Mathematical analysis for tumor growth model of ordinary differential equations

Special functions occur quite frequently in mathematical analysis and lend itself rather frequently in physical and engineering applications. Among the special functions, gamma function seemed to be widely used. The purpose of this thesis is to analyse the various properties of gamma function and use these properties and its definition to derive and tackle some integration problem which occur quite frequently in applications. It should be noted that if elementary techniques such as substitution and integration by parts were used to tackle most of the integration problems, then we will end up with frustration. Due to this, importance of gamma function cannot be denied

Three essays on the study of nationalization with automated content analysis

In three papers, I consider two questions of nationalization in American politics, and one question of the methodology necessary to study them. Nationalization is the process by which local politics become more like national politics on the basis of political issues and electoral engagement. It is usually measured using the difference in presidential and state-level electoral returns over time. To expand the study of nationalization, I use automated content analysis to derive new measures for the phenomenon’s study based on political text. In particular, I apply automated content analysis via latent dirichlet allocation to code for salient topics in text from national political agenda speech, local agenda speech, and state laws. The primary source for these local agenda codes is a novel database of State of the State addresses, which are like presidential State of the Union addresses, but are delivered by governors. I developed the database over the past seven years as part of this dissertation; it draws from all 50 States, and the earliest captured addresses date to the year 1893. The secondary sources for these codes are the State of the Union addresses and a corpus of laws passed by state legislatures. I utilize the codes from these naturally distinct text corpora to study the nationalization of the political agenda, and how nationalized elections relate to the production of salient laws. The comparison of naturally distinct texts, however, is problematic and requires further examination. To that end, the first paper, “A Theory and Method for Pooling Naturally Distinct Corpora” concerns the theory and method for why we should be able to use, pool, and compare the computer-generated codes from these naturally distinct text corpora to study nationalization. I propose a theoretical framework with which the researcher may defend the pooling of corpora, and introduce an empirical approach to testing for absolute comparability, the delta-statistic. While statistics like the Akaike Information Criterion (AIC) and penalized log likelihood can help the researcher to determine if a model fits the pooled corpora better than the corpora separately, the delta-statistic relies on a strong theory of latent traits to evaluate the absolute quality of a pooled model. This is especially important when it is impossible to evaluate ground truth fit because some data are unlabeled. The second paper, “Have State Policy Agendas Become More Nationalized?” examines whether the nationalization of state policy agendas is related to the nationalization of gubernatorial elections. The analysis shows that State agendas, as laid out in the State of the State addresses, have become more similar to each other over time. It also shows that State agendas have become more similar to the national agenda, as laid out in the State of the Union addresses. Finally, I demonstrate an increasing relationship between the similarity in the agenda and the nationalization of elections. The findings suggest that the nationalization of the agenda is a significant and related factor to the nationalization of elections. The third paper, “Can States Govern Effectively When Politics Are Nationalized?” considers the question of whether electoral nationalization moderates the relationship between divided government and legislative productivity in the states. I find a null effect of divided government on salient lawmaking ability, and that nationalization of state legislatures has generally decreased the production of salient laws. The result holds even though nationalization is unrelated to the ability of our state governments to take action on salient issues during times of divided government. The findings suggest that behavioral factors driving lawmaker decisions may be more to blame for lawmaking defects than institutional ones. Taken together, the essays demonstrate the value of text analysis to the analysis of nationalization and other research topics in American politics

Cultivating Sustainable Small-Enterprise Networks: A Way to Enhance Value, Competitiveness and Resilience

The author’s experiences and successes in the 1980’s using “green chemistry” as a leading strategy in the transformation of a textile chemical company’s financial success, led to research on the potential of “sustainability” as a new strategic lens to improve value creation in small to medium sized enterprises (SMEs). Sustainability was offered as a useful strategic lens to aid in transforming SMEs to produce greater value in a world defined as “hot, flat and crowded”, meaning, a world where population pressures on resources, global warming, and the development of global trade are fundamentally changing the nature of enterprise and the consumer’s concept of the role of the corporate enterprises. The dissertation research proceeded along the following steps: · Pursue background research on sustainable development and the concepts for creation of sustainable enterprise · Develop research questions to discover what role “sustainability” might play in strategy planning and successful business strategies for SMEs · Examine the role of SMEs in the global economy · Explore the role and theory of SME network behavior and performance within the boundaries of sustainable development · Report the results of three action research cases where a sustainability lens and transformational framework were inserted as major influences on strategy development over a fiveplus year period · Summarize findings and develop suggestions for ongoing research The research questions developed were directed at discovering: what were the important attributes of sustainable enterprise that could lead SMEs to become more successful, how could these attributes be inserted into the activities of SMEs, and what were the impacts of defining a sustainability lens and inserting it into the strategy of three SMEs? Furthermore, there are many regions of the world where networks of SMEs have been found to create markets and unexpected synergies. Exploring these examples exposes the complexity of network formation and the architecture and behavior of such networks, but also produced some new understandings as examples of networking behavior from the Internet were contrasted with the performance of SME networks. It was found that networks of SMEs could form and dissolve rapidly; the term “ad hoc” network was coined to describe such behaviors. It was also observed that ad hoc networks could be extremely detrimental to the global physical and fiscal environments if their behaviors were not tempered by a realization of the need for sustainability and its associated behaviors. The globalization of markets seems to have forced SMEs to choose between hyperefficient behaviors, which create brittle, monofocused lowprice driven networks and have few environmental or social conscience boundaries, versus more resilient, socially, environmentally and financiallybounded networks that tend to be regional or local. The big questions addressed are whether SME networks can develop a hybrid structure that allows for adequate efficiency within a broadbased, “rightly understood” creation of value for large number of diverse stakeholders, and whether the winlose war of either “local” or “global” can be supplanted by multiscale sustainability? Samuel B. Moore, Erasmus University vi A transformative framework was developed based on the work of leading theorists on sustainable enterprise to encourage development of hybrid strategies and actions. This action research framework is outlined and consists of a series of educational and diagnostic exercises with the chosen firms, based on extensive dialogues with the owners/entrepreneurs of the firms. The anticipated results sought to balance the inputs and outputs of the corporation through inclusion of heretofore ignored stakeholders that creates new customers. The results were analyzed by value mapping of the new sustainable investments. This framework was used by the author on three SMEs as a lens to help the owners and managers of these firms to find a path forward out of their failing incumbent strategies. Three action research cases are presented: · Burlington Chemical Company, Inc. the author’s textile chemical manufacturing firm that was failing due to globalization of the textile industry. · Reedy Fork Dairy Farm – A family farm located in central North Carolina, USA that was failing due to wide fluctuation and decline of liquid milk prices. · TS Designs, Inc. A custom apparel printing company that was also failing due globalization of the textile market in the southeastern USA. The overall results of the action research projects were successful. Two of the three SMEs were adequately transformed as a result of sustainable lens insertion and new strategy implementation. They continue to survive and thrive after 5 plus years of strategic intervention. The textile chemical company did not survive due to inadequate understanding and actions related to “creative destruction” of the incumbent business model, however, even in failure, this case provides support for the idea that sustainable strategies can provide unique competitive advantages The finding of the research indicates that sustainability is a useful foundation for formal strategyplanning processes for SMEs. It forces consideration of internal and external factors and provides a new communication channel for communication and inclusion with new stakeholders. A sustainability lens provides for a broader definition of success that transcends but is inclusive of economic profitability and provides stability and control (resilience) within operations of SMES and networks of SMEs. The key concept of enterprise creating abundance for as many stakeholders as possible and thus expanding opportunities for many, rather than limiting value to strictly economic profits for shareholders, was a key metaphor for the success of these cases. Opportunities for further work remain in correlation of SME network behavior and other measureable networks such as the Internet. There also remains a great opportunity to study the resilience effects of the sustainability lens on creation of value for adopting SME firms and perhaps even the creation of new forms of SME network business structures

African Handbook of Climate Change Adaptation

This open access book discusses current thinking and presents the main issues and challenges associated with climate change in Africa. It introduces evidences from studies and projects which show how climate change adaptation is being - and may continue to be successfully implemented in African countries. Thanks to its scope and wide range of themes surrounding climate change, the ambition is that this book will be a lead publication on the topic, which may be regularly updated and hence capture further works. Climate change is a major global challenge. However, some geographical regions are more severly affected than others. One of these regions is the African continent. Due to a combination of unfavourable socio-economic and meteorological conditions, African countries are particularly vulnerable to climate change and its impacts. The recently released IPCC special report "Global Warming of 1.5º C" outlines the fact that keeping global warming by the level of 1.5º C is possible, but also suggested that an increase by 2º C could lead to crises with crops (agriculture fed by rain could drop by 50% in some African countries by 2020) and livestock production, could damage water supplies and pose an additonal threat to coastal areas. The 5th Assessment Report produced by IPCC predicts that wheat may disappear from Africa by 2080, and that maize— a staple—will fall significantly in southern Africa. Also, arid and semi-arid lands are likely to increase by up to 8%, with severe ramifications for livelihoods, poverty eradication and meeting the SDGs. Pursuing appropriate adaptation strategies is thus vital, in order to address the current and future challenges posed by a changing climate. It is against this background that the "African Handbook of Climate Change Adaptation" is being published. It contains papers prepared by scholars, representatives from social movements, practitioners and members of governmental agencies, undertaking research and/or executing climate change projects in Africa, and working with communities across the African continent. Encompassing over 100 contribtions from across Africa, it is the most comprehensive publication on climate change adaptation in Africa ever produced

Patent Law: Cases & Materials ~ Version 2.0

The book contains edited cases, patent figures, and excerpts, along with brief introductions on patent law. This book is designed for use in close conjunction with a specific softcover hornbook published by Wolters Kluwer, Janice Mueller’s, Patent Law, Fourth Edition (Aspen Student Treatise Series 2013). If you decide to use this case collection to teach a course of your own — as I hope people will — please check back to ensure that you have the most up-to-date version. This version, which is 2.0, was posted in June 2015. Reproduced and linked with permission of the author.https://digitalcommons.law.uga.edu/books/1101/thumbnail.jp

Effects of Complementary use of Organic and Inorganic fertilizers on the growth and yield of Cucumber (Cucumu sativus. L.) on an ultisol

A field study was conducted in 2008 and 2009 early cropping seasons to assess the response of cucumber (Cucumus sativus L.) to complementary use of organic and inorganic fertilizers in Uyo agro-ecology. The fertilizer treatments were: NPK (15:15:15) at 100 and 200 kgha-1, poultry manure (PM) at 5 and 10 tha-1 , and complementary application of 100 kgha-1 of NPK + 5 tha-1 of PM, 100 kgha-1 of NPK + 10 tha-1 of PM, 200 kgha1 of NPK +5 tha-1 of PM ,200 kgha-1 of NPK +10 tha-1 of PM and control (no fertilizer). Results showed significant differences (P<0.05) in all the growth and yield parameters considered in both cropping seasons. The combined application of 200 kgha-1 of NPK and 10 tha-1 of PM performed better than sole application of either organic or inorganic fertilizer, with fresh fruit yield of 14.63 and 14.92 tha-1 in 2008 and 2009, respectively and exceeded other treatments by 1 -76% and 1-73% in 2009 and 2010, respectively. This indicates strongly the synergistic benefits of using both organic and inorganic fertilizers even at lower rates

Proceedings of the 19th European Roundtable for Sustainable Consumption and Production Circular Europe for Sustainability: Design, Production and Consumption

Postprint (published version