The octopus effect: when and who platform companies acquire

After their launch, Amazon, Apple, Airbnb, and Google, giant platforms of the digital economy, all followed a similar pattern. They quickly bought competing platform companies in their same market niche before growing tentacles through acquisitions in other sectors. Margherita Pagani, Milan Miric, and Omar El Sawy call this phenomenon “octopus effect” and wonder what the next evolutionary stage of platforms will be

The Rise of Human-Machine Collaboration: Managers’ Perceptions of Leveraging Artificial Intelligence for Enhanced B2B Service Recovery

This research analyzes managers’ perceptions of the multiple types of artificial intelligence (AI) required at each stage of the business-to-business (B2B) service recovery journey for successful human-AI collaboration in this context. Study 1 is an exploratory study that identifies managers’ perceptions of the main stages of a B2B service recovery journey based on human-AI collaboration and the corresponding roles of the human-AI collaboration at each stage. Study 2 provides an empirical examination of the proposed theoretical framework to identify the specific types of intelligence required by AI to enhance performance in each stage of B2B service recovery, based on managers’ perceptions. Our findings show that the prediction stage benefits from collaborations involving processing-speed and visual-spatial AI. The detection stage requires logic-mathematical, social, and processing-speed AI. The recovery stage requires logic-mathematical, social, verbal-linguistic, and processing-speed AI. The post-recovery stage calls for logic-mathematical, social, verbal-linguistic, and processing-speed AI

Severe growth hormone deficiency and pituitary malformation in a patient with chromosome 2p25 duplication and 2q37 deletion.

We report on a male child ascertained at 4.8 years of age with severe growth failure, growth hormone (GH) deficiency, psychomotor delay with prevalent speech impairment, and a distinct phenotype. An evaluation of his hypothalamic-pituitary region by Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) revealed pituitary hypoplasia with pituitary stalk interruption and ectopic posterior pituitary lobe, which are considered prognostic markers of permanent GH deficiency. Prenatal chromosome analysis because of increased nuchal translucency revealed a normal male karyotype, whereas postnatal high resolution banding raised the suspicion of a 2q abnormality. Subsequently, array Comparative Genomic Hybridization (array-CGH) revealed a de novo complex genomic rearrangement consisting of a 2p25 duplication and a 2q37 deletion: arr[hg19] 2p25.3p25.1(30,341-9,588,369)x3,2q37.2q37.3(235,744,424-243,041,305)x1. FISH analysis showed that the abnormal chromosome 2 mimicked the derivative of an inversion with the duplicated 2p region located distally at 2q. This is, to the best of our knowledge, the first case with distal 2p25 duplication and 2q37 deletion and pituitary malformation leading to GH deficiency

Level of agreement between frequently used cardiovascular risk calculators in people living with HIV

Objectives The aim of the study was to describe agreement between the QRISK2, Framingham and Data Collection on Adverse Events of Anti‐HIV Drugs (D:A:D) cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk calculators in a large UK study of people living with HIV (PLWH). Methods PLWH enrolled in the Pharmacokinetic and Clinical Observations in People over Fifty (POPPY) study without a prior CVD event were included in this study. QRISK2, Framingham CVD and the full and reduced D:A:D CVD scores were calculated; participants were stratified into ‘low’ ( 20%) categories for each. Agreement between scores was assessed using weighted kappas and Bland–Altman plots. Results The 730 included participants were predominantly male (636; 87.1%) and of white ethnicity (645; 88.5%), with a median age of 53 [interquartile range (IQR) 49–59] years. The median calculated 10‐year CVD risk was 11.9% (IQR 6.8–18.4%), 8.9% (IQR 4.6–15.0%), 8.5% (IQR 4.8–14.6%) and 6.9% (IQR 4.1–11.1%) when using the Framingham, QRISK2, and full and reduced D:A:D scores, respectively. Agreement between the different scores was generally moderate, with the highest level of agreement being between the Framingham and QRISK2 scores (weighted kappa = 0.65) but with most other kappa coefficients in the 0.50–0.60 range. Conclusions Estimates of predicted 10‐year CVD risk obtained with commonly used CVD risk prediction tools demonstrate, in general, only moderate agreement among PLWH in the UK. While further validation with clinical endpoints is required, our findings suggest that care should be taken when interpreting any score alone

“So what if ChatGPT wrote it?” Multidisciplinary perspectives on opportunities, challenges and implications of generative conversational AI for research, practice and policy

Transformative artificially intelligent tools, such as ChatGPT, designed to generate sophisticated text indistinguishable from that produced by a human, are applicable across a wide range of contexts. The technology presents opportunities as well as, often ethical and legal, challenges, and has the potential for both positive and negative impacts for organisations, society, and individuals. Offering multi-disciplinary insight into some of these, this article brings together 43 contributions from experts in fields such as computer science, marketing, information systems, education, policy, hospitality and tourism, management, publishing, and nursing. The contributors acknowledge ChatGPT’s capabilities to enhance productivity and suggest that it is likely to offer significant gains in the banking, hospitality and tourism, and information technology industries, and enhance business activities, such as management and marketing. Nevertheless, they also consider its limitations, disruptions to practices, threats to privacy and security, and consequences of biases, misuse, and misinformation. However, opinion is split on whether ChatGPT’s use should be restricted or legislated. Drawing on these contributions, the article identifies questions requiring further research across three thematic areas: knowledge, transparency, and ethics; digital transformation of organisations and societies; and teaching, learning, and scholarly research. The avenues for further research include: identifying skills, resources, and capabilities needed to handle generative AI; examining biases of generative AI attributable to training datasets and processes; exploring business and societal contexts best suited for generative AI implementation; determining optimal combinations of human and generative AI for various tasks; identifying ways to assess accuracy of text produced by generative AI; and uncovering the ethical and legal issues in using generative AI across different contexts

“So what if ChatGPT wrote it?”:Multidisciplinary perspectives on opportunities, challenges and implications of generative conversational AI for research, practice and policy

Transformative artificially intelligent tools, such as ChatGPT, designed to generate sophisticated text indistinguishable from that produced by a human, are applicable across a wide range of contexts. The technology presents opportunities as well as, often ethical and legal, challenges, and has the potential for both positive and negative impacts for organisations, society, and individuals. Offering multi-disciplinary insight into some of these, this article brings together 43 contributions from experts in fields such as computer science, marketing, information systems, education, policy, hospitality and tourism, management, publishing, and nursing. The contributors acknowledge ChatGPT’s capabilities to enhance productivity and suggest that it is likely to offer significant gains in the banking, hospitality and tourism, and information technology industries, and enhance business activities, such as management and marketing. Nevertheless, they also consider its limitations, disruptions to practices, threats to privacy and security, and consequences of biases, misuse, and misinformation. However, opinion is split on whether ChatGPT’s use should be restricted or legislated. Drawing on these contributions, the article identifies questions requiring further research across three thematic areas: knowledge, transparency, and ethics; digital transformation of organisations and societies; and teaching, learning, and scholarly research. The avenues for further research include: identifying skills, resources, and capabilities needed to handle generative AI; examining biases of generative AI attributable to training datasets and processes; exploring business and societal contexts best suited for generative AI implementation; determining optimal combinations of human and generative AI for various tasks; identifying ways to assess accuracy of text produced by generative AI; and uncovering the ethical and legal issues in using generative AI across different contexts

Depression, lifestyle factors and cognitive function in people living with HIV and comparable HIV-negative controls

We investigated whether differences in cognitive performance between people living with HIV (PLWH) and comparable HIV-negative people were mediated or moderated by depressive symptoms and lifestyle factors. METHODS: A cross-sectional study of 637 'older' PLWH aged ≥ 50 years, 340 'younger' PLWH aged < 50 years and 276 demographically matched HIV-negative controls aged ≥ 50 years enrolled in the Pharmacokinetic and Clinical Observations in People over Fifty (POPPY) study was performed. Cognitive function was assessed using a computerized battery (CogState). Scores were standardized into Z-scores [mean = 0; standard deviation (SD) = 1] and averaged to obtain a global Z-score. Depressive symptoms were evaluated via the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9). Differences between the three groups and the effects of depression, sociodemographic factors and lifestyle factors on cognitive performance were evaluated using median regression. All analyses accounted for age, gender, ethnicity and level of education. RESULTS: After adjustment for sociodemographic factors, older and younger PLWH had poorer overall cognitive scores than older HIV-negative controls (P < 0.001 and P = 0.006, respectively). Moderate or severe depressive symptoms were more prevalent in both older (27%; P < 0.001) and younger (21%; P < 0.001) PLWH compared with controls (8%). Depressive symptoms (P < 0.001) and use of hashish (P = 0.01) were associated with lower cognitive function; alcohol consumption (P = 0.02) was associated with better cognitive scores. After further adjustment for these factors, the difference between older PLWH and HIV-negative controls was no longer significant (P = 0.08), while that between younger PLWH and older HIV-negative controls remained significant (P = 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: Poorer cognitive performances in PLWH compared with HIV-negative individuals were, in part, mediated by the greater prevalence of depressive symptoms and recreational drug use reported by PLWH

Gaia Early Data Release 3: Structure and properties of the Magellanic Clouds

We compare the Gaia DR2 and Gaia EDR3 performances in the study of the Magellanic Clouds and show the clear improvements in precision and accuracy in the new release. We also show that the systematics still present in the data make the determination of the 3D geometry of the LMC a difficult endeavour; this is at the very limit of the usefulness of the Gaia EDR3 astrometry, but it may become feasible with the use of additional external data. We derive radial and tangential velocity maps and global profiles for the LMC for the several subsamples we defined. To our knowledge, this is the first time that the two planar components of the ordered and random motions are derived for multiple stellar evolutionary phases in a galactic disc outside the Milky Way, showing the differences between younger and older phases. We also analyse the spatial structure and motions in the central region, the bar, and the disc, providing new insights into features and kinematics. Finally, we show that the Gaia EDR3 data allows clearly resolving the Magellanic Bridge, and we trace the density and velocity flow of the stars from the SMC towards the LMC not only globally, but also separately for young and evolved populations. This allows us to confirm an evolved population in the Bridge that is slightly shift from the younger population. Additionally, we were able to study the outskirts of both Magellanic Clouds, in which we detected some well-known features and indications of new ones

A first update on mapping the human genetic architecture of COVID-19

peer reviewe

The Gaia mission

Gaia is a cornerstone mission in the science programme of the EuropeanSpace Agency (ESA). The spacecraft construction was approved in 2006, following a study in which the original interferometric concept was changed to a direct-imaging approach. Both the spacecraft and the payload were built by European industry. The involvement of the scientific community focusses on data processing for which the international Gaia Data Processing and Analysis Consortium (DPAC) was selected in 2007. Gaia was launched on 19 December 2013 and arrived at its operating point, the second Lagrange point of the Sun-Earth-Moon system, a few weeks later. The commissioning of the spacecraft and payload was completed on 19 July 2014. The nominal five-year mission started with four weeks of special, ecliptic-pole scanning and subsequently transferred into full-sky scanning mode. We recall the scientific goals of Gaia and give a description of the as-built spacecraft that is currently (mid-2016) being operated to achieve these goals. We pay special attention to the payload module, the performance of which is closely related to the scientific performance of the mission. We provide a summary of the commissioning activities and findings, followed by a description of the routine operational mode. We summarise scientific performance estimates on the basis of in-orbit operations. Several intermediate Gaia data releases are planned and the data can be retrieved from the Gaia Archive, which is available through the Gaia home page. http://www.cosmos.esa.int/gai