What are the success factors for Spanish textile firms? An exploratory multiple-case study

The objective of this article is to identify differential traits of successful SMEs in comparison to average SME firms in the textile and clothing sector. The method used is the multiple case-study of 12 firms based on qualitative and quantitative data obtained by means of in-depth interviews. Building on recent academic literature, we use four main dimensions that may explain success: i) knowledge generation (R&D) and acquisition; ii) innovation activity; iii) product and market characteristics and iv) strategic characteristics. Our results indicate that a higher R&D intensity and knowledge acquisition do not explain success. The main differential characteristic is that successful firms have a higher level of innovation activity, since innovation is their strategic priority, being a result of perceiving the key success factors of their markets differently. From the analysis it also follows that the prevalent strategy of successful firms is the niche strategy, with a demand pull focus, and a high proximity to the customer

Fat oxidation over a range of exercise intensities: fitness versus fatness.

Maximal fat oxidation (MFO), as well as the exercise intensity at which it occurs (Fatmax), have been reported as lower in sedentary overweight individuals but have not been studied in trained overweight individuals. The aim of this study was to compare Fatmax and MFO in lean and overweight recreationally trained males matched for cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) and to study the relationships between these variables, anthropometric characteristics, and CRF. Twelve recreationally trained overweight (high fatness (HiFat) group, 30.0% ± 5.3% body fat) and 12 lean males (low fatness (LoFat), 17.2% ± 5.7% body fat) matched for CRF (maximal oxygen consumption (V̇O2max) 39.0 ± 5.5 vs. 41.4 ± 7.6 mL·kg(-1)·min(-1), p = 0.31) and age (p = 0.93) performed a graded exercise test on a cycle ergometer. V̇O2max and fat and carbohydrate oxidation rates were determined using indirect calorimetry; Fatmax and MFO were determined with a mathematical model (SIN); and % body fat was assessed by air displacement plethysmography. MFO (0.38 ± 0.19 vs. 0.42 ± 0.16 g·min(-1), p = 0.58), Fatmax (46.7% ± 8.6% vs. 45.4% ± 7.2% V̇O2max, p = 0.71), and fat oxidation rates over a wide range of exercise intensities were not significantly different (p > 0.05) between HiFat and LoFat groups. In the overall cohort (n = 24), MFO and Fatmax were correlated with V̇O2max (r = 0.46, p = 0.02; r = 0.61, p = 0.002) but not with % body fat or body mass index (p > 0.05). Fat oxidation during exercise was similar in recreationally trained overweight and lean males matched for CRF. Consistently, substrate oxidation rates during exercise were not related to adiposity (% body fat) but were related to CRF. The benefits of high CRF independent of body weight and % body fat should be further highlighted in the management of obesity.

Genomic insights into the Ixodes scapularis tick vector of Lyme disease.

Ticks transmit more pathogens to humans and animals than any other arthropod. We describe the 2.1 Gbp nuclear genome of the tick, Ixodes scapularis (Say), which vectors pathogens that cause Lyme disease, human granulocytic anaplasmosis, babesiosis and other diseases. The large genome reflects accumulation of repetitive DNA, new lineages of retro-transposons, and gene architecture patterns resembling ancient metazoans rather than pancrustaceans. Annotation of scaffolds representing ∼57% of the genome, reveals 20,486 protein-coding genes and expansions of gene families associated with tick-host interactions. We report insights from genome analyses into parasitic processes unique to ticks, including host 'questing', prolonged feeding, cuticle synthesis, blood meal concentration, novel methods of haemoglobin digestion, haem detoxification, vitellogenesis and prolonged off-host survival. We identify proteins associated with the agent of human granulocytic anaplasmosis, an emerging disease, and the encephalitis-causing Langat virus, and a population structure correlated to life-history traits and transmission of the Lyme disease agent.

Safety and immunogenicity of a chimpanzee adenovirus-vectored Ebola vaccine in healthy adults: a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, dose-finding, phase 1/2a study.

BACKGROUND: The ongoing Ebola outbreak led to accelerated efforts to test vaccine candidates. On the basis of a request by WHO, we aimed to assess the safety and immunogenicity of the monovalent, recombinant, chimpanzee adenovirus type-3 vector-based Ebola Zaire vaccine (ChAd3-EBO-Z). METHODS: We did this randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, dose-finding, phase 1/2a trial at the Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Vaudois, Lausanne, Switzerland. Participants (aged 18-65 years) were randomly assigned (2:2:1), via two computer-generated randomisation lists for individuals potentially deployed in endemic areas and those not deployed, to receive a single intramuscular dose of high-dose vaccine (5 × 10(10) viral particles), low-dose vaccine (2·5 × 10(10) viral particles), or placebo. Deployed participants were allocated to only the vaccine groups. Group allocation was concealed from non-deployed participants, investigators, and outcome assessors. The safety evaluation was not masked for potentially deployed participants, who were therefore not included in the safety analysis for comparison between the vaccine doses and placebo, but were pooled with the non-deployed group to compare immunogenicity. The main objectives were safety and immunogenicity of ChAd3-EBO-Z. We did analysis by intention to treat. This trial is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT02289027. FINDINGS: Between Oct 24, 2014, and June 22, 2015, we randomly assigned 120 participants, of whom 18 (15%) were potentially deployed and 102 (85%) were non-deployed, to receive high-dose vaccine (n=49), low-dose vaccine (n=51), or placebo (n=20). Participants were followed up for 6 months. No vaccine-related serious adverse events were reported. We recorded local adverse events in 30 (75%) of 40 participants in the high-dose group, 33 (79%) of 42 participants in the low-dose group, and five (25%) of 20 participants in the placebo group. Fatigue or malaise was the most common systemic adverse event, reported in 25 (62%) participants in the high-dose group, 25 (60%) participants in the low-dose group, and five (25%) participants in the placebo group, followed by headache, reported in 23 (57%), 25 (60%), and three (15%) participants, respectively. Fever occurred 24 h after injection in 12 (30%) participants in the high-dose group and 11 (26%) participants in the low-dose group versus one (5%) participant in the placebo group. Geometric mean concentrations of IgG antibodies against Ebola glycoprotein peaked on day 28 at 51 μg/mL (95% CI 41·1-63·3) in the high-dose group, 44·9 μg/mL (25·8-56·3) in the low-dose group, and 5·2 μg/mL (3·5-7·6) in the placebo group, with respective response rates of 96% (95% CI 85·7-99·5), 96% (86·5-99·5), and 5% (0·1-24·9). Geometric mean concentrations decreased by day 180 to 25·5 μg/mL (95% CI 20·6-31·5) in the high-dose group, 22·1 μg/mL (19·3-28·6) in the low-dose group, and 3·2 μg/mL (2·4-4·9) in the placebo group. 28 (57%) participants given high-dose vaccine and 31 (61%) participants given low-dose vaccine developed glycoprotein-specific CD4 cell responses, and 33 (67%) and 35 (69%), respectively, developed CD8 responses. INTERPRETATION: ChAd3-EBO-Z was safe and well tolerated, although mild to moderate systemic adverse events were common. A single dose was immunogenic in almost all vaccine recipients. Antibody responses were still significantly present at 6 months. There was no significant difference between doses for safety and immunogenicity outcomes. This acceptable safety profile provides a reliable basis to proceed with phase 2 and phase 3 efficacy trials in Africa. FUNDING: Swiss State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation (SERI), through the EU Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Programme.

Dial M for Murder: A Case of Passion Killing, Criminal Evidence and Sultanic Power in Medieval India

This paper considers the structures and applications of the criminal judicial system in the Islamic Later Middle Period as it developed in India under the sultans of Delhi (1200-1400 CE). A fundamental issue in crime and punishment is the relationship between sultanic power and religious authority. Particularly at stake in this relationship is the question of who can sanction the highest form of punishment, i.e. the death penalty (siyāsa). Contemporary historians and scholars in the study of religion investigating the relationship between sharīʿa and siyāsa to reveal the extent and limits of sultanic power show a system of governance that allowed for the delegation of authority, particularly in the area of the judiciary, from the sultan down to viziers and judges. Some scholars depict the relationship between the ʿulamāʾ and the sultan as a kind of stand off. The actual dynamics of legal jurisdiction were much more complex. This study proposes a new interpretive framework for understanding the relationship between political power and religious authority through a critical analysis of the criminal judicial system, law, and historical narrative. In particular, I consider a murder case described by Shams al-dīn Sirāj ʿAfīf in one of the most significant histories written in the later Delhi Sultanate, the Tārīkh-i Fīrūzshāhī.

Dissertationer - Sverige

Samlingen med signum HB Sv.diss finns vid huvudbiblioteket och innehåller svenska doktorsavhandlingar. Den lista över avhandlingar som fåtts i april 2008 med sökfunktionen Signum och söktermen HB Sv.diss. kommer att ändra då den retroaktiva inmatningen i Alma ur bibliotekets alfabetiska kortkatalog genomförts. Period Antalet titlar - 1899 10 1900-49 214 1950-59 293 1960-69 616 1970-79 2952 Listan antyder att det skulle finns väldigt få svenska avhandlingar före år 1900 vid akademibiblioteket, vilket inte är med verkligheten överensstämmande. Dels ingår en del äldre avhandlingar i övriga samlingar, dels finns det en ansenlig separat samling svenska doktorsavhandlingar från äldre tid som inte i detta skede är katalogiserade, men finns förprickade i ett exemplar av Catalogus disputationum in Academiis Scandinaviae et Finlandiae Lidenianus (Lidén-Marklin) Med sökfunktionen Avancerad sökning och söktermen diss kombinerad med Sveriges ISBN 91 fås alla svenska doktorsavhandlingar vid hela akademibiblioteket fr.o.m. 1980.

Alandica

Samlingen med signum HB Saml. Alandica finns vid huvudbiblioteket och innehåller litteratur som på något sätt berör landskapet Åland, politiskt, naturvetenskapligt, socialt, historiskt, litterärt osv. Stommen till Alandica-samlingen kommer från det historiska bibliotek som statsarkivarie Reinhold Hausen samlade och donerade till akademibiblioteket. I Hausens stora historiska bibliotek ingick en omfattande specialsamling om Åland som han använde som underlag för sina bibliografier över Åland publicerade i samlingsverken Åland VI, VII, IX och X. Bibliografierna omfattar tiden ända fram till 1936. Av särskilt intresse i Hausens samling är det material som handlar om ålandsfrågan, speciellt kan nämnas talrika särtryck av artiklar i tidskrifter och övertryck från tidningar, även utländska. Utom katalogiserat material finns det också endel okatalogiserat småtryck. Samlingen Alandica har kontinuerligt vuxit genom bibliotekets friexemplarsrätt. En del material har kommit som gåvor, t.ex. material från Ålands lagting. Samlingen innehåller också administrativt material som inte enskilt katalogiseras, exempelvis Ålands författningssamling och olika årsberättelser, verksamhetsberättelser och budgeter. Biblioteket strävar efter att bevaka den utländska utgivningen av alandica och kompletterar samlingen genom inköp. Återvinning av material görs i databasen Alma med sökfunktionen Signum och söktermen HB Saml. Alandica. En kortkatalog med alandica tryckt mellan 1830 och 1979 är i det närmaste retrokatalogiserad till Alma.

Determinação eletroanalítica de corante reativo presente como contaminante em proteínas purificadas por cromatografia de afinidade

Procion Green HE-4BD is a reactive dye currently used in affinity purification, and commonly present as a contaminant in the final biological preparation. An assay method is described to determine trace amounts of the dye in the presence of human serum albumin(HSA) and leakage from agarose as affinity sorbent by cathodic stripping voltammetry. The proposed method is based on the reductive peak at -0.55V in B-R buffer pH 3 (E=0V and t= 240s), obtained when samples of HSA 2% (m/v) containing dye concentrations in sodium hydroxide pH 12 are submitted to a heating time of 330 min at 80 ºC. Linear calibration curves can be obtained for RG19 dye concentrations from 5x10-9 mol L-1 to 8 x10-8 mol L-1. The detection limit (3sigma) is 1x10-9 mol L-1.

Sovinto riita-asioiden ratkaisukeinona. Sovinnon edellytysten mallintamisesta taloustieteen

Tässä tutkielmassa tarkastellaan dispositiivisen riita-asian ratkaisua Suomen oikeusjärjestelmässä taloustieteen menetelmiä hyödyntämällä. Tutkielman tarkoituksena on yhtäältä selvittää, miksi osa tapauksista etenee käräjäoikeuden pääkäsittelyyn, ja toisaalta havainnollistaa sovintoneuvottelun kulkua ja tulosta. Tärkeimpinä lähteinä ovat olleet S. Shavellin <i>Economic analysis of litigation and the legal processi> (2003) sekä R. D. Cooterin ja D. L. Rubinfeldin <i>Economic analysis of legal disputes and their resolutioni> (1989). Lisäksi useita peliteoreettisia tutkimuksia on käytetty esikuvana mallien muodostamisessa ja analysoinnissa. Oikeustaloustieteellinen tutkimus perustuu oletukseen, että sovinto on aina tuomiota tehokkaampi ratkaisukeino. Sovinto on kuitenkin mahdollinen vain, jos kantajan odotettu voitto oikeudenkäynnistä on enintään yhtä suuri kuin vastaajan odotettu tappio. Tutkielmassa osoitetaan, että käytännössä sovinnon esteenä on vähintään toisen osapuolen relatiivinen optimismi oikeudenkäynnin lopputuloksesta. Siten sovittelijan tehtävä on poistaa erot asianosaisten informaatiossa, eikä muunsisältöisen sovinnon edistäminen ole oikeustaloustieteen näkökulmasta tehokasta. Oikeuteen voidaan kuitenkin aina edetä positiivisella todennäköisyydellä, jos epäsymmetristä informaatiota ei voida uskottavasti jakaa tai ainakin toisella asianosaisista on kannuste käyttäytyä strategisesti neuvottelussa. Peliteorian avulla on analysoitu sekä neuvotteludynamiikkaa että informaation yksi- ja kaksipuolisen epäsymmetrian vaikutusta neuvotteluongelman tasapainoon. Tuloksena voidaan esittää seuraavat neljä havaintoa: Kun neuvottelun enimmäiskesto tiedetään, sovinnon syntymisen todennäköisyys on suurempi neuvotteluprosessin alkaessa ja päättyessä kuin sen keskivaiheilla. Heikommin informoidun kantajan neuvotteluvoima perustuu oikeudenkäyntiuhkauksen uskottavuuteen, joten hänen on rajoitettava mahdollisuuttaan omaksua epäedullista tietoa kanteen kannattavuudesta. Paremmin informoidulla vastaajalla on kannuste strategiseen käyttäytymiseen, jos sovintotarjous voi paljastaa hänen yksityisen informaationsa. Kun kummallakin osapuolella on yksityistä tietoa, sovintoehdotuksen tekijän on signaloitava tyyppinsä vastapuolelle, ja roolien satunnainen määräytyminen saattaa aiheuttaa yhteiskunnallista tehottomuutta liiallisten oikeudenkäyntien vuoksi.

Blackbody emission under laser excitation of silicon nanopowder produced by plasma-enhanced chemical-vapor deposition

Previous results concerning radiative emission under laser irradiation of silicon nanopowder are reinterpreted in terms of thermal emission. A model is developed that considers the particles in the powder as independent, so under vacuum the only dissipation mechanism is thermal radiation. The supralinear dependence observed between the intensity of the emitted radiation and laser power is predicted by the model, as is the exponential quenching when the gas pressure around the sample increases. The analysis allows us to determine the sample temperature. The local heating of the sample has been assessed independently by the position of the transverse optical Raman mode. Finally, it is suggested that the photoluminescence observed in porous silicon and similar materials could, in some cases, be blackbody radiation

Gas collisions and pressure quenching of the photoluminescence of silicon nanopowder grown by plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition

The quenching of the photoluminescence of Si nanopowder grown by plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition due to pressure was measured for various gases ( H2, O2, N2, He, Ne, Ar, and Kr) and at different temperatures. The characteristic pressure, P0, of the general dependence I(P)=I0exp(-P/P0) is gas and temperature dependent. However, when the number of gas collisions is taken as the variable instead of pressure, then the quenching is the same within a gas family (mono- or diatomic) and it is temperature independent. So it is concluded that the effect depends on the number of gas collisions irrespective of the nature of the gas or its temperature

Atomic diffusion induced by stress relaxation in InGaAs/GaAs epitaxial layers

The origin of the microscopic inhomogeneities in InxGa1-xAs layers grown on GaAs by molecular beam epitaxy is analyzed through the optical absorption spectra near the band gap. It is seen that, for relaxed thick layers of about 2.8μm, composition inhomogeneities are responsible for the band edge smoothing into the whole compositional range (0.05in thin enough layers strain inhomogeneities are dominant. This evolution in line with layer thickness is due to the atomic diffusion at the surface during growth, induced by the strain inhomogeneities that arise from stress relaxation. In consequence, the strain variations present in the layer are converted into composition variations during growth. This process is energetically favorable as it diminishes elastic energy. An additional support to this hypothesis is given by a clear proportionality between the magnitude of the composition variations and the mean strain

Jousikvartetto III

Äänitetty: 3.12.1966.

Nonnulla theoremata miscellanea

Invocatio: I.N.J.R.N.