Privacy threats with retail technologies: A consumer perspective

This paper focuses on new retail technologies that acquire information from consumers, advancing that such devices represent privacy management concerns. Specifically, we propose that privacy perceptions in a retail environment are driven by retailer- and technology-related factors as well as consumers’ personality traits. By running a moderated serial mediation analysis, we address the technologies’ fairness and hedonism as antecedents of consumer privacy perceptions, technology acceptance and perceived value, and account for consumers’ trust in the retailer. We find that privacy perceptions are directly affected by distributive fairness, while the technology’s hedonism affects acceptance. Further, the effects extend to patronage intention and word-of- mouth

A qualitative comparative analysis (QCA) of satisfaction toward extreme sporting Events

We examine participant satisfaction in the context of extreme sporting events, where participants seek intense sensations but want to feel in control over the risky challenges. We combine two streams of literature scarcely related by previous studies, addressing both event-related and psychological attributes of extreme individuals. Because of the complex set of inter-relationships in which the investigated phenomena unfold, complexity theory tenets can provide a more accurate understanding of what generates extreme sport participants\u2019 satisfaction toward a sporting event. Applying this perspective, the present research determines the possible combinations that build strong participant satisfaction in the context of extreme sporting events. Through qualitative comparative analysis (QCA), we identify more possible \u201crecipes\u201d that contribute to high levels of satisfaction. Results suggest that attributes related to the event (trust, image, attitude) and attributes related to the psychology of extreme sport participants (sensation-seeking, perceived control) contribute jointly in all \u201crecipes\u201d. Furthermore, satisfaction can emerge for events despite low attitude if their image is strong and participants feel in control of the challenges

Competing during a pandemic? Retailers’ ups and downs during the COVID-19 outbreak

The COVID-19 pandemic (that started in early 2020) is causing several disruptions in the short- and mid-term, to which businesses have to adapt. Some retailers have reacted to the emergency immediately, displaying a plethora of different intervention types. The authors aim to synthesize the challenges that retailers are facing during the COVID-19 emergency. We do this from the perspective of both consumers and managers, with the goal of providing guidelines on and examples of how retailers can handle this unprecedented situation

A genomic glimpse of aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases in malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p><it>Plasmodium </it>parasites are causative agents of malaria which affects >500 million people and claims ~2 million lives annually. The completion of <it>Plasmodium </it>genome sequencing and availability of PlasmoDB database has provided a platform for systematic study of parasite genome. Aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases (<it>aaRS</it>s) are pivotal enzymes for protein translation and other vital cellular processes. We report an extensive analysis of the <it>Plasmodium falciparum </it>genome to identify and classify <it>aaRSs </it>in this organism.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Using various computational and bioinformatics tools, we have identified 37 <it>aaRS</it>s in <it>P. falciparum</it>. Our key observations are: (i) fraction of proteome dedicated to <it>aaRS</it>s in <it>P. falciparum </it>is very high compared to many other organisms; (ii) 23 out of 37 <it>Pf-aaRS </it>sequences contain signal peptides possibly directing them to different cellular organelles; (iii) expression profiles of <it>Pf-aaRSs </it>vary considerably at various life cycle stages of the parasite; (iv) several <it>PfaaRSs </it>posses very unusual domain architectures; (v) phylogenetic analyses reveal evolutionary relatedness of several parasite <it>aaRS</it>s to bacterial and plants <it>aaRSs</it>; (vi) three dimensional structural modelling has provided insights which could be exploited in inhibitor discovery against parasite <it>aaRSs</it>.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>We have identified 37 <it>Pf-aaRSs </it>based on our bioinformatics analysis. Our data reveal several unique attributes in this protein family. We have annotated all 37 <it>Pf-aaRSs </it>based on predicted localization, phylogenetics, domain architectures and their overall protein expression profiles. The sets of distinct features elaborated in this work will provide a platform for experimental dissection of this family of enzymes, possibly for the discovery of novel drugs against malaria.</p

fast measurement by infrared spectroscopy as support to woody biofuels quality determination

The increase in the demand for energy supply during the past few decades has brought and will bring to a growth in the utilisation of renewable resources, in particular of solid biomasses. Considering the variability in the properties of biomass and the globalisation of the timber market, a chemical and physical characterisation is essential to determine the biomass quality. The specific international standards on solid biofuels (ISO 17225 series) describe proper specification and classification of wood chip and pellet, to ensure appropriate quality. Moreover, standard requires information about origin and source of the biomass, normally only to be declared by the producers. In order to fulfill the requirements for the biomass quality, the origin and the source should be assessed, even if currently is hard to determine, in particular on milled or densified biomass. Infrared spectroscopy can provide information on the biomass at the chemical level, directly linked also to its origin and source. This technique is fast and not destructive thus suitable also for online monitoring along the biofuel production chain. In this study, 60 samples belonging to 8 different species were collected and related spectra were acquired using a Fourier transform infrared (IR) spectrometer equipped with a module for solid analysis and analysed by principal component analysis. The results obtained show that the method is very efficient in the identification between coniferous and deciduous wood (99% confidence level) and good results were obtained in the recognition of coniferous/deciduous mixtures, too. Nevertheless, some clear differences have been also noted among intra-class grouping, but additional tests should be carried out. This technique can provide useful information to solid biofuel stakeholders about wood quality and origin, important especially for sustainability issues. Further work will be oriented to the development of IR methodologies for the fast measurement of other important biomass parameters (e.g., ash content, high calorific value, nitrogen content, etc.)

Materials Cloud, a platform for open computational science

Materials Cloud is a platform designed to enable open and seamless sharing of resources for computational science, driven by applications in materials modelling. It hosts 1) archival and dissemination services for raw and curated data, together with their provenance graph, 2) modelling services and virtual machines, 3) tools for data analytics, and pre-/post-processing, and 4) educational materials. Data is citable and archived persistently, providing a comprehensive embodiment of the FAIR principles that extends to computational workflows. Materials Cloud leverages the AiiDA framework to record the provenance of entire simulation pipelines (calculations performed, codes used, data generated) in the form of graphs that allow to retrace and reproduce any computed result. When an AiiDA database is shared on Materials Cloud, peers can browse the interconnected record of simulations, download individual files or the full database, and start their research from the results of the original authors. The infrastructure is agnostic to the specific simulation codes used and can support diverse applications in computational science that transcend its initial materials domain.Comment: 19 pages, 8 figure

Uso de tecnologia de informação na Prefeitura Municipal de Palmeira das Missões

Neste artigo é retratado o uso da Tecnologia da Informação (TI) na Prefeitura Municipal de Palmeira das Missões. Sendo abordado a história e o conceito de TI, o conceito de sistemas de informação e a relação entre organizações públicas e TI. O objetivo desse estudo é pesquisar para que fins sejam utilizados a tecnologia de informação na prefeitura pelos servidores públicos, cargos de confiança e estagiários, além dos problemas enfrentados pelos mesmos no entendimento e utilização do sistema. Contudo foi realizada uma pesquisa exploratória, a partir da revisão da literatura, procurou-se elaborar um questionário e uma entrevista para serem aplicados na organização, trazendo resultados positivos e satisfatórios para a pesquisa. Assim, foi identificado que o sistema utilizado na organização é de caráter lento, mas, possui um layout considerado bom, sendo que, os usuários operantes do mesmo recebem treinamentos e cursos de especialização. Constatou-se que a prefeitura atualizará o sistema utilizado, com intuito de oferecer um suporte técnico maior à resolução das falhas que possam ocorrer, possibilitando uma melhor comunicação entre os setores.Palavras-chave:Tecnologia da Informação. Sistemas de Informação. Organizações Públicas. 

Sex-Related Disparities in Cardiac Masses: Clinical Features and Outcomes

Background. Cardiac masses (CM) represent a heterogeneous clinical scenario, and sex-related differences of these patients remain to be established. Purpose: To evaluate sex-related disparities in CMs regarding clinical presentation and outcomes. Material and Methods. The study cohort included 321 consecutive patients with CM enrolled in our Centre between 2004 and 2022. A definitive diagnosis was achieved by histological examination or, in the case of cardiac thrombi, with radiological evidence of thrombus resolution after anticoagulant treatment. All-cause mortality at follow-up was evaluated. Multivariable regression analysis assessed the potential prognostic disparities between men and women. Results. Out of 321 patients with CM, 172 (54%) were female. Women were more frequently younger (p = 0.02) than men. Regarding CM histotypes, females were affected by benign masses more frequently (with cardiac myxoma above all), while metastatic tumours were more common in men (p &lt; 0.001). At presentation, peripheral embolism occurred predominantly in women (p = 0.03). Echocardiographic features such as greater dimension, irregular margin, infiltration, sessile mass and immobility were far more common in men. Despite a better overall survival in women, no sex-related differences were observed in the prognosis of benign or malignant masses. In fact, in multivariate analyses, sex was not independently associated with all-cause death. Conversely, age, smoking habit, malignant tumours and peripheral embolism were independent predictors of mortality. Conclusions. In a large cohort of cardiac masses, a significant sex-related difference in histotype prevalence was found: Benign CMs affected female patients more frequently, while malignant tumours affected predominantly men. Despite better overall survival in women, sex did not influence prognosis in benign and malignant masses