Linked versus Non-linked Firms in Innovation: The Effects of Economies of Network in Agglomeration in East Asia

This paper proposes a new mechanism linking innovation and network in developing economies to detect explicit production and information linkages and investigates the testable implications of these linkages using survey data gathered from manufacturing firms in East Asia. We found that firms with more information linkages tend to innovate more, have a higher probability of introducing new goods, introducing new goods to new markets using new technologies, and finding new partners located in remote areas. We also found that firms that dispatched engineers to customers achieved more innovations than firms that did not. These findings support the hypothesis that production linkages and face‐to‐face communication encourage product and process innovation.

Technology Choice in the IT Industry and Changes of the Trade Structure

In the IT industry, there has been a remarkable increase in the demand for system LSI. A system LSI must be produced, tailor-designed for each electrical appliance. It is said that this production method has made the IC cycle ambiguous in recent years. It can be sought that the choice of whether the economy pursues a development path centering on technology which is tradable or technology which is embodied in labor, depends on the historical background. The relationship between these two types of technologies is changing rapidly every one or two years. In this background, the analysis is focused on the new trend of technology. In the section 2, the newest trend of technology in the field of system LSI is explained. Then, which kind of technology will be developed and how it will have an affect in the near future, is considered.

FDI and Export Participation of Local Firms in Africa: The Case of the Kenyan Garment Industry

FDI in the garment sector has been the single case of large-scale manufacturing investment in African low-income countries since the 1990s. While FDI has triggered the development of local industries in many developing countries, it has not yet been realized in Africa. This paper describes the spillover process in the Kenyan garment industry and investigates the background of local firms' behavior through firm interviews and simulation of expected profits in export market. It shows that credit constraint, rather than absorptive capacity, is a primary source of inactive participation in export opportunity. Only firms which afford additional production facilities without sacrificing stable domestic supply may be motivated to start exporting. However, in comparison with successful Asian exporters, those firms were not as motivated as Asian firms due to the large gap in expected profits.

Innovation networks in China, Japan, and Korea : evidence from Japanese patent data

The growing importance of innovation in economic growth has encouraged the development of innovation capabilities in East Asia, within which China, Japan, and Korea are most important in terms of technological capabilities. Using Japanese patent data, we examine how knowledge networks have developed among these countries. We find that Japan's technological specialization saw little change, but those of Korea and China changed rapidly since 1970s. By the year 2009, technology specialization has become similar across three countries in the sense that the common field of prominent technology is "electronic circuits and communication technologies". Patent citations suggest that technology flows were largest in the electronic technology, pointing to the deepening of innovation networks in these countries.

Innovation networks in China, Japan, and Korea : further evidence from U.S. patent data

The growing importance of innovation in economic growth has encouraged the development of innovation capabilities in East Asia, within which China, Japan, and Korea are most important in terms of technological capabilities. Using U.S. patent data, we examine how knowledge networks have developed among these countries. We find that Japan's technological specialization saw gradual changes, but those of Korea and China changed rapidly since 1970s. By the year 2009, technology specialization has become similar across three countries in the sense that the common fields of prominent technology are electronics and semiconductors. Patent citations suggest that technology flows were largest in the electronics technology, pointing to the deepening of innovation networks in these countries. Together with our prior work, the Japanese and U.S. data produce similar conclusions about innovation networks.

Knowledge spillover in Indian automobile industry : the process and the coverage

In India, as the production of passenger cars increased, many local small and medium enterprises (SMEs) entered the parts and components manufacturing sector. The sources of knowledge for large enterprises and SMEs are different. Naturally, spillover effects among large enterprises and between large enterprises and SMEs are different. This paper focuses on knowledge spillover among large enterprises and from large enterprises to SMEs. Subcontractor can absorb relation-specific skills through repeated interaction with parent company. The results of field survey emphasizes that relation-specific skills are a determinant factor of spillover effects from assemblers and large auto component manufacturers to SMEs. Econometric analysis shows that spillover effects among medium and large automobile units and from medium and large automobile units to small units went beyond boundary of cluster.

Technology network for machine tools in Vietnam

When Vietnam joined the WTO, it accepted foreign direct investment and started to grow. Technically, it was then greatly influenced by the enterprises that entered the country through direct investment. This report shows that the technology network for machine tools is formed via direct investment and subcontracting.

Farming strategy of African smallholder farmers in transition from traditional to alternative agriculture : the case of the Nupe in central Nigeria

It is worthwhile to understand farming strategies of smallholder farmers in sub-Saharan Africa, especially those of farmers who are in transition from traditional to alternative agriculture in terms of adoption of innovative technologies. In a case study of inland valleys in central Nigeria, we investigated the farming strategy of Nupe farmers who have a long-term tradition of wet rice cultivation and indigenous methods of land preparation for soil, water and weed management. In this region, a new method of land preparation has recently been introduced along with a recommendation to use improved seeds and chemical fertilizers. Our findings reveal that Nupe farmers directly sow traditional seeds and apply a marginal amount of fertilizer to paddy plots prepared by labor-saving methods on drought-prone hydromorphic valley fringes and flood-susceptible valley bottoms, whereas they preferentially transplanted improved seedlings and applied a relatively large quantity of fertilizer to paddy fields prepared by a labor-intensive and mechanized method on a valley position where they can access to optimum water condition (less risky against the drought and flood).

Slow and steady wins the race : how the garment industry leads industrialization in low-income countries

This paper investigates how the garment industry escapes this vicious cycle and argues for the validity of labor-intensive industry as a starting point for full-fledged industrialization, even though it might at first seem to be a digression from the path to an innovation-led economy. By examining original firm-level data on garment-producing firms collected in 2002 and 2008 in Bangladesh, Cambodia, Kenya and Madagascar, the following conclusions are drawn: (1) low wages, though still sufficient for poverty reduction, are the main source of competitiveness in low-income countries; (2) after the successful initiation of industrialization causes wages to begin to rise, there is still a possibility for productivity enhancement; and (3) skill bias in technological progress is not yet a major factor, implying that the garment industry is still a labor-intensive industry. In sum, labor-intensive industry should not be discounted as a part of the development strategy of low-income countries.

Boundaries of firms and catching up by latecomers in global production networks : the case of a Mexican auto-parts manufacturer

For manufacturing firms in developing countries, there are high barriers to entry and to catching up with competitors in their global production networks (GPNs). This paper examines the case of a Mexican auto-parts manufacturer that succeeded in catching up in the automotive GPN. The author proposes that the door to GPNs is open thanks to frequent changes in the boundaries of firms, and also stresses the importance of the necessary conditions that generate opportunities, including institutional settings that facilitate market entry and catching up, and capability building by firms hopeful of entry.

Microtubule self-organization is gravity-dependent

Although weightlessness is known to affect living cells, the manner by which this occurs is unknown. Some reaction-diffusion processes have been theoretically predicted as being gravity-dependent. Microtubules, a major constituent of the cellular cytoskeleton, self-organize in vitro by way of reaction-diffusion processes. To investigate how self-organization depends on gravity, microtubules were assembled under low gravity conditions produced during space flight. Contrary to the samples formed on an in-flight 1 × g centrifuge, the samples prepared in microgravity showed almost no self-organization and were locally disordered.

Alterações dos estados de ânimo presentes de jovens atletas de futebol em função do decurso temporal durante um período competitivo

São escassos os estudos que analisam o contínuo temporal dos estados de ânimo ao longo de um período competitivo esportivo. Embora os estados de ânimo pareçam estáveis ao longo do tempo, diferentes estímulos e contextos presentes modificam a intensidade e a valência desses estados. Além disso, há fenômenos psicológicos como decaimento, em que traços de informação perdem sua ativação devido, principalmente, à passagem do tempo e a expectativa, que é a espera pela ocorrência de um evento em um determinado tempo. O objetivo desse estudo foi examinar as alterações dos estados de ânimo em jovens atletas de futebol, separados por posição e função, que ocorreram num período competitivo, em função do decurso temporal. Assim, processos como decaimento dos estados de ânimo e a influência da expectativa pela ocorrência jogo foram analisados, bem como a influência do contexto nas variações dos estados de ânimo dos atletas. Participaram deste estudo 18 jovens atletas (média de 15,4 anos ± 0,266) de um clube de futebol que estava disputando um campeonato estadual. Para o acesso aos estados de ânimo, foi utilizada a versão reduzida da Lista de Estados de Ânimo Presentes (LEAP), juntamente com um formulário de instruções de preenchimento, aplicada minutos antes de alguns treinamentos e jogos. Foram calculados os valores de presença de cada Fator da LEAP em cada evento para cada participante. Os dados foram coletados em três tipos de Eventos: antes do último treino antecedente ao jogo (Treino-Pré), antes do jogo (Pré-jogo) e antes do primeiro treino subsequente ao jogo (Treino-Pós). Os 18 jogadores foram divididos em dois grupos: Ações Defensivas (AD) e Ações Ofensivas (AO). Foram encontrados padrões de alteração dos estados de ânimo, representados pelos Fatores II (Fadiga), VII (Interesse) e XII (Serenidade) da LEAP, em função do decurso temporal, permitindo a análise dos processos de decaimento desses estados de ânimo e a influência da expectativa nessas alterações. Também foi encontrado que alguns estados de ânimo diferiram seus padrões de alteração de acordo com um intervalo temporal (Fatores IV Limerência/Empatia e; VII Interesse), bem como tiveram valores de presença diferentes na comparação entre esses intervalos. Além disso, os Fatores III (Esperança), V (Fisiológico) e XI (Receptividade) apresentaram padrões de alteração em função do decurso temporal em diferentes intervalos temporais. Variáveis contextuais, como o resultado das partidas e a competição esportiva em si, também foram influentes nessas alterações. Fadiga, esperança, empatia, estados ligados à propriocepção, interesse, receptividade e serenidade foram os estados de ânimo presentes durante todo o estudo. Ressalta-se a importância de incluir a temporalidade como variável influente nos modelos de variação de processos neurobiológicos, sobretudo nas investigações acerca de aspectos subjetivos como os estados de ânimo.

Ukraine, Another point of view. OSW Point of View (Unspecified), February 2003

Ukraine is a difficult partner for the West, and recently, it has been perceived as an enfant terrible because of the Kolchuga affair. Western and Polish press describe Ukraine as an authoritarian regime plagued by an internal crisis or even threatened by destabilisation. This picture is certainly one-sided and oversimplified, and it fails to accurately present the reality of Ukraine. Apart from experiencing definitely adverse political developments, Ukraine has also been successful in some ways in terms of its internal and foreign policies and the economy. At the same time, certain processes take place among the Ukrainian elites, that might be difficult to capture in social surveys, but may become the starting point for the future modernisation and democratisation of the country. To realise that there are some favourable aspects to the changes occurring in Ukraine is not to recognise Ukraine as a country heading to democratisation and a market economy in the Western sense. Still, it is worthwhile to understand that the positive developments, even if isolated, do occur in Ukraine and that they could be strengthened by adequate policies of the Ukrainian authorities and the Western states.

Catchment characteristics and soil and water chemistry of the San Francisco basin and subbasins, Ecuador

In this study, the Mean Transit Time and Mixing Model Analysis methods are combined to unravel the runoff generation process of the San Francisco River basin (73.5 km**2) situated on the Amazonian side of the Cordillera Real in the southernmost Andes of Ecuador. The montane basin is covered with cloud forest, sub-páramo, pasture and ferns. Nested sampling was applied for the collection of streamwater samples and discharge measurements in the main tributaries and outlet of the basin, and for the collection of soil and rock water samples. Weekly to biweekly water grab samples were taken at all stations in the period April 2007-November 2008. Hydrometric data, Mean Transit Time and Mixing Model Analysis allowed preliminary evaluation of the processes controlling the runoff in the San Francisco River basin. Results suggest that flow during dry conditions mainly consists of lateral flow through the C-horizon and cracks in the top weathered bedrock layer, and that all subcatchments have an important contribution of this deep water to runoff, no matter whether pristine or deforested. During normal to low precipitation intensities, when antecedent soil moisture conditions favour water infiltration, vertical flow paths to deeper soil horizons with subsequent lateral subsurface flow contribute most to streamflow. Under wet conditions in forested catchments, streamflow is controlled by near surface lateral flow through the organic horizon. Exceptionally, saturation excess overland flow occurs. By absence of the litter layer in pasture, streamflow under wet conditions originates from the A horizon, and overland flow.