bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Outcomes of Adults with Congenital Heart Disease Supported with Extracorporeal Life Support After Cardiac Surgery
Authors: Dolgner Stephen J. , Keeshan Britton C. , Burke Christopher R. , McMullan David Michael , Chan Titus
Published: March 2020

Patients with adult congenital heart disease (ACHD) who undergo cardiac surgery may require extracorporeal life support (ECLS) for cardiopulmonary support, but outcomes after ECLS support have not been well described. This study aimed to identify risk factors for ECLS mortality in this population. We identified 368 ACHD patients who received ECLS after cardiac surgery between 1994 and 2016 in the Extracorporeal Life Support Organization (ELSO) database, a multicenter international registry of ECLS centers. Risk factors for mortality were assessed using multivariate logistic regression. Overall mortality was 61%. In a multivariate model using precannulation characteristics, Fontan physiology (odds ratio [OR]: 5.7; 95% CI: 1.6–20.0), weight over 100 kg (OR: 2.6; 95% CI: 1.3–5.4), female gender (OR: 1.6; 95% CI: 1.001–2.6), delayed ECLS cannulation (OR: 2.0; 95% CI: 1.2–3.2), and neuromuscular blockade (OR: 1.9; 95% CI: 1.1–3.3) were associated with increased mortality. Adding postcannulation characteristics to the model, renal complications (OR: 3.0; 95% CI: 1.7–5.2), neurologic complications (OR, 4.7; 95% CI: 1.5–15.2), and pulmonary hemorrhage (OR: 6.4; 95% CI: 1.3–33.2) were associated with increased mortality, whereas Fontan physiology was no longer associated, suggesting the association of Fontan physiology with mortality may be mediated by complications. Fontan physiology was also a risk factor for neurologic complications (OR: 8.2; 95% CI: 3.3–20.9). Given the rapid increase in ECLS use, understanding risk factors for ACHD patients receiving ECLS after cardiac surgery will aid clinicians in decision-making and preoperative planning.
Older Adults' Outcomes and Perceptions After Participating in the HOP-UP-PT Program
Authors: Wilson Christopher , Arena Sara K. , Starceski Rose , Swanson Kaleigh
Published: March 2020

The purpose of this study was to describe self-reported outcomes and perceptions of community-dwelling older adults who participated in a 6-month prevention-focused home care physical therapy program entitled Home-based Older Persons Upstreaming Prevention Physical Therapy (HOP-UP-PT). A 17-question telephone survey was offered 1 to 3 months after program completion to HOP-UP-PT participants who completed a minimum of three visits. Self-reported fall outcomes, healthcare utilization outcomes, perceptions of interventions, and financial perceptions were descriptively analyzed. There were 18 survey respondents (9 male, 9 female, mean age = 79 years). No falls were reported by 15 respondents and 3 reported 1 to 2 falls without injury. Seventeen participants reported no hospitalizations, one reported only overnight emergency room observation, and no participants reported requiring physical therapy. Participants reported benefits of: activity trackers (18/18), fall-prevention exercises (17/18), and electronic blood pressure monitor use (13/18). Despite reported benefits, participants indicated an inability/unwillingness to privately pay for the program with fixed incomes identified as the rationale for this response. Future considerations for third-party reimbursement warrants examination given older adults may have limitations in disposable income. The findings of this study suggest efficacy of HOP-UP-PT may translate to participant satisfaction and positive health and behavior changes after participation.
Prevalence of posttraumatic stress disorder in acute trauma patients
Authors: Joseph Noah M. , Benedick Alex , Flanagan Christopher D. , Breslin Mary A. , Simpson Megen , Ragone Christina , Kalina Mark , Hendrickson Sarah B. , Vallier Heather A.
Published: March 2020

Objective:

To determine the prevalence of positive screening for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) amongst trauma patients.

Design:

Prospective, longitudinal study.

Setting:

Single urban US level 1 trauma center.

Patients and methods:

Four hundred fifty-two adult trauma patients were administered the PTSD checklist for DSM-V (PCL-5) survey upon posthospital outpatient clinic visit. This included 300 men (66%) and 152 women with mean age 43.8 years and mean Injury Severity Score (ISS) 11.3, with 83% having fractures of the pelvis and/or extremities. Medical and injury related variables were recorded. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was performed to identify factors predictive of screening positive for PTSD.

Main outcome measurement:

Prevalence and risk factors for screening positive for PTSD amongst the trauma patient population.

Results:

Twenty-six percent of trauma patients screened positive for PTSD after mean 86 days following injury. These patients were younger (35 vs 46 years old, P < 0.001) and more commonly African American (56% vs 43% Caucasian, P < 0.001). Pedestrians struck by motor vehicles (OR 4.70, P = 0.040) and victims of crime (OR 4.12, P = 0.013) were more likely to screen positive. Psychiatric history, injury severity (ISS), and injury type did not predict positive screening.

Conclusion:

One-in-four patients suffering traumatic injuries screened positive for PTSD suggesting the prevalence of PTSD among trauma patients far exceeds that of the general population. Predictive factors included victims of crime and pedestrians struck by motor vehicles. Screening measures are needed in orthopaedic trauma surgery clinics to refer these at-risk patients for proper evaluation and treatment.

Level of evidence:

Prognostic; Level II
Travel barriers, unemployment, and external fixation predict loss to follow-up after surgical management of lower extremity fractures in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
Authors: Patterson Joseph T. , Albright Patrick D. , Jackson J. Hunter , Eliezer Edmund N. , Haonga Billy T. , Morshed Saam , Shearer David W.
Published: March 2020

Objective:

Predict loss to follow-up in prospective clinical investigations of lower extremity fracture surgery.

Design:

Secondary analysis of 2 prospective clinical trials.

Setting:

National public orthopaedic and neurologic trauma tertiary referral hospital in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, a low-income country in sub-Saharan Africa.

Patients/Participants:

Three hundred twenty-nine femoral shaft and 240 open tibial shaft fracture patients prospectively enrolled in prospective controlled trials of surgical fracture management by external fixation, plating, or intramedullary nailing between June 2015 and March 2017.

Intervention:

Telephone contact for failure to attend scheduled 1-year clinic visit.

Main Outcome Measurements:

Ascertainment of primary trial outcome at 1-year from surgery; post-hoc telephone questionnaire for reasons patient did not attend the 1-year clinic visit.

Results:

One hundred twenty-seven femur fracture (39%) and 68 open tibia fracture (28%) patients did not attend the 1-year clinic visit. Telephone contact significantly improved ascertainment of the primary study outcome by 20% between 6-month and 1-year clinic visits to 82% and 92% respectively at study completion. Multivariable analysis associated unemployment (OR = 2.5 [1.7–3.9], P < .001), treatment with an external fixator (OR = 1.7 [1.0–2.8], P = .033), and each additional 20 km between residence and clinic (OR = 1.03 [1.00–1.06], P = .047] with clinic nonattendance. One hundred eight (55%) nonattending patients completed the telephone questionnaire, reporting travel distance to the hospital (49%), and travel costs to the hospital (46%) as the most prevalent reasons for nonattendance. Sixty-five percent of patients with open tibia fractures cited relocation after surgery as a contributing factor.

Conclusions:

Relocation during recovery, travel distance, travel cost, unemployment, and use of an external fixator are associated with loss to clinical follow-up in prospective investigations of femur and open tibia fracture surgery in this population. Telephone contact is an effective means to assess outcome.
The components of directional and disruptive selection in heterogeneous group-structured populations
Authors: Ohtsuki Hisashi , Rueffler Claus , Wakano Joe Yuichiro , Parvinen Kalle , Lehmann Laurent
Published: March 2020

We derive how directional and disruptive selection operate on scalar traits in a heterogeneous group-structured population for a general class of models. In particular, we assume that each group in the population can be in one of a finite number of states, where states can affect group size and/or other environmental variables, at a given time. Using up to second-order perturbation expansions of the invasion fitness of a mutant allele, we derive expressions for the directional and disruptive selection coefficients, which are sufficient to classify the singular strategies of adaptive dynamics. These expressions include first- and second-order perturbations of individual fitness (expected number of settled offspring produced by an individual, possibly including self through survival); the first-order perturbation of the stationary distribution of mutants (derived here explicitly for the first time); the first-order perturbation of pairwise relatedness; and reproductive values, pairwise and three-way relatedness, and stationary distribution of mutants, each evaluated under neutrality. We introduce the concept of individualk-fitness (defined as the expected number of settled offspring of an individual for whichk −1 randomly chosen neighbors are lineage members) and show its usefulness for calculating relatedness and its perturbation. We then demonstrate that the directional and disruptive selection coefficients can be expressed in terms individualk-fitnesses withk= 1, 2, 3 only. This representation has two important benefits. First, it allows for a significant reduction in the dimensions of the system of equations describing the mutant dynamics that needs to be solved to evaluate explicitly the two selection coefficients. Second, it leads to a biologically meaningful interpretation of their components. As an application of our methodology, we analyze directional and disruptive selection in a lottery model with either hard or soft selection and show that many previous results about selection in group-structured populations can be reproduced as special cases of our model.
A Novel Approach to Investigate Subcortical and Cortical Sensitivity to Temporal Structure Simultaneously
Authors: Varma Sonia Y. , Purcell David , Veeranna Sangamanatha A. , Johnsrude Ingrid S. , Herrmann Björn
Published: March 2020

Hearing loss is associated with changes at the peripheral, subcortical, and cortical auditory stages. Research often focuses on these stages in isolation, but peripheral damage has cascading effects on central processing, and different stages are interconnected through extensive feedforward and feedback projections. Accordingly, assessment of the entire auditory system is needed to understand auditory pathology. Using a novel stimulus paired with electroencephalography in young, normal-hearing adults, we assess neural function at multiple stages of the auditory pathway simultaneously. We employ click trains that repeatedly accelerate then decelerate (3.5 Hz frequency modulation; FM) introducing varying inter-click-intervals (4 to 40 ms). We measured the amplitude of cortical potentials, and the latencies and amplitudes of Waves III and V of the auditory brainstem response (ABR), to clicks as a function of preceding inter-click-interval. This allowed us to assess cortical processing of frequency modulation, as well as adaptation and neural recovery time in subcortical structures (probably cochlear nuclei and inferior colliculi). Subcortical adaptation to inter-click intervals was reflected in longer latencies. Cortical responses to the 3.5 Hz FM included phase-locking, probably originating from auditory cortex, and sustained activity likely originating from higher-level cortices. We did not observe any correlations between subcortical and cortical responses. By recording neural responses from different stages of the auditory system simultaneously, we can study functional relationships among levels of the auditory system, which may provide a new and helpful window on hearing and hearing impairment.
The visual ecology of a color polymorphic reef fish: the role of aggressive mimicry
Authors: Pierotti Michele ER , Wandycz Anna , Wandycz Pawel , Rebelein Anja , Corredor Vitor H , Tashiro Juliana H , Castillo Armando , Wcislo William T , McMillan W Owen , Loew Ellis R
Published: March 2020

Since all forms of mimicry are based on perceptual deception, the sensory ecology of the intended receiver is of paramount importance to test the necessary precondition for mimicry to occur, i.e. model-mimic misidentification, and to gain insight in the origin and evolutionary trajectory of the signals. Here we test the potential for aggressive mimicry by a group of coral reef fishes, the color polymorphicHypoplectrushamlets, from the point of view of their most common prey, small epibenthic gobies and mysid shrimp. We build visual models based on the visual pigments and spatial resolution of the prey, the underwater light spectrum and color reflectances of putative models and their hamlet mimics. Our results are consistent with one mimic-model relationship between the butter hamletH. unicolorand its model the butterflyfishChaetodon capistratusbut do not support a second proposed mimic-model pair between the black hamletH. nigricansand the dusky damselfishStegastes adustus. We discuss our results in the context of color morphs divergence in theHypoplectrusspecies radiation and suggest that aggressive mimicry inH. unicolormight have originated in the context of protective (Batesian) mimicry by the hamlet from its fish predators.
The relation between intrinsic protein conformational changes and ligand binding
Authors: de Boer Marijn
Published: March 2020

1

Structural changes in proteins allow them to exist in several conformations. Non-covalent interactions with ligands drive the structural changes, thereby allowing the protein to perform its biological function. Recent findings suggest that many proteins are always in an equilibrium of different conformations and that each of these conformations can be formed by both the ligand-free and ligand-bound protein. By using classical statistical mechanics, we derived the equilibrium probabilities of forming a conformation with and without ligand. We found, under certain conditions, that increasing the probability of forming a conformation by the ligand-free protein also increases the probability of forming the same conformation when the protein has a ligand bound. Further, we found that changes in the conformational equilibrium of the ligand-free protein can increase or decrease the affinity for the ligand.
The Persistence Potential of Mobile Genetic Elements
Authors: Wang Teng , You Lingchong
Published: March 2020

Mobile genetic elements (MGEs), such as plasmids, phages, and transposons, play a critical role in mediating the transfer and maintenance of diverse traits and functions in microbial communities. This role depends on the ability of MGEs to persist. For a community consisting of multiple populations transferring multiple MGEs, however, the conditions underlying the persistence of these MGEs are poorly understood. Computationally, this difficulty arises from the combinatorial explosion associated with describing the gene flow in a complex community using the conventional modeling framework. Here, we describe an MGE-centric framework that makes it computationally feasible to analyze such transfer dynamics. Using this framework, we derive the persistence potential: a general, heuristic metric that predicts the persistence and abundance of any MGEs. We validate the metric with engineered microbial consortia transferring mobilizable plasmids and quantitative data available in the literature. Our modeling framework and the resulting metric have implications for developing a quantitative understanding of natural microbial communities and guiding the engineering of microbial consortia.
Caloric Restriction recovers impaired β-cell-β-cell coupling, calcium oscillation coordination and insulin secretion in prediabetic mice
Authors: Corezola do Amaral Maria Esméria , Kravets Vira , Dwulet JaeAnn M. , Farnsworth Nikki L. , Piscopio Robert , Schleicher Wolfgang E. , Miranda Jose Guadalupe , Benninger Richard K. P.
Published: March 2020

Caloric restriction has been shown to decrease the incidence of metabolic diseases such as obesity and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). The mechanisms underlying the benefits of caloric restriction involved in insulin secretion and glucose homeostasis and are not fully understood. Intercellular communication within the islets of Langerhans, mediated by Connexin36 (Cx36) gap junctions, regulates insulin secretion dynamics and glucose homeostasis. The goal of this study was to determine if caloric restriction can protect against decreases in Cx36 gap junction coupling and altered islet function induced in models of obesity and prediabetes. C57BL6 mice were fed with a high fat diet (HFD), showing indications of prediabetes after 2 months, including weight gain, insulin resistance, and elevated fasting glucose and insulin levels. Subsequently, mice were submitted to one month of 40% caloric restriction (2g/day of HFD). Mice under 40% caloric restriction showed reversal in weight gain and recovered insulin sensitivity, fasting glucose and insulin levels. In islets of mice fed the HFD, caloric restriction protected against obesity-induced decreases in gap junction coupling and preserved glucose-stimulated calcium signaling, including Ca2+oscillation coordination and oscillation amplitude. Caloric restriction also promoted a slight increase in glucose metabolism, as measured by increased NAD(P)H autofluorescence, as well as recovering glucose-stimulated insulin secretion. We conclude that declines in Cx36 gap junction coupling that occur in obesity can be completely recovered by caloric restriction and obesity reversal, improving Ca2+dynamics and insulin secretion regulation. This suggests a critical role for caloric restriction in the context of obesity to prevent islet dysfunction.
Theoretical analysis of neural crest cell migration
Authors: Khataee Hamid , Czirok Andras , Neufeld Zoltan
Published: March 2020

The neural crest cells are embryonic stem cells that migrate throughout embryos and, at different target locations, give rise to the formation of a variety of tissues and organs. The directional migration of the neural crest cells is experimentally described using a process referred to as contact inhibition of locomotion (CIL), by which cells redirect their movement upon the cell–cell contacts. However, it is unclear how the migration alignment is affected by the motility properties of the cells. Here, we computationally model the migration alignment and the average time to reach a target location as functions of the motility dynamics and interaction of the cells in an open domain with a channel geometry. The results indicate that by varying the properties of the CIL interaction a transition takes place from random movement of the cells to an organized collective migration, where the migration alignment is maximised and the migration time is minimised. This phase transition is accelerated and strengthened with the influx rate of the cells into the domain through increasing the density of the migrating cells. The model further suggests that the migration is more coordinated when the cells with a large CIL radius move fast in a narrow domain.
Negative disclosures in corporate social responsibility reporting
Authors: Einwiller Sabine A. , Carroll Craig E.
Published: March 2020

Purpose

This study aims to reveal the quantity, quality and cultural differences of negative corporate social performance (CSP) disclosures in large firms' corporate social responsibility (CSR) reports. Firms are expected to be transparent about the impacts and outcomes of their CSP. A central aspect of transparency is balance, which means disclosing both positive and negative CSP.

Design/methodology/approach

Content analysis was applied to 75 CSR reports of large firms chosen from the Forbes Top 500 list. The firms belong to three cultural clusters: Anglo, Confucian Asia and Germanic/Nordic Europe.

Findings

Firms made few negative CSP disclosures, yet the quantity of negative CSP disclosures varied among cultural clusters. Reports from Germanic/Nordic Europe showed the highest number of negative CSP disclosures, reports from Confucian Asia showed the lowest number and the Anglo cluster's number fell in between. The Asian firms communicated corrective actions more often than firms from the other clusters.

Research limitations/implications

This study focused on negative CSP disclosures in the CSR reports – not omitting negative CSP. The practice of self-laudatory CSR communication decreases the likelihood that relevant stakeholders will believe what firms report about.

Originality/value

Studies on the quality and quantity of negative disclosures are rare; by examining cultural differences, this study contributes to the limited body of knowledge.
“You really shouldn't have!” Coping with failed gift experiences
Authors: Branco-Illodo Ines , Heath Teresa , Tynan Caroline
Published: March 2020

Purpose

This paper aims to examine coping approaches used by receivers to deal with failed gift experiences, thereby dealing with misperceptions between givers and receivers that could affect their relationship.

Design/methodology/approach

This study uses a sequential, multimethod methodology using background questionnaires, online diary method and 27 semi-structured interviews.

Findings

Receivers cope with failed gift experiences through concealing, disclosing or re-evaluating the gift experience. These approaches encompass several coping strategies, allowing receivers to deal with their experiences in ways that help them manage their relationships with givers.

Research limitations/implications

Informants described gift experiences in their own terms without being prompted to talk about coping, thus some insights of coping with failed gifts may have been missed. Multiple data collection methods were used to minimise this limitation, and the research findings suggest new avenues for future research.

Practical implications

The present research helps retailers and brands to minimise gift failure by promoting gifts that emphasise aspects of the giver–receiver relationship, assists givers in their learning from gift failure by making them aware of the receiver’s preferences and reduces the cost of gift failure by offering further opportunities to dispose of unwanted gifts.

Originality/value

This paper contributes to the emerging topic of consumer coping by providing a novel and rounded understanding of coping in the context of failed gift events, identifying new reasons for gift failure, highlighting receivers’ ethical considerations when responding to failed gifts and proposing new insights for the coping literature.
Research in nonprofit human resource management from 2015 to 2018
Authors: Cooper Elizabeth A. , Phelps Aimee DuVall , Rogers Sean Edmund
Published: March 2020

Purpose

This paper systematically reviews the past four years of research on human resource management (HRM) in nonprofit organizations (NPOs) to better understand: (1) recent theoretical and empirical developments and where scholarship in the field is headed (i.e. trends); (2) what topics and findings are especially important to understanding how the thought and practice of nonprofit HRM differs from that in public and for-profit organizations (i.e. insights); and (3) what gaps exist in current knowledge and scholarship and some real-world, practice-driven developments in people management that illuminate promising future research directions (i.e. opportunities).

Design/methodology/approach

Sixty-seven peer-reviewed journal articles covering the period 2015–2018 were identified using a university library database search, as well as by-hand searches through every issue of 22 nonprofit and 36 human resources-related journals during the four-year period.

Findings

The findings highlight strong continued interest by scholars in a wide range of nonprofit HRM issues, coverage of these issues by a worldwide network of researchers who bring global perspectives and contexts to the study of nonprofit HRM, and rich theoretical and methodological diversity. Yet, compared with the universe of possible human resource topics and several leading-edge developments in organizations and societies that might affect the way people are managed in nonprofits, the paper uncovers gaps in the most recent knowledge base.

Originality/value

The paper creates a compilation of the most recent nonprofit human resource research to be used as a tool for scholars, students, and practitioners for many years to come.
Intention to adopt online learning
Authors: Watjatrakul Boonlert
Published: March 2020

Purpose

Personality traits and perceived value have been the focus for research in online learning adoption. However, there is a lack of understanding of how the effects of perceived value on online learning adoption vary according to the different personality traits and the levels of a personality trait. This study explores the moderating roles of the Big Five personality traits (i.e. neuroticism, extraversion, conscientiousness, openness to experience, and agreeableness) in the relationships between the perceived value (i.e. value for money, quality, emotional value, and social value) and intention to study online courses.

Design/methodology/approach

A survey questionnaire was used to collect data from university students. This study used the partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) method to measure the quality of the formative and reflective constructs and examine the moderating effects of the five personality traits in four models. The regression of intention to study online courses on the perceived value at the different levels of a personality trait was analyzed by the simple slope analysis approach.

Findings

The study found that particular personality traits moderate the relationships between the perceived value and intention to study online courses. Neuroticism and openness to experience have the moderating effects on the relationship between perceived value for money and intention to study online courses. Neuroticism is the only personality trait that moderates the effect of perceived emotional value on intention to study online courses. In addition, the different levels of a personality trait differentially moderate the effects of the perceived value on intention to study online courses.

Originality/value

This study is considered among the first research attempting to explore the moderating roles of the Big Five personality traits in the context of online learning adoption. It bridges the research gap in online learning literature and generalizes the impacts of perceived value on online learning adoption to the different personality traits and the levels of a personality trait. The results provide guidance for educational institutions to develop an effective online learning strategy by creating and communicating the right value propositions to the right group of students based on their personality traits.
On dialectics in theorizing: the contingent nature of organizational learning
Authors: Meisinger Norman
Published: March 2020

Purpose

During the past decades, numerous contributions to organizational learning have emerged. However, these theories are plagued by the same paradoxical core that prevents organizational learning from being unambiguously determined or stably located throughout the entire organization and its individuals. The purpose of this paper is to understand how researchers approach this issue.

Design/methodology/approach

Through a meta-lens, this conceptual study observes how researchers are taming the paradox of organizational learning, referring exclusively to the theories that deal with its inherent paradox.

Findings

The author distinguishes fundamentally different theorizing strategies. Therefore, the paper aims not to sharpen the elusive and fuzzy nature of organizational learning but to sharpen the elusive understanding that its nature is fuzzy. As a consequence, the study further emphasizes how challenging an instrumental use of the academic construct of organizational learning for practicing managers outside research laboratories is.

Originality/value

The paper contributes (first) to the core understanding of the inherently conflicting construct of organizational learning by (second) uncovering the dialectics of the theories concerning it – the former only becomes feasible as a result of the latter.
Sustainability of Indian management education institutions
Authors: Mahajan Ritika
Published: March 2020

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore perspectives of academicians in leadership positions in Indian business schools on the sustainability of management education institutions in India.

Design/methodology/approach

Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 20 respondents including directors, deans and vice-chancellors of private and public sector institutions offering management programmes across India. The interviews were audio recorded and transcribed verbatim for analysis.

Findings

All the respondents strongly supported the need for building sustainable management education institutions. Different factors affecting sustainability of institutions that emerged from the interviews included focus on local context and inter-disciplinarity, visionary leadership and culture, country specific curriculum and pedagogy, sustained industry-academia collaboration, faculty orientation, training, retention and growth. On the basis of the factors identified, a directional proposition with the perspective of blue ocean strategy is proposed.

Originality/value

There is a vast scope for exploring issues, challenges and strategies for building sustainable management education institutions. Literature in this field in the Indian context is very limited. This paper is one of the few attempts to study perspectives and experiences of leaders in Indian business schools on the sustainability of their institutions.
Experimental study on leakage and wear characteristics of C/C composite finger seal
Authors: Lu Fei , Liu Jian , Lu Hongyan
Published: March 2020

Purpose

The carbon/carbon (C/C) composite finger seal experiment was performed on a high-speed seal tester. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the leakage and wear characteristics of C/C composite finger seal under various operating conditions.

Design/methodology/approach

Static, dynamic, endurance and post endurance tests were carried out. For static and performance tests, the pressure differential changed from 0.1 to 0.6 MPa and the rotor speed varied from 1,000 to 9,000 r/min. Two endurance tests were conducted for 4 h, with each mounting two finger seals. The seal leakage was monitored by mass flowmeters, and the wear depth was measured and calculated by using three-dimensional profilometer.

Findings

Results showed that the seal leakage increases with pressure differential but decreases with rotor speed. Leakage rate is lower when speed is decelerated than that with the speed stepped up. During a time history, material removal caused by wear has significant influence on leakage data causing higher leakage than the results before endurance test. Particular interest is that the uneven wear characteristic on finger foot bottom was firstly revealed, showing severe wear in foot heel area than that in foot toe.

Originality/value

This study could provide experimental guidance for finger seal designers. Additionally, the uneven wear characteristic of finger foot was firstly revealed, which showed the necessity of further theoretical research on finger seal wear.
Exploiting business networks in the age of social media: the use and integration of social media analytics in B2B marketing
Authors: Wang Yun , Rod Michel , Deng Qi , Ji Shaobo
Published: March 2020

Purpose

Based on an organizational capability perspective, this paper aims to propose a development model for social media analytics (SMA) capability that can be applied to business-to-business (B2B) marketing, with the aim of facilitating the use and integration of SMA in B2B marketing and maximizing the benefits of business networks in the age of social media.

Design/methodology/approach

This is a critical interpretive synthesis of SMA publications collected from academic journals, business magazines and the SMA service industry. In addition, an inter-disciplinary approach was adopted by drawing upon both marketing and information systems literature. In total, 123 academic papers, 106 industry case studies and 141 magazine papers were identified and analyzed. The findings were synthesized and compiled to address the predefined research question.

Findings

An SMA capability development model is proposed. The proposed model consists of four inter-dependent levels (technological, operational, managed and strategic) that collectively transfer the technological capability of SMA to the dynamic organizational capability. Each level of SMA capability is detailed. SMA-in-B2B marketing is highlighted as a socio-technical phenomenon, in which a technological level SMA capability is emphasized as the foundation for developing organizational level SMA capabilities and organizational capabilities, in turn, supporting and managing SMA activities and practices (e.g. strategic planning, social and cultural changes, skills and resources, measurements and values).

Practical implications

The proposed research framework may have implications for the operational level SMA development and the investigations on the direct and/or indirect measurements to help firms see the impact of SMA on their business.

Originality/value

This study may have implications for the adoption, use, integration and management of SMA in B2B marketing. The proposed model is grounded on the integrated insights from academia and industry. It is particularly relevant to B2B firms that have engaged in or plan to engage in applying SMA to extract insights from their online networks and is relevant to B2B researchers who are interested in SMA, big data and information technology organization integration studies.
Investigation of critical factors on corporate entrepreneurship
Authors: Kim Ji Yeon , Park Min Jae
Published: March 2020

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to investigate critical factors needed for an internal environment conducive to entrepreneurial activity. Also, this study aims to suggest improved measurement items that can be applied to national corporations in the national management environment where is much interested in the implementation of corporate entrepreneurship.

Design/methodology/approach

In particular, by using the corporate entrepreneurship assessment instrument (CEAI) and through the Delphi and analytical hierarchy process (AHP) surveys on the group of corporate entrepreneurship experts, a comparative analysis among the emergent four kinds of types is deducted with main internal environmental factors of corporate entrepreneurship activities in South Korea.

Findings

This study contributes to the decision-making of many organizations about new business directions and success factors to gain new growth opportunities with corporate entrepreneurship activities according to each of their own internal environment status. As a result of the AHP analysis on the opportunist type, work discretion was revealed as the most significant factor. Furthermore, the avoiding identical work approach/steps, the subjective work assessment and the opportunities to practice one’s own style were all recognized as crucial enough to occupy the top to fourth place in the overall importance priority.

Originality/value

Academically, the local organizational environmental critical factors based on an existing CEAI were issued by allowing the AHP survey with specific scenarios per corporate entrepreneurship activity. This can be applied through various means to benefit many organizations looking for continuous growth and innovation based on corporate entrepreneurship.
Tariffs, rail rates and social welfare in the USA, 1887-1914
Authors: Collier Deirdre M. , Miranti Paul J.
Published: March 2020

Purpose

This study aims to explain how the Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) used its power over rail rates as part of an effort to promote the growth of economically underdeveloped regions of the USA. This was accomplished by subsidizing shipments of food and fuel staples to major domestic and world markets and by offsetting the burden of high protective tariffs through low transportation rates on imported goods, from its inception in 1887 until the disruption of ocean transport with the outbreak of First World War in 1914.

Design/methodology/approach

Through examination of contemporary ICC studies and cases, this study shows how the ICC condoned rate practices that promoted the socioeconomic welfare of sparsely populated regions primarily in the Southern and Western USA.

Findings

The study illustrates that the ICC facilitated exports by authorizing rates that subsidized the transport of overseas food and fuel staples from the interior while at the same time allowing preferential rail–sea contracts on imports that partially offset the burden of protective tariffs on these regions. The focus on regional social welfare within the ICC largely ended by 1914, with the end of protective tariffs and the start of First World War.

Originality/value

This new interpretation explains how international trade patterns in the USA were influenced in significant ways by the ICC to achieve regional social welfare objectives and to promote greater national economic integration.
Evaluation of the effect of R&D subsidies on Iranian firms’ innovative behavior
Authors: Soltanzadeh Javad , Elyasi Mehdi , Ghaderifar Esmaeil , Rezaei Soufi Hojat , Khoshsirat Mohsen
Published: March 2020

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the effect of government intervention on a firm's innovation activities.

Design/methodology/approach

On the basis of previous literature, this paper proposes a framework to explain behavioral changes in the firm resulting from government interventions. Using propensity score matching technique, this research tries to estimate the effect of R&D subsidies on Iranian firms (small and medium-sized enterprises and large-sized firms).

Findings

This paper identified that R&D subsidies have a significant effect on the innovation process. Furthermore, investigations indicate that behavioral variables (innovation capabilities, collaboration agreements and risk-taking) have been partly changed in both SMEs and large firms after subsidizing. The analysis of innovation outputs showed that although R&D subsidies significantly increase the number of new products/services or patents (especially for SMEs), it could not increase the total sale of the firms. These results show that the effect of R&D subsidies has not interestingly covered all variables influencing innovation activities.

Research limitations/implications

The work used dynamic capability theory, transaction cost theory and behavioral theory of the firm to explain behavioral changes in the firm resulting from government interventions.

Practical implications

This paper proposes several policy concerns which can help the policymakers to stimulate the innovation support procedures in Iran.

Social implications

This paper provides insights for improved policymaking which in turn can aid boosting social welfare.

Originality/value

This paper re-conceptualized behavioral additionality based on firms’ behavioral theories and evaluated the effects of Iranian R&D subsidies on their measures.
How does the distributors’ “banding together” affect contract governance in marketing channels?
Authors: Feng Chao , Zhuang Guijun , Chen Hui , Hu Daxian
Published: March 2020

Purpose

Based on social network theory and the literature of contract governance, the purpose of this study is to explore how distributors’ “banding together” (network intensity) affects contract governance (detailed contracts), which, in turn, influences channel conflict and simultaneously tests the moderating effect of network centrality.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors collect the data from the side of 288 manufacturers.

Findings

This study finds that, first, distributors’ network intensity positively affects detailed contracts between manufacturers and distributors; second, detailed contracts, in turn, declines channel conflict; and third, network centrality will weaken the positive influence of network density on detailed contracts. In addition, an ex post analysis finds that detailed contracts play a negative mediating role between distributors’ network density and channel conflict and this negative mediating effect would be weakened by distributors’ network centrality.

Originality/value

The current study not only helps to make up for the shortcomings of using the dyadic analysis paradigm to analyze channel behavior but also helps manufacturers to understand and respond to the phenomenon of distributors’ “banding together” comprehensively and deeply.
Impact of pricing mechanism on IPO oversubscription: evidence from Pakistan stock exchange
Authors: Mehmood Waqas , Mohd-Rashid Rasidah , Ahmad Abd Halim
Published: March 2020

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the effects of pricing mechanism on initial public offerings (IPOs) oversubscription in Pakistan.

Design/methodology/approach

This study used cross-sectional data to analyse 85 listed IPOs on the Pakistan stock exchange during the period of 2000-2017 to assess hypotheses related to influential determinants of IPO oversubscription. Accordingly, ordinary least square, robust regression and quantile regression approaches were applied in this study to evaluate the factors that influenced oversubscription.

Findings

The outcome displayed pricing mechanism is negatively significant with an oversubscription of IPOs. This indicates firms using the fixed-price mechanism signalled higher information asymmetry and uncertainty in their value. Thus, investors are aware that they will be offset with underpricing, and it is expected the demand will be higher for the particular IPOs.

Research limitations/implications

This study is entirely focused on the available information of prospectus that should not be ignored by potential investors at the time of subscription of IPO. Therefore, the study contributes to extending the available literature in signalling theory whereby issuers should consider using the book-building pricing mechanism in enhancing the efficiency of the IPO offer price during the listing.

Originality/value

This paper provides evidence for the determinants of the IPO oversubscription.
Cassandra-based data repository design for food supply chain traceability
Authors: Singh Sandeep Kumar , Jenamani Mamata
Published: March 2020

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to design a supply chain database schema for Cassandra to store real-time data generated by Radio Frequency IDentification technology in a traceability system.

Design/methodology/approach

The real-time data generated in such traceability systems are of high frequency and volume, making it difficult to handle by traditional relational database technologies. To overcome this difficulty, a NoSQL database repository based on Casandra is proposed. The efficacy of the proposed schema is compared with two such databases, document-based MongoDB and column family-based Cassandra, which are suitable for storing traceability data.

Findings

The proposed Cassandra-based data repository outperforms the traditional Structured Query Language-based and MongoDB system from the literature in terms of concurrent reading, and works at par with respect to writing and updating of tracing queries.

Originality/value

The proposed schema is able to store the real-time data generated in a supply chain with low latency. To test the performance of the Cassandra-based data repository, a test-bed is designed in the lab and supply chain operations of Indian Public Distribution System are simulated to generate data.
Macroalgal blooms caused by marine nutrient changes resulting from human activities
Authors: Wang Hui , Wang Guangce , Gu Wenhui
Published: March 2020

Macroalgal blooms (green tides) are occurring more frequently in many regions of the world, leading to significant impacts on marine ecology and economies. Although many studies and hypotheses have been proposed, the exact mechanism of green tide formation remains unclear.

The world's largest green tides recur in the Yellow Sea and this area is representative for studying the origin and mechanism of green tide formation. We conducted a meta‐analysis of studies related to green tides and associated hypotheses for their formation.

Rapid industrialization/urbanization and environmental protection actions in coastal zones have led to an increase in nitrate (nitrite) and decline in ammonium (ammonia), and this has resulted in increasing levels of dissolved inorganic nitrogen in seawater.

We found that presence of appropriate attachment substrates for Ulva including laver culture rafts and certain hydrological conditions are supplementary factors to green tide formation in the Yellow Sea.

Changes in marine nutrient levels promote the production of nitric oxide, which is essential for Ulva sporulation. Consequently, numerous spores are created and attach to substrates including laver culture rafts and parent Ulva thalli. These spores then develop into new thalli that are capable of producing further spores. As a result, Ulva thalli rapidly occupy vast areas of the sea and develop into green tides.

Synthesis and applications. Our synthesis identifies that escalating marine nitric oxide generation caused by various factors and its essential role in Ulva sporulation are underlying and significant components in the mechanism of green tide formation. We provide solutions such as the improvement of comprehensive management of aquaculture and strict restriction of marine nitrate pollution, to prevent green tides. Furthermore, we propose an innovative wastewater treatment programme combined with Ulva application to fulfil the standard of sustainable development and circular economy.
Quick microbial molecular phenotyping by differential shotgun proteomics
Authors: Gouveia Duarte , Grenga Lucia , Pible Olivier , Armengaud Jean
Published: March 2020

Differential shotgun proteomics identifies proteins that discriminate between sets of samples based on differences in abundance. This methodology can be easily applied to study (i) specific microorganisms subjected to a variety of growth or stress conditions or (ii) different microorganisms sampled in the same condition. In microbiology, this comparison is particularly successful because differing microorganism phenotypes are explained by clearly altered abundances of key protein players. The extensive description and quantification of proteins from any given microorganism can be routinely obtained for several conditions within a few days by tandem mass spectrometry. Such protein‐centred microbial molecular phenotyping is rich in information. However, well‐designed experimental strategies, carefully parameterized analytical pipelines, and sound statistical approaches must be applied if the shotgun proteomic data are to be correctly interpreted. This minireview describes these key items for a quick molecular phenotyping based on label‐free quantification shotgun proteomics.