Going above and beyond

Purpose This paper aims to review the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoint practical implications from cutting-edge research and case studies. Design/methodology/approach This briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds their own impartial comments and places the articles in context. Findings For organizational success on a global scale, companies are looking for employees who will perform above and beyond the job description. These extra-role behaviors benefit both the individual and the organization. Good strategic human resource practices (SHRPs) such as reward management (RM) and employee development (ED) can increase the potential for employees performing such organizational citizenship behaviors (OCBs). Employees who have emotional exhaustion (EE) are likely to demonstrate reduced extra-role behaviors. Managers need to ensure there are good SHRPs in place and that employee EE is reduced. Good congruence (Person-Organization fit) is beneficial for increasing OCB. Originality/value The briefing saves busy executives and researchers hours of reading time by selecting only the very best, most pertinent information and presenting it in a condensed and easy-to-digest format.

Computerized Sunnybrook facial grading scale (SBface) application for facial paralysis evaluation

Background The Sunnybrook facial grading scale is a comprehensive scale for the evaluation of facial paralysis patients. Its results greatly depend on subjective input. This study aimed to develop and validate an automated Sunnybrook facial grading scale (SBface) to more objectively assess disfigurement due to facial paralysis.Methods An application compatible with iOS version 11.0 and up was developed. The software automatically detected facial features in standardized photographs and generated scores following the Sunnybrook facial grading scale. Photographic data from 30 unilateral facial paralysis patients were randomly sampled for validation. Intrarater reliability was tested by conducting two identical tests at a 2-week interval. Interrater reliability was tested between the software and three facial nerve clinicians.Results A beta version of the SBface application was tested. Intrarater reliability showed excellent congruence between the two tests. Moderate to strong positive correlations were found between the software and an otolaryngologist, including the total scores of the three individual software domains and composite scores. However, 74.4% (29/39) of the subdomain items showed low to zero correlation with the human raters (κ<0.2). The correlations between the human raters showed good congruence for most of the total and composite scores, with 10.3% (4/39) of the subdomain items failing to correspond (κ<0.2).Conclusions The SBface application is efficient and accurate for evaluating the degree of facial paralysis based on the Sunnybrook facial grading scale. However, correlations of the software-derived results with those of human raters are limited by the software algorithm and the raters’ inconsistency.

Synthesis, Molecular Docking, and Evaluation of Triazole and Chalcone Conjugate As Antitubercular Agent

The aim of this work was to be combine two pharmocophoric nuclei viz, triazole and chalcone and evaluate their antitubercular activity. Propargylated vanillin was condensed with differently substituted acetophenones to produce various chalcones (3a-c). Propargyl chalcones were then made to react with benzyl azides (2a-d) using the technique of Click chemistry and this reaction yielded triazole-chalcone hybrids (4a-l) in good yields, ranged from 34 to 93%. These hybrids were evaluated for their antitubercular activity, from the results it was found that triazole and chalcone on combination exhibited enhanced bioactivity thereby supported the theory of synergistic effect. The conjugate 4a and 4f were found to be most potent with MIC of 1.6 µg/ml. Molecular docking studies of bioactive compounds were in good congruence with in-vitro studies.

It Often Howls More than It Chugs: Wind versus Ship Noise Under Water in Australia’s Maritime Regions

Marine soundscapes consist of cumulative contributions by diverse sources of sound grouped into: physical (e.g., wind), biological (e.g., fish), and anthropogenic (e.g., shipping)—each with unique spatial, temporal, and frequency characteristics. In terms of anthropophony, shipping has been found to be the greatest (ubiquitous and continuous) contributor of low-frequency underwater noise in several northern hemisphere soundscapes. Our aim was to develop a model for ship noise in Australian waters, which could be used by industry and government to manage marine zones, their usage, stressors, and potential impacts. We also modelled wind noise under water to provide context to the contribution of ship noise. The models were validated with underwater recordings from 25 sites. As expected, there was good congruence when shipping or wind were the dominant sources. However, there was less agreement when other anthropogenic or biological sources were present (i.e., primarily marine seismic surveying and whales). Off Australia, pristine marine soundscapes (based on the dominance of natural, biological and physical sound) remain, in particular, near offshore reefs and islands. Strong wind noise dominates along the southern Australian coast. Underwater shipping noise dominates only in certain areas, along the eastern seaboard and on the northwest shelf, close to shipping lanes.

Levels of Cognitive Congruence between Managers and Team Members’ Perceptions of Cooperation at Work

Much of the research on the psychological dynamics of performance teams suffers from the following limitations: consideration of only one theoretical framework and analysis of just one perspective (e.g., manager–coach or team member). To address these shortcomings, this study used a Global Cooperation concept that synthesized five psychological frameworks: coordination, cohesion, cooperation, integration, and identification. The objective of this study was to examine the level of congruence–symmetry between the two perspectives and the tendency for managers–coaches and team members to reduce cognitive dissonance in the perception of global cooperation. To this end, 108 managers–coaches and members of performance teams were studied (range: 23−60 years old) using a Cooperative Workteam Questionnaire (CWQ). Results revealed that the greatest amount of asymmetry was observed in Global Cooperation and Emotional Cooperation, while less asymmetry was found in Personal Growth, and good congruence–fit in Conditioned Cooperation. Results are discussed in terms of their theoretical meaning and practical implications for interventions on performance teams.

Vertebrate endemism in south-eastern Africa numerically redefines a biodiversity hotspot

We use numerical methods to explore patterns of vertebrate endemism in south-eastern Africa, refining the boundaries of the intuitively-defined Maputaland-Pondoland-Albany biodiversity hotspot, also proposing a zoogeographic regionalisation. An incidence matrix of 300 vertebrate species endemic to south-eastern Africa sensu lato in 37 operational geographic units were used in (a) phenetic cluster analysis (PCA) using the algorithm of unweighted pair-group method with arithmetic averages (phenetic approach), and (b) parsimony analysis of endemicity (PAE; parsimony approach), in order to numerically evaluate the bioregional delimitations. The analyses provide a valid biogeographical entity 37% larger than the Maputaland-Pondoland-Albany hotspot, but substantially (131%) higher in vertebrate endemicity viz. the Greater Maputaland-Pondoland-Albany (GMPA) region of vertebrate endemism. South-east Africa is recognised as a dominion in the global zoogeographical area hierarchy, with subordinate units including the GMPA province. Various spatially-based measures of endemism were mapped for vertebrate species restricted to the dominion, i.e. endemic to south-eastern Africa sensu stricto. Areas and centres of endemism detected respectively from PAE and PCA, within the south-east Africa dominion also support the refined boundary of the GMPA region of endemism, which provides a better spatial conservation priority compared to the Maputaland-Pondoland-Albany hotspot. Reptiles and amphibians are found to be the main drivers of the overall pattern of endemism, while the pattern in freshwater fish is the most distinctive. Our analyses also indicate a good congruence of the centres of endemism across different terrestrial vertebrate taxa.

Interaction of katabatic wind and local surface mass balance at Scharffenbergbotnen Blue Ice Area, Antarctica

We model the wind causing the formation of a blue ice area in Scharffenbergbotnen valley, Antarctica, using the finite element code Elmer. The high resolution numerical simulations of the local wind flow from katabatic wind fronts show highly spatially variable wind impact patterns and good congruence between places of enhanced wind-impact and the blue ice area. The results were fortuitously confirmed by the destruction of a field camp located in a high wind speed area and its subsequent redistribution to low velocity areas. In addition we perform wind simulations on an altered glacier geometry that resembles the thicker ice cover at the Late Glacial Maximum (LGM). These simulations indicate that the pronounced spatial wind-impact patterns depend on present day geometry and did not occur during the LGM. This leads to the conclusion that the formation of the blue ice area that is situated more inside the valley of Scharffenbergbotnen started only after the lowering of the ice surface, later than the LGM. Experiments with smoothed surface topography suggest that detailed positions of the high wind regions and hence individual blue ice fields, may have varied as the ice sheet lowered. The experiments and the field observations are consistent with localized violent katabatic events, rather than synoptic scale storms, playing the dominant role in the formation and maintenance of this, and perhaps many blue ice areas.

Multilocus Sequence Types, Serotypes, and Variants of the Surface Antigen PspA in Streptococcus pneumoniae Isolates from Meningitis Patients in Poland

ABSTRACT Meningitis caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae represents an important factor of morbidity and mortality in humans. In a significant number of cases, this disease is associated with specific clones of the organism, the so-called invasive pneumococcal clones. The aim of the study was to analyze 156 S. pneumoniae isolates identified as etiological agents of meningitis in Poland in the years 1997 through 2002. The isolates were characterized by multilocus sequence typing (MLST), and the results were compared with those obtained by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) and with the MLST data on invasive pneumococci from other countries. Eighty-nine different sequence types were found in the group of isolates, 50 of which had been known before including 19 of the major invasive clones. However, a significant fraction of the isolates possessed novel combinations of known and new MLST alleles. The majority of penicillin-nonsusceptible isolates belonged to the group of international multiresistant clones (Spain23F-1, Spain6B-2, Spain9V-3, Poland23F-16, and Poland6B-20), which underlined the importance of these in the dissemination of antimicrobial resistance. The results of the MLST analysis correlated well with the PFGE data, thus again demonstrating good congruence between the two typing methods for S. pneumoniae. The majority of the isolates (95.5%) belonged to families 1 or 2 of the surface protein PspA, confirming its potential usefulness as the vaccine antigen candidate.

Digital Three-Dimensional Photogrammetry: Evaluation of Anthropometric Precision and Accuracy Using a Genex 3D Camera System

Objective To determine the precision and accuracy of facial anthropometric measurements obtained through digital three-dimensional (3D) photogrammetry. Design Nineteen standard craniofacial measurements were repeatedly obtained on 20 subjects by two independent observers, using calipers and 3D photos (obtained with a Genex 3D camera system), both with and without facial landmarks labeled. Four different precision estimates were then calculated and compared statistically across techniques. In addition, mean measurements from 3D photos were compared statistically with those from direct anthropometry. Results In terms of measurement precision, the 3D photos were clearly better than direct anthropometry. In almost all cases, the 3D photo with landmarks labeled had the highest overall precision. In addition, labeling landmarks prior to taking measurements improved precision, regardless of method. Good congruence was observed between means derived from the 3D photos and direct anthropometry. Statistically significant differences were noted for seven measurements; however, the magnitude of these differences was often clinically insignificant (< 2 mm). Conclusions Digital 3D photogrammetry with the Genex camera system is sufficiently precise and accurate for the anthropometric needs of most medical and craniofacial research designs.

Detecting Population Growth, Selection and Inherited Fertility From Haplotypic Data in Humans

The frequency of a rare mutant allele and the level of allelic association between this allele and one or several closely linked markers are frequently measured in genetic epidemiology. Both quantities are related to the time elapsed since the appearance of the mutation in the population and the intrinsic growth rate of the mutation (which may be different from the average population growth rate). Here, we develop a method that uses these two kinds of genetic data to perform a joint estimation of the age of the mutation and the minimum growth rate that is compatible with its present frequency. In absence of demographic data, it provides a useful estimate of population growth rate. When such data are available, contrasts among estimates from several loci allow demographic processes, affecting all loci similarly, to be distinguished from selection, affecting loci differently. Testing these estimates on populations for which data are available for several disorders shows good congruence with demographic data in some cases whereas in others higher growth rates are obtained, which may be the result of selection or hidden demographic processes.