Initial algebra for a system of right-linear functors

In 2003 we showed that right-linear systems of equations over regular expressions, when interpreted in a category of trees, have a solution when ever they enjoy a specific property that we called hierarchicity and that is instrumental to avoid critical mutual recursive definitions. In this note, we prove that a right-linear system of polynomial endofunctors on a cocartesian monoidal closed category which enjoys parameterized left list arithmeticity, has an initial algebra, provided it satisfies a property similar to hierarchicity

Telling It Like It Is: Oral Presentations and Peer Assessment for Business Law Students

As academics, we are constantly encouraged to devise assessment tasks that engage students. Much research has been conducted into devising assessment that is for learning, rather than of learning. In three business law units over the past three years, one assessment task that has been utilised is that of an oral presentation which is assessed by the presenter’s peers, and in some cases, by the tutor as well. One of the reasons this method of assessment was chosen was that having to assess your peers and be assessed by them is a realistic mode of assessment since in working environments, many of us have to present in a group and may be assessed, formally or informally, by our peers. Assessing someone else can also be one of the best ways of learning about ourselves. This paper reflects on the research with regard to peer assessment as both a formative and a summative assessment tool. It observes how the peer assessment tasks in Curtin Law School have been informed by research, and concludes that overall, peer assessment is positive for student learning, provided that it is utilised within certain well-defined parameters. It is hoped that this paper will lead to further investigation into developing a peer assessment approach that can be applied to engage students across many disciplines

Mixture of Topic Modeling and Network Analysis. The case-study of climate change on Twitter

The paper proposes a semi-automatic labeling of topics extracted with a Topic Model using the tools of Social Network Analysis. The aim is to attach a label to every topic studying the terms-topics network structure. This method performs a semi-automatic topics labelling by using Latent Dirichlet Allocation model, integrating the network approach with topic generative model. LDA allows to extract latent topics and Social Network Analysis' tools permit to delineate the neighborhood of each topic, fostering a stronger interpretation of the meanings of the topics through the analysis of the extracted topics and documents' terms. To better show the joint use of Topic Model and Network Analysis, we present a case-study of how young people feel the climate change through the messages of user @Fridays4future extracted by International Fridays For Future Twitter account

3-Way Doherty Power Amplifiers: Design Guidelines and MMIC Implementation at 28 GHz

This article presents the design strategy and the implementation of a three-way Doherty power amplifier (DPA3W) to enhance the efficiency at deep power back-off. Theoretical design equations are derived, based on which design charts are drawn to explore the available design space, accounting for practical constraints related to the available technology and selected application. The proposed design strategy is demonstrated by the design, fabrication and experimental characterization of a three-way multistage Doherty amplifier optimized for efficiency peaks at 6 and 12 dB back-off. The amplifier is realized on the WIN Semiconductors 150 nm GaN-SiC high-electron-mobility transistor (HEMT) monolithic process at 28 GHz, targeting 5G applications. The prototype achieves saturated output power in excess of 34 dBm and power added efficiency of the order of 15% from 6 to 12 dB back-off, demonstrating competitive performance and a good agreement between simulations and measurements, thus validating the approach

Knowledge Transfer in Doctoral Education During the Pandemic Time: An Exploratory Study of the PhD Students’ Experiences

The research aims to explore how PhD students interacted with professors and peers and transferred knowledge during pandemic time. We firstly aim to provide an overview of communication media used by students, as well as to classify them for different kinds, social presence, and media richness. Furthermore, our research also aims to explore how doctoral students took their courses by interacting with professors and with peers, in terms of learning (KT) and social exchange relations (LMX, TMX, POS), through online learning platforms and communication media. We conducted exploratory research on 25 PhD students from 5 Italian PhD Programs in ‘economic and statistical sciences’ area. Data was collected through (a) the focus group interview with PhD students for collecting their opinions and experiences on the usage of media for communicating with professors and peers and (b) an online questionnaire aimed to measure their experiences or perceptions on technology usage and social relations. Results shown that PhD students used e-learning platform for communicating with peers and professors, so developing good social relations -even at a distance- which have encouraged knowledge transfer among them

Disentangling capabilities for industry 4.0 - an information systems capability perspective

Digital technologies revolutionise the manufacturing industry by connecting the physical and digital worlds. The resulting paradigm shift, referred to as Industry 4.0, impacts manufacturing processes and business models. While the ‘why’ and ‘what’ of Industry 4.0 have been extensively researched, the ‘how’ remains poorly understood. Manufacturers struggle with exploiting Industry 4.0’s full potential as a holistic understanding of required Information Systems (IS) capabilities is missing. To foster such understanding, we present a holistic IS capability framework for Industry 4.0, including primary and support capabilities. After developing the framework based on a structured literature review, we refined and evaluated it with ten Industry 4.0 experts from research and practice. We demonstrated its use with a German machinery manufacturer. In sum, we contribute to understanding and analysing IS capabilities for Industry 4.0. Our work serves as a foundation for further theorising on Industry 4.0 and for deriving theory-led design recommendations for manufacturers

Spider surgical system versus multiport laparoscopic surgery. Performance comparison on a surgical simulator

BACKGROUND: The rising interest towards minimally invasive surgery has led to the introduction of laparo-endoscopic single site (LESS) surgery as the natural evolution of conventional multiport laparoscopy. However, this new surgical approach is hampered with peculiar technical difficulties. The SPIDER surgical system has been developed in the attempt to overcome some of these challenges. Our study aimed to compare standard laparoscopy and SPIDER technical performance on a surgical simulator, using standardized tasks from the Fundamentals of Laparoscopic Surgery (FLS). METHODS: Twenty participants were divided into two groups based on their surgical laparoscopic experience: 10 PGY1 residents were included in the inexperienced group and 10 laparoscopists in the experienced group. Participants performed the FLS pegboard transfers task and pattern cutting task on a laparoscopic box trainer. Objective task scores and subjective questionnaire rating scales were used to compare conventional laparoscopy and SPIDER surgical system. RESULTS: Both groups performed significantly better in the FLS scores on the standard laparoscopic simulator compared to the SPIDER. Inexperienced group: Task 1 scores (median 252.5 vs. 228.5; p = 0.007); Task 2 scores (median 270.5 vs. 219.0; p = 0.005). Experienced group: Task 1 scores (median 411.5 vs. 309.5; p = 0.005); Task 2 scores (median 418.0 vs. 331.5; p = 0.007). Same aspects were highlighted for the subjective evaluations, except for the inexperienced surgeons who found both devices equivalent in terms of ease of use only in the peg transfer task. CONCLUSIONS: Even though the SPIDER is an innovative and promising device, our study proved that it is more challenging than conventional laparoscopy in a population with different degrees of surgical experience. We presume that a possible way to overcome such challenges could be the development of tailored training programs through simulation methods. This may represent an effective way to deliver training, achieve mastery and skills and prepare surgeons for their future clinical experience

Fear of COVID-19, depression, anxiety, and their association with Internet addiction disorder in a sample of Italian students

Abstract Background The 2019 Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has led to a worldwide lockdown which has obliged people to stay confined at home, often resulting in social distancing measures and isolation, which can lead to mental health problems as well as to specific Internet-use disorders. This study aims to investigate fear of COVID-19, anxiety, and depression symptoms, and their impact on Internet addiction disorder, modeled as intrapersonal conflicts and interpersonal conflicts, during the COVID-19 epidemic. Method An online questionnaire was administered to 454 Italian students during the first national lockdown. All the recruited participants completed measures including the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress (DASS-21 ), Fear of COVID-19, and Internet addiction . Results The results of the present study demonstrated that fear of COVID-19 was associated with Internet addiction disorder, and fear of COVID-19 mediated the relationship between anxiety and Internet addiction disorder. Finally, controlling for covariates (age and gender), fear of COVID-19 was linked to Internet addiction disorder. Limitations Limitations include the cross-sectional research design and reliance on data exclusively from Italy. Conclusions Results are discussed in the framework of the Interaction-Person-Affect-Cognition-Execution (I-PACE) conceptualization of affective and cognitive responses as strategies for explicating the psycho-pathology of excessive Internet use

Knowledge management in virtual community: some implications in COVID-19 pandemic

To reduce the COVID-19 contagion, the organizations have had to implement new organizational models based on the technology intensive, social distance and the reduction of face-to-face contacts. These conditions have led to the creation of virtual communities. A Virtual Community (VC) can be defined as a social entity which, using ICT, allows the sharing and transfer of knowledge between members of the community, bridging the geographical distance. VC are based on a Human-Device-Human interaction. For this reason, VC are based on the continuous and active participation of members, a rapid access to shared knowledge and reciprocity of information. Also in the healthcare sector, there has been the creation of VC. A VC in the healthcare sector aims to share knowledge related to the delivery of health services, provide support and discuss problems related to health and treatment, share documents and consult doctors. Few studies have focused on the VC in the healthcare sector, from the perspective of knowledge management. This study aims to identify and understand the elements of the VC in the healthcare sector. An explorative-qualitative methodology was used. Mobile applications (M-apps) created by public authorities in Italy were analyzed. The results highlighted that the VC, through the M-apps, is a complex system characterized by a reciprocal relationship between the members. Some aspects, such as trust and functionality of the M-app and speed of response, can allow the success of the virtual community. M-apps are a useful tool for KM and enable to support healthcare sector

Pro-Environmental Behaviors and Well-Being in Adolescence: The Mediating Role of Place Attachment

Adolescents represent the future generation, so it is important to pay attention to behaviors that involve them as actors in social activities and constitute the expression of an adequate growth path. Engaging in pro-environmental behaviors leads adolescents to do something good for themselves, for their own community, and for the place in which they live, and this type of conduct increases their levels of well-being and place attachment. This study examines the association between pro-environmental behavior and personal and social well-being in a sample of 1925 adolescents aged 14 to 20 years. Structural equation analyses showed a direct positive effect of pro-environmental behavior on personal and social well-being as well as place attachment. The latter partially mediated the relationship between pro-environmental behaviors and personal and social well-being. This study is significant in that it provides new data on how pro-environmental behaviors enhance adolescents’ personal and social well-being by potentially ensuring long-term benefits, thereby suggesting that it is important to stimulate, motivate, and recommend these kinds of action