Alleviating time poverty among the working poor: a pre-registered longitudinal field experiment

Poverty entails more than a scarcity of material resources—it also involves a shortage of time. To examine the causal benefits of reducing time poverty, we conducted a longitudinal field experiment over six consecutive weeks in an urban slum in Kenya with a sample of working mothers, a population who is especially likely to experience severe time poverty. Participants received vouchers for services designed to reduce their burden of unpaid labor. We compared the effect of these vouchers against equivalently valued unconditional cash transfers (UCTs) and a neutral control condition. In contrast to our pre-registered hypotheses, a pre-registered Bayesian ANCOVA indicated that the time-saving, UCT, and control conditions led to similar increases in subjective well-being, reductions in perceived stress, and decreases in relationship conflict (Cohen’s d’s ranged from 0.25 to 0.85 during the treatment weeks and from 0.21 to 0.36 at the endline). Exploratory analyses revealed that the time-saving vouchers and UCTs produced these benefits through distinct psychological pathways. We conclude by discussing the implications of these results for economic development initiatives. Protocol registration The Stage 1 protocol for this Registered Report was accepted in principle on 27/06/2019. The protocol, as accepted by Nature Human Behaviour, can be found at https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.c.4368455.

The de Almeida–Thouless Line in Hierarchical Quantum Spin Glasses

We determine explicitly and discuss in detail the effects of the joint presence of a longitudinal and a transversal (random) magnetic field on the phases of the Random Energy Model and its hierarchical generalization, the GREM. Our results extent known results both in the classical case of vanishing transversal field and in the quantum case for vanishing longitudinal field. Following Derrida and Gardner, we argue that the longitudinal field has to be implemented hierarchically also in the Quantum GREM. We show that this ensures the shrinking of the spin glass phase in the presence of the magnetic fields as is also expected for the Quantum Sherrington–Kirkpatrick model.

Runaway electron flows in magnetized coaxial gas diodes

This paper presents the experimental results on applying a strong magnetic field (B) to increase the uniformity and density of a picosecond runaway electron flow (RAEF) formed in an air coaxial diode with a tubular cathode. A uniform longitudinal field Bz allows to confine RAEF similarly to the electron beam in a magnetically insulated coaxial vacuum diode. Dependence of the spatial discreteness of RAEF emission and the transverse size of the emitting plasma regions on Bz has been demonstrated. For the cathode diameter of 8 mm, a current density was significantly increased from 40 A/cm2 (at Bz = const) to 100 A/cm2 by applying B-field with converging field lines. In the region of B maximum (5 T) the RAEF diameter was squeezed by ≈ 4 times.

Energy efficiency comparison of three-phase transverse and longitudinal field inductors

The paper presents the results of energy efficiency and traction evaluation of linear induction machines for with molten aluminum recycling furnaces. Ansys Maxwell software was used for the synthesis of 3D parametric models of electromagnetic fields for a large air gap furnace. Interchangeable modules of three-phase transverse and longitudinal field inductors were used as a subsystem of a parametric model. Both inductor models include invertor low frequency power supply. Transverse and longitudinal field inductors have been designed with similarity principles. A stationary electromagnetic mode and power parameters has been modeled without taking melt hydrodynamics into account. Linear induction transverse-field machines have demonstrated higher efficiency.

Climate change: An increase in norms for inclusion predicts greater fit and commitment for women in STEM

In male-dominated STEM fields, workplace culture is often cited as a factor for women’s attrition. In the present research, we used longitudinal field data to examine how changes in the perceived normative support for gender-inclusive policies and practices over 6 months relate to changes in women’s and men’s experiences of fit and commitment to their organization. Longitudinal analyses of survey data from a sample of 181 engineers revealed that increased perceptions of support for gender-inclusive policies and practices predicted increased organizational commitment only among women, an effect that was mediated by an increase in organizational value fit. Additional analyses suggest that perceptions of change in normative attitudes toward inclusive policies were more predictive of women’s organizational commitment than the awareness that the policies were in place or that one has personally benefitted from them. The implications of an inclusive workplace culture for supporting women’s retention in STEM are discussed.