Social innovation futures: beyond policy panacea and conceptual ambiguity

Social innovation is once more an increasingly popular notion circulating as an apparent means to solve the Grand Challenges of the 21st Century. But this common-sense idea of social innovation is based on a quasi-concept, where processes of innovation are absent. To restore some academic rigour to this important concept, we argue more attention need be paid to these innovation processes in social innovation, and that there is value in using innovation concepts drawn from other areas of innovation studies (disruptive innovation, innovation systems, institutional innovation and socio-technical transitions) in highlighting how small-scale social experiments can ultimately lead to the solution of pressing societal problems. Through a subtle critique of the current policy conception of social innovation, it is possible for the field of Innovation Studies in general to help provide better insights into social innovation processes and ultimately to lead to better support frameworks and interventions for promoting solutions to these Grand Challenges.We would like to acknowledge the financial support of the Eu-SPRI Forum for our exploratory project “Social innovation futures: beyond policy panacea and conceptual ambiguity” for developing the ideas in this paper.Peer reviewe

Social innovation as institutional innovation

Trabajo presentado a la Annual Conference of the EU-SPRI Forum: "Innovation policies for economic and social transitions: Developing strategies for knowledge, practices and organizations" celebrada en Helsinki (Finlandia) del 9 al 12 de junio de 2015.Common understanding of Social Innovation (SI) as an essential component in policy discourses to solve the so-called Grand Challenges of the 21st Century confronts the need to answer the remaining ‘desperate quest for a definition’ (Djellal & Gallouj, 2012: p. 121). SI has become ‘overdetermined’ that is, associated with a variety of meanings and interpretations rooted in a diversity of disciplines and faces the risk of having its validity challenged (Laclau & Mouffe, 1985). From the theoretical perspectives of science, technology and innovation studies, the EU-SPRI Exploratory study on Social Innovation Futures aspires to open academic debate to overcome current concerns surrounding ‘policy and chaotic’ views on the SI concept. Being the ‘innovation problem’ to understanding what affects innovation processes and how that shapes the change trajectories, the project aims to the nuclear question: How can SI be understood and interpreted as innovation process? (Benneworth et al., 2015). SI processes take parts of an emergent paradigm that needs to explicitly address the issue of purpose and direction of change where the social and technological components of innovation should not be seen as contradictory, but as inherently connected (Howaldt et al., 2014). This paradigm shift claims for a theory of socio-technological innovation and new answers on the nature and purposes of innovation in society (Edwards-Schachter et al., 2012; Benneworth & Cuhna, 2014). It is also intrinsic to policy orientations to deal with global ‘intractable problems’ or ‘global challenges’ which dates back several decades ago, like in the references in the Club of Rome report Limits to Growth (1972), which likewise explicitly names social innovation, in parallel to technical change, to change political processes and structures to favour a sustainable development. In this framework, this paper reviews the burgeoning literature that has developed in recent years a diversity of approaches on the role of institutions and institutional dynamic in innovation processes and explores their possible contributions and research avenues to SI1. The critical review attempts to examine important aspects and characteristics, which have so far remained rather latent, like institutional changes and legitimisation of SIs.Peer Reviewe

Analysis of fungal air pollution using different samplers

The aim of this study was the analysis of fungal air pollution in different rooms using different the air samplers. Air for mycological studies was collected from various hospital rooms. To monitor fungal air pollution were used samplers: SAS SUPER 100 (pbi-international), MAS 100 (Merck) and AIR IDEAL (BioMerieux). We found differences in CFU/L values in depending on hospital room and the air sampler type. The CFU/L values of air samples taken by the AIR IDEAL ranged from 350 to 850 and (724.2 ± 159.9), and the CFU/L values of air samples taken by the sampler SAS SUPER 100 ranged from 160 to 800 (455.3 ± 250.73). The CFU/L values of air samples taken by the MAS 100 sampler varied from 50 to 1340 (302.5±56.6) From the air samples of both samplers was incubated 6 genera/species of fungi. Candia albicans fungi species and genus Penicillium species were most frequently isolated from SAS Super 100 sampler, and Penicillium species from the AIR IDEAL sampler. From the air samples of MAS 100 was isolated 11 types/species of fungi and in air samples of SAS Super 100 was isolated 7 types/species. Significant differences of CFU/L values in the tested rooms were found in depending on the used sampler. Mycological analysis of the obtained cultures from air samples suggests that there is not same isolation of fungi using the different samplers

Optimization methodology for high COD nutrient-limited wastewaters treatment using BAS process

Optimization of biofilm activated sludge (BAS) process via mathematical modelling is an entangle activity since economic, environmental objective and technical decision must be considered. This paper presents a methodology to optimize the operational conditions of BAS process in four steps by combining dynamic simulation techniques with non-linear optimization methods and with operative decision-making criteria. Two set of variables are separately prioritized in the methodology: essential variables related to physical operation to enforce established process performance, and refinement variables related to biological processes that can generate risks of bulking, pin-point floc and rising sludge. The proposed optimization strategy is applied for the treatment of high COD wastewater under nutrient limitation using an integrated mathematical model for COD removal that include predation, hydrolysis and a simplified approach to the limiting solids flux theory in the secondary clarifier in order to facilitate the convergence of the optimization solver. The methodology is implemented in a full-scale wastewater treatment plant for a cellulose and viscose fibre mill obtaining (i) improvement of the effluent quality index (Kg pollution/m3) up to 62% and, (ii) decrease the operating cost index (€/m3) of the process up to 30% respect the regular working operational conditions of the plant. The proposed procedure can be also applied to other biological treatments treating high COD nutrient-limited industrial wastewater such as from textile and winery production among others

The problem of sharp notch in microstructured solids governed by dipolar gradient elasticity

In this paper, we deal with the asymptotic problem of a body of infinite extent with a notch (re-entrant corner) under remotely applied plane-strain or anti-plane shear loadings. The problem is formulated within the framework of the Toupin-Mindlin theory of dipolar gradient elasticity. This generalized continuum theory is appropriate to model the response of materials with microstructure. A linear version of the theory results by considering a linear isotropic expression for the strain-energy density that depends on strain-gradient terms, in addition to the standard strain terms appearing in classical elasticity. Through this formulation, a microstructural material constant is introduced, in addition to the standard Lamé constants . The faces of the notch are considered to be traction-free and a boundary-layer approach is followed. The boundary value problem is attacked with the asymptotic Knein-Williams technique. Our analysis leads to an eigenvalue problem, which, along with the restriction of a bounded strain energy, provides the asymptotic fields. The cases of a crack and a half-space are analyzed in detail as limit cases of the general notch (infinite wedge) problem. The results show significant departure from the predictions of the standard fracture mechanics

Novel concepts in virally induced asthma

Viruses are the predominant infectious cause of asthma exacerbations in the developed world. In addition, recent evidence strongly suggests that viral infections may also have a causal role in the development of childhood asthma. In this article, we will briefly describe the general perception of how the link between infections and asthma has changed over the last century, and then focus on very recent developments that have provided new insights into the contribution of viruses to asthma pathogenesis. Highlighted areas include the contribution of severe early life viral infections to asthma inception, genetic determinants of severe viral infections in infancy, the differences in innate and adaptive immune system cytokine responses to viral infection between asthmatic and nonasthmatic subjects, and a potential vaccine strategy to prevent severe early life virally-induced illness