Coding Theory Research Articles

Fostering Interdisciplinary Skills in Doctoral Students From Across the Disciplines on an English for Special Academic Purposes (ESAP) Course

Universities have increasingly placed interdisciplinarity at the heart of their mission statements (Bridle et al., 2013). Yet, despite its integration into postgraduate programmes, research projects, conferences and workshops, the realisation of the interdisciplinary agenda can be problematic (Murdoch, 1992). In part, this is due to the continued focus on disciplinary socialisation at the postgraduate level (Holley, 2017), meaning that doctoral students are often unaware of what other disciplines do; lack experience of working or communicating with those outside their field; and might have a reluctance or lack of confidence to do so. Additionally, while collaboration and communication across the disciplines are deemed central to interdisciplinary endeavour, there is little guidance on how this can be encouraged at the doctoral level. These issues are evident in the English for Special Academic Purposes (ESAP) classroom which often requires doctoral students from diverse disciplines to work together. To address these problems, this paper will describe a tool designed for use in the doctoral ESAP classroom at a European university. The tool adapted elements of Karl Maton’s (2013) Legitimation Code Theory (LCT) to help raise awareness of how to communicate with those outside the student’s own (narrow) field. The paper evaluates this tool through a quantitative and qualitative analysis of post-course evaluations. In doing so, it highlights how the tool helps students see how they can adapt their contextualised knowledge and specific disciplinary language to their audience. One key advantage of the tool is that it enables students to retain discipline identity whilst giving them a means to appreciate non-disciplinary perspectives (Lattuca et al., 2013) or find common ground (Repko, 2008) or discipline interdependencies (Ashby & Exter, 2019), competencies recognised as key for interdisciplinary success.

Relationships of Abstraction and Application Complexity in the Attainment between Mathematics and Electrical Engineering Modules in Diploma Courses of South Africa

In South Africa, universities are under pressure to meet increasing targets for student enrolment in engineering disciplines and fields. This has resulted in many students being enrolled in engineering programs without possessing the minimum required mathematical skills and understanding to tackle the challenging engineering disciplines. Hence, the engineering disciplines have a high student attrition and failure rate. This study aimed to evaluate the complex relationship of abstraction and application between mathematics attainment and principles of electrical engineering attainment by the students enrolled in diploma courses in technical universities of South Africa. A blend of quantitative and qualitative data was used. Legitimation code theory (LCT) was used to determine the complexity of higher learning levels. The relationships between six core courses in the Electrical Engineering curriculum were investigated to analyze the knowledge building from mathematics modules to principles of electrical engineering modules. The problem-solving, analytics, and abstract mathematical skills developed in these modules impact the overall progression into principles of electrical engineering courses at different levels for diverse students. The research examines the theoretical foundation, student performance, and practical application of mathematical ideas in electrical engineering using curriculum documents, student academic records, and interviews with electrical engineering lecturers. The study found a weak correlation between the two modules and examined how resources, cultural attitudes, and pedagogy affect student achievement. The results indicate an unexpected negative and fragile correlation between the lower mathematics and engineering modules at high levels. The LCT analysis showed the disconnect between the mathematics courses and the principles of electrical engineering in both the level of abstraction used in the studies and the extent of application principles taught.

Культурные и лингвокультурные коды: теоретический обзор

The review paper aims to summarize scientific theoretical knowledge on the problem of codes presented in its humanitarian aspect. The paper provides various points of view on the essence, composition, structure and functioning of codes in general, culture and linguoculture codes in particular. The interaction of verbal and non-verbal codes is discussed. Special attention is paid to such a variety of linguoculture codes as figurative codes. The scientific novelty lies in the fact that the authors of this review paper attempt to provide insight into the concept of culture and linguoculture codes, to demonstrate scholars’ diverse opinions, coinciding views and their disagreements on this issue, which gives a detailed idea of the current state of the issue. As a result of studying various points of view of Russian linguists, semiologists and scholars in culture studies on the essence, composition, structure and functioning of codes, the review demonstrates the high importance attached to the notion of code within the entire spectrum of the humanities and the great effectiveness of the theory of codes, which acts as a general scientific epistemology that makes it possible to consider society, culture and language in a single system of categories. In addition, by extracting and bringing together the disparate features presented in the works on the subject under consideration, the review paper presented a list of essential (categorical) features collectively forming the notion of ‘culture code’.

The Potential of Mental Simulation for Enhancing Self-efficacy and Managing Stress in Emergency Care: A Nurse Education Perspective

This theoretical article explores how mental simulation can enhance self-efficacy and stress management in emergency care, focusing on its application in nurse education. This article delves into the concept, functionality, and applications of mental simulation in nurse education, specifically addressing stress mitigation in emergency care. We offer an overview of relevant literature and research, including a specific focus on surgical skills education. The mechanisms of mental simulation, encompassing the simulation theory of action and dual code theory, are discussed, providing valuable insights into neural networks and image evocation processes. The article underscores the significant impact of stress on emergency care performance. It highlights the potential benefits of incorporating mental simulation as a stress-exposure training technique in the learning process. By adopting a Bandurian theoretical framework, the article proposes how mental simulation can contribute to the cultivation of self-efficacious nurses. Integrating mental simulation in nurse education has the potential to mitigate stress’s negative impact on emergency care. Nurses mentally rehearse and simulate scenarios, becoming familiar with demands and stressors. This practice can potentially refine skills, improve performance under pressure, and boost self-efficacy. Mental simulation replicates real-life situations, enhancing learning from a patient safety perspective. Mental simulation enhances self-efficacy and stress management in emergency care. Its integration into nurse education prepares nurses for high-stress situations. Further research should explore its diverse applications. Understanding mental simulation mechanisms can improve training programmes, potentially empowering nurses in delivering self-confident emergency care.

Operationalizing the Autonomy dimension of Legitimation Code Theory: A Hallidayan approach

This article is a theoretical one aimed at elaborating and operationalizing one of the more recently developed aspects of the educational theory named Legitimation Code Theory (LCT) (e.g. Maton 2014). LCT is a sociological theory with a markedly interventionist streak, which is reflected in endeavours to identify and recommend ways of removing obstacles to knowledge-building for learners. Out of three active dimensions in LCT, this article is focused on the particular dimension termed Autonomy. As applied to situations of knowledge communication, Autonomy appears to be concerned with the degree of insulation or focus with which a given topic is treated, i.e. whether the topic of, e.g., a school lesson, is ‘autonomous’ in that lesson or whether competing topics and perspectives are brought in to further the educational process. However, the concept of Autonomy is in need of both concretization and operationalization and will therefore be interpreted through the lens of certain aspects of Hallidayan linguistic theory that may fruitfully elucidate the concept. The operationalization will be exemplified through two cases of knowledge communication.

Series of formulas for bhattacharyya parameters in the theory of polar codes

Bhattacharyya parameters are used in the theory of polar codes to determine positions of frozen and information bits. These parameters characterize rate of polarization of channels WN(i), 1 ≤ i ≤ N, which are constructed in a special way from the original channel W, where N = 2n is the channel length, n = 1, 2, .... In the case where W is a binary symmetric memoryless channel, we present two series of formulas for the parameters Z(WN(i)): for i = N - 2k + 1, 0 ≤ k ≤ n, and for i = N/2 - 2k + 1, 1 ≤ k ≤ n - 2. The formulas require of the order of $\binom{2^{n-k}+2^k-1}{2^k} 2^{2^k}$ addition operations for the first series and of the order of $\binom{2^{n-k-1}+2^k-1}{2^k} 2^{2^k}$ for the second. In the cases i = 1, N/4 + 1, N/2 + 1, N, the obtained expressions for the parameters have been simplified by computing the sums in them. We show potential generalizations for the values of i in the interval (N/4, N). We also study combinatorial properties of the polarizing matrix GN of a polar code with Arıkan’s kernel. In particular, we establish simple recurrence relations between rows of the matrices GN and GN/2.

Transphobic Truth Markets: Comparing Trans-hostile Discourses in British Trans-exclusionary Radical Feminist and US Right-wing Movements

British “Trans-Exclusionary Radical Feminist” (TERF) discourse has often been contextualised in fringe radical feminist thought, but its similarities to and alliances with right-wing trans-exclusionary movements in the US are notable (McClean, 2020). To understand the place of TERF discourse in an international wave of trans-hostility, it is necessary to understand how it converges with and differs from explicitly conservative counterparts. I place TERF discourse in comparison to trans-exclusionary discourses of the American Right (AR) using a Critical Frame Analysis, investigating the extent of shared themes and the role of ontological discourses across cases. I find that TERF and AR discourses converge heavily on frames and have a shared ontology, but draw on different repertoires to bolster their claims. Combining Harsin’s (2014) truth markets and Smith’s (1995) ideological code theory, I show how an ideological-code-like structure demonises and ontologically delegitimises trans people, demonstrating how reactionary frames can be granted cross-ideological appeal.

Engineering education in change. A case study on the impact of digital transformation on content and teaching methods in different engineering disciplines

ABSTRACT This study investigates the question of how Engineering education in the Nordic region responds to the challenge of educating future engineers who are ready for professional practice in a digital world. Particular interest is put on identifying who is responsible for the implementation of digital knowledge and what and how subject content is addressed. Our study draws on Bernstein’s pedagogical device model (Bernstein, B. 2002. “Editorial: Basil Bernstein’s Theory of Social Class, Educational Codes and Social Control.” British Journal of Sociology of Education 23 (4): 525–526). The study focuses on the questions of if/how digital transformation leads to change of engineering education content and/or pedagogical approaches. Narratives of 20 university teachers have been collected and analysed. Findings reveal three areas of consideration; there is a connection between how digital knowledge is valued and how the subject is introduced in engineering education, differences in digital knowledge can be linked to the generation gap and, universities are seldom seen as the driving force for digital innovation. It is concluded that education must reflect on the purpose for which digitalisation takes place, continuous training targeting digital transformation should be offered to senior teachers and, universities need to provide increased focus and dedicated time for educational development.

Method of information protection based on the integration of probabilistic encryption and noise immune coding

The subject matter of this article is the processes of increasing information security in communication systems to solve applied problems that are critical in the transmission of confidential data. The goal is to develop a multi-stage method for protecting information from unauthorized access, based on probabilistic encryption integration, error-correcting code, and error decorrelation. The tasks to be solved are as follows: to develop a probabilistic encryption algorithm that considers the entropy of the characters’ appearance in a message; to implement iterative coding with variable parameters of the information bits matrix; and to implement error decorrelation based on the generated matrix by interleaving information and check bits according to a given algorithm. Methodology: theory of signal communication and signal processing, theory of cryptography, theory of noise-resistant codes, probability theory, statistical analysis. The following results were obtained: a multi-stage method for protecting information from unauthorized access was proposed, in which at each step of data conversion, information secrecy is increased; probabilistic encryption was implemented, which considers the entropy of a discrete source of information when forming a space of random combinations; based on an iterative code with specified matrix parameters, an additional increase in the space of random combinations was implemented; error decorrelation reduces the multiplicity of errors in codewords and ensures mixing of bits according to a predetermined law. Conclusions. The scientific novelty of the results obtained is as follows: 1) an improved method of information protection from unauthorized access is proposed, based on probabilistic encryption integration, interference-resistant coding, and error decorrelation; 2) increasing information concealment is realized by eliminating the main shortcomings of probabilistic encryption, which did not take into account the entropy of the symbols of the open message; 3) it is proposed to form the space of random combinations taking into account the average probability of the appearance of a symbol in open texts, which will allow the output of a probabilistic cipher to form a stream of random combinations, which, according to its statistical properties, is close to the uniform distribution law; 4) further development of information protection methods based on interference-resistant coding and error decorrelation with encryption functions is received; 5) a further development of the statistical encryption method is the use of all redundant elements for both probabilistic encryption and interference-resistant coding.

Disentangling sensory precision and prior expectation of change in autism during tactile discrimination

Predictive coding theories suggest that core symptoms in autism spectrum disorders (ASD) may stem from atypical mechanisms of perceptual inference (i.e., inferring the hidden causes of sensations). Specifically, there would be an imbalance in the precision or weight ascribed to sensory inputs relative to prior expectations. Using three tactile behavioral tasks and computational modeling, we specifically targeted the implicit dynamics of sensory adaptation and perceptual learning in ASD. Participants were neurotypical and autistic adults without intellectual disability. In Experiment I, tactile detection thresholds and adaptation effects were measured to assess sensory precision. Experiments II and III relied on two-alternative forced choice tasks designed to elicit a time-order effect, where prior knowledge biases perceptual decisions. Our results suggest a subtler explanation than a simple imbalance in the prior/sensory weights, having to do with the dynamic nature of perception, that is the adjustment of precision weights to context. Compared to neurotypicals, autistic adults showed no difference in average performance and sensory sensitivity. Both groups managed to implicitly learn and adjust a prior that biased their perception. However, depending on the context, autistic participants showed no, normal or slower adaptation, a phenomenon that computational modeling of trial-to-trial responses helped us to associate with a higher expectation for sameness in ASD, and to dissociate from another observed robust difference in terms of response bias. These results point to atypical perceptual learning rather than altered perceptual inference per se, calling for further empirical and computational studies to refine the current predictive coding theories of ASD.

Modeling the diverse effects of divisive normalization on noise correlations.

Divisive normalization, a prominent descriptive model of neural activity, is employed by theories of neural coding across many different brain areas. Yet, the relationship between normalization and the statistics of neural responses beyond single neurons remains largely unexplored. Here we focus on noise correlations, a widely studied pairwise statistic, because its stimulus and state dependence plays a central role in neural coding. Existing models of covariability typically ignore normalization despite empirical evidence suggesting it affects correlation structure in neural populations. We therefore propose a pairwise stochastic divisive normalization model that accounts for the effects of normalization and other factors on covariability. We first show that normalization modulates noise correlations in qualitatively different ways depending on whether normalization is shared between neurons, and we discuss how to infer when normalization signals are shared. We then apply our model to calcium imaging data from mouse primary visual cortex (V1), and find that it accurately fits the data, often outperforming a popular alternative model of correlations. Our analysis indicates that normalization signals are often shared between V1 neurons in this dataset. Our model will enable quantifying the relation between normalization and covariability in a broad range of neural systems, which could provide new constraints on circuit mechanisms of normalization and their role in information transmission and representation.

The Impact of Cultural Code on the Visual Presentation of Brand Touchpoints: A Case Study of the Common Skincare Market in South Korea

Brand touch point is a common means of brand marketing, is the key moment for users to contact with the brand, is an important part of influencing consumer decision-making, and has a significant impact on consumer experience and help them decide whether to buy the brand products. This paper is research on common Skincare Market in South Korea. Proposing an Innovative Path for Brand Marketing in the Current Consumer Era Based on the Brand Touchpoint Perspective. It is proposed to meet the basic needs of users, provide personalized services and co-create brand value with consumers before, during and after the brand contact, respectively. Applying the theory of cultural codes as well as analyzing the characteristics of such companies, insights are drawn from the visual design of brand touchpoints and factors affecting consumer decision-making, providing practical references for the marketing of such brands.

Constructing research findings: a tool for teaching doctoral writing

ABSTRACT Making a contribution to knowledge is a cornerstone requirement of the PhD. It requires candidates to provide new understandings about a phenomenon to push the boundaries of an intellectual field. To achieve this ‘boundary pushing’, the findings offered in the research must have relevance for contexts beyond the site of study. In effect, the knowledge generated in one context needs to be transferable to other contexts. This aspect of research writing is broadly acknowledged; however, learning how to implement it in practice is less widely understood. Drawing on the concept of semantic gravity from Legitimation Code Theory, this paper offers a conceptual account of knowledge and an associated set of practical writing strategies for weaving different forms of knowledge together. The paper offers a writing tool which can be used by supervisors in the humanities and social sciences to make writing expectations clear and as a metalanguage for feedback practices.

A focus on the multiple interfaces between action and perception and their neural correlates.

Successful behaviour relies on the appropriate interplay between action and perception. The well-established dorsal and ventral stream theories depicted two distinct functional pathways for the processes of action and perception, respectively. In physiological conditions, the two pathways closely cooperate in order to produce successful adaptive behaviour.As the coupling between perception and action exists, this requires an interface that is responsible for a common reading of the two functions. Several studies have proposed different types of perception and action interfaces, suggesting their role in the creation of the shared interaction channel. In the present review, we describe three possible perception and action interfaces: i) the motor code, including common coding approaches, ii) attention, and iii) object affordance; we highlight their potential neural correlates. From this overview, a recurrent neural substrate that underlies all these interface functions appears to be crucial: the parieto-frontal circuit. This network is involved in the mirror mechanism which underlies the perception and action interfaces identified as common coding and motor code theories. The same network is also involved in the spotlight of attention and in the encoding of potential action towards objects; these are manifested in the perception and action interfaces for common attention and object affordance, respectively. Within this framework, most studies were dedicated to the description of the role of the inferior parietal lobule; growing evidence, however, suggests that the superior parietal lobule also plays a crucial role in the interplay between action and perception. The present review proposes a novel model that is inclusive of the superior parietal regions and their relative contribution to the different action and perception interfaces.

A Simple Family of Non-Linear Analog Codes

A Simple Family of Non-Linear Analog Codes

TVET SI: Renewable Energy Technologies: How technical curricula could enable a brighter future

The potential of renewable energy technologies to mitigate climate change while meeting the energy demand of future generations is recognised globally. In South Africa, occupations such as wind turbine technicians and solar photovoltaic installers are in high demand. In response to these needs, Renewable Energy Technologies (RET) subjects were developed as specialised electives within the Electrical Infrastructure Construction programme that is off ered by technical and vocational education and training (TVET) colleges. The focus of this study is the knowledge that underpins the RET subjects. The guiding research question is: What forms of knowledge underpin the RET curricula, and what is the relationship between these knowledge forms? The semantic dimension of Legitimation Code Theory was used to explain the knowledge forms underpinning the RET subjects. The study uncovered gaps and imbalances across the range of knowledge forms selected, while the relationships between the knowledge forms constrained cumulative knowledge building. The contribution made by the study is a principled understanding of how knowledge selection and sequencing in technical curricula could enable cumulative learning and build valued competencies within the renewable energy field.
 Keywords: renewable energy technologies, technical and vocational education and training, wind turbine technicians, solar photovoltaic installers

Teachers’ Classroom Discourse Pattern for Postgraduates Majoring in Foreign Linguistics: A Perspective of Legitimation Code Theory

“Introduction to English Linguistics (IEL)” is a professional knowledge course for postgraduates majoring in Foreign Linguistics. In traditional classrooms, teachers usually use knowledge code in their discourse, emphasizing the inculcation of theoretical knowledge in Foreign Linguistics. However, faced with large numbers of concepts, terminology, and academic opinions, students generate lots of confusion. This study quantitatively analyzes the teaching situation of IEL course under the framework of Legitimation Code Theory, and explores the influence of different teachers’ classroom discourse patterns on students’ learning efficiency. It is found that the use of knower code in teachers’ classroom discourse is an important factor in students’ learning efficiency while not being affirmatively proved to be effective in a pronounced manner, suggesting that a more advanced model of teachers’ classroom discourse pattern combining both knowledge code and knower code for postgraduates majoring in Foreign Linguistics is urgently needed.

On constacyclic codes of length 9ps over 𝔽pm and their optimal codes

The problem of classifying constacyclic codes over a finite field, both the Hamming distance and the algebraic structure, is an interesting problem in algebraic coding theory. For the repeated-root constacyclic codes of length [Formula: see text] over [Formula: see text], where [Formula: see text] is a prime number and [Formula: see text] does not divide [Formula: see text], the problem has been solved completely for all [Formula: see text] and partially for [Formula: see text]. In this paper, we solve the problem for [Formula: see text] and all primes [Formula: see text] different from [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text]. In particular, we characterize the Hamming distance of all repeated-root constacyclic codes of length [Formula: see text] over [Formula: see text]. As an application, we identify all optimal and near-optimal codes with respect to the Singleton bound of these types, namely, MDS, almost-MDS, and near-MDS codes.

Theory of additive complementary dual codes, constructions and computations

We study complementary dual Fq-linear codes defined over an extension field Fqm, which we refer to as additive complementary dual (ACD) codes. We first consider duality of this class of codes with respect to a general inner product on Fqmn, which covers the commonly studied cases such as the trace-Euclidean and Hermitian inner products. In general this inner product is not necessarily symmetric, hence we define the notions of left/right hulls and left/right duals of an additive code. This leads to one-sided ACD codes, for which we prove a characterization result in terms of the generator matrix, extending the analogous characterization of Massey for linear complementary dual (LCD) codes. Then we focus on constructions and parameters of ACD codes with respect to trace-Euclidean, Hermitian and Galois inner products. We prove how LCD codes yield ACD codes relative to inner products considered in this work, make some observations on MDS subclass of ACD codes and present a construction of an ACD code by expanding another ACD code. We provide extensive computational results and tables on ACD codes over F4,F8 and F9. Our computations yield many MDS ACD codes and also examples of ACD codes, which have more codewords than the comparable LCD codes with the same length and minimum distance.

Applying Legitimation Code Theory to teach breastfeeding in nurse education: A case study

AimTo use Legitimation Code Theory as a framework to inform the design of nursing education and gain insights into student perspectives of this design. BackgroundInternationally, the World Health Organization’s breastfeeding recommendations are not being met. One contributing factor is that healthcare providers including registered nurses lack the knowledge to support breastfeeding women on an ongoing basis and rely on their personal experiences to inform the care they provide. Undergraduate nursing students should receive education to assist breastfeeding women in practice. DesignThe study is underpinned by case-study methodology. The Legitimation Code Theory (LCT) dimension of Semantics and the concepts of semantic gravity and semantic density were used to theoretically frame and develop an intervention module to teach undergraduate nurses about breastfeeding. MethodsThis module was part of an elective seven-week paediatric nursing course. University Human Research Ethics Committee (HREC201/203) reviewed the study. Participants (n = 9) completed semi-structured interviews and thematic analysis helped us to understand their experiences of the module. The Template for Intervention and Description and Replication (TIDeR) framework was used to report the intervention. ResultsThe breastfeeding module was positively received by participants who noted the module’s structure differed from previous courses. Three main themes were identified in the student experience. These are: a) threads and links; b) engaging structure; and c) seedlings. ConclusionLegitimation Code Theory is an effective course development framework to harness the learners’ prior informal knowledge and weave learning activities between theory and contextual practice to develop cumulative knowledge. ImpactWith an increased understanding of how undergraduate nursing students develop knowledge, the LCT dimension of Semantics can be ussed to structure content knowledge in instructional design. This approach builds explicit bridges between knowledge development in the nursing curriculum and learners' informal knowledge and contextual practice in clinical settings.