Analysing the composition of the SME sector in high- and low-income regions. Some research hypotheses

Certain qualitative characteristics of the small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) operating within a territory might be essential to explain their macroeconomic impact. From this perspective, the current paper explores the relationship between the composition of the SME sector and the level of regional economic development. In this respect, a conceptual framework to analyse the composition of SME sectors is proposed considering two key aspects: on the one hand, different dimensions of SMEs’entrepreneurial orientation –innovation, cooperation, proactivity and quality orientation- and, on the other hand, the role of the external effects resulting from the inter-firm productive linkages within a specific area –differentiating between domestic, dependent, exporting and extravert SMEs. The relationship between these two key aspects is also considered and tested using a multinomial logit model. The empirical analysis uses data from a survey among over 650 SMEs in two Spanish provinces: Barcelona, as an example of a high-income economy, and Seville, as an example of a comparatively backward area

Contour Generator Points for Threshold Selection and a Novel Photo-Consistency Measure for Space Carving

Space carving has emerged as a powerful method for multiview scene reconstruction. Although a wide variety of methods have been proposed, the quality of the reconstruction remains highly-dependent on the photometric consistency measure, and the threshold used to carve away voxels. In this paper, we present a novel photo-consistency measure that is motivated by a multiset variant of the chamfer distance. The new measure is robust to high amounts of within-view color variance and also takes into account the projection angles of back-projected pixels. Another critical issue in space carving is the selection of the photo-consistency threshold used to determine what surface voxels are kept or carved away. In this paper, a reliable threshold selection technique is proposed that examines the photo-consistency values at contour generator points. Contour generators are points that lie on both the surface of the object and the visual hull. To determine the threshold, a percentile ranking of the photo-consistency values of these generator points is used. This improved technique is applicable to a wide variety of photo-consistency measures, including the new measure presented in this paper. Also presented in this paper is a method to choose between photo-consistency measures, and voxel array resolutions prior to carving using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves

The pulmonary-proteoliposome as a new therapeutic approach for Coronaviruses

We are proposing the use of pulmonary-proteoliposome as a new therapeutic approach for Coronaviruses. The designed strategy represents a potential treatment to reduce the overall viral load in the lungs and to help the immune system to successfully stave off the infection

Satisfaction and adaptation in voting behavior: an empirical exploration

Dynamic models of learning and adaptation have provided realistic predictions in terms of voting behavior. This study aims at contributing to their scant empirical verification. We develop a learning algorithm based on bounded rationality estimating the pattern of learning process through a two-stage econometric model. The analysis links voting behavior to past choices and economic satisfaction derived from previous period election and state of the economy. This represents a novelty in the literature on voting that assumes given voter preferences. Results show that persistence is positively affected by the combination of income changes and past behavior and by union membership.voting; bounded rationality; learning; political accountability

Symbolic representation of scenarios in Bologna airport on virtual reality concept

This paper is a part of a big Project named Retina Project, which is focused in reduce the workload of an ATCO. It uses the last technological advances as Virtual Reality concept. The work has consisted in studying the different awareness situations that happens daily in Bologna Airport. It has been analysed one scenario with good visibility where the sun predominates and two other scenarios with poor visibility where the rain and the fog dominate. Due to the study of visibility in the three scenarios computed, the conclusion obtained is that the overlay must be shown with a constant dimension regardless the position of the aircraft to be readable by the ATC and also, the frame and the flight strip should be coloured in a showy colour (like red) for a better control by the ATCO

Two methodological approaches to the study of production chains in tourism industry

In this article, two different methodological frameworks are applied to study the production chains in the tourism industry in Andalusia (Spain). Firstly, from a macroeconomic perspective, input-output techniques are used to identify tourism production chains from the regional input-output table. Secondly, from a microeconomic perspective, a different approach is taken based on the concept of Global Value Chains (GVC) (Gereffi 1999; Kaplinsky and Readman 2001). In this respect, the structure and main agents participating in the GVC in tourism are presented, and the role of SMEs in the tourist industry in Andalusia is put forward. Finally, the relationship between the two approaches is discussed, pointing out their main differences and complementing factors

El pensamiento multiplicativo en los primeros niveles: una investigación en curso

Este artículo muestra los resultados parciales de un estudio empírico sobre el desarrollo de pensamiento multiplicativo en los primeros niveles escolares. Concretamente, se han realizado entrevistas a niños de tercer curso de segundo ciclo de Educación Infantil (cinco años) en las que se han planteado, mediante situaciones manipulables, varios problemas de división que no podían ser resueltos mediante reparto, así como algunas preguntas sobre pensamiento relacional (de tipo proporcional)

Satisfaction and adaptation in voting behavior: an empirical exploration

Dynamic models of learning and adaptation have provided realistic predictions in terms of voting behavior. This study aims at contributing to their scant empirical verification. We develop a learning algorithm based on bounded rationality estimating the pattern of learning process through a two-stage econometric model. The analysis links voting behavior to past choices and economic satisfaction derived from previous period election and state of the economy. This represents a novelty in the literature on voting that assumes given voter preferences. Results show that persistence is positively affected by the combination of income changes and past behavior and by union membership.voting; bounded rationality; learning; political accountability

Determinants of technology adoption in the retail trade industry - the case of SMEs in Spain

This paper analyzes the determinants of small and medium-sized enterprises’ technology adoption in the retail trade industry. From the theoretical perspective, two types of influential factors are differentiated in this respect: the personal characteristics of the manager/business owner and the business’s organizational characteristics. The empirical analysis is based on a survey of 268 small and medium-sized enterprises in the Spanish retail trade sector. A logistic regression specification is used as an econometric method. The results indicate that both the acquisition of new technical and electronic equipment and the obtaining of new software are affected by the two types of determinants previously pointed out. The manager/business owner’s entrepreneurial motivation and educational background have significant influences on technology adoption in this type of companies. Furthermore, being part of a business group, carrying out training activities for the employees and inter-firm cooperation also positively influence technology adoption in the retail trade industry

Firm Size and Regional Linkages. A Typology of Manufacturing Establishments in Southern Spain

Regions with different levels of development are characterized by different enterprise compositions according to firm size and regional productive linkages. Using these two variables and two additional ones -the technological level and the position in the value chain-, the composition of the industrial sector in any region can be studied. In this respect, a new theoretical enterprise typology is proposed in this paper as a powerful analytical tool. Furthermore, an empirical work is carried out using a data set from the survey done to estimate the regional input-output table of Andalusia, a backward region in southern Spain. Thus, the theoretical enterprise typology is applied to the industry in Andalusia, so that some strengths and weaknesses of the regional economy are identified