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A stroke is a serious, life-threatening condition that occurs when the blood supply to a part of the brain is cut off. The earlier a stroke is treated, the less damage is likely to occur. One of the methods that can lead to faster treatment is timely and accurate prediction and diagnosis. This paper aims to compare the binary integer programming-data envelopment analysis (BIP-DEA) model and the logistic regression (LR) model for diagnosing and predicting the occurrence of stroke in Iran.

In this study, two algorithms of the BIP-DEA and LR methods were introduced and key risk factors leading to stroke were extracted.

The study population consisted of 2,100 samples (patients) divided into six subsamples of different sizes. The classification table of each algorithm showed that the BIP-DEA model had more reliable results than the LR for the small data size. After running each algorithm, the BIP-DEA and LR algorithms identified eight and five factors as more effective risk factors and causes of stroke, respectively. Finally, predictive models using the important risk factors were proposed.

The main objective of this study is to provide the integrated BIP-DEA algorithm as a fast, easy and suitable tool for evaluation and prediction. In fact, the BIP-DEA algorithm can be used as an alternative tool to the LR model when the sample size is small. These algorithms can be used in various fields, including the health-care industry, to predict and prevent various diseases before the patient’s condition becomes more dangerous.

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the moderating effects of the social influence of the blogger and the extent to which the reader has experience of that blogger, on loyalty toward the blogger, via two variables: blogger interactive practices (BIPs) and blogger credibility.

A quantitative empirical study was undertaken to estimate the research model. Structural equations were employed.

The results show that blogger social influence moderates the relationships between BIPs and intention to recommend the blogger and blogger credibility; and between credibility and intention (to recommend the blogger and to follow their suggestions). Meanwhile, the extent of the reader’s experience of the blogger moderates the relationships between BIPs and intention.

The present work offers criteria that may be of value to bloggers and firms in assessing the extent to which the blogger’s activities are effective in terms of achieving reader loyalty. The proposed variables are measured objectively online, using the Klout Index of social influence and the extent of the reader’s experience of the blogger (inferred from the number of bloggers followed by the reader).

Blogs are considered a mechanism to manage information overload in social media, and they are recognized for their influence on the reader’s decision-making process. The study contributes to the knowledge-base by proposing two moderating variables of loyalty-formation: blogger social influence and the extent of the reader’s experience of the blogger.

This paper aims to detect the most profitable, i.e. optimal turning points (TPs), from the history of time series using a binary integer programming (BIP) model. TPs prediction problem is one of the most popular yet challenging topics in financial planning. Predicting profitable TPs results in earning profit by offering the opportunity to buy at low and selling at high. TPs detected from the history of time series will be used as the prediction model’s input. According to the literature, the predicted TPs’ profitability depends on the detected TPs’ profitability. Therefore, research for improving the profitability of detection methods has been never given up. Nevertheless, to the best of our knowledge, none of the existing methods can detect the optimal TPs.

The objective function of our model maximizes the profit of adopting all the trading strategies. The decision variables represent whether or not to detect the breakpoints as TPs. The assumptions of the model are as follows. Short-selling is possible. The time value for the money is not considered. Detection of consecutive buying (selling) TPs is not possible.

Empirical results with 20 data sets from Shanghai Stock Exchange indicate that the model detects the optimal TPs.

The proposed model, in contrast to the other methods, can detect the optimal TPs. Additionally, the proposed model, in contrast to the other methods, requires transaction cost as its only input parameter. This advantage reduces the process’ calculations.

The purpose of this paper is to explore lecturers’ perceptions on factors that affect the implementation of bilingual instruction (BI) policy in Indonesian higher education.

This qualitative study used 15 lecturers who taught in BI programs in three Indonesian universities. The data were gained through semi-structured interviews. The semi-structured interview data were analyzed via thematic approach.

The findings of the study suggest a number of factors influencing the implementation of BI, including the support from lecturers, leadership, and government. The availability of adapted curriculum and systematic assessment also influences the successful implementation of BI in Indonesian tertiary education.

The findings of this study have implications for the success of similar programs and the ways to gain understanding of BI within higher education contexts.

BI research is not new; however, little information is related to BI in Indonesia. This work contributes to a growing body of literature that explore BI and education factors within higher education setting. The significance of this study is to raise greater understanding of several important factors that influence the implementation of BI policy within university settings.

Purpose – ‐‐ This article aims to determine if, given the current economic climate in higher education, academic libraries are still using the database Books in Print (BIP) as a collection development tool.Design/methodology/approach ‐‐ The article discusses a survey distributed to the Learning Times Library Online Community; Marylib, the list‐serv for the Maryland Library Association; ili‐l, the American Library Association's Information Literacy Instruction Discussion List; and Libref‐l, sponsored by Kent State for Reference Librarians. Participants responded to a series of questions about whether they use BIP as a collection development tool; whether they use other resources and, if so, what they are; and if the BIP database was dropped, why this decision was made.Findings ‐‐ Many academic libraries have dropped BIP and are using a variety of resources to find book reviews, pricing, and availability information. Only a slightly lower percentage of academic libraries have kept the database and use it as an important collection development tool.Research limitations/implications ‐‐ The sample size was relatively small.Originality/value ‐‐ This survey and subsequent article fill a gap in the literature – no other survey results could be found that addressed changes in academic libraries' perception of BIP as the “go to” source for collection development.

BIP of Oldbury in the West Midlands and part of T&N plc for over 30 years, celebrates its centenary this year. Now two sister companies, BIP Plastics and BIP Speciality Resins share the 11 hectare site straddling Tat Bank Road and bordered by Popes Lane and Rood End Road.

The exportability of Singapore’s industrial‐development model to other Asian environments has been one of the hallmarks of the city‐state’s regionalization program, together with the state‐led, market‐driven intervention that has underscored the citystate’s development strategies. The paper presents an empirical analysis on the portability of this transborder industrialization strategy, and contributes new insights to the discourse on state‐enterprise networks in promulgating transnational entrepreneurial ventures. Empirical evidence from on‐site surveys and interviews in Indonesia, China, Vietnam and India will be presented. Our study concludes that, while the calculated, schematised efforts have been remarkable, this attempt at re‐engineering economic space beyond the city‐state has not fully accounted for the intricacies of either economic, or socio‐political, realities in the host environments.

Body image perception is a complex cognitive process that involves several different dimensions. This has necessitated several studies to have different findings about each dimension, therefore. This is because body image perception is a continuous and constantly evolving process. The development of self-concept depends largely on positive or negative perception of body image in today’s time. This paper aims to develop an instrument to measure beliefs and attitudes of people involved in the perception of body image, defined as the perception that a person has of their physical self and the thoughts and feelings that result into a positive or negative self-concept.

The factorial structure, reliability, content validity and impact of gender on factor structure of body image perception scale (BIPS) were examined among university students (N = 200) in study, with male (n = 100) and female (n = 100) population. Self-made instrument BIPS was used.

Exploratory factor analysis using direct obliman method based on principal component analysis indicated a three-factor, 20-item scale including subscales 1) negative feeling; 2) public perception; and 3) future success. BIPS exhibited decent reliability (0.789) and content validity in both male and female university students, suggesting a highly significant difference between the two genders on BIPS.

The major limitation was that the sample was obtained from student population; therefore, it will not be entirely correct to generalize it to the whole population of Pakistan. Future studies need to include samples from different populations in Pakistan to bring out a more generalized view and try to minimize the variances in sample as much as possible for better results. Finally, the sample was drawn only from educated and young adult males and females (age ranging 17–28). Middle age and old age people must be included in future study. Also, in this study incremental and discriminant validity can be computed by comparing results on BIPS with any other body image questionnaire.

This standard instrument can be efficiently used for the research purpose and will enable the researcher to identify the positive and negative feelings and attitudes of male and females towards their body image and towards the development of healthy self-concept. The scale can be used by clinical psychologists and medical health professionals to help assess and treat their patients more accurately.

All in all, it can be suggested that the findings received illustrated that body image perception differs significantly among both men and women in Pakistani culture. The newly established version of BIPS with its high reliability indicates that the scale can be used in future as well with diverse populations to assess whether which among them hold either positive or negative self-concept of themselves based on their body image perceptions. Moreover, as the psychometric strength of the scale is well established, it can be used with future researches by health psychologists, dietitians and nutritionists to identify body image concerns among young males and females, especially in individuals with eating disorders.