Parameter Estimation and Reverse Martingales

Within the framework of transitive sufficient processes we investigate identifiability properties of unknown parameters. In particular we consider unbiased parameter estimators, which are shown to be closely connected to time reversal and to reverse martingales. One of the main results is that, within our framework, every unbiased estimator process is a reverse martingale, thus automatically giving us strong consistency results. We also study structural properties of unbiased estimators, and it is shown that the existence of an unbiased parameter estimator is equivalent to the existence of a solution to an inverse boundary value problem. We give explicit representation formulas for the estimators in terms of Feynman-Kac type representations using complex valued diffusions, and we also give Cramér-Rao bounds for the estimation error.Parameter estimation; time reversal; martingale theory

Competitive Advantage and Enterprise Resource Planning Systems: Some Conflicts in the Value-Chain

Whether an organization gains a competitive advantage (CA) from an enterprise resource planning (ERP) system is a topic of much debate in the literature. However, when we differentiate between the stakeholders in the ERP value-chain and their relative CA positions, the literature is curiously silent. We depict the ERP value-chain as having three stakeholders: an ERP vendor, an ERP partner or re-seller, and the ERP end-users or client. The paper suggests how the interests these stakeholders have in maintaining or improving their CA in their own markets is complex and in some circumstances may hinder the development of future ERPs. This paper formulates a set of propositions to address this gap in our knowledge. We close the paper by proposing eight scenarios and suggesting how these and our propositions may be explored empirically

Microemancipatory practicies in information system development

Different approaches on how to implement or deploy enterprise resource planning (ERPs) systems exist. Although virtually nobody really doubts importance of ERPs for running a business today, there is a sentiment regarding their implementation – both in terms of time and money. In this paper we investigate relationship between factors influencing selection of a specific implementation approach and companies’ ability to stay on budget when implementing ERPs. The question is: whether factors influencing implementation approach then affects to what extent ERP system implementation costs exceed planned costs for implementation. The questionnaire research, focused on this issue, was conducted in Denmark, Slovakia and Slovenia. Dependent variables were percentage of actual ERP system implementation costs and staying on budget vis-à-vis the planned costs and budgets. The independent variables were implementation approach, country, company size, information strategy, representation of the IT department on board level, and number of implemented modules. Main conclusions are that number of modules influences selection of implementation approach and companies with information strategy are more likely to stay on budget. However, implementation approach does not significantly influences implementation costs and clear relationships between factors influencing selection of implementation approach and costs for ERP implementation could not be found

Defining the ERP and CRM integrative value

The value of IT adoption has been and still is a crucial question for the decision on IT adoption. In this paper we suggest a research model that aims at defining the integrative value of adoption of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems. The integrative value is described from the Resource Based View of the firm (RBV) and will be measured as impact on firm performance. The research model suggests six hypotheses that will be tested and analysed with data from a questionnaire among firms that have adopted both ERP and CRM systems in their organization. Due to the nature of the research model and the fact that it has not been tested in the past, the data analysis will be supported by Partial Least Squares (PLS. Our aim with this research project is that it will provide new knowledge on how integration between systems can positively influence value from IT investments, but also how different software such as ERP and CRM provides value to systems integration as well as process integration. (C) 2014 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.publishersversionpublishe

Temperature Stabilization of the Phase-Reference Line at the European Spallation Source

We consider temperature stabilization of the phase-reference line at the European Spallation Source, a facility for neutron spallation currently under construction. Based on extensive modeling of the heat dynamics, a prototype model-based control system with associated hardware architecture is developed and experimentally evaluated on a small-scale setup. The results indicate that temperature stability within ±0.1°C is possible to achieve, also with significant disturbances in the ambient temperature expected during operation

PSB33 protein sustains photosystem II in plant chloroplasts under UV-A light

Plants can quickly and dynamically respond to spectral and intensity variations of the incident light. These responses include activation of developmental processes, morphological changes, and photosynthetic acclimation that ensure optimal energy conversion and minimal photoinhibition. Plant adaptation and acclimation to environmental changes have been extensively studied, but many details surrounding these processes remain elusive. The photosystem II (PSII)-associated protein PSB33 plays a fundamental role in sustaining PSII as well as in the regulation of the light antenna in fluctuating light. We investigated how PSB33 knock-out Arabidopsis plants perform under different light qualities. psb33 plants displayed a reduction of 88% of total fresh weight compared to wild type plants when cultivated at the boundary of UV-A and blue light. The sensitivity towards UV-A light was associated with a lower abundance of PSII proteins, which reduces psb33 plants\u27 capacity for photosynthesis. The UV-A phenotype was found to be linked to altered phytohormone status and changed thylakoid ultrastructure. Our results collectively show that PSB33 is involved in a UV-A light-mediated mechanism to maintain a functional PSII pool in the chloroplast

EOSC Authentication and Authorization Infrastructure (AAI) : Report from the EOSC Executive Board Working Group (WG) Architecture AAI Task Force (TF)

The EOSC Architecture Working Group has assigned the AAI Task Force (AAI TF) the task to establish a common global ecosystem for identity and access control infrastructures for the European Open Science Cloud (EOSC). Since the EOSC is part of an international environment of research and education, the principles established by the EOSC AAI subtask must be globally viable. The EOSC AAI TF has produced a set of deliverables: - EOSC AAI First Principles & Requirements - EOSC AAI Baseline Architecture - EOSC AAI Federation participation guidelines (participation policy and technical framework) - EOSC AAI Best Practise

Between-study differences in grip strength: a comparison of Norwegian and Russian adults aged 40-69 years

Background: Identifying individuals with low grip strength is an initial step in many operational definitions of sarcopenia. As evidence indicates that contemporaneous Russian populations may have lower mean levels of grip strength than other populations in northern Europe, we aimed to: compare grip strength in Russian and Norwegian populations by age and sex; investigate whether height, body mass index, education, smoking status, alcohol use and health status explain observed differences and; examine implications for case-finding low muscle strength. Methods: We used harmonized cross-sectional data on grip strength and covariates for participants aged 40-69 years from the Russian Know Your Heart study (KYH) (n = 3833) and the seventh survey of the Norwegian Tromsø Study (n = 5598). Maximum grip strength (kg) was assessed using the same protocol and device in both studies. Grip strength by age, sex and study was modelled using linear regression and between-study differences were predicted from these models. Sex-specific age-standardized differences in grip strength and in prevalence of low muscle strength were estimated using the European population standard of 2013. Results: Normal ranges of maximum grip strength in both studies combined were 33.8 to 67.0 kg in men and 18.7 to 40.1 kg in women. Mean grip strength was higher among Tromsø than KYH study participants and this difference did not vary markedly by age or sex. Adjustment for covariates, most notably height, attenuated between-study differences but these differences were still evident at younger ages. For example, estimated between-study differences in mean grip strength in fully adjusted models were 2.2 kg [95% confidence interval (CI) 1.4, 3.1] at 40 years and 1.0 kg (95% CI 0.5, 1.5) at 65 years in men (age × study interaction P = 0.09) and 1.1 kg (95% CI 0.4, 1.9) at age 40 years and -0.2 kg (95% CI -0.7, 0.3) at 65 years in women (age × study interaction P < 0.01). Conclusions: We found between-study differences in mean grip strength that are likely to translate into greater future risk of sarcopenia and poorer prospects of healthy ageing for Russian than Norwegian study participants. For example, the average Russian participant had a similar level of grip strength to a Norwegian participant 7 years older. Our findings suggest these differences may have their origins in childhood highlighting the need to consider interventions in early life to prevent sarcopenia

Prediagnostic concentrations of plasma genistein and prostate cancer risk in 1,605 men with prostate cancer and 1,697 matched control participants in EPIC

PURPOSE: Data from prospective epidemiological studies in Asian populations and from experimental studies in animals and cell lines suggest a possible protective association between dietary isoflavones and the development of prostate cancer. We examined the association between circulating concentrations of genistein and prostate cancer risk in a case-control study nested in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition. METHODS: Concentrations of the isoflavone genistein were measured in prediagnostic plasma samples for 1,605 prostate cancer cases and 1,697 matched control participants. Relative risks (RRs) for prostate cancer in relation to plasma concentrations of genistein were estimated by conditional logistic regression. RESULTS: Plasma genistein concentrations were not associated with prostate cancer risk; the multivariate relative risk for men in the highest fifth of genistein compared with men in the lowest fifth was 1.00 (95 % confidence interval: 0.79, 1.27; p linear trend = 0.82). There was no evidence of heterogeneity in this association by age at blood collection, country of recruitment, or cancer stage or histological grade. CONCLUSION: Plasma genistein concentration was not associated with prostate cancer risk in this large cohort of European men