bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
RFID tags: commercial applications v. privacy rights
Authors: Kelly Eileen P. , Erickson G. Scott 
Published: July 2005

PurposeThis article seeks to examine the use of radio frequency identification (RFID) technology in commercial applications and to discuss whether regulation is needed to balance commercial economic interests versus consumer privacy and libertarian concerns.Design/methodology/approachThis paper covers discussions and comparative studies of others' work and thinking.FindingsRFID technology provides enormous economic benefits for both business and consumers, while simultaneously potentially constituting one of the most invasive surveillance technologies threatening consumer privacy.Practical implicationsThe use of RFID technology has profound consumer privacy, civil liberty and security implications.Originality/valueRFID technology is at an embryonic stage. Like many new technologies, it poses both potential benefit and harm to society. The article recommends that legislation is needed to tip the balance enough to provide adequate privacy protection without unduly harming economic efficiency.
The evolution of SAP implementation environments
Authors: Gulledge Thomas , Simon Georg 
Published: July 2005

PurposeThis paper seeks to describe the evolution of SAP implementation methodologies and tools, in particular, Value SAP, with a focus on the Accelerated SAP (ASAP) implementation methodology and its evolution as a part of SAP's new Solution Manager tool.Design/methodology/approachThe general approach is more focused on monitoring and managing an ongoing SAP implementation project using an enterprise solution architecture. Three options are explored.FindingsFinds that one option supports end‐to‐end business process management – other options can be managed, but with cost and risk.Originality/valueThis paper has reviewed the latest developments in SAP implementation methodologies from a management orientation. The issues in this paper are often taken for granted by researchers, so it is hoped that the focus on these issues will elevate interests in pursuing some of the unanswered questions.
Non‐enforceable implementation of enterprise mobilization
Authors: Luarn Pin , Lin Tom M.Y. , Lo Peter K.Y. 
Published: July 2005

PurposeEnterprise mobilization refers to the provision by an enterprise of the means for its employees to update information at any time and any place through the use of a wireless network system and related equipment. The implementation of enterprise mobilization can be separated into two main methods, non‐enforceable and enforceable. Non‐enforceable implementation refers to those situations where, although an enterprise encourages its employees to use a mobilized system, it does not enforce such use, whereas the reverse is true in the case of enforceable methods. Aims to examine this situation.Design/methodology/approachSince this is a relatively new research topic with very little previous research having been undertaken in this area, this paper employs a triangulation. This method enables integration of both quantitative and qualitative data, to investigate the critical success factors (CSFs) for the implementation of non‐enforceable mobilization by enterprises. The data were collected by means of in‐depth interviews with corporate managers and specialists from 29 enterprises and comprise 126 samples of employees currently using mobilization systems.FindingsThe study reveals a total of six CSFs for the implementation of non‐enforceable mobilization by enterprises, comprising: cooperation with a good solution “value added reseller”; appropriate planning and the support of senior management; user participation and minimization of any resistance to the installation of the system; open communication channels; enhancement of the understanding of mobilization itself and of employee requirements; and effective mobilization equipment.Originality/valueThis paper will be of interest to organizations looking to implement a wireless network system. The results provided can be used as references for industry and businesses in general, to support their decision‐making processes concerning the introduction of mobilization.
Collaborative supply‐chain partnerships built upon trust and electronically mediated exchange
Authors: Myhr Niklas , Spekman Robert E. 
Published: July 2005

PurposeTo investigate how supply‐chain partners can achieve collaboration under varying circumstances (transactional types) by developing trust‐based social foundations and by utilizing electronically mediated exchange.Design/methodology/approachA conceptual framework illustrates the roles of trust and electronically mediated exchange in achieving collaboration and its hypotheses are tested with a sample of 157 supply‐chain relationships of international subsidiaries of Nordic multinational corporations (MNCs).FindingsFinds that collaborative partnerships can be achieved both via trust and through electronically mediated exchange. Results also indicate that electronically mediated exchange more readily enhances collaboration in exchange relationships involving standardized products, while trust plays a larger role when customized products are being exchanged.Research limitations/implicationsThe transactional type involved impacts the relative effectiveness of trust and electronically mediated exchange in achieving collaboration. This finding might stimulate research of the impact of other contextual factors. Limitations include that only managers on one side of inter‐organizational dyads were surveyed.Practical implicationsPracticing managers need to prioritize the time and effort they spend developing partnerships. While both trust and electronically mediated exchange play pivotal roles in fostering collaboration, managers involved in the exchange of standardized products can place a relative emphasis on electronically mediated exchange, while trust is of higher importance when customized products are being exchanged.Originality/valueThis paper examines the complex interplay of trust and electronically mediated exchange in achieving collaborative supply‐chain partnerships and offers guidance to practicing managers as well as implications of theoretical interest to academics.
Cooperative adoption of complex systems: a comprehensive model within and across networks
Authors: Hausman Angela , Johnston Wesley J. , Oyedele Adesegun 
Published: July 2005

PurposeThe purpose of this study was to develop a better understanding of cooperation among members of network firms.Design/methodology/approachAn extensive literature review of industrial cooperation/adaptation was conducted, especially research pertaining to industrial adoption of communication technology across partner firms. This review was combined with elements of population ecology, as it has been applied to business networks, and other sociological aspects of inter‐firm relationships to develop a set of propositions related to cooperative adoption.FindingsThis is a conceptual paper, so there were no quantifiable results. Instead, the paper contains a number of propositions related to the relational, structural, and influential aspects that affect adoption and sustained use of innovative products in a network context.Research limitations/implicationsThe lack of empirical support for hypothesized relationships is the major limitation. However, the study provides guidance toward empirical testing and suggests a number of managerial implications resulting from the understandings provided by the proposed relationship.Originality/valueThis study helps extend earlier models developed to understand intra‐organizational adoption to reflect the more common situation where adoption occurs within and affects a network of related firms.
The impact of supply‐chain management capabilities on business performance
Authors: Tracey Michael , Lim Jeen‐Su , Vonderembse Mark A. 
Published: July 2005

PurposeThe purpose of this article is to empirically test the impact of supply‐chain management (SCM) capabilities on business performance so as to determine to what degree customer‐oriented SCM issues influence competitive position and organizational performance.Design/methodology/approachA rigorous methodology is employed to generate a reliable and valid measurement instrument. Responses from 474 manufacturing managers are then utilized to test a causal model using LISREL®.FindingsThe results indicate significant positive relationships exist among three types of SCM capabilities (outside‐in, inside‐out, and spanning) and business performance (perceived customer value, customer loyalty, market performance, and financial performance).Practical implicationsThe article demonstrates that strategically developing SCM capabilities such as efficient inbound and outbound transportation, warehousing, and inventory control, production support, packaging, purchasing, order processing, and information dissemination enable a manufacturing firm to identify and take advantage of opportunities in the global marketplace.Research limitations/implicationsThe sample was drawn from manufacturing firms in the USA across four SIC codes. Future studies could collect more extensive data to confirm, refine, and expand upon the model presented and the associated construct measures utilizing confirmatory factor analysis. Extending the research to include additional industries and firms from outside of the USA would enhance the generalizability and usefulness of the findings.Originality/valueThe paper statistically validates that managers should regard the cultivation of SCM capabilities as a proprietary resource that facilitates competitive advantage. It also contributes a concise instrument that may be used by academics interested in the areas of supply‐chain management processes and firm performance.
Building an activity‐based costing hospital model using quality function deployment and benchmarking
Authors: González Marvin E. , Quesada Gioconda , Mack Rhonda , Urrutia Ignacio 
Published: July 2005

PurposeTo use quality function deployment (QFD)/benchmarking for building an optimal activity‐based costing (ABC) model using baseline information from five different Spanish hospitals.Design/methodology/approachThe customer satisfaction benchmarking process in QFD is discussed along with the benefits of hierarchical benchmarks in specifying areas of strategic competition and the logically ensuing product/service strategic decision‐making requirements. A case study is presented to illustrate the use of two methodological approaches: benchmarking and QFD to obtain the final product of the paper: an optimal ABC.FindingsThe resulting outcome from the QFD/benchmarking analysis is an ABC model, which has the customer expectations and the requirements that hospitals are looking for.Research limitations/implicationsFuture research can benefit from this research by expanding the scope from hospitals to other types of industries in order to comparatively analyze the applicability of the proposed tools, and applying the same methodology to other hospitals for developing a model for a standardized costing system in health care industry.Practical implicationsWith the outcomes produced by the methodology applied in this paper, hospital strategic decision makers can now have specifics on which to base decisions regarding the most appropriate allocation of time, human and capital resources.Originality/valueThe paper presents a new approach for developing an optimal ABC for healthcare by applying two important methodologies: benchmarking and QFD. The use and modification of these methodologies in healthcare are new to research for achieving a final ABC model that will easily identify any performance improvements.
Embedding sustainable development at Cambridge University Engineering Department
Authors: Fenner Richard A. , Ainger Charles M. , Cruickshank Heather J. , Guthrie Peter M. 
Published: July 2005

PurposeThe paper seeks to examine the latest stage in a process of change aimed at introducing concepts of sustainable development into the activities of the Department of Engineering at Cambridge University, UK.Design/methodology/approachThe rationale behind defining the skills which future engineers require is discussed and vehicles for change at both undergraduate and postgraduate level are described. Reflections on the paradigms and pedagogy of teaching sustainable development issues to engineers are offered, as well as notes on barriers to progress which have been encountered.FindingsThe paper observes that the ability to effectively initiate a change process is a vital skill which must be formally developed in those engineers wishing to seek sustainable solutions from within the organisations for which they will work. Lessons are drawn about managing a change process within a large academic department, so that concepts of sustainable development can be effectively introduced across all areas of the engineering curriculum.Practical implicationsA new pedagogy for dealing with changes from the quantitative to the qualitative is required, as the paper questions where the education balance should lie between providing access to technological knowledge which can be applied to designing hard solutions, and training engineers to rethink their fundamental attitudes towards a broader, multiple perspective approach in which problem formulation and context setting play a vital role in reaching consensual solutions.Originality/valueThe paper reviews previously recognised key themes for engineering education for sustainable development, and proposes three further essential ingredients relating to an engineer's ability to engage in problem definition, manage change in organisations, and understand the nature of technical and business innovations.
Design of enhanced agonists through the use of a new virtual screening method: Application to peptides that bind class I major histocompatibility complex (MHC) molecules
Authors: Madurga Sergio , Belda Ignasi , Llorà Xavier , Giralt Ernest 
Published: July 2005

AbstractA new screening procedure is described that uses docking calculations to design enhanced agonist peptides that bind to major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class I receptors. The screening process proceeds via single mutations of one amino acid at the positions that directly interact with the MHC receptor. The energetic and structural effects of these mutations have been studied using fragments of the original ligand that vary in length. The results of these docking studies indicate that the mutant affinity ranking of long peptides can be practically reproduced with a screening approach performed using fragments of six residues. Fragments of four and five residues could mimic, in some cases, the structural arrangement of the side chains of the full‐length peptide. We have compared the structural and energetic results of the docking calculations with experimental data using three unrelated ligand peptides that differ greatly in their affinity for the MHC complex. Analysis of the affinity of the fragments led to the identification of three important parameters in the construction of fragments that mimic the structural and energetic properties of the full‐length ligand: the length of the fragment; its intermolecular energy; and the number and localization, internal or terminal, of the anchor residues. The results of this new peptide‐design methodology have been applied to suggest new peptides derived from the MUC1–8 peptide that could be used as murine vaccines that trigger the immune response through the MHC class I protein H‐2Kb.
Crystal structure of Yersinia enterocolitica type III secretion chaperone SycT
Authors: Büttner Carina R. , Cornelis Guy R. , Heinz Dirk W. , Niemann Hartmut H. 
Published: July 2005

AbstractPathogenic Yersinia species use a type III secretion (TTS) system to deliver a number of cytotoxic effector proteins directly into the mammalian host cell. To ensure effective translocation, several such effector proteins transiently bind to specific chaperones in the bacterial cytoplasm. Correspondingly, SycT is the chaperone of YopT, a cysteine protease that cleaves the membrane‐anchor of Rho‐GTPases in the host. We have analyzed the complex between YopT and SycT and determined the structure of SycT in three crystal forms. Biochemical studies indicate a stoichometric effector/chaperone ratio of 1:2 and the chaperone‐binding site contains at least residues 52–103 of YopT. The crystal structures reveal a SycT homodimer with an overall fold similar to that of other TTS effector chaperones. In contrast to the canonical five‐stranded anti‐parallel β‐sheet flanked by three α‐helices, SycT lacks the dimerization α‐helix and has an additional β‐strand capable of undergoing a conformational change. The dimer interface consists of two β‐strands and the connecting loops. Two hydrophobic patches involved in effector binding in other TTS effector chaperones are also found in SycT. The structural similarity of SycT to other chaperones and the spatial conservation of effector‐binding sites support the idea that TTS effector chaperones form a single functional and structural group.
Focus‐Pocus? Thinking Critically about Whether Aid Organizations Should Do Fewer Things in Fewer Countries
Authors: Munro Lauchlan T. 
Published: July 2005

AbstractThe OECD Development Assistance Committee and G7 Finance Ministers have suggested that many bilateral and multilateral aid organizations are too dispersed, pursuing too many objectives in too many countries and too many sectors with too many partners. These organizations are accused of lacking critical mass, failing to follow their comparative advantage, failing to find and exploit a niche, and having high transactions costs and low effectiveness. Such aid organizations are being told to ‘focus’, ‘concentrate’, or be more ‘selective’ in order to become more effective. This article analyses the arguments in favour of greater focus by aid organizations and suggests that, while some of these arguments are valid, some are not and others need to be more nuanced. There are many possible dimensions along which an aid organization could focus and the link — if any — between focus and aid effectiveness is complex along each of those dimensions. The debate so far has also ignored the possibility that less focus may promote more effective aid. There is no clear, simple link between focus and aid effectiveness, but this finding should not be interpreted as carte blanche for spreading aid programmes indiscriminately. Dispersion, like focus, needs careful thought and justification.
Combined small‐cell carcinoma of the stomach: p53 and K‐ras gene mutational analysis supports a monoclonal origin of three histological components
Authors: Han Bo , Mori Ichiro , Wang Xiaojuan , Nakamura Misa , Nakamura Yasushi , Kakudo Kennichi 
Published: July 2005

SummaryPrimary small‐cell carcinoma (SmCC) is extremely rare in stomach. We reported an autopsy case of combined gastric SmCC with p53 and K‐ras mutational analysis. Histologically, the tumour was composed of well‐differentiated adenocarcinoma surrounding the central dominant SmCC component with scattered nests of squamous cell carcinoma. Immunohistochemically, all the neoplastic components revealed strong expression for p53 protein. Based on these findings, we hypothesized that these histologically different components originated from a same progenitor cell that possessed p53 mutation. Using Laser‐capture microdissection technique and mutational analysis, we identified the same point mutations of p53 gene (A→G transversion in codon 239) and K‐ras gene (G→A transversion in codon 13) in all the neoplastic components, but not in the adjacent normal gastric epithelium. Our results strongly support a hypothesis that the combined SmCC of stomach in this case was of monoclonal origin.
Radiation sensitivities of 31 human oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma cell lines
Authors: Ban Sadayuki , Michikawa Yuichi , Ishikawa Ken‐ichi , Sagara Masashi , Watanabe Koji , Shimada Yutaka , Inazawa Johji , Imai Takashi 
Published: July 2005

SummaryThe purpose of this study was to determine the radiosensitivities of 31 human oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma cell lines with a colony‐formation assay. A large variation in radiosensitivity existed among 31 cell lines. Such a large variation may partly explain the poor result of radiotherapy for this cancer. One cell line (KYSE190) demonstrated an unusual radiosensitivity. Ataxia‐telangiectasia‐mutated (ATM) gene in these cells had five missense mutations, and ATM protein was truncated or degraded. Inability to phosphorylate Chk2 in the irradiated KYSE190 cells suggests that the ATM protein in these cells had lost its function. The dysfunctional ATM protein may be a main cause of unusual radiosensitivity of KYSE190 cells. Because the donor of these cells was not diagnosed with ataxia telangiectasia, mutations in ATM gene might have occurred during the initiation and progression of cancer. Radiosensitive cancer developed in non‐hereditary diseased patients must be a good target for radiotherapy.
Dendritic cells in viral pathogenesis: protective or defective?
Authors: Pollara Gabriele , Kwan Antonia , Newton Philippa J. , Handley Matthew E. , Chain Benjamin M. , Katz David R. 
Published: July 2005

SummaryDendritic cells (DC) are potent antigen‐presenting cells that are critical in the initiation of immune responses to control and/or eliminate viral infections. Recent studies have investigated the effects of virus infection on the biology of DC. This review summarizes these changes, focusing on both the DC parameters affected and the viral factors involved. In addition, the central role of DC biology in the pathogenesis of several viral families, including herpesviruses, paramyxoviruses and retroviruses, is explored. The field of pathogen recognition by DC is addressed, focusing on its role in protecting the host from viral infection, as well as the ability of viruses to exploit such host receptor ligation and signalling to their replicative advantage. The hypothesis is proposed that virus and host have evolved a symbiotic relationship to ensure both viral transmission and host survival.