Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Managing perceptions of waiting times in service queues

Investigates the extent to which there is a gap between customers’ perception of waiting time compared with the actual waiting time and, whether this gap could be reduced. Maister originally identified eight propositions based around the idea that the perception of waiting lines are modified by a range of factors. Although other studies have discussed Maister’s propositions by identifying the level of management control and customers’ perceptions of waiting lines, rarely has the basic idea ‐ that perceived and actual wait times may be different ‐ been empirically tested. Reviews those studies which have compared actual waiting time with perceived waiting time, before going on to report on the first known UK study. The research involved an experimental study into two of Maister’s propositions involving 300 members of the general public. Tests a control group of 100 people queueing in a small retail food outlet to identify whether there is a significant difference between perceived and actual waiting times. Repeats the measurement on two further random samples of 100 people. Then discusses the implications of this study, and the earlier studies, with respect to a revision of Maister’s original eight propositions. Concludes with a review of how queue management may be carried out more effectively in relation to matching more closely actual and perceived waiting times.
Equine cellular therapy—from stall to bench to bedside?

Pioneering clinical stem cell research is being performed in the horse, a recipient of cutting edge veterinary medicine as well as a unique animal model, paving the way for human medical applications. Although demonstrable progress has been made on the clinical front, in vitro characterization of equine stem cells is still in comparatively early stages. To translate the promising results of clinical stem cell therapy in the horse, advances must be made in the characterization of equine stem cells. Aiming to improve communication between veterinarians and other natural scientists, this review gives an overview of veterinary “bedside” achievements, focusing on stem cell therapies in equine orthopedics as well as the current state of in vitro characterization of equine multipotent mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) and equine embryonic stem cells (ESCs). © 2012 International Society for Advancement of Cytometry
Beyond the final consumer: the effectiveness of a generalist stakeholder strategy

Purpose – Managers often face a number of dilemmas with respect to their stakeholders: Who are the most salient ones? How many should they target? How to allocate attention/efforts among them? Based on stakeholders and market orientation research this paper aims to address these dilemmas.Design/methodology/approach – The study is based on a survey of managers in a cross‐industry sample of 115 firms. The authors first identify a specific group of salient stakeholders – those providing the firm with revenues and financial support. The article then studies the conditions under which firms should adopt a key approach to stakeholders' management – a “generalist” stakeholder strategy, that is, deal with a larger number of revenue and funding producing stakeholder types, and/or more evenly spread attention/efforts among them.Findings – The findings suggest that a generalist stakeholder strategy has a positive effect on firms' performance among resource‐rich firms and among firms who face dissimilar (“unrelated”).
Compulsory land acquisitions and compensation in Ghana: searching for alternative policies and strategies.

The State’s power of eminent domain has been exercised in Ghana since colonial times under various enactments. The objective has been in pursuit of the socio-economic development for the public good. The result has been the compulsory acquisition of about 20% of the lands in the country for the state. The acquisition and management of state lands have left in their trail several unresolved problems. Among them are the acquisition of lands far in excess of actual requirements, unpaid compensation in respect of some of the acquisitions, encroachment on acquired lands, lack of intergenerational equity in the utilization of paid compensation, change of use of compulsorily acquired land as against the purpose of the acquisition, optimizing the use and economic returns of state lands, private sector participation in the development of compulsorily acquired land, etc. There is another category of lands occupied by the state without any acquisition, depriving the land owners the opportunity to demand compensation. The result is loss of public confidence in the state machinery for the management of land, leading to tension between the state and customary land owners, massive deliberate encroachment of state lands, and challenging the state’s legitimacy to claim control over compulsorily acquired lands. Under the Ghana Land Administration Project, policy proposals are to be developed to deal with the outstanding issues of compulsory acquisition and also make proposals to guide future compulsory acquisitions. The paper will explore alternative policy options for dealing with these issues so as to provide a sustainable framework for managing state lands efficiently and to reduce the tension between the state and land owners.
On strategic networks

In parallel with a theoretical acceptance of the importance of the laws of competition to formulate strategy, the realization is growing that cooperative behavior among firms is at the root of many success stories in today's management. This situation calls for an effort to develop a theoretical framework to study both aspects of firm behavior (cooperative and competitive) as compatible, complementary aspects of a unique reality. Indeed, the cooperative relationships of a firm can be the source of its competitive strength. This paper develops the concept of strategic network, as a tool to understand those cooperative relationships and their role in the strategy of the firm. There are three main tasks of the paper: first, to show that strategic networks are but a ‘mode of organization’; second, to study the economic conditions of existence of a network; finally, to analyze the conditions of existence of a network from the point of view of its internal consistency. In a final section some of the most obvious strategic implications of the framework are outlined.
Evaluating the impact of prioritization of antiretroviral pre-exposure prophylaxis in New York City.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the value and effectiveness of different prioritization strategies of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) in New York City (NYC). DESIGN: Mathematical modelling utilized as clinical trial is not feasible. METHODS: Using a model accounting for both sexual and parenteral transmission of HIV, we compare different prioritization strategies (PPS) for PrEP with two scenarios - no PrEP and PrEP for all susceptible at-risk individuals. The PPS included PrEP for all MSM, only high-risk MSM, high-risk heterosexuals, and IDUs, and all combinations of these four strategies. Outcomes included HIV infections averted, and incremental cost-effectiveness (per-infection averted) ratios. Initial assumptions regarding PrEP included a 44% reduction in HIV transmission, 50% uptake in the prioritized population and an annual cost per person of $9762. Sensitivity analyses on key parameters were conducted. RESULTS: Prioritization to all MSM results in a 19% reduction in new HIV infections. Compared with PrEP for all persons at-risk, this PPS retains 79% of the preventive effect at 15% of the total cost. PrEP prioritized to only high-risk MSM results in a reduction in new HIV infections of 15%. This PPS retains 60% of the preventive effect at 6% of the total cost. There are diminishing returns when PrEP utilization is expanded beyond this group. CONCLUSION: PrEP implementation is relatively cost-inefficient under our initial assumptions. Our results suggest that PrEP should first be promoted among MSM who are at particularly high risk of HIV acquisition. Further expansion beyond this group may be cost-effective, but is unlikely to be cost-saving.
A New Approach to Assessing Ethical Conduct in Scientific Work

The intent of the current article is to describe the development of a new approach to the study of ethical conduct in scientific research settings. The approach presented in this article has two main components. The first component entails the development of a taxonomy of ethical events as they occur across a broad range of scientific disciplines. The second involves the identification of proximate criteria that will allow systematic and objective evaluation of ethical behaviors through low-fidelity performance simulations. Two proposed measures based on the new approach are intended to identify and measure variations in the scientific environment that might predispose certain individuals to make unethical decisions.
The Characteristics of Atmospheric Turbulence and Radiation Energy Transfer and the Structure of Atm

The mountains of Himalayas are the important channels for the mass exchange between surface layer of Northern Hemisphere and troposphere. The mountains relate surface layer atmosphere over the Tibetan Plateau and the above free atmosphere through many atmospheric circulation systems including mountain-valley wind and glacier wind etc. Mt. Qomolangma (Mt. Everest) is the highest peak in the world, and its nearby region is a representative case of mountains of Himalayas. Firstly the back ground of the establishment of the Qomolangma Station for Atmospheric and Environmental Observation and Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences (QOMS/ CAS) and the role of the station in the study of the atmosphere-land interaction over Himalayan area were intro-duced in this paper. Then some preliminary observational analysis results, such as the structure of the Atmo-spheric Boundary Layer (ABL) and the characteristics of the atmospheric turbulence and the radiation energy distribution were shown. The results showed that: The excess resistance to heat transfer kB-1 has obvious diurnal variations with lower values in the night and higher values in the daytime; The low frequency perturbations have a large influence on the spectra variation of all wind components, but mid frequency perturbations have only in-fluence on the spectra variation of vertical wind components and also alter the co-spectra of momentum and sen-sible heat flux under near neutral stratification; The downward shortwave radiation over this area are obviously larger than that in other areas; There is very clear constant layer of potential temperature existing in the northern slope of Mt. Qomolangma area around 12:00 (Beijing Standard Time, BST) in May, and the layer is about 2,200 m during the period over this area. In comparison with study results from other areas, some uniqueness and commonness of the Himalayan region are clearly identified.
Divergent goals in supplier-customer co-development process: an integrated framework

Purpose – Innovations in business-to-business markets often result from co-development activities between multiple actors, all of which have their own goals for the collaboration. The purpose of this paper is to study how the actors’ divergent goals reflect on their perceptions of the supplier-customer co-development process. Design/methodology/approach – A grounded theory approach is adopted to reveal the actors’ perceptions of eight studied supplier-customer co-development processes, of which, four also involve an expert partner. Findings – The findings suggest that because of the supplier’s aim to commercialize the resulting product, a supplier has a wider ranging perception of the co-development process, whereas the customer and expert partner focus on those phases that support their goals to improve the efficiency of the process or to develop new technology. Practical implications – As each actor operates according to its own goals and is involved in those phases of the process that facilitates their.
Supply chain management practices in Asia Pacific today

Examines the state of supply chain management practices in the Asia Pacific region and presents results of a survey distributed to some of the region’s biggest companies, representing, for example, the chemical, food, transport, communications and automotive industries. Identifies key supply chain management issues such as information technology, inventory, internal and external infrastructures, studies, and roles and responsibilities. Explores the competitive strategies adopted by management to improve supply chain management performance, and examines the means by which companies evaluate the performance levels of critical components of the supply chain management function.
Leaders and Followers Among Security Analysts: Analysis of Impact and Accuracy

The average number of security analysts following a firm has increased dramatically over the last decade. Prior research has documented that information asymmetry between managers and investors is negatively associated with the number of analysts following a firm (for example, Brennan and Subrahmanyam, 1995, and Easley, O'Hara, and Paperman, 1998). When a large number of analysts release forecasts for a single firm, the question arises as to what is the marginal informativeness of the forecast released by the nth follower analyst? In this paper, we classify analysts as leaders and followers based on the relative timeliness of their earnings forecasts. We then compare leaders and followers among analysts on various performance attributes linked to analyst compensation, such as price impact, accuracy, boldness, and dimensionality. The objective of this analysis is to shed some light on what role leaders and followers among analysts play in the capital market.
Finite element method for analysis of band structures of three dimensonal phononic crystals

In this paper, a computational method based on finite element method is presented to evaluate the propagation of acoustic waves through three-dimensional phononic crystals consisting of simple cubic (SC), body-centered cubic (BCC) or face-centered cubic (FCC) array spheres embedded in a host. Complete and accurate band structure information is obtained to identify the band gaps and eigenmodes. The results indicate that the finite element method is precise for the band structure computation of the phononic crystals and can reduce computing time to a certain extent.
Human resource strategic orientation, employee job performance and performance of state corporations in Tanzania

xxi CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION . 1 1.1 Background of the Study . 1 1.1.1 Employee Job Performance . 4 1.1.2 Orientation of Human Resource Strategy . 5 1.1.3 Organizational Factors . 9 1.1.4 Organizational Performance . 9 1.1.5 The Tanzanian State Corporations . 10 1.2 Research Problem . 15 1.3 Research Objectives . 19 1.4 Significance of the Study . 20 1.5 Summary of the Thesis . 20 CHAPTER TWO:LITERATURE REVIEW . 22 2.
Alterations of peripheral blood CD5+ B cells in inflammatory bowel disease

Objective. CD5+ B cells comprise a unique subset of B cells that modulates innate as well as autoimmune systems. The aim of this study was to investigate alterations of the circulating CD5+ B-cell subset in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) by evaluating various clinical parameters, including therapeutic regimens. Material and methods. Thirty-four patients with ulcerative colitis (UC), 19 patients with Crohn's disease (CD), and 46 healthy control subjects were enrolled in this study. CD5+ B cells in peripheral blood collected from each subject were analyzed by flow cytometry. Multiple regression analysis was carried out to evaluate the factors related to the circulating CD5+ B-cell subset in the IBD patients. In an in vitro examination, dexamethasone-induced apoptosis in peripheral blood B cells was examined by detecting cell surface binding of the annexin-V antibody. Results. Age and gender in the control subjects did not influence the circulating CD5+ B-cell subset. Multiple regression analysis showed that the presence of UC, corticosteroid therapy, and number of white blood cells in peripheral blood each had a significant influence in decreasing the number of circulating CD5+ B cells in the IBD patients. Furthermore, in vitro results showed that dexamethasone treatment significantly induced apoptosis in CD5+ B cells, though apoptosis was similarly observed in CD5− B cells. Conclusions. CD5+ B cells may be involved in the pathogenesis of UC, and modulation of this subset by corticosteroid therapy may play a role in the treatment of IBD patients.
A consumer shopping channel extension model: attitude shift toward the online store

Purpose – The purpose of this study is to examine the consumer shopping channel extension focusing on attitude shift from offline to online store with a theoretical approach.Design/methodology/approach – Two hundred and sixty two students in a large US midwestern university participated and provided usable survey responses. Structural equation modeling was employed to test hypotheses and the modified theory of planned behavior in the online retailing environment.Findings – The results showed that attitude toward the offline store was a significant predictor of attitude toward the online store. In addition, search intention for product information via the online store was the strongest predictor of consumer's purchase intention via the online store as well as a mediating variable between predictor variables and purchase intention.Research limitations/implications – The sample of this study was slightly biased by gender and age. Female college‐aged consumers were the majority. This demographic group is, how.
A Theoretical Perspective on Effective Interorganizational Knowledge Sharing

Interorganizational knowledge sharing is critical to knowledge intensive collaborations between organizations. Despite a proliferation of literature on knowledge sharing, most studies focused on such practice within an organization. The question of how to achieve effective interorganizational knowledge sharing remains unanswered. This study intends to answer this research question using the results from a case study of a software implementation project. Collaboration between software vendors and clients in information systems development/implementation projects require considerable amount of knowledge exchange between the partners. Differences in organizational culture, knowledge domain, as well as other critical factors, pose major challenge for interorganizational knowledge sharing. To be able to observe the impact of these critical factors on interorganizational knowledge sharing, the knowledge sharing processes between organizations should first be thoroughly explored. While effectiveness of knowledge sharing may be viewed from different theoretical disciplines, we draw our analysis based on organizational learning perspective.
51.1-Tbit/s MCF Transmission Over 2520 km Using Cladding-Pumped Seven-Core EDFAs

Multicore erbium-doped fiber amplifiers (MC-EDFAs) are essential components to achieve long-haul multicore fiber (MCF) transmission. An attractive technique for reducing the number of components and power consumption is the cladding-pumping scheme in MC-EDFAs in which all cores are simultaneously pumped using a single high-power multimode laser diode. In this paper, we experimentally demonstrate long-haul MCF transmission using cladding-pumped seven-core EDFAs. We confirm that 73 × 128-Gbit/s Nyquist-pulse-shaped dual-polarization quadrature phase-shift keying signals are successfully transmitted over 2520-km seven-core fiber.
Compartmentation of guanine nucleotide precursors for DNA synthesis.

We have studied the kinetics of guanine incorporation into DNA in mouse T-lymphoma (S-49) mutant cells [PNPase (purine-nucleoside phosphorylase)- and HGPRTase (hypoxanthine: guanine phosphoribosyltransferase)-deficient] that are incapable of converting dGuo (deoxyguanosine) to Gua (guanine) ribonucleotides. Of the two possible pathways for an exogenous guanine source to reach DNA, firstly: dGuo----dGMP----dGDP----dGTP and secondly: Gua----GMP----GDP----dGDP----dGTP only the second pathway was found to be functional in providing guanine for DNA replication, although deoxyguanosine readily produced toxic cellular dGTP levels via the first pathway. The functional guanine-nucleotide-precursor pools for DNA are rather small; further, the depletion of the small GMP pool, but not that of GDP, GTP and dGTP, correlated well with the inhibition of DNA synthesis by mycophenolic acid, an IMP dehydrogenase inhibitor. These results support the hypothesis that guanine-nucleotide incorporation into DNA is highly compartmentalized and that a small functional guanine-nucleotide pool, e.g., the GMP pool, may serve a crucial role in limiting the availability of DNA precursor substrate.
Assessing E-Learning Tools in an Academic Environment: A Study of Availability and Use among Undergraduate Students in a Nigerian University

This study investigated the availability and use of e-learning tools as emerging paradigms in Covenant University, Nigeria. The study population comprise of 7000 undergraduate students, out of which 1000 was used as sample. Questionnaire was used as data collecting tool for the study. A total of five hundred and eleven questionnaires were filled and returned. The study revealed that an appreciable number of e-learning tools were available and in use in the University. Notable among them is an electronic learning management system - Moodle. Most of the respondents (61.8%) indicated that they used the e-learning tools mostly for downloading lecture notes. The study further revealed that there was no significant relationship between students' level of study (class) and their use of elearning tools. Also, no significant relationship between use of e-learning tools and academic performance was established. Majority of the respondents (54%) identified inadequate internet access as the biggest challenge to students' use of e-learning platforms. The study was concluded with recommendations that could enhance the use of e-learning platforms in Universities in Nigeria
Strategy‐making and environment: The third link

Whereas much is known about the relationships between strategy and structure, and between environment and structure, too little is known about a third link—the relationship between strategy-making and environment. An empirical study was conducted upon two distinct samples of firms. We hypothesized that increases in environmental dynamism, hostility and heterogeneity should be related to specific changes in the amount of analysis and innovation which characterizes strategy-making activity. Most of these relationships tended to be much stronger in successful than in unsuccessful samples of firms.