Annex 14 : bulk data : policy implications (draft)

The term “bulk surveillance” is used to describe the collection and analysis of behavioral big data relevant to maintenance of law and order, broadly defined. Avoidance of detection by law breakers may be perceived as easier in virtual space when agents of the law are at a technological disadvantage. The focus of this paper is on the subset of big data known as transaction-generated data (also described as “data exhaust”) arising from the day-to-day behaviors of persons and the technological devices closely associated with them. What should the principles be with regard to bulk surveillance and uses of personal data

Job Satisfaction and Productivity of the Factory Offices of the Tea Plantation Sector in Sri Lanka

Ceylon Tea which is a world renown brand name celebrates the 150th year since the planting of the first tree by a British national in the Loolekandura Estate in the Central Hills of the country.  This research Paper is to analyze the Factory Employees’ Job Satisfaction and Productivity of the Sri Lankan Plantation Sector in Sri Lanka. Job Satisfaction and Productivity are widely spoken topics of the many other fields of the international forums and journals. Four hundred questionnaires were distributed among the Factory Officers of the Tea Estates. The response to four hundred questionnaires distributed among the factory employees, 370 were returned and the response rate was 92.5 percent. The data was analyzed by using descriptive analysis and structural equation methods. The findings show that job satisfaction has a significant positive impact on productivity

Impact of Management Styles on the Productivity (Perception) of Tea Plantation Sector in Sri Lanka

Topic of this research is very much up to date and need a solution to one of the burning issues of the Sri Lankan Plantation Sector.  There is limited literature available on the topic of this research impact of Management Styles on the Productivity of Plantation Sector in Sri Lanka. While going through the existing literature of the topic of this research, several variables pertaining to the issue has been explored.   The variables under scrutiny of this research are Management style as the independent variable and productivity as the dependent variable. Job Satisfaction plays the role of the mediating variable and Organizational Culture plays the role of moderating variable.  This conceptual frame work will enhance the body of knowledge existed so far, so that this research will be a launching pad for future research. Keywords: Management Styles, Productivity, Job Satisfaction, Organizational Culture

Perturbation of Dopamine Metabolism by 3-Amino-2-(4Ј- halophenyl)propenes Leads to Increased Oxidative Stress and Apoptotic SH-SY5Y Cell Death

ABSTRACT We have recently characterized a series of 3-amino-2-phenylpropene (APP) derivatives as reversible inhibitors for the bovine adrenal chromaffin granule vesicular monoamine transporter (VMAT) that have been previously characterized as potent irreversible dopamine-␤-monooxygenase (D␤M) and monoamine oxidase (MAO) inhibitors. Halogen substitution on the 4Ј-position of the aromatic ring gradually increases VMAT inhibition potency from 4Ј-F to 4Ј-I, parallel to the hydrophobicity of the halogen. We show that these derivatives are taken up into both neuronal and non-neuronal cells, and into resealed chromaffin granule ghosts efficiently through passive diffusion. Uptake rates increased according to the hydrophobicity of the 4Ј-substituent. More importantly, these derivatives are highly toxic to human neuroblastoma SH-SY5Y but not toxic to M-1, Hep G2, or human embryonic kidney 293 non-neuronal cells at similar concentrations. They drastically perturb dopamine (DA) uptake and metabolism in SH-SY5Y cells under sublethal conditions and are able to deplete both vesicular and cytosolic catecholamines in a manner similar to that of amphetamines. In addition, 4Ј-IAPP treatment significantly increases intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) and decreases glutathione (GSH) levels in SH-SY5Y cells, and cell death is significantly attenuated by the common antioxidants ␣-tocopherol, N-acetyl-L-cysteine and GSH, but not by the nonspecific caspase inhibitor N-benzyloxycarbonyl-Val-Ala-Asp-fluoromethyl ketone. DNA fragmentation analysis further supports that cell death is probably due to a caspase-independent ROSmediated apoptotic pathway. Based on these and other findings, we propose that drastic perturbation of DA metabolism in SH-SY5Y cells by 4Ј-halo APP derivatives causes increased oxidative stress, leading to apoptotic cell death. Oxidative stress in the central and peripheral nervous systems plays a significant role in neurodegenerative disorders, aging, and the toxicity of a large number of neurotoxins Numerous studies indicate that efficient uptake, biosynthetic conversion, and storage of catecholamines in vesicles are mandatory for proper functioning of catecholaminergic neurons. The vital proteins responsible, including vesicular H ϩ -ATPase (V-H ϩ -ATPase), cytochrome b 561 (b 561 ), dopamine-␤-monooxygenase (D␤M), and vesicular monoamine transporter (VMAT), have been well characterized (Beer

Study protocol of the YP Face IT feasibility study: Comparing an online psychosocial intervention versus treatment as usual for adolescents distressed by appearance-altering conditions/injuries

© Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. Introduction A significant number of adolescents suffer extensive and enduring difficulties such as social anxiety, body image dissatisfaction, low self-esteem and bullying as a result of conditions or injuries that affect their appearance (eg, craniofacial and skin conditions, treatment side effects and scarring). Evidence-based psychosocial interventions to meet their specific needs are currently lacking. YP Face IT, developed by the UK's Centre for Appearance Research in collaboration with clinical experts and young people, is an innovative online psychosocial intervention designed to offer this group immediate support, advice and coping strategies. It has been endorsed by young people, their parents/carers, GPs, clinical psychologists and health professionals working with those affected by appearance-related conditions. Methods and analysis Young people aged 12-17 with an appearance-altering condition/injury that self-identify as experiencing appearance-related distress, teasing or bullying will be invited to participate via GP practices and UK charities. Consenting participants will be randomised to the intervention (YP Face IT) or the treatment as usual (TAU) control group. Outcome measures will be completed by young people and their parents/carers at baseline, 13, 26 and 52â €..weeks. Primary outcome measures will be the Body Esteem Scale and the Social Anxiety Scale for Adolescents. Participants will complete other health-related outcome measures and resource use questionnaires for health economic analysis. We will assess recruitment rates, acceptability of the YP Face IT programme, adherence and retention to treatment, questionnaire completion rates, variation of TAU in Primary Care and the feasibility of GP practice staff supervising young people's use of YP Face IT. Ethics and dissemination This feasibility trial protocol (V.1, 3 March 2014), received a favourable ethical opinion from the NRES Committee South West-Frenchay (reference number 14/SW/0058). Findings will be disseminated through academic peer-reviewed publications, conferences and to participating GP practices and charities supporting those with conditions affecting appearance

Ferroelectric Nematic Droplets in their Isotropic Melt

The isotropic to ferroelectric nematic liquid transition had been theoretically studied over one hundred years ago, but its experimental studies are rare. Here we present polarizing optical microscopy studies and theoretical considerations of ferroelectric nematic liquid crystal droplets coexisting with the isotropic melt. We find that the droplets have flat pancake-like shapes that are thinner than the sample thickness as long as there is a room to increase the lateral droplet size. In the center of the droplets a wing shaped defect with low birefringence is present that moves perpendicular to a weak in-plane electric field, and then extends and splits in two at higher fields. Parallel to the defect motion and extension, the entire droplet drifts along the electric field with speed that is independent of the size of the droplet and is proportional to the amplitude of the electric field. After the field is increased above 1V/mm the entire droplet gets deformed and oscillates with the field. These observations led us to determine the polarization field and revealed the presence of a pair of positive and negative bound electric charge due to divergences of polarization around the defect volume

Observation of the Production of Three Massive Gauge Bosons at root s=13 TeV

The first observation is reported of the combined production of three massive gauge bosons (VVV with V = W, Z) in proton-proton collisions at a center-of-mass energy of 13 TeV. The analysis is based on a data sample recorded by the CMS experiment at the CERN LHC corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 137 fb(-1). The searches for individualWWW, WWZ, WZZ, and ZZZ production are performed in final states with three, four, five, and six leptons (electrons or muons), or with two same-sign leptons plus one or two jets. The observed (expected) significance of the combinedVVV production signal is 5.7 (5.9) standard deviations and the corresponding measured cross section relative to the standard model prediction is 1.02(-0.23)(+0.26). The significances of the individual WWW and WWZ production are 3.3 and 3.4 standard deviations, respectively. Measured production cross sections for the individual triboson processes are also reported

Search for a light pseudoscalar Higgs boson in the boosted mu mu tau tau final state in proton-proton collisions at root s=13 TeV

A search for a light pseudoscalar Higgs boson (a) decaying from the 125 GeV (or a heavier) scalar Higgs boson (H) is performed using the 2016 LHC proton-proton collision data at root s = 13 TeV, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 35.9 fb(-1), collected by the CMS experiment. The analysis considers gluon fusion and vector boson fusion production of the H, followed by the decay H -> aa -> mu mu tau tau, and considers pseudoscalar masses in the range 3.6 aa -> mu mu tau tau, down to 1.5 (2.0)x10(-4) for m(H) = 125 (300) GeV. Model-dependent limits on B(H -> aa) are set within the context of two Higgs doublets plus singlet models, with the most stringent results obtained for Type-III models. These results extend current LHC searches for heavier a bosons that decay to resolved lepton pairs and provide the first such bounds for an H boson with a mass above 125 GeV.Peer reviewe

Study of the motivation of teachers in Hong Kong

No other intervention can make the difference a skilful teacher can make in learning. A teacher may account for a variation of up to 30% in student achievement. However, in most western countries, teaching is in crisis, with many studies indicating high attrition among teachers. Therefore, there is an urgent need for further research to identify the attributes that make happy, committed teachers and enable informed interventions that can reverse this trend. Unlike western countries, the Hong Kong school context is characterised by strong inducements with high salaries, high social obligations and high academic achievement, as evidenced by its top five ranking in the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA). Consequently, an analysis of the attributes of Hong Kong teachers as predictors of desirable workplace outcomes offers a valuable opportunity to gain new insights for use in other countries. This thesis aimed to identify and develop a set of motivational attributes for teachers that can predict positive outcomes for job satisfaction, job self-concept and psychological well-being. These predictive attributes can guide further research, facilitate professional development, inform policymaking and guide interventions for the ongoing motivation of teachers. The thesis consists of three interrelated studies. Study 1 established a psychometrically sound set of attributes (Education motivation attribute profile [EdMAP]). Study 2 analysed the predictive relationship between EdMAP and the outcome measurements of job satisfaction, job self-concept and personal well-being at work, thus establishing the practical value of EdMAP attributes for predicting the desired outcomes. Study 3 used latent profile analysis to unearth any identifiable, practical and theoretically relevant latent profiles or profile-based subgroups within the teacher population that can guide professional development and policymaking. A sample of teachers from Hong Kong was administered an adapted version (for teachers) of the employee motivation attribute profile (EMAP) survey developed by Marsh et al. (1991). The instrument measured a broad range of motivation-related attributes using five items per attribute. The total useable sample was 896, with 34% males and 66% females. Study 1 found that each of the attributes used in the investigation was a valid and robust measure of the construct being measured. The data provided an excellent fit to the hypothesised a-priori factor structure (configuration of factor loadings, variances and covariance). Confirmatory factor analysis yielded an acceptable fit. An exploratory structural equation model with all 23 factors concurrently evaluated and loaded into the non-target factors yielded a comparative fit index/Tucker-Lewis index of 0.981/0.969. The results supported a previously hypothesised set of second-order factors consisting of global-leadership, global-goal orientation, global-variety, global-abstract thinking and global-interpersonal formulated by Marsh and McInerney (1991) with varying degrees of model fit. Study 2 found a predictive relationship between EdMAP attributes and the measured outcomes of job satisfaction, job self-concept and personal well-being at work. Considering the multicollinearity among the factors, the least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) regression technique identified a subset of factors that best predicted the outcomes. With β coefficients ranging up to 0.45, decisiveness, leadership, application and emotional control were found to predict most outcomes. Study 3 found that while most of the teachers were profiled based on the level of their attributes, there was a distinct group with differences in the profile. The four-class model unearthed a group that had very low values for routine and consultative behaviour and high values for variety, emotional control and career orientation. While the covariates of gender and grades taught did not have any effect on the probability of being in a specific class, the study found age-related changes in class probability. Further investigation is required to establish the significance of these changes. In conclusion, this thesis found that the EdMAP instrument is a psychometrically sound tool, confirming that the results from the Hong Kong sample are suitable to be baselined and used for future investigations into the motivation of teachers and other professions. The results of Study 2 indicated that predictive attributes such as leadership, emotional control and sociability should be targeted in professional development. Policies and interventions to increase leadership opportunities and create environments that encourage behavioural flexibility and group sociability are predicted to lead to higher job self-concept and psychological well-being. Study 3 indicated that there were subgroups within the teacher population that need to be targeted with specific interventions such as being change agents and early adopters