Author: Naman Dubey
Soft HRM bundles: a potential toolkit for future crisis management
Publisher: International Journal of Organizational Analysis, 2024
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Purpose
The purpose of this paper spans twofold. Firstly, to investigate Human Resource Management practices (HRMP) adopted by organisations during the pandemic. Secondly, to bundle similar HRMP into Human Resource Management (HRM) bundles that provided unhindered organisational support to employees during the crisis.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors conducted 39 in-depth interviews across industries using a semi-structured interview schedule. Thereafter, the authors transcribed the interviews verbatim and analysed them thematically using MAXQDA 2021.
Findings
The study identifies effective practices during times of uncertainty and how soft HRM practices helped organisations survive during a crisis. When bundled together, these practices enabled organisations to continue operations during the pandemic, keeping their employees engaged and motivated.
Practical implications
Based on the learnings from the COVID-19 pandemic, the study provides a toolkit of HRMP bundles that organisations can adopt for future crisis management, enhancing the organisations’ absorptive capacity.
Originality/value
The study investigates the practices incorporated during COVID-19, leading to the identification of soft HRM bundles. The study adds value to the existing domain of HRM by including a unique set of soft HRMP bundles that have not been discussed in earlier studies and could be of high utility to organisations during the crisis.
https://doi.org/10.1108/IJOA-04-2023-3706
Purpose
The purpose of this paper spans twofold. Firstly, to investigate Human Resource Management practices (HRMP) adopted by organisations during the pandemic. Secondly, to bundle similar HRMP into Human Resource Management (HRM) bundles that provided unhindered organisational support to employees during the crisis.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors conducted 39 in-depth interviews across industries using a semi-structured interview schedule. Thereafter, the authors transcribed the interviews verbatim and analysed them thematically using MAXQDA 2021.
Findings
The study identifies effective practices during times of uncertainty and how soft HRM practices helped organisations survive during a crisis. When bundled together, these practices enabled organisations to continue operations during the pandemic, keeping their employees engaged and motivated.
Practical implications
Based on the learnings from the COVID-19 pandemic, the study provides a toolkit of HRMP bundles that organisations can adopt for future crisis management, enhancing the organisations’ absorptive capacity.
Originality/value
The study investigates the practices incorporated during COVID-19, leading to the identification of soft HRM bundles. The study adds value to the existing domain of HRM by including a unique set of soft HRMP bundles that have not been discussed in earlier studies and could be of high utility to organisations during the crisis.
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Author: Menon P., Samaddar K., Aparna K H
Towards Globalisation of B-Schools: Best Practices for Sustainable Higher Education
Publisher: International Journal of Business and Globalisation, 2023
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Higher education today contributes to economic, social and human development. The quality and focus of higher education decide the quality of the workforce in businesses. Prominent frameworks in higher education like Humboldtian model of higher education, responsible research and innovation (RRI) framework and Wals and Jickling model have been synthesised to find newer meaning in this space. This paper's content analyses 18 interviews of leaders from top-ranking B-schools that were published in a leading business magazine. Focus on international collaboration, industry exposure and encouraging entrepreneurship, emphasis on innovative and quality learning atmosphere, focus on research, nurturing socially responsible global leaders, women in higher education and leadership, and shaping young managers who are conversant with digital transformation, were the seven best practices identified by this study for sustainable higher education. Corroborating with existing frameworks, this study provides direction to B-schools, policymakers and scholars in the area of sustainable higher education.
https://doi.org/10.1504/IJBG.2021.10034688
Higher education today contributes to economic, social and human development. The quality and focus of higher education decide the quality of the workforce in businesses. Prominent frameworks in higher education like Humboldtian model of higher education, responsible research and innovation (RRI) framework and Wals and Jickling model have been synthesised to find newer meaning in this space. This paper's content analyses 18 interviews of leaders from top-ranking B-schools that were published in a leading business magazine. Focus on international collaboration, industry exposure and encouraging entrepreneurship, emphasis on innovative and quality learning atmosphere, focus on research, nurturing socially responsible global leaders, women in higher education and leadership, and shaping young managers who are conversant with digital transformation, were the seven best practices identified by this study for sustainable higher education. Corroborating with existing frameworks, this study provides direction to B-schools, policymakers and scholars in the area of sustainable higher education.
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Author: Yadav, N., Verma, S., Chikhalkar, R.
Online Reviews towards reducing Risk
Publisher: Journal of Tourism Futures, 2023
Abstract
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Links
This paper aims to examine the impact of online reviews on behavioral intentions via perceived risk. Perceived risk is both analytical and emotional. Stimulus–organism–response (S–O–R) framework guided this study to explore the interaction between online reviews, perceived risk and behavioral intentions.
https://doi.org/10.1108/JTF-01-2022-0016
This paper aims to examine the impact of online reviews on behavioral intentions via perceived risk. Perceived risk is both analytical and emotional. Stimulus–organism–response (S–O–R) framework guided this study to explore the interaction between online reviews, perceived risk and behavioral intentions.
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Author: Tripathi, A., Samanta, T.
“I Don’t Want to Have the Time When I Do Nothing”: Aging and Reconfigured Leisure Practices During the Pandemic
Publisher: Ageing International, 2023
Abstract
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Links
In this paper, we contend that urban middle-class older Indians engaged in “serious leisure” as a way to reimagine and reconfigure the structure of everyday life during the pandemic-led epochal downtime. In particular, we heuristically show that leisure activity patterns and constraint negotiation strategies among older Indians followed conceptual semblances with the dominant leisure-based typology of Serious Leisure Perspective. By thematically analysing household surveys (n = 71), time-use diaries and in-depth interviews (n = 15) of middle to upper middle-class individuals (55–80 years), we show how both men and women distinguished between serious leisure that is marked by motivation, agency and perseverance with that of unstructured, routinized free-time (or causal leisure). Time-use diaries suggested that despite the changed realities of heightened domestic time available to both genders due to the pandemic, women recorded higher proportion of their daily hours in household management and caregiving. Although women were governed by moral-cultural self-descriptions in their engagement with leisure, it was often associated with an enhanced sense of self-actualisation, self-management and identity. Overall, we show how the social codes of age and gender were inextricably linked with the practice of leisure during the pandemic.
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12126-023-09519-8
In this paper, we contend that urban middle-class older Indians engaged in “serious leisure” as a way to reimagine and reconfigure the structure of everyday life during the pandemic-led epochal downtime. In particular, we heuristically show that leisure activity patterns and constraint negotiation strategies among older Indians followed conceptual semblances with the dominant leisure-based typology of Serious Leisure Perspective. By thematically analysing household surveys (n = 71), time-use diaries and in-depth interviews (n = 15) of middle to upper middle-class individuals (55–80 years), we show how both men and women distinguished between serious leisure that is marked by motivation, agency and perseverance with that of unstructured, routinized free-time (or causal leisure). Time-use diaries suggested that despite the changed realities of heightened domestic time available to both genders due to the pandemic, women recorded higher proportion of their daily hours in household management and caregiving. Although women were governed by moral-cultural self-descriptions in their engagement with leisure, it was often associated with an enhanced sense of self-actualisation, self-management and identity. Overall, we show how the social codes of age and gender were inextricably linked with the practice of leisure during the pandemic.
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Author: Deshpande, B., Kaur, P., Ferraris, A., Yahiaoui, D., Dhir, A.
The dark side of advertising: promoting unhealthy food consumption
Publisher: European Journal of Marketing, 2023
Links
https://doi.org/10.1108/EJM-08-2021-0659
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ABDC : A*
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SCOPUS®
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Q1
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Author: Jain, D.K., Ur-Rehman, N., Ganiev, O., Arora, K.
Currencies of greater interest for central Asian economies: an analysis of exchange market pressure amid global and regional interdependence
Publisher: Financial Innovation, 2023
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Central Asian Economies (CAEs) have diverse exchange rate policies. They have recorded higher volatility in the foreign exchange market since inception. High volatility of the transition era has drifted these economies towards partial dollarization. Monetary authorities in CAEs, (already have a challenge of maintaining monetary policy autonomy) have a gigantic task of price stability and stopping the spread of dollarization. This study is directed towards assessing the drivers and the determinants of foreign exchange market pressure in CAEs. The results, based on panel data analysis and the System GMM model, have provided useful insights about the exchange market pressure determinants particularly USD, Euro, Ruble, and Renminbi. The results show that China and Russia exchange market pressure has a negative effect on the exchange market pressure of CAEs. While the dollar index shows a positive impact on the exchange market pressure of CAEs. Overall, the findings imply that China and Russia currency appreciation results in a trade deficit across CAEs. The policy implication suggests that the floating exchange rate regime (inflation targeting regime) is not in favor of CAEs, and they must use managed-float to reduce their trade deficits.
https://doi.org/10.1186/s40854-022-00417-7
Central Asian Economies (CAEs) have diverse exchange rate policies. They have recorded higher volatility in the foreign exchange market since inception. High volatility of the transition era has drifted these economies towards partial dollarization. Monetary authorities in CAEs, (already have a challenge of maintaining monetary policy autonomy) have a gigantic task of price stability and stopping the spread of dollarization. This study is directed towards assessing the drivers and the determinants of foreign exchange market pressure in CAEs. The results, based on panel data analysis and the System GMM model, have provided useful insights about the exchange market pressure determinants particularly USD, Euro, Ruble, and Renminbi. The results show that China and Russia exchange market pressure has a negative effect on the exchange market pressure of CAEs. While the dollar index shows a positive impact on the exchange market pressure of CAEs. Overall, the findings imply that China and Russia currency appreciation results in a trade deficit across CAEs. The policy implication suggests that the floating exchange rate regime (inflation targeting regime) is not in favor of CAEs, and they must use managed-float to reduce their trade deficits.
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Author: Jain, A., Rajpal, S., Rana, M.J., Kim, R., Subramanian, S.V.
Small area variations in four measures of poverty among Indian households: Econometric analysis of National Family Health Survey 2019–2021
Publisher: Humanities and Social Sciences Communications, 2023
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India has seen enormous reductions in poverty in the past few decades. However, much of this progress has been unequal throughout the country. This paper examined the 2019–2021 National Family Health Survey to examine small area variations in four measures of household poverty. Overall, the results show that clusters and states were the largest sources of variation for the four measures of poverty. These findings also show persistent within-district inequality when examining the bottom 10th wealth percentile, bottom 20th wealth percentile, and multidimensional poverty. Thus, these findings pinpoint the precise districts where between-cluster inequality in poverty is most prevalent. This can help guide policy makers in terms of targeting policies aimed at reducing poverty.
https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-023-01509-0
India has seen enormous reductions in poverty in the past few decades. However, much of this progress has been unequal throughout the country. This paper examined the 2019–2021 National Family Health Survey to examine small area variations in four measures of household poverty. Overall, the results show that clusters and states were the largest sources of variation for the four measures of poverty. These findings also show persistent within-district inequality when examining the bottom 10th wealth percentile, bottom 20th wealth percentile, and multidimensional poverty. Thus, these findings pinpoint the precise districts where between-cluster inequality in poverty is most prevalent. This can help guide policy makers in terms of targeting policies aimed at reducing poverty.
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Author: Rajpal, S., Kumar, A., Johri, M., Kim, R., Subramanian, S.V.
Patterns in the Prevalence of Unvaccinated Children Across 36 States and Union Territories in India, 1993-2021
Publisher: JAMA Network Open, 2023
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2022.54919 Children who do not receive any routine vaccinations (ie, who have 0-dose status) are at elevated risk of death, morbidity, and socioeconomic vulnerabilities that limit their development over the life course. India has the world’s highest number of children with 0-dose status; analysis of national and subnational patterns is the first important step to addressing this problem.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2022.54919
http://dx.doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2022.54919 Children who do not receive any routine vaccinations (ie, who have 0-dose status) are at elevated risk of death, morbidity, and socioeconomic vulnerabilities that limit their development over the life course. India has the world’s highest number of children with 0-dose status; analysis of national and subnational patterns is the first important step to addressing this problem.
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Author: Thakur, B.K., Bal, D.P., Nurujjaman, Md., Debnath, K.
Developing a model for residential water demand in the Indian Himalayan Region of Ravangla, South Sikkim, India
Publisher: Groundwater for Sustainable Development, 2023
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Climate change and increased demand for human needs have led to drinking water scarcity in the cities and towns located in the Indian Himalayan region. This paper aims to address the challenge of drinking water security by proposing a model of water demand among households in Ravangla town of South Sikkim, India. Our field survey results indicate that the water demand increases significantly due to the number of household members between the age of 18 and 60. Further, we find that the number of taps in the household is positively and significantly correlated with water demand. Number of water taps, storage capacity and the water consumption are positively related. However, we did not find any such strong association with the number of toilets in the household. The GIS maps of South Sikkim shows the areas with households that will soon face acute water stress and drinking water insecurity. In order to address the scarcity of water in these regions, policymakers may develop plans like rainwater harvesting to ameliorate the situation through a GIS based decision support system.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gsd.2023.100923
Climate change and increased demand for human needs have led to drinking water scarcity in the cities and towns located in the Indian Himalayan region. This paper aims to address the challenge of drinking water security by proposing a model of water demand among households in Ravangla town of South Sikkim, India. Our field survey results indicate that the water demand increases significantly due to the number of household members between the age of 18 and 60. Further, we find that the number of taps in the household is positively and significantly correlated with water demand. Number of water taps, storage capacity and the water consumption are positively related. However, we did not find any such strong association with the number of toilets in the household. The GIS maps of South Sikkim shows the areas with households that will soon face acute water stress and drinking water insecurity. In order to address the scarcity of water in these regions, policymakers may develop plans like rainwater harvesting to ameliorate the situation through a GIS based decision support system.
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Author: Narayanan, S., Singh, G.A.
Consumers' willingness to pay for corporate social responsibility: Theory and evidence
Publisher: International Journal of Consumer Studies, 2023
Abstract
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In an era when consumers believe that businesses should engage in corporate social responsibility (CSR), it is vital to understand how it affects consumers' willingness to pay (WTP) for the goods and services offered by such businesses. There is a need for an in-depth study into the relationship between CSR and WTP, and to identify the mediators and the moderators affecting this relationship. To investigate this, we conducted a systematic literature review based on a preliminary search result of 116 unique articles indexed on this topic in four bibliographic databases—Scopus, Google Scholar, Dimensions and Web of Science—published over the previous seven decades. The findings confirm the overall positive effect of CSR on WTP. This study also reveals the indirect effect between CSR and WTP, mediated by variables like Brand Trust, Brand Loyalty, Brand Love, Customer Satisfaction, Brand Attitude, Purchase Intention and Brand Equity. The relationship is impacted by moderators, including demographics, cause-based aspects, company characteristics, personal aspects and types of products. The theory explaining the evidence of each of these aspects provides a deeper understanding of the relationship between CSR and WTP, and the intervening variables. Based on these, a conceptual framework of this relationship involving all the variables is developed. The Theory, Context and Method (TCM) framework is employed to identify gaps and systematically make recommendations for future research. The findings of this study will aid marketers in developing pricing strategies based on a thorough understanding of consumer behaviour in terms of CSR perceptions. Scholars can use this study's conceptual framework to examine previously unexplored relationships. As the literature on CSR and its influence on consumers' purchase behaviour grows, this comprehensive systematic literature review on the effects of CSR on WTP fills an important gap.
https://doi.org/10.1111/ijcs.12910
In an era when consumers believe that businesses should engage in corporate social responsibility (CSR), it is vital to understand how it affects consumers' willingness to pay (WTP) for the goods and services offered by such businesses. There is a need for an in-depth study into the relationship between CSR and WTP, and to identify the mediators and the moderators affecting this relationship. To investigate this, we conducted a systematic literature review based on a preliminary search result of 116 unique articles indexed on this topic in four bibliographic databases—Scopus, Google Scholar, Dimensions and Web of Science—published over the previous seven decades. The findings confirm the overall positive effect of CSR on WTP. This study also reveals the indirect effect between CSR and WTP, mediated by variables like Brand Trust, Brand Loyalty, Brand Love, Customer Satisfaction, Brand Attitude, Purchase Intention and Brand Equity. The relationship is impacted by moderators, including demographics, cause-based aspects, company characteristics, personal aspects and types of products. The theory explaining the evidence of each of these aspects provides a deeper understanding of the relationship between CSR and WTP, and the intervening variables. Based on these, a conceptual framework of this relationship involving all the variables is developed. The Theory, Context and Method (TCM) framework is employed to identify gaps and systematically make recommendations for future research. The findings of this study will aid marketers in developing pricing strategies based on a thorough understanding of consumer behaviour in terms of CSR perceptions. Scholars can use this study's conceptual framework to examine previously unexplored relationships. As the literature on CSR and its influence on consumers' purchase behaviour grows, this comprehensive systematic literature review on the effects of CSR on WTP fills an important gap.
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Author: Kudtarkar, S.K., Dhadwal, R.
Noise induced bistability in a fluctuating environment
Publisher: Physica A: Statistical Mechanics and its Applications, 2023
Abstract
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Bistability in some systems does not occur at the mean-field level but is induced by noise. In this work, we consider a system which exhibits bistability induced by noise but in the presence of environmental fluctuations. The system can transition between two environmental states at a specified rate. It has absorbing boundaries in one state and can switch between two metastable states in the other. At small values of a system parameter (), the model exhibits noise-induced switching behaviour and the probability distribution is bimodal which becomes unimodal at large values of . We calculate the exact eigenvalues and steady-state solutions of the system. We further extend the investigation by calculating the mean switching time between the two metastable states in the small parameter limit and compare its accuracy with simulation results.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.physa.2023.128582
Bistability in some systems does not occur at the mean-field level but is induced by noise. In this work, we consider a system which exhibits bistability induced by noise but in the presence of environmental fluctuations. The system can transition between two environmental states at a specified rate. It has absorbing boundaries in one state and can switch between two metastable states in the other. At small values of a system parameter (), the model exhibits noise-induced switching behaviour and the probability distribution is bimodal which becomes unimodal at large values of . We calculate the exact eigenvalues and steady-state solutions of the system. We further extend the investigation by calculating the mean switching time between the two metastable states in the small parameter limit and compare its accuracy with simulation results.
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Author: Krishna, Y.
Film and Caste Anxieties in Early Twentieth-Century India
Publisher: South Asia: Journal of South Asia Studies, 2023
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Links
Film was one of the new technological inventions of the ‘long nineteenth century’ that often instilled a fear of loss of the existing way of life and of disturbing existing social structures. In India, this manifested in a variety of ways, such as through the censorship of films by the government, but also by social codes which created major barriers for many to work in the film industry. In this article, I discuss film and its negotiations with caste in the twentieth century through close reading of the Indian Cinematograph Committee Report, film magazines, advertisements, audience responses and the speeches of nationalist leaders. I argue that rather than democratising desire by producing the universally desirable object of the star body, popular films in India produced desire that conformed to existing caste structures. The paper contributes to debates about early cinema and caste beyond the question of representation.
https://doi.org/10.1080/00856401.2023.2176064
Film was one of the new technological inventions of the ‘long nineteenth century’ that often instilled a fear of loss of the existing way of life and of disturbing existing social structures. In India, this manifested in a variety of ways, such as through the censorship of films by the government, but also by social codes which created major barriers for many to work in the film industry. In this article, I discuss film and its negotiations with caste in the twentieth century through close reading of the Indian Cinematograph Committee Report, film magazines, advertisements, audience responses and the speeches of nationalist leaders. I argue that rather than democratising desire by producing the universally desirable object of the star body, popular films in India produced desire that conformed to existing caste structures. The paper contributes to debates about early cinema and caste beyond the question of representation.
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Author: Bodhanwala, S., Bodhanwala, R.
Environmental, social and governance performance: influence on market value in the COVID-19 crisis
Publisher: Management Decision, 2023
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Links
"The aim of this paper is to study whether adoption of sustainability policies by firms makes their stock market performance resilient to the downside risk during the crisis period.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper empirically examines the relationship between environmental, social and governance (ESG) and stock market performance for Indian companies that have consistently been a part of Refinitiv Eikon ESG database. Further, the study examines whether there exist significant differences in stock market performance of high ESG and low ESG-compliant firms during crisis period. The sample was made up of 70 Indian firms studied over the period 2016–2019 defined as “normal period” as well as for the declared COVID-19 crisis period, i.e. January–March 2020, and full year 2020. The authors used multivariate panel data regression, robust least square multivariate regression, pooled OLS model and two-stage least square regression method."
https://doi.org/10.1108/MD-08-2022-1084
"The aim of this paper is to study whether adoption of sustainability policies by firms makes their stock market performance resilient to the downside risk during the crisis period.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper empirically examines the relationship between environmental, social and governance (ESG) and stock market performance for Indian companies that have consistently been a part of Refinitiv Eikon ESG database. Further, the study examines whether there exist significant differences in stock market performance of high ESG and low ESG-compliant firms during crisis period. The sample was made up of 70 Indian firms studied over the period 2016–2019 defined as “normal period” as well as for the declared COVID-19 crisis period, i.e. January–March 2020, and full year 2020. The authors used multivariate panel data regression, robust least square multivariate regression, pooled OLS model and two-stage least square regression method."
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Author: Kumar, P., Singh, V.K., Rao, S.
Does the substitution effect lead to feedback effect linkage between ethanol, crude oil, and soft agricultural commodities?
Publisher: Energy Economics, 2023
Abstract
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Links
Despite increased demand for cleaner fuel alternatives such as ethanol in recent decades, portfolio weight allocation has become challenging due to the complex interlinkage amongst crude, ethanol and soft agricultural commodities that form part of the value chain. As a result, portfolio returns face three trade-offs in terms of risk: dispersion across mean, risk arising due to market interconnectedness, and risk arising due to global shocks for assets sharing common macroeconomic fundamentals. This study proposes an optimal weight allocation portfolio strategy, encapsulating the three risk measures and returns, estimated using state-of-the-art multi-objective elitist Non-Dominated Sorting Algorithm II (NSGA-II). Our proposed strategy performs well for newly constituted objectives against the Markowitz Mean-Variance approach and Global Minimum Variance. A balanced diversification escapes the feedback spillover loop trap at the same time. Our results indicate that soybean oil, sugar, and rice offer a better reward to risk, aiding portfolio immunisation to extreme market movements. Furthermore, using GJR-GARCH volatility to capture the volatility asymmetry effect, the Generalized Forecast Error Variance Decomposition (GFEVD) shows the existence of a strong triplet pair Crude-Ethanol-Soybean as a breeding ground for the feedback effect to occur. Moreover, replacing crude weight with ethanol depicts a fall in spillover risk up to a threshold of 30% Ethanol weight, after which the feedback effect kicks in.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eneco.2023.106574
Despite increased demand for cleaner fuel alternatives such as ethanol in recent decades, portfolio weight allocation has become challenging due to the complex interlinkage amongst crude, ethanol and soft agricultural commodities that form part of the value chain. As a result, portfolio returns face three trade-offs in terms of risk: dispersion across mean, risk arising due to market interconnectedness, and risk arising due to global shocks for assets sharing common macroeconomic fundamentals. This study proposes an optimal weight allocation portfolio strategy, encapsulating the three risk measures and returns, estimated using state-of-the-art multi-objective elitist Non-Dominated Sorting Algorithm II (NSGA-II). Our proposed strategy performs well for newly constituted objectives against the Markowitz Mean-Variance approach and Global Minimum Variance. A balanced diversification escapes the feedback spillover loop trap at the same time. Our results indicate that soybean oil, sugar, and rice offer a better reward to risk, aiding portfolio immunisation to extreme market movements. Furthermore, using GJR-GARCH volatility to capture the volatility asymmetry effect, the Generalized Forecast Error Variance Decomposition (GFEVD) shows the existence of a strong triplet pair Crude-Ethanol-Soybean as a breeding ground for the feedback effect to occur. Moreover, replacing crude weight with ethanol depicts a fall in spillover risk up to a threshold of 30% Ethanol weight, after which the feedback effect kicks in.
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ABDC : A*
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SCOPUS®
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Q1
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Author: Rivi, V., Batabyal, A., Benatti, C., Blom, J.M., Tascedda, F., Lukowiak, K.
Novel taste, sickness, and memory: Lipopolysaccharide to induce a Garcia-like effect in inbred and wild strains of Lymnaea stagnalis
Publisher: Physiology & Behavior, 2023
Abstract
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Links
Food is not only necessary for our survival but also elicits pleasure. However, when a novel food is followed sometime later by nausea or sickness animals form a long-lasting association to avoid that food. This phenomenon is called the ‘Garcia effect’. We hypothesized that lipopolysaccharide (LPS) could be used as the sickness-inducing stimulus to produce a Garcia-like effect in inbred and wild populations of Lymnaea stagnalis. We first demonstrated that the injection of 25 μg (6.25 µg/mL) of Escherichia coli-derived LPS serotype O127:B8 did not by itself alter snails’ feeding behavior. Then we showed that the presentation of a novel appetitive stimulus (i.e., carrot slurry) and LPS resulted in a taste-specific and long-lasting feeding suppression (i.e., the Garcia-like effect). We also found strain-specific variations in the duration of the long-term memory (LTM). That is, while the LTM for the Garcia-like effect in W-strain snails persisted for 24h, LTM persisted for 48h in freshly collected Margo snails and their F1 offspring. Finally, we demonstrated that the exposure to a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug, aspirin (acetylsalicylic acid) before the LPS injection prevented both the LPS-induced sickness state and the Garcia-like effect from occurring. The results of this study may pave the way for new research that aims at (1) uncovering the conserved molecular mechanisms underlying the Garcia-like effect, (2) understanding how cognitive traits vary within and between species, and (3) creating a holistic picture of the complex dialogue between the immune and central nervous systems.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.physbeh.2023.114137
Food is not only necessary for our survival but also elicits pleasure. However, when a novel food is followed sometime later by nausea or sickness animals form a long-lasting association to avoid that food. This phenomenon is called the ‘Garcia effect’. We hypothesized that lipopolysaccharide (LPS) could be used as the sickness-inducing stimulus to produce a Garcia-like effect in inbred and wild populations of Lymnaea stagnalis. We first demonstrated that the injection of 25 μg (6.25 µg/mL) of Escherichia coli-derived LPS serotype O127:B8 did not by itself alter snails’ feeding behavior. Then we showed that the presentation of a novel appetitive stimulus (i.e., carrot slurry) and LPS resulted in a taste-specific and long-lasting feeding suppression (i.e., the Garcia-like effect). We also found strain-specific variations in the duration of the long-term memory (LTM). That is, while the LTM for the Garcia-like effect in W-strain snails persisted for 24h, LTM persisted for 48h in freshly collected Margo snails and their F1 offspring. Finally, we demonstrated that the exposure to a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug, aspirin (acetylsalicylic acid) before the LPS injection prevented both the LPS-induced sickness state and the Garcia-like effect from occurring. The results of this study may pave the way for new research that aims at (1) uncovering the conserved molecular mechanisms underlying the Garcia-like effect, (2) understanding how cognitive traits vary within and between species, and (3) creating a holistic picture of the complex dialogue between the immune and central nervous systems.
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Author: Guleria, H.V., Luqmani, A.M., Kothari, H.D., Phukan, P., Patil, S., Pareek, P., Kotecha, K., Abraham, A., Gabralla, L.A.
Enhancing the Breast Histopathology Image Analysis for Cancer Detection Using Variational Autoencoder
Publisher: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 2023
Abstract
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A breast tissue biopsy is performed to identify the nature of a tumour, as it can be either cancerous or benign. The first implementations involved the use of machine learning algorithms. Random Forest and Support Vector Machine (SVM) were used to classify the input histopathological images into whether they were cancerous or non-cancerous. The implementations continued to provide promising results, and then Artificial Neural Networks (ANNs) were applied for this purpose. We propose an approach for reconstructing the images using a Variational Autoencoder (VAE) and the Denoising Variational Autoencoder (DVAE) and then use a Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) model. Afterwards, we predicted whether the input image was cancerous or non-cancerous. Our implementation provides predictions with 73% accuracy, which is greater than the results produced by our custom-built CNN on our dataset. The proposed architecture will prove to be a new field of research and a new area to be explored in the field of computer vision using CNN and Generative Modelling since it incorporates reconstructions of the original input images and provides predictions on them thereafter.
https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20054244
A breast tissue biopsy is performed to identify the nature of a tumour, as it can be either cancerous or benign. The first implementations involved the use of machine learning algorithms. Random Forest and Support Vector Machine (SVM) were used to classify the input histopathological images into whether they were cancerous or non-cancerous. The implementations continued to provide promising results, and then Artificial Neural Networks (ANNs) were applied for this purpose. We propose an approach for reconstructing the images using a Variational Autoencoder (VAE) and the Denoising Variational Autoencoder (DVAE) and then use a Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) model. Afterwards, we predicted whether the input image was cancerous or non-cancerous. Our implementation provides predictions with 73% accuracy, which is greater than the results produced by our custom-built CNN on our dataset. The proposed architecture will prove to be a new field of research and a new area to be explored in the field of computer vision using CNN and Generative Modelling since it incorporates reconstructions of the original input images and provides predictions on them thereafter.
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Author: Yazdani-Asrami, M., Song, W., Morandi, A.,De Carne, G., Murta-Pina, J., Pronto, A., Oliveira, R., Shen, B., Coombs, T., Salmi, T., Wu, D., GroBe, V., Mauro, D., Senatore, C., S., Yoon, T.L., Wang, Y., Camata, R.P., Chen, C.C., Madureira, A.M., Abraham, A.
Roadmap on artificial intelligence and big data techniques for superconductivity
Publisher: Superconductor Science and Technology, 2023
Abstract
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This paper presents a roadmap to the application of AI techniques and big data (BD) for different modelling, design, monitoring, manufacturing and operation purposes of different superconducting applications. To help superconductivity researchers, engineers, and manufacturers understand the viability of using AI and BD techniques as future solutions for challenges in superconductivity, a series of short articles are presented to outline some of the potential applications and solutions. These potential futuristic routes and their materials/technologies are considered for a 10–20 yr time-frame.
https://doi.org/10.1088/1361-6668/acbb34
This paper presents a roadmap to the application of AI techniques and big data (BD) for different modelling, design, monitoring, manufacturing and operation purposes of different superconducting applications. To help superconductivity researchers, engineers, and manufacturers understand the viability of using AI and BD techniques as future solutions for challenges in superconductivity, a series of short articles are presented to outline some of the potential applications and solutions. These potential futuristic routes and their materials/technologies are considered for a 10–20 yr time-frame.
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Author: Rajalakshmi, E., Elakkiya, R., Subramaniyaswamy, V., Alexey, L.P., Makhail, G.,Bakaev, M., Kotecha, K., Gabralla, L.A., Abraham, A.
Multi-Semantic Discriminative Feature Learning for Sign Gesture Recognition Using Hybrid Deep Neural Architecture
Publisher: IEEE Access, 2023
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The speech and hearing-impaired community use sign language as the primary means of communication. It is quite challenging for the general population to interpret or learn sign language completely. A sign language recognition system must be designed and developed to address this communication barrier. Most current sign language recognition systems rely on wearable sensors, keeping the recognition system unaffordable for most individuals. Moreover, the existing vision-based sign recognition frameworks do not consider all of the spatial and temporal information required for accurate recognition. A novel vison-based hybrid deep neural net methodology is proposed in this study for recognizing Indian and Russian sign gestures. The proposed framework is aimed to establish a single framework for tracking and extracting multi-semantic properties, such as non-manual components and manual co- articulations. Furthermore, spatial feature extraction from the sign gestures is deployed using a 3D deep neural net with atrous convolutions. The temporal and sequential feature extraction is carried out by employing attention-based Bi-LSTM. In addition, the distinguished abstract feature extraction is done using the modified autoencoders. The discriminative feature extraction for differentiating the sign gestures from unwanted transition gestures is done by leveraging the hybrid attention module. The experimentation of the proposed model has been carried out on the novel multi-signer Indo-Russian sign language dataset. The proposed sign language recognition framework with hybrid neural net yields better results than other state-of-the-art frameworks.
https://doi.org/10.1109/ACCESS.2022.3233671
The speech and hearing-impaired community use sign language as the primary means of communication. It is quite challenging for the general population to interpret or learn sign language completely. A sign language recognition system must be designed and developed to address this communication barrier. Most current sign language recognition systems rely on wearable sensors, keeping the recognition system unaffordable for most individuals. Moreover, the existing vision-based sign recognition frameworks do not consider all of the spatial and temporal information required for accurate recognition. A novel vison-based hybrid deep neural net methodology is proposed in this study for recognizing Indian and Russian sign gestures. The proposed framework is aimed to establish a single framework for tracking and extracting multi-semantic properties, such as non-manual components and manual co- articulations. Furthermore, spatial feature extraction from the sign gestures is deployed using a 3D deep neural net with atrous convolutions. The temporal and sequential feature extraction is carried out by employing attention-based Bi-LSTM. In addition, the distinguished abstract feature extraction is done using the modified autoencoders. The discriminative feature extraction for differentiating the sign gestures from unwanted transition gestures is done by leveraging the hybrid attention module. The experimentation of the proposed model has been carried out on the novel multi-signer Indo-Russian sign language dataset. The proposed sign language recognition framework with hybrid neural net yields better results than other state-of-the-art frameworks.
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Author: Sarkar, A., Blaney, A.
Material Metaphor and Reflexivity in Contemporary Painting:A Practice-based Investigation
Publisher: The Journal of Aesthetic Education, 2023
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Contemporary painting is a complex practice, and artists regularly incorporate elements from different media such as photography, textile, and performance. Despite its status being diminished by different conceptual art movements, painting still has a critically important place in the artworld. This importance is largely due to painting’s ability to stretch across media and make a direct appeal to the senses. In this article, an attempt is made to theorize the facility of painting to incorporate different media and its resulting reflexivity. Maurice Merleau-Ponty’s theory of embodiment and phenomenological theory of metaphor provide the theoretical means to articulate reflexivity in painting. Curatorial writing about contemporary painting and case studies of young painters from India form a backdrop for the analysis of examples from the painting practice of one of the authors to demonstrate the material dynamism of painting. It is shown that this reflexivity is intimately related to the sensuous texture of materials used in the creation of the paintings under discussion. The first-person narrative of artistic process and production provides insight into the embodied process of making and manipulating media and evidence that painters can create new insights about the ontology of painting.
https://muse.jhu.edu/article/881734#info_wrap
Contemporary painting is a complex practice, and artists regularly incorporate elements from different media such as photography, textile, and performance. Despite its status being diminished by different conceptual art movements, painting still has a critically important place in the artworld. This importance is largely due to painting’s ability to stretch across media and make a direct appeal to the senses. In this article, an attempt is made to theorize the facility of painting to incorporate different media and its resulting reflexivity. Maurice Merleau-Ponty’s theory of embodiment and phenomenological theory of metaphor provide the theoretical means to articulate reflexivity in painting. Curatorial writing about contemporary painting and case studies of young painters from India form a backdrop for the analysis of examples from the painting practice of one of the authors to demonstrate the material dynamism of painting. It is shown that this reflexivity is intimately related to the sensuous texture of materials used in the creation of the paintings under discussion. The first-person narrative of artistic process and production provides insight into the embodied process of making and manipulating media and evidence that painters can create new insights about the ontology of painting.
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Author: Mazumdar, K., Gupta, S.P., Sen. I
Mothering load: Underlying realities of professionally engaged Indian mothers during a global crisis
Publisher: Gender, Work & Organization, 2023
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The current global crisis has had a significant impact on professionally engaged mothers and the proliferation of the invisible nature of the work that they are engaged in on a daily basis. Several research studies have indicated how mothers seem to have been particularly affected. Mothers experienced an exacerbation in their domestic household and child-care responsibilities due to the absence of househelp and other child care arrangements while balancing their professional careers. These challenges crystallized the existing gender inequalities and the gendered nature of parenting. Using a feminist lens, this study explores the experiences of mothering load during COVID-19 against the backdrop of urban India. A total of two themes and six sub-themes were identified through the process of thematic analysis—Triad of work included increased care work, increased formal work, and increased worry work and Mothering experiences: Burdens and Biases included the lack of support, parental role overload, and gendered nature of parenting. This study adds to the limited empirical evidence of working mothers in India while straddling the worlds of feminism and mental health activism. Findings indicate the need to explicitly highlight the invisibilized phenomena of unpaid care work, worry work, and the gendered nature of parenting that contribute to the larger experience of mothering load. The findings also point toward acknowledging the importance of maternal mental health and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 5 to establish and enforce stronger policies around recognizing and appreciating unpaid care and domestic work to promote gender equality and empowering women at all levels. This may be enacted through the encouragement of shared responsibilities within the household and family units as contextually feasible and through the development of appropriate infrastructure, social protection policies, and the delivery of public services.
https://doi.org/10.1111/gwao.12974
The current global crisis has had a significant impact on professionally engaged mothers and the proliferation of the invisible nature of the work that they are engaged in on a daily basis. Several research studies have indicated how mothers seem to have been particularly affected. Mothers experienced an exacerbation in their domestic household and child-care responsibilities due to the absence of househelp and other child care arrangements while balancing their professional careers. These challenges crystallized the existing gender inequalities and the gendered nature of parenting. Using a feminist lens, this study explores the experiences of mothering load during COVID-19 against the backdrop of urban India. A total of two themes and six sub-themes were identified through the process of thematic analysis—Triad of work included increased care work, increased formal work, and increased worry work and Mothering experiences: Burdens and Biases included the lack of support, parental role overload, and gendered nature of parenting. This study adds to the limited empirical evidence of working mothers in India while straddling the worlds of feminism and mental health activism. Findings indicate the need to explicitly highlight the invisibilized phenomena of unpaid care work, worry work, and the gendered nature of parenting that contribute to the larger experience of mothering load. The findings also point toward acknowledging the importance of maternal mental health and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 5 to establish and enforce stronger policies around recognizing and appreciating unpaid care and domestic work to promote gender equality and empowering women at all levels. This may be enacted through the encouragement of shared responsibilities within the household and family units as contextually feasible and through the development of appropriate infrastructure, social protection policies, and the delivery of public services.
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