Variability and Uncertainty Analysis of the Cross‐Contamination Ratios of Salmonella During Pork Cutting

The transfer ratio of bacteria from one surface to another is often estimated from laboratory experiments and quantified by dividing the expected number of bacteria on the recipient surface by the expected number of bacteria on the donor surface. Yet, the expected number of bacteria on each surface is uncertain due to the limited number of colonies that are counted and/or samples that can be analyzed. The expected transfer ratio is, therefore, also uncertain and its estimate may exceed 1 if real transfer is close to 100%. In addition, the transferred fractions vary over experiments but it is unclear, using this approach, how to combine uncertainty and variability into one estimate for the transfer ratio. A Bayesian network model was proposed that allows the combination of uncertainty within one experiment and variability over multiple experiments and prevents inappropriate values for the transfer ratio. Model functionality was shown using data from a laboratory experiment in which the transfer of Salmonella was determined from contaminated pork meat to a butcher's knife, and vice versa. Recovery efficiency of bacteria from both surfaces was also determined and accounted for in the analysis. Transfer ratio probability distributions showed a large variability, with a mean value of 0.19 for the transfer of Salmonella from pork meat to the knife and 0.58 for the transfer of Salmonella from the knife to pork meat. The proposed Bayesian model can be used for analyzing data from similar study designs in which uncertainty should be combined with variability.     

Non-Gaussian Conditional Linear AR(1) Models

This paper gives a general formulation of a non-Gaussian conditional linear AR(1) model subsuming most of the non-Gaussian AR(1) models that have appeared in the literature. It derives some general results giving properties for the stationary process mean, variance and correlation structure, and conditions for stationarity. These results highlight similarities with and differences from the Gaussian AR(1) model, and unify many separate results appearing in the literature. Examples illustrate the wide range of properties that can appear under the conditional linear autoregressive assumption. These results are used in analysing three real datasets, illustrating general methods of estimation, model diagnostics and model selection. In particular, the theoretical results can be used to develop diagnostics for deciding if a time series can be modelled by some linear autoregressive model, and for selecting among several candidate models.     

(Mis)interpreting urban youth language: white kids sounding black?

The language of young people is often viewed very negatively by some sections of the mainstream media and by some social commentators in the UK. While this is nothing new – older generations routinely despair of how the youth of today are ruining the language – what is different now is the added element of ethnicity, whereby young people of various ethnicities are perceived as using some kind of ‘ghetto grammar’ or ‘Jafaican’ which carry often explicit connotations of ‘sounding black’. This paper challenges the mainstream view by firstly introducing the linguistic take on this emerging Multicultural Urban British English, and then exploring the views of young people themselves on how they use language by taking qualitative data from a linguistic ethnography project involving 14–16-year-olds in a non-mainstream urban educational setting. The young people provide insights into their language that are in complete opposition to the views so often expressed in the media, and which instead suggest that linguistic features that were previously strongly associated with specific ethnicities are being used in new and innovative ways. Refreshingly, it would appear that for many young people ethnicity is simply not a consideration, at least in relation to language.     

Thinking critically about and researching algorithms

ABSTRACT

More and more aspects of our everyday lives are being mediated, augmented, produced and regulated by software-enabled technologies. Software is fundamentally composed of algorithms: sets of defined steps structured to process instructions/data to produce an output. This paper synthesises and extends emerging critical thinking about algorithms and considers how best to research them in practice. Four main arguments are developed. First, there is a pressing need to focus critical and empirical attention on algorithms and the work that they do given their increasing importance in shaping social and economic life. Second, algorithms can be conceived in a number of ways – technically, computationally, mathematically, politically, culturally, economically, contextually, materially, philosophically, ethically – but are best understood as being contingent, ontogenetic and performative in nature, and embedded in wider socio-technical assemblages. Third, there are three main challenges that hinder research about algorithms (gaining access to their formulation; they are heterogeneous and embedded in wider systems; their work unfolds contextually and contingently), which require practical and epistemological attention. Fourth, the constitution and work of algorithms can be empirically studied in a number of ways, each of which has strengths and weaknesses that need to be systematically evaluated. Six methodological approaches designed to produce insights into the nature and work of algorithms are critically appraised. It is contended that these methods are best used in combination in order to help overcome epistemological and practical challenges.     

Intergenerational Contact in Chinese Families: Structural and Cultural Explanations

Although the determinants of intergenerational contact have been well documented in Western countries, we know virtually nothing about the situation in China, a country that has recently experienced unprecedented socioeconomic and demographic change. This study analyzed the frequency of (a) visits and (b) other contact (phone, text message, etc.) in a representative sample of 16,715 adult child–parent dyads, focusing in particular on the role of migration as well as children's gender, marital status, and education level. Adult children generally maintained intensive social relations with parents, although distance was a major barrier to face‐to‐face contact. Sons visited more often than daughters, but daughters were more likely to stay in touch by other means. Moreover, the strength of parent–daughter ties was strongly dependent on education level. These findings suggest that women's empowerment and the spread of mobile technology have created new opportunities for intergenerational solidarity.     

The Sexual Health of Transgender Men: A Scoping Review

There is a general paucity of research concerning the sexual health of transgender individuals, and most existing research focuses on transgender women. A scoping review concerning the sexual health of transgender men was conducted to identify gaps in the literature and to highlight opportunities for future research and intervention. A comprehensive search of seven databases was conducted. The Joanna Briggs Institute Reviewers’ Manual was used as a framework. Some 7,485 articles were initially identified using a search strategy applied to seven online databases: 54 articles were identified as relevant to the research questions and reviewed in detail; of those, 33 were included in the final analysis. Studies were conceptualized into four broad themes: sexual behaviors, sexual identity, sexual pleasure and sexual function, and transactional sex. Besides an overall lack of research, existing studies were often characterized by small convenience samples that do not allow for generalization to the larger population of transgender men. Significant gaps in the literature regarding sexual coercion, sexual and intimate partner violence, and relationship quality and functioning among transgender men exist. There is a need to improve the scope and depth of research examining the sexual health of this population, especially concerning sexual risk behaviors and structural barriers to sexual health care access.     

Mobilizing resistance: the Burberry workers' campaign against factory closure

This paper draws on mobilization theory, frame analysis and community characteristics to explore a high‐profile campaign by a largely female workforce against the closure of a clothing plant owned by the international fashion house, Burberry. It analyses the particular factors associated with their mobilization and examines the workforce's propensity to act collectively, having exhibited little indication of a clear definition of its collective interests in the past. The paper highlights the central importance of perceived substantive and procedural injustice among the workforce, together with the ways in which geographic location and community characteristics reinforced their willingness to fight the closure decision. The paper concludes by considering the wider implications of this campaign for mobilization theory.     

Practitioner research for the professionalization of human resources practice: empirical data from the Netherlands

Despite the growing interest in and literature regarding practitioner research in human resources (HR), not much is known about the factors that play a role in the actual practice by HR practitioners. This article describes an explorative study to gain empirical insight into the use and quality of practitioner research in HR practice. We conducted semi-structured interviews with 21 Dutch HR practitioners from diverse backgrounds, posing questions about (1) their definitions of practitioner research, (2) the characteristics of the research they perform, (3) the quality and usability of the research projects in which they have taken part, and (4) the forces that drive or hinder practitioner research. We constructed theory-based coding schemes to analyse the data. To assess the quality and usability of the research performed by participants, we constructed a quality framework. Our findings show that all participants were more or less involved in HR-related practitioner research, but the quality and usability of that research could be improved. We report several causes and influencing factors. Our findings complement previous research on evidence-based HR and other practitioner research approaches and provide new insights. Based on our findings, we discuss implications for further research and practice.     

Tweeting Toward Transformation: Prison Abolition and Criminal Justice Reform in 140 Characters

The United States is the world leader in confining bodies behind bars. As scholars, practitioners, and activists struggle against the problem of mass incarceration, this article makes a distinction between two competing perspectives, both of which seek to change the current criminal legal system: “prison abolition” and “reformism.” Each represents ideological and political differences in how mass incarceration should and could be resolved. Prior research has relied on historical methods and data to examine theoretical departures between prison reform and prison abolition, yet to our knowledge, there have been no explorations of these perspectives on new media. This article fills the gap, drawing on a sample of 2,112,206 tweets between 2011 and 2020 and engaging in an in-depth qualitative analysis of nearly 5,000 tweets over a 6-year period in order to investigate the ways Twitter users disclose and define their positions on criminal justice reform on one hand, and prison abolition on the other, and how these discussions have changed over time.