1,721,037 research outputs found
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Get PDFThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Variations on the Author
Get PDF“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Mind Over Muscle: Exploring the Hallmarks of Central Fatigue During Exercise
No full textPrevious research has indicated that reduced velocity of saccadic eye movements during exercise is a distinctive characteristic of central fatigue. Using recent technological advancements in eye tracking and neuroimaging, this thesis presents findings from five comprehensive studies that significantly contribute to our understanding of central fatigue
during exercise. The validation of a head-mounted eye tracker as a reliable tool for
assessing eye movements during exercise enabled valuable insights into the dynamic
changes in saccadic kinematics during prolonged exercise. The initial increase in saccadic
velocity at the onset of exercise, followed by a subsequent decrease observed in the
findings, suggests that central fatigue could be better assessed through pre-to-post
comparisons rather than measurements taken during exercise. Furthermore, the integration
of functional near-infrared spectroscopy with saccadic eye movements provided crucial
information on the underlying neural mechanisms involved in central fatigue. The
continuous increase in oxyhaemoglobin and deoxyhaemoglobin levels during prolonged
exercise suggests that the brain has dynamic metabolic demands during exercise caused by
alterations in catecholamine concentrations. This is supported by the reversible effects of
caffeine on exercise-induced central fatigue. The research has also shown that saccadic eye
movements scale linearly with exercise intensity. Importantly, these changes are not
attributed to a lack of attention but rather reflect neural adjustments in the visual system
during intense exercise. Overall, this thesis has comprehensively explored new techniques
to reveal novel markers of central fatigue during exercise
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
Get PDFWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
The Role of Dietary Interventions on Cognitive and Operational Task Performance and Tolerance during Hypoxia
No full textThe brain requires a continuous supply of energy via oxidative metabolism for the maintenance of intracellular environment and synaptic transmission required for its essential function. Reduced oxygen availability can significantly impair oxidative metabolism and compromise cognitive functions that may lead to reduced performance, increased risk of accidents with possible fatalities. Creatine and nitrate are examples of nutritional supplements that can potentially improve the metabolic function of the brain. Creatine is a naturally occurring molecule that, when phosphorylated, can replenish cellular ATP without oxygen. Creatine supplementation can increase the stored levels of creatine in skeletal muscle and the brain potentially improving the energy buffering capacity during disruptions in oxygen supply. Inorganic nitrate plays a critical role in the nitrate-nitrite-nitric oxide pathway. Nitrate supplementation can increase nitric oxide bioavailability increasing blood flow to metabolic tissue, and improve the oxidative efficiency of mitochondria. Due to their unique mechanisms, both of these supplements may positively influence an individual’s ability to carry out cognitive tasks when experiencing significant reductions in oxygen availability.
The first experiment establishes the reliability of a driving simulator tool with oculomotor kinematic measurements to assess an individual’s operational performance. The second experiment explores to potential benefits of creatine supplementation on the ability to maintain useful consciousness during extreme hypoxia (FIO2=5.5%). The third experiment conducts a secondary data analysis to explore the potential applications of the physiological monitoring used in previous experimental chapters to establish an early warning tool to aid in the early detection of hypoxia related impairments in function. The fourth experiment explores the supplementation of creatine on operational task performance using a driving simulator during severe hypoxia (FIO2=10%). Lastly, the fifth experiment implements similar experimental methodologies except investigating the effects of dietary nitrates as an alternative nutritional intervention. Results from experiments four and five indicate that the nutritional supplementation was unable to provide a meaningful benefit in operational performance but reveal key physiological and cerebrovascular effects.
This thesis reports the use of two different hypoxia paradigms to investigate the potential applications of creatine and nitrate supplementation to improve our ability to perform tasks reflective of the cognitive demands during the type of hypoxia exposure that is encountered. These novel paradigms assessing task performance, and both cardiopulmonary, and cerebral haemodynamic measurements simultaneously provide a greater understanding of the effects these supplements may have on meaningful cognitive performance related outcomes and the underlying physiological mechanisms behind any differences
Engaging design: Empowering beyond ‘participation’ for active engagement
Get PDFDesign’s approach to complexity; often employs tactics aimed at engaging the public, provoking awareness, seeking transitional behaviour(s) and provoking changes in culture. Engaging Design (ED) initiates active involvement (as a new paradigm for embedding provocative design propositions) within communities and society. ED is an empowering practice (traversing beyond participation) energising communities, providing agency and facilitating; ‘self-authored’ and ‘community authored’ responsible change. Distributed tools, capabilities and access to knowledge has transformed ‘authorship’ to be socially, environmentally and contextually led. ED examples respond to environmental concerns; presenting opportunities to achieve sustainable and responsible goals. The work focuses on ‘authorship and responsibility’ as material and engagement ‘mis-use’ remains unregulated. This presents design’s responsibility toward embodying sustainable behaviour in all its means. We analyse two case study research projects that foster independence, authorship, as a means to engender engagement; 1) My Naturewatch, engages DIY technologies to create digital trail cameras, empowering people to create and author ‘accessible nature’, through ‘homecooked’ environment exploration. 2) Grangemead, is a facilitated, community-led response, enabling participants to design their own garden within a local-authority carehome. Authors unpick design practice examples, presenting Engaging Design methods for; impactful, responsible, co-authored, sustainable and resilient design interactions
Dispelling the Myths Behind First-author Citation Counts
Get PDFWe conducted a full-scale evaluative citation analysis study of scholars in the XML research field to explore just how different from each other author rankings resulting from different citation counting methods actually are, and to demonstrate the capability of emerging data and tools on the Web in supporting more realistic citation counting methods. Our results contest some common arguments for the continued
use of first-author citation counts in the evaluation of scholars, such as high correlations between author rankings by first-author citation counts and other citation
counting methods, and high costs of using more realistic citation counting methods that are not well-supported by the ISI databases. It is argued that increasingly available digital full text research papers make it possible for citation analysis studies to go beyond what the ISI databases have directly supported and to employ more
sophisticated methods
Human Physiological and Neurocognitive Responses to Controlled Acute Nitrogen Dioxide Exposure: A Protocol Development and Feasibility Study
No full textNitrogen dioxide (NO2) is a gaseous air pollutant that is hazardous to human health. A systematic review of known literature concerning the effects of acute isolated NO2 exposure on human physiology was conducted. There was a lack of evidence that acute NO2 had any
effect on lung function. There was evidence that breathing air with 4 parts per million of NO2
caused a reduction in systolic blood pressure (SP). No study in the systematic review
investigated the effect of acute NO2 exposure on neurophysiological or neurocognitive
functioning. This literature gap prompted inquiry into whether the diminished SP resulting
from high acute concentrations of acute NO2 could impact cerebral blood flow and
neurocognitive function. Based on this question a protocol was developed to investigate the
effect of acute NO2 on human physiology and neurocognition using an exercise test paradigm.
Participants will perform an acute NO2 intervention period testing neuropsychological using
Central Nervous System Vital Signs (CNSVS) software, functional near-infrared spectroscopy
neuroimaging (fNIRS), physiological monitoring and a symptom questionnaire. Participants
will subsequently perform an exercise test, only initially exposed to NO2. Post-intervention
spirometry, physiology monitoring and symptom questionnaires will follow the exercise test.
Feasibility issues surrounding the practicality and sensitivity of the protocol were tested. A
familiarisation protocol to calculate the starting and incremental wattage for the exercise test,
specific to each participant’s aerobic fitness, was designed and assessed for its feasibility. This
model was successfully applied to the exercise test of the protocol enabling exercise intensity
comparisons between- and within-participants. The CNSVS test was sensitive to the learned
effect. fNIRS was sensitive to hemoglobin changes during CNSVS testing. Finally, using a face mask in serial spirometry was comparable to mouthpiece spirometry. Overall, this protocol is feasible to detect the possible physiological and neurocognitive effects of acute NO2 exposure in human participant
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