On optimal location and management of a new industrial plant: Numerical simulation and control

Within the framework of numerical modelling and multi-objective control of partial differential equations, in this work we deal with the problem of determining the optimal location of a new industrial plant. We take into account both economic and ecological objectives, and we look not only for the optimal location of the plant but also for the optimal management of its emissions rate. In order to do this, we introduce a mathematical model (a system of nonlinear parabolic partial differential equations) for the numerical simulation of air pollution. Based on this model, we formulate the problem in the field of multi-objective optimal control from a cooperative viewpoint, recalling the standard concept of Pareto-optimal solution, and pointing out the usefulness of Pareto-optimal frontier in the decision making process. Finally, a numerical algorithm – based on a characteristics/Galerkin discretization of the adjoint model – is proposed, and some numerical results for a hypothetical situation in the region of Galicia (NW Spain) are presented.     

Technological change in U.S. jet fighter aircraft

This paper quantitatively measures technological change in U.S. jet fighter aircraft from 1944 to the present day using the hedonic pricing approach. The technical and performance characteristics of jet fighters have changed dramatically between the time they were first developed at the beginning of the 1940s and the present. Parallel to this technological change there has been a sharp escalation in costs regarding the new generations of jet fighter aircraft. We estimate a measure of price for the performance and technical characteristics of these aircraft. Embodied technological change in jet fighter airframes is measured using quality-adjusted prices. Although the flyaway cost of jet fighter aircraft has soared, on average, by about 12.63% per year, the quality-adjusted aircraft cost has only risen by about 2.6% per year, a figure lower than the average observed general inflation rate for the period (around 4%). This represents an impressive average technological progress ratio of around 10% per year. A revealed preferences argument shows that the characteristic most valued by the government is stealth capability, followed by advanced avionics.     

Light emitting diodes and the lighting revolution: The emergence of a solid-state lighting industry

Emergence of new industries from evolving technologies is critical to the global economy, yet has been relatively understudied due to the paucity of available data. This study draws lessons on industry emergence, by analyzing how a solid-state lighting (SSL) industry grew out of light emitting diode (LED) technologies that evolved for half a century, with participation by tens of thousands of researchers in universities, national laboratories, and firms. Using data on publications, patents, and firms combined with business history we trace the evolution of SSL through a succession of market niches. At times a few researchers with unorthodox research approaches made breakthroughs that greatly advanced particular technology trajectories and pushed LED research in unexpected directions. A succession of LED market niches advanced the technology and provided profits to incentivize continuing research while reducing cost and improving efficacy of LEDs. Innovating firms developed a thicket of patents and captured substantial profit, but were embroiled in extensive litigation that was ultimately resolved through cross-licensing. A major new generation of lighting products is now disrupting the traditional lighting industry. Although the leading incumbent lighting firms all invested early and heavily in SSL, the industry's future leadership is uncertain.     

专业镇竞争力评价的指标体系与模型构建

<正>确分析和评价专业镇竞争力,客观认识和了解专业镇发展现状及竞争优势,对专业镇的政策制定及转型发展具有重要现实意义。从专业镇竞争力的内涵及评价内容入手,从城镇竞争力、产业竞争力、企业竞争力、自主创新能力和环境竞争力五个方面构建出一套相对完整的专业镇竞争力评价指标体系以及与之相应的评价模型,为客观、全面、定量地评价和衡量专业镇竞争力提供理论支撑和实践依据。     

Green intellectual capital and environmental product innovation: the mediating role of green social capital

Although the importance of intellectual capital has already been highlighted in the management literature, few articles have focused on the importance of its green counterpart, green intellectual capital. Nowadays, when environmental concerns cannot be ignored by firms, it is therefore time to explore the role of green intellectual capital in environmental improvement. For that reason, our research aims to explore the relationships between green intellectual capital components and the environmental performance of the firms. In particular, we try to show the importance of green organizational and social capital in the development of environmental product innovations, which are vital to the development and implementation of environmental strategies since, as scholars have pointed out, they generate some of the greatest environmental impacts. The empirical results show that green organizational capital has an indirect impact on environmental product innovation through green social capital, meaning that the latter is a significant mediator of that relationship, and at the same time emphasizing that informal relationships play a key role in the improvement of the environmental performance of the firm and, more specifically, in the development of environmental product innovations.     

Social capital as a driver of local knowledge exchange: a social network analysis

The objective of this paper is to take an in-depth look, from a network perspective, at the role that social capital plays in improving knowledge exchange between organizations. To do this, we consider the three dimensions of social capital: the structural dimension, as measured by the position of firms bridging structural holes; the relational dimension, as gauged by the level of trust and friendship in each relationship; and the cognitive dimension, as estimated by the presence of a shared culture. We also evaluate the level of organizational and human capital present in terms of the firms in the network. Empirical evidence has been gathered from the Madrid Science Park in Spain by applying the social network analysis methodology. The results show that the three dimensions of social capital play a significant role in increasing knowledge exchange in this network, while human and organizational capital differences are only significant for a sub-sample.     

Advances in the identification and measurement of Intellectual Capital and future developments in the Intellectual Capital research agenda: experience of the Intellectus Model and proposal of a synthetic index

Knowledge Management Research & Practice - Nowadays knowledge has become a key asset for firms in order to build a sustainable competitive advantage. The environment changes quickly and...     

Critical elements for product innovation at Portuguese innovative SMEs: an intellectual capital perspective

Knowledge Management Research & Practice - The general purpose of this research is to study interaction effects between intangible assets and product innovation. More specifically, the authors...     

The relationships among consumers’ ethical ideology,risk aversion and ethically-based distrust of online retailers and the moderating role of consumers’ need for personal interaction

Consumer distrust is only recently beginning to be perceived as an important e-commerce issue and, unlike online trust, the nature and role of distrust is much less established. This study examines the influence of two important consumer characteristics (ethical ideology and risk aversion) on consumer’s ethically-based distrust of online retailers. Also, the moderating role of consumer’s need for personal contact with sales staff is tested. Results from 409 online consumers confirm that both relativist-based ethical ideology and risk aversion are strongly and positively related to consumers’ distrust. Interestingly, our findings show that positive effects of relativism and risk aversion on consumer’s distrust are moderated by consumers’ need for personal interaction, which is more pronounced for those consumers with a high need for personal interaction with retail salespeople.     

Inducing chemotactic and haptotactic cues in microfluidic devices for three-dimensional in vitro assays

Microfluidic devices allow for the production of physiologically relevant cellular microenvironments by including biomimetic hydrogels and generating controlled chemical gradients. During transport, the biomolecules interact in distinct ways with the fibrillar networks: as purely diffusive factors in the soluble fluid or bound to the matrix proteins. These two main mechanisms may regulate distinct cell responses in order to guide their directional migration: caused by the substrate-bound chemoattractant gradient (haptotaxis) or by the gradient established within the soluble fluid (chemotaxis). In this work 3D diffusion experiments, in combination with ELISA assays, are performed using microfluidic platforms in order to quantify the distribution of PDGF-BB and TGF-β₁ across collagen and fibrin gels. Furthermore, to gain a deeper understanding of the fundamental processes, the experiments are reproduced by computer simulations based on a reaction-diffusion transport model. This model yields an accurate prediction of the experimental results, confirming that diffusion and binding phenomena are established within the microdevice.