Dual language input and the impact of language separation on early lexical development

We examined properties of the input and the environment that characterize bilingual exposure in 11‐month‐old infants with a regular exposure to French and an additional language, and their possible effects on receptive vocabulary size. Using a diary method, we found that a majority of the families roughly followed a one‐parent–one‐language approach. Yet, the two languages co‐occurred to various extents within the same half‐hour both within and across speakers. We used exploratory correlation analyses to examine potential effects of the dual input on the size of infants’ vocabularies. The results revealed some evidence for an impact of language separation by speakers.     

Alef and Shem: Original artwork

Abstract

Artist and scientist Sharon Gershoni presents here two works of her art in different mediums. Alef is a series of drawings made with Japanese sumi ink on washi paper and is a reflection on the first letter of the Hebrew alphabet, alef. Shem (Name) is a photograph exposing the symbols and attributes of women in Western art and thought.     

Demonstrating the Benefits of Predictive Bayesian Dose–Response Relationships Using Six Exposure Studies of Cryptosporidium parvum

A conventional dose–response function can be refitted as additional data become available. A predictive dose–response function in contrast does not require a curve-fitting step, only additional data and presents the unconditional probabilities of illness, reflecting the level of information it contains. In contrast, the predictive Bayesian dose–response function becomes progressively less conservative as more information is included. This investigation evaluated the potential for using predictive Bayesian methods to develop a dose–response for human infection that improves on existing models, to show how predictive Bayesian statistical methods can utilize additional data, and expand the Bayesian methods for a broad audience including those concerned about an oversimplification of dose–response curve use in quantitative microbial risk assessment (QMRA). This study used a dose–response relationship incorporating six separate data sets for Cryptosporidium parvum. A Pareto II distribution with known priors was applied to one of the six data sets to calibrate the model, while the others were used for subsequent updating. While epidemiological principles indicate that local variations, host susceptibility, and organism strain virulence may vary, the six data sets all appear to be well characterized using the Bayesian approach. The adaptable model was applied to an existing data set for Campylobacter jejuni for model validation purposes, which yielded results that demonstrate the ability to analyze a dose–response function with limited data using and update those relationships with new data. An analysis of the goodness of fit compared to the beta-Poisson methods also demonstrated correlation between the predictive Bayesian model and the data.     

Corporate Ideology – Meanings and Contradictions for Middle Managers

This paper describes an investigation into corporate ideology and control and the responses of the ‘middle managers’ in a large engineering corporation. The paper explores the creation of meaning and values in the organization through a large‐scale ‘corporate values’ programme aimed at 1500 middle managers, and asks to what extent the priorities of these managers match those of the organization, and whether the creation of meaning through an ideological values programme carries risks that have not been considered by the organization adopting this approach. The findings suggest six individual response types amongst the delegates on the programme: ‘evangelists’, ‘actors’, ‘sceptics’, ‘open cynics’, ‘critical thinkers’ and ‘untouched professionals’. The influences upon these responses are considered, and a number of key factors identified as important in affecting perceptions of and response to the programme. The paper concludes that today more than ever, corporate ideologies are becoming an increasingly dominant influence on our organizations, causing mixed and confused responses amongst the middle managers who are required to disseminate these messages.     

British Publications of Note on Serials

Abstract

Three years ago, the Gold and Green Roads to Open Access were viewed as complementary strategies, with repositories having the potential of gradually behaving more like journals, and vice versa. Since then, repositories and journals have been progressing on parallel tracks. Re-examining the situation, the reasoning suggested in 2004 appears still valid. Simultaneously, a knowledge economy has made of science a strategic resource. The developing world is essentially invited to contribute to world science with little or no regard to the development of an autonomous scientific capacity. Open Access, in this context, takes a new meaning with one objective to help development of local and autonomous scientific capacity. However, to do so, mixing and matching repositories with journals is needed. Brazil exemplifies this type of development and shows how the Green and Gold roads can mix and match.     

Economies of visibility as a moderator of feminism: ‘Never mind Brexit. Who won Legs‐it!’

This article utilizes economies of visibility to interpret how two UK women political leaders’ bodies are constructed in the press, online and by audience responses across several media platforms via a multimodal analysis. We contribute politicizing economies of visibility, lying at the intersection of politics of visibility and economies of visibility, as a possible new modality of feminist politics. We suggest this offers a space where feminism can be progressed. Analysis illustrates how economies of visibility moderate feminism and tie women leaders in various ways to their bodies; commodities constantly scrutinized. The study surfaces how media insist upon femininity through appearance from women leaders, serving to moderate power and feminist potential. We consider complexities attached to public consumption of powerful women's constructions, set up in opposition, where sexism is visible and visceral. This simultaneously fortifies moderate feminism and provokes feminism. The insistence on femininity nevertheless disrupts, through an arousal of audible and commanding feminist voices, to reconnect with the political project of women's equality.     

Hard to reach and easy to ignore: the drinking careers of young people not in education,employment or training

Young people's drinking in the UK remains a matter of medical, social, media and political concern. The notion of transition and drinking styles in the move from childhood to adulthood and from education to employment has been central to understanding young people's drinking behaviour, but little is known about how the drinking patterns of those not in education or employment, both men and women, develop over time. This paper reports on research which aimed to examine the current drinking habits and drinking careers of young people not in education employment and training who are traditionally described as hard to reach. In‐depth qualitative interviews were undertaken with 23 young people: 15 women and 8 men aged between 14 and 23. The findings are presented with respect to three stages of drinking: starting, continuing or increasing, and decreasing or stopping. The conclusions indicate that for the majority of these young people, alcohol is a significant factor in their lives and that peers, gender, time and place combine to structure both their current alcohol use and drinking career. The paper argues that an understanding of young people's drinking career development and current alcohol use will help target effective social work and multi‐agency intervention.     

Sudanese and Somali Refugees in Canada: Social Support Needs and Preferences

The aim of the study was to identify the unique support needs and preferences of African refugees in Canada. In‐depth interviews were conducted with Sudanese and Somali refugees (n=68) living in two cities in central and western Canada. Refugees were interviewed individually to identify their support needs, current sources of support, available support programmes, barriers to access to support resources, and preferred support interventions. These refugees reported major support needs, depleted social networks, and barriers to accessing services and supports. They identified distinct preferences for support from peers from the same country of origin and professionals. Participants wanted group‐level support supplemented by one‐to‐one support. Transportation, child care, meals, and peers matched by language and gender were recommended to enhance accessibility to support programmes. These findings can inform the design of support intervention research and enhance the relevance and supportiveness of services and programmes for recent refugees.     

A Survey regarding the Reporting of Simulation Studies

Hoaglin and Andrews (1975) proposed standards for computational practice and the reporting of computation-based studies. They observed that “statisticians … often pay too little attention to their own principles of design.” To see if the design and reporting had improved, we surveyed five major statistical journals for 1975, 1978, and 1981 to ascertain whether reported simulation studies involved a specified design, justified the choice of the number of iterations, and specified the random number generator(s) used. Eighteen percent of the 1,198 papers surveyed included results based on simulation. We found that 9% of the papers including a simulation study justified the choice of the number of iterations and 44% at least partially specified the random number generator. Hoaglin and Andrews's observation appears still to be true.