• 10. No inequality close

Real-world studies show that the facial expressions produced during pain and orgasm—two different and intense affective experiences—are virtually indistinguishable. However, this finding is counterintuitive, because facial expressions are widely considered to be a powerful tool for social interaction. Consequently, debate continues as to whether the facial expressions of these extreme positive and negative affective states serve a communicative function. Here, we address this debate from a novel angle by modeling the mental representations of dynamic facial expressions of pain and orgasm in 40 observers in each of two cultures (Western, East Asian) using a data-driven method. Using a complementary approach of machine learning, an information-theoretic analysis, and a human perceptual discrimination task, we show that mental representations of pain and orgasm are physically and perceptually distinct in each culture. Cross-cultural comparisons also revealed that pain is represented by similar face movements across cultures, whereas orgasm showed distinct cultural accents. Together, our data show that mental representations of the facial expressions of pain and orgasm are distinct, which questions their nondiagnosticity and instead suggests they could be used for communicative purposes. Our results also highlight the potential role of cultural and perceptual factors in shaping the mental representation of these facial expressions. We discuss new research directions to further explore their relationship to the production of facial expressions. Significance Humans often use facial expressions to communicate social messages. However, observational studies report that people experiencing pain or orgasm produce facial expressions that are indistinguishable, which questions their role as an effective tool for communication. Here, we investigate this counterintuitive finding using a new data-driven approach to model the mental representations of facial expressions of pain and orgasm in individuals from two different cultures. Using complementary analyses, we show that representations of pain and orgasm are distinct in each culture. We also show that pain is represented with similar face movements across cultures, whereas orgasm shows differences. Our findings therefore inform understanding of the possible communicative role of facial expressions of pain and orgasm, and how culture could shape their representation.

Throughout Islamic history the conflict between the Enlightenment, that is, recognition of the primacy of reason vis-a-vis the sacred, and religious orthodoxy has revolved around a fight over the control of the institutions of learning. In medieval Islam the cultural borrowing from the Greek legacy contributed to the rise of Islamic rationalism. The Islamic fiqh-orthodoxy, though, succeeded in undermining the spread of this innovation in Islam. The great achievements of Islamic rational philosophers such as al-Kindi, Avicenna or Averroes, were thus being prevented from inclusion into the teaching of the madrasa, that is, the Islamic institution of learning. In cultural sociology, scholars are aware of the fact that new ideas and worldviews need to be institutionalised by establishing the related new knowledge in the system of education. Otherwise the new thinking will fail to have a social impact.1 This is exactly what happened in medieval Islam: Islamic rationalism was denied this needed institutionalisation and hence the lack of its impact on society becomes clear.

ABSTRACTThe presence of immigrants is an important contextual variable when explaining attitudes toward immigrants. We examine how the presence of immigrants is related to the affective social dist...

Background Despite the centrality of family in Indian society, relatively little is known about family-based communication concerning sexual behaviour and HIV/AIDS in rural Indian families. To date, very few family-based adolescent HIV-prevention interventions have been developed for rural Indian youth. This study conducted formative research with youth aged 14 to18 years and their parents in order to assess the feasibility of conducting a family-based HIV-prevention intervention for rural Indian adolescents. Methods Eight focus groups were conducted (n = 46) with mothers, fathers, adolescent females and adolescent males (two focus groups were held for each of the four groups). All focus groups consisted of same-gender participants. Adolescents aged 14 to18 years old and their parents were recruited from a tribal community in rural Maharashtra, India. Focus group transcripts were content analyzed to identify themes related to family perceptions about HIV/AIDS and participation in a family-based intervention to reduce adolescent vulnerability to HIV infection. Results Six primary thematic areas were identified: (1) family knowledge about HIV/AIDS; (2) family perceptions about adolescent vulnerability to HIV infection; (3) feasibility of a family-based programme to prevent adolescent HIV infection; (4) barriers to participation; (5) recruitment and retention strategies; and (6) preferred content for an adolescent HIV prevention intervention. Conclusion Despite suggestions that family-based approaches to preventing adolescent HIV infection may be culturally inappropriate, our results suggest that a family-based intervention to prevent adolescent HIV infection is feasible if it: (1) provides families with comprehensive HIV prevention strategies and knowledge; (2) addresses barriers to participation; (3) is adolescent friendly, flexible and convenient; and (4) is developmentally and culturally appropriate for rural Indian families.

New multi-epoch, mid-infrared (8-13 microns) spectrophotometric observations are presented for 30~late-type stars. The observations were collected over a four year period (1994-1997), permitting an investigation of the mid-infrared spectral shape as a function of the pulsation cycle (typically 1-2 years). The spectra of stars with little excess infrared emission and those with carbon-rich dust show the least spectral variability, while stars with evidence for dusty, oxygen-rich envelopes are most likely to show discernible variations in their spectral profile. Most significantly, a large fraction of variable stars with strong 9.7 micron emission features show clear spectral profile changes which repeat from one cycle to the next. The significant sharpening of the silicate feature near maximum light can not be fully explained by heating and cooling of the circumstellar dust shell during the pulsational cycle, suggesting that the dust optical properties themselves must also be varying. In addition, the appearance of a narrow emission feature near the silicate peak for a few stars may require the production of especially ``pure'' silicate dust near maximum light. The general narrowing of the silicate feature observed may reflect the evolution of the pre-existing dirty grains whose surface impurities have been evaporated off when the grain temperature rises preceding maximum light. An improved theory of dust formation which can explain the observed changes in the grain properties around a single, pulsating star may lead to a definitive explanation for the diversity of silicate emission profiles observed amongst oxygen-rich, late-type stars.

International audience; Triplet excitation transport occurring in the columnar liquid crystalline phase of a triphenylene derivative at room temperature is studied by transient absorption spectroscopy with nanosecond resolution. The properties of the triplet excitons are evidenced by doping the mesophase with different concentrations of 2,4,6-trinitrofluoren-9-one (TNF) which is inserted in the stacks of the triphenylene cores (T) and acts as energy trap. It is shown that triplet migration and trapping leads to the formation of the ion-pair 3(T+, TNF-), whose recombination rate constant is 5.5 × 105 s-1. The comparison of the experimentally determined time dependence of the ion-pair concentration with numerically simulated curves on the basis of an one-dimensional random walk model allows the determination of the hopping time (2 ± 1 ps). The latter value is close to that found, in a previous study, for the singlet excitation transport (1.2 ± 0.5 ps) in the same mesophase. This is in agreement with the finding that interactions due to intermolecular orbital overlap, responsible for energy transport in the triplet state, are also the main driving force for singlet excitation transport. The migration length of the triplet exciton is limited by structural defects to a few hundreds of triphenylene cores.

Lindsay 1 is an intermediate age (approx 8 Gyr) massive cluster in the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC). Using VLT FORS2 spectra of 16 probable cluster members on the lower RGB of the cluster, we measure CN and CH band strengths (at 3883 and 4300 Angstroms respectively), along with carbon and nitrogen abundances and find that a sub-population of stars has significant nitrogen enrichment. A lack of spread in carbon abundances excludes evolutionary mixing as the source of this enrichment, so we conclude that this is evidence of multiple populations. Therefore, L1 is the youngest cluster to show such variations, implying that the process triggering the onset of multiple populations must operate until at least redshift ~1. 5 pages, accepted for publication in MNRAS Letters

Este artigo teve como objetivo identificar aspetos ambientais influentes no processo de inclusão de alunos com incapacidade. Foram analisados Programas Educativos Individuais (PEI) de 170 alunos com necessidades adicionais de suporte, num processo de recolha que cobriu diferentes regiões de Portugal Continental. Os conteúdos dos PEI foram objeto de análise de conteúdo, procedendo- se à identificação de unidades de significado e sua categorização dedutiva nas taxonomias de: Whiteneck et al. (1997) – acessibilidade, disponibilidade, adaptabilidade, suporte social e equidade; e da CIFCJ (OMS, 2007) – produtos e tecnologias, ambiente natural, apoio e relacionamentos, atitudes e serviços, sistemas e politicas. Os resultados sugerem que o suporte social (e.g., atitudes, comportamentos de apoio), a disponibilidade (e.g., serviços, recursos, materiais) e a adaptabilidade (e.g., ajustamento de métodos/ tarefas/ materiais) são, na globalidade dos casos, as dimensões mais consideradas no apoio à participação dos alunos com incapacidade. De modo correspondente, os domínios da CIF-CJ mais abordados foram o apoio e relacionamentos (i.e., apoio prático físico ou emocional) e os produtos e tecnologias, especificamente métodos/ materiais educativos especialmente concebidos ou adaptados. A partir destes resultados são discutidas implicações práticas em diferentes níveis do sistema educativo. The aim of this study was to identify environmental conditions that influence the inclusion process of students with disabilities. To this end, the Individualized Education Programs (IEP) for 170 students with additional support needs were analyzed. The sample represented all regions of continental Portugal. The IEP were subject to content analysis with the identification of meaning units and its deductive categorization within the taxonomies proposed by Whiteneck et al. (1997) – accessibility availability, adaptability, social support and equity – and the ICF-CY (WHO, 2007) – products and technology, natural environment, support and relationships, attitudes, and services, systems and policies. The results suggested that social support (e.g., attitudes, supportive behaviors) and availability (e.g., services, resources, materials) and adaptability (e.g., adjustment of methods/tasks/materials) were the most referenced dimensions in the support provided to enhance students’ participation. In a congruent way, the most mentioned domains of the ICF-CY were support and relationships (i.e., physical and emotional practical support) and products and technology, specifically educational methods/ materials adapted or especially designed. Based on these results practical implications on different educational system levels were outlined. Cet article vise l’identification de plusieurs variables de nature environnementale qui influencent le processus d’inclusion des étudiants handicapés. On a analysé les programmes éducatifs individuels (PEI) de 170 élèves ayant des besoins d’assistance supplémentaires, en suivant une procédure d’échantillonnage qui couvrait différentes régions du Portugal continental. Le contenu de chaque PEI a été l’objet d’une analyse de contenu où étaient identifiées des unités de signification qui étaient après catégorisées déductivement en utilisant des catégories incluses dans les taxonomies de Whiteneck et al. (1997) – accessibilité, disponibilité, adaptabilité, soutien social et équité – et de la CIF-EA (OMS, 2007) - produits et systèmes techniques, environnement naturel, soutiens et relations, les attitudes et services, systèmes et politiques. Les résultats suggèrent que, dans l’ensemble des cas, le soutien social, la disponibilité et l’adaptabilité sont les dimensions plus considérées dans le soutien à la participation des étudiants handicapés. Corrélativement, les domaines plus considérés de la CIF-EA ont été les soutiens et relations et les produits et systèmes techniques, en particulier les méthodes / matériels pédagogiques spécialement conçus ou adaptés. Ces résultats sont discutés en termes de ses implications pratiques aux différents niveaux d l’enseignement. Este trabalho foi apoiado pela Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT) ao abrigo da Bolsa n.º SFRH/BD/47417/2008 SI