This study longitudinally modeled home language exposure patterns of US Spanish–English bilingual children between the ages of 4 and 12. Participants were 280 Spanish–English bilinguals (95% Hispanic, 52% female) who were followed for up to 5 years using a cross-sequential longitudinal design. Multilevel linear regression models were used to estimate language exposure trajectories across four home language sources (adults, peers, electronic media and literacy activities) and three language modes (Spanish-only, English-only and bilingual). Results demonstrated that Spanish interactions with both adults and peers declined as children aged, while bilingual interactions showed a distinct increase over time. Conversely, media exposure and engagement in literacy activities increased over time, irrespective of the language used. Children’s age of first English exposure and current school English exposure also influenced language contact and use in the home. These findings approximate an 8-year exposure trajectory across a continuum of bilingual experiences.

This study investigates the referential forms children use to introduce characters in Swedish, in a cross-sectional sample of oral narratives by 100 Turkish/Swedish bilinguals aged 4 to 7 and in a longitudinal sample from age 4 to 6 (N = 10). We analysed development with age and how language proficiency (expressive vocabulary) and exposure affect children’s use of referring expressions, with a focus on referential appropriateness. In addition, a qualitative analysis of the characteristics of high- and low-performing children was carried out. The results show significant effects of age and language proficiency, but not of language exposure on appropriate use of referring expressions. At age 7, 69% of the characters were introduced with an indefinite NP. The Turkish/Swedish bilinguals were found to lag behind in their use of indefinite NPs in comparison to Swedish-speaking children investigated in previous studies, with little crosslinguistic influence from L1 Turkish.

A significant proportion of the forested production area in South Carolina is managed using aerial applications of imazapyr. Cotton injury from off-target movement of imazapyr has been observed in South Carolina. Field experiments were conducted twice at the Edisto Research and Education Center (EREC) in 2021 and 2022, and once at the Pee Dee Research and Education Center (PDREC) in 2022, to evaluate the response of cotton at two growth stages to imazapyr at 0.1×, 0.05×, 0.025×, 0.0125×, and 0.00625× of the normal use rate of 0.84 kg ae ha−1. Injury to cotton at the vegetative stage was 86% and 74% at 0.1× and 0.05× imazapyr rates 28 d after application (DAA). Cotton height ranged from 23 to 93 cm at all three locations. Yield at the EREC location in 2021 was reduced by 79%, 48%, and 31% at the 0.1×, 0.05×, and 0.025× rates of imazapyr, respectively. Similar reductions from imazapyr were observed at both EREC and PDREC in 2022. Injury to cotton at the reproductive stage based on visual estimates at 28 DAA ranged from 95% to 64% for the 0.1× to 0.0125× rates, respectively. Cotton height at the reproductive stage was reduced to 59% of the untreated control 28 DAA when the 0.1× rate of imazapyr was applied. Seed cotton (which included both seed and lint) yield ranged from 0 to 2,880 kg ha−1 at the three locations in both years. Seed cotton yield was lowest when imazapyr was applied at the 0.1× to 0.025× rates. Cotton exposure to imazapyr at the vegetative and reproductive growth stages resulted in plant injury, height, and yield reductions, especially at the higher rates of imazapyr. The greatest reduction in cotton growth and yield was observed after exposure at the reproductive growth stage regardless of imazapyr rate. In summary, the magnitude of cotton response to imazapyr depends on crop growth stage and imazapyr concentration at the time of exposure with the greatest impact occurring at the reproductive growth stage.

Interactions between social identity groups can reduce perceptions of threatening out-groups and improve inter-group attitudes. But these interactions have an inevitable side effect: while an interaction may improve attitudes among its participants, the same interaction can increase exposure to out-groups in the proximity of the interaction, leading to increased perceptions of threat among those not participating in the interaction. With such negative externalities in mind, this paper argues that the presence of a large number of out-group members both improves and aggravates native attitudes toward out-groups in the same area, which may, in the aggregate, conceal a hot spot of anti-immigration attitudes. This study examines the effects of interaction and exposure through a series of surveys of native attitudes toward Muslim immigrants in the Netherlands. While the exposure effect was not observed, empirical analyses suggest that brief interactions tend to worsen negative attitudes toward Muslims, possibly due to their physical and religious appearances. This highlights the importance of visual cues in shaping inter-group relations, as these visual cues may prompt natives to sort out interactions based on appearance, hindering efforts to promote inter-group contact between Muslims and non-Muslims.

Since the 1990s, gender quotas have been celebrated for improving women’s equality. Yet their cross-national and longitudinal impact on attitudes toward female politicians and the mechanism through which this process occurs are not well understood. Using multilevel modeling on 87 nations, we examine how different types of quotas, with varied features and levels of strength, shape beliefs about women in politics. We give particular attention to the mechanism of visibility created by quotas in impacting attitudes. Results suggest that unlike quotas with features facilitating low visibility (i.e., weak quotas), those producing high visibility (i.e., robust quotas) significantly impact public approval of women in politics. However, the direction of this effect varies by quota type. Social context also matters. Robust quota effects—both positive and negative—are especially pronounced in democracies but are insignificant in nondemocracies. Limited differences by gender (men versus women) emerge. Theoretical and policy implications are discussed.

The objective of the present study was to assess the dietary intake of steviol glycosides in the Belgian population and to conduct a risk assessment by comparing the estimated intakes to the acceptable daily intake (ADI). A tiered approach was adopted in this study. First, a Tier 2 assessment was performed using maximum permitted levels. Next, the calculations were refined because market share data were used (refined Tier 2). Finally, the actual concentration data of 198 samples purchased from the Belgian market were used for Tier 3 exposure assessment. Based on a Tier 2 assessment, the ADI was exceeded for the high-consumer children population. However, the results of a more refined exposure assessment (Tier 3) of high consumers (P95) within the child, adolescent and adult populations were 13·75, 10 and 6·25 % of the ADI, respectively, using mean analytical results. Even with more conservative refined approaches, the estimated daily intake remained below 20 % of ADI. Flavoured drinks, flavoured fermented milk products and jams, jellies, and marmalades were the top three contributing food groups to steviol intake at 26–49 %, 12–27 % and 5–13 %, respectively. Despite the high concentrations (up to 94 000 mg/kg) of steviol glycosides in tabletop sweeteners, their contribution to the total intake remains low. The impact of the use of food supplements on the total intake was also considered to be limited. It was concluded that there was no risk for the Belgian population related to dietary exposure to steviol glycoside.

Climate change (CC) is a major threat to biodiversity, increasing species extinction risk. Assessments of its possible impacts on species are crucial for designing conservation strategies. Here, we adjusted a global trait-based approach to the national level and apply it to Uruguay (South America) to evaluate the CC vulnerability of its herpetofauna. A total of 112 species were assessed in a scenario of CC projections for 2050 with regard to three dimensions of vulnerability: sensitivity, low adaptive capacity and exposure. We conducted the assessment through an expert elicitation process based on the Delphi method. We found that most local species (64.6% amphibians; 100% reptiles) were highly sensitive to CC. Among them, seven amphibians (14.6%) and seven reptiles (10.9%) were identified as highly vulnerable to CC. Important gaps in the life-history traits of the species were found that should guide future research. The structured expert consultation process allowed us to gather more and better information than if it had only been based on published sources. Our study identified challenges associated with changing the scale from global to national that might be used for similar assessments in other countries.