6 research outputs found
Foreign Direct Investment. The key determinants of foreign direct investment in Poland. Case company: ArgusPack P.C.
No full textThe aim of this thesis was to provide a better understanding of the determinants of foreign direct invest-ment (referred to hereafter as “FDI”). The company ArgusPack P.C. is a flexible packaging manufacturer located in Greece which decided to engage using FDI in Poland. Thus, the factors that favors FDI into the selected region had to be determined.
This thesis was a qualitative research, an empirical non-numerical data research. For primary data a series of interviews was conducted by the author and for secondary data peer-reviewed articles and literatures that fully-describe the determinants of FDI were utilized. There are numerous theories that define the FDI, such as Vernon’s product life cycle (Vernon, 1966), Buckley and Casson’s internalization theory (P. Buckley, 1976) and Dunning’s eclectic paradigm (Dunning J. , 2001). In this project, the Dunning’s eclectic paradigm theory was selected and applied, aiming to provide a better understanding of the factors that motivates a company or an organization to become involved using FDI. Through a research study the primary data were collected and through excessive academic research the secondary data were collected as well. In conclu-sion, an analysis of the primary data in combination with the secondary data was done mainly focusing on the participants’ point of view and the way it aligns with the theoretical aspect given by this thesis. In the end a conclusion and recommendation were formed based on all data mentioned and the personal belief of the author.
Finally, since the key determinants have been identified and examined. Foreign direct investment seems to be an adequate business strategy for ArgusPack P.C. in Polan
Non-Consensus Opinion Model with Byzantine Nodes
No full textpinion dynamics models study how the interaction among people influences the opinion formation process. In most opinion dynamics models, only one opinion can exist in the steady state, which is different from the real-life opinion formation process. In 2009, Shao et at. introduced a Non-Consensus Opinion (NCO) model, which allows different opinions to coexist in the steady state. This paper extends the NCO model by introducing a special type of nodes, namely Byzantine nodes, to play the role of dishonest people. We perform simulations on three different network models: small-scale graphs, Erdős-Rényi random graphs and scale-free networks. We find a new steady state for the NCO model: the cyclic steady state. The cyclic behavior of the NCO and Byzantine NCO model is discussed, including a method to generate networks with extremely long cycle lengths. Other properties of the Byzantine NCO model, such as the probability of cyclic behavior and the final opinion distribution, are also studied. We find that the introduction of Byzantine nodes generally steers towards a more balanced steady state and increases the probability of cyclic behavior. The latter is particularly problematic in communication systems, where the large cycle lengths may cause a very slow consensus process and thus stalling future communications.Green Open Access added to TU Delft Institutional Repository ‘You share, we take care!’ – Taverne project https://www.openaccess.nl/en/you-share-we-take-care Otherwise as indicated in the copyright section: the publisher is the copyright holder of this work and the author uses the Dutch legislation to make this work public.Network Architectures and ServicesBUS/TNO STAF
Ligji Osman ndër shqiptarët e mesjetës së vonë
No full textTo recognize a political formation and then to analyze it, inevitably, one must know the law, and must analyze the mechanism that raised and managed it; in other words, it should be recognized the legal product has has emerged from its chancellor, which, in all cases turns out to be more than this, even more than a historical document that photographs only a certain segment of time. In this context, the recognition of the Ottoman law, which dominated relatively long in Albanian territories, today is more than necessary. Only by getting familiar with it we may judge about the nature of the Ottoman state and Ottoman rule in general, as well as of the features of this rule in the Balkans as a whole and the Ottoman policy followed in Albanian areas in particular. This edition of critical literal translation serves precisely to this perception about the history of the Ottoman Empire, the knowledge of the history of its law and its institutions.Even early the codes of Ottoman law have been to the attention of the author of this book for the complexity of the information that they provide, and even to get to know more closely with them, the author has conducted a study, which has not yet been published. But the more he penetrated into the original information that only this type of document can provide, the more the author had the desire to present it to the general Albanian public and especially to the qualified readers. While today this volume with Ottoman codes is published in Albanian, it remains the obligation of the author to conclude that the study began more than a decade ago, so to give the readers a complete overview of the Ottoman code analysis, just as in time plane and in the spatial one.Some of the headings and subheadings of the contents of this book, with which the reader will get acquainted during reading are: Organizational Ottoman Code, Ottoman Code of timar, Ottoman Code of the Sanjak of Shkodra, the Ottoman Code of the Sanjak of Montenegro, the Ottoman Code of the Sanjak of Prizren, Vilayet of Vushtria, the Sanjak of Skopje, Sandjak of Ohri, of Elbasan, Manastir (Bitola), Vlora, etc.. We hope that this edition of critical literal translation serves as a sound foundation built on original historical documents and basic as much for cognitive studies as for deep ones in the field of law that has operated in Albanian areas before, during and after the centuries of Ottoman rule. The author would like to thank all those colleagues with whom he conversed and shared thoughts about the legal and philological aspects of this edition of translation.Especially he thanks Prof. Assoc. Irakli Koçollari, for the scientific curiosity and patience with which he read this study. He assesses the exchange of ideas and especially his suggestions about the juridical aspects of text editing. He is also grateful to Prof. Afërdita Onuzi. And Prof. Ali Muka for their generous support provided for the clarification of some terms and of some institutions of the Albanian tradition. He thanks Dr. Ramiz Zekaj, whose comments and suggestions about the theological Islamic aspects of the passages of the Ottoman Code are considered very important. He also thanks his colleagues of the Department of Medieval and Ottoman Studies at the Institute of History for the constructive spirit with which they welcomed and appreciated this voluminous work: Prof. Pëllumb Xhufi, Prof. Ferit. Duka and Dr. Edmond Malaj. The process of publication of this work was facilitated by the commitment of the Director of the Institute of History, Prof. Beqir Meta, who pursues a stimulus policy to scientific publications.Për të njohur një formacion politik dhe më pas për ta analizuar atë, në mënyrë të pashmangshme, atij duhet t’i njohësh ligjin, t’i analizosh mekanizmin që e ngriti dhe e administroi; me fjalë të tjera, duhet njohur si produkt juridik që ka dalë nga kancelaria e tij, i cili në të gjitha rastet rezulton të jetë më shumë se i tillë, madje edhe më shumë se një dokument historik që fotografon vetëm një segment të caktuar kohor. Në këtë kuadër edhe njohja me Ligjin Osman, i cili ka sunduar relativisht gjatë në viset shqiptare, sot është më shumë se i domosdoshëm. Vetëm duke u njohur me të mund të gjykojmë se për natyrën e shtetit dhe të sundimit osman në përgjithsi, po aq edhe për veçoritë e këtij sundimi në rajonin e Ballkanit në tërësi dhe për politikën osmane të ndjekur në viset shqiptare në veçanti. Ky edicion tekstual kritik përkthimi i shërben pikërisht këtij perceptimi për historinë e Perandorisë Osmane, njohjes së historisë së të drejtës dhe të institucioneve të saj. Qysh herët kanunnametë osmane (ang.code of Ottoman law) kanë qenë në vëmendjen e autorit të këtij libri për vetë kompleksitetin e informacionit që ofrojnë, madje për t’u njohur më nga afër me të autori ka kryer një studim i cili ende nuk është publikuar. Por sa më shumë depërtonte në informacionin origjinal që vetëm ky lloj dokumenti ofron, aq më shumë i lindte autorit dëshira që ato t’ia paraqiste opinionit të gjerë shqiptar dhe sidomos lexuesit të kualifikuar. Ndërsa sot ky vëllim me kode osmane po sheh dritën e botimit shqip, mbetet obligim i autorit të përfundojë edhe atë studim të filluar më shumë se një dekadë më parë, pra t’i jap lexuesit një panoramë të plotë analize të kanunnameve osmane, si në rrafsh kohor ashtu edhe në rrafsh hapësinor. Disa ndër titujt dhe nëntitujt e përmbajtjes së këtij libri, me të cilat do të njihet lexuesi gjatë leximit janë: Kanunnameja organizative, Kanunnameja e timarit, Kanunnameja e sanxhakut të Shkodrës, Kanunnameja e sanxhakut të vilajetit të Malit të Zi, Kanunnameja e sanxhakut të Prizrenit, Vilajeti i Vushtrisë, Sanxhaku i Shkupit, Sanxhaku i Ohrit, Elbasanit, Manastirit, Vlorës etj. Shpresojmë që ky edicion tekstual kritik përkthimi të shërbejë si një bazament i shëndoshë i ndërtuar mbi dokumentacion historik origjinal dhe themelor për studime sa njohëse aq edhe të thelluara në fushën e së drejtës që ka vepruar në viset shqiptare para, gjatë dhe pas shekujve të sundimit osman. Autori falënderon të gjithë ata kolegë me të cilët ka bashkëbiseduar dhe ndarë mendime në lidhje me aspektet juridike dhe filologjike të këtij edicioni përkthimi. Falëndëron në veçanti Prof. Asoc. Irakli Koçollarin, për durimin dhe kureshtjen shkencore me të cilin lexoi këtë punim. Vlerëson shkëmbimin e mendimeve me të dhe veçanërisht sugjerimet e tij për aspektet juridike të editimit të tekstit.Falënderon gjithashtu Prof. Afërdita Onuzin dhe Prof. Ali Mukën për ndihmën e pakursyer që ofruan në lidhje me sqarimin e disa termave dhe të disa prej institucioneve të traditës shqiptare. Falëndëron Dr. Ramiz Zekaj, komentet dhe sugjerimet e të cilit për aspektet teologjike islame të pasazheve të kanunnameve i konsideron shumë të rëndësishme. Falëndëron gjithashtu kolegët e tij të Departamentit të Studimeve Mesjetare dhe Osmane pranë Institutit të Historisë për frymën konstruktive me të cilën e pritën dhe e vlerësuan këtë punë voluminoze: Prof. Pëllumb Xhufin, Prof. Ferit Dukën dhe Dr. Edmond Malajn. Procesi i botimit të kësaj vepre u lehtësua falë angazhimit të drejtorit të Institutit të Historisë, Prof. Beqir Meta, i cili ndjek një politikë stimuluese ndaj botimeve shkencore
Optimisation et conception des réseaux sécurisés (une approche basée sur la décomposition de Benders)
No full textCette thèse a pour objectif d'étudier le problème de la conception de réseaux sécurisés en vue de proposer des méthodes efficaces pour le résoudre de façon optimale. Notre tâche a consisté à déterminer simultanément la topologie et le dimensionnement du réseau, qui permettent de router un ensemble de demandes de trafic, y compris pour une famille prédéfinie de pannes (pannes simples d'arc, de nœud ou pannes multiples), pour un type de sécurisation donné (local, global, de bout en bout), et la nature des capacités des équipements (modulaire ou non). Il a fallu résoudre des problèmes combinatoires en nombres entiers difficiles tels que le choix des arcs et leurs dimensionnements, et des problèmes apparentés aux multiflots comme l'écoulement de la demande. L'introduction de contraintes de sécurisation augmente encore la difficulté. Ceci est dû à la grande taille du problème induite par les nombreux états de pannes et leurs interactions avec le routage nominal.This thesis aims to study the capacitated survivable network design problem and to propose efficient methods to solve it optimally. Our task consists in determining simultaneously the topology, the dimensioning and the routing of the network, while satisfying a set of traffic demands even in some failure cases (i.e. simple failure of arc, of node or multiple-arc failure), and respecting a given restoration strategy (link, global, end to end with or without recovery of the released capacities) and the nature of the equipment capacities (continuous or modular). AIl this leads to a series of difficult problems. They combine combinatorial problems such as the choice of the arcs and their dimensioning, and multiflow problems such as routing or rerouting. The introduction of survivability constraints further increases the difficulty, especially due to the big size of the problem induced by the management of a large number of failure states and their interactions with the nominal routing.COMPIEGNE-BU (601592101) / SudocSudocFranceF
The Acute VertEbRal AugmentaTion (AVERT) study: Protocol for a randomised controlled, feasibility trial of spinal medial branch nerve block in hospitalised older patients with vertebral fragility fractures
No full textINTRODUCTION: Vertebral fragility fractures (VFFs) are the most common type of osteoporotic fracture found in older people, resulting in increasing morbidity and excess mortality. These fractures can cause significant pain, requiring admission to hospital. Vertebroplasty (VP) is effective in reducing pain and allowing early mobilisation in hospitalised patients. However, it may be associated with complications such as cement leakage, infection, bleeding at the injection site and fracture of adjacent vertebrae. It is also costly and not readily accessible in many UK hospitals.A recent retrospective study reported that spinal medial branch nerve block (MBNB), typically used to treat facet arthropathy, had similar efficacy in terms of pain relief compared with VP for the treatment of painful VFF. However, to date, no study has prospectively compared MBNB to VP. We therefore propose a prospective feasibility randomised controlled trial (RCT) to compare the role of MBNB to VP, in hospitalised older patients. METHOD: A parallel, two-arm RCT with participants allocated on a 1:1 ratio to either standard care-VP or MBNB in hospitalised patients aged over 70 with acute osteoporotic vertebral fractures. Follow-up will be at weeks 1, 4 and 8 post intervention. The primary objective is to determine the feasibility and design of a future trial, including specific outcomes of recruitment, adherence to randomisation and safety. Embedded within the trial will be a health economic evaluation to understand resource utilisation and implications of the intervention and a qualitative study of the experiences and insights of trial participants and clinicians. Secondary outcomes will include pain scores, analgesia requirements, resource use and quality of life data. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: Ethical approval was granted by the Yorkshire & the Humber Research Ethics Committee (reference 21/YH/0065). AVERT (Acute VertEbRal AugmentaTion) has received approval by the Health Research Authority (reference IRAS 293210) and is sponsored by Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust (reference 21HC001). Recruitment is ongoing. Results will be presented at relevant conferences and submitted to appropriate journals for publication on completion. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: ISRCTN18334053. Copyright © Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2022. Re-use permitted under CC BY. Published by BMJ.https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2021-05919
Physical-layer Network Coding in Two-Way Heterogeneous Cellular Networks with Power Imbalance
No full textThe growing demand for high-speed data, quality of service (QoS) assurance and energy efficiency has triggered the evolution of 4G LTE-A networks to 5G and beyond. Interference is still a major performance bottleneck. This paper studies the application of physical-layer network coding (PNC), a technique that exploits interference, in heterogeneous cellular networks. In particular, we propose a rate-maximising relay selection algorithm for a single cell with multiple relays assuming the decode-and-forward strategy. With nodes transmitting at different powers, the proposed algorithm adapts the resource allocation according to the differing link rates and we prove theoretically that the optimisation problem is log-concave. The proposed technique is shown to perform significantly better than the widely studied selection-cooperation technique. We then undertake an experimental study -- on a software radio platform -- of the decoding performance of PNC with unbalanced SNRs in the multiple-access transmissions. This problem is inherent in cellular networks and it is shown that with channel coding and decoders based on multiuser detection and successive interference cancellation, the performance is better with power imbalance. This paper paves the way for further research in multi-cell PNC, resource allocation, and the implementation of PNC with higher-order modulations and advanced coding techniques
