Design and analysis of field studies with bees: a critical review of the draft EFSA guidance

The specific protection goal, primary assessment endpoints, acceptable effect thresholds and experimental design proposed in the EFSA update of the bee guidance document are subjected to critical review. It is concluded that the negligible effect criteria were established without sufficient regulatory definition and without convincing scientific argumentation. For the assessment endpoints, effects on hive strength lack temporal definition and the reduction to numbers of bees is inappropriate to evaluate effects. Restricting mortality assessments to homing failure is not theoretically justified and specific criteria were incorrectly derived. The combination of acute effect estimates with models for chronic stressors is biased risk assessment and a temporal basis for the acceptability of effects is missing. Effects on overwintering success cannot be experimentally assessed using the proposed criteria. The experimental methodology proposed is inappropriate and the logistical consequences, in particular those relted to replication and land use are such that field studies are no longer a feasible option for the risk assessment. It may be necessary to explore new lines of thought for the set-up of field studies and to clearly separate experimentation from monitoring. Keywords: honeybee risk assessment, field study, regulatory guidanc

Thermoelectric effects in magnetic nanostructures

Elektronentransport is een belangrijk natuurkundig verschijnsel dat vaak wordt gebruikt in de hedendaagse technologie. Alle elektrische apparaten, variërend van stofzuigers tot computerchips, zijn in principe gebaseerd op dit type transport. Ondanks dat elektronen meerdere eigenschappen hebben, wordt in de praktijk echter vaak alleen de lading van het elektron gebruikt. De energie en het magnetisch moment van de elektronen zijn eigenschappen die in respectievelijk thermoelektriciteit en spin-elektronica (afgekort: spintronica) worden toegepast. Spintronica richt zich op de overdracht van het magnetisch moment om bijvoorbeeld informatie te transporteren, terwijl thermoelektrische verschijnselen, zoals het Peltier en Seebeck effect, toegepast kunnen worden voor elektrische verwarming/koeling en thermokoppels. Dit proefschrift beschrijft de fundamentele interacties tussen de drie vormen van transport (lading, warmte en spin) in magnetische nanostructuren. Het experimentele werk is een onderdeel van een breder onderzoeksgebied dat spin-caloritronica wordt genoemd. Deze onderzoeksrichting binnen de spintronica bestudeert de rol van het magnetisch moment van elektronen in warmtetransport. De meerwaarde van deze spin-caloritronische effecten ligt, ten opzichte van reguliere thermoelektrische verschijnselen, in het gemak van het controleren van de magnetische textuur op de nanoschaal. Dit biedt daarom een sterk gelokaliseerde en programmeerbare controle over warmtestromen en zou bruikbaar kunnen zijn voor het genereren van thermo-elektrische energie of voor koeling. De gemeten effecten zijn echter klein en zijn nog ver weg van directe toepassingen. Desalniettemin zouden nieuwe ontwikkelingen binnen dit onderzoeksveld op een dag kunnen leiden tot de implementatie van spin-caloritronica in onze dagelijkse elektronische apparatuur. Electron transport is one of the most important physical phenomena used in todays technology. All modern electrical equipment, ranging from vacuum cleaners till high-end microprocessors is essentially founded on this type of transport. However, in most cases the electron's full potential is not used and most applications only exploit the negative elementary charge that it possesses. The energy and the magnetic moment of the electrons are properties which are used in thermoelectricity and spin-electronics (spintronics), respectively. Spintronics focuses on the transfer of magnetic moments for the information transport, while thermoelectric phenomena (e.g. the Peltier and Seebeck effect) have found their application in devices for electric heating/cooling or thermocouples. This thesis describes the fundamental interactions between the three types of transport (charge, heat, spin) in magnetic nanostructures. The experimental work described here is part of a wider research direction, called spin-caloritronics. This research branch of spintronics studies the role of magnetic moments in heat transport. The potential advantages of spin-caloritronic effects with respect to regular thermoelectricity can be found in the easy manipulation of magnetic textures at the nanoscale. This enables very localized and programmable control of heat flow which might prove useful for thermopower energy harvesting or refrigeration. However, the previously discussed effects are weak and far from direct applications. Nonetheless, a combination of new developments in this field and by exploring novel materials it could one day lead to the implementation of spin-caloritronics in our everyday electronic devices.

How transnational stakeholders impact multinational corporations in the context of globalization

Stakeholder theory faces two closely related challenges in the light of globalization. On the one hand, globalization has not only led many firms to explore and expand into different parts of the world, it has also created possibilities for non-traditional stakeholders to ‘knock on the doors’ of firms and make their concerns heard. On the other hand, the context of the multitude and complexity of novel stakeholder relationships that were not usually considered in stakeholder mappings renders the issue of corporate responsibility even more ‘political’ than stakeholder relationships have always been. However, exactly how such non-traditional stakeholders knock on the firms’ doors has insufficiently been explored in stakeholder theorizing. Stakeholder theory appears to have difficulty in explaining the potential leverage that stakeholder groups without a clear and direct stake in a firm may exert over that particular firm. We propose to speak of ‘boomerang politics’ as a general and overarching term in order to advance stakeholder theory in the light of the challenges from globalization by exploring how non-traditional stakeholders knock on firms’ doors

4TU.Bouw Lighthouse projects + PDEng

Spool has published previously four issues dedicated to projects, developed in a high-risk innovation programme: the so-called the 4TU.BOUW lighthouse projects. Initially, the main topic of this programme was Energy-Innovation, hence the name of this “thread”. This issue of Spool presents the last batch of Lighthouse projects as the programme came to a close. &nbsp

The introduction of deductibles for prescription drugs in a national health insurance: Compulsory or voluntary?

We consider a situation of full insurance coverage for prescription drugs where, at a certain point in time, people are given the opportunity to take a deductible in exchange for a lower premium. Four determinants of this premium reduction can be considered: expected out-of-pocket payments, adverse selection effects, moral hazard effects, and administration costs. The purpose of this study is to analyse the first two determinants. Survey data of 17 242 insureds in the Netherlands have been used for this research. Results show that the expected out-of-pocket expenditures in case of a certain deductible amount depend strongly on age and gender. People in poor health could be given a larger premium discount if they would take a deductible than those in good health. This implies that a uniform premium discount would induce adverse selection. The effects of such selection have been simulated by using a survey question about the preference to take a general deductible. If the premium reductions for policies with a deductible are adjusted for age and gender, the selection effect will halve but will still be substantial. We conclude that, in the situation considered here, it is largely immaterial whether deductibles are compulsory or voluntary, provided premium reductions are allowed to depend on relevant risk factors

Talking the Walk: The Deflation Response to Legitimacy Challenges

Organizations need legitimacy to be able to operate effectively. Consequently, and just like their participants, Multi-Stakeholder Initiatives (MSIs) need to respond when faced with legitimacy challenges from external parties. We build on current theory to identify three organizational elements that can be made the subject of legitimacy critique – i.e., statutory procedures, objectives, mechanisms – and use these elements to structure our analysis of a conflict-ridden case concerning the United Nations Global Compact (UNGC). Whereas prior work suggests that organizations can respond to such conflicts in a fashion consistent with either moral entrapment or decoupling, we show that organizations can also respond by deflating their statutory procedures and objectives. A deflationary response can help organizations maintain their validity by diminishing the ability of external parties to advance propriety legitimacy critiques against them. By examining this alternative response, we expand the scope and refine the analytic detail by which organizational legitimacy conflicts can be investigate

Activism in the global sports apparel industry

F. den Hond, F.G.A. de Bakker, P. de Haan (2010), The sequential patterning of tactics: Activism in the global sports apparel industry, 1988–2002, International Journal of Sociology and Social Policy Vol.30, No.11, pp.648-66

Complete and partial organizing for corporate social responsibility

This paper investigates different modes of organizing for corporate social responsibility (CSR). Based on insights from organization theory, we theorize two ways to organize for CSR. “Complete” organization for CSR happens within businesses and depends on the availability of certain organizational elements (e.g., membership, hierarchy, rules, monitoring, and sanctioning). By contrast, “partial” organization for CSR happens when organizers do not have direct access to all these organizational elements. We discuss partial organization for CSR by analyzing how standards and cross-sector partnerships make selective use of organizational elements. We maintain that an important feature of the increasing institutionalization of CSR—not only within businesses but also among non-governmental, governmental, and professional actors—is the rise of partial forms of organization. We discuss the contributions to this Special Issue in the context of our theorization of complete/partial organization for CSR and outline avenues for further research

Taking Stock and Looking Ahead

F.G.A. de Bakker, F. den Hond, B.G. King, K. Weber (2013), Social Movements, Civil Society and Corporations: Taking Stock and Looking Ahead, Organization Studies Vol.34, No.3, pp.573-593 The relationships between social movements and civil society on the one hand, and the corporate world on the other hand, are often shaped by conflict over the domination of economic, cultural and social life. How this conflict plays out, in current as well as in historical times and places, is the central question that unites the papers in this special issue. In this essay, we review the differences and points of contact between the study of social movements, civil society and corporations, and offer an agenda for future research at this intersection that also frames the papers in the special issue. We suggest that three research areas are becoming increasingly important: the blurring of the three empirical domains and corresponding opportunities for theoretical integration, the institutional and cultural embeddedness of strategic interaction processes between agents, and the consequences of contestation and collaboration. The papers in this special issue are introduced in how they speak to these questions