Influence of soil properties on street tree attributes in Singapore

Urban Ecosystems - Soil quality is thought to be a primary driver of street tree performance and thus a major concern for urban forest growth, health and longevity. This research was conducted to...     

技术创新对中国工业制成品国际竞争力作用的实证研究

中国对外贸易的发展取决于其出口商品的国际竞争力。从出口商品的构成来看,工业制成品贸易已是当今国际贸易的主流。因此,增强工业制成品的国际竞争力是促进中国对外贸易发展所面临的一个迫切而且紧要的问题。另一方面,由于国内经济发展的需要,中国对外贸易必须由以往...     

高原、民族与宗教：清代西藏城市发展特征

西藏地区城市出现较早,但发展相对缓慢。清代是西藏城市发展的一个重要时期,自然地理环境、交通、商贸的发展,清廷对西藏统治的加强以及政教合一制度的继承和发展都对西藏地区城市体系的初步形成产生了重大影响。特殊的自然地理环境决定了清代西藏的城市多分布于河谷低地区域,呈现沿河流、湖泊分布的地域特征。西藏的城市空间布局也深受藏传佛教的影响,寺庙等宗教场所成为城市的中心或重心所在。西藏地区的游牧经济也深刻地影响到城市发展进程,与内地相比,城市发展相对滞后,城市形态不完善,城市数量少,规模较小,功能单一。     

Statistical Properties of Generalized Gini Coefficient with Application to Health Inequality Measurement

In this article, we report statistical properties of two classes of generalized Gini coefficients (G1 and G2). The theoretical results were assessed via Monte Carlo simulations. Further, we used G1 and G2 on life expectancy to measure health inequalities among the provinces of China and the states of the United States. For China, the results indicated that there was statistically significant health inequality by both G1 and G2. However, for the US, the results showed that there was significant health inequality by G1 but no statistical significance was found in health inequality by G2. Overall, from our study, China has higher health inequality than the United States.     

Recognition of Facial Expressions of Emotion is Related to their Frequency in Everyday Life

Cross-cultural and laboratory research indicates that some facial expressions of emotion are recognized more accurately and faster than others. We assessed the hypothesis that such differences depend on the frequency with which each expression occurs in social encounters. Thirty observers recorded how often they saw different facial expressions during natural conditions in their daily life. For a total of 90 days (3 days per observer), 2,462 samples of seen expressions were collected. Among the basic expressions, happy faces were observed most frequently (31 %), followed by surprised (11.3 %), sad (9.3 %), angry (8.7 %), disgusted (7.2 %), and fearful faces, which were the least frequent (3.4 %). A significant amount (29 %) of non-basic emotional expressions (e.g., pride or shame) were also observed. We correlated our frequency data with recognition accuracy and response latency data from prior studies. In support of the hypothesis, significant correlations (generally, above .70) emerged, with recognition accuracy increasing and latency decreasing as a function of frequency. We conclude that the efficiency of facial emotion recognition is modulated by familiarity of the expressions.     

Gandhi and the heritage of enlightenment: non-violence,secularism and conflict resolution

This essay re-examines the democratic Enlightenment as a multi-dimensional, heterogeneous, non-Eurocentric and living heritage. Gandhi's political contribution to the Enlightenment heritage is assessed in terms of values, epistemology and practice. Practically, this concerns the French Revolutionary heritage as a paradigm of political action, and Gandhian innovations in terms of mass movements based on the philosophy and practice of non-violence. The essay contends that Gandhi, far from merely an heir to the Enlightenment tradition, also radically challenged, expanded and transformed it. This transformation belongs to a broader re-evaluation of Enlightenment in terms of growth over final ends, held in common with thinkers such as John Dewey. The article critiques predominant arguments that Gandhi was an ‘anti-modern’, whether in a heroic ‘post-modern’ posture or as an enemy of ‘scientific modernity’. It argues for a more sociologically nuanced and historically grounded view of Gandhi in the historical comparative perspective of modern independence struggles, civil society formation and nation-making.     

Stigma and family relationships of middle-aged gay men in recovery

The primary objective of this study was to explore how middle-aged gay men in recovery cope with stigma and family relationships. For gay men, perceptions of acceptance of their sexual orientation and degree of social connectedness can play a role in their recovery from alcohol and substance use disorders. Yet gay men may have a more difficult time accessing certain family-level health resources because their families of origin may stigmatize, reject, or silence them on account of their sexual orientation. Semi-structured interviews were used to explore how participants in recovery constructed and coped with their experiences of stigma, family relationships, and alcohol and substance use. Participants (30 gay men ages 50 to 64) completed a questionnaire and interview. We used constructivist grounded theory method and minority stress theory as a theoretical framework to interpret the data. We identified the following themes: Internalization of Stigma, Changes in Coping Strategies, and Ongoing Stigma. Future research should explore how to incorporate familial support into gay men's recovery, address ongoing internalized stigma, and develop a social response to stigma, rather than leaving it to individuals to confront on their own.     

青海民间刺绣文化初探

民间刺绣艺术是青海民俗文化的重要组成部分,较之于其它艺术门类,其民间普及性、作者广泛性更为突出。它扎根于青海,富有浓郁的高原特色。绣品是青海民间艺人思想与现实结合的审美物化产品。     

地方性高校教材建设初探

提出了地方性高校教材建设应包含的基本内容．认为：地方性高校教材建设应侧重于详细的教学大纲的编写和参考书目的编订；硬性规定学生人手一册同样的统编教材的做法是有害的；对于基础课程，教师应给学生指定几套参考书，专业课程要给学生予丰富的文献资料；适当引用国外优秀教材、改革教材管理机构是必要的．