15064 research outputs found
Sort by
Understanding the Gender-Equality Paradox: A Comparative Study of Matrilineal and Patriarchal Societies
No full textThe gender-equality paradox is the counterintuitive observation that more gender-egalitarian societies tend to have larger gender differences in preferences. Previous research has largely focused on patriarchal societies, where gender equality generally improves alongside economic development. We examined the gender-equality paradox in the matrilineal Mosuo society and compared it to two patriarchal groups: the Yi and the Han. The Mosuo are unique in being highly gender equal despite their limited economic resources. We recruited participants from Yongning Township, where the Mosuo people have long resided. The Mosuo (n = 39) and the patriarchal participants (n = 50) completed a survey on gender-related perceptions and ideologies. Compared to patriarchal groups, the Mosuo reported higher perceptions of gender equality, yet they also endorsed more gender essentialist beliefs. Despite this, they did not perceive greater gender differences. The Mosuo also exhibited a more traditional view of gender roles, tying women to the family. Although gender equality and division coexist, the Mosuo society specifically values women. Mosuo participants exhibited a preference for daughters and valued communal traits such as helpfulness and conscientiousness, which are traditionally associated with femininity. These results suggest that gendered cultural values are important for gender equality, even when traditional gender roles persist
Explaining Gendered Language Through Embedding Approximation: How “Stupid” Became a Man’s Word
No full textRecent advances in word embedding and digitized text have reinvigorated macro-historical cultural analysis based on empirical data. However, static word2vec embedding, a distance-based measurement of latent semantic structures, becomes less interpretable when moved beyond survey-validated categories. Often, there is a one-to-many mapping between low-level semantic distance and high-level meanings, obscuring the pragmatic language use that drive latent semantic shifts in the embedding space. Focusing on “unintelligence” words in 20th-century American discourse, I critique the stereotype-based interpretation of their changing gender alignment in historical word2vec embeddings of American literature. While the gender axis reliably measures word associations, low-level associations do not neatly map onto well-defined gender stereotypes. Applying an adapted A La Carte approximation of individual context words and sentences, I suggest another possible interpretation: that the masculinization of “unintelligence” words could have stemmed from the increasing harshness in tone (a spurious variable), not judgments of male intelligence or stupidity. This study highlights the interpretive gap in embedding-based methods and calls for more rigorous approaches to making intersubjectively valid interpretations on cultural change
Study design and the sampling of deleterious rare variants in biobank-scale datasets
Get PDFOne key component of study design in population genetics is the “geographic breadth” of a sample (i.e., how broad a region across which individuals are sampled). How the geographic breadth of a sample impacts observations of rare, deleterious variants is unclear, even though such variants are of particular interest for biomedical and evolutionary applications. Here, in order to gain insight into the effects of sample design on ascertained genetic variants, we formulate a stochastic model of dispersal, genetic drift, selection, mutation, and geographically concentrated sampling. We use this model to understand the effects of the geographic breadth of sampling effort on the discovery of negatively selected variants. We find that samples which are more geographically broad will discover a greater number of variants as compared to geographically narrow samples (an effect we label “discovery”); though the variants will be detected at lower average frequency than in narrow samples (e.g., as singletons, an effect we label “dilution”). Importantly, these effects are amplified for larger sample sizes and fitness effects. We validate these results using both population genetic simulations and empirical analyses in the UK Biobank. Our results are particularly important in two contexts: the association of large-effect rare variants with particular phenotypes and the inference of negative selection from allele frequency data. Overall, our findings emphasize the importance of considering geographic breadth when designing and carrying out genetic studies, especially at biobank scale
In vivo structure profiling reveals human cytosolic and mitochondrial tRNA structurome and interactome in response to stress
Get PDFTransfer RNA (tRNA) is the most abundant cellular RNA family in terms of copy numbers. It not only folds into defined structures but also has complex cellular interaction networks involving aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases, translation factors, and ribosomes. The human tRNAome is comprised of chromosomal-encoded tRNAs with a large sequence diversity and mitochondrial-encoded tRNAs with A/U-rich sequences and noncanonical tertiary interactions. How tRNA folding and interactions in a eukaryotic cell respond to stress is poorly understood. Here, we develop DM-DMS-MaPseq, which utilizes in vivo dimethyl-sulfate (DMS) chemical probing and mutational profiling (MaP) coupled with demethylase (DM) treatment in transcriptome-wide tRNA sequencing to profile structures and the cellular interactions of human chromosomal and mitochondrial-encoded tRNAs. We found that tRNAs maintain stable structures in vivo, but the in vivo DMS profiles are vastly different from those in vitro, which can be explained by their interactions with cellular proteins and the ribosome. We also identify cytosolic and mitochondrial tRNA structure and interaction changes upon arsenite treatment, a type of oxidative stress that induces translational reprogramming, which is consistent with global translation repression in both compartments. Our results reveal variations of tRNA structurome and dynamic interactome that have functional consequences in translational regulation
Ureteral contrast findings as a potential predictor for invasive intervention in high-grade pediatric renal trauma: A retrospective analysis
Get PDFObjectives: To determine if patient variables were associated with intervention in pediatric patients presenting with high-grade renal injuries. Methods: A retrospective review of pediatric patients presenting with grade IV/V renal injury between 2003 and 2021 at a Level 1 trauma center was performed. Renal injury grade was verified and updated based upon the 2018 American Association for the Surgery of Trauma injury scale. Multivariable logistic regression analyses were performed. Results: Seventy-five patients (median age 13 years old, IQR 9-16) with Grade IV (n = 53) or Grade V (n = 22) injury were identified. 33% (25/75) had immediate renal intervention within 24 h of admission. Of the remaining 50 children who were observed, 47 had blunt trauma, and outcomes were analyzed. The median age of observed patients was 12 years (IQR 8-14) and 30% (14/47) had intervention. Delayed images on CT showed ureteral contrast was present in 87% (41/47) of observed patients. Multivariable analysis demonstrated that the presence of contrast in the ureter is associated with significantly lower odds of intervention, OR 0.06 [0-0.73, 95% CI], p = 0.03. Conclusion: After grades IV and V blunt renal injury, for those children who are considered safe to observe, AAST grade of injury did not associate with procedural intervention. The presence of contrast in the ureter on delayed CT imaging was associated with a significantly lower odds of procedural intervention.</p
Why Men Have Abortions: Quantitative and Qualitative Perspectives From Urban Family Planning Clinics in Chicago, Illinois, USA
Get PDFSupport for abortion is comparable between men and women in the United States; one in five reproductive age men reports abortion involvement. Yet, societal focus on abortion as a uniquely women’s issue minimizes men’s involvement in abortion. We conducted a secondary analysis of survey (n = 203) and interview data (n = 30) on male partner’s experiences accompanying abortion recipients at two family planning clinics in Chicago, Illinois. Respondents identified reasons for abortion from a prepopulated 14-item list. We correlated reasons with respondent’s abortion preference and decision satisfaction, characterizing this relationship via thematic analyses of interview transcripts. Nearly all men (97.5%) identified multiple reasons for abortion (median: 6/14), including: mistimed pregnancy (80%), impact on his/his partner’s education/career (75%–80%), and finances (71%). Neither individual reasons nor number of reasons was significantly associated with abortion decision preference or decision satisfaction. While 41% would not have chosen abortion, only 10% reported dissatisfaction. Men’s perception of decision concordance with their partner was significantly linked to their satisfaction (p < .01). Thematic analysis highlighted complex partner involvement, including shared and deferred decision-making and tension amid demonstrated support. Many abortion-accompanying men preferred to continue the pregnancy, yet very few reported dissatisfaction with the ultimate decision, which may be related to perceived decision concordance with their female partner. Men’s decisions for abortion are complex and include varying degrees of male partner involvement and/or decision deferral to female partners
Cyanobacteria and Chloroflexota cooperate to structure light-responsive biofilms
Get PDFMicrobial mats are stratified communities often dominated by unicellular and filamentous phototrophs within an exopolymer matrix. It is challenging to quantify the dynamic responses of community members in situ as they experience steep gradients and rapid fluctuations of light. To address this, we developed a binary consortium using two representative isolates from hot spring mats: the unicellular oxygenic phototrophic cyanobacterium Synechococcus OS-B′ (Syn OS-B′) and the filamentous anoxygenic phototroph Chloroflexus MS-CIW-1 (Chfl MS-1). We quantified the motility of individual cells and entire colonies and demonstrated that Chfl MS-1 formed bundles of filaments that moved in all directions with no directional bias to light. Syn OS-B′ was slightly less motile but exhibited positive phototaxis. This binary consortium displayed cooperative behavior by moving further than either species alone and formed ordered arrays where both species aligned with the light source. No cooperative motility was observed when a nonmotile pilB mutant of Syn OS-B′ was used instead of Syn OS-B′. The binary consortium also produced more adherent biofilm than individual species, consistent with the close interspecies association revealed by electron microscopy. We propose that cyanobacteria and Chloroflexota cooperate in forming natural microbial mats by colonizing new niches and building robust biofilms
Symbolism itself does not improve memory for elements on the periodic table
Get PDFRecent work demonstrates that symbols (e.g., $) are reliably better remembered than their word counterparts (e.g., ‘dollar’). It remains an open question whether the memory benefit observed for symbols is due to their unique visual form, or because they offer a symbolic representation of to-be-remembered information. Here, we assessed memory for symbols on the periodic table of elements, which could be presented in symbol format (e.g., H) or word format (e.g., Hydrogen), and compared both to memory for meaningless letters (e.g., J). These stimuli were selected because they all share the same visual features and the former two share the same meaning. Memory was compared across individuals with and without a background in chemistry. In non-experts, memory was highest for words relative to symbols and meaningless letters. In experts (students who had passed an introductory chemistry course), however, memory for words and symbols was equivalent, with both higher than for meaningless letters. Results suggest that prior knowledge of what a symbol means is necessary to gain a memory benefit over semantically-void information, but is not enough to boost memory relative to words. We suggest that using a concrete visual symbol to represent an abstract concept is not enough to confer a memory advantage relative to words; a meaningful and visually distinctive symbol may be necessary
Microlevel structural poverty estimates for southern and eastern Africa
Get PDFFor many countries in the Global South traditional poverty estimates are available only infrequently and at coarse spatial resolutions, if at all. This limits decision-makers’ and analysts’ ability to target humanitarian and development interventions and makes it difficult to study relationships between poverty and other natural and human phenomena at finer spatial scales. Advances in Earth observation and machine learning-based methods have proven capable of generating more granular estimates of relative asset wealth indices. They have been less successful in predicting the consumption-based poverty measures most commonly used by decision-makers, those tied to national and international poverty lines. For a study area including four countries in southern and eastern Africa, we pilot a two-step approach that combines Earth observation, accessible machine learning methods, and asset-based structural poverty measurement to address this gap. This structural poverty approach to machine learning-based poverty estimation preserves the interpretability and policy-relevance of consumption-based poverty measures, while allowing us to explain 72 to 78% of cluster-level variation in a pooled model and 40 to 54% even when predicting out-of-country
Disrupting Consistency in Accounting
Get PDFI show that the issuance of a new accounting standard disrupts the cycle of consistency within accounting organizations, leading to improved accounting information. For the recent FASB Revenue Recognition and Leases standards, I show they lead to more error disclosures and more updates to legacy policies within the standards’ topic areas before the accounting standard change is implemented. I do not find a difference in the effects between firms more or less affected by a standard, consistent with the standards being broadly disruptive for all firms. However, I do find stronger effects for more decentralized firms following the Leases standard, implying a mechanism of the disruption: a centralized standard implementation effort that unifies historically dispersed accounting practices. I further demonstrate that the policy updates identified following the disruption result in improvements to accounting information. My results show that accounting standard-setting activity affects financial reporting processes and outcomes even prior to the adoption of the standard in a way that is distinct from the effects of the actual changes in accounting guidance