Team Knowledge Networks, Task Dependencies and Coordination: Preliminary Findings from Software Teams

Today’s work increasingly involves teams with fluid boundaries, and members working on multiple projects at a time. To understand how work is effectively coordinated in such complex organizations, we focus on the role of a company’s task dependency network. We integrate three research streams – coordination, team knowledge and social networks to conceptualize multiteam work as a large collaboration with members in multiple functional roles and areas of expertise, with complex task dependency relationships, operating as a coherent and well-coordinated knowledge network. Through this integration and empirical test of associated hypotheses with data from a European software company, our study illustrates how to represent multiple relationships in one complex multiplex network. This extends our understanding of how the various knowledge relationships and individual attribute differences influence the effective coordination in collaborative software development work. We address the concepts of awareness and shared familiarity and how they affect coordination, while keeping our focus on illustrating the power of network analytics to gain nuanced insights into the drivers of effective coordination

Living on Cold Substrata: New Insights and Approaches in the Study of Microphytobenthos Ecophysiology and Ecology in Kongsfjorden

Organisms in shallow waters at high latitudes are under pressure due to climate change. These areas are typically inhabited by microphytobenthos (MPB) communities, composed mainly of diatoms. Only sparse information is available on the ecophysiology and acclimation processes within MPBs from Arctic regions. The physico-chemical environment and the ecology and ecophysiology of benthic diatoms in Kongsfjorden (Svalbard, Norway) are addressed in this review. MPB biofilms cover extensive areas of sediment. They show high rates of primary production, stabilise sediment surfaces against erosion under hydrodynamic forces,and affect the exchange of oxygen and nutrients across the sediment-water interface. Additionally, this phototrophic community represents a key component in the functioning of the Kongsfjorden trophic web, particularly as a major food source for benthic suspension- or deposit-feeders. MPB in Kongsfjorden is confronted with pronounced seasonal variations in solar radiation, low temperatures, and hyposaline (meltwater) conditions in summer, as well as long periods of ice and snow cover in winter. From the few data available, it seems that these organisms can easily cope with these environmental extremes. The underlying physiological mechanisms that allow growth and photosynthesis to continue under widely varying abiotic parameters, along with vertical migration and heterotrophy, and biochemical features such as a pronounced fatty-acid metabolism and silicate incorporation are discussed. Existing gaps in our knowledge of benthic diatoms in Kongsfjorden, such as the chemical ecology of biotic interactions, need to be filled. In addition, since many of the underlying molecular acclimation mechanisms are poorly understood, modern approaches based on transcriptomics, proteomics, and/or metabolomics, in conjunction with cell biological and biochemical techniques, are urgently needed. Climate change models for the Arctic predict other multifactorial stressors, such as an increase in precipitation and permafrost thawing, with consequences for the shallow-water regions. Both precipitation and permafrost thawing are likely to increase nutrient-enriched, turbid freshwater runoff and may locally counteract the expected increase in coastal radiation availability. So far, complex interactions among factors, as well as the full genetic diversity and physiological plasticity of Arctic benthic diatoms, have only rarely been considered. The limited existing information is described and discussed in this review

”Rinnallakulkijat”:muistisairasta puolisoaan kotona hoitavien miesomaisten kokemuksia tukemisesta

Tämän tutkimuksen tarkoituksena oli kuvata kotona muistisairasta puolisoaan hoitavien ja hoitaneiden miesomaisten kokemuksia saamastaan tuesta sekä tuen tarpeesta. Tutkimus toteutettiin laadullisena tutkimuksena. Tiedonantajat rekrytoitiin tutkimukseen kahden muistiyhdistyksen kautta. Yhdistysten työntekijät valitsivat harkinnanvaraisella otannalla kymmenen tiedonantajaa (n=10) miesomaisten joukosta. Tiedonkeruu tapahtui vapaamuotoisten kirjoitelmien ja kirjoitelmia täydentävien haastatteluiden avulla keväällä ja kesällä 2017. Aineisto analysoitiin induktiivisella sisällönanalyysillä. Miesomaisten kokemuksista muodostui kolme luokkaa, jotka kuvasivat tutkittavaa ilmiötä: yhdessä eläminen arjessa, miesomaisten saama tuki ja miesomaisten tuen tarve. Tutkimustulosten mukaan yhdessä eläminen kuvattiin yhteiselon vaikeuksina sekä positiivisina kokemuksina. Yhdessä tekeminen ja osallistuminen nousivat tutkimuksesta esille. Tietoa muistisairauksista ja niiden etenemisestä oli saatavilla esitteiden ja luentojen muodossa. Vertaistuki, läheisiltä ja ystäviltä saatu tuki sekä yhdistysten järjestämät tilaisuudet koettiin tärkeänä sosiaalisena tukena. Muistiyhdistyksen merkitys tiedon antajana ja tilaisuuksien järjestäjänä korostui. Liikunta koettiin tärkeäksi toimintakyvyn ja voimavarojen ylläpitämisessä. Kotitöistä selvittiin itsenäisesti tai puolison kanssa yhdessä. Miesomaiset kaipasivat uutta ja ajantasaista tietoa muistisairauksista sekä käytösoireista. He toivoivat tukea ja ohjausta erilaisten lomakkeiden täyttämisiin sekä neuvoja tukien hakemisiin. Tietoa teknologiasta ja käyttäjäkokemusta erilaisista laitteista kaivattiin myös lisää. Muistisairauden edetessä tarvittaisiin apua kotitöihin sekä tukea miesomaisten jaksamiseen. Tutkimus on tuonut lisää uutta tietoa sekä ymmärrystä muistisairasta puolisoaan hoitavien miesomaisten saamasta tuesta ja tuen tarpeista. Tuloksia voidaan hyödyntää kehitettäessä miesomaisille tarkoitettuja tukimuotoja. Tukimuotojen kehittämisessä tulisi kiinnittää huomiota eri palvelujen tarjoajien yhteistyöhön, jolla varmistetaan tiedon siirtyminen ja kokonaisvaltainen tukeminen.The purpose of this study was to describe how male caregivers experience received support and the need for it. The research was carried out as a qualitative study. The informants were recruited through two memory associations. The associations’ employees opted for a discretionary sampling altogether ten informants (n=10) among the male caregivers. The data collection was carried out in the spring and summer of 2017 with free-form writings and thematic interviews. The material was analysed using an inductive content analysis. The experiences of male relatives consisted of three concepts that illustrate the phenomenon was being studied: Living together in everyday life, support received by male caregivers and the need for support. According to the research results, the effects of memory disease on everyday life appear as difficulties and as positive experiences. Togetherness and participation emerged from the research. Information on memory disorders and their progress was available in brochures and lectures. Peer support, support from family and friends, and events organized by organizations and associations were seen as an important social support. The importance of the memory association as a provider of information and organizer of events was emphasized. Physical exercise was considered to be important in maintaining functional capacity and resources. Home chores were solved independently or with the spouse. Male caregivers needed new and updated information on memory disorders. The male caregivers hoped for support and guidance on filling in various forms and advice on how to apply for support. More information about technology and user experience on various devices were needed. As the memory disease proceeds help would be needed in home chores as well as in supporting male caregivers’ wellbeing. The research has brought new knowledge and understanding of the support received by male caregivers and the needs for support. The results can be used to develop new forms of support for male caregivers. In the development of support models attention should be paid to the cooperation of various service providers to ensure the transfer of information and comprehensive support

Microalgal Biomass of Industrial Interest: Methods of Characterization

International audienceMicroalgae represent a new source of biomass for many applications. The advantage of microalgae over higher plants is their high productivities. The photoautotrophic microalgae include all photosynthetic microorganisms, i.e. Cyanobacteria (prokaryotes) or microalgae (eukaryotes). These microorganisms are characterized by a large biodiversity and chimiodiversity. Then, the analysis of microalgal and cyanobacterial biomass often needs specific adaptations of the classical protocols for extraction as well as for quantification of their contents. This chapter reviewed the main analytical methods used for the analysis of microalgae biomass and its main vaporizable compounds: proteins, polysaccharides, lipids, pigments and secondary metabolites