How can entrepreneurs benefit from user knowledge to create innovation in the digital services sector?

The paper focuses attention on the value of user knowledge to entrepreneurs and addresses an important gap in current literature concerning entrepreneurial activity, user knowledge and innovation in digital services. Drawing on the entrepreneurship and innovation literatures, the paper highlights the challenges posed by the application of user knowledge to digital services and outlines a novel unit of analysis for the examination of entrepreneurial activity. The Innovation Opportunity Space framework is introduced and applied to the analysis of giffgaff, a UK-based mobile telephony supplier. This case is employed in order to explore the boundaries of the current understanding of entrepreneurial knowledge networks, user knowledge and innovation. The theoretical contribution of the paper proposes a reappraisal of the notion of spillovers, user knowledge and firm boundaries in the digital services sector. The paper concludes by outlining directions for further research in this area

The Professionalization of Hackers: A Content Analysis of 30 Years of Hacker Communication

Underground hacking has evolved from its early countercultural roots to become a complex and varied phenomenon. By combining a historical review of the literature with a content analysis of 30 years of underground hacker communication, we show that hacking has evolved in three waves to embrace learning and creativity, intrusion and crime, as well as politics and cyberwarfare. We uncover a paradoxical relationship between hackers and society at large where underground hacking is considered a digital crime while at the same time inspiring and driving corporate innovation, cybersecurity, and even cyberwarfare. The outcome of our research provides a nuanced picture of the hacker underground by highlighting differences between competing discursive themes across time. Moreover, by translating these themes into a set of six contrasting personas of IS professionals, we discuss how knowledge, technologies, and creative practices of underground hackers are being professionalized. We use this discussion to provide implications and a research agenda for IS studies in cybersecurity, innovation, and cyberwarfare

Comparing Business and Household Sector Innovation in Consumer Products: Findings from a Representative Study in the United Kingdom

In a first survey of its type, we measure development and modification of consumer products by product users in a representative sample of 1,173 UK consumers age 18 and older. We estimate this previously unmeasured type of household sector innovation to be quite large: 6.1% of UK consumers—nearly 2.9 million individuals—have engaged in consumer product innovation during the prior three years. In aggregate, consumers' annual product development expenditures are more than 1.4 times larger than the annual consumer product R&D expenditures of all firms in the United Kingdom combined. Consumers engage in many small projects that seem complementary to the innovation efforts of incumbent producers. Consumer innovators very seldom protect their innovations via intellectual property, and 17% diffuse to others. These results imply that, at the country level, productivity studies yield inflated effect sizes for producer innovation in consumer goods. They also imply that existing companies should reconfigure their product development systems to find and build on prototypes developed by consumers

Social Media Use: Attitudes, "Detox," and Craving in Typical and Frequent Users

Social media has become a core feature of daily life, with 4.8 billion users worldwide. Research on individual differences in social media use has tended to focus on the effect of differing levels of engagement on specific mental health outcomes. In contrast, few studies have directly investigated users’ own perceptions of the impact of their social media use, attempts to regulate their behavior through periods of “detox,” and the drivers that compel them to return to these platforms. Therefore, in this study, we examined users’ current attitudes toward their social media use, their awareness of the impact it had on other aspects of their lives, their experiences of self-initiated periods of “detox,” and their reasons for reengagement. A sample of 208 U.K. social media users (aged 18–28), partitioned into typical and frequent user groups using the Social Media Addiction Questionnaire and the Social Media Engagement Questionnaire, were tested on all measures. The findings, derived from both quantitative and qualitative data, showed that users across both groups were aware of the impact of overuse, and they were able to successfully engage in sustained periods of social media detox, from which they derived positive effects (e.g., on sleep, mood, productivity), and the primary driver for continued use was a desire for social connectedness and information rather than a “craving” for social media per se. Taken together, these findings provide novel data on users’ perceptions of their social media use and, in particular, evidence in support of the positive benefits of periods of social media “detox.

FOXO1 Modulates Osteoblast Differentiation

Forkhead box O1 (FOXO1) is upregulated during bone formation and in response to stimulation by bone morphogenetic proteins. Studies presented here examined the functional role of FOXO1 in a well defined culture system in which pre-osteoblastic cells undergo terminal differentiation in vitro. Mineralizing cultures of MC3T3-E1 cells were examined with or without FOXO1 knockdown by RNAi. Normal cells show the upregulation of FOXO1 and RUNX2 DNA binding activity, alkaline phosphatase activity, and mRNA levels of FOXO1, RUNX2, type 1 collagen, osteocalcin and MMP13 during formation of mineralizing nodules. In FOXO1 depleted cells each of these measurements was significantly reduced compared to values in control cells transfected with scrambled siRNA (P \u3c 0.05). Depletion of FOXO1 also reduced the number of mineralized nodules formed. Moreover, chromatin immunoprecipitation assays revealed a direct interaction of FOXO1 with the RUNX2 promoter. Overexpression of FOXO1 reduced the MC3T3-E1 cell number and the number of PCNA positive cells with little effect on apoptosis. These findings indicate that FOXO1 plays an important role in promoting osteoblast differentiation and suppressing proliferation in differentiating cells

Space Transportation System (STS)-117 External Tank (ET)-124 Hail Damage Repair Assessment

Severe thunderstorms with associated hail and high winds struck the STS-117 stack on February 26, 2007. Peak winds were recorded at 62 knots with hail sizes ranging from 0.3 inch to 0.8 inch in diameter. As a result of the storm, the North Carolina Foam Institute (NCFI) type 24-124 Thermal Protection System (TPS) foam on the liquid oxygen (LO2) ogive acreage incurred significant impact damage. The NCFI on the ET intertank and the liquid hydrogen (LH2) acreage sustained hail damage. The Polymer Development Laboratory (PDL)-1034 foam of the LO2 ice frost ramps (IFRs) and the Super-Lightweight Ablator (SLA) of the LO2 cable tray also suffered minor damage. NASA Engineering and Safety Center (NESC) was asked to assess the technical feasibility of repairing the ET TPS, the reasonableness of conducting those repairs with the vehicle in a vertical, integrated configuration at the Kennedy Space Center (KSC) Vehicle Assemble Building (VAB), and to address attendant human factors considerations including worker fatigue and the potential for error. The outcome of the assessment is recorded in this document

Use of Fluid-Ventilated, Gas-Permeable Scleral Lens for Management of Severe Keratoconjunctivitis Sicca Secondary to Chronic Graft-versus-Host Disease

AbstractKeratoconjunctivitis sicca (KCS) occurs in 40%-60% of patients with chronic graft-versus-host-disease (cGVHD) after allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation. Although immunosuppressive therapy is the primary treatment of chronic GVHD, ocular symptoms require measures to improve ocular lubrication, decrease inflammation, and maintain mucosal integrity. The liquid corneal bandage provided by a fluid-ventilated, gas-permeable scleral lens (SL) has been effective in mitigating symptoms and resurfacing corneal erosions in patients with KCS related to causes other than cGVHD. We report outcomes in 9 consecutive patients referred for SL fitting for cGVHD-related severe KCS that was refractory to standard treatments. All patients reported improvement of ocular symptoms and reduced the use of topical lubricants after SL fitting resulting from decreased evaporation. No serious adverse events or infections attributable to the SL occurred. The median Ocular Surface Disease Index improved from 81 (75-100) to 21 (6-52) within 2 weeks after SL fitting, and was 12 (2-53) at the time of last contact, 1-23 months (median, 8.0) after SL fitting. Disability related to KCS resolved in 7 patients after SL fitting. The use of SL appears to be safe and effective in patients with severe cGVHD-related KCS refractory to conventional therapies

Effects of Hot and Temperate Environments on Executive Function Tasks during Moderate and High Intensity Exercise

Cognitive function testing during changes in body core temperature has been widely studied in regards to human performance, often employing passive hyperthermia. More recently, executive function (EF) testing during exercise has been addressed to assess changes in performance with some level of active hyperthermia. The purpose of the present study was to employ both external thermal stress and active hyperthermia in order to assess changes in executive function (EF) tasks within varying environmental temperatures before, during, and after a maximal treadmill test. Nine apparently healthy college-aged males participated in two trials of a Bruce protocol treadmill test in hot (35°C) and temperate (21°C) environments. Treadmill tests were terminated upon subjects reaching ventilatory thresholds (VT). Subjects performed three EF tests to assess simple reaction time, attention/inhibition, and planning/problem solving abilities (Stroop–dot, Stroop–color, and Tower of London (TOL), respectively). Each test was given on three occasions during both trials; pre, mid, and post VT. Subjects’ performances on time of completion and errors within both EF tests were assessed across varying environments. Paired samples t-test revealed no significant differences (p=.05) within time of completion or errors for either EF test across both environments, with the exception of TOL number of moves post VT (p=.03). While not statistically significant, further analysis revealed an improvement (-.86 sec.) in reaction time (Stroop–dot) from pre to mid protocol in hot trials, as compared to a worsening (+.50 sec.) during temperate. Pre to Post reaction times were attenuated during hot trials (-.13 sec improvement), as compared to temperate trials (+1.34 sec. decline). Attention/inhibition (Stroop–color time) from pre to mid exercise revealed attenuation of the worsening of performance within heat trials of +.64 sec. vs. +1.96 sec. during temperate. Planning/problem solving (TOL time) improved in both pre to mid (-12.62 sec. hot [p=.44], -21.65 sec. temperate [p=.01]) and pre to post exercise (-19.10 sec. hot [p=.07], -27.67 sec. temperate [p=.01]). Taken together, these support previous findings on the complexity of the exercise–EF relationships, while adding the potential of active hyperthermia to moderate these relationships. Future research should continue to focus on external thermal stress and active hyperthermia in regards to effects on executive function tasks

Parent-Reported Homework Problems in the MTA Study: Evidence for Sustained Improvement with Behavioral Treatment

Parent-report of child homework problems was examined as a treatment outcome variable in the MTA-Multimodal Treatment Study of Children with Attention-Deficit/ Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). Five hundred seventy-nine children ages 7.0 to 9.9 were randomly assigned to either medication management, behavioral treatment, combination treatment, or routine community care. Results showed that only participants who received behavioral treatment (behavioral and combined treatment) demonstrated sustained improvements in homework problems in comparison to routine community care. The magnitude of the sustained effect at the 10-month follow-up assessment was small to moderate for combined and behavioral treatment over routine community care (d=.37, .40, respectively). Parent ratings of initial ADHD symptom severity was the only variable found to moderate these effects

A Phase I/II Study of Chemotherapy Followed by Donor Lymphocyte Infusion plus Interleukin-2 for Relapsed Acute Leukemia after Allogeneic Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation

The efficacy of donor lymphocyte infusion (DLI) for treatment of relapsed acute leukemia after allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation is limited. We hypothesized that interleukin-2 (IL-2) combined with DLI after chemotherapy might augment graft-versus-leukemia effects. To identify a safe and effective IL-2 regimen, a phase I/II study of DLI plus IL-2 therapy was performed for such patients. After chemotherapy, 17 patients received DLI (1 × 108 CD3/kg for patients with related donors, and 0.1 × 108 CD3/kg for those with unrelated donors) and an escalating dose of induction IL-2 (1.0, 2.0, or 3.0 × 106 IU/m2/day representing levels I [n = 7], Ia [n = 9], and II [n = 1]) for 5 days followed by maintenance (1.0 × 106 IU/m2/day) for 10 days as a continuous intravenous infusion. Unacceptable IL-2–related toxicities developed in 1 patient at level I, 2 at level Ia, and 1 at level II. Grades III-IV acute graft-versus-host disease (aGVHD) developed in 5 patients, and extensive chronic GVHD (cGVHD) developed in 8. Eight patients had a complete remission after chemotherapy prior to DLI, and 2 additional patients had a complete remission after DLI plus IL-2 therapy. In conclusion, the maximal tolerated induction dose of IL-2 combined with DLI appears to be 1.0 × 106 IU/m2/day. IL-2 administration after DLI might increase the incidence of cGVHD