Student-managed investment funds: a review and research agenda

PurposeIn recent years, student-managed investment funds (SMIFs), experiential learning programs at an increasing number of universities, have attracted significant scholarly interest. In this article, we review the academic literature on this pedagogy.Design/methodology/approachWe use the systematic review method to assess a sample of 85 articles published in 30 journals during the period 1975 to 2020.FindingsOur literature review reveals four streams of research: best practices and challenges, investment management, innovation and trends and SMIFs in a research setting. We also propose future research directions, including specific gaps in the literature, a focus on innovations to traditional programs, systematic investment performance and expansion into behavioral finance issues.Originality/valueWe contribute a comprehensive view of the body of scholarship on SMIFs, identifying existing streams of research and future research directions that will help guide the development of SMIF research into a cohesive and productive space.

Bicycling as a Positive Youth Development Mechanism

Recreational activities are uniquely suited for the implementation of a positive youth development (PYD) approach, as they create space for youths’ physical, psychological, and social development. This may be especially true for vulnerable youth who face additional risk factors such as single parent homes and living in low-income communities. Momentum Bicycle Clubs (MBC), based in Greenville, South Carolina, use noncompetitive recreational bicycling as a mechanism to facilitate group mentoring opportunities for high-risk youth. MBC engage youth with their community while providing opportunities for leadership, building positive relationships, exercise, and learning new skills. This exploratory project’s purpose is to better understand the bicycle as a PYD mechanism through group mentoring by studying MBC program design, processes, and outcomes. Researchers identified three primary themes that indicated the bicycle provided youth opportunities to gain responsibility, confidence, and improved health. Sub themes provided additional context. For example, youth gained responsibility for their bikes and related equipment, as well as their individual and the group’s safety. MBC is an example of using individual specialized recreation equipment as an effective PYD mechanism that allows the program to meet more PYD desired outcomes than traditional programs. The bicycle rides differentiate the program dynamic from other PYD programs as the mentors are also group participants. This allows the mentors to share in the experience and role model behavior, which may foster stronger group identity and cohesiveness. Year-round asset intensive programs of this nature have management challenges, including sufficient resources (e.g., bicycle storage and maintenance), mentors willing to ride bicycles, as well as ensuring youth safety while riding. The resource challenges are met through extensive partnerships with government, nonprofit, and commercial agencies, which has also benefitted the program through a wider variety of mentors, adult role models, internship opportunities for the youth, and community knowledge about MBC. Safe bicycling is accomplished through extensive training, locating the clubs in areas with access to low traffic streets, and a 20-mile paved multiuse path. Lastly, since it is difficult to have meaningful conversations while riding, mentors must build in time before and after rides and at planned stops to facilitate the most meaningful mentor-mentee relationships.

CONFUZZIUS: A Data Dependency-Aware Hybrid Fuzzer for Smart Contracts

<div> <div> <p>Smart contracts are Turing-complete programs that are executed across a blockchain. Unlike traditional programs, once deployed, they cannot be modified. As smart contracts carry more value, they become more of an exciting target for attackers. Over the last years, they suffered from exploits costing millions of dollars due to simple programming mistakes. As a result, a variety of tools for detecting bugs have been proposed. Most of these tools rely on symbolic execution, which may yield false positives due to over-approximation. Recently, many fuzzers have been proposed to detect bugs in smart contracts. However, these tend to be more effective in finding shallow bugs and less effective in finding bugs that lie deep in the execution, therefore achieving low code coverage and many false negatives. An alternative that has proven to achieve good results in traditional programs is hybrid fuzzing, a combination of symbolic execution and fuzzing. In this work, we study hybrid fuzzing on smart contracts and present ConFuzzius, the first hybrid fuzzer for smart contracts. ConFuzzius uses evolutionary fuzzing to exercise shallow parts of a smart contract and constraint solving to generate inputs that satisfy complex conditions that prevent evolutionary fuzzing from exploring deeper parts. Moreover, ConFuzzius leverages dynamic data dependency analysis to efficiently generate sequences of transactions that are more likely to result in contract states in which bugs may be hidden. We evaluate the effectiveness of ConFuzzius by comparing it with state-of-the-art symbolic execution tools and fuzzers for smart contracts. Our evaluation on a curated dataset of 128 contracts and a dataset of 21K real-world contracts shows that our hybrid approach detects more bugs than state-of-the-art tools (up to 23%) and that it outperforms existing tools in terms of code coverage (up to 69%). We also demonstrate that data dependency analysis can boost bug detection up to 18%.</p> </div> </div>

CONFUZZIUS: A Data Dependency-Aware Hybrid Fuzzer for Smart Contracts

<div> <div> <p>Smart contracts are Turing-complete programs that are executed across a blockchain. Unlike traditional programs, once deployed, they cannot be modified. As smart contracts carry more value, they become more of an exciting target for attackers. Over the last years, they suffered from exploits costing millions of dollars due to simple programming mistakes. As a result, a variety of tools for detecting bugs have been proposed. Most of these tools rely on symbolic execution, which may yield false positives due to over-approximation. Recently, many fuzzers have been proposed to detect bugs in smart contracts. However, these tend to be more effective in finding shallow bugs and less effective in finding bugs that lie deep in the execution, therefore achieving low code coverage and many false negatives. An alternative that has proven to achieve good results in traditional programs is hybrid fuzzing, a combination of symbolic execution and fuzzing. In this work, we study hybrid fuzzing on smart contracts and present ConFuzzius, the first hybrid fuzzer for smart contracts. ConFuzzius uses evolutionary fuzzing to exercise shallow parts of a smart contract and constraint solving to generate inputs that satisfy complex conditions that prevent evolutionary fuzzing from exploring deeper parts. Moreover, ConFuzzius leverages dynamic data dependency analysis to efficiently generate sequences of transactions that are more likely to result in contract states in which bugs may be hidden. We evaluate the effectiveness of ConFuzzius by comparing it with state-of-the-art symbolic execution tools and fuzzers for smart contracts. Our evaluation on a curated dataset of 128 contracts and a dataset of 21K real-world contracts shows that our hybrid approach detects more bugs than state-of-the-art tools (up to 23%) and that it outperforms existing tools in terms of code coverage (up to 69%). We also demonstrate that data dependency analysis can boost bug detection up to 18%.</p> </div> </div>

Mindfulness Meditation – From Traditional Approaches to Mobile Applications (Preprint)

BACKGROUND Since the 1970s, psychological and neuroscientific research has had an increasing interest in mindfulness meditation. The resulting findings were followed by various programs which are based on the same idea: mindfulness meditation is a process of openly attending, with awareness to one’s present moment experience. In recent years the traditional programs have been turned more and more into digital applications, which promise increased spatial and temporal flexibility as well as an individual use. However, the large number of mobile applications offered contrasts with few evidence-based programs. OBJECTIVE The present review aims to consider the potential of mobile but also traditional programs to improve executive functions and alter neural mechanisms, in order to meet the growing demands of our digitized everyday life. METHODS - RESULTS By reviewing previous empirical findings and theoretical considerations, we describe short-term and long-term effects of both types as well as challenges and limitations with which they are faced. CONCLUSIONS Furthermore, we provide potential solutions for future programs with a specific focus of improving executive functions and underlying neural mechanisms. CLINICALTRIAL -

Student Veterans: Does How We Welcome Them Matter?

The recent influx of veterans into higher education has caused an increase of dedicated services and programs. Educational success is contingent upon student involvement in their educational communities, and orientation plays an important role in facilitating this engagement. Using quasi-experimental research design, and Schlossberg’s constructs of mattering and marginality in higher education as a lens, this study sought to discover if student veterans experienced differing levels of mattering to their schools when categorized by the type of orientation they attended. Five hundred eighty-nine student veterans at 13 public universities within one Midwestern state completed the Unified Measure of University Mattering Instrument (France, 2011), and provided limited demographic information. Findings demonstrate that student veterans who experienced an orientation session which included a session designed exclusively for veterans demonstrated statistically significant higher scores in their perceived mattering to their school than student veterans who did not attend orientation. However, student veterans who attended standard orientation without veteran-specific content did not demonstrate statistically significant higher scores that those who did not attend orientation at all. Results indicate how small changes in traditional programs can have a significant impact on student veterans’ sense of mattering to their university.

The impact of the application of cloud accounting on accounting programs in Palestinian universities: أثر تطبيق المحاسبة السحابية على برامج المحاسبة في الجامعات الفلسطينية

This study aims to clarify the impact of the application of cloud accounting on accounting programs in Palestinian universities from the point of view of academics working in Palestinian universities. A questionnaire has been used to solicit the opinions of specialists in this field, the questionnaires were distributed to all academics working in the accounting and financial science programs in the Palestinian universities, which are eleven universities, offer the accounting and financial sciences program. 33 valid questionnaires were retrieved for analysis... The study concluded that the application of cloud accounting to accounting programs in Palestinian universities may have the greatest impact in reducing the cost of traditional programs and the number of credit hours. It may also increase student's rehabilitation. Accounting will lead to an increase in the number of students enrolled in accounting programs in the Palestinian universities.

Effects of Physical Exercise on Sexual Function and Quality of Sexual Life Related to Menopausal Symptoms in Peri- and Postmenopausal Women: A Systematic Review

During the menopausal period, sexual dysfunction is associated with the development or worsening of psychological conditions, causing deterioration in women’s mental health and quality of life. This systematic review aims to investigate the effects of different exercise programs on sexual function and quality of sexual life related to menopausal symptoms. With this purpose, a systematic literature search was conducted in PubMed, CINAHL, Scopus, Web of Science, and Cochrane Plus. A total of 1787 articles were identified in the initial search and 11 prospective studies (including 8 randomized controlled trials) were finally included. The most commonly recommended training programs are based on exercising pelvic floor muscles, as they seem to have the largest impact on sexual function. Mind–body disciplines also helped in managing menopausal symptoms. However, as far as the most traditional programs were concerned, aerobic exercises showed inconsistent results and resistance training did not seem to convey any benefits. Although positive effects have been found, evidence supporting physical exercise as a strategy to improve sexual function and quality of sexual life related to menopausal symptoms is limited, and further studies on this topic are needed.

DYNAMICS OF INDICATORS SPECIAL PHYSICAL PREPAREDNESS OF ATHLETES AGE 15-16 YEARS IN PANCRATION DURING THE YEAR PREPARATION CYCLE

Introduction. The main directions of development the theory and methods of management of educational and training process and competitive activity include the optimal selection of the educational and training content at different stages of long-term training. Purpose: to determine the dynamics of special physical fitness athletes aged 15-16 years in pankration at the stage of specialized basic training in the annual cycle under the influence of experimental and traditional programs. Methods: theoretical analysis and generalization of literary sources, analysis of documentary materials, pedagogical testing, pedagogical experiment, methods of mathematical statistics. During November 2018 - October 2019, a formative pedagogical experiment was organized and conducted, involving control (21 athletes) and experimental (22 athletes) groups. Results. Most of the relative indicators ("climbing a rope 5 m without the help of legs", "Burpee test in 30 s", "squats with a disc from a barbell 20 kg in 1 min.", "rotation with a disc from a barbell 20 kg in 1 min."," pull of amortization rubber in 60 s") ranged from 12.05 to 18.35% improvement over the entire (annual period) of the pedagogical experiment implementation. According to one of the special physical fitness indicators (control exercise "simulation of passages in the legs with pulling a partner in 60 s (with amortization rubber)") the values of improvement were more significant and amounted 43.28%. In the control group, based on the results of the whole pedagogical experiment, there are significant increases in most indicators of special physical fitness. Significant (p≤0.01) increments of results are observed for most indicators. Relative indicators of improvement of results ("climbing on a rope of 5 m without the help of legs", "Burpy test in 30 s", " rotation with a disk from a barbell of 20 kg in 1 min.", " pull of amortization rubber in 60 s") ranged from 5.05–17.70% during the implementation of the pedagogical experiment. However, according to one of the special physical fitness indicators (control exercise "Squats with a disc from a barbell 20 kg in 1 min.") the values of improvement did not acquire significant values and amounted 5.07% (p = 0.07). Conclusions. According to the results of pedagogical experiment, we observe a significant improvement in most special physical fitness indicators, the situation is fairly uniform. Significant (p≤0.01) increases in the results of control exercises are observed for all indicators. Key words: preparedness, stage, indicators, results, mixed combat sports.