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Financial development and natural resources: Does information technology moderate for financial resource blessing?
No full textThe study investigates the nexus between natural resources rents (TNRR), Information and communication technology (ICTE), economic growth (EGT), institutional quality (IQ) and financial development (FD) in Malaysia, using quarterly data from 2001Q 1 to 2020Q 4 . Motivated by the critical role of natural resources management, digital information, and institutional strength in promoting financial sector development in Malaysian economy, this study seeks to expose the interplay between these variables. Fourier unit root tests were utilized to determine the order to integration among the variables, revealing a unique order of integration. The RALS-FARDL cointegration approach confirmed the presence of long-run nexus, which was further validated by the Bayer-Hanck combined cointegration test. To estimate the long-run elasticity, DOLS methodology was employed, identifying a resource curse for the financial sector in Malaysia. The results demonstrate that ICTE positively affects FD. Moreover, higher IQ enhances and strengthens the financial sector. Further, the positive influence of the combined effect of ICTE and natural resources further confirms that ICTE positively moderates the association between TNRR and FD. Causality analysis confirmed bidirectional causal interaction between FD and economic growth, supporting the feed-back hypothesis. The study highlights several crucial policy implications. The Malaysian government should prioritize diversifying investment beyond natural resources and reinforce the use of ICTE for conserving natural resources in such a way to leverage the financial sector. By fostering an institutional framework and investing in ICTE, Malaysia can achieve sustainable economic growth in the long-run
Relative Age Effects in Women’s and Girls’ Cricket
No full textBackground: Relative age effects (RAEs) refer to the overrepresentation of athletes born earlier in a selection year and may influence talent identification in sport. While RAEs are well-documented in male cricket, limited research exists in the female game. Purpose: To examine the prevalence of RAEs across the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) women’s and girls’ national talent pathway, from youth to senior levels. Research Design: A cross-sectional design comparing observed and expected birthdate distributions. Study Sample: Data were collected for 289 players from six cohorts: Regional Festivals (n = 108), School Games (n = 48), England U19 World Cup Squad (n = 15), and senior national squads—T20 (n = 47), ODI (n = 41), and Test (n = 30). Data Collection and/or Analysis: Players’ birthdates were categorised into quartiles based on the UK academic year. Chi-square tests and odds ratios (95% CIs) were used to assess RAEs by cohort and skill set (batters, bowlers). Transitions from youth to senior levels were also examined. Results: Significant RAEs were identified in all youth cohorts, with relatively older players overrepresented. In contrast, senior cohorts showed a reversal effect, with relatively younger players more prevalent, particularly among those who played more matches. These patterns were evident across both batters and bowlers. Conclusions: RAEs are present in the ECB women’s and girls’ talent pathway, suggesting selection biases that may hinder long-term development. Stakeholders should implement strategies to create a more equitable pathway and support all players in realising their potential
SCAN: ML-Based Slice Congestion and Admission Network Controller
No full textNetwork slicing enables 5G/6G networks to support Ultra-Reliable Low-Latency Communication (ULLC), enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB) and Massive Machine-Type Communication (mMTC). However, while this virtual networking technology enhances network efficiency, it also adds substantial signaling overhead. Maintaining sub-millisecond latency and managing dense deployments require continuous signaling at high resolution, which keeps hardware components active, leading to increased energy consumption. In this paper, we introduce a novel network controller that manages slice congestion and admission, designed to meet flexible Quality-of-Experience requirements for both priority and non-priority traffic. Utilizing metadata from Internet of Things (IoT) device applications and network characteristics, we introduce adaptability and elasticity features, enabled by transfer and reinforcement learning, significantly lowering signaling overhead and network resources. Further, analytical results show the proposed framework effectively reduces rejection rates and congestions across varying mMTC and eMBB traffic loads
Supply Management Capability, Strategic Orientation and Firm Performance
No full textThis study investigates the performance impact of how supply management capabilities interacts with firm-level strategic configurations. The research addresses the significant gap in empirical understanding of whether and how different firm-level strategies moderate the relationship between procurement capabilities and firm performance. Using partial least squares Structural Equation Modeling, mediation and moderation effects were tested for the key variables include supply management capability measured as four routine bundles, strategic orientation using the Miles and Snow typology and two performance outcomes (operational and financial) on a sample of 518 usable responses from UK-based supply management professionals. The findings reveal that supply management capability positively affects financial performance but only indirectly through operational performance and only for firms with stable strategic orientations (prospectors, analysers or defenders). In contrast, strategically unstable businesses (reactors) lack a performance impact from supply management capability. Theoretically, this research advances understanding of the operational performance value of specific bundles of supply management capabilities by highlighting the necessity of strategic coherence for capability-driven performance gains. For practioners, these findings suggest that managers should prioritize building supply management capabilities only when their firms have a clear and stable strategy, as such investments yield no performance benefit in strategically incoherent contexts. The study opens avenues for future research on the dynamics of supply management during periods of strategic transition and the development of more granular capability measures.This study investigates the performance impact of how supply management capabilities interacts with firm-level strategic configurations. The research addresses the significant gap in empirical understanding of whether and how different firm-level strategies moderate the relationship between procurement capabilities and firm performance. Using partial least squares Structural Equation Modeling, mediation and moderation effects were tested for the key variables include supply management capability measured as four routine bundles, strategic orientation using the Miles and Snow typology and two performance outcomes (operational and financial) on a sample of 518 usable responses from UK-based supply management professionals. The findings reveal that supply management capability positively affects financial performance but only indirectly through operational performance and only for firms with stable strategic orientations (prospectors, analysers or defenders). In contrast, strategically unstable businesses (reactors) lack a performance impact from supply management capability. Theoretically, this research advances understanding of the operational performance value of specific bundles of supply management capabilities by highlighting the necessity of strategic coherence for capability-driven performance gains. For practioners, these findings suggest that managers should prioritize building supply management capabilities only when their firms have a clear and stable strategy, as such investments yield no performance benefit in strategically incoherent contexts. The study opens avenues for future research on the dynamics of supply management during periods of strategic transition and the development of more granular capability measures
Community Empowerment and Environmental Ordinances in the United States: A Study
No full textIn the aftermath of the Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission decision in 2010, there has been a notable increase in corporate lobbying efforts aimed at influencing State legislatures.¹
The ruling effectively expanded corporate influence in politics by equating financial spending with free speech, opening the door for corporations to exert greater control over legislative agendas. One notable consequence of this shift has been the suppression of municipal powers, as corporations increasingly lobby state governments to preempt or override local regulations that conflict with their interests.
Municipalities, as subordinate entities to their state governments, often seek to assert themselves by using the regulatory powers granted to them to make political or social statements, such as enacting environmental protections, labour laws, or anti-discrimination ordinances. However, corporations—armed with more political influence post Citizens United —have successfully pushed state legislatures to pass preemption laws that prevent municipalities from enacting policies that could hurt business interests. This dynamic creates a significant tension between local governments attempting to reflect the values of their communities and state governments, which may be more susceptible to corporate influence. Consequently, the ability of municipalities to enact meaningful local regulations is often stifled.
In some instances, local government municipalities have responded in what may be regarded as typical US fashion, by employing the ideals of “We the People of the United States,” to advance their own political agenda through local action.² They have done so using their regulatory powers and specifically their powers to enact municipal ordinances as a tool for change, endeavouring to rebalance the power dynamics that exist among local, state, and federal levels.³
Central to this thesis is an exploration of a series of ordinances which have been put in place by municipalities for political purposes but which, in legal terms, have had very little chance of withstanding challenges in the courts, and their connection with a not-for profit organisation –the Community Environmental Legal Defence Fund (CELDF). This thesis seeks to uncover the extent to which CEDLF has served as the conduit through which these municipalities have channelled their activism.⁴
To this end, I have compiled a dataset of municipal ordinances that challenge corporate influence and aim to grant rights to nature. This thesis argues that the primary purpose of these ordinances is to assert the right to local democracy, with many of the municipalities involved drawing heavily on the guidance and experience of the Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund (CELDF). ⁵ As a result, the reader will also find a significant focus on the work and ethos of CELDF, in fact, this research places significant emphasis on CELDF’s work and its role in helping local communities develop what are known as Community Bills of Rights (CBRs), which serve as the foundation for the CBRs I have examined.
CELDF’s capacity to assist communities expanded after 2006, when the organisation grew to include national, state, and local chapters. This growth allowed CELDF to engage more directly with communities through initiatives like the “Democracy School.” At these sessions, participants are encouraged to explore ways to address the constitutional power imbalance between states and municipalities and to confront corporate influence on state legislatures. Topics covered include strategies such as revoking legal personhood for corporations and formulating, enacting, and protecting local community rights. ⁶
After attending Democracy School, participants can collaborate with CELDF’s legal experts to address their specific concerns by drafting a Community Bill of Rights tailored to their needs and circumstances. This process has been instrumental in shaping the ordinances featured in this research.7
The municipal ordinances or CBRs, that I have assembled are of interest for two specific reasons. First they grant rights to nature or natural phenomena. This is in itself sufficient to make them of interest. As my research discovered, the recent attempts to confer legal or constitutional rights upon natural phenomena that we have seen specifically in Ecuador and now elsewhere in South America owed much to the work of CEDLF which pioneered this strategy in Pennsylvania with the Tamaqua Ordinance that I discuss in Chapter 1.
The second main focus of my interest is that though seemingly granting rights to natural entities, these ordinances, or CBRs are, in essence, bold affirmations of community rights to self-determination.⁸ Laden with an anti-corporate ethos, the ordinances, challenge established norms and boldly assert that the bedrock commitment of the US Constitution should be interpreted through the lens of prioritizing localism, self-governance, and self-determination.⁹ Specific features take the form of attempts a to confer legal “standing” sufficient to support an action in the courts upon “residents”, thereby apparently seeking to create an Actio Popularis, or citizens’ action which will enable public-minded citizens to enforce the rights which the ordinances purport to confer. These include rights to take nonviolent direct action as a legal enforcement tool, to secure sanctuary from the state and federal violation of conferred rights and to ensure that corporations that have not been banned from their territory are subjected to fair taxation.¹⁰ Because of these bold assertions, the ordinances are unlikely to withstand legal scrutiny.¹¹
This thesis ventures to explore the driving forces behind the municipal ordinances’ enactment, their dynamic evolution over time in terms of values and strategy, and what these municipal ordinances or CBRs tell in terms of US political practices.
This thesis investigates US municipal activism, aided by the Community Environmental Legal Defence Fund (CELDF), through municipal ordinances known as Community Bills of Rights (CBRs) as instruments for change.
First, it explores the interaction between the current trend of constitutionalising rights of nature and local legislative activism, emphasizing the convergence of Roman law principles and indigenous jurisprudential traditions in granting rights of nature, especially the recognition of community rights. It also highlights CELDF's influence in shaping Ecuadorian constitutional provisions on rights of nature and the shift from mere environmental protection to recognizing local communities' rights over their natural resources.
Second, it discusses and then compares current scholarship on adversarial activism against (what is termed) legislative activism. Doing so highlights the distinctive nature of legislative activism within the adversarial framework and offers a better understanding of the methods and motivations behind the municipal legislative activism influenced by CELDF's values.
Finally, it dissects CBRs as legislative instruments and examines claims made by CELDF, seeking to understand the widespread adoption of ordinances purportedly granting rights of nature, despite having been legally challenged several times. This sheds light on the motivations behind the CBRs, revealing connections to themes such as anti-corporatism, limited government, and assertions of local democracy and self-determination. The analysis redefines CELDF's role as a radical grassroots movement advocating for Police Powers' recognition by municipalities.
In summary, this thesis underscores the importance of safeguarding local communities' rights. While the focus appears centred on recognizing rights of nature, the essence lies in empowering local communities and preserving their control over their environment. By advocating for the community's right to local self-governance, CELDF aims to enable municipalities to secure local communities' rights in local decision-making. This perspective has profound implications for legal advocacy, governance structures, and social justice in the US, emphasizing the paramount importance of localism and community empowerment.
¹ Citizens United v. FEC, 130 S. Ct. 876, 913 (2010).
² Bruce Ackerman, Constitutional Politics/Constitutional Law, 99 THE YALE LAW JOURNAL 453 (Dec. 1989), p. 456.
³ Christopher B Goodman, Megan E Hatch, Bruce D McDonald III, State Preemption of Local Laws: Origins and Modern Trends, 4 PERSPECTIVES ON PUBLIC MANAGEMENT AND GOVERNANCE, Issue 2 (2021).
⁴ CELDF Community Rights Pioneers Protecting Nature and Communities, CELDF (2020), https://celdf.org/.
⁵ CELDF -Where We Work, CELDF, https://celdf.org/where-we-work/.
⁶ Richard L. Grossman, The Daniel Pennock Democracy School Curriculum (Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund 2005).
⁷ Thomas Linzey, We The People : Stories From the Community Rights Movement in the United States (Oakland, California: Pm Press 2016).
8 On this see for instance, Simon Davis-Cohen, Dismantling Corporate Control Isn’t a Spectator Sport: An Interview with Thomas Linzey, In These Times, (Mar. 15, 2016) https://inthesetimes.com/article/thomas-linzey-interview-on-corporate-control-and-community-rights.
9 Id.
10 On this, however, CELDF’s list is not exhaustive, I will show this in more detail in chapter three.
11 On this see for instance, Peggy Kirk Hall, Ellen Essman, Evin Bachelor, The Lake Erie Bill of Rights Ballot Initiative, In the Weeds Digging into current legal issues with OSU Extension’s Farm Office, (2018). https://www.greatlakeslaw.org/files/LEBOR_OSU_Extension_Ag_Law_Analysis.pdf
From informal to formal: Does formal enterprises’ prior experience in the informal sector drive their adoption of bricolage?
No full textWhile previous studies have significantly contributed to our understanding of bricolage – an important resource mobilisation approach in resource-constrained contexts, there is limited research on the impact of formal enterprises’ prior informal sector experience on their adoption of bricolage. This paper develops and tests the hypothesis that the adoption of bricolage can be a function of prior informal sector experience. Using survey data from 1251 formal enterprises operating in Indonesia, we found support for our proposition. Our findings show that there is a positive relationship between prior informal sector experience and the adoption of bricolage. This relationship is strengthened by greater levels of informal competition. The results have implications for theory and practice
Strengths and Challenges of the Speech and Language Therapy (SLT) Degree Apprenticeship Route: Initial Stakeholder Perspectives
No full textBackground
This article shares details of a pilot research project that explored stakeholder perceptions and experiences of the academic and work‐based elements involved in one university's innovative speech and language therapy (SLT) degree apprenticeship.
Aims
To share findings about SLT apprentice learner and mentor expectations and experiences since this knowledge, including of barriers and facilitators, will enable the university concerned, and others already providing or developing their SLT degree apprenticeship, to enhance their offer and so apprentice learning experience and outcomes.
Methods and Procedures
Following ethical approval, a mixed‐methods research design was applied. In phase one, 18 apprentice and mentor participants involved in the programme completed online questionnaires. Themes identified from inductive thematic analysis of the questionnaire data were probed further in nine online semi‐structured interviews, with transcripts also being analysed using inductive thematic analysis.
Outcomes and Results
Findings offer new knowledge about the apprenticeship route into the profession and provide valuable insight for HEIs and employers considering or developing an SLT or wider allied health profession (AHP) apprenticeship offer. This includes detail about the strengths and challenges related to four key themes: internal factors; time and support; structure and organisation; and apprenticeship processes.
Conclusions and Implications
The apprenticeship provides an economically sustainable and practical progression opportunity for learners, including SLTAs, and may provide SLT training that is better embedded in clinical practice than traditional routes. Collaboration between the key stakeholders (apprentice learner, workplace mentor, and HEI) is central to this, though challenges in terms of time and resources exist. Developing and sustaining SLT apprenticeships therefore has implications for future workforce development and the profession
“A Light at the End of the Tunnel”—Post-COVID Condition and the Role of Rehabilitation and Recovery Intervention Delivered in a Football Club Community Trust: A Qualitative Study
No full textBackground and Objectives: This study explored the lived experiences of individuals with post-COVID condition (PCC) who participated in a 12-week exercise rehabilitation and recovery programme (PCCRRP) delivered by a professional football club community trust (FCCT). The aim was to understand the effects of the programme on physical function and quality of life (QoL). This study aims to address the gap in the literature of a lack of qualitative research exploring the experiences and perspectives of individuals engaging in exercise and physical activity as part of their recovery from PCC. Furthermore, it seeks to provide in-depth participant accounts to better understand outcome-level data. Methods: A qualitative approach was employed, involving semi-structured interviews with seven participants (mean age of 52 ± 8.54 years, with ages ranging from 45 to 60 years) following the 12-week PCCRRP to explore perceived changes in physical function and QoL. Thematic analysis was used to analyse the interview data, including participants’ narratives on their QoL experiences. Results: Participants reported improvements in exercise capacity, fatigue, and breathlessness, leading to enhanced physical function and QoL. They also experienced improvements in emotional well-being, including increased confidence and reduced anxiety. The programme’s focus on tailored exercise plans empowered participants to manage their symptoms and regain control over their lives. Conclusions: The PCCRRP delivered by an FCCT had positive effects on the physical function and QoL of individuals with PCC. This highlights the potential of FCCTs in providing effective rehabilitation and support for individuals with PCC
An explainable and efficient deep learning framework for EEG-based diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease and frontotemporal dementia
No full textThe early and accurate diagnosis of Alzheimer's Disease and Frontotemporal Dementia remains a critical challenge, particularly with traditional machine learning models which often fail to provide transparency in their predictions, reducing user confidence and treatment effectiveness. To address these limitations, this paper introduces an explainable and lightweight deep learning framework comprising temporal convolutional networks and long short-term memory networks that efficiently classifies Frontotemporal dementia (FTD), Alzheimer's Disease (AD), and healthy controls using electroencephalogram (EEG) data. Feature engineering has been conducted using modified Relative Band Power (RBP) analysis, leveraging six EEG frequency bands extracted through power spectrum density (PSD) calculations. The model achieves high classification accuracies of 99.7% for binary tasks and 80.34% for multi-class classification. Furthermore, to enhance the transparency and interpretability of the framework, SHAP (SHapley Additive exPlanations) has been utilized as an explainable artificial intelligence technique that provides insights into feature contributions
Formalization as a strategy of ASM “sanitization”: So far, how far?
No full textPurpose
For decades, a significant number of studies have examined the agenda of the formalization of artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) operations. There is now enough anecdotal evidence that formalization of ASM operations can help promote safe working conditions. However, very few studies have examined the internal dynamics and outcomes once ASM operations become formalized. This notwithstanding, these few studies provide very useful insights that could help reshape policy and refine scholarly ideas about formalization. This present study, therefore, performs the task of (re)visiting the empirically oriented insights of the literature that explores the ASM activities of operators that are in possession of mining licenses and are in operation.
Design/methodology/approach
The study seeks to answer the following question: How far have formalization mechanisms succeeded in “sanitizing” the ASM sector? To achieve this, the authors draw on the findings of qualitative case studies examining the operations of formal ASM actors. Other data for the inquiry were sourced from published documents providing insights and discussions on the dynamics of the formalization of ASM.
Findings
Synthesizing the findings of the studies that have examined formalized ASM operations, the evidence seems to suggest that monitoring and supervision can mediate good environmental management practices. Formalization seems to have positive impacts on the working conditions and the health and safety of the operators; however, this might not be true for access to credit, reinforcing the fact that unaided formalization cannot completely cure the excesses of informality.
Originality/value
Analyzing the literature on formal ASM operations, this present study provides useful discussions of where we stand and how research and policy discussions on ASM formalization may proceed from here