The future impact of changes in rate parity agreements on hotel chains: the long-term implications of the removal of rate parity agreements between hotels and online travel agents using closed consumer group booking models

The Office of Fair Trading, a not-for-profit and non-ministerial government department of the United Kingdom (from April 2014 incorporated within the Competition and Markets Authority), investigated the legality of rate parity from 2012, particularly rate parity agreements made between Intercontinental Hotel Group, Booking.com, and Expedia. Consequently, these major hotel brands and agents have committed to remove rate parity for closed consumer groups. This article identifies confusion over such groups and longer term implications. Smaller agents will enter the market, leading to increased fragmentation and competition. Branded hotels will face tough challenges in protecting prices and value from aggressive agents suddenly facing a more competitive market and independent hoteliers able to establish effective relationships with the new, smaller agents. Keywords : Rate parity, pricing, closed consumer groups, hotels

Synthesis of Alkaline Earth Diazenides MAEN2 (MAE = Ca, Sr, Ba) by Controlled Thermal Decomposition of Azides under High Pressure

The alkaline earth diazenides MAEN2 with MAE = Ca, Sr and Ba were synthesized by a novel synthetic approach, namely, a controlled decomposition of the corresponding azides in a multianvil press at highpressure/ high-temperature conditions. The crystal structure of hitherto unknown calcium diazenide (space group I4/mmm (no. 139), a = 3.5747(6) Å, c = 5.9844(9) Å, Z = 2, wRp = 0.078) was solved and refined on the basis of powder X-ray diffraction data as well as that of SrN2 and BaN2. Accordingly, CaN2 is isotypic with SrN2 (space group I4/mmm (no. 139), a = 3.8054(2) Å, c = 6.8961(4) Å, Z = 2, wRp = 0.057) and the corresponding alkaline earth acetylenides (MAEC2) crystallizing in a tetragonally distorted NaCl structure type. In accordance with literature data, BaN2 adopts a more distorted structure in space group C2/c (no. 15) with a = 7.1608(4) Å, b = 4.3776(3) Å, c = 7.2188(4) Å, β = 104.9679(33)°, Z = 4 and wRp = 0.049). The N−N bond lengths of 1.202(4) Å in CaN2 (SrN2 1.239(4) Å, BaN2 1.23(2) Å) correspond well with a double-bonded dinitrogen unit confirming a diazenide ion [N2]2−. Temperature-dependent in situ powder X-ray diffractometry of the three alkaline earth diazenides resulted in formation of the corresponding subnitrides MAE2N (MAE = Ca, Sr, Ba) at higher temperatures. FTIR spectroscopy revealed a band at about 1380 cm−1 assigned to the N−N stretching vibration of the diazenide unit. Electronic structure calculations support the metallic character of alkaline earth diazenides

Integration and Implementation Strategies for AI Algorithm Deployment with Smart Routing Rules and Workflow Management

This paper reviews the challenges hindering the widespread adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) solutions in the healthcare industry, focusing on computer vision applications for medical imaging, and how interoperability and enterprise-grade scalability can be used to address these challenges. The complex nature of healthcare workflows, intricacies in managing large and secure medical imaging data, and the absence of standardized frameworks for AI development pose significant barriers and require a new paradigm to address them. The role of interoperability is examined in this paper as a crucial factor in connecting disparate applications within healthcare workflows. Standards such as DICOM, Health Level 7 (HL7), and Integrating the Healthcare Enterprise (IHE) are highlighted as foundational for common imaging workflows. A specific focus is placed on the role of DICOM gateways, with Smart Routing Rules and Workflow Management leading transformational efforts in this area. To drive enterprise scalability, new tools are needed. Project MONAI, established in 2019, is introduced as an initiative aiming to redefine the development of medical AI applications. The MONAI Deploy App SDK, a component of Project MONAI, is identified as a key tool in simplifying the packaging and deployment process, enabling repeatable, scalable, and standardized deployment patterns for AI applications. The abstract underscores the potential impact of successful AI adoption in healthcare, offering physicians both life-saving and time-saving insights and driving efficiencies in radiology department workflows. The collaborative efforts between academia and industry, are emphasized as essential for advancing the adoption of healthcare AI solutions.Comment: 13 pages, 6 figure

Dielectrophoresis-Driven Spreading of Immersed Liquid Droplets

In recent years electrowetting-on-dielectric (EWOD) has become an effective tool to control partial wetting. EWOD uses the liquid−solid interface as part of a capacitive structure that allows capacitive and interfacial energies to adjust by changes in wetting when the liquid−solid interface is charged due to an applied voltage. An important aspect of EWOD has been its applications in micro fluidics in chemistry and biology and in optical devices and displays in physics and engineering. Many of these rely on the use of a liquid droplet immersed in a second liquid due to the need either for neutral buoyancy to overcome gravity and shield against impact shocks or to encapsulate the droplet for other reasons, such as in microfluidic-based DNA analyses. Recently, it has been shown that nonwetting oleophobic surfaces can be forcibly wetted by nonconducting oils using nonuniform electric fields and an interface-localized form of liquid dielectrophoresis (dielectrowetting). Here we show that this effect can be used to create films of oil immersed in a second immiscible fluid of lower permittivity. We predict that the square of the thickness of the film should obey a simple law dependent on the square of the applied voltage and with strength dependent on the ratio of difference in permittivity to the liquid-fluid interfacial tension, Δε/γLF. This relationship is experimentally confirmed for 11 liquid−air and liquid−liquid combinations with Δε/γLF having a span of more than two orders of magnitude. We therefore provide fundamental understanding of dielectrowetting for liquid-in-liquid systems and also open up a new method to determine liquid−liquid interfacial tensions

Influence of dietary lipid sources on sensory characteristics of broiler meat

________________________________________________________________________________ Abstract A study was conducted to determine the influence of different dietary lipid sources and inclusion levels on sensory characteristics of chicken breast meat. Eight isoenergetic (15.1 MJ AME/kg DM) and isonitrogenous (223 g CP/kg DM) diets were formulated, using high oleic sunflower oil (HOSO), sunflower oil (SO), fish oil (FO) and tallow (T) at 30 g/kg and 60 g/kg inclusion levels. Eight hundred, day-old Ross 788 broiler males were randomly allocated to the eight treatments (n = 100) and further subdivided into four replicates/treatment (n = 25). All birds receive a commercial starter diet for the first 14 days, where-after the experimental diets were fed for 28 days. At 42 days of age, three birds/replicate (n = 12/treatment) were randomly selected, weighed and slaughtered at a commercial abattoir. Breast muscles were removed from the chilled carcasses (4 °C) and de-skinned. Meat samples were wrapped in aluminium foil and steamed (200 °C) before cutting into smaller pieces (2.5 cm 3 ) and served to the respondents (n = 75) of a consumer panel. Each respondent tasted eight meat samples while completing a nine-point hedonic scale questionnaire. Meat samples of the HOSO treatment were preferred, while FO samples were the least acceptable to the respondents. These results suggested that dietary lipid sources could be used to manipulate sensory characteristics of broiler breast meat according to consumer preferences. _______________________________________________________________________________

Questioning cultural narratives of economic development—an investigation of Kitchener-Waterloo

The version of record [Spigel, B. & Bathelt, H. (2019). Questioning cultural narratives of economic development - An investigation of Kitchener-Waterloo. Canadian Geographer, 63(2), 267-283.] is available online at: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/cag.12512This paper investigates the relationship between culture and economy and scrutinizes cultural narratives of economic development in Kitchener-Waterloo, southern Ontario. It argues for the need to carefully conceptualize the link between culture and economic development to avoid boosting deterministic stereotypes. In the case of Kitchener-Waterloo, a notable hub of high-technology firms and technology development, a link is frequently drawn between the German community and culture and the region’s technology economy and entrepreneurial culture. A social capital analysis, however, reveals that the German ethnic community neither has the strong professional internal ties nor the external social ties to other regional communities that could constitute a lead role in economic development. Rather, the legacy of Kitchener-Waterloo’s ethnic German population has been absorbed into the region’s self-image and creates a feeling of belonging and common reference points for joint social and economic initiatives in the region

Presidential Popularity and Reputation

This paper reports on the results of an empirical study of relationships between the popularity of US presidents and economic variables. Traditionally, these relationships are based on the hypothesis that voters hold the incumbent President responsible for the economic situation. We derive an alternative specification of popularity, based on the hypothesis that political parties perform better on different issues. Empirical evidence turns out to be strongly in favour of our hypothesis. Our findings have important implications for studies on government behaviour in which it is assumed that one of the objectives of administrations is to maximise votes