Patterns of technological progress and corporate innovation

The bulk of the global innovative effort takes place in 5 countries: USA, Japan and China as leaders, with France and United Kingdom as immediate followers, which all display, on the long run, a negative marginal value added on innovation. The present paper attempts to answer the following question: why does most of innovative activity takes place in markets apparently hostile to innovation, i.e. giving back negative marginal value added on innovation ? A model is introduced in which any market may be represented as a Selten’s extensive game, subgames of which are played as Harsanyi’s games with imperfect information, by a temporarily finite and changing set of players. The firms’ innovative activity is a Nash’s dynamic equilibrium in which innovating is rational though suboptimal, without premium on innovation being a real economic profit. The model is the theoretical framework for the study of six cases: Ford Motor, General Motors, Honda, Chevron, Akzo Nobel and IBM, which allow to conclude that firms do innovation either because they have to or because this is their comparative advantage and they can do it in an exceptionally efficient way. As economic growth is grounded in efficient business patterns and in some countries those business patterns shape themselves in the context of a strong exogenous pressure on innovation. This leads to the development of economies which, regardless its pace of economic growth and balance of payments, come to a point when marginal value added on innovation is negative. At this point, however, incentives to innovate do not disappear and firms continue to apply the same business patterns and thus do create scientific input which gives back negative marginal real output. This pattern of global technological progress seem to be quite durable, with financial markets that allow to compensate, by successful financial placements, the downturns of innovative projects.innovation; technology; technological progress; corporate strategies

Informative path planning for scalar dynamic reconstruction using coregionalized Gaussian processes and a spatiotemporal kernel

The proliferation of unmanned vehicles offers many opportunities for solving environmental sampling tasks with applications in resource monitoring and precision agriculture. Informative path planning (IPP) includes a family of methods which offer improvements over traditional surveying techniques for suggesting locations for observation collection. In this work, we present a novel solution to the IPP problem by using a coregionalized Gaussian processes to estimate a dynamic scalar field that varies in space and time. Our method improves previous approaches by using a composite kernel accounting for spatiotemporal correlations and at the same time, can be readily incorporated in existing IPP algorithms. Through extensive simulations, we show that our novel modeling approach leads to more accurate estimations when compared with formerly proposed methods that do not account for the temporal dimension.Comment: Accepted to IROS 202

Information-Driven Adaptive Structured-Light Scanners

Sensor planning and active sensing, long studied in robotics, adapt sensor parameters to maximize a utility function while constraining resource expenditures. Here we consider information gain as the utility function. While these concepts are often used to reason about 3D sensors, these are usually treated as a predefined, black-box, component. In this paper we show how the same principles can be used as part of the 3D sensor. We describe the relevant generative model for structured-light 3D scanning and show how adaptive pattern selection can maximize information gain in an open-loop-feedback manner. We then demonstrate how different choices of relevant variable sets (corresponding to the subproblems of locatization and mapping) lead to different criteria for pattern selection and can be computed in an online fashion. We show results for both subproblems with several pattern dictionary choices and demonstrate their usefulness for pose estimation and depth acquisition.United States. Office of Naval Research (Grant N00014-09-1-1051)United States. Army Research Office (Grant W911NF-11- 1-0391)United States. Office of Naval Research (Grant N00014- 11-1-0688

Parent Peer Advocacy, Mentoring, and Support in Child Protection:A Scoping Review of Programs and Services

Parent peer advocacy, mentoring, and support programs, delivered by parents with lived child protection (CP) experience to parents receiving CP intervention, are increasingly recognized internationally as inclusive practices that promote positive outcomes, but little is known about what shared characteristics exist across these types of programs and what variations may exist in service delivery or impact. This scoping review examines 25 years (1996–2021) of empirical literature on these programs to develop a systematic mapping of existing models and practices as context for program benefits and outcome achievement. Method: Studies were selected using a systematic search process. The final sample comprised 45 publications that addressed research on 24 CP-related parent peer advocacy and support programs. Data analysis explored how programs were studied and conceptualized and examined their impact on parents, professionals, and the CP system. Results: Substantial variation in program settings, target populations, aims, advocate roles, and underlying theoretical frameworks were identified. Across program settings, existing empirical evidence on impact and outcomes also varied, though positive impacts and outcomes were evident across most settings. Conclusions: Findings from this review highlight the need to account better for parent peer advocacy and support program variations in future practice development to ensure alignment with inclusive and participatory principles and goals. Future research is also needed to address current knowledge gaps and shed light on the impact of these differences on individual, case, and system outcomes

Systemic: A Testbed For Characterizing the Detection of Extrasolar Planets. I. The Systemic Console Package

We present the systemic Console, a new all-in-one, general-purpose software package for the analysis and combined multiparameter fitting of Doppler radial velocity (RV) and transit timing observations. We give an overview of the computational algorithms implemented in the Console, and describe the tools offered for streamlining the characterization of planetary systems. We illustrate the capabilities of the package by analyzing an updated radial velocity data set for the HD128311 planetary system. HD128311 harbors a pair of planets that appear to be participating in a 2:1 mean motion resonance. We show that the dynamical configuration cannot be fully determined from the current data. We find that if a planetary system like HD128311 is found to undergo transits, then self-consistent Newtonian fits to combined radial velocity data and a small number of timing measurements of transit midpoints can provide an immediate and vastly improved characterization of the planet's dynamical state.Comment: 10 pages, 5 figures, accepted for publication on PASP. Additional material at http://www.ucolick.org/~smeschia/systemic.ph

Autonomous Exploration of Large-Scale Natural Environments

This thesis addresses issues which arise when using robotic platforms to explore large-scale, natural environments. Two main problems are identified: the volume of data collected by autonomous platforms and the complexity of planning surveys in large environments. Autonomous platforms are able to rapidly accumulate large data sets. The volume of data that must be processed is often too large for human experts to analyse exhaustively in a practical amount of time or in a cost-effective manner. This burden can create a bottleneck in the process of converting observations into scientifically relevant data. Although autonomous platforms can collect precisely navigated, high-resolution data, they are typically limited by finite battery capacities, data storage and computational resources. Deployments are also limited by project budgets and time frames. These constraints make it impractical to sample large environments exhaustively. To use the limited resources effectively, trajectories which maximise the amount of information gathered from the environment must be designed. This thesis addresses these problems. Three primary contributions are presented: a new classifier designed to accept probabilistic training targets rather than discrete training targets; a semi-autonomous pipeline for creating models of the environment; and an offline method for autonomously planning surveys. These contributions allow large data sets to be processed with minimal human intervention and promote efficient allocation of resources. In this thesis environmental models are established by learning the correlation between data extracted from a digital elevation model (DEM) of the seafloor and habitat categories derived from in-situ images. The DEM of the seafloor is collected using ship-borne multibeam sonar and the in-situ images are collected using an autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV). While the thesis specifically focuses on mapping and exploring marine habitats with an AUV, the research applies equally to other applications such as aerial and terrestrial environmental monitoring and planetary exploration

Private Company Lies

Rule 10b-5’s antifraud catch-all is one of the most consequential pieces of American administrative law and most highly developed areas of judicially-created federal law. Although the rule broadly prohibits securities fraud in both public and private company stock, the vast majority of jurisprudence, and the voluminous academic literature that accompanies it, has developed through a public company lens. This Article illuminates how the explosive growth of private markets has left huge portions of U.S. capital markets with relatively light securities fraud scrutiny and enforcement. Some of the largest private companies by valuation grow in an environment of extreme information asymmetry and with the pressure, opportunity, and rationalizing culture that can foster misconduct and deception. Many investors in the private markets are sophisticated and can bear high levels of risk and significant losses from securities fraud. It is increasingly evident, however, that private company lies can harm a broader range of shareholders and stakeholders as well as the efficiency of allocating billions of dollars for innovation and new business. In response to this underappreciated problem, this Article explores a range of mechanisms to improve accountability in the private markets and ultimately argues for greater public oversight and enforcement

Development of a framework for successful international clinical placements: A case study of Australian Bachelor of Nursing students studying abroad in Asia

International clinical placements (ICP) in undergraduate nursing programs are often offered to facilitate the integration of nursing students’ knowledge and clinical skills in complex and culturally diverse healthcare settings. This study aimed to better understand how key stakeholders’ value and attribute meaning to successful short-term placements undertaken in the Asia region within Australian Bachelor of Nursing programs. A mixed-methods case study design was used to provide a holistic view of ICPs and incorporated four phases of data collection and analysis. Phase one consisted of a qualitative systematic review, and was completed in late 2014; Phase two was an online mapping survey of higher education providers in Australia (n=18) to collect descriptive data of current ICP practices (conducted August to September 2015); Phase three and four were conducted concurrently and included semi-structured interviews with key stakeholders (university, student, program administrators and local community) (n=19) and a reflective photo journal by the researcher. Six themes spanning the continuum of the ICP experience emerged from interpretive analysis of semi-structured interviews with stakeholders in Phase 3. They included: ‘Developing successful placements’, ‘Preparing for the unknown’, ‘Putting the focus on learning’, ‘Recognising difference’, and ‘Building relationships’ to ‘Growing from the experience’. Alongside the findings from the other data collection phases, these themes informed the development of a framework to assist education providers to prepare for and critically evaluate placements. The International Clinical Placement Planning and Evaluation (ICliPPE) framework reflects the multifaceted nature of international clinical placements, through a focus on factors that enhance clinical learning within three pillars that contribute to a successful placement experience: ‘Maximising learning’, ‘Exploring difference’ and ‘Motivations and Intentions’. The ICliPPE framework, whilst created within the Australian nursing context provides an identifiable structure that can potentially have applicability for all higher education providers wishing to maximise learning opportunities and develop sustainable international clinical placements

Placement of Former English Language Learners in Middle Schools: General Education or Dual Language?

Historically, many educators have attempted to help English Language Learners (ELLs) develop sufficient English skills to be reclassified so that they can be placed in general-education classrooms. At present, educators increasingly favor a policy of placing former ELLs in dual-language settings. But it remains unclear whether former ELLs in middle schools perform better academically in general-education (GE) or dual-language (DL) classrooms. Research was conducted to compare former ELLs placed in GE settings and those who remained in DL classrooms on state tests in English Language Arts (ELA) and math (n=99) at the middle-school level. In both subjects, DL students outperformed GE students on two of four yearly test administrations following reclassification, and for ELA averaged across the four, with single-test effects stronger in math than ELA. GE students did not outperform DL students on any of eight tests. Calling into question policies favoring placement of former ELLs in GE classes, the results underscore the efficacy of continuing to use students’ home language in instruction following reclassification

Local Partners’ Perspectives on Health Student Service-Learning Placements in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: A Pilot Qualitative Study with Partners from Vietnam and Timor-Leste

Service-learning programs can provide clinical assistance in low-resourced settings while providing students with intercultural learning opportunities in diverse health contexts; local partners’ perspectives on international service-learning (ISL) programs are integral to ethical, effective and sustainable university-community partnerships; yet the perspectives of local partners remain under-represented in research. Interpretive description methods guided data collection and thematic analysis of qualitative responses from written questionnaires. Four local partners from Vietnam and Timor-Leste responded to questionnaires in this pilot project. Three themes were identified regarding benefits, underpinning factors for program effectiveness, and a further three themes related to desired improvements. According to local partners, benefits of ISL include skill and knowledge exchange, enhanced assessment and intervention strategies, and increased service quality. Communication and relationships were seen as underpinning factors of effective partnerships. Areas for further improvement included drawing more strongly on local partner strengths and perspectives, further collaborative preparation for the placements, and more regular communication. These preliminary findings align with existing research regarding benefits to local partners. Modelling effective practices, formal training and meetings, and ongoing case discussions may be some useful methods for achieving knowledge and skill exchange in ISL