Question, plan, data, Analysis, and Conclusion (QPDAC): A tutorial

Application of artificial intelligence: benefits and limitations for human potential and labor-intensive economy – an empirical investigation into pandemic ridden Indian industry

Significant differences prevail in human Stem Cell Research (hSCR) policy and patent protection of human Stem Cell based Inventions/Innovations (hSCI) among the countries. This study being an interdisciplinary one combined very different disciplines, i.e., human stem cell research, ethics/bioethics and IPR/patent. The laws and policies of Germany, Italy, Lithuania, Spain, UK and the USA are revisited. For the empirical investigation, thirty-one (31) experts on bioethics, life science and intellectual property law from sixteen (16) countries were inquired. Both the theoretical discussion and the empirical investigation (findings from the survey data analysis) comprised the Monograph. The techniques of derivation of human stem cells examined from the clinical, ethical and legal perspectives include: Human Embryonic Stem Cells (hESC) from the Inner Cell Mass (ICM) of the Blastocyst, Nuclear Transfer Embryonic Stem Cells (NT-ESC) / Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer (SCNT), Embryonic Stem Cells (ESC) from the blastomere cell of the pre-implantation stage embryo, Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells (iPSC) and Human Parthenogenetic Stem Cells (hpSC). Their “issued and pending” patents have been investigated. The hESC research being the most controvertial form of hSCR, “a definition of human embryo”and “how unethical” its destruction and use was expolored. The iPSC being the cleanest technology from the ethical perspective, was examined throughly. Adequacy of the patent system and patent related concerns for the hSCI are inquired. The study explored how incentive to invention/innovation can be offered, access to therapies can be fostered and the ethical crisis can be handled better.The conclusions put forward certain ideas for the ethical hSCR, better IP protection of hSCI and fostering access to the therapy.

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to identify if the open Brazilian companies that have family control manage their accounting results in a negative way, and if this influence is in a positive sense of pushing the results down, that is, worsening their present profits due to future results. Design/methodology/approach – The empirical investigation is developed using as a sample 123 Brazilian companies listed on BM&FBovespa, totaling 1.353 observations for a period of 11 years (2000-2010). Data analysis is conducted by means of regression with panel data, method of ordinary least squares (OLS), and random effects. Findings – First, it was found that family-type companies show lower profits compared to profits earned by non-family companies. Nevertheless, it was observed that family businesses have negative discretionary accruals higher than those submitted by non-family firms, and that family control has a positive influence on this type of earnings management. Research limitations/implications – The ...

In recent years, several empirical investigations have suggested that female children in South Asia are more frequently undernourished than male children (Chen et al., 1980; 1981; Sen and Sengupta, 1983; das Gupta, 1987; Behrman, 1988), although there are a few counter-indications (Harriss, 1987). Schofield (1979, pp. 82–3) stated that ‘analysis of data from 94 Latin American villages showed that females aged 0–4 years fulfilled 87 per cent of their expected weight/age measurements compared with the 90 per cent level achieved by boys of the same age. The differences, as measured by the t-paired test, were found to be significant at the 0.5 per cent level.’ The evidence available on gender differences in nutrition and health in Sub-Saharan Africa is scant. The most comprehensive quantitative information has been published by Schofield (1979, p. 87). Her analysis of data from 11 African villages showed that adult males fulfilled 101 per cent of their estimated calorie requirement, while women only filled 96 per cent, but the difference was not statistically significant.

This study examines the causes of unethical behavior in the marketing of banking services in Nigeria. The study adopts a survey design and uses structured questionnaire to elicit information from respondents. It focuses on banks in the south-south and south-eastern regions of Nigeria. From each of the regions two state capitals were judgmentally selected. Ten out of the 24 banks currently operating in the country with branches within these regions were included in the study. Using Raosoft sample size calculator, a sample of 173 was drawn from the total staff strength of 313 of these banks’ 35 branches within the region. Inferential and descriptive statistics were applied in data analysis and results led to the conclusion that personal, organizational and societal factors play prominent roles in fostering unethical behavior in bank services marketing. The study therefore recommends a downward review of marketing targets for bank staff by the various bank boards of directors.

Research and development is an emerging competitive advantage to gain maximum market share. This study is conducted to empirically investigate the relationship between research and development intensity and firm performance in selected non-financial firms listed at Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX). Moreover, the role of ownership structure and board structure have been evaluated between predictor and outcome variable. For this purpose, 27 non-financial firms listed on PSX have been selected for the period of eight years from 2009 to 2016 and unbalanced panel data was obtained. Research and development intensity has been used as an independent variable. ROA, ROE, and TQ are used as measures of financial performance, i.e., dependent variable. Ownership concentration, institutional ownership, and managerial ownership are used as the proxies for ownership structure. Board size, board independence, and board meeting frequency are used as the proxies for board structure. Moreover, firm size, firm age and leverage have also been used as a control variables in data analysis. Based on data analyses, it is concluded that research and development intensity has a positive and significant relationship with all three proxies of firm performance, i.e., ROA, ROE and Tobin’s Q. Afterward, the researchers have investigated the moderating role of ownership structure and board structure between research and development intensity and three proxies of firm performance. It is also concluded that in general ownership structure as well as board structure are negatively moderating the relationship between research and development intensity and firm performance which raises a question mark on the effectiveness of corporate governance mechanism in terms of R&D performance.

This study provides an overview of the factors that influence the level of TOEFL graduation of English Study Program students in the Intensive TOEFL Training Program. The purpose of this study is to conduct an empirical investigation whether the factors variable affect the variable of TOEFL graduation level. The total populations in this study were 113 respondents. The data were collected through questionnaires. Data analysis was done by multiple regressions using SPSS version 22. The result showed that the factors simultaneously affect the level of TOEFL graduation.

“What data will show the truth?” is a fundamental question emerging early in any empirical investigation. From a statistical perspective, experimental design is the appropriate tool to address this question by ensuring control of the error rates of planned data analyses and of the ensuing decisions. From an epistemological standpoint, planned data analyses describe in mathematical and algorithmic terms a pre-specified mapping of observations into decisions. The value of exploratory data analyses is often less clear, resulting in confusion about what characteristics of design and analysis are necessary for decision making and what may be useful to inspire new questions. This point is addressed here by illustrating the Popper-Miller theorem in plain terms and using a graphical support. Popper and Miller proved that probability estimates cannot generate hypotheses on behalf of investigators. Consistently with Popper-Miller, we show that probability estimation can only reduce uncertainty about the truth of a merely possible hypothesis. This fact clearly identifies exploratory analysis as one of the tools supporting a dynamic process of hypothesis generation and refinement which cannot be purely analytic. A clear understanding of these facts will enable stakeholders, mathematical modellers and data analysts to better engage on a level playing field when designing experiments and when interpreting the results of planned and exploratory data analyses.

Inferential methods based on ranks present robust and powerful alternative methodology for testing and estimation. In this article, two objectives are followed. First, develop a general method of simultaneous confidence intervals based on the rank estimates of the parameters of a general linear model and derive the asymptotic distribution of the pivotal quantity. Second, extend the method to high dimensional data such as gene expression data for which the usual large sample approximation does not apply. It is common in practice to use the asymptotic distribution to make inference for small samples. The empirical investigation in this article shows that for methods based on the rank-estimates, this approach does not produce a viable inference and should be avoided. A method based on the bootstrap is outlined and it is shown to provide a reliable and accurate method of constructing simultaneous confidence intervals based on rank estimates. In particular it is shown that commonly applied methods of normal or t-approximation are not satisfactory, particularly for large-scale inferences. Methods based on ranks are uniquely suitable for analysis of microarray gene expression data since they often involve large scale inferences based on small samples containing a large number of outliers and violate the assumption of normality. A real microarray data is analyzed using the rank-estimate simultaneous confidence intervals. Viability of the proposed method is assessed through a Monte Carlo simulation study under varied assumptions.

Despite the robust literature on the nature of business models and their implications for firm performance, research on the organizational antecedents of business model innovations (BMIs) is still evolving. In this paper, we empirically examine the extent to which firm-level strategic agility predicts the adoption of three (value creation, value capture, and value proposition) types of BMIs. Furthermore, we propose that the relationship between firm-level strategic agility and BMI adoption is contingent on the degree of environmental turbulence. Finally, we explore the mediating role that BMI plays in the relationship between firm-level strategic agility and firm performance. Our analysis of data from 432 German firms in the electronics industry indicates that strategic agility is positively related to BMI and that this relationship is indeed strengthened by the degree of environmental turbulence. Additionally, our findings show that, while value proposition and value creation BMIs have positive relationships with firm performance, value capture innovation is negatively related to firm performance; these findings are contrary to our prediction. Finally, the results of our mediation tests indicate that BMI serves as an important intermediary mechanism through which firms' strategic agility contributes to superior firm performance.

Based on empirical investigation and analysis and big data analysis, this paper explores the information behavior characteristics, information behavior models and influencing factors of college students'consciousness state, and uses discrete geometry and MATLAB to collect and feature extraction of the collected college students'consciousness information data, and then use computer high calculation Forced to conduct multidimensional modeling and analysis of data, the efficiency of model display was increased by 7.3%, which provided a scientific reference for improving the information literacy and innovation ability of college students' mathematical modeling team.

The main objective of this study is to examine the contribution of career guidance in quality education in Harar and Woliso Technical and Vocational colleges. The sources of information were two purposefully selected guidance personnel, 190 students and 93 teachers who were randomly selected after stratification based on their fields of studies. Questionnaires were used as data gathering instruments. In the analysis of data, qualitative description of information from the open-ended questions and statistics such as frequency and percentage were used in the analysis of closed-ended questions. The results of the empirical investigation indicated a lack of policy at the institutional level, which is considered to be indispensable to the initiation and to sustain career guidance. Systematic career guidance and guidance programmes are lacking, and there is a scarcity of facilities that should have been set aside for career guidance. The personnel providing career guidance are not appropriately trained, and seldom received the opportunity to undergo in-service training. As a result, career guidance is not contributing to quality education as required. Finally, recommendations and suggestions for further investigation were made. Keywords: career guidance, career development, career education, quality education, TVET colleges.

This paper aims to explain why people are motivated to contribute to the Wikipedia project. A comprehensive analysis of the motivations of Wikipedians is conducted using the iterative methodology developed by Batya Friedman and Peter Kahn in Value Sensitive Design and Information Systems and co-developed by Nissenbaum and Friedman in Bias in Computer Systems . The Value Sensitive Design (VSD) approach consists of three stages: Empirical Investigation, Conceptual Investigation, and Technical Investigation. During the empirical phase, motivations of the contributors to Wikipedia are identified through analysis of data from two published surveys and a pilot survey conducted at New York University. The underlying values behind these motivations are then defined in the conceptual phase of the study. Finally, a technical investigation is conducted in order to determine how features of the Wiki technology support and facilitate these values.

Landmines are hazardous explosive devices that endanger lives and disrupt economies, finding and removing them requires specialized knowledge. To effectively find mines and pinpoint their whereabouts, a variety of technologies are available. However, most innovation should be utilized to benefit people and civilization in order to significantly increase its good impact at the detriment of its drawbacks. This paper’s goal is to emphasize the value of incorporating robotics, communication, and analysis of data into the field of landmine detection. It covers the methods that can help the autonomous robot find mines utilizing wireless camera and sensors. The suggested technology has the ability to fully operate the robot and conFigure the robot operator’s rights and restrictions. It can also save and preserve the printed statements and navigational outcomes in a separate database. Additionally, this method considerably lowers the hazard to human detectors’ safety when they stay in a minefield.

Feedback helps employees to evaluate and improve their performance, but there have been relatively few empirical investigations into how leaders can encourage employees to seek feedback. To fill this gap we examined the relationship among delegation, psychological empowerment, and feedback-seeking behavior. We hypothesized that delegation promotes feedback-seeking behavior by psychologically empowering subordinates. In addition, power distance moderates the relationship between delegation and feedback-seeking behavior. Analysis of data from a sample of 248 full-time employees of a hotel group in northern China indicated that delegation predicts subordinates’ feedback seeking for individuals with moderate and high power distance orientation, but not for those with low power distance orientation. The mediation hypothesis was also supported.