A strategic framework using open innovation and platforms to embrace disruptive "Software as a Service" technology

Thesis (S.M. in System Design and Management)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Engineering Systems Division, System Design and Management Program, 2010.Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.Includes bibliographical references (p. 114-116).Over the past several decades, technology has become fundamental to the facilitation of communication, collaboration and productivity inside and between enterprises. Enterprises use numerous tools to reach their customers, manage increasingly decentralized and mobile workforces and to create digital assets critical to their daily operations. In the last several years, changes in the availability of internet access and the compatibility of internet browsers has resulted in massively scalable services available on the internet - delivered by models termed "Software as a Service" and "Cloud Computing". This delivery mechanism is vastly different from traditional models of enterprise software delivery where enterprise purchase, install and manage their own enterprise software packages. This thesis will evaluate a strategy for one of the market leaders in messaging, IBM Lotus, in the face of the disruptive forces of new internet enabled delivery mechanisms like Software as a Service and Cloud Computing. In doing so, it will integrate the topics of several researchers in the field of strategy and innovation. After a treatment of background topics and themes, it will present an evaluation of the enterprise software market in the face of the disruptive forces created by the internet. A framework for evaluating market strategies for established players will be developed using concepts of software platforms and open innovation. Finally, a case study of the established player will be viewed through the lens of this framework.by Matthew Flaherty.S.M.in System Design and Managemen

The Effects of Transitioning an Undergraduate Mechanical Engineering Course from Shorter and More Frequent Class Periods to Longer and Fewer In-Class Sessions

Class frequency and duration are fundamental parameters within engineering education across nearly all pedagogical methods. Optimizing these factors enables programs to achieve a higher level of learning in the classroom while providing for more efficient time management. The objective of this paper is to document the perceived effect on students and instructors when transitioning from a traditional 40 lesson course with 55 minutes duration, to one comprised of 30 lessons at 75 minutes in length. This analysis limits research to a mechanical engineering curriculum at the United States Military Academy at West Point, NY. Major assessment performance under the new structure was compared with historical results to provide objective qualitative comparison. Anonymous student feedback was also collected at the midpoint and end of each course. Survey questions centered on perceived information absorption and synthesis, impact on problem solving opportunities, and the effect of variation in classroom contact time. Changes in course syllabi to accommodate the 75 minute structure generally resulted in no net gain or loss of new material to the original curriculum, though outliers did occur and are discussed in more detail. Class size averaged 18 students over four different courses, ranging from Helicopter Aeronautics to Vehicle Dynamics. Course size averaged 34 students with a total of 135 students enrolled across all courses. The change in course structure demonstrates potential opportunity for both greater depth and application of learning in the classroom as well as increased schedule flexibility. Conversely, the heightened implications of students missing class and the administrative feasibility of such a shift can be problematic. Instructor assessment of student learning and student feedback through end-of-course evaluations will be presented in this paper, as well as recommendations for future instructors wishing to apply similar changes

Practice patterns for acute ischemic stroke workup: A longitudinal population‐based study

Background We examined practice patterns of inpatient testing to identify stroke etiologies and treatable risk factors for acute ischemic stroke recurrence. Methods and Results We identified stroke cases and related diagnostic testing from four 1‐year study periods (July 1993 to June 1994, 1999, 2005, and 2010) of the Greater Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky Stroke Study. Patients aged ≥18 years were included. We focused on evaluation of extracranial arteries for carotid stenosis and assessment of atrial fibrillation because randomized controlled trials supported treatment of these conditions for stroke prevention across all 4 study periods. In each study period, we also recorded stroke etiology, as determined by diagnostic testing and physician adjudication. An increasing proportion of stroke patients received assessment of both extracranial arteries and the heart over time (50%, 58%, 74%, and 78% in the 1993–1994, 1999, 2005, and 2010 periods, respectively; P &lt;0.0001 for trend), with the most dramatic individual increases in echocardiography (57%, 63%, 77%, and 83%, respectively). Concurrently, we observed a decrease in strokes of unknown etiology (47%, 48%, 41%, and 38%, respectively; P &lt;0.0001 for trend). We also found a significant increase in strokes of other known causes (32%, 25%, 45% and 59%, respectively; P &lt;0.0001 for trend). Conclusions Stroke workup for treatable causes of stroke are being used more frequently over time, and this is associated with a decrease in cryptogenic strokes. Future study of whether better determination of treatable stroke etiologies translates to a decrease in stroke recurrence at the population level will be essential. </jats:sec

Who is a passive saver under opt-in and auto-enrollment?

Defaults have been shown to have a powerful effect on retirement saving behavior yet there is limited research on who is most affected by defaults and whether this varies based on features of the choice environment. Using administrative data on employer-sponsored retirement accounts linked to survey data, we estimate the relationship between retirement saving choices and individual characteristics – long-term discounting, present bias, financial literacy, and exponential-growth bias – under two distinct choice environments: an opt-in regime and an auto-enrollment regime. Consistent with our conceptual model, we find that the determinants of following the default and contribution behavior are regime-specific. Under the opt-in regime, financial literacy plays an important role in predicting total contributions, active saving choices, and maxing out contributions in the tax-preferred account. In contrast, under the auto-enrollment regime, present bias is the most significant behavioral predictor of contribution behavior. A causal interpretation of the estimates suggests that auto-enrollment increases saving primarily among those with low financial literacy

The Role of Time Preferences and Exponential-Growth Bias in Retirement Savings

There is considerable variation in retirement savings within income, age, and educational categories. Using a broad sample of the U.S. population, we elicit time preference parameters from a quasi-hyperbolic discounting model, and perceptions of exponential growth. We find that present bias (PB), the tendency to value utility in the present over the future in a dynamically inconsistent way, and exponential-growth bias (EGB), the tendency to neglect compounding, are prevalent and distinct latent variables. PB, EGB, and the long-run discount factor are all highly significant in predicting retirement savings, even while controlling for measures of IQ and general financial literacy as well as a rich set of demographic controls. We find that lack of self-awareness of these biases has an additional independent negative impact on retirement savings. We assess potential threats to a causal interpretation of our results with a hypothetical choice experiment and several robustness exercises. Finally, we explore potential mechanisms for our findings. If the relationship we estimate is causal, our estimates suggest that eliminating PB and EGB would be associated with an increase in retirement savings of 12%, or as high as 70% using estimates that account for classical measurement error

Impact of depth of response on survival in patients treated with cobimetinib ± vemurafenib: pooled analysis of BRIM-2, BRIM-3, BRIM-7 and coBRIM.

BackgroundThis pooled analysis investigated the prognostic value of depth of response in two cohorts of patients with BRAFV600-mutated metastatic melanoma treated with vemurafenib or cobimetinib plus vemurafenib.MethodsThe data were pooled from BRIM-2, BRIM-3, BRIM-7 and coBRIM. Association of depth of response with survival was estimated by Cox proportional hazards regression, adjusted for clinically relevant covariates. Depth of response was analysed in previously identified prognostic subgroups based on disease characteristics and gene signatures.ResultsGreater tumour reduction and longer time to maximal response were significantly associated with longer progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS) when evaluated as continuous variables. Patients with the deepest responses had long-lasting survival outcomes (median PFS: 14 months; OS: 32 months with vemurafenib; not estimable with cobimetinib plus vemurafenib). Cobimetinib plus vemurafenib improved depth of response versus vemurafenib monotherapy regardless of other prognostic factors, including gene signatures.ConclusionsGreater depth of response was associated with improved survival, supporting its utility as a measure of treatment efficacy in melanoma and further evaluation of its incorporation into existing prognostic models. Cobimetinib plus vemurafenib improved outcomes across quartiles of response regardless of prognostic factors or gene signatures and provided durable survival benefits in patients with deep responses

Are Retirement Planning Tools Substitutes or Complements to Financial Capability?

We conduct a randomized controlled trial to understand how a web-based retirement saving calculator affects workers’ retirement-savings decisions. In both conditions, the calculator projects workers’ retirement income goals. In the treatment condition, it also projects retirement income based on defined-contribution savings, prominently displays the gap between projected goal and actual retirement income, and allows users to interactively explore how alternative, future contribution choices would affect the gap. The treatment increased average annual retirement contributions by $174 (2.3 percent). However, effects were larger for those with greater financial knowledge, suggesting this type of tool complements, rather than substitutes for, underlying financial capability

Prehospital neurological deterioration in stroke

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Patients with stroke can experience neurological deterioration in the prehospital setting. We evaluated patients with stroke to determine factors associated with prehospital neurological deterioration (PND). METHODS: Among the Greater Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky region (population ~1.3 million), we screened all 15 local hospitals' admissions from 2010 for acute stroke and included patients aged ≥20. The GCS was compared between emergency medical services (EMS) arrival and hospital arrival, with decrease ≥2 points considered PND. Data obtained retrospectively included demographics, medical history and medication use, stroke subtype (eg, ischaemic stroke (IS), intracerebral haemorrhage (ICH), subarachnoid haemorrhage (SAH)) and IS subtype (eg, small vessel, large vessel, cardioembolic), seizure at onset, time intervals between symptom onset, EMS arrival and hospital arrival, EMS level of training, and blood pressure and serum glucose on EMS arrival. RESULTS: Of 2708 total patients who had a stroke, 1092 patients (median (IQR) age 74 (61-83) years; 56% women; 21% black) were analysed. PND occurred in 129 cases (12%), including 9% of IS, 24% of ICH and 16% of SAH. In multivariable analysis, black race, atrial fibrillation, haemorrhagic subtype and ALS level of transport were associated with PND. CONCLUSION: Haemorrhage and atrial fibrillation is associated with PND in stroke, and further investigation is needed to establish whether PND can be predicted. Further studies are also needed to assess whether preferential transport of patients with deterioration to hospitals equipped with higher levels of care is beneficial, identify why race is associated with deterioration and to test therapies targeting PND

Growth and Mycotoxin Production by Chaetomium globosum Is Favored in a Neutral pH

Chaetomium globosum is frequently isolated in water-damaged buildings and produces two mycotoxins called chaetoglobosins A and C when cultured on building material. In this study, the influence of ambient pH on the growth of C. globosum was examined on an artificial medium. This fungus was capable of growth on potato dextrose agar ranging in pH from 4.3 to 9.4 with optimal growth and chaetoglobosin C production occurring at a neutral pH. In addition, our results show that sporulation is favored in an acidic environment

Uncovering Tropical Eiversity: Six Sympatric Cryptic Species of Blepharoneura (Diptera: Tephritidae) in Flowers of Gurania spinulosa (Cucurbitaceae) in Eastern Ecuador

Diversification of phytophagous insects is often associated with changes in the use of host taxa and host parts. We focus on a group of newly discovered Neotropical tephritids in the genus Blepharoneura, and report the discovery of an extraordinary number of sympatric, morphologically cryptic species, all feeding as larvae on calyces of flowers of a single functionally dioecious and highly sexually dimorphic host species (Gurania spinulosa) in eastern Ecuador. Molecular analyses of the mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase-I gene from flies reared from flowers of G. spinulosa reveal six distinct haplotype groups that differ by 7.2-10.1% bp (uncorrected pairwise distances; N = 624 bp). Haplotype groups correspond to six distinct and well-supported clades. Members of five clades specialize on the calyces of flowers of a particular sex: three clades comprise male flower specialists; two clades comprise female flower specialists; the sixth clade comprises generalists reared from male and female flowers. The six clades occupy significantly different morphological spaces defined by wing pigmentation patterns; however, diagnostic morphological characters were not discovered. Behavioural observations suggest specific courtship behaviours may play a role in maintaining reproductive isolation among sympatric species