The Negative Ramifications of Hate Crime Legislation: It’s Time to Reevaluate Whether Hate Crime Laws are Beneficial to Society

Supporters of hate crime legislation suggest that the primary reason for the codification of hate crime laws is “to send a strong message of tolerance and equality, signaling to all members of society that hatred and prejudice on the basis of identity will be punished with extra severity.” However, hate crime laws may actually be accomplishing the opposite effect of tolerance and equality because they encourage U.S. citizens to view themselves, not as members of our society, but as members of a protected group. The enactment of hate crime legislation at the federal and state levels has led to unintended consequences and unfair practices. Today, the controversy regarding the effectiveness of hate crime laws is debated, and people question whether this type of legislation is beneficial to society. This article will candidly reevaluate hate crime legislation. Part II will provide the definition of the term “hate crime” and the theoretical justification for enhanced sentencing involving discrimination-based conduct. Focus will be placed on data that disproves the theory that hate crime laws reduce or deter future hate crimes. It will also explain the underlying reasons for the enactment of hate crime laws, such as the media’s role and political influences, and it will present several of the misconceptions associated with hate crime legislation. Part III will present the unintended consequences associated with the enactment of hate crime statutes, including constitutional violations. It will also explain why hate crimes are rarely prosecuted, and will focus on the inconsistency, redundancy, and arbitrary usage/application of hate crime legislation. Part III will also present an individual’s response to the negative, unintended effects of hate crime legislation. Part IV will determine that hate crime legislation is not cost-effective. Part V sets forth a recommendation on improving community efforts to educate or reeducate citizens on respecting diversity. Finally, the article analyzes hate crime laws from supporting and opposing viewpoints and concludes that there is no need to separate hate crimes from other types of crimes as a means to promote a more tolerant, equal, and stable society

Recent advances in the design of water based-flame retardant coatings for polyester and polyester-cotton blends

Over the last ten years a new trend of research activities regarding the flame retardancy of polymeric materials has arisen. Indeed, the continuous search for new flame retardant systems able to replace the traditional approaches has encouraged alternative solutions, mainly centred on nanotechnology. In this context, the deposition of nanostructured coatings on fabrics appears to be the most appealing and performance suitable approach. To this aim, different strategies can be exploited: from the deposition of a single monolayer consisting of inorganic nanoparticles (single-step adsorption) to the building-up of more complex architectures derived from layer by layer assembly (multi-step adsorption). The present paper aims to review the application of such systems in the field of polyester and polyester-cotton blend fabrics. The results collated by the authors are discussed and compared with those published in the literature on the basis of the different deposition methods adopted. A critical analysis of the advantages and disadvantages exhibited by these approaches is also presented

I volti della poesia operaia

Traduzione dal cinese all'italiano e commento traduttologico di quattro poesie di tre diversi autori estratte da due raccolte di poesie operaie scelte intitolate rispettivamente: «2009-2010 Poesie scelte di operai migranti cinesi» (2009-2010 Zhongguo dagong shige jingxuan, 2008-2010中国打工诗歌精选) e «Poesie scelte di Zheng Xiaoqiong» (Zheng Xiaoqiong shixuan, 郑小琼诗选)

Development of a prognostic model for Macrophage Activation Syndrome in Systemic Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis

Introduction: Macrophage activation syndrome (MAS) is a potentially life-threatening complication of systemic juvenile idiopathic arthritis (SJIA) characterized by heterogeneous organ involvement and severity. Early identification of patients at high risk of complicated clinical course may improve outcome by helping initiate prompt, appropriate immunosuppressive and supportive treatments. Yet, despite recent progress in clarifying the underlying immunological mechanisms, factors driving organ damage and severe outcome are not entirely understood, nor has the prognostic value of routinely gathered clinical and laboratory factors been fully explored. Objectives: To develop a prognostic model for SJIA-MAS based on routinely available parameters at disease onset, accounting for patient heterogeneity, possible latent factors, non-linear relationships and confounders. Methods: We examined a retrospective multinational cohort of 362 patients diagnosed with SJIA-MAS. The relationships between demographic, laboratory features at MAS onset (such as hemoglobin, whole blood cells, platelets, ERS, CRP, AST, ALT, bilirubin, fibrinogen, d-dimer, ferritin and creatinine), therapeutic interventions and outcomes were analyzed. Outcomes of interest included a \u201csevere course\u201d (defined as ICU admission or death), occurring of organs failure and CSN dysfunction. To identify potential phenotypes related to clinical features and outcome, we explored laboratory parameter patterns at MAS onset through Latent class modeling, which detects multiple unobserved clusters in heterogeneous populations. A structural causal approach was then used for investigating causal pathways leading to severe outcomes. Directed acyclic graphs (DAGs) were employed to depict possible causal relationships between the candidate biomarkers, potential confounding variables, and the outcomes, and inform the choice of adjustment sets in multivariate regression models. We assessed the possible relationships between variables and outcomes by penalized likelihood logistic regression and identified optimal cut off points for prognostic factors using Multiple Adaptive Regression Splines (MARS) and Classification and Regression Trees (CART). To account for possible treatment confounders, the effect of cyclosporine and etoposide use on outcomes was estimated using augmented inverse probability weighting (IPW) with double robust methods. Finally, results from previous analyses were incorporated in a probabilistic framework through a Bayesian network (BN) model, which provides risk estimates for specific clinical scenarios and quantifies the amount of information contributed from the identified prognostic variables. Results: The latent class model revealed six clusters based on biomarkers at MAS onset, characterized by the following features: mild alterations of white blood cells, platelets, fibrinogen, d-dimer and ferritin values, considered the baseline type (cluster 1, n =115); hyperferritinemia with low organs involvement (cluster 2, n = 101); elevation of inflammatory markers (cluster 3, n =51); hepatobiliary involvement (cluster 4, n = 41); severe pancytopenia, liver and kidney failure with higher elevation of LDH, d-dimer, ferritin (cluster 5, n = 30); biliary and renal dysfunction (cluster 6, n = 24). Cluster 2 and 3 presented lower age and SJIA duration at MAS onset compared to other subgroups. Cluster membership was predictive of severe course (p<0.001), CSN involvement (p<0.001), Hemorrhagic complications (p <0.001) and Heart failure (p<0.001), with patients in cluster 5 showing the highest risk of severe course and heart failure, and increased occurrence of CNS and Hemorrhagic manifestations in both cluster 5 and 6. In multivariate regression models, parameters at onset associated with risk of severe course were creatinine (OR 1,6 [95% CI 1.13\u20132.3]; p = 0.008) and albumin levels (OR 0,65 [95% CI 0.44\u20130.98]; p = 0.044) Higher risk of CNS involvement was found for patients younger at MAS onset (OR 0,62 [95% CI 0.42\u20130.92]; p = 0.018). Na (OR 0.0,89 [95% CI 0.82\u20130.96]; p = 0.006) and creatinine values (OR 1.69 [95% CI 1.14\u20132.5]; p = 0.009) were identified as independent predictors of mortality. There was no evidence for an effect of etoposide (OR 1.03 [95% CI 0.91\u20131.12]) and cyclosporine (OR 1.04 [95% CI 0.92\u20131.19]) on severe course. BNs defined distinct groups with different probability of severe outcomes, achieving a c-index of 0.76 for mortality, 0.81 for severe course and 0.81 for CNS involvement. Adding the obtained latent clusters to the BN model increased the prediction accuracy for severe course up to a c-index of 0.83. Based on information theory metrics (mutual information) from the BN model, decision algorithms for each outcome and a web-based decision support tool for external users were implemented. Conclusions: We developed a probabilistic prognostic model of SJIA-MAS based on routinely available data. This stratification tool may facilitate informed decision-making about the clinical management of these patients. The probabilistic and information-theoretic approach offers a framework for further validation, expansion and integration of the model with emerging molecular biomarkers

River flow monitoring: LS-PIV technique, an image-based method to assess discharge

The measurement of the river discharge within a natural ort artificial channel is still one of the most challenging tasks for hydrologists and the scientific community. Although discharge is a physical quantity that theoretically can be measured with very high accuracy, since the volume of water flows in a well-defined domain, there are numerous critical issues in obtaining a reliable value. Discharge cannot be measured directly, so its value is obtained by coupling a measurement of a quantity related to the volume of flowing water and the area of a channel cross-section. Direct measurements of current velocity are made, traditionally with instruments such as current meters. Although measurements with current meters are sufficiently accurate and even if there are universally recognized standards for the current application of such instruments, they are often unusable under specific flow conditions. In flood conditions, for example, due to the need for personnel to dive into the watercourse, it is impossible to ensure adequate safety conditions to operators for carrying out flow measures. Critical issue arising from the use of current meters has been partially addressed thanks to technological development and the adoption of acoustic sensors. In particular, with the advent of Acoustic Doppler Current Profilers (ADCPs), flow measurements can take place without personnel having direct contact with the flow, performing measurements either from the bridge or from the banks. This made it possible to extend the available range of discharge measurements. However, the flood conditions of a watercourse also limit the technology of ADCPs. The introduction of the instrument into the current with high velocities and turbulence would put the instrument itself at serious risk, making it vulnerable and exposed to damage. In the most critical case, the instrument could be torn away by the turbulent current. On the other hand, considering smaller discharges, both current meters and ADCPs are technologically limited in their measurement as there are no adequate water levels for the use of the devices. The difficulty in obtaining information on the lowest and highest values of discharge has important implications on how to define the relationships linking flows to water levels. The stage-discharge relationship is one of the tools through which it is possible to monitor the flow in a specific section of a watercourse. Through this curve, a discharge value can be obtained from knowing the water stage. Curves are site-specific and must be continuously updated to account for changes in geometry that the sections for which they are defined may experience over time. They are determined by making simultaneous discharge and stage measurements. Since instruments such as current meters and ADCPs are traditionally used, stage-discharge curves suffer from instrumental limitations. So, rating curves are usually obtained by interpolation of field-measured data and by extrapolate them for the highest and the lowest discharge values, with a consequent reduction in accuracy. This thesis aims to identify a valid alternative to traditional flow measurements and to show the advantages of using new methods of monitoring to support traditional techniques, or to replace them. Optical techniques represent the best solution for overcoming the difficulties arising from the adoption of a traditional approach to flow measurement. Among these, the most widely used techniques are the Large-Scale Particle Image Velocimetry (LS-PIV) and the Large-Scale Particle Tracking Velocimetry. They are able to estimate the surface velocity fields by processing images representing a moving tracer, suitably dispersed on the liquid surface. By coupling velocity data obtained from optical techniques with geometry of a cross-section, a discharge value can easily be calculated. In this thesis, the study of the LS-PIV technique was deepened, analysing the performance of the technique, and studying the physical and environmental parameters and factors on which the optical results depend. As the LS-PIV technique is relatively new, there are no recognized standards available for the proper application of the technique. A preliminary numerical analysis was conducted to identify the factors on which the technique is significantly dependent. The results of these analyses enabled the development of specific guidelines through which the LS-PIV technique could subsequently be applied in open field during flow measurement campaigns in Sicily. In this way it was possible to observe experimentally the criticalities involved in applying the technique on real cases. These measurement campaigns provided the opportunity to carry out analyses on field case studies and structure an automatic procedure for optimising the LS-PIV technique. In all case studies it was possible to observe how the turbulence phenomenon is a worsening factor in the output results of the LS-PIV technique. A final numerical analysis was therefore performed to understand the influence of turbulence factor on the performance of the technique. The results obtained represent an important step for future development of the topic

Introspection and Self-Transformation: Empathy in Toni Morrison’s \u3cem\u3eThe Bluest Eye\u3c/em\u3e

The ability to connect with and feel empathy for others is an innate quality within ourselves that serves to make each of us human. We empathize with the poor, homeless, and the less fortunate. Empathy drives us to do good for others; it allows us to make a difference in the world in which we live. In her novel The Bluest Eye the unfortunate situations and experiences in which Toni Morrison places her characters force readers to place themselves in the characters situation and grapple with the examination of oneself as a result. Moral essayist Samuel Johnson once wrote, “All joy or sorrow for the happiness or calamities of others is produced by an act of the imagination that realizes the event however fictitious… by placing us, for a time, in the condition of him whose fortune we contemplate, so that we feel… whatever emotions would be excited by the same good or evil happening to ourselves” (Johnson 204). Toni Morrison, in her novel The Bluest Eye, uses the empathy she evokes from her readers as a tool to teach audiences a lesson about the evils of internalized racism, lack of empathy, and rape

Effects of group apology and reparation after breach of psychological contract

Psychological contracts are expectations of reciprocal obligations between an employee and an organization which are held by the employee. Research has shown that victims who experience psychological contract breach may seek to retaliate towards the offending organization. Little research has investigated how a breach can be remediated. The present study investigated the effects of a group apology and reparation on victim‟s sense of power and revenge cognition after a breach of psychological contract. Participants were asked to imagine themselves in a vignette in which a student experiences psychological contract breach by their academic department. The outcome of the scenario differed according to the condition to which they were assigned: they received no response from the department, they received reparations, they received an apology, or they received an apology with reparations. All participants then completed the same series of measures, including their sense of power, revenge cognitions, likelihood to transmit a negative rumor, calculus-based trust, and identification-based trust. Results showed that reparations elicited a greater sense of power and less revenge cognition in the victim compared to not receiving a response. Receiving an apology did not increase sense of power or decrease revenge cognition. Additionally, the effect of reparations on sense of power and revenge cognition is mediated by calculus-based trust. Implications for these results suggest that if an organization breaches psychological contract and wishes to repair the relationship with the victim, they should focus in offering adequate reparations, as an apology may not be helpful in diffusing retaliation

Microbial-meiofaunal interrelationships in some tropical intertidal sediments

Interrelationships among microbial and meiofaunal communities were examined for one year at four intertidal mangrove and sandflat habitats in tropical northeastern Australia. None of the microbial and meiofaunal communities correlated with physical factors over the year as densities of most microbial and meiofaunal groups, bacterial productivity and specific growth rates (μ) of bacteria fluctuated significantly over time at each habitat with no distinct seasonality. However, over a tidal cycle, bacterial growth rates were significantly affected by tidal flooding and exposure on the sandflat; bacterial growth rates increased with increasing sediment temperatures upon exposure during daylight. Protozoan and meiofaunal abundances generally did not change significantly over tidal cycles. There were few significant correlations and no time lags of bacterial growth rates, and bacterial and microalgal (as chlorophyll a) densities with protozoans and meiobenthos (including nematode species and trophic groups) over the year or during tidal cycles. In concert with the very high rates of bacterial productivity (–x = 475 mgC ˙ m–2 d–1; range; 45-1725 mgC ˙ m–2 d–1) measured in these tropical sediments, the results suggest that protozoan and meiofaunal communities may not be tightly coupled to the dynamics of bacterial and microalgal communities in some tropical intertidal habitats

Effect of physical disturbance on population dynamics and trophic interactions among microbes and meiofauna

A series of laboratory experiments was conducted to assess the effects of physical disturbance of surface sediments on trophic interactions among bacteria, protozoa and meiofauna. Bacteria, zooflagellates, and populations of the hypotrich ciliate Aspidisca sp. and the nematode Diplolaimella chitwoodi were, at most sampling periods, not significantly affected by small-scale, daily disturbances. However, populations of the epibenthic harpacticoid copepod Tisbe holothuriae became disproportionately abundant in disturbed cultures.Bacterial numbers, growth rates and doubling times were affected little by the presence of meiofauna. The response of zooflagellates was not clear; populations of the ciliate Aspidisca sp. were, at most sampling intervals, significantly more abundant in the presence of either meiofauna species.Small-scale disturbances of surface sediments, perhaps regardless of cause, do not appear to be important mechanisms in the structuring and functioning of infaunal meiobenthos-microbial food webs. The dynamics of microbe-meiofauna interactions in sediments are ultimately regulated by the amounts of essential nutrients derived from detritus. Disturbances may be more important for some epifaunal meiobenthos dependent upon migration to disturbed habitats for their survival