“Are you really proud of me?” Influence of stereotype threats on college athletes’ career thoughts

Removing the vulnerability of a stereotype threat can weaken the stereotype’s negative influence. However, stereotype threats can be produced simply by reminding individuals of their stigmatized social identity. In this study, a typical explicit stereotype threat was compared with two types of reports on positive role models to determine whether the influence of stereotypes varied according to the type of report. In total, 178 college athletes were recruited and randomly assigned to the explicit threat group (EX group, n = 46), report on a special case group (RS group, n = 42), report on a general topic group (RG group, n = 46), or neutral report group (control, n = 44). The participants first read a short text with manipulated context. They then completed scales assessing career adaptability and optimism and were asked to choose whether to complete a scholastic test with high or low difficulty or not take the test at all. The career adaptability and optimism scores of the control group were higher than those of the RS and EX group. The career optimism scores of the RG group were higher than those of the EX group. Fewer participants opted for the difficult version of the scholastic text in the EX and RS groups; the majority of participants in these groups chose to not take any test. The results indicated the influence of negative stereotype threats and indicated that reading the news report on the special case did not have a positive and encouraging effect on the participants

Effect of mangrove restoration on crab burrow density in Luoyangjiang Estuary, China

Background Mangrove restoration seeks to restore or rebuild degraded mangrove systems. The methods of mangrove restoration include ecological projects and restoration-oriented technologies, the latter of which are designed to restore the structure, processes as well as related physical, chemical and biological characteristics of wetlands and to ensure the provision of ecosystem services. As important components of mangrove ecosystem, benthic organisms and crabs play a key role in nutrient cycling. In addition, mangrove restoration, such as vegetation restoration measures, can lead to changes in the benthic faunal communities. This study investigates whether the presence of different mangrove species, age and canopy cover of mangrove communities affect the density of crab burrows. Methods The Luoyangjiang Estuary, in the southeast of Fujian Province, was selected as our research area. A survey, covering 14 sites, was conducted to investigate the impacts of mangrove restoration on the density of crab burrows in four rehabilitated forests with different stand ages and canopy. Results It was found that differences in vegetation types had a large impact on crab density and that the density of crab burrows was lower on exposed beaches (non-mangrove) than under mature Kandelia candel, Aegiceras corniculatum and Avicennia marina communities. In general, the amount of leaf litter and debris on mangrove mudflats was greater than on the beaches as food sources for crabs. Two-factor analysis of variance (ANOVA) shows that changes in mangrove species and age since restoration had different effects on crab burrow density. The effect of canopy cover was highly significant on crab burrow density. Conclusions The results suggest that in the process of mangrove restoration the combined effects of mangrove stand age, canopy cover and other factors should be taken into account. This study further supports the findings of the future scientific research and practice on mangrove restoration and management measures

Nitrogen Removal in a Horizontal Subsurface Flow Constructed Wetland Estimated Using the First-Order Kinetic Model

We monitored the water quality and hydrological conditions of a horizontal subsurface constructed wetland (HSSF-CW) in Beijing, China, for two years. We simulated the area-based constant and the temperature coefficient with the first-order kinetic model. We examined the relationships between the nitrogen (N) removal rate, N load, seasonal variations in the N removal rate, and environmental factors—such as the area-based constant, temperature, and dissolved oxygen (DO). The effluent ammonia (NH4 + -N) and nitrate (NO3 −-N) concentrations were significantly lower than the influent concentrations (p \u3c 0.01, n = 38). The NO3 −-N load was significantly correlated with the removal rate (R 2 = 0.96, p \u3c 0.01), but the NH4 + -N load was not correlated with the removal rate (R 2 = 0.02, p \u3e 0.01). The area-based constants of NO3 −-N and NH4 + -N at 20 ◦C were 27 ± 26 (mean ± SD) and 14 ± 10 m·year−1 , respectively. The temperature coefficients for NO3 −-N and NH4 + -N were estimated at 1.004 and 0.960, respectively. The area-based constants for NO3 −-N and NH4 + -N were not correlated with temperature (p \u3e 0.01). The NO3 −-N area-based constant was correlated with the corresponding load (R 2 = 0.96, p \u3c 0.01). The NH4 + -N area rate was correlated with DO (R 2 = 0.69, p \u3c 0.01), suggesting that the factors that influenced the N removal rate in this wetland met Liebig’s law of the minimum

Distribution patterns of plant communities and their associations with environmental soil factors on the eastern shore of Lake Taihu, China

Introduction: Plant communities and soil factors might interact with each other in different temporal and spatial scales, which can influence the patterns and processes of the wetland ecosystem. To get a better understanding of the distribution of plants in wetlands and analyze their associations with environmental soil factors, the structure and types of plant communities in the eastern shore area of Lake Taihu were analyzed by two-way indicator species analysis and canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) ordination. The spatial distribution patterns of vegetation and the main factors affecting the distributions were investigated.Outcomes: Sixty-six sampling sites were selected to obtain vegetation species and soil environmental factor data. Results showed that 22 species from the 66 sites could be divided into seven communities: I: Arundo donax; II: A. donax + Phragmites australis; III: Zizania latifolia + Typha orientalis; IV: P. australis + Alternanthera philoxeroides + Polygonum hydropiper; V: P. australis; VI: P. australis + Humulus scandens; and VII: Erigeron acer + Ipomoea batatas + Rumex acetosa. Plant species and soil factors in the CCA analysis showed that I. batatas, E. acer, Chenopodium album, Polygonum lapathifolium, and Acalypha australis were mainly affected by pH, whereas Echinochloa crus-galli, Setaria viridis, and H. scandens were mainly affected by soil total phosphorus. Mentha canadensis and A. donax were mainly affected by soil conductivity, A. philoxeroides was mainly affected by soil organic matter and, Z. latifolia, Metaplexis japonica and P. hydropiper were mainly affected by available phosphorus.Conclusion:These results indicated that different plants adapted to different soil environmental factors and provided basic information on the diversity of Lake Taihu wetland vegetation

Inversion of soil carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus in the Yellow River Wetland of Shaanxi Province using field in situ hyperspectroscopy

Soil nitrogen and phosphorus are directly related to soil quality and vegetation growth and are, therefore, a common research topic in studies on global climate change, material cycling, and information exchange in terrestrial ecosystems. However, collecting soil hyperspectral data under in situ conditions and predicting soil properties, which can effectively save time, manpower, material resources, and financial costs, have been generally undervalued. Recent optimization techniques have, however, addressed several of the limitations previously restricting this technique. In this study, hyperspectral data were taken from surface soils under different vegetation types in the wetlands of the Shaanxi Yellow River Wetland Provincial Nature Reserve. Through in situ original and first-order differential transformation spectral data, three prediction models for soil carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus contents were established: partial least squares (PLSR), random forest (RF), and Gaussian process regression (GPR). The R2 and RMSR of the constructed models were then compared to select the optimal model for evaluating soil content. The soil organic carbon, total nitrogen, and total phosphorus content models established based on the first-order differential had a higher accuracy when modeling and during model validation than those of other models. Moreover, the PLSR model based on the original spectrum and the Gaussian process regression model had a superior inversion performance. These results provide solid theoretical and technical support for developing the optimal model for the quantitative inversion of wetland surface soil carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus based on in situ hyperspectral technology

“Are you really proud of me?” Influence of stereotype threats on college athletes’ career thoughts

Removing the vulnerability of a stereotype threat can weaken the stereotype’s negative influence. However, stereotype threats can be produced simply by reminding individuals of their stigmatized social identity. In this study, a typical explicit stereotype threat was compared with two types of reports on positive role models to determine whether the influence of stereotypes varied according to the type of report. In total, 178 college athletes were recruited and randomly assigned to the explicit threat group (EX group, n = 46), report on a special case group (RS group, n = 42), report on a general topic group (RG group, n = 46), or neutral report group (control, n = 44). The participants first read a short text with manipulated context. They then completed scales assessing career adaptability and optimism and were asked to choose whether to complete a scholastic test with high or low difficulty or not take the test at all. The career adaptability and optimism scores of the control group were higher than those of the RS and EX group. The career optimism scores of the RG group were higher than those of the EX group. Fewer participants opted for the difficult version of the scholastic text in the EX and RS groups; the majority of participants in these groups chose to not take any test. The results indicated the influence of negative stereotype threats and indicated that reading the news report on the special case did not have a positive and encouraging effect on the participants

“Are you really proud of me?” Influence of stereotype threats on college athletes’ career thoughts

Removing the vulnerability of a stereotype threat can weaken the stereotype’s negative influence. However, stereotype threats can be produced simply by reminding individuals of their stigmatized social identity. In this study, a typical explicit stereotype threat was compared with two types of reports on positive role models to determine whether the influence of stereotypes varied according to the type of report. In total, 178 college athletes were recruited and randomly assigned to the explicit threat group (EX group, n = 46), report on a special case group (RS group, n = 42), report on a general topic group (RG group, n = 46), or neutral report group (control, n = 44). The participants first read a short text with manipulated context. They then completed scales assessing career adaptability and optimism and were asked to choose whether to complete a scholastic test with high or low difficulty or not take the test at all. The career adaptability and optimism scores of the control group were higher than those of the RS and EX group. The career optimism scores of the RG group were higher than those of the EX group. Fewer participants opted for the difficult version of the scholastic text in the EX and RS groups; the majority of participants in these groups chose to not take any test. The results indicated the influence of negative stereotype threats and indicated that reading the news report on the special case did not have a positive and encouraging effect on the participants

Session comparison measurement and learning in masquerading detection

In applying command sequence matching to detect masquerading attack, the first important step is to build a user's profile for characterizing normal behavior. In this paper, we proposed a new approach which applies the comparison of arbitrary length of sessions to distinguish users. In this approach, a session is regarded as an integral comparison unit. This method makes it possible to locate command matches in historical command data for long sequences. The testing results show that the method can be used in creating a user's profile. Further, it will pave the road for future work in applying data mining technology to detect potential masqueraders.Godkänd; 2004; 20080522 (ysko

Session comparison measurement and learning in masquerading detection

In applying command sequence matching to detect masquerading attack, the first important step is to build a user's profile for characterizing normal behavior. In this paper, we proposed a new approach which applies the comparison of arbitrary length of sessions to distinguish users. In this approach, a session is regarded as an integral comparison unit. This method makes it possible to locate command matches in historical command data for long sequences. The testing results show that the method can be used in creating a user's profile. Further, it will pave the road for future work in applying data mining technology to detect potential masqueraders.Godkänd; 2004; 20080522 (ysko

Winter Decomposition of Emergent Macrophytes Affects Water Quality under Ice in a Temperate Shallow Lake

Decomposition of emergent macrophytes is now recognized as an internal nutrient source for shallow lakes. Temperate lakes always experience seasonal ice cover in winter, but the influences of emergent macrophytes decomposition on water quality have rarely been examined under ice. Here, we conducted an incubation experiment to investigate winter decomposition of two common emergent macrophytes species (Typha orientalis and Phragmites australis) and its influences on water quality in the Hengshui Lake, North China. Mesocosms simulating a lake ice regime were incubated in the field for 120 days in winter and were treated with and without plant material addition. Water quality was monitored through dissolved oxygen (DO), dissolved organic carbon (DOC), total nitrogen (TN), total phosphorus (TP), ammonium nitrogen (NH4-N), and nitrate nitrogen (NO3-N). We found that both species were significantly decomposed in winter and that the majority of mass loss occurred in the first 10 days of decomposition when the water surface of mesocosms were already frozen. The concentrations of DO rapidly dropped to values close to zero after plant material submergence. At the end of incubation, the concentrations of DOC, TN, and NO3-N in the mesocosms with plant material addition were significantly higher than initial concentrations. In contrast, the concentrations of DOC, TN, TP, NO3-N, and NH4-N in the mesocosms without plant material addition were equal to or less than initial concentrations. Our research suggests that winter decomposition of emergent macrophytes produces negative influences on water quality under ice that lasts for the whole winter