80 research outputs found
Local Embeddedness and Economic and Social Upgrading in Madagascar's Export Apparel Industry
Local supplier firms in Madagascarâs apparel export industry : Upgrading paths, transnational social relations and regional production networks
Abstract: Please refer to full text to view abstract
The Hand-bot, a Robot Design for Simultaneous Climbing and Manipulation
We present a novel approach to mobile object manipulation for service in indoor environments. Current research in service robotics focus on single robots able to move, manipulate objects, and transport them to various locations. Our approach differs by taking a collective robotics perspective: different types of small robots perform different tasks and exploit complementarity by collaborating together. We propose a robot design to solve one of these tasks: climbing vertical structures and manipulating objects. Our robot embeds two manipulators that can grasp both objects or structures. To help climbing, it uses a rope to compensate for the gravity force. This allows it to free one of its manipulators to interact with an object while the other grasps a part of a structure for stabilization. Our robot can launch and retrieve the rope autonomously, allowing multiple ascents. We show the design and the implementation of our robot and demonstrate the successful autonomous retrieval of a book from a shelf
The Increase in Balloon Size to Over 15Â mm Does Not Affect the Development of Pancreatitis After Endoscopic Papillary Large Balloon Dilatation for Bile Duct Stone Removal
BACKGROUND: Endoscopic papillary large balloon dilatation (EPLBD) after endoscopic sphincterotomy (EST) has recently become widely used for common bile duct (CBD) stone removal, but many clinicians remain concerned about post-procedural pancreatitis with increasing the balloon size to over 15 mm.
AIMS: We aimed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of EPLBD with a relatively large balloon (15-20 mm) after EST and to evaluate the factors related to post-EPLBD pancreatitis.
METHODS: A retrospective review was undertaken of the endoscopic database of 101 patients with CBD stones who underwent EPLBD using a larger balloon size of over 15 mm (15-20 mm). Clinical parameters, endoscopic data, and outcomes were analyzed.
RESULTS: The mean age of the subjects was 69 years. All patients had a dilated CBD of over 11 mm (mean = 22.6 mm). The mean size of balloon used in EPLBD was 17.1 ± 1.9 mm (range 15-20 mm). Mechanical lithotripsy was required in seven patients (6.9%). The rate of complete stone removal in the first session was 92.1%. Post-procedural pancreatitis developed in five cases (5.4%), but none were graded as severe. The smaller dilatation of the CBD, longer cannulation time, and longer time for stone removal were associated with post-procedural pancreatitis, but larger size of balloon did not affect the development of post-EPLBD pancreatitis.
CONCLUSIONS: EPLBD with a large balloon of over 15 mm with EST is an effective and safe procedure with a very low probability of severe post-procedural pancreatitis. Post-EPLBD pancreatitis was not associated with larger balloon size, but was associated with longer procedure time and smaller dilatation of the CBD.ope
Endoscopic papillary large balloon dilation alone without sphincterotomy for the treatment of large common bile duct stones
Manufacturing urbanism: Improvising the urbanâindustrial nexus through Chinese economic zones in Africa
The relationship between industrialisation and urban development is subject to assumptions based on experiences in the global North, with little research on how it plays out in countries undergoing urbanisation and industrialisation today. In the context of recent excitement about Chinaâs role in stimulating an âindustrial revolutionâ in Africa, we examine how Chinese zones in Ethiopia and Uganda are influencing the urbanâindustrial nexus. We argue that Chinese zones are key sites of urbanâindustrial encounter, but these dynamics are not primarily driven by the government officials that dominate the âpolicy mobilitiesâ literature, nor by the State-Owned Enterprises usually associated with Chinese activity overseas. Rather, they are emerging through the activities of inexperienced private Chinese actors who do not even operate in the worlds of urban policy. Faced with government histories and capacities that vastly differ from Chinaâs, directly replicating the Chinese experience is virtually impossible; yet the tentative and improvisational relationships between Chinese firms, African government authorities and other local actors are gradually moulding new urbanisms into shape. The piecemeal bargaining and negotiation that unfolds through these relationships bridges some of the gaps between industrialisation and planning, but this cannot compensate for the governance of the urbanâindustrial nexus at higher scales
Developing Countries in the Global Apparel Value Chain: A Tale of Upgrading and Downgrading Experiences
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