Evidence based decision making to strenghten local governance : nutritional health interventions

Since 2001, district governments have had the main responsibility for providing public health care in Indonesia. One of the main public health challenges facing many district governments is improving nutritional standards, particularly among poorer segments of the population. Developing effective policies and strategies for improving nutrition requires a multi-sectoral approach encompassing agricultural development policy, access to markets, food security (storage) programs, provision of public health facilities, and promotion of public awareness of nutritional health. This implies a strong need for a coordinated approach involving multiple government agencies at the district level. Due to diverse economic, agricultural,and infrastructure conditions across the country, district governments’ ought to be better placed than central government both to identify areas of greatest need for public nutrition interventions, and devise policies that reflect local characteristics. However, in the two districts observed in this study—Bantul and Gunungkidul—it was clear that local government capacity to generate, obtain and integrate evidence about local conditions into the policy-making process was still limited. In both districts, decision-makers tended to rely more on intuition,anecdote, and precedent in formulating policy. The potential for evidence-based decision making was also severely constrained by a lack of coordination and communication between agencies, and current arrangements related to central government fiscal transfers, which compel local governments to allocate funding to centrally determined programs and priorities.

Aberrations and pupil location under corneal topography and Hartmann-Shack illumination conditions

PURPOSE. This study was conducted to determine the magnitude of pupil center shift between the illumination conditions provided by corneal topography measurement (photopic illuminance) and by Hartmann-Shack aberrometry (mesopic illuminance) and to investigate the importance of this shift when calculating corneal aberrations and for the success of wavefront-guided surgical procedures. METHODS. Sixty-two subjects with emmetropia underwent corneal topography and Hartmann-Shack aberrometry. Corneal limbus and pupil edges were detected, and the differences between their respective centers were determined for both procedures. Corneal aberrations were calculated using the pupil centers for corneal topography and for Hartmann-Shack aberrometry. Bland-Altmann plots and paired t-tests were used to analyze the differences between corneal aberrations referenced to the two pupil centers. RESULTS. The mean magnitude (modulus) of the displacement of the pupil with the change of the illumination conditions was 0.21 ± 0.11 mm. The effect of this pupillary shift was manifest for coma corneal aberrations for 5-mm pupils, but the two sets of aberrations calculated with the two pupil positions were not significantly different. Sixty-eight percent of the population had differences in coma smaller than 0.05 µm, and only 4% had differences larger than 0.1 µm. Pupil displacement was not large enough to significantly affect other higher-order Zernike modes. CONCLUSIONS. Estimated corneal aberrations changed slightly between photopic and mesopic illumination conditions given by corneal topography and Hartmann-Shack aberrometry. However, this systematic pupil shift, according to the published tolerances ranges, is enough to deteriorate the optical quality below the theoretically predicted diffraction limit of wavefront-guided corneal surgery.

Power management and power flow control with back-to-back converters in a utility connected microgrid

This paper proposes a method for power flow control between utility and microgrid through back-to-back converters, which facilitates desired real and reactive power flow between utility and microgrid. In the proposed control strategy, the system can run in two different modes depending on the power requirement in the microgrid. In mode-1, specified amount of real and reactive power are shared between the utility and the microgrid through the back-to-back converters. Mode-2 is invoked when the power that can be supplied by the DGs in the microgrid reaches its maximum limit. In such a case, the rest of the power demand of the microgrid has to be supplied by the utility. An arrangement between DGs in the microgrid is proposed to achieve load sharing in both grid connected and islanded modes. The back-to-back converters also provide total frequency isolation between the utility and the microgrid. It is shown that the voltage or frequency fluctuation in the utility side has no impact on voltage or power in microgrid side. Proper relay-breaker operation coordination is proposed during fault along with the blocking of the back-to-back converters for seamless resynchronization. Both impedance and motor type loads are considered to verify the system stability. The impact of dc side voltage fluctuation of the DGs and DG tripping on power sharing is also investigated. The efficacy of the proposed control ar-rangement has been validated through simulation for various operating conditions. The model of the microgrid power system is simulated in PSCAD.

Driving performance in persons with hemianopia and quadrantanopia assessed under in-traffic conditions

Purpose: To evaluate the on-road driving performance of persons with homonymous hemianopia or quadrantanopia in comparison to age-matched controls with normal visual fields. Methods: Participants were 22 hemianopes and eight quadrantanopes (mean age 53 years) and 30 persons with normal visual fields (mean age 52 years) and were either current drivers or aiming to resume driving. All participants completed a battery of tests of vision (ETDRS visual acuity, Pelli-Robson letter contrast sensitivity, Humphrey visual fields), cognitive tests (trials A and B, Mini Mental State Examination, Digit Symbol Substitution) and an on-road driving assessment. Driving performance was assessed in a dual-brake vehicle with safety monitored by a certified driving rehabilitation specialist. Backseat evaluators masked to the clinical characteristics of participants independently rated driving performance along a 22.7 kilometre route involving urban and interstate driving. Results: Seventy-three per cent of the hemianopes, 88 per cent of quadrantanopes and all of the drivers with normal fields received safe driving ratings. Those hemianopic and quadrantanopic drivers rated as unsafe tended to have problems with maintaining appropriate lane position, steering steadiness and gap judgment compared to controls. Unsafe driving was associated with slower visual processing speed and impairments in contrast sensitivity, visual field sensitivity and executive function. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that some drivers with hemianopia or quadrantanopia are capable of safe driving performance, when compared to those of the same age with normal visual fields. This finding has important implications for the assessment of fitness to drive in this population.

Managing a portfolio of corporate venture units : challenges in achieving within-unit focus and between-unit coordination

Principal Topic: There is increasing recognition that the organizational configurations of corporate venture units should depend on the types of ventures the unit seeks to develop (Burgelman, 1984; Hill and Birkinshaw, 2008). Distinction have been made between internal and external as well as exploitative versus explorative ventures (Hill and Birkinshaw, 2008; Narayan et al., 2009; Schildt et al., 2005). Assuming that firms do not want to limit themselves to a single type of venture, but rather employ a portfolio of ventures, the logical consequence is that firms should employ multiple corporate venture units. Each venture unit tailor-made for the type of venture it seeks to develop. Surprisingly, there is limited attention in the literature for the challenges of managing multiple corporate venture units in a single firm. Maintaining multiple venture units within one firm provides easier access to funding for new ideas (Hamel, 1999). It allows for freedom and flexibility to tie the organizational systems (Rice et al., 2000), autonomy (Hill and Rothaermel, 2003), and involvement of management (Day, 1994; Wadwha and Kotha, 2006) to the requirements of the individual ventures. Yet, the strategic objectives of a venture may change when uncertainty around the venture is resolved (Burgelman, 1984). For example, firms may decide to spin-in external ventures (Chesbrough, 2002) or spun-out ventures that prove strategically unimportant (Burgelman, 1984). This suggests that ventures might need to be transferred between venture units, e.g. from a more internally-driven corporate venture division to a corporate venture capital unit. Several studies suggested that ventures require different managerial skills across their phase of development (Desouza et al., 2007; O'Connor and Ayers, 2005; Kazanjian and Drazin, 1990; Westerman et al., 2006). To facilitate effective transfer between venture units and manage the overall venturing process, it is important that firms set up and manage integrative linkages. Integrative linkages provide synergies and coordination between differentiated units (Lawrence and Lorsch, 1967). Prior findings pointed to the important role of senior management (Westerman et al., 2006; Gilbert, 2006) and a shared organizational vision (Burgers et al., 2009) to coordinate venture units with mainstream businesses. We will draw on these literatures to investigate the key question of how to integratively manage multiple venture units. ---------- Methodology/Key Propositions: In order to seek an answer to the research question, we employ a case study approach that provides unique insights into how firms can break up their venturing process. We selected three Fortune 500 companies that employ multiple venturing units, IBM, Royal Dutch/ Shell and Nokia, and investigated and compared their approaches. It was important that the case companies somewhat differed in the type of venture units they employed as well as the way they integrate and coordinate their venture units. The data are based on extensive interviews and a variety of internal and external company documents to triangulate our findings (Eisenhardt, 1989). The key proposition of the article is that firms can best manage their multiple venture units through an ambidextrous design of loosely coupled units. This provides venture units with sufficient flexibility to employ organizational configurations that best support the type of venture they seek to develop, as well as provides sufficient integration to facilitate smooth transfer of ventures between venture units. Based on the case findings, we develop a generic framework for a new way of managing the venturing process through multiple corporate venture units. ---------- Results and Implications: One of our main findings is that these firms tend to organize their venture units according to phases in the venture development process. That is, they tend to have venture units aimed at incubation of venture ideas as well as units aimed more at the commercialization of ventures into a new business unit for the firm or a start-up. The companies in our case studies tended to coordinate venture units through integrative management skills or a coordinative venture unit that spanned multiple phases. We believe this paper makes two significant contributions. First, we extend prior venturing literature by addressing how firms manage a portfolio of venture units, each achieving different strategic objectives. Second, our framework provides recommendations on how firms should manage such an approach towards venturing. This helps to increase the likelihood of success of their venturing programs.

Dynamics of in vitro polymer degradation of polycaprolactone-based scaffolds : accelerated versus simulated physiological conditions

The increasing use of biodegradable devices in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine means it is essential to study and understand their degradation behaviour. Accelerated degradation systems aim to achieve similar degradation profiles within a shorter period of time, compared with standard conditions. However, these conditions only partially mimic the actual situation, and subsequent analyses and derived mechanisms must be treated with caution and should always be supported by actual long-term degradation data obtained under physiological conditions. Our studies revealed that polycaprolactone (PCL) and PCL-composite scaffolds degrade very differently under these different degradation conditions, whilst still undergoing hydrolysis. Molecular weight and mass loss results differ due to the different degradation pathways followed (surface degradation pathway for accelerated conditions and bulk degradation pathway for simulated physiological conditions). Crystallinity studies revealed similar patterns of recrystallization dynamics, and mechanical data indicated that the scaffolds retained their functional stability, in both instances, over the course of degradation. Ultimately, polymer degradation was shown to be chiefly governed by molecular weight, crystallinity susceptibility to hydrolysis and device architecture considerations whilst maintaining its thermodynamic equilibrium.

Deconstructing neurobiological coordination

Inherent indeterminacy of neurobiological systems has been revealed by research on coordination of multiarticular actions. We consider three important issues that these investigations raise for biomechanical measurement and performance modeling. These issues highlight the role of dynamic systems theory as a platform for integration of motor control and biomechanics in exercise and sports science.

Multitasking, cognitive coordination and cognitive shifts during web searching

As Web searching becomes more prolific for information access worldwide, we need to better understand users’ Web searching behaviour and develop better models of their interaction with Web search systems. Web search modelling is a significant and important area of Web research. Searching on the Web is an integral element of information behaviour and human–computer interaction. Web searching includes multitasking processes, the allocation of cognitive resources among several tasks, and shifts in cognitive, problem and knowledge states. In addition to multitasking, cognitive coordination and cognitive shifts are also important, but are under-explored aspects of Web searching. During the Web searching process, beyond physical actions, users experience various cognitive activities. Interactive Web searching involves many users’ cognitive shifts at different information behaviour levels. Cognitive coordination allows users to trade off the dependences among multiple information tasks and the resources available. Much research has been conducted into Web searching. However, few studies have modelled the nature of and relationship between multitasking, cognitive coordination and cognitive shifts in the Web search context. Modelling how Web users interact with Web search systems is vital for the development of more effective Web IR systems. This study aims to model the relationship between multitasking, cognitive coordination and cognitive shifts during Web searching. A preliminary theoretical model is presented based on previous studies. The research is designed to validate the preliminary model. Forty-two study participants were involved in the empirical study. A combination of data collection instruments, including pre- and post-questionnaires, think-aloud protocols, search logs, observations and interviews were employed to obtain users’ comprehensive data during Web search interactions. Based on the grounded theory approach, qualitative analysis methods including content analysis and verbal protocol analysis were used to analyse the data. The findings were inferred through an analysis of questionnaires, a transcription of think-aloud protocols, the Web search logs, and notes on observations and interviews. Five key findings emerged. (1) Multitasking during Web searching was demonstrated as a two-dimensional behaviour. The first dimension was represented as multiple information problems searching by task switching. Users’ Web searching behaviour was a process of multiple tasks switching, that is, from searching on one information problem to searching another. The second dimension of multitasking behaviour was represented as an information problem searching within multiple Web search sessions. Users usually conducted Web searching on a complex information problem by submitting multiple queries, using several Web search systems and opening multiple windows/tabs. (2) Cognitive shifts were the brain’s internal response to external stimuli. Cognitive shifts were found as an essential element of searching interactions and users’ Web searching behaviour. The study revealed two kinds of cognitive shifts. The first kind, the holistic shift, included users’ perception on the information problem and overall information evaluation before and after Web searching. The second kind, the state shift, reflected users’ changes in focus between the different cognitive states during the course of Web searching. Cognitive states included users’ focus on the states of topic, strategy, evaluation, view and overview. (3) Three levels of cognitive coordination behaviour were identified: the information task coordination level, the coordination mechanism level, and the strategy coordination level. The three levels of cognitive coordination behaviour interplayed to support multiple information tasks switching. (4) An important relationship existed between multitasking, cognitive coordination and cognitive shifts during Web searching. Cognitive coordination as a management mechanism bound together other cognitive processes, including multitasking and cognitive shifts, in order to move through users’ Web searching process. (5) Web search interaction was shown to be a multitasking process which included information problems ordering, task switching and task and mental coordinating; also, at a deeper level, cognitive shifts took place. Cognitive coordination was the hinge behaviour linking multitasking and cognitive shifts. Without cognitive coordination, neither multitasking Web searching behaviour nor the complicated mental process of cognitive shifting could occur. The preliminary model was revisited with these empirical findings. A revised theoretical model (MCC Model) was built to illustrate the relationship between multitasking, cognitive coordination and cognitive shifts during Web searching. Implications and limitations of the study are also discussed, along with future research work.