Consume, Modify, Share (CMS): The Interplay between Individual Decisions and Structural Network Properties in the Diffusion of Information

Widely used information diffusion models such as Independent Cascade Model, Susceptible Infected Recovered (SIR) and others fail to acknowledge that information is constantly subject to modification. Some aspects of information diffusion are best explained by network structural characteristics while in some cases strong influence comes from individual decisions. We introduce reinvention, the ability to modify information, as an individual level decision that affects the diffusion process as a whole. Based on a combination of constructs from the Diffusion of Innovations and the Critical Mass Theories, the present study advances the CMS (consume, modify, share) model which accounts for the interplay between network structure and human behavior and interactions. The model's building blocks include processes leading up to and following the formation of a critical mass of information adopters and disseminators. We examine the formation of an inflection point, information reach, sustainability of the diffusion process and collective value creation. The CMS model is tested on two directed networks and one undirected network, assuming weak or strong ties and applying constant and relative modification schemes. While all three networks are designed for disseminating new knowledge they differ in structural properties. Our findings suggest that modification enhances the diffusion of information in networks that support undirected connections and carries the biggest effect when information is shared via weak ties. Rogers' diffusion model and traditional information contagion models are fine tuned. Our results show that modifications not only contribute to a sustainable diffusion process, but also aid information in reaching remote areas of the network. The results point to the importance of cultivating weak ties, allowing reciprocal interaction among nodes and supporting the modification of information in promoting diffusion processes. These results have theoretical and practical implications for designing networks aimed at accelerating the creation and diffusion of information

Avant-propos

Le deuxième numéro de la revue Argumentation et Analyse du Discours se propose de reprendre et de relancer sur des bases nouvelles un débat ancien, et pourtant toujours actuel : celui qui porte sur les relations entre argumentation et rhétorique. Une dissociation de fait semble s’être imposée aujourd’hui à travers le découpage des disciplines, où une coupure plus ou moins radicale s’est établie entre les historiens de la rhétorique  et les théoriciens de l’argumentation, mais aussi entre les..

Avant-propos

Le deuxième numéro de la revue Argumentation et Analyse du Discours se propose de reprendre et de relancer sur des bases nouvelles un débat ancien, et pourtant toujours actuel : celui qui porte sur les relations entre argumentation et rhétorique. Une dissociation de fait semble s’être imposée aujourd’hui à travers le découpage des disciplines, où une coupure plus ou moins radicale s’est établie entre les historiens de la rhétorique  et les théoriciens de l’argumentation, mais aussi entre les..

Argumentation et discours politique

Peut-on analyser le discours politique sans tenir compte de l’argumentation ? Chez Aristote, le discours délibératif, destiné à réguler la vie de la Cité, est au centre du dispositif rhétorique. Fondé sur l’exhortation et la dissuasion, il vise l’avenir en termes d’avantages et d’inconvénients. C’est en des termes similaires qu’on définit aujourd’hui la communication politique qui, en régime démocratique, tente de faire adhérer les destinataires aux choix politiques qui leur sont proposés (Ge..

Introduction : Y a-t-il des régimes de rationalité alternatifs ?

1. La question des régimes de rationalités : état des lieux La question des modes de rationalité qui président à la communication verbale est une question qui a fait couler beaucoup d’encre, et qui reste encore largement ouverte. La pluralité des façons de raisonner, et les incompréhensions mutuelles qui en résultent, posent des problèmes à la fois pratiques et théoriques. Elles possèdent des enjeux de taille, sur lesquels on reviendra plus loin. Ces questions sont explorées par diverses dis..

Abnormal Dosage of Ultraconserved Elements Is Highly Disfavored in Healthy Cells but Not Cancer Cells

Ultraconserved elements (UCEs) are strongly depleted from segmental duplications and copy number variations (CNVs) in the human genome, suggesting that deletion or duplication of a UCE can be deleterious to the mammalian cell. Here we address the process by which CNVs become depleted of UCEs. We begin by showing that depletion for UCEs characterizes the most recent large-scale human CNV datasets and then find that even newly formed de novo CNVs, which have passed through meiosis at most once, are significantly depleted for UCEs. In striking contrast, CNVs arising specifically in cancer cells are, as a rule, not depleted for UCEs and can even become significantly enriched. This observation raises the possibility that CNVs that arise somatically and are relatively newly formed are less likely to have established a CNV profile that is depleted for UCEs. Alternatively, lack of depletion for UCEs from cancer CNVs may reflect the diseased state. In support of this latter explanation, somatic CNVs that are not associated with disease are depleted for UCEs. Finally, we show that it is possible to observe the CNVs of induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells become depleted of UCEs over time, suggesting that depletion may be established through selection against UCE-disrupting CNVs without the requirement for meiotic divisions

Implementing a participatory model of micro health insurance among rural poor with evidence from Nepal

This paper reports on two voluntary, contributory, contextualised, community-based health insurance (CBHI) schemes, launched in Dhading and Banke (Nepal) in 2011. The implementation followed a four-stage process: initiating (baseline survey), involving (awareness generation and engaging community in benefit-package-design), launch (enrolment and training of selected community members) and post-launch (viable claims ratio, settled within satisfactory time, sustainable affiliation). Both schemes were successful on four key parameters: effective planning; affiliation (grew from 0 to ∼10,000) and renewals (>65 per cent); claims ratio (∼50 per cent); and promptness of claim settlement (∼23 days). This model succeeded in implementing CBHI with zero premium subsidies or subsidised health-care costs. The successful operation relied in large part on the fact that members trust that they can enforce this contract. Considerable insurance education and capacity development is necessary before the launch of the CBHI, and for sustainable operations as well as for scaling

A Guide to Enterotypes across the Human Body: Meta-Analysis of Microbial Community Structures in Human Microbiome Datasets

Recent analyses of human-associated bacterial diversity have categorized individuals into ‘enterotypes’ or clusters based on the abundances of key bacterial genera in the gut microbiota. There is a lack of consensus, however, on the analytical basis for enterotypes and on the interpretation of these results. We tested how the following factors influenced the detection of enterotypes: clustering methodology, distance metrics, OTU-picking approaches, sequencing depth, data type (whole genome shotgun (WGS) vs.16S rRNA gene sequence data), and 16S rRNA region. We included 16S rRNA gene sequences from the Human Microbiome Project (HMP) and from 16 additional studies and WGS sequences from the HMP and MetaHIT. In most body sites, we observed smooth abundance gradients of key genera without discrete clustering of samples. Some body habitats displayed bimodal (e.g., gut) or multimodal (e.g., vagina) distributions of sample abundances, but not all clustering methods and workflows accurately highlight such clusters. Because identifying enterotypes in datasets depends not only on the structure of the data but is also sensitive to the methods applied to identifying clustering strength, we recommend that multiple approaches be used and compared when testing for enterotypes

Analysis of gut microbial regulation of host gene expression along the length of the gut and regulation of gut microbial ecology through MyD88

BackgroundThe gut microbiota has profound effects on host physiology but local host-microbial interactions in the gut are only poorly characterised and are likely to vary from the sparsely colonised duodenum to the densely colonised colon. Microorganisms are recognised by pattern recognition receptors such as Toll-like receptors, which signal through the adaptor molecule MyD88.MethodsTo identify host responses induced by gut microbiota along the length of the gut and whether these required MyD88, transcriptional profiles of duodenum, jejunum, ileum and colon were compared from germ-free and conventionally raised wild-type and Myd88-/- mice. The gut microbial ecology was assessed by 454-based pyrosequencing and viruses were analysed by PCR.ResultsThe gut microbiota modulated the expression of a large set of genes in the small intestine and fewer genes in the colon but surprisingly few microbiota-regulated genes required MyD88 signalling. However, MyD88 was essential for microbiota-induced colonic expression of the antimicrobial genes Reg3β and Reg3γ in the epithelium, and Myd88 deficiency was associated with both a shift in bacterial diversity and a greater proportion of segmented filamentous bacteria in the small intestine. In addition, conventionally raised Myd88-/- mice had increased expression of antiviral genes in the colon, which correlated with norovirus infection in the colonic epithelium.ConclusionThis study provides a detailed description of tissue-specific host transcriptional responses to the normal gut microbiota along the length of the gut and demonstrates that the absence of MyD88 alters gut microbial ecology

Accessing humanities research in a digital environment

AbstractContract law co-exists with copyright law in the publishing world often blurring the lines between authors and publishers in the dissemination of scholarly research. Technology has further obscured the traditional publishing model creating complications for academics as uncertainties about access to their published research arise. The goal of authors in publishing their scholarly research is to make an impact, to contribute to the global discussion and to disseminate knowledge to others. Making research available through open access (OA) may assist with the increased circulation of research, thereby potentially increasing its impact. OA research is seemingly more accepted and developed as a publishing model in science, technology and medicine, but evidence suggests less so in the humanities. The development of digital humanities represents a potential means by which OA may become more widely accepted as a publishing model in the humanities in general. This paper explores the role of open access in scholarly publication, and its influence on publishing contracts and the copyright of authors