bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Patient Satisfaction After Total Shoulder Arthroplasty
Authors: Puzzitiello Richard N. , Nwachukwu Benedict U. , Agarwalla Avinesh , Cvetanovich Gregory L. , Chahla Jorge , Romeo Anthony A. , Verma Nikhil N. , Forsythe Brian
Published: August 2020

Although patient-reported outcome measures use objective evaluations of impairment to focus on subjective responses, these measures may not necessarily reflect patient satisfaction with the outcome or the care provided. The goal of this study was to systematically review the available literature to assess patient satisfaction after total shoulder arthroplasty. Two investigators systematically reviewed the MEDLINE database for articles on satisfaction after this procedure. This study included 47 articles. The most commonly used method for assessing satisfaction was an ordinal scale (27 studies, 57.4%). Of the studies, 27 (57.5%) differentiated between patient satisfaction with the care provided and with the outcome achieved. Reported satisfaction rates after anatomic total shoulder arthroplasty ranged from 75% to 100%. For the included studies, increasing age, workers' compensation status, depression, opioid use, and visual analog scale pain score were the only preoperative factors that were significantly associated with worse postoperative satisfaction. Postoperative American Shoulder and Elbow Surgeons score, Simple Shoulder Test score, Subjective Shoulder Value score, Short Form-36 mental component score, range of motion, visual analog scale pain score, and ability to perform activities of daily living showed a significant association with postoperative satisfaction. Studies of satisfaction after total shoulder arthroplasty are of low evidence levels. Although overall patient satisfaction is high, there is no standardized method for measuring satisfaction. For the identified studies, the most common assessment method was an ordinal scale that consists of qualitative values representing increasing levels of satisfaction. Orthopedic surgeons are increasingly expected to demonstrate the value of procedures, and a uniform and validated method of assessing patient satisfaction is needed. [
Orthopedics
. 2020;43(6):e492–e497.]
Clinical Outcome of Transtendon Repair of Partial Articular Supraspinatus Tendon Avulsion Tear
Authors: Makki Daoud , Cooke Robert A. , Tang Quen O. , Peach Chris A. , Morgan Barnes W.
Published: August 2020

Partial articular supraspinatus tendon avulsion (PASTA) tears are common. However, there is no consensus on the optimal surgical technique for the management of grade 3 tears (>50%). The authors report a retrospective consecutive case series of 64 patients with grade 3 PASTA lesions. The patients were treated by 2 surgeons from 2 centers with the same transtendon repair technique and implant system. The preoperative Oxford Shoulder Score (OSS) was compared with the postoperative OSS at final follow-up (mean, 28 months). Significant improvement in mean OSS occurred from 19.2 (SD, 7.5) preoperatively to 39.8 (SD, 7.8) postoperatively (
P
=.0001), and patient satisfaction rates were high (88%). The authors believe that transtendon repair of PASTA lesions of 50% or more is beneficial. High-quality randomized controlled trials are required to compare the benefit of repair vs debridement alone. [
Orthopedics
. 2020;43(6):e533–e537.]
The July Effect for Total Joint Arthroplasty Procedures
Authors: Rockov Zachary A. , Etzioni David A. , Schwartz Adam J.
Published: August 2020

The “July effect” refers to the assumed increased risk of complications during the months when medical school graduates transition to residency programs. The actual existence of a July effect is controversial. With this study, the authors sought to determine whether evidence exists for the presence of a July effect among total joint arthroplasty (TJA) procedures. The 2013 and 2014 Nationwide Readmission Databases were combined and all index primary and revision arthroplasty procedures were identified, and then patients from December were excluded. Thirty-day readmission rates, time to readmission, and readmission costs were analyzed by index procedure month and index procedure type. A total of 1,193,034 procedures (index primary: n=1,107,657; revision arthroplasty: n=85,377) were identified. Among all procedure types, 46,674 (3.9%) 30-day readmissions were observed. Among all procedures, an index procedure with a discharge in July resulted in the highest monthly readmission rate of the year (4.2%), which was significantly higher than the mean annual readmission rate (
P
<.0001). This effect was most pronounced for primary total knee arthroplasty (3.9% vs 3.6%,
P
<.0001). When stratifying results into teaching vs nonteaching hospitals, the highest readmission rate occurred if the index procedure occurred at a nonteaching hospital in July (4.5%,
P
<.0001). These data provide evidence that a July effect appears to exist for TJA procedures and is most pronounced at nonteaching institutions. Based on published mean readmission costs, the total annualized cost variation attributable to the higher readmission rate for primary TJA procedures in July is approximately $18.6 million. [
Orthopedics
. 2020;43(6):e543–e548.]
Four-Year Outcome of Aflibercept for Peripapillary Choroidal Neovascularization Secondary to Optic Nerve Head Drusen in a Child
Authors: Torres Ledesma Belén , Botella García Jéssica , Torres Pereda Juan Pedro
Published: August 2020

Choroidal neovascularization is an optic nerve head drusen complication that can lead to severe vision loss. There is no prior evidence of the efficacy of intravitreal aflibercept in children in such cases. The authors report the case of a boy who was successfully treated with aflibercept with benefits lasting up to 4 years.

[
J Pediatr Ophthalmol Strabismus
. 2020;57:e63–e67.]
Muscle Transplantation for Large Angle Horizontal Strabismus
Authors: Kaur Savleen , Choudhary Tripti , Geh Vernon , Sukhija Jaspreet
Published: August 2020

Large angle sensory strabismus in the form of esotropia and exotropia often calls for bilateral surgery to correct the primary angle deviation. However, considering patients' reluctance to have surgery on the good eye, such large deviations may be managed with true muscle transplantation. The authors present a case series of four patients with large angle esotropia and exotropia who underwent unilateral true muscle transplantation as a single-stage procedure.

[
J Pediatr Ophthalmol Strabismus
. 2020;57:e59–e62.]
What Is the Cost of a Posterior Capsule Rupture Complication?
Authors: Ryburn Cullen , Patnaik Jennifer L. , Miller D. Claire , Alexander Jamie , Lynch Anne M. , Davidson Richard S. , Taravella Michael J.
Published: August 2020

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE:

To examine the cost of a posterior capsule rupture (PCR) in patients who underwent planned phacoemulsification.

PATIENTS AND METHODS:

Retrospective review of 8,113 cataract surgeries performed between January 2014 and December 2017 at one academic institution. The rate of PCR was 0.55%, and 34 patients with PCR who met inclusion criteria were identified. Investigators evaluated the added operating room time required to manage PCR, subsequent surgeon visits beyond the typical average, referrals to other specialties, further imaging, and additional required surgeries.

RESULTS:

Patients with PCR had an additional 2.76 (standard deviation [SD] ± 3.27) postoperative encounters and 3.06 (SD ± 3.78) visits to another subspecialty. Operating room time was found to average 61.43 minutes (range: 21 to 191 minutes) at an additional cost of $455.48 (SD ± $407.37). Additional visits, imaging, and procedures added $655.59 (SD ± $767.21). The total additional average cost was $1,111.07 (SD ± $1,021.20) per PCR.

CONCLUSION:

Posterior capsular ruptures impose a substantial cost burden on the health care system.

[
Ophthalmic Surg Lasers Imaging Retina.
2020;51:444–447.]
Regression of Cystoid Macular Edema Three Weeks After Laser for Retinopathy of Prematurity
Authors: Wong Brittany M. , Chu Alison , Tsui Irena
Published: August 2020

Cystoid macular edema (CME) has been reported in the neonatal period associated with preterm birth; however, its pathogenesis remains unclear and is likely multifactorial. The authors report the case of a preterm infant imaged using optical coherence tomography (OCT), which revealed severe CME that regressed after laser treatment. Because laser for retinopathy of prematurity aims to reduce vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) levels, this case considers the possibility of VEGF-mediated CME pathogenesis. Further, the authors provide additional evidence of the value of OCT for noninvasive visualization of the preterm retina; the modality provides an effective way to evaluate and monitor progression of CME.

[
Ophthalmic Surg Lasers Imaging Retina
. 2020;51:472–475.]
Test Suite Minimization in Regression Testing Using Hybrid Approach of ACO and GA
Authors: Pandey Abhishek , Banerjee Soumya
Published: August 2020

This article describes about the application of search-based techniques in regression testing and compares the performance of various search-based techniques for software testing. Test cases tend to increase exponentially as the software is modified. It is essential to remove redundant test cases from the existing test suite. Regression testing is very costly and must be performed in restricted ways to ensure the validity of the existing software. There exist different methods to improve the quality of test cases in terms of the number of faults covered, opposed to the number of statements covered in a minimum time. Different methods exist for this purpose, such as minimization, test case selection, and test case prioritization. In this article, search-based methods are applied to improve the quality of the test suite in order to select a minimum set of test cases which covers all the statements in a minimum time. The whole approach is named search based regression testing. In this paper, the performance of different metaheuristics for test suite minimization problem is also compared with a hybrid approach of ant colony optimization algorithm and genetic algorithm.
A Framework for Modernizing Non-Mobile Software
Authors: Favre Liliana
Published: August 2020

New paradigms such as pervasive computing, cloud computing, and the internet of things (IoT) are transforming the software industry and the business world. Organizations need to redesign their models and processes to be sustainable. Smartphones are at the core of these paradigms, letting us locate and easily interact with the world around us. Frequently, the development of mobile software requires of the adaption of valuable and tested non-mobile software. Most challenges in this kind of software modernization are related to the diversity of platforms on the smartphones market and to the need of systematic and reusable processes with a high degree of automation that reduce time, cost, and risks. This chapter proposes a modernization framework based on model-driven engineering (MDE). It allows integrating legacy code with the native behaviors of the different mobile platform through cross-platform languages. Realizations of the framework for the migration of C/C++ or Java code to mobile platforms through the Haxe multiplatform language are described.
Adding Emotions to Models in a Viewpoint Modelling Framework From Agent-Oriented Software Engineering
Authors: Sterling Leon , Lopez-Lorca Alex , Kissoon-Curumsing Maheswaree
Published: August 2020

In modern software development, considering the viewpoints of stakeholders is an important step in building the right system. Over the past decade, several authors have proposed solutions to capture and model these viewpoints. While these solutions have been successful, emotions of stakeholders have been largely ignored. Considering the emotional needs of stakeholders is important because both the users' perceptions of a product and their use of a product are influenced by emotion as much as cognition. Building on recent work in modelling the emotional goals of stakeholders, the authors extend an existing viewpoint framework to capture emotions, and to use emotions in models from early-phase requirements to detailed software design. They demonstrate the models and framework with a case study of an emergency alarm system for older people, presenting a complete set of models for the case study. The authors introduce recent experience in using emotional models in requirements elicitation within an agile process.
MCOQR (Misuse Case-Oriented Quality Requirements) Metrics Framework
Authors: Banerjee Chitreshh , Banerjee Arpita , Pandey Santosh K.
Published: August 2020

In today's information age, software is attacked deliberately resulting in breach of security & people's trust. These malicious attacks provide harm to individuals, organizations, and the world at large. The attacker targets vulnerabilities to exploit the software. The chapter highlights the importance of security metrics which is comprehensive in nature and easily implementable. It also emphasis on the early implementation of security metrics i.e., from the requirements elicitation phase of requirement engineering stage so that a comprehensive and complete set of security requirements could be defined with their countermeasure to develop a secured software. For development of security metrics a framework has been proposed using use case and misuse case tree modeling. The proposed work may help the Software Security Team to identify and analyse the potential vulnerabilities and associated threats which may be exploited by the attacker to harm the system well in advance in the requirements engineering phase thereby balancing the security using misuse cases modeling.
On the Use of Motion Vectors for 2D and 3D Error Concealment in H.264/AVC Video
Authors: Marins Hugo R. , Estrela Vania V.
Published: August 2020

The fundamental principles of the coding/decoding H.264/AVC standard are introduced emphasizing the role of motion estimation and motion compensation (MC) in error concealment using intra- and inter-frame motion estimates, along with other features such as the integer transform, quantization options, entropy coding possibilities, deblocking filter, among other provisions. Efficient MC is one of the certain reasons for H.264/AVC superior performance compared to its antecedents. The H.264/AVC has selective intra-prediction and optimized inter-prediction methods to reduce temporal and spatial redundancy more efficiently. Motion compensation/prediction using variable block sizes and directional intra-prediction to choose the adequate modes help decide the best coding. Unfortunately, motion treatment is a computationally-demanding component of a video codec. The H.264/AVC standard has solved problems its predecessors faced when it comes to image quality and coding efficiency, but many of its advantages require an increase in computing complexity.
Towards a New Combination and Communication Approach of Software Components
Authors: Rehioui Fadoua , Hair Abdellatif
Published: August 2020

The interest behind the use of component based software engineering is to divide an information system in subsystems with less complexity, the reduction of time, faster development, and enhancing the productivity. The software systems are developed by assembling components which are software units that offer a set of services exposed as interfaces. The indispensable role of component-based development is the component model that defines how components can be built and how they can be assembled. A component is intended to provide specific services as the management of the combination and the communication between the system units. The Manager Component is an important and complementary paradigm for the development of software systems. The functionalities that it encapsulates must be related and consistent. The model presented in this paper proposes a component called Manager Software component based on the viewpoint (vision of each system user and actor) by the assembly of Base Component and system components.
An Evaluation of Software Development Practices among Small Firms in Developing Countries
Authors: Chevers Delroy , Mills Annette M. , Duggan Evan , Moore Stanford
Published: August 2020

For software development firms to be competitive they must assure the quality of the software product. This has led many firms to adopt software process improvement (SPI) programs such as the capability maturity model integration (CMMI). However, for small software firms, especially those in developing countries with limited resources, these programs are often too cumbersome and costly to implement. To address this issue, this paper proposes a simplified SPI model for small firms (SPM-S) comprised of 10 key software development practices; with fewer practices, the proposed model should be more accessible and less costly to implement. Using data collected in four developing countries in the English-speaking Caribbean from 112 developer/user dyads, the model is evaluated with respect to its impact on software quality. The findings show that the software development process coupled with supporting technology (e.g. project management tools) significantly impact software product quality. Implications for software process improvement in small firms and future research are discussed.
Software Development Crisis
Authors: Zykov Sergey
Published: August 2020

Software development is critically dependent on a number of factors. These factors include techno-logical and anthropic-oriented ones. Software production is a multiple party process; it includes customer and developer parties. Due to different expectations and goals of each side, the human factors become mission-critical. Misconceptions in the expectations of each side may lead to misbalanced production; the product that the developers produce may significantly differ from what the customers expect. This misbalanced vision of the software product may result in a software de-livery crisis. To manage this crisis, the authors recommend using software engineering methods. Software engineering is a discipline which emerged from the so-called “software crisis” in the 1960s: it combines technical and anthropic-oriented “soft” skills. To conquer the crisis, this chapter discusses general architecture patterns for software and hardware systems; it provides instances of particular industries, such as oil and gas and nuclear power production.
A Systematic Mapping Study on Requirements Engineering in Software Ecosystems
Authors: Vegendla Aparna , Duc Anh Nguyen , Gao Shang , Sindre Guttorm
Published: August 2020

Software ecosystems (SECOs) and open innovation processes have been claimed as a way forward for the software industry. A proper understanding of requirements is as important for SECOs as for more traditional ones. This article presents a mapping study on the issues of RE and quality aspects in SECOs. Our findings indicate that among the various phases or subtasks of RE, most of the SECO specific research has been accomplished on elicitation, analysis, and modeling. On the other hand, requirement selection, prioritization, verification, and traceability has attracted few published studies. Among the various quality attributes, most of the SECOs research has been performed on security, performance and testability. On the other hand, reliability, safety, maintainability, transparency, usability attracted few published studies. The article provides a review of the academic literature about SECO-related RE activities, modeling approaches, and quality attributes, positions the source publications in a taxonomy of issues and identifies gaps where there has been little research.
A Systematic Snapshot of Small Packaged Software Vendors' Enterprises
Authors: Tamimi Moutasm , Jebreen Issam
Published: August 2020

This article describes how small packaged software vendors' enterprises (SPSVEs) have played a massive role in a software environment and contributed dramatically to economies. The purpose of this article is to investigate and categorize the most recent of literature addressing small packaged software vendors' enterprises through a systematic snapshot research in order to identify current research topics and highlight some areas needing more consideration. The pattern of the authors' systematic approach is based on developing a classification scheme which targets a collection of papers published within the period of 2007-2017. The authors analysed one hundred and one papers from peer-reviewed conferences, journals, and workshops to examine the current state of SPSVE's research in order to provide systematic snapshot mapping (SSM) that includes the small packaged software life cycle, research methods used, and country of study. The systematic snapshot of 101 papers reveals that the majority of the literature has focused on the planning and implementation phases of SPSVEs. Figuring out a new model of packaged software life-cycle in SMEs will occur by applying the model of categorizations with regard to the life cycle with its factors and sub factors. Moreover, it will contribute to finding research methods, regions, top ten citation, articles type classifications, and other kinds of classifications. This research is targeted to small packaged software vendors' enterprises (SPSVEs). The authors' finding is intended for software research areas more than economic research areas. This article has presented a high degree of benefits in order to assist researchers in evidence-based decision making in terms of investigating hot research areas in line with the small packaged software vendors' enterprises (SPSVEs).
Streaming Coded Video in P2P Networks
Authors: Raheel Muhammad Salman , Raad Raad
Published: August 2020

This chapter discusses the state of the art in dealing with the resource optimization problem for smooth delivery of video across a peer to peer (P2P) network. It further discusses the properties of using different video coding techniques such as Scalable Video Coding (SVC) and Multiple Descriptive Coding (MDC) to overcome the playback latency in multimedia streaming and maintains an adequate quality of service (QoS) among the users. The problem can be summarized as follows; Given that a video is requested by a peer in the network, what properties of SVC and MDC can be exploited to deliver the video with the highest quality, least upload bandwidth and least delay from all participating peers. However, the solution to these problems is known to be NP hard. Hence, this chapter presents the state of the art in approximation algorithms or techniques that have been proposed to overcome these issues.
Factors Influencing the Adoption of ISO/IEC 29110 in Thai Government Projects
Authors: Siddoo Veeraporn , Wongsai Noppachai
Published: August 2020

This paper presents the views of four Thai government organizations who had been awarded ISO/IEC 29110 Basic Profile Certification. Team ideas as to the success factors and barriers involved in implementations are explored. In-depth interviews with closed- and open-ended questions were conducted. The data collected was analyzed using qualitative content analysis. The results show two reasons for choosing standard, first, to enhance software development process, and second, because the financial support from the SIPA. The success factors were supportive organizational policy, staff participation, availability of time and resources for the improvement of the software process, consultations with the SIPA and team commitment and recognition. The barrier factors were time constraints, lack of experience, documentation load, unsynchronized means of communication and improper project selection. The findings were based on four diverse organizations. Other countries may take into account the variations e.g. working culture or organizational structure when seeking to apply these results.
On the Nature of Collaborations in Agile Software Engineering Course Projects
Authors: Kamthan Pankaj
Published: August 2020

If there is a constant in software development, then it is that its ecosystem is a variable. The agile methodologies are part of a relatively recent shift from predictive to adaptive approach towards software development. This change has had a notable impact on software engineering education (SEE). In this article, a glimpse into the state-of-the-art of incorporating agile methodologies in software engineering courses is presented. In doing so, the reasons for including a project component in software engineering courses, and for committing to agile methodologies in software engineering projects in those courses, are given. The significance of collaboration in the execution of agile methodologies, in general, is underscored, and the pivotal role of collaboration in agile course projects, in particular, is emphasized. To lend an understanding to the notion of collaboration in agile methodologies, a conceptual model for collaboration is proposed and elaborated. The types of collaborations that can occur in agile course projects are classified and discussed. The use technological means for facilitating collaboration, including the Social Web and especially the Wiki, is highlighted.
Impact Assessment of Policies and Practices for Agile Software Process Improvement
Authors: Jamil George Leal , Almeida de Oliveira Rodrigo
Published: August 2020

This chapter proposes the application of computer simulation models for the evaluation of software quality improvement through the implementation of policies and practices of software development processes and performing the measurement of the evolution of the quality through the Six Sigma methodology. In order to provide decision makers of process improvement, a model of dynamic simulation of systems was proposed. Model validation was performed using data collected from various projects developed in an information technology company headquartered in Belo Horizonte-MG. The models mentioned in this chapter are able to provide the decision makers a tooling of process improvement able to perform predictions, predictions, analysis of “what if” scenarios in the model. As a result of this work, a dynamic simulation model of systems capable of performing the evaluation of software quality in Sigma level is found. Also, there are comparisons and analyses of actual data of software development projects with the simulation data of the models presented. The earnings with the new version of the case exceed by more than 50% the Sigma level, the quality of software developed, and reduction of more than 55% of the time of development of the project.
Combining Data Preprocessing Methods With Imputation Techniques for Software Defect Prediction
Authors: Kakkar Misha , Jain Sarika , Bansal Abhay , Grover P.S.
Published: August 2020

Software Defect Prediction (SDP) models are used to predict, whether software is clean or buggy using the historical data collected from various software repositories. The data collected from such repositories may contain some missing values. In order to estimate missing values, imputation techniques are used, which utilizes the complete observed values in the dataset. The objective of this study is to identify the best-suited imputation technique for handling missing values in SDP dataset. In addition to identifying the imputation technique, the authors have investigated for the most appropriate combination of imputation technique and data preprocessing method for building SDP model. In this study, four combinations of imputation technique and data preprocessing methods are examined using the improved NASA datasets. These combinations are used along with five different machine-learning algorithms to develop models. The performance of these SDP models are then compared using traditional performance indicators. Experiment results show that among different imputation techniques, linear regression gives the most accurate imputed value. The combination of linear regression with correlation based feature selector outperforms all other combinations. To validate the significance of data preprocessing methods with imputation the findings are applied to open source projects. It was concluded that the result is in consistency with the above conclusion.
The Evolution of the ISO/IEC 29110 Set of Standards and Guides
Authors: O'Connor Rory V. , Laporte Claude Y.
Published: August 2020

While the quality of products is a competitive advantage for very small software development organizations, the usage of Software and Systems Engineering standards amongst such very small organizations is extremely low. A key factor in the literature explaining this lack of quality standards adoption is the perception by small and very small organizations that such standards have been developed for large multi-national companies and not with small and very small organizations in mind. The ISO/IEC 29110 standard is unique amongst software and systems engineering standards, in that the working group (ISO/IEC JTC1/SC7 WG 24) mandated to develop a new standard approached industry to conduct a needs assessment and gather actual requirements for a new standard as part of the standards development process. This paper presents a historical perspective behind the development of the ISO/IEC 29110 systems and software engineering standard and its constituent components, including the rationale behind its development and the innovative design of implementation guides to assist very small companies in adopting the standards. Further this paper will present an overview of the various parts of the ISO/IEC 29110 family and briefly present the plans for the future evolution of this series of standards.
The Economies of East Asia
Authors: Hooke Angus , Kaur Harpreet
Published: August 2020

In 2018, East Asia accounted for accounted for 31% of gross world product (GWP). A global forecasting model developed by Hooke and updated by Hooke, Alati, and Kaur for the first three chapters of this book suggests that the region's share will remain at about this level until 2050, with the effects of global labour productivity convergence more than offsetting East Asia's relatively slow work force growth. Thereafter, the share will decline to 18% by 2100 due mainly to more rapid productivity and work force growth in West Asia and Africa. China is expected to retain its position as the world's largest economy until about the middle of this century, at which time its GDP will be more than 2.5 times that of the United States. An important driver of growth in East Asia during the coming decades will be Indonesia, whose share of GWP is forecast to rise from 2.6% in 2018 to 3.8% by 2050.
Population Aging and Prospect of China's Elderly Care and Its Related Industries
Authors: Liu Mei , Ma Qing-Ping
Published: August 2020

China becomes an aging society in a pace much faster than other countries because of its one-child policy implemented since 1980. This chapter examines the current situation of population aging in China, the government policies and regulations surrounding elderly care, and the experiences of other Asian and Oceanian countries in dealing with population aging. The rapid population aging poses severe challenges for the elderly care in China, which has not established an adequate social security system, but it also provides abundant opportunities for enterprises and entrepreneurs in the aging industry from other Asian and Oceanian countries as well as China. China can learn from the experiences of industrialized Asian and Oceanian countries and regions in developing its elderly care industry.
Selected Applications of Grey Models in Stock Price Prediction
Authors: Škrinjarić Tihana , Čižmešija Mirjana
Published: August 2020

This chapter examines the possibilities of utilizing the results of Grey Models (GM) in the portfolio selection. Namely, stock price prediction represents one of the most important steps in the portfolio management. Many different models and methods have been developed for this purpose over the decades. The GM models could be utilized for such purpose. However, this approach is still relatively unknown today although research in the Far East has shown that applications of GM approach have good forecasting capabilities. That is why this chapter aims to popularize the GM approach of modeling stock prices and to combine the estimation results with the portfolio performance measurement. The benefits of using GM models within the portfolio management are empirically confirmed using daily data on the stock market index CROBEX from Zagreb Stock Exchange during the period from September 2, 2019, until February 7, 2020. The GM(2,1) model is the best performing one with respect to out of sample forecasts and based on portfolio performance measures important to the investor.
Fit for Purpose
Authors: Prager Erika , Hall Barbara M. , Wellner Laurie , Riggle B. Andrew
Published: August 2020

Using an illustrative case study, this chapter explores the two-year design process of a practice-based Doctor of Education degree program in an online university. Emerging from the continuous improvement lens, the redesign process centered around the examination of the purpose of the degree in the context of meeting the educational needs of practitioners in the field. Principally, this program redesign led to greater differentiation between the practitioner-based EdD degree and the PhD to provide students with distinct options for meeting their personal and professional goals.
Navigating the Doctoral Labyrinth
Authors: Burrington Debra D. , Throne Robin
Published: August 2020

The journey through a practitioner doctorate program to earn the terminal degree has been likened to a labyrinth with its complex maze or a mountain climb with its inherent obstacles and challenges the doctoral scholar must surpass to be successful. Reflexive positionality is a concomitant process which can be used throughout the practitioner doctorate to facilitate the iterative and recursive journey of the scholar-practitioner. Reflexivity facilitates an introspective process to elevate professional practitioners to scholar-practitioners and incorporate a reflexive view to transcend doctoral hurdles, attain the terminal degree, and return to practice to solve societal problems and problems within the discipline. Practitioner doctorate leadership may also be well served to incorporate reflexivity in the pedagogical redesign of the practitioner doctorate to strengthen the development and preparation of these scholar-practitioners.
Exploring the Factors Affecting User Satisfaction With Metrash2 System
Authors: Hassan Ahmed , Abu-Shanab Emad Ahmed
Published: August 2020

This research investigated Qatari citizens' perceptions regarding the factors influencing their satisfaction with Metrash2 system. Qatari residents use Metrash2 to query, transact, and follow-up their needed information/services online. The study integrated the technology acceptance model (TAM) and the information system success model (ISSM) to explore the factors influencing users' satisfaction with the system. Perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use were significant predictors of behavioral intentions (R2 = 0.554). Furthermore, service quality, information quality, and behavioral intentions were significant predictors of users' satisfaction (R2 = 0.789). Research results did not support the role of system quality in predicting users' satisfaction. Qatari government should focus on the usefulness and ease of use of the system to drive citizens to use it. Convincing citizens to use Metrash2 requires better service quality and information quality. More details are reported at the end of the paper.
The Impact of Industry Expert Adjuncts on Students' Course Experiences
Authors: Boyer D. Matthew , Walker Erica B.
Published: August 2020

As a reality of modern higher education, the use of adjunct instructors to teach courses is a common practice, often viewed through institutional constraints. This paper uses a different lens to examine the experiences of students in courses taught by adjunct instructors who are primarily employed in industry. It explores the affordances these instructors bring into the classroom including timely knowledge and skills from outside the academic institution. This work is a methodological pilot in a longer design-based project studying industry expert adjuncts as college teachers by analyzing their impact through students' perceptions of their experiences.
Multi-Feature Approach for Bug Severity Assignment
Authors: Hamdy Abeer , Ellaithy Abdulrahman
Published: August 2020

When bug reports are submitted through bug tracking systems, they are analysed manually to identify their severity levels. A severity level specifies the negative impact of a bug on a system. With the huge number of submitted reports, setting the severity class manually is tedious and time consuming. Moreover, some bug types are reported more often than other types, which leads to imbalanced bug repositories. This paper proposes a multi-feature approach for automatic severity assignment, which leverages lexical, semantic, and categorical properties of the bug reports. The proposed approach utilizes word embeddings, topic model, vector space model, and an adapted K-Nearest Neighbour technique. Moreover, the impact of utilizing two sampling techniques, namely SMOTE and cluster-based under-sampling (CBU), were investigated. Experiments over two open source repositories, Eclipse and Mozilla, demonstrated that the proposed approach is superior to two previous studies.
E-Government Awareness and Adoption by the Residents
Authors: Eyupoglu Anil , Kaya Tugberk
Published: August 2020

This paper presents the results of an empirical survey study conducted on people living in North Cyprus, aiming to measure awareness of e-government practices. Brief information regarding e-government, awareness and adoption concepts, and current situation in North Cyprus is also provided. A particular survey is designed based on preliminary pre-testing methods and academic supervision. This study aims to contribute to a literature that is lacking studies regarding awareness of e-government in small islands. As Cyprus is a Small Island Developing State (SID) member and has the last divided capital, revealing the main reasons for awareness, usage and trustiness of e-government practices is believed to contribute to the literature.
Extracellular Vesicles from Pseudomonas aeruginosa Suppress MHC-Related Molecules in Human Lung Macrophages
Authors: Armstrong David A , Lee Min Kyung , Hazlett Haley F , Dessaint John A , Mellinger Diane L , Aridgides Daniel S , Hendricks Gregory M , Abdalla Moemen A K , Christensen Brock C , Ashare Alix
Published: August 2020

Pseudomonas aeruginosa, a Gram-negative bacterium, is one of the most common pathogens colonizing the lungs of cystic fibrosis patients. P. aeruginosa secrete extracellular vesicles (EVs) that contain LPS and other virulence factors that modulate the host’s innate immune response, leading to an increased local proinflammatory response and reduced pathogen clearance, resulting in chronic infection and ultimately poor patient outcomes. Lung macrophages are the first line of defense in the airway innate immune response to pathogens. Proper host response to bacterial infection requires communication between APC and T cells, ultimately leading to pathogen clearance. In this study, we investigate whether EVs secreted from P. aeruginosa alter MHC Ag expression in lung macrophages, thereby potentially contributing to decreased pathogen clearance. Primary lung macrophages from human subjects were collected via bronchoalveolar lavage and exposed to EVs isolated from P. aeruginosa in vitro. Gene expression was measured with the NanoString nCounter gene expression assay. DNA methylation was measured with the EPIC array platform to assess changes in methylation. P. aeruginosa EVs suppress the expression of 11 different MHC-associated molecules in lung macrophages. Additionally, we show reduced DNA methylation in a regulatory region of gene complement factor B (CFB) as the possible driving mechanism of widespread MHC gene suppression. Our results demonstrate MHC molecule downregulation by P. aeruginosa–derived EVs in lung macrophages, which is consistent with an immune evasion strategy employed by a prokaryote in a host–pathogen interaction, potentially leading to decreased pulmonary bacterial clearance.
Injury, Illness, and Training Load in a Professional Contemporary Dance Company: A Prospective Study
Authors: Jeffries Annie C. , Wallace Lee , Coutts Aaron J. , Cohen Ashlea Mary , McCall Alan , Impellizzeri Franco M.
Published: August 2020

Context

Professional dance is a demanding physical activity with high injury rates. Currently, no epidemiologic data exist regarding the incidence of injury and illness together with training load (TL) over a long period of time.

Objective

To provide a detailed description of injury, illness, and TL occurring in professional contemporary dancers.

Design

Descriptive epidemiology study.

Setting

A single professional contemporary dance company during a 1-year period.

Patients or Other Participants

A total of 16 male and female professional contemporary dancers.

Main Outcome Measure(s)

Injury data consisted of medical-attention injury (Med-Inj) and time-loss injury (Time-Inj). Illness was measured using the Wisconsin Upper Respiratory Tract Infection Survey. Training load was collected for each dance session using the session rating of perceived exertion and classified into 3 groups based on individual and group percentiles: low, medium, or high.

Results

Reported injuries totaled 79 (86.1% new, 6.3% reinjury, and 7.6% exacerbation). The Med-Inj incidence rate was 4.6 per 1000 hours (95% confidence interval [CI] = 3.8, 5.8), and the Time-Inj rate was 1.4 per 1000 hours (95% CI = 0.8, 2.1). The median time until injury for Med-Inj and Time-Inj was 3 months. The number of days dancers experienced illness symptoms was 39.9 ± 26.9 (range = 1–96), with an incidence rate of 9.1 per 1000 hours (95% CI = 7.7, 10.7). Mean weekly TL was 6685 ± 1605 (4641–10 391; arbitrary units). Inconsistent results were found for the incidence of injury and illness based on individual and group categorizations of TL.

Conclusions

Professional dancing is associated with high injury and illness rates. This is worrying from a health perspective and underlines the need for further studies to understand how to decrease the risk. The TL is higher than in other sport disciplines, but whether the high incidence of injuries and illnesses is related to high training demands needs additional investigation, possibly conducted as international, multicenter collaborative studies.
Towards redeeming marriage custom from ‘triangular captivity’: The missional dilemma of the Methodist Church in Zimbabwe
Authors: Mujinga Martin
Published: August 2020

Marriage in the Methodist Church in Zimbabwe (MCZ) is under siege. This scenario was bequeathed by the British imperialists. This siege is evident because the ecclesiastical theology of marriage in the MCZ is fastened on both African culture and the civil order. Firstly, marriage is anchored on African culture because the MCZ is an African church and it grows its mission using African epistemology. Secondly, marriage in the MCZ is affixed on civil authority because adult membership in the the MCZ is defined by being ‘properly married’ for those who have spouses. The triangular net is evident because marriage starts and proceeds culturally, the government legalises marriages and the MCZ uses marriage certificates to grow its membership, whilst the clergy solemnise marriages as government agents using the civil Marriage Act Chapter 5:11. The aim of this article was to investigate how the MCZ’s mission is informed by both African culture and civil order given that it regards marriage as the canon of adult membership, blousing of women and badging of men, participation in the sacrament of Holy Communion, confirmation into full membership, leadership positions, accredited as local preachers and acceptance into ministry. In responding to this aim, the article uses a qualitative research method to interrogate the MCZ policy books and minutes of conferences that address the theology of marriage. The research will conclude by challenging the MCZ to come up with a theology of marriage that unties itself from the cultural and civil net of this rite to interpret its ecclesial mission.Intradisciplinary and/or interdisciplinary implications: This article is interdisciplinary in the sense that it addresses the issues of ecclesiology, missiology, theology, African culture, gender, church polity and the power of civil authority. The research calls the MCZ to define its marriage theology not contaminated by civil ideologies and African philosophy.
Kuperberg invariants for balanced sutured 3-manifolds
Authors: Neumann Daniel López
Published: August 2020

We construct quantum invariants of balanced sutured 3-manifolds with a
${\text {Spin}^c}$
structure out of an involutive (possibly nonunimodular) Hopf superalgebra H. If H is the Borel subalgebra of

${U_q(\mathfrak {gl}(1|1))}$
, we show that our invariant is computed via Fox calculus, and it is a normalization of Reidemeister torsion. The invariant is defined via a modification of a construction of Kuperberg, where we use the

${\text {Spin}^c}$
structure to take care of the nonunimodularity of H or

$H^{*}$
.
Variational principles for symplectic eigenvalues
Authors: Bhatia Rajendra , Jain Tanvi
Published: August 2020

If A is a real

$2n \times 2n$
positive definite matrix, then there exists a symplectic matrix M such that

$M^TAM=\text {diag}(D, D),$
where D is a positive diagonal matrix with diagonal entries

$d_1(A)\leqslant \cdots \leqslant d_n(A).$
We prove a maxmin principle for

$d_k(A)$
akin to the classical Courant–Fisher–Weyl principle for Hermitian eigenvalues and use it to derive an analogue of the Weyl inequality

$d_{i+j-1}(A+B)\geqslant d_i(A)+d_j(B).$
Rigidity of diagonally embedded triangle groups
Authors: Burelle Jean-Philippe
Published: August 2020

We show local rigidity of hyperbolic triangle groups generated by reflections in pairs of n-dimensional subspaces of

$\mathbb {R}^{2n}$
obtained by composition of the geometric representation in

$\mathsf {PGL}(2,\mathbb {R})$
with the diagonal embeddings into

$\mathsf {PGL}(2n,\mathbb {R})$
and

$\mathsf {PSp}^\pm (2n,\mathbb {R})$
.
A characterization of Krull monoids for which sets of lengths are (almost) arithmetical progressions
Authors: Geroldinger Alfred , Schmid Wolfgang Alexander
Published: August 2020

Let

H

be a Krull monoid with finite class group

G

and suppose that every class contains a prime divisor. Then sets of lengths in

H

have a well-defined structure which depends only on the class group

G

. With methods from additive combinatorics we establish a characterization of those class groups

G

guaranteeing that all sets of lengths are (almost) arithmetical progressions.
China Rising in Latin America
Authors: Volkov K. O.
Published: August 2020

The article analyses one of the most important international relations trends in Latin America in the early 21st century, the PRC’s growing presence in Latin America. The first part of the article deals with the historical background of the phenomenon, pragmatic interests of the parties and China’s skillful diplomacy with the second one concentrating on the comparative analysis of models of bilateral relations between China and the leading nations of the region.
The fiesta as a key concept of Spanish linguistic culture
Authors: Astakhova E. V.
Published: August 2020

The author examines the image of Spain through the megaconcept of fiesta, which determines many aspects of the national and cultural mentality. This concept reflects various vectors of quotidian life, religious and popular holidays with their complicated details and special dramaturgy, penetrates to every day communication and behavior. The research determines such Spanish extralinguistic realities as corrida, tertulia, movida, botellon, indignados, analyses the role of the theater, of “coffee culture”, of football and other phenomenons in social life and cognitive space of Spaniards. The knowledge of different aspects of fiesta helps to understand the word potential of Spanish language, its metafores, stylistic images.