First observations of separated atmospheric nu_mu and bar{nu-mu} events in the MINOS detector

The complete 5.4 kton MINOS far detector has been taking data since the beginning of August 2003 at a depth of 2070 meters water-equivalent in the Soudan mine, Minnesota. This paper presents the first MINOS observations of nuµ and [overline nu ]µ charged-current atmospheric neutrino interactions based on an exposure of 418 days. The ratio of upward- to downward-going events in the data is compared to the Monte Carlo expectation in the absence of neutrino oscillations, giving Rup/downdata/Rup/downMC=0.62-0.14+0.19(stat.)±0.02(sys.). An extended maximum likelihood analysis of the observed L/E distributions excludes the null hypothesis of no neutrino oscillations at the 98% confidence level. Using the curvature of the observed muons in the 1.3 T MINOS magnetic field nuµ and [overline nu ]µ interactions are separated. The ratio of [overline nu ]µ to nuµ events in the data is compared to the Monte Carlo expectation assuming neutrinos and antineutrinos oscillate in the same manner, giving R[overline nu ][sub mu]/nu[sub mu]data/R[overline nu ][sub mu]/nu[sub mu]MC=0.96-0.27+0.38(stat.)±0.15(sys.), where the errors are the statistical and systematic uncertainties. Although the statistics are limited, this is the first direct observation of atmospheric neutrino interactions separately for nuµ and [overline nu ]µ

The impact of alliance management capabilities on alliance attributes and performance: A literature review

The literature on alliances has identified a variety of inter-firm antecedents of performance, including information and knowledge sharing between partners, shared partner understanding, and a focus on collective objectives. Recent studies have focused on alliance management capabilities (AMC) - firms' abilities to capture, share, store and apply alliance management knowledge - as an important antecedent of performance. This paper reviews 90 studies on AMC and makes two important contributions to the literature. First, the review provides an overview of and classification scheme for the different types of AMC to better organise the diverse empirical findings that have been presented in the literature. The novel classification distinguishes between general and partner-specific AMC and between AMC stored within the firm and within the alliance. Second, consistent with the dynamic capabilities perspective, this paper offers a more detailed understanding of why AMC improve performance, by highlighting the intermediate impact of AMC on alliance attributes. In particular, the review demonstrates how the different categories of AMC influence alliances in terms of information and knowledge-sharing between partners, shared partner understanding and the pursuit of collective goals. The review also demonstrates that these attributes improve performance. The authors note promising avenues for future empirical research that involve combining the classification scheme with research on the impact of AMC on alliance attributes and performance

Discourses of Collective Spirituality and Turkish Islamic Ethics:An Inquiry into Transcendence, Connectedness, and Virtuousness in Anatolian Tigers

Based on case studies and qualitative interviews conducted with 40 stakeholders in five SMEs, or so called Anatolian tigers, in Turkey, this article has explored what collective spirituality and Turkish Islamic business ethics entail and how they shape organizational values using diverse stakeholder perspectives. The study has revealed six emergent discourses around collective spirituality and Islamic business ethics: Flying with both wings; striving to transcend egos; being devoted to each other; treating people as whole persons; upholding an ethics of compassion; and leaving a legacy for future generations. These discourses are organized around three themes of collective spirituality, respectively: Transcendence, connectedness, and virtuousness

A self-avoidance mechanism in patterning of the urinary collecting duct tree

BACKGROUND: Glandular organs require the development of a correctly patterned epithelial tree. These arise by iterative branching: early branches have a stereotyped anatomy, while subsequent branching is more flexible, branches spacing out to avoid entanglement. Previous studies have suggested different genetic programs are responsible for these two classes of branches. RESULTS: Here, working with the urinary collecting duct tree of mouse kidneys, we show that the transition from the initial, stereotyped, wide branching to narrower later branching is independent from previous branching events but depends instead on the proximity of other branch tips. A simple computer model suggests that a repelling molecule secreted by branches can in principle generate a well-spaced tree that switches automatically from wide initial branch angles to narrower subsequent ones, and that co-cultured trees would distort their normal shapes rather than colliding. We confirm this collision-avoidance experimentally using organ cultures, and identify BMP7 as the repelling molecule. CONCLUSIONS: We propose that self-avoidance, an intrinsically error-correcting mechanism, may be an important patterning mechanism in collecting duct branching, operating along with already-known mesenchyme-derived paracrine factors

Inhibitory morphogens and monopodial branching of the embryonic chicken lung

Background: Branching morphogenesis generates a diverse array of epithelial patterns, including dichotomous and monopodial geometries. Dichotomous branching can be instructed by concentration gradients of epithelial-derived inhibitory morphogens, including transforming growth factor-β (TGFβ), which is responsible for ramification of the pubertal mammary gland. Here, we investigated the role of autocrine inhibitory morphogens in monopodial branching morphogenesis of the embryonic chicken lung. Results: Computational modeling and experiments using cultured organ explants each separately revealed that monopodial branching patterns cannot be specified by a single epithelial-derived autocrine morphogen gradient. Instead, signaling by means of TGFβ1 and bone morphogenetic protein-4 (BMP4) differentially affect the rates of branching and growth of the airways. Allometric analysis revealed that development of the epithelial tree obeys power-law dynamics; TGFβ1 and BMP4 have distinct but reversible effects on the scaling coefficient of the power law. Conclusions: These data suggest that although autocrine inhibition cannot specify monopodial branching, inhibitory morphogens define the dynamics of lung morphogenesis

Morphogenesis and morphometric scaling of lung airway development follows phylogeny in chicken, quail, and duck embryos

Background: New branches within the embryonic chicken lung form via apical constriction, in which epithelial cells in the primary bronchus become trapezoidal in shape. These branches form at precise locations along the primary bronchus that scale relative to the size of the organ. Here, we examined the extent to which this scaling relationship and branching mechanism are conserved within lungs of three species of birds. Findings: Analyzing the development of embryonic lungs from chicken, quail, and duck, as well as lungs explanted and cultured ex vivo, revealed that the patterns of branching are remarkably conserved. In particular, secondary bronchi form at identical positions in chicken and quail, the patterns of which are indistinguishable, consistent with the close evolutionary relationship of these two species. In contrast, secondary bronchi form at slightly different positions in duck, the lungs of which are significantly larger than those of chicken and quail at the same stage of development. Confocal analysis of fixed specimens revealed that each secondary bronchus forms by apical constriction of the dorsal epithelium of the primary bronchus, a morphogenetic mechanism distinct from that used to create branches in mammalian lungs. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that monopodial branching off the primary bronchus is driven by apical constriction in lungs of chicken, quail, and duck. The relative positions at which these branches form are also conserved relative to the evolutionary relationship of these species. It will be interesting to determine whether these mechanisms hold in more distant species of birds, and why they differ so significantly in mammals

Entrepreneurship as worship: A Malay Muslim perspective

While Islam is the second largest religion in the world with 1.6 billion Muslims, there are variations in the interpretations of that law (i.e. Sharia). This diversity and variation may hold the key in explaining the different behaviours among Muslim entrepreneurs because of their views on the concept of work as worship. In this study, we examine how Malay entrepreneurs are guided in their sourcing and shaping of entrepreneurial opportunities through Shafii practice. Our contributions include identifying five central values that guided the participant's sourcing of opportunities: Fardhu Kifayah (communal obligation), Wasatiyyah (balanced), Dakwah (the call of joining the good and forbidding the bad), Amanah (trust), and Barakah (blessings). We also contribute to the entrepreneurship literature by demonstrating how these macro-level values of worship gave the entrepreneurs confidence in creating their new ventures