REGIONAL INNOVATION SYSTEMS (RIS) IN THE U.S. SOUTH: THE ROLE OF LOCAL CHARACTERISTICS OF RIS IN RURAL DEVELOPMENT

Regional innovation systems (RIS) and innovative activity are now recognized as having important roles to play in regional economic development policy. The goal of this study is to expand our understanding of the relationship between regional economic growth and the local characteristics of RIS. The research identified the existence and importance of sources of innovation, knowledge spillovers, and regional spillovers as the principal characteristics of RIS in the South. A knowledge production function approach was used to estimate the determinants of innovative activity in rural counties. A zero inflated negative binomial model was estimated to capture the influence of local characteristics of the county on the existence and volume of innovative activity in the county. The findings of this research indicate that local innovative activity and characteristics of RIS matter in regional economic growth. Patenting activities in metro areas had a positive and statistically significant association with patent totals for nearby rural areas. However, the results of the OLS models and the simultaneous system of equations for the extended Carlino-Mills model found a negative association between metro patenting activity and economic growth of neighboring rural areas, indicating \u27backwash\u27 effects. Thus, the implication from these findings is that regional policymakers should be careful of investments in metro RIS if the goal is economic development in nearby rural areas

Innovative Activity in Rural Areas: The Role of Local and Regional Characteristics

Community/Rural/Urban Development,

Innovative activity in rural areas: the importance of local and regional characteristics

Innovation, supported by a developed and active entrepreneurial system, long has been recognized as critical to regional economic competitiveness. Innovation also plays an essential role for rural economic development as these regions respond to the challenges of competing in the global economy. Barkley and Henry identify assets that contribute to nonmetro innovation “hot spots.”Community development ; Research and development ; Patents

Charge density wave surface reconstruction in a van der Waals layered material

Surface reconstruction plays a vital role in determining the surface electronic structure and chemistry of semiconductors and metal oxides. However, it has been commonly believed that surface reconstruction does not occur in van der Waals layered materials, as they do not undergo significant bond breaking during surface formation. In this study, we present evidence that charge density wave (CDW) order in these materials can, in fact, cause CDW surface reconstruction through interlayer coupling. Using density functional theory calculations on the 1T-TaS2 surface, we reveal that CDW reconstruction, involving concerted small atomic displacements in the subsurface layer, results in a significant modification of the surface electronic structure, transforming it from a Mott insulator to a band insulator. This new form of surface reconstruction explains several previously unexplained observations on the 1T-TaS2 surface and has important implications for interpreting surface phenomena in CDW-ordered layered materials.Comment: 20 pages, 6 figures (Supplementary Information: 5 Pages, 3 figures

Correlated electronic states at domain walls of a Mott-charge-density-wave insulator 1T-TaS2

Domain walls in interacting electronic systems can have distinct localized states, which often govern physical properties and may lead to unprecedented functionalities and novel devices. However, electronic states within domain walls themselves have not been clearly identified and understood for strongly correlated electron systems. Here, we resolve the electronic states localized on domain walls in a Mott-charge-density-wave(CDW) insulator 1T-TaS2 using scanning tunneling spectroscopy. We establish that the domain wall state decomposes into two nonconducting states located at the center of domain walls and edges of domains. Theoretical calculations reveal their atomistic origin as the local reconstruction of domain walls under the strong influence of electron correlation. Our results introduce a concept for the domain wall electronic property, the wall's own internal degrees of freedom, which is potentially related to the controllability of domain wall electronic properties

Transformational leadership and workplace injury and absenteeism: Analysis of a National Nursing Assistant Survey

Background: Transformational leadership (TL) has long been popular among management scholars and health services researchers, but no research studies have empirically tested the association of TL with workplace injuries and absenteeism among nursing assistants (NAs). Purpose: This cross-sectional study seeks to explore whether TL is associated with workplace injuries and absenteeism among NAs. Methodology: We analyzed the 2004 National Nursing Assistant Survey data (n = 2,882). A multivariate logistic regression analysis was performed to test the role of TL in the context of workplace performances. Principal Findings: Results reveal that the TL model was positively linked to workplace injury in the level of NAs. Injury-related absenteeism was also associated with the TL style, indicating that TL behaviors may help address workplace absence among NAs. Practice Implications: Findings suggest that introducing TL practices may benefit NAs in improving workplace performances

Is uncompensated care affecting quality assurance of rural hospitals?

Healthcare disparities in rural areas remain significant in the U.S. healthcare industry. Uncompensated care makes healthcare disparities in rural areas worse and rural hospitals are unfavorably positioned to compete with urban hospitals in the economic downturn marketplace. How uncompensated care affects quality care among rural hospitals has been lightly investigated. As many rural residents experience difficulty accessing high quality care and the importance of establishing quality care practice standards in a rural setting, we conducted a systematic literature review to identify some quality care barriers and opportunities, suggested strategies to strengthen the position of rural hospitals in response to uncompensated care

Uncompensated Care and Quality Assurance Among Rural Hospitals

Health care disparities in rural areas remain significant in the U.S. health care industry. Uncompensated care makes health care disparities in rural areas worse, and rural hospitals are unfavorably positioned to compete with urban hospitals in the economic-downturn marketplace. How uncompensated care affects quality care among rural hospitals has been lightly investigated. Given that many rural residents experience difficulty accessing high quality care and given the importance of establishing quality care practice standards in a rural setting, we conducted a systematic literature review to identify some quality-care barriers and opportunities and suggested strategies to strengthen the position of rural hospitals in response to uncompensated care