In the domain of legal information retrieval, an important challenge is to compute similarity between two legal documents. Precedents play an important role in The Common Law system, where lawyers need to frequently refer to relevant prior cases. Measuring document similarity is one of the most crucial aspects of any document retrieval system which decides the speed, scalability and accuracy of the system. Text-based and network-based methods for computing similarity among case reports have already been proposed in prior works but (...) not without a few pitfalls. Since legal citation networks are generally highly disconnected, network based metrics are not suited for them. Till date, only a few text-based and predominant embedding based methods have been employed, for instance, TF-IDF based approaches, Word2Vec and Doc2Vec based approaches. We investigate the performance of 56 different methodologies for computing textual similarity across court case statements when applied on a dataset of Indian Supreme Court Cases. Among the 56 different methods, thirty are adaptations of existing methods and twenty-six are our proposed methods. The methods studied include models such as BERT and Law2Vec. It is observed that the more traditional methods that rely on a bag-of-words representation performs better than the more advanced context-aware methods for computing document-level similarity. Finally we nominate, via empirical validation, five of our best performing methods as appropriate for measuring similarity between case reports. Among these five, two are adaptations of existing methods and the other three are our proposed methods. (shrink)

In a Common Law system, legal practitioners need frequent access to prior case documents that discuss relevant legal issues. Case documents are generally very lengthy, containing complex sentence structures, and reading them fully is a strenuous task even for legal practitioners. Having a concise overview of these documents can relieve legal practitioners from the task of reading the complete case statements. Legal catchphrases are (multi-word) phrases that provide a concise overview of the contents of a case document, and automated generation (...) of catchphrases is a challenging problem in legal analytics. In this paper, we propose a novel supervised neural sequence tagging model for the extraction of catchphrases from legal case documents. Specifically, we show that incorporating document-specific information along with a sequence tagging model can enhance the performance of catchphrase extraction. We perform experiments over a set of Indian Supreme Court case documents, for which the gold-standard catchphrases (annotated by legal practitioners) are obtained from a popular legal information system. The performance of our proposed method is compared with that of several existing supervised and unsupervised methods, and our proposed method is empirically shown to be superior to all baselines. (shrink)

Pothos & Busemeyer (P&B) argue how key concepts of quantum probability, for example, order/context, interference, superposition, and entanglement, can be used in cognitive modeling. Here, we suggest that these concepts can be extended to analyze neurophysiological measurements of cognitive tasks in humans, especially in functional neuroimaging investigations of large-scale brain networks.

The genetically and experimentally accessible organs of Drosophila, such as the heart or blood‐forming tissues, have become a fertile ground for systematic projects of gene discovery and for functional studies of gene networks and signaling pathways. One argument justifying this approach is the often‐tacit assumption that clear‐cut homologies can be established between the Drosophila organs and their vertebrate counterparts. Here we investigate this assumption by surveying pertinent aspects of vascular structure and development in different invertebrate phyla, in the hope that (...) this information will help to reveal the ancestral condition of the vascular system. Evolutionary scenarios that derive the structure of the cardiovascular system of extant animal taxa from the ancestral condition will be used to qualify hypotheses regarding homologies that are based on molecular similarities. BioEssays 28: 1203–1210, 2006. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. (shrink)

Advertising is omnipresent and cannot be ignored. The advertisers intertwine the cultural practices prevalent in the country to make a lasting impact on the viewers. The culture of the nation has a...

The Transforming growth factor beta (TGF‐β) family of secreted proteins regulates a variety of key events in normal development and physiology. In mammals, this family, represented by 33 ligands, including TGF‐β, activins, nodal, bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs), and growth and differentiation factors (GDFs), regulate biological processes as diverse as cell proliferation, differentiation, apoptosis, metabolism, homeostasis, immune response, wound repair, and endocrine functions. In Drosophila, only 7 members of this family are present, with 4 TGF‐β/BMP and 3 TGF‐β/activin ligands. Studies in (...) the fly have illustrated the role of TGF‐β/BMP ligands during embryogenesis and organ patterning, while the TGF‐β/activin ligands have been implicated in the control of wing growth and neuronal functions. In this review, we focus on the emerging roles of Drosophila TGF‐β/activins in inter‐organ communication via long‐distance regulation, especially in systemic lipid and carbohydrate homeostasis, and discuss findings relevant to metabolic diseases in humans. -/- . (shrink)

BackgroundRationing of care in nursing is nurses' inability to complete all care activities for patients because of scarcity in time and resource. Literature suggests that rationing of care is closely related to patient safety and quality of care. The phenomena have been defined and studied from varied perspectives and contexts. A systematic review of studies related to the concept was aimed at identifying and synthesizing the finding.MethodsThe review followed Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta‐analysis guidelines, and literature searches (...) were conducted in MEDLINE, CINAHL, PsycInfo, Web of Science and EMBASE databases. Fifty‐seven quantitative studies were included in the review.FindingsThe review observed that nursing activities addressing the emotional, educational, mobility and hygiene needs of the patients were commonly rationed. Antecedents of rationing included resource inadequacy and organizational work environment. Rationing influenced patient satisfaction, mortality and a number of adverse events and was associated with decreased job satisfaction, increased intention to leave and high turnover among nurses.DiscussionsThis review concludes that rationing in nursing is ubiquitous, embedded in the work environment and poses a threat to the professional health and philosophical base of nursing in addition to having serious implications on patients' safety. Strategies to reframe and reconsider organizational traits, and open discussion with other healthcare stakeholders can reduce rationing of nursing care. The review suggests future researchers adopt different methodological layout to study rationing. (shrink)

Sumit K. Mandal uncovers the hybridity and transregional connections underlying modern Asian identities. By considering Arabs in the Malay world under European rule, Becoming Arab explores how a long history of inter-Asian interaction was altered by nineteenth-century racial categorisation and control. Mandal traces the transformation of Arabs from familiar and multi-faceted creole personages of Malay courts into alienated figures defined by economic and political function. The racialisation constrained but did not eliminate the fluid character of Arabness. Creole Arabs (...) responded to the constraints by initiating transregional links with the Ottoman Empire and establishing modern social organisations, schools, and a press. Contentions emerged between organisations respectively based on Prophetic descent and egalitarianism, advancing empowering but conflicting representations of a modern Arab and Islamic identity. Mandal unsettles finite understandings of race and identity by demonstrating not only the incremental development of a modern identity, but the contested state of its birth. (shrink)

In this paper, we consider the influence of Gibson's affordance theory on the design of robotic agents. Affordance theory (and the ecological approach to agent design in general) has in many cases contributed to the development of successful robotic systems; we provide a brief survey of AI research in this area. However, there remain significant issues that complicate discussions on this topic, particularly in the exchange of ideas between researchers in artificial intelligence and ecological psychology. We identify some of these (...) issues, specifically the lack of a generally accepted definition of "affordance" and fundamental differences in the current approaches taken in AI and ecological psychology. While we consider reconciliation between these fields to be possible and mutually beneficial, it will require some flexibility on the issue of direct perception. (shrink)

The article attempts to describe adonization, a specific tactic for exerting influence which employs physical attraction, as well as its determinants. The article presents a proprietary model of determinants and motivational mechanisms which constitute the basis of the attitude toward adonization. A cycle of 3 studies on individual determinants for the attitude toward adonization was described. Results of study 1 confirmed that male gender, psychological masculinity, narcissism, Machiavellianism and high self-monitoring were correlates of a positive attitude toward adonization. Study 2 (...) showed that extraversion was the predictor of a positive attitude toward adonization of men and women and that agreeableness was the predictor of a less positive attitude of women. In Study 3 it was established that there were no differences in the attitude toward adonization in young and middle-aged men. Comparison among young and middle-aged women proved that younger women had a more positive attitude toward adonization in the cognitive and in the affective components than older women. (shrink)

The topic of the article concerns the issue of place attachment and its determinants. An analysis of place attachment was performed in terms of place identity and place dependence. Moreover, links between place attachment and selected geographical, demographic and psychological variables were investigated. The study group included 759 respondents: 398 women and 361 men, aged 18-83 years, residing in 74 places in the Silesian Province, a region in Poland: in 10 sub-regions in the Upper Silesian conurbation and outside the conurbation. (...) The study used the Place Attachment Scale, the Satisfaction with Life Scale and a personal information section containing questions regarding place of permanent residence, sex and age. Results showed that subjects residing in smaller and non-industrial places had a stronger place attachment than those residing in larger and industrial cities. People living outside the Upper Silesian conurbation were more strongly attached to their place of residence in terms of place identity than those residing in the Upper Silesian conurbation. People living in the Zagłębie sub-region were more strongly attached in terms of place dependence than those residing in the Bytom sub-region. Satisfaction with life was positively correlated with place attachment. Older subjects were more strongly attached to their place of residence. Men and women did not differ in the sense of place attachment and life satisfaction. (shrink)

Contributed research papers on various aspects of Hindu philosophy, Sanskrit grammar and poetics.

This study aims to explore how CSR-related messages posted by CEOs on social media are beneficial in fostering social capital, which in turn impacts the FP and online reputation of the firm. The study also examines whether there is any difference in FP due to sharing of CSR-related messages by CEOs before and during the pandemic. Hierarchical regression is used to examine the influence of CEOs CSR related tweets on FP and online reputation. The study reveals that by posting CSR-related (...) messages on Twitter, CEOs can build social capital available on social media, which leads to better FP and online reputation. Findings also indicate that there is no statistically significant difference in FP and online reputation of the firm due to sharing of CSR-related messages by CEOs before and during the pandemic. Our research makes a significant addition to the empirical studies of CSR, social media and social capital theory. (shrink)

Architectural style is a medium for the promotion of cultural identities and cohesion. South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation nations provide a prism through which all forms of vernacular architecture can be viewed. This study is presented through the lens of the soul of the eye coupled with the power of technological probing. This synthesis affords a most appealing and lyrical exploration of the course of the development of cities within the SAARC nations. It showcases research results combining the above (...) stated synergy—starting from some of SAARC’s sophisticated historic cultures, cultures that ebbed and flowed along its shores and valleys. This paper shall touch upon unique cultural roots stretching back to the Dravidian civilization that flourished over 3500 years ago and also look at the grouping of houses within the Indus Valley Civilization in Lothal and the Sarasvati Valley Civilization in Kalibangan. The sensitivity underlying SAARC architecture and its traditions are seen in many communal settlements, profoundly so in the Indian subcontinent and in Sri Lanka. The paper shall showcase two specific, but nevertheless, distinct styles of communal functioning within unique architectural strongholds in the ancient Ratnagiri University in Odisha, India, and also touch upon a unique blend of styles of landscape architecture in Sri Lanka. The overarching emphasis of this study is that throughout SAARC’s history, architecture has been creatively adopted to the need of its users and the characteristics of its climate and location. It has always fulfilled the needs and nourished the spirit of its people, promoting cultural cohesion even today. In this context, it is interesting to explore traditional techniques of vernacular architecture in houses in Andhra, Tamil Nadu and Kerala. The common thread linking mass housing in Lothal, Kalibangan, Anuradhapura and Ratnagiri about 2 millennia ago, with present day housing patterns, is in the application of sustainable building practices using intelligent building forms, fabric and orientation. This paper explores this commonality from a modern perspective using CFD. As the SAARC countries still struggle to get a fuller understanding of their unique ecology and the complexity of their diverse cultures, revisiting the architectural legacy of their indigenous societies might prove insightful. The need for this revisit becomes even more relevant in the wake of the Paris Agreement and more recently the Kigali Agreement. The discourse on providing indoor thermal comfort to the SAARC people cannot be decoupled from the climate change story—heating, ventilation and cooling consume a large amount of energy and have a deep underlying link with the targets set at Paris and Kigali. The onus will be on a large number of stakeholders to meet these targets—engineers, architects, manufacturers, policy-makers, researchers and consumers. This paper aims at reminding the stakeholders of the richness and the usefulness of their vernacular architecture in upholding the ideal of sustainability. (shrink)

The paper is a short introduction to the article 'Affordances for robots' by Thomas E. Horton, Arpan Chakraborty and Robert St. Amant, in the context of applications of ecological psychology.

Development and homeostasis of the haematopoietic system is dependent upon stem cells that have the unique ability to both self‐renew and to differentiate in all cell lineages of the blood. The crucial decision between haematopoietic stem cell (HSC) self‐renewal and differentiation must be tightly controlled. Ultimately, this choice is regulated by the integration of intrinsic signals together with extrinsic cues provided by an exclusive microenvironment, the so‐called haematopoietic niche. Although the haematopoietic system of vertebrates has been studied extensively for many (...) decades, the specification of the HSC niche and its signals involved are poorly understood. Much of our current knowledge of how niches regulate long‐term maintenance of stem cells is derived from studies on Drosophila germ cells. Now, two recently published studies by Mandal et al.1 and Krezmien et al.2 describe the Drosophila haematopoietic niche and signal transduction pathways that are involved in the maintenance of haematopoietic precursors. Both reports emphasize several features that are important for controlling stem cell behavior and show parallels to both the vertebrate haematopoietic niche as well as the Drosophila germline stem cell niches in ovary and testis. The findings of both papers shed new light on the specific interactions between haematopoietic progenitors and their microenvironment. BioEssays 29:713–716, 2007. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. (shrink)