bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Metaphors of parliamentary budget debates in times of crisis
Authors: Vuković Stamatović Milica
Published: July 2017

The aim of this paper is to explore the metaphoric imprint the global financial crisis has left on the discourse of parliamentary budget debates, which are at the intersection of political and economic discourse, as well as the imprint the MPs have tried to leave on the electorate by carefully selecting metaphors to hide agency, disclaim responsibility and project themselves as saviours. We focus both on conceptual and linguistic metaphors, trying, simultaneously, to account for how the metaphors are developed in the debate. The corpus comprises two budget debates held at the time the financial crisis was in full swing (conducted in the Parliament of Montenegro and the UK House of Commons). The recurrent conceptual metaphors related to the economic crisis were analysed for the two parts of the corpus respectively – the results were compared and similarities were observed in terms of the metaphors used and the discourse strategies behind their selection.
Spatially Dependent Responses of a Large‐River Fish Assemblage to Bank Stabilization and Side Channels
Authors: Reinhold Ann Marie , Bramblett Robert G. , Zale Alexander V. , Poole Geoffrey C. , Roberts David W.
Published: July 2017

The alteration of rivers by anthropogenic bank stabilization to prevent the erosion of economically valuable lands and structures has become commonplace. However, such alteration has ambiguous consequences for fish assemblages, especially in large rivers. Because most large, temperate rivers have impoundments, it can be difficult to separate the influences of bank stabilization structures from those of main‐stem impoundments, especially because both stabilization structures and impoundments can cause side‐channel loss. Few large rivers are free flowing and retain extensive side channels, but the Yellowstone River (our study area) is one such river. We hypothesized that in this river (1) bank stabilization has changed fish assemblage structure by altering habitats, (2) side‐channel availability has influenced fish assemblage structure by providing habitat heterogeneity, and (3) the influences of bank stabilization and side channels on fish assemblages were spatially scale dependent. We developed a spatially explicit framework to test these hypotheses. Fish assemblage structure varied with the extent of bank stabilization and the availability of side channels; however, not all assemblage subsets were influenced. Nevertheless, bank stabilization and side channels had different and sometimes opposite influences on the fish assemblage. The effects of side channels on fish were more consistent and widespread than those of bank stabilization; the catches of more fishes were positively correlated with side‐channel availability than with the extent of bank stabilization. The influences of bank stabilization and side channels on the relative abundances of fish also varied, depending on species and river bend geomorphology. The variation in river morphology probably contributed to the assemblage differences between stabilized and reference river bends; stabilized alluvial pools were deeper than reference alluvial pools, but the depths of stabilized and reference bluff pools did not differ. The strengths of the relationships among fish assemblages, bank stabilization, and side channels were spatially scale dependent; optimum spatial scales ranged from less than 200 m to 3,200 m up‐ and downstream, suggesting that bank stabilization and side channels influenced fish assemblages across multiple spatial scales.

Received October 7, 2016; accepted January 23, 2017 Published online July 31, 2017
Effects of Diel Temperature Fluctuation on Growth, Stress Response, and Immune Function of Burbot
Authors: Terrazas Marc M. , Adams Jennifer R. , Sudheesh Ponnerassery S. , Cain Kenneth D.
Published: July 2017

North American Burbot Lota lota maculosa occupy habitats from deep, cold lakes to prairie streams. Controlled laboratory trials were conducted to evaluate the growth, immune response, and thermal stress physiology of juvenile Burbot subjected to fluctuating, high diel temperatures. Age‐0 Burbot from a captive propagation program associated with population restoration in the Kootenai River, Idaho, were tested in temperature cycles that imitated summer conditions observed in regional stream habitats. The diel temperature cycle for the treatment group varied from 18°C at night to 27°C during the day, whereas the control group was held at a constant temperature of 14°C. We evaluated survival, growth, feed efficiency, heat shock protein 70 (hsp70) levels, hsp70 gene expression, serum lysozyme levels, and proximate body composition in samples taken from fish before, during, and at the completion of the trials. Both treatments had high survival and similar growth rates, but the control group gained significantly more weight and had better feed conversion rates than the treatment group. Mean hsp70 expression and hsp70 abundance were significantly higher in the treatment group but varied between sampling events and between tissue types. Expression of hsp70 in treatment fish was highest on day 15 for muscle tissue (251 times the control value) and on day 30 for liver tissue (1,131 times the control value), with variable abundance of hsp70 at both sampling points. Serum lysozyme levels were not different between treatments. An additional short‐term trial was conducted to evaluate the response of Burbot to upper lethal temperatures, with daily maxima approaching 32°C. Despite being commonly referred to as a coldwater stenotherm, the Burbot displayed resilience to thermal stress, and were able to withstand temperatures exceeding 31°C.

Received September 13, 2016; accepted May 12, 2017 Published online July 31, 2017
Changes in Phytate Content in Whole Meal Wheat Dough and Bread Fermented with Phytase‐Active Yeasts
Authors: Nor Qhairul Izzreen M. N. , Nuobariene Lina , Rasmussen Søren K. , Arneborg Nils , Hansen Åse S.
Published: July 2017

The degradation of inositol hexakisphosphate (IP6) was evaluated in whole meal wheat dough fermented with baker's yeast without phytase activity, different strains of Saccharomyces cerevisiae (L1.12 or L6.06), or Pichia kudriavzevii with extracellular phytase activity to see if the degradation of IP6 in whole meal dough and the corresponding bread could be increased by fermentation with phytase‐active yeasts. The IP6 degradation was measured after the dough was mixed for 19 min, after the completion of fermentation, and in bread after baking. Around 60–70% of the initial value of IP6 in the flour (10.02 mg/g) was reduced in the dough already after mixing, and additionally 10–20% was reduced after fermentation. The highest degradation of IP6 was seen in dough fermented with the phytase‐active yeast strains S. cerevisiae L1.12 and P. kudriavzevii L3.04. Activity of wheat phytase in whole meal wheat dough seems to be the primary source of phytate degradation, and the degradation is considerably higher in this study with a mixing time of 19 min compared with earlier studies. The additional degradation of IP6 by phytase‐active yeasts was not related to their extracellular phytase activities, suggesting that phytases from the yeasts are inhibited differently. Therefore, the highest degradation of IP6 and expected highest mineral bioavailability in whole meal wheat bread can be achieved by use of a phytase‐active yeast strain with less inhibition. The strain S. cerevisiae L1.12 is suitable for this because it was the most effective yeast strain in reducing the amount of IP6 in dough during a short fermentation time.
Clustering de Novo by Gene of Long Reads from Transcriptomics Data
Authors: Marchet Camille , Lecompte Lolita , Da Silva Corinne , Cruaud Corinne , Aury Jean-Marc , Nicolas Jacques , Peterlongo Pierre
Published: July 2017

Long-read sequencing currently provides sequences of several thousand base pairs. This allows to obtain complete transcripts, which offers an un-precedented vision of the cellular transcriptome.

However the literature is lacking tools to cluster such datade novo, in particular for Oxford Nanopore Technologies reads, because of the inherent high error rate compared to short reads.

Our goal is to process reads from whole transcriptome sequencing data accurately and without a reference genome in order to reliably group reads coming from the same gene. Thisde novoapproach is therefore particularly suitable for non-model species, but can also serve as a useful pre-processing step to improve read mapping. Our contribution is both to propose a new algorithm adapted to clustering of reads by gene and a practical and free access tool that permits to scale the complete processing of eukaryotic transcriptomes.

We sequenced a mouse RNA sample using the MinION device, this dataset is used to compare our solution to other algorithms used in the context of biological clustering. We demonstrate its is better-suited for transcriptomics long reads. When a reference is available thus mapping possible, we show that it stands as an alternative method that predicts complementary clusters.
3’UTR cleavage of transcripts localized in axons of sympathetic neurons
Authors: Andreassi Catia , Luisier Raphaëlle , Crerar Hamish , Blokzijl-Franke Sasja , Luscombe Nicholas M. , Cuda Giovanni , Gaspari Marco , Riccio Antonella
Published: July 2017

The 3’ untranslated regions (3’UTRs) of messenger RNAs (mRNA) are non-coding sequences that regulate several aspects of mRNA metabolism, including intracellular localisation and translation. Here, we show that in sympathetic neuron axons, the 3’UTRs of many transcripts undergo cleavage, generating both translatable isoforms expressing a shorter 3’UTR, and 3’UTR fragments. 3’end RNA sequencing indicated that 3’UTR cleavage is a potentially widespread event in axons, which is mediated by a protein complex containing the endonuclease Ago2 and the RNA binding protein HuD. Analysis of theInositol monophosphatase 1(Impa1) mRNA revealed that a stem loop structure within the 3’UTR is necessary for Ago2 cleavage. Thus, remodeling of the 3’UTR provides an alternative mechanism that simultaneously regulates local protein synthesis and generates a new class of 3’UTR RNAs with yet unknown functions.
Fundamental limits on dynamic inference from single cell snapshots
Authors: Weinreb Caleb , Wolock Samuel , Tusi Betsabeh K. , Socolovsky Merav , Klein Allon M.
Published: July 2017

Single cell expression profiling reveals the molecular states of individual cells with unprecedented detail. However, because these methods destroy cells in the process of analysis, they cannot measure how gene expression changes over time. But some information on dynamics is present in the data: the continuum of molecular states in the population can reflect the trajectory of a typical cell. Many methods for extracting single cell dynamics from population data have been proposed. However, all such attempts face a common limitation: for any measured distribution of cell states, there are multiple dynamics that could give rise to it, and by extension, multiple possibilities for underlying mechanisms of gene regulation. Here, we describe the aspects of gene expression dynamics that cannot be inferred from a static snapshot alone and identify assumptions necessary to constrain a unique solution for cell dynamics from static snapshots. We translate these constraints into a practical algorithmic approach, Population Balance Analysis (PBA), which makes use of a method from spectral graph theory to solve a class of high dimensional differential equations. We use simulations to show the strengths and limitations of PBA, and then apply it to single-cell profiles of hematopoietic progenitor cells (HPCs). Cell state predictions from this analysis agree with HPC fate assays reported in several papers over the past two decades. By highlighting the fundamental limits on dynamic inference faced by any method, our framework provides a rigorous basis for dynamic interpretation of a gene expression continuum and clarifies best experimental designs for trajectory reconstruction from static snapshot measurements.

Significance

Seeing a snapshot of individuals at different stages of a process can reveal what the process would look like for a single individual over time. Biologists apply this principle to infer temporal sequences of gene expression states in cells from measurements made at a single moment in time. However, these inferences are fundamentally under-determined. Using a conservation law, we enumerate reasons that there is no unique dynamics associated with a single snapshot, limiting our ability to infer gene regulatory mechanisms. We then propose a method for dynamic inference that provides a unique dynamic solution under defined approximations and apply it to data from bone marrow stem cells. Overall, this study introduces formal biophysical approaches to single cell bioinformatics.

Classification

BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES / Systems Biology
Thalamocortical transmission of visual information in awake mice involves phase synchronization and spike synchrony at high gamma frequencies
Authors: McAfee Samuel S. , Liu Yu , Dhamala Mukesh , Heck Detlef H.
Published: July 2017

Synchronization of neuronal spike activity is thought to play a key role in the transmission of information for sensory processing in the brain, and this synchronization is influenced by oscillatory population activity occurring in multiple frequency ranges at multiple stages of sensory pathways. In the neocortex, gamma frequency oscillations appear to play an important role in synchronizing neuronal ensembles and allowing for selective communication between regions, yet relatively little is known about whether gamma oscillations facilitate transmission of sensory information from thalamus to cortex. Here, we investigate the role of gamma oscillations in promoting synchronous spike activity between the visual thalamus (dLGN) and primary visual cortex (V1) in awake mice, a model sensory system with prominent gamma oscillations that are modulated by visual input. We demonstrate that transmission of visual information to cortex involves phase-synchronized oscillations in the high gamma range (50-90Hz), with concomitant millisecond-scale synchronization of thalamic and cortical spike activity. Transition from a full-field gray image to a high-contrast checkerboard image caused gamma activity to rapidly increase in amplitude, frequency, and bandwidth, yet the gamma oscillations in dLGN and V1 maintained a consistent phase relationship. High contrast stimulation also caused an increase in amplitude of oscillations in the beta and low gamma range, but those were not associated with synchronous thalamic activity. These results indicate a role for high gamma oscillations in mediating the functional connectivity between thalamic and cortical neurons in the visual pathway, a similar role to beta oscillations in primates.

Significance statement:

The mechanisms by which neurons selectively communicate are essential to our understanding of how the brain processes information. Abundant evidence suggests that cortical sensory processing involves the synchronization of high frequency electric field oscillations known as gamma oscillations, which allow groups of neurons to synchronize their spike activity in order to collaboratively process sensory input. Here, we show that oscillations and spikes in the visual thalamocortical pathway of the mouse exhibit synchrony across a broad high gamma frequency range (50-90Hz), suggesting these oscillations play an important role in the relay of visual information to the cortex. This is substantially different from oscillations observed in monkeys, in which gamma is absent in thalamus and beta oscillations support thalamocortical relay.
Social learning strategies for matters of taste
Authors: Analytis Pantelis P. , Barkoczi Daniel , Herzog Stefan M.
Published: July 2017

Most choices people make are about “matters of taste” on which there is no universal, objective truth. Nevertheless, people can learn from the experiences of individuals with similar tastes who have already evaluated the available options—a potential harnessed by recommender systems. We mapped recommender system algorithms to models of human judgment and decision making about “matters of fact” and recast the latter as social learning strategies for “matters of taste.” Using computer simulations on a large-scale, empirical dataset, we studied how people could leverage the experiences of others to make better decisions. Our simulation showed that experienced individuals can benefit from relying mostly on the opinions of seemingly similar people; inexperienced individuals, in contrast, cannot reliably estimate similarity and are better off picking the mainstream option despite differences in taste. Crucially, the level of experience beyond which people should switch to similarity-heavy strategies varies substantially across individuals and depends on (i) how mainstream (or alternative) an individual’s tastes are and (ii) the level of dispersion in taste similarity with the other people in the group.
HapCHAT: Adaptive haplotype assembly for efficiently leveraging high coverage in long reads
Authors: Beretta Stefano , Patterson Murray D , Zaccaria Simone , Vedova Gianluca Della , Bonizzoni Paola
Published: July 2017

Background

Haplotype assembly is the process of assigning the different alleles of the variants covered by mapped sequencing reads to the two haplotypes of the genome of a human individual. Long reads, which are nowadays cheaper to produce and more widely available than ever before, have been used to reduce the fragmentation of the assembled haplotypes since their ability to span several variants along the genome. These long reads are also characterized by a high error rate, an issue which may be mitigated, however, with larger sets of reads, when this error rate is uniform across genome positions. Unfortunately, current state-of-the-art dynamic programming approaches designed for long reads deal only with limited coverages.

Results

Here, we propose a new method for assembling haplotypes which combines and extends the features of previous approaches to deal with long reads and higher coverages. In particular, our algorithm is able to dynamically adapt the estimated number of errors at each variant site, while minimizing the total number of error corrections necessary for finding a feasible solution. This allows our method to significantly reduce the required computational resources, allowing to consider datasets composed of higher coverages. The algorithm has been implemented in a freely available tool, HapCHAT:Haplotype AssemblyCoverageHandling byAdaptingThresholds. An experimental analysis on sequencing reads with up to 60× coverage reveals improvements in accuracy and recall achieved by considering a higher coverage with lower runtimes.

Conclusions

Our method leverages the long-range information of sequencing reads that allows to obtain assembled haplotypes fragmented in a lower number of unphased haplotype blocks. At the same time, our method is also able to deal with higher coverages to better correct the errors in the original reads and to obtain more accurate haplotypes as a result.

Availability

HapCHAT is available athttp://hapchat.algolab.euunder the GPL license.
Maize leaf functional responses to drought episode and rewatering
Authors: Song He , Li Yibo , Zhou Li , Xu Zhenzhu , Zhou Guangsheng
Published: July 2017

Effects of crop growth and physiological activity to drought and irrigation regimes have been extensively studied; however, the responses of plant growth, morphological and photosynthetic behaviors to drought episodes and thereafter rewatering receive a less attention. This field experiment was carried out directlyin situat an agricultural ecosystem research station during 2015-2016, in a northeastern China, on the renowned northeastern maize production belt, where is being threatened by severe drought. A field automatic rain-shelter was used, and five irrigation regimes including control, four drought episodes, and rewatering treatments were established. The chlorophyll contents (SPAD values), light-saturated photosynthetic rate (Asat), and photosystem II actual quantum yield (ΦPSII), maximum quantum yield (Fv′/Fm′) decreased at lower leaf positions and with plant development. Episodic drought effects on plant growth, leaf morphological traits and photosynthetic processes at both vegetative and reproductive stages were severely remarked, particularly at late development stage and with longer drought duration. The recovery of leaf functional traits of the plants experienced historical-drought following re-irrigating was not fully restored to the level of the plants subjected to ample and normal water status; and the strength of recovery was proportional to the persistence of pre-drought episodes. The relationship ofAsatwith SPAD depends on water status and plant development. A principal component analysis can well denote the change patterns in responses to water status treatments with plant development. The results may give an insight into how to understand the maize traits’ responses to drought episode and rewatering, and this also might assist the drought-stricken crops to cope with future climatic change.
Automatic OpenAPI to Bio.tools Conversion
Authors: Willighagen Egon , Mélius Jonathan
Published: July 2017

Computation has become a central component of life sciences research. Making computational services FAIR has had a strong interest from the life sciences community in the past 15 years. Admittedly, uptake of any of the developed solutions has been limited, and the existence of multiple approaches will not have helped. Interoperability of solution may be essential. This work introduces an interoperability layer between two approaches for FAIR annotation of web services: OpenAPI and bio. tools.
Single-molecule force spectroscopy of protein-membrane interactions
Authors: Ma Lu , Cai Yiying , Li Yanghui , Jiao Junyi , Wu Zhenyong , O’Shaughnessy Ben , Karatekin Erdem , Camilli Pietro De , Zhang Yongli
Published: July 2017

Many biological processes rely on protein-membrane interactions in the presence of mechanical forces, yet high resolution methods to quantify such interactions are lacking. Here, we describe a single-molecule force spectroscopy approach to quantify membrane binding of C2 domains in Synaptotagmin-1 (Syt1) and Extended Synaptotagmin-2 (E-Syt2). Syts and E-Syts bind the plasma membrane via multiple C2 domains, bridging the plasma membrane with synaptic vesicles or endoplasmic reticulum to regulate membrane fusion or lipid exchange, respectively. In our approach single proteins attached to membranes supported on silica beads are pulled by optical tweezers, allowing membrane binding and unbinding transitions to be measured with unprecedented spatiotemporal resolution. C2 domains from either protein resisted unbinding forces of 2-7 pN and had binding energies of 4-14 kBT per C2 domain. Regulation by bilayer composition or Ca2+recapitulated known properties of both proteins. The method can be widely applied to study protein-membrane interactions.
When western entrepreneurs meet rural India: preparing the set-up of a water shop in Udaipur
Authors: Moser Roger , Raju Abhishek , Narayanamurthy Gopalakrishnan
Published: July 2017

Subject area

Business internationalization into emerging markets.

Study level/applicability

BA Level.

Case overview

On March 23, 2014, Yves, Patrick and Pascal were on their flight back from Udaipur, India, to Zurich, Switzerland thinking about all the experiences they had during the last 12 months and especially in the last three weeks when they visited India to do the feasibility study for their water shop concept. They still had many questions that were unanswered before leaving India. Do they have the sufficient Indian contextual knowledge and expertise to run a business? Are they considering all relevant aspects to successfully establish a water shop in rural India? Have they developed the conducive mindset? Are they ready to leave their comfort zone, friends and family behind to embark on an once-in-a-lifetime adventure? Do they have enough social capital to assist them in the process of setting up the water shop? Shortly before landing at Zurich airport, Yves knew that they now either had to become serious and really spend at least a year in India to turn their concept of a water shop into reality or stay back in Europe starting with their masters studies. The case offers a true story about three BSc students that decided to evaluate whether they could implement a business opportunity that they had identified during a “Doing Business in India” course at their university and subsequently developed into a serious business case. Based on this situation, the case study offers the opportunity for students to better understand what it takes to create the right mindset (i.e. “Triple I” mindset) before actually implementing a market entry or expansion project in India.

Expected learning outcomes

The case focuses on teaching the “Triple I” mindset to discuss the prerequisites of a successful market entry or expansion in India: investment mindset, intercultural mindset and infrastructure mindset The case study also highlights the importance of networks and networking locally (i.e. building social capital) as a prerequisite for a successful market entry or expansion. This approach including the “Triple I” mindset, the role of social capital as well as the actual market entry or expansion project is summarized in a metaphor that we call the “Archimedes’ Screw of Internationalization”. The case study proposes to work on the following five assignment questions to drive the intended learning objectives by discussing the different prerequisites of a successful market entry or expansion in India.

Supplementary materials

Teaching Notes are available for educators only. Please contact your
library to gain login details or email support@emeraldinsight.com to request teaching notes.

Subject code

CSS: 5: International business.
Do bank credit rejection and financial education affect financial self-confidence?
Authors: Imarhiagbe Bernard Owens , Saridakis George , Mohammed Anne-Marie
Published: July 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine empirically the determinants of owner manager financial self-confidence. In particular, it estimates the effect of bank credit rejection and financial education (FE) on the financial self-confidence of business owners.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper uses data from 2004 and 2008 surveys of 2,500 UK small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs). An ordered probit estimation is used to measure and assess the effect of bank credit rejection and FE variables on financial self-confidence for the two periods. The authors also explore potential differences in self-confidence between males and females.

Findings

The results show that outright bank credit rejection reduces financial self-confidence among owner managers whereas partial bank credit rejection is found to help boost confidence prior to the financial crisis. There is strong evidence that FE increases financial self-confidence. Finally, the authors find no association between gender and reported self-confidence in finance.

Research limitations/implications

Entrepreneurs and potential entrepreneurs are encouraged to explore financial literacy and knowledge with a view to increasing their financial self-confidence. This will help SMEs to deal with the banks or other finance providers more efficiently. In addition, better application procedures and information on lending criteria may help SMEs to minimize the probability of bank credit rejection. So the current study has implications for professional bodies as well. The study, however, is restricted to sole proprietor and partnership SMEs and in the UK context only.

Practical implications

Financial self-confidence has a progressive effect on entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial venture growth. The financial self-confidence of owner managers can support their entrepreneurial capability in starting and operating one or more businesses. As entrepreneurs successfully start and operate their own businesses, they are contributing to economic development through job creation, employment and tax contribution.

Originality/value

This paper makes an original contribution in highlighting the usefulness of FE in boosting financial self-confidence among entrepreneurs and potential entrepreneurs. It is also found that the experience of bank credit rejection reduces entrepreneurs’ financial self-confidence.
Modeling complex entrepreneurial processes
Authors: Shim Jaehu , Bliemel Martin , Choi Myeonggil
Published: July 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to suggest a bibliometric method for designing agent-based models (ABMs) in entrepreneurship research. The application of this method is illustrated with an exemplary agent-based modeling and simulation (ABMS) regarding the early venture growth process. This bibliometric approach invigorates the utilization of ABMS as a viable research methodology in process-oriented entrepreneurship research.

Design/methodology/approach

In the bibliometric method, a domain corpus composed of scholarly articles is established and systematically analyzed through co-word analysis to discern essential concepts (i.e. agents, objects, and contexts) and their interrelations. The usefulness of the bibliometric method is elucidated by constructing an illustrative ABMS.

Findings

The bibliometric method for designing ABMs identifies essential concepts in the entrepreneurship literature and provides contexts in which the concepts are interrelated. The illustrative ABMS based on these concepts and interrelations accurately and consistently reproduces the emergence of power-law distributions in venture outcomes consistent with empirical evidence, implying further merit to bibliometric procedures.

Practical implications

The proposed method can be used not only to build simple models with essential concepts, but also to build more complex models that take a large number of concepts and their interrelations into consideration.

Originality/value

This study proposes a bibliometric method for designing ABMs. The proposed method extends similar procedures that are limited to thematic or cluster analysis by examining the semantic contexts in which the concepts co-occur. This research suggests that ABMS from bibliographic sources can be built and validated with empirical evidence. Several considerations are provided for the combined utilization of the bibliometric method and ABMS in entrepreneurship.
Evidence-based recommendations to improve reproductive healthcare for incarcerated women
Authors: Knittel Andrea , Ti Angeline , Schear Sarah , Comfort Megan
Published: July 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to describe standards for evidence-based reproductive healthcare for incarcerated women.

Design/methodology/approach

The literature on reproductive healthcare in the US criminal justice system and recommendations from professional organizations were reviewed and critical areas of concern were identified. Within these areas, studies and expert opinion were synthesized and policy recommendations were formulated through an iterative process of group discussion and document revision. This brief specifically addresses women’s incarceration in the USA, but the recommendations are grounded in a human rights framework with global relevance.

Findings

Women who are incarcerated have health needs that are distinct from those of men, and there is a clear need for gender-responsive reproductive healthcare within the criminal justice system. This brief identifies five core domains of reproductive healthcare: routine screening, menstruation-related concerns, prenatal and postpartum care, contraception and abortion, and sexually transmitted infections. The recommendations emphasize the continuity between the criminal justice system and the community, as well as the dignity and self-determination of incarcerated women.

Originality/value

This brief provides a unique synthesis of the available evidence with concrete recommendations for improving the reproductive healthcare for incarcerated women.
Harnessing information and communication technologies for effective knowledge creation
Authors: Gupta Vikas , Jain Namita
Published: July 2017

Purpose

Education is subject to the same pressures as a business, it has to spur innovation, improve customer service and achieve operational excellence. Education is expected to solve intricate problems that heralded the twenty-first century. Niche areas emerged in education that need further study and research. The authors postulate such demands may be met by information and communication technologies (ICTs) that opened up the avenue for innovation and experimentation in education. One such innovation is online learning and massive open online courses (MOOCs) that represent immense opportunities in education. With their advent, even the permanent relevance of physical classrooms has been questioned. The purpose of this paper is to answer to all these questions and attempts to fill gaps in the understanding of the future of education.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper came into being after a review of literature pertaining to the changing ecosystem of education and an analysis of newer platforms like MOOCs. The paper surveyed books, scholarly articles, reports, conference proceedings and online databases in the area of education and related technological developments.

Findings

The existence of MOOCs in the education landscape cannot be ignored. This is proven by the fact that MOOC enrollment surpassed 35 million users in 2015. MOOCs were considered a popular concept in the developed world to start with. But, today MOOCs are being offered by universities in developing nations too. As the number of participant countries increases, MOOCs in vernacular languages are being developed to overcome the language barrier. The paper found that the online model cannot replace the brick and mortar model completely. Rather, it will complement it by providing an enriching experience to various stakeholders, including the learner and the instructor. In the future, students will have the advantage of a blended classroom where the best of online and offline models converge into an optimal experience.

Research limitations/implications

As the theme of the paper is new and the educational landscape continues to evolve, it is very difficult to determine the pace of transformation of education. However, the authors have tried to suggest a conceptual framework for the future in education, subject to empirical validation.

Practical implications

This paper helps us understand that we are in a rapidly evolving scenario where innovations have the potential to disrupt the existing model. Such disruptions can have behavioral, economical and social ramifications. A better understanding of such alterations will help academicians equip themselves for evolving classrooms and the changing nature of their jobs. The new ICT enabled ecosystem will also try to overcome issues related to the quality of education and knowledge dissemination.

Originality/value

The present paper is a comprehensive study of the opportunities and challenges posed by emerging classrooms.
Re-thinking SME disadvantage in public procurement
Authors: Flynn Anthony
Published: July 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between firm size, resources, capabilities and involvement in public procurement. While the liability of smallness has been a recurring theme in research into public sector suppliers, there remains a dearth of evidence and theorising on the effects of size.

Design/methodology/approach

A model linking firm size, resources, capabilities, tendering activity and performance is devised. Resource-based view theory informs the model. Survey data from over 3,000 firms active in the Irish public sector marketplace is used to test the model.

Findings

As hypothesised, firm size is positively associated with tendering resources and capabilities. Resources and capabilities, in turn, influence tendering activity and performance. Specifically, resources act as enablers for the number and value of contracts firms tender for while capabilities are important for winning contracts. The author also finds similarities between medium and large enterprises in their ability to tender.

Research limitations/implications

The treatment of tendering resources and capabilities is not exhaustive. Future research could include additional indicators of resources (e.g. external consultants, IT) and capabilities (e.g. production, process innovation).

Practical implications

Managers of micro and small suppliers should focus on augmenting their tendering capabilities as they lag bigger suppliers. Legislators need to re-assess current “one-size-fits-all” small and medium enterprise (SME) friendly policy as it is not sensitive to intra-SME differences.

Originality/value

This study introduces an important qualification into understanding of public sector suppliers by demonstrating that SME disadvantage is less black and white than shades of grey.
A survey of the factors influencing the resistance of the employees of university libraries to technological changes
Authors: Nakhoda Maryam , Tajik Samaneh
Published: July 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to study the factors influencing the resistance of the employees of Tehran University libraries to technological changes. Through achieving this aim, it attempts to provide a suitable understanding of these factors for the managers so that they would be able to reduce the resistance to change among the employees of university libraries.

Design/methodology/approach

This study is a descriptive survey in its data collection method. Based on the review of the literature, a questionnaire on resistance to technological changes was devised (Cronbach’s α coefficient being 93 percent). The questionnaire was distributed among 128 of the employees in the technology section of Tehran University libraries, and the achieved data were analyzed using an SPSS and PLS.

Findings

The findings achieved through a confirmatory factor analysis showed 11 elements of ambiguity, threat of the current situation, habit, lack of interest, the need for relearning, unsuitable understanding, inefficient rewarding system, emotional reactions, lack of interest understanding, inflexibility of the beliefs and feeling of being a veteran in the organization, which influence the resistance of the employees of the university libraries, among them the inefficient rewarding system ranks first and the unsuitable understanding ranks last.

Originality/value

In this research, an attempt is made to identify the resistance to technological changes shown by the employees of Tehran University libraries, which can be a guide for library managers to improve the changing process in their libraries. Influencing factors of resistance to change which had been identified by other research works were examined here regarding the circumstances of Tehran University Libraries.
Knowledge sharing among innovative customers in a virtual innovation community
Authors: Zhang Depeng , Zhang Fuli , Lin Mengfei , Du Helen S.
Published: July 2017

Purpose

Based upon social cognition and social exchange theories, the purpose of this paper is to develop and test a conceptual model, suggesting that customer psychological capitals (CPCs) affect their knowledge sharing behavior (KSB) within a virtual innovation community (VIC) under the influence of material reward (MR) and reciprocal relationship (RR).

Design/methodology/approach

The sample comprises of valid responses collected from 516 customers in five virtual innovation communities via an online survey. The authors adopted the hierarchical regression method to mitigate any concerns relating to endogeneity within the models, and also to test the relationships among the variables.

Findings

CPC, MR and RR are found to have a profound impact on their enthusiasm to share knowledge. Environmental factors play an important role in shaping the effects of CPC on KSB. MR tends to weaken the positive effect of CPC on KSB, whilst RR tends to strengthen the positive effect.

Practical implications

To effectively manage a VIC, firms should make full use of the positive impact of CPC on KSB, set up appropriate incentive mechanisms and create a virtuous community atmosphere to encourage knowledge sharing.

Originality/value

This study integrates two theoretical perspectives to examine which types of psychological and environmental factors, and which combinations of these factors, affect innovative customers to share knowledge. It offers useful guidelines for firms to engage in effective customer-driven products, services and/or processes innovation.
Exploring the use of online video games to detect personality dichotomies
Authors: Feldman Juan , Monteserin Ariel , Amandi Analía
Published: July 2017

Purpose

Personality trait detection is a problem that has been gaining much attention in the computer science field recently. By leveraging users’ personality knowledge software applications are able to adapt their behaviour accordingly. To detect personality traits automatically users must substantially interact with software applications to gather enough information that describe their behaviour. For addressing this limitation, the authors explore the use of online video games as an alternative approach to detect personality dichotomies. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors analyse the use of several online video games that exhibit features related with Myers-Briggs sensitive-intuitive personality dichotomy. Then, the authors build a user profile that describes users’ behaviour when interacting with online video games. Finally, the authors identify users’ personality by analysing their profile with different classification algorithms.

Findings

The results show that games that obtained better results in the personality dichotomy detection exhibit features that had better match with the sensitive-intuitive dichotomy preferences. Moreover, the results show that the classification algorithms should satisfactorily deal with unbalanced data sets, since it is natural that the frequencies of the dichotomies types are unbalanced. In addition, in the context of personality trait detection, online video games possess several advantages over other type of software applications. By using games, users do not need to have previous experience, since they learn how to play during gameplay. Furthermore, the information and time needed to predict the sensitive-intuitive dichotomy using games is little.

Originality/value

This study shows that online video games are a promising environment in which the users’ personality dichotomies can be detected.
Effects of the characteristics of online multimedia synergy on consumers’ message acceptance and message response
Authors: Dong Xuebing , Chang Yaping , Fan Xiaojun
Published: July 2017

Purpose

Marketers recognize that the internet is crucial in the lives of consumers; thus, they invest money on online advertisements. Using multiple online media primarily influences the message acceptance of consumers. The synergistic effect of online multimedia relies on form, content, and sources of information, and time. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

Design/methodology/approach

A model that reflects the influence of the characteristics of online multimedia on message response through message acceptance is established based on theories of information persuasion, encoding variability, and multiple-source assumption. Based on a survey of 411 online media users, the study applies partial least-squares regression to test the research model.

Findings

The results show that variety of forms, complementary of contents, diversity of sources, and time interval influence message response via message strength. Complementary of contents and diversity of sources affect message response via perceived credibility. Synergy type moderates the relationship between variety of forms and perceived credibility and between diversity of sources and perceived credibility.

Research limitations/implications

The current study mainly tests the effect of these characteristics on message response and the moderating effect of synergy type. Future research can examine the effect of these characteristics on information seeking and consumption behavior and the moderating effect of the cognitive mode of consumers.

Practical implications

This study provides insight into the characteristics of synergy and contributes to the literature on integrated marketing communication. The results provide guidance for practitioners to effectively plan online multimedia practices.

Originality/value

This study explored the influence of the characteristics of online media synergy on message response through message acceptance. The study also discussed the moderating effect of the type of online multimedia synergy.
Assessment practices in social studies classrooms: results from a longitudinal survey
Authors: Curry Kristal , Smith Doug
Published: July 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to present results from three years of a longitudinal “Assessment Attitudes and Practices” survey collected from a large school district in the Southern USA.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper focuses on both formative and summative “assessment practices” results from secondary (middle and high school) social studies teachers.

Findings

There was no statistically significant difference between secondary social studies teachers’ use of assessments and secondary teachers of other disciplines, nor was there a statistically significant difference in assessment use by year. Data results by assessment type were ranked in order of how often teachers claimed to use various assessment practices, and discussed in terms of assessment practices recommended by NCSS. Social studies teachers in this study were often more likely to report use of assessments of knowledge (including selected-response items) than performance-based assessment techniques (such as authentic assessments).

Research limitations/implications

The lack of statistically significant differences in assessment practices along disciplinary lines indicates homogeneity in the use of assessments that does not do justice to social studies.

Practical implications

Using Common Core standards or not, having a 1:1 technological environment or not, teacher respondents essentially reported using the same assessments, perhaps because high-stakes assessments did not change.

Social implications

There is a need for professional development that helps teachers see how performance-based assessments can be used to boost student performance on high-stakes assessments.

Originality/value

Studies of actual assessment practices (as opposed to ideas about how teachers should assess) are still quite rare, and provide a helpful window in understanding what is actually happening inside schools.