Innovative activities of SMEs in Russia : constraints and growth factors

Puprose: The article is aimed at comprehensive study of small enterprises’ innovative activity in Russia and highlights the key constraints factors as well as factors promoting small business innovative activity. Design/Methodology/Approach: We conduct a review of modern domestic and foreign studies on innovative development of SMEs their components and factors to give a comparative description of the innovation activity of SMEs in Russia and the EU countries. We also consider the factors of innovation activity of SMEs in Russia, to identify their regional differences, and to determine the prospects for the innovation activity of small businesses in Russia. The methodological approach is based on the exploration analysis procedures, principal component analysis (PCA), multidimentional classification and logicitic regression. Findings: This analysis revealed that Russian small enterprises are characterized by lower indicators of innovation activity than in many developed countries. The constraints to the growth of the innovation activity of small businesses in Russia are the insufficient level of development of credit financing and the backlog of the production and technological bases. Practical implications: This approach could be used in the development of promotion measures for new innovative process participants, taking into account the regional context. Originality/Value: The main contribution of this study is that the approach can be used in the course of the study to confirm regional differences in the innovative development of small enterprises and allows to identify three clusters with different indicators of the innovative activity of small businesses.The research was supported by Russian Foundation for Basic Research (project № 18-01000960).peer-reviewe

Применение многомерных статистических методов для анализа состояния и тенденций развития российского рынка мяса

The article presents results of a comparative analysis of trends of the global and domestic meat markets: worldwide trend were identified as well as specific features of the Russian market. Using multivariate statistical methods a comprehensive analysis of the place Russia has in the global meat market was conducted, regional characteristics of meat production and consumption in the country are also identified. According to results of multivariate classification of major meat producing countries, the Russian Federation has entered into a cluster with a low competitive position in the global market. The results of this study may contribute to the development of regionally-oriented policies to support domestic producers of meat.В статье представлены результаты сравнительного анализа тенденций развития мирового и отечественного рынков мяса: были выявлены как общемировые тенденции, так и специфические особенности, характерные для российского рынка. С помощью многомерных статистических методов проведен комплексный анализ положения России на мировом рынке мяса, а также определены региональные особенности производства и потребления мяса в стране. Согласно итогам многомерной классификации стран, лидирующих по производству мяса, Российская Федерация вошла в кластер с невысокими конкурентными преимуществами на мировом рынке. Результаты исследования могут способствовать разработке регионально ориентированной политики поддержки отечественных производителей мяса

ВОЗМОЖНОСТИ ИСПОЛЬЗОВАНИЯ КОМПЬЮТЕРНОЙ ТОМОГРАФИИ ПРИ ИССЛЕДОВАНИИ СКЕЛЕТИРОВАННЫХ ОСТАНКОВ ЧЕЛОВЕКА

Introduction. The investigation is devoted to the possibility of application of computed tomography for forensic examination of skeletal human remains.Aim of study: to evaluate the CT scanning application to skeletons with poor preservation state of bone tissue; to find out the possibility to describe the traumatic lesions on bones; to examine the density of bone tissue.Material and method. The skeletonized remains of General Guden, the participant in the Napoleonic campaign of 1812 were studied by CT scanner «Philips Medical Systems».Results. Antemortem and postmortem traumas are described as well as bone tissue density.Conclusion. Postmortem tomography is the best non-invasive method to study skeletonized human remains in bad preservation state, which allows to define the antemortem and postmortem traumas.Введение. Работа посвящена возможности использования метода компьютерной томографии для проведения судебномедицинской экспертизы скелетированных останков человека.Цель исследования: оценить возможности использования компьютерной томографии при экспертизе скелета человека с плохой сохранностью костной ткани, выявить возможность определения характера травматических повреждений, а также рассмотреть плотность костей различных отделов скелета.Материалы и методы. Объектом исследования стали останки участника Наполеоновской кампании 1812 года генерала Гюдена, обнаруженные в результате раскопок в г. Смоленске в 2019 г. Магнитно-резонансная томография выполнялась на томографе фирмы «Philips Medical Systems» в два этапа.Результаты. Описаны прижизненные и посмертные травмы, определена плотность костной ткани.Заключение. Посмертная томография — это максимально неинвазивный способ изучения  скелетированных останков плохой сохранности при невозможности полной очистки от  грунта, который позволяет определить характер прижизненных и посмертных повреждений костей скелета

A Spatial Survey of Environmental Indicators for Kazakhstan: An Examination of Current Conditions and Future Needs

The Republic of Kazakhstan, located in Central Asia, has experienced many years of environmental degradation, largely as a result of the poor management of its significant natural resources. In this survey, data relating to different environmental factors are critically analysed in order to understand the state of the environment. It was found that: warming trends are seen in sensitive areas (e.g. the steppe and near glaciers); drying trends are seen where there is already water stress (e.g. the Aral Sea); air quality has been declining recently (following improvements on the decadal timescale) in major urban centres, particularly Almaty; water quality appears to be improving in some areas (e.g. important lakes in the Aktobe and Zhambyl regions); and levels of exposure to radioactivity are below internationally recommended levels (where data have been found). More generally, there is an issue with data availability and quality, which requires attention if Kazakhstan is going to make the best use of its increasing investment in environmental actions. Current policies are reviewed and recommendations are made for future interventions

Роль немедикаментозных методов в комплексе мероприятий по профилактике и лечению остеопороза (обзор литературы)

The review represents the results of investigations into the role of nondrug methods in the treatment and prevention of osteoporosis (OA). The data available in the literature suggest that a number of non-drug technologies, first of all exercise therapy, aquatic therapy, reflexotherapy, electrical stimulation, and electromagnetic therapy, have proven efficiency and a certain potential for reducing the risk of osteoporosis and its complications and for improving bone metabolism. Expanding the range of these methods and increasing their validity for clinical introduction are very promising.В обзоре литературы представлены результаты исследований, посвященных изучению роли немедикаментозных методов в лечении и профилактике остеопороза (ОП). Данные литературы свидетельствуют о том, что ряд немедикаментозных технологий, прежде всего лечебная физкультура, акватерапия, рефлексотерапия, электростимуляция, электромагнитотерапия, обладают доказанной эффективностью и имеют определенный потенциал для снижения риска развития ОП и его осложнений, а также улучшения костного метаболизма. Расширение спектра и повышение степени доказательности этих методов для внедрения в лечебную практику является весьма перспективным

Directional genetic selection by pulp mill effluent on multiple natural populations of three-spined stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus)

Contamination can cause a rapid environmental change which may require populations to respond with evolutionary changes. To evaluate the effects of pulp mill effluents on population genetics, we sampled three-spined sticklebacks (Gasterosteus aculeatus) near four pulp mills and four adjacent reference sites and analyzed Amplified Fragment Length Polymorphism (AFLP) to compare genetic variability. A fine scale genetic structure was detected and samples from polluted sites separated from reference sites in multidimensional scaling plots (P < 0.005, 1000 permutations) and locus-by-locus Analysis of Molecular Variance (AMOVA) further confirmed that habitats are significantly separated (FST = 0.021, P < 0.01, 1023 permutations). The amount of genetic variation between populations did not differ between habitats, and populations from both habitats had similar levels of heterozygosity (polluted sites Nei’s Hs = 0.11, reference sites Nei’s Hs = 0.11). Still, pairwise FST: s between three, out of four, pairs of polluted-reference sites were significant. A FST-outlier analysis showed that 21 (8.4%) loci were statistically different from a neutral distribution at the P < 0.05 level and therefore indicated to be under divergent selection. When removing 13 FST-outlier loci, significant at the P < 0.01 level, differentiation between habitats disappeared in a multidimensional scaling plot. In conclusion, pulp mill effluence has acted as a selective agent on natural populations of G. aculeatus, causing a convergence in genotype composition change at multiple sites in an open environment

Cooperative development of logical modelling standards and tools with CoLoMoTo.

The identification of large regulatory and signalling networks involved in the control of crucial cellular processes calls for proper modelling approaches. Indeed, models can help elucidate properties of these networks, understand their behaviour and provide (testable) predictions by performing in silico experiments. In this context, qualitative, logical frameworks have emerged as relevant approaches, as demonstrated by a growing number of published models, along with new methodologies and software tools. This productive activity now requires a concerted effort to ensure model reusability and interoperability between tools. Following an outline of the logical modelling framework, we present the most important achievements of the Consortium for Logical Models and Tools, along with future objectives. Our aim is to advertise this open community, which welcomes contributions from all researchers interested in logical modelling or in related mathematical and computational developments

Y-chromosomal diversity in Europe is clinal and influenced primarily by geography, rather than by language

Clinal patterns of autosomal genetic diversity within Europe have been interpreted in previous studies in terms of a Neolithic demic diffusion model for the spread of agriculture; in contrast, studies using mtDNA have traced many founding lineages to the Paleolithic and have not shown strongly clinal variation. We have used 11 human Y-chromosomal biallelic polymorphisms, defining 10 haplogroups, to analyze a sample of 3,616 Y chromosomes belonging to 47 European and circum-European populations. Patterns of geographic differentiation are highly nonrandom, and, when they are assessed using spatial autocorrelation analysis, they show significant dines for five of six haplogroups analyzed. Clines for two haplogroups, representing 45% of the chromosomes, are continentwide and consistent with the demic diffusion hypothesis. Clines for three other haplogroups each have different foci and are more regionally restricted and are likely to reflect distinct population movements, including one from north of the Black Sea. principal-components analysis suggests that populations are related primarily on the basis of geography, rather than on the basis of linguistic affinity. This is confirmed in Mantel tests, which show a strong and highly significant partial correlation between genetics and geography but a low nonsignificant partial correlation between genetics and language. Genetic-barrier analysis also indicates the primacy of geography in the shaping of patterns of variation. These patterns retain a strong signal of expansion from the Near East but also suggest that the demographic history of Europe has been complex and influenced by other major population movements, as well as by linguistic and geographic heterogeneities and the effects of drift