Breathing Life Into Marketing Scholarship Through Creativity Learning and Teaching

Both employers and higher education institutes acknowledge creativity as a critical skill that all marketing graduates need to be equipped with when entering the job market. Creativity needs to exist within the marketing curriculum and be regarded as an integral part of the academic programmes offered at business schools. Whilst scholarly attempts have been made to find ways of incorporating creativity within the formal training at universities, many scholars acknowledge that creativity in marketing education has received little attention from researchers. This chapter highlights the importance of creative thinking for marketing and reviews the literature to provide a synthesis of the leading models for learning and teaching creativity in marketing modules

Cell migration on material-driven fibronectin microenvironments

Cell migration is a fundamental process involved in a wide range of biological phenomena. However, how the underlying mechanisms that control migration are orchestrated is not fully understood. In this work, we explore the migratory characteristics of human fibroblasts using different organisations of fibronectin (FN) triggered by two chemically similar surfaces, poly(ethyl acrylate) (PEA) and poly(methyl acrylate) (PMA); cell migration is mediated via an intermediate layer of fibronectin (FN). FN is organised into nanonetworks upon simple adsorption on PEA whereas a globular conformation is observed on PMA. We studied cell speed over the course of 24 h and the morphology of focal adhesions in terms of area and length. Additionally, we analysed the amount of cell-secreted FN as well as FN remodelling. Velocity of human fibroblasts was found to exhibit a biphasic behaviour on PEA, whereas it remained fairly constant on PMA. FA analysis revealed more mature focal adhesions on PEA over time contrary to smaller FAs found on PMA. Finally, human fibroblasts seemed to remodel adsorbed FN more on PMA than on PEA. Overall, these results indicate that the cell–protein–material interface affects cell migratory behaviour. Analysis of FAs together with FN secretion and remodelling were associated with differences in cell velocity providing insights into the factors that can modulate cell motility

Pre-plant release enhanced the earlier establishment of Nesidiocoris tenuis in open field tomato

Ο εχθρός της τομάτας, Tuta absoluta (Meyrick) (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae) που εισέβαλε στη χώρα μας, πολύ σύντομα έγινε σημαντικός εχθρός τόσο των υπαίθριων όσο και των θερμοκηπιακών καλλιεργειών. Η εξαπόλυση του αρπακτικού Nesidiocoris tenuis (Reuter) (Heteroptera: Miridae) στο φυτώριο έχει βρεθεί ότι μπορεί να συμβάλει στην αντιμετώπιση του T. absoluta σε καλλιέργειες τομάτας στο θερμοκήπιο. Ο στόχος της παρούσας μελέτης είναι να αξιολογηθεί κατά πόσο σε υπαίθρια καλλιέργεια τομάτας, η εξαπόλυση του N. Tenuis στο φυτώριο μπορεί να συμβάλει στην έγκαιρη εγκατάστασή του. Συμπερασματικά, η εξαπόλυση του N. tenuis συνέβαλε ουσιαστικά στην έγκαιρη αποίκηση της καλλιέργειας σε σύγκριση με τα τεμάχια του μάρτυρα. Επίσης, ο ρόλος του ιθαγενούς πληθυσμού του M. pygmaeus πρέπει να λαμβάνεται σοβαρά υπόψη στα προγράμματα ολοκληρωμένης αντιμετώπισης. Η μέθοδος αυτή είναι αποτελεσματική στην πιο έγκαιρη εγκατάσταση του N. tenuis και θα πρέπει να αξιολογηθεί περαιτέρω η συμβολή της στην αντιμετώπιση του Τ. absoluta.The invasive pest of the tomato crops, Tuta absoluta (Meyrick) (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae), soon after its establishment became a major problem of outdoor and greenhouse tomato crops across the Mediterranean countries. The pre-plant release of the predator Nesidiocoris tenuis (Reuter) (Heteroptera: Miridae) has been found to substantially contribute to its establishment on the crop and efficient control of T. absoluta in greenhouses. The aim of the current study was to assess whether the pre-plant release of N. tenuis could contribute to its earlier establishment. It was concluded that the release of N. tenuis in the nursery contributed substantially in the earlier increase of its numbers in the field in comparison to the control plots. The native populations of M. pygmaeus appeared on the tomato plants before the native populations of N. tenuis. Thus, the conservation of both predators should be taken into consideration in the integrated management strategies against T. absoluta. Therefore, the application of this method in open field tomato crop enhances the earlier establishment of N. tenuis and should be further evaluated in the control of T. absoluta

A comparison of manifest refractions, cycloplegic refractions and retinoscopy on the RMA-3000 autorefractometer in children aged 3 to 15 years

T Rotsos,1 D Grigoriou,2 A Kokkolaki,2 N Manios21Moorfields eye hospital, London, UK; 2Department of Ophthalmology, General Children’s Hospital, Penteli, Athens, GreecePurpose: The study was conducted to compare the accuracy of readings of the RMA-3000 autorefractometer (Topcon, Tokyo, Japan) with traditional retinoscopy as a means of determining the approximate subjective refraction in children after cycloplegia.Methods: 142 children aged 3 to 15 years were included. All children had their refractive status measured with the RMA-3000 autorefractometer (noncycloplegic autorefraction [AR]). Subsequently all children underwent cycloplegia and the refractive status was estimated again with the autorefractometer (cycloplegic autorefraction [ARC]) and traditional retinoscopy (RC) by examiners who were unaware of the results from the other techniques.Results: From 69 right eyes with negative sphere we observed that the sphere power was significantly higher (more than 0.5 diopters) in AR than in ARC (P = 0.0001) and RC (P = 0.0001). From the 73 normal and hyperopic right eyes we observed that the sphere power was significantly lower (more than 0.5 diopters) in AR than in ARC (P = 0.0001) and RC (P = 0.0001). Conclusions: The use of the autorefractometer in children (in whom accommodation is more active than older patients) without cycloplegia may underestimate the actual hyperopia and overestimate the actual myopia. Manual retinoscopy is still the most accurate technique to estimate refractive status in children.Keywords: refractometer, cycloplegia, retinoscopy, myopia, hyperopia, astigmatis

An SDN-approach for QoE management of multimedia services using resource allocation

Future networks will be accompanied by new heterogeneous requirements in terms of end-users Quality of Experience (QoE) due to the increasing number of application scenarios being deployed. Network softwarization technologies such as Software Defined Networks (SDNs) and Network Function Virtualization (NFV) promise to provide these capabilities. In this paper, a novel QoE-driven resource allocation mechanism is proposed to dynamically assign tasks to virtual network nodes in order to achieve an optimized end-to-end quality. The aim is to find the best combination of network node functions that can provide an optimized level of QoE to the end users though node cooperation. The service in question is divided in tasks and the neighbor nodes negotiate the assignment of these considering the final quality. In the paper we specifically focus on the video streaming service. We also show that the agility provided by SDN/NFV is a key factor for enhancing video quality, resource allocation and QoE management in future networks. Preliminary results based on the Mininet network emulator and the OpenDaylight controller have shown that our approach can significantly improve the quality of a transmitted video by selecting the best path with normalized QoS values

Pandemic pains to Instagram gains! COVID-19 perceptions effects on behaviours towards fashion brands on Instagram in Sub-Saharan Africa: Tech-native vs non-native generations

This study represents a novel attempt to investigate the cascading effects of COVID-19 perceptions onto behavioural patterns towards fashion brands on Instagram and across two generations tech-native vs tech non-native) in a Sub-Saharan African context. We drew our study on a sample of 338 Instagram users that experienced fashion brands on Instagram in two Sub-Saharan African countries: Uganda and Nigeria. We used partial least square structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) to test the hypothetical model. We found that COVID-19 perception positively predicted enjoyment and usefulness, leading to more satisfaction with fashion brand accounts on Instagram and hence greater intention to follow and recommend those accounts. Finally, running a multigroup analysis (MGA), we found the effects of COVID-19 perceptions pronounced into both intentions to follow and intention to recommend via the sequence of mediators: enjoyment and satisfaction were only valid amongst the tech-native generational cohort. Our research suggested a new generational categorisation based on technology nativity – offering a new direction of generational studies in digital marketing communications

Molecular diversity and distribution of eastern Atlantic and Mediterranean dogfishes Squalus highlight taxonomic issues in the genus

This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Wiley via the DOI in this record.The alpha taxonomy of the globally distributed shark genus Squalus has been under intense investigation recently, and many new species have been described over the last decade. However, taxonomic uncertainty remains about several taxa. Without consistent nomenclature and the ability to reliably distinguish between the different Squalus species, basic data collection, downstream conservation and management efforts are seriously compromised. To aid in clarifying the taxonomic status of Squalus species in the eastern Atlantic and Mediterranean, we assessed species diversity at the molecular level and evaluated the consistency in species identification in the region. Samples from all nominal Squalus species recognized in the above regions were collected in an international effort and sequenced for regions of the mitochondrial COI and ND2 genes. These data were further analysed alongside publicly available sequences, including 19 of the 26 Squalus species globally recognized, to compare the regional genus-level diversity with that found elsewhere. Our results confirm inconsistent species identification in the eastern Atlantic and Mediterranean Squalus, particularly concerning S. blainville and S. megalops, and reinforce the need to revise the status of S. megalops and S. mitsukurii as they may include several distinct species distributed around the world. The status of S. blainville is also discussed in the light of the current findings and its problematic taxonomic history.Systematic Research Fund. Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia. Grant Number: SFRH/BPD/77487/2007. Social European Fund. Portuguese funds. New Zealand National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research Lt

Centre d’études byzantines, néo-helléniques et sud-est européennes

Georges Drettas, chargé de recherche au CNRS Dans le prolongement de la réflexion commencée l’année précédente, nous avons examiné les ensembles dialectaux de notre zone. L’introduction méthodologique a eu pour objet de faire le point sur la place de la dialectologie dans la linguistique moderne. L’examen s’est focalisé sur l’origine et le développement de certaines représentations des faits linguistiques. L’histoire qui commence à la fin du XIXe siècle reflète l’influence de modèles emprunté..

of Research in Interactive Marketing Email is Evil! Behavioural Responses towards Permission based Direct Email Marketing and Gender Differences

Purpose – This study assesses consumers’ beliefs in three Middle Eastern Arab countries regarding attitudinal and behavioural responses towards permission-based Direct Email Marketing (hereafter DEM) and the moderating role of gender in the hypothesized path model. Design/methodology/approach – Structural equation modelling was used to test our hypothesized path model, utilizing data collected from 829 respondents. Findings – Our findings show that attitude was found to fully mediate the relationship between beliefs and behavioural responses towards permission-based DEM. Gender moderates the relationship between beliefs and attitudes, and responses to permission-based DEM. Notably, female respondents were found to react more actively when exposed to permission-based DEM. Research limitations/implications – Further qualitative research is needed to learn more about how and why individuals develop behavioural intentions in certain ways towards opt-in DEM. Also, neuropsychology approaches such eye-tracking are endorsed for future research to gain more insights and conquer biases associated with self-reporting procedures in countries where such technologies are deemed as legal and ethical to be used with human subjects. Practical implications – Advertisers promoting products and services in the Middle Eastern Arab context should take further steps to enhance the quality of information [including cultural sensitiveness] and the perceived entertainment value that could be delivered to consumers through permission-based DEM, especially for female internet users. Additionally, this study highly recommends the double opt-in approach to permission-based DEM. Originality/value – To the best of our knowledge, this is the first attempt to address the gender role as a moderator of the path depicting the effectiveness of permission-based DEM approach in the Middle East (Arab counties), from beliefs to behavioural responses via attitudes