bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Abstract concepts, language and sociality: from acquisition to inner speech
Authors: Borghi Anna M. , Barca Laura , Binkofski Ferdinand , Tummolini Luca 
Published: June 2018

The problem of representation of abstract concepts, such as ‘freedom’ and ‘justice’, has become particularly crucial in recent years, owing to the increased success of embodied and grounded views of cognition. We will present a novel view on abstract concepts and abstract words. Since abstract concepts do not have single objects as referents, children and adults might rely more on input from others to learn them; we, therefore, suggest that linguistic and social experience play an important role for abstract concepts. We will discuss evidence obtained in our and other laboratories showing that processing of abstract concepts evokes linguistic interaction and social experiences, leading to the activation of the mouth motor system. We will discuss the possible mechanisms that underlie this activation. Mouth motor system activation can be due to re-enactment of the experience of conceptual acquisition, which occurred through the mediation of language. Alternatively, it could be due to the re-explanation of the word meaning, possibly through inner speech. Finally, it can be due to a metacognitive process revealing low confidence in the meaning of our concepts. This process induces in us the need to rely on others to ask/negotiate conceptual meaning. We conclude that with abstract concepts language works as a social tool: it extends our thinking abilities and pushes us to rely on others to integrate our knowledge.
This article is part of the theme issue ‘Varieties of abstract concepts: development, use, and representation in the brain’.
Moving beyond the distinction between concrete and abstract concepts
Authors: Barsalou Lawrence W. , Dutriaux Léo , Scheepers Christoph 
Published: June 2018

From the perspective of the situated conceptualization framework, the primary purpose of concepts is for categorizing and integrating elements of situations to support goal-directed action (including communication and social interaction). To the extent that important situational elements are categorized and integrated properly, effective goal-directed action follows. Over time, frequent patterns of co-occurring concepts within situations become established in memory as situated conceptualizations, conditioning the conceptual system and producing habitual patterns of conceptual processing. As a consequence, individual concepts are most basically represented within patterns of concepts that become entrained with specific kinds of physical situations. In this framework, the concrete versus abstract distinction between concepts is no longer useful, with two other distinctions becoming important instead: (i) external versus internal situational elements, (ii) situational elements versus situational integrations. Whereas concepts for situational elements originate in distributed neural networks that provide continual feeds about components of situations, concepts for situational integrations originate in association areas that establish temporal co-occurrence relations between situational elements, both external and internal. We propose that studying concepts in the context of situated action is necessary for establishing complete accounts of them, and that continuing to study concepts in isolation is likely to provide relatively incomplete and distorted accounts.This article is part of the theme issue ‘Varieties of abstract concepts: development, use and representation in the brain’.
Evaluating fMRI-Based Estimation of Eye Gaze during Naturalistic Viewing
Authors: Son Jake , Ai Lei , Lim Ryan , Xu Ting , Colcombe Stanley , Franco Alexandre Rosa , Cloud Jessica , LaConte Stephen , Lisinski Jonathan , Klein Arno , Craddock R. Cameron , Milham Michael 
Published: June 2018

ABSTRACTThe collection of eye gaze information during functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) is important for monitoring variations in attention and task compliance, particularly for naturalistic viewing paradigms (e.g., movies). However, the complexity and setup requirements of current in-scanner eye-tracking solutions can preclude many researchers from accessing such information. Predictive eye estimation regression (PEER) is a previously developed support vector regression-based method for retrospectively estimating eye gaze from the fMRI signal in the eye’s orbit using a 1.5-minute calibration scan. Here, we provide confirmatory validation of the PEER method’s ability to infer eye gaze on a TR-by-TR basis during movie viewing, using simultaneously acquired eye tracking data in five individuals (median angular deviation < 2°). Then, we examine variations in the predictive validity of PEER models across individuals in a subset of data (n=448) from the Child Mind Institute Healthy Brain Network Biobank, identifying head motion as a primary determinant. Finally, we accurately classify which of two movies is being watched based on the predicted eye gaze patterns (area under the curve = .90 ± .02) and map the neural correlates of eye movements derived from PEER. PEER is a freely available and easy-to-use tool for determining eye fixations during naturalistic viewing.
Environmental and Socioeconomic Factors Associated with West Nile Virus
Authors: Hernandez E , Joyce AL , Torres R 
Published: June 2018

AbstractEnvironmental and socioeconomic risk factors associated with West Nile Virus cases were investigated in the Northern San Joaquin Valley region of California, a largely rural area. The study included human West Nile Virus (WNV) cases from the years 2011-2015 in the three county area of San Joaquin, Stanislaus and Merced Counties, and examined whether factors were associated with WNV using census tracts as the unit of analysis. Environmental factors included temperature, precipitation, mosquitoes positive for WNV, and habitat. Socioeconomic variables included age, education, housing age, home vacancies, median income, population density, ethnicity, and language spoken. Chi-squared independence tests were used to examine whether each variable was associated with WNV in each county, and then also used for the three counties combined. Logistic regression was used for a three-county combined analysis, to examine which environmental and socioeconomic variables were most likely associated with WNV cases. The chi-squared tests found that the variables associated with WNV varied in each of the three counties. The chi-squared tests for data combined from the three counties found that WNV cases were significantly associated with mosquitoes positive for WNV, urban habitat, higher home vacancies, higher population density, higher education, and ethnicity. Logistic regression analysis revealed that overall, the environmental factors precipitation, mean temperature, and WNV positive mosquitoes were the strongest predictors of WNV cases. Results support efforts of mosquito control districts, which aim for source reduction of mosquito breeding sites. In addition, findings suggest that residents with higher income and education may be more aware of WNV and its symptoms, and more likely to request testing from physicians. Lower income and education residents may not be aware of WNV. Public health education might increase its prevention messages about vector-borne disease in the various languages of the region, which would contribute overall to public health in the region.
diffcyt: Differential discovery in high-dimensional cytometry via high-resolution clustering
Authors: Weber Lukas M. , Nowicka Malgorzata , Soneson Charlotte , Robinson Mark D. 
Published: June 2018

1AbstractHigh-dimensional flow and mass cytometry allow cell types and states to be characterized in great detail by measuring expression levels of more than 40 targeted protein markers per cell at the single-cell level. However, data analysis can be difficult, due to the large size and dimensionality of datasets as well as limitations of existing computational methods. Here, we present diffcyt, a new computational framework for differential discovery analyses in high-dimensional cytometry data, based on a combination of high-resolution clustering and empirical Bayes moderated tests adapted from transcriptomics. Our approach provides improved statistical performance, including for rare cell populations, along with flexible experimental designs and fast runtimes in an open-source framework.
Effects of host species and environmental factors on the prevalence of Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis in northern Europe
Authors: Kärvemo Simon , Meurling Sara , Berger David , Höglund Jacob , Laurila Anssi 
Published: June 2018

AbstractThe fungal pathogen Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd) is a major threat to amphibian populations. Here we asked if the prevalence of Bd differs between amphibian species and whether it is related to local environmental factors in breeding habitats as well as landscape variables measured at three scales (500, 2000 and 5000 m radius) in southernmost Sweden. We sampled 947 anurans from six species in 31 ponds. Canopy cover, pond perimeter, pH and temperature were treated as local scale pond characteristics. Number of surrounding ponds, area of arable land, area of mature forest and number of resident people were treated as landscape variables. Bufo bufo and Rana temporaria had a prevalence of 0.5-1.0% which differed strongly from the other four species (Bombina bombina, Bufotes variabilis, Epidalea calamita, Rana arvalis) showing 13-64% prevalence. Bd prevalence in these four species was higher in ponds with higher pH, surrounded by a landscape with less mature forest and few wetlands. Our results show that the infection dynamics of Bd are complex and depend on local pond characteristics, host community composition and the spatial scale under investigation. Information on environmental factors associated with Bd and species differences in susceptibility may mitigate further spread of the disease through public information and guide conservational action plans, especially for the most threatened species.
A Network of Networks Approach for Modeling Interconnected Brain Tissue-Specific Networks
Authors: Kawakubo Hideko , Matsui Yusuke , Kushima Itaru , Ozaki Norio , Shimamura Teppei 
Published: June 2018

AbstractMotivationRecent sequence-based analyses have identified a lot of gene variants that may contribute to neurogenetic disorders such as autism spectrum disorder and schizophrenia. Several state-of-the-art network-based analyses have been proposed for mechanical understanding of genetic variants in neurogenetic disorders. However, these methods were mainly designed for modeling and analyzing single networks that do not interact with or depend on other networks, and thus cannot capture the properties between interdependent systems in brain-specific tissues, circuits, and regions which are connected each other and affect behavior and cognitive processes.ResultsWe introduce a novel and efficient framework, called a “Network of Networks” (NoN) approach, to infer the interconnectivity structure between multiple networks where the response and the predictor variables are topological information matrices of given networks. We also propose Graph-Oriented SParsE Learning (GOSPEL), a new sparse structural learning algorithm for network graph data to identify a subset of the topological information matrices of the predictors related to the response. We demonstrate on simulated data that GOSPEL outperforms existing kernel-based algorithms in terms of F-measure. On real data from human brain region-specific functional networks associated with the autism risk genes, we show that the NoN model provides insights on the autism-associated interconnectivity structure between functional interaction networks and a comprehensive understanding of the genetic basis of autism across diverse regions of the brain.AvailabilityOur software is available from https://github.com/infinite-point/GOSPEL.Contactkawakubo@med.nagoya-u.ac.jp, shimamura@med.nagoya-u.ac.jpSupplementary informationSupplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
Performance assessment and capital budgeting based on performance
Authors: Ghiyasi Mojtaba 
Published: June 2018

Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to propose two performance-based capital budgeting (PBCB) approaches. The proposed approaches aim to assign limited capital within different firms based on their performance. These approaches have been applied to capital budgeting process of the technical and vocational training schools of Semnan Province, Iran for the fiscal year 2014–2016. Although the current capital of each decision-making unit (DMU) is secured in the first approach, the second approach provides possibility of sharing the capital between DMUs.

Design/methodology/approach
Data envelopment analysis which is a broadly used mathematical programming technique for assessing performance of DMUs is utilized for the first phase of both approaches. The proposed models are based on linear programming. Different scenarios are presented and their pros and cons for the capital budgeting process are discussed.

Findings
The proposed approaches are applied to capital budgeting process for a fiscal year of technical and vocational training schools of Semnan Province, Iran. The budget allocation of the previous year has been found to be non-optimal in terms of budget consuming. This emphasizes reconsideration of budget allotment within schools. The results show a high potential for producing more outputs. The second approach that provides the possibility of sharing and realloting of budget between schools based on their performance may be crucial for those schools that are not performing efficiently because there is possibility of losing budget in each given year in contrast with the previous years.

Originality/value
This paper proposes two linear programming-based approaches for the PBCB. The author not only deals with static framework but also proposes dynamic structured models. Using performance-based budgeting in organizations has been emphasized by authorities in Iran for many years. Using the proposed approaches, different suggestion and policy recommendation for decision makers in process of capital budgeting process within period of study are provided for technical and vocational training schools of Semnan Province, Iran.
The impact of soft TQM on financial performance
Authors: Albuhisi Ahmad Musbah , Abdallah Ayman Bahjat 
Published: June 2018

Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore the effect of soft total quality management (TQM) on organizational performance in the Jordanian pharmaceutical manufacturing sector using the balanced scorecard (BSC) perspective. It also examines the indirect effect of soft TQM on financial performance through BSC non-financial perspectives.

Design/methodology/approach
The study is based on survey data collected from 197 employees in managerial and non-managerial positions working in Jordanian pharmaceutical manufacturing companies. Validity and reliability analyses were performed, and the study hypotheses were tested using structural equation modeling.

Findings
The results indicated that soft TQM positively affected all BSC perspectives. Customer perspective positively affected financial performance while innovation and learning perspective and internal business process perspective did not. In addition, only customer perspective significantly mediated the relationship between soft TQM and financial performance.

Originality/value
This is one of the first papers to examine the effect of soft TQM on organizational performance in terms of BSC perspective in the pharmaceutical sector. In addition, this paper is the first to examine the mediating effects of the BSC non-financial perspectives on the relationship between soft TQM and financial performance.
Aggregate effects of advertising decisions
Authors: Yang Yanwu , Li Xin , Zeng Daniel , Jansen Bernard J. 
Published: June 2018

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to model group advertising decisions, which are the collective decisions of every single advertiser within the set of advertisers who are competing in the same auction or vertical industry, and examine resulting market outcomes, via a proposed simulation framework named Experimental Platform for Search Engine Advertising (EXP-SEA) supporting experimental studies of collective behaviors in the context of search engine advertising.Design/methodology/approachThe authors implement the EXP-SEA to validate the proposed simulation framework, also conduct three experimental studies on the aggregate impact of electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM), the competition level and strategic bidding behaviors. EXP-SEA supports heterogeneous participants, various auction mechanisms and also ranking and pricing algorithms.FindingsFindings from the three experiments show that both the market profit and advertising indexes such as number of impressions and number of clicks are larger when the eWOM effect is present, meaning social media certainly has some effect on search engine advertising outcomes, the competition level has a monotonic increasing effect on the market performance, thus search engines have an incentive to encourage both the eWOM among search users and competition among advertisers, and given the market-level effect of the percentage of advertisers employing a dynamic greedy bidding strategy, there is a cut-off point for strategic bidding behaviors.Originality/valueThis is one of the first research works to explore collective group decisions and resulting phenomena in the complex context of search engine advertising via developing and validating a simulation framework that supports assessments of various advertising strategies and estimations of the impact of mechanisms on the search market.
“I’m supposed to feel like this is my home”
Authors: Shirazi Roozbeh 
Published: June 2018

Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine how the exercise of administrative authority to suspend the Muslim Student Association (MSA), an affinity group at a suburban Midwestern high school, was experienced and perceived by affected students. Notably, it traces the mobilization of the MSA students to challenge the principal’s authority through formal channels within the district to reopen the affinity group. In doing so, the students’ activism represents an example of dissensus, or mode of political engagement that challenges top-down models of fostering equity and diversity in schools.

Design/methodology/approach
The data are drawn from a nine-month ethnographic case study at an inner-ring suburban school in a large Midwestern metropolitan area. Data include participant observation of classrooms and affinity group meetings, semi-structured individual and group interviews, informal conversation and analytical memos synthesizing ethnographic fieldnotes.

Findings
Though the school and district have made different investments in strengthening equity and diversity at the school, transnational and minoritized Muslim students report a school climate that is characterized by exclusion and racialized surveillance. The principal’s decision to suspend the MSA was characterized by a narrow understanding of the purpose of the group and the identities of the student members. The decision to suspend the MSA, however, produced conditions centering the agentive potential of marginalized and minoritized students.

Originality/value
This paper opens up the tensions challenges of incorporating student voice into educational decision making. Notably, it highlights important possibilities for political action students when their voices cannot or will not be heard by those who make decisions on their behalf.
Broken bridges: a social network perspective on urban high school leadership
Authors: Liou Yi-Hwa , Daly Alan J. 
Published: June 2018

PurposeSecondary school leadership provides multiple challenges in terms of the diversity of tasks, multiple demands on time, balancing communities and attending to instructional programming. An emerging scholarship suggests the importance of a distributed instructional leadership approach to high school leadership. However, what has been less thoroughly explored is how secondary school leadership is distributed leaders across a school district. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the social structure and positions urban high school principals occupy in the district system.Design/methodology/approachThis study was conducted in one urban fringe public school district in southern California serving diverse students populations. The data were collected at three time points starting in Fall 2012 and ending in Fall 2014 from a district-wide leadership team including all central office and site leaders. All leaders were asked to assess their social relations and perception of innovative climate. The data were analyzed through a series of social network indices to examine the structure and positions of high school principals.FindingsResults indicate that over time high school principals have decreasing access to social capital and are typically occupying peripheral positions in the social network. The high school principals’ perception of innovative climate across the district decreases over time.Originality/valueThis longitudinal study, one of the first to examine high school principals from a network perspective, sheds new light on the social infrastructure of urban high school principals and what this might mean for efforts at improvement.
Heterogeneity of Pregamers by Consumption and Reinforcement Reasons: A Latent Profile Analysis
Authors: Haas Amie L. , Wickham Robert E. , Zamboanga Byron L. , Read Jennifer P. , Borsari Brian 
Published: June 2018

BackgroundPregaming is a common, high‐risk drinking activity among college students that has been largely unchangeable despite targeted intervention approaches. Therefore, identifying profiles of pregamers could enhance understanding of the risks associated with this practice and inform intervention development.MethodsThis study identified subtypes of pregamers in undergraduates (N = 911; 60% female, 42.9% White) attending 3 U.S. universities in 2012. Self‐report data assessed recent alcohol use (overall, heavy, and pregaming), pregaming motives, and demographics. Alcohol‐related consequences were assessed via the Young Adult Alcohol Consequences Questionnaire.ResultsLatent profile analysis using pregaming‐specific indicators assessing motives (e.g., to avoid getting caught) and consumption (e.g., estimated pregaming blood alcohol concentration) yielded 5 unique profiles. Three profiles were characterized by pregaming on 50% or more of all drinking events that differed by pregaming consumption and motives: Instrumental (5.3%; heavy consumption, intoxication‐driven motives), Global (16.0%; moderate consumption, indistinct motives), and Risk‐averse (18.3%; moderate‐to‐heavy consumption, negatively reinforcing motives). Two profiles reported lower levels of pregaming: Occasional (32.4%; moderate consumption, indistinct motives) and Infrequent (28.0%; lowest pregaming involvement). Cross‐profile differences were then examined for demographics, general drinking and pregaming‐specific motives, and alcohol‐related consequences. Profile comparisons indicated differences in overall alcohol consumption, ethnicity, gender, current living arrangements, Greek involvement, and a variety of alcohol‐related consequences (ps < 0.01).ConclusionsOverall, pregaming is a very heterogeneous behavior among college students in that some students utilize this drinking practice as a means to mitigate risk and others use it to promote intoxication. Results suggest that distinguishing pregamers by consumption as well as motives can facilitate the development of more tailored intervention approaches for students who engage in this high‐risk practice.