Becoming a Swarm Catalyst

2013 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 57-70 ◽  
Author(s):  
Juhana Kokkonen ◽  
Sami Paavola ◽  
Yrjö Engeström
Keyword(s):  
Applied Sciences ◽  
Social Media ◽  
Development Process ◽  
Hierarchical Organization ◽  
Collaborative Community ◽  
University Of Applied Sciences ◽  
Traditional Organization ◽  
Changing Role

This article analyzes the problems of bringing in social media in a traditional, hierarchical organization. Difficulties rise from the contradiction between the bureaucratic approach of an organization and the collaborative community approach connected to social media. A change in the role of a developer is analyzed through a case study. The data was collected in a co-development process of a work unit at a Finnish University of Applied Sciences. The method of this study is analytic autoethnography, which proved to be a valuable tool for capturing a long-term development process and the changing role of the developer inside the organization. A new change agent, a swarm catalyst, is introduced at the end of the article. The initial characteristics of a swarm catalyst are based on the experiences of various, iterative developmental experiments. A swarm catalyst operates within an organization as an autonomous developer, and as a negotiator between the traditional organization and decentralized developmental swarms.

Mother, baby and Facebook makes three: does social media provide social support for new mothers?

2018 ◽  
Vol 168 (1) ◽  
pp. 122-139 ◽  
Author(s):  
Catherine Archer ◽  
Kai-Ti Kao
Keyword(s):  
Social Support ◽  
Social Media ◽  
Media Use ◽  
Long Term Effects ◽  
New Mothers ◽  
Social Media Use ◽  
Extreme Stress ◽  
Ability To Act

Many mothers can find themselves increasingly isolated and overwhelmed after giving birth to a new baby. This period can be a source of extreme stress, anxiety and depression, which can not only have an economic impact on national health services, but can also have long-term effects on the development of the child. At the same time, social media use among most new mothers has become ubiquitous. This research investigates the role of social media, potentially as a mechanism for social support, among Australian mothers of young children aged from birth to 4 years. The findings indicate that participants had mixed responses to their social media use. While social support was deemed a benefit, there were also some negative aspects to social media use identified. The findings highlight the need to critically interrogate social media’s ability to act as a source of social support for new mothers.

scholarly journals The importance of formal grammar skills: Reflections on Polish students learning Norwegian

2018 ◽  
pp. 107-132
Author(s):  
Jens Haugan
Keyword(s):  
Applied Sciences ◽  
Language Education ◽  
Formal Grammar ◽  
Language Teacher Education ◽  
Educational Role ◽  
University Of Applied Sciences ◽  
Scandinavian Language ◽  
The University ◽  
Language Network

Norwegian and Scandinavian languages in general have grown quite popular among Polish students in recent years and more and more Polish universities are trying to offer Bachelor’s and even Master’s programmes in a Scandinavian language. Based on experience as a teacher of a Norwegian grammar course at the University of Szczecin and as a teacher of grammar at the Inland Norway University of Applied Sciences which in 2016/2017 hosted around twenty Erasmus+ students from Szczecin, some of the challenges for Polish students of academic Norwegian will be reflected upon, as well as some of the challenges for a teacher of Norwegian who has very little knowledge of Polish. The main purpose of this paper will be to argue for the importance of grammar skills in language education and especially in language teacher education. This study is a contribution to the Educational Role of Language network.

The changing role of eosinophils in long-term hyperreactivity following a single ozone exposure

2005 ◽  
Vol 289 (4) ◽  
pp. L627-L635 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bethany L. Yost ◽  
Gerald J. Gleich ◽  
David B. Jacoby ◽  
Allison D. Fryer
Keyword(s):  
Smooth Muscle ◽  
Vagal Stimulation ◽  
Airway Hyperreactivity ◽  
Ozone Exposure ◽  
Single Exposure ◽  
Eosinophil Major Basic Protein ◽  
Changing Role ◽  
Eosinophil Accumulation

Ozone hyperreactivity over 24 h is mediated by blockade of inhibitory M2 muscarinic autoreceptors by eosinophil major basic protein. Because eosinophil populations in the lungs fluctuate following ozone, the contribution of eosinophils to M2 dysfunction and airway hyperreactivity was measured over several days. After one exposure to ozone, M2 function, vagal reactivity, smooth muscle responsiveness, and inflammation were measured in anesthetized guinea pigs. Ozone-induced hyperreactivity to vagal stimulation persisted over 3 days. Although hyperreactivity one day after ozone is mediated by eosinophils, AbVLA-4 did not inhibit either eosinophil accumulation in the lungs or around the nerves or prevent hyperreactivity at this time point. Two days after ozone, eosinophils in BAL, around airway nerves and in lungs, were decreased, and neuronal M2 receptor function was normal, although animals were still hyperreactive to vagal stimulation. Depleting eosinophils with AbIL-5 prevented hyperreactivity, thus eosinophils contribute to vagal hyperreactivity by mechanisms separate from M2 receptor blockade. Three days after ozone, vagal hyperreactivity persisted, eosinophils were again elevated in BAL in lungs and around nerves, and M2 receptors were again dysfunctional. At this point, airway smooth muscle was also hyperresponsive to methacholine. Eosinophil depletion with AbIL-5, AbVLA-4, or cyclophosphamide protected M2 function 3 days after ozone and prevented smooth muscle hyperreactivity. However, vagal hyperreactivity was significantly potentiated by eosinophil depletion. The site of hyperreactivity, muscle or nerve, changes over 3 days after a single exposure to ozone. Additionally, the role of eosinophils is complex; they mediate hyperreactivity acutely while chronically may be involved in repair.

Fundamental R&D Work on Methods for State Monitoring of Transport and Storage Containers for Spent Fuel and Heat-Generating High-Level Radioactive Waste on Prolonged Intermediate Storage

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Fiß ◽  
Sebastian Schmidt ◽  
Sebastian Reinicke ◽  
Alexander Kratzsch
Keyword(s):  
Applied Sciences ◽  
Radioactive Waste ◽  
Storage Period ◽  
Material Behavior ◽  
Spent Fuel ◽  
Radiation Emission ◽  
Storage Container ◽  
University Of Applied Sciences ◽  
Intermediate Storage

The continuing search for a long-term storage for highly-active nuclear waste in Germany requires a prolonged intermediate storage period of spent fuel in dry storage casks at the power plant sites. Currently, it is not sufficiently clear if there might be a loss of integrity of the fuel rods within such long periods, e.g. due to rising pressure from gaseous products of nuclear decay. Regarding a final evaluation, extrapolative modelling of the radiochemical and thermomechanical material behavior is challenging and not suitable for predictions on the condition of storage container inventory after the intermediate storage period. Therefore, it is of public interest to find measurement principles or methods which can provide information about the condition of the storage container inventory. In line with a cooperative project (project partners: Technical University Dresden, Zittau/Görlitz University of Applied Sciences) different measurement principles and methods (radiation emission, muon transmission, thermography, acoustical spectrometry) for non-invasive condition monitoring of the storage container inventory in case of prolonged intermediate storage are going to be investigated and evaluated. The results shall help to determine suitable methods for the identification of both changes of the spent fuel and inner container structure over long periods without opening the container and would be a significant contribution for the long-term safety of intermediately stored highly radioactive waste. Furthermore, suitable methods would provide information about the transport and conditioning ability of the waste before transfer to the repository. This paper deals with the content of the subproject of Zittau/Görlitz University of Applied Sciences as well as with the approach for project realization. A further main part of this paper is the development of experimental infrastructure to support the investigations.

A Finnish Concept for Academic Entrepreneurship

2008 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
pp. 19-28 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kari Laine
Keyword(s):  
Applied Sciences ◽  
Higher Education ◽  
Knowledge Creation ◽  
Basic Research ◽  
Entrepreneurial Activity ◽  
Knowledge Based ◽  
Knowledge Based Economy ◽  
University Of Applied Sciences ◽  
Potential Applications

In a knowledge-driven economy there is a growing need for deeper and more productive interaction between higher education and industry. The full exploitation of knowledge requires strategies, incentives, appropriate systems and strong interaction between the transfer processes and the main processes in higher education. In a knowledge-based economy, knowledge is more likely to be created if there is collaboration on the potential applications. In such a knowledge creation process, the creation, dissemination and utilization of knowledge are carried out in quick succession or even simultaneously. Also, basic research and applied research can no longer be separated. Knowledge creation is, in many cases, achieved through long-term partnerships based on trust, commitment and mutual benefit. This paper explores ways of supporting and creating entrepreneurial activity in higher education. It studies the case of Satakunta University of Applied Sciences in Finland.

scholarly journals The Influence of Socio-Emotional Wealth on the Speed of the Export Development Proces in Family and Non-Family Firms

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ana M. Moreno Menéndez ◽  
Marco Castiglioni ◽  
María del Mar Cobeña Ruiz-Lopez
Keyword(s):  
Empirical Research ◽  
Family Business ◽  
Development Process ◽  
Family Firms ◽  
Manufacturing Firms ◽  
Internationalization Process ◽  
Risk Avoidance ◽  
Commitment Level

This paper proposes that family firms do not necessarily internationalize less than non-family businesses, but rather, they do it more slowly. Lower speed of internationalization process of family business (measured by the speed of the export development process) is a consequence of the role of the socio-emotional wealth (SEW) in these firms. SEW operates through three different mechanisms: (1) long-term orientation, (2) risk avoidance, and (3) lack of resources to be independent. The empirical research, based on a panel of more than a thousand Spanish manufacturing firms along nine years (2006-2014), supports the hypothesis proposed, independently of firm’s previous size, age, and export commitment level.

scholarly journals The role of Twitter in the life cycle of a scientific publication

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emily S Darling ◽  
David Shiffman ◽  
Isabelle M. Côté ◽  
Joshua A Drew
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Social Impact ◽  
Scientific Publication ◽  
Decision Makers ◽  
New Ideas ◽  
Media Platform ◽  
Long Term Impact

Twitter is a micro-blogging social media platform for short messages that can have a long-term impact on how scientists create and publish ideas. We investigate the usefulness of twitter in the development and distribution of scientific knowledge. At the start of the 'life cycle' of a scientific publication, twitter provides a large virtual department of colleagues that can help to rapidly generate, share and refine new ideas. As ideas become manuscripts, twitter can be used as an informal arena for the pre-review of works in progress. Finally, tweeting published findings can communicate research to a broad audience of other researchers, decision makers, journalists and the general public that can amplify the scientific and social impact of publications. However, there are limitations, largely surrounding issues of intellectual property and ownership, inclusiveness and misrepresentations of science ‘sound bites’. Nevertheless, we believe twitter is a useful social media tool that can provide a valuable contribution to scientific publishing in the 21st century.

scholarly journals Reflecting on the role of universities in the fight against corruption

2019 ◽  
Vol 54 (1) ◽  
pp. 4-13 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christian Hauser
Keyword(s):  
Applied Sciences ◽  
Single Case ◽  
Good Practice ◽  
Private Institutions ◽  
Public And Private ◽  
Content Type ◽  
University Of Applied Sciences ◽  
Guidelines And Standards ◽  
The University

Purpose Corruption continues to ravage societies around the world. The fight against corruption can be fruitful only if approached from multiple standpoints. Thus, corruption must also be approached from an academic and educational perspective. The purpose of this paper is to provide a good practice example of how universities and business schools can take actions to align themselves with the international sustainability and anticorruption agenda. Design/methodology/approach The six principles of the United Nations Principles for Responsible Management Education (PRME) provide a framework for higher education institutions to address corruption-related issues. This paper presents the case story of the Swiss-based University of Applied Sciences HTW Chur, which developed an academic working agenda on corruption-related topics based on the principles of the PRME. Findings The case story shares the actions that HTW Chur has taken and the benefits that have resulted from the university’s work. The findings show that to address corruption-related issues, scholars from the university took actions related to four principles in the PRME: method, research, partnership and dialogue. Furthermore, the results indicate that in addition to the university itself, public and private institutions have also profited from the actions taken. Research limitations/implications This paper is founded on a single case story; thus, the usual limitations of this research design apply. Practical implications It becomes apparent that the needs of the private sector in the fight against corruption could be addressed by engaging in and strengthening partnerships with universities. Thus, it seems beneficial to develop guidelines and standards to facilitate collaborations and dialogue in a participatory and transparent way. Originality/value The paper provides a good practice example of how universities can take actions to align themselves with the international sustainability and anticorruption agenda.

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