The role of cultural values in understanding the challenges faced by female entrepreneurs in Nigeria

This article is (c) Emerald Group Publishing and permission has been granted for this version to appear here (http://bura.brunel.ac.uk/handle/2438/4036). Emerald does not grant permission for this article to be further copied/distributed or hosted elsewhere without the express permission from Emerald Group Publishing Limited.Purpose: This paper examines the challenges female entrepreneurs face in the development of their business in the context of Nigeria. In so doing, it addresses a gap in the literature on the experiences of female entrepreneurs in a non-Western context and acknowledges the contribution that women make in this area of work. Design: It draws on survey data from 274 female entrepreneurs currently engaged in their businesses in three states—Lagos (Nigeria’s largest city), Ogun, and Oyo within the south west of Nigeria. Findings: Results indicate that female entrepreneurs are generally confident and resourceful and that they enjoy the challenge of entrepreneurial activity. As in the West, they experience difficulties relating to family commitments and access to finance – as well as problems gaining acceptance and accessing networks. Originality: It is argued that cultural values specific to the situation mean that these challenges, while common to female entrepreneurs in other national contexts, ‘play out’ differentially and that they are experienced with different levels of depth and ‘intensity’. It is also argued that future research might uncover at a deeper level and drawing on qualitative methodology how some of the factors identified are experienced in women’s day to day lives. The paper suggests some policy implications in the form of support for female entrepreneurs in this context

Technological learning: towards an integrated model

The acquisition and growth of technological knowledge is fundamental to competitive advantage in the emerging knowledge economy. This article explores the notion of technological learning as a means of developing the capabilities that underpin long term sustainable innovation. The research project was designed to identify new ways of understanding learning in the context of technology-driven SMEs, so the methods employed were essentially inductive in nature. This has resulted in the development of a comprehensive framework comprising four inter-related knowledge categories (Identity, Direction, Capability, and Relationship), each of which has an associated learning process (learning by reflecting, learning by strategising, learning by doing, and learning by interacting). We argue that it is the interaction between these knowledge categories that generates the new insights that are essential to technological learning

Macroscale and Nanoscale Photoelectrochemical Behavior of p-Type Si(111) Covered by a Single Layer of Graphene or Hexagonal Boron Nitride

Two-dimensional (2D) materials may enable a general approach to the introduction of a dipole at a semiconductor surface as well as control over other properties of the double layer at a semiconductor/liquid interface. Vastly different properties can be found in the 2D materials currently studied due in part to the range of the distribution of density-of-states. In this work, the open-circuit voltage (V_(oc)) of p-Si–H, p-Si/Gr (graphene), and p-Si/h-BN (hexagonal boron nitride) in contact with a series of one-electron outer-sphere redox couples was investigated by macroscale measurements as well as by scanning electrochemical cell microscopy (SECCM). The band gaps of Gr and h-BN (0–5.97 eV) encompass the wide range of band gaps for 2D materials, so these interfaces (p-Si/Gr and p-Si/h-BN) serve as useful references to understand the behavior of 2D materials more generally. The value of V_(oc) shifted with respect to the effective potential of the contacting solution, with slopes (ΔV_(oc)/ΔE_(Eff)) of −0.27 and −0.38 for p-Si/Gr and p-Si/h-BN, respectively, indicating that band bending at the p-Si/h-BN and p-Si/Gr interfaces responds at least partially to changes in the electrochemical potential of the contacting liquid electrolyte. Additionally, SECCM is shown to be an effective method to interrogate the nanoscale photoelectrochemical behavior of an interface, showing little spatial variance over scales exceeding the grain size of the CVD-grown 2D materials in this work. The measurements demonstrated that the polycrystalline nature of the 2D materials had little effect on the results and confirmed that the macroscale measurements reflected the junction behavior at the nanoscale

Near-infrared and X-ray obscuration to the nucleus of the Seyfert 2 galaxy NGC 3281

We present the results of a near-infrared and X-ray study of the Seyfert 2 galaxy NGC 3281. Emission from the Seyfert nucleus is detected in both regions of the electromagnetic spectrum, allowing us to infer both the equivalent line of sight hydrogen column density, N_H = 71.0(+11.3,-12.3)e26/m^2 and the extinction due to dust, A_V = 22+/-11 magnitudes (90% confidence intervals). We infer a ratio of N_H/A_V which is an order of magnitude larger than that determined along lines of sight in the Milky Way and discuss possible interpretations. We consider the most plausible explanation to be a dense cloud in the foreground of both the X-ray and infrared emitting regions which obscures the entire X-ray source but only a fraction of the much larger infrared source.Comment: 23 pages including 9 figure

Embedded Eigenvalues and the Nonlinear Schrodinger Equation

A common challenge to proving asymptotic stability of solitary waves is understanding the spectrum of the operator associated with the linearized flow. The existence of eigenvalues can inhibit the dispersive estimates key to proving stability. Following the work of Marzuola & Simpson, we prove the absence of embedded eigenvalues for a collection of nonlinear Schrodinger equations, including some one and three dimensional supercritical equations, and the three dimensional cubic-quintic equation. Our results also rule out nonzero eigenvalues within the spectral gap and, in 3D, endpoint resonances. The proof is computer assisted as it depends on the sign of certain inner products which do not readily admit analytic representations. Our source code is available for verification at http://www.math.toronto.edu/simpson/files/spec_prop_asad_simpson_code.zip.Comment: 29 pages, 27 figures: fixed a typo in an equation from the previous version, and added two equations to clarif

A digital technique to compensate for time- base error in magnetic tape recording

Digital technique for compensation of time base error in magnetic tape recorder dat

Waveform distortion in an FM/FM telemetry system

Waveform distortion in FM/FM telemetry syste

Low-power radio galaxy environments in the Subaru/XMM-Newton Deep Field at z~0.5

We present multi-object spectroscopy of galaxies in the immediate (Mpc-scale) environments of four low-power (L_1.4 GHz < 10^25 W/Hz) radio galaxies at z~0.5, selected from the Subaru/XMM-Newton Deep Field. We use the spectra to calculate velocity dispersions and central redshifts of the groups the radio galaxies inhabit, and combined with XMM-Newton (0.3-10 keV) X-ray observations investigate the L_X--sigma_v and T_X--sigma_v scaling relationships. All the radio galaxies reside in moderately rich groups -- intermediate environments between poor groups and rich clusters, with remarkably similar X-ray properties. We concentrate our discussion on our best statistical example that we interpret as a low-power (FRI) source triggered within a sub-group, which in turn is interacting with a nearby group of galaxies, containing the bulk of the X-ray emission for the system -- a basic scenario which can be compared to more powerful radio sources at both high (z>4) and low (z<0.1) redshifts. This suggests that galaxy-galaxy interactions triggered by group mergers may play an important role in the life-cycle of radio galaxies at all epochs and luminosities.Comment: 12 pages, 7 figures, accepted for publication in MNRAS. High resolution version available upon reques

Estimating the masses of extra-solar planets

All extra-solar planet masses that have been derived spectroscopically are lower limits since the inclination of the orbit to our line-of-sight is unknown except for transiting systems. It is, however, possible to determine the inclination angle, i, between the rotation axis of a star and an observer's line-of-sight from measurements of the projected equatorial velocity (v sin i), the stellar rotation period (P_rot) and the stellar radius (R_star). This allows the removal of the sin i dependency of spectroscopically derived extra-solar planet masses under the assumption that the planetary orbits lie perpendicular to the stellar rotation axis. We have carried out an extensive literature search and present a catalogue of v sin i, P_rot, and R_star estimates for exoplanet host stars. In addition, we have used Hipparcos parallaxes and the Barnes-Evans relationship to further supplement the R_star estimates obtained from the literature. Using this catalogue, we have obtained sin i estimates using a Markov-chain Monte Carlo analysis. This allows proper 1-sigma two-tailed confidence limits to be placed on the derived sin i's along with the transit probability for each planet to be determined. While a small proportion of systems yield sin i's significantly greater than 1, most likely due to poor P_rot estimations, the large majority are acceptable. We are further encouraged by the cases where we have data on transiting systems, as the technique indicates inclinations of ~90 degrees and high transit probabilities. In total, we estimate the true masses of 133 extra-solar planets. Of these, only 6 have revised masses that place them above the 13 Jupiter mass deuterium burning limit. Our work reveals a population of high-mass planets with low eccentricities and we speculate that these may represent the signature of different planetary formation mechanisms at work.Comment: 40 pages, 6 tables, 2 figures. Accepted for publication in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society after editing of Tables 1 & 6 for electronic publication. Html abstract shortened for astro-ph submissio

Isospin-breaking interactions studied through mirror energy differences

Background: Information on charge-dependent (i.e., isospin-non-conserving) interactions is extracted from excited states of mirror nuclei. Purpose: Specifically, the purpose of the study is to extract effective isovector (Vpp 12Vnn) interactions which, in general, can either be of Coulomb or nuclear origin. Methods: A comprehensive shell-model description of isospin-breaking effects is used to fit data on mirror energy differences in the A = 42\u201354 region. The angular-momentum dependence of isospin-breaking interactions was determined from a systematic study of mirror energy differences. Results: The results reveal a significant isovector term, with a very strong spin dependence, beyond that expected of a two-body Coulomb interaction. Conclusions: The isospin-breaking terms that are extracted have a J dependence that is not consistent with the known CSB properties of the bare nucleon-nucleon interaction