Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
An investigation of the relationships between organizational factors, business process improvement, and ERP success

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present an empirical investigation into the relationships between the selected organizational variables, business process improvement (BPI) and enterprise resource planning (ERP) success.Design/methodology/approach – It is based on a sample of 96 firms operating in an Asian (Hong Kong) setting. Non‐parametric statistical tests are conducted on the sample.Findings – It has found that the extent of BPI is positively related to ERP success, and senior management support of BPI (MSB), and senior management support of IT (MSI) and CEO‐IT distance are negatively related. However, it has also found that there exist no statistically significant relationships between approaches to business process changes and BPI, between MSI and ERP success, and between CEO‐IT distance and MSB. It has also yielded divergent findings for the impacts of CEO‐IT distance on the levels of senior MSI and MSB for the sub‐samples of firms of Western and Asian origin.Research limitations/implicati.
Team approach to ERCP-directed single-brush cytology for the diagnosis of malignancy.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the clinical usefulness of single-brush cytology performed at ERCP as initial method for detecting pancreatobiliary malignancy, ensuring a very close relationship between endoscopists, cytotechnicians, and cytopathologists. STUDY DESIGN All 125 cytodiagnoses considered in this study correspond to the first brushing for each patient, collected by one of the three members of a fixed team of endoscopists in the presence of the same cytotechnician. Smears were fixed immediately with Merckofix spray, stained with Papanicolau, and analyzed by the same cytopathologist in a laboratory exclusively devoted to gastrointestinal cytopathology located at the endoscopy unit. RESULTS Of 125 cytological diagnoses 94 were considered benign, 4 suspicious, and 27 malignant. These findings were compared to the final diagnosis of 45 malignant and 80 benign lesions obtained either by surgical pathology or after at least one year of clinical follow-up. The comparison yielded 30 true positives, 78 true negatives, 1 false positive and 16 false negative results, which corresponds to a sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value, and accuracy of 65.2, 98.7, 96.8, 83, and 86.4%, respectively. CONCLUSION Results seem to confirm the usefulness of an effective team approach to ERCP-directed brush cytology for the diagnosis of pancreatobiliary malignancy. However, sensitivity continues to be rather low.
Pravastatin Modulate Niemann-Pick C1-Like 1 and ATP-Binding Cassette G5 and G8 to Influence Intestinal Cholesterol Absorption.

PURPOSE Niemann-Pick C1-like 1 (NPC1L1), ATP-binding cassette (ABC)G5, and ABCG8 mediate intestinal cholesterol absorption. It is unclear whether pravastatin (PR) or ezetimibe (EZ) affect expression of these transporters. We examined the effects of PR and EZ on NPC1L1, ABCG5, and ABCG8 expression in human hepatoma HepG2 cells and the murine small intestine. We also assessed expression of the transcription factors liver X receptor (LXR)a, LXRb and sterol regulatory element-binding protein. METHODS Transporter mRNA levels were determined in murine small intestines 6 and 24 h after oral PR and EZ administration by real-time reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). In PR- and EZ-treated HepG2 cells, transporter and transcription factor mRNA and protein levels were examined by RT-PCR and western blot, respectively. RESULTS Significant decreases in NPC1L1, ABCG5, and ABCG8 mRNA expression were observed in the duodenum, but not jejunum and ileum, of mice 24 h after treatment with PR, but not EZ. In HepG2 cells, PR but not EZ treatment for 24 h also significantly decreased NPC1L1 protein and ABCG5, and ABCG8 mRNA expression, while increasing LXRa mRNA levels. CONCLUSION PR but not EZ treatment reduced duodenal cholesterol transporter expression in mice. PR-induced increases in LXRa mRNA levels may be involved in attenuation of NPC1L1 expression, subsequently decreasing intestinal cholesterol absorption.
An Efficient Gait Recognition with Backpack Removal

Gait-based human identification is a paradigm to recognize individuals using visual cues that characterize their walking motion. An important requirement for successful gait recognition is robustness to variations including different lighting conditions, poses, and walking speed. Deformation of the gait silhouette caused by objects carried by subjects also has a significant effect on the performance of gait recognition systems; a backpack is the most common of these objects. This paper proposes methods for eliminating the effect of a carried backpack for efficient gait recognition. We apply simple, recursive principal component analysis (PCA) reconstructions and error compensation to remove the backpack from the gait representation and then conduct gait recognition. Experiments performed with the CASIA database illustrate the performance of the proposed algorithm.
#Sponsored: The Emergence of Influencer Marketing

As social media platforms grow and evolve, how are brands keeping up and staying relevant? The purpose of this honors thesis is to investigate how brands are utilizing influencer marketing on social media. To further explore this topic, thirteen inperson qualitative interviews were conducted over the span of a week with those who have influencer marketing experience and work in the advertising industry in New York City, the advertising capital of the world. These participants worked at a variety of agency sizes from small and specialized to large and international. During the 30-45 minute interviews, the discussion topics included the origin of social media influencers, along with the benefits and risks involved in working with them. Combining the insights from the qualitative interviews with secondary research, a better understanding of the emergence of influencer marketing on social media is achieved. Table of
Brand Equity, Brand Preference, and Purchase Intent

Abstract The issue of brand equity has emerged as one of the most critical areas for marketing management in the 1990s. Despite strong interest in the subject, however, there is little empirical evidence of how brand value is created and what its precise effects are. This study explores some of the consequences of brand equity. In particular, the authors examine the effect of brand equity on consumer preferences and purchase intentions. For comparative purposes, two sets of brands are tested, one from a service category characterized by fairly high financial and functional risk (hotels), and one from a generally lower risk product category (household cleansers). Each set includes two brands that are objectively similar (based on Consumer Reports ratings), but they have invested markedly different levels of advertising spending over the past decade. Across both categories, the brand with the higher advertising budget yielded substantially higher levels of brand equity. In turn, the brand with the higher eq.
Modeling and Control of a Renewable Hybrid Energy System With Hydrogen Storage

This paper deals with system integration and controller design for power management of a stand-alone renewable energy (RE) hybrid system, which is at the construction stage in Lambton College (Sarnia, ON, Canada). The system consists of five main components: photovoltaic arrays, wind turbine, electrolyzer, hydrogen storage tanks, and fuel cell. The model for each process component is developed, and all the components are integrated in a Matlab/Simulink environment. A two-level control system is implemented, comprising a supervisory controller, which ensures the power balance between intermittent RE generation, energy storage, and dynamic load demand, as well as local controllers for the photovoltaic, wind, electrolyzer, and fuel cell unit. Simulations are performed to document the efficacy of the proposed power management strategy.
Comparing Two Short Forms of the Hewitt–Flett Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale

Hewitt and Flett’s 45-item Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale is a widely used instrument to assess self-oriented, other-oriented, and socially prescribed perfectionism. With 45 items, it is not overly lengthy, but there are situations where a short form is useful. Analyzing data from four samples, this article compares two frequently used 15-item short forms of the Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale—Cox et al.’s and Hewitt et al.’s—by examining to what degree their scores replicate the original version’s correlations with various personality characteristics (e.g., traits, social goals, personal/interpersonal orientations). Regarding self-oriented and socially prescribed perfectionism, both short forms performed well. Regarding other-oriented perfectionism, however, Cox et al.’s short form (exclusively composed of negatively worded items) performed less well than Hewitt et al.’s (which contains no negatively worded items). It is recommended that researchers use Hewitt et al.’s short form to assess other-oriented perfectionism rather than Cox et al.’s.
Energy efficient real-time scheduling [microprocessors]

Real-time scheduling on processors that support dynamic voltage and frequency scaling is analyzed. The Slacked Earliest Deadline First (SEDF) algorithm is proposed and it is shown that the algorithm is optimal in minimizing processor energy consumption and maximum lateness. An upper bound on the processor energy savings is also derived. Real-time scheduling of periodic tasks is also analyzed and optimal voltage and frequency allocation for a given task set is determined that guarantees schedulability and minimizes energy consumption.
Steady-state analysis of a 5-level bidirectional buck+boost dc-dc converter

This paper presents a nonisolated multilevel buck+boost dc-dc converter suitable for high voltage and high power application. It is composed by a Buck-type and a Boost-type converters, both multilevel and bidirectional. The main features of proposed converter are: reduced voltage stress across the semiconductors, allowing its use in high voltage; bidirectional power flow; frequency operation of the inductor is a multiple of the switching frequency, reducing the volume of magnetic component. This paper focuses on the five-level structure of the proposed converter, in which the theoretical analysis is carried out and discussed. In order to validate the theoretical analysis, a prototype with 10 kW output power capability, 1 kV to 750 V input-to-output voltage and 20 kHz of switching frequency was constructed and experimented. The results attest the advantages of the new dc-dc topology and it is reported herein.
Towards the proteome of Brassica napus phloem sap

The soluble proteins in sieve tube exudate from Brassica napus plants were systematically analyzed by 1‐DE and high‐resolution 2‐DE, partial amino acid sequence determination by MS/MS, followed by database searches. 140 proteins could be identified by their high similarity to database sequences (135 from 2‐DE, 5 additional from 1‐DE). Most analyzed spots led to successful protein identifications, demonstrating that Brassica napus, a close relative of Arabidopsis thaliana, is a highly suitable model plant for phloem research. None of the identified proteins was formerly known to be present in Brassica napus phloem, but several proteins have been described in phloem sap of other species. The data, which is discussed with respect to possible physiological importance of the proteins in the phloem, further confirms and substantially extends earlier findings and uncovers the presence of new protein functions in the vascular system. For example, we found several formerly unknown phloem proteins that are potentially involved in signal generation and transport, e.g., proteins mediating calcium and G‐protein signaling, a set of RNA‐binding proteins, and FLOWERING LOCUS T (FT) and its twin sister that might be key components for the regulation of flowering time.
School Bus Routing and Scheduling : a Real Case Study

This paper presents a model to schedule school buses transportation routes. Student’s daily routes defined between student’s homes, schools and extra curricula activities are analysed while accounting for three different objectives: number of vehicles, route total time and average passenger travelling time. A combined multiobjective function is defined. As solution method to this problem, a heuristic algorithm was developed. This combines a set of heuristic procedures with a simulated annealing algorithm. The developed algorithm applicability and efficiency is studied on the solution of a real case-study of a students transportation company that operates in the city of Lisbon in Portugal. As results, it was found an improvement on the economics and service level up to 3% and 28%, respectively, when compared to the real current routes.
Robust shrinking ellipsoid model predictive control for linear parameter varying system

In this paper, a new off-line model predictive control strategy is presented for a kind of linear parameter varying system with polytopic uncertainty. A nest of shrinking ellipsoids is constructed by solving linear matrix inequality. By splitting the objective function into two parts, the proposed strategy moves most computations off-line. The on-line computation is only calculating the current control to assure the system shrinking into the smaller ellipsoid. With the proposed formulation, the stability of the closed system is proved, followed with two numerical examples to demonstrate the proposed method’s effectiveness in the end.
International and domestic collateral constraints in a model of emerging

We build a model of emerging markets crises which features two types of collateral constraints. Firms in a domestic economy have limited borrowing capacity from international investors. They also have limited borrowing capacity with respect to each other. We study how the presence and changes in these collateral constraints affect financial and real variables. A binding international constraint in the aggregate leads to a sharp rise in interest rates and fire sales of domestic assets, while limited domestic collateral can lead to wasted international collateral. These two collateral constraints can interact in important ways. The first is disintermediation: a fire sale of domestic assets causes banks to fail in their function of reallocating resources across the economy leading to wasted international collateral. The second is a dynamic effect. We show that
CUSTOMER INTENTION TO PURCHASE HALAL COSMETICS IN MALAYSIA

The main objective of this research is to examine the factors influencing customer intention to purchase halal cosmetics in Malaysia especially by University students. The research investigates on four factors that affect the intention to purchase halal cosmetics in Malaysia which are attitude, subjective norm, perceived behavioral control and brand awareness. Data were collected from 400 female students in Universiti Utara Malaysia. The internal consistency reliability test of Cronbach’s Alpha indicated that all scale items were proven reliable. Correlation and Multiple Regression were used to examine the relationship between independent variables and dependent variable. The results showed that there are positive relationships between the four factors and intention to purchase halal cosmetics. The result also showed the attitude is the most important factor in affecting customer intention to purchase halal cosmetics in Malaysia.
Contemporary Trends in Japanese Large Scale Retail Stores

Japanese large scale retail stores are changing along with the change of time. So this paper tries to find out the current trends of Japanese large scale retail stores. This paper also focuses on scale economies and impact of age groups on the sales of the large scale stores. Descriptive statistics and different empirical techniques are used to analyze the data. The findings of the paper demonstrate that the convenience stores are competing strongly with department stores and supermarket stores. The large scale retail stores can enjoy competitive advantage if they emphasize on product differentiation, think about mature consumers and cut their prices compare to their rival firms. JEL Classification: D22, M21
Impacts of Lesotho Highlands Water Project on Sustainable Livelihoods

The sustainable livelihood framework was used to understand and interpret communities’ perceptions of the Lesotho Highlands Water Project’s impacts on livelihoods in the highlands of Lesotho. In-depth interviews were held with representatives of households in three villages who were part of Phase 1A of the Lesotho Highland Project. The results suggest that the Lesotho Highland Water Project has changed the livelihoods of the mountain people living nearby. The water project should embark on image building by involving people from the affected communities in setting up new priorities and a new vision concerning how the project can aid in sustaining the livelihoods of affected villages. Most importantly, the project should educate the concerned villages regarding its prime objectives and how communities can benefit from them. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2014. v5n15p640
A dynamic positioning thrust allocation approach based on a hybrid artificial colony bee algorithm with chaotic search

Trust allocation (TA) is an important part in dynamic positioning system. The function of TA is to allocate thrust and angle of each thruster so that the desired force and moment can be achieved. In this study, a hybrid artificial bee colony algorithm with chaotic search (HABCC) which introduces mutation operator from differential evolution (DE), social cognitive part from particle swarm optimisation (PSO) to honeybee search strategy and chaotic search to scouts searching, is proposed. Therefore, the capacity of exploration and exploitation is greatly improved. The optimal search of HABCC is speeded up compared with traditional ABC algorithm and the probability of finding the optimal results and avoiding local optimum is significantly increased. The effectiveness of the HABCC algorithm is demonstrated by simulations.
Sphingosine Kinase 1 Regulates Tumor Necrosis Factor-mediated RANTES Induction through p38 Mitogen-activated Protein Kinase but Independently of Nuclear Factor κB Activation*

Background: SK1 is widely involved in promoting inflammatory diseases. Results: Unexpectedly, loss of SK1 caused an increase in chemokines upon TNF stimulation. This occurred through regulation of p38 MAPK but independently of NF-κB. Conclusion: SK1 negatively regulates RANTES expression through the p38 MAPK pathway. Significance: Targeting SK1 in therapy may affect inflammatory conditions by up-regulating chemokines independently of NF-κB. Sphingosine kinase 1 (SK1) produces the pro-survival sphingolipid sphingosine 1-phosphate and has been implicated in inflammation, proliferation, and angiogenesis. Recent studies identified TRAF2 as a sphingosine 1-phosphate target, implicating SK1 in activation of the NF-κB pathway, but the functional consequences of this connection on gene expression are unknown. Here, we find that loss of SK1 potentiates induction of the chemokine RANTES (regulated on activation, normal T cell expressed and secreted; also known as CCL5) in HeLa cells stimulated with TNF-α despite RANTES induction being highly dependent on the NF-κB pathway. Additionally, we find that SK1 is not required for TNF-induced IKK phosphorylation, IκB degradation, nuclear translocation of NF-κB subunits, and transcriptional NF-κB activity. In contrast, loss of SK1 prevented TNF-induced phosphorylation of p38 MAPK, and inhibition of p38 MAPK, like SK1 knockdown, also potentiates RANTES induction. Finally, in addition to RANTES, loss of SK1 also potentiated the induction of multiple chemokines and cytokines in the TNF response. Taken together, these data identify a potential and novel anti-inflammatory function of SK1 in which chemokine levels are suppressed through SK1-mediated activation of p38 MAPK. Furthermore, in this system, activation of NF-κB is dissociated from SK1, suggesting that the interaction between these pathways may be more complex than currently thought.
Dynamic complexity of cognitive event-related potential based on time-dependent approximate entropy

A method for calculating dynamic complexity of cognitive event-related potential (ERP) was introduced, which was recognized as time-dependent approximate entropy (ApEn). In addition, two calculating methods, mean of entropy for each trial (Mean of ApEn) and entropy for averaged ERP (ApEn of ERP), were validated and compared through an investigation of EEG complexity in a Chinese Stroop task containing two types of stimulus. Two phenomena can be observed from the experiment: 1. In contrast to the ApEn before stimulus, ApEn from two types of tasks decreased remarkably after the presence of stimulus, reached a minimum corresponding to the response output and rose back after response over frontal, central, and parietal regions. 2. ApEn of ERP had significant difference among three periods: pre-stimulus, within-response, and post-response, while Mean of ApEn did not. It is demonstrated that time-dependent approximate entropy is an effective method to measure the dynamic complexity of cognitive ERPs.
Investigation of soft-switching behavior of 600 V cascode GaN HEMT

Gallium Nitride High Electron Mobility Transistor (GaN HEMT) is an emerging wide band gap power device in recent years. Using a cascoded structure, the GaN HEMT can be combined with a low voltage MOSFET to make the combination behave as a normally-off device. This paper investigates the soft-switching behavior of cascode GaN HEMT in the phase-leg structure. The analysis reveals some internal device behaviors during the soft-switching transition, which are not found in the non-cascode device. Due to the internal feedback of the cascode structure, the channel current of the internal GaN HEMT drops to zero quickly, leading to extremely low turn-off loss. However, it has been found that there are switching energy loss dissipated in the internal GaN HEMT during the turn-on transient, although the external waveforms of the cascode GaN HEMT exhibit zero voltage switching. The fundamental reason is that ratio of the sum of MOSFET output capacitance and internal GaN HEMT input capacitance to the internal GaN HEMT output capacitance is quite low. Based on the simulation, by adding additional capacitance on the gate source terminals of internal GaN HEMT, these losses can be mitigated. Experimental tests using a commercially available GaN device are presented which show nearly 400 mW of loss at 1 MHz switching frequency in four different load current conditions.
The Relationships among Quality Management System, Knowledge Management and Organizational Performance: An Application of the Heckman Two-step Method

Previous research has shown that the adoption of quality management system and the implementation of knowledge management have effects on organizational performance. Yet, little attention has been paid to moderating conditions on the relationship among these variables. The main purpose of this research is to empirically examine the moderating role of adopting quality management system in the effect of implementing knowledge management on organizational performance by employing the hierarchical regression procedure. And, we utilize the Heckman two-step method to avoid the problem of sample selection bias. The findings reveal that the adoption of the quality management system in business plays a moderating role in the relationship between the implementation of knowledge management and organizational performance. This research is helpful to managers by offering deeper insight into the complex structure of quality management system, knowledge management and organizational performance, which will help them to make better decisions on the adoption of management systems for improving organizational performance. Jel code: M19, M49, L25, C38 Copyright © 2014 JAEBR