Methods for determining color characteristics of vegetable raw materials. A review

Food product quality defines a complex of food product properties such size, shape, texture, color and others, and determines acceptability of these products for consumers. It is possible to detect defects in plant raw materials by color and classify them by color characteristics, texture, shape, a degree of maturity and so on. Currently, the work on modernization of color control systems has been carried out for rapid and objective measuring information about color of plant raw materials during their harvesting, processing and storage. The aim of the work is to analyze existing methods for determining color characteristics of plant raw materials described in foreign and domestic studies. Also, this paper presents the results of the experimental studies that describe the practical use of methods for measuring food product color. At present, the following methods for determining color characteristics by the sensor analysis principle are used: sensory, spectrophotometric and photometric. These methods have several disadvantages. Therefore, computer vision has found wide application as an automated method for food control. It is distinguished by high confidence and reliability in the process of determining freshness, safety, a degree of maturity and other parameters of plant raw materials that are heterogeneous in terms of the abovementioned indicators. The computer vision method is realized in the following systems: conventional, hyperspectral and multispectral. Each subsequent system is a component of the preceding one. Materials presented in the paper allow making a conclusion about the effectiveness of the computer vision systems with the aim of automatic sorting and determining quality of plant raw materials in the food industry.

Measuring the Organizational Change Maturity of Chilean Companies

This research presents the Strategic Change Management index, an indicator measuring the level of maturity of organizations to address processes of organizational change. At present, there is no other available indicator that fulfills this function. The index is built using the information provided from an instrument (questionnaire) specially created for this purpose. The instrument was applied to a sample of 151 companies, mostly Chilean. Studies about reliability (Cronbach’s α, hierarchical ω coefficients, among others), and instrument validity (second-order confirmatory factor analysis and retrospective validity) are presented. These studies show that the instrument has good psychometric properties. The results show that the degree of maturity of the companies comprising the sample to face change processes is low: 87% of the companies have a basic, initial, or amateur level of maturity; 13% have a professional level; and only one company had an expert level. More validity studies are required. However, the absence of a similar available instrument restrains the realization of more in-depth validity studies at this time.

The Maturity of Corporate Websites as a Digital Communication Channel in Portuguese SMEs’ Process of Adopting E-Commerce

This study aims to determine the maturity of the websites of Portuguese small and mid-sized enterprises (SMEs) as a basic form of digital communication in the sequential process of incorporation of e-commerce. The starting premise is that there is a relationship between the level of maturity reached in the SMEs’ websites as digital tools that allow firms to communicate effectively, and the adoption of e-commerce. To study this, a representative sample of 381 SMEs located in Portugal and selected through stratified random sampling was analysed. To assess the degree of maturity of the websites, a sequential validation model, the extended model of internet commerce adoption (E-MICA), was applied. This information was crossed with some descriptive variables such as the volume of business, the location, the number of employees, and the sector of activity of the SMEs. The results showed that, in general terms, there predominant websites that limit their interaction to promoting products and services thus present a low level of maturity. While the sector of activity, the volume of income, and the location of the firm are decisive for the maturity of the websites as a form of digital communication in the process of incorporating e-commerce, the number of employees is not.

Differentiation of the Generation Potential of the Menilite and Istebna Beds of the Silesian Unit in the Carpathians Based on Compiled Pyrolytic Studies

The study of the source rocks was carried out with the use of various analytical methods in order to assess their generation potential and to predict the decomposition products of organic matter. The selected samples from the Menilite Beds from the Silesian and Dukla units, as well as the Istebna layers from the Silesian unit, which are classified as weak and medium source rocks in the Carpathian oil system, were examined. The generation potential and type of the products obtained from the pyrolysis of the analyzed source rocks, despite the often comparable overall content of organic matter, are significantly different. Menilite shale generated a higher abundance of hydrocarbons (alkanes, alkenes, and isoalkanes) by stage pyrolysis, which suggested that the organic matter of Menilite shale is different from the Istebna source rocks. Moreover, the thermogravimetric analysis showed a two-stage weight loss in the case of Menilite shales, while the Istebna shales were characterized by a one-stage weight loss at higher temperature. For the Istebna layers, n-alkanes from the C1–C5 range were detected as the main pyrolysis products, which proves the gas-forming type of the organic matter dispersed in these sediments. Rock-Eval analyses showed that the organic matter reached a degree of maturity corresponding to the early thermocatalytic processes (the initial oil window stage) and therefore was able to generate liquid and gaseous hydrocarbons. The comparison of the decomposition temperatures of the organic matter from the Rock-Eval and TG analyses allowed us to conclude that both measurements correlate well and can be equally used to assess the level of thermal transformations of organic matter.

Antioxidant capacity, oxidative stability of mango (Mangifera indica L) seed oil in 2 varieties and two degrees of maturity

The present work search the influence of the Edward and Kent mango varieties, in degrees of maturity partially ripe and ripe respectively, on the antioxidant capacity and oxidative stability of mango seed oil (Mangifera indica L.), previously extracted by pressing in cold, clarified by centrifugation, and stored in refrigeration under nitrogen atmosphere. The antioxidant capacity is determine by DPPH method, the oxidative stability by the Rancimat test with temperature parameters 130, 140 and 150 °C, and airflow 15 L/h. The results are evaluate by ANOVA (p˂0, 05) finding in the antioxidant capacity and other analyzes made a significant difference with a level of 95% confidence in the variables of variety and degree of maturity. Regarding the influence, the relationship will be determined that in a mature degree of maturity has a higher content of unsaturated fatty acids (oleic), and a lower content of total polyphenols, antioxidant capacity and oxidative stability. Being the oil of the variety Edward in degree of maturity ripe the most stable due to low value of the peroxide index (0,898 meq O2 / kg), acidity (1,1856%), and the higher content of total polyphenols (8,5931 mg GAE /100g) and antioxidant capacity (263,858 umoltrolox /100g), with a lifetime of 12,89 years.

A newly developed method based on surface physicochemical proprieties, for measuring the maturation level of olive fruit

The maturation process is an important determining factor to initiate the fermentation process in olive fruit. Level of maturation classically determined by the color of the olive fruit. In this study, we aim to develop a measurable criterion based on physicochemical properties and surface roughness of two important olive varieties grown in Morocco. The hydrophobic/hydrophilic properties and the electron donor-acceptor character of the olives were calculated. The obtained results showed a very clear change in the electron donor character and the surface roughness of the two studied varieties. This change depended on the degree of maturity and the nature of the cultivar. The electron donor character decreased (two times) with an increasing degree of maturity for the Arbequina, contrary to the Picholine variety, which showed a significant increase (4 times). Surface roughness increased 10 times for the Arbequina and decreased 5 times for the Picholine as maturity progressed from the green to the black stage. These findings may be useful in the management/prediction of the process of table olive fermentation.

The Effects of Age, Biological Maturation and Sex on the Development of Executive Functions in Adolescents

The development of executive functions (EF) has been widely investigated and is associated with various domains of expertise, such as academic achievement and sports performance. Multiple factors are assumed to influence the development of EF, among them biological maturation. Currently the effect of biological maturation on EF performance is largely unexplored, in contrast to other domains like physical development or sports performance. Therefore, this study aimed (a) to explore the effect of chronological age on EF performance and (b) to investigate to what extent age-related changes found in EF are affected by biological maturation on both sexes. To this end, EF performance and degree of maturity, indexed by percentage of predicted adult height (%PAH), of 90 adolescents (11–16 years old, 54% males) were measured on three occasions in a time frame of 12 months. A Generalized Estimating Equation (GEE) approach was used to examine the association between chronological age and %PAH and the weighted sum scores for each EF component (i.e., inhibition, planning, working memory, shifting). All models were run separately for both sexes. The males’ results indicated that EF performance improved with age and degree of maturity on all four components. Interaction effects between age and %PAH on inhibition showed that at a younger age, males with a higher %PAH had a lower chance of performing well on inhibition, whereas at later ages, males with a higher %PAH had a higher chance to have a good inhibition performance. For working memory, it seems that there is no maturity effect at a younger age, while at later ages, a disadvantage for later maturing peers compared to on-time and earlier maturing male adolescents emerged. Females showed slightly different results. Here, age positively influenced EF performance, whereas maturity only influenced inhibition. Interaction effects emerged for working memory only, with opposite results from the males. At younger ages, females with lower %PAH values seem to be scoring higher, whereas at later ages, no maturity effect is observed. This study is one of the first to investigate the effect of biological maturation on EF performance, and shows that distinct components of EF are influenced by maturational status, although the effects are different in both sexes. Further research is warranted to unravel the implications for maturation-driven effects on EF that might significantly affect domains of human functioning like academic achievement and social development.

The Impact of Seven Macroprudential Policy Instruments on Financial Stability in Six Euro Area Economies

The aim of this paper is to investigate whether macroprudential policy instruments can influence the credit growth rate and hence financial stability. We use a fixed effects panel regression model to test the following hypothesis for six euro area economies (Austria, Finland, Germany, Italy, Netherlands and Spain) during time span 2010 Q3 to 2018 Q4: “Macroprudential policy instruments (degree of maturity mismatch; interbank loans as a percentage of total loans; leverage ratio; non-deposit funding as a percentage of total funding; loan-to-value ratio; loan-to-deposit ratio; solvency ratio) enhance financial stability, as measured by credit growth”. Our empirical results suggest that the degree of maturity mismatch, non-deposit funding as a percentage of total funding, loan-to-value ratio and loan-to-deposit ratio exhibit the predicted impact on the credit growth rate and therefore on financial stability. On the other hand, interbank loans as a percentage of total loans, leverage ratio, and solvency ratio do not exhibit the expected impact on the response variable. Since only four regressors (out of seven) have the signs predicted by our hypothesis, we can only partly confirm it.

GOVERNANCE PROPOSAL FOR AN INNOVATION CENTER INSERTED IN A REFERRED ECOSYSTEM

As an important economic and social transformation strategy that has been adopted throughout the world, the formation of local innovation ecosystems constitutes a network of cooperation in favor of local development through the innovation economy formed by different types of actors. Among these actors, innovation habitats stand out, in particular, innovation centers that bring together in a single location several mechanisms, programs and other habitats in one place, and can thus become an epicenter of innovation ecosystems. However, depending on the degree of maturity of the ecosystem, the management and integration of an innovation center may have certain difficulties in its execution, therefore, this article presents a governance model, called hive, based on the case of the innovation center Jaraguá in Maceió/AL, recently launched within an ecosystem still under construction. At the end, a unique new look at the governance of an innovation center in a reference ecosystem is launched, demonstrating its main obstacles, strengths and how the flow of knowledge is developed in it.

International and domestic initiatives for e-commerce regulation

Introduction. The development of online commerce, which is gradually displacing the traditional one, is a clear trend of global economic transformations. Key aspects of e-commerce, such as online transactions, privacy and consumer protection, and customs clearance, need to be regulated at the international and national levels.The purpose of the article is to study the development of e-commerce in retail goods in the XXI century. in the context of assessing the completeness and effectiveness of international and domesticResearch methods. General scientific and special methods were used to study the legal aspects of e-commerce regulation, namely: analysis and synthesis, induction and deduction, abstraction and concretization, description, characterization, generalization, comparison. The methodological basis for the study was international regulations (UN Laws, European Union Directives, Acts of International Organizations) and a list of laws of Ukraine on the regulation of the electronic sphere.Results. The analysis of indicators of e-commerce development on the world market is carried out, its rapid dynamics is pointed out. International initiatives to regulate e-commerce are considered. A comparison of aspects of legal regulation of e-commerce in Ukraine and the European Union is carried out. Conclusions are made on the completeness and degree of maturity of the institutional base. Emphasis was placed on the need to strengthen regulatory mechanisms in the field of e-commerce in order to create a modern institutional system adapted to the global and European.Perspectives. It is important to focus future research on the development of guidelines for determining the effectiveness of the implementation of initiatives to regulate e-commerce at the domestic and global levels.