An empirical study of cultural dimensions and e-government development: implications of the findings and strategies

We aim to examine whether national culture has an impact on e-government development. We used methods of correlation and multiple regression to analyse two sets of index: (1) Hofstede's cultural dimension index and (2) the e-government development index of the 2010 United Nations e-government survey. We found that there is a correlation to a various degree between e-governmental development and the cultural dimensions defined by Hofstede. Of the five cultural dimensions, we found that, individualism (i.e. the extent to which an individual is integrated into a group), power distance (i.e. the extent to which a society accepts the differences and inequalities in power distribution) and long-term orientation (i.e. the extent to which a culture programs its members to accept delayed satisfaction of their material, social and emotional needs) are significantly correlated with e-government development. The implications of the findings and the strategies proposed by this study could help governments and decision makers design and implement policies that take into account cultural factors to improve e-government services and their overall development. This study confirms and supports previous research and extends the scope of, and updates the results of, similar studies in the field.     

Motorcyclists’ speed and “looked-but-failed-to-see” accidents

Previous research on motorcycle crashes has shown the frequency and severity of accidents in which a non-priority road user failed to give way to an approaching motorcyclist without seeing him/her, even though the road user had looked in the approaching motorcycle's direction and the motorcycle was visible. These accidents are usually called “looked-but-failed-to-see” (LBFS) accidents. This article deals with the effects that the motorcyclist's speed has in these accidents. It is based on the in-depth study and precise kinematic reconstruction of 44 accident cases involving a motorcyclist and another road user, all occurring in intersections. The results show that, in urban environments, the initial speeds of motorcyclists involved in “looked-but-failed-to-see” accidents are significantly higher than in other accidents at intersections. In rural environments, the difference in speed between LBFS accidents and other accidents is not significant, but further investigations would be necessary to draw any conclusions. These results suggest that speed management, through road design or by other means, could contribute to preventing “looked-but-failed-to-see” motorcycle accidents, at least in urban environments.     

Distillation technology – still young and full of breakthrough opportunities

Throughout history, distillation has been the most widespread separation method. However, despite its simplicity and flexibility, distillation still remains very energy inefficient. Novel distillation concepts based on process intensification, can deliver major benefits, not just in terms of significantly lower energy use, but also in reducing capital investment and improving eco‐efficiency. While very likely to remain the separation technology of choice for the next decades, there is no doubt that distillation technology needs to make radical changes in order to meet the demands of the energy‐conscious modern society. This article aims to show that in spite of its long age, distillation technology is still young and full of breakthrough opportunities. Moreover, it provides a broad overview of the recent developments in distillation based on process intensification principles, for example heat pump assisted distillation (e.g. vapor compression or compression–resorption), heat‐integrated distillation column, membrane distillation, HiGee distillation, cyclic distillation, thermally coupled distillation systems (Petlyuk), dividing‐wall column, and reactive distillation. These developments as well as the future perspectives of distillation are discussed in the context of changes towards a more energy efficient and sustainable chemical process industry. Several key examples are also included to illustrate the astonishing potential of these new distillation concepts to significantly reduce the capital and operating cost at industrial scale. © 2013 Society of Chemical Industry     

Visual query interfaces for semantic datasets: An evaluation study

The rapid growth of the Linked Open Data cloud, as well as the increasing ability to lift relational enterprise datasets to a semantic, ontology-based level means that vast amounts of information are now available in a representation that closely matches the conceptualizations of the potential users of this information. This makes it interesting to create ontology based, user-oriented tools for searching and exploring this data. Although initial efforts were intended for tech users with knowledge of SPARQL/RDF, there are ongoing proposals designed for lay users. One of the most promising approaches is to use visual query interfaces, but more user studies are needed to assess their effectiveness. In this paper, we compare the effect on usability of two important paradigms for ontology-based query interfaces: form-based and graph-based interfaces. In order to reduce the number of variables affecting the comparison, we performed a user study with two state-of-the-art query tools developed by ourselves, sharing a large part of the code base: the graph-based tool OptiqueVQS*, and the form-based tool PepeSearch. We evaluated these tools in a formal comparison study with 15 participants searching a Linked Open Data version of the Norwegian Company Registry. Participants had to respond to 6 non-trivial search tasks using alternately OptiqueVQS* and PepeSearch. Even without previous training, retrieval performance and user confidence were very high, thus suggesting that both interface designs are effective for searching RDF datasets. Expert searchers had a clear preference for the graph-based interface, and mainstream searchers obtained better performance and confidence with the form-based interface. While a number of participants spontaneously praised the capability of the graph interface for composing complex queries, our results evidence that graph interfaces are difficult to grasp. In contrast, form interfaces are more learnable and relieve problems with disorientation for mainstream users. We have also observed positive results introducing faceted search and dynamic term suggestion in semantic search interfaces.     

Evaluation of 4-(4-Fluorobenzyl)piperazin-1-yl]-Based Compounds as Competitive Tyrosinase Inhibitors Endowed with Antimelanogenic Effects

There is a considerable attention for the development of inhibitors of tyrosinase (TYR) as therapeutic strategy for the treatment of hyperpigmentation disorders in humans. Continuing in our efforts to identify TYR inhibitors, we describe the design, synthesis and pharmacophore exploration of new small molecules structurally characterized by the presence of the 4-fluorobenzylpiperazine moiety as key pharmacophoric feature for the inhibition of TYR from Agaricus bisporus (AbTYR). Our investigations resulted in the discovery of the competitive inhibitor [4-(4-fluorobenzyl)piperazin-1-yl]-(3-chloro-2-nitro-phenyl)methanone 26 (IC₅₀=0.18 μM) that proved to be ∼100-fold more active than reference compound kojic acid (IC₅₀=17.76 μM). Notably, compound 26 exerted antimelanogenic effect on B16F10 cells in absence of cytotoxicity. Docking analysis suggested its binding mode into AbTYR and into modelled human TYR.     

A comprehensive meta-analysis on evidence of Mediterranean diet and cardiovascular disease: Are individual components equal?

Many studies have reported that higher adherence to Mediterranean diet may decrease cardiovascular disease (CVD) incidence and mortality. We performed a meta-analysis to explore the association in prospective studies and randomized control trials (RCTs) between Mediterranean diet adherence and CVD incidence and mortality. The PubMed database was searched up to June 2014. A total of 17 studies were extracted and 11 qualified for the quantitative analysis. Individuals in the highest quantile of adherence to the diet had lower incidence [relative risk (RR): 0.76, 95% confidence intervals (CI): 0.68, 0.83] and mortality (RR: 0.76, 95% CI: 0.68, 0.83) from CVD compared to those least adherent. A significant reduction of risk was found also for coronary heart disease (CHD) (RR: 0.72, 95% CI: 0.60, 0.86), myocardial infarction (MI) (RR: 0.67; 95% CI: 0.54, 0.83), and stroke (RR: 0.76; 95% CI: 0.60, 0.96) incidence. Pooled analyses of individual components of the diet revealed that the protective effects of the diet appear to be most attributable to olive oil, fruits, vegetables, and legumes. An average reduced risk of 40% for the aforementioned outcomes has been retrieved when pooling results of RCTs. A Mediterranean dietary pattern is associated with lower risks of CVD incidence and mortality, including CHD and MI. The relative effects of specific food groups should be further investigated.     

The sociology of technology before the turn to technology

This project recommences an underdeveloped conversation between the sociology of technology and classical sociology. There was a vibrant and consistent interest in technology among sociology's founders between Marx and Ogburn and revisiting this tradition is beneficial for contemporary sociological studies of technology. In addition to functioning as exemplars of excellence for the sociology of technology, classical sociology provides distinctive and important considerations and contributions, including: the potential benefits of borrowing technology (Veblen), the ecological influences on technological development and use (Cooley), the impact of technology on science (Mauss), and the rationalization of technology (Weber). Most importantly, classical sociology offers partial though unique frameworks for examining technology in society and vice versa, frameworks that are novel precisely because they are out of sync with recent trends.     

The influence of low- and high-linear energy transfers on some physical properties of poly(methyl-methacrylate) samples

Clear poly(methyl-methacrylate)—PMMA—dosimeter is widely used in food irradiations. Positron annihilation lifetime spectroscopy (PALS) is one of the unique tools used for studying free-volumes and open-volume type defects in solid media. The Vicker's microhardness measurements offer a simple and nondestructive tool for investigating the mechanical behavior of polymer materials. PALS as well as microhardness measurements were carried out for PMMA samples, irradiated with low- and high-linear energy transfers (LET). The low-LET irradiations were provided at lethal doses of gamma radiations for vegetative bacteria. Such irradiations showed a chain scission in the PMMA samples. High-LET irradiations showed behavior different from the low-LET ones. The observed behavior depends on the alpha particle fluence. The microhardness testing was carried out for virgin and irradiated PMMA samples at high-LET. A negative correlation was found between PALS measurements and microhardness results. The optical characteristics and structural studies for the virgin and irradiated PMMA samples were in agreement with the PALS and microhardness measurements. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2012     

Translational aspects of the modern genetics in head and neck cancers

Oral Cancer (OC) is one of the most recurrent cancers in the head and neck squamous cancer (SCCHN) category. Recently, the genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have gained growing interest in the scientific community. GWAS have identified several pathways involved in the interactions among general risk factors and genomic variants affecting SCCHN. This systematic overview aims to critically evaluate the latest data reported within the scientific literature. The aim was to investigate the impact of genetic aspects on SCCHN onset and prognosis, involving other clinical and systemic co-factors. PubMed, Google Scholar, and Cancer Genetics Web databases have been systematically investigated for original articles published in the last two years, reporting studies on the main queries addressed in this work. This review also comparatively describes the impact of environmental and pathological co-factors in different types of cancers, clarifying and updating the role of genetic factors in SCCHN onset and development. The main outcomes reported may be helpful to drive clinicians towards their clinical evaluations for the most appropriate therapeutic approach in SCCHN.