Trends and preferences of Internet participants: differences between SNS users and non-users

The staggering growth of online social networking and the potential of Social Networking Sites as marketing channels has become an issue of attention and interest by commercial organizations. This explorative study provides the basis for understanding the nature and behaviour of users of these sites. Based on a national sample, this paper investigates the demographics, profiles and behaviour of participants of Social Networking Sites in The Netherlands. The paper compares the online behaviour of users and non-users of SNS and reveals that the first category of networked citizens is much more active on most types of online activities. Furthermore the study identifies the profile of the average participant in online social networks, identifies preferences and reveals ways that online citizens are engaged with this particular form of social media. The findings provide a better understanding of the importance of the Social Networks for the digital citizen and present useful facts to marketers eager to integrate these media into their marketing approaches and strategies; they also present researchers of human behaviour with interesting insights on the role of the online social networks as platforms of social interaction and communication

Segmentation of users of social networking websites

The typology of networked consumers in The Netherlands presented in this study, was based on an online survey and obtained using latent segmentation analysis. This approach is based on the frequency with which users perform different activities, their sociodemographic variables, social networking experience, and patterns of interaction. The findings present new insights for marketing strategists wishing to use the communication potential of online social networks and for marketers willing to explore the potential of online networking as a low-cost, efficient alternative to traditional networking approaches. The findings also present researchers of social behavior with interesting insights into the role of online social networks as a platform for social interaction and communicatio

Segmenting the social networking sites users: An empirical study

The growth of social networking sites (SNS) presents businesses and marketers with risks and challenges. Customers become sophisticated, empowered and increasingly involved in shaping of the marketing offer. Marketers are becoming aware of the threat of losing control over their message but also begin to realise the potential of SNS as marketing tools; understanding the nature of the SNS users and the way they interact online is a vital step in developing business strategies targeting and engaging the networked consumer. The paper presents an explorative survey on the demographics, background, adoption motives and behaviour of SNS users as bases for the identification of segments in this market. The survey, held among SNS users in The Netherlands, identifies four distinctive user profiles of social networking users. The paper presents the results of the survey, discusses the management implications of the findings and identifies areas of future research

Quantification of sprouting angiogenesis under the effect of different growth factors involved in the tumor microenvironmen

One of the most important problems in tumor control is the management of metastatic process. Angiogenesis or the formation of new blood vessels from preexisting ones plays a crucial role in the expansion of the tumor by providing oxygen, nutrition and conduits for cancer cells to invade and metastasize new tissues¹. Abnormalities of growth factors (GFs) released such as PDGFs (Platelet Derived Growth Factor) could be involved in malignant human diseases2,3. Inflammation and cancer present similar mechanisms of development including angiogenesis or cell proliferation4. In order to know the effect on sprouting promotion of GFs existent in the tumor environment such as VEGF (Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor), PDGF, BMP2 (Bone Morphogenetic Protein 2) or TGF-ß (Transforming Growth Factor-ß), we have developed a microfluidic-based test based on devices designed by Farahat et al. (2012)5, which allows to the user the quantification of sprouting formation under the effect of these GFs. TGF-ß pathway involved in tumor progression in multiple human cancers, instigates phenotypical changes affecting to the cell growth, differentiation and migration6. Knowing the overexpression of GFs such as VEGF or BMP2 in tumors7,8, we aimed to compare its effect on endothelial cells in angiogenesis. Analyzing the promotion of sprout in normal conditions under GFs addition would be possible to determine which of these molecules could decrease or promote the advance of the endothelial cells. The results obtained in this work indicated that VEGF is the most important factor to enhance the angiogenic process while non-specific factors such as BMP2 or TGF-ß show a low effectiveness. In the case of PDGF, the negative effect of this molecule observed in our assays could be explained by the non-optimal balance of concentration. Furthermore, we are currently working to quantify the effect of fluid flow on the sprouting promotion

Dynamics of formation and decay of coherence in a polariton condensate

We study the dynamics of formation and decay of a condensate of microcavity polaritons. We investigate the relationship between the number of particles, the emission's linewidth and its degree of linear polarization which serves as the order parameter. Tracking the condensate's formation, we show that, even when interactions are negligible, coherence is not determined only by occupation of the ground state. As a result of the competition between the coherent and thermal fractions of the condensate, the highest coherence is obtained some time after the particle number has reached its maximum

Analysis of the D^+ → K^-π^+e^+ν_e decay channel

Using 347.5  fb^(-1) of data recorded by the BABAR detector at the PEP-II electron-positron collider, 244×10^3 signal events for the D^+ → K^-π^+e^+ν_e decay channel are analyzed. This decay mode is dominated by the K̅ ^*(892)^0 contribution. We determine the K̅ ^*(892)^0 parameters: m_(K^*(892)^0)=(895.4±0.2±0.2)  MeV/c^2, Γ_(K^*(892)^0)=(46.5±0.3±0.2)  MeV/c^2, and the Blatt-Weisskopf parameter r_(BW) =2.1±0.5±0.5  (GeV/c)^-1, where the first uncertainty comes from statistics and the second from systematic uncertainties. We also measure the parameters defining the corresponding hadronic form factors at q^2 = 0 (r_V = ^(V(0))/_(A1(0)) = 1.463 ± 0.017 ± 0.031, r_2 = _(A1(0)) ^(A2(0))= 0.801±0.020±0.020) and the value of the axial-vector pole mass parametrizing the q^2 variation of A_1 and A_2: m_A=(2.63±0.10±0.13)  GeV/c^2. The S-wave fraction is equal to (5.79±0.16±0.15)%. Other signal components correspond to fractions below 1%. Using the D^+ → K^-π^+π^+ channel as a normalization, we measure the D^+ semileptonic branching fraction: B(D^+ → K^-π^+e^+ν_e)=(4.00±0.03±0.04±0.09)×10^(-2), where the third uncertainty comes from external inputs. We then obtain the value of the hadronic form factor A_1 at q^2=0: A_1(0)=0.6200±0.0056±0.0065±0.0071. Fixing the P-wave parameters, we measure the phase of the S wave for several values of the Kπ mass. These results confirm those obtained with Kπ production at small momentum transfer in fixed target experiments

Observation of η_c(1S) and η_c(2S) decays to K^+K^-π^+π^-π^0 in two-photon interactions

We study the processes γγ→K_S^0K^±π^∓ and γγ→K^+K^-π^+π-π^0 using a data sample of 519.2fb^(-1) recorded by the BABAR detector at the PEP-II asymmetric-energy e^+e^- collider at center-of-mass energies near the Υ(nS) (n=2, 3, 4) resonances. We observe the η_c(1S), χ_(c0)(1P) and η_c(2S) resonances produced in two-photon interactions and decaying to K^+K^-π^+π^-π^0, with significances of 18.1, 5.4 and 5.3 standard deviations (including systematic errors), respectively, and report 4.0σ evidence of the χ_(c2)(1P) decay to this final state. We measure the η_c(2S) mass and width in K_S^0K^±π^∓ decays, and obtain the values m(η_c(2S))=3638.5±1.5±0.8  MeV/c^2 and Γ(η_c(2S))=13.4±4.6±3.2  MeV, where the first uncertainty is statistical and the second is systematic. We measure the two-photon width times branching fraction for the reported resonance signals, and search for the χ_(c2)(2P) resonance, but no significant signal is observed

Evidence for the decay X(3872)→J/ψω

We present a study of the decays B^(0,+)→J/ψπ^+π^-π^0K^(0,+), using 467×10^6 BB[overbar] pairs recorded with the BABAR detector. We present evidence for the decay mode X(3872)→J/ψω, with product branching fractions B(B^+→X(3872)K^+)×B(X(3872)→J/ψω)=[0.6±0.2(stat)±0.1(syst)]×10^(-5), and B(B^0→X(3872)K^0)×B(X(3872)→J/ψω)=[0.6±0.3(stat)±0.1(syst)]×10^(-5). A detailed study of the π^+π^-π^0 mass distribution from X(3872) decay favors a negative-parity assignment

Study of B → πlν and B → ρlν decays and determination of |V_(ub)|

We present an analysis of exclusive charmless semileptonic B-meson decays based on 377 × 10^6 BB̅ pairs recorded with the BABAR detector at the Υ(4S) resonance. We select four event samples corresponding to the decay modes B^0 → π^-ℓ^+ν, B^+ → π^0ℓ^+ν, B^0 → ρ^-ℓ^+ν, and B^+ → ρ^0ℓ^+ν and find the measured branching fractions to be consistent with isospin symmetry. Assuming isospin symmetry, we combine the two B → πℓν samples, and similarly the two B → ρℓν samples, and measure the branching fractions B(B^0→π^-ℓ^+ν)=(1.41 ± 0.05 ± 0.07) × 10^(-4) and B(B^0 → ρ^-ℓ^+ν)=(1.75 ± 0.15 ± 0.27) × 10^(-4), where the errors are statistical and systematic. We compare the measured distribution in q^2, the momentum transfer squared, with predictions for the form factors from QCD calculations and determine the Cabibbo-Kobayashi-Maskawa matrix element |V_(ub)|. Based on the measured partial branching fraction for B → πℓν in the range q^2 < 12  GeV^2 and the most recent QCD light-cone sum-rule calculations, we obtain |V_(ub)|=(3.78 ± 0.13^(+0.55)_(-0.40)) × 10^(-3), where the errors refer to the experimental and theoretical uncertainties. From a simultaneous fit to the data over the full q^2 range and the FNAL/MILC lattice QCD results, we obtain |V_(ub)|=(2.95 ± 0.31) × 10^(-3) from B → πℓν, where the error is the combined experimental and theoretical uncertainty