Addressing big data variety using an automated approach for data characterization

The creation of new knowledge from manipulating and analysing existing knowledge is one of the primary objectives of any cognitive system. Most of the effort on Big Data research has been focussed upon Volume and Velocity, while Variety, “the ugly duckling” of Big Data, is often neglected and difficult to solve. A principal challenge with Variety is being able to understand and comprehend the data. This paper proposes and evaluates an automated approach for metadata identification and enrichment in describing Big Data. The paper focuses on the use of self-learning systems that will enable automatic compliance of data against regulatory requirements along with the capability of generating valuable and readily usable metadata towards data classification. Two experiments towards data confidentiality and data identification were conducted in evaluating the feasibility of the approach. The focus of the experiments was to confirm that repetitive manual tasks can be automated, thus reducing the focus of a Data Scientist on data identification and thereby providing more focus towards the extraction and analysis of the data itself. The origin of the datasets used were Private/Business and Public/Governmental and exhibited diverse characteristics in relation to the number of files and size of the files. The experimental work confirmed that: (a) the use of algorithmic techniques attributed to the substantial decrease in false positives regarding the identification of confidential information; (b) evidence that the use of a fraction of a data set along with statistical analysis and supervised learning is sufficient in identifying the structure of information within it. With this approach, the issues of understanding the nature of data can be mitigated, enabling a greater focus on meaningful interpretation of the heterogeneous data.

No Country for Non-Graduate Men: The Childish Roots of Adult Job Tasks \& Employment

Male employment has declined across advanced economies as non-graduate men found it increasingly difficult to gain jobs in the wake of technological change and globalisation. This has led to rising earnings and, subsequently, income inequality. Female employment, by contrast, has risen in this period. Previous work has shown changing job task demands explain this pattern - with declining manual tasks penalising men and rising non-routine tasks benefiting women. In this paper, I test whether gendered differences in childhood \& adolescent cognitive, social, perseverance, and emotional-health skills can help explain why men are less adept at non-routine tasks using long-term longitudinal data from the United Kingdom. I find that childhood \& adolescent skills have a significant effect on adult job tasks and employment outcomes. Greater cognitive and childhood emotional-health skills lead to people performing more high-pay analytical and interactive job tasks as adults. Greater cognitive and non-cognitive skills are also associated with higher adult employment levels. Indicative calculations show that gendered differences in these childhood and adolescent skills explain an economically significant decline in the analytical and interactive job tasks performed by non-graduate men as well as their employment rates.

Urgency forces stimulus-driven action by overcoming cognitive control

Intelligent behavior requires to act directed by goals despite competing action tendencies triggered by stimuli in the environment. For eye movements, it has recently been discovered that this ability is briefly reduced in urgent situations (Salinas et al., 2019). In a time-window before an urgent response, participants could not help but look at a suddenly appearing visual stimulus, even though their goal was to look away from it. Urgency seemed to provoke a new visual–oculomotor phenomenon: A period in which saccadic eye movements are dominated by external stimuli, and uncontrollable by current goals. This period was assumed to arise from brain mechanisms controlling eye movements and spatial attention, such as those of the frontal eye field. Here, we show that the phenomenon is more general than previously thought. We found that also in well-investigated manual tasks, urgency made goal-conflicting stimulus features dominate behavioral responses. This dominance of behavior followed established trial-to-trial signatures of cognitive control mechanisms that replicate across a variety of tasks. Thus together, these findings reveal that urgency temporarily forces stimulus-driven action by overcoming cognitive control in general, not only at brain mechanisms controlling eye movements.

Physical activity and public health

There are well-established chronic disease prevention and broader public health benefits associated with being physically active. However, large proportions of the adult populations of developed countries and rapidly urbanizing developing countries are inactive. Additionally, many people’s lives are now characterized by large amounts of time spent sitting—at work, at home, and in automobiles. Widespread urbanization, particularly in low- and middle-income countries, has resulted in large segments of traditionally active rural populations moving into cities. Many previously manual tasks in the occupational and household sectors have become automated, making life easier and safer in many respects. However, a pervasive consequence of these developments is that large numbers of people globally are now going about their daily lives in environments that place them at risk of overweight and obesity, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and other health problems. This represents a formidable set of public health challenges. In this context, the present chapter describes: key definitions and distinctions relating to physical activity, exercise, and sedentary behaviour; current evidence on relationships physical inactivity and sitting time with health outcomes, and associated public health recommendations; prevalence and trends in physical activity and sedentary behaviours, and some of the key issues for surveillance and measurement; and, how physical activity and sedentary behaviour may be understood in ways that will inform broad-based public health approaches. An interdisciplinary and intersectoral strategy is emphasized. This requires working with constituencies beyond the public health field, such as urban planning, architecture, occupational health and safety, and social policy.

RESEARCH OF THE GLOBAL MARKET OF AUDIT SERVICES IN THE CONTEXT OF TODAY’S CHALLENGES

Purpose. The purpose of the research is to define the size of the global audit market in 2020, define the revenue of the Big Four for 2014–2020 and predict the amount of income for 2021; to determine how the crisis caused by Covid-19 has affected on the activities of the Big Four companies; perform a SWOT analysis of the audit market in terms of Deloitte, EY, KPMG and PwC; identify trends in the field of audit in 2021, knowledge of which will allow the Big Four to maintain their market position. Design/methodology/approach. The study examines the hypothesis of the effectiveness of global trends in the global audit market, with their possible implementation in the activities of the Big Four companies. The methodological basis of this study are general scientific, theoretical and special research methods that allow analyze all phenomena and processes in the field of auditing in interdependence. To solve the tasks in this study the following methods has been used: statistical and economic analysis, synthesis, logical generalization, comparison, forecasting, SWOT analysis, graphical and expert method. Findings. The study examines the activities of the Big Four companies in the context of today’s challenges. The dynamics of changes in the revenues of the Big Four companies for 2015–2020 and forecasts the total income of the surveyed companies for 2021 have been showed at the study. The authors determined the share of revenues from auditing in the overall revenue structure of each of the companies and graphically presented the revenue structure of the Big Four companies for 2019–2020. The authors developed a SWOT-analysis, which describes the strengths and weaknesses of each of the companies, as well as opportunities and threats to the environment. The authors also summarized the main trends in the global audit market, which were formed as a result of the crisis caused by Covid-19. Practical implications. The research could be used to adapt the experience of large companies in the recommendations for Ukrainian companies in the field of audit. Originality/value. Considering current crisis situation around the world, the results of this study are valuable for international audit companies and for Ukrainian as well, as it shows the main trends in the field of auditing. As organizations experience difficult economic times due to the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, audit firms will need to prioritize their resources and demonstrate their value effectively in line with these new expectations in 2021. Covering automation and digital technologies such as research analytics, automated control testing, robotic process automation, and continuous risk assessment, auditing can forget about repetitive manual tasks and free up time for more value-added activities. As long as the Covid-19 pandemic continues, the changes caused by the pandemic will be felt for a long time. The experience of auditors in the field of risk management will continue to grow, as all companies will adapt to this new rule. However, despite budget cuts, new audit processes, and custom work, auditors will continue to be reliable business consultants and help companies thrive even in the face of growing threats and an uncertain future.

Application of BIM Tools in Parametric and Generative Design for the Conception of Complex Structures

The present research applies the Parametric Design (PD) and Generative Design (GD) for the generation of complex structures, through the BIM methodology, being implemented in design phase of a new modern proposal for Pavilion J1 of the National University of Engineering from Perú. The research aims to: Study the PD and GD considering the interoperability provided by BIM tools, propose procedures that help solve PD and GD problems, understand the benefits of process automation through generative and parametric algorithms. The conception and design phase of projects are developed in a traditional way using CAD Softwares for drawing plans or BIM Softwares for the design and/or modeling of structures, carrying out manual tasks either for the extraction of measurements, exchange of information or modeling, this implies a lack of efficiency in many processes because despite having modern computational tools, the full potential they offer is not used. This is reflected in the productivity of the construction sector as it is one of the lowest compared to other sectors such as manufacturing, commerce, agriculture. Due to this problem, new technologies were studied, such as evolutionary algorithms supported by parametric design for the conception and design of structures. Subsequently, as a test, this new methodology was applied to various types of structures, testing the parametric behavior and understanding the operation of these new methodologies. As a result of the previous tests, key procedures were defined to cover parametric and generative problems, developing algorithms in textual code (Python), visual algorithms and applying generative algorithms (NSGA-II); capable of creating structures automatically adapting to the designer's criteria. Based on the last stage of the PD and GD procedures, the algorithms for the formulation of the structure were implemented in Block J1, demonstrating the applications and benefits in various tasks such as modeling, loads generation, structural design and software interoperability.

In Situ Visualization for 3D Ultrasound-Guided Interventions with Augmented Reality Headset

Augmented Reality (AR) headsets have become the most ergonomic and efficient visualization devices to support complex manual tasks performed under direct vision. Their ability to provide hands-free interaction with the augmented scene makes them perfect for manual procedures such as surgery. This study demonstrates the reliability of an AR head-mounted display (HMD), conceived for surgical guidance, in navigating in-depth high-precision manual tasks guided by a 3D ultrasound imaging system. The integration between the AR visualization system and the ultrasound imaging system provides the surgeon with real-time intra-operative information on unexposed soft tissues that are spatially registered with the surrounding anatomic structures. The efficacy of the AR guiding system was quantitatively assessed with an in vitro study simulating a biopsy intervention aimed at determining the level of accuracy achievable. In the experiments, 10 subjects were asked to perform the biopsy on four spherical lesions of decreasing sizes (10, 7, 5, and 3 mm). The experimental results showed that 80% of the subjects were able to successfully perform the biopsy on the 5 mm lesion, with a 2.5 mm system accuracy. The results confirmed that the proposed integrated system can be used for navigation during in-depth high-precision manual tasks.

THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE SYSTEM FOR ASSESSING THE FUNCTIONAL LITERACY OF STUDENTS IN COMPUTER SCIENCE BASED ON THE CRITERION APPROACH

In the article, based on the criterion approach, the effectiveness of the system for assessing the functional literacy of students in computer science is proved by conducting a pedagogical experiment and conclusions are drawn about the results of practical work. The teaching experience consists of three stages. At the ascertaining stage, it was revealed to what extent the assessment tasks in computer science were compiled taking into account the directions of functional literacy of students. At the applicant stage, tasks and tasks were developed to assess the functional literacy of students based on a criteria-based approach in computer science. At the educational and control stage, the influence of the functional literacy assessment system, developed on the basis of a criterion approach in computer science, on the quality of knowledge and the methodology of teaching students in computer science was revealed. In addition, during the practice, the educational and methodological manual "tasks for assessing the functional literacy of students in computer science" was used. During the training in the control groups, the assessment of knowledge was carried out according to the traditional method, and in the experimental groups on tasks to assess the functional literacy of students based on the criteria approach.

Urgency disrupts cognitive control of human action

Intelligent behavior requires cognitive control, the ability to act directed by goals despite competing action tendencies triggered by stimuli in the environment. For eye movements, it has recently been discovered that cognitive control is briefly disrupted in urgent situations (Salinas et al., 2019). In a time-window before an urgent response, participants could not help but look at a suddenly appearing visual stimulus, even though their goal was to look away from it. Urgency seemed to provoke a new visual-oculomotor phenomenon: A period in which saccadic eye movements are dominated by external stimuli, and uncontrollable by current goals. This period was assumed to arise from brain mechanisms controlling eye movements and spatial attention, such as those of the frontal eye field. Here, we show that the phenomenon is more general than previously thought. We found that urgency disrupted cognitive control also in well-investigated manual tasks, so that responses were dominated by goal-conflicting stimulus features. This dominance of behavior followed established trial-to-trial signatures of cognitive control that replicate across a variety of tasks. Thus together, these findings reveal that urgency temporarily impairs cognitive control in general, not only at brain mechanisms controlling eye movements.