Mixture model clustering using the MULTIMIX program

Hunt (1996) implemented the finite mixture model approach to clustering in a program called MULTIMIX. The program is designed to cluster multivariate data that have categorical and continuous variables and that possibly contain missing values. This paper describes the approach taken to design MULTIMIX and how some of the statistical problems were dealt with. As an example, the program is used to cluster a large medical dataset.     

The Influence of Parental Identification on Attitudes in Same-Sex Families

ABSTRACT

Without the ability to be legally married in most U.S. states until 2015, same-sex couples did not have the rights and privileges of married or once-married couples. Even with the changing legality and increasing social acceptance of same-sex marriage, the relationship between nonbirth parents and children in same-sex parented families is often not recognized as a legitimate child-parent bond. The focus of this article is to investigate how attitudes related to social networks and the language used to identify parental figures likely contribute to the binary gender-role structure of the family. Using data from a self-administered survey, I examine whether nonbirth and birth parents hold distinct attitudes about social concepts that are relevant to their lives.     

A movement divided: SlutWalks,protest repertoires and the privilege of nudity

The use of the corporeal female body in social protest has a long and complex history, particularly in anti-gender based violence movements. From early 20th Century suffragists in international coalitions circulating images of women protesters withered by hunger strikes to the more contemporary staging of nude protest by groups like FEMEN, women’s bodies have certainly functioned as powerful symbols. But such repertoires have also been controversial within the movement, as conceptualizations, norms and security surrounding female bodies can vary so much depending on culture and socioeconomic status. This paper uses the 2011–2014 SlutWalk movement to explore the use of female bodies in mobilizations staged by actors across those differences. It investigates the varying degrees of privilege associated with the choice – or choicelessness – protestors encounter when collectively considering effective repertoires. As the discourse unfolded around Slutwalk and who had the ‘right’ or ‘privilege’ to practice nudity as a protest repertoire, it illuminated deep divisions within anti-sexual violence and feminist activism. I argue this created important opportunities for the movement to integrate analysis of structural inequalities beyond gender, particularly in attempts to improve processes of deliberation.     

Social Scientists and Other People

In the context of considering problems associated with curriculum development in social science education, an attempt is made to identify roles of the social sciences and social scientists in society. Issues and debates in several of the social sciences are reviewed and positions underlying these issues are postulated. In particular, a moral component is posited, and implications for research and other activities such as social science education are indicated.     

Comparison of five approaches to keeping power line maintainers' hands warm during work in the cold

Electric utility workers in Canada must frequently work in the cold and must wear thick rubber gloves which can result in rapid fatigue and reduced performance. The purpose of the study was therefore to document the challenge of working in the cold wearing the standard five-finger rubber gloves and covers and compare them to two equipment options, mitten style gloves or a prototype wool liner, and two heating options, glove or torso heating. The dependent measures were grip force, temperature, dexterity (modified Purdue pegboard test and a simulated occupational task), finger sensitivity (Von Frey hair test), perceived effort and thermal sensation. The study population consisted of 10 experienced male utility workers. They worked in a controlled temperature walk-in chamber (-20 degrees Celsius) and performed simulated utility work for 45 minutes with interspersed test batteries. The mitten style glove and woolen liner in a standard glove reduced the effects of working in the cold compared to the standard five-fingered variety with a thin cotton liner. We found that the mitten style glove showed lesser drops in skin temperature for the 3rd and 5th digits than the other conditions (p < 0.05).     

Borderline personality disorder across the lifespan

Borderline personality disorder is characterized by affective dysregulation, intense, unstable interpersonal relationships, impulsivity and unstable identity. It overlaps considerably with both PTSD and bipolar spectrum disorders. Research on true late-life BPD is limited, but suggests that some of the core features of BPD including interpersonal difficulties, unstable affect and anger remain relatively unchanged, while impulsivity and identity disturbance decline or change their mode of expression in late life. Diagnosis of BPD in late life requires both flexible application of the standard diagnostic criteria as well as a thorough longitudinal history. The etiology of BPD is best explained as a combination of genetic, neurobiological vulnerability combined with childhood trauma, abuse or neglect that leads to dysregulated emotions, distorted cognitions, social skills deficits, and few adaptive coping strategies. Treatment options include pharmacotherapy (especially mood stabilizers, SSRIs and atypical antipsychotics) and psychotherapeutic interventions that focus on distress tolerance, affective regulation, changing distorted beliefs, and introducing new social and relationship problem solving skills (especially Dialectical Behavior Therapy and Schema Focused Cognitive Therapy). In late life care environments, such as nursing homes and other residential facilities, staff need to be empowered to set appropriate limits on problematic behavior while maintaining empathy and validating the painful affect patients often experience.     

Survival,abundance, and capture rate of eastern cottontail rabbits in an urban park

Eastern cottontail rabbits (Sylvilagus floridanus) are common, conspicuous denizens of urban environments. They are associated with human-wildlife conflict due to vegetation damage. Prior to this study, population dynamics of this species in urban environments remained largely uncharacterized. For three consecutive winters, we used classic field ecology methods (mark-recapture and mark–resight surveys) to estimate demographic parameters of rabbits in a city park in Chicago, Illinois. Rabbits occurred in densities as high as 16.3 rabbits/ha, which is comparatively high for the Midwestern United States. An annual survivorship of 30.4?±?12.9 % SE was similar to that observed in natural environments in similar climates. This result refuted our hypothesis that urban rabbits would have higher annual survival rates than rabbits in natural settings due to food subsidies supplied by landscaping in parks. Mean distance between trap locations for rabbits trapped three or more times was 43.14?±?30.01 m SD, suggesting that rabbits in the urban study area had smaller home ranges than rabbits in non-human-dominated habitats. This study contributes to our understanding of population dynamics of a human-wildlife conflict species in urban environments and provides useful information for managers dealing with damage caused by rabbits. The mark-resight method employed here could be used by managers to estimate pre- and post-management population sizes of other conflict species, for example Canada geese (Branta Canadensis), in parks and green spaces, provided that the species is trappable, visible, and individuals have relatively small home ranges.     

马克思和罗尔斯论资本主义及其市场的正义

马克思和罗尔斯(Rawls)看起来对正义持十分不同的观点.马克思声称,正义观念在意识形态领域起着作用,它代表着具有普遍约束力的主要生产方式所要求的行为.罗尔斯认为,正义乃是一个社会的首要美德,所有社会成员遵守正义原则,公平地、理性地精心处理社会合作的责任和利益的公平分配问题.我认为,虽然马克思和罗尔斯对正义持不同观点,但这种不同能够得以协调.虽然黑格尔和康德对马克思和罗尔斯有着不同的影响,他们的观点有相通之处.在提出一个明确的关于正义的政治观念时,罗尔斯认为可接受的正义原则必须是在社会制度中可实现的,这样他的"康德建构主义"思想接近于黑格尔学派的思想.也正是通过依靠黑格尔思想马克思建立了他的反对普遍的、社会的正义优越性原则.我认为马克思和罗尔斯都在致力于寻求一个能够实现公平的正义原则的社会制度.然而,他们的观点存在二个重要差别.首先,马克思似乎在构想一个休谟和罗尔斯特别提到的"公平环境"的社会.而对于罗尔斯来说,一个超越公平环境的社会就是乌托邦①.其次,马克思认为市场关系应该被看作是社会的根基,因为市场关系内在地包含在劳动者同社会的生产过程和劳动者同他们的社会劳动产品的异化中.然而,在一个充满公平环境的社会中,市场的消除是可能的.罗尔斯声称,在任何一个需要公平解决竞争要求的社会里,市场的消除是不可能的.我想,只要我们把马克思反对市场看作是本质上反对"商品拜物主义",马克思和罗尔斯的观点是能够被和解的.总之,我认为,除了马克思的未来无阶级社会观念有些乌托邦色彩外,马克思和罗尔斯对资本主义及其市场的正义的观点应该相当接近.