bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Modeling Group Creativity as the Evolution of Community-Level, Creative Problem Solving
Authors: Doboli Alex , Liu Xiaowei , Li Hao , Doboli Simona
Published: May 2019

Understanding creativity and innovation in large communities (collectivities) is emerging as a key problem in computational and social sciences as the amount and importance of innovation achieved by groups significantly exceeds innovation produced by individuals. Community-level innovation raises new, intriguing yet challenging problems (e.g., knowledge and belief formation, learning, and decision-making at the community level). This chapter presents and contrasts computational modeling approaches for studying creativity in large communities, from cognitive models to multiagent models and machine learning models. It also details a new model for gaining insight on the evolution process that leads to innovative solutions by large communities. The model has the following components: (1) explicit knowledge representation, (2) expression of the evolution process, and (3) a backward differential reasoning method for characterizing the trajectory of the evolution process. The chapter presents an application of the proposed model as a cyber-social system for reducing fixation in communities working on related problems.
Group Creativity and Collective Choice
Authors: Stasser Garold , Abele Susanne
Published: May 2019

Identifying creative collective decisions often depends on pooling diverse information. However, groups tend to focus on commonly known information and forego full consideration of all information known to members. Among the reasons for this state of affairs is that consensus often implies correctness, there is a bias for common information that is typically seen as credible and compelling. The SCOPE model identifies factors that facilitate effective information exchange and thereby increase the likelihood of creative decisions. A group climate that is conducive to information exchange, provision of opportunities to share information, using optimal procedures such as the nominal group technique or electronic communication systems, and assigning expert roles are highlighted as ways of enhancing information exchange in groups.
Creativity in Computer-Mediated Virtual Groups
Authors: Dennis Alan R. , Minas Randall K. , Williams Michael L.
Published: May 2019

Virtual teams exist throughout business and society, impacting creative generation in a variety of modalities. This chapter examines research on computer-mediated creativity and draws conclusions about the effects of computer technology across three distinct areas of interest: electronic brainstorming (EBS) groups, individual cognition, and crowdsourcing. This chapter examines EBS performance from the individual level, small group level, and large, distributed group level. It further examines theoretical underpinnings in the exchange of ideas among group members and how computer technology may alter traditional face-to-face approaches to creativity. It considers emergent research on how the computer can be intentionally designed to leverage the creativity of group members in ways that are not easy to implement in traditional face-to-face interactions. Finally, it considers how technology enables creativity on a massive scale through crowdsourcing.
Creativity in Sociocultural Systems
Authors: Simonton Dean Keith
Published: May 2019

Although psychologists typically see creativity as an individual-level event, sociologists and cultural anthropologists are more likely to view it as a sociocultural phenomenon. This phenomenon takes place at the level of relatively large and enduring collectives, such as cultures, nations, and even whole civilizations. This chapter reviews the extensive research on such macro-level creativity. The review begins with a historical overview before turning to the cross-sectional research on the creative Ortgeist, a subject that encompasses the factors that influence the relative creativity of both preliterate cultures and entire modern nations. From there the chapter turns to role of the Zeitgeist in affecting the creativity of civilizations across time—the rise and fall of creative activity. This research examines both quantitative and qualitative causes that operate both short- and long-term.
Design and Group Creativity
Authors: Markman Arthur B. , Cagan Jonathan
Published: May 2019

Design communities in engineering and other disciplines have a practical reason for caring about group creativity. People employed in these areas have to generate creative solutions routinely, and they often must do so in a group. As a result, research in these areas has focused on processes to improve group creativity. This chapter explores techniques for generating problem statements and solutions in groups that have emerged from this literature. It also examines computer-based methods of problem solving that groups can use to enhance the ideas that arise from these group processes. This work has expanded the range of elements explored in studies of group creativity. Although theoretical studies of creativity can be useful in uncovering underlying mental processes, design development requires useful end products. The focus of this research on techniques that enhance creativity in design provides an opportunity to link this literature with the broader literature on individual and group creativity.
How Science Teams Deal with Uncertainty
Authors: Chan Joel , Paletz Susannah B. F.
Published: May 2019

This chapter reviews prior and new research on the unique strategies that multidisciplinary teams possess for dealing with uncertainty. In particular, it summarizes recent findings from research on the 2004 NASA mission that sent two rovers on opposite sides of Mars so that scientists on Earth could determine whether there was evidence for liquid water. Using natural audiovideo data from these scientists’ task-relevant conversations, researchers were able to explore novel cross-psychology questions about how this exemplary multidisciplinary science team dealt with uncertainty. The findings in concert with prior research on teams and problem solving suggest that in knowledge diverse teams, disagreement can uncover latent uncertainty between individuals, whereas analogies can serve to reduce uncertainty. These findings advance understanding of how multidisciplinary science teams succeed, and point to the value of studying real-world cases for uncovering novel connections between social and cognitive processes in teams.
The Cognitive Underpinnings of Creativity in Teams
Authors: Taggar Simon
Published: May 2019

This chapter examines how individual creativity and teamwork impact team creativity in part through self-efficacy mechanisms. At the team level, it examines the role played by creative collective-efficacy and teamwork collective-efficacy mechanisms in a team’s creative performance. It concludes that the individual differences leading to fit with the creative task may differ from those leading to fit with teamwork. That is, individuals may prefer creative tasks due to relatively high creative self-efficacy and relatively good performance on creative tasks but may not want to work in teams because of low teamwork self-efficacy and low performance as a team player. However, while traits are stable, efficacy beliefs can be positively influenced by managers. Therefore, interventions aimed at building efficacy beliefs are useful when organizations cannot select individuals solely according to a set of desirable stable trait characteristics.
Innovation in the Arts
Authors: Kerrigan Susan
Published: May 2019

The filmmaking creative process is staged and task specific, and the success of a film is dependent on filmmaker’s working collaboratively and creatively, in small and large teams, to complete discrete tasks that are frequently iterative and recursive. These tasks are enabled and constrained by situational variables including financial, logistical, technological, aesthetic, and editorial, and the successful completion of the filmmaking tasks is dependent on a filmmaker’s creativity. This practice-led research presents an innovative methodological case study that captures the creative and collaborative activities of a documentary filmmaker and illustrates how filmmakers collaborate with other filmmakers and the community to create a film. Four collaborative principles are identified that describe how filmmakers achieve their goals; the principles reflect group approaches to creative filmmaking practices and, more broadly, the collective nature of arts practice.
Better Than Individuals?
Authors: Nemeth Charlan Jeanne , O'Connor Alexander
Published: May 2019

Groups have notoriously shown less creativity than the sum of their group members. And while others can inhibit creative thought and its expression, another line of research finds that, when another group member shares a dissenting viewpoint, group creativity is often increased. Dissent stimulates thought that is divergent, and, on balance, leads to better decision-making and more creativity. This is true even if that dissent is wrong and even if the dissenter(s) are not valued. Importantly, evidence shows that for dissent to effectively stimulate such divergent thinking, it should be authentic. Role-playing techniques are less effective and may in fact have unintended consequences. The take-home message is that groups should embrace, not just tolerate, dissenting viewpoints for they improve the quality of thought.
Information Processing, Motivation, and Group Creativity
Authors: Nijstad Bernard A. , Bechtoldt Myriam , Choi Hoon-Seok
Published: May 2019

According to an information processing perspective, group creativity results from the combination of individual resources into a (creative) group product. This involves information processing at the individual as well as the group level (by means of communication). This chapter first discusses how individual-level information processing is affected by group interaction in terms of both cognitive interference and cognitive stimulation. It then discusses (1) the evidence linking group-level information processing (i.e., communication, information sharing, collaborative problem solving) to group creativity and (2) the factors that stimulate or reduce group-level information processing. It is argued that many research findings can be explained by assuming that group creativity involves motivated information processing of members.
The Emergence of Team Creativity
Authors: Yuan Yingjie
Published: May 2019

Viewing teams as evolving networks of intertwined social relations, the social network perspective has been increasingly adopted to understand the emergence of team creativity in the past decades. This network lens enables creativity scholars to accurately depict how creative inputs embedded in team structures combine to take effects in collective processes and eventually form team creative outcomes in a dynamic fashion. Yet applications of this network view in team creativity research are scarce, and not closely linked to the development of social network theories. Therefore, after introducing the core concepts and principles of social network theories, this chapter reviews the status quo of team creativity research in terms of three components—creative inputs, team structure, and creative processes from a social network perspective. Furthermore, this chapter puts forward three key directions for future studies on the emergence of team creativity—specialization, integration, and dynamics.
Investigating the Ovulatory Cycle
Authors: Welling Lisa L. M. , Burriss Robert P.
Published: May 2019

An abundant amount of research into the human ovulatory cycle and related adaptive shifts in preferences and behaviors has been published in recent decades. Evidence suggests that fertility in women is accompanied by increased preferences for male traits that putatively signal underlying genetic quality, adaptive increases in sexual motivation, and changes in attractiveness. Yet, these supposed adaptive shifts remain controversial and disputed, while methods across studies have been inconsistent. In this chapter, we review the research on phenotypic variation across the human menstrual cycle, focusing on the related areas of preferences for male traits, sexual behavior and motivation, and cues to ovulation. Next, we consider the various methods currently used by researchers to ascertain conception risk and review recently published recommendations intended to guide future research and facilitate comparison across studies.
Cognitive Function in Mood and Anxiety Disorders
Authors: Snyder Hannah R. , Hankin Benjamin L.
Published: May 2019

Mood and anxiety disorders are the most common forms of adult psychopathology, and impaired cognitive function plays an important role in daily functioning and disability associated with these conditions. This chapter reviews evidence for impairments in executive function, attention, and memory associated with major depressive disorder, bipolar disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, social anxiety disorder, panic disorder, and obsessive–compulsive disorder. It describes patterns of both overlapping and distinct symptoms, risk factors, structural and functional neuroanatomical differences, and impaired cognitive function across these disorders. Although there are important differences between disorders, evidence suggests that all are associated with (1) broad impairments in executive function and sustained attention, and structural and neuroanatomical differences in prefrontal brain areas supporting these abilities; and (2) attentional biases for affective stimuli and structural and functional differences in limbic brain areas involved in affective processes. Next, the chapter discusses possible causal models and mediating mechanisms linking cognitive dysfunction to psychopathology. Finally, it highlights larger shifts in the way psychopathology, cognition, and their neural substrates are conceptualized and measured, which are considered critical for advancing understanding of cognition–psychopathology links.
Authorship
Authors: Murray Simone
Published: May 2019

The culturally esteemed concept of the ‘Author’ is the product of the Anglophone world and emerged simultaneously with copyright and Romanticism from the early eighteenth century. Digital technologies present fundamental challenges to traditional conceptions and practices of authorship: digital texts are typically open to ‘readerly’ manipulation, and digital publishing has allowed more democratic forms of authorship such as self-publishing and crowd-funded publishing. Paradoxically, the digital domain has triggered a further elevation of the celebrity author figure, with author-maintained social media accounts providing readers with daily, or even real-time, communion with favourite authors. Authorship thus stands at a fascinating point: at once sacralized more than ever and yet, in theory at least, never more accessible to a mass public.
Comparative Law Before the Code Napoléon
Authors: Donahue Charles
Published: May 2019

Modern comparative lawyers tend to date the foundation of their discipline to the nineteenth century and to the promulgation of the great European codes. This article claims that one could make an argument that comparative law is to be found in the ancient world, with some suggestion of it in the early writings of Aristotle’s Politics; that despite the multiplicity of legal sources it is not often found in the early or high middle ages; that there are hints of it in the commentators of the later middle ages; that in a very real sense it can be found in the ideas of the French legal thinkers of the sixteenth century; and that one can trace a relatively clean line of sources from the sixteenth century to whatever nineteenth-century authors one chooses to focus on as the founders of the discipline that produced the First International Congress of Comparative Law in 1900.
Comparative Legal Families and Comparative Legal Traditions
Authors: Glenn H. Patrick
Published: May 2019

For much of the twentieth century, comparatists have divided the world into ‘legal families’ (such as the civil law, the common law, socialist law, etc.) and assigned each (national) legal system a place in one of them. The chapter argues that this taxonomic enterprise has largely remained at the descriptive state, entailed a misleading division into fixed categories, and that is has failed to produce real comparison between laws. It is also too static, state-centred, and Euro-centric to be workable under conditions of late twentieth and early twenty-first century globalism. It should be replaced by the paradigm of ‘legal traditions’ which not only emphasizes the evolving nature of law, but also avoids dividing the world into clearly separated groupings. Instead, a ‘legal traditions’ approach focuses on the fluidity, interaction, and resulting hybridity of laws, thus facilitating their comparison. As it is not tied to Western-style national legal systems, it can easily capture the laws of the whole world, including the increasingly important non-state forms of legal normativity. Since the chapter was written by the late H. Patrick Glenn over a decade ago, the editors added a postscript bringing the reader up to date on the scholarship on, and the debate about, legal families and traditions.
Alternative Splicing in the Regulation of Plant–Microbe Interactions
Authors: Rigo Richard , Bazin Jï¿½rï¿½mie , Crespi Martin , Charon Cï¿½line
Published: May 2019

As sessile organisms, plants are continuously exposed to a wide range of biotic interactions. While some biotic interactions are beneficial or even essential for the plant (e.g. rhizobia and mycorrhiza), others such as pathogens are detrimental and require fast adaptation. Plants partially achieve this growth and developmental plasticity by modulating the repertoire of genes they express. In the past few years, high-throughput transcriptome sequencing have revealed that, in addition to transcriptional control of gene expression, post-transcriptional processes, notably alternative splicing (AS), emerged as a key mechanism for gene regulation during plant adaptation to the environment. AS not only can increase proteome diversity by generating multiple transcripts from a single gene but also can reduce gene expression by yielding isoforms degraded by mechanisms such as nonsense-mediated mRNA decay. In this review, we will summarize recent discoveries detailing the contribution of AS to the regulation of plant–microbe interactions, with an emphasis on the modulation of immunity receptor function and other components of the signaling pathways that deal with pathogen responses. We will also discuss emerging evidences that AS could contribute to dynamic reprogramming of the plant transcriptome during beneficial interactions, such as the legume–symbiotic interaction.
Machine Learning and the Police: Asking the Right Questions
Authors: Vestby Annette , Vestby Jonas
Published: May 2019

How can we secure an accessible and open democratic debate about police use of predictive analytics when the technology itself is a specialized area of expertise? Police utilize technologies of prediction and automation where the underlying technology is often a machine learning (ML) model. The article argues that important issues concerning ML decision models can be unveiled without detailed knowledge about the learning algorithm, empowering non-ML experts and stakeholders in debates over if, and how to, include them, for example, in the form of predictive policing. Non-ML experts can, and should, review ML models. We provide a ‘toolbox’ of questions about three elements of a decision model that can be fruitfully scrutinized by non-ML experts: the learning data, the learning goal, and constructivism. Showing this room for fruitful criticism can empower non-ML experts and improve democratic accountability when using ML models in policing.
MONTE CARLO-BASED INVESTIGATION OF MICRODOSIMETRIC DISTRIBUTION OF HIGH ENERGY BRACHYTHERAPY SOURCES
Authors: Chattaraj Arghya , Selvam T Palani , Datta D
Published: May 2019

FLUKA-based Monte Carlo calculations were carried out to study microdosimetric distributions in air and in water for encapsulated high energy brachytherapy sources (60Co, 137Cs, 192Ir and 169Yb) by simulating a Tissue Equivalent Proportional Counter (Model LET1/2) having sensitive diameter of 1. 27 cm for a site size of 1 μm. The study also included microdosimetric distributions of bare sources. When the sources are in air, for a given source, the source geometry does not affect the y¯F and y¯D values significantly. When the encapsulated 192Ir, 137Cs and 60Co sources are in water, y¯F and y¯D values increase with distance in water which is due to degradation in the energy of photons. Using the calculated values of y¯D, relative biological effectiveness (RBE) was obtained for the investigated sources. When 60Co, 137Cs and 192Ir sources are in water, RBE increases from 1.03 ± 0.01 to 1.17 ± 0.01, 1.24 ± 0.01 to 1.46 ± 0.02 and 1.50 ± 0.01 to 1.75 ± 0.03, respectively, when the distance was increased from 3–15 cm, whereas for 169Yb, RBE is about 2, independent of distance in water.
TLDECOXCEL: A DYNAMIC EXCEL SPREADSHEET FOR THE COMPUTERISED CURVE DECONVOLUTION OF TL GLOW CURVES INTO DISCRETE-ENERGY AND/OR CONTINUOUS-ENERGY-DISTRIBUTION PEAKS
Authors: Kazakis Nikolaos A
Published: May 2019

The present work presents a new user-friendly and dynamic tool, TLDecoxcel, for the computerised curve deconvolution analysis (CCDA) of simple or complex TL glow peaks using Microsoft® Excel. TLDecoxcel can be applied for the fitting of glow curves consisting of discrete-energy peaks (general or mixed order) or continuous-energy-distribution peaks or combination of the above using widely accepted analytical expressions, with minimal user intervention.
Design and assessment of TRAP-CSP fusion antigens as effective malaria vaccines
Authors: Lu Chafen , Song Gaojie , Beale Kristin , Yan Jiabin , Garst Emma , Lund Emily , Catteruccia Flaminia , Springer Timothy A.
Published: May 2019

The circumsporozoite protein (CSP) and thrombospondin-related adhesion protein (TRAP) are major targets for pre-erythrocytic malaria vaccine development. However, the most advanced CSP-based vaccine RTS,S provides only partial protection, highlighting the need for innovative approaches for vaccine design and development. Here we design and characterize TRAP-CSP fusion antigens, and evaluate their immunogenicity and protection against malaria infection. TRAP N-terminal folded domains were fused to CSP C-terminal fragments consisting of the C-terminal αTSR domain with or without the intervening repeat region. Homogenous, monomeric and properly folded fusion proteins were purified from mammalian transfectants. Notably, fusion improved expression of chimeras relative to the TRAP or CSP components alone. Immunization of BALB/c mice with the P. berghei TRAP-CSP fusion antigens formulated in AddaVax adjuvant elicited antigen-specific antibody responses. Remarkably, fusion antigens containing the CSP repeat region conferred complete sterile protection against P. berghei sporozoite challenge, and furthermore, mice that survived the challenge were completely protected from re-challenge 16 weeks after the first challenge. In contrast, fusion antigens lacking the CSP repeat region were less effective, indicating that the CSP repeat region provided enhanced protection, which correlated with higher antibody titers elicited by fusion antigens containing the CSP repeat region. In addition, we demonstrated that N-linked glycans had no significant effect on antibody elicitation or protection. Our results show that TRAP-CSP fusion antigens could be highly effective vaccine candidates. Our approach provides a platform for designing multi-antigen/multi-stage fusion antigens as next generation more effective malaria vaccines.
R.ROSETTA: an interpretable machine learning framework
Authors: Garbulowski Mateusz , Diamanti Klev , Smolińska Karolina , Baltzer Nicholas , Stoll Patricia , Bornelöv Susanne , Øhrn Aleksander , Feuk Lars , Komorowski Jan
Published: May 2019

Motivation

For machine learning to matter beyond intellectual curiosity, the models developed therefrom must be adopted within the greater scientific community. In this study, we developed an interpretable machine learning framework that allows identification of semantics from various datatypes. Our package can analyze and illuminate co-predictive mechanisms reflecting biological processes.

Results

We present R.ROSETTA, an R package for building and analyzing interpretable machine learning models. R.ROSETTA gathers combinatorial statistics via rule-based modelling for accessible and transparent results, well-suited for adoption within the greater scientific community. The package also provides statistics and visualization tools that facilitate minimization of analysis bias and noise. Investigating case-control studies of autism, we showed that our tool provided hypotheses for potential interdependencies among features that discerned phenotype classes. These interdependencies regarded neurodevelopmental and autism-related genes. Although our sample application of R.ROSETTA was used for transcriptomic data analysis, R.ROSETTA works perfectly with any decision-related omics data.

Availability

The R.ROSETTA package is freely available at https://github.com/komorowskilab/R.ROSETTA.

Contact

mateusz.garbulowski@icm.uu.se (Mateusz Garbulowski), jan.komorowski@icm.uu.se (Jan Komorowski)
From metabarcoding to metaphylogeography: separating the wheat from the chaff
Authors: Turon Xavier , Antich Adrià , Palacín Creu , Præbel Kim , Wangensteen Owen Simon
Published: May 2019

Metabarcoding is by now a well-established method for biodiversity assessment in terrestrial, freshwater and marine environments. Metabarcoding datasets are usually used for α- and β-diversity estimates, that is, interspecies (or inter-MOTU) patterns. However, the use of hypervariable metabarcoding markers may provide an enormous amount of intraspecies (intra-MOTU) information - mostly untapped so far. The use of cytochrome oxidase (COI) amplicons is gaining momentum in metabarcoding studies targeting eukaryote richness. COI has been for a long time the marker of choice in population genetics and phylogeographic studies. Therefore, COI metabarcoding datasets may be used to study intraspecies patterns and phylogeographic features for hundreds of species simultaneously, opening a new field which we suggest to name metaphylogeography. The main challenge for the implementation of this approach is the separation of erroneous sequences from true intra-MOTU variation. Here, we develop a cleaning protocol based on changes in entropy of the different codon positions of the COI sequence, together with co-occurrence patterns of sequences. Using a dataset of community DNA from several benthic littoral communities in the Mediterranean and Atlantic seas, we first tested by simulation on a subset of sequences a two-step cleaning approach consisting of a denoising step followed by a minimal abundance filtering. The procedure was then applied to the whole dataset. We obtained a total of 563 MOTUs that were usable for phylogeographic inference. We used semiquantitative rank data instead of read abundances to perform AMOVAs and haplotype networks. Genetic variability was mainly concentrated within samples, but with an important between-seas component as well. There were inter-group differences in the amount of variability between and within communities in each sea. For two species the results could be compared with traditional Sanger sequence data available for the same zones, giving similar patterns. Our study shows that metabarcoding data can be used to infer intra- and interpopulation genetic variability of many species at a time, providing a new method with great potential for basic biogeography, connectivity and dispersal studies, and for the more applied fields of conservation genetics, invasion genetics, and design of protected areas.
Temporally coherent perturbation of neural dynamics during retention alters human multi-item working memory
Authors: Li Jiaqi , Huang Qiaoli , Han Qiming , Mi Yuanyuan , Luo Huan
Published: May 2019

Temporarily storing a list of items in working memory (WM), a fundamental ability in cognition, has been posited to rely on the temporal dynamics of multi-item neural representations during retention. Here, we develop a “dynamic perturbation” approach to manipulate the relative memory strength of a list of WM items, by interfering with their neural dynamics during the delay period in a temporally correlated way. Six experiments on human subjects confirm the effectiveness of this WM manipulation method. A computational model combining continuous attractor neural network (CANN) and short-term synaptic plasticity (STP) principles further reproduces all the empirical findings. The model shows that the “dynamic perturbation” modifies the synaptic efficacies of WM items through STP principles, eventually leading to changes in their relative memory strengths. Our results support the causal role of temporal dynamics of neural network in mediating multi-item WM and offer a promising, non-invasive approach to manipulate WM.
Integration of Structured Biological Data Sources using Biological Expression Language
Authors: Hoyt Charles Tapley , Domingo-Fernández Daniel , Mubeen Sarah , Llaó Josep Marin , Konotopez Andrej , Ebeling Christian , Birkenbihl Colin , Muslu Özlem , English Bradley , Müller Simon , de Lacerda Mauricio Pio , Ali Mehdi , Colby Scott , Türei Dénes , Palacio-Escat Nicolàs , Hofmann-Apitius Martin
Published: May 2019

Background

The integration of heterogeneous, multiscale, and multimodal knowledge and data has become a common prerequisite for joint analysis to unravel the mechanisms and aetiologies of complex diseases. Because of its unique ability to capture this variety, Biological Expression Language (BEL) is well suited to be further used as a platform for semantic integration and harmonization in networks and systems biology.

Results

We have developed numerous independent packages capable of downloading, structuring, and serializing various biological data sources to BEL. Each Bio2BEL package is implemented in the Python programming language and distributed through GitHub (https://github.com/bio2bel) and PyPI.

Conclusions

The philosophy of Bio2BEL encourages reproducibility, accessibility, and democratization of biological databases. We present several applications of Bio2BEL packages including their ability to support the curation of pathway mappings, integration of pathway databases, and machine learning applications.

Tweet

A suite of independent Python packages for downloading, parsing, warehousing, and converting multi-modal and multi-scale biological databases to Biological Expression Language
Hierarchical transcriptional control regulatesPlasmodium falciparumsexual differentiation
Authors: van Biljon Riëtte , van Wyk Roelof , Painter Heather J. , Orchard Lindsey , Reader Janette , Niemand Jandeli , Llinás Manuel , Birkholtz Lyn-Marie
Published: May 2019

Malaria pathogenesis relies on sexual gametocyte forms of the malaria parasite to be transmitted between the infected human and the mosquito host but the molecular mechanisms controlling gametocytogenesis remains poorly understood. Here we provide a high-resolution transcriptome ofPlasmodium falciparumas it commits to and develops through gametocytogenesis. The gametocyte-associated transcriptome is significantly different from that of the asexual parasites, with dynamic gene expression shifts characterizing early, intermediate and late-stage gametocyte development and results in differential timing for sex-specific transcripts. The striking transcriptional dynamics suggest strict transcriptional control during gametocytogenesis inP. falciparum, which we propose is mediated by putative regulators including epigenetic mechanisms (driving active repression of proliferation-associated processes) and a cascade-like expression of ApiAP2 transcription factors. The gametocyte transcriptome serves as the blueprint for sexual differentiation and will be a rich resource for future functional studies on this critical stage ofPlasmodiumdevelopment, as the intraerythrocytic transcriptome has been for our understanding of the asexual cycle.
The determinants of aggregate and dis-aggregated import demand in Ghana
Authors: Vacu Nomfundo Portia , Odhiambo Nicholas
Published: May 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the determinants of aggregate and dis-aggregated import demand for Ghana for the period from 1985 to 2015.

Design/methodology/approach

The study employed the autoregressive distributed lag bounds testing approach.

Findings

The long-run finding show that aggregate import demand (AIMD) is positively determined by exports of goods and services and consumer spending, but negatively determined by foreign exchange reserves. It is found that consumer spending is the key positive determinant of the import demand of consumer goods, while foreign exchange reserves, trade liberalisation policy and relative import price are negative determinants. It is found that import demand of intermediate goods is positively determined by consumer spending, government spending and investment spending. The long-run findings further confirm that import demand of capital goods is negatively determined by relative import price. In the short run, the findings suggest that AIMD is positively affected by exports of goods and services, investment spending and consumer spending, but negatively affected by foreign exchange reserves. Import demand of consumer goods is positively influenced by consumer spending, but negatively determined by relative import price. Finally, import demand for intermediate goods is found to be positively determined by investment spending and government spending, while import demand for capital goods is positively associated with exports of goods and services and trade liberalisation policy in the previous period.

Originality/value

A number of studies have looked at the determinants of import demand, focussing on the aggregated import demand. This study adds the component of dis-aggregated import demand, as it assist in dealing with the issues of bias.
Must attic ventilation be preserved in energy retrofits?
Authors: Rose William
Published: May 2019

Purpose

The addition of thermal insulation into attics along with air-tightening of the ceiling plane is a common first step in making homes more energy efficient. Attic ventilation was introduced decades ago on the assumption that air leakage across the ceiling was inevitable and not correctible – this was before the era of spray-applied foams. Often attic ventilation is provided at roof eaves, and ensuring good insulation in their location is critical to avoid cold corners in the rooms below. So may vents be blocked in the course of energy retrofits? The paper aims to discuss this issue.

Design/methodology/approach

This study consists of a simple spreadsheet model of attic performance. The model is built using material from ASHRAE Handbook Fundamentals and ASHRAE Standards. It includes: Glaser calculations for temperature, vapor pressure and vapor pressure excess; radiation exchange – solar and sky; buoyancy flow assumption for leakage from indoors; wind flow assumption for leakage from outdoors; and change in attic air RH as assumed indicator of change in sheathing moisture performance.

Findings

The model results show that lowered moisture contributions across air-tightened ceilings may compensate effectively for added insulation (which lowers the attic air temperature) and reduced moisture dilution from attic ventilation.

Originality/value

These results provide support for the policy of allowing attic ventilation reductions that are proportionate to ceiling air leakage reductions as part of weatherization efforts. Given the limitations of the model, continued field observations remain critical.
Banking regulation - burden or blessing?
Authors: Abildgren Kim
Published: May 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore the impact of regulation on previously unregulated banks’ balance-sheet growth using the 1880 Danish Savings Bank Act as a natural experiment. With the Act, Danish savings banks became, for the first time, subject to regulation and supervision whereas commercial banks continued as unregulated institutions.

Design/methodology/approach

The main elements of the Act focussed on supervision and provisions to improve information transparency. The paper estimates the impact of the Act on the balance-sheet growth of Danish savings banks using bank-level panel data and a difference-in-differences approach.

Findings

The paper finds no indications that the Act had a negative effect on the balance-sheet growth of savings banks compared to commercial banks in the short run. Furthermore, there are indications of a positive effect after a couple of years. This suggests that regulation is not always a burden for the regulated institutions and might even have a positive impact on their business activity.

Originality/value

This paper is the first study using the introduction of banking supervision and regulation in the 1800s as a natural experiment to evaluate the causal effect of regulation on the balance-sheet growth of previously unregulated financial intermediaries.
The colour stability of natural blue dye extracted from Clitoria ternatea L. in poly(acrylamide-co-acrylic acid) coating film
Authors: Abidin Z.H.Z. , Manah N.S.A. , Hadi A.N. , Saugi N.S. , Fuad F.A. , Mazni N.A. , Hassan H.C. , Careem M.A. , Arof A.K.
Published: May 2019

Purpose

This paper aims to focus on a comparison study of the visible stability of natural blue dye consisting anthocyanin molecules extracted from Clitoria ternatea in coating films.

Design/methodology/approach

The coating films were prepared by mixing the blue dye with poly(acrylamide-co-acrylic acid) in three different weight ratios. Samples were coded as 10PBA, 15PBA and 20PBA, where PBA is the abbreviation for poly acrylamide-co-acrylic acid, blue dyes and anthocyanin. The number at the beginning of each code represents the weight percentage of poly(acrylamide-co-acrylic acid) to natural blue dye. The mixtures were applied on separate glass substrates to form coating films. Another set of samples were prepared for the comparison study with a commercial acrylic clear coat (cc) applied on the surface of the 10PBA, 15PBA and 20PBA coating films. These coating films were coded 10PBAcc, 15PBAcc and 20PBAcc. The purpose of the clear coat is to observe how it affects the colour stability of the blue coating films with respect to time. All samples were exposed to the ultraviolet (UV) source, an 18 W Philips TL-D 18w/830 UV fluorescent lamp. The UV lamp was placed 15 cm above the surface of the samples for 35 days. The colour of the coatings was measured using CIE L*a*b* colour space coordinate.

Findings

The results obtained show 10PBA and 10PBAcc have the highest colour stability after 35 days of exposure to UV light. The reflectivity of the coating films was also measured during exposure to UV lamp. Reflectivity measurements also showed that 10PBA and 10PBAcc coating films had the highest reflective stabilities.

Research limitations/implications

The potential of using natural blue dye consisting anthocyanin in coating film to obtain high colour stability.

Practical implications

The coating film developed in this work is suitable to be applied on glass substrates.

Originality/value

The application of anthocyanin dye extracted from the Clitoria ternatea L. as a colourant in coating films
Bidens pilosa L.: Exclusive report of vivipary in a non‐mangrove taxa from the eastern Himalayas
Authors: Karmakar Narayan C. , Hazra Anjan , Das Sauren
Published: May 2019

Vivipary is an extremely evolved type of epigeal germination in seed plants and very common in tropical estuarine plant communities (mangroves), ensuring a greater number of viable settings of offspring. In addition to this, there are some other non‐mangrove angiosperm taxa that have a successful existence, and because of their invasive nature, vivipary has been reported as an attribute of their uncongenial abiotic stress. The present observation confirms the incidence of true vivipary in Bidens pilosa L. (a member of the family Asteraceae) from the eastern Himalayan region.
Decomposing changes in the growth of U.S. prescription drug use and expenditures, 1999‐2016
Authors: Selden Thomas M. , Abdus Salam , Miller G. Edward
Published: May 2019

Objective

To analyze factors associated with changes in prescription drug use and expenditures in the United States from 1999 to 2016, a period of rapid growth, deceleration, and resumed above‐average growth.

Data Sources/Study Setting

The Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS), containing household and pharmacy information on over five million prescription drug fills.

Study Design

We use nonparametric decomposition to analyze drug use, average payment per fill, and per capita expenditure, tracking the contributions over time of socioeconomic characteristics, health status and treated conditions, insurance coverage, and market factors surrounding the patent cycle.

Data Collection/Extraction Methods

Medical Expenditure Panel Survey data were combined with information on drug approval dates and patent status.

Principal Findings

Per capita utilization increased by nearly half during 1999‐2016, with changes in health status and treated conditions accounting for four‐fifths of the increase. In contrast, per capita expenditures more than doubled, with individual characteristics only explaining one‐third of the change. Other drivers of spending during this period include the changing pipeline of new drugs, drugs losing exclusivity, and changes in generic competition.

Conclusions

Long‐term trends in treated conditions were the fundamental drivers of medication use, whereas factors involving the patent cycle accelerated and decelerated spending growth relative to trends in use.
Cancer risk among patients with type 2 diabetes: A real‐world study in Shanghai, China
Authors: Qi Jiying , He Ping , Yao Huayi , Song Ruogang , Ma Chenglong , Cao Min , Cui Bin , Ning Guang
Published: May 2019

Background

The aim of this study was to investigate the risk of 23 common types of cancer among patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D) compared with the general Chinese population.

Methods

Based on the Shanghai Hospital Link database, 410 191 patients with T2D (age 20‐99 years) were identified from July 2013 to December 2016, and were followed‐up for cancer incidence until December 2017.

Results

In all, 8485 cases of newly diagnosed cancer were identified. The standardized incidence ratios (SIRs) of total cancer were 1.34 and 1.62 among males and females, respectively. Among males with T2D, the risk of cancer of the prostate (highest SIR of 1.86), blood (leukemia, lymphoma), skin, thyroid, kidney, liver, pancreas, lung, colorectum, and stomach was increased significantly. There was a significant decrease in the risk of esophageal cancer. In females with T2D, there were significantly greater risks of cancer of the nasopharynx (highest SIR of 2.33), liver, esophagus, thyroid, lung, pancreas, blood (lymphoma, leukemia), uterus, colorectum, breast, cervix, and stomach. In contrast, there was significantly decrease risk of gallbladder cancer in females with T2D.

Conclusions

This study shows significantly increased risks of overall and some site‐specific cancers among patients with T2D. We suggest that establishing strategies for regular cancer‐specific screening and prevention care among patients with T2D are necessary.
A New World Order for the Beer Industry: A Review of the Acquisition of SABMiller by Anheuser‐Busch AB InBev
Authors: Bamber Matthew
Published: May 2019

This case study reviews one of the largest merger and acquisition transactions in corporate history—the acquisition of SABMiller by Anheuser‐Busch InBev. This study provides information to value the post‐transaction combined entity and provide an investment recommendation. Following this, the case discusses the basic details of the funding required to undertake the acquisition and questions which implications of any additional financial risk may arise for AB InBev from a valuation perspective.
Keeping invertebrate research ethical in a landscape of shifting public opinion
Authors: Drinkwater Eleanor , Robinson Elva J. H. , Hart Adam G.
Published: May 2019

Invertebrate study systems are cornerstones of biological and biomedical research, providing key insights into fields from genetics to behavioural ecology. Despite the widespread use of invertebrates in research, there are very few ethical guidelines surrounding their use.

Focussing on two ethical considerations faced during invertebrate studies—collecting methods and euthanasia—we make recommendations for integrating principles of vertebrate research into invertebrate research practice.

We argue, given emerging research on invertebrate cognition and shifting public perception on the use of invertebrates in research, it is vital that the scientific community revisits the ethics of invertebrate use in research.

Without careful consideration and development of the ethics surrounding the use of invertebrates by the scientific community, there is a danger of losing public support. It is imperative that the public understand the significance of research that uses invertebrates and that scientists demonstrate their ethical treatment of their experimental subjects.
Double jeopardy: Comorbid obesity and cigarette smoking are linked to neurobiological alterations in inhibitory control during smoking cue exposure
Authors: Ely Alice V. , Jagannathan Kanchana , Hager Nathan , Ketcherside Ariel , Franklin Teresa R. , Wetherill Reagan R.
Published: May 2019

Obesity and cigarette smoking are two of the leading preventable causes of death in the United States. Research suggests that overlapping pathophysiology may contribute to obesity and nicotine use disorder (NUD), yet no studies have investigated the effect of obesity on neural response to reward stimuli in NUD. This study used arterial spin‐labeled perfusion functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to examine neural responses during exposure to smoking versus nonsmoking cues in 79 treatment‐seeking participants with NUD, 26 with normal weight, 28 with overweight, and 25 with obesity. Given that deficits in behavioral inhibitory control have been associated with both obesity and NUD, participants completed an affect‐congruent Go/NoGo task to assess the effect of body mass index (BMI) on this construct in NUD. Analyses revealed that BMI was negatively associated with activation in the right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC) in response to smoking cues, with significantly reduced response in smokers with overweight and smokers with obesity compared with normal‐weight smokers. In addition, greater commission errors on the Go/NoGo task were correlated with reduced neural response to smoking cues in the right dlPFC only among those with obesity. Together, these findings provide evidence that obesity in treatment‐seeking NUDs is related to neurobiological alterations in inhibitory control over cue‐potentiated behaviors, suggesting that smoking cessation may be more difficult in individuals with comorbid NUD and obesity than in those without, requiring treatment strategies tailored to meet their unique needs.