bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Antibiotic Molecules Involved in Increasing Microbial Resistance
Authors: Duceac Letitia Doina , Marcu Constantin , Ichim Daniela Luminita , Ciomaga Irina Mihaela , Tarca Elena , Iordache Alin Constantin , Ciuhodaru Madalina Irina , Florescu Laura , Tutunaru Dana , Luca Alina Costina , Stafie Liviu
Published: January 2020

Over the past two decades, the resistance to antibiotics, especially for Gram-negative bacteria, has increased at an alarming rate, requiring constant concern for resolving and controlling this extremely important therapeutic aspect in any medical department but in particular, in Anaesthesia and Intensive Care Units, in units of neonatology, paediatrics, neurosurgery, burned patients and immunosuppressed. Specialists note a particular concern for the resistance of Enterobacteriaceae to third-generation cephalosporins and aztreonam, with a resistance profile frequently associated with the expression of extended-spectrum �-lactamases (ESBL). The Enterobacter genus comprises 14 species, but two are of medical interest, Enterobacter aerogenes and E. cloacae, which are involved in inducing healthcare-associated infections such as urinary tract infections, pneumonia associated with mechanical ventilation, bacteremia, septicemia, etc. The purpose of the study was to highlight the antibiotic molecules in which microbial resistance of some circulating strains of enterobacteria was detected. A descriptive and retrospective study was conducted between 2012-2017, on a batch of 35 patients, admitted to the Sf. Maria Emergency Clinical Hospital for Children of Iasi, from whom various pathological products were collected to highlight the Enterobacter sp strains involved in the production of infections associated with the inpatient medical care. The antimicrobial sensitivity of each strain was determined by diffusimetric method, while the interpretation criteria were considered to be those of the laboratory standards. Most cases were reported in 2017 (31.42%). The majority were registered in new-borns (42.85%) and infants (25.71%). The Anaesthesia and Intensive Care Units and Neonatology Anaesthesia and Intensive Care Units departments were the most involved. Microbial antibacterial resistance of Enterobacter sp isolates showed that all manifested resistance to ampicillin, amoxicillin and clavulanic acid, 48.57% were resistant to Cefuroxime, 42.85% resistant to Ceftazidime and Ceftriaxone, 14.28% to ciprofloxacin, 11.42% to ertapenem, 5.71% to Meronem. Although it showed relatively few cases with infections associated with healthcare in which strains of Enterobacter sp. were isolated our study, which was carried out over a period of 5 years, provides useful indications regarding the prevalence of healthcare associated infections with Enterobacter sp in paediatric patients and guidelines for antibiotic therapy.
Biological Chemistry in Intermediate Lipid Metabolism Disorder
Authors: Condratovici Alina Plesea , Elisei Alina Mihaela , Vasincu Decebal , Cuciureanu Iulian Dan , Nechita Aurel , Grigore Camelia Ana , Condratovici Catalin Plesea
Published: January 2020

Any pathological process is accompanied by quantitative and qualitative changes in metabolism, which is the main form of life manifestation. Metabolism disorders (it is the permanent exchange of substances between the body and the environment) arise if the activity of the central nervous system is affected; the trophic function of the nervous system directs nutrition and metabolism. In this function, the coordinating role belongs to the central nervous system and is made by means of the endocrine glands. Lipids introduced into the body are digested mainly with the help of the pancreatic and intestinal juice and are resorbed through the walls of the small intestine. Even in the intestinal wall, the re-synthesis of fatty acids and glycerine fat occurs. A certain amount of neutral fat is probably resorbed without being split into fatty acids and glycerine. Fats are mainly resorbed through the lymphatic system, in part (about 30%) by means of the portal vein system; the entire fat emulsion penetrates into the blood and its main mass is deposited in certain fat deposits: the adipose subcutaneous cell tissue, the epiploon and the mesenterium of the abdominal cavity, as well as in the fatty layers of the various organs. In fat deposits, processes of lipid formation from carbohydrates and of transformation of higher fatty acids can occur. Lipids from fat deposits are subject to oxidation, especially at the liver level.
6-(2,3-Dichlorodiphenyl)-1,2,4-Triazine-3,5-Diamine Use in Pregnancy and Body Stalk Anomaly- A Possible Association?
Authors: Huniadi Anca , Sorian Andrea , Maghiar Adrian , Mocuta Diana , Antal Liana , Pop Ovidiu Laurean , Judea Pusta Claudia Teodora , Buhas Camelia Liana , Pascalau Andrei , Sandor Mircea
Published: January 2020

Body Stalk Anomaly is a rare malformation syndrome characterized by anterior abdominal wall defect, kyphoscoliosis, limb reduction, rudimentary umbilical cord, craniofacial defects and anomalies of the chest wall. The association between antiepileptic drugs, such as Lamotrigine [6-(2,3-dichlorophenyl)- 1,2,4-triazine-3,5-diamine], and the development of such malformation have been studied for many years. Many studies can be found regarding the teratogenic potential of Lamotrigine, but they have contradictory results. We present the case of a 34-year old pregnant, caucasian woman, known with acquired epilepsy due to neurocysticercosis for which she is under treatment with Lamotrigine 400mg/day. The patient was examined at 12 weeks of gestational age, when the ultrasound images showed a large defect in the fetal abdominal wall: eviscerated liver and bowel outside the coelomic cavity, kyphoscoliosis, a short umbilical cord, nuchal translucency 2.8mm, mandibular retrognathism. Based upon the aforementioned ultrasound findings we considered the diagnosis to be Body Stalk Anomaly and recommended a medical abortion. Embryological remainings were sent to pathology and genetic department revealing Turner Syndrome. We consider important to detect typical features of the anomaly in the first trimester and distinguish it from other abdominal defects like omphalocele and gastroschisis, since the conditions imply different management. Another important issue is to be aware about the treatment with Lamotrigine.
Gastroesophageal Reflux and Wheezing in Pediatry pH-metry studies
Authors: Elisei Alina Mihaela , Tutunaru Dana , Grigore Camelia Ana , Dinu Ciprian Adrian , Florescu Laura , Vasincu Decebal
Published: January 2020

Analysis of esophageal pH is useful and recommended by specialists when the gastroesophageal reflux disease does not show specific symptoms such as chest pain or burnings, but a form of asthma and chronic cough. The investigation is performed after a mild anesthesia, inserting a thin and flexible catheter in the patient�s nostril; it reaches the esophagus, particularly the esophageal sphincter that connects the stomach to the esophagus. The catheter has a sensor that monitors the acidity level, the number of reflux episodes, their duration and the part of the esophagus reached by the acid in the stomach. Gastroesophageal reflux disease is frequently met in pediatric practice, rooting in the intrauterine life, a physiologic phenomenon in infants during the first semester of life.
The Effect of Carbonated Natural Mineral Water on Oxidative Stress in Experimental Myocardial Ischemia
Authors: Dogaru Gabriela , Bulboaca Adriana , Stanescu Ioana , Rus Vasile , Gyorgy Bodizs , Ciumarnean Lorena , Munteanu Constantin , Boarescu Paul Mihai , Neagos Adriana , Festila Dana
Published: January 2020

Natural therapeutic factors are widely used as an important adjuvant therapy in various cardiovascular and cerebrovascular disorders. The aim of this study was to assess the role of balneal therapy on oxidative stress parameters in experimental myocardial ischemia induced in rats. 5 groups of 8 rats were used as follow: group 1- control group; group 2 - group swimming in distilled water (DW); group 3- group with myocardial ischemia (MI); group 4 - group with MI swimming in DW; group 5 - group with MI and swimming in carbonated mineral water (CMW). Myocardial ischemia was induced with Isoproterenol. The following oxidative stress/antioxidant blood parameters were assessed for each animal: nitric oxide (NOx), malondialdechyde (MDA), total oxidative stress (TOS), catalase (CAT) and total ant oxidative capacity of plasma (TAC). In group 5 all parameters assessed were significantly improved compared with group 3 and 4. Carbonated mineral water can be used as an adjuvant therapy for improving oxidative stress/antioxidant status in patients with cardiac ischemia, in order to reduce the amplitude of ischemic lesions and to contribute as a prophylactic therapy to a better quality of life for these patients. Continuing this research in humans through clinical studies would be warranted.
Results after Using Bioactive Glass S53P4 in Reconstructive Orthopaedic Surgery - A 36 - Month Follow-up Clinical Study
Authors: Bataga Tiberiu , Trambitas Cristian , Solyom Arpad , Fodor Raluca , Bataga Simona , Abageru Sabina Amalia , Trambitas Miron Alina Dia , Halmaciu Ioana , Ivanescu Adrian
Published: January 2020

Osteocartilaginous tissue normally has the capability of regeneration, which means that many osteoarticular problems or bony defects will heal spontaneously, not needing important interventions. Although the high regenerative capacity of this tissue, large osseous defects encountered difficulties in optimal healing process and remain a clinical challenge, demanding surgical procedures. This aim of this study was to evaluate clinical and radiological outcomes using bioactive glass S53P4 (BonAlive�) as a synthetic bone substitute material in some specific orthopedic pathologies like prosthesis revision surgery, and pseudarthrosis.
Paradoks Desentralisasi dan Kesejahteraan: Kalimantan Timur Kaya Tapi Miskin
Authors: Hapsah Muhammad Ali , Mas’udi Wawan
Published: January 2020

East Kalimantan is a province full of paradoxes. This region has considerable economic potential measured in terms of its abundant endowments of natural resources, including oil, natural gas, gold, coal and forestry. Yet, East Kalimantan still lacks infrastructure, has poor human resources and high levels of unemployment, factors that condemn much of the population to a life of poverty and hardship. The new system of regional autonomy, which has been implemented since 2001, was expected to give more benefit to the regions, as regional governments have held relatively more power and fiscal capacity. Law 22/1999, which has been revised twice, has provided more authority to regional governments to manage their respective regions. The introduction of fiscal decentralisation through Law 25/1999, further revised in Law 33/2004, has favoured regions rich in natural resources such as East Kalimantan. As it has abundant natural resources, this region has received greatly increased funds from the central government due to the implementation of sharing revenue formula generated from the exploitation of natural resources. These supposed to give more opportunities for the rich regions such East Kalimantan to accelerate regional development and bring their people to greater prosperity. Nevertheless, East Kalimantan has realized neither the objectives of regional autonomy nor the community aspirations for a more prosperous society. This paper aims to examine the extent to which regional autonomy laws have impacted people's welfare in East Kalimantan.
Realitas dan Tantangan Inovasi Penyelenggaraan Pemerintahan (Perspektif Reformasi Administrasi di Indonesia)
Authors: Suharto Didik G.
Published: January 2020

The government innovation proceeds in line with the administrative reformation movement. The innovative government frequently finds the momentum in the government in which the administration has experienced reformation. In Indonesia, the administrative (bureaucracy) reformation discourse is articulated widely along with the total reformation demand in 1997-1998. However, after more than one decade, the implementation of such administrative reformation had not been as expected. The administrative reformation experiences stagnation, even in some cases, it shows a paradoxical situation. Congruent to the administrative reformation development, governmental innovation development (central and local) has not reached the maximal result. The government innovation still tends to be sporadic, sectoral and regional. The effectiveness and sustainability of governmental innovation currently proceed are still questioned. The improvement in bureaucracy system and human resource management is considered as important to cope with the challenge in institutionalizing the governmental innovation proven good.
Partisipasi Masyarakat dalam Proses Kebijakan Daerah
Authors: Manshur Abdullah
Published: January 2020

Public policy is a decision to deal with a particular problem situation, that identifies the objectives, principles, ways, and means to achieve them. The ability and understanding of policy makers in the policy-making process is very important for the realization of public policy of rapid, accurate and adequate. The product to suit the needs of the public policy, public participation in the policy process is needed in the policy cycle, from policy formulation to policy evaluation. This paper attempts to review the importance of community participation and other forms of public participation in the policy process, in particular, policy areas.
Konsep Peningkatan Penyelenggaraan Pemerintahan yang Bersih dan Bebas KKN dan Indikator Hasil-Hasilnya serta Model Pengukurannya
Authors: Rosyadi Slamet
Published: January 2020

Berbagai upaya baik secara yuridis-normatif maupun administratif telah dilakukan oleh pemerintah untuk melakukan pemberantasan KKN. Hasil-hasil positif telah memenuhi sebagian ekspektasi pemerintah maupun masyarakat yang mendambakan pemerintahan yang bersih dan bebas dari KKN. Namun demikian, capaian kinerja pemberantasan KKN ternyata belum optimal.
Methodology of Integration for Competitive Technical Intelligence with Blue Ocean Strategy: Application to an exotic fruit
Authors: Salvador Marisela Rodríguez , Reyes Manuel Alejandro Bautista
Published: January 2020

This article presents a new methodology that integrates Competitive Technical Intelligence with Blue Ocean Strategy. We explore new business niches taking advantage of the synergy that both areas offer, developing a model based on cyclic interactions through a process developed in two stages: Understanding opportunity that arise from idea formulation to decision making and strategic development. The validity of our approach (first stage) was observed in the evaluation of an exotic fruit, Anacardium Occidentale, in the South of the State of Veracruz, Mexico with the support of the university ITESM, Campus Monterrey. We identified critical factors for success, opportunities and threats. Results confirm the attractiveness of this crop.
Synergy Between Competitive Intelligence and Knowledge Management - a key for Competitive Advantage
Authors: Ghannay Jihene Chebbi , Mamlouk Zeineb Ben Ammar
Published: January 2020

The market orientation perspective states that organizations have no option but to look beyond internal business activities and to integrate events from the external environment. These are complex, turbulent and rapidly changing. Firms today are led to utilize information and the knowledge of companies because to succeed in the information economy comes from harnessing these resources. Knowledge and information become strategic, paramount and must therefore be managed. Integrating knowledge management (KM) and competitive intelligence encourage the use of these resources, improve their quality and allow an enterprise to respond more rapidly to changing business conditions. The aim of this article, is to present similarities, differences, benefits of KM and CI for the organization through the study of current literature. Besides, we present critical success factors needed to achieve a successful implementation of these two processes, and further, highlight the importance of KM and CI integration for the organization to compete in the knowledge economy.
Competitive Intelligence and Complex Systems
Authors: Gay Brigitte
Published: January 2020

The economy reflects a dynamic interaction of a large number of different organizations and agents. A major challenge is to understand how these complex systems of interacting organizations form and evolve. The systemic perspective presented here confers an understanding of global effects as coming from these ever changing complex network interactions. Another main endeavor is to capture the interplay between individual firms’ alliance strategies and the dynamic interactions between all firms. In this paper, we advocate the use in competitive intelligence of a complex systems approach originating in statistical physics to understand the intricate meshes of interfirm interactions that characterize industries today, their dynamics, and the role major organizations play in these industries.
Applying Competitive Intelligence: The Case of Thermoplastics Elastomers
Authors: Rodriguez Salvador Marisela , Salinas Casanova Luis Francisco
Published: January 2020

The objective of this article is to investigate and identify drivers to compete in the industry of plastics through the application of the methodology of Competitive Intelligence. Practical implications: This article provides a practical case of the Competitive Intelligence Methodology applied to the Thermoplastics Elastomers Industry, specifically within the Styrenic Block Copolymers category. The output of this research helped support a Mexican Company in their decision-making process.
The intelligence worker as a knowledge activist – an alternative view on intelligence by the use of Burke’s pentad
Authors: Hoppe Magnus
Published: January 2020

As society and business is becoming more complex, the creation and management of knowledge attracts more attention. For intelligence research it offers an alternative perspective on the art and science of intelligence that challenges a previous dominance of strategy and decision-making theories. The article is based on semi-structured interviews with intelligence personnel in four different multinational companies. Through the use of Burke’s pentad this article gives an account of important challenges encountered by intelligence personnel in modern business organizations due to an increasing dependence on different knowledge processes. These challenges are summarized in four central tasks for knowledge activists; that is to initiate and focus knowledge creation, to reduce the time and cost needed for knowledge creation, to leverage knowledge creation initiatives throughout the corporation and to guide knowledge creation by the instigation of complementary reference points. By engaging in these types of activities intelligence workers are able to stage and influence different sorts of analytical conversations, where the insights from these conversations as reformed knowledge govern an evolving strategy in dispersed circumstances. Thus, intelligence workers fulfil their purpose, which in this perspective can be viewed as creating better business in whatever process they engage in.
Intelligence analysis and cognitive biases: an illustrative case study
Authors: Memheld Pierre
Published: January 2020

This case study is foremost an educational tool. It involves two European and Asian multinational tires manufacturer for OTR, Off the Road, or “off road” and a problem of price competition. It shows how an initial intelligence effort is led astray. Instead the solution is a combination of approaches, better known as Competitive Intelligence. It is built on the external vision of the company craft, the use of all information sources characteristics of an intelligence field dedicated to the business world. It is not a new discipline but a trans-disciplinary approach for information exploitation which is using elements from financial analysis, SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats) matrixes, and value chain analysis. In the above case, the company Eurotires used mostly the following sources: internet, scientific and patent databases; public administrative sources; customers interviews, industrial experts (manufacturing and distribution), and marketing analysis.
Revisiting Sun Tzu in the Information Overload Age for Applied Intelligence Education: Stop Answering, Find Good Questions
Authors: Bruneau Jean-Maurice , Frion Pascal
Published: January 2020

Sun Tzu's 'Art of War' is an illustration of the Chinese Strategic Mode of thinking. Today, faced with Information Overload it is unclear if the model of ''Foreknowledge'' is as relevant as it once was. The method we used in this paper is Action Research to compare an Occidental approach and an Asian approach. The results obtained are applied suggestions to Intelligence Education. The contribution is to show how to step away from the epistemic of the information-centric approach to shift to a more multi-centric approach. We identified anchors such as strategic and critical questioning, identifying source people we do not yet know, and uncertainty-acceptance and bounded rationality. The implications are numerous. We are not so much dependent on the information available as associated with Big Data and software. Our suggestions can be used in Small and Medium-Sized Organizations and do not necessitate resources associated with Large Organizations.
Competitive intelligence research: an investigation of trends in the literature
Authors: Du Toit A.S.A.
Published: January 2020

This article looked at competitive intelligence research reported from 1994 to 2014 in the ABI/Inform database to determine the development of competitive intelligence as subject field. This development can be attributed to several factors. Content analysis was used to establish research patterns and the author based the analysis on the extant literature and on the 338 articles that were gathered from the ABI/Inform database. Only peer-reviewed articles were analysed. The most popular term used in the literature is competitive intelligence, followed by business intelligence and marketing intelligence. The journals in which the articles appeared are scattered and few journals have published more than ten competitive intelligence articles. Few authors have published more than five articles.
The impact of CRM on QoE : An exploratory study from mobile phone industry in Morocco
Authors: Aziza Amine , Oubrich Mourad , Solberg Søilen Klaus
Published: January 2020

Today’s mobile phone sector is marked by intensified competition and strong market penetration. In this environment, the carriers offer their customers a wide variety of services that are quite similar from one operator to another. These customers are always searching for a quality of experience (QoE). On one hand, operators interact with their customers through CRM practices inspired by their marketing strategies and rolled out through their procedures and technological support. On the other hand, the customers expect an extremely high quality of service (QoS) and subjectively perceive the utility and usability (Qp) of these mobile services. This paradox led us to study the impact of CRM on the customer experience (QoE) in the mobile phone industry, in this study with data from Morocco. Empirical data confirms existing theory, CRM determinants for QoE include quality of service, quality of interaction with customer, claims management and customer knowledge. However, we also found that practitioners are aware that organizations should look beyond the relationship to manage the customer experience. To this end we developed a model based on the first four CRM determinants and the findings in this study.
Leveraging organizational knowledge vision through Strategic Intelligence profiling - the case of the Romanian software industry
Authors: Bleoju Gianita , Capatina Alexandru
Published: January 2020

This paper presents the empirical testing of a Strategic Intelligence profiling tool customized for software development companies that we have previously designed, through an abductive methodology. We conducted a quantitative survey to identify the associations between the strategic profiles embedded into the profiling tool (Intelligence Provider, Vigilant Learner, Opportunity Captor and Opportunity Defender) and four variables with high impact on organizational knowledge: strategic scope, organizational agility, organizational cultural change process and the approach of competitors. We found that the relevance of our Strategic Intelligence tool’s variables is a consistent base for testing the robustness of the model in software industry, in order to validate the profiling instrument. We consider that the originality of the Strategic Intelligence profiling tool, tailored to software industry requirements, resides mainly in the foresight capability of the firm, which is highly dependent on less acknowledgeable factors such as: anticipative versus non-anticipative signal processing; the profile specific equilibrium of recognitional versus analytical strategic decision and rising the actionability of tacit managerial knowledge through collective intelligence reliability.
Geospatial analysis of census data for targeting new businesses using geoeconomics
Authors: Sushant K. Singha
Published: January 2020

Geoeconomics plays a vital role in encouraging goods and services on new marketplaces. Selecting a “sweet-spot” for new businesses is one of the biggest challenges for new entrepreneurs, enterprises, and investors, especially in the restaurant industry. This paper aims to present a novel geospatial methodological approach for new businesses using census data to answer an important business question: Where I should start my new Asian cuisine restaurant? State and zip code tabulation area (ZCTA) level data on race and income, downloaded from the US census website, were applied for the analysis. ArcGIS software was used as a geospatial analytics tool for hotspot analysis and for producing maps. Based on the state level standard deviation map, California was found to have the second-highest relative Asian population as gauged by the standard deviation (Std. Dev.) from the mean (1.5-2.5 Std. Dev.), after Hawaii (>2.5 Std. Dev.), and followed by New Jersey, New York, Nevada, and Washington. The state of California was selected for further investigation. Seventeen of 58 counties were found to be Asian community hotspots in California. A majority (48%, 854 of 1763) of the ZCTA were found to be Asian community hotspots in these zip codes in this state, and this was statistically significant. Only 9% (163 of 1763) of the ZCTA were not statistically significant Asian community hotspots, while 43% of the ZCTA were found to be statistically significant coldspots of Asian communities in California. Among the 17 hotspot counties of Asian communities, 14 were also derived as hotspots of mean income. The road layer map revealed that these ZCTAs are well connected to major roads in the state. New entrepreneurs, enterprises, and investors, those who are willing to open and or invest in new restaurants, but are not sure about the location, could target hotspot ZCTAs in these counties for Asian cuisine. Integrating ArcGIS with census data for producing maps of statistically significant potential business locations could be used as an important decision-making tool for opening new businesses.
Key success factors to business intelligence solution implementation
Authors: García José Manuel Villamarín , Pinzón Beatriz Helena Díaz
Published: January 2020

Business intelligence (BI) solutions have been adopted within organizations as a mean to achieve a more grounded decision making process that results in better organizational outcomes. Nowadays, about 70% to 80% of business intelligence implementation projects fail due to both technological and managerial issues. Multi-methodology proposed by Mingers (2006) was followed to develop the research in four phases: appreciation, where documental search was conducted through a literature review; analysis, where hypothetical structures related with the key success factors were proposed; assessment, where key success factors were assessed along with experts; and action, where research results discussion was shown. As a result, 13 factors that affect the business intelligence solution’s success were identified. Those factors contribute to improve planning and implementation of business intelligence projects, accomplishing in a greater extent the purposes of these projects.
How companies succeed and fail to succeed with the implementation of intelligence systems
Authors: Söilen Klaus Solberg
Published: January 2020

Most papers in this issue deal with different sides of technological systems and managerial practices used for intelligence work in private organizations. Empirical data from a number of countries and companies are gathered to illustrate how companies work and fail to work with business intelligence and competitive intelligence in organizations.The paper by Rezaie, Mirabedini and Abtahi entitled “Identifying key effective factors on the implementation process of business intelligence in the banking industry of Iran” identifies key effective factors on the implementation process of business intelligence. Thirty-nine factors were identified and classified in nine main groups, including organizational, human, data quality, environmental, system ability, strategic, service quality, technical infrastructure, and managerial factors.The paper by Bisson and Gurpinar entitled “A Bayesian approach to developing a strategic early warning system for the French milk market” suggests a new strategic early warning system for companies and public organizations to better anticipate market changes and make more robust decisions.The paper by Al Rashdi and Nair entitled “A business intelligence framework for Sultan Qaboos University: A case study in the Middle East” aims to build a customized business intelligence (BI) framework for Sultan Qaboos University (SQU). A prototype is tested with good results.The paper by Søilen, Tontini, Aagerup and Andersson entitled “The perception of useful information derived from Twitter: A survey of professionals” is a survey of professionals about the value of the information or intelligence on Twitter. It shows that Twitter is perceived as a service for useful information but not for the reason one may expect, not because the content of the tweets gives valuable information, but because of what can be derived and extracted from the information that is being tweeted and not tweeted.The paper by Calof, Richards and Santilli entitled “Insight through open intelligence” is an opinion piece that gives suggestions of how to broaden the CI field with the help of open innovation.
Exploratory study of competitive intelligence in Mexico
Authors: Ojinaga Eduardo Rafael Poblano
Published: January 2020

In order to increase their competitiveness, companies need information for problem analysis, to develop strategies and for decisions making. One way to achieve this is through methodologies, among which competitive intelligence stands out. For Pellissier & Nenzhelele (2013) competitive intelligence is a process or practice that produces and disseminates actionable intelligence by planning, ethically and legally collecting, processing and analyzing information from and about the internal and external or competitive environment in order to help decision-makers in decision-making and to provide a competitive advantage to the enterprise. Because of its importance this paper presents an investigation using a meta-analysis methodology of 72 papers published between 2000 and 2015 of applications of competitive intelligence in México. In recent years the practice of competitive intelligence has been increasing in México, though its use is not yet widespread. This is why it is important to disseminate and promote the growth of competitive intelligence theory.
Competitive and technology intelligence to reveal the most influential authors and inter-institutional collaborations on additive manufacturing for hand orthoses
Authors: Garcia-Garcia Leonardo A. , Rodríguez Marisela
Published: January 2020

Additive manufacturing (AM) is revolutionizing the health industry, where it provides innovative solutions for the production of personalized devices, such as hand orthoses. However, the scientific research dynamics in this topic have not yet been investigated. This study aims to fill this gap through the application of a competitive and technology intelligence (CTI) methodology enhanced by a scientometric and network map analysis. Major advances in the fabrication of hand orthoses using AM, the presence of collaborations, and the most influential authors were determined. Specifically, network map analysis, bibliographic occurrence and bibliographic coupling were conducted on documents retrieved from Scopus and the Web of Science (WoS), and on patents from more than 104 authorities. Results showed only nine published patent families and 34 research articles on this topic from 2006 to 2016. Ten papers concern static orthoses, while 24 deal with dynamic orthoses and exoskeletons. The indegree and outdegree parameters and the betweenness centrality of these documents enabled us to determine the most cited authors and instances of collaboration (papers co-authored between institutions). Dr. Paterson A. M. J. was the most influential author, with four publications with the highest betweenness centrality in the network (189), which accounted for the most cited document with five citations. The institution with the most publications was Loughborough University, with four papers, and the collaboration between affiliations was rare. These documents review important aspects of manufacturing orthoses using AM, and additionally pay particular attention to the importance of personalised orthoses where AM contributes. Notably, these papers focused primarily on studies for the development of a methodology for the fabrication of hand orthoses using AM, but they do not present any application. This research provides insights to better understand the dynamics of research and development in the orthopaedics domain, specifically for hand orthoses.
Enhancing competitive response to market challenges with a strategic intelligence maturity model
Authors: Bleoju Gianita , Capatina Alexandru
Published: January 2020

Tracking meaningful insights about companies’ exposures to high risk of failure in competitive markets, intelligence studies in business should listen to practitioners’ signals and act in providing decision making support to systematic scanning for valuable information. In order to gain robustness in confronting unexpected events in real markets, companies should adopt an unstructured learning perspective with maturity assessment tools, while purposely pooling strategic intelligence (SI) skills. By bridging organizational maturity modeling with a future orientation stream of literature and intelligence studies in business, this conceptual research aims to highlight a genuine Strategic Intelligence Capability Maturity Model (SI CMM), capable of purposely addressing the challenge of aligning detective and anticipatory organizational capabilities. The conceptual model highlights the degree of preparedness of four SI profiles behaviors (intelligence provider, vigilant learner, opportunity captor and opportunity defender – previously developed by the authors) against seven levels of maturity. The SI CMM framework outlines both conditioned scanning capabilities (the first five SI readiness levels) and enablers to anticipate future market trends (the last two SI readiness levels). The novel approach of the strategic intelligence readiness framework supplies companies with a valuable organizational learning tool to close the skills gap through an opportunity provider profile. The main features lie in coordination and sharing SI common knowledge to enhance preparedness in forward-looking competitive pressures. The conceptual framework invites academia and the community of intelligence experts in business to evaluate the relevance of the new conceptualization, clarity of constructs and complementary nature of correlation and causation with the proposed SI CMM model
How managers stay informed about the surrounding world
Authors: Solberg Søilen Klaus
Published: January 2020

In this paper we look at how managers and knowledge workers stay informed about the events in the outside world that affect their organizations. Data was collected using a survey of 308 subjects from around the world. A model for how managers stay informed is presented. We introduce the idea of the proprietary cloud. The findings have implications for managers who want to compare their own sources of information and improve routines for information gathering.
Study on the various intellectual property management strategies used and implemented by ICT firms for business intelligence
Authors: Shaikha Shabib-Ahmed , Singhalb Tarun Kumar
Published: January 2020

Software technology is seeing enormous growth as it is used in all fields of technology. It is continuously evolving at a rapid pace and has a short span of the technological life cycle. The use of the software is not restricted only to information and communication technology but is used in all fields of technology. In many cases, the inventive step of a product or service lies solely in the software. Hence, the software plays a crucial role in all fields of technology. However, ease of copying poses a financial risk for the software industry, thereby creating major disincentives to the development of innovation. Still, the technology is changing very fast and firms investing in this technology expect quick returns on their innovation investments. Strategies for generating and managing intellectual property have subsequently taken center stage for information and communication technology companies, and patents have become an important feature providing maximum protection for any technology. Hence, intellectual property rights strategies in general and patenting strategies especially play a crucial role in the information and communication technology industry to be globally competitive. Firms never publish or disclose their intellectual property strategies; hence, this study makes use of the literature review to highlight various intellectual property management strategies used by information and communication technology firms for managing their intellectual property. These strategies can be offensive or defensive and may be used as proactive or reactive depending on various aspects such as market, territory, technology, or time. The insights provided in this work may help the research community from the IT domain in industry and academia to learn and modify their strategies for patent acquisition.
A new corpus-based convolutional neural network for big data text analytics
Authors: Nahilia Wedjdane , Rezega Kahled , Kazara Okba
Published: January 2020

Companies market their services and products on social media platforms with today's easy access to the internet. As result, they receive feedback and reviews from their users directly on their social media sites. Reading every text is time-consuming and resourcedemanding. With access to technology-based solutions, analyzing the sentiment of all these texts gives companies an overview of how positive or negative users are on specific subjects will minimize losses. In this paper, we propose a deep learning approach to perform sentiment analysis on reviews using a convolutional neural network model, because that they have proven remarkable results for text classification. We validate our convolutional neural network model using large-scale data sets: IMDB movie reviews and Reuters data sets with a final accuracy score of ~86% for both data sets.
Iris Murdoch (1919–1999)
Authors: Rowe Anne
Published: January 2020

Iris Murdoch is introduced as a writer of brave and open –minded novels that are not only idiosyncratic in their dealing with issues that push against accepted moral and social boundaries but also relevant to the everyday experiences of all types of readers. With reference to significant biographical information the chapter suggests why her novels have carved out her place in British culture in the late twentieth century and outlines the ways in which her often tortuous personal relationships and complex personality are inextricably entwined with her art. The considerable media attention she has attracted since her death in 1999 is evaluated and the reasons for the fluctuations within the critical reception of Murdoch’s novels over four decades are explained. The introduction concludes with summaries of the following four chapters on Murdoch’s philosophy, theology, aesthetics and settings.
A Writing Life: 1954–1995
Authors: Rowe Anne
Published: January 2020

This chapter describes how Murdoch’s ambitions to be a writer were fostered in childhood, and moves on to acknowledge the insecurities and depressions that haunted her later in life, despite her many achievements and the winning of prestigious literary prizes. After exploring the reasons for the popularity of her novels, as well as acknowledging their deep moral and philosophical seriousness, this chapter undertakes a tour d’horizon that is divided into the four decades of Murdoch’s ‘Writing Life’. Each of her twenty –six novels is explored in terms of enduring thematic concerns, her ‘moral psychology’, changes and developments in style, and their critical reception in academia. Particular attention is paid to illuminating the ways in which Murdoch’s novels are being re-thought and revised in the twenty-first century.
Writing the Landscape: The Island of Spells and the Sacred City
Authors: Rowe Anne
Published: January 2020

This chapter discusses the two geographical environments that predominantly shape Iris Murdoch’s identity and her fiction: Ireland, her birthplace, the ‘island of spells’, and London, the city in which she spent much of her life and spoke of as ‘sacred’. It first explores Murdoch’s often tortuous relationship with her homeland and the political upheavals that engulfed it during her lifetime, then moves on to illustrate how this ambivalence is reflected in a number of her Irish characters and the metaphorical fogs and mists that characterise her two ‘Irish’ novels The Unicorn and The Red and The Green. The second half of this chapter celebrates her less equivocal love of London, the dominant setting in twenty-four of the twenty-six novels, which is celebrated with an extraordinary acuity of detail. The chapter concludes with discussions of the ways in which the London settings serve multiple symbolic functions that include a sophisticated awareness of the complex connections between psychological well-being and the environment, distinctly feminist explorations of the male psyche, and an encoded system of images that points toward the moral issues within the novels.
‘Onward!’1
Authors: Rowe Anne
Published: January 2020

This final chapter identifies Murdoch’s novels as relevant to the social, religious and political issues that are dominating the second decade of the twenty-first century and evaluates her current status within the English canon. The vast amount of documentation relating to her life and work now available in the Iris Murdoch Archives at Kingston University identifies hers as one of the most extensively catalogued literary lives of the twentieth century, and this chapter illustrates some of the ways in which this fresh information is already changing perceptions of Iris Murdoch as a writer, a philosopher and a woman. It concludes by reiterating her unshakeable belief that wisdom and moral improvement would come out of intellectually distinguished thinking embodied in artistic expression, and that art, not God, was the medium by which humanity could be nudged closer to a healthy psychological state, which is also a state of moral goodness.
Odd Beasts
Authors: Williams James
Published: January 2020

This chapter is concerned with the animals in Lear’s work. It considers the relevance of his background as a zoological illustrator, the relationship between human and animal protagonists in his limericks and drawings, and the attempt in the later poems to imagine entirely animal-populated worlds without human agents. It is concerned with how Lear explores the philosophical problem of imagining forms of social life for non-human creatures without straightforward anthropomorphism. It concludes with an extended close reading of “The Owl and the Pussy-cat”.
The Scroobious Traveller
Authors: Williams James
Published: January 2020

This chapter is about Lear’s experiences as a traveller, and how they shaped him as a writer. It considers the way his poems and paintings are animated by dramas of arrival, departure, and being left behind. It considers, using evidence from Lear’s travel writing, the relationship between the experience of being a foreigner, and hearing unfamiliar languages, and the creation of nonsense words. It concludes with an extended close reading of “The Courtship of the Yonghy-Bonghy-Bò”.
The Plays of Carlton and Barbara Molette: The Transformative Power of African-American Theater
Authors: Castro-Borrego Silvia Pilar
Published: January 2020

Chapter offers a critical analysis of Barbara and Carlton Molette’s body of theatrical work. It focuses in particular on the racial and class politics present within the plays Rosalee Pritchett (1970), Noah’s Ark (1974), Legacy (2012) and the ten-minute play Tee-Shirt History (2011). The author argues that to understand the Molettes’ plays, one must appreciate the extent to which the type of theatre that they conceive is nourished by the broader cultural perspective of Afrocentricity and its values. Indeed, the chapter proposes that the Molettes’ insightful and powerful dialogue encourages us to question a belief system based in the ideology of White supremacy and its attendant stereotypes. Furthermore, as representatives and inheritors of the Black intellectual tradition and the Black Arts Movement, their plays offer harsh criticisms of the ideas and behaviours of those who deny the existence of a solid African American culture, and instead propose ways to celebrate Black heritage. In this way, the author suggests that the Molettes’ collective body of work is a clarion call for self-definition and Black agency.
Redrawing Borders of Belonging in a Narrow Nation: Afro-Chilean Activism in the Hinterlands of Afro-Latin America
Authors: Busdiecker Sara
Published: January 2020

Chapter examines the historical and contemporary roots of Afro-Chilean invisibility and the nature and trajectory of collective organising that has only recently emerged among Afro-Chileans in response. It reflects on the ways in which the desire and need for Afro-Chilean activism since the turn of the twenty-first century, in this forgotten corner of the global African diaspora, highlights the temporally and spatially enduring nature of the struggles for equality among African-descended peoples. Within this context and using specific examples, the chapter shows how the activities and demands of multiple organisations based around shared African descent have helped to redefine notions of belonging in Chile and, in turn, challenge traditional expectations of what it means to be Chilean.
Lowcountry, High Demands: The Struggle for Quality Education in Charleston, South Carolina
Authors: Hale Jon , Cooper Clerc
Published: January 2020

Chapter documents the strategies employed by local governing officials to resist the implementation of a racially desegregated public school system in Charleston Country, South Carolina in the wake of the landmark 1954 Brown v. Board of Education ruling. It discusses the role of student-led activism in maintaining the momentum of the desegregationist movement, as well as recounts the often traumatic experiences of black children who were among the first to attended desegregated schools in Charleston County. The chapter also considers later battles for education reform in South Carolina and, as such, highlights the ongoing struggle to realise the promises of quality education throughout the state.