The Problem of Embeddedness: Knowledge Transfer, Situated Practice, and the Role of Information Systems

This study examines the problems associated with the use of knowledge management systems designed for transferring internal best practices. The field research explores the nature of engineers’ tacit knowledge in a dynamic context maintaining semiconductor fabrication machines. It illustrates the problem underlying the codification of tacit knowledge embedded in situated practice. Three problems of such embeddedness are explained with reference to task complexity, the collaboration mode, and industrial context. The study analyzes knowledge in actual practice in a high-velocity industry via a situated practice perspective, and suggests how it might affect the use of information systems

Household environmental tobacco smoke and risks of asthma, wheeze and bronchitic symptoms among children in Taiwan

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Although studies show that maternal smoking during pregnancy increases the risks of respiratory outcomes in childhood, evidence concerning the effects of household environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) exposure remains inconsistent.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We conducted a population-based study comprised of 5,019 seventh and eighth-grade children in 14 Taiwanese communities. Questionnaire responses by parents were used to ascertain children's exposure and disease status. Logistic regression models were fitted to estimate the effects of ETS exposures on the prevalence of asthma, wheeze, and bronchitic symptoms.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The lifetime prevalence of wheeze was 11.6% and physician-diagnosed asthma was 7.5% in our population. After adjustment for potential confounders, <it>in utero </it>exposure showed the strongest effect on all respiratory outcomes. Current household ETS exposure was significantly associated with increased prevalence of active asthma, ever wheeze, wheeze with nighttime awakening, and bronchitis. Maternal smoking was associated with the increased prevalence of a wide range of wheeze subcategories, serious asthma, and chronic cough, but paternal smoking had no significant effects. Although maternal smoking alone and paternal smoking alone were not independently associated with respiratory outcomes, joint exposure appeared to increase the effects. Furthermore, joint exposure to parental smoking showed a significant effect on early-onset asthma (OR, 2.01; 95% CI, 1.00-4.02), but did not show a significant effect on late-onset asthma (OR, 1.17; 95% CI, 0.36-3.87).</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>We concluded that prenatal and household ETS exposure had significant adverse effects on respiratory health in Taiwanese children.</p

A novel mutation in the WFS1 gene identified in a Taiwanese family with low-frequency hearing impairment

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Wolfram syndrome gene 1 (<it>WFS1</it>) accounts for most of the familial nonsyndromic low-frequency sensorineural hearing loss (LFSNHL) which is characterized by sensorineural hearing losses equal to and below 2000 Hz. The current study aimed to contribute to our understanding of the molecular basis of LFSNHL in an affected Taiwanese family.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>The Taiwanese family with LFSNHL was phenotypically characterized using audiologic examination and pedigree analysis. Genetic characterization was performed by direct sequencing of <it>WFS1 </it>and mutation analysis.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Pure tone audiometry confirmed that the family members affected with LFSNHL had a bilateral sensorineural hearing loss equal to or below 2000 Hz. The hearing loss threshold of the affected members showed no progression, a characteristic that was consistent with a mutation in the <it>WFS1 </it>gene located in the DFNA6/14/38 locus. Pedigree analysis showed a hereditarily autosomal dominant pattern characterized by a full penetrance. Among several polymorphisms, a missense mutation Y669H (2005T>C) in exon 8 of <it>WFS1 </it>was identified in members of a Taiwanese family diagnosed with LFSNHL but not in any of the control subjects.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>We discovered a novel heterozygous missense mutation in exon 8 of <it>WFS1 </it>(i.e., Y669H) which is likely responsible for the LFSNHL phenotype in this particular Taiwanese family.</p

Overweight worsens apoptosis, neuroinflammation and blood-brain barrier damage after hypoxic ischemia in neonatal brain through JNK hyperactivation

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Apoptosis, neuroinflammation and blood-brain barrier (BBB) damage affect the susceptibility of the developing brain to hypoxic-ischemic (HI) insults. c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) is an important mediator of insulin resistance in obesity. We hypothesized that neonatal overweight aggravates HI brain damage through JNK hyperactivation-mediated upregulation of neuronal apoptosis, neuroinflammation and BBB leakage in rat pups.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Overweight (OF) pups were established by reducing the litter size to 6, and control (NF) pups by keeping the litter size at 12 from postnatal (P) day 1 before HI on P7. Immunohistochemistry and immunoblotting were used to determine the TUNEL-(+) cells and BBB damage, cleaved caspase-3 and poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP), and phospho-JNK and phospho-Bim_ELlevels. Immunofluorescence was performed to determine the cellular distribution of phospho-JNK.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Compared with NF pups, OF pups had a significantly heavier body-weight and greater fat deposition on P7. Compared with the NF-HI group, the OF-HI group showed significant increases of TUNEL-(+) cells, cleaved levels of caspase-3 and PARP, and ED1-(+) activated microglia and BBB damage in the cortex 24 hours post-HI. Immunofluorescence of the OF-HI pups showed that activated-caspase 3 expression was found mainly in NeuN-(+) neurons and RECA1-(+) vascular endothelial cells 24 hours post-HI. The OF-HI group also had prolonged escape latency in the Morris water maze test and greater brain-volume loss compared with the NF-HI group when assessed at adulthood. Phospho-JNK and phospho-Bim_ELlevels were higher in OF-HI pups than in NF-HI pups immediately post-HI. JNK activation in OF-HI pups was mainly expressed in neurons, microglia and vascular endothelial cells. Inhibiting JNK activity by AS601245 caused more attenuation of cleaved caspase-3 and PARP, a greater reduction of microglial activation and BBB damage post-HI, and significantly reduced brain damage in OF-HI than in NF-HI pups.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Neonatal overweight increased HI-induced neuronal apoptosis, microglial activation and BBB damage, and aggravated HI brain damage in rat pups through JNK hyperactivation.</p

Ameliorate Effects of Li-Fu Formula on IL-6-Mediated Cardiac Hypertrophy in Hamsters Fed with a Hyper-Cholesterol Diet

Hypercholesterolemia diets are considered as major sources to cause cardiac hypertrophy. This study intends to evaluate the effects of Li-Fu formula on cardiac hypertrophy induced by hypercholesterolemia diet. Twenty-four male Golden Syrian hamsters were randomly divided into control, cholesterol and Li-Fu formula groups and fed with different experimental diets for 2 months. Histopathological analysis and western blotting were performed to measure the myocardial architecture, and various cardiac hypertrophy-associated molecules in the excised left ventricle from hamsters. The ratios of whole heart weight/body weight (BW) and left ventricle weight/BW were significantly higher in the cholesterol group but significantly lower in the Li-Fu formula group. The protein levels of both atrial natriuretic peptide and brain natriuretic peptide were significantly increased in the cholesterol group but significantly reduced in the Li-Fu formula group. Additionally, significantly increased interleukin-6, STAT3, MEK5, p-ERK5 and non-cardiomyocyte proliferate signal molecules such as p-MEK and p-ERK, were detected in the cholesterol group but significantly reduced in the Li-Fu formula group. Notably, no significant variations of inflammatory signaling molecules, including p-P38 and p-JNK, were detected in all groups. Our experimental results demonstrated the significant reductions of cardiac hypertrophy and related eccentric hypertrophy signaling, non-cardiomyocyte proliferate signaling in the excised left ventricle of hamsters from the Li-Fu formula. We suggested the protective effects of Li-Fu formula on cardiac hypertrophy that may be useful in prevention or treatment of hypertrophy-associated cardiovascular diseases

The Relationship between Ownership Structure and the Probability of a Financial Distress Warning Happening: Evidence of Listed Common Stock Companies in Taiwan

This paper discusses about the ownership structure of firms and the probability of a financial distress warning happening in Taiwan. Our sample covers all listed common stock companiesexceptthe financial industry from 2006 to 2014. This study usesthe Z-score to measure the probability of firms’ financial distress warning happening and employs the shareholding ratio of managerial share ownership, the shareholding ratio of financial institutional investors, and the size of the board of directors to measure firms’ ownership structure. For our results, the shareholding ratio of managerial share ownership has positive relationship with the probability of a financial distress warning happening, while the shareholding ratio of institutional investors and the size of the board of directors have a negative relationship with the probability of the same warning happening

Proposal for Improvement of Processes on the Production Line

Import 05/08/2014Cílem práce bylo najít úzké místo na lince obrábění a následně navrhnout možné kroky na zlepšení procesů. Nejprve bylo nutné se seznámit s výrobním procesem a jednotlivými operacemi, kterými musí výrobek projít. Úzké místo bylo nalezeno pomocí naměřených časů jednotlivých operací a časů linek. Tyto časy nám umožnily nalézt nejpomalejší úsek ve výrobě. Závěr diplomové práce se opírá o vypočtenou výrobní kapacitu, se kterou se pracovalo při návrzích na zlepšení.The main aim of this thesis was to find out a narrow place of the concrete machine tool and then suggest the possible steps to improve the processes. Firstly, it was necessary to become familiarized with the production process and the various operations in which the product must go through. The bottleneck was found out by accurate recording the operations and the production lines. These times showed us the slowest part of the production. The conclusion of this thesis relies on the calculated capacity which was used when the improvement suggestions were hand in.152 - Katedra podnikohospodářskávýborn

Efficacy of Femarelle for the treatment of climacteric syndrome in postmenopausal women: An open label trial

AbstractObjectiveTo assess the effects of 2 months of treatment with Femarelle for climacteric syndrome in Taiwanese postmenopausal women.Materials and methodsA multi-center, open-label trial of 260 postmenopausal women, age ≥ 45 years with vasomotor symptoms. Women were enrolled after obtaining a detailed medical history and a thorough physical examination. They then received Femarelle (640 mg/d) twice daily for 8 weeks. The primary outcome was the changes in the frequency and severity of hot flushes from baseline to 4 weeks (1 month) and 8 weeks (2 months). Changes of general climacteric syndrome were assessed using a modified climacteric scale designed by Greene.ResultsThe frequency and severity of hot flushes were significantly improved with Femarelle use (p < 0.001). After 8 weeks of treatment, the percentage of women with various climacteric syndromes was reduced (from 100% to 20.9% for hot flushes, from 97.7% to 87.9% for psychological symptoms, from 93.8% to 78.8% for somatic symptoms, and from 87.8% to 74.9% for sexual symptoms). General climacteric syndrome scores also significantly decreased, from 20.8 ± 0.7 at the time of enrollment to 12.9 ± 0.7 after 8 weeks of Femarelle treatment (p < 0.0001). Participants experienced improvement of various climacteric symptoms and signs after 8 weeks of treatment (75.1% for hot flushes, 68.7% for psychological symptoms, 70.6% for somatic symptoms, and 69.0% for sexual problems respectively). After 4 weeks and 8 weeks of treatment with Femarelle, patients showed statistically significant improvement in climacteric symptoms (p < 0.0001). Three women (1.2%) withdrew from the study after 4 weeks of treatment due to adverse effects.ConclusionFemarelle significantly improved climacteric symptoms in Taiwanese postmenopausal women. However, further evaluation is needed regarding the safety of long-term consumption