Technology and the Export Behavior of Small, Locally- owned Firms: New Insight

This paper investigates the relationship between technology and the export performance of small, locally-owned firms in the Jamaican economy. The literature argues that technology is an important variable in influencing the export performance of small firms given its technological ability to generate competitive advantage for the firm. However, the results from empirical studies are not always consistent. To investigate this issue, the paper uses survey data collected through face-to-face interviews of 92 exporters and non-exporters to estimate a logistic regression model of the firm’s export behavior. The results revealed that firm size, is the most critical factor that determines export performance. This result resonates with some aspects of existent literature while not finding resonance with others. The context specific nature of this result is what makes it novel

Two simultaneous talkers distract more than one in simulated multi-talker environments, regardless of overall sound levels typical of open-plan offices

The irrelevant speech effect (ISE) characterizes detriment to cognitive task performance in the presence of irrelevant speech. This paper examines whether the ISE varies due to the number of simultaneously active nearby talkers (for up to two talkers), or the overall sound level, within the context of a simulated open-plan office. Two experiments were conducted within a climate-controlled chamber that was set-up as a medium-sized open-plan office. The cognitive tasks performed by the participants included the digit recall task, and a writing task, within a room acoustic simulation of realistic multi-talker speech from spatially separated talkers. Within Experiment 1 (n=60), an increase in the number of talkers from none (T0) to one (T1), and from one to two (T2) simultaneous talkers resulted in statistically significant decline in the digit recall task performances, with effect sizes of 24% (i.e., T1 vs. T0), and 12% (i.e., T2 vs. T1), respectively. The pauses between words during the writing task were similar for T0 and T1, but showed a statistically significant increase within T2 vs. T1, with an effect size of 12%. The findings of Experiment 1 are inconsistent with the maximally distracting status attributed to T1 in some studies, but is consistent with findings in other studies. Within Experiment 2 (n = 62), the cognitive performance in T2 remained largely invariant between 45 and 57 dB (A-weighted sound pressure levels), which represents a typical range of levels within open-plan offices. In general, these findings have relevance for characterizing auditory distraction within complex multi-talker environments; both in laboratory studies and actual open-plan offices. (Abridged version; please see the paper for the full abstract

A Study of Perceptions Held Toward Teacher Evaluation Policies and Practices by Teachers and Their Supervisors in Adventist Schools in Canada

Problem. Most school administrators and teachers deem teacher evaluation systems to be extremely stressful, of little or no value, and a barrier to high staff morale. The purpose of this study was to investigate the current teacher evaluation policies and practices and the perceptions held toward these policies and practices by selected elementary and secondary\u27 teachers and their supervisors in the Adventist schools in Canada. Method. The population of this study consisted of selected elementary and secondary teachers and their supervisors in the Adventist schools in Canada. Two hundred and twenty-five teachers and 48 supervisors were surveyed. The survey instrument used in the study was adapted from the one used by Hauge (1981). The instrument was designed to reflect the teachers\u27 evaluation policies and practices as perceived by elementary and secondary teachers and their supervisors. The survey instrument and the cover letters were sent to the supervisors and the teachers by first-class mail. The 47 hypotheses were tested at the .05 level o f significance using /-tests and chi-square to determine whether a significant difference existed between variables by comparing the group means and whether or not an association existed between variables by calculating discrepancies between observed and expected cell frequencies, respectively. Results. The findings of this research study generally confirm that: 1. The supervisors thought they had a better knowledge of their teachers’ teaching capabilities than their teachers thought they had. 2. Both supervisors and teachers perceived the evaluation process to be a useful one. 3. Both teachers and supervisors viewed the improvement of teaching performance as the main purpose of performance evaluation. 4. While supervisors and teachers agreed in their perception concerning the implementation of four basic components of the evaluation process, they disagreed on another four. The general picture, however, indicates that supervisors tended to view themselves as implementing the basic components of the evaluation process to a greater extent than teachers viewed them as doing. 5. Most supervisors reported having had formal training in performance evaluation before and after assuming the supervisory role. Supervisors reported that they felt competent and at ease in the evaluator\u27s role, and teachers concurred. 6. Both teachers and supervisors felt there was a need for more administrative assistance for supervisors so that they could have the time to conduct more frequent and more effective evaluations. They also felt that the evaluation process ought to include greater teacher involvement. Conclusion. From this study it can be concluded that most teachers and supervisors in Adventist schools in Canada deemed teacher evaluation policies and practices to be helpful. As well it was not as stressful, nor of little value as reported in the literature and pertinent research studies

Autophonic Loudness of Singers in Simulated Room Acoustic Environments

This paper aims to study the effect of room acoustics and phonemes on the perception of loudness of one's own voice (autophonic loudness) for a group of trained singers. For a set of five phonemes, 20 singers vocalized over several autophonic loudness ratios, while maintaining pitch constancy over extreme voice levels, within five simulated rooms. There were statistically significant differences in the slope of the autophonic loudness function (logarithm of autophonic loudness as a function of voice sound pressure level) for the five phonemes, with slopes ranging from 1.3 (/a:/) to 2.0 (/z:/). There was no significant variation in the autophonic loudness function slopes with variations in room acoustics. The autophonic room response, which represents a systematic decrease in voice levels with increasing levels of room reflections, was also studied, with some evidence found in support. Overall, the average slope of the autophonic room response for the three corner vowels (/a:/, /i:/, and /u:/) was -1.4 for medium autophonic loudness. The findings relating to the slope of the autophonic loudness function are in agreement with the findings of previous studies where the sensorimotor mechanisms in regulating voice were shown to be more important in the perception of autophonic loudness than hearing of room acoustics. However, the role of room acoustics, in terms of the autophonic room response, is shown to be more complicated, requiring further inquiry. Overall, it is shown that autophonic loudness grows at more than twice the rate of loudness growth for sounds created outside the human body

Plan de ejercicios físicos para disminuir los niveles de tensión arterial en adultos hipertensos (grado II) entre 65-75 años de edad, pertenecientes a la circunscripción no.182 del Reparto Hermanos Cruz

La hipertensión arterial es una de las cardiopatías isquémicas más frecuentes que azotan a la humanidad, siendo el ejercicio físico un pilar importante para mejorar la salud desde todos los puntos de vista; su relevancia no reside en sus características como enfermedad, sino en el incremento del riesgo de padecer enfermedades vasculares y el desarrollo de la aterosclerosis. El presente trabajo tiene como objetivo proponer un plan de ejercicios físicos para controlar los niveles de tensión arterial en adultos hipertensos (grado II) entre 65-75 años de edad, pertenecientes a la Circunscripción # 182 del Reparto “Hermanos Cruz”, teniendo en cuenta las enfermedades asociadas y características individuales de cada paciente. Los fundamentos teórico-metodológicos muestran que es una enfermedad producida por la consecuencia de diversos factores asociados a los hábitos de vida inadecuados, entre los que se encuentra el sedentarismo, por lo que la práctica de ejercicios físicos es altamente recomendable. Para realizar esta investigación se utilizaron métodos teóricos, empíricos y estadísticos auxiliados además de determinadas técnicas de intervención comunitaria., Los resultados indican que los pacientes mayormente utilizan el tratamiento farmacológico, limitándose por causas variadas a la ejecución de actividades físicas. El plan de ejercicios físicos diseñado posee requisitos teóricos y metodológicos basados en las características de la hipertensión arterial, así como las necesidades, gustos e intereses del grupo etáreo estudiado

Parameters for auditory display of height and size

Proceedings of the 9th International Conference on Auditory Display (ICAD), Boston, MA, July 7-9, 2003.The vertical localization, and vertical and horizontal spread, of auditory images was investigated using a vertical 5- loudspeaker array, with the noise-band signal spectrum, loudness level, number of active loudspeakers, and center loudspeaker position as parameters. The signal spectrum and center loudspeaker position affected the image vertical center. Loudness level, and secondarily the signal spectrum, affected the auditory image size. These results, which are consistent with, and extend, previous studies into auditory volume and associations between stimulus frequency and vertical localization, suggest a robust basis for the auditory display of height and size

Reliability and repeatability of ISO 3382-3 metrics based on repeated acoustic measurements in open-plan offices

This paper investigates variability in the key ISO 3382-3:2012 metrics, based primarily on the repeatability and reliability of these metrics, using repeated measurements in open-plan offices. Two types of repeated measurements were performed in offices, Type1 (n=36), where the same path over workstations was measured from opposite ends, and Type2 (n=7), where two different measurement paths were measured. Overall, most of the Type1 results seem reasonable considering repeats were conducted in complicated room acoustic environments, while Type2 repeats would benefit from larger sample sizes in future studies. Some recommendations are outlined for the ISO 3382-3 methodology vis-a-vis Type1 and Type2 repeats, including future research directions that go beyond increased sample sizes. (This is an abridged version of the abstract. Please see the paper for the full abstract

The development of an ingestible biosensor for the characterization of gut metabolites related to major depressive disorder: hypothesis and theory

The diagnostic process for psychiatric conditions is guided by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) in North America. Revisions of the DSM over the years have led to lowered diagnostic thresholds across the board, incurring increased rates of both misdiagnosis and over-diagnosis. Coupled with stigma, this ambiguity and lack of consistency exacerbates the challenges that clinicians and scientists face in the clinical assessment and research of mood disorders such as Major Depressive Disorder (MDD). While current efforts to characterize MDD have largely focused on qualitative approaches, the broad variations in physiological traits, such as those found in the gut, suggest the immense potential of using biomarkers to provide a quantitative and objective assessment. Here, we propose the development of a probiotic Escherichia coli (E. coli) multi-input ingestible biosensor for the characterization of key gut metabolites implicated in MDD. DNA writing with CRISPR based editors allows for the molecular recording of signals while riboflavin detection acts as a means to establish temporal and spatial specificity for the large intestine. We test the feasibility of this approach through kinetic modeling of the system which demonstrates targeted sensing and robust recording of metabolites within the large intestine in a time- and dose- dependent manner. Additionally, a post-hoc normalization model successfully controlled for confounding factors such as individual variation in riboflavin concentrations, producing a linear relationship between actual and predicted metabolite concentrations. We also highlight indole, butyrate, tetrahydrofolate, hydrogen peroxide, and tetrathionate as key gut metabolites that have the potential to direct our proposed biosensor specifically for MDD. Ultimately, our proposed biosensor has the potential to allow for a greater understanding of disease pathophysiology, assessment, and treatment response for many mood disorders

Motivating nonexporters to go abroad: Investigating the role of government using evidence from a developing country

© 2018 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Government export promotion programs enhance export intention of small and medium enterprises through boosting their managerial and relational resources. In Algeria, managerial and relational resources are the main drivers of export intention, whereas organizational capabilities have a limited influence. Export promotion programs increase firms’ managerial, organizational and relational resources. At the pre-export stage, informational programs are more likely to enhance SMEs’ export initiation than experiential ones

Control of Perceived Room Size Using Simple Binaural Technology

The localization of auditory images and their size forms the bulk of the research literature in spatial auditory perception using binaural technology. Nevertheless, binaural technology conveys many other spatial characteristics of sound environments, and the present paper is concerned with one of these: auditory room size perception. This paper reviews the potential cues to room size perception conveyed through simple binaural technology. Statistical room acoustics is shown to provide indications of room size through energy relations between direct sound, early reflections and late reflections. However, binaural hearing could be important in distinguishing the concept of room size from source distance. These theoretical notions are considered in relation to experimental findings on room size perception using simple binaural technology