The time frames of new venture teams.

The central research question in this dissertation is: how do an individual’s perceptions of time impact a new venture team? Specifically, the study examined whether or not temporal depth relates to how reactive entrepreneurs may be to the environmental changes and threats that they face in their new venture team. I interviewed two cofounders from 40 new venture teams. The results suggest that cofounders in the same new venture team have very different perceptions of time. Their agreement, or congruence of temporal depth (future, past, and total) impacts their new venture team’s perception regarding environmental hostility. This relationship is negatively moderated by polychronicity (the extent to which people prefer to be engaged in two or more tasks or events at the same time). This study provides early evidence of possible reasons why cofounders may eventually see threats and changes for the same business differently. Results and implications for research are discussed

Hepatoprotective activity of Psidium guajava extract and its phospholipid complex in paracetamol induced hepatic damage in rats

Psidium guajava is a well known traditional medicinal plant and is used in various indigenous systems of medicine. The present research work aims at evaluating hepatoprotective activity of ethanolic extract of P. guajava and the phospholipid complex of the extract with phosphatidylcholine against paracetamol induced hepatic damage in albino rats. The hepatoprotective effect was studied on rat liver damage induced by paracetamol by monitoring serum parameters SGOT, SGPT, ALP, Total protein, Albumin, Globulin, Bilirubin and histopathological alterations. Significant hepatoprotective effects were observed against liver damage induced by paracetamol overdose as evident from decreased serum levels of SGOT, SGPT, ALP and bilirubin in the extract treated groups (200, 400 mg/kg) and phospholipid complex (100mg/kg) compared to the intoxicated controls. The hepatoprotective effect was further verified by histopathology of the liver. The phospholipid complex showed better activity than the plain extracts which was almost comparable to standard silymarin. The aqueous extracts of P. guajava and the phospholipid complex exhibited protective effect against paracetamol-induced hepatotoxicity with the complex showing activity better than the plain extract. These results supported the use of this plant for the treatment of hepatitis in oriental traditional medicine.Keywords: Phospholipid complex, Quercetin, Hepatoprotective, Paracetamol, Psidium guajav

Puzzle-solving activity as an indicator of epistemic confusion

When students perform complex cognitive activities, such as solving a problem, epistemic emotions can occur and influence the completion of the task. Confusion is one of these emotions and it can produce either negative or positive outcomes, according to the situation. For this reason, considering confusion can be an important factor for educators to evaluate students' progression in cognitive activities. However, in digital learning environments, observing students' confusion, as well as other epistemic emotions, can be problematic because of the remoteness of students. The study reported in this article explored new methodologies to assess emotions in a problem-solving task. The experimental task consisted of the resolution of logic puzzles presented on a computer, before, and after watching an instructional video depicting a method to solve the puzzle. In parallel to collecting self-reported confusion ratings, human-computer interaction was captured to serve as non-intrusive measures of emotions. The results revealed that the level of self-reported confusion was negatively correlated with the performance on solving the puzzles. In addition, while comparing the pre- and post-video sequences, the experience of confusion tended to differ. Before watching the instructional video, the number of clicks on the puzzle was positively correlated with the level of confusion whereas the correlation was negatively after the video. Moreover, the main emotions reported before the video (e.g., confusion, frustration, curiosity) tended to differ from the emotions reported after the videos (e.g., engagement, delight, boredom). These results provide insights into the ambivalent impact of confusion in problem-solving task, illustrating the dual effect (i.e., positive or negative) of this emotion on activity and performance, as reported in the literature. Applications of this methodology to real-world settings are discussed

Evaluation of Antioxidant and Antihyperlipidemic Activity of extracts Rich in Polyphenols

Polyphenols are phytochemicals present in plants that contribute to their antioxidant and different pharmacological activities. Flavonoids comprise of one class of polyphenols which play a beneficial role in preventing free radical damage and owe its antioxidant property. Lipid peroxidation and lipid-derived oxidized products have been implicated in the pathogenesis of a variety of human diseases. To clarify the role of oxidative stress in prevention of atherosclerosis and hypercholesterolemia, the antioxidant status of plant extracts of Oroxylum indicum, Vitis vinifera and Policosanol isolated from, Saccharum officinarum were selected for the study.The extracts were evaluated by in vitro methods by monitoring the production of malondialdehyde as Thiobarbituric acid Reacting Substances (TBARs). The antihypperlipidemic activity was examined in cholesterol induced hyperlipidemic model using Albino Wistar rats.The result of the study exhibited significant reduction in total cholesterol, triglycerides, LDL-C, VLDL-C levels and remarkable increase in the level of HDL-C when compared to standard lovastatin drug. The artherogenic index and LDL-C: HDL-C risk ratio was also reduced to significant extent in the group treated with extracts. The levels of SGOT and SGPT were estimated and found to be significantly less than that of hyperlipidemic control group.The highest antihyperlipidemic activity was exhibited by total extract of the bark of Oroxylum indicum followed by extracts of fruits of Vitis vinifera and Policosanol isolated from sugarcane wax.Keywords:- Polyphenols, Antihyperlipidemic, Antioxidant, Oroxylum indicum, Vitis vinifera, Policosano

The effect of disfluency on mind wandering during text comprehension

Perceptual disfluency of a text can operate as a desirable difficulty, presumably because it leads to better comprehen-sion. However, little is known about what cognitive mechanisms support this benefit. Here, we investigate whether sustainedattention, as measured by reports of mind wandering (i.e., lapses in attention) during reading, mediates the relationship be-tween disfluency and text comprehension. We manipulated the typeface (fluent: Arial; disfluent: Comic Sans) of two textson research methods. A total of 208 participants recruited online read either one of these texts, either in a fluent or disfluenttypeface, followed by a series of text level and inference level comprehension questions. We found that mind wandering wasless frequent when participants read disfluent text. Importantly, our results show that the relationship between disfluency andtext level comprehension was indirectly mediated by mind wandering, suggesting that sustained attention is one of the cognitivemechanisms by which disfluency influences comprehension

MULTIPLE DICTIONARY FOR SPARSE MODELING

Much of the progress made in image processing in the past decades can be attributed to better modeling of image content, and a wise deployment of these models in relevant applications. In this paper, we review the role of this recent model in image processing, its rationale, and models related to it. As it turns out, the field of image processing is one of the main beneficiaries from the recent progress made in the theory and practice of sparse and redundant representations. Sparse coding is a key principle that underlies wavelet representation of images. Sparse representation based classification has led to interesting image recognition results, while the dictionary used for sparse coding plays a key role in it. In general, the choice of a proper dictionary can be done using one of two ways: i) building asparsifying  dictionary based on a mathematical model of the data, or ii) learning a dictionary to perform best on a training set

A Survey on Touch Based Food Ordering System in Restaurants

In today’s world, technology has entered almost all the fields and has grown vastly in each of these fields. But one of the industries where technology is yet to expand is the Food Industry. In India the food industry i.e., the restaurants still follow the traditional pen and paper method. While the new cafes have adapted to a new a computer based ordering, the restaurants in India still use the traditional method of pen and paper. This method often tends to waste the time of both the customers as well as the restaurants, plus there is a possibility of getting the wrong order. This paper presents touch based food ordering system considering android as the base and various other technologies such as Java and Html, CSS, AJAX, etc. for web based applications

Exploring Expat-preneur Similarities and Differences between Self-initiated and Company-Assigned Transitioned Expatriates

Based upon the authors’ collective international experience and observance of emerging trends, this paper explores two different types of expat-preneurs as a new growing international career phenomenon: self-initiated expatriate expat-preneurs and company-assigned expatriate transitioned expat-preneurs. While the former is comprised of entrepreneurs who initiate their own expatriation to a new host country, the latter refers to expatriates who, during or at the end of a traditional international expatriate assignment, have started their own transition away from multinational organizations and into an entrepreneurial career in the host country or region of residence. This paper first summarizes the backgrounds and development patterns of these two distinctive types of expat-preneurs. It discusses similarities and differences between the two groups and suggests research propositions in terms of their approach to identifying business opportunities, meeting contextual conditions, and other characteristics. Finally, the paper discusses important implications and potential future research directions

A note using mergers and acquisitions to gain competitive advantage in the United States in the case of Latin American MNCs

Author's OriginalThe "new" economic and business climate in Latin America, fostered by multilateral trade agreements such as NAFTA, MERCOSUR, and the ANDEAN Pact, suggests that Latin American (LA) firms must become more aggressive and competitive in order to survive. Foreign direct investment in the form of mergers and acquisitions (M&A) is often an effective way of competing in a tough global environment. Using transactions data collected from Security Data Company's Worldwide Merger and Acquisition database, this paper analyzes the relative involvement of firms from five LA countries (Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Mexico, and Venezuela) in acquiring targets in the United States of America. Transaction characteristics examined and summarized include the annual distribution (1985-1998) of the deals, the industrial sector of the target firm, the form of acquisition method used, and the form of ownership of the target firm. The trends are analyzed, and implications for managers are indicated.Milman, C. D., D’Mello, J. P., Aybar, B., & Arbaláez, H. (2001). A note using mergers and acquisitions to gain competitive advantage in the United States in the case of Latin American MNCs. International Review of Financial Analysis, 10(3), 323-332. doi:10.1016/S1057-5219(01)00056-

Students’ opinions on the prevailing and innovative methods in medical education technology and changes recommended

Background: Medical education technology has evolved greatly and it is essential to keep abreast of the recent techniques to keep the students focussed in the classroom. It is also necessary to receive feedback and input from the students regarding our teaching methodologies. Our aim was to learn from the learners about their opinion regarding the current teaching methodology.Methods: 172 students belonging to two batches participated in the study.  79.83% of the students were satisfied with the current system. A questionnaire was prepared with 23 questions covering the current methodology, innovations, learning methods and faculty qualities.Results: 77.70% of the students opined that the present system of medical teaching in pharmacology was satisfactory. 40% of the students thought that interactive sessions are desirable. 52.8% students said that was that seminars can be fun once in a while with 21.35% saying that only the group leaders benefit from seminars. 60.8% said bedside teaching sessions were interesting and useful. 52.67% students thought that problem-based learning (PBL) could be interesting and 21.5% thought it is essential.Conclusions: The survey reveals that the students are satisfied with the current system on the whole. However they require changes in some areas like lectures and seminars. They appear willing and enthusiastic to accept new concepts in teaching. Hence, newer teaching-learning methodologies should be tried and adopted for better classroom results