The Role of Affect in Service Encounter Satisfaction: An Experimental Study.

The objective of the dissertation was to address the influence of affect towards service provider on service encounter satisfaction. The following research questions were examined: (1) the impact of affect towards the service provider on perceived performance and satisfaction; (2) the relative influence of affective versus cognitive variables in explaining satisfaction with services; (3) the explanatory ability of the disconfirmation model of satisfaction within the context of services. An experimental study was designed to address the above questions. Two factors, affect towards the service provider labeled Evaluative Impression of the service provider and Interaction Style (one dimension of perceived performance) of the service provider were manipulated in a 3 (Positive Evaluative Impression, Negative Evaluative Impression and Neutral Evaluative Impression) x 2 (Positive versus Negative Interaction Style) design. The dependent variables of interest were Perceived Performance and Satisfaction with the service provided. The experimental stimuli were six videotapes, each of which showed a spokesperson introducing a hypothetical scenario and the proposed manipulations to the audience followed by an interaction between a doctor and a patient. A total of 198 students participated in six computer lab sessions, where they watched the videotape of the interaction and responded on the computer regarding their perceptions of the quality of care provided. A 3 x 2 full factorial MANOVA was performed on the experimental data. The results indicated that Interaction style had a major impact on the satisfaction with the physician. An interaction between Evaluative Impression and Interaction Style also achieved significance. To address the structural relationships among the model components, additional data was collected in two of the cells, positive evaluative impression/positive interaction style (The Affect Group) and neutral evaluative impression/positive interaction style (The Cognitive Group). The hypothesized relationships were tested using structural equations analysis. Results indicated that the Affect-Based Model of Service Encounter Satisfaction provides a better fit to the data compared to the Disconfirmation Model. The main limitations of the study are its artificial nature and high correlations found among measures of performance, disconfirmation and satisfaction. The positive influence of Evaluative Impression on perceived performance is suggested to have significant theoretical and managerial implications

Stigma perceived by family members of psychiatric patients attending outpatient department of a teaching hospital

Introductions: Stigma and unfavorable view of people towards mental illness is prevailing in Nepal due to lack of awareness. Stigma among family members of people with mental illness has a serious impact on the outcome. This study aims to identify the level of perceived stigma by family members and association with selected demographical variables. Methods: A cross-sectional research design was used to assess the stigma perceived by family members of patients visiting psychiatry outpatient department of Patan Hospital, Patan Academy of Health Sciences during 12 August to Sep 7, 2018. Questionnaire on socio-demographic variables and self-stigma of mental illness scale was used to interview the family members to assess the level of perceived stigma. Chi-square was used to examine the association between demographic variables and stigma, p < 0.05 was considered significant. Results: Out of 180 family interviewed 94 (52.2%) had perceived high level of stigma and 86 (47.8%) low level of stigma. There was significant association between age and perceived stigma (p value=0.030) at 95% of significance. Conclusions: More than half of the family members of psychiatric patients had perceived high level of stigma and was associated with the age. Keywords: family members, perceived stigma, psychiatric patien

Optimized DWT Based Digital Image Watermarking and Extraction Using RNN-LSTM

The rapid growth of Internet and the fast emergence of multi-media applications over the past decades have led to new problems such as illegal copying, digital plagiarism, distribution and use of copyrighted digital data. Watermarking digital data for copyright protection is a current need of the community. For embedding watermarks, robust algorithms in die media will resolve copyright infringements. Therefore, to enhance the robustness, optimization techniques and deep neural network concepts are utilized. In this paper, the optimized Discrete Wavelet Transform (DWT) is utilized for embedding the watermark. The optimization algorithm is a combination of Simulated Annealing (SA) and Tunicate Swarm Algorithm (TSA). After performing the embedding process, the extraction is processed by deep neural network concept of Recurrent Neural Network based Long Short-Term Memory (RNN-LSTM). From the extraction process, the original image is obtained by this RNN-LSTM method. The experimental set up is carried out in the MATLAB platform. The performance metrics of PSNR, NC and SSIM are determined and compared with existing optimization and machine learning approaches. The results are achieved under various attacks to show the robustness of the proposed work

ANTIOXIDANT AND ANTIPROLIFERATIVE POTENTIALS OF MARINE ACTINOMYCETES

Objective: The aim of present studyis to isolate and characterize a novel actinomycetes strain from marine sediments collected at Kakinada coast. To evaluate antioxidant and antiproliferative activities of the crude methanolic extract of isolated actinomycetes.Methods: Actinomycetes was isolated from marine sediments collected at Kakinada coast using starch casein agar. Morphological, biochemical and molecular characterization was performed and the crude methanolic extract was used for determination of in vitro antioxidant activity and antiproliferative activity against MDA-MB 231 breast cancer cells.Results: The crude methanolic extract exhibited significant antioxidant activity with IC­50­ value in the range of 30-46 µg/ml in different radical scavenging assays. Moreover, the extract showed concentration dependent cytotoxicity against triple negative breast cancer cell line, MDA-MB 231 with IC50 of 42.5µg/ml. The extract also inhibited cell proliferation with IC50 value 44.1 µg/ml probably by arresting cell cycle at S phase. The antioxidant activity of the extract was strongly correlated with cytotoxic and antiproliferative activity.Conclusion: The isolated marine actinomycetes can be the potential source of antioxidants with the anticancer property

A Case Report of Marfan Syndrome with Literature Review

Marfan syndrome(MFS) is a connective tissue disorder that affects multiple organ systems. Cardiovascular, ocular, and skeletal abnormalities are cardinal features of the syndrome. Its incidence is among the highest of any heritable disorder.Most patients who have Marfan syndrome are usually diagnosed incidentally when they present for a routine physical examination for various reasons. The purpose of this paper is to provide a review of the literature, as well as describe a 22-year-old male with MFS and right hydroureteronephrosis diagnosed incidentally when he attended our hospital for complaints of fever and right loin pain. This case report emphasizes importance of “Revised Ghent criteria” for the diagnosis of MFS and highlights various clinical signs of MFS

A case series of sarcomatoid transitional cell carcinoma of renal pelvis and collecting duct carcinoma of kidney

Sarcomatoid transitional cell carcinoma (TCC) of the renal pelvis and collecting duct carcinoma (CDC) of the kidney are rare types of malignant renal tumors with aggressive behavior. Here, we report a case series of these tumors, in males of age 65 years and 72 years, respectively. In both the cases, the left kidney was affected and they underwent the left-sided radical nephroureterectomy. Histologically, sarcomatoid TCC showed two components with invasive TCC and areas with spindle cells and osteoclastic type of giant cells. The immunohistochemistry showed diffuse positivity for CK7 and negativity for CK20 and p63 in both the components. CDC showed tubule-papillary patterns with marked desmoplasia. The patients were disease free after a follow-up of 12 months and 2½ years, respectively, without any adjuvant therapy

HYDROGEL: RESPONSIVE STRUCTURES FOR DRUG DELIVERY

Hydrogels are water-swollen 3D networks made of polymers, proteins, small molecules, or colloids. They are porous in structure and entrap/encapsulate large amounts of therapeutic agents and biopharmaceuticals. Their unique properties like biocompatibility, biodegradability, sensitivity to various stimuli, and the ability to be easily conjugated with hydrophilic and hydrophobic drugs with a controlled-release profile make hydrogels a smart drug delivery system. Smart hydrogel systems with various chemically and structurally responsive moieties exhibit responsiveness to external stimuli including temperature, pH, ionic concentration, light, magnetic fields, electrical fields, and chemical and biological stimuli with selected triggers includes polymers with multiple responsive properties have also been developed elegantly combining two or more stimuli-responsive mechanisms. This article emphasized the types, features, and various stimuli systems that produce responsive delivery of drugs

Reconstructing phase diagrams from local measurements via Gaussian processes: mapping the temperature-composition space to confidence

We show the ability to map the phase diagram of a relaxor-ferroelectric system as a function of temperature and composition through local hysteresis curve acquisition, with the voltage spectroscopy data being used as a proxy for the (unknown) microscopic state or thermodynamic parameters of materials. Given the discrete nature of the measurement points, we use Gaussian processes to reconstruct hysteresis loops in temperature and voltage space, and compare the results with the raw data and bulk dielectric spectroscopy measurements. The results indicate that the surface transition temperature is similar for all but one composition with respect to the bulk. Through clustering algorithms, we recreate the main features of the bulk diagram, and provide statistical confidence estimates for the reconstructed phase transition temperatures. We validate the method by using Gaussian processes to predict hysteresis loops for a given temperature for a composition unseen by the algorithm, and compare with measurements. These techniques can be used to map phase diagrams from functional materials in an automated fashion, and provide a method for uncertainty quantification and model selection

Achieving Equity: An Evaluation of a Multi-Component, Lower Division Student Success Program

The purpose of this study was to evaluate an academic support program that aims to improve persistence and graduation for lower-division students who are low income, first generation, and/or underrepresented. Students were organized in 10 academies that serve as a “school within a school” and have three main elements: a pathway of two linked general education courses that students follow, cohort-style, over four semesters; wraparound student services integrated into the classroom; and a 45-hour faculty development process. Program participants (n = 2,281) were compared to a matched comparison group (n = 2,276). Multimodal logistic regression analyses showed that program participants statistically significantly outperformed the comparison group on every outcome measure: GPA, completion of developmental coursework, persistence toward graduation, and graduation rates