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Left Behind Economically or Politically? Economic Grievances, Representation, and Populist Attitudes
No full textResearch on the relationship between discontent and populist attitudes abounds. However, whether this discontent arises in response to economic grievances or a perceived lack of representation remains understudied. While previous research has considered both as independent factors, we assume their interaction drives populist attitudes. We argue that deprivation and sentiments of being left behind exacerbate the feeling that one’s policy positions are not recognized and represented in politics. To test this claim empirically, we draw on recent data from the German Longitudinal Election Study of 2021. We combine egocentric and sociotropic indicators of being left behind and interact these with the perceived distance of one’s own policy positions to the positions of the opposition and government parties represented in parliament. We find that both perceptions of personal and societal deprivation, as well as a greater perceived distance from the government, are associated with populist attitudes. Furthermore, we find that the effect of distance from the government is contingent on someone’s economic position, albeit the direction of the interaction effect contradicts our initial expectations: The effect of perceived ideological distance from the government on populist attitudes is primarily reinforced among those who are better off rather than for those who struggle economically. This implies that populist attitudes ought to be addressed depending on the source of discontent rather than treating populism as a general expression of indiscriminate protest. Our analysis contributes to understanding the various origins of populist attitudes and to developing possible ways of mitigation
Limits in the Perception of Facial Symmetry—A Prospective Study
No full textObjectives: It is generally accepted that the symmetry of the face plays a significant role in the visual perception of its attractiveness. Therefore, its objective assessment could be useful for individual therapy planning. However, there is an ongoing debate about whether completely symmetrical faces are less attractive than those with minor deviations. The aim of this study is to find thresholds of symmetry perception among faces with an increased spectrum of asymmetry values. Methods: The faces of 50 persons (25 men, 25 women) were digitized using a 3D scanner based on the fringe projection technique, and asymmetry values were calculated. In order to achieve a larger spectrum of asymmetry values, some of the surfaces were symmetrized or the symmetry was reduced. Afterward, an independent second group of 50 persons (13 medical professionals, 37 laypersons) rated "symmetry", "attractiveness" and "health" using a visual analog scale (VAS). Results: Symmetry ratings and asymmetry value had a strong and monotonically decreasing association (rho = −0.78, p ˂ 0.001). Manipulated or naturally asymmetrical faces (n = 12) could not be well distinguished with regard to their symmetry (rho = −0.14, p = 0.67). The same applies to very symmetrical or symmetrized faces (n = 10, rho = −0.14, p = 0.67). Medical professionals rated the symmetry (p ˂ 0.001) and attractiveness (p ˂ 0.001) significantly higher than laypersons, while there was no significant difference in the health assessment (p = 0.24). Conclusions: It could be shown that there are indications of threshold values in the perception of facial symmetries, both in the direction of very symmetrical faces and in the direction of asymmetrical faces. There is no evidence that completely symmetrical faces are perceived as less attractive. Thus, in maxillofacial surgery, treatment should aim for the highest symmetry possible, although small deviations are not detrimental
Mathematik ist PriMa:Zur Förderung von Kindern mit einem hohen mathematischen Potenzial
No full textPriMa – Kinder der Primarstufe auf verschiedenen Wegen zur Mathematik – ist eine Maßnahme der Behörde für Schule und Berufsbildung in Hamburg in Kooperation mit der Fakultät für Erziehungswissenschaft der Universität Hamburg und der William-Stern-Gesellschaft für Begabungsforschung und Begabtenförderung e.V. Hamburg. Im Rahmen dieser Maßnahme bieten wir Uni-Zirkel für Schüler:innen mit einem hohen mathematischen Potenzial an, beginnend mit Förderangeboten für Drittklässler:innen. Das Buch befasst sich mit vielen Fragen zur besonderen mathematischen Begabung, deren Erörterung zur Entwicklung des Konzepts und seiner Durchführung wesentlich sind. Es richtet sich an Eltern, Lehrkräfte und andere Interessierte. Fragen zur mathematischen Begabungsforschung sind sehr vielfältig. Deshalb gibt das Buch eher einen Überblick und kann keinen Anspruch auf Vollständigkeit erheben. Es will hingegen einen Eindruck von der Komplexität verschiedener Forschungsfragen vermitteln
Methodological quality of systematic reviews in dentistry including animal studies: a cross-sectional study
No full textBackground: The overall confidence in the results of systematic reviews including animal models can be heterogeneous. We assessed the methodological quality of systematic reviews including animal models in dentistry as well as the overall confidence in the results of those systematic reviews.
Material & methods: PubMed, Web of Science and Scopus were searched for systematic reviews including animal studies in dentistry published later than January 2010 until 18th of July 2022. Overall confidence in the results was assessed using a modified version of the A MeaSurement Tool to Assess systematic Reviews (AMSTAR-2) checklist. Checklist items were rated as 'yes, partial yes, no' and 'not applicable'. Linear regression analysis was used to investigate associations between systematic review characteristics and the overall adherence to the AMSTAR-2 checklist. The overall confidence in the results was calculated based on the number of critical and non-critical weaknesses presented in the AMSTAR-2 items and rated as high, moderate, low and critical low. Results: Of initially 951 retrieved systematic reviews, 190 were included in the study. The overall confidence in the results was low in 43 (22.6%) and critically low in 133 (70.0%) systematic reviews. While some AMSTAR-2 items were regularly reported (e.g. conflict of interest, selection in duplicate), others were not (e.g. funding: n = 1; 0.5%). Multivariable linear regression analysis showed that the adherence scores of AMSTAR-2 was significantly associated with publication year, journal impact factor (IF), topic, and the use of tools to assess risk of bias (RoB) of the systematic reviews. Conclusion: Although the methodological quality of dental systematic reviews of animal models improved over the years, it is still suboptimal. The overall confidence in the results was mostly low or critically low. Systematic reviews, which were published later, published in a journal with a higher IF, focused on non-surgery topics, and used at least one tool to assess RoB correlated with greater adherence to the AMSTAR-2 guidelines
Network analysis of polymicrobial chronic wound infections in Masanga, Sierra Leone
No full textBackground: Chronic wounds are frequently colonized or infected with multiple bacterial or fungal species, which can both promote or inhibit each other. Network analyses are helpful to understand the interplay of these species in polymicrobial infections. Our aim was to analyse the network of bacterial and fungal species in chronic wounds. Methods: Swabs (n = 163) from chronic wound infections (Masanga, Sierra Leone, 2019–2020) were screened for bacterial and fungal species using non-selective agars. Some of these wounds were suspected but not confirmed Buruli ulcer. Species identification was done with MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry. Network analysis was performed to investigate co-occurrence of different species within one patient. All species with n ≥ 10 isolates were taken into account. Results: Of the 163 patients, 156 had a positive wound culture (median of three different species per patient; range 1–7). 'Pseudomonas aeruginosa' (n = 75) was the dominating species with frequent co-detections of 'Klebsiella pneumoniae' (21 cases; OR = 1.36, 95%CI: 0.63–2.96, p = 0.47), 'Staphylococcus aureus' (14 cases; OR = 1.06, 95%CI: 0.44–2.55, p = 1) and 'Proteus mirabilis' (13 cases; OR = 0.84, 95%CI: 0.35–1.99, p = 0.69). Conclusion: The culturome of chronic wounds in Sierra Leonean patients is highly diverse and characterized by the co-occurrence of 'P. aeruginosa, K. pneumoniae' and 'S. aureus'
Social comparison selection in individuals with depression and the role of self-assessment and self-enhancement motives: An experimental investigation
No full textSocial comparison plays an important role in depression. However, the process of social comparison selection among depressed individuals remains understudied. This study investigated the choices made by individuals with elevated depression scores (assessed with the Patient Health Questionnaire-8) when exposed to vignettes depicting individuals with varying depression severity and coping ability. We experimentally activated either self-assessment or self-enhancement motives and had participants choose from four vignettes: (1) 'Mild Depression/Coping Well'; (2) 'Mild Depression/Coping Poorly'; (3) 'Severe Depression/Coping Well'; and (4) 'Severe Depression/Coping Poorly'. Our first hypothesis was that most participants would select the 'Mild Depression/Coping Well' vignette, presenting a potential upward social comparison standard (H1). Additionally, we expected higher depression scores to correlate with selecting vignettes featuring greater severity (H2). We further hypothesized that those in the self-enhancement condition would prefer 'coping poorly' vignettes more than those in the self-assessment condition (H3). We conducted a between-subject online experiment (N = 449). Confirming H1, most participants favored the 'Mild Depression/Coping Well' vignette, while the 'Severe Depression/Coping Poorly' vignette was least selected. Supporting H2, higher depression levels were linked to opting for alternative comparison standards over the 'Mild Depression/Coping Well' vignette. Contrary to H3, participants’ choices were not influenced by self-motives
Stimulus awareness is associated with secondary somatosensory cortex activation in an inattentional numbness paradigm
No full textWhile inattentional blindness and deafness studies have revealed neural correlates of consciousness (NCC) without the confound of task relevance in the visual and auditory modality, comparable studies for the somatosensory modality are lacking. Here, we investigated NCC using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) in an inattentional numbness paradigm. Participants (N = 44) received weak electrical stimulation on the left hand while solving a demanding visual task. Half of the participants were informed that task-irrelevant weak tactile stimuli above the detection threshold would be applied during the experiment, while the other half expected stimuli below the detection threshold. Unexpected awareness assessments after the experiment revealed that altogether 10 participants did not consciously perceive the somatosensory stimuli during the visual task. Awareness was not significantly modulated by prior information. The fMRI data show that awareness of stimuli led to increased activation in the contralateral secondary somatosensory cortex. We found no significant effects of stimulus awareness in the primary somatosensory cortex or frontoparietal areas. Thus, our results support the hypothesis that somatosensory stimulus awareness is mainly based on activation in higher areas of the somatosensory cortex and does not require strong activation in extended anterior or posterior networks, which is usually seen when perceived stimuli are task-relevant
The Classification of Purely Infinite C*-Algebras Using Kasparov’s Theory
No full textNach Eberhard Kirchbergs Tod im August 2022 hat seine Ehefrau Sommai freundlicherweise zugestimmt, das vorliegende Manuskript der mathematischen Öffentlichkeit zugänglich zu machen. Dieses Werk war gedacht als ein vollständiges Werk zur Klassifikation rein unendlicher C*-Algebren. Es enthält eine große Fülle von tiefen Resultaten, Ideen und Techniken, wurde aber vom Autor nicht vollständig fertiggestellt. Es ist hier in dem Zustand, wie es auf seinem Computer vorgefunden wurde. Lediglich ein von James Gabe und Mikael Rørdam erstellter einführender Text wurde hinzugefügt.After Eberhard Kirchberg's passing in August 2022, his wife, Sommai, graciously agreed to make this manuscript available to the mathematical community. This work was intended to serve as the definitive book on purely infinite C*-algebras and their classification. It contains a wealth of deep results, ideas, and techniques, but the manuscript is not completely finished. It remains in the form in which it was found on Kirchberg's computer, with no alterations made. But it comes with an additional explanatory text by James Gabe and Mikael Rørdam
Utilizing a tablet-based artificial intelligence system to assess movement disorders in a prospective study
No full textSpiral drawings on paper are used as routine measures in hospitals to assess Parkinson’s Disease motor deficiencies. In the age of emerging mobile health tools and Artificial Intelligence a comprehensive digital setup enables granular biomarker analyses and improved differential diagnoses in movement disorders. This study aims to evaluate on discriminatory features among Parkison’s Disease patients, healthy subjects and diverse movement disorders. Overall, 24 Parkinson’s Disease patients, 27 healthy controls and 26 patients with similar differential diagnoses were assessed with a novel tablet-based system. It utilizes an integrative assessment by combining a structured symptoms questionnaire—the Parkinson’s Disease Non-Motor Scale—and 2-handed spiral drawing captured on a tablet device. Three different classification tasks were evaluated: Parkinson’s Disease patients versus healthy control group (Task 1), all Movement disorders versus healthy control group (Task 2) and Parkinson’s Disease patients versus diverse other movement disorder patients (Task 3). To systematically study feature importances of digital biomarkers a Machine Learning classifier is cross-validated and interpreted with SHapley Additive exPlanations (SHAP) values. The number of non-motor symptoms differed significantly for Tasks 1 and 2 but not for Task 3. The proposed drawing features partially differed significantly for all three tasks. The diagnostic accuracy was on average 94.0% in Task 1, 89.4% in Task 2, and 72% in Task 3. While the accuracy in Task 3 only using the symptom questionnaire was close to the baseline, it greatly improved when including the tablet-based features from 60 to 72%. The accuracies for all three tasks were significantly improved by integrating the two modalities. These results show that tablet-based drawing features can not only be captured by consumer grade devices, but also capture specific features to Parkinson’s Disease that significantly improve the diagnostic accuracy compared to the symptom questionnaire. Therefore, the proposed system provides an objective type of disease characterization of movement disorders, which could be utilized for home-based assessments as well
Verschwörungstheoretische Kommunikation: Eine kommunikationswissenschaftliche Perspektive auf das Phänomen Verschwörungstheorien
No full textVerschwörungstheorien sind ein interdisziplinär erforschtes Phänomen mit einer langen Geschichte und weitreichenden gesellschaftlichen Implikationen. Trotz ihrer essentiellen kommunikativen Komponente, fehlte bisher eine originär kommunikationswissenschaftliche Perspektive auf das Phänomen. Nach einer strukturierten Literaturanalyse entwickelt diese Arbeit das Modell der verschwörungstheoretischen Kommunikation (VTK) und operationalisiert es für die quantitative Inhaltsanalyse und validiert es empirisch. Die VTK ist eine heterodoxe Form der sozialen Kommunikation, die sich auf eine risikoreiche Epistemologie stützt, kontextabhängig und prozesshaft ist und weder doxastisch noch normativ in ihren Annahmen ist. Durch die Konzeption und Messbarmachung dieses Prozesses des „collective sensemaking“ lässt eine Demarkation von legitimen und illegitimen Verschwörungstheorien zu und ermöglicht so die Erforschung von den diskursiven Kipppunkten zwischen Legitimität und Illegitimität