THE ROLE OF QMS IN THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN INNOVATION CLIMATE AND PERFORMANCE

The emergence of new global competitors, the convergence of high-technology industries and the increasing speed and cost of technological development promise an increasingly uncertain environment for organizations, making adaptation to changes in the environment a central theme in the study of the organization for both organization theory and strategic management. This paper is thus seeks principally to verify that, while innovation and QM alone do not possess the qualities required to provide organizations with sustainable competitive advantages, the bundle of innovation and QM together with other resources and competencies will allow organizations to obtain a competitive advantage and adapt to their environment. The results show that the factors determining innovation—such as resistance to change, cohesion, and workload pressures—have repercussions for the firms’ capacity to adapt to their environment, and that a QM context facilitates this adaptation. Finally, we can conclude that a climate of support for innovation is positively related to the organization’s performance

Un estudio empírico del impacto de las iniciativas actuales de gestión de la calidad sobre la innovación y flexibilidad organizativa

In recent years, managers have opted for implementing Quality Management in their firms. The market offers different alternatives for QM implementation (EFQM, ISO, Six Sigma, etc.). Benefits of each initiative, varies from case to case. This article designs a criterion for choosing among four alternatives (Quality Control, EFQM, Six Sigma and ISO 9000), according to the different effects that QM elements included in each initiative, have on innovation and flexibility capabilities. To do so, using a stepwise regression with dummy variables, it analyses 234 European organizations. The research concludes that QM elements included on Quality Control and ISO standards have the same effect on administrative and technical innovation, and operational and strategic flexibility. QM elements included in EFQM model have a deeper impact on administrative and technical innovation, and strategic flexibility. And finally, QM elements included in Six Sigma methodology have a deeper impact on operational flexibility

Cost-Effective Printed Electrodes Based on Emerging Materials Applied to Biosignal Acquisition

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Inovação no Desenvolvimento do Curso Online Acessível a Todos (MOOC) sobre “Redes Ultra-densas 5G e sua Evolução”

Muitos dos novos dispositivos de comunicações móveis serão aparelhos que alimentam e monitorizam as nossas casas, infraestruturas urbanas e transportes. Controlar drones a milhares de quilómetros de distância, realizar cirurgias remotas ou estar imerso em vídeo com latência reduzida transformará certamente o acesso às tecnologias de informação e comunicação digitais. Estes são alguns dos aspetos que tornarão a quinta geração das comunicações móveis (5G) uma revolução, um impulso para a economia, e o foco de todos os intervenientes atuais na área das telecomunicações. Com este intuito, o planeamento e a crescente densidade de implantação destas novas redes introduzem novos desafios de otimização. Que elementos serão adicionados em relação às gerações anteriores? Baseados num Curso Online Acessível a Todos (MOOC) anteriormente desenvolvido na UC3M (UC3M Staff, 2022), o MOOC sobre redes ultra-densas 5G e sua evolução foi elaborado pelos investigadores da Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) ITN/ETN Europeia (teamUp5G Reserachers, 2022), denominada TeamUp5G (Teamup5G, 2022; Pérez Leal et al., 2020) e apresenta as tecnologias mais importantes que suportam comunicações móveis 5G, com ênfase no aumento de capacidade e redução de energia, que facilitam o desenvolvimento de redes com pequenas células. Os conteúdos abrangem aspectos desde tecnologias de comunicação até casos de utilização, prototipagem e o futuro próximo, sem esquecer questões como a gestão de interferência, eficiência energética ou gestão de espectro. O objetivo do MOOC (TeamUp5G, 2022) é preencher a lacuna na aprendizagem ao nível dos estudos de graduação e pós-graduação, em conteúdos relacionados com tecnologias 5G emergentes e suas aplicações, incluindo a 6G futura. O público-alvo envolve engenheiros, investigadores, profissionais e estudantes. O artigo descreve o conteúdo e os resultados de aprendizagem do MOOC, as principais tarefas e recursos envolvidos na sua criação, as contribuições conjuntas do setor académico e não académico, e aspectos como a conformidade relativamente aos direitos de autor, garantia de qualidade, testes e detalhes sobre comunicação e inscrição, seguidos da discussão das lições extraídas.Este trabalho foi financiado pelo programa de investigação e inovação Horizonte 2020 da União Europeia através da Rede Europeia de Estágios (ETN) Marie Skłodowska-Curie TeamUp5G, acordo de bolsa N.º 813391, pela SNF Scientific Exchange - AISpectrum (projecto 205842) e UIDB/50008/2020. Os autores agradecem as contribuições da equipa audiovisual da UC3M responsáveis pela edição do MOOC, e da equipa responsável pelos direitos de autor e pela gravação na plataforma edX.info:eu-repo/semantics/acceptedVersio

Recent cadmium exposure among male partners may affect oocyte fertilization during in vitro fertilization (IVF)

We recently reported evidence suggesting associations between urine cadmium concentrations, reflecting long-term exposure, measured in 25 female patients (relative risk = 1.41, P = 0.412) and 15 of their male partners (relative risk = 0.19, P = 0.097) and oocyte fertilization in vitro. Blood cadmium concentrations reflect more recent exposure. We here incorporate those measures into our prior data set and employ multivariable log-binomial regression models to generate hypotheses concerning the relative effects of long-term and recent cadmium exposure on oocyte fertilization in vitro. No association is indicated for blood cadmium from women and oocyte fertilization, adjusted for urine cadmium and creatinine, blood lead and mercury, age, race/ethnicity and cigarette smoking (relative risk = 0.88, P = 0.828). However, we suggest an inverse adjusted association between blood cadmium from men and oocyte fertilization (relative risk = 0.66, P = 0.143). These results suggest that consideration of long-term and recent exposures are both important for assessing the effect of partner cadmium levels on oocyte fertilization in vitro

Desarrollo multidisciplinario en investigación y docencia del centro universitario UAEM Valle de México

DESARROLLO MULTIDISCIPLINARIO EN INVESTIGACIÓN Y DOCENCIA DEL CENTRO UNIVERSITARIO UAEM VALLE DE MÉXICOLa Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México ha evolucionado a través de sus 188 años de historia, dedicada a la educación, la investigación, la cultura y el deporte, como sus grandes ejes rectores, formadora de hombres y mujeres con un alto sentido humanista y ético, contribuyendo a lograr nuevas y mejores formas de existencia y convivencia social. Durante el proceso de desconcentración de la UAEM, se crearon las Unidades Académicas y Centros Universitarios para brindar el servicio de educación a más jóvenes en todo el Estado de México, este Centro Universitario fue uno de los primeros y a sus veinte años de existencia se está consolidando como uno de los mejores. Es en los últimos años que se ha venido impulsando la investigación al contar con cuerpos académicos, en formación y en consolidación, con infraestructura de primera tanto en equipo como en laboratorios especializados, con profesores de tiempo completo que participan en congresos, seminarios y presentan publicaciones en revistas indexadas. Por ello para celebrar esos veinte años de existencia de esta honorable institución, se planeó la compilación de esta obra que es parte del quehacer multidisciplinario en investigación y docencia como parte del Plan de Desarrollo 2013-2017, de esta administración. Esta obra reúne investigaciones tanto de profesores como de alumnos desde las diferentes ramas del saber en las que se inscriben sus siete licenciaturas, Actuaría, Administración, Contaduría, Derecho, Economía, Relaciones Económicas Internacionales e Informática Administrativa, tanto presencial como a distancia, así como sus tres ingenierías, Industrial, en Computación y Sistemas y Comunicaciones, así como gracias a la vinculación y colaboración académico – científica que se tiene con otras instituciones de educación superior a nivel nacional, como el Instituto Tecnológico de Orizaba, la Universidad Autónoma de San Luis Potosí, la Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, la Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana, Universidad Politécnica de Victoria, el Instituto Politécnico Nacional entre otras. En el capítulo 1 se abordan seis temáticas diferentes de vanguardia en el área de las Ingenierías, en los capítulos 2 y 3 se incluyen temas de interés y gran relevancia en materia de ciencias sociales, política y economía. Se hace extensivo un reconocimiento para todos los que participaron tanto en la revisión de los trabajos, como en la compilación del producto final de este Libro intitulado “Desarrollo Multidisciplinario en Investigación y Docencia del Centro Universitario UAEM Valle de México”

Characterization of S3Pvac Anti-Cysticercosis Vaccine Components: Implications for the Development of an Anti-Cestodiasis Vaccine

Background: Cysticercosis and hydatidosis seriously affect human health and are responsible for considerable economic loss in animal husbandry in non-developed and developed countries. S3Pvac and EG95 are the only field trial-tested vaccine candidates against cysticercosis and hydatidosis, respectively. S3Pvac is composed of three peptides (KETc1, GK1 and KETc12), originally identified in a Taenia crassiceps cDNA library. S3Pvac synthetically and recombinantly expressed is effective against experimentally and naturally acquired cysticercosis.Methodology/ Principal Findings: In this study, the homologous sequences of two of the S3Pvac peptides, GK1 and KETc1, were identified and further characterized in Taenia crassiceps WFU, Taenia solium, Taenia saginata, Echinococcus granulosus and Echinococcus multilocularis. Comparisons of the nucleotide and amino acid sequences coding for KETc1 and GK1 revealed significant homologies in these species. The predicted secondary structure of GK1 is almost identical between the species, while some differences were observed in the C terminal region of KETc1 according to 3D modeling. A KETc1 variant with a deletion of three C-terminal amino acids protected to the same extent against experimental murine cysticercosis as the entire peptide. on the contrary, immunization with the truncated GK1 failed to induce protection. Immunolocalization studies revealed the non stage-specificity of the two S3Pvac epitopes and their persistence in the larval tegument of all species and in Taenia adult tapeworms.Conclusions/ Significance: These results indicate that GK1 and KETc1 may be considered candidates to be included in the formulation of a multivalent and multistage vaccine against these cestodiases because of their enhancing effects on other available vaccine candidates

SELNET clinical practice guidelines for bone sarcoma

Bone sarcoma are infrequent diseases, representing < 0.2% of all adult neoplasms. A multidisciplinary management within reference centers for sarcoma, with discussion of the diagnostic and therapeutic strategies within an expert multidisciplinary tumour board, is essential for these patients, given its heterogeneity and low frequency. This approach leads to an improvement in patient's outcome, as demonstrated in several studies. The Sarcoma European Latin-American Network (SELNET), aims to improve clinical outcome in sarcoma care, with a special focus in Latin-American countries. These Clinical Practice Guidelines (CPG) have been developed and agreed by a multidisciplinary expert group (including medical and radiation oncologist, surgical oncologist, orthopaedic surgeons, radiologist, pathologist, molecular biologist and representatives of patients advocacy groups) of the SELNET consortium, and are conceived to provide the standard approach to diagnosis, treatment and follow-up of bone sarcoma patients in the Latin-American context

An upper limit to the photon fraction in cosmic rays above 10^19 eV from the Pierre Auger Observatory

An upper limit of 16% (at 95% c.l.) is derived for the photon fraction in cosmic rays with energies above 10^19 eV, based on observations of the depth of shower maximum performed with the hybrid detector of the Pierre Auger Observatory. This is the first such limit on photons obtained by observing the fluorescence light profile of air showers. This upper limit confirms and improves on previous results from the Haverah Park and AGASA surface arrays. Additional data recorded with the Auger surface detectors for a subset of the event sample, support the conclusion that a photon origin of the observed events is not favoured