bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Why do scientists fabricate and falsify data? A matched-control analysis of papers containing problematic image duplications
Authors: Fanelli Daniele , Costas Rodrigo , Fang Ferric C. , Casadevall Arturo , Bik Elisabeth M.
Published: April 2017

It is commonly hypothesized that scientists are more likely to engage in data falsification and fabrication when they are subject to pressures to publish, when they are not restrained by forms of social control, when they work in countries lacking policies to tackle scientific misconduct, and when they are male. Evidence to test these hypotheses, however, is inconclusive due to the difficulties of obtaining unbiased data.

Here we report a pre-registered test of these four hypotheses, conducted on papers that were identified in a previous study as containing problematic image duplications through a systematic screening of the journal PLoS ONE. Image duplications were classified into three categories based on their complexity, with category 1 being most likely to reflect unintentional error and category 3 being most likely to reflect intentional fabrication. Multiple parameters connected to the hypotheses above were tested with a matched-control paradigm, by collecting two controls for each paper containing duplications.

Category 1 duplications were mostly not associated with any of the parameters tested, in accordance with the assumption that these duplications were mostly not due to misconduct. Category 2 and 3, however, exhibited numerous statistically significant associations. Results of univariable and multivariable analyses support the hypotheses that academic culture, peer control, cash-based publication incentives and national misconduct policies might affect scientific integrity. Significant correlations between the risk of image duplication and individual publication rates or gender, however, were only observed in secondary and exploratory analyses.

Country-level parameters generally exhibited effects of larger magnitude than individual-level parameters, because a subset of countries was significantly more likely to produce problematic image duplications. Promoting good research practices in all countries should be a priority for the international research integrity agenda.
Simultaneous Modelling of Movement, Measurement Error, and Observer Dependence in Double-Observer Distance Sampling Surveys
Authors: Conn By Paul B. , Alisauskas Ray T.
Published: April 2017

Mark-recapture distance sampling uses detections, non-detections and recorded distances of animals encountered in transect surveys to estimate abundance. However, commonly available distance sampling estimators require that distances to target animals are made without error and that animals are stationary while sampling is being conducted. In practice these requirements are often violated. In this paper, we describe a marginal likelihood framework for estimating abundance from double-observer data that can accommodate movement and measurement error when observations are made consecutively (as with front and rear observers) and when animals are randomly distributed when detected by the first observer. Our framework requires that two observers independently detect and record binned distances to observed animal groups, as we well as a binary indicator for whether animals were moving or not. We then assume that stationary animals are subject to measurement error whereas moving animals are subject to both movement and measurement error. Integrating over unknown animal locations, we construct a marginal likelihood for detection, movement, and measurement error parameters. Estimates of animal abundance are then obtained using a modified Horvitz-Thompson-like estimator. In addition, unmodelled heterogeneity in detection probability can be accommodated through observer dependence parameters. Using simulation, we show that our approach yields low bias compared to approaches that ignore movement and/or measurement error, including in cases where there is considerable detection heterogeneity. We demonstrate our approach using data from a double-observer waterfowl helicopter survey.
Interactome INSIDER: a multi-scale structural interactome browser for genomic studies
Authors: Meyer Michael J. , Beltrán Juan Felipe , Liang Siqi , Fragoza Robert , Rumack Aaron , Liang Jin , Wei Xiaomu , Yu Haiyuan
Published: April 2017

Protein interactions underlie nearly all known cellular function, making knowledge of their binding conformations paramount to understanding the physical workings of the cell. Studying binding conformations has allowed scientists to explore some of the mechanistic underpinnings of disease caused by disruption of protein interactions. However, since experimentally determined interaction structures are only available for a small fraction of the known interactome such inquiry has largely excluded functional genomic studies of the human interactome and broad observations of the inner workings of disease. Here we present Interactome INSIDER, an information center for genomic studies using the first full-interactome map of human interaction interfaces. We applied a new, unified framework to predict protein interaction interfaces for 184,605 protein interactions with previously unresolved interfaces in human and 7 model organisms, including the entire experimentally determined human binary interactome. We find that predicted interfaces share several known functional properties of interfaces, including an enrichment for disease mutations and recurrent cancer mutations, suggesting their applicability to functional genomic studies. We also performed 2,164de novomutagenesis experiments and show that mutations of predicted interface residues disrupt interactions at a similar rate to known interface residues and at a much higher rate than mutations outside of predicted interfaces. To spur functional genomic studies in the human interactome, Interactome INSIDER (http://interactomeinsider.yulab.org) allows users to explore known population variants, disease mutations, and somatic cancer mutations, or upload their own set of mutations to find enrichment at the level of protein domains, residues, and 3D atomic clustering in known and predicted interaction interfaces.
Consensus Development of a Modern Ontology of Emergency Department Presenting Problems – the HierArchical Presenting Problem ontologY (HaPPy)
Authors: Horng Steven , Greenbaum Nathaniel R. , Nathanson Larry A. , McClay James C , Goss Foster R. , Nielson Jeffrey A.
Published: April 2017

Objective

Numerous attempts have been made to create a standardized ‘presenting problem’ or ‘chief complaint’ list to characterize the nature of an Emergency Department visit. Previous attempts have failed to gain widespread adoption as none were freely sharable and contained the right level of specificity, structure, and clinical relevance to gain acceptance by the larger emergency medicine community. Using real-world data, we constructed a presenting problem list that addresses these challenges.

Materials and Methods

We prospectively captured the presenting problems for 180,424 consecutive emergency department patient visits at an urban, academic, Level I trauma center in the Boston metro area. No patients were excluded. We used a consensus process to iteratively derive our system using real-world data. We used the first 70% of consecutive visits to derive our ontology; followed by a 6 month washout period, and the remaining 30% for validation. All concepts were mapped to SNOMED-CT.

Results

Our system consists of a polyhierarchical ontology containing 692 unique concepts, 2,118 synonyms, and 30,613 non-visible descriptions to correct misspellings and non-standard terminology. Our ontology successfully captured structured data for 95.9% of visits in our validation dataset.

Discussion and Conclusion

We present the HierArchical Presenting Problem ontologY (HaPPy). This ontology was empirically derived then iteratively validated by an expert consensus panel. HaPPy contains 692 presenting problem concepts, each concept being mapped to SNOMED-CT. This freely sharable ontology can help to facilitate presenting problem based quality metrics, research, and patient care.
Evidence for stabilizing selection at pleiotropic loci for human complex traits
Authors: Wong Emily S , Chenoweth Steve , Blows Mark , Powell Joseph E
Published: April 2017

How genetic variation contributes to phenotypic variation is a central question in genetics. Association signals for a complex trait are found throughout the majority of the genome suggesting much of the genome is under some degree of genetic constraint. Here, we develop a intraspecific population genetics approach to define a measure of population structure for each single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP). Using this approach, we test for evidence of stabilizing selection at complex traits and pleiotropic loci arising from the evolutionary history of 47 complex traits and common diseases. Our approach allowed us to identify traits and regions under stabilizing selection towards both global and subpopulation optima. Strongest depletion of allelic diversity was found at disease loci, indicating stabilizing selection has acted on these phenotypes in all subpopulations. Pleiotropic loci predominantly displayed evidence of stabilizing selection, often contributed to multiple disease risks, and sometimes also affected non-disease traits such as height. Risk alleles at pleiotropic disease loci displayed a more consistent direction of effect than expected by chance suggesting that stabilizing selection acting on pleiotropic loci is amplified through multiple disease phenotypes.
Genome wide identification of bacterial genes required for plant infection by Tn-seq
Authors: Royet Kevin , Parisot Nicolas , Rodrigue Agnès , Gueguen Erwan , Condemine Guy
Published: April 2017

Soft rot enterobacteria (DickeyaandPectobacterium) are major pathogens that cause diseases on plants of agricultural importance such as potato and ornamentals. Long term studies to identify virulence factors of these bacteria focused mostly on plant cell wall degrading enzymes secreted by the type II secretion system and the regulation of their expression. To identify new virulence factors we performed a Tn-seq genome-wide screen of a transposon mutant library during chicory infection followed by high-throughput sequencing. This allowed the detection of mutants with reduced but also increased fitness in the plant. Virulence factors identified differed from those previously known since diffusible ones (secreted enzymes, siderophores or metabolites) were not detected by this screen. In addition to genes encoding proteins of unknown function that could be new virulence factors, others could be assigned to known biological functions. The central role of the FlhDC regulatory cascade in the control of virulence was highlighted with the identification of new members of this pathway. Scarcity of the plant in certain amino acids and nucleic acids required presence of the corresponding biosynthetic genes in the bacteria. Their products could be targets for the development of antibacterial compounds. Among the genes required for full development in chicory we also identified six genes involved in the glycosylation of the flagellin FliC, glycosylation, which in other plant pathogenic bacteria contributes to virulence.

Author summary

Identification of virulence factors of plant pathogenic bacteria has relied on the test of individual mutants on plants, a time-consuming method. New methods like transcriptomic or proteomic can now be used but they only allow the identification of genes induced during the infection process and non-induced genes may be missed. Tn-seq is a very powerful method to identify genes required for bacterial growth in their host. We used for the first time this method in a plant pathogenic bacteria to identify genes required for the multiplication ofDickeya dadantiiin chicory. We identified about 100 genes with decreased or increased fitness in the plant. Most of them had no previously described role in bacterial virulence. We unveiled important metabolic genes and regulators of motility and virulence. We showed thatD. dadantiiflagellin is glycosylated and that this modification confers fitness to the bacteria during plant infection. Our work opens the way to the use of Tn-seq with bacterial phytopathogens. Assay by this method of large collections of environmental pathogenic strains now available will allow an easy and rapid identification of new virulence factors.
The WPRE improves genetic engineering with site-specific nucleases
Authors: Ong Jessica M. , Brown Christopher R. , Mendel Matthew C. , Cost Gregory J.
Published: April 2017

Inclusion of the woodchuck hepatitis virus post-transcriptional response element (WPRE) in the 3’ UTR of mRNA encoding zinc-finger or TALE nucleases results in up to a fifty-fold increase in nuclease expression and a several-fold increase in nuclease-modified chromosomes. Significantly, this increase is additive with the enhancement generated by transient hypothermic shock. The WPRE-mediated improvement is seen across several types of human and mouse primary and transformed cells and is translatablein vivoto the mouse liver.
Adolescent tuning of association cortex in human structural brain networks
Authors: Váša František , Seidlitz Jakob , Romero-Garcia Rafael , Whitaker Kirstie J. , Rosenthal Gideon , Vértes Petra E. , Shinn Maxwell , Alexander-Bloch Aaron , Fonagy Peter , Dolan Raymond J. , Jones Peter B. , Goodyer Ian M. ,   the NSPN consortium, Sporns Olaf , Bullmore Edward T.
Published: April 2017

Motivated by prior data on local cortical shrinkage and intracortical myelination, we predicted age-related changes in topological organisation of cortical structural networks during adolescence. We estimated structural correlation from magnetic resonance imaging measures of cortical thickness at 308 regions in a sample of N=297 healthy participants, aged 14-24 years. We used a novel sliding-window analysis to measure age-related changes in network attributes globally, locally and in the context of several community partitions of the network. We found that the strength of structural correlation generally decreased as a function of age. Association cortical regions demonstrated a sharp decrease in nodal degree (hubness) from 14 years, reaching a minimum at approximately 19 years, and then levelling off or even slightly increasing until 24 years. Greater and more prolonged age-related changes in degree of cortical regions within the brain network were associated with faster rates of adolescent cortical myelination and shrinkage. The brain regions that demonstrated the greatest age-related changes were concentrated within prefrontal modules. We conclude that human adolescence is associated with biologically plausible changes in structural imaging markers of brain network organization, consistent with the concept of tuning or consolidating anatomical connectivity between frontal cortex and the rest of the connectome.
Gut microbiota composition related withClostridium difficile-positive diarrhea andC. difficiletype (A+B+, A-B+, and A-B-) in ICU hospitalized patients
Authors: Wu Anhua , Duan Juping , Liu Sidi , Meng Xiujuan , Zhou Pengcheng , Dou Qingya , Li Chunhui
Published: April 2017

Background

Gut microbiota composition of intensive care unit (ICU) patients suffering fromClostridium difficile-positive diarrhea (CDpD) is still poorly understood. This study aims to use 16S rDNA (and metagenome) sequencing to compare the microbiota composition of 58 (and 5) ICU patients with CDpD (CDpD group), 33 (and 4) ICU patients withC. difficilenegative diarrhea (CDnD group), and 21 (and 5) healthy control subjects (control group), as well as CDpD patients in A+B+(N=34; A/B:C. difficile TcdA/B), A-B+(N=7), and A-B-(N=17) subgroups. For 16S rDNA data, OTU clustering (tool: UPARSE), taxonomic assignment (tool: RDP classifier), α-diversity and β-diversity analyses (tool: QIIME) were conducted. For metagenome data, metagenome assembly (tool: SOAP), gene calling (tools: MetaGeneMark, CD-HIT, and SoapAligner), unigene alignment (tool: DIAMOND), taxon difference analysis (tool: Metastats), and gene annotation (tool: DIAMOND) were performed.

Results

The microbial diversity of CDpD group was lower than that of CDnD and control groups. The abundances of 10 taxa (e.g. Deferribacteres, Cryptomycota, Acetothermia) in CDpD group were significantly higher than that in CDnD group. The abundances of Saccharomycetes and Clostridia were significantly lower in CDpD in comparison with control. A+B+, A-B+and A-B-subgroups couldn’t be separated in principal component analysis, while some taxa are significantly different between A+B+and A-B-subgroups.

Conclusion

CDpD might relate to the decrease of beneficial taxa (i.e. Saccharomycetes and Clostridia) and the increase of harmful taxa (e.g. Deferribacteres, Cryptomycota, Acetothermia) in gut microbiota in ICU patients.C. difficiletype might be slightly associated with gut microbiota composition.
Compound heterozygous alterations in intraflagellar transport protein CLUAP1 in a child with a novel Joubert and oral–facial–digital overlap syndrome
Authors: Johnston Jennifer J. , Lee Chanjae , Wentzensen Ingrid M. , Parisi Melissa A. , Crenshaw Molly M. , Sapp Julie C. , Gross Jeffrey M. , Wallingford John B. , Biesecker Leslie G.
Published: April 2017

Disruption of normal ciliary function results in a range of diseases collectively referred to as ciliopathies. Here we report a child with a phenotype that overlapped with Joubert, oral–facial–digital, and Pallister–Hall syndromes including brain, limb, and craniofacial anomalies. We performed exome-sequence analysis on a proband and both parents, filtered for putative causative variants, and Sanger-verified variants of interest. Identified variants in CLUAP1 were functionally analyzed in a Xenopus system to determine their effect on ciliary function. Two variants in CLUAP1 were identified through exome-sequence analysis, Chr16:g.3558407T>G, c.338T>G, p.(Met113Arg) and Chr16:g.3570011C>T, c.688C>T, p.(Arg230Ter). These variants were rare in the Exome Aggregation Consortium (ExAC) data set of 65,000 individuals (one and two occurrences, respectively). Transfection of mutant CLUAP1 constructs into Xenopus embryos showed reduced protein levels p.(Arg230Ter) and reduced intraflagellar transport p.(Met113Arg). The genetic data show that these variants are present in an affected child, are rare in the population, and result in reduced, but not absent, intraflagellar transport. We conclude that biallelic mutations in CLUAP1 resulted in this novel ciliopathy syndrome in the proband.
Simultaneous determination of high-temperature crystal structure and texture of synthetic porous cordierite
Authors: Bruno Giovanni , Vogel Sven C.
Published: April 2017

The evolution of the crystal structure and crystallographic texture of porous synthetic cordierite was studied byin situhigh-temperature neutron diffraction up to 1373 K, providing the firstin situhigh-temperature texture measurement of this technologically important material. It was observed that the crystal texture slightly weakens with increasing temperature, concurrently with subtle changes in the crystal structure. These changes are in agreement with previous work, leading the authors to the conclusion that high-temperature neutron diffraction allows reliable crystallographic characterization of materials with moderate texture. It was also observed that structural changes occur at about the glass transition temperature of the cordierite glass (between 973 and 1073 K). Crystal structure refinements were conducted with and without quantitative texture analysis being part of the Rietveld refinement, and a critical comparison of the results is presented, contributing to the sparse body of literature on combined texture and crystal structure refinements.
Incorporation of interfacial roughness into recursion matrix formalism of dynamical X-ray diffraction in multilayers and superlattices
Authors: Lobach Ihar , Benediktovitch Andrei , Ulyanenkov Alexander
Published: April 2017

Diffraction in multilayers in the presence of interfacial roughness is studied theoretically, the roughness being considered as a transition layer. Exact (within the framework of the two-beam dynamical diffraction theory) differential equations for field amplitudes in a crystalline structure with varying properties along its surface normal are obtained. An iterative scheme for approximate solution of the equations is developed. The presented approach to interfacial roughness is incorporated into the recursion matrix formalism in a way that obviates possible numerical problems. Fitting of the experimental rocking curve is performed in order to test the possibility of reconstructing the roughness value from a diffraction scan. The developed algorithm works substantially faster than the traditional approach to dealing with a transition layer (dividing it into a finite number of thin lamellae). Calculations by the proposed approach are only two to three times longer than calculations for corresponding structures with ideally sharp interfaces.
SLADS: a parallel code for direct simulations of scattering of large anisotropic dense nanoparticle systems
Authors: Chen Sen , E Juncheng , Luo Sheng-Nian
Published: April 2017

SLADS (http://www.pims.ac.cn/Resources.html), a parallel code for direct simulations of X-ray scattering of large anisotropic dense nanoparticle systems of arbitrary species and atomic configurations, is presented. Particles can be of arbitrary shapes and dispersities, and interactions between particles are considered. Parallelization is achieved in real space for the sake of memory limitation. The system sizes attempted are up to one billion atoms, and particle concentrations in dense systems up to 0.36. Anisotropy is explored in terms of superlattices. One- and two-dimensional small-angle scattering or diffraction patterns are obtained. SLADS is validated self-consistently or against cases with analytical solutions.
Crystal structures of titanium–aluminium and –gallium complexes bearing two μ2
-CH3 units
Authors: Oswald Tim , Diekmann Mira , Frey Annika , Schmidtmann Marc , Beckhaus Rüdiger
Published: April 2017

The isotypic crystal structures of two titanocene complexes containing an EMe3 unit (E = Al, Ga; Me = methyl) with two μ
2-coordinating methyl groups, namely [μ-1(η5)-(adamantan-1-yl-2κC
1)cycylopentadienyl]di-μ2-methyl-methyl-2κC-[1(η5)-pentamethylcyclopentadienyl]aluminiumtitanium(III), [AlTi(CH3)3(C10H15)(C15H18)], and [μ-1(η5)-(adamantan-1-yl-2κC
1)cycylopentadienyl]di-μ2-methyl-methyl-2κC-[1(η5)-pentamethylcyclopentadienyl]galliumtitanium(III), [GaTi(CH3)3(C10H15)(C15H18)], are reported. Reacting a dinuclear nitrogen-bridged low-valent titanium(III) complex with the Lewis acids AlMe3 or GaMe3 results in the loss of molecular dinitrogen and the formation of two monomeric titanocene(III) fragments bearing two μ
2-bridging methyl groups. Single crystal X-ray diffraction reveals the formation of a new E—C bond involving the pentafulvene ligand while the bridging and terminal methyl groups remain intact.
Crystal structures of dibromido{N-[(pyridin-2-yl-κN)methylidene]picolinohydrazide-κ2
N′,O}cadmium methanol monosolvate and diiodido{N-[(pyridin-2-yl-κN)methylidene]picolinohydrazide-κ2
N′,O}cadmium
Authors: Khandar Ali Akbar , Afkhami Farhad Akbari , Krautscheid Harald , Kristoffersen Kenneth Aase , Atioğlu Zeliha , Akkurt Mehmet , Görbitz Carl Henrik
Published: April 2017

The title compounds, [CdBr2(C12H10N4O)]·CH3OH, (I), and [CdI2(C12H10N4O)], (II), are cadmium bromide and cadmium iodide complexes of the ligand (E)-N′-(pyridin-2-ylmethylene)picolinohydrazide. Complex (I) crystallizes as the methanol monosolvate. In both compounds, the Cd2+ cation is ligated by one O atom and two N atoms of the tridentate ligand, and by two bromide anions forming a Br2N2O pentacoordination sphere for (I), and by two iodide anions forming an I2N2O pentacoordination sphere for (II), both with a distorted square-pyramidal geometry. In the crystal of complex (I), molecules are linked by pairs of N—H...O and O—H...Br hydrogen bonds, involving the solvent molecule, forming dimeric units, which are linked by C—H...Br hydrogen bonds forming layers parallel to (101). In the crystal of complex (II), molecules are linked by N—H...I hydrogen bonds, forming chains propagating along [010]. In complex (II), measured at room temperature, the two iodide anions are each disordered over two sites; the refined occupancy ratio is 0.75 (2):0.25 (2).
Crystal structure of the diglycidyl ether of eugenol
Authors: Vigier Jordan , François Camille , Pourchet Sylvie , Boni Gilles , Plasseraud Laurent , Placet Vincent , Fontaine Stéphane , Cattey Hélène
Published: April 2017

The diepoxy monomer, C13H16O4 {DGE-Eu; systematic name: 2-[3-methoxy-4-(oxiran-2-ylmethoxy)benzyl]oxirane}, was synthesized from eugenol by a three-step reaction. It consists of a 1,2,4-trisubstituted benzene ring substituted by diglycidyl ether, a methoxy group and a methyloxirane group. The three-membered oxirane rings are inclined to the benzene ring by 61.0 (3) and 27.9 (3)°. The methylene C atom of one of the two terminal epoxide rings is positionally disordered [refined occupancy ratio = 0.69 (1):0.31 (1)]. In the crystal, molecules are linked by C—H...O hydrogen bonds, forming layers parallel to the ab plane. The layers are linked by C—H...π interactions, forming a three-dimensional network.
Hirshfeld analysis and molecular docking with the RDR enzyme of 2-(5-chloro-2-oxoindolin-3-ylidene)-N-methylhydrazinecarbothioamide
Authors: Velasques Jecika Maciel , Gervini Vanessa Carratu , Kickofel Lisliane , Farias Renan Lira de , Oliveira Adriano Bof de
Published: April 2017

The acetic acid-catalyzed reaction between 5-chloroisatin and 4-methylthiosemicarbazide yields the title compound, C10H9ClN4OS (I) (common name: 5-chloroisatin-4-methylthiosemicarbazone). The molecule is nearly planar (r.m.s. deviation = 0.047 Å for all non-H atoms), with a maximum deviation of 0.089 (1) Å for the O atom. An S(6) ring motif formed by an intramolecular N—H...O hydrogen bond is observed. In the crystal, molecules are linked by N—H...O hydrogen bonds, forming chains propagating along the a-axis direction. The chains are linked by N—H...S hydrogen bonds, forming a three-dimensional supramolecular structure. The three-dimensional framework is reinforced by C—H...π interactions. The absolute structure of the molecule in the crystal was determined by resonant scattering [Flack parameter = 0.006 (9)]. The crystal structure of the same compound, measured at 100 K, has been reported on previously [Qasem Ali et al. (2012). Acta Cryst. E68, o964–o965]. The Hirshfeld surface analysis indicates that the most important contributions for the crystal packing are the H...H (23.1%), H...C (18.4%), H...Cl (13.7%), H...S (12.0%) and H...O (11.3%) interactions. A molecular docking evaluation of the title compound with the ribonucleoside diphosphate reductase (RDR) enzyme was carried out. The title compound (I) and the active site of the selected enzyme show Cl...H—C(LYS140), Cg(aromatic ring)...H—C(SER71), H...O—C(GLU200) and FeIII...O...FeIII intermolecular interactions, which suggests a solid theoretical structure–activity relationship.
Crystal structure of catena-poly[[[diaquabis(2,4,6-trimethylbenzoato-κO)cobalt(II)]-μ-aqua-κ2
O:O] dihydrate]
Authors: Hökelek Tuncer , Akduran Nurcan , Özkaya Safiye , Necefoğlu Hacali
Published: April 2017

The asymmetric unit of the title one-dimensional polymeric compound, {[Co(C10H11O2)2(H2O)3]·2H2O}
n
, contains one CoII cation situated on a centre of inversion, one-half of a coordinating water molecule, one 2,4,6-trimethylbenzoate (TMB) anion together with one coordinating and one non-coordinating water molecule; the TMB anion acts as a monodentate ligand. In the anion, the carboxylate group is twisted away from the attached benzene ring by 84.9 (2)°. The CoII atom is coordinated by two TMB anions and two water molecules in the basal plane, while another water molecule bridges the CoII atoms in the axial directions, forming polymeric chains running along [001]. The coordination environment for the CoII cation is a slightly distorted octahedron. The coordinating and bridging water molecules link to the carboxylate groups via intra- and intermolecular O—H...O hydrogen bonds, enclosing S(6) ring motifs, while the coordinating, bridging and non-coordinating water molecules link to the carboxylate groups and the coordinating water molecules link to the non-coordinating water molecules via O—H...O hydrogen bonds, enclosing R
2
2(8) and R
3
3(8) ring motifs. Weak C—H...O and C—H...π interactions may further stabilize the crystal structure.
Benefits of visual management in construction: cases from the transportation sector in England
Authors: Tezel Algan , Aziz Zeeshan
Published: April 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore the benefits of visual management (VM) systems in transportation construction projects in England.

Design/methodology/approach

Following a comprehensive literature review, the benefits of VM were investigated through action and case study research executed within two construction projects in England.

Findings

The main findings are: VM can contribute to increased self-management, better team coordination, better promises or an increasing plan percent complete, easier control for the management and improved workplace conditions in the transportation sector. It is important for the management to obtain the engagement of their workforce for VM through increased participation and show the actual benefits. However, managerial monitoring and control on the systems should not be underestimated.

Originality/value

The transportation sector in England has been systematically deploying Lean construction techniques in its operations for a while. One of those Lean techniques is a close-range visual communication strategy called VM. The literature on the VM implementation in construction is scarce and generally limited to the building construction context. This paper documents the benefits of VM systems for the transportation sector by using data captured through both qualitative and quantitative data collection methods. The paper also identifies a set of recommendations for similar research efforts in the transportation context in the future.
Exploring organisational attributes affecting the innovativeness of UK SMEs
Authors: Gledson Barry J. , Phoenix Calum
Published: April 2017

Purpose

The UK construction sector of small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) has received criticism for a perceived lack of desire to innovate. Previous research has identified attributes such as company size and levels of research and development expenditure as being significant and causal variables determining this response. The purpose of this study was to further explore organisational attributes that determine innovation likeliness within construction SMEs.

Design/methodology/approach

Web-based questionnaires were administered to 101 construction professionals. Responses from large companies and SMEs were compared, and data were analysed using descriptive and inferential statistical methods.

Findings

The findings indicate that SMEs do implement a substantial amount of innovation to improve profitability. Both organisational maturity and in-house design capability were found to impact SME innovativeness.

Originality/value

The study provides further evidence that the UK construction SME sector is evolving away from traditional to more innovative practices.
Valuations of electricity distribution and retail companies in an emerging market
Authors: Alma Hasan , Karan Mehmet Baha
Published: April 2017

Purpose

This paper is aimed to evaluate recently privatized 18 electricity distribution and retail companies, using the data and conditions at the time they were privatized. The main hypothesis of the study is that most of the privatized companies in this research are underpriced similar to previous experiences in developed and emerging economies.

Design/methodology/approach

Values of the companies are calculated considering the formal procedures of Turkish energy authorities. These companies are valued under the base, moderate and extreme scenarios created from different sets of assumptions considering conditions and existing data at the time they were privatized. Discounted cash flows (DCF) methodology is used in the estimations. The market prices obtained in their privatization tenders are compared with those theoretically calculated values (intrinsic prices).

Findings

The findings reject the hypothesis and indicate an overpricing in general in the privatizations of Turkey. Even the extreme scenario which gives the highest intrinsic values supports the findings.

Research limitations/implications

Research is limited with 18 regional electricity distribution company in Turkey.

Originality/value

The paper is one of the initial empirical studies on the valuation of energy companies using DCF methodology in an emerging market.
Emission/fuel energy restricted dynamic optimal power flow using fuzzy - ant lion optimizer
Authors: Radha Janagaraman , Subramanian Srikrishna , Ganesan Sivarajan , Abirami Manoharan
Published: April 2017

Purpose

This study aims to minimize operating cost, adhere to pollution norms and maintain reserve and voltage levels subject to various operational concerns, including non linear characteristics of generators and fuel limitation issues, which are useful for the current power system applications.

Design/methodology/approach

Improved control settings are required while considering multiple conflicting operational objectives that necessitate using the modern bio-inspired algorithm ant lion optimizer (ALO) as the main optimization tool. Fuzzy decision-making mechanism is incorporated in ALO to extract the best compromise solution (BCS) among set of non-dominated solutions.

Findings

The BCS records of IEEE-30 bus and JEAS-118 bus systems are updated in this work. Numerical simulation results comparison and comprehensive performance analysis justify the applicability of the intended algorithm to solve multi-objective dynamic optimal power flow (DOPF) problem over the state-of-art methods.

Originality/value

Optimal control settings are obtained for IEEE-30 and JEAS-118 bus systems with the objectives of minimizing fuel cost and emission in dynamic environment considering take-or-pay fuel contract issue. The fuzzy supported ALO (FSALO) is applied first time to solve the DOPF problem.
Usage and future prospects of CER: a survey of perceptions of top fifty Indian companies
Authors: Dhamija Ajay K. , Yadav Surendra S. , Jain P.K.
Published: April 2017

Purpose

Certified emission reduction (CER) survey studies in the literature are quite restrictive in scope. These studies are based on convenience sampling and, therefore, cannot be relied upon. The current study comprehensively surveys the strengths, weaknesses and suggestive measures for clean development mechanism (CDM). This paper systematically aims to conduct the survey on top 50 companies in terms of CER volume.

Design/methodology/approach

The survey is aimed to target top 50 companies which account for 55 per cent of total number of CERs of all the Indian projects. The online survey link was sent to all 50 companies, and the finance managers were followed up regularly over a period of one year. Finally, 37 responses (a response rate of 72 per cent) have been received.

Findings

“CER is cheaper than EUA for Emission Compliance” is rated as topmost strength and “Methodology of Financial Additionality is Subjective” is rated as topmost weakness of CER mechanism. Removal of Quantitative Restrictions on CERs is rated as the topmost suggestive measure for stabilization of CER. Companies overwhelmingly favored continuation of banking and inclusion of carbon emission cost as one of the internal cost of business.

Practical implications

The current study throws light on future policy interventions for minimization of carbon footprint and efficient energy management.

Social implications

This study gives vital reflections for stabilization of CDM. This will help sustainable development, generation of green energy, mitigation of carbon emission at the least cost and employment generation in developing countries because of CDM project development.

Originality/value

This study differs from earlier studies because it comprehensively surveys the pertinent issues relating to strengths, weaknesses and suggestive measures for CDM. It also differs from them because it is not based on convenience sampling. It conducts the survey systematically on top 50 companies in terms of CER volume. Therefore, unlike previous studies of questionable validities, the findings of this study can be safely considered for policy interventions
CEOs’ regulatory foci and firm-level product innovativeness in competitive environments
Authors: Adomako Samuel
Published: April 2017

Purpose

Using arguments from the regulatory focus and upper echelons theories, this paper aims to examine the impact of a chief executive officer’s (CEO’s) regulatory foci (i.e. promotion and prevention focus) on small- and medium-sized enterprises’ (SMEs’) level of innovativeness and how these relationships are jointly moderated by intense competition.

Design/methodology/approach

The empirical analysis draws on survey data gathered from 257 SMEs in Ghana.

Findings

The study findings indicate that a CEO’s level of promotion focus positively affects the firm’s engagement in innovation, while a CEO’s prevention focus is negatively associated with the firm’s innovativeness. The positive association between a CEO’s promotion focus and a firm’s innovativeness is enhanced under conditions of intense competition. Additionally, the negative relationship between prevention focus and firm-level innovativeness is attenuated under intense competition.

Research limitations/implications

This study relied on a single informant and also used subjective measures for the dependent variable. As such, individual respondents might have biased perspectives on firm-level product innovativeness. Future studies may use multiple informants to examine the causal links of the variables.

Practical implications

The study’s findings provide managers with a deeper understanding of how to achieve superior firm-level product innovation. The understanding of this issue can promote the development and maintenance of further entrepreneurial ventures in emerging economies.

Originality/value

The paper has a strong theoretical value as it pioneers research on the effect of CEOs’ regulatory foci on firm-level innovativeness in competitive environments.
Thought self-leadership strategies and sales performance: integrating selling skills and adaptive selling behavior as missing links
Authors: Singh Rakesh , Kumar Narendra , Puri Sandeep
Published: April 2017

Purpose

This study aims to address the need to study salespersons’ thought self-leadership (TSL) and its effectiveness through the interplay of self-efficacy, skills and behavior at the individual level. It also advances the agenda of integrating self-leadership into marketing literature.

Design/methodology/approach

A model was tested using survey data collected from salespeople within pharmaceutical companies located in India and other Asian countries. A structural equation model was used to test the hypotheses.

Findings

The results suggest an interesting interplay between a salesperson’s TSL and his/her sales performance. The results also demonstrate the relationship between TSL and self-efficacy and the mediation mechanism through which self-efficacy influences sales performance. Results support the role of TSL as a distal predictor of performance and delineate the complexity of the mediation mechanism through theoretical grounding and empirical evidence.

Research limitations/implications

The research suggests that a salesperson’s TSL relates positively with the sales performance through three process variables; self-efficacy, selling skills and adaptive selling behavior. The results should encourage managers to leverage salesperson’s TSL strategies to build a self-leading sales force and optimize supervision cost. Moreover, training the sales force for enhanced TSL has immediate payoffs in terms of increased selling effectiveness. The study also discusses theoretical implications.

Originality/value

By examining TSL in the sales context, the study makes an original contribution to the extant literature. The results of the study enrich the extant information on self-leadership and sales performance linkages by suggesting a mediation mechanism and proposing an integrated framework with selling skills and adaptive selling behavior.
Contentment of employees vs their prosumeric activity in the scope of recommending an employer
Authors: Baruk Agnieszka Izabela
Published: April 2017

Purpose

This paper aims to identify dependences between recommending an employer by employees and the level of their contentment; indicate the determinants of the level of employees’ contentment; and define the hierarchical order of identified determinants of the level of employees’ contentment.

Design/methodology/approach

To prepare the theoretical part, the method of cognitive-critical analysis of worldwide subject literature from the field of marketing, personal marketing, management and human resources management was used, whereas to prepare the empirical part, the following research methods were used: a questionnaire (to gather primary data) and the method of statistical analysis in the form of correspondence analysis, including analysis the total value ofχ2(to analyse the primary data gathered and for statistical deduction).

Findings

The statistical analysis of results of primary research allowed to identify the internal system of dependence between recommending an employer and employees’ contentment. Its determinants were defined and ordered according to the significance of given dependence. The strongest determinants of employees’ contentment were their satisfaction and relation variables, especially the way of treating subordinates by superiors. Majority of 18 analysed dependences were also statistically significant (apart from 7 of them), although they were characterised by a relatively weaker strength. The knowledge about this is very important for business-to-business (B2B) enterprises. Thanks it the employers can activate employees as prosumers co-building employer’s image.

Originality/value

The originality of the paper results from the applied approach. According to it, employees play a role of prosumers through taking part in creating the image of a B2B company as an employer. So far, the prosumption was associated only with final purchasers and not with employees. Additionally, this approach counts the contentment context of recommending B2B enterprise as the employer.
Social media as a resource in SMEs’ sales process
Authors: Bocconcelli Roberta , Cioppi Marco , Pagano Alessandro
Published: April 2017

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore the impact of social media (SM) adoption in upgrading and innovating selling processes by small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) facing complex and rapidly changing market scenarios.

Design/methodology/approach

To achieve this goal, the paper undertakes an exploratory case study of Gamma, a mechanical company, by actively using SM to start and open a new market. The case-study is analyzed through the industrial marketing and purchasing (IMP) approach, which emphasizes the role of interaction and the interdependencies of resources.

Findings

The adoption of SM resources helped Gamma to tap into new markets and thus survive and face the downturn of its original market. SM displayed its effects in combination with other resources: a simple and not expensive machinery, capable human resources, effective production and logistical resources. SM represented a strategic resource to implement an effective business networking effort.

Originality/value

This paper provides novel empirical evidence and conceptual development over the role of SM as a resource in SMEs’ sales processes, using the IMP perspective on combination and development of resources.
Solution providers’ strategic capabilities
Authors: Huikkola Tuomas , Kohtamäki Marko
Published: April 2017

Purpose

Drawing on the resource-based view of the firm, this study aims to analyze solution providers’ strategic capabilities that facilitate above-average returns.

Design/methodology/approach

The study applies a qualitative comparative case method. In addition to an extensive set of secondary data, the results are based on interviews with 35 executives from nine leading industrial solution providers, their strategic customers and suppliers. The analyzed solution providers were identified based on quantitative survey data.

Findings

By observing six distinctive resources and three strategic business processes, the present study identifies seven strategic capabilities that occur in different phases of solution development and deployment: fleet management capability, technology-development capability, mergers and acquisitions capability, value quantifying capability, project management capability, supplier network management capability and value co-creation capability.

Research limitations/implications

The study develops a generic model for the strategic capabilities of servitization. Application of the developed model to different contexts would further validate and enhance it.

Practical implications

Managers can use the developed model to benchmark, identify, build and manage solution providers’ strategic capabilities and associated practices.

Originality/value

The study develops a valuable conceptual model based on the comparative case data. Case firms were selected for the study based on a representative quantitative data set. The results were verified and triangulated with external data.
Living by the numbers: understanding the “quantification effect”
Authors: Pettinico George , Milne George R.
Published: April 2017

Purpose

This paper aims to establish if quantified self-data positively impact motivation in a goal pursuit across a broad cross-section of consumers and in multiple contexts; and to understand the underlying causal mechanism and identify boundary conditions.

Design/methodology/approach

Exploratory qualitative research helped direct the hypotheses development. Two quantitative experiments were then conducted via MTURK, involving 331 respondents, to test the hypotheses in two different personal goal areas (fitness and carbon footprint reduction).

Findings

Self-quantification has a significant and positive impact on anticipated motivation in both contexts studied. The mediated model provides insight into the psychological process underlying self-quantification’s motivational impact, which involves strengthening user perceptions regarding feedback meaningfulness, self-empowerment and goal focus. Age (>50) was found to be a boundary condition; however, distance to goal was not.

Research limitations/implications

This paper focuses on initial (anticipated) motivation, which is the vital first step in behavior change. However, more work is needed to understand quantification’s long-term impact over the course of a behavior change process.

Practical implications

This research encourages firms to incorporate self-quantification features into products/services aimed at behavior change and helps firms better understand consumer-perceived benefits. It alerts firms regarding the extra effort needed to convince older consumers of these benefits.

Originality/value

This is the first study to confirm the “quantification effect” on motivation in multiple life areas and provide a causal model to explain how it works. It is also the first to highlight age as a boundary condition.