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Impact of gender on the acceptance of electronic word-of-mouth (eWOM) information in Spain
No full textThe aim of this paper is to explore the differences between males and females in the acceptance of eWOM information. For this purpose, the Information Acceptance Model (IACM), which addresses the characteristics that are evaluated in the use and attitude towards the use of information and play a role in the purchase decision-making process, as demonstrated in the literature, has been used as a reference. An empirical model, which is expected to be validated from the information collected through an online questionnaire completed by 271 users of social networking sites in Spain, has been used. A structural equation model (SEM) is introduced to calculate the measurement structure of the variables and the relationships between them. This paper provides useful insights into the understanding of the differences in the behaviour of males and females regarding online eWOM, and therefore could imply differentiated online marketing and reputation management activities. © 2018 Tautosakos Darbai. All rights reserved
Modelo de evaluacion gamificado en cursos de algoritmos y programacion
No full textCurrently, engineering and computer science programs worldwide face several challenges, on the one hand, high dropout rates still persist in these programs with rates ranging from 30% to 50%. On the other hand, due to this problem, a crisis is looming in the software industry due to the high demand and the shortage of qualified talent in Information and Communication Technologies (ICT). This is why software development and more specifically learning to program has become a worldwide trend. While gamification-based teaching methodologies and strategies can improve student motivation and engagement during the teaching-learning process, the design and implementation of gamified assessment models remains a largely unmet challenge, due to that most authors apply the use of gamification in virtual learning environments and little in face-To-face activities developed in the classroom. Due to the above, this article proposes a gamified evaluation model aimed at improving the performance of students during an introductory course on algorithms and programming, through permanent feedback, assertive problem solving and mini-lines, and the development of video games to motivate learning by accumulating points or bonuses. With the application of this model, not only will it be possible to improve the motivation, permanence and performance of the students, but also the teachers will be able to maintain an adequate level of demand in each of the proposed evaluative activities and thus achieve greater commitment in the students, motivation and effort to obtain the bonuses and increase the results obtained in each of the course evaluations. © 2020 IEEE
Technical feasibility and life cycle assessment of an industrial waste as stabilizing product for unpaved roads, and influence of packaging
No full textThe use of industrial solid wastes with a high content of SiO2 and Al2O3, called “precursors” is often studied in the construction industry when combined with NaOH as “activator”. The precursor and activator system is generally proposed as a binder material with similar characteristics to Portland cement. In this work, we technically and environmentally evaluated such a system elaborated with an industrial waste: coal ash with caustic soda in solid state. This product, mixed with the soil, acts as a stabilizer to increase the capacity of load support, allowing the improvement of the conditions of performance in low volume traffic roads. An experimental design applied to the stabilizing product showed the incidence of different factors on the load carrying capacity response: packaging material, type of seal, baling moisture and storage humidity. The application of the stabilizer product was found to increase the resistance of the ground over a 500%. Finally, the environmental aspects were evaluated through a simplified Life Cycle Assessment methodology (LCA), the scope of the study was restricted to cradle to gate, collecting data up to the packaged stabilizing product. The results showed that the highest impacts were caused, for most impact categories, by NaOH production, and transport was relevant as well. © 2018 Elsevier B.V
Assessment of mobile taxi booking apps: An empirical study of adoption by taxi drivers in Medellín-Colombia
No full textThis paper aims to explore the variables that precede the intention and use of Mobile taxi booking (MTB) Apps as tools for taxi drivers to make contact with customers in the city of Medellin, Colombia. A literature review was carried out to select the variables that most effectively represent the analysed behaviour. The methodology was a quantitative study based on theories technology adoption such as the planned behaviour model, the model of the theory of technology adoption, and the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology. The data was collected in Medellin Colombia by means of surveying taxi drivers who use MTB Apps. The data analysis Partial Least Square (PLS) was used and the result more important is the evidence that taxi drivers take the positives factors that this technology provides to contact customers. © 2020 Elsevier Lt
Matrix variate Birnbaum–Saunders distribution under elliptical models
No full textThis paper derives the elliptical matrix variate version of the well known univariate Birnbaum–Saunders distribution of 1969. A generalisation based on a matrix transformation is proposed, instead of the independent element-to-element elliptical extension of the Gaussian univariate case. Some results on Jacobians were needed to derive the new matrix variate distribution. A number of particular distributions are studied and some basic properties are found. Finally, an example based on real data of two populations is given and the maximum likelihood estimates are obtained for the class of Kotz models. A comparison with the Gaussian kernel is also given by using a modified BIC criterion. © 2020 Elsevier B.V
PID tuning method based on IMC for inverse-response second-order plus dead time processes
No full textThis work addresses a set of tuning rules for PID controllers based on Internal Model Control (IMC) for inverse-response second-order systems with dead time. The transfer function, and some time-response characteristics for such systems are first described. Then, the IMC-based methodology is developed by using an optimization objective function that mixes performance and robustness. A correlation that minimizes the objective function and that allows the user to compute the controller's tuning parameter is found. The obtained expressions are mathematically simple, which facilitate their application in a ten-step systematic methodology. Finally, the proposed tuning method is compared to other well-known tuning rules that have been reported in literature, for a wide range of parameters of the process. The performance achieved with the proposed method is very good not only for disturbance rejection but for set-point tracking, when considering a wide-range of parameters of the process' transfer function. © 2020 by the authors
Do hybrid organizations contribute to Sustainable Development Goals? Evidence from B Corps in Colombia
No full textThe Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) agreed upon by the United Nations (UN) in 2015 encompass a set of 17 Goals, aimed at integrating matters of humanity's most pressing problems. Although the SDGs were initially suggested to be carried out by governments, enterprises are key players for the achievement of these goals through their business activities. Among for-profit firms, Certified B Corporations (B Corps) are a legal form of hybrid organizations (HOs) that has received scarce attention in the literature. Building on business model and corporate social innovation (CSI) literature, this paper aims to identify to what extent and how B Corps contribute to the SDGs when focusing on the solution of renowned social problems highlighted by the UN. A multiple-case study based on in-depth, semi-structured interviews with 18 enterprises in an emerging economy in Latin America (Colombia), shows that B Corps are great contributors to the solution of social problems, such as agriculture-related challenges, corruption, climate change, labor, poverty, and unsustainable habits. Results elucidate that Colombian B Corps show great potential in the empowerment of communities, the introduction of novel organizational practices, the creation of alternatives that shape new lifestyles and consumption patterns, and the introduction of novel environmental solutions. Overall, Colombian B Corps show relevant contributions to Goals 2, 6, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, and 16. Finally, this research provides a model for analyzing CSI in HOs and gives avenues for future research. © 2020 Elsevier Lt
The words of the other in Colombia: The testimony of politically complex victims in the institutionalized memory [La palabra del otro en Colombia: El testimonio de víctimas políticamente complejas en la memoria institucionalizada]
No full textThis article develops a problematization of the notion of testimony with which the historical memory has been constructed in Colombia. It is argued that the use of testimony as primary information of historical memory reports starts from an epistemological frame of the notion of victim. The case of the politically complex victim is analysed as a significant subject that allows to make political decisions on how to build the corpus of testimonial information in historical memory exercises. This method leads to a questioning of the representational function of historical memory reports. The analysis is the product of different fieldworks developed over ten years with victims and demobilized former combatants of illegal armies in Colombia. The work concludes that the inclusion of the testimony of the so-called the others facilitates the necessary destabilization of the narrative of violence. Keywords: Memory, victims, armed conflict, Colombia. © Gabriel Ruiz Romero, Daniel Castaño Zapata. Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 Unported (CC BY 4.0) License https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Small molecule gas adsorption onto blue phosphorene oxide layers
No full textWe report a first-principles study of the electronic and optical properties of BPO (Blue phosphorene oxide) and BPO-V (Blue phosphorene oxide with vacancy) with the adsorption of low molecular weight gases (CH4, CO2, CO, SO2, and O2). Blue phosphorene oxide -with and without vacancies- shows different optoelectronic compared to blue phosphorene. The BPO has proven to be more energetically, and structurally stable than blue phosphorene under ambient conditions. Our calculations show that: Blue phosphorene oxide -with and without vacancies- exhibits different optoelectronic compared to blue phosphorene. Physical adsorption occurs for all gas molecules. Highest values of adsorption energy are found when the monolayers interact with O2 and SO2. This is associated with a modification of conducting nature, which is changed from semiconductor to conductor character, depending on the orientation of adsorbed molecules. By contrast, the coupling with CO and CO2 molecules leads to the lowest values of the energy of adsorption. The observed features of the electronic properties and optical response of BPO + adsorbed-gas complexes allow to suggest that this phosphorene-based structures could be promising candidates for gas sensing applications. © 2020 Elsevier B.V
Interdisciplinary Approach of the Design Process for the Application of New Materials in Wheelchair Design
No full textThe appropriation of new technology requires the design and development of products that are accepted by the market. Developing such products is a complex task that usually requires the integration of knowledge from multiple disciplines. In the field of new materials, developments that can be applied to assistive technology are constantly made. This work studies the collaboration between users and professionals from industrial design, engineering, human factors, and disability for the design of an all-terrain wheelchair. This product incorporates the use of magnesium alloys, a material with an excellent strength-to-weight ratio and good damping properties. With a human-centered design approach, tools such as interviews, focus groups, prototyping, and testing were used in several stages of the process. It allowed achieving a design that takes advantage of the properties of the new material and, at the same time, meets the mobility, stability and comfort requirements of the users. © 2020, Springer Nature Switzerland AG