bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A Pre-Operative Exercise Intervention Can Be Safely Delivered to People with Femoroacetabular Impingement and Improve Clinical and Biomechanical Outcomes
Authors: Guenther Jerrad R. , Cochrane Christopher K. , Crossley Kay M. , Gilbart Michael K. , Hunt Michael A.
Published: January 2017

Purpose: This study aimed to investigate the effects of a pre–hip arthroscopy exercise intervention on hip strength, pain, and function in individuals with femoroacetabular impingement (FAI). Methods: A total of 20 individuals with FAI completed a 10-week, partially supervised exercise programme; this included three phases of increasing resistance and functionality, consisting of four to six exercises per phase. Hip strength in all six directions; hip pain; function, as measured by the Hip disability and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score (HOOS); and objective physical function, as measured by the Timed Stair Climb test, were determined before and after the intervention. Results: Maximum isometric hip strength significantly increased in abduction (p=0.008), adduction (p=0.021), and internal rotation (p=0.006) at follow-up. Increases in flexion, extension, and external rotation strength did not reach statistical significance. Self-reported HOOS pain (p<0.01) and activities of daily living sub-scale scores (p<0.01) significantly improved at follow-up. Timed Stair Climb times (p<0.001) also significantly decreased at follow-up. Conclusion: A 10-week exercise programme can be safely completed by adults with FAI before surgery, and statistically significant changes in strength, function, and self-reported clinical outcomes can be achieved.
Computing a Clique Tree with the Algorithm Maximal Label Search
Authors: Berry Anne , Simonet Geneviève
Published: January 2017

The algorithm MLS (Maximal Label Search) is a graph search algorithm that generalizes the algorithms Maximum Cardinality Search (MCS), Lexicographic Breadth-First Search (LexBFS), Lexicographic Depth-First Search (LexDFS) and Maximal Neighborhood Search (MNS). On a chordal graph, MLS computes a PEO (perfect elimination ordering) of the graph. We show how the algorithm MLS can be modified to compute a PMO (perfect moplex ordering), as well as a clique tree and the minimal separators of a chordal graph. We give a necessary and sufficient condition on the labeling structure of MLS for the beginning of a new clique in the clique tree to be detected by a condition on labels. MLS is also used to compute a clique tree of the complement graph, and new cliques in the complement graph can be detected by a condition on labels for any labeling structure. We provide a linear time algorithm computing a PMO and the corresponding generators of the maximal cliques and minimal separators of the complement graph. On a non-chordal graph, the algorithm MLSM, a graph search algorithm computing an MEO and a minimal triangulation of the graph, is used to compute an atom tree of the clique minimal separator decomposition of any graph.
3D Printing of Organs-On-Chips
Authors: Yi Hee-Gyeong , Lee Hyungseok , Cho Dong-Woo
Published: January 2017

Organ-on-a-chip engineering aims to create artificial living organs that mimic the complex and physiological responses of real organs, in order to test drugs by precisely manipulating the cells and their microenvironments. To achieve this, the artificial organs should to be microfabricated with an extracellular matrix (ECM) and various types of cells, and should recapitulate morphogenesis, cell differentiation, and functions according to the native organ. A promising strategy is 3D printing, which precisely controls the spatial distribution and layer-by-layer assembly of cells, ECMs, and other biomaterials. Owing to this unique advantage, integration of 3D printing into organ-on-a-chip engineering can facilitate the creation of micro-organs with heterogeneity, a desired 3D cellular arrangement, tissue-specific functions, or even cyclic movement within a microfluidic device. Moreover, fully 3D-printed organs-on-chips more easily incorporate other mechanical and electrical components with the chips, and can be commercialized via automated massive production. Herein, we discuss the recent advances and the potential of 3D cell-printing technology in engineering organs-on-chips, and provides the future perspectives of this technology to establish the highly reliable and useful drug-screening platforms.
An Overview and Evaluation of Recent Machine Learning Imputation Methods Using Cardiac Imaging Data
Authors: Liu Yuzhe , Gopalakrishnan Vanathi
Published: January 2017

Many clinical research datasets have a large percentage of missing values that directly impacts their usefulness in yielding high accuracy classifiers when used for training in supervised machine learning. While missing value imputation methods have been shown to work well with smaller percentages of missing values, their ability to impute sparse clinical research data can be problem specific. We previously attempted to learn quantitative guidelines for ordering cardiac magnetic resonance imaging during the evaluation for pediatric cardiomyopathy, but missing data significantly reduced our usable sample size. In this work, we sought to determine if increasing the usable sample size through imputation would allow us to learn better guidelines. We first review several machine learning methods for estimating missing data. Then, we apply four popular methods (mean imputation, decision tree, k-nearest neighbors, and self-organizing maps) to a clinical research dataset of pediatric patients undergoing evaluation for cardiomyopathy. Using Bayesian Rule Learning (BRL) to learn ruleset models, we compared the performance of imputation-augmented models versus unaugmented models. We found that all four imputation-augmented models performed similarly to unaugmented models. While imputation did not improve performance, it did provide evidence for the robustness of our learned models.
Entropies of the Chinese Land Use/Cover Change from 1990 to 2010 at a County Level
Authors: Fan Yong , Yu Guangming , He Zongyi , Yu Hailong , Bai Rui , Yang Linru , Wu Di
Published: January 2017

Land Use/Cover Change (LUCC) has gradually became an important direction in the research of global changes. LUCC is a complex system, and entropy is a measure of the degree of disorder of a system. According to land use information entropy, this paper analyzes changes in land use from the perspective of the system. Research on the entropy of LUCC structures has a certain “guiding role” for the optimization and adjustment of regional land use structure. Based on the five periods of LUCC data from the year of 1990 to 2010, this paper focuses on analyzing three types of LUCC entropies among counties in China—namely, Shannon, Renyi, and Tsallis entropies. The findings suggest that: (1) Shannon entropy can reflect the volatility of the LUCC, that Renyi and Tsallis entropies also have this function when their parameter has a positive value, and that Renyi and Tsallis entropies can reflect the extreme case of the LUCC when their parameter has a negative value.; (2) The entropy of China’s LUCC is uneven in time and space distributions, and that there is a large trend during 1990–2010, the central region generally has high entropy in space.
Mblk-1 Transcription Factor Family: Its Roles in Various Animals and Regulation by NOL4 Splice Variants in Mammals
Authors: Takayanagi-Kiya Seika , Kiya Taketoshi , Kunieda Takekazu , Kubo Takeo
Published: January 2017

Transcription factors play critical roles in regulation of neural development and functions. A transcription factor Mblk-1 was previously reported from a screen for factors possibly important for the higher brain functions of the honeybee. This review first summarizes how Mblk-1 was identified, and then provides an overview of the studies of Mblk-1 and their homologs. Mblk-1 family proteins are found broadly in animals and are shown to affect transcription activities. Studies have revealed that the mammalian homologs can interact with several cofactors and together regulate transcription. Interestingly, a recent study using the mouse homologs, Mlr1 and Mlr2, showed that one of their cofactor proteins, NOL4, have several splice variants with different effects on the transactivation activities of Mlr proteins. These findings suggest that there is an additional layer of the regulation of Mblk-1 family proteins by cofactor splice variants and provide novel insights into our current understanding of the roles of the conserved transcription factor family.
Preparation of Thermo-Responsive and Cross-Linked Fluorinated Nanoparticles via RAFT-Mediated Aqueous Polymerization in Nanoreactors
Authors: Ma Jiachen , Zhang Luqing , Geng Bing , Azhar Umair , Xu Anhou , Zhang Shuxiang
Published: January 2017

In this work, a thermo-responsive and cross-linked fluoropolymer poly(2,2,2-Trifluoroethyl) methacrylate (PTFEMA) was successfully prepared by reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) mediated aqueous polymerization with a thermo-responsive diblock poly(dimethylacrylamide-b-N-isopropylacrylamide) (PDMA-b-PNIPAM) that performed a dual function as both a nanoreactor and macro-RAFT agent. The cross-linked polymer particles proved to be in a spherical-like structure of about 50 nm in diameter and with a relatively narrow particle size distribution. 1H-NMR and 19F-NMR spectra showed that thermo-responsive diblock P(DMA-b-NIPAM) and cross-linked PTFEMA particles were successfully synthesized. Influence of the amount of ammonium persulfate (APS), the molar ratio of monomers to RAFT agent, influence of the amount of cross-linker on aqueous polymerization and thermo-responsive characterization of the particles are investigated. Monomer conversion increased from 44% to 94% with increasing the molar ratio of APS and P(DMA-b-NIPAM) from 1:9 to1:3. As the reaction proceeded, the particle size increased from 29 to 49 nm due to the consumption of TFEMA monomer. The size of cross-linked nanoparticles sharply decreased from 50.3 to 40.5 nm over the temperature range 14–44 °C, suggesting good temperature sensitivity for these nanoparticles.
Chemical Characterization and Antioxidant Potential of Wild Ganoderma Species from Ghana
Authors: Obodai Mary , Narh Mensah Deborah , Fernandes Ângela , Kortei Nii , Dzomeku Matilda , Teegarden Matthew , Schwartz Steven , Barros Lillian , Prempeh Juanita , Takli Richard , Ferreira Isabel
Published: January 2017

The chemical characterization and antioxidant potential of twelve wild strains of Ganoderma sp. from Ghana, nine (LS1–LS9) of which were found growing wild simultaneously on the same dying Delonix regia tree, were evaluated. Parameters evaluated included the nutritional value, composition in sugars, fatty acids, phenolic and other organic compounds and some vitamins and vitamin precursors. Antioxidant potential was evaluated by investigating reducing power, radical scavenging activity and lipid peroxidation inhibition using five in vitro assays. Protein, carbohydrate, fat, ash and energy contents ranged between 15.7–24.5 g/100 g·dw, 73.31–81.90 g/100 g, 0.48–1.40 g/100 g, 0.68–2.12 g/100 g ash and 396.1–402.02 kcal/100 g, respectively. Fatty acids such as linoleic, oleic and palmitic acids were relatively abundant. Free sugars included rhamnose, fructose, mannitol, sucrose and trehalose. Total tocopherols, organic acids and phenolic compounds’ content ranged between 741–3191 µg/100 g, 77–1003 mg/100 g and 7.6–489 µg/100 g, respectively. There were variations in the β-glucans, ergosterol and vitamin D2 contents. The three major minerals in decreasing order were K > P > S. Ganoderma sp. strain AM1 showed the highest antioxidant activity. This study reveals, for the first time, chemical characteristics of Ganoderma spp. which grew simultaneously on the same tree.
Quantification of Finger-Tapping Angle Based on Wearable Sensors
Authors: Djurić-Jovičić Milica , Jovičić Nenad , Roby-Brami Agnes , Popović Mirjana , Kostić Vladimir , Djordjević Antonije
Published: January 2017

We propose a novel simple method for quantitative and qualitative finger-tapping assessment based on miniature inertial sensors (3D gyroscopes) placed on the thumb and index-finger. We propose a simplified description of the finger tapping by using a single angle, describing rotation around a dominant axis. The method was verified on twelve subjects, who performed various tapping tasks, mimicking impaired patterns. The obtained tapping angles were compared with results of a motion capture camera system, demonstrating excellent accuracy. The root-mean-square (RMS) error between the two sets of data is, on average, below 4°, and the intraclass correlation coefficient is, on average, greater than 0.972. Data obtained by the proposed method may be used together with scores from clinical tests to enable a better diagnostic. Along with hardware simplicity, this makes the proposed method a promising candidate for use in clinical practice. Furthermore, our definition of the tapping angle can be applied to all tapping assessment systems.
Approaches on Correlation between Board of Directors and Risk Management in Resilient Economies
Authors: Armeanu Daniel , Vintilă Georgeta , Gherghina Ştefan , Petrache Dan
Published: January 2017

The recent financial crisis highlighted the need for a strong emphasis on the effectiveness of board risk oversight practices. Good corporate governance upholds effective risk management, which in turn ensures the flexibility to reply to unpredicted threats and take benefit of opportunities. Thus, risk management affords corporate resilience that engenders competitive advantage due to the capacity to circumvent, deter, defend, react, and adjust to any kind of disturbance, besides recovering quickly. Guaranteeing that the board is prepared and adequately resilient to deal with a crisis circumstance is a crucial part of good governance. By employing a data set of companies listed in Romania, this paper analyzes whether boards of directors influence risk management. We measure boards by means of size, independence, diversity, establishment of Consultative Committees, as well as CEO duality, gender, age, and tenure. Based on ten financial ratios, we develop two risk indicators regarding shareholders’ wealth and short-term risk, alongside a global business failure risk tool, by means of principal component analysis. Furthermore, the output of the multivariate regression analysis show that CEO gender, the size of the board, and Audit Committee negatively influence business failure risk.
Research Strategies for Biomedical and Health Informatics
Authors: Haux Reinhold , Kulikowski Casimir , Bakken Suzanne , de Lusignan Simon , Kimura Michio , Koch Sabine , Mantas John , Maojo Victor , Marschollek Michael , Martin-Sanchez Fernando , Moen Anne , Park Hyeoun-Ae , Neil Sarkar Indra , Yun Leong Tze , McCray Alexa
Published: January 2017

Background: Medical informatics, or biomedical and health informatics (BMHI), has become an established scientific discipline. In all such disciplines there is a certain inertia to persist in focusing on well-established research areas and to hold on to well-known research methodologies rather than adopting new ones, which may be more appropriate.

Objectives: To search for answers to the following questions: What are research fields in informatics, which are not being currently adequately addressed, and which methodological approaches might be insufficiently used? Do we know about reasons? What could be consequences of change for research and for education?

Methods: Outstanding informatics scientists were invited to three panel sessions on this topic in leading international conferences (MIE 2015, Medinfo 2015, HEC 2016) in order to get their answers to these questions.

Results: A variety of themes emerged in the set of answers provided by the panellists. Some panellists took the theoretical foundations of the field for granted, while several questioned whether the field was actually grounded in a strong theoretical foundation. Panellists proposed a range of suggestions for new or improved approaches, methodologies, and techniques to enhance the BMHI research agenda.

Conclusions: The field of BMHI is on the one hand maturing as an academic community and intellectual endeavour. On the other hand vendor-supplied solutions may be too readily and uncritically accepted in health care practice. There is a high chance that BMHI will continue to flourish as an important discipline; its innovative interventions might then reach the original objectives of advancing science and improving health care outcomes.
Long-Term Follow-Up of Patients after Autologous Bone Marrow Cell Infusion for Decompensated Liver Cirrhosis
Authors: Kim Ja Kyung , Kim Soo-Jeong , Kim Yuri , Chung Yong Eun , Park Young Nyun , Kim Hyun Ok , Kim Jin Seok , Park Mi-Suk , Sakaida Isao , Kim Do Young , Lee Jung Il , Ahn Sang Hoon , Lee Kwan Sik , Han Kwang-Hyub
Published: January 2017

Although several human clinical trials using various bone marrow-derived cell types for cirrhotic or decompensated patients have reported a short-term benefit, long-term follow-up data are limited. We analyzed the long-term clinical outcomes of autologous bone marrow cell infusion (ABMI) for decompensated liver cirrhosis (LC). Patients enrolled in a pilot single-armed ABMI study were followed up more than 5 years. Bone marrow-derived mononuclear cells (BM-MNCs) from decompensated LC were harvested and after processing were infused into a peripheral vein. The laboratory test results and long-term clinical course including liver transplantation (LT), development of cancer, cause of death, and survival after ABMI were analyzed. Nineteen patients were followed up for a median of 66 months after ABMI. Liver function, including serum levels of albumin and Child–Pugh (CP) score, was improved at the 1-year follow-up. Liver volume was significantly greater, cirrhosis was sustained, and collagen content was decreased at the 6-month follow-up. Five years after ABMI, five patients (26.3%) maintained CP class A without LT or death, and five patients (26.3%) had undergone elective LT. Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) occurred in five patients (26.3%), and lymphoma and colon cancer occurred in one patient each. Three patients (15.8%) were lost to follow-up at months 22, 31, and 33, respectively, but maintained CP class A until their last follow-up. Five patients expired due to infection. While improved liver function was maintained in some patients for more than 5 years after ABMI, other patients developed HCC. Further studies of long-term follow-up cohorts after cell therapy for LC are warranted.
Milliarcsecond Imaging of the Radio Emission from the Quasar with the Most Massive Black Hole at Reionization
Authors: Wang Ran , Momjian Emmanuel , Carilli Chris L. , Wu Xue-Bing , Fan Xiaohui , Walter Fabian , Strauss Michael A. , Wang Feige , Jiang Linhua
Published: January 2017

We report Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA) observations of the 1.5 GHz radio continuum emission of the z = 6.326 quasar SDSS J010013.02+280225.8 (hereafter J0100+2802). J0100+2802 is by far the most optically luminous and is a radio-quiet quasar with the most massive black hole known at z > 6. The VLBA observations have a synthesized beam size of 12.10 mas ×5.36 mas (FWHM), and detected the radio continuum emission from this object with a peak surface brightness of 64.6 ± 9.0 μJy beam−1 and a total flux density of 88 ± 19 μJy. The position of the radio peak is consistent with that from SDSS in the optical and Chandra in the X-ray. The radio source is marginally resolved by the VLBA observations. A 2D Gaussian fit to the image constrains the source size to (7.1 ± 3.5) mas × (3.1 ± 1.7) mas. This corresponds to a physical scale of (40 ± 20) pc × (18 ± 10) pc. We estimate the intrinsic brightness temperature of the VLBA source to be T
B = (1.6 ± 1.2) × 107 K. This is significantly higher than the maximum value in normal star-forming galaxies, indicating an active galactic nucleus (AGN) origin for the radio continuum emission. However, it is also significantly lower than the brightness temperatures found in highest-redshift radio-loud quasars. J0100+2802 provides a unique example for studying the radio activity in optically luminous and radio-quiet AGNs in the early universe. Further observations at multiple radio frequencies will accurately measure the spectral index and address the dominant radiation mechanism of the radio emission.
Implications from the Upper Limit of Radio Afterglow Emission of FRB 131104/Swift J0644.5-5111
Authors: Gao He , Zhang Bing
Published: January 2017

A γ-ray transient, Swift J0644.5-5111, has been claimed to be associated with FRB 131104. However, a long-term radio imaging follow-up observation only placed an upper limit on the radio afterglow flux of Swift J0644.5-5111. Applying the external shock model, we perform a detailed constraint on the afterglow parameters for the FRB 131104/Swift J0644.5-5111 system. We find that for the commonly used microphysics shock parameters (e.g.,

,

, and p = 2.3), if the fast radio burst (FRB) is indeed cosmological as inferred from its measured dispersion measure (DM), the ambient medium number density should be

, which is the typical value for a compact binary merger environment but disfavors a massive star origin. Assuming a typical ISM density, one would require that the redshift of the FRB be much smaller than the value inferred from DM (

), implying a non-cosmological origin of DM. The constraints are much looser if one adopts smaller

and

values, as observed in some gamma-ray burst afterglows. The FRB 131104/Swift J0644.5-5111 association remains plausible. We critically discuss possible progenitor models for the system.
El Séfer ha-Šorašim de David Quimḥí: una herramienta didáctica
Authors: Kogel Judith
Published: January 2017

Menos de cuarenta años después de que Judá ibn Tibbón tradujera al hebreo el Kitāb al-Uṣūl de Ibn Ŷanāḥ, David Quimhí se aprestó a elaborar un nuevo diccionario de raíces hebreas conocido como Séfer ha-Šorašim. La obra alcanzó gran éxito y, en consecuencia, eclipsó el trabajo de su predecesor quien, en cualquier caso, había servido de modelo a Quimḥí. Una investigación preliminar basada en aquellas raíces encabezadas por las letras tet y sámej constituye una muestra representativa para el conocimiento de la historia del texto: primero, porque permite entender mejor los motivos de Quimḥí para llevar a cabo un nuevo diccionario; y después, porque el análisis de este corpus, relativamente pequeño, nos da pistas para entender el acercamiento lexicológico de Quimḥí a la raíz del hebreo y su estrategia a la hora de organizar cada entrada del diccionario.
«No sustentas tú a la raíz, sino la raíz a ti». Sobre la recepción en latín del Séfer ha-šorašim
Authors: Campanini Saverio
Published: January 2017

Este artículo se ocupa de los principales capítulos de la recepción del Sefer ha-šorašim de David Quimḥi en el mundo cristiano durante el Renacimiento. Un testimonio menos conocido de este interés, que combina el examen crítico con la apropiación, es la traducción latina integral compuesta por, o para, el cardenal Egidio de Viterbo, probablemente durante la segunda década del siglo XVI, y conservada en dos manuscritos. En este artículo se ofrece, junto a una rápida presentación de la situación de la lexicografía hebrea al principio del Renacimiento y de su profunda transformación debida a la problemática adopción del modelo de Quimḥí, una visión sintética de los diferentes enfoques de las varias versiones del diccionario de Quimḥí en el mundo cristiano: de la simple adaptación al moldeo, bastante complicado, de un diccionario bilingüe de hebreo bíblico, al fenómeno paradójico de la traducción de un léxico monolingüe en un idioma diferente. En este último, la pérdida semántica es evidente: lo que sigue siendo de interés prioritario es el provecho exegético esperado de la investigación sobre esta adaptación, y no menos importante, el avance de nuestro conocimiento de la comprensión humanista de la Biblia en una época de cambios paradigmáticos radicales.
Préstamos con interés encubierto de cristianos y judíos en la Galicia del siglo XV
Authors: De Antonio Rubio María Gloria
Published: January 2017

Todos los contratos de préstamo, salvo los realizados entre personas con una relación de carácter familiar o de amistad, son de carácter mercantil, es decir, persiguen un beneficio para el prestamista. Sin embargo, las limitaciones legales y religiosas sobre el cobro de intereses obligaron a judíos y cristianos a desarrollar fórmulas para ocultarlos: en unos casos, falseando la cantidad que había sido prestada; en otros, exigiendo la devolución de la cantidad prestada con un bien o el valor de ese bien en el mercado pero nunca el dinero inicial. El marco documental, geográfico y cronológico elegido para analizar este tipo de préstamos son dos libros de notarios gallegos del siglo XV, restricción que no impide que los métodos propuestos sean aplicables a otros ámbitos.
The Human Behavioral Response to Automated Trading
Authors: Vragov Roumen
Published: January 2017

The use of computer algorithms by human traders in markets has been steadily increasing. These electronic agents or proxies vary in terms of purpose and complexity, however, most of them first require some input on the part of the human trader and then perform the rest of the trading task autonomously. This paper proposes a theoretical model of human behavior that can be used to detect behavioral biases in commodity markets populated by humans and electronic proxies. The model's predictions are tested with the help of laboratory experiments with economically-motivated human subjects. Results suggests that the usefulness of automated trading is initially diminished by behavioral biases arising from attitudes towards technology. In some cases, the biases disappear with experience and in others they do not.
Knowledge Management System from Individual Firm to National Scale
Authors: Chu Mei-Tai
Published: January 2017

Knowledge management system (KMS) is capable of capturing explicit knowledge and tacit knowledge in a systematic manner. As any type of organization scales up, the issue in relation to, how to construct an effective knowledge sharing mechanism in KMS to covert individual knowledge into collective knowledge remains under surveyed. The rising concerns especially focus on the identification of individual knowledge worker, how firms facilitate knowledge sharing and the effectiveness of national knowledge management system. Communities of Practice (CoPs) are well known as effective mechanism to foster knowledge sharing theoretically and practically. This paper aims to explore the journey of CoPs driven KMS from the lens of individuals, firms' business strategies to the perspectives of national interest. On individual level, knowledge nodes are explored in the context of knowledge flow, which often transcend organizational boundaries and are distinct and different than workflow models. Thus, a CoPs centered knowledge flow model in a multinational organization is developed, implemented, and analyzed. On firm level, this model is underpinned in a CoPs framework built around four expected firms' major business strategies including four dimensions and sixteen criteria as a comprehensive mechanism to intensify knowledge sharing effect. Finally, a conceptual model of KMS embedded national innovation system is also addressed.
Insights into the Culture of Young Internet Users
Authors: Lichy Jessica , Kachour Maher
Published: January 2017

This study focuses on the Internet user behaviour of young people, at a time when information and communication technologies (ICT) are rapidly transforming how individuals behave and interact in the online environment. The intention is to put forward a snapshot of contemporary Internet user behaviour, with reference to social networking, and thus provide an overview and understanding of the various online activities undertaken by Generation Y and Generation Z in a non-Anglophone context. The study uses a mixed methods approach to gather data on the thoughts, experiences and behaviours of young Internet users in order to explain their social networking. The findings suggest commonality and disparity between Generation Y and Generation Z. They also reveal the extent to which certain national differences are less apparent when using social networks, suggesting that the widespread adoption of Internet technology is generating a somewhat ‘standardised' Internet user behaviour.
Information Retrieval and Access in Cloud
Authors: Gupta Punit , Jha Ravi Shankar
Published: January 2017

With increase of information sharing over the internet or intranet, we require techniques to increase the availability of shared resource over large number of users trying to access the resources at the same time. Many techniques are being proposed to make access easy and more secure in distributed environment. Information retrieval plays an important to serve the most reliant data in least waiting, this chapter discuses all such techniques for information retrieval and sharing over the cloud infrastructure. Cloud Computing services provide better performance in terms of resource sharing and resource access with high reliability and scalability under high load.
How to Effectively Apply Appreciative Inquiry in Developing Talent in Organizations
Authors: Mupepi Mambo , Ross-Davis Yalonda M. , Davis Mark , Vachon Thomas S.
Published: January 2017

Focusing strictly on negative organizational issues could constitute an obstacle to the improvement of key attributes, products, and or services offered. This chapter suggests that Appreciative Inquiry (AI) can be an effective and efficient strategic tool used to lead positive change and improve the talent of the organization by emphasizing what is successful rather than a deficit. AI is a well-developed methodology of examining, defining, implementing, and executing precise pans of improvement by applying positive psychology which will lead to the revitalization of productivity. Furthermore, available data suggests the employees within the organization can become resistant to change when there is an overemphasizing of the shortcoming areas of weakness. By using the AI assessment and evaluation technology, companies can pin-point and materialize desirable change.
Patents and Logocentric Differences
Authors: Mupepi Mambo , Frey Robert , Motwani Jaideep
Published: January 2017

The discussion progressed in this chapter is about the protection of organizational knowledge in competitive environments. Knowledge can leak in the value creation networks embedded in knowledge-intensive firms, and a collaborative approach can be utilized to minimize risk and increase sustainability. For knowledge to be preserved from unintentional outflow, its confidential nature and description must be understood at all levels. Loss of knowledge can occur at any point; whether it is through the process of consultation or when employees do their work. Forfeiture of information can be unintended or a planned effort. To prevent such unintended leakage, it is important to develop a shared mindset among employees to minimize the risk. The socio-technical system is a philosophical framework that enables companies to simultaneously consider both ethical and technical systems in order to best match the technology and the people involved. In this paper we show how the socio-technical system can be applied to prevent knowledge leakage.
Managing Talent in Global Environments
Authors: Deng Yiheng
Published: January 2017

In response to the call to elucidate the conditions necessary for successful multinational organization, this discussion is centered on effective communications between a subsidiary company located in China and an American parent organization (multinational company, MNC) based in the USA. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 37 participants including the expatriate managers and the local employees. The findings show that the challenges facing the MNC mainly include confrontation in the contexts of conflict based on cultural differences and supervisor-subordinate interaction, and collectivity reflected in two themes including group dynamics and collective activities. The MNC incorporates local knowledge systems into its administration schema when conducting business worldwide. The study shows that perceptions of both management and employees vary. The challenge is to increase understanding of the job and what needs to be done in different environment as antecedent to increased outputs.
The Perception of the Effect of Tourism on the Local Community before the Ibiza Smart Island Project
Authors: Sánchez-Fernández María Dolores , Cardona José Ramon
Published: January 2017

The perceptions that residents had towards aspects linked to tourism development on the island of Ibiza is measured. In 2011 fieldwork which asked the extent of agreement with several statements was carried out. A descriptive analysis was carried out on the data obtained to determine the average valuation on various items and cross tabulations to see if there are differences between the five municipalities of the island. The results show that there is a high valuation of the economic benefits and tourism is considered to be very important, but they are half-hearted or critical towards the rest of the impacts. In addition, there are no significant differences between the five municipalities. Ibiza is a single tourist destination and works as one single social unit. In 2015 the Ibiza Smart Island project was launched, with smart city and smart destination elements, to solve the problems that affect residents and tourists.
Strategic Challenges of the Portuguese Molds Industry
Authors: Moreira António , Ferreira Miguel A. M. M.
Published: January 2017

In a competitive environment shaped by continuous change, the understanding of the different forces that support or hinder the development of an industry, enables more informed, and assertive decision making. As such, following a sectoral system of innovation perspective that takes into account the temporal evolution of its most important events, the main objective of this chapter is to define a set of strategic lines for the sustainable development of the Portuguese molds industry. The study supports set of strategic priorities so that the Portuguese molds industry can embrace both an international favorable position and an entrepreneurial outward looking governance perspective. This chapter proposes that the future outlook will support the diversification to and the penetration of new sectoral markets, associated with a strong international product engineering and development cluster capable of supplying integrated solutions to several international markets.
Impact of Advertising and Public Relations on Tourism Development in Da Nang, Vietnam
Authors: Tran Xuan , Nguyen Minh , Luu Ha Kieu Tan , Ngo Ny , Tran My , Nguyen Ngoc Bich , Tran Hai
Published: January 2017

An exploratory study was conducted to determine the impact of advertising and public relations on the visit intention of tourists in Da Nang, Vietnam. In 2015, Trip Advisor and New York Times selected Da Nang, Vietnam as one of the top Asia tourist destinations. This study sought to address the relationship between advertising or public relations and tourists' intention to visit based on the theory of planned behavior. Structure Equation Modeling was conducted to predict the impact of advertising and public relations on the visit intention of tourists in Da Nang. Findings indicate that an increased favorable attitude and control of advertising would increase tourist arrivals. Surprisingly, an increased positive attitude and control of public relations did not significantly affect tourists' intention to visit. Instead, the social norms of public relations were effective in driving the decision to visit but the social norms of advertising were not. The findings have contributed to destination brand through advertising and public relations. Implications are discussed.
Can Educational Tourism Spur Economic Growth in Malaysia?
Authors: Matahir Hylmee , Tang Chor Foon
Published: January 2017

This paper employs the neoclassical growth model to investigate empirically the role of educational tourism in Malaysia's economic growth during the period of 2002:Q1 to 2014:Q4. The present study finds that all determinants including educational tourism have a significant positive impact on economic growth in Malaysia, especially in the long-run. In terms of Granger causality, our results show that educational tourism and economic growth are Granger-cause each other in both the short- and long-run. In light of this, educational tourism can be an effective stimulator of Malaysia's economic growth. Moreover, the generalised variance decomposition analysis also affirms that educational tourism explained most of the long-run variation in economic growth compared to other determinants. Therefore, educational tourism is found to be a new and reliable source for Malaysia's economic growth. For the sake of brevity, any macroeconomic policies that heading toward promoting inbound educational tourism will probably spur the growth of the Malaysian economy, especially in the long-run.
Potential Role of Nuclear Factor κB in Cardiovascular Disease
Authors: Mishra Rakesh K.
Published: January 2017

Lung and Cardiovascular disease creating a major health burden in developed countries and primary cause of deaths. Although treatments have progressed, the development of novel treatments for patients with cardiovascular diseases remains a major research goal. Despite modern advances in pharmacological and interventional cardiology, cardiovascular disease still remains a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in all over the world. The nuclear factor (NF)-?B super family of transcription factors has been implicated in the regulation of immune cell maturation, cell survival, and inflammation in many cell types, including cardiac myocytes. Recent studies have shown that NF-?B is cardioprotective during acute hypoxia and reperfusion injury. NF-kB regulates the gene expression of major pro-inflammatory cytokines (TNF-a, IL-b), chemokines [macrophage inflammatory protein (MIP-2), cytokine-induced neutrophil chemoattractant (CINC)], and adhesion molecules (ICAM-1, E selectin) (2), all of which play a major role in lung injury. However, prolonged activation of NF-?B appears to be detrimental and promotes heart failure by eliciting signals that trigger chronic inflammation through enhanced elaboration of cytokines. In this review, we summarize progresses in understanding the NF-kB pathway in lung and cardio-vascular disease development as well as in modulating NF-kB for prevention and therapy.
Myocardial Infarction
Authors: Chapalamadugu Kalyan C. , Gudla Samhitha , Kukreja Rakesh , Tipparaju Srinivas M.
Published: January 2017

Myocardial infarction (MI) is a major cardiovascular disease (CVD) and ranks among the leading causes of morbidity and mortality in humans, worldwide. Despite advances in disease prevention and treatment strategies, majority of the developed and developing world's suffer higher disease burden from MI, and incur billions of dollars in healthcare costs (Murray et al., 2015). Global estimates from 2013 show that MI is the major cardiovascular disease (CVD), and that deaths due to MI accounted for nearly half of the 17 million CVD mortalities (GBD, 2013; Mortality and Causes of Death Collaborators, 2015). Within the United States, MI top's the chart of both communicable and non-communicable diseases in terms of health loss that it is estimated to have inflicted in the population (Murray, et al., 2015). It has been estimated that every 2 minutes, three Americans suffer from myocardial infarction (MI), primary cause of MI being coronary blood flow obstruction and myocardial damage. The annual estimates of MI incidence in USA are approximately three quarter million a year while almost two-thirds of these cases represent new attacks (Mozaffarian, et al., 2015). Collectively, MI continues to lead the charts for CVD incidence rates, health loss, mortalities thereby putting enormous strain on healthcare system.
Complementary and Alternative Medicine Use in Hypertension
Authors: Shatnawi Aymen , Shafer Alison , Ahmed Hytham , Elbarbry Fawzy
Published: January 2017

Thirty six percent of people in USA and Canada regularly use complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) for the prevention and treatment of different diseases, including hypertension. Generally, majority of the hypertensive patients do not disclose the use of such remedies, and also health care providers do not usually ask their hypertensive patients if they use CAM. The widespread consumption of CAM in hypertension requires clear understanding of their underlying mechanism of action, efficacy and safety. This chapter will provide a comprehensive list of CAM commonly used by Americans for the prevention and treatment of hypertension as well as their postulated mechanism of action. Modulation of drug metabolizing enzymes and their safety will also be covered along with the clinical consequences, i.e. drug-herb or herb-disease interactions. patients and healthcare providers should also be careful with using CAM therapies, because not only is there minimal evidence that several CAM products work to treat hypertension, but their safety hasn't been well-established.
Construct Reliability and Validity of the Shortened Version of the Information-Seeking Behavior Scale
Authors: Lerdpornkulrat Thanita , Poondej Chanut , Koul Ravinder
Published: January 2017

This study aimed to translate the information-seeking behavior scale from English to Thai, and to ascertain the construct reliability and validity of the scale. Data were collected from 664 undergraduate students in Thailand. The descriptive statistics were explored to see the extent to which various information sources are being used by undergraduate students. The researchers conducted Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) and Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) for the 33 Likert-type items. Results from EFA suggested the elimination of some items and results from CFA confirmed the validity of the scales. The shortened version was comprised of three constructs: ‘regulation activities when applying search strategies' (five items), ‘regulation activities when evaluating information on websites' (four items), and ‘referring to information' (four items). Educators and researchers may find this shortened version of the scale as a useful tool to assess students' information-seeking behavior.
Factors Affecting Students' Adoption of ICT Tools in Higher Education Institutions
Authors: Rosaline Salini , Wesley J. Reeves
Published: January 2017

In the recent years, technology has been an important component in teaching and learning. The literature has highlighted many studies investigations on the students' intention to use technology in many Western, African and South East Asian countries. This article brings in the factors influencing students' adoption of ICT tools in higher education institutions in India. The Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) model was used to determine the predictors of ICT adoption in learning their coursework in colleges. The results were obtained by structural equation modelling, using the data collected from 398 students doing their undergraduate engineering programs. The findings show that performance expectancy, effort expectancy and social influence has a positive significant relationship on behavioral intention to use ICT tools and facilitating conditions has a direct relationship with usage behaviour. The findings have led to relevant theoretical and practical implications and future researches are suggested.
Vulnerability Discovery Modeling for Open and Closed Source Software
Authors: Sharma Ruchi , Sibal Ritu , Shrivastava A.K.
Published: January 2017

With growing concern for security, the researchers began with the quantitative modeling of vulnerabilities termed as vulnerability discovery models (VDM). These models aim at finding the trend of vulnerability discovery with time and facilitate the developers in patch management, optimal resource allocation and assessing associated security risks. Among the existing models for vulnerability discovery, Alhazmi-Malaiya Logistic Model (AML) is considered the best fitted model on all kinds of datasets. But, each of the existing models has a predefined basic shape and can only fit datasets following their basic shapes. Thus, shape of the dataset forms the decisive parameter for model selection. In this paper, the authors have proposed a new model to capture a wide variety of datasets irrespective of their shape accounting for better goodness of fit. The proposed model has been evaluated on three real life datasets each for open and closed source software and the models are ranked based on their suitability to discover vulnerabilities using normalized criteria distance (NCD) technique.
School Performance Analysis from a Scholastic Learning Process
Authors: Masmiquel Judit Lacomba , Ferrer August Climent , Fonseca David
Published: January 2017

In this study, the authors describe the design and use evaluation of a system that allows the academic behavior analysis of high school students using a data model based on business intelligence techniques. Based on the system data analysis information can be extracted and the right decisions taken in order to help and improve the student academic performance. From the design and implementation of the model, the relationship between the study habits of students and their academic performance is studied. More specifically, it aims to validate the initial hypothesis that there is a relationship between study habits of students and their academic performance. Based on the analysis it is concluded that the initial hypothesis is true. The proposed model also allows the extraction of information to other levels, where its primary objective is the application to improve the academic performance of students or to prevent situations of academic failure.
Intelligent Content-Based Dermoscopic Image Retrieval with Relevance Feedback for Computer-Aided Melanoma Diagnosis
Authors: Belattar Khadidja , Mostefai Sihem , Draa Amer
Published: January 2017

The use of Computer-Aided Diagnosis in dermatology raises the necessity of integrating Content-Based Image Retrieval (CBIR) technologies. The latter could be helpful to untrained users as a decision support system for skin lesion diagnosis. However, classical CBIR systems perform poorly due to semantic gap. To alleviate this problem, we propose in this paper an intelligent Content-Based Dermoscopic Image Retrieval (CBDIR) system with Relevance Feedback (RF) for melanoma diagnosis that exhibits: efficient and accurate image retrieval as well as visual features extraction that is independent of any specific diagnostic method. After submitting a query image, the proposed system uses linear kernel-based active SVM, combined with histogram intersection-based similarity measure to retrieve the K most similar skin lesion images. The dominant (melanoma, benign) class in this set will be identified as the image query diagnosis. Extensive experiments conducted on our system using a 1097 image database show that the proposed scheme is more effective than CBDIR without the assistance of RF.