4101 research outputs found
Sort by
Missing Out: does masters students' preference for surveys produce sub-optimal research outcomes?
No full textLittle research has been done on the way Business Masters students carry out research for their dissertations. This exploratory study examined the way data is collected and analysed; it reviewed a small sample of dissertations and found them overwhelmingly skewed towards questionnaires (used by 91% of students) with archival (secondary) sources largely ignored. Further examination of the findings showed that almost half (45%) had poorly analysed data from questionnaires exhibiting problems such as ‘voting on the facts’ and ‘crowdsourcing judgements’. By comparison, more experienced researchers showed a much lower dependence on questionnaires. To investigate causes for this, research methods texts were reviewed and generally found to have little focus on secondary data and often to show a negative attitude towards it.The study concludes that there are issues in the way students gather data and that this can have adverse impacts on quality
Crosstalk between photoreceptor and sugar signaling modulates floral signal transduction
No full textOver the past decade, integrated genetic, cellular, proteomic and genomic approaches have begun to unravel the surprisingly crosstalk between photoreceptors and sugar signaling in regulation of floral signal transduction. Although a number of physiological factors in the pathway have been identified, the molecular genetic interactions of some components are less well understood. The further elucidation of the crosstalk mechanisms between photoreceptors and sugar signaling will certainly contribute to our better understanding of the developmental circuitry that controls floral signal transduction. This article summarizes our current knowledge of this crosstalk, which has not received much attention, and suggests possible directions for future research
An analysis of a sport degree's ability to foster deep learning: A case study of one university degree programme
No full textImpact of trade policies on SMEs' business relationships in the Nigerian textile industry : a shared value approach
No full textThere is a perception that the development of SMEs’ and their role as engines of socioeconomic growth in developing countries like Nigeria is being constrained by changes in international trading systems of goods and services. It is believed that SMEs’ competitive abilities are being restricted by the impact of international trade policy on liberalised markets.This is a particular issue in the Nigerian textile industry were at its peak, and before the impact of liberal policies, the Nigerian textile industry was the third largest in Africa; it was the second largest employer of labour after the government, contributed immensely to the GDP of the country, and was an important source of revenue to the government. However, from the 1990s, the Nigerian textile industry started experiencing some challenges often linked to trade liberalisation policy under the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade/World Trade Organisation (GATT/WTO). This placed SMEs’ textile fabric manufacturing firms under immense pressure to attain long-term sustainability while creating social and economic value in their operative environments as these challenges led to the loss of competitiveness, collaborative abilities in inter-organisational relationships, and closure of numerous SMEs’ textile fabric-manufacturing firms across the country. Given the potential impact of these challenges on SMEs’ competitive and collaborative abilities; this research examines what constitutes SMEs’ in the country’s textile industry, the issues they face as a result of trade policies; how these issues impact on their productivity and competitiveness; and finally, areas of collaborative partnership between SMEs’ and key inter-organisational stakeholders in the industry.Literature around business relationship and value creation was examined, but found to be deficient because it failed to yield insight into the role of multiple actors such as stakeholders in SMEs’ inter-organisational relationship. Hence, the research drew on the theoretical foundation of creating shared value (CSV), which embodies the principles of business relationship, value creation and reflects the roles of multiple actors in inter-organisational relationships. In addition, CSV was adopted as the theoretical underpinning of this study because it aligns with the research objective. This approach also allies with the growing body of literature suggesting that SMEs’ survival and prosperity are reliant on their business networks and relationships in and out of their value chain in order to adapt and respond to competitive pressures from the global business environment and simultaneously create socioeconomic value. Given the shared value perspective of this research, the study was examined from multiple stakeholders’ perspectives in the Nigerian textile industry and informed by a qualitative mode of inquiry and case study research strategy. In-depth case studies were employed because it is useful in areas where little or no research has been done, as is the case of this research from a developing country’s perspective. Data was collected using semi-structured in-depth interviews.In terms of the research questions, the findings from the first research question indicate that there is no shared consensus on what constitutes an SME in the Nigerian textile industry. In addition, the study found that the implementation of international and regional trade policies in Nigeria did not take into account the relevance of a shared value perspective. Thus, the absence of efficient, supportive and measurable policies such as; macroeconomic, trade-related infrastructure and institutional policies led to inconsistent banning and unbanning of textile fabrics, the influx of textiles, and high production cost in the Nigerian textile industry.Findings from the second research question show that macroeconomic, trade-related infrastructure and institutional policy issues identified in research question one led to the loss of market share and textile manufacturing firms and massive unemployment. The outcome of which led to low patronage of locally manufactured fabrics and changes in buyer behaviour which had a huge impact on SMEs’ productivity and competitiveness in the Nigerian textile industry.Findings from the third research question identified some elements of collaboration between SMEs’ and some inter-organisational stakeholders in areas of value co-creation with customers; collaboration between educational institutions and the industry in areas of innovation and knowledge transfer that previously existed; and areas of collaborative planning and outcomes between the government and practitioners in the Nigerian textile industry. However, these collaborative efforts have yielded little or no result due to the lack of shared understanding and values among key stakeholders in the industry. Hence, the central findings suggest that the lack of shared values between key inter-organisational stakeholders immensely contributed to current issues facing SMEs’ in the Nigerian textile industry. Based on these findings, the study reveals that it is difficult for firms to compete and operate efficiently in an unfavourable business environment. Therefore, SMEs’ operating in the Nigerian textile industry will have to engage in a collaborative relationship with key stakeholders in and out of the textile value chain in order to co-create shared value efficiently
Competing ideas of regulationism - what can be learnt from the German move to a more comprehensive regulation of prostitution
No full textIn 2002, Germany legalised prostitution through the enactment of the Prostitution Act, thereby following one of the most liberal regulationist approaches to date. The following year, New Zealand enacted the Prostitution Reform Act 2003, which has become an often-referenced example of decriminalisation. Despite both jurisdictions following a regulationist approach, New Zealand‘s model has attracted much positive international attention, whereas the German approach is used as an example of the shortcomings within regulationism. Drawing on the findings of the governmental evaluations of both New Zealand‘s and Germany‘s prostitution legislation, this article argues that the significant differences between the New Zealand and German models of regulating prostitution are not to be found within the legislation, but rather in the evaluation thereof. This finding calls into question the evidence presented within the evaluation of approaches to prostitution, and suggests that there may be other societal factors which decide how the success of legislation is determined. In Germany, the evaluation of the 2002 Prostitution Act (Prostitutionsgesetz) resulted in a move towards stricter regulation of prostitution. This article examines the changes to the law that will enter into force in July 2017, which are aimed at ensuring that the rights of sex workers in Germany will not just be protected in theory, but also in practic
Bridging new product development with sustainable supply chain management practices
No full textThis paper proposes a novel method linking new product development (NPD) strategies and the supply chain management practices considering sustainability approaches. The paper highlights the first stage of research study through current literature and a critical review which are based on a systematic approach by gathering a set of structured data as inputs of research findings. Using a descriptive research method and qualitative analysis, the study involves Boeing Company’s evaluation of Dreamliner development. Given the comprehensive literature regarding the Dreamliner’s development program, its weaknesses and supply chain restructuring risks, the paper establishes coherent strategies and a well-defined framework towards minimising the potential risks associated with the future series of aircraft manufacturing practices. Paper investigates the Dreamliner’s case that only represents aircraft manufacturing industry, whereas the characteristics of other industries might necessitate different approaches. Besides, minimising the environmental impacts of aircraft manufacturing industry, a full life-cycle analysis is required. Effective NPD approaches would be considered by all the businesses desiring to make innovation and alter their supply chain and advanced project management practices in order for their profitability enhancement. The research aims to develop an early understanding of systematic review of Dreamliner’s case towards emerging a clear framework addressing project management and sustainability issues. The paper would be considered by the industrial entities especially Aircraft industries which tends to receive the highest advantages from redesigning their global supply chain adoption methods
Synthesis and thermal analytical screening of metal complexes as potential novel fire retardants in polyamide 6.6
No full textThe development of new flame retardants is of ever increasing importance because of ecotoxicity concerns over existing systems and related regulatory pressures. From a range of low-toxicity, water-insoluble reagents, a total of 151 metal complexes were assessed for their potential to impart flame retardant behaviour in polymer matrices. These were successfully synthesised on a small scale and possible interactions were explored with a model engineering polymer, namely polyamide 6.6 (PA66). Powder mixtures of each complex with PA66 in a 1:3 mass ratio were analysed under air using TGA/DTA. Based on the stability of each at the typical processing temperature of 290 °C and its char forming potential (the final residue requirement at 580 °C being > 25%), selected mixtures were then analysed further using a differential mass loss technique. Metal complex/PA66 mixtures in which the differential residual mass above 470 °C was >10% with respect to the theoretical value were considered to have a positive char forming interaction. Only eight of the metal complexes passed this last criterion including aluminium, tin (II) and zinc tungstates, three tin (II) phosphorus oxyanion complexes, iron (II) aluminate and iron (III) hypophosphite. These selected compounds were synthesised on a larger scale (c.a. 100 g), characterised and compounded into PA66 at 5 wt% for flammability assessment using LOI, UL94 and cone calorimetry. Of these, only aluminium tungstate and iron (II) aluminate showed some degree of FR behaviour with LOI values ≥ 23.0 vol% compared with PA66 (LOI = 22.9 vol%) and the former almost achieved a UL94 V-2 rating. However, while up to 32% reductions in total heat releases and up to 49% reduction in PHRR in cone calorimetric tests were observed for the metal complex/PA66 composites generally, those for Al2(WO4)3 were 6 and 29% respectively and for Fe(AlO2)2 were 18 and 45% respectively
Hybrid framework of management systems supporting cluster-oriented smart grid operations
No full textThe concept of smart grids has been widely introduced to cope with energy transition towards sustainable energy system, which results in decentralization of the energy supply system. Among various solutions to accomplish the smart grids, clustering power systems approach (CPSA) has been proposed. Based on this approach, active interconnected cluster areas, operating similar to interconnected grids in transmission systems, are created in bottom-up direction from distribution level upwards to the upstream systems. In order to manage emerging cluster areas and concurrently facilitate their cooperation, this paper proposes hybrid framework of management systems. That is, both centralized and decentralized management systems are employed for operations under the CPSA. Besides, to add a level of cyber security, this paper also presents the integration of the adapted access control mechanism based on XACML data-flow model to the management systems. Lastly, the applications of the proposed hybrid framework are illustrated and discussed in use cases
A humidity sensor based on quartz crystal microbalance using graphene oxide as a sensitive layer
No full textHumidity is a vital physical quantity which is extremely important to production quality control, reliability of electronics, and health of human being. This paper proposed a humidity sensor based on quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) using graphene oxide as a sensitive layer, and investigated the characteristics of sensor according to the shift of quality factor (Q factor) as well as resonant frequency at different relative humidity (RH). Results show that at low RH values, the shift of Q factor is more suitable than the shift of resonant frequency for assessing the sensitivity of the sensor. By combining both frequency and Q factor shifts, we obtain a sensitivity of ∼1371/1%RH at 10–60%RH (by Q factor) and 1068 Hz/10%RH at 70%RH (by frequency), which are much better than the reported QCM humidity sensors, with good linearity. The QCM humidity sensor also shows good repeatability with response time and recovery time smaller than 20 and 3 s, respectively. These good characteristics of the sensor are attributed to the large surface area and high hydrophilic nature of the graphene oxide, demonstrated good potential for future applications