Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Enhancing the Effectiveness of Companies’ Open Innovation Efforts for Firm Performance: A Comprehensive Network Perspective

This thesis is devoted to a phenomenon that is currently reshaping the global business architecture: Open innovation (OI) networks. Managers are interested to know how to construct and manage their networks such that they are beneficial for their OI efforts. The goal of the thesis is to determine how network characteristics influence the effectiveness of different types of OI activities and how firms can achieve a beneficial network position by engaging in OI efforts. This thesis is based on three empirical studies that draw on social network theory as an overreaching theoretical framework. Furthermore, this thesis aligns social network theory with the relational view and the literature on distant knowledge. To provide a comprehensive understanding of OI networks, the studies in this thesis also employ different methodological approaches: Crosssectional and longitudinal analysis based on multisource and multiindustry datasets. The key results show that in order to profit from OI firms need well-elaborated risk and network management practices that are applied to the main decisions that managers have to make regarding firms’ entire OI efforts. In specific, network characteristics can help firms to increase the potentials of the upsides of OI and at the same time they can reduce the risks of the downsides of OI. Moreover, certain types of OI activities are more or less suitable for achieving a beneficial position in an OI network and fostering firm performance. Altogether, this thesis provides important implications for managerial practice and closes relevant gaps in the scientific research regarding OI networks.
[2013 research ranking of Spanish public universities].

BACKGROUND The evaluation of research production and productivity is becoming increasingly necessary for universities. Having reliable and clear data is extremely useful in order to uncover strengths and weaknesses. The objective of this article is to update the research ranking of Spanish public universities with the 2013 data. METHOD Assessment was carried out based on articles in journals indexed in the JCR, research periods, R+D projects, doctoral theses, FPU grants, doctoral studies awarded with a citation of excellence, and patents, providing a rating, both for each individual indicator and globally, in production and productivity. The same methodology as previous editions was followed. RESULTS In the global ranking, the universities with a higher production are Barcelona, Complutense of Madrid, and Granada. In productivity, the first positions are held by the universities Pompeu Fabra, Pablo de Olavide, and the Autonomous University of Barcelona. CONCLUSIONS Differences can be found between the universities in production and productivity, while there are also certain similarities with regard to the position of Spanish universities in international rankings.
An Assessment of the Implementation of the National Policy on Local Economic Development by District Assemblies in Ghana

Policies are important inputs to the economic development process of any territory. But policies, of themselves, cannot bring about the desired goals unless they are duly implemented. In Ghana, experience has shown that many good policies formulated in the past did not get implemented. Also, the pace of implementation of many other policies has been terribly slow resulting in huge time lag between policy formulation and implementation. This study thus investigated the extent of implementation of the National LED Policy formulated in 2013 and made operational from January 2014. The study is a case study survey of two District Assemblies: Asuogyaman and Ada West District Assemblies. These Assemblies were purposively selected based on the endowment of some natural resources. The broad objective was to find out whether District Assemblies are delivering on their roles and responsibilities as provided by the National LED Policy. The study found that the District Assemblies studied have not put in much effort specifically aimed at implementing the National LED Policy in their jurisdictions.
Clinical and Environmental Risk Factors for Bipolar Disorder: Review of Prospective Studies

Learning objectives After participating in this activity, learners should be better able to: • Evaluate factors that have been identified in prospective studies as predicting the onset of bipolar disorder Abstract The prodromal phase of bipolar disorder (BD) remains incompletely characterized, limiting early detection of BD and delaying interventions that might limit future morbidity and disability. Retrospective and family-risk studies have consistently found evidence of prodromal psychopathology in subjects later diagnosed with BD. Here, we review prospective studies of clinical risk factors and exposures identified before diagnosis of BD: our findings are consistent with those from retrospective and family-risk studies. Affective psychopathology often precedes diagnosis to suggest a homotypic trajectory in developing BD. Early non-affective (heterotypic) psychopathological disturbances, including anxiety and disruptive behavior disorders, as well as environmental factors and exposures, have been found in prospective studies to increase the risk of BD, but tend to lack specificity in predicting BD. Findings from prospective studies are encouragingly similar to those of retrospective and family-risk studies.
Impact of Basel II on Bank Portfolios in Australia

This paper analyses the sensitivity of various risk-weighted assets and liabilities to regulatory capital ratios of domestic and foreign banks in Australia. In particular, this paper investigates whether the growth of various risk-weighted assets changes during the post-Basel II period and whether those changes are caused by the more rigorous capital regulation introduced by the Basel II. The empirical analysis shows that Australian local banks is found to experience a substantial increase of the high-risk weighted assets (namely, non-residential loans) and subordinated debt with respect to their tier 1 capital ratio. The same changes, however, are found to have insignificant influence on the growth of low-risk weighted assets and total asset. Keywords: Regulatory capital; Basel II; Bank; Australia DOI : 10.7176/EJBM/11-5-04
Factors Influencing Succession Planning for Continuity of Family-owned Businesses in the Wa Municipality, Ghana

The literature generally indicates that succession in family businesses takes the form of transfer from one generation to another, but succession planning appears to be left to chance by many firms. This neglect of succession planning and the emotions generated by the process make owners ill-prepared for succession. The objective of this study was to explore the factors that influence succession planning in family-owned businesses and their importance in ensuring the continuity and prosperity of businesses in the Wa Municipality, Ghana. A random sample of 205 out of 440 family businesses was systematically drawn, and an interview schedule was used to collect data which were analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics. The findings indicate that higher level of education of founders and communication of the succession decision, comprising the transfer date, and post-succession roles to all key stakeholders affect the succession process and the success of the transfer. When the founder's level of education is relatively high, there is the likelihood of succession planning in the business, but trust seems to be limited with respect to female owners. It is therefore recommended that family-owned businesses in the municipality should be encouraged by supervisory or oversight agencies like the registrar general or National Board for Small Scale Industries to improve their educational level, build trust, and set dates for transfer of responsibilities, specify post-succession roles of incumbents and communicate the succession decision to all key stakeholders in order to improve the succession process and ensure the continuity of the businesses.
Acute myocardial infarction in the Medicare population. Process of care and clinical outcomes.

OBJECTIVE To describe the process of care and clinical outcomes associated with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) in the Medicare population, and to examine differences in process of care and outcome of care as a function of patient age, gender, and race. DESIGN Retrospective cohort study using a longitudinal database created from Medicare utilization and administrative files. PATIENT POPULATIONS: A cohort of AMI patients covered by Medicare in 1987 and a random sample of Medicare patients without AMI. MAIN PROCESS AND OUTCOME MEASUREMENTS: (1) The use of coronary angiography, coronary artery bypass graft surgery, and percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty during the first 90 days after a new AMI; (2) mortality at 30 days, 1 year, and 2 years; (3) reinfarction rates; and (4) reoperation rates for coronary artery bypass graft surgery and percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty. MAIN RESULTS Mortality rates were high: 26% at 30 days, 40% at 1 year, and 47% at 2 years. They varied greatly by age, less so by gender and race, and were high even among patients who survived the first 30 days. Compared with mortality, reinfarction was uncommon, occurring in 7.3% of patients. During the first 90 days, 23% of all patients underwent angiography and 13% underwent coronary revascularization (coronary artery bypass graft surgery, 8%; percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty, 5%). The use of all three procedures decreased with age and was less common among women and blacks than among men and whites. Differential use by age and race was greater for angiography than for revascularization procedures. CONCLUSIONS The prognosis following AMI in patients aged 65 years and above is much worse than is commonly realized. Procedure use in these patients varies as a function of gender and race, even though mortality does not. Further research is needed to reduce the mortality of elderly patients with AMI and to understand the significance of differences in procedure use on the basis of sociodemographic characteristics.
Partitioned Common Spatial Pattern Method for single trial EEG Signal classification in Brain-Computer Interface System

Common spatial pattern (CSP) method is highly successful in calculating spatial filters for motor imagery-based brain-computer interfaces (BCIs). However, conventional CSP algorithm is based on a single wide frequency band with a poor frequency selectivity which will lead to poor recognition accuracy. To solve this problem, a novel Partitioned CSP (PCSP) algorithm is proposed to find the most relevant spatial frequency distribution with motor imaginary, so that the algorithm has flexible frequency selectivity. Firstly, we partition the dataset into frequency components using a constant-bandwidth filters bank. Then, a features selection method based on the Bhattacharyya distance is adopted for PCSP features ranking, selection and evaluation. Subsequently, the PCSP features are used to obtain scores which reflect the classification capability and being used for EEG signal classification. The experimental results on 4 subjects showed that the PCSP method significantly outperforms the other two existing approaches based on conventional CSP and Common Spatio-Spectral Pattern (CSSP).
Country-of-origin 1965-2004: a literature review

From the publication of its first study in 1965 up to the present day, country-of-origin has attracted a high level of interest from both scholars and practitioners. This paper reviews the country-of-origin literature and traces the conceptual development of the country-oforigin construct. The value of such literature reviews resides in their ability to provide scholars, students, and practitioners with a critical appraisal of the existing research on a topic. By classifying and evaluating the extant knowledge base of the country-of-origin area, this literature review not only delineates the major themes and issues in the field but also identifies and develops avenues for future research. Three main periods are identified in the development of country-oforigin research, and the conceptual development of the country-of-origin construct is assessed through a chronological perspective.
TRAF‐Mediated TNFR‐Family Signaling

The tumor necrosis factor (TNF) superfamily consists of a wide variety of cell‐bound and secreted proteins that regulate numerous cellular processes. In particular, TNF‐family proteins regulate the proliferation and death of tumor cells, as well as activated immune cells. This overview discusses the mammalian TNF receptor‐associated factors (TRAFs), of which TRAF1, 2, 3, 5, and 6 have been shown to interact directly or indirectly with members of the TNF receptor superfamily. Structural features of TRAF proteins are described along with a discussion of TRAF‐interacting proteins and the signaling pathways activated by the TRAF proteins. Finally, we examine the phenotypes observed in TRAF‐knockout mice. Curr. Protoc. Immunol. 87:11.9D. 1‐11.9D. 19. © 2009 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
REGULATION OF NERVE GROWTH FACTOR SYNTHESIS IN MOUSE SUBMAXILLARY GLANDS BY TESTOSTERONE 1

—It has long been known that the activity of nerve growth factor (NGF) in extracts obtained from the male mouse submaxillary gland is higher than in extracts from the female gland, and that the activity present in female glands can be increased by testosterone treatment. This communication presents a study of the mechanism of the testosterone effect. Of several different steroids administered to female Swiss–Webster mice only testosterone propionate led to increased gland NGF activity. The increase did not appear to be due to an enhancement of the activity of pre‐existing molecules on sympathetic nerve fiber outgrowth, or due to an altered affinity for the specific antibodies used in the estimation of NGF content, but appeared rather to be due to an accumulation of NFG molecules. The kinetics of change in the male gland NGF content upon castration and secondary testosterone propionate stimulation was analyzed by application of the plateau principle. The rate of loss of NGF from this organ was not measureably different between the castrate and testosterone propionate stimulated state. On the other hand, there was estimated to be a 10‐fold difference in the rate of input between the basal and steroid stimulated state. Tracer amounts of radioiodine labelled NGF administered i.v. was not accumulated by the gland, and there is no evidence for uptake of this protein from the circulation. We, therefore, infer that the increased NGF concentration in male submaxillary glands is due to a 10‐fold increase in the rate constant of synthesis.
Dynamic Mechanical Analysis of Carbon Nanotube-Reinforced Nanocomposites

Background To predict the mechanical properties of multiwalled carbon nanotube (MWCNT)–reinforced polymers, it is necessary to understand the role of the nanotube-polymer interface with regard to load transfer and the formation of the interphase region. The main objective of this study was to explore and attempt to clarify the reinforcement mechanisms of MWCNTs in epoxy matrix. Methods Nanocomposites were fabricated by adding different amounts of MWCNTs to epoxy resin. Tensile test and dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) were conducted to investigate the effect of MWCNT contents on the mechanical properties and thermal stability of nanocomposites. Results Compared with the neat epoxy, nanocomposite reinforced with 1 wt% of MWCNTs exhibited an increase of 152% and 54% in Young's modulus and tensile strength, respectively. Conclusions Dynamic mechanical analysis demonstrates that both the storage modulus and glass transition temperature tend to increase with the addition of MWCNTs. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) observations reveal that uniform dispersion and strong interfacial adhesion between the MWCNTs and epoxy are achieved, resulting in the improvement of mechanical properties and thermal stability as compared with neat epoxy.
Dimensions of Concern over Telecommunications Privacy in the United States

Abstract Analyses of attitudes and concerns about privacy from a national survey sample of 1,532 adult Americans in 1988 revealed several separate dimensions. A modification of Tryon's method of clustering variables (third‐order correlations) yielded groups of variables whose meanings were much more interpretable than they had been when factor analysis was initially used. We tested the validity of the clustering by a highly comprehensive system of item analyses. The main findings were that (1) respondent concerns over telephone privacy were not related to other aspects of privacy, (2) interest in devices like Caller ID that enable recipients to know the number of the caller were not related to other aspects of telephone privacy, and (3) general privacy concerns under conditions where the respondent and the other party know each other were independent of those conditions where they do not know each other. Implications for telecommunications policy and new services are discussed.
Blind Guardian: A Sonar-Based Solution for Avoiding Collisions with the Real World

Sightless navigation is an ever-present issue that affects a great part of the population. The affected include permanent or temporarily blind individuals, persons walking in the dark, and users of immersive virtual environments using real walking for navigation. This paper presents an alternative solution to this problem, which relies on a simple wearable device based on ultrasonic waves to detect obstacles and on vibrotactile feedback to warn the user of nearby obstacles. In the following pages, we describe the design and implementation of this apparatus, called the Blind Guardian. We conducted user tests with 29 subjects in a controlled environment. Results demonstrated the potential of Blind Guardian for future use in real life situations, as well as for immersive virtual reality applications based on the use of head-mounted displays.
Solitons à gestion de dispersion et solitons de cut-off dans les lignes électriques non linéaires

La premiere partie de cette these est consacree a une etude numerique de la technique de la gestion de dispersion sur un systeme de lignes electriques discretes et non lineaires. L'utilisation des lignes passe-bas et passe-bande induit une respiration impulsionnelle caracteristique des solitons a gestion de dispersion. Cependant ces systemes de lignes electriques se revelent etre particulierement sensibles aux effets de la dispersion d'ordre 3 et d'adaptation d'impedance. La deuxieme partie de cette these concerne la supra-transmission et la bistabilite�� non lineaire au-dela de la frequence de coupure d'une ligne electrique passe-bas non lineaire. Nous developpons une theorie qui permet de predire les amplitudes seuils declenchant la supra-transmission et la generation de solitons de cut-off dans le cas d'une ligne longue, et la bistabilite avec hysteresis pour une ligne courte. Les resultats de cette theorie sont confirmes numeriquement et experimentalement sur des lignes longues de 200 et 18 cellules.
802 . 11 ah : A technology to face the IoT Challenge 2

Since the conception of the Internet of things (IoT), a large number of promising 13 applications and technologies have been developed, which will change different aspects in our 14 daily life. This paper explores the key characteristics of the forthcoming IEEE 802.11ah 15 specification. This future IEEE 802.11 standard aims to amend the IEEE 802.11 legacy specification 16 to support IoT requirements. We present a thorough evaluation of the foregoing amendment in 17 comparison to the most notable IEEE 802.11 standards. In addition, we expose the capabilities of 18 future IEEE 802.11ah in supporting different IoT applications. Also, we provide a brief overview of 19 the technology contenders that are competing to cover the IoT communications framework. 20 Numerical results are presented showing how the future IEEE 802.11ah specification offers the 21 features required by IoT communications, thus putting forward IEEE 802.11ah as a technology to 22 cater the needs of the Internet of Things paradigm. 23
Design of Post-wall Feed Waveguide for a Parallel Plate Slot Array by a Solid-wall Model with Improved Equivalent Wall Thickness

A post-wall waveguide-fed parallel plate slot array shown in Fig.1 is one of the attractive candidates for high efficiency and mass producible planar array antennas in millimeter-wave applications [1]-[3]. A unit T-junction model with simplified PEC solid-walls was utilized for highspeed design using the method of moments [1]. Unfortunately, the antenna designed by this model was suffered from large reflection, which was mainly due to an immature design model of the Tjunction. In this paper, a novel analysis model which gives good approximation of a post-wall waveguide T-junction is proposed, and the design of the feed waveguide by the proposed analysis model is presented.
Semen Modulates the Expression of NGF, ABHD2, VCAN, and CTEN in the Reproductive Tract of Female Rabbits

Semen changes the gene expression in endometrial and oviductal tissues modulating important processes for reproduction. We tested the hypothesis that mating and/or sperm-free seminal plasma deposition in the reproductive tract affect the expression of genes associated with sperm-lining epithelium interactions, ovulation, and pre-implantation effects (nerve growth factor, NGF; α/β hydrolase domain-containing protein 2, ABHD2; C-terminal tensin-like protein, CTEN or TNS4; and versican, VCAN) in the period 10–72 h post-mating. In Experiment 1, does (n = 9) were treated with gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) (control), GnRH-stimulated, and vaginally infused with sperm-free seminal plasma (SP-AI), or GnRH-stimulated and naturally mated (NM). In Experiment 2, does (n = 15) were GnRH-stimulated and naturally mated. Samples were retrieved from the internal reproductive tracts (cervix-to-infundibulum) 20 h post-treatment (Experiment 1) or sequentially collected at 10, 24, 36, 68, or 72 h post-mating (Experiment 2, 3 does/period). All samples were processed for gene expression analysis by quantitative PCR. Data showed an upregulation of endometrial CTEN and NGF by NM, but not by SP-AI. The findings suggest that the NGF gene affects the reproductive tract of the doe during ovulation and beyond, influencing the maternal environment during early embryonic development.
Virtual reality analysis of intrinsic protein geometry with applications to cis peptide planes

A protein is traditionally visualised as a piecewise linear discrete curve, and its geometry is conventionally characterised by the extrinsically determined Ramachandran angles. However, a protein backbone has also two independent intrinsic geometric structures, due to the peptide planes and the side chains. Here we adapt and develop modern 3D virtual reality techniques to scrutinize the atomic geometry along a protein backbone, in the vicinity of a peptide plane. For this we compare backbone geometry-based (extrinsic) and structure-based (intrinsic) coordinate systems, and as an example we inspect the trans and cis peptide planes. We reveal systematics in the way how a cis peptide plane deforms the neighbouring atomic geometry, and we develop a virtual reality based visual methodology that can identify the presence of a cis peptide plane from the arrangement of atoms in its vicinity. Our approach can easily detect exceptionally placed atoms in crystallographic structures. Thus it can be employed as a powerful visual refinement tool which is applicable also in the case when resolution of the protein structure is limited and whenever refinement is needed. As concrete examples we identify a number of crystallographic protein structures in Protein Data Bank (PDB) that display exceptional atomic positions around their cis peptide planes.