bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Strategies for Online Academic Research (SOAR)
Authors: Knox Carolyn Harper , Anderson-Inman Lynne , Terrazas-Arellanes Fatima E. , Walden Emily D. , Strycker Lisa A. , Hildreth Bridget
Published: March 2016

The ability to conduct research is essential for meeting Common Core State Standards, for success in post-secondary education, and for access to many 21st-century careers. Although today's students increasingly turn to the Internet for information, they are often unprepared to engage effectively in academic research online. This article describes work at the University of Oregon's Center for Advanced Technology in Education in developing and testing nine Strategies for Online Academic Research (SOAR) designed for middle school students, with specific attention to the needs of students with learning disabilities. Included is information about the SOAR Student Toolkit, a multimedia website with step-by-step instructional modules for learning the nine strategies, as well as results from an evaluation in Connecticut. Results indicate that using the SOAR Student Toolkit improves online research performance for sixth-, seventh-, and eighth-grade general education students and students with learning disabilities. Implications for future research are discussed.
Cultivating Global Competencies for the 21st Century Classroom
Authors: Yildiz Melda N. , Palak Deniz
Published: March 2016

This participatory action research study aims to advance teachers' knowledge of innovative technologies as a means to promote global competency skills. This research aims to advance scientific knowledge of Transformative Critical Pedagogy as a means to promote heutagogy through the lens of innovative technologies in global education context while redefining education and developing “transformative educator model” that integrate global education into the 21st century classrooms. It studied over 10 pre-service teachers, 2 in-service teachers and 3 teacher educators, and documented their transformative, inclusive, multilingual, multicultural projects across content areas.
Holistic Framework for Evolving Effective Information Systems Strategy
Authors: Baporikar Neeta
Published: March 2016

The world today is an information society, with most of its workforce employed as knowledge workers, thus increasing the complexity of management. There is general recognition of information as a key resource. Information is considered to add value to, and differentiate products and services. New work practices like desk sharing; home working, individual learning, and the use of satellite offices are changing the work culture. In this scenario, information systems strategy plays a pivotal role and much organizational success would depend on how well integrated the information systems strategy is with the overall organizational strategy. Based on in depth literature review, reports and polices desk analysis and the authors own experience in designing and implementation strategies, this paper describes, discusses and reviews the existing models and more important proposes a holistic framework that can be adopted for evolving an effective information systems strategy in general and for SMEs and entrepreneurs in particular.
ICT Standards Cooperation among China-Japan-Korea
Authors: Zoo Hanah , Lee Heejin , Kwak Jooyoung
Published: March 2016

As the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between China and Korea is completed, and one among China, Japan and Korea (CJK) is being discussed, a renewed attention is given to the three countries' efforts to establish a Northeast Asian regional standards cooperation mechanism. In this paper, two ICT-oriented standards cooperative programs among the three countries, CJK-SITE and CJK-ITSM, are selected as a research setting and examined. The analysis indicates that the slow progress of CJK ICT standards cooperation can be explained by two conflicting perspectives: techno-regionalism and techno-nationalism. From the techno-regionalism perspective, standards cooperation will position CJK at a more strategic standing to effectively respond to the ever-intensifying global standards wars over the international ICT market. However, there exist significant gaps among the three countries as to why and how to purse the standards cooperation. The authors attribute the gaps to techno-nationalism which dominates the agenda of each country's national standardization policy. Despite the apparent rationales for regional cooperation, as a Chinese proverb says, it seems that the three countries go to ‘the same bed with different dreams.'
Investigating Critical Success Factors in Implementing ITIL Framework
Authors: Mohammadi Mohammad Mehrabioun , Ravasan Ahad Zare , Hamidi Homa
Published: March 2016

Nowadays, many organizations adopt Information Technology Service Management (ITSM) best practices to enhance their IT service related processes. Although many organizations have adopted ITSM frameworks such as Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL), not all have been successful. Keeping this in mind, this paper seeks to identify Critical Success Factors (CSFs) that impact on successful implementation of ITSM frameworks with a focus on ITIL in Iranian organizations as a case of a developing country. Hence, based on a mixed method, at first, with the semi-structured interviews and literature review, 22 success factors were identified. Following that, a questionnaire was developed and sent out to domain experts. Next, robust Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) was run for analyzing data and establishing construct validity which finally classified critical success factors into five groups named as “organizational”, “human resources”, “project management”, “managerial” and “process”. The findings of this study have provided a very useful reference for IT standardization scholars and practitioners to identify the important issues of ITSM frameworks implementation projects in their research and practice.
Restricting Glutamine or Glutamine-Dependent Purine and Pyrimidine Syntheses Promotes Human T Cells with High FOXP3 Expression and Regulatory Properties
Authors: Metzler Barbara , Gfeller Patrick , Guinet Elisabeth
Published: March 2016

T cell subsets differ in their metabolic requirements, and further insight into such differences might be harnessed to selectively promote regulatory T cells (Tregs) for therapies in autoimmunity and transplantation. We found that Gln restriction during human T cell activation favored CD4 T cells with high expression of the Treg transcription factor FOXP3. This resulted from shrinking numbers and reduced proliferation of activated FOXP3lo/−CD4 T cells while FOXP3hiCD4 T cell numbers increased. This gain was abolished by blocking Gln synthetase, an enzyme that responds to Gln and purine/pyrimidine deficiencies. The shift toward FOXP3hiCD4 T cells under Gln restriction was recapitulated with inhibitors of Gln-dependent pyrimidine and purine syntheses that together closely mimicked declining cell numbers and cell cycles, and by small interfering RNA knockdown of the respective rate-limiting Gln-consuming enzymes CAD and PPAT. FOXP3hi-enriched CD25hiCD4 T cells from these cultures inhibited proliferation, but they also produced effector cytokines, including IL-17A. The latter was largely confined to CTLA-4hi-expressing FOXP3hi-enriched CD25hiCD4 T cells that suppressed proliferation more weakly than did CTLA-4lo/−CD25hiFOXP3hi–enriched T cells. A causal link between high IL-17A production and impaired suppression of proliferation could not be demonstrated, however. Collectively, these results reveal a Gln synthetase–dependent increase and resilience of FOXP3hi cells under Gln restriction, and they demonstrate that impaired Gln-dependent nucleotide synthesis promotes FOXP3hi cells with regulator properties. It remains to be investigated to what extent the concomitant retention of IL-17A–producing CD4 T cells may limit the therapeutic potential of Tregs enriched through targeting these pathways in vivo.
Are South African Speech-Language Therapists adequately equipped to assess English Additional Language (EAL) speakers who are from an indigenous linguistic and cultural background? A profile and exploration of the current situation
Authors: Mdladlo Thandeka , Flack Penelope , Joubert Robin
Published: March 2016

This article presents the results of a survey conducted on Speech-Language Therapists (SLTs) regarding current practices in the assessment of English Additional Language (EAL) speakers in South Africa. It forms part of the rationale for a broader (PhD) study that critiques the use of assessment instruments on EAL speakers from an indigenous linguistic and cultural background. This article discusses an aspect of the broader research and presents the background, method, findings, discussion and implications of the survey. The results of this survey highlight the challenges of human and material resources to, and the dominance of English in, the profession in South Africa. The findings contribute to understanding critical factors for acquiring reliable and valid assessment results with diverse populations, particularly the implications from a cultural and linguistic perspective.[PDF to follow]
Epidemiology of Guillain–Barré Syndrome in Aruba
Authors: Suryapranata Franciska S. T. , Ang C. Wim , Chong Luis L. , Murk Jean-Luc , Falconi Jaime , Huits Ralph M. H. G.
Published: March 2016

The epidemiology of Guillain–Barré syndrome (GBS) in tropical areas is different compared with developed countries. We investigated the epidemiology of GBS on the Caribbean island of Aruba. Data were collected retrospectively from all 36 patients hospitalized with GBS between 2003 and 2011 in Aruba. We observed a seasonal distribution of GBS cases with a peak in February. The incidence rate (IR) fluctuated heavily between individual years. The overall IR was 3.93/100,000, which is higher than that observed in developed countries. Serological studies indicated a possible relation of GBS cases with dengue virus infections. We also observed a relation between the annual number of dengue cases in Aruba and the number of GBS cases in the same year. We conclude that the epidemiology of GBS in tropical areas can be different from temperate climate regions and that dengue may be a trigger for developing GBS.
Challenges to Arboviral Surveillance in Tennessee: Health-Care Providers' Attitudes and Behaviors
Authors: Shaffner Julie , Jones Timothy F. , Moncayo Abelardo C.
Published: March 2016

Surveillance of arboviruses depends on health-care providers' ability to diagnose and report human cases of disease. The purposes of this study were to assess Tennessee providers' 1) self-efficacy toward diagnosis and management, 2) clinical practices, and 3) variation in these measures by provider characteristics. A survey was e-mailed to 13,851 providers, of which 916 (7%) responded. Respondents diagnosed more arboviruses in the previous year than were recorded in surveillance records, an indication of underreporting. Respondents had low to moderate self-efficacy toward diagnosis and management of arboviruses. Although more than 70% (N = 589) used paired serology, only 46% (N = 396) asked patients to return for a convalescent specimen draw within the correct time frame. One of the most commonly reported barriers to testing was uncertainty about which tests to order. Providers working in family medicine and urgent care, nurse practitioners, and those at outpatient facilities had lower rates of high self-efficacy than their counterparts working in other settings and from other specialties. Clinical practices were influenced by specialty, designation, setting, and geography but not by years of experience. Education to improve arboviral surveillance in Tennessee is warranted. Topics could include proper diagnosis and management, appropriate testing and overcoming barriers to testing, and public health reporting.
Characterization of a Novel Murine Model to Study Zika Virus
Authors: Rossi Shannan L. , Tesh Robert B. , Azar Sasha R. , Muruato Antonio E. , Hanley Kathryn A. , Auguste Albert J. , Langsjoen Rose M. , Paessler Slobodan , Vasilakis Nikos , Weaver Scott C.
Published: March 2016

The mosquito-borne Zika virus (ZIKV) is responsible for an explosive ongoing outbreak of febrile illness across the Americas. ZIKV was previously thought to cause only a mild, flu-like illness, but during the current outbreak, an association with Guillain–Barré syndrome and microcephaly in neonates has been detected. A previous study showed that ZIKV requires murine adaptation to generate reproducible murine disease. In our study, a low-passage Cambodian isolate caused disease and mortality in mice lacking the interferon (IFN) alpha receptor (A129 mice) in an age-dependent manner, but not in similarly aged immunocompetent mice. In A129 mice, viremia peaked at ∼107 plaque-forming units/mL by day 2 postinfection (PI) and reached high titers in the spleen by day 1. ZIKV was detected in the brain on day 3 PI and caused signs of neurologic disease, including tremors, by day 6. Robust replication was also noted in the testis. In this model, all mice infected at the youngest age (3 weeks) succumbed to illness by day 7 PI. Older mice (11 weeks) showed signs of illness, viremia, and weight loss but recovered starting on day 8. In addition, AG129 mice, which lack both type I and II IFN responses, supported similar infection kinetics to A129 mice, but with exaggerated disease signs. This characterization of an Asian lineage ZIKV strain in a murine model, and one of the few studies reporting a model of Zika disease and demonstrating age-dependent morbidity and mortality, could provide a platform for testing the efficacy of antivirals and vaccines.
Chemical and physical influences on aerosol activation in liquid clouds: a study based on observations from the Jungfraujoch, Switzerland
Authors: Hoyle Christopher R. , Webster Clare S. , Rieder Harald E. , Nenes Athanasios , Hammer Emanuel , Herrmann Erik , Gysel Martin , Bukowiecki Nicolas , Weingartner Ernest , Steinbacher Martin , Baltensperger Urs
Published: March 2016

Abstract. A simple statistical model to predict the number of aerosols which activate to form cloud droplets in warm clouds has been established, based on regression analysis of data from four summertime Cloud and Aerosol Characterisation Experiments (CLACE) at the high-altitude site Jungfraujoch (JFJ). It is shown that 79 % of the observed variance in droplet numbers can be represented by a model accounting only for the number of potential cloud condensation nuclei (defined as number of particles larger than 80 nm in diameter), while the mean errors in the model representation may be reduced by the addition of further explanatory variables, such as the mixing ratios of O3, CO, and the height of the measurements above cloud base. The statistical model has a similar ability to represent the observed droplet numbers in each of the individual years, as well as for the two predominant local wind directions at the JFJ (northwest and southeast). Given the central European location of the JFJ, with air masses in summer being representative of the free troposphere with regular boundary layer in-mixing via convection, we expect that this statistical model is generally applicable to warm clouds under conditions where droplet formation is aerosol limited (i.e. at relatively high updraught velocities and/or relatively low aerosol number concentrations). A comparison between the statistical model and an established microphysical parametrization shows good agreement between the two and supports the conclusion that cloud droplet formation at the JFJ is predominantly controlled by the number concentration of aerosol particles.
Size-segregated compositional analysis of aerosol particles collected in the European Arctic during the ACCACIA campaign
Authors: Young G. , Jones H. M. , Darbyshire E. , Baustian K. J. , McQuaid J. B. , Bower K. N. , Connolly P. J. , Gallagher M. W. , Choularton T. W.
Published: March 2016

Abstract. Single-particle compositional analysis of filter samples collected on board the Facility for Airborne Atmospheric Measurements (FAAM) BAe-146 aircraft is presented for six flights during the springtime Aerosol–Cloud Coupling and Climate Interactions in the Arctic (ACCACIA) campaign (March–April 2013). Scanning electron microscopy was utilised to derive size-segregated particle compositions and size distributions, and these were compared to corresponding data from wing-mounted optical particle counters. Reasonable agreement between the calculated number size distributions was found. Significant variability in composition was observed, with differing external and internal mixing identified, between air mass trajectory cases based on HYbrid Single-Particle Lagrangian Integrated Trajectory (HYSPLIT) analyses. Dominant particle classes were silicate-based dusts and sea salts, with particles notably rich in K and Ca detected in one case. Source regions varied from the Arctic Ocean and Greenland through to northern Russia and the European continent. Good agreement between the back trajectories was mirrored by comparable compositional trends between samples. Silicate dusts were identified in all cases, and the elemental composition of the dust was consistent for all samples except one. It is hypothesised that long-range, high-altitude transport was primarily responsible for this dust, with likely sources including the Asian arid regions.
Heterogeneous reactions of NO2 with CaCO3-(NH4)2SO4 mixtures at different relative humidities
Authors: Tan Fang , Tong Shengrui , Jing Bo , Hou Siqi , Liu Qifan , Li Kun , Zhang Ying , Ge Maofa
Published: March 2016

Abstract. In this work, the heterogeneous reactions of NO2 with CaCO3-(NH4)2SO4 mixtures with a series of weight percentage (wt%) of (NH4)2SO4 were investigated using a diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform spectroscopy (DRIFTS) at different relative humidity (RH) values. For comparison, the heterogeneous reactions of NO2 with pure CaCO3 particles and pure (NH4)2SO4 particles, as well as the reaction of CaCO3 with (NH4)2SO4 particles were also studied. The results indicated that NO2 did not show any significant uptake on pure (NH4)2SO4 particles, and it reacted with pure CaCO3 particles to form calcium nitrate at all the RHs investigated. The heterogeneous reactions of NO2 with CaCO3-(NH4)2SO4 mixtures were markedly dependent on RH. Calcium nitrate was formed from the heterogeneous reactions of NO2 with the mixtures under both dry and wet conditions, whereas CaSO4·0.5H2O (bassanite), CaSO4·2H2O (gypsum) and (NH4)2Ca(SO4)2·H2O (koktaite) were produced depending on RH. The NO3− mass concentrations of the CaCO3-(NH4)2SO4 mixtures had a negative linear relation with (NH4)2SO4 mass fraction under dry condition. In this condition, the heterogeneous uptake of NO2 on the mixtures was similar to that on pure CaCO3 particles. The CaCO3-(NH4)2SO4 mixtures exhibited a promotive effect on the heterogeneous uptake of NO2 and the formation of nitrate under wet conditions. Additionally, the reaction between CaCO3 and (NH4)2SO4 was enhanced with increasing RH, and it exhibited an inhibiting effect on the formation of nitrate. On the contrary, the interaction between Ca(NO3)2 and (NH4)2SO4 promoted the nitrate formation during the heterogeneous reaction process. Furthermore, the heterogeneous uptake of NO2 on CaCO3-(NH4)2SO4 mixtures was found to favor the formation of bassanite and gypsum due to the decomposition of CaCO3 and the coagulation of Ca2+ and SO42−. A possible reaction mechanism was proposed and atmospheric implications were discussed.
Validation of brightness and physical temperature from two scanning microwave radiometers in the 60 GHz O2-band using radiosonde measurements
Authors: Navas-Guzmán Francisco , Kämpfer Niklaus , Haefele Alexander
Published: March 2016

Abstract. In this paper, we address the assessment of the tropospheric performance of a new temperature radiometer (TEMPERA) at 60 GHz.With this goal, an intercomparison campaign was carried out at the aerological station of MeteoSwiss in Payerne (Swizerland). The brightness temperature and the tropospheric temperature were assessed by means of a comparison with simultaneous and collocated radiosondes which are launched twice a day at this station. In addition, the TEMPERA performances are compared with the ones from a commercial microwave radiometer (HATPRO) which has some different instrumental characteristics and uses a different inversion algorithm. Brightness temperatures from both radiometers were compared with the ones simulated using a radiative transfer model and atmospheric profiles from radiosondes. A total of 532 cases were analyzed under all weather conditions and evidenced larger brightness temperature deviations between the two radiometers and the radiosondes for the most transparent channels. Two different retrievals for the TEMPERA radiometer were implemented in order to evaluate the effect of the different channels on the temperature retrievals. The comparison with radiosondes evidenced better results and very similar to the ones from HATPRO when the 8 more opaques channels were used. The study shows the good performance of TEMPERA to retrieve temperature profiles in the troposphere. The inversion method of TEMPERA is based on the Optimal Estimation Method. The main advantage of this algorithm is that there is no necessity for radiosonde information to achieve good results in contrast to conventional methods as neuronal networks or lineal regression. Finally, an assessment of the effect of instrumental characteristics as the filter response and the antenna pattern on the brightness temperature showed that they can have an important impact on the most transparent channels.
The impact of clouds, land use and snow cover on climate in the Canadian Prairies
Authors: Betts Alan K. , Desjardins Raymond L. , Worth Devon E.
Published: March 2016

Abstract. This study uses 55 years of hourly observations of air temperature, relative humidity, daily precipitation, snow cover and cloud cover from 15 climate stations across the Canadian Prairies to analyze biosphere-atmosphere interactions. We will provide examples of the coupling between climate, snow cover, clouds, and land use. Snow cover acts as a fast climate switch. With the first snow fall, air temperature falls by 10 °C, and a similar increase in temperature occurs with snow melt. Climatologically, days with snow cover are 10 °C cooler than days with no snow cover in Alberta. However the interannual variability has a larger range, so that for every 10 % decrease in days with snow cover, the mean October to April climate is warmer by 1.4 to 1.5 °C. Snow cover also transforms the coupling between clouds and the diurnal cycle of air temperature from a boundary layer regime dominated by shortwave cloud forcing in the warm season to one dominated by longwave cloud forcing with snow cover. Changing agricultural land use in the past thirty years, specifically the reduction of summer fallowing, has cooled and moistened the growing season climate and increased summer precipitation. These hourly climate data provide a solid observational basis for understanding land surface coupling, which can be used to improve the representation of clouds and land-surface processes in atmospheric models.
Lightning and electrical activity during the Shiveluch volcano eruption on 16 November 2014
Authors: Shevtsov Boris M. , Firstov Pavel P. , Cherneva Nina V. , Holzworth Robert H. , Akbashev Renat R.
Published: March 2016

Abstract. According to World Wide Lightning Location Network (WWLLN) data, a sequence of lightning discharges was detected which occurred in the area of the explosive eruption of Shiveluch volcano on 16 November 2014 in Kamchatka. Information on the ash cloud motion was confirmed by the measurements of atmospheric electricity, satellite observations and meteorological and seismic data. It was concluded that WWLLN resolution is enough to detect the earlier stage of volcanic explosive eruption when electrification processes develop the most intensively. The lightning method has the undeniable advantage for the fast remote sensing of volcanic electric activity anywhere in the world. There is a good opportunity for the development of WWLLN technology to observe explosive volcanic eruptions.
Análisis de la revista Bibliotecas: Anales de Investigación
Authors: González-Valiente Carlos Luis , Núñez Amaro Sonia , Santovenia Díaz Javier Ramón , Linares Herrera Manuel Paulino
Published: March 2016

El objetivo de este artículo es describir el impacto académico, la calidad del proceso editorial, y las estrategias editoriales y de visibilidad de la revista científica cubana Bibliotecas. Anales de Investigación (BAI), editada por la Biblioteca Nacional de Cuba “José Martí”. Para determinar el impacto académico se efectúa un análisis de las citas recibidas a partir de la base datos Google Académico, mediante los indicadores bibliométricos: citas por año, citación vs. autocitación, revistas citables vs. documentos no citables, Índice Hirsch y factor de impacto. La calidad del proceso editorial y las estrategias de visibilidad se determinan mediante una autoevaluación efectuada con la metodología de los sistemas de indización SciELO, Scopus, CLASE, Redalyc, Latindex, Dialnet, y ERIH PLUS. Los resultados revelan una línea de crecimiento en la citación, destacándose como fuentes citantes las revistas científicas de las áreas Bibliotecología y Ciencia de la Información, Medicina y Ciencias de la Salud, y Educación. Se evidencia que algunos aspectos de formato y contenido inciden negativamente en la calidad del proceso editorial. Se proponen estrategias para mejorar la visibilidad científica a través de la inclusión en bases de datos, directorios, y redes sociales y académicas. En general, este estudio contribuye a la toma de decisiones editoriales para aumentar el impacto y la visibilidad científica de BAI.
Informação e conhecimento na economia solidária
Authors: Godoy Viera Angel Freddy , Foresti Fabricio , Da Rosa Viviane
Published: March 2016

Objetivo. O estudo busca identificar como a questão da informação e do conhecimento é abordada em Economia Solidária (ES) de forma a identificar as necessidades e problemas relacionados. Método. Para alcançar os objetivos propostos foi realizada pesquisa quantitativa bibliográfica com amostra composta por 60 artigos revisados por pares recuperados na base SciELO (Scientific Electronic Library Online) com as palavras-chave Economia Solidária no título. A pesquisa relaciona as frequências dos termos informação e conhecimento com 14 classes de interesse e objeto de estudo da Ciência da Informação. Resultados. Foram identificados os autores que mais citam a informação e o conhecimento em suas publicações, bem como os períodicos mais relevantes para a área e os problemas mais recorrentes em relação à informação e ao conhecimento na Economia Solidária, em conformidade com a amostra e os procedimentos metodológicos. Ao final é apresentada tabela que aponta formas de atuação possíveis pelos profissionais da informação frente à Economia Solidária. Conclusões. Conclui que a informação e o conhecimento são fundamentais para a Economia Solidária, mas que muitas carências são básicas e que o tipo de informação mais relevante para a Economia Solidária é a informação para a tomada de decisão coletiva.
Flujo documental entre áreas administrativas de una entidad bancaria: una aproximación desde el análisis de redes sociales (ARS)
Authors: Montoya Mogollón Juan Bernardo , Carvalho Madio Telma Campanha de
Published: March 2016

El presente trabajo pretende como objeto de estudio, analizar doce departamentos administrativos de una entidad bancaria y sus relaciones en términos documentales (flujos), abordados desde la unidad de investigación del Análisis de Redes Sociales (ARS). El problema esencial de este estudio, se enfoca en determinar la manera en la que se relacionan las áreas descritas, destacando sus principales fortalezas y/o debilidades tanto al interior de cada una de ellas, como en sus relaciones con las demás en la organización. Por último, estos análisis pretende brindar la posibilidad de entender cómo se relacionan los actores dentro de una organización, para proyectar posibles soluciones en términos de relaciones y diseminación documental, una actividad que sigue teniendo visibles dificultades en la actualidad.
ANÁLISE DE PERCEPÇÃO QUALITATIVA DO TRANSPORTE PÚBLICO: UM ESTUDO DE CASO NA CIDADE DE BELÉM/PA
Authors: Bentes Kato Ricardo , Macêdo Bordalo Bernardo , Da Silva Camelo Tiago
Published: March 2016

RESUMO: Com base nos indicadores de qualidade do sistema de transporte coletivo urbano em Belém - PA, medidos pela opinião dos usuários, esta pesquisa analisa a qualidade do sistema de transporte coletivo realizado por ônibus em um sistema não integrado. Por meio da aplicação de uma pesquisa de opinião com uma amostra dos usuários e, levantamento de critérios de qualidade do serviço, essa pesquisa analisou o grau de percepção de qualidade desse meio de transporte, tendo como referencial básico, parâmetros utilizados na biografia já publicada. Por meio da análise dos resultados determinou-se o nível do serviço ofertado pelas empresas operadoras do transporte coletivo em Belém. Fornecendo, assim, um diagnóstico a respeito da qualidade deste serviço que pode servir de subsídio na formulação de políticas públicas que visem melhorar o transporte público urbano em Belém - PA. ABSTRACT: Based on the quality indicators of the urban public transportation system in Belém – PA, measured by the opinion of users, this research analyses the quality of public transport system of the bus modality, in a non-integrated model. Through the application of a opinion survey, with a sample of the users and the determination of service quality indicators, this research analyzed the level of user perception about the quality of the service provided by this typology of transport, taking as a reference for the development of this research, parameters used in the published biography. Through the results analysis, it was determined the service quality level offered by the public transport companies in Belém. Thus, the main contribution of this research is to provide a data base for public policy formulation allowances to improve urban public transport in Belém – PA.
The Impact of Cultural Diversity on the Academic Performance: A Study on Turkish Universities
Authors: Turgut Ercan
Published: March 2016

Universities as science production centers are institutions that bring diverse information together. It is noteworthy that no longer these institutions have more international and heterogeneous structures. Qualified foreign academicians with the educational culture of a different country get universities stronger with these differences and knowledge, and improve the universities’ academic performance. Considering this idea in this research the effect of the number of foreign academicians to the academic performance of universities is investigated. For this purpose, the effect and correlation between performance rates of 130 universities of Turkey and the number of the foreign academicians, which is evaluated by University Ranking by Academic Performance Research Laboratory (URAP), have been revealed with correlation and regression analysis. As a consequence, a positive and weak relationship was determined between the number of foreign academicians and performance. Also the number of the foreign instructors affects the performance of the universities positively.
A Quantitative Analysis of the Causes of Drug Shortages in Jordan: A Supply Chain Perspective
Authors: Awad Hala , Al-Zu'bi Zu'bi M.F. , Abdallah Ayman Bahjat
Published: March 2016

This study investigates the causes of drug shortage in Jordan. Based on thorough literature review, five causes related to supply chain were identified, namely regulatory and legislative processes, manufacturing-related issues, distribution factors, supply and demand imbalance, and human factors.

Data were collected from 221 professionals selected from Jordan Food and Drug Administration (JFDA), pharmaceutical manufacturing sector, hospital professionals, and other nodes in the supply chain including distributors and wholesalers. Multiple-regression analysis was used to test the hypothesized relationships. The results indicate that four causes are significantly related to drug shortages in Jordan, regulatory and legislative processes, distribution factors, human factors, and supply and demand imbalance. Manufacturing-related issues are not significantly related to drug shortages. Implications and recommendations for the decision makers are proposed on the basis of the study results.
Integrated Model to Measure the Impact of Terrorism and Political Stability on FDI Inflows: Empirical Study of Pakistan
Authors: Rauf Sundas , Mehmood Rashid , Rauf Aisha , Mehmood Shafaqat
Published: March 2016

To condense saving-investment gap, transformation of technology, creation of employment opportunities and more importantly, increasing economic development of host countries, Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) is proven to be a significant source of investment predominantly for developing countries. Numerous standing studies have scrutinized the economic impact of terrorism and political stability by referring to decrease in FDI. This study empirically enlightens the determinants of FDI for Pakistan over the period 1970 to 2013, by using annual secondary time series data. Adopting the optimistic approach, in this study, variables in the combination of terrorism, political stability, trade openness and GDP have been analyzed applying Ordinary Least Square (OLS) method. As expected, the projected results confirm that GDP, trade openness and political stability have positive and significant impact whilst terrorism has negative influence on FDI inflows in Pakistan. Because of the political stability along with stable GDP growth rate, inverse impact of terrorism has been found statistically insignificant.
Earnings Management and Audit Opinion
Authors: Moazedi Elaheh , Khansalar Ehsan
Published: March 2016

The subject of the present research is the study of the relationship between earnings management (accrual-based and real) and auditor’s opinion. Alongside putting the control variables into consideration, this this paper studies the relationship between earnings management (accrual-based and real) and auditors’ opinion. The purpose of this research is to examine the effect of income smoothing and manipulation on the opinion of independent auditors. This research includes two independent variables i.e. earnings management (based on discretionary accruals) and real earnings management, one dependent variable i.e. auditor’s opinion, along with control variables. In the first main hypothesis the relation between real earnings management and auditor’s opinion is examined; and the second hypothesis involves the association between discretionary accrual-based earnings management and auditor’s opinion. In this research some 117 firms in the time period 2008-2013 are empirically investigated and studied using logistic regression method. In conclusion, the second and third hypotheses are rejected; however examination of the first and fourth hypotheses confirms their significant association with auditor’s opinion.
Explaining Tourism Inflows in Greece: A Macroeconometric Approach
Authors: Agiomirgianakis George , Sfakianakis George
Published: March 2016

This paper investigates the determinants of tourism inflows to Greece. The significance of the specific sector for the Greek economy varies from 15% to 20% of GDP (measured directly or indirectly respectively). Building on the existing literature, panel data estimation techniques are used, with explanatory variables including selected macroeconomic indicators and (relative) price indices. The main innovation of the paper is that, regarding the cross section dimension of the sample, disaggregated data based on the country (or area) of origin are used, combined with the corresponding macroeconomic aggregates. The time-span of the data is the 2004-2010 period, with the specific econometric techniques used taking into account both the statistical properties of variables and the differences between the various cross sections. The main conclusion of the paper is that the macroeconometric approach to explaining tourist arrivals provides a very satisfactory model fit, with explanatory variables explaining a significant part of the variability of the dependent variable.
Credit Scoring and Default Risk Prediction: A Comparative Study between Discriminant Analysis & Logistic Regression
Authors: Khemais Zaghdoudi , Nesrine Djebali , Mohamed Mezni
Published: March 2016

This paper aims to develop models for foreseeing default risk of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) for one Tunisian commercial bank using two different methodologies (logistic regression and discriminant analysis). We used a database that consists of 195 credit files granted to Tunisian SMEs which are divided into five sectors “industry, agriculture, tourism, trade and services” for a period from 2012 to 2014. The empirical results that we found support the idea that these two scoring techniques have a statistically significant power in predicting default risk of enterprises. Logistic discrimination classifies enterprises correctly in their original groups with a rate of 76.7% against 76.4% in case of linear discrimination giving so a slight superiority to the first method.
Population Monotonicity in Public Good Economies with Single Dipped Preferences
Authors: Gursel Tapki Ipek
Published: March 2016

We study public good economies with variable population. We consider the problem of locating a single public good along a segment when agents have single dipped preferences. We analyze population monotonicity along with the standard properties Pareto efficiency, continuity and no-veto power. We show that there is no rule satisfying these properties together.
The Influence of Elision on the Original Syllabic Structure in English and Safwani Arabic: A Contextual Analysis
Authors: Ibrahim Majid Abdulatif
Published: March 2016

Elision, as being a distinguishing mark among phonological processes, plays a vital role in patterning and mapping syllables of the language in a way that it can “distort” particular syllabic forms and templates. It represents deterioration, modification and to some extent radical changes in the syllabic structure of the original words even though it is usually a result of rapid colloquial speech. This study is a phonological work to detect the influence of sound deletion on syllabic templates and patterns of English and Safwani Arabic. It is an attempt to work out an analysis of the possible contexts where individual segments and syllables exhibit deletion. The analysis of all possible contexts where segments and syllables are lost in these varieties is illustrated by detailed tables within the paper. The tables are designed in a way that both original and reduced word or phrase forms are given, the context of sound elision is provided and then both original and resulting syllabic patterns are demonstrated.
Language or Protolanguage
Authors: Hajizade Aftab Yashar
Published: March 2016

The article investigates the communication system of living beings, especially the non-humans. The author tries to analyse that if there are any relations between the evolution of the language and the communication system of the species. The author studies the Animal Communication System by Mark Hauser.

According to the investigations mostly all living beings communicate to each other with any way. Humans, animals, birds, insects and even bacteria are able to communicate with each other. This reason caused Mark Hauser to investigate Animal Communication System (ACS) decades ago. Basing on his observations in different environments and with different kinds of animals for many years he defined that ACS covers three broad categories.

He named those categories as signals and gave such a division:

1)         The signals that relate to individual survival;

2)         The signals that relate to mating and reproduction;

3)         The signals that relate to other kinds of interactions among members of the same species; they are called social signals (2, s.16).

The author investigates each of these categories by giving detailed examples from different sources. The author comes to the conclusion that the non-humans do not concepts as some people think. They only have abilities that were given to them by birth. And they perform their abilities in each situation.
The Production of English Coda Clusters by Aljouf Arabic Speakers
Authors: Alenazi Areej Rakha
Published: March 2016

This study examines how Aljouf Arabic speakers deal with English coda clusters containing two consonants, which will help in addressing the modification strategies used by the participants to simplify clusters. In addition, the study aims to examine whether or not markedness—based on the sonority distance—has an effect on the participants’ pronunciation. Fifteen native speakers of the Aljouf Arabic dialect were asked to read a list of twenty-five nonwords that took into account the sonority distance between C1 and C2 in clusters. In general, the results showed that the participants tended to modify English coda clusters. They used two strategies to modify the clusters: epenthesis and deletion. Markedness based on sonority distance did not provide an explanation for participants' performance. Coda clusters in which the sonority distance is two were modified by all participants. On the other hand, some clusters in which the sonority distance is less than two were pronounced correctly by most of the participants. The clusters which were correctly pronounced by most of the participants include nasal- obstruent clusters and an obstruent-obstruent cluster.
Building a ladder to Hershey Heaven
Authors: Zinn Kai
Published: March 2016

A genome-wide resource looks set to turn an experimental ideal into a reality for the Drosophila community.
Impact of three-dimensional stacking silicon on diamond substrate for the electrostatic discharge protection device
Authors: Ikeda Yuho , Nakagawa Kentaro , Yoshida Wataru , Matsumoto Satoshi
Published: March 2016

In this paper, the electrostatic-discharge (ESD) protection capabilities of the protection devices fabricated on a silicon-on-diamond (SOD) structure and a conventional Si substrate are compared. The results showed that the ESD protection capability of the SOD substrate is higher than that of the silicon-on-insulator (SOI) substrate. We also evaluate the ESD protection device suitable for the SOD structure. In addition, we propose the three-dimensional (3D) stacking structure suitable for a power supply on a chip (power-SoC) and the best location for the implementation of the ESD protection device based on the results of device simulations.
CaribbeanBulimulusrevisited: physical moves and molecular traces (Mollusca, Gastropoda, Bulimulidae)
Authors: Breure Abraham S.H.
Published: March 2016

Twenty-five samples ofBulimulusspecies are studied, partly from localities within their known distribution range, partly based on interceptions where the material originates from localities where the species seem to be recently introduced and non-native. Molecular study of cytochrome oxidase 1 (CO1) reveals the origin of some of these introductions, but is less conclusive for others. Four different methods for species delimitation were applied, which did not result in unambiguous species hypotheses. For a rapid identification of morphologically indistinct species, a more comprehensive database of sequences is needed.
The effect of the dispersal kernel on isolation-by-distance in a continuous population
Authors: Furstenau Tara N. , Cartwright Reed A.
Published: March 2016

Under models of isolation-by-distance, population structure is determined by the probability of identity-by-descent between pairs of genes according to the geographic distance between them. Well established analytical results indicate that the relationship between geographical and genetic distance depends mostly on the neighborhood size of the population which represents a standardized measure of gene flow. To test this prediction, we model local dispersal of haploid individuals on a two-dimensional landscape using seven dispersal kernels: Rayleigh, exponential, half-normal, triangular, gamma, Lomax and Pareto. When neighborhood size is held constant, the distributions produce similar patterns of isolation-by-distance, confirming predictions. Considering this, we propose that the triangular distribution is the appropriate null distribution for isolation-by-distance studies. Under the triangular distribution, dispersal is uniform over the neighborhood area which suggests that the common description of neighborhood size as a measure of an effective, local panmictic population is valid for popular families of dispersal distributions. We further show how to draw random variables from the triangular distribution efficiently and argue that it should be utilized in other studies in which computational efficiency is important.
Specializations of the mandibular anatomy and dentition ofSegnosaurus galbinensis(Theropoda: Therizinosauria)
Authors: Zanno Lindsay E. , Tsogtbaatar Khishigjav , Chinzorig Tsogtbaatar , Gates Terry A.
Published: March 2016

Definitive therizinosaurid cranial materials are exceptionally rare, represented solely by an isolated braincase and tooth in the North American taxonNothronychus mckinleyi, the remarkably complete skull of the Asian taxonErlikosaurus andrewsi, and the lower hemimandibles ofSegnosaurus galbinensis. To date, comprehensive descriptions of the former taxa are published; however, the mandibular materials ofS. galbinensishave remained largely understudied since their initial description in 1979. Here we provide a comprehensive description of the well-preserved hemimandibles and dentition ofS. galbinensis(MPC-D 100/80), from the Upper Cretaceous Bayanshiree Formation, Gobi Desert, Mongolia. The subrectangular and ventrally displaced caudal hemimandible, extreme ventral deflection of the rostral dentary, and edentulism of the caudal dentary ofS. galbinensisare currently apomorphic among therizinosaurians. Unique, unreported dental traits including lingually folded mesial carinae, development of a denticulated triangular facet on the distal carinae near the cervix, and extracarinal accessory denticles, suggest a highly specialized feeding strategy inS. galbinensis. The presence of triple carinae on the distalmost lateral tooth crowns is also unique, although may represent an abnormality. Contrasted with the simplistic dentition of the contemporaneous therizinosauridE. andrewsi, the dentition ofS. galbinensisis indicative of niche partitioning in food acquisition, processing, or resources among known therizinosaurids inhabiting Asian ecosystems in the Late Cretaceous. Although not quantitatively correlated with diet, this suite of specializations is otherwise unique among theropod dinosaurs and supports derived inferences of facultative or obligate herbivory in therizinosaurids, ultimately adding novel information to our understanding of ecomorphology in theropods.