Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Uncovering the Semiotic in Organizational Aesthetics

This article seeks to illustrate the utility of a semiotically grounded approach to the analysis of organizational aesthetics. Developed from a critique of the tendency to romanticize the notion of aesthetics within both organization studies and the social sciences more generally, it is argued that such a tendency tends to overlook the ways in which organizational imagery and artefacts are imbued with aesthetic meaning—which in turn can be understood to function as what Gell (1992) has described as cultural ‘technologies of enchantment’. Commencing with a brief review of increasing practitioner interest in the possibility of harnessing the aesthetic as a managerial resource, the article then considers the nature of the aesthetic as an essentially contested concept within both philosophy and organization studies. In doing so, it outlines the dominance of what it considers to be a romanticized understanding of the aesthetic amongst those who believe it to provide what Strati (1999) has described as an ‘epistemological metaphor’ for organizational studies. In contrast to this, a case is then made for the utility of a semiotic approach to studying organizational aesthetics, which is itself illustrated with reference to an analysis of a particular organizational artefact, namely a graduate recruitment document.
Pose-Guided Human Parsing by an AND/OR Graph Using Pose-Context Features

Parsing human into semantic parts is crucial to human-centric analysis. In this paper, we propose a human parsing pipeline that uses pose cues, e.g., estimates of human joint locations, to provide pose-guided segment proposals for semantic parts. These segment proposals are ranked using standard appearance cues, deep-learned semantic feature, and a novel pose feature called pose-context. Then these proposals are selected and assembled using an And-Or graph to output a parse of the person. The And-Or graph is able to deal with large human appearance variability due to pose, choice of clothing, etc. We evaluate our approach on the popular Penn-Fudan pedestrian parsing dataset, showing that it significantly outperforms the state of the art, and perform diagnostics to demonstrate the effectiveness of different stages of our pipeline.
Microlearning an Evolving Elearning Trend

Abstract This article is analyzing the meanings of the micro-learning trend, as they have emerged and developed over the last few years. Exploring how the term micro-learning is used to organize and order a set of pedagogical and technological phenomena and concepts in new and interesting ways, it is brought into focus the most popular and widely used learning management platforms that embrace this concept.
Chronic Medical Conditions and Negative Affect; Racial Variation in Reciprocal Associations Over Time

Background The Black–White health paradox can be defined as lower frequency of depression despite higher prevalence of economic and social adversities as well as chronic medical conditions (CMC) among American Blacks compared to American Whites. Based on this paradox, the CMC – depressive symptoms link is expected to be weaker among Blacks than Whites. We conducted a 10-year longitudinal study to compare Blacks and Whites for bidirectional associations between number of CMC and negative affect over time. Methods We used data from the MIDUS (Midlife in the United States), a nationally representative longitudinal study of American adults. A total number of 7,108 individuals with an age range of 25–75 years (N = 7,108) were followed for 10 years from 1995 to 2004. Age, gender, and socioeconomic status (education and income) were measured at baseline. Negative affect and CMC were measured at baseline (1995) and end of follow up (2004). Race was the moderator. Linear regression was used to test the moderating effect of race on the reciprocal associations between CMC and negative affect, net of covariates. Results In the pooled sample, while baseline CMC was predictive of an increase in negative affect over time, baseline negative affect was also predictive of an increase in CMC. We found interactions between race and baseline CMC on change in depressive symptoms, as well as race with negative affect on CMC change, suggesting that the associations between CMC and negative affect are stronger for Whites in comparison to Blacks. Conclusion Blacks and Whites differ in reciprocal links between CMC and negative affect over time. This finding replicates recent studies on differential links between psychosocial factors and physical health based on race. Findings may help us better understand how Black-White health paradox develops across mid and later life.
Prognosis, disease progression, and treatment of atrial fibrillation patients during 1 year: follow-up of the Euro Heart Survey on atrial fibrillation.

AIMS To gain insight in the prognosis and treatment of atrial fibrillation (AF) patients during 1-year follow-up in the Euro Heart Survey (EHS) on AF. METHODS AND RESULTS The EHS enrolled 5333 AF patients in 2003--2004. One-year follow-up data were available for 80%. Of first detected AF patients, 46% did not have a recurrence during 1 year, paroxysmal AF largely remained paroxysmal AF (80%), and 30% of persistent AF progressed to permanent AF. Many treatment changes occurred since baseline. Oral anticoagulation was started in 19% and discontinued in 16% of all patients. Of patients initially on rhythm control 27% did not receive rhythm control during follow-up, whereas 15% of patients initially on rate control received rhythm control. Mortality was highest in permanent AF (8.2%), but also substantial in first detected AF (5.7%). In multivariable analysis, sinus rhythm at baseline was associated with lower mortality, but no significant effect was observed regarding the application of either rhythm or rate control. CONCLUSION The EHS on AF provides unique prospective observational data on AF progression, long-term treatment, prognosis, and determinants of adverse outcome of the total clinical spectrum of AF in a European cardiology-based patient cohort.
Thyroid Hormone Concentrations in Nepal: A Study of Potential Gurkha Army Recruits. The Effect of Changes in Diet

A group of non goitrous, potential Gurkha army recruits were tested in Nepal for serum free triiodothyronine (fT3), free thyroxine (fT4) and thyrotropin (TSH) concentrations. Twenty-five percent of the men were recruited into the army and urine samples taken for analysis of iodine and creatinine. Twenty per cent of the recruits underwent thyrotropin releasing hormone (TRH) stimulation tests. After ten months basic training on a diet considered to be iodine sufficient, the tests were repeated on the same men. The results were also compared to army recruits in the UK. All the potential Gurkha recruits had higher serum levels of thyroid hormones than the UK recruits. Some regional differences were found with those men from the Western recruiting depot having lower fT4 and higher TSH concentrations. Urinary iodine and creatinine concentrations showed evidence of slight relative malnutrition and iodine deficiency which was more pronounced in the Western depot. TRH stimulation tests showed no evidence of thyroid dysfunction but highlighted the differences between the Eastern and Western groups. After ten months on an iodine sufficient diet the serum thyroid hormone concentrations became closer to those of the UK recruits, showing any differences to be reversible. The results from the two Gurkha groups became similar which was reflected in the urine analysis results.
The Borg dyspnoea score: a relevant clinical marker of inspiratory muscle weakness in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

The aim of the study was to determine whether the Borg dyspnoea scale could be a useful and simple marker to predict respiratory muscle weakness in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). From April 1997 to 2001, respiratory function was perfomed in 72 patients together with the Borg score in both the upright (uBorg) and supine (sBorg) positions. Mean upright vital capacity (VC) was 81±24% predicted, sniff nasal inspiratory pressure (SNIP) was 55±26% pred, maximal inspiratory pressure (PI,max) was 57±26% pred and arterial carbon dioxide tension (Pa,CO2) was 41±6 mmHg. The mean Borg scores in the upright and supine positions were 1.7±1.5 and 2.2±2, respectively. A significant relationship between SNIP and uBorg (r = 0.4; p = 0.0007) and SNIP and sBorg (r = 0.58; p<0.0001) was observed. Upright VC, ΔVC (measured as the supine fall in VC as a percentage of seated VC), PI,max and Pa,CO2 were significantly correlated with SNIP. A cut-off value of 3 on the sBorg scale provided the best sensitivity (80%) and specificity (78%) (area under the curve 0.8) to predict a SNIP ≤40 cmH2O, indicating severe inspiratory muscle weakness. Patients with a sBorg score ≥3 also exhibited significantly lower VC, PI,max and twitch mouth pressure during cervical magnetic stimulation, and slightly higher Pa,CO2 (43.7±7 versus 39.2±5 mmHg; p = 0.05). The Borg dyspnoea scale is a valuable noninvasive test for the prediction of inspiratory muscle weakness in ALS patients.
Adherence to physical activity in a workplace setting – A qualitative interview study

Abstract Purpose: Employees at a Danish production company experienced little adherence to company-initiated workplace physical activity (WPA). The objective of this study was to analyse factors explaining non-adherence to WPA from the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB) and Trans Theoretical Model (TTM). The TPB explains the criteria for intent towards certain behaviour and the TTM explains behaviour from stages of change and cognitive and motivational considerations. Method: The study was done at a Danish production company that manufactures plastic bags. Data was collected using individual semi-structured interviews with 6 male employees with a mean age of 46 years (range 32–64). Respondents were recruited using purposive sampling, aimed at non-adhering employees. The interview guide was constructed based on the TPB and TTM. The interviews lasted between 30 and 50 minutes. Thematic analysis was done by analyst triangulation. Results: The majority of respondents had a low sense of control over factors influencing their intent such as time of day, distance to activity, work planning and low level of perceived behavioural control and half the respondents reported that they felt able to overcome these factors but lacked an incentive. Disadvantages, such as perceived low level of physical ability, clearly outweighed advantages: processes of change were dominated by cognitive processes and only one respondent exhibited an adequate level of self-efficacy needed to take active steps towards changing behaviour. Conclusions: Future WPA interventions should consider participants’ control over factors influencing the intervention and be sure that the advantages of participating outweigh the disadvantages.
Independent Effects of HIV, Aging, and HAART on Brain Volumetric Measures

Background:Neurocognitive impairment remains prevalent in HIV-infected (HIV+) individuals despite highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART). We assessed the impact of HIV, HAART, and aging using structural neuroimaging. Methods:Seventy-eight participants [HIV− (n = 26), HIV+ on stable HAART (HIV+/HAART+; n = 26), HIV+ naive to HAART (HIV+/HAART−; n = 26)] completed neuroimaging and neuropsychological testing. A subset of HIV+ subjects (n = 12) performed longitudinal assessments before and after initiating HAART. Neuropsychological tests evaluated memory, psychomotor speed, and executive function, and a composite neuropsychological score was calculated based on normalized performances (neuropsychological summary Z score, NPZ-4). Volumetrics were evaluated for the amygdala, caudate, thalamus, hippocampus, putamen, corpus callosum, and cerebral gray and white matter. A 3-group 1-way analysis of variance assessed differences in neuroimaging and neuropsychological indices. Correlations were examined between NPZ-4 and volumetrics. Exploratory testing using a broken-stick regression model evaluated self-reported duration of HIV infection on brain structure. Results:HIV+ individuals had significant reductions in brain volumetrics within select subcortical regions (amygdala, caudate, and corpus callosum) compared with HIV− participants. However, HAART did not affect brain structure as regional volumes were similar for HIV+/HAART− and HIV+/HAART+. No association existed between NPZ-4 and volumetrics. HIV and aging were independently associated with volumetric reductions. Exploratory analyses suggest caudate atrophy due to HIV slowly occurs after self-reported seroconversion. Conclusions:HIV associated volumetric reductions within the amygdala, caudate, and corpus callosum occurs despite HAART. A gradual decline in caudate volume occurs after self-reported seroconversion. HIV and aging independently increase brain vulnerability. Additional longitudinal structural magnetic resonance imaging studies, especially within older HIV+ participants, are required.
Cortical fMRI activation produced by attentive tracking of moving targets.

Attention can be used to keep track of moving items, particularly when there are multiple targets of interest that cannot all be followed with eye movements. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was used to investigate cortical regions involved in attentive tracking. Cortical flattening techniques facilitated within-subject comparisons of activation produced by attentive tracking, visual motion, discrete attention shifts, and eye movements. In the main task, subjects viewed a display of nine green "bouncing balls" and used attention to mentally track a subset of them while fixating. At the start of each attentive-tracking condition, several target balls (e.g., 3/9) turned red for 2 s and then reverted to green. Subjects then used attention to keep track of the previously indicated targets, which were otherwise indistinguishable from the nontargets. Attentive-tracking conditions alternated with passive viewing of the same display when no targets had been indicated. Subjects were pretested with an eye-movement monitor to ensure they could perform the task accurately while fixating. For seven subjects, functional activation was superimposed on each individual's cortically unfolded surface. Comparisons between attentive tracking and passive viewing revealed bilateral activation in parietal cortex (intraparietal sulcus, postcentral sulcus, superior parietal lobule, and precuneus), frontal cortex (frontal eye fields and precentral sulcus), and the MT complex (including motion-selective areas MT and MST). Attentional enhancement was absent in early visual areas and weak in the MT complex. However, in parietal and frontal areas, the signal change produced by the moving stimuli was more than doubled when items were tracked attentively. Comparisons between attentive tracking and attention shifting revealed essentially identical activation patterns that differed only in the magnitude of activation. This suggests that parietal cortex is involved not only in discrete shifts of attention between objects at different spatial locations but also in continuous "attentional pursuit" of moving objects. Attentive-tracking activation patterns were also similar, though not identical, to those produced by eye movements. Taken together, these results suggest that attentive tracking is mediated by a network of areas that includes parietal and frontal regions responsible for attention shifts and eye movements and the MT complex, thought to be responsible for motion perception. These results are consistent with theoretical models of attentive tracking as an attentional process that assigns spatial tags to targets and registers changes in their position, generating a high-level percept of apparent motion.
EMPIRICAL PREDICTION AND PREDICTABILITY OF DRY AND WET SPELLS OF THE INDIAN SUMMER MONSOON

Prediction of the active (rainy) and break (dry) phases of the Indian summer monsoon intraseasonal oscillations (ISO’s) two to three weeks in advance is of great importance for food production and water management of the country, but is currently unavailable. Potential predictability inherent in the quasi-periodic nature of the monsoon ISO’s is estimated from daily rainfall and circulation data for 23 years. The monsoon breaks are potentially more predictable than the active conditions with perdictability limit of about 20 days for breaks compared to 10 days for
Culture influences to website information architecture: An empirical investigation

This study explores the relationship between culture and website information architecture (IA) that is under-represented in the Human Computer Interaction (HCI) literature. Our study drew from the works of Wan Abdul Rahim et al. (2006, 2007, 2008), who provided the IA framework from architectural perspectives and later incorporated Islamic cultural dimensions into the context of website IA. In this study, we enrich their framework by conducting empirical investigation to test the hypotheses linkage between culture and website IA. The research method involves using Islamic culture as the case study and web-based survey on 427 Muslims from Islamic countries. The result of the ordinal regression analysis suggests culture does influence website IA. This result contributes to the growing body of IA literature and has both substantive and methodological implications for future research.
Effectiveness and Students’ Perception of the Use of Pre-reading Strategies and Summaries: A Case Study of Adult EFL Students in a Reading Comprehension Course

This study is aimed at providing an answer to the questions of how the completion of pre-reading exercises and summaries can enhance learners’ reading comprehension and what their perceptions of the usefulness of these tools to read texts in English are. Students completed different pre-reading exercises including the adapted version of the K-W-L organizer to establish a connection between their background knowledge and the texts. They also wrote summaries in order to check their understanding of the gist of the texts. The review of the literature makes reference to the bene ts of using pre-reading strategies and summaries to better un derstand texts. The information gathered shows that learners were able to understand the main ideas of the texts, but some of them still had diffi culties to analyze speci c details in order to carry out the course-related tasks. The results also indicate that students had contrasting points of view about the usefulness of both strategies to read texts in English be- fore and after the interventions. Este estudio responde a las preguntas de como la realizacion de ejercicios de prelectura y resumenes pueden mejorar la comprension de lectura de los educandos y cual es su percepcion de la utilidad de estas herramientas para leer textos en ingles. Los estudiantes completaron diferentes ejercicios de prelectura, incluida la version adaptada del diagrama K-W-L con el n de establecer una conexion entre su conocimiento previo y los textos. Ademas, escribieron resumenes para comprobar su comprension de la idea central de los textos. El marco teorico hace referencia a los bene cios de usar estrategias de prelectura y resumenes para una mejor comprension. Los datos obtenidos muestran que los estudiantes fueron capaces de comprender la idea principal de los textos pero algunos de ellos tuvieron di cultad en analizar detalles especi cos para llevar a cabo las asignaciones del curso. Los resultados tambien indican que los alumnos tuvieron puntos de vista contrastantes sobre la utilidad de ambas estrategias para leer textos en ingles antes y despues de las intervenciones
Data Center Scheduling, Generalized Flows, and Submodularity

Inspired by problems in data center scheduling, we study the submodularity of certain scheduling problems as a function of the set of machine capacities and the corresponding implications. In particular, we • give a short proof that, as a function of the excess vector, maximum generalized flow is submodular and minimum cost generalized flow is supermodular; • extend Wolsey's approximation guarantees for submodular covering problems to a new class of problems we call supermodular packing problems; • use these results to get tighter approximation guarantees for several data center scheduling problems.
Sequential action of ATPase, ATP, ADP, Pi and dsDNA in procapsid-free system to enlighten mechanism in viral dsDNA packaging

Many cells and double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) viruses contain an AAA+ ATPase that assembles into oligomers, often hexamers, with a central channel. The dsDNA packaging motor of bacteriophage phi29 also contains an ATPase to translocate dsDNA through a dodecameric channel. The motor ATPase has been investigated substantially in the context of the entire procapsid. Here, we report the sequential action between the ATPase and additional motor components. It is suggested that the contact of ATPase to ATP resulted in its conformational change to a higher binding affinity toward dsDNA. It was found that ATP hydrolysis led to the departure of dsDNA from the ATPase/dsDNA complex, an action that is speculated to push dsDNA to pass the connector channel. Our results suggest that dsDNA packaging goes through a combined effort of both the gp16 ATPase for pushing and the channel as a one-way valve to control the dsDNA translocation direction. Many packaging models have previously been proposed, and the packaging mechanism has been contingent upon the number of nucleotides packaged per ATP relative to the 10.5 bp per helical turn for B-type dsDNA. Both 2 and 2.5 bp per ATP have been used to argue for four, five or six discrete steps of dsDNA translocation. Combination of the two distinct roles of gp16 and connector renews the perception of previous dsDNA packaging energy calculations and provides insight into the discrepancy between 2 and 2.5 bp per ATP.
Can Exergames Impart Health Messages? Game Play, Framing, and Drivers of Physical Activity Among Children

This study examines the effectiveness of incorporating exergaming into physical education lessons as a platform for imparting health education messages and influencing children's beliefs about and attitudes toward physical activity. The authors launched a 6-week intervention program using Nintendo Wii games coupled with protection motivation theory–based health messaging among 5th-grade school children in Singapore. Results indicated that when children who were exposed to threat-framed messages played Wii exergames during physical education lessons, they reported more positive physical activity attitude, self-efficacy, and perceived behavioral control than did those who underwent regular physical education lessons and were exposed to the same message. In addition, among children playing Wii, the threat and coping frames had similar effects on the degree of message influence on physical activity attitudes and beliefs. The implications for schools, parents, and health policy are discussed.