Mobile Banking Adoption in the United States: Adapting mobile banking features from low - income countries

This is a work-in-progress research paper on Mobile Banking (mBanking) in the USA that draws upon mBanking deployment successes in low-income countries. The research investigates mBanking adoption at a large (over 24,000 students) university in the southeast United States, with plans to collect data from low-income countries (Ghana, Kenya, and Ethiopia). The completed study will compare the results from the USA to those in low-income countries with a view to developing a theoretical framework that compares US adoption patterns to those in low-income countries. The paper has three objectives: identification of the core mBanking features evidenced in the dominant mBanking solutions within low-income countries, identification of a theoretical framework for mBanking use, and an empirical study to understand the adoption of mBanking in the US as contrasted to its adoption in the low-income countries. We borrow from Internet banking studies and adapt a theoretical framework for mBanking use. We conduct surveys and interviews to empirically test our theoretical model. We identify common mBanking features from solution providers in low-income countries and apply it to our target population in the US. In January 2011 the United States’ Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), as a major part of its economic inclusion campaign to reach out to the unbanked and under-banked communities, sponsored nine banks to launch economic inclusion program for the seventeen million unbanked and forty-three million under-banked residents in the United States (Corporation 2011). Students are part of these sixty million people that make up the unbanked and under-banked US residents. Students aren’t building the credit history needed to get loans and often are unable to take advantage of the less costly forms of financial products. There are similarities between low-income countries and the unbanked and under-banked communities in the US. Hence, this study looks at common mBanking features in low - income countries and tests to see their likely adoption in the US

In vitro antimicrobial activity of fermented spices and Capsicum Frutescens against multi drug resistance clinical isolate and standard reference bacteria

Introduction: Food preservation is required to maintain for a long period of time. Traditional organic food preservative, “Datta” is spice mainly made up of Chili Peppers which frequently used in southern and western part of Ethiopia. Datta can be consumed almost with every kind of foods and it is believed as appetizer and antimicrobial agent against food borne pathogen. This study aimed to assess in vitro antimicrobial activity of fermented condiment and Capsicum frutescens against multi drug resistance clinical isolate and standard reference bacteria.Method: Datta samples collected from different level hotels and Capsicum frutescens (Chili peppers) were extractedin different solvents.Agar well diffusion assay was used to determine antimicrobial activity and minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimum bactericidal concentration was determined by tube dilution method. One way analysis of variant was used in comparison of the finding.Results: Extracted fermented condiment (Datta) sample and Chili Pepper showed antimicrobial activities against multidrug resistant clinical isolate and standard reference bacteria in well diffusion assay. Datta extract showed MIC ranged from 25 mg/L to 66.7 mg/L and MBC ranged from 25 mg/L to 100 mg/L. The Datta and Chili pepper extracts showed high antimicrobial activities against standard Staphylococcus aureus. The water based extract of Datta sample were exhibited significantly low antimicrobial activities (P=0.000) as compared to the other extraction solvents.Conclusion: Water was weak extractor of active compounds having antimicrobial activities. Reference S. aureuswasmore susceptible organism while ATCC Salmonella enteritidis and clinical isolated multi-drug resistant E. coli less susceptible. The traditional use of fermented condiment for food preservation by the local people is supported by this study.Key words: Antimicrobial activity; Chili Pepper extract; Fermented condiment; Minimum bactericidal concentration; Minimum inhibition contractionActivite antimicrobienne en vitro d'epices fermentees et de fruits de capsicume pour la resistance aux medicaments isolate clinique et bacteries de reference standardIntroduction: La conservation des aliments est nécessaire pour maintenir pendant une longue période de temps. Conservateur de nourriture organiqu et raditionnel, "Datta" est l'épicé compose principalement de Chili Peppers qui fréquemment utilize dans le sud et l'ouest de l'Ethiopie. Datta peu têtre consommé presque avec toutes sortes d'aliments et on le croit comme un apéritif et un agent antimicrobien contre l'agent pathogène alimentaire. Cette etude visait à évaluer l'activité antimicrobienne in vitro du condiment fermenté et Capsicum frutescens contre l'isolement clinique de résistance aux médicaments multiples et les bactéries de référence standard.Méthode: Les échantillons de Datta prélevés dans des hôtels de différents niveaux et Capsicum frutescens (Chili Peppers) ont été extraits dans différents solvants. Un dosage de diffusion de puits a été utilisé pour determiner l'activité antimicrobienne et la concentration inhibitrice minimale (MIC) et la concentration bactericide minimale a été determine par la méthode de dilution du tube. Une analyse à sens unique de la variante a été utilisée en comparaison de la découverte.Résultats: L'échantillon extrait de condiments fermentés (Datta) et Chili Pepper ont montré des activités antimicrobiennes contre l'isolement Clinique résistant aux médicaments multiples et les bactéries de référence standard dans le dosage par diffusion de puits. L'extrait de Datta a montréque le MIC variait de 25 mg / L à 66,7 mg / L et le MBC variait de 25 mg / L à 100 mg / L. Les extraits de poisson de Datta et de Chili ont montré des activités antimicrobiennes élevées contre Staphylococcus aureus standard. L'extrait à base d'eau de l'échantillon de Datta a montré des activités antimicrobiennes significativement faibles (P = 0,000) par rapport aux autres solvants d'extraction.Conclusion: L'eauétaitun extracteur faible de composes actifs ayant des activités antimicrobiennes. Référence S. aureus était un organisme plus susceptible tandisque ATCC Salmonella enteritidis et E.coli. E. coli résistant aux médicaments multiples isolés était moins susceptible. L'utilisation traditionnelle du condiment fermenté pour la conservation des aliments par les populations locales est soutenue par cette étude.Mots clés: Activitéantimicrobienne; Extrait de poivre de piment; Condiment fermenté; Concentration bactéricide minimum; Contraction minimaled'inhibitio

Multiple effects of silymarin on the hepatitis C virus lifecycle

Silymarin, an extract from milk thistle (Silybum marianum), and its purified flavonolignans have been recently shown to inhibit hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection, both in vitro and in vivo. In the current study, we further characterized silymarin's antiviral actions. Silymarin had antiviral effects against hepatitis C virus cell culture (HCVcc) infection that included inhibition of virus entry, RNA and protein expression, and infectious virus production. Silymarin did not block HCVcc binding to cells but inhibited the entry of several viral pseudoparticles (pp), and fusion of HCVpp with liposomes. Silymarin but not silibinin inhibited genotype 2a NS5B RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp) activity at concentrations 5 to 10 times higher than required for anti-HCVcc effects. Furthermore, silymarin had inefficient activity on the genotype 1b BK and four 1b RDRPs derived from HCV-infected patients. Moreover, silymarin did not inhibit HCV replication in five independent genotype 1a, 1b, and 2a replicon cell lines that did not produce infectious virus. Silymarin inhibited microsomal triglyceride transfer protein activity, apolipoprotein B secretion, and infectious virion production into culture supernatants. Silymarin also blocked cell-to-cell spread of virus. CONCLUSION: Although inhibition of in vitro NS5B polymerase activity is demonstrable, the mechanisms of silymarin's antiviral action appear to include blocking of virus entry and transmission, possibly by targeting the host cell

Associations of cognitive reserve and psychological resilience with cognitive functioning in subjects with cerebral white matter hyperintensities

Background and purpose Cerebral small vessel disease is characterized by progressive white matter hyperintensities (WMH) and cognitive decline. However, variability exists in how individuals maintain cognitive capabilities despite significant neuropathology. The relationships between individual cognitive reserve, psychological resilience and cognitive functioning were examined in subjects with varying degrees of WMH. Methods In the Helsinki Small Vessel Disease Study, 152 subjects (aged 65-75 years) underwent a comprehensive neuropsychological assessment, evaluation of subjective cognitive complaints and brain magnetic resonance imaging with volumetric WMH evaluation. Cognitive reserve was determined by education (years) and the modified Cognitive Reserve Scale (mCRS). Psychological resilience was evaluated with the Resilience Scale 14. Results The mCRS total score correlated significantly with years of education (r = 0.23, p < 0.01), but it was not related to age, sex or WMH volume. Together, mCRS score and education were associated with performance in a wide range of cognitive domains including processing speed, executive functions, working memory, verbal memory, visuospatial perception and verbal reasoning. Independently of education, the mCRS score had incremental predictive value on delayed verbal recall and subjective cognitive complaints. Psychological resilience was not significantly related to age, education, sex, WMH severity or cognitive test scores, but it was associated with subjective cognitive complaints. Conclusions Cognitive reserve has strong and consistent associations with cognitive functioning in subjects with WMH. Education is widely associated with objective cognitive functioning, whereas lifetime engagement in cognitively stimulating leisure activities (mCRS) has independent predictive value on memory performance and subjective cognitive complaints. Psychological resilience is strongly associated with subjective, but not objective, cognitive functioning.Peer reviewe

The development of a business intelligence web application to support the decision-making process regarding absenteeism in the workplace

Nowadays, one of the biggest concerns of industries all over the world is situations regarding absenteeism, since it has a great impact on the productivity and economy of companies, as well as on the health of their employees. The major causes of absenteeism appear to be work accidents and sickness leaves, which lead to the attempt by companies of understanding how the workload is related to the health of their collaborators and, consequently, to absenteeism. Thus, this paper proposes the design and development of a Web Application based on Business Intelligence indicators in order to help the health and human resources professionals of a Portuguese company analyse the relation between absenteeism and the health and lifestyle of employees, with the intention of concluding whether the work executed on the company is harming workers’ health. Furthermore, it is intended to discover the principal motives for the numerous and more frequent absences in this company, so that it is possible to decrease the absenteeism rate and, hence, improve the decision-making process. This platform will also provide higher quality healthcare and the possibility to find patterns in the absence of collaborators, as well as reduce time-waste and errors.This work has been supported by FCT –Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia within the Project Scope: UID/CEC/00319/201

A New Approach for Designing Orthogonal Wavelets for Multicarrier Applications

yesThe Daubechies, coiflet and symlet wavelets, with properties of orthogonal wavelets are suitable for multicarrier transmission over band-limited channels. It has been shown that similar wavelets can be constructed by Lagrange approximation interpolation. In this work and using established wavelet design algorithms, it is shown that ideal filters can be approximated to construct new orthogonal wavelets. These new wavelets, in terms of BER behave slightly better than the wavelets mentioned above, and much better than biorthogonal wavelets, in multipath channels with additive white Gaussian noise (AWGN). It is shown that the construction, which uses a simple simultaneous solution to obtain the wavelet filters from the ideal filters based on established wavelet design algorithms, is simple and can easily be reproduced

Wheat rust epidemics damage Ethiopian wheat production: A decade of field disease surveillance reveals national-scale trends in past outbreaks.

Wheat rusts are the key biological constraint to wheat production in Ethiopia-one of Africa's largest wheat producing countries. The fungal diseases cause economic losses and threaten livelihoods of smallholder farmers. While it is known that wheat rust epidemics have occurred in Ethiopia, to date no systematic long-term analysis of past outbreaks has been available. We present results from one of the most comprehensive surveillance campaigns of wheat rusts in Africa. More than 13,000 fields have been surveyed during the last 13 years. Using a combination of spatial data-analysis and visualization, statistical tools, and empirical modelling, we identify trends in the distribution of wheat stem rust (Sr), stripe rust (Yr) and leaf rust (Lr). Results show very high infection levels (mean incidence for Yr: 44%; Sr: 34%; Lr: 18%). These recurrent rust outbreaks lead to substantial economic losses, which we estimate to be of the order of 10s of millions of US-D annually. On the widely adopted wheat variety, Digalu, there is a marked increase in disease prevalence following the incursion of new rust races into Ethiopia, which indicates a pronounced boom-and-bust cycle of major gene resistance. Using spatial analyses, we identify hotspots of disease risk for all three rusts, show a linear correlation between altitude and disease prevalence, and find a pronounced north-south trend in stem rust prevalence. Temporal analyses show a sigmoidal increase in disease levels during the wheat season and strong inter-annual variations. While a simple logistic curve performs satisfactorily in predicting stem rust in some years, it cannot account for the complex outbreak patterns in other years and fails to predict the occurrence of stripe and leaf rust. The empirical insights into wheat rust epidemiology in Ethiopia presented here provide a basis for improving future surveillance and to inform the development of mechanistic models to predict disease spread

The burden of neglected tropical diseases in Ethiopia, and opportunities for integrated control and elimination

Background: Neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) are a group of chronic parasitic diseases and related conditions that are the most common diseases among the 2·7 billion people globally living on less than US$2 per day. In response to the growing challenge of NTDs, Ethiopia is preparing to launch a NTD Master Plan. The purpose of this review is to underscore the burden of NTDs in Ethiopia, highlight the state of current interventions, and suggest ways forward. Results: This review indicates that NTDs are significant public health problems in Ethiopia. From the analysis reported here, Ethiopia stands out for having the largest number of NTD cases following Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Ethiopia is estimated to have the highest burden of trachoma, podoconiosis and cutaneous leishmaniasis in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), the second highest burden in terms of ascariasis, leprosy and visceral leishmaniasis, and the third highest burden of hookworm. Infections such as schistosomiasis, trichuriasis, lymphatic filariasis and rabies are also common. A third of Ethiopians are infected with ascariasis, one quarter is infected with trichuriasis and one in eight Ethiopians lives with hookworm or is infected with trachoma. However, despite these high burdens of infection, the control of most NTDs in Ethiopia is in its infancy. In terms of NTD control achievements, Ethiopia reached the leprosy elimination target of 1 case/10,000 population in 1999. No cases of human African trypanosomiasis have been reported since 1984. Guinea worm eradication is in its final phase. The Onchocerciasis Control Program has been making steady progress since 2001. A national blindness survey was conducted in 2006 and the trachoma program has kicked off in some regions. Lymphatic Filariasis, podoconiosis and rabies mapping are underway. Conclusion: Ethiopia bears a significant burden of NTDs compared to other SSA countries. To achieve success in integrated control of NTDs, integrated mapping, rapid scale up of interventions and operational research into co implementation of intervention packages will be crucial