490 research outputs found
âWhen I Came to Germany, Everything Changedâ: Adolescent Migrant Narratives on Shifting Identities, Societal Integration, Language Learning, and Citizenship Pathways
This ethnographic study incorporated participant observation field notes and narrative interview analyses of migrant adolescent students (N = 12) from diverse national and cultural backgrounds who arrived in LuÌbeck, Germany within 3 years. Situated within the current German migration context following the advent of the âRefugee Crisisâ in 2015, the study sought to understand how migrant students responded to shifting notions of âGermannessâ in relation to language learning to adapt to their new lives. A dynamic process-oriented acculturation model was employed to demonstrate how the participants altered their adaptive strategies in different contexts to achieve life goals and exhibit individual agency. The perpetuation of a monolingual paradigm of national identity (Yildiz, 2012) affected these orientations by lauding German language learning and discouraging students from speaking other languages, despite liberal politiciansâ calls to embrace diversity. Students from hybrid cultural and linguistic backgrounds felt pressured to suppress these histories in order to âmove forwardâ and adopt German norms. Key findings emphasize the particular challenges of migrants from non-Western backgrounds to fit a narrow image of âGermannessâ, the potential efficacy of assimilating for migrants who can pass as âGermanâ, the promises of an integration program to facilitate new lives and diverse migrant identities, and the importance of belonging for societal integration. Recommendations for future psychological identity-based research, responses to national discourses, and school policies are proposed to facilitate successful integration and identity development across backgrounds
We Chinese
âWe Chineseâ grew out of a curiosity to find out what Chinese people think about their country and their future. Media coverage of the country and its development often raises questions about the direction of the government in Beijing on the world stage. Few reports take into account the feelings of the Chinese people, instead making reference to the country as a monolithic actor without constituent parts. A countryâs trajectory through history cannot be mapped without careful consideration of the people. This project aims, in a small way, to develop a portrait of the country by looking at the individual people that make it up
Evaluation of the Impact of a Public Bicycle Share Program on Population Bicycling in Vancouver, BC
Public bicycle share programs have been implemented in cities around the world to encourage bicycling. However, there are limited evaluations of the impact of these programs on bicycling at the population level. This study examined the impact of a public bicycle share program on bicycling amongst residents of Vancouver, BC. Using an online panel, we surveyed a population-based sample of Vancouver residents three times: prior to the implementation of the public bicycle share program (T0, October 2015, n=1111); in the early phase of implementation (T1, October 2016, n=995); and one-year post implementation (T2, October 2017, n=966). We used difference in differences estimation to assess whether there was an increase in bicycling amongst those living and/or working in close proximity (â€500 m) to Vancouver\u27s Mobi by Shaw Go public bicycle share program, compared to those living and working outside this area. Results suggest that only living or only working inside the bicycle share service area was not associated with increases in bicycling at T1 or T2 relative to those outside the service area. Both living and working inside the bicycle share service area was associated with increases in bicycling at T1 (OR: 2.26, 95% CI: 1.07, 4.80), however not at T2 (OR: 1.37, 95% CI: 0.67, 2.83). These findings indicate that the implementation of a public bicycle share program may have a greater effect on bicycling for residents who both live and work within the service area, although this effect may not be sustained over time. 
Some properties of character products
Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/22947/1/0000514.pd
The effect of the regular solution model in the condensation of protoplanetary dust
We utilize a chemical equilibrium code in order to study the condensation
process which occurs in protoplanetary discs during the formation of the first
solids. The model specifically focuses on the thermodynamic behaviour on the
solid species assuming the regular solution model. For each solution, we
establish the relationship between the activity of the species, the composition
and the temperature using experimental data from the literature. We then apply
the Gibbs free energy minimization method and study the resulting condensation
sequence for a range of temperatures and pressures within a protoplanetary
disc. Our results using the regular solution model show that grains condense
over a large temperature range and therefore throughout a large portion of the
disc. In the high temperature region (T > 1400 K) Ca-Al compounds dominate and
the formation of corundum is sensitive to the pressure. The mid-temperature
region is dominated by Fe(s) and silicates such as Mg2SiO4 and MgSiO3 . The
chemistry of forsterite and enstatite are strictly related, and our simulations
show a sequence of forsterite-enstatite-forsterite with decreasing temperature.
In the low temperature regions (T < 600 K) a range of iron compounds and
sulfides form. We also run simulations using the ideal solution model and see
clear differences in the resulting condensation sequences with changing
solution model In particular, we find that the turning point in which
forsterite replaces enstatite in the low temperature region is sensitive to the
solution model. Our results show that the ideal solution model is often a poor
approximation to experimental data at most temperatures important in
protoplanetary discs. We find some important differences in the resulting
condensation sequences when using the regular solution model, and suggest that
this model should provide a more realistic condensation sequence.Comment: MNRAS: Accepted 2011 February 16. Received 2011 February 14; in
original form 2010 July 2
Deciphering the Origin of the Regular Satellites of Gaseous Giants - Iapetus: the Rosetta Ice-Moon
Here we show that Iapetus can serve to discriminate between satellite
formation models. Its accretion history can be understood in terms of a
two-component gaseous subnebula, with a relatively dense inner region, and an
extended tail out to the location of the irregular satellites, as in the SEMM
model of Mosqueira and Estrada (2003a,b). Following giant planet formation,
planetesimals in the feeding zone of Jupiter and Saturn become dynamically
excited, and undergo a collisional cascade. Ablation and capture of
planetesimal fragments crossing the gaseous circumplanetary disks delivers
enough collisional rubble to account for the mass budgets of the regular
satellites of Jupiter and Saturn. This process can result in rock/ice
fractionation provided the make up of the population of disk crossers is
non-homogeneous, thus offering a natural explanation for the marked
compositional differences between outer solar nebula objects and those that
accreted in the subnebulae of the giant planets. Consequently, our model leads
to an enhancement of the ice content of Iapetus, and to a lesser degree those
of Ganymede, Titan and Callisto, and accounts for the (non-stochastic)
compositions of these large, low-porosity outer regular satellites of Jupiter
and Saturn. (abridged)Comment: 33 pages, 7 figures, 2 tables, Accepted for publication to Icaru
The Canadian Healthy Infant Longitudinal Development (CHILD) birth cohort study: Assessment of environmental exposures
The Canadian Healthy Infant Longitudinal Development birth cohort was designed to elucidate interactions between environment and genetics underlying development of asthma and allergy. Over 3600 pregnant mothers were recruited from the general population in four provinces with diverse environments. The child is followed to age 5 years, with prospective characterization of diverse exposures during this critical period. Key exposure domains include indoor and outdoor air pollutants, inhalation, ingestion and dermal uptake of chemicals, mold, dampness, biological allergens, pets and pests, housing structure, and living behavior, together with infections, nutrition, psychosocial environment, and medications. Assessments of early life exposures are focused on those linked to inflammatory responses driven by the acquired and innate immune systems. Mothers complete extensive environmental questionnaires including time-activity behavior at recruitment and when the child is 3, 6, 12, 24, 30, 36, 48, and 60 months old. House dust collected during a thorough home assessment at 3â4 months, and biological specimens obtained for multiple exposure-related measurements, are archived for analyses. Geo-locations of homes and daycares and land-use regression for estimating traffic-related air pollution complement time-activity-behavior data to provide comprehensive individual exposure profiles. Several analytical frameworks are proposed to address the many interacting exposure variables and potential issues of co-linearity in this complex data set
Comparison of Questionnaire Responses with Biomarkers of Tobacco Smoke Exposure in A Canadian Birth Cohort at Three Months of Age
Background
Exposure to tobacco smoke increases the risk for several adverse health effects in children including wheeze, asthma, and asthma exacerbation. Accurately assessing tobacco smoke exposure is important for understanding and preventing these health effects. Questionnaires are a flexible and relatively inexpensive method of assessing exposure, but biomarkers of tobacco smoke exposure are considered more accurate. We developed questionnaire-based exposure models predicting urinary levels of biomarkers cotinine and trans-3â-hydroxycotinine (3HC) (metabolites of nicotine) in 3-month old infants using parent-reported questionnaire responses about tobacco smoke exposure from the Canadian Healthy Infant Longitudinal Development (CHILD) Study.
Methods
We used a manual model building process to build multiple linear regression models predicting urinary concentrations of cotinine, 3HC, and the sum of cotinine and 3HC on a molar basis (Cot+3HC) for 987, 1003, and 983 infants, respectively. Questions were included on the infantâs exposure assessed at 3 months of age and tobacco smoke odour in the home. We also included questions on maternal smoking status and history, passive exposure, and family socio-economic status assessed during pregnancy, as potential indirect measures of the infantâs exposure at 3 months. Adjusted R2 values were maximized in the final models.
Results
During pregnancy, the prevalence of maternal smoking was 2.4 %, and 115 (11.4 %) mothers reported smoking by at least 1 person at home. Of the 144 (14.3 %) infants whose mothers reported that smoking occurred at home when their child was 3 months, 129 (89.6%) and 136 (94.4%) had cotinine and 3HC levels above the detection limit (0.03 ng/mL), respectively. Of the 811 infants who had no parent-reported exposure at 3 months, 538 (66.3%) and 715 (88.2%) had detectable cotinine and 3HC levels, respectively. After correcting for urine dilution, the geometric mean levels were 0.085 ng/mL for cotinine, 0.20 ng/mL for 3HC, and 1.62 picomole/mL for Cot+3HC. The final questionnaire models explained 43.4%, 41.0%, and 42.9% of the variance in cotinine, 3HC, and Cot+3HC levels, respectively.
Conclusions
Our results indicate that exposure of these infants to tobacco smoke is not completely captured by questionnaires, suggesting that exposure assessment could be improved by using a combination of biomarker and questionnaire methods. Though more detectable, the inclusion of 3HC did not increase the ability of the questionnaires to explain variance in metabolite levels, but 3HC may be important since the ratio of 3HC to cotinine can be used to quantify the rate of nicotine metabolism and variation within population
- âŠ