21 research outputs found
A systematic literature review on environmental sustainability issues of flexible packaging: potential pathways for academic research and managerial practice
No full textThe purpose of this review is to investigate environmental sustainability issues of the flexible packaging (FP) segment of the packaging industry. Increasingly, waste and pollution caused by FP have become a significant challenge for global sustainable development. Prior research studies have examined a diverse set of environmental challenges associated with FP, albeit, in a fragmented way. There is a paucity of research exploring and synthesizing the environmental burden of FP in an integrated fashion. To bridge this knowledge gap, we conducted a systematic literature review (SLR) to identify, synthesize, and analyze the environmental sustainability issues of FP utilizing the SCOPUS database. Based on an in-depth critical analysis of selected articles, this paper provides novel insights to scholars, practitioners, and policymakers for developing an improved understanding of environmental issues of the FP sector. This paper promotes academic scholarship and strengthens managerial practice in addressing the environmental sustainability challenges of FP.fals
The Benefits Of Being Shy
No full text“Shy people notice everything but they do not get noticed” (Author unknown) Practicing shyness and modesty should be an integral part of the managerial education yet it often gets associated with weakness. Anyone who has ever experienced a shy, modest and kind line manager feels a sense of ease and approachability so alien to nowadays business world and backstabbing mentality. Shy and modest managers see the person behind the employee rather than the employee as a number. Today's business world is lacking a portal for shyness and modesty among line managers who have grown in numbers but not very often human quality in recent years. For this reason, it is important that researchers, educators, managers and businesses become aware of the nature of shyness and modesty and its benefits. Researchers are in a unique position to help businesses and institutions reflect upon and understand that aggressive behavior can potentially harm the progress and image of a company rather than insuring to build a successful team, honest service and lasting product
Disrupt by the Rules. Interview with Florian Cramer
No full textHuman prejudices reemerge in algorithmic cultures allegedly devised to be blind to them. Algorithmic identity politics reinstate old forms of social segregation—in a digital world, identity politics is pattern discrimination. It is by recognizing patterns in input data that artificial intelligence algorithms create bias and practice racial exclusions thereby inscribing power relations into media.
These are just some of the questions explored by Clemens Apprich, Wendy Hui Kyong Chun, Hito Steyerl and Florian Cramer on Pattern Discrimination, a new book published by University of Minnesota Press in November 2018. After reading it, I wanted to learn more and got in contact with Florian Cramer, reader at Willem de Kooning Academy & Piet Zwart Institute in Rotterdam and author of the essay What Is Post-Digital
Equine Hoof Canker:Cell Proliferation and Morphology
No full textHoof canker is described as progressive pododermatitis of the equine hoof with absent epidermal cornification and extensive proliferation of the dermal papillary body; however, in-depth research on the type of proliferative activity has not yet been reported. The aim of the present study was to determine cell-specific proliferation patterns together with morphological analysis of hoof canker tissue. Tissues removed during surgery from 19 horses presented for treatment of canker were compared with similar postmortem tissues of healthy hooves of 10 horses. Morphological alterations visible in light microscopy were assessed semiquantitatively and graded for severity. Proliferative activity was evaluated by means of anti-PCNA (proliferative cell nuclear antigen) and anti-Ki67 immunohistochemistry. Histologically, canker tissue showed 5 major morphological alterations-the presence of lacunae, vacuoles, giant cells, hemorrhage, and inflammation-not seen in control tissue. Also, there was a notable koilocytotic appearance of keratinocytes in canker tissue. Immunohistochemistry revealed increased levels of PCNA protein expression in keratinocytes and fibroblasts of canker tissue compared with control tissue. In control tissue, keratinocytes showed higher levels of Ki67 compared with canker tissue, while the dermal fibroblasts of both groups showed similar levels of Ki67, indicating similar proliferative activity of less than 3% of total dermal fibroblasts. These results demonstrate that, in contrast to previous reports, there is no evidence for increased proliferative activity of the dermal papillary body associated with hoof canker. Increased levels of PCNA protein expression and morphological alterations indicate that dysregulation of keratinocyte differentiation constitutes a key event in equine hoof canker development.</p
A finite element model of the bovine claw under static load for evaluation of different flooring conditions
No full textCaught in the net. The emergence of network society between utopia and reality
No full textEs geht in der vorliegenden Arbeit Vernetzt. Zur Entstehung der Netzwerkgesellschaft von Clemens Apprich um die Vorgeschichte der Netzwerkgesellschaft im europäischen Kontext. Er untersucht die historischen Bedingungen eines inzwischen allgegenwärtigen Netzwerkdiskurses und lüftet den ideologischen Schleier um Utopien der 1990er Jahre, wie etwa der Emanzipation der Frauen, des Individuums oder der Teilhabe aller an den neuen Medientechnologien. Der Autor geht hart mit den großen Medien-Unternehmen ins Gericht und kritisiert die massenmediale Logik der kommerziellen Online-Medien welche dazu dienen, eine normative Subjektivität herzustellen. Abschließend werden alternative Vorschläge unterbreitet, die einen neuen Weg im Umgang mit dem Internet vorzeigen.The focal point of this work is the history of network society in the European context. It examines the historical conditions of a now ubiquitous discourse about networks, and uncovers the ideological veil of the utopias presented in the 1990’s, such as the emancipation of women or the individual, as well as community participation in new media technologies. The author is harsh with big media companies and criticizes the mass media logic that equates to commercial online media, which serves to establish a normative subjectivity. Eventually, alternative proposals are presented, which suggest new ways of dealing with the Internet
Effect of intra-arterial cisplatin on dorsal hoof wall tissue of isolated perfused equine limbs
No full textEquine hoof canker is a chronic proliferative condition of the hoof tissues that is often time-consuming and frustrating to treat. After surgical debridement, topical application of cisplatin (cis-Diamindichlorplatin II) has been reported, requiring repeatedly handling this hazardous substance during bandage changes. Alternatively, intraarterial application of cisplatin could be used, similar to the treatment of some human neoplastic diseases. As the side effects of such a treatment are currently unknown, evaluation of associated risks is necessary before treating live horses. Thus, forelimbs of thirteen horses underwent an eight-hour perfusion protocol; nine limbs received a 20-minute intraarterial cisplatin infusion (14 mg/600 ml autologous blood-plasma perfusate). Post-treatment, dorsal hoof wall samples were subjected to histological (hematoxylin and eosin) and immunohistochemical (laminin, Ki-67) analysis. Comparisons were carried out using a linear mixed model analysis to investigate the effect of cisplatin. Appearance of primary and secondary epidermal lamellae was not significantly affected by the cisplatin treatment. Notable basal membrane damage was evidenced by significantly weaker laminin staining intensity in the limbs of the cisplatin group than in the control group (p=0.005). Cisplatin samples showed 54% weak, 37% moderate and 9% strong staining intensities, and control samples showed 12% weak, 53% moderate and 35% strong staining intensities. Median numbers of Ki-67 positive basal cells in the primary epidermal lamellae were not affected by cisplatin. Specifically, even short-term cisplatin exposure significantly compromises the basal membrane of the dorsal hoof wall creating a considerable risk of laminitis.</p
Exploring T*2 decay : new methods for short echo time imaging and fat-water quantification
No full textThe major advantage of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) over
other imaging modalities like computed tomography (CT) is that it
does not utilize ionizing radiation. A drawback of MRI in
comparison to CT is that in general it requires longer scan times
and for this reason fast scanning techniques have been proposed.
Fast MR imaging can refer to fast scan times or fast signal
acquisition. The first is important in various cases such as in
abdominal scans to decrease motion sensitivity, while short echo
times and short acquisition times allow visualization of tissues
with fast signal relaxation. One category of MR sequences that
allows fast scanning is gradient echo sequences. These sequences
do not use radiofrequency pulses to yield a signal echo and this
allows fast imaging, shorter echo times and scan times, while the
signal decays according to the apparent transverse relaxation T_{2}^{*}
. Gradient echo sequences can be used both for qualitative and
quantitative imaging and during this thesis an application in
each direction was explored.
The first part of this thesis is related to fast gradient echo
imaging for qualitative imaging of fast decaying signals. It is
focused on the development of a short echo time sequence that can
be easily translated to clinical settings. In the first chapter
of this part a novel short echo time sequence is being
introduced. Subsequently, two different applications are being
discussed. Firstly, the application of the sequence to
musculoskeletal imaging at high and ultra-high field is being
described. In the second chapter, the effect of fat suppression
on short T_{2}
tissues imaging is being considered. At the last
chapter of this part the sequence is adapted to be used for
molecular imaging of iron oxide labeled cells.
The second part of this thesis refers to quantitative gradient
echo imaging. The aim is tissue characterization based on the
analysis of the signal decay. A multi-echo sequence is adapted in
order to be used with a novel powerful fitting tool for
three-dimensional (3D) liver fat-water imaging. Preliminary
results are presented from a comparison with a standard two-point
Dixon technique
