Towards an econophysics view of intellectual capital dynamics: from self-organized criticality to the stochastic frontier

The paper begins with research studying the concept and nature of Intellectual Capital (IC), as well as how close IC firms are to the stochastic frontier. Then basic concepts of complexity theory – such as agents, self-organized criticality (SOC), connectivities, fractals, and power laws (PLs) – are used to distinguish between two kinds of IC firms’ success: traditional SOC applications to how firms maintain their position in a changing industry vs. how an IC firm (such as Apple) creates a new stochastic frontier. The research sets up PLs as indicators of whether or not firms and industries are SOC-effective and includes propositions about: (1) How IC firms benefit from complexity dynamics and SOC; (2) How PL distributions are indicators of efficacious SOC and adaptivity; and (3) Why IC attributes serve to create more transient dynamics pertaining to the stochastic frontier and the rest of the industry's rank/frequency distribution.     

The Last and Most Developed Naṣrid Palace in the Alhambra: The Alijares and Its Country Estate (Fourteenth Century)

The country estate (al-munya, almunia in Spanish) of the Alijares occupied grounds near the Alhambra and the Generalife, although it was higher up. It was constructed at the peak of the Na?rid dynasty's splendour, during the last stage of the reign of Mu?ammad V (r.1354–1359 / 1362–1391), after he had finished the Palace of the Lions.

The Alijares formed the last link in the chain in the stylistic development of the palaces of al-Andalus. When its founder decided on the features of the Alijares, he was in search of something that was completely innovative, as he had already undertaken work in the medinas of Granada and in the Alhambra that turned out to be a transformation of the architectural forms so far developed.

Life in the palace and the al-munya was cut short by sizeable earthquake in 1431, which coincided with a hard Castilian military campaign against the Kingdom of Granada. The consequences of the allegiance formed after the Na?rid defeat hindered the reconstruction of the Alijares, and so the royal buildings above the Royal Water Channel (Acequia Real) of the Alhambra were abandoned. Although time has erased many of the traces of the palace and its al-munya, we have extensive knowledge of its main architectural features, thanks to an analysis of all the available sources.     

Validity of a portable force platform for assessing biomechanical parameters in three different tasks

The aim of this study was to determine the precision and accuracy of the vertical and anterior–posterior force components of the portable PASCO PS-2142 force plate. Impulse, peak force, and time to peak force were assessed and compared to a gold standard force plate in three different tasks: vertical jump, forward jump, and sprint start. Two healthy male participants performed ten trials for each task, resulting in 60 trials. Data analyses revealed good precision and accuracy for the vertical component of the portable force plate, with relative bias and root mean square (RMS) error values nearly the same in all tasks for the impulse, time to peak force, and peak force parameters. Precision and accuracy of the anterior–posterior component were lower for the impulse and time to peak force, with relative bias and RMS error values nearly the same between tasks. Despite the lower precision and accuracy of the anterior–posterior component of the portable force plate, these errors were systematic, reflecting a good repeatability of the measure. In addition, all variables presented good agreement between the portable and gold standard platforms. Our results provide a good perspective for using the aforementioned portable force plate in sports and clinical biomechanics.     

How players exploit variability and regularity of game actions in female volleyball teams

Variability analysis has been used to understand how competitive constraints shape different behaviours in team sports. In this study, we analysed and compared variability of tactical performance indices in players within complex I at two different competitive levels in volleyball. We also examined whether variability was influenced by set type and period. Eight matches from the 2012 Olympics competition and from the Portuguese national league in the 2014–2015 season were analysed (1496 rallies). Variability of setting conditions, attack zone, attack tempo and block opposition was assessed using Shannon entropy measures. Magnitude-based inferences were used to analyse the practical significance of compared values of selected variables. Results showed differences between elite and national teams for all variables, which were co-adapted to the competitive constraints of set type and set periods. Elite teams exploited system stability in setting conditions and block opposition, but greater unpredictability in zone and tempo of attack. These findings suggest that uncertainty in attacking actions was a key factor that could only be achieved with greater performance stability in other game actions. Data suggested how coaches could help setters develop the capacity to play at faster tempos, diversifying attack zones, especially at critical moments in competition.