bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Natural environment of the Inner Hebrides—an introduction
Authors: Boyd John Morton 
Published: July 2012

SynopsisThe Inner Hebrides have a natural history which, in geological time, dates from the Archaean and, in human history, from the Mesolithic 7000–6500 BC. The archipelago was a great attraction to scientists and historians in the 19th and 20th centuries which has resulted in an extensive literature. It started with Martin in 1703 and following a steady interest for about two centuries has blossomed in many spheres of scientific and other interests over the past 50 years. The islands are geologically outstanding and much pioneering work has been done on their Lewisian and Torridonian basement, Mesozoic fossiliferous sediments and Tertiary ring structures which has been of value in the understanding of the geology of the European and the North Atlantic provinces. The geomorphological features include glaciated landscapes, raised beaches and those caused by marine erosion and accretion.The character of the islands is in great part determined by a mild, wet and windy climate. The soils are mainly ‘mor’ in character with localities of ‘mull’ soils overlying limestone or calcareous sand. Similarly, the vegetation and freshwaters are mainly oligotrophic except when overlying limestone or shell-sand which support meso- and eutrophic communities of plants and animals. There are important assemblies of breeding seabirds in Rhum and Treshnish Isles and wintering flocks of geese and other wildfowl in Islay. The large islands have populations of red deer, grey seals, common seals and otters breed throughout the islands. The Inner Hebrides hold stocks of plants and animals which are genetically distinct from those of the mainland and some have Lusitanian and American affinities.The islands are mainly used for the grazing of sheep and cattle with local small-scale arable cropping in crofting and farming. Forestry is possible only in the sheltered parts of the larger islands or in small sheltered islands; the main crops are sitka spruce and lodgepole pine but there are broadleafed woodlands around large houses in many islands and gardens with exotic, sub-tropical plants, shrubs and trees. There are pelagic and demersal marine fisheries, shell fisheries and fish farms mainly growing salmon, rainbow trout and mussels. The mineral resources on a commercial scale, are minor. The nature conservation interest is high with two National Nature Reserves (including Rhum) and 62 Sites of Special Scientific Interest.
Growth‐differentiation factor‐15 improves reclassification for the diagnosis of heart failure with normal ejection fraction in morbid obesity
Authors: Baessler Andrea , Strack Christina , Rousseva Elena , Wagner Florian , Bruxmeier Janine , Schmiedel Martin , Riegger Günter , Lahmann Claas , Loew Thomas , Schmitz Gerd , Fischer Marcus 
Published: July 2012

AimsThis study aimed to examine the incremental value of growth‐differentiation factor‐15 (GDF‐15) to N‐terminal pro brain natriuretic hormone (NT‐proBNP) levels for the diagnosis of left ventricular diastolic dysfunction (LVDD) and possible heart failure (HF) in morbidly obese patients.Method and resultsWe analysed data from 207 obese subjects [body mass index (BMI) 41 ± 8 kg/m2] with normal ejection fraction, LVDD, and symptoms and/or signs of HF (referred to as ‘LVDD with possible HF’, n = 88) and with normal left ventricular function (n = 119) before participating in a medical weight loss programme, in addition to the study of healthy lean subjects (n = 51). Median NT‐proBNP (interquartile range) for obese subjects with ‘LVDD and possibe HF’ and with normal LV function was 52 (29–96) and 42 (25–66) pg/mL, respectively (P = 0.12). There was no correlation of NT‐proBNP with parameters of left ventricular filling pressure, i.e. E/E' (r2 = 0.002, P = 0.63) or E' velocity (r2 = 0.02, P = 0.24). In contrast, GDF‐15 was 665 (496–926) with ‘LVDD and possible HF’ and 451 (392– 679) pg/mL without (P < 0.0001). GDF‐15 was significantly correlated to E/E', E' velocity, E/A ratio, isovolumetric relaxation time, duration of reversed pulmonary vein atrial systolic flow, and left atrial size. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve that defines LVDD with possible HF was 0.56 for NT‐proBNP and 0.74 for GDF‐15 (P < 0.0001). The addition of GDF‐15 to a multivariate predicition model increased the net reclassification improvement (NRI) by 9% (P= 0.022).ConclusionIn morbidly obese individuals, GDF‐15 levels seem to better correlate with diastolic dysfunction than NT‐proBNP levels. GDF‐15 significantly improves reclassification for the diagnosis of ‘LVDD with possible HF’ and, thus, adds incremental value to NT‐proBNP.
First Report of Alfalfa mosaic virus Associated with Severe Mosaic and Mottling of Pepper (Capsicum annuum) and White Clover (Trifolium repens) in Oklahoma
Authors: Abdalla O. A. , Ali A. 
Published: July 2012

Alfalfa mosaic virus (AMV), a member of the genus Alfamovirus, family Bromoviridae (1), has been reported in 44 states in the United States excluding Oklahoma. During a cucurbit survey in the summer of 2010, severe mosaic and mottling symptoms were observed on many peppers (Capsicum annuum) and white clover (Trifolium repens) plants in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Symptomatic leaf samples from 15 pepper and two white clover plants were collected in the Bixby area and analyzed serologically by dot-immunobinding assay (DIBA) using specific polyclonal antibodies against AMV (Agdia, Inc). Seven out of 15 pepper samples and both white clover samples were tested positive by DIBA to AMV. The remaining symptomatic samples were positive to Cucumber mosaic virus (CMV). Total RNA was extracted from DIBA positive AMV samples by Tri-reagent method. A small aliquot of total RNA was tested by reverse transcription (RT)-PCR using specific primers: AMV-F 5′ GTCCGCGATCTCTTAAAT 3′ and AMV-R 5′ GAAGTTTGGGTCGAGAGA 3′ that were designed to amplify 900 bp of the AMV-RNA 3. Analysis of the PCR products on agarose gel electrophoreses showed that all tested samples showed a band of the expected size while DIBA negative AMV samples did not produce any band. The amplified PCR product (900 bp) obtained from pepper and white clover were cleaned with PCR purification kit (Qiagen, Germantown, MD) and directly sequenced bi-directionally using the above primers. Sequence analysis confirmed that this virus shared 97% identity at nucleotide sequence with RNA 3 of AMV isolate from Madison-USA (GenBank Accession No. K02703). For biological and morphological characterization of the virus, eight pepper plants were mechanically inoculated using 0.1 M K2HPO4 buffer (pH 7.2) with total RNA extracted from AMV positive pepper or white clover plant samples. One to two weeks post-inoculation, all inoculated plants produced severe mosaic, mottling, and stunting. Virus-like particles preparations were obtained from these symptomatic plants according to our previously described method (2) and electron microcopy examination showed typical AMV particles. These biological and morphological data further confirmed the presence of AMV infecting pepper and clover in Oklahoma. AMV is a significant pathogen worldwide and infects more than 600 species in 70 families, especially alfalfa, pepper, soybean, and tobacco (3). AMV has a worldwide distribution, including the United States, and particularly the Midwestern U.S. where the incidence of the virus is on the rise recently because of the presence of its vector (Aphis glycines) (4). To our knowledge, this is the first report of AMV infecting crops in Oklahoma, which could pose a threat to other economic crops grown in Oklahoma, especially soybean. References: (1) E. E. Mueller et al. Plant Dis. 91:266, 2007. (2) A. Ali et al. Plant Dis. 96:243, 2012. (3) J. F. Bol. Mol. Plant Path.4:1, 2003. (4) M. Malapi-Nelson et al. Plant Dis.93:1259, 2009.
GeoTheses: development of union catalogue of Indian geoscience theses using GSDL
Authors: Alam Nurul , Pandey Pragya 
Published: July 2012

PurposeThis paper aims to describe a model to provide a mechanism for the development of a union catalogue for geoscience theses based on open source software (GSDL) and to show how libraries can use open source as a vehicle for promoting library services. It is used for the geoscience community and educational users in India.Design/methodology/approachThe system is based on open source software (GSDL, Apache, PERL, JRE). GeoTheses can be used both in offline mode (i.e. self‐installable CD‐ROM) and online through the web.FindingsThe findings of this study suggest that GeoTheses can serve as an online distributed digital library for geoscience theses held in India and will enhance the geoscience research activity by providing nascent information pinpointedly, exhaustively and expeditiously.Research limitation/implicationsThis is a pilot study, with the only limitation being that very few samples have been considered. This will be investigated further with a wider population, which will improve the GeoTheses system.Practical implicationsThese results suggest that a system like GeoTheses could be used by the geoscience research communities, which would help to serve students and scientists working in the field to access information from other geoscience institutes around the world quickly.Originality/valueThe paper describes the application of open source software, GSDL as a form of resource sharing, an electronic archive and a high quality, central database of records for geosciences theses in India.
Six Sigma, organizational learning and innovation
Authors: Sony Michael , Naik Subhash 
Published: July 2012

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between Six Sigma, organizational learning and innovation performance. Also, whether organizational learning advance innovation performance by playing a mediating role between Six Sigma and innovation performance, probing the moderating effects of organizational types between six sigma and organizational learning, and also testing a proposed model to explain the relationships among Six Sigma, organizational type organizational learning, and innovation performance through an empirical examination in the Indian industry context.Design/methodology/approachCorrelations are used to analyze the degree of relationship between constructs and to further understand the direct and indirect effects, as well as the moderating and mediating effects among the constructs in model, structural equation modeling is conducted using AMOS 6.0 on data collected from Indian industries.FindingsThis study proves the positive relationship between Six Sigma and organizational learning. It also confirms that Six Sigma role structure and Six Sigma focus on metrics contributes positively to organizational innovation, however, Six Sigma structured improvement procedure was found to be negatively related to organizational innovation, thus contributing to Six Sigma‐Innovation Paradox. This study also rejects moderating effects of organizational type between Six Sigma and organizational learning.Research limitations/implicationsCultural context is a critical factor not only on Six Sigma, but also organizational learning, and organization innovation for investigating hence future study should consider this aspect. This research suggests the need for more intensive research to explore in more depth the relationship between Six Sigma structured improvement procedure, and the administrative and the technical innovation to identify the existence of potentially mediating variables in order to understand what is named the Six Sigma‐Innovation Paradox.Practical implicationsThe findings are useful for business managers in developing countries such as India, who want to enhance business performance through implementing Six Sigma practices that support their firm's product and services innovation efforts.Originality/valueThe study has contributed to establishing an empirical research between Six Sigma, organizational learning and organizational innovations that facilitates more quality management research in developing countries. It has contributed to clarifying the disputed relationship between Six Sigma practices and the firm's learning and innovativeness, and shows empirical evidence in India to confirm that the Six Sigma practices deployed by a firm has a positive impact on its organizational learning. Six Sigma focuses on role structure and metrics contributed positively to innovation, however the Six Sigma effect of procedure on organizational innovation is negatively related, thus opening new areas of Six Sigma‐Innovation Paradox.
A decision support system for demand forecasting in the clothing industry
Authors: Aksoy Asli , Ozturk Nursel , Sucky Eric 
Published: July 2012

PurposeDemand forecasting in the clothing industry is very complex due to the existence of a wide range of product references and the lack of historical sales data. To the authors' knowledge, there is an inadequate number of literature studies to forecast the demand with the adaptive network based fuzzy inference system for the clothing industry. The purpose of this paper is to construct a decision support system for demand forecasting in the clothing industry.Design/methodology/approachThe adaptive‐network‐based fuzzy inference system (ANFIS) is used for forecasting demand in the clothing industry.FindingsThe results of the proposed study showed that an ANFIS‐based demand forecasting system can help clothing manufacturers to forecast demand more accurately, effectively and simply.Originality/valueIn this study, the demand is forecast in terms of clothing manufacturers by using ANFIS. ANFIS is a new technique for demand forecasting, it combines the learning capability of the neural networks and the generalization capability of the fuzzy logic. The input and output criteria are determined based on clothing manufacturers' requirements and via literature research, and the forecasting horizon is about one month. The study includes the real life application of the proposed system and the proposed system is tested by using real demand values for clothing manufacturers.
Comparing apples to apples
Authors: Lyons Sean T. , Schweitzer Linda , Ng Eddy S.W. , Kuron Lisa K.J. 
Published: July 2012

PurposeThis study aims to compare the career patterns of Matures, Baby Boomers, Generation Xers and Millennials over the various stages of their careers to determine whether there have been notable shifts away from the “traditional” career model characterized by long‐term linear, upward career movement, toward a “modern” career model characterized by increased job mobility, organizational mobility and multi‐directional career movement.Design/methodology/approachThe retrospective career accounts of 105 Canadians were gathered through review of résumé information and semi‐structured interviews. The job changes and organizational changes experienced by each respondent in each five‐year career period (e.g. age 20‐24, 25‐29) and the direction of job changes (i.e. upward, downward, lateral or change of career track) were recorded. The generations were compared statistically on each of these measures through analysis of variance (ANOVA).FindingsSignificant inter‐generational differences were observed on all variables of interest, but the differences were largely restricted to the age 20‐24 and 30‐34 career stages.Research limitations/implicationsThe study relied on a small sample because of the qualitative nature of the data collection. The sample was also exclusively Canadian. The results should therefore be interpreted with care and the research should be replicated with different types of respondents and in different cultural contexts.Practical implicationsThe research demonstrates to employers that the younger generations change jobs and employers at a greater rate than previous generations and that they are more willing to accept non‐upward career moves. Recruiting and retaining young employees will therefore require a different approach than was used for previous generations.Originality/valueThe use of retrospective accounts allowed for the comparison of generations within various career stages. This overcomes a significant limitation of cross‐sectional studies of generational phenomena by simultaneously considering life‐cycle and generational cohort effects.
A practitioner friendly and scientifically robust training evaluation approach
Authors: Griffin Richard 
Published: July 2012

PurposeThis article seeks to review the current state of workplace learning evaluation, to set out the rationale for evaluation along with the barriers that practitioners face when seeking to assess the effectiveness of training and development. Finally, it aims to propose a scientifically robust and practitioner friendly approach to evaluation.Design/methodology/approachThis article is based on a multi disciplinary literature review.FindingsDespite the substantial investment in workplace learning there is a paucity of evaluation activity. There are a wide range of reasons for this including capacity and capability issues, lack of supportive organisational environment and a lack of effective measurement instruments. There is also a large research to practice gap. The starting point for evaluation approaches should be the needs of practitioners. Latest research on training suggests that effective evaluation approaches should adopt a stakeholder and systems approach and collect corroborative data.Research limitations/implicationsThis article presents research findings, based on a multidisciplinary literature review, on the factors that inhibit effective workplace learning evaluation, sets out a novel evaluation framework and approach, grounded in a conceptual model of workplace learning.Practical implicationsThe findings seek to assist practitioners such as learning and development professionals undertake more robust and efficient evaluations. The article also addresses the research to practice gap.Originality/valueThis article presents a novel approach to workplace learning evaluation.
Emerging business models and strategies for mobile platform providers: a reference framework
Authors: Ghezzi Antonio 
Published: July 2012

PurposeThe purpose of the paper is to provide a business model design reference framework for mobile platform providers, the platform vendors and technology enablers of the mobile content market. The framework aims at identifying the most critical choices – i.e. design parameters – to be made at a business model design level for a MPP, and at explicitly assessing their strategic implications.Design/methodology/approachThe research design integrates a twofold literature review on MPPs definitions and on business model design state of the art, with an in‐depth analysis of significant cases performed through a multiple case studies methodology: through 72 semi‐structured interviews to top managers, 24 companies were analyzed.FindingsThe findings allow to infer that some key business model parameters described by the existing literature – in particular, Osterwalder and Ballon – can be applied to MPPs' business model design process, while other original and actor‐specific building blocks emerge; furthermore, a first taxonomy of three noteworthy business models currently adopted by MPPs – “pure play”, “full asset” and “platform & content management” – is identified, associated respectively to three underlying strategic patterns: “stay on core”, “grow, wait and see”, and “aggressive downstream”.Research limitations/implicationsThe research presents a firm‐specific reference framework, which, however, does not focus on the potential different performances coming from alternative design parameters selection. Future works may concentrate in developing comparative or “benchmarking” analysis among the different business models depicted through the taxonomy, in order to explain any differential in firms' performances originated by alternative design parameter choices.Practical implicationsThe findings can support a wide set of stakeholders – either first movers or newcomers in the mobile industry – in their strategic and business model design choices.Originality/valueThe paper's value for researchers can be brought back to its descriptive, normative and validating contribution to value network and business model design theories, with specific reference to the rising role of mobile platform providers. Value for practitioners lies in the creation and provisioning of a “reference framework” capable of supporting the decision making process concerning business model design, as it presents strong ties between business model parameters and strategic implications.
Twentieth century models for the twenty‐first century: models of fast growing firms and industries in the twentieth century for fast growing firms and industries in the twenty‐first century
Authors: Fruin W. Mark , Nakamura Masao 
Published: July 2012

PurposeThis paper aims to present a general review of the circumstances of America and Japan's rapid corporate, economic and industrial development in the twentieth century.Design/methodology/approachThe approach considered and evaluated how the circumstances of America and Japan's growth might apply to China and India, two of the fastest growing economies of the twenty‐first century.FindingsThe findings suggest that both America and Japan might be considered exceptional cases and, as such, neither one might be regarded as a good model for emulation. However, the circumstances of Japan's rapid growth appear closer to those of contemporary China and India and on that basis the authors suggest that Japan might be a better model for emulation.Originality/valueThe American model is too novel and unlikely to be imitated, replicated or repeated whereas Japan's high population density, agrarian origins, state assisted and administered development, adaptation and hybridization of local and imported methods and technologies, kinship, pseudo‐kinship and locality based business groupings, and rapid, come‐from‐behind charge toward industrialization, urbanization and international emergence, all suggest that Japan offers a more relevant and useful development model.
Assessing corporate social and financial performance in China
Authors: Luethge Denise , Guohong Han Helen 
Published: July 2012

PurposeThis study aims to examine corporate social responsibility disclosure (CSD) in China.Design/methodology/approachThe paper examines the extent to which firm size and financial performance impacts social disclosure by examining published financial information and social disclosure information in annual reports.FindingsResults indicate a positive relationship between firm size and disclosure but no relationship between firm profitability and disclosure.Research limitations/implicationsOnly 2008 annual reports with a relatively small sample size are used. Longitudinal studies in the future may be warranted.Practical implicationsCSD has become widespread in the west but is only now taking hold in the east. As many global firms expand operations in China, this paper will add to research in the area addressing CSD in that country.Originality/valueMost studies have examined CSD in the west. This study makes a contribution to the corporate social responsibility literature by investigating an emerging market in China.