Advocates of an ‘extended evolutionary synthesis’ have claimed that standard evolutionary theory fails to accommodate epigenetic inheritance. The opponents of the extended synthesis argue that the evidence for epigenetic inheritance causing adaptive evolution in nature is insufficient. We suggest that the ambiguity surrounding the conception of the gene represents a background semantic issue in the debate. Starting from Haig’s gene-selectionist framework and Griffiths and Neumann-Held’s notion of the evolutionary gene, we define senses of ‘gene’, ‘environment’, and ‘phenotype’ in a way (...) that makes them consistent with gene-centric evolutionary theory. We argue that the evolutionary gene, when being materialized, need not be restricted to nucleic acids but can encompass other heritable units such as epialleles. If the evolutionary gene is understood more broadly, and the notions of environment and phenotype are defined accordingly, current evolutionary theory does not require a major conceptual change in order to incorporate the mechanisms of epigenetic inheritance. _1_ Introduction _2_ The Gene-centric Evolutionary Theory and the ‘Evolutionary Gene’ _2.1_ The evolutionary gene _2.2_ Genes, phenotypes, and environments _3_ Epigenetic Inheritance and the Gene-Centred Framework _3.1_ Treating the gene as the sole heritable material? _3.2_ Epigenetics and phenotypic plasticity _4_ Conclusion. (shrink)

Heritability estimates obtained from genome-wide association studies are much lower than those of traditional quantitative methods. This phenomenon has been called the “missing heritability problem.” By analyzing and comparing GWAS and traditional quantitative methods, we first show that the estimates obtained from the latter involve some terms other than additive genetic variance, while the estimates from the former do not. Second, GWAS, when used to estimate heritability, do not take into account additive epigenetic factors transmitted across generations, while traditional quantitative (...) methods do. Given these two points we show that the missing heritability problem can largely be dissolved. (shrink)

Graphical AbstractThere are four major hypotheses (H1, H2, H3, and H4) as to the source of missing heritability. We propose that estimates obtained from GWAS underestimate heritability by not taking into account non-DNA (epigenetic) sources of heritability. Taking those factors into account (H4) should result in increased heritability estimates.

Business groups dominate the economic landscape in many economies around the world. While business groups overcome the institutional voids arising due to inefficiencies of external markets, they also possess market power, which could be economically and socially counterproductive, especially for unaffiliated firms. Drawing on the transaction cost and industrial organization economics, we examine whether the presence of business group affiliated firms in industries restricts the entry of unaffiliated firms or firms affiliated with small- and medium-size business groups. Findings based on (...) Indian firms suggest that investments by business group affiliated firms in an industry have an inverted U-shaped relationship with the investment by unaffiliated firms. However, investments by firms affiliated with large-sized business groups have a U-shaped relationship with the investment by affiliates of small and medium business groups. These findings suggest that the market power of business groups and entry barrier relationship is contingent on the size of the business groups. (shrink)

Using a data set of 30 authentic institutional emails written by Chinese college students to their native English teacher, this article investigates the frequency and combinations of apology strategies used by English as a Foreign Language learners in natural contexts. Drawing on the coding framework adapted from previous studies, this article carries out a fine-grained analysis of apology behaviors of Chinese EFL learners when they offended their teacher for various reasons. Results revealed that the most frequently used strategy was illustrative (...) force indicating devices, and “IFIDs + taking on responsibility” ranked the most frequent combination. Among IFID sub-strategies, an expression of regret had the highest frequency. In addition, a new strategy—request for a chance to repair—was identified, which was used by Chinese learners to show their respectful and pious attitude when a more serious offense was made to their teacher. Findings from the study indicate that Chinese EFL learners tend to use culture-specific apology strategies in academic contexts. This study has pedagogical implications for EFL pragmatics instruction in Chinese contexts and also second language pragmatics instruction tailored for native Chinese learners in English-speaking countries. (shrink)

With the rapid development of information technology and data science, as well as the innovative concept of “Internet+” education, personalized e-learning has received widespread attention in school education and family education. The development of education informatization has led to a rapid increase in the number of online learning users and an explosion in the number of learning resources, which makes learners face the dilemma of “information overload” and “learning lost” in the learning process. In the personalized learning resource recommendation system, (...) the most critical thing is the construction of the learner model. Currently, most learner models generally have a lack of scientific focus that they have a single method of obtaining dimensions, feature attributes, and low computational complexity. These problems may lead to disagreement between the learner’s learning ability and the difficulty of the recommended learning resources and may lead to the cognitive overload or disorientation of learners in the learning process. The purpose of this paper is to construct a learner model to support the above problems and to strongly support individual learning resources recommendation by learning the resource model which effectively reduces the problem of cold start and sparsity in the recommended process. In this paper, we analyze the behavioral data of learners in the learning process and extract three features of learner’s cognitive ability, knowledge level, and preference for learning of learner model analysis. Among them, the preference model of the learner is constructed using the ontology, and the semantic relation between the knowledge is better understood, and the interest of the student learning is discovered. (shrink)

Information on age-related differences in affective meanings of words is widely used by researchers to study emotions, word recognition, attention, memory, and text-based sentiment analysis. To date, no Chinese affective norms for older adults are available although Chinese as a spoken language has the largest population in the world. This article presents the first large-scale age-related affective norms for 2,061 four-character Chinese words (AANC). Each word in this database has rating values in the four dimensions, namely, valence, arousal, dominance, and (...) familiarity. We found that older adults tended to perceive positive words as more arousing and less controllable and evaluate negative words as less arousing and more controllable than younger adults did. This indicates that the positivity effect is reliable for older adults who show a processing bias toward positive vs. negative words. Our AANC database supplies valuable information for researchers to study how emotional characteristics of words influence the cognitive processes and how this influence evolves with age. This age-related difference study on affective norms not only provides a tool for cognitive science, gerontology, and psychology in experimental studies but also serves as a valuable resource for affective analysis in various natural language processing applications. (shrink)

This study combined conservation of resources theory with the job demands-resources model to explore the influence of leader mindfulness on the emotional exhaustion of university teachers Using a time-lagged research design, 388 paired data sets were gathered. Multiple regression and bootstrapping were used to test each hypothesis. The results showed that first, leader mindfulness significantly reduces the emotional exhaustion of university teachers. Second, the results showed that workplace telepressure partially mediates the relationship between leader mindfulness and the emotional exhaustion of (...) university teachers. Third, university teacher mindfulness positively moderates the relationship between leader mindfulness and workplace telepressure. Finally, the results of this study indicate that self-efficacy in managing negative emotions negatively moderates the relationship between workplace telepressure and the emotional exhaustion of university teachers. This study empirically examined the interpersonal influence of leader mindfulness and the initial resources effect of university teacher mindfulness and self-efficacy in managing negative emotions from the bilateral perspective of leaders and university teachers. (shrink)

ObjectiveDespite its prevalence, insomnia disorder remains poorly understood. In this study, we used machine learning to analyze the functional connectivity disturbances underlying ID, and identify potential predictors of treatment response through recurrent transcranial magnetic stimulation and pharmacotherapy.Materials and methods51 adult patients with chronic insomnia and 42 healthy age and education matched controls underwent baseline anatomical T1 magnetic resonance imaging, resting-stage functional MRI, and diffusion weighted imaging. Imaging was repeated for 24 ID patients following four weeks of treatment with pharmacotherapy, with (...) or without rTMS. A recently developed machine learning technique, Hollow Tree Super was used to classify subjects into ID and control groups based on their FC, and derive network and parcel-based FC features contributing to each model. The number of FC anomalies within each network was also compared between responders and non-responders using median absolute deviation at baseline and follow-up.ResultsSubjects were classified into ID and control with an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.828. Baseline FC anomaly counts were higher in responders than non-responders. Response as measured by the Insomnia Severity Index was associated with a decrease in anomaly counts across all networks, while all networks showed an increase in anomaly counts when response was measured using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index. Overall, responders also showed greater change in all networks, with the Default Mode Network demonstrating the greatest change.ConclusionMachine learning analysis into the functional connectome in ID may provide useful insight into diagnostic and therapeutic targets. (shrink)

Collision-free autonomous path planning under a dynamic and uncertainty vineyard environment is the most important issue which needs to be resolved firstly in the process of improving robotic harvesting manipulator intelligence. We present and apply energy optimal and artificial potential field to develop a path planning method for six degree of freedom serial harvesting robot under dynamic uncertain environment. Firstly, the kinematical model of Six-DOF serial manipulator was constructed by using the Denavit-Hartenberg method. The model of obstacles was defined by (...) axis-aligned bounding box, and then the configuration space of harvesting robot was described by combining the obstacles and arm space of robot. Secondly, the harvesting sequence in path planning was computed by energy optimal method, and the anticollision path points were automatically generated based on the artificial potential field and sampling searching method. Finally, to verify and test the proposed path planning algorithm, a virtual test system based on virtual reality was developed. After obtaining the space coordinates of grape picking point and anticollision bounding volume, the path points were drew out by the proposed method. 10 times picking tests for grape anticollision path planning were implemented on the developed simulation system, and the success rate was up to 90%. The results showed that the proposed path planning method can be used to the harvesting robot. (shrink)

BackgroundNurses are facing increasing pressure due to the progressing of society, broadening of nursing service connotation, and increasing of the masses’ demand for medical treatment. Psychiatric nurses face suicides, violence, and lost along with other accidents involving patients with mental disorders under higher psychological pressure. A coping style, which is affected by individual emotions and cognition, is an essential psychological resource that allows individuals to regulate stress. The purpose of this study was to investigate the correlation between self-acceptance and the (...) positive coping style of psychiatric nurses, and investigate the mediating role of emotional intelligence.MethodsA total of 813 psychiatric nurses from six natural regions in Shandong Province were investigated using the Self-Acceptance Questionnaire, Emotional Intelligence Scale, Simplified Coping Style Questionnaire, and self-compiled general information questionnaire.ResultsThe total EIS score of psychiatric nurses was 3.848 ± 0.459. The highest score was for others’ emotional management and the lowest was for emotion perception. EIS and positive coping style were statistically significant based on age, work experience, professional title, education level, and gender. Self-acceptance was statistically significant only for professional titles. Self-acceptance and emotional intelligence were positively correlated with positive coping style. The factors were also positively correlated with each other. Self-emotion management, others’ emotional management, emotion perception, self-acceptance, and education level jointly predicted positive coping styles. Emotional intelligence partially mediated the relationship between self-acceptance and positive coping styles, with a mediating effect of 16.3%.ConclusionEmotional intelligence and self-acceptance can promote positive coping styles and improve psychiatric nurses’ mental health. (shrink)

Educational institutions need to respond to global competitive problems, and branding has become a method for higher education institutions to differentiate themselves. Thus, this study attempted to investigate predictors of employee brand-based equity. A cross-sectional research design has been used to record the perception of the teachers, and data are collected using a convenience sampling technique. Before administrating the study on large scale, a pilot testing was conducted, and reliability of the scale and their items was ensured. Pilot testing results (...) indicated a satisfactory reliability level, and constructs correlations were in the assumed directions, which allowed to conduct the study on a large scale. A sample size of 400 was set, and questionnaires were distributed among the participants, out of which, 376 were received back, while 351 were left at the end after discarding incomplete responses. The left over and completed questionnaires indicate 88% response rate. Data have been analyzed through the Smart PLS software by applying the structural equation modeling technique. After establishment of the measurement model through reliability and validity, the structural model was used to test study hypotheses. All the study hypotheses were found statistically significant on the basis of t and p statistics. Results indicate that teacher’s emotional intelligence enhances teachers’ self-efficacy, which further improves their brand-based equity. Similarly, emotional intelligence increases teacher’s performance, which also increases their brand-based equity. Limitations and future directions of the study are also reported. (shrink)