bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Smoothness discriminates physical from motor imagery practice of arm reaching movements
Authors: Ruffino Célia , Rannaud Monany Dylan , Papaxanthis Charalambos , Hilt Pauline M. , Gaveau Jérémie , Lebon Florent
Published: September 2021

Physical practice (PP) and motor imagery practice (MP) lead to the execution of fast and accurate arm movements. However, there is currently no information about the influence of MP on movement smoothness, nor about which performance parameters best discriminate these practices. In the current study, we assessed motor performances with an arm pointing task with constrained precision before and after PP (n= 15), MP (n= 15), or no practice (n= 15). We analyzed gains between Pre- and Post-Test for five performance parameters: movement duration, mean and maximal velocities, total displacements, and the number of velocity peaks characterizing movement smoothness. The results showed an improvement of performance after PP and MP for all parameters, except for total displacements. The gains for movement duration, and mean and maximal velocities were statistically higher after PP and MP than after no practice, and comparable between practices. However, motor gains for the number of velocity peaks were higher after PP than MP, suggesting that movements were smoother after PP than after MP. A discriminant analysis also identified the number of velocity peaks as the most relevant parameter that differentiated PP from MP. The current results provide evidence that PP and MP specifically modulate movement smoothness during arm reaching tasks. This difference may rely on online corrections through sensory feedback integration, available during PP but not during MP.
Crystal structures of 6-nitroquinazolin-4(3H)-one, 6-aminoquinazolin-4(3H)-one and 4-aminoquinazoline hemihydrochloride dihydrate
Authors: Turgunov Kambarali , Ziyadullaev Mirjalol , Khoshimov Farkhod , Karimov Rikhsiboy , Elmuradov Burkhon
Published: September 2021

The title compounds, 6-nitroquinazolin-4(3H)-one (C8H5N3O3; I), 6-aminoquinazolin-4(3H)-one (C8H7N3O; II) and 4-aminoquinazolin-1-ium chloride–4-aminoquinazoline–water (1/1/2), (C8H8N3
+·Cl−·C8H7N3·2H2O; III) were synthesized and their structures were determined by single-crystal X-ray analysis. In the crystals of I and II, the quinazoline molecules form hydrogen-bonded dimers via N—H...O interactions. The dimers are connected by weak intermolecular C—H...N and C—H...O hydrogen bonds, forming a layered structure in the case of I. In the crystal of II, N—H...N and C—H...O interactions link the dimers into a three-dimensional network structure. The asymmetric unit of III consists of two quinazoline molecules, one of which is protonated, a chloride ion, and two water molecules. The chloride anion and the water molecules form hydrogen-bonded chains consisting of fused five-membered rings. The protonated and unprotonated quinazolin molecules are linked to the chloride ions and water molecules of the chain by their amino groups.
BIM-based mixed-reality application for bridge inspection and maintenance
Authors: Nguyen Duy-Cuong , Nguyen The-Quan , Jin Ruoyu , Jeon Chi-Ho , Shim Chang-Su
Published: September 2021

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to develop a building information modelling (BIM)-based mixed reality (MR) application to enhance and facilitate the process of managing bridge inspection and maintenance works remotely from office. It aims to address the ineffective decision-making process on maintenance tasks from the conventional method which relies on documents and 2D drawings on visual inspection. This study targets two key issues: creating a BIM-based model for bridge inspection and maintenance; and developing this model in a MR platform based on Microsoft Hololens.

Design/methodology/approach

Literature review is conducted to determine the limitation of MR technology in the construction industry and identify the gaps of integration of BIM and MR for bridge inspection works. A new framework for a greater adoption of integrated BIM and Hololens is proposed. It consists of a bridge information model for inspection and a newly-developed Hololens application named “HoloBridge”. This application contains the functional modules that allow users to check and update the progress of inspection and maintenance. The application has been implemented for an existing bridge in South Korea as the case study.

Findings

The results from pilot implementation show that the inspection information management can be enhanced because the inspection database can be systematically captured, stored and managed through BIM-based models. The inspection information in MR environment has been improved in interpretation, visualization and visual interpretation of 3D models because of intuitively interactive in real-time simulation.

Originality/value

The proposed framework through “HoloBridge” application explores the potential of integrating BIM and MR technology by using Hololens. It provides new possibilities for remote inspection of bridge conditions.
Design of reversible Feynman and double Feynman gates in quantum-dot cellular automata nanotechnology
Authors: Riyaz Sadat , Sharma Vijay Kumar
Published: September 2021

Purpose

This paper aims to propose the reversible Feynman and double Feynman gates using quantum-dot cellular automata (QCA) nanotechnology with minimum QCA cells and latency which minimizes the circuit area with the more energy efficiency.

Design/methodology/approach

The core aim of the QCA nanotechnology is to build the high-speed, energy efficient and as much smaller devices as possible. This brings a challenge for the designers to construct the designs that fulfill the requirements as demanded. This paper proposed a new exclusive-OR (XOR) gate which is then used to implement the logical operations of the reversible Feynman and double Feynman gates using QCA nanotechnology.

Findings

QCA designer-E has been used for the QCA designs and the simulation results. The proposed QCA designs have less latency, occupy less area and have lesser cell count as compared to the existing ones.

Originality/value

The latencies of the proposed gates are 0.25 which are improved by 50% as compared to the best available design as reported in the literature. The cell count in the proposed XOR gate is 11, while it is 14 in Feynman gate and 27 in double Feynman gate. The cell count for the proposed designs is minimum as compared to the best available designs.
An extended car-following model considering the effect of two-sided lateral gap with uncertain velocity on curved road
Authors: Li Huizhe , Ge Hongxia , Cheng Rongjun
Published: September 2021

Purpose

The goal of this study is to explore the effect of two-sided lateral gap with uncertain velocity on the stability of traffic flow on a curved road.

Design/methodology/approach

In this paper, an extended car-following model considering the effect of two-sided lateral gap with uncertain velocity on a curved road is proposed. The effects of different lateral positions and radius of different sizes can be considered as control signals. The stability condition of the new model is obtained by the control theory. The numerical simulations are carried out to analyze how the control signal and lateral positions and radius of curved road affect traffic flow stability. The results show that driving between two lanes and inaccurate speed estimates both have a negative effect on traffic flow stability, and the stability also decreases with the increase in the radius of curved road.

Findings

(1) Simulation of influencing factors of vehicle lateral position indicates that if the driver drives between two lanes, it would have a negative impact on traffic flow. (2) When the speed is fixed, the traffic flow becomes more and more unstable with the increase in the radius of the curve. (3) The stability of traffic flow will be affected when the driver estimates the speed of the vehicle ahead. Therefore, whether it is manual driving or future intelligent vehicle driving, it is necessary to accurately judge the speed of the front vehicle.

Originality/value

There is little research on two-sided lateral gap with uncertain velocity for the stability of traffic flow on a curved road. The enhanced model constructed in this study can better reflect the real traffic, which can also give some theoretical reference for the development of connected and autonomous vehicles (CAVs).
Social inclusion of migrant workers in a pandemic: employing consumer vulnerability lens to internal Indian migrant experience
Authors: Voola Archana Preeti , Ray Subhasis , Voola Ranjit
Published: September 2021

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to expand the theoretical understanding of social inclusion of vulnerable populations. Employing cross disciplinary literature from marketing and social policy, this paper examines the factors shaping internal migrant workers experience of inclusion and vulnerability in the context of COVID-19 pandemic.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors conducted a review of social inclusion and consumer vulnerability literature to develop a new and innovative conceptual framework which operationalises social inclusion. This framework was then examined using an illustrative case study of internal migrant worker crisis in India. Data for the case were collected from various national and international media, government and non-government reports published in English on the pandemic related migrant crisis in India.

Findings

Access and control over food was fraught with barriers for migrant workers. As the lockdown progressed, access to and control over work opportunities was precarious. Furthermore, the resource-control constraints faced by migrant workers in terms of food, work and transport had a direct impact on their experience of social inclusion. Lastly, the stranded migrant workers found themselves unable to fully participate in economic activities.

Originality/value

To the authors’ knowledge this is the first paper that integrates consumer vulnerability concept, originating in marketing scholarship into the social inclusion framework. This allowed for anchoring the “aspirational goals” of social inclusion into the concrete context of consumers and marketplaces.
DMart: driving growth in a changed business environment
Authors: Pradhan Swapna , Bhatkal Smeeta
Published: September 2021

Learning outcomes

The learning outcomes of this paper are as follows: to comprehend the unique features of the DMart business model, to understand the dynamics of the Indian food and grocery market, to analyse the reasons for the success of DMart, to analyse the financial health of a business by using financial ratios and to appreciate the effect of business and operating strategy on financial statements.

Case overview/synopsis

In September 2020, the management team of Pegasus Consulting (PS) – a boutique strategy consulting firm headquartered in Mumbai, India had convened a meeting to evaluate business options for future growth. Post the COVID −19 pandemic outbreak in India in March 2020; many industry sectors had been experiencing a general slowdown in business. Retail was one such sector identified, which had faced a slowdown. A recent Edelweiss report suggested a 39% dip in revenues of DMart stores that were owned and operated by Avenue Supermarts Limited (ASL). The PS team had been following the impressive growth story of DMart since 2017 when they had made a historic market debut with the initial public offering. Over the years the company had grown and emerged as one of the most valued listed retailers in the Indian retail space in the fiscal year 2019–2020. However, much had changed, as the imposition of the countrywide lockdown in March 2020. Based on the Government of India and local government directives nearly 50% of the stores had to be temporarily shut. The case highlights the dynamics of the Indian retail market with multiple players and formats and the changes in consumer behaviour. ASL had used its DMart Ready online app and DMart on Wheels to service the needs of its customers during the period of the lockdown. The PS team wanted to make a business consulting pitch to DMart to help them revive their growth trajectory. What could be the best advice that the PS team could offer to DMart in their pitch?

Complexity academic level

The case has been written with the objective of enabling the students to understand the dynamics of a rapidly changing emerging market. It is structured for use at a Master’s level course and an MBA audience in the subject of business strategy and/or retail strategy.

Supplementary materials

Teaching Notes are available for educators only.

Subject code

CSS 11: Strategy.
Central bank's communication and markets' reactions: Polish evidence
Authors: Brzeszczyński Janusz , Gajdka Jerzy , Schabek Tomasz , Kutan Ali M
Published: September 2021

Purpose

This study contributes to the pool of knowledge about the impact of monetary policy communication of central banks on financial instruments' prices and assets' value in emerging markets.

Design/methodology/approach

Empirical analysis is executed using the National Bank of Poland (NBP) announcements about its monetary policy covering the data from the broad financial market in its three main segments: stock market, foreign exchange market and bonds market. The reactions are measured relative to the changes in the NBP announcements and also with respect to investors' expectations. Autoregressive conditional heteroscedasticity (ARCH) models with dummy variables are used as the main methodological tool.

Findings

Bonds market and foreign exchange market are the most sensitive market segments, while interest rate and money supply are the most influential types of announcements. The changes of the revealed new macroeconomic figures had more impact on assets' prices movements than the deviations from their expectations. Moreover, greater diversity of the Monetary Policy Council (MPC) members' opinions on the voted motions, captured in the MPC voting reports, is associated with more cases of statistically significant NBP communication events.

Practical implications

The findings have direct relevance for fund managers, portfolio analysts, investors and also for financial market regulators.

Originality/value

The results provide novel evidence about how the emerging financial market responds to monetary policy announcements. They help understand the nature of the impact of public information on financial assets' valuation and on movements of their prices, analysed comprehensively in three market segments, in the emerging market environment.
An enhanced network intrusion detection system for malicious crawler detection and security event correlations in ubiquitous banking infrastructure
Authors: Eswaran Sivaraman , Rani Vakula , D. Daniel , Ramakrishnan Jayabrabu , Selvakumar Sadhana
Published: September 2021

Purpose

In the recent era, banking infrastructure constructs various remotely handled platforms for users. However, the security risk toward the banking sector has also elevated, as it is visible from the rising number of reported attacks against these security systems. Intelligence shows that cyberattacks of the crawlers are increasing. Malicious crawlers can crawl the Web pages, crack the passwords and reap the private data of the users. Besides, intrusion detection systems in a dynamic environment provide more false positives. The purpose of this research paper is to propose an efficient methodology to sense the attacks for creating low levels of false positives.

Design/methodology/approach

In this research, the authors have developed an efficient approach for malicious crawler detection and correlated the security alerts. The behavioral features of the crawlers are examined for the recognition of the malicious crawlers, and a novel methodology is proposed to improvise the bank user portal security. The authors have compared various machine learning strategies including Bayesian network, support sector machine (SVM) and decision tree.

Findings

This proposed work stretches in various aspects. Initially, the outcomes are stated for the mixture of different kinds of log files. Then, distinct sites of various log files are selected for the construction of the acceptable data sets. Session identification, attribute extraction, session labeling and classification were held. Moreover, this approach clustered the meta-alerts into higher level meta-alerts for fusing multistages of attacks and the various types of attacks.

Originality/value

This methodology used incremental clustering techniques and analyzed the probability of existing topologies in SVM classifiers for more deterministic classification. It also enhanced the taxonomy for various domains.
Network interactions for pharmaceutical market access: findings from an explorative research
Authors: Runfola Andrea , Guercini Simone , Milanesi Matilde
Published: September 2021

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate pharmaceutical market access (MA) and the interaction between the pharmaceutical company and other business and non-business actors (NBAs) involved in the MA of ethical drugs, to identify the main categories of actors, their role for MA and the content of the interaction, adopting an industrial marketing approach.

Design/methodology/approach

A qualitative interpretivist approach is adopted, with interviews as the primary data collection method: 36 interviews have been conducted with 16 key informants from the pharmaceutical industry.

Findings

The findings of this study reveal that (i) MA can be seen as a relational-driven activity with specific features owing to the highly regulated nature of the pharmaceutical industry, (ii) there is a multiplicity of business, and NBAs involved in the MA activities with whom pharmaceutical companies interact to acquire knowledge, legitimacy and make MA timely and effective, and (iii) the interaction with each category of actors has specific content.

Originality/value

This paper advances the debate on the marketing and management of pharmaceutical companies by emphasizing the importance of MA and the need to conceptualize it according to an industrial marketing perspective, revealing the interdependencies among actors for MA and the content of the interaction. It also contributes to the industrial marketing literature that has recently stressed the importance of NBAs as part of the extended business network of a company by identifying different categories of actors, their role in terms of knowledge and legitimization and the features and the trade-off of the extended business network in highly regulated markets.
Numerical modelling of fire test with timber fire protection
Authors: Šálek Vojtěch , Cábová Kamila , Wald František , Jahoda Milan
Published: September 2021

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to present a complex pyrolysis computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model of timber protection exposed to fire in a medium size enclosure. An emphasis is placed on rarely used temperature-dependent thermal material properties effecting the overall simulation outputs. Using the input dataset, a fire test model with oriented strand boards (OSB) in the room corner test facility is created in Fire Dynamics Simulator (FDS).

Design/methodology/approach

Seven FDS models comprising different complexity approaches to modelling the burning of wood-based materials, from a simplified model of burning based on a prescribed heat release rate to complex pyrolysis models which can describe the fire spread, are presented. The models are validated by the experimental data measured during a fire test of OSB in the room corner test facility.

Findings

The use of complex pyrolysis approach is recommended in real-scale enclosure fire scenarios with timber as a supplementary heat source. However, extra attention should be paid to burning material thermal properties implementation. A commonly used constant specific heat capacity and thermal conductivity provided poor agreement with experimental data. When the fire spread is expected, simplified model results should be processed with great care and the user should be aware of possible significant errors.

Originality/value

This paper brings an innovative and rarely used complex pyrolysis CFD model approach to predict the behaviour of timber protection exposed to fire. A study on different temperature-dependent thermal material properties combined with multi-step pyrolysis in the room corner test scenario has not been sufficiently published and validated yet.
Workplace spirituality, well-being at work and employee loyalty in a gig economy: multi-group analysis across temporary vs permanent employment status
Authors: Aboobaker Nimitha , Edward Manoj , Zakkariya K.A.
Published: September 2021

Purpose

This study aims to examine the influence of workplace spirituality on employee loyalty toward the organization, mediated through well-being at work. Furthermore, the study endeavors to test the difference in conceptual model estimates, across two groups of employees: those who work on contract/temporary and permanent basis. The study gains relevance particularly in the context of the emerging sharing economy, where jobs are primarily characterized by short-term contracts and freelancing.

Design/methodology/approach

This descriptive study was conducted among a sample of 523 educators working in private educational institutions in India. Self-reporting questionnaires were administered among the respondents, who were selected through the purposive sampling method. Structural equation modeling and multi-group analysis were done to test the proposed hypotheses.

Findings

The analysis revealed that workplace spirituality enriched employee well-being and loyalty toward the organization and evidence were found for indirect effects too. Variances were observed in the relationships, with respect to the different employment statuses of the personnel. Significant differences in the relationships were not found across temporary and permanent employment statuses. Interestingly, temporary employees experienced stronger influences between meaningful work, well-being and word-of-mouth. Results suggest the relevance of understanding employees' differential work experiences and attitudes and thus facilitate human resource strategies accordingly.

Originality/value

This study is pioneering in conceptualizing and testing a theoretical model linking workplace spirituality, well-being at work and employee loyalty, particularly in the context of employees who differ in their employment status, which is a critical aspect of modern-day organizations. Unlike traditional workplaces, in recent times, people come together and work along for shorter terms, as the case of a sharing economy and the thus emergent interpersonal dynamics between each other and with the workplace has significant repercussions on the organization. Theoretical and managerial implications with regard to the experience of workplace spirituality and job outcomes are elaborated, thus striving to fill a gap in the existing literature.
Interview-based research in management and organisation studies: making sense of the plurality of methodological practices and presentational styles
Authors: Reissner Stefanie , Whittle Andrea
Published: September 2021

Purpose

The aim of this review paper is to identify the methodological practices and presentational styles used to report interview-based research in “leading” management and organisation journals.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper reviews a sample of 225 articles using qualitative interviews that were published in management, human resource management, organisational behaviour and international business journals listed in the Financial Times 50 list between 2009 and 2019.

Findings

The review found diversity and plurality in the methodological practices used in these studies and the presentational styles used to report interview research.

Practical implications

The findings are expected to help doctoral students, early career scholars and those new to using qualitative interviews to make decisions about the appropriateness of different methodological practices and presentational styles. The findings are also expected to support editors, reviewers, doctoral examiners and conference organisers in making sense of the dissensus that exists amongst qualitative interview researchers (Johnson et al., 2007). These insights will also enable greater “paradigmatic awareness” (Plakoyiannaki and Budhwar, 2021, p. 5) in the evaluation of the quality of interview-based research that is not restricted to standardised criteria derived from positivism (Cassell and Symon, 2015).

Originality/value

To make sense of this plurality, the authors map these practices and styles against the onto-epistemological paradigms identified by Alvesson (2003, 2011). The paper contributes to calls for philosophical diversity in the evaluation of qualitative research. The authors specifically articulate concerns about the use of practices in interview-based studies that derive from the positivistic logic associated with quantitative research.
The role of personality traits in promoting customer citizenship behaviour: special reference to the homestay tourism context in Sri Lanka
Authors: Lakmali Shanika , Kajendra Kanagasabai
Published: September 2021

Purpose

This study aims to explore customer personality traits as an antecedent of customer citizenship behaviour which positively facilitates service providers.

Design/methodology/approach

This study follows the positivism research paradigm. Hence, primary data were collected from 250 homestay visitors who stayed at five selected homestays located at Mirissa homestay zone, Sri Lanka.

Findings

The present study's findings reveal that “agreeableness,” “extraversion” and “conscientiousness” personality traits promote customer citizenship behaviour. Furthermore, the openness to “experience” trait identified to have a statistically insignificant relationship with CCB and neuroticism recorded a positive impact on the relationship between CCB and personality, contrary to the existing literature.

Practical implications

This study comprehensively explains how service providers should arrange their service facilities to increase customer willingness to perform citizenship behaviour, which helps develop their services.

Originality/value

Previous research has investigated that customer personality in terms of prosocial and proactive nature impacts CCBs. In contrast, the effect of Big Five personality traits on CCB is highlighted in this study.
Disaster relief efforts of Houston sport organizations
Authors: Finch Bryan
Published: September 2021

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the community recovery efforts undertaken by Houston, Texas, sport organizations following Hurricane Harvey in 2017.

Design/methodology/approach

Forty-eight media articles, 138 social media posts from Houston athletes and five semi-structured interviews with Houston sport organization executives underwent a content analysis to categorize responses of disaster relief activities. All eleven categories were identified. Three themes emerged from additional analysis: organizations serving as communication hubs, earned trust and internal organizational support. Benchmark examples in key categories are also discussed.

Findings

This paper provided focused analysis of the reactions of several Houston area sport organizations during the immediate disaster recovery period. Organizations participated in both tangible and emotional recovery efforts. The long-term impacts of these efforts will require additional investigation. The findings of this case study are specific to the relief efforts in Houston, Texas, following Hurricane Harvey in 2017 and may not be generalizable beyond this scope.

Practical implications

Sport organizations and community leaders can better prepare for future disaster responses by gaining insight into the roles and procedures enacted by the Houston teams following the Hurricane in 2017.

Originality/value

This study provides a detailed examination of the responses of several Houston sport organizations following Hurricane Harvey, including perspectives from executives inside of the organizations. Utilizing social anchor theory, this paper expands our understanding of the impacts sport organizations may produce in their roles as social anchors during disaster relief and recovery.
The impact of climate change on aggregate output in middle‐ and high‐income countries
Authors: Doğanlar Murat , Mike Faruk , Kızılkaya Oktay
Published: September 2021

This study aims to analyse the impact of climate change on the aggregate output of middle‐ and high‐income countries by using dynamic panel data analysis for yearly observations from 1990 to 2016. Following the Cobb–Douglas production function, the analyses included key economic parameters which are capital stock, labour force, and total factor productivity, and also climate change indicators namely temperature and precipitation. The generalised method of moments test results revealed different findings for middle‐ and high‐income countries. Both the temperature and precipitation variables had a negative and statistically significant impact on aggregate output for middle‐income countries. In the high‐income countries, the temperature was found to have a positive but negligible effect on aggregate output, whereas precipitation was not found to have any significant effect. Granger causality test is also conducted to check for the consistency of GMM estimation.
Extracorporeal blood purification is associated with improvement in biochemical and clinical variables in the critically‐ill COVID‐19 patients
Authors: Premužić Vedran , Babel Jakša , Gardijan Danilo , Lapić Ivana , Gabelica Rajka , Ostojić Zvonimir , Lozić Marin , Pavliša Gordana , Hrabak Maja , Knežević Josip , Rogić Dunja , Mihaljević Slobodan
Published: September 2021

This study tried to investigate the impact of oXiris filter on both clinical and laboratory parameters in critically‐ill COVID‐19 intensive care unit (ICU) patients receiving extracorporeal blood purification and the clinical setting for the initiation of therapy. A consecutive sample of 15 ICU patients with COVID‐19 was treated with oXiris membrane for blood purification or for support of renal function due to acute kidney injury. We have included 19 non treated ICU COVID‐19 patients as a control group. Two chest x‐rays were analyzed for determining the chest x‐ray severity score. We have found a significant decrease of SOFA score, respiratory status improved and the chest x‐ray severity score was significantly decreased after 72 h of treatment. IL‐6 significantly decreased after 72 h of treatment while other inflammatory markers did not. Respiratory status in the control group worsened as well as increase in SOFA score and chest x‐ray severity score. Survived patients have shorter time from the onset of symptoms before starting with extracorporeal blood purification treatment and shorter time on vasoactive therapy and invasive respiratory support than deceased patients. Critically‐ill patients with COVID‐19 treated with extracorporeal blood purification survived significantly longer than other ICU COVID‐19 patients. Treatment with oXiris membrane provides significant reduction of IL‐6, leads to improvement in respiratory status, chest x‐ray severity score, and reduction of SOFA score severity. Our results can suggest that ICU COVID‐19 patients in an early course of a disease could be potentially a target group for earlier initiation of extracorporeal blood purification.
Festschrift initiative: Celebrating Emeritus Professor Ruth Fincher AM
Authors: Stratford Elaine
Published: September 2021

Professional and society journals often publish obituaries in which colleagues reflect on and celebrate the lives of others—in this instance, geographers—who are no longer with us and who have been closely associated with a discipline and sometimes also with a country or region. Less often do journal editors and contributors curate collections of works that recognise and reflect upon the sustained contributions made by colleagues who are still with us. Festschrift offerings such as the kind I am thinking of are almost unheard of in this journal. We begin to remedy that gap now because such offerings show colleagues’ influences on us and the discipline. To those ends, this inaugural offering celebrating Ruth Fincher initiates what I hope will be the first of many in coming years.
Relative Performance Evaluation and Earnings Management*
Authors: Infuehr Jakob
Published: September 2021

Conventional agency theory suggests that firms should benchmark CEO compensation to absorb systemic risk and to more efficiently incentivize executives to work hard. Yet empirical research has found only a modest use of benchmarking in CEO compensation contracts. In this paper, I highlight one weakness of relative performance evaluation (RPE). When earnings management is possible, benchmarking creates stronger incentives for misreporting performance measures compared to benchmark‐independent pay. The optimal contract will depend less on a correlated benchmark (e.g., a stock market index) if it is easier for the manager to misreport performance. Thus, the model predicts that firms with weak internal controls and bad auditors are less likely to use RPE, offering a theoretical explanation for the empirically observed lack of RPE use.
Venous thromboembolism in women with ovarian cancer undergoing neoadjuvant chemotherapy prior to cytoreductive surgery: A retrospective study
Authors: Oxley Samuel G. , Achampong Yaa A. , Sambandan Nikola , Hughes Daniel J. , Thomas Mari , Lockley Michelle , Olaitan Adeola
Published: September 2021

Introduction

Ovarian cancer is associated with a venous thromboembolism risk of at least 7.2% by 2 years from diagnosis, and although patients undergoing surgery benefit from routine thromboprophylaxis, those undergoing neoadjuvant chemotherapy do not. This study aims to determine the venous thromboembolism incidence in patients with ovarian cancer undergoing neoadjuvant chemotherapy, and explore whether any subset is at higher risk, in order to evaluate whether thromboprophylaxis is justified in some or all of these patients.

Material and methods

This was a retrospective review of all women undergoing neoadjuvant chemotherapy for FIGO radiological stages III and IV primary ovarian, fallopian tube, and primary peritoneal cancer, between 2000 and 2015, in a London tertiary cancer center. The primary outcome was venous thromboembolism rate among women undergoing neoadjuvant chemotherapy. The secondary outcomes were patient or treatment factors associated with venous thromboembolism risk, including age, body mass index, smoking status, performance status, and tumor stage.

Results

We identified 278 eligible women from the ovarian cancer database. Fifty‐eight women (20.9%) developed venous thromboembolism between initial presentation and the immediate postoperative period, of which 45 (77.6%) developed a pulmonary embolism. In all, 15.1% of women developed venous thromboembolism from the start of neoadjuvant chemotherapy. Age, body mass index, smoking, or other comorbidities were not significantly associated with venous thromboembolism risk. One woman died from massive pulmonary embolism, 27 women underwent inferior vena cava filter insertion, and 10 had surgery delayed.

Conclusions

This study demonstrates an unacceptably high rate of avoidable venous thromboembolism including pulmonary embolism in these women, which complicates and delays treatment. Thromboprophylaxis during neoadjuvant chemotherapy should now be assessed prospectively.
Addition of 3‐methoxytyramine or chromogranin A to plasma free metanephrines as the initial test for pheochromocytoma and paraganglioma: Which is the best diagnostic strategy
Authors: Liu Lu , Xie Wenchun , Song Zhijing , Wang Tianyu , Li Xuesong , Gao Ying , Li Yan , Zhang Junqing , Guo Xiaohui
Published: September 2021

Objective

Measurements of plasma free metanephrines (MNs), including MN and normetanephrine, provide high sensitivity and specificity for the diagnosis of pheochromocytoma and paraganglioma (PPGL). 3‐Methoxytyramine (3‐MT) and chromogranin A (CgA) may allow the detection of dopamine‐producing or biochemically silent PPGL. The aim of this study was to evaluate whether measurements of plasma 3‐MT or CgA as a supplement of plasma MNs offer a better diagnostic strategy for initial testing of PPGL.

Patients and Design

We enroled 125 patients who underwent surgery from 2015 to 2016 for our study and identified 33 patients with PPGL and 92 patients with non‐PPGL masses.

Measurement

The levels of plasma free MNs and 3‐MT were measured for all 125 patients using liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry. Plasma CgA concentrations were determined using a radioimmunoassay. To evaluate the diagnostic performance of plasma free MNs, 3‐MT and CgA, sensitivity and specificity were determined, and receiver operating characteristic curves were constructed.

Results

We found that combining 3‐MT and MNs increased the diagnostic sensitivity from 93.9% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 78.4%–98.9%) to 97.0% (95% CI: 82.5%–99.8%). In contrast, addition of plasma CgA test reduced the diagnostic specificity significantly from 91.3% (95% CI: 83.1%–95.9%) to 75.0% (95% CI: 64.7%–83.2%).

Conclusion

Here, we demonstrated that 3‐MT represents a valuable supplementary test to plasma MNs, which can further enhance the sensitivity of the assay, while plasma CgA added no additional diagnostic value to MNs due to the lowered diagnostic specificity.
Bright spots as climate‐smart marine spatial planning tools for conservation and blue growth
Authors: Queirós Ana M. , Talbot Elizabeth , Beaumont Nicola J. , Somerfield Paul J. , Kay Susan , Pascoe Christine , Dedman Simon , Fernandes Jose A. , Jueterbock Alexander , Miller Peter I. , Sailley Sevrine F. , Sará Gianluca , Carr Liam M. , Austen Melanie C. , Widdicombe Steve , Rilov Gil , Levin Lisa A. , Hull Stephen C. , Walmsley Suzannah F. , Nic Aonghusa Caitriona
Published: September 2021

Marine spatial planning that addresses ocean climate‐driven change (‘climate‐smart MSP’) is a global aspiration to support economic growth, food security and ecosystem sustainability. Ocean climate change (‘CC’) modelling may become a key decision‐support tool for MSP, but traditional modelling analysis and communication challenges prevent their broad uptake. We employed MSP‐specific ocean climate modelling analyses to inform a real‐life MSP process; addressing how nature conservation and fisheries could be adapted to CC. We found that the currently planned distribution of these activities may become unsustainable during the policy's implementation due to CC, leading to a shortfall in its sustainability and blue growth targets. Significant, climate‐driven ecosystem‐level shifts in ocean components underpinning designated sites and fishing activity were estimated, reflecting different magnitudes of shifts in benthic versus pelagic, and inshore versus offshore habitats. Supporting adaptation, we then identified: CC refugia (areas where the ecosystem remains within the boundaries of its present state); CC hotspots (where climate drives the ecosystem towards a new state, inconsistent with each sectors’ present use distribution); and for the first time, identified bright spots (areas where oceanographic processes drive range expansion opportunities that may support sustainable growth in the medium term). We thus create the means to: identify where sector‐relevant ecosystem change is attributable to CC; incorporate resilient delivery of conservation and sustainable ecosystem management aims into MSP; and to harness opportunities for blue growth where they exist. Capturing CC bright spots alongside refugia within protected areas may present important opportunities to meet sustainability targets while helping support the fishing sector in a changing climate. By capitalizing on the natural distribution of climate resilience within ocean ecosystems, such climate‐adaptive spatial management strategies could be seen as nature‐based solutions to limit the impact of CC on ocean ecosystems and dependent blue economy sectors, paving the way for climate‐smart MSP.
Multinational coordination required for conservation of over 90% of marine species
Authors: Roberson Leslie A. , Beyer Hawthorne L. , O’Hara Casey , Watson James E. M. , Dunn Daniel C. , Halpern Benjamin S. , Klein Carissa J. , Frazier Melanie R. , Kuempel Caitlin D. , Williams Brooke , Grantham Hedley S. , Montgomery Jamie C. , Kark Salit , Runting Rebecca K.
Published: September 2021

Marine species are declining at an unprecedented rate, catalyzing many nations to adopt conservation and management targets within their jurisdictions. However, marine species and the biophysical processes that sustain them are naive to international borders. An understanding of the prevalence of cross‐border species distributions is important for informing high‐level conservation strategies, such as bilateral or regional agreements. Here, we examined 28,252 distribution maps to determine the number and locations of transboundary marine plants and animals. More than 90% of species have ranges spanning at least two jurisdictions, with 58% covering more than 10 jurisdictions. All jurisdictions have at least one transboundary species, with the highest concentrations of transboundary species in the USA, Australia, Indonesia, and the Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction. Distributions of mapped biodiversity indicate that overcoming the challenges of multinational governance is critical for a much wider suite of species than migratory megavertebrates and commercially exploited fish stocks—the groups that have received the vast majority of multinational management attention. To effectively protect marine biodiversity, international governance mechanisms (particularly those related to the Convention on Biological Diversity, the Convention on Migratory Species, and Regional Seas Organizations) must be expanded to promote multinational conservation planning, and complimented by a holistic governance framework for biodiversity beyond national jurisdiction.
A Hit or Miss—Can residential hall experience impact university students' development?
Authors: Ong Elsie Li Chen , Chu Sam Kai Wah
Published: September 2021

Residential halls are an important component of college education, and the benefits for holistic personal development have been documented by previous research. The majority of studies, however, have focused on Western universities. The current research therefore assessed the academic, social and independent development of students attending universities in Hong Kong. A total of 1904 students completed a self‐report questionnaire measuring various aspects of their development. The students living in residential halls scored significantly higher than those not living in halls on five aspects of development—peer group interactions and communication skills, self‐efficacy, problem‐solving skills, self‐control and open‐mindedness—but not on other aspects such as academic development. The results imply that improvements to students' residential hall experiences are needed to facilitate their personal development.
Development and internal validation of the HIV In‐hospital Mortality Prediction (HIV‐IMP) risk score
Authors: Laher Abdullah E. , Paruk Fathima , Venter Willem D. F. , Ayeni Oluwatosin A. , Motara Feroza , Moolla Muhammed , Richards Guy A.
Published: September 2021

Background

Despite advances in availability and access to antiretroviral therapy (ART), HIV still ranks as a major cause of global mortality. Hence, the aim of this study was to develop and internally validate a risk score capable of accurately predicting in‐hospital mortality in HIV‐positive patients requiring hospital admission.

Methods

Consecutive HIV‐positive patients presenting to the Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic Hospital adult emergency department between 7 July 2017 and 18 October 2018 were prospectively enrolled. Multivariate logistic regression was used to determine parameters for inclusion in the final risk score. Discrimination and calibration were assessed by means of the area under the receiver operating curve (AUROC) and the Hosmer–Lemeshow goodness‐of‐fit test, respectively. Internal validation was conducted using the regular bootstrap technique.

Results

The overall in‐hospital mortality rate was 13.6% (n = 166). Eight predictors were included in the final risk score: ART non‐adherence or not yet on ART, Glasgow Coma Scale < 15, respiratory rate > 20 breaths/min, oxygen saturation < 90%, white cell count < 4 × 109/L, creatinine > 120 μmol/L, lactate > 2 mmol/L and albumin < 35 g/L. After internal validation, the risk score maintained good discrimination [AUROC 0.83, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.78–0.88] and calibration (Hosmer–Lemeshow χ2 = 2.26, p = 0.895).

Conclusion

The HIV In‐hospital Mortality Prediction (HIV‐IMP) risk score has overall good discrimination and calibration and is relatively easy to use. Further studies should be aimed at externally validating the score in varying clinical settings.
GLOBAL INFLUENCES ON GENDER INEQUALITY: EVIDENCE FROM FEMALE EMPLOYMENT IN KOREA
Authors: Choi Jaerim , Greaney Theresa M.
Published: September 2021

Do multinational enterprises (MNEs) transfer gender‐equal employment practices across borders? Using firm‐level data for Korea, a country with low gender equality, we find evidence that MNEs bring their home countries' gender norms in employment with them. Foreign‐acquired firms report 2–12 percentage‐points higher female shares of permanent main‐task workers at firm headquarters compared with nonacquired firms and the differential increases with the level of gender equality in the MNEs’ home countries. We estimate that 1 to 7 percent of the productivity increase caused by foreign acquisition can be attributed to workforce reorganization that may reduce gender‐based misallocations of talent.
Impact of parasitism on levels of human-pathogenic Vibrio species in eastern oysters
Authors: Bienlien Lydia M. , Audemard Corinne , Reece Kimberly S. , Carnegie Ryan B.
Published: September 2021

Aims

To investigate the relationships between individual health status of oysters, particularly with regard to parasitic infection, and variability in abundance of human-pathogenic Vibrio species.

Methods and Results

Aquacultured eastern oysters, Crassostrea virginica, were analysed individually for infection by the protozoan parasite Perkinsus marinus through quantitative PCR, and total Vibrio vulnificus and total and pathogenic Vibrio parahaemolyticus abundance was assessed using a most probable number (MPN)-qPCR approach. Additionally, perspective on general oyster health and other parasitic infections was obtained through histopathology. Perkinsus marinus infection and human-pathogenic Vibrio species levels were not correlated, but through histology, analyses revealed that oysters infected by Haplosporidium nelsoni harboured more V. vulnificus.

Conclusions

The highly prevalent parasite P. marinus had little influence on human-pathogenic Vibrio species levels in eastern oysters, but the less prevalent parasite, H. nelsoni, may influence V. vulnificus levels, highlighting the potential nuances of within-oyster dynamics of Vibrio species.

Significance and Impact of the Study

Human-pathogenic bacteria continue to be a concern to the oyster industry and causes for individual oyster variation in bacterial levels remain unknown. The major oyster pathogen P. marinus does not appear to affect levels of these bacteria within oysters, suggesting that other factors may influence Vibrio spp. levels in oysters.