Intuition and Its Impact on Information Systems Success

The concept of Intuition is not new to management and behavioral sciences. However, defining Intuition has been anything but intuitive even in these heavily studied domains. This research seeks to expand current Intuition research into the information systems (IS) domain. Given the velocity of change in contemporary IS, researchers and practitioners are seeking richer explanations and success measurements to better understand and promote effective use of IS. A preliminary content analysis of select proceedings from the Americas Conference on Information Systems (AMCIS), designed to assess the investigation and interest in the concept of Intuition as a contemporary IS research topic, suggests this topic is relevant to IS. This research introduces IS Intuition as a mediating variable impacting IS Success. Healthcare IS provides the context for this study although the results are anticipated to be generalizable to other IS contexts. Quantitative results from a survey found the mediating impact of human intuition to be less significant than originally hoped. However, qualitative results from a followon survey of healthcare executives, managers and IS consultants illustrate 62% of respondents believe Intuition impacts IS success and EHR adoption. Additionally, a growing body of research since this study began provides strong empirical guidance that intuition can be challenging to measure as with the common self-report measures. vi Studies indicate experimentation and other Neuro-based methods may be better suited to aid in measurement of intuition. Thus, further investigation through other epistemologies to determine the impact of intuition on IS success is warranted

Experimental Characterization and Quantification of Deformation Behavior in a Porous Carbon Fiber Network

Due to their wide range of attractive functional properties (such as low thermal conductivity and low density) porous materials are utilized in a variety of applications. In order to characterize these properties and others, the intrinsically heterogeneous microstructures of these materials need to be taken into account. These microstructures result in interactions across multiple length scales spanning several orders of magnitude. This makes the creation of robust computational models and straight-forward predictions of mechanical properties difficult for porous materials. With this in mind, this dissertation aims to provide experimental mechanical and deformation information spanning the length scales of interest for a porous carbon fiber material. Ex situ mechanical testing in combination with digital image correlation (DIC) was utilized to investigate the macroscale mechanical properties and mesoscale deformation behavior. Distinct, orientation-dependent properties were obtained through both tensile and compressive testing. Loading parallel to the average fiber orientation resulted in greater elastic moduli and greater toughness during tensile loading. Conversely, loading perpendicular to the average fiber orientation resulted in greater toughness during compressive loading. These definitive behaviors are thought to be caused by either reversible (fiber bending and sliding) or irreversible (fiber and fiber contact failure) damage accumulation methods. The impact of complex geometries (e.g. cracks and through-holes) on the compressive results has also been investigated utilizing the same setup. From the findings of the ex situ work, it was determined that additional in situ investigation was necessary to more comprehensively understand the deformation behavior. A new testing protocol utilizing interrupted compression testing in conjunction with in situ micro-computed tomography (microCT) was created to answer these questions. Through this technique both high-resolution and lower-resolution microCT scans were completed to visualize the samples at the fiber level and mesoscale, respectively. The combination of these results allowed for greater understanding of how both the fiber level and mesoscale change and interact during compressive deformation

The Effects of Two Different Fatigue Protocols on Lower Extremity Kinematics and Kinetics During an Unanticipated Running Stop-Jump

Altered neuromuscular control strategies and biomechanical movement risk factors are most likely to contribute to the increased incidence of non-contact ACL injury for female athletes. Neuromuscular control strategies and movement patterns are further altered when the effects of fatigue are present. The purpose of this study was to determine neuromechanical differences between two fatigue protocols [Slow Linear Oxidative Fatigue Protocol (SLO-FP) and Functional Agility Short-Term Fatigue Protocol (FASTFP)] when performing a running stop-jump task (RS). A sample of convenience of fifteen Division I female soccer players (age= 19.2 ± 0.8 years; height= 1.67 ± 0.05 m; mass= 61.7 ± 8.1 kg) participated in this study. Participants performed five successful trials of a RS task pre and post fatigue protocols. For the SLO-FP, a VO2peak test was conducted prior to the fatigue protocol. Five minutes after the conclusion of VO2pcak test subjects started the fatigue protocol by performing a 30-minute interval run with six intervals. The FAST-FP consisted of 4 sets of a functional circuit that included: L-Drill, Ladder, Vertical Jumps, and step-ups. Repeated 2 (time) x 2 (protocol) ANOVAs were conducted to assess task and fatigue differences. Alpha level was set at .05. During SLOFP participants had increased internal varus moment at initial contact (0.064±0.09Nm/Kgm) when compared with the FAST-FP (0.024±0.06Nm/kgm), p=0.033. Participants were in significantly lower hip flexion at initial contact post-fatigue (44. 7±8.1 °) when compared with pre-fatigue (50.1±9.5°), p=0.001 as well as at peak vertical ground reaction force post-fatigue (44.7±8.4°) when compared with pre-fatigue (50.4±10.3°), p=0.001; at peak posterior ground reaction force post-fatigue (45.2±8.6°) when compared with pre-fatigue (51.1±10.8°), p=0.001; at peak knee flexion post-fatigue (38.7±8.7°) when compared with pre-fatigue (45.1±11.6°), p=0.001, and at max hip flexion post-fatigue (47.3±8.2°) when compared with pre-fatigue (53.3±10.95°), p=0.001. During SLO-FP subjects had increased knee extension moment (2.0l±.32Nm/K.gm) when compared with the FASTFP (1.9±.36Nm/Kgm), p=0.033. Both protocols induced similar changes to our subjects lower extremity biomechanics, the FAST-FP induced changes in as little as five minutes whereas the SLO-FP took 45 minutes to induce similar biomechanical changes. Our results demonstrated a decrease in hip and knee flexion angles at post-fatigue condition. Landing in an upright position has been shown to increase anterior tibial shear force, which augments the loads on the ACL

Social criticism in the works of Dylan Thomas

The genesis of this thesis is the belief that an artist\u27s primary purpose is to communicate some aspect of human existence to his fellow man. Regardless of how the creative art is rendered, whether through the arrangement of color and texture on a canvas, or sounds in or out of harmonica chord, or shapes carved out of blocks of stone, or sounds articulated in the spoken word, the realization of the artistic process is meaningful only in the final communication of the imaginative urge which motivates an artist. Therefore, art exists for both the creation of it and the reception of it and by an audience. Every aspect of human nature is given meaning in the context of the society within which it is manifested. The purpose of this thesis is to investigate the art of Dylan Thomas in relation to his view of man and his society

Quantitative assessment of the upper airway in infants and children with subglottic stenosis

OBJECTIVES/HYPOTHESIS: Determine whether quantitative geometric measures and a computational fluid dynamic (CFD) model derived from medical imaging of children with subglottic stenosis (SGS) can be effective diagnostic and treatment planning tools. STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective chart and imaging review in a tertiary care hospital. METHODS: Computed tomography scans (n = 17) of children with SGS were analyzed by geometric and CFD methods. Polysomnograms (n = 15) were also analyzed. Radiographic data were age/weight flow normalized and were compared to an atlas created from radiographically normal airways. Five geometric, seven CFD, and five polysomnography measures were analyzed. Statistical analysis utilized a two-sample t test with Bonferroni correction and area under the curve analysis. RESULTS: Two geometric indices (the ratio of the subglottic to midtracheal airway, the percent relative reduction of the subglottic airway) and one CFD measure (the percent relative reduction of the hydraulic diameter of the subglottic airway) were significant for determining which children with SGS received surgical intervention. Optimal cutoffs for these values were determined. Polysomnography, the respiratory effort-related arousals index, was significant only prior to Bonferroni correction for determining which children received surgical intervention. CONCLUSIONS: Geometric and CFD variables were sensitive at determining which patients with SGS received surgical intervention. Discrete quantitative assessment of the pediatric airway was performed, yielding preliminary data regarding possible objective thresholds for surgical versus nonsurgical treatment of disease. This study is limited by its small, retrospective, single-institution nature. Further studies to validate these findings and possibly optimize treatment threshold recommendations are warranted

Local strain quantification of a porous carbon fiber network material

While porous materials’ wide range of attractive functional properties have led to their development for a variety of applications, their intrinsically stochastic microstructures prevent straightforward approaches to predicting their mechanical behavior. This is attributed to the mechanisms that govern the macroscale behavior of these materials operating on multiple microstructure-specific length scales spanning several orders of magnitude. The goal of this work was to experimentally observe these operative deformation mechanisms to better improve the development of mechanism-informed models that more accurately predict the behavior of these materials. In this study compression tests were conducted on a porous carbon fiber network material. The resulting macroscale mechanical properties and mesoscale deformation behavior were tied together through digital image correlation (DIC) strain mapping. It was shown that deformation accumulation occurred via both reversible (fiber bending and sliding) and irreversible (fiber and junction failure) ways. The presence of irreversible deformation is indicated by strain being retained after unloading, with values of up to 0.426 locally and 0.248 globally. Local and macroscopic recovery of up to 0.306 and 0.207 strain respectively showcase the operation of reversible deformation. Furthermore, the calculation of energy loss coefficients increasing from 0.016 to 0.371 illustrates that the deformation occurs via dissipative mechanisms

Jealousy, Transmission and Recovery

Recovery is a performance project by Natalie Cursio and Shannon Bott that premiered in Melbourne, Australia in late 2015. In the credits I am listed as ‘Director / Choreographer’ but I was not involved at the beginning of the project and nor did I see the premiere. My relative absence from Recovery has led me to conceive of my relationship to it as being that of a jealous lover. In turn, I ask how the experience of jealousy may be useful in re-negotiating the role of the choreographer—and choreography—through time. The writing evokes the biological metaphor of 'spillover' to help imagine a work's persistence beyond performance (and related considerations of annotation and archive), and proposes that the idea of stewardship helps to recognize the limited role of the director/choreographer in how performance is transmitted through time. This is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by Taylor & Francis in Performance Research on 26 November 2015 available online: http://www.tandfonline.com/10.1080/13528165.2015.111106

Por que não estávamos prontos para o coronavírus?

This paper by David Quammen, author of the recommended book Spillover. Animal infections and the next human pandemic, makes a brief synthesis of the latest research on epizootic diseases, caused by viruses that jump from other animal species to the human species, and is a sort of addendum to the epilogue of the Spanish version, entitled “We were the ones who created the coronavirus epidemic”. In this paper Quammen argues that U.S. has fared worse than other countries not because it lacked information or funding but because it failed to learn the lessons of the last outbreaks.Este artículo de David Quammen, autor del recomendable libro Contagio. La evolución de las pandemias, hace una breve síntesis de las últimas investigaciones sobre las enfermedades epizoóticas, causadas por virus que saltan de otras especies animales a la especie humana, y es una especie de adenda al epílogo de la versión en castellano, titulado “Fuimos nosotros quienes creamos la epidemia del coronavirus”.En este artículo Quammen argumenta que a Estados Unidos le ha ido peor que a otros países, no porque haya carecido de información o de financiación, sino porque no aprendió las lecciones de los últimos brotes.Este artigo é de David Quammen, autor do livro recomendado Spillover. Infecções animais e a próxima pandemia humana, faz uma breve síntese das últimas pesquisas sobre doenças epizoóticas, causadas por vírus que saltam de outras espécies animais para a espécie humana, e é uma espécie de adendo ao epílogo da versão espanhola, intitulada “ Fomos nós que criamos a epidemia do coronavírus ”. Neste artigo, Quammen argumenta que se saiu pior do que outros países, não por falta de informação ou financiamento, mas porque não aprendeu as lições do último surtos

A Functional Agility Short-Term Fatigue Protocol Changes Lower Extremity Mechanics

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of a functional agility fatigue protocol on lower extremity biomechanics between two unanticipated tasks (stop-jump and sidestep). The subjects consisted of fifteen female collegiate soccer athletes (19 ± 0.7 years, 1.67 ± 0.1 m, 61.7± 8 kg) free of lower extremity injury. Participants performed five trials of stop-jump and sidestep tasks. A functional short-term agility protocol was performed, and immediately following participants repeated the unanticipated running tasks. Lower extremity kinematic and kinetic values were obtained pre and post fatigue. Repeated measures analyses of variance were conducted for each dependent variable with an alpha level set at 0.05. Knee position post-fatigue had increased knee internal rotation (11.4 ± 7.5 degrees vs. 7.9 ± 6.5 degrees p = 0.011) than pre-fatigue, and a decreased knee flexion angle (-36.6 ± 6.2 degrees vs. -40.0 ± 6.3 degrees, p = 0.003), as well as hip position post-fatigue had decreased hip flexion angle (35.5 ± 8.7 degrees vs. 43.2 ± 9.5 degrees, p = 0.002). A quick functional fatigue protocol altered lower extremity mechanics of Division I collegiate soccer athletes during landing tasks. Proper mechanics should be emphasized from the beginning of practice/game to aid in potentially minimizing the effects of fatigue in lower extremity mechanics