Innovativeness and Online Shopping Adoption

This study was designed to examine the role of innovativeness in online shopping. Innovativeness is one of the more widely studied phenomena in the domain of consumer research and is said to play a prominent role in the adoption of new products (Im, Bayus & Mason, 2003, Midgley & Dowling, 1978). However, issues regarding the validity of the innovativeness construct as well as its scales still remain. Using responses from an online survey given in the United States regarding online shopping habits, the effectiveness and validity of two innovativeness scales were examined both alone as well as in larger models which incorporate other variables. Direct relationships were examined with simple correlation, while the role of the types of innovativeness with other variables was tested using regression. Finally, complete models were tested using structural equation modeling. Results indicate that when used alone, the innovativeness scales are significantly related to the adoption of online shopping. However, it was found that the Doman Specific Innovativeness scale (DSI) as a predictor becomes ineffective in predicting online purchase frequency when used in a model which incorporates a measure of purchase intention. However, this effect was not seen for a new scale, the General Shopping Innovativeness scale (GSI). Results of this study will allow researchers to better understand and measure the innovativeness construct as well as increase marketers understanding of when and why people are likely to adopt innovation

Innovativeness and Online Shopping Adoption

This study was designed to examine the role of innovativeness in online shopping. Innovativeness is one of the more widely studied phenomena in the domain of consumer research and is said to play a prominent role in the adoption of new products (Im, Bayus & Mason, 2003, Midgley & Dowling, 1978). However, issues regarding the validity of the innovativeness construct as well as its scales still remain. Using responses from an online survey given in the United States regarding online shopping habits, the effectiveness and validity of two innovativeness scales were examined both alone as well as in larger models which incorporate other variables. Direct relationships were examined with simple correlation, while the role of the types of innovativeness with other variables was tested using regression. Finally, complete models were tested using structural equation modeling. Results indicate that when used alone, the innovativeness scales are significantly related to the adoption of online shopping. However, it was found that the Doman Specific Innovativeness scale (DSI) as a predictor becomes ineffective in predicting online purchase frequency when used in a model which incorporates a measure of purchase intention. However, this effect was not seen for a new scale, the General Shopping Innovativeness scale (GSI). Results of this study will allow researchers to better understand and measure the innovativeness construct as well as increase marketers understanding of when and why people are likely to adopt innovation

Properties of Nb\_xTi\_{(1-x)}N thin films deposited on 300 mm silicon wafers for upscaling superconducting digital circuits

Scaling superconducting digital circuits requires fundamental changes in the current material set and fabrication process. The transition to 300 mm wafers and the implementation of advanced lithography are instrumental in facilitating mature CMOS processes, ensuring uniformity, and optimizing the yield. This study explores the properties of NbxTi(1-x)N films fabricated by magnetron DC sputtering on 300 mm Si wafers. As a promising alternative to traditional Nb in device manufacturing, NbxTi(1-x)N offers numerous advantages, including enhanced stability and scalability to smaller dimensions, in both processing and design. As a ternary material, NbxTi(1-x)N allows engineering material parameters by changing deposition conditions. The engineered properties can be used to modulate device parameters through the stack and mitigate failure modes. We report characterization of NbxTi(1-x)N films at less than 2% thickness variability, 2.4% Tc variability and 3% composition variability. The films material properties such as resistivity (140-375 {\Omega}cm) and critical temperature Tc (4.6 K - 14.1 K) are correlated with stoichiometry and morphology of the films. Our results highlight the significant influence of deposition conditions on crystallographic texture along the films and its correlation with Tc.Comment: 8 pages 8 figure

Scaling NbTiN-based ac-powered Josephson digital to 400M devices/cm2^2

We describe a fabrication stackup for digital logic with 16 superconducting NbTiN layers, self-shunted a-silicon barrier Josephson Junctions (JJs), and low loss, high-$\kappa$ tunable HZO capacitors. The stack enables 400 MJJ/cm$^2$ device density, efficient routing, and AC power distribution on a resonant network. The materials scale beyond 28nm lithography and are compatible with standard high-temperature CMOS processes. We report initial results for two-metal layer NbTiN wires with 50nm critical dimension. A semi-ascendance wire-and-via process module using 193i lithography and 50nm critical dimension has shown cross-section uniformity of 1%=1s across the 300mm wafer, critical temperature of 12.5K, and critical current of 0.1mA at 4.2K. We also present a new design of the resonant AC power network enabled by NbTiN wires and HZO MIM capacitors. The design matches the device density and provides a 30 GHz clock with estimated efficiency of up to 90%. Finally, magnetic imaging of patterned NbTiN ground planes shows low intrinsic defectivity and consistent trapping of vorteces in 0.5 mm holes spaced on a 20 $\mu$m x 20 $\mu$m grid.Comment: 7 pages, 3 figure

The use of standardized patients for mock oral board exams in neurology: a pilot study

BACKGROUND: Mock oral board exams, fashioned after the live patient hour of the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology exam, are commonly part of resident assessment during residency training. Exams using real patients selected from clinics or hospitals are not standardized and do not allow comparisons of resident performance across the residency program. We sought to create a standardized patient mock oral board exam that would allow comparison of residents' clinical performance. METHODS: Three cases were created and then used for this mock oral boards exercise utilizing trained standardized patients. Residents from the University of Cincinnati and Indiana University participated in the exam. Residents were scored by attending physician examiners who directly observed the encounter with the standardized patient. The standardized patient also assessed each resident. A post-test survey was administered to ascertain participant's satisfaction with the examination process. RESULTS: Resident scores were grouped within one standard deviation of the mean, with the exception of one resident who was also subjectively felt to "fail" the exam. In exams with two faculty "evaluators", scores were highly correlated. The survey showed satisfaction with the examination process in general. CONCLUSION: Standardized patients can be used for mock oral boards in the live patient format. Our initial experience with this examination process was positive. Further testing is needed to determine if this examination format is more reliable and valid than traditional methods of assessing resident competency

Industry Relations With Emergency Medicine Graduate Medical Education Programs

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/72174/1/j.1553-2712.2009.00539.x.pdfhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/72174/2/ACEM_539_sm_DataSupplementS1.pd

Learning to Teach About Ideas and Evidence in Science : The Student Teacher as Change Agent

A collaborative curriculum development project was set up to address the lack of good examples of teaching about ideas and evidence and the nature of science encountered by student teachers training to teach in the age range 11-16 in schools in England. Student and teacher-mentor pairs devised, taught and evaluated novel lessons and approaches. The project design required increasing levels of critique through cycles of teaching, evaluation and revision of lessons. Data were gathered from interviews and students' reports to assess the impact of the project on student teachers and to what extent any influences survived when they gained their first teaching posts. A significant outcome was the perception of teaching shifting from the delivery of standard lessons in prescribed ways to endeavours demanding creativity and decision-making. Although school-based factors limited newly qualified teachers' chances to use new lessons and approaches and therefore act as change-agents in schools, the ability to critique curriculum materials and the recognition of the need to create space for professional dialogue were durable gains

Spirit, mind and body: the archaeology of monastic healing

Archaeology and material culture are used in this chapter to consider how monastic experience responded to illness, ageing and disability. The approach taken is influenced by the material study of religion, which interrogates how bodies and things engage to construct the sensory experience of religion, and by practice-based approaches in archaeology, which examine the active role of space and material culture in shaping religious agency and embodiment. The archaeology of monastic healing focuses on the full spectrum of healing technologies, from managing the body in order to prevent illness, through to the treatment of the sick and preparation of the corpse for burial

Space Science Opportunities Augmented by Exploration Telepresence

Since the end of the Apollo missions to the lunar surface in December 1972, humanity has exclusively conducted scientific studies on distant planetary surfaces using teleprogrammed robots. Operations and science return for all of these missions are constrained by two issues related to the great distances between terrestrial scientists and their exploration targets: high communication latencies and limited data bandwidth. Despite the proven successes of in-situ science being conducted using teleprogrammed robotic assets such as Spirit, Opportunity, and Curiosity rovers on the surface of Mars, future planetary field research may substantially overcome latency and bandwidth constraints by employing a variety of alternative strategies that could involve: 1) placing scientists/astronauts directly on planetary surfaces, as was done in the Apollo era; 2) developing fully autonomous robotic systems capable of conducting in-situ field science research; or 3) teleoperation of robotic assets by humans sufficiently proximal to the exploration targets to drastically reduce latencies and significantly increase bandwidth, thereby achieving effective human telepresence. This third strategy has been the focus of experts in telerobotics, telepresence, planetary science, and human spaceflight during two workshops held from October 3–7, 2016, and July 7–13, 2017, at the Keck Institute for Space Studies (KISS). Based on findings from these workshops, this document describes the conceptual and practical foundations of low-latency telepresence (LLT), opportunities for using derivative approaches for scientific exploration of planetary surfaces, and circumstances under which employing telepresence would be especially productive for planetary science. An important finding of these workshops is the conclusion that there has been limited study of the advantages of planetary science via LLT. A major recommendation from these workshops is that space agencies such as NASA should substantially increase science return with greater investments in this promising strategy for human conduct at distant exploration sites