Desensitization to hate speech: Examination using heart rate measurement.

Exposure to hate speech (HS) leads to desensitization of listeners. Yet, most evidence of this process has been obtained using self-report measures. In this paper, we examined desensitization to HS using an unobtrusive, psychophysiological measure. In an experimental electrocardiogram study (N = 56), we observed heart rate (HR) deceleration after reading comments that contained HS. This suggested a substantive psychophysiological reaction of participants to hateful comments. However, such HR deceleration was not observed among participants preexposed to HS. People exposed to hateful comments thus appeared to show different HR responses to HS compared to people who were not previously exposed to such comments. Consequently, not only does frequent exposure to HS influence an individual's beliefs as observed in earlier studies, but it also impacts psychophysiological reactions to derogatory language.

Integrating open- and closed-ended questions on attitudes towards outgroups with different methods of text analysis.

Researchers in behavioral sciences often use closed-ended questions, forcing participants to express even complex impressions or attitudes through a set of predetermined answers. Even if this has many advantages, people's opinions can be much richer. We argue for assessing them using different methods, including open-ended questions. Manual coding of open-ended answers requires much effort, but automated tools help to analyze them more easily. In order to investigate how attitudes towards outgroups can be assessed and analyzed with different methods, we carried out two representative surveys in Poland. We asked closed- and open-ended questions about what Poland should do regarding the influx of refugees. While the attitudes measured with closed-ended questions were rather negative, those that emerged from open-ended answers were not only richer, but also more positive. Many themes that emerged in the manual coding were also identified in automated text analyses with Meaning Extraction Helper (MEH). Using Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count (LIWC) and Sentiment Analyzer from the Common Language Resources and Technology Infrastructure (CLARIN), we compared the difference between the studies in the emotional tone of the answers. Our research confirms the high usefulness of open-ended questions in surveys and shows how methods of textual data analysis help in understanding people's attitudes towards outgroup members. Based on our methods comparison, researchers can choose a method or combine methods in a way that best fits their needs.

Reactive Extrusion Synthesis of Biobased Isocyanate-Free Hydrophobically Modified Ethoxylated Urethanes with Pendant Hydrophobic Groups.

Development of hydrophobically modified ethoxylated urethane (HEUR) rheology modifiers enabled the widespread application of waterborne paints and coatings, replacing their environmentally burdening solvent-based predecessors. However, the diisocyanates, required for the conventional synthesis of HEURs, pose severe eco-sustainability threats. In this paper, we demonstrate an innovative approach to avoiding toxic components in the preparation of rheology modifiers by obtaining a new class of water-soluble isocyanate-free hydrophobically modified ethoxylated poly(hydroxy-urethane)s (IFHEURs). The first step in the synthetic pathway was the preparation of CO2-based five-membered poly(ethylene glycol) bis(cyclic carbonate) and its subsequent aminolysis using 4,7,10-trioxa-1,13-tridecanediamine, yielding poly(hydroxy-urethane) (PHU) prepolymers terminated with cyclic carbonate groups. The PHU prepolymers were further extended in a reactive extrusion (REX) synthesis using biobased hydrophobic diamine PRIAMINE 1075. The REX technique made it possible to overcome the typical limitations of the aminolysis reaction and to reach the desired conversion within a moderate reaction time. IFHEURs have been structurally elucidated using FT-IR and NMR spectroscopy techniques, MALDI-ToF mass spectrometry, and SEC analysis and applied as rheology modifiers. The study of their associative behavior in aqueous solutions confirmed that the architectural flexibility of the obtained IFHEURs, containing terminal and pendant hydrophobic groups, opens a perspective for tuneable thickening performance.

The Influence of UV Radiation Aging on Degradation of Shear Thickening Fluids.

Shear thickening fluids (STFs) are innovative materials that can find applications in smart body armor. However, the usage of STFs is limited by the aging of these materials. This work aims to analyze the influence of UV radiation on the aging process of STFs. The investigation was done experimentally, and artificial aging was applied to investigate the impact of UV radiation on the properties of STFs. The shear-thickening properties of obtained STFs were confirmed by viscosity measurements. The STFs based on PPG425, PPG2700, and KE-P10 exhibited a very high maximum viscosity of up to 580.7 Pa·s and 3313 Pa·s for the STF425 and STF2700, respectively. The aging of the obtained STFs caused the liquid matrix degradation, causing damage to the STFs and their change from liquid into solid. Furthermore, the FT-IR, 1H NMR, and 13C NMR spectroscopies were used for the confirmation of the breakdown of STFs. The FT-IR spectroscopy revealed the appearance of carbonyl groups in STFs after aging. Moreover, 1H NMR and 13C NMR spectroscopy confirmed the formation of the typical groups containing carbonyl groups. Our results demonstrate that STFs are UV light-sensitive and may lose their properties during storage.

Seeing the mind of robots: Harm augments mind perception but benevolent intentions reduce dehumanisation of artificial entities in visual vignettes.

According to moral typecasting theory, good- and evil-doers (agents) interact with the recipients of their actions (patients) in a moral dyad. When this dyad is completed, mind attribution towards intentionally harmed liminal minds is enhanced. However, from a dehumanisation view, malevolent actions may instead result in a denial of humanness. To contrast both accounts, a visual vignette experiment (N = 253) depicted either malevolent or benevolent intentions towards robotic or human avatars. Additionally, we examined the role of harm-salience by showing patients as either harmed, or still unharmed. The results revealed significantly increased mind attribution towards visibly harmed patients, mediated by perceived pain and expressed empathy. Benevolent and malevolent intentions were evaluated respectively as morally right or wrong, but their impact on the patient was diminished for the robotic avatar. Contrary to dehumanisation predictions, our manipulation of intentions failed to affect mind perception. Nonetheless, benevolent intentions reduced dehumanisation of the patients. Moreover, when pain and empathy were statistically controlled, the effect of intentions on mind perception was mediated by dehumanisation. These findings suggest that perceived intentions might only be indirectly tied to mind perception, and that their role may be better understood when additionally accounting for empathy and dehumanisation.

Robots as Malevolent Moral Agents: Harmful Behavior Results in Dehumanization, Not Anthropomorphism.

A robot's decision to harm a person is sometimes considered to be the ultimate proof of it gaining a human-like mind. Here, we contrasted predictions about attribution of mental capacities from moral typecasting theory, with the denial of agency from dehumanization literature. Experiments 1 and 2 investigated mind perception for intentionally and accidentally harmful robotic agents based on text and image vignettes. Experiment 3 disambiguated agent intention (malevolent and benevolent), and additionally varied the type of agent (robotic and human) using short computer-generated animations. Harmful robotic agents were consistently imbued with mental states to a lower degree than benevolent agents, supporting the dehumanization account. Further results revealed that a human moral patient appeared to suffer less when depicted with a robotic agent than with another human. The findings suggest that future robots may become subject to human-like dehumanization mechanisms, which challenges the established beliefs about anthropomorphism in the domain of moral interactions.

Hyperbranched Poly(ether-siloxane)s Containing Ammonium Groups: Synthesis, Characterization and Catalytic Activity.

In this article we report an easy synthetic route towards hyperbranched polyglycerols (Amm-HBPGs) containing trimethylammonium groups and siloxane or hydroxyl end-groups. Siloxane derivatives of Amm-HBPGs were synthesized in an efficient five-step procedure including an anionic ring opening copolymerization of the phthalimide-epoxy monomer with glycidol, followed by reactions with allyl bromide, hydrosililation with hydrogenheptamethyltrisiloxane, hydrazinolysis of phthalimide groups and quaternization of resulting amine groups with methyl iodide. Hydroxyl derivatives were obtained by quaternization of previously reported aminated HBPG's with methyl iodide. Polymeric products were characterized using various NMR techniques, FTIR, and elemental analysis. Both Amm-HBPGs were shown to be effective in catalysis of addition of CO2 to oxirane. The hydrophilic catalysts showed higher efficiency but synthesis of ethylene carbonate was accompanied by formation of small amounts of ethylene glycol. The siloxane-containing catalyst was easily separable from reaction mixture showing high potential in the process of converting carbon dioxide into valuable chemical raw materials.

Avatars in Pain: Visible Harm Enhances Mind Perception in Humans and Robots.

Previous research has shown that when people read vignettes about the infliction of harm upon an entity appearing to have no more than a liminal mind, their attributions of mind to that entity increased. Currently, we investigated if the presence of a facial wound enhanced the perception of mental capacities (experience and agency) in response to images of robotic and human-like avatars, compared with unharmed avatars. The results revealed that harmed versions of both robotic and human-like avatars were imbued with mind to a higher degree, irrespective of the baseline level of mind attributed to their unharmed counterparts. Perceptions of capacity for pain mediated attributions of experience, while both pain and empathy mediated attributions of abilities linked to agency. The findings suggest that harm, even when it appears to have been inflicted unintentionally, may augment mind perception for robotic as well as for nearly human entities, at least as long as it is perceived to elicit pain.

Poisonings in Poland reported to the Polish National Health Fund in the years 2009-2011.

BACKGROUND: Poisonings constitute a significant medical, social and economic problem worldwide. In Poland there is no nationwide registry of poisonings, which results in a lack of accurate epidemiological data. Few publications dealing with the problem are based on data obtained from toxicology units and therefore do not include information about cases treated at emergency departments and other non-toxicology units. METHODS: We analyzed all admissions due to poisonings reported to the Polish National Health Fund by all hospital units in Poland in the 2009-2011 period. Diagnoses were encoded according to the ICD-10 classification. RESULTS: A total of 254,425 admissions were reported, 85,398 in 2009, 85,230 in 2010 and 83,797 in 2011. The male to female ratios were 1.88, 1.75 and 1.80 respectively. The most frequent causes of admissions were poisonings with ethanol (n = 121,874; 47.9%), carbon monoxide (n = 17,179; 6.8%) and benzodiazepines (n = 10,340; 4.1%). Alcohols were the reason for 104,680 admissions in men (63.2%) and 22,612 admissions in women (25.5%; p < 0.01). Poisonings with pharmaceuticals and other drugs were reported in 34,616 men (20.9%) and 45,238 women (51%; p < 0.01). There were 1680 cases of fatal poisonings in the analyzed period. The hospital mortality due to poisonings increased from 1.1% in 2009 to 1.5% in 2011 (p < 0.01). The mortality in general Intensive Care Units increased from 14.4% in 2009 to 22.3% in 2011 (p < 0.01). The etiology of fatal poisonings was highly dependent on the type of hospital unit. CONCLUSIONS: The overall number of admissions due to poisonings decreased slightly during the study period, but they remained a significant cause of morbidity and mortality. Alcohols were the main cause of admissions in the analyzed period. Alcohol intoxications were more frequent in men while poisonings with pharmaceuticals were more frequent in women. Carbon monoxide exposures were a significant cause of morbidity and mortality in the studied period in Poland. A national poison information and toxicovigilance system should be created in Poland, ideally allowing for near real-time monitoring of cases of poisonings.

Data on synthesis and characterization of new diglycerol based environmentally friendly non-isocyanate poly(hydroxyurethanes).

This article contains original experimental data, figures and methods to the preparation of non-isocyanate poly(hydroxyurethanes) by an environmentally friendly method without the use of toxic phosgene and isocyanates from bis(2,3-dihydroxypropyl)ether dicarbonate and various diamines (Tryznowski et al., Submitted for publication) [1]. Bis(2,3-dihydroxypropyl)ether dicarbonate was obtained from a one-step procedure from commercially available diglycerol. The product was characterized by (1)H NMR, (13)C NMR, and FTIR spectroscopies and for the first time by X-Ray diffraction measurements. Then, the bis(cyclic carbonate) monomer was used as a precursor for the synthesis of various NIPUs. The NIPUs were prepared in a non-solvent process. Spectral and thermal properties of the NIPUs are compered. Here we give the procedure in order to perform bis(2,3-dihydroxypropyl)ether dicarbonate with high yield and the procedure NIPU synthesis and the complete set of monomer and NIPU analysis ((1)H NMR, (13)C NMR, FTIR, X-Ray).

[Clinical importance and diagnostic methods of minimal hepatic encephalopathy]. / Znaczenie kliniczne oraz metody diagnostyczne utajonej encefalopatii watrobowej.

Minimal hepatic encephalopathy (MHE) encompasses a number of neuropsychological and neurophysiological disorders in patients suffering from liver cirrhosis, who do not display abnormalities during a medical interview or physical examination. A negative influence of MHE on the quality of life of patients suffering from liver cirrhosis was confirmed, which include retardation of ability of operating motor vehicles and disruption of multiple health-related areas, as well as functioning in the society. The data on frequency of traffic offences and accidents amongst patients diagnosed with MHE in comparison to patients diagnosed with liver cirrhosis without MHE, as well as healthy persons is alarming. Those patients are unaware of their disorder and retardation of their ability to operate vehicles, therefore it is of utmost importance to define this group. The term minimal hepatic encephalopathy (formerly "subclinical" encephalopathy) erroneously suggested the unnecessity of diagnostic and therapeutic procedures in patients with liver cirrhosis. Diagnosing MHE is an important predictive factor for occurrence of overt encephalopathy - more than 50% of patients with this diagnosis develop overt encephalopathy during a period of 30 months after. Early diagnosing MHE gives a chance to implement proper treatment which can be a prevention of overt encephalopathy. Due to continuing lack of clinical research there exist no commonly agreed-upon standards for definition, diagnostics, classification and treatment of hepatic encephalopathy. This article introduces the newest findings regarding the importance of MHE, scientific recommendations and provides detailed descriptions of the most valuable diagnostic methods.

Real or Artificial? Intergroup Biases in Mind Perception in a Cross-Cultural Perspective.

Recent research suggests that attributions of aliveness and mental capacities to faces are influenced by social group membership. In this article, we investigated group related biases in mind perception in participants from a Western and Eastern culture, employing faces of varying ethnic groups. In Experiment 1, Caucasian faces that ranged on a continuum from real to artificial were evaluated by participants in the UK (in-group) and in India (out-group) on animacy, abilities to plan and to feel pain, and having a mind. Human features were found to be assigned to a greater extent to faces when these belonged to in-group members, whereas out-group faces had to appear more realistic in order to be perceived as human. When participants in India evaluated South Asian (in-group) and Caucasian (out-group) faces in Experiment 2, the results closely mirrored those of the first experiment. For both studies, ratings of out-group faces were significantly predicted by participants' levels of ethnocultural empathy. The findings highlight the role of intergroup processes (i.e., in-group favoritism, out-group dehumanization) in the perception of human and mental qualities and point to ethnocultural empathy as an important factor in responses to out-groups.

[Selected data of acute poisonings with ethylene glycol and methanol in Poland in the year 2010]. / Wybrane zagadnienia dotyczace ostrych zatruc glikolem etylenowym i metanolem w Polsce w roku 2010.

UNLABELLED: There are no reliable studies in Poland evaluating the scale of acute intoxications with different type of xenobiotics. The aim of the study was to evaluate selected problems referring to the patients intoxicated with ethylene glycol and methanol, who were given the medical treatment in all Toxicological (TUs) and Intensive Care Units (ICUs), having contract with Polish National Fund of Health, in the year 2010. All cases of acute intoxications treated in polish hospitals in 2010 and reported to the Polish National Fund of Health were included to the analysis. To further analysis were chosen only those patients, whose main diagnosis or co-morbidities were coded as T 51.1 or T 52.3, according to the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems 10th Revision and, according to the state of health, patients were treated in TUs and ICUs. All the cases, in which intoxication was not the main health problem were excluded. RESULTS: There were 85 230 acute poisonings in Poland in 2010, 503 of them referred to ethylene glycol and methanol poisonings. 220 patients were treated in TUs and ICUs. The most common methods of therapy in those units were extracorporeal toxin removal (53.22% in TUs and 52.08% in ICUs) and conservative treatment (46.78% in TUs and 47.92% in ICUs). The mortality rate in ethylene glycol and methanol poisonings in TUs and ICUs were 20.97% and 48.96% respectively. In the conservatively treated group the mortality rates in TUs and ICUs were 15.52% and 54.35% respectively, while in extracorporeal toxin removal group the mortality rates in TUs and ICUs were 25.76% and 44.00% respectively. The authors also observed one region (Maków Mazowiecki), in which the amount of ethylene glycol and methanol poisonings was much higher than in the rest part of the country. CONCLUSIONS: 1. All the cases of acute intoxications of glycol and methanol should be consulted with Polish Poison Control Centers. 2. It is necessary to establish diagnostic and treatment protocols for intoxicated patients in Poland. 3. There is a strong need for popularization of the modern methods of glycol and methanol poisonings therapy and increasing the availability of modern antidotes. 4. It is necessary to continue monitoring and evaluation of different ways of treatment glycol and methanol intoxications. 5. The cases of abnormally high rate of glycol and methanol intoxications in some hospitals should be investigated.

[Selected data concerning acute intoxications with xenobiotics in Poland in the year 2010]. / Wybrane zagadnienia dotyczace ostrych zatruc ksenobiotykami w Polsce w 2010 roku.

UNLABELLED: There are no reliable studies in Poland evaluating the amount of acute intoxications by drugs, chemical substances, animal venom, plant toxins. The aim of the study was to evaluate selected problems referring to intoxicated patients, who were given medical treatment in all hospitals having contract with National Fund of Health in 2010. All medical interventions, in which the main diagnosis were coded as T36-T65 (with four-character subcategories) according to the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems 10th Revision, were involved to the study. Also all poisonings with those codes put as comorbidities and positively verified by the authors, were included to the analysis. There were 85 230 acute intoxications in Poland in 2010. In 41 653 cases there were no need of further hospital treatment. Ethanol poisonings were the most common diagnosis among patients treated in the Emergency Departments. The average hospitalization in Toxicology Centers lasted 3.35 days while in other hospitals about 3 days. There is the high percentage of discharges on "patient's demand" (about 12% of all hospitalizations). In Toxicological Units this kind of discharges reaches up to 18%. In 2010 there were 580 deaths because of acute intoxications. It presents 1.33% of all hospitalizations. It's worth to indicate that the mortality rate in critical care departments has reached the level of 17.82%, while in Toxicology Centers the mortality rate was 0.96% in all cases and less than 3% in most severe poisonings. CONCLUSIONS: In Poland, as it is in other countries, the national toxicological information and control system should be brought into being. The system should be based on Toxicology Centers which should exist in all Polish districts. Taking into consideration the high mortality rate outside the Toxicological Units, there is a need of toxicological education of doctors, nurses and other medical staff. It's necessary to monitor permanently diagnostics, treatment and mortality rate of intoxicated patients.

[Selected data of acute intoxications with glycol and methanol in Poland in the year 2009]. / Wybrane zagadnienia dotyczace ostrych zatruc glikolem i metanolem w Polsce w roku 2009.

BACKGROUND: There are no reliable studies in Poland evaluating the scale of acute intoxications with different types of xenobiotics. OBJECTIVE: The aim of the study was to evaluate selected problems referring to the patients intoxicated with glycol and methanol, who were given the medical treatment in all Toxicological (TUs) and Intensive Care Units (ICUs), having contract with Polish National Fund of Health, in the year 2009. METHODS: All cases of acute intoxications treated in Polish hospitals in 2009 and reported to the Polish National Fund of Health were included to the analysis. To further analysis were chosen only those patients, whose main diagnosis or comorbidities were coded as T51.1 or T52.3 according to the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems 10th Revision and, according to the state of health, patients were treated in TUs and ICUs. All the cases, in which intoxication was not the main health problem were excluded. RESULTS: There were 85 398 acute intoxications in Poland in 2009, 470 of them referred to glycol and methanol poisonings. 192 patients were treated in TUs and ICUs. The most common methods of therapy in those units were extracorporeal toxin removal (60.2% in TUs and 62.5% in ICUs) and conservative treatment (39.8% in TUs and 37.5% in ICUs). The mortality rate in glycol and methanol poisonings in TUs and ICUs were 24.2%, and 56.3% respectively. In the conservatively treated group the mortality rates in TUs and ICUs were 23.5%, and 66.7% respectively, while in extracorporeal toxin removal group the mortality rates in TUs and ICUs were 24.7%, and 50% respectively. The authors also observed two regions (Maków Mazowiecki and Slubice), in which the amount of glycol and methanol intoxications was much higher than in the rest part of the country. CONCLUSIONS: 1. All the cases of acute intoxications of glycol and methanol should be consulted with Polish Poison Control Centers. 2. It is necessary to establish diagnostic and treatment protocols for intoxicated patients in Poland. 3. There is a strong need for popularization of the modern methods of glycol and methanol poisonings therapy and increasing the availability of modern antidotes. 4. It is necessary to monitor diagnostics, treatment and mortality rate of glycol and methanol intoxicated patients in all types of hospital units in Poland. 5. There is a need of further toxicological education of medical students and doctors as well. 6. The cases of abnormally high rate of glycol and methanol intoxications in some hospitals should be investigated.

[Selected data concerning acute intoxications with xenobiotics in Poland in the year 2009]. / Wybrane zagadnienia dotyczace ostrych zatruc ksenobiotykami w Polsce w roku 2009.

BACKGROUND: There are no reliable studies in Poland evaluating the amount of acute intoxications by drugs, chemical substances, animal venom, plant toxins. THE AIM OF THE STUDY: The aim of the study was to evaluate selected problems referring to intoxicated patients, who were given medical treatment in all hospitals having contract with National Fund of Health in 2009. MATERIAL AND METHODS: All medical interventions, in which the main diagnosis were coded as T36-T65 (with four-character subcategories) according to the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems 10th Revision, were involved to the study. Also all poisonings with those codes put as comorbidities and positively verified by the authors, were included to the analysis. RESULTS: There were 85 398 acute intoxications in Poland in 2009. In 42 002 cases there were no need of further hospital treatment. Ethanol poisonings were the most common diagnosis among patients treated in the Emergency Departments. Intoxication with drugs were dominant among patients admitted to hospitals. The average hospitalization in Toxicology Centers lasted 3,6 days while in other hospitals about 3 days. There is the high percentage of discharges on "patient's demand" (about 13% of all hospitalizations). In Toxicological Units this kind of discharges reaches up to 19%. In 2009 there were 491 deaths because of acute intoxications. It presents 1.13% of all hospitalizations. It's worth to indicate that the mortality rate in critical care departments has reached the level of 14.41%, while in Toxicology Centers the mortality rate was 1.13% in all cases and less than 4% in most severe poisonings. CONCLUSIONS: 1. In Poland, as it is in other countries, the national toxicological information and control system should be brought into being. The system should be based on existing Toxicology Centers. 2. Taking into consideration the high mortality rate outside the Toxicological Units, there is a need nurses and other medical staff. 3. It's necessary to monitor permanently diagnostics, treatment and mortality rate of intoxicated patients in Poland.