Can institutional forces create competitive advantage? An empirical examination of environmental innovation

We examine institutional pressures as antecedents of environmental innovation. Drawing on institutional theory and a resource-based view of the firm, we argue that regulatory and normative forces influence companies' propensity to innovate in environment-related projects. Furthermore, we suggest that this relationship is contingent on the availability and specificity of the companies' resources. These relationships were tested using environmental patents and citations of 340 publicly-traded companies from polluting industries in the U.S. Results suggest that institutional pressures can be a source of competitive advantage, and regulatory forces are becoming more strongly associated with environmental innovations as the intensity of companies' R&D activities increase.environmental innovation; institutional theory; resource-based view;

Diseño e implementación de un controlador de motor BRUSHLESS

[spa] A lo largo de este artículo se explicará el proceso llevado a cabo para diseñar e implementar un controlador de motor De tipo brushless. El diseño parte inicialmente de lo propuesto por el fabricante del microcontrolador, para luego ser modificado en función de los requerimientos, su posterior montaje de la placa, aplicación de técnicas de ensamblaje, identificación de problemas de diseño y solución de los mismos

Conductance oscillations of a spin-orbit stripe with polarized contacts

We investigate the linear conductance of a stripe of spin-orbit interaction in a 2D electron gas; that is, a 2D region of length $\ell$ along the transport direction and infinite in the transverse one in which a spin-orbit interaction of Rashba type is present. Polarization in the contacts is described by means of Zeeman fields. Our model predicts two types of conductance oscillations: Ramsauer oscillations in the minority spin transmission, when both spins can propagate, and Fano oscillations when only one spin propagates. The latter are due to the spin-orbit coupling with quasibound states of the non propagating spin. In the case of polarized contacts in antiparallel configuration Fano-like oscillations of the conductance are still made possible by the spin orbit coupling, even though no spin component is bound by the contacts. To describe these behaviors we propose a simplified model based on an ansatz wave function. In general, we find that the contribution for vanishing transverse momentum dominates and defines the conductance oscillations. Regarding the oscillations with Rashba coupling intensity, our model confirms the spin transistor behavior, but only for high degrees of polarization. Including a position dependent effective mass yields additional oscillations due to the mass jumps at the interfaces.Comment: 8.5 pages, 9 figure

Physical factors, distribution and present land-use of terraces in the Tramuntana range

We have studied the present-day spatial distribution of terraced lands and their current uses in the main mountainous area of the Mallorca island. A pattern of physical factors affecting the terraces has been established; the greatest significance belongs to lithology, slope and altitude. The process of land degradation and the transitional process of conversion to vegetation-covered land have been quantified. This conversion has affected up to 25 % of the terraced lands during the last 25 years.[es] Se estudia la distribución actual de los terrenos abancalados en la principal comarca montañosa de la isla de Mallorca, y se analizan sus usos actuales. Se establecen los factores físicos a los que se ajusta la distribución de las terrazas, entre los cuales destaca la influencia de la litología, la pendiente y la altitud. Se cuantifica el proceso de desaparición de esta forma de acondicionamiento del terreno y su transición hacia su conversión en sectores ocupados por vegetación natural, de modo que a lo largo de los últimos 25 años en cerca de un 25% de los terrenos abancalados el aterrazamiento ha desaparecido. [fr] On a étudié la distribution actuelle des terrains aménagés en terrasses dans la principale contrée montagneuse de l'Ile de Majorque. On a analysé leurs usages actuels et on a établi les facteurs naturels qui ont déterminé la distribution en terrasses, facteurs parmi lesquels les plus importants sont la lithologie, la pente et l'altitude... On a quantifié le processus de disparition de cette forme d'aménagement du terrain et sa transition vers une transformation en secteurs occupés par la végétation naturelle. Ainsi au cours des 25 dernières années, cette disposition en terrasses a disparu dans presque 25% de ces terrains ainsi aménagés

Exchange-bias phenomenon: The role of the ferromagnetic spin strucutre

The exchange bias of antiferromagnetic-ferromagnetic (AFM-FM) bilayers is found to be strongly dependent on the ferromagnetic spin configuration. The widely accepted inverse proportionality of the exchange bias field with the ferromagnetic thickness is broken in FM layers thinner than the FM correlation length. Moreover, an anomalous thermal dependence of both exchange bias field and coercivity is also found. A model based on springlike domain walls parallel to the AFM-FM interface quantitatively accounts for the experimental results and, in particular, for the deviation from the inverse proportionality law. These results reveal the active role the ferromagnetic spin structure plays in AFM-FM hybrids which leads to a new paradigm of the exchange bias phenomenon

Ancient crops provide first archaeological signature of the westward Austronesian expansion

The Austronesian settlement of the remote island of Madagascar remains one of the great puzzles of Indo-Pacific prehistory. Although linguistic, ethnographic, and genetic evidence points clearly to a colonization of Madagascar by Austronesian language-speaking people from Island Southeast Asia, decades of archaeological research have failed to locate evidence for a Southeast Asian signature in the island's early material record. Here, we present new archaeobotanical data that show that Southeast Asian settlers brought Asian crops with them when they settled in Africa. These crops provide the first, to our knowledge, reliable archaeological window into the Southeast Asian colonization of Madagascar. They additionally suggest that initial Southeast Asian settlement in Africa was not limited to Madagascar, but also extended to the Comoros. Archaeobotanical data may support a model of indirect Austronesian colonization of Madagascar from the Comoros and/or elsewhere in eastern Africa

Crucial Role of the Co Cations on the Destabilization of the Ferrimagnetic Alignment in Co-Ferrite Nanoparticles with Tunable Structural Defects

The key role of the structural defects on the magnetic properties of cobalt ferrite nanoparticles (NPs) is investigated by complementary local probes: element- and site-specific X-ray magnetic circular dichroism (XMCD) combined with high-resolution transmission electron microscopy of individual NPs. A series of monodisperse samples of 8 nm NPs with a tunable amount of structural defects were prepared by thermal decomposition of Fe(III) and Co(II) acetylacetonates in the presence of a variable concentration of 1,2-hexadecanediol. The particles show a partial inverse spinel structure, and their stoichiometry and cation distribution are comparable along the series. Element-specific XMCD hysteresis loops at all the cationic sites show a decrease in squareness and an increase in both the closure field and the high-field susceptibility as the NPs become more structurally defective, suggesting the progressive loss of the collinear ferrimagnetism. However, the Co2+ cations in octahedral sites are significantly more affected by the structural defects than the rest of the cations. This is because structural defects cause local distortions of the crystal field acting on the orbital component of the cations, yielding effective local anisotropy axes that cause a prevalent Co2+ spin canting through the spin–orbit coupling, owing to the relatively large value of the partially unquenched moment of these cations, as found by XMCD. All in all, our results emphasize the crucial role of the Co2+ cations on the destabilization of the collinear ferrimagnetism with the inclusion of structural defects in cobalt ferrite NPs

Neonatal-onset multisystem inflammatory disease responsive to interleukin-1 beta inhibition

BACKGROUND:Neonatal-onset multisystem inflammatory disease is characterized by fever, urticarial rash, aseptic meningitis, deforming arthropathy, hearing loss, and mental retardation. Many patients have mutations in the cold-induced autoinflammatory syndrome 1 (CIAS1) gene, encoding cryopyrin, a protein that regulates inflammation.METHODS:We selected 18 patients with neonatal-onset multisystem inflammatory disease (12 with identifiable CIAS1 mutations) to receive anakinra, an interleukin-1-receptor antagonist (1 to 2 mg per kilogram of body weight per day subcutaneously). In 11 patients, anakinra was withdrawn at three months until a flare occurred. The primary end points included changes in scores in a daily diary of symptoms, serum levels of amyloid A and C-reactive protein, and the erythrocyte sedimentation rate from baseline to month 3 and from month 3 until a disease flare.RESULTS:All 18 patients had a rapid response to anakinra, with disappearance of rash. Diary scores improved (P<0.001) and serum amyloid A (from a median of 174 mg to 8 mg per liter), C-reactive protein (from a median of 5.29 mg to 0.34 mg per deciliter), and the erythrocyte sedimentation rate decreased at month 3 (all P<0.001), and remained low at month 6. Magnetic resonance imaging showed improvement in cochlear and leptomeningeal lesions as compared with baseline. Withdrawal of anakinra uniformly resulted in relapse within days; retreatment led to rapid improvement. There were no drug-related serious adverse events.CONCLUSIONS:Daily injections of anakinra markedly improved clinical and laboratory manifestations in patients with neonatal-onset multisystem inflammatory disease, with or without CIAS1 mutations

Coping strategies and postpartum depressive symptoms: A structural equation modelling approach

BACKGROUND: Variables such as the mother's personality, social support, coping strategies and stressful events have been described as risk factors for postpartum depression. Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) analysis was used to examine whether neuroticism, perceived social support, perceived life events, and coping strategies are associated with postpartum depressive symptoms at the 8th and 32nd weeks. METHODS: A total of 1626 pregnant women participated in a longitudinal study. Different evaluations were performed 8 and 32weeks after delivery. Several measures were used: the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS), the Diagnostic Interview for Genetic Studies (DIGS), the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (EPQ-RS), the St. Paul Ramsey life events scale and the Duke-UNC Functional Social Support Questionnaire. The brief COPE scale was used to measure coping strategies. SEM analysis was conducted for all women and in those women with a clinical diagnosis of postpartum depression. RESULTS: Passive coping strategies were associated with postpartum depressive symptoms at both visits (8th and 32nd weeks). Neuroticism was associated with more passive coping strategies and less active coping strategies. Neuroticism and life stress were positively correlated, and social support was negatively correlated with life stress and neuroticism. CONCLUSIONS: Early identification of potential risk for symptomatology of depression postpartum should include assessment of neuroticism, life events, social support and coping strategies.Gobierno de España. Instituto de Salud Carlos III (ISCIII)Spanish Psychiatric Genetics and Genotyping networkRTAGeneralitat de Cataluny