760 research outputs found
Ethics of Engagement in Research Practices. Response-ability in Organization and Management
No full textThe book asks how it would work to do research in organization and management in ways which are not only accountable (responsible) but also responsive (response-able). In dialogue with the Routledge Focus on Women Writers in Organization Studies series, this book honours the work of the ‘founding mothers’ of care theory and research who have contributed to developing the concept of response-ability - the capacity to respond and render each other capable to respond - in particular, Joan Tronto, Donna Haraway, Vinciane Despret, and Karen Barad. The chapters in this book entwine theory and practice in exploring the concept of response-ability by interlacing the contributions of such scholars, rather than treating them separately, and bringing them into organization and management studies. The authors in this book call for changes to the ways that research happens in terms of the ethical sensibilities which emanate from ‘becoming-with-others’ not only within a project-oriented timeframe but in everyday academic practices. The book is an invitation to students, researchers, and practitioners to find ways of embodying response-ability while engaging with multiple others in generating knowledge
Introduction. Ethics of Engagement in Research Practices: Response-ability in Organization and Management
No full textThe chapter provides a cartographic reading of "response-ability' and honours the work of the ‘founding mothers’ of care theory and research who have contributed to developing this concept. We use the cartographic approach to elaborate on response-ability in academia by articulating some of the practices that enable responsiveness and attentiveness in management and organization studies (MOS). We then move across and beyondnacademia, where MOS researchers encapsulate response‐ability into worldmaking practices that shake the ‘ivory tower.’ We end this introduction by
navigating through the chapters to provide an overview of the book
A Study on Text-Score Disagreement in Online Reviews
No full textIn this paper, we focus on online reviews and employ artificial intelligence tools, taken from the cognitive computing field, to help understand the relationships between the textual part of the review and the assigned numerical score. We move from the intuitions that (1) a set of textual reviews expressing different sentiments may feature the same score (and vice-versa), and (2) detecting and analyzing the mismatches between the review content and the actual score may benefit both service providers and consumers, by highlighting specific factors of satisfaction (and dissatisfaction) in texts. To prove the intuitions, we adopt sentiment analysis techniques and we concentrate on hotel reviews, to find polarity mismatches therein. In particular, we first train a text classifier with a set of annotated hotel reviews, taken from the Booking website. Then, we analyze a large dataset, with around 160k hotel reviews collected fromTripAdvisor, with the aim of detecting a polarity mismatch, indicating if the textual content of the review is in line, or not, with the associated score. Using well-established artificial intelligence techniques and analyzing in depth the reviews featuring a mismatch between the text polarity and the score, we find that—on a scale of five stars—those reviews ranked with middle scores include a mixture of positive and negative aspects. The approach proposed here, beside acting as a polarity detector, provides an effective selection of reviews—on an initial very large dataset—that may allow both consumers and providers to focus directly on the review subset featuring a text/score disagreement, which conveniently convey to the user a summary of positive and negative features of the review target
Becoming response-able together in research fieldwork
No full textPublisher Copyright: © 2025 selection and editorial matter, Michela Cozza, Anna Carreri, and Barbara Poggio; individual chapters, the contributors.In this chapter, we explore response-ability – our embodied ability to respond to others – in research fieldwork. Building on materials from an immersive coaching process of a leadership team, we elaborate on how the researcher-coach and the team negotiated becoming ‘response-able-together’ over time and how that supported the development of collective leadership. We focus on the affective intensities during the process, particularly moments where differences in ideas, rhythms, priorities, and abilities led to uncertainty and vulnerability, necessitating an ongoing negotiation of response-ability. We illustrate how response-ability in fieldwork may nurture reciprocal relations that arise from tensions instead of privileging consensus and/or unity. We further argue that response-able research can support organizational processes and practices that enhance individual and collective capacities to act, while counter-acting forms of affective contagion that work in disciplining and diminishing ways.Peer reviewe
Mitigating oxidative damage: novel therapeutic approaches for cystic fibrosis
No full textCystic Fibrosis (CF) is a genetic disorder caused by mutations in the CFTR gene. There are over 2000 known CFTR mutations, with the most prevalent being F508del. Current therapy (Trikafta®) works on a limited number of mutations, and new adverse effects are emerging. Hence, there is a need for new therapeutic strategies. In CF, a pro-oxidative and pro-inflammatory environment has been described, which contributes to disease outcome. The onset of inflammation and oxidative stress in patients happens early in life resulting from a complex interplay of various factors. These include the overproduction of reactive oxygen species (ROS), NF-E2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) and glutathione (GSH) depletion, and lipid peroxidation (LPO) of membrane lipids. In this thesis, I have exploited cellular models of CF to test Nrf2 activators as possible therapeutic agents to improve the current therapy. The idea is that recovering the derailed CF intracellular environment might improve proteostasis and functional rescue of mutated CFTR. Preliminary Ussing chamber data on Nrf2 activators combined with CFTR correctors support the initial hypothesis. Specifically, the collected data unveil new therapeutic alternatives that could be translated to orphan mutations. Moreover, I identified and characterized the antioxidant properties of the potentiator VX770. The identification of a CFTR-independent mechanism acting in parallel with the function for which the compound had been approved in CF represents an absolute novelty and offers a therapeutic opportunity for diseases associated with oxidative stress
Thin-plate spline analysis of craniofacial morphology in subjects with adenoid or tonsillar hypertrophy.
No full textObjective: To compare the skeletal features of subjects with adenoid hypertrophy with those of children with tonsillar hypertrophy using thin-plate spline (TPS) analysis. Materials and methods: A group of 20 subjects (9 girls and 11 boys; mean age 8.4 +/- 0.9 years) with adenoid hypertrophy (AG) was compared with a group of 20 subjects (10 girls and 10 boys; mean age 8.2 +/- 1.1 years) with tonsillar hypertrophy (TG). Craniofacial morphology was analyzed on the lateral cephalograms of the subjects in both groups by means of TPS analysis. A cross-sectional comparison was performed on both size and shape differences between the two groups. Results: AG exhibited statistically significant shape and size differences in craniofacial configuration with respect to TG. Subjects with adenoid hypertrophy showed an upward dislocation of the anterior region of the maxilla, a more downward/backward position of the anterior region of the mandibular body and an upward/backward displacement of the condylar region. Conversely, subjects with tonsillar hypertrophy showed a downward dislocation of the anterior region of the maxilla, a more upward/forward position of the anterior region of the mandibular body and a downward/forward displacement of the condylar region. Conclusions: Subjects with adenoid hypertrophy exhibited features suggesting a more retrognathic mandible while subjects with tonsillar hypertrophy showed features suggesting a more prognathic mandible. (C) 2011 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved
Benextramine derivatives as probes to target human monoamine oxidases
No full textBenextramine is an “old” tetraamine disulfide acting as irreversible alfa-adrenergic antagonist, able to recognize additional targets, such as nicotinic and muscarinic receptors and acetylcholinesterase enzyme, all involved in neurodegeneration. Thanks to its disulfide moiety, benextramine can react with Cys residues of receptors and enzymes leading to a covalent bond resulting in irreversible alteration of the biological activity of the protein target. Benextramine also behaves as competitive M2 muscarinic receptors antagonist and reversible AChE inhibitor. Using benextramine as “template”, various polyamine analogues were designed to improve selectivity and activity towards the multiple targets, besides the cholinergic system, involved in neurodegeneration.(Melchiorre et al, Med Res Rev 2003). Monoamine oxidases (MAO) are well known targets in neurodegenerative diseases ((Bortolato et al., 2008) and both MAO A and MAO B contain Cys residues important for their catalytic activity. On these bases (Hubalek et al., JBC, 2003; Vintem et al., 2005), we thought to evaluate the effect of some benextramine derivatives on MAOs activity, by using a kinetic approach and human recombinant enzymes. Most of the tested compounds were found able to inactivate both MAOs, with a potency and selectivity depending on the type of substituent and on the length of polyamine chain. In particular, increasing the length of the aliphatic chain between the nitrogen atoms of the polyamine scaffold increased the inactivation constant for both the MAOs isoforms. In addition, the catechol moiety on the terminal nitrogen atoms increased the selectivity towards MAO B.
In the case of MAO A, an irreversible inactivation was found. Further studies are in progress to elucidate the binding mode of these compounds to MAOs, with the aim to modify their structure in order to improve their affinity and selectivity for potential application in neurodegenerative diseases
Natural risk assessment and managment
No full text"Natural risk assessment and managment" is a chapter of the "Handbook on Urban Sustainability", edited by Nolberto Munier. A book which addresses the sustainable development of a city.
In particular Michela Tiboni deals with a subject rarely seen in the technical literature: Risk management. It refers to risks related with land uses, and as the author rightly states its aim is to reduce danger for human beings and the environment. Some projects are built on terrains that have characteristics that make then unsuitable for that kind of project. Others alter the natural flow of water during storms, paving the way to floods, and cave ins. Both can generate action-reaction response. This Chapter presents the necessary guidelines to evaluate a risk involved in the construction of a project. This is something that has to be carefully considered to avoid future consequences, which can turn to be catastrophic. Remember, most human activities modify the environment, and it is then necessary to evaluate the consequences of such actions
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