Skill level changes the coordination and variability of standing posture and movement in a pistol-aiming task

The study investigated the coordination and variability of posture and pistol motion for skilled pistol shooters and novices in a pistol-aiming task. The participants stood on a force platform and held a pistol with the preferred arm to aim for accuracy to a target on 30 s trials. The results revealed that the amount of the centre of pressure (COP) and pistol motion was lower for the expert than novice group. The time–varying structure of COP as indexed by multiscale entropy (MSE) and detrended fluctuation analysis (DFA) was also lower for the expert than the novice group. The relative phase between the COP in the anterior–posterior (AP) and pistol in the AP and between the COP in the medial–lateral (ML) and pistol in AP was close to inphase for the both groups. However, for the novice group the coordination patterns of posture and pistol motion were more variable with the pistol motion leading the posture motion while it was lagging in the skilled group. The findings show different qualitative and quantitative dynamics in pistol-aiming as a function of skill level with postural control foundational to supporting the reduced dispersion and complexity of the skilled arm-pistol motion.     

Physical performance in female handball players according to playing position

Demands for female handball players are not yet sufficiently specified, especially not with respect to position-specific performance. For optimal match preparation, individual training based on specific demands of each position is necessary. Consequently, the aim of the study was to gain insight into position-specific differences in female handball players in order to establish position-specific training recommendations. Data from 652 female players from German leagues of all levels were analyzed using a test-battery assessing handball-relevant physical performance factors. Players were tested during their usual training in their regular training locations for running, throwing speed, jumping height, reaction-speed, basic running endurance, arm and abdominal muscle strength and hamstrings and lower back flexibility. Significant differences between positions were found for several parameters, while the differences were pronounced variably at the different performance levels. For example, goalkeepers performed worst in the Half-Cooper test (p?<?0.001) at elite level with wings displaying the best values. Halfbacks had the highest throwing speed (p?<?0.001) and jumping heights (p?<?0.002) at elite level. Goalkeepers were slowest for best and mean value out of five attempts (p?<?0.001; p?<?0.010) in 20?m sprint but, together with wings outperformed half and centre backs at elite level in 30?m sprint (best out of two attempts, p?<?0.001). Goalkeepers also did fewer chin ups than wing and back players at elite level (p?<?0.003). The present study demonstrated positional differences regarding physical performance parameters, thus suggesting the need to intensify position-specific training, especially for goalkeepers during preparation and in-season. Also, position-specific testing during selection-processes might be indicated.     

THE STRUCTURE OF COGNITIVE ABILITIES IN HIGHLY AND MODERATELY GIFTED YOUNG PEOPLE

In order to assess the structure of cognitive abilities in highly and moderately gifted young people, data from the Munich Longitudinal Study of Giftedness were analyzed by conventional factor analysis. In the total group as well as in the subsample of the moderately gifted, a three factor solution was obtained which was subsequently confirmed by a LISREL analysis of the same data. In the subsample of the highly gifted, a two factor solution was obtained by conventional factor analysis and confirmed by a LISREL analysis. Contrary to the opinion voiced in the statistical literature that in groups formed on the basis of some cutoff value the reduced variances and covariances will lead to factorial artifacts, we argue that the factors obtained can be interpreted meaningfully. We were also able to predict, on the basis of the two factor solution, the occurrence of specific types of highly gifted youths.     

The research and publication programs of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Inc.

In 1973, the Board for International Broadcasting assumed responsibility for the operation of the joint corporate entity, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Inc. Broadcasting news, entertainment, and public affairs programs to Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union since 1950 and 1953 respectively, RFE/RL, Inc. has also maintained the largest research and analysis activity on these countries in the Free World. This information has been made widely available through serial and monographic publications, notably in the two weeklies Radio Free Europe Research (Eastern Europe) and Radio Liberty Research Bulletin (Soviet Union). Contract and independent researchers make use of rich archival and current affairs library research facilities in New York and Munich. As Federal funding has been maintained and expanded in recent years, facilities and capabilities have been greatly extended.     

新千年图书馆员的全职能素质要求

在论述图书馆与图书馆员将知识与大众给合到一起的从业观念;图书馆员vs.知识媒体vs.读者服务所担负的社会责任;图书馆的服务与图书馆员的角色在于社会记忆、信息传播和知识管理;图书馆演化与图书馆员的角色变化从对知识媒介的加值服务到对人的知识服务;图书馆员的素质坐标及图书馆员的素质塑造等的基础上，指出当前对图书馆员的素质要求以心理素质和沟通能力最为重要。     

Privacy: an institutional fact

Let us show how property is grasped as an institutional fact. If Jones steals a computer, he does not own it in the sense of property, but only exercises control towards it. If he buys the computer, he controls it too, and moreover owns it in the sense of property. In other words, simply exercising control towards something is a brute fact. This control counts as property only in a certain context: the computer counts as Jones’s property only if he got it through a licit transfer. This is why property is not a brute fact, and is therefore an institutional fact. The same kind of reasoning applies to privacy. When a personal information P about Jones is openly diffused, it seems that P becomes public. From this point of view, a violation of privacy equates to a publication. The problem about this account is the following: who would call “publication of a book” the hacking of it on its author’s computer? No one, because the word “publication” is an institutional word that only refers to a licit diffusion. Considering this answer, we may conclude as follows: if the diffusion of P is illicit, P still counts as private, even if everyone knows about it. If that conclusion is true, privacy is an institutional fact.     

Charting a Future for fMRI in Communication Science

Neuroscientific investigations into communication phenomena using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) are becoming increasingly popular in communication science. This presents opportunities for new discoveries, but also for the rapid spread of questionable practices. Here, we look to the future of fMRI in communication science: first, highlighting and advocating for several relatively new methods that should enable communication scholars to address novel research questions; and second, pointing out various controversies or pitfalls that exist in the use of several of the more widely used fMRI analysis methods within the field. Given the rapidly changing nature of the fMRI analysis landscape, such reflection is an essential part of being a good scholar in this domain. Our aim is to ensure that the future of fMRI in communication science is healthy, robust, and rich in variety, by encouraging all researchers in the field to think critically about the methods they use, whether that means adopting new analysis methods that can answer previously unanswerable questions, or adjusting their use of methods they already use to align with the latest recommended practices.     

Digitization or equality: When government automation covers some,but not all citizens

This paper presents an empirical study of automation in government digital systems. Previous studies have found that automated systems are not suited to cover all citizens equally and may cause administrative burdens on excluded citizens. The case presented in this study is the automated system for awarding child benefits in Norway. Based on data from the national registry, most recipients are awarded the benefit automatically. However, some citizens are not covered by the automation and must apply manually. The theoretical framing of the study combines modern and classic views of how citizens access public services by combining theory from recent literature on administrative burdens and the older theory of access. The data analysis is done with process mining, an innovative method of sorting and understanding data. The findings support previous findings of how registry data and automated computer systems in government can create inequality in service quality. Furthermore, the findings also show that low-income citizens are disproportionally required to apply manually. The study addresses questions concerning why automated systems fail to cover all citizens and the potential challenges generated by this exclusion when governments rely on computer systems in delivering welfare programmes. These are important considerations, as government digitalisation is increasingly innovating with automated systems to deliver public services.