From viability to sustainability: the contribution of the viable systems approach (VSA)

The current dynamics of business systems require new ways of conceiving the role of single entities. On this basis, a complex of interactions between the company and the reference context must be activated to guarantee survival dynamics. From these considerations re-emerge the ideas of Peccei (2013) and King (2013) that recognise in the systemic thought the foundations for a sustainable society. The present study derives from these considerations, and aims at contributing to the advancement of the knowledge necessary to overcome the challenges in the sustainability field. The methodological approach, albeit heuristic, can be traced back to the positive scientific and constructivist method. The results of the study showed the prevalence of qualitative and subjective techniques, accompanied by the so-called inductive method, testifying to the intense interaction between the scholar and the object investigated. With regard to future research, it would be interesting to construct a flexible, scalable and extensible model to recover both a database and an ontology for the theoretical framework

Nonstationary Kalman filter for estimation of accurate and consistent car-following data

Difficulty in obtaining accurate car-following data has traditionally been regarded as a considerable drawback in understanding real phenomena and has affected development and validation of traffic micro-simulation models. Recent advancements in digital technology have opened up new horizons in researching this field. In spite of the high precision of these techniques, estimating time series data of speeds and accelerations from positions with the required accuracy is still a demanding task. The core of the problem is to filter noisy trajectory data of each vehicle without altering platoon data consistency, i.e. speeds and accelerations of following vehicles have to be estimated so that resulting inter-vehicle spacings are equal to the “real” one. Otherwise negative spacings can also easily occur. The task was achieved in this study by considering vehicles of a platoon as a sole dynamic system and reducing several estimation problems to a single consistent one. This process was accomplished by means of a non-stationary Kalman filter that uses measurements and time-varying error information from differential GPS devices. The Kalman filter, not applicable to estimate the speeds of one vehicle from its position measurements alone, was fruitfully applied here to the speed estimation of the whole platoon by including inter-vehicle spacings as additional measurements (assumed as reference measurements). The closed solution of an optimisation problem ensuring strict observation of the “true” inter-vehicle spacings concludes the estimation process. The stationary counterpart of the devised filter is suitable to be applied to position data whichever technique is used, e.g. video cameras

Management control of contractual networks: the business network scorecard

The paper presents an analysis of the management control systems, introducing a useful instrument to summarise performance achieved from the organizational network model, with a view to establishing the competitive advantage and the creation of value on the long term. The research approach is based on the qualitative methodology. The research is developed according to the study of national and international literature. The contribution proposes theoretical proof to support the new management control instrument for contractual networks: the Business Network Scorecard. The approach adopted for the development of the network management control instrument (Business Network Scorecard) refers to the principles of the Balanced Scorecard and value creation. So, the reporting system of network performance aims at highlighting the joint results of an economic-financial nature as well as those of an intangible nature. Through a logic of interception of large aggregates, the results achieved by the network are proposed through the matrix of network objectives, the multidimensional network model, including perspective indicators, 4 indicators of synergy and the comparison report of joint and individual performance of companies

marketing innovation and key performance indicator in banking

This paper aims to analyze the relationship between marketing innovation and performance of an enterprise, studying in particular the banking sector. So after a brief review of the literature on services marketing and on the issue of business innovation, through the methodology of the single case (Yin, 1994; Dubois &amp; Gadde, 2002), that is appropriate because of the complexity of the phenomenon, the research analyzes how innovation of bank management—interpreted as a tendency to integrate strategies and tools of "marketing" that have long been the preserve of industrial production and, in recent years, of retailers—influences the performance and competitive advantages.In detail, the work provides an analysis of the main KPIs of the bank on the one hand, and innovation indicators of marketing on the other; subsequently it detects any correlation between the two elements and it emphasizes through what strategies a bank has managed to overcome the crisis and to gain a defensible competitive advantage.</p

Specification of skeletal muscle differentiation by repressor element-1 silencing transcription factor (REST)-regulated Kv7.4 potassium channels

Changes in the expression of potassium (K(+)) channels is a pivotal event during skeletal muscle differentiation. In mouse C(2)C(12) cells, similarly to human skeletal muscle cells, myotube formation increased the expression of K(v)7.1, K(v)7.3, and K(v)7.4, the last showing the highest degree of regulation. In C(2)C(12) cells, K(v)7.4 silencing by RNA interference reduced the expression levels of differentiation markers (myogenin, myosin heavy chain, troponinT-1, and Pax3) and impaired myotube formation and multinucleation. In K(v)7.4-silenced cells, the differentiation-promoting effect of the K(v)7 activator N-(2-amino-4-(4-fluorobenzylamino)-phenyl)-carbamic acid ethyl ester (retigabine) was abrogated. Expression levels for the repressor element-1 silencing transcription factor (REST) declined during myotube formation. Transcript levels for K(v)7.4, as well as for myogenin, troponinT-1, and Pax3, were reduced by REST overexpression and enhanced upon REST suppression by RNA interference. Four regions containing potential REST-binding sites in the 5′ untranslated region and in the first intron of the K(v)7.4 gene were identified by bioinformatic analysis. Chromatin immunoprecipitation assays showed that REST binds to these regions, exhibiting a higher efficiency in myoblasts than in myotubes. These data suggest that K(v)7.4 plays a permissive role in skeletal muscle differentiation and highlight REST as a crucial transcriptional regulator for this K(+) channel subunit

Assessment of the design criteria for concentric V-braced steel structures according to Italian and European codes

The critical review of design methodologies provided by the NTC2008, in agreement with the European seismic code (Eurocode 8) for steel Concentrically Braced Frames with chevron (or inverted V) diagonals (CBF-V), carried out by deepening the seismic behaviour of such typical steel seismic resistant structures, aims to provide more efficient design criteria able to ensure adequate safety levels under seism. As reference case studies, common structural configurations of CBF-V are designed according to the NTC2008 provisions. Each case study is designed through both the Linear Static (LS) and Dynamic (LD) analysis. For braces either Circular Hollow Sections (CHS) or HE profiles are used. General critical issues have been evidenced in the design process. The seismic performance of investigated structures is evaluated by non-linear static analyses, in order to appraise the most relevant behavioural issues, like the behaviour factor, the failure modes and the effectiveness of the capacity design criteria. A discussion on the obtained results has allowed to point out the pros and cons of the current design approach

Chemical composition and phytotoxic effects of essential oils of Salvia hierosolymitana Boiss. and Salvia multicaulis Vahl. var. simplicifolia Boiss. growing wild in Lebanon

The chemical composition of the essential oils of S. hierosolymitana Boiss. and S. multicaulis Vahl. var. simplicifolia Boiss. collected in Lebanon was studied by means of GC and GC-MS analysis. In all 115 compounds were identified: 82 for S hierosolymitana and 72 for S. multicaulis var. simplicifolia. The presence of carbonylic compounds (17%) characterizes the oil from S. hierosolymitana,while S. multicaulis var. simplicifolia oil is rich of monoterpenes (34.5%) and sesquiterpenes (46.9%). The effects of the essential oils on germination and initial radical elongation of Raphanus sativus L. (radish) and Lepidium sativum L. (garden cress) were studied, indicating in a different activity against radical elongation of the species tested

Chemical composition and phytotoxic effects of essential oils of Salvia hierosolymitana Boiss. and Salvia multicaulis Vahl. var. simplicifolia Boiss. growing wild in Lebanon

The chemical composition of the essential oils of S. hierosolymitana Boiss. and S. multicaulis Vahl. var. simplicifolia Boiss. collected in Lebanon was studied by means of GC and GC-MS analysis. In all 115 compounds were identified: 82 for S hierosolymitana and 72 for S. multicaulis var. simplicifolia. The presence of carbonylic compounds (17%) characterizes the oil from S. hierosolymitana,while S. multicaulis var. simplicifolia oil is rich of monoterpenes (34.5%) and sesquiterpenes (46.9%). The effects of the essential oils on germination and initial radical elongation of Raphanus sativus L. (radish) and Lepidium sativum L. (garden cress) were studied, indicating in a different activity against radical elongation of the species tested