Effects of RoHs and REACH regulations on firm-level production and export, and the role of global value chains : the cases of Malaysia and Vietnam

This paper uses firm-level data to examine the impact of foreign chemical safety regulations such as RoHS and REACH on the production costs and export performance of firms in Malaysia and Vietnam. This paper also investigates the role of global value chains in enhancing the likelihood that a firm complies with RoHS and REACH. We find that in addition to the initial setup costs for compliance, EU RoHS (REACH) implementation imposes on firms additional variable production costs by requiring additional labor and capital expenditures of around 57% (73%) of variable costs. We also find that compliance with RoHS and REACH significantly increases the probability of export and that compliance with EU RoHS and REACH helps firms enter a greater variety of countries. Furthermore, firms participating in global value chains have higher compliance with RoHS and REACH regulations, regardless of whether the firm is directly exporting, when the firm operates in upstream or downstream industries of the countries' supply chain.

Stability of complementarity between Japanese FDI and import of intermediate goods : agglomeration effects and parent-firm heterogeneity

This paper examines the duration of intermediate goods imports and its determinants for Japanese affiliates in China. Our estimations, using a unique parent-affiliate-transaction matched panel dataset for a discrete-time hazard model over the 2000–2006 period, reveal that products with a higher upstreamness index, differentiated goods, and goods traded under processing trade are less likely to be substituted with local procurement. Firms located in more agglomerated regions with more foreign affiliates tend to shorten the duration of imports from the home country. For parent-firm characteristics, multinational enterprises that have many foreign affiliates or longer foreign production experience import intermediate goods for a longer duration.

Impacts of an HIV counseling and testing initiative -- results from an experimental intervention in a large firm in South Africa

We have run experimental interventions to promote HIV tests in a large firm in South Africa. We combined HIV tests with existing medical check programs to increase the uptake. In the foregoing survey we undertook previously, it was suggested that fears and stigma of HIV/AIDS were the primary reasons given by the employees for not taking the test. To counter these, we implemented randomized interventions. We find substantial heterogeneity in responses by ethnicity. Africans and Colored rejected the tests most often. Supportive information increased the uptake by 6 to 16% points. A tradeoff in targeting resulting in stigmatizing the targeted and a reduction of exclusion error is discussed.

How does firm heterogeneity information impact the estimation of embodied carbon emissions in Chinese exports?

Using an augmented Chinese input–output table in which information about firm ownership and type of traded goods are explicitly reported, we show that ignoring firm heterogeneity causes embodied CO2 emissions in Chinese exports to be overestimated by 20% at the national level, with huge differences at the sector level, for 2007. This is because different types of firm that are allocated to the same sector of the conventional Chinese input–output table vary greatly in terms of market share, production technology and carbon intensity. This overestimation of export-related carbon emissions would be even higher if it were not for the fact that 80% of CO2 emissions embodied in exports of foreign-owned firms are, in fact, emitted by Chinese-owned firms upstream of the supply chain. The main reason is that the largest CO2 emitter, the electricity sector located upstream in Chinese domestic supply chains, is strongly dominated by Chinese-owned firms with very high carbon intensity.

Handy or practical student. Objective: to pass or to learn

With the introduction of the European Higher Education Area and the development of the "Bologna" method in learning certain technological subjects, a pilot assessment procedure was launched in the "old" plan to observe, monitor and analyze the acquiring knowledge of senior students in various academic courses. This paper is a reflection on culture and knowledge. Will students accommodate to get a lower score on tests because they know they have a lot of tooltips to achieve their objectives?. Are their skills lower for these reason?.

Estimating Perceived Video Quality from Objective Parameters in Video over IP Services

In Video over IP services, perceived video quality heavily depends on parameters such as video coding and network Quality of Service. This paper proposes a model for the estimation of perceived video quality in video streaming and broadcasting services that combines the aforementioned parameters with other that depend mainly on the information contents of the video sequences. These fitting parameters are derived from the Spatial and Temporal Information contents of the sequences. This model does not require reference to the original video sequence so it can be used for online, real-time monitoring of perceived video quality in Video over IP services. Furthermore, this paper proposes a measurement workbench designed to acquire both training data for model fitting and test data for model validation. Preliminary results show good correlation between measured and predicted values.

Methods and Tools for Objective Assessment of Psychomotor Skills in Laparoscopic Surgery

Training and assessment paradigms for laparoscopic surgical skills are evolving from traditional mentor–trainee tutorship towards structured, more objective and safer programs. Accreditation of surgeons requires reaching a consensus on metrics and tasks used to assess surgeons’ psychomotor skills. Ongoing development of tracking systems and software solutions has allowed for the expansion of novel training and assessment means in laparoscopy. The current challenge is to adapt and include these systems within training programs, and to exploit their possibilities for evaluation purposes. This paper describes the state of the art in research on measuring and assessing psychomotor laparoscopic skills. It gives an overview on tracking systems as well as on metrics and advanced statistical and machine learning techniques employed for evaluation purposes. The later ones have a potential to be used as an aid in deciding on the surgical competence level, which is an important aspect when accreditation of the surgeons in particular, and patient safety in general, are considered. The prospective of these methods and tools make them complementary means for surgical assessment of motor skills, especially in the early stages of training. Successful examples such as the Fundamentals of Laparoscopic Surgery should help drive a paradigm change to structured curricula based on objective parameters. These may improve the accreditation of new surgeons, as well as optimize their already overloaded training schedules.

Design of a compact objective for SWIR applications

Lately the short-wave infrared (SWIR) has become very important due to the recent appearance on the market of the small detectors with a large focal plane array. Military applications for SWIR cameras include handheld and airborne systems with long range detection requirements, but where volume and weight restrictions must be considered. In this paper we present three different designs of telephoto objectives that have been designed according to three different methods. Firstly the conventional method where the starting point of the design is an existing design. Secondly we will face design starting from the design of an aplanatic system. And finally the simultaneous multiple surfaces (SMS) method, where the starting point is the input wavefronts that we choose. The designs are compared in terms of optical performance, volume, weight and manufacturability. Because the objectives have been designed for the SWIR waveband, the color correction has important implications in the choice of glass that will be discussed in detail

Multi-objective Estimation of Distribution Algorithm Based on Joint Modeling of Objectives and Variables

This paper proposes a new multi-objective estimation of distribution algorithm (EDA) based on joint modeling of objectives and variables. This EDA uses the multi-dimensional Bayesian network as its probabilistic model. In this way it can capture the dependencies between objectives, variables and objectives, as well as the dependencies learnt between variables in other Bayesian network-based EDAs. This model leads to a problem decomposition that helps the proposed algorithm to find better trade-off solutions to the multi-objective problem. In addition to Pareto set approximation, the algorithm is also able to estimate the structure of the multi-objective problem. To apply the algorithm to many-objective problems, the algorithm includes four different ranking methods proposed in the literature for this purpose. The algorithm is applied to the set of walking fish group (WFG) problems, and its optimization performance is compared with an evolutionary algorithm and another multi-objective EDA. The experimental results show that the proposed algorithm performs significantly better on many of the problems and for different objective space dimensions, and achieves comparable results on some compared with the other algorithms.

Transportation infrastructure impacts on firm location: the effect of a new metro line in the suburbs of Madrid

Firm location patterns emerge as a consequence of multiple factors, including firm considerations, labor force availability, market opportunities, and transportation costs. Many of these factors are influenced by changes in accessibility wrought by new transportation infrastructure. In this paper we use spatial statistical techniques and a micro-level data base to evaluate the effects of Madrid?s metro line 12 (known as Metrosur) expansion on business location patterns. The case study is the municipality of Alcorcon, which is served by the new metro line since 2003. Specifically, we explore the location patterns by different industry sectors, to evaluate if the new metro line has encouraged the emergence of a ?Metrosur spatial economy?. Our results indicate that the pattern of economic activity location is related to urban accessibility and that agglomeration, through economies of scale, also plays an important role. The results presented in this paper provide evidence useful to inform efficient transportation, urban, and regional economic planning.

Flexibility, innovation and sustainability in business models as determinants of firm performance heterogeneity.

La comprensión actual de la heterogeneidad de las empresas académico rendimiento en el entorno entra industria necesita un mayor desarrollo. Gestión estratégica y el discurso sobre la literatura empresarial necesita mayor explicación de por qué los modelos de negocio aparentemente similares en el mismo sector actúan de forma diferente. También qué factores del entorno sectorial y operativo determina el surgimiento y funcionamiento de los modelos de negocio sostenibles e innovadoras permanecen sin explorar. Un marco se conceptualiza acompañado de estudios de caso sobre la compañía aérea y las industrias de energía renovable. El estudio lleva a una visión basada en los recursos de los modelos de negocio que las empresas alcancen posiciones heterogéneas de recursos. Una explicación para la heterogeneidad firme desempeño que se busca por intermediación conocimiento que genera valor a partir de la utilización eficaz de los recursos de conocimientos adquiridos a entornos entra y inter-empresa. Un marco para la aparición de nuevos modelos de negocios verdes se conceptualiza y deducciones se obtienen mediante un estudio de caso sobre la base de la industria de biocombustibles de energías renovables para explicar la dinámica de los mercados verdes y cómo se puede crear valor sostenible y capturó e innovadora de los modelos de negocios verdes. El marco desarrollado proporciona una visión cíclica de la flexibilidad del modelo de negocio en la que se propaga la acumulación de recursos basada en el conocimiento del modelo de negocio a través de los ambientes dentro y inter-empresa. Estrategias de conocimiento de corretaje del resultado ambientes inter e dentro-firma en un mejor desempeño del modelo de negocio. La flexibilidad del modelo de negocio que adquiere está determinada por la eficiencia con la acumulación de recursos está alineado con su ambiente externo. Las características de la que el modelo de negocio alcanza ventajas competitivas, como la innovación y la flexibilidad se atribuyen a la heterogeneidad de los recursos. La investigación se extiende a la literatura orientación de servicio al conceptualizar y medir la orientación a servicios como un requisito clave para la innovación del modelo de negocio, mientras que aboga por la necesidad de identificar correctamente las competencias básicas de la empresa, especialmente relevante en el contexto de la empresa orientada a los servicios, donde la creación de valor requiere recursos y la prestación eficiente de los servicios. La investigación trata de llegar a una descripción de los modelos de negocio sostenibles verdes y argumenta que la innovación, la flexibilidad y la sostenibilidad son los tres habilitadores básicos de los cuales el concepto de modelo de negocio verde puede evolucionar la explotación de nuevos mecanismos de mercado y los mercados para crear y capturar valor en el mantenimiento de su innovadora ambiente externo. La investigación integra efectivamente los conceptos de corretaje de conocimientos y modelos de negocio a partir de un recurso basado en la acumulación de vista y al mismo tiempo llega a la heterogeneidad rendimiento de los modelos de negocio aparentemente similares dentro de la misma industria. La investigación indica cómo se producen perturbaciones del mercado en una industria como resultado de modelos de negocio innovador y flexible, y cómo los nuevos modelos de negocio evolucionan en base a estos trastornos. Avanza la comprensión de cómo la estrategia de núcleo competencia y la innovación del modelo de negocio construcciones se comportan en el esfuerzo de la empresa de servicios para obtener una ventaja competitiva sostenible. Los resultados tienen implicaciones en el rendimiento de las empresas que empiezan sin recursos distintos de los suyos, o que utilizan un modelo de negocio imitado, para lograr un mejor rendimiento a través de la evolución del modelo de negocio alineado con las exitosas estrategias de conocimiento de corretaje. Dicho marco puede permitir a las empresas a evaluar y elegir un modelo de negocio basado en la innovación, la flexibilidad, la sostenibilidad y las opciones para el cambio. La investigación se suma a la literatura acumulación de recursos, explicando cómo los recursos pueden ser efectivamente adquirida para crear valor. La investigación también se suma a la literatura empresarial verde, explicando cómo las empresas crear y capturar valor en los nuevos mecanismos dinámicos de mercado.

The role of a firm's absorptive capacity and the technology transfer process in clusters: How effective are technology centres in low-tech clusters?

This paper analyses how the internal resources of small- and medium-sized enterprises determine access (learning processes) to technology centres (TCs) or industrial research institutes (innovation infrastructure) in traditional low-tech clusters. These interactions basically represent traded (market-based) transactions, which constitute important sources of knowledge in clusters. The paper addresses the role of TCs in low-tech clusters, and uses semi-structured interviews with 80 firms in a manufacturing cluster. The results point out that producer–user interactions are the most frequent; thus, the higher the sector knowledge-intensive base, the more likely the utilization of the available research infrastructure becomes. Conversely, the sectors with less knowledge-intensive structures, i.e. less absorptive capacity (AC), present weak linkages to TCs, as they frequently prefer to interact with suppliers, who act as transceivers of knowledge. Therefore, not all the firms in a cluster can fully exploit the available research infrastructure, and their AC moderates this engagement. In addition, the existence of TCs is not sufficient since the active role of a firm's search strategies to undertake interactions and conduct openness to available sources of knowledge is also needed. The study has implications for policymakers and academia.

Regularized logistic regression and multi-objective variable selection for classifying MEG data

This paper addresses the question of maximizing classifier accuracy for classifying task-related mental activity from Magnetoencelophalography (MEG) data. We propose the use of different sources of information and introduce an automatic channel selection procedure. To determine an informative set of channels, our approach combines a variety of machine learning algorithms: feature subset selection methods, classifiers based on regularized logistic regression, information fusion, and multiobjective optimization based on probabilistic modeling of the search space. The experimental results show that our proposal is able to improve classification accuracy compared to approaches whose classifiers use only one type of MEG information or for which the set of channels is fixed a priori.

Regularized model learning in EDAs for continuous and multi-objective optimization

Probabilistic modeling is the de�ning characteristic of estimation of distribution algorithms (EDAs) which determines their behavior and performance in optimization. Regularization is a well-known statistical technique used for obtaining an improved model by reducing the generalization error of estimation, especially in high-dimensional problems. `1-regularization is a type of this technique with the appealing variable selection property which results in sparse model estimations. In this thesis, we study the use of regularization techniques for model learning in EDAs. Several methods for regularized model estimation in continuous domains based on a Gaussian distribution assumption are presented, and analyzed from di�erent aspects when used for optimization in a high-dimensional setting, where the population size of EDA has a logarithmic scale with respect to the number of variables. The optimization results obtained for a number of continuous problems with an increasing number of variables show that the proposed EDA based on regularized model estimation performs a more robust optimization, and is able to achieve signi�cantly better results for larger dimensions than other Gaussian-based EDAs. We also propose a method for learning a marginally factorized Gaussian Markov random �eld model using regularization techniques and a clustering algorithm. The experimental results show notable optimization performance on continuous additively decomposable problems when using this model estimation method. Our study also covers multi-objective optimization and we propose joint probabilistic modeling of variables and objectives in EDAs based on Bayesian networks, speci�cally models inspired from multi-dimensional Bayesian network classi�ers. It is shown that with this approach to modeling, two new types of relationships are encoded in the estimated models in addition to the variable relationships captured in other EDAs: objectivevariable and objective-objective relationships. An extensive experimental study shows the e�ectiveness of this approach for multi- and many-objective optimization. With the proposed joint variable-objective modeling, in addition to the Pareto set approximation, the algorithm is also able to obtain an estimation of the multi-objective problem structure. Finally, the study of multi-objective optimization based on joint probabilistic modeling is extended to noisy domains, where the noise in objective values is represented by intervals. A new version of the Pareto dominance relation for ordering the solutions in these problems, namely �-degree Pareto dominance, is introduced and its properties are analyzed. We show that the ranking methods based on this dominance relation can result in competitive performance of EDAs with respect to the quality of the approximated Pareto sets. This dominance relation is then used together with a method for joint probabilistic modeling based on `1-regularization for multi-objective feature subset selection in classi�cation, where six di�erent measures of accuracy are considered as objectives with interval values. The individual assessment of the proposed joint probabilistic modeling and solution ranking methods on datasets with small-medium dimensionality, when using two di�erent Bayesian classi�ers, shows that comparable or better Pareto sets of feature subsets are approximated in comparison to standard methods.

Essays on contextualising firm performance heterogeneity.

¿Por qué las empresas tienen un rendimiento diferente dentro del mismo sector? Esta ha sido la pregunta clave en la literatura de gestión estratégica y esta disertación se centra en los avances del conocimiento académico sobre la heterogeneidad en el desempeño de las empresas. Por medio de una serie de ensayos, la tesis adopta un enfoque complejo y tiene como objetivo contextualizar la heterogeneidad en el desempeño de las empresas. Esta disertación se basa principalmente en una serie de ensayos que contextualizan los resultados empresariales a nivel de la empresa del, sector y de la relación entre sectores. Hay un gran debate entre los investigadores en temas de estrategia para presentar una visión más holística sobre los resultados empresariales - desde su creación hasta alcanzar una ventaja competitiva sostenible - y esta tesis tiene como objetivo proporcionar una visión mas completa. Mediante la incorporación de conceptos como el aprendizaje organizacional los modelos de negocio flexible, la heterogeneidad de los recursos, la gestión del conocimiento y las capacidades clave, que han sido estudiados de forma independiente, esta tesis tiene como objetivo examinar estos conceptos de forma conjunta y conceptualizar el proceso del desempeño empresarial. Usando la metodología del estudio de casos y un enfoque pluralista que incorpore el positivismo e interpretativismo en e l análisis de las empresas del sector aéreo y de servicios eléctricos, esta tesis desarrolla el concepto de desempeño de la empresa en los ámbitos entra e inter industrial. Los resultados indican que la heterogeneidad del desempeño entre las empresas dentro del mismo sector no se basa en un solo factor o en una sola teoría sino más bien en una serie de conceptos.