1,721,054 research outputs found
Oscillations in SIR behavioural epidemic models: The interplay between behaviour and overexposure to infection
No full textOscillations in epidemic models including human behaviour indicate that the human factor might play a key role in the occurrence of periodically high levels of incidence and prevalence of the disease. Such phenomena can be captured even with minimal models, i.e. basic SIR or SEIR models with a reduced mathematical complexity. In such models, the effects of information-dependent changes in contact patterns are strongly affected by the function used to describe the memory of the population. In particular, the endemic equilibrium cannot be destabilized in case of exponentially fading memory but sustained oscillations are possible when the memory of the population is described by certain unimodal functions. In this work, we introduce a behavioural SIR-like model with information-dependent social distancing to investigate the interplay between individuals’ behaviour and overexposure to infection due to unconscious exposure to contagion. We use spectral analysis to show that sustained oscillations may take place even with exponentially fading memory. We show that this result holds both in case of prevalence-based and incidence-based social distancing. Furthermore, we show that the individual's behavioural response to information may stabilize the oscillations induced by overexposure
Silicate-melt inclusions in clinopyroxenes of "prehistoric" transitional to alkaline lavas: inferences on the processes of evolution in Etnean magmas.
No full textDesigning and Managing Business Community of Practice
No full textPurpose – The purpose of this paper is to put forward a model to map the evolution of a business
Community of Practice (CoP) in terms of learning and knowledge management processes.
Design/methodology/approach – Empirical evidence is based on seven case studies and the
analyses of three best practices fromsecondary sources. Two of those cases are analyzed longitudinally
from inception, while the others are retrospective. Cases were chosen in order to cover different kinds of
industries and, especially, to analyze sharing of different kinds of knowledge (from call-centre operators
to complex new products knowledge).
Findings – The article sheds light on the different evolutionary paths that business CoPs follow and the
role of the dynamics of the organizational commitment and the people involvement. It was noticed that a
high level of commitment from both the organization and its members is related to the effectiveness of
the Community in supporting learning and knowledge management processes.
Research limitations/implications – The case studies and best practice examples reported are all
based on the experiences ofWestern companies – although some, if not all, may have global operations.
It is possible that some of the conclusions (e.g, levels of organizational commitment and individual
participation, evolutionary stages and drivers), may not be valid for Asian-headquartered companies.
Practical implications – This article aims to develop actionable knowledge to support management in
understanding how to manage a business CoP, in order to create value for both the organization and its
members. The proposed model can be used for mapping the CoP evolution, while identifying the
appropriate governance tools to cultivate, stimulate and drive the Community evolution.
Originality/value – In the model, the evolution of a Community has been assessed in terms of its vitality
– i.e. its effectiveness in supporting knowledge management and learning. This vitality depends on the
combination of the organization’s commitment and members’ involvement. Therefore, supporting a
Community in its evolution means stimulating and maintaining the commitment (animation and
promotions levers) of these two parties
Rethinking Knowledge Management: the Role of ICT and the Rise of the Virtual Workspace
No full textThe ability to manage and enhance the value of knowledge and
intellectual capital has to be rethought to address:
1 the new challenges from the organisational models (increasing workforce
dispersion, the growing importance of interorganisational relationships,
orientation to processes more than to functions)
2 the new opportunities – which are technology based (the availability of
new Information and Communication Technology (ICT)-enabled services
and particularly of web and mobile communication services makes it
possible to overcome geographical, temporal and organisational barriers to
communication and knowledge transfer).
The synthesis of these two aspects explains the rise of what we call virtual
Workspace (v-W).
Our perspective on organisational knowledge is sociopractical: knowledge
is considered as a common good rather than a mere individual asset. ICT tools,
according to this stream, have to recreate a social reality, with its interpersonal
relationships and communication flows, and possibly augment it by
emphasising openness and collaboration.
Based on a research with 110 case studies, this paper focuses on
knowledge workplace technologies (among others: forums, instant messaging,
wikis, blogs, expertise location and management, social network analysis and
presence awareness), regarded as strategic tools in the context of knowledge
and change management
Analysis of an epidemic model with peer-pressure and information-dependent transmission with high-order distributed delay
No full textCommunities and Collaboration Tools in Italian Banking Industry
No full textThis paper aims to provide:
1 a description from a strategic, organisational and technological point of
view of “the state-of-the-art” of Community and Collaboration (C&C)
tools in the Italian banking industry
2 a roadmap to help management to implement C&C tools.
The research is based on 16 retrospective case studies that cover more than
50% of the banking sector in Italy by number of employees. The findings
provide interesting elements and suggestions to develop a Community in a
banking context
Silicate-melt inclusions in clinopyroxenes of "prehistoric" transitional to alkaline lavas: inferences on the processes of evolution in Etnean magmas.
No full text
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
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