Public Concern About Immigration and Customer Complaints Against Minority Financial Advisors

We examine the relation between public concern about immigration and customer complaints against minority financial advisors in the United States. We find that minority advisors are more likely to receive complaints in periods of high public concern about immigration than in other periods, relative to their white colleagues from the same firm, at the same office location, and at the same point in time. This result holds for both complaints with merit and dismissed complaints and is more pronounced in counties where residents likely hold stronger anti-immigration views. We also find that minority advisors are more likely to face regulatory actions or leave their firms after customer allegations in periods of high public concern about immigration than in other periods. Overall, our study provides descriptive evidence of a positive relation between public concern about immigration and customer dissatisfaction with minority advisors. This paper was accepted by Suraj Srinivasan, accounting.

Analyzing Public Concern Responsesfor Formulating Ordinances and Lawsusing Sentiment Analysis through VADER Application

Purpose–Thispaperaimed to develop a system that applies VADER Sentiment Analysis to tweets collected using adevelopedtwitter scraper toolto identify the insights of public responsesbased on their tweetson certain government servicesrendered to them thus providing legislators of the province of Laguna an additional tool in writing future legislations.Method–This study may serve as an additional tool tothe Sangguniang Panlalawigan of Laguna in identifying sentiments of the public in terms of government services that are rendered and lack thereof based on the collected tweets written in Tagalog, English or Taglish(Tagalog and English).Data collected through the Twitter scraper tool are preprocessed taking into consideration the special characters that also have impact on scoring sentiments, emojis,and emoticons. The compound score is computed by normalizing the sum of the polarityscores foreach tweet.Results–Aside from a tabular visualization of VADER’s results, the system also provides graphical representation of the evaluation result with the percentage of positive neutral and negative tweets. Based on the result of the testing and evaluation, the VADER model is 80.71% accurate and had an F-score of 84.33%.Conclusion–The reports generated from the system be utilized to serve as potentially additional basis for legislators of the province of Laguna in writing legislations such as resolutions and ordinances based on the sentiment or voice of the community. Recommendations–It is recommended to collaborate with linguists to develop a native language of VADER’s lexicon to improve the accuracy of the sentiment scores.

Measurement and Calculation of SAR Due to 900 MHz Electromagnetic Waves

Purpose: The widespread use of mobile phones and Base Transceiver Stations (BTSs) has generated public concern about exposure to Electromagnetic (EM) waves. In this study, the electric field intensity and Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) in the emergency, general hospitalization, radiology, and laboratory departments of four hospitals in Arak (Iran) are reported. Materials and Methods: Electric field strength in the 900 MHz frequency band was obtained using a TES 592 radiometer. Then, SAR induced in the brain, skin, fat and bone tissues were calculated based on equations and the obtained values were compared with the thresholds recommended by the International Commissions. Results: The obtained results showed that the electric field’s mean value was 1.334 V/m which is almost 2.7% of the threshold introduced by the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) and 2.6% of the threshold adopted by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). The highest SAR value was 1.6 W/kg for the skin, which is lower than the threshold values presented by ICNIRP (2 W/kg) and IEEE (1.6 W/kg). Conclusion: The findings of the present work show that for both quantities in Arak hospitals the SAR values are less than the thresholds announced by IEEE and ICNIRP committees. To deal with the concerns of the community that is generally caused by a lack of awareness, the executions of educational and public awareness programs are recommended.

Identifying regional variation in place visit behavior during a global pandemic

The emergence of the SARS-CoV-2 virus in 2019 lead to a global pandemic that altered the activity behavior of most people on our planet. While government regulations and public concern modified visitation patterns to places of interest, little research has examined the nuanced changes in the length of time someone spends at a place, nor the regional variability of these changes. In this work, we examine place visit duration in four major U.S. cities, identify which place types saw the largest and smallest changes, and quantify variation between cities. Furthermore, we identify socio-economic and demographic factors that contribute to changes in visit duration and demonstrate the varying influence of these factors by region. The results of our analysis indicate that the pandemic's impact on visiting behavior varies between cities, though there are commonalities found in certain types of places. Our findings suggest that places of interest within lower income communities experienced less change in visit duration than others. An increase in the percentage of younger, Black or Hispanic populations within a community also resulted in a smaller decrease in visit duration than in other communities. These findings offer insight into the factors that contribute to changes in visiting behavior and the resilience of communities to a global pandemic.

Electronic initiatives as a tool for e-democracy: the experience of Ukraine and Latvia

The article is devoted to a comparative legal analysis of the experience of Ukraine and Latvia in the implementation of the institution of electronic initiative as an important tool of direct e-democracy. The practical question of why in some countries e-initiatives are a real leverage, while in others it is more likely just a marker that signals certain problems of concern to society, prompts a thorough study of legal regulation and information technology support of e-initiatives. For a comparative analysis of the regulation of the procedure for submitting and considering an electronic initiative, the experience of Latvia as a state that has demonstrated real successful results of the work of the online platform ManaBalss.lv as a tool for presenting, registering, discussing, considering an electronic initiative and solving issues in it was selected. In addition, the experience of this country shows that an increase in the level of participation of citizens in the management of public affairs is possible provided they are provided with an effective and convenient mechanism of influence. The article focuses on the shortcomings of the legal regulation of the institution of electronic petitions in Ukraine as the main factor in the ineffectiveness of this tool of e-democracy, including the absence of a special legislative act on electronic petitions, a legislative guarantee for resolving the issue that is raised in the petition, failure to take into account public opinion, expressed in a petition that received fewer votes than is required by law, etc. The necessity of introducing a mechanism for preliminary verification of the content of electronic petitions for constructiveness, reliability and reality is indicated. It is noted that for the proper implementation of the goal of direct e-democracy, levers of influence on the government must be created, which will make it listen to the problems of public concern.

Prevalence and Serotype Diversity of Salmonella enterica in the Estonian Meat Production Chain in 2016–2020

Background: Salmonella enterica represents a considerable public concern worldwide, with farm animals often recognised as an important reservoir. This study gives an overview of the prevalence and serotype diversity of Salmonella over a 5-year period in the meat production chain in Estonia. Data on human salmonellosis over the same period are provided. Methods: Salmonella surveillance data from 2016 to 2020 were analysed. Results: The prevalence of Salmonella at the farm level was 27.7%, 3.3% and 0.1% for fattening pigs, cattle and poultry, respectively. S. Derby was the most prevalent serotype at the farm level for fattening pigs and S. Dublin for cattle. The top three serotypes isolated at the slaughterhouse and meat cutting levels were S. Derby, monophasic S. Typhimurium and S. Typhimurium with proportions of 64.7%, 9.4% and 7.0%, respectively. These serotypes were the top five most common Salmonella serotypes responsible for human infections in Estonia. S. Enteritidis is the main cause (46.9%) of human salmonellosis cases in Estonia, but in recent years, Enteritidis has not been detected at the slaughterhouse or meat cutting level. Conclusion: In recent years, monophasic S. Typhimurium has become epidemiologically more important in Estonia, with the second-highest cause in human cases and third-highest among the most prevalent serotypes of Salmonella enterica in the meat chain.

Introduction: Shifting Attention

In recent years, attention has become a matter of increasing public concern. New digital technologies have transformed human attention materially and discursively, reorganizing perceptual practices and inciting debates about them. The essays in this special issue emerged from a set of panels focused on attention at the 4S conference in New Orleans in 2019. They are all, in various ways, concerned with shifts among attention’s many meanings: between payment and care, instinct and agency, or vulnerability and power. Drawing on Science and Technology Studies (STS) sensibilities, these pieces examine how scientific and technical actors are invested in theorizing and capturing attention, while simultaneously engendering new forms of care, resistance, and critique. At a moment where the attention economy appears to be in transformative crisis, this collection maps a set of incipient directions that ask us to pay attention to not only attention itself but also to the many sociotechnical settings where experts and publics are shifting attention’s meaning and value.

Environmental Pollution to Blame for Depressive Disorder?

Public concern has emerged about the effects of endocrine disruptor compounds (EDCs) on neuropsychiatric disorders. Preclinical evidence suggests that exposure to EDCs is associated with the development of the major depressive disorder (MDD) and could result in neural degeneration. The interaction of EDCs with hormonal receptors is the best-described mechanism of their biological activity. However, the dysregulation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal adrenal axis has been reported and linked to neurological disorders. On the other hand, at a worldwide level and in Mexico, the incidence of MDD has recently been increasing. Of note, in Mexico, there are no clinical associations on blood levels of EDCs and the incidence of the MDD. Methodology: Thus, we quantified for the first time the serum levels of parent compounds of two bisphenols and four phthalates in patients with MDD. Results: The levels of di-ethyl-hexyl-phthalate (DEHP), butyl-benzyl-phthalate (BBP), di-n-butyl phthalate (DBP), and di-ethyl-phthalate (DEP), bisphenol A (BPA), and bisphenol S (BPS) were determined with a gas chromatograph-mass spectrometer. Results/ conclusion: We found significant differences between concentrations of BBP between controls and patients with MDD.

The new intrusion tort: The news media exposed?

<p>In C v Holland, Whata J recognised that the tort of intrusion upon seclusion formed part of New Zealand’s common law. The tort protects against intentional intrusions into a person’s private space. This decision potentially exposes the news media to tortious liability when it engages in intrusive newsgathering practices. However, Whata J’s decision provides little guidance as to how the tort should be applied in later cases. In order to ascertain the meaning of the tort’s formulation, this essay draws upon the methods used, both in New Zealand and internationally, to prevent the news media from breaching individual privacy rights. It then suggests that the courts should replace the formulation with a one-step reasonable expectation of privacy test. It also argues that the legitimate public concern defence should be better tailored to the intrusion context. Finally, it briefly assesses how the intrusion tort should interact with the tort in Hosking v Runting. Ultimately, it concludes that, in future, the courts should reflect more carefully on the precise wording of the intrusion tort’s formulation so that it best vindicates the interests that it was designed to protect.</p>

The new intrusion tort: The news media exposed?

<p>In C v Holland, Whata J recognised that the tort of intrusion upon seclusion formed part of New Zealand’s common law. The tort protects against intentional intrusions into a person’s private space. This decision potentially exposes the news media to tortious liability when it engages in intrusive newsgathering practices. However, Whata J’s decision provides little guidance as to how the tort should be applied in later cases. In order to ascertain the meaning of the tort’s formulation, this essay draws upon the methods used, both in New Zealand and internationally, to prevent the news media from breaching individual privacy rights. It then suggests that the courts should replace the formulation with a one-step reasonable expectation of privacy test. It also argues that the legitimate public concern defence should be better tailored to the intrusion context. Finally, it briefly assesses how the intrusion tort should interact with the tort in Hosking v Runting. Ultimately, it concludes that, in future, the courts should reflect more carefully on the precise wording of the intrusion tort’s formulation so that it best vindicates the interests that it was designed to protect.</p>