Increasing R&D and Marketing Integration in the Fuzzy Front End to Stimulate and Support Radical innovation

Large and mature companies often struggle with their capability of introducing radical innovations, as they can be in conflict with existing business model, processes and bureaucracy. A vital phase of the radical innovation process is the first phase, called the Fuzzy Front End. Scholars claim that FFE activities are entailed with much complexity and uncertainty, yet crucial for a company’s competitive advantage. Innovation success is highly dependent on the integration between R&D and Marketing, which tends to be low in large and mature companies. The effects of R&D and Marketing integration in the FFE, when aiming to support radical innovation, have been little academically explored. Through conducting a case study on a Global Manufacturing Company, the study aims to better understand challenges and opportunities of increasing R&D and Marketing integration in the Fuzzy Front End to support radical innovation. The study shows there are many external factors driving increased need for integration and physical barriers and different organizational responsibilities were considered the highest barriers for the case company. Most evident potential positive effects of increased integration were deemed: helping to grasp market and technology opportunities, making better business assessments and aligning goals and visions for the departments

Close Encounters of the Digital Kind::A Research Agenda for the Digitalization of Public Services

This paper contributes to e-government research by presenting a review and discussion on how digitalization of public services has affected the interaction between citizens and government. We argue for a conceptualization and critical reflection on the nature of the underlying interaction between citizens and public officials - the public encounter - that digital public services are developed to support. We apply a qualitative and hermeneutic approach and illustrate that digital public services change public encounters concerning when, where, and how interactions occur, what each actor does, and the skills required of them. By relating these changes to emerging digital technologies (e.g. data mining, machine learning, sensor technology, and service automation), we illustrate that while these new technologies carry the potential to further digitalize service provision and fulfill the democratic goals of digital government, authorities can apply the same technology to restrict, control, and surveil citizens. Based on a critical discussion on what digitalization might entail for society, we identify problem areas arising from this development and propose a research agenda for understanding this phenomenon further. We raise questions and ethical concerns regarding accountability and reskilling of citizens and public officials as public service provision becomes citizen self-service.Funding Agencies|Swedish Transportation Administration; Research Center for Government IT</p

Lexikal förmåga hos en- och flerspråkiga barn Sambandet mellan lexikal variation, ordmobilisering och nonordsrepetition

Syftet med studien var att undersöka den lexikala förmågan hos en- och flerspråkiga (svensk-arabiska) barn med typisk språkutveckling. Studien utfördes genom att undersöka ordmobilisering och förmågan att repetera nonord på både svenska och arabiska samt lexikal variation i samtal på svenska. I uppsatsen ingick samtalsdata och testresultat från totalt 64 barn, varav 34 enspråkiga och 30 flerspråkiga. Barnen befann sig i åldersspannet 6-9 år. De inspelade samtalen, som skedde med känd vuxen transkriberades och analyserades vad gäller TTR (typetoken ratio). En jämförelse av samtalsmått och testresultat gjordes på gruppnivå. I den flerspråkiga gruppen gjordes även en jämförelse mellan språken (arabiska och svenska). Slutligen utfördes en regressionsanalys för att utreda om testresultaten kunde förklara barnens prestation i samtal. Resultatet visade att grupperna presterade likvärdigt på TTR och Repetition av nonord. Däremot skilde sig grupperna signifikant åt på Ordflöde, där den enspråkiga gruppen hade ett högre medelvärde. Den flerspråkiga gruppen uppvisade vid nonordsrepetition ett signifikant bättre resultat på arabiska än på svenska. I Ordflöde framkom emellertid en bättre prestation på svenska. I regressionsanalysen för den enspråkiga gruppen kunde variablerna (ålder, Repetition av nonord och Ordflöde) inte ge någon förklaring till den lexikala variationen i samtal (TTR). Däremot gav variablerna Arabiska non-ord och Ordflöde på arabiska unika bidrag till TTR på svenska för den flerspråkiga gruppen. Ordrikedomen hos samtalspartnern påverkade inte barnens lexikala variation i samtal. Utifrån resultaten drar vi slutsatsen att TTR förefaller vara ett reliabelt mått på lexikal variation för både en- och flerspråkiga barn. Även Repetition av nonord verkar ge en rättvis bild för de båda grupperna. Ordflöde skiljer grupperna åt och det är därför tveksamt om det är ett tillförlitligt test att mäta lexikal förmåga hos flerspråkiga barn. Den arabiska testdatans förklaring av samtal på svenska bekräftar tidigare forskning om att modersmålet stärker andraspråket

Percepção de efeitos adversos por adolescentes em um programa preventivo de saúde bucal, a base de clorexidina e fluoreto

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to evaluate the incidence of adverse effects reported by adolescents following 14 days of use of a mouthrinse containing 0.05% NaF+0.12% chlorhexidine. METHODS: This double-blind study was developed as part of a randomized clinical trial. The adolescents enrolled to the study were randomly divided into two groups to use either: 0.05% NaF+0.12% chlorhexidine (G1, n=85) or 0.05% NaF (G2, n=85). Both groups used a 10mL solution of the mouthwash during 1 minute daily for 2 weeks under supervision. After that period, the subject's acceptance of taste was measured using a verbal descriptive scale (Labeled Magnitude Scale - LMS)11. Participants were also interviewed regarding the occurrence of possible adverse effects during treatment (temporary palate disorders, tooth staining or unpleasant taste). The proportional differences between the groups were tested using the chi-square test. RESULTS: Palate changes were reported by 26% of participants of each group; 17.7% of G1 and 32% of G2 reported an unpleasant taste (p = 0.062), while staining was reported by 55% of G1 and 68.9% of G2 (p = 0.117). Absenteeism rates were similar in both groups (G1= 2.58 &plusmn; 2.69; G2=2.81 &plusmn; 2.39), p=0.362. CONCLUSION: adherence was high in both groups and side effects reported by subjects were not perceived by them as being important. Since subjects' acceptance and compliance is fundamental to the success of an oral health program, chlorhexidine-fluoride could be a useful resource in a program of plaque control.OBJETIVO: Este estudo se propôs a calcular taxa de efeitos adversos após 14 dias de uso de solução de bochecho de NaF 0,05% + clorexidina 0,12% realizados por adolescentes. MÉTODOS: Este estudo duplo-cego foi desenvolvido como parte de um ensaio clínico randomizado. Os adolescentes foram divididos aleatoriamente em dois grupos: NaF 0,05% + clorexidina 0,12% (G1) ou NaF 0,05%, (G2) de 85 estudantes cada que bochecharam diariamente, 10mL de solução sob supervisão, durante 1 minuto, por 2 semanas. Após esse período, a aceitação dos participantes ao gosto das soluções foi avaliada através de uma escala descritiva verbal - (LMS)11. Os participantes foram entrevistados também quanto a possíveis efeitos adversos acontecidos durante tratamentos (desordens temporárias de paladar, manchamento dental e o gosto de soluções desagradáveis). As diferenças entre proporções em ambos os grupos foram testadas pelo teste do qui-quadrado. RESULTADOS: Alteração de paladar foi informada por 26% dos estudantes de cada grupo; 17,7% dos G1 e 32% do G2 notaram o gosto desagradável (p = 0,062); manchas foram observadas por 55% dos G1 e 68,9% dos G2 (p = 0,117) e, as taxas de absenteísmo foram semelhantes (G1 = 2,58&plusmn;2,69; G2=2,81(2,39), p=0,362. CONCLUSÃO: A aderência dos participantes foi alta e os efeitos colaterais percebidos não pareceram importantes pelos adolescentes nos dois grupos. Implicação prática: porquanto a aceitação e aderência dos participantes são fundamentais para o sucesso de um programa de saúde bucal, a associação da clorexidina-fluoreto poderia ser um recurso adicional favorável dentro de um programa de controle de placa

Targeted Sequencing in Chromosome 17q Linkage Region Identifies Familial Glioma Candidates in the Gliogene Consortium

Glioma is a rare, but highly fatal, cancer that accounts for the majority of malignant primary brain tumors. Inherited predisposition to glioma has been consistently observed within non-syndromic families. Our previous studies, which involved non-parametric and parametric linkage analyses, both yielded significant linkage peaks on chromosome 17q. Here, we use data from next generation and Sanger sequencing to identify familial glioma candidate genes and variants on chromosome 17q for further investigation. We applied a filtering schema to narrow the original list of 4830 annotated variants down to 21 very rare (,0.1% frequency), non-synonymous variants. Our findings implicate the MYO19 and KIF18B genes and rare variants in SPAG9 and RUNDC1 as candidates worthy of further investigation. Burden testing and functional studies are planned

Influence of obesity-related risk factors in the aetiology of glioma

BACKGROUND: Obesity and related factors have been implicated as possible aetiological factors for the development of glioma in epidemiological observation studies. We used genetic markers in a Mendelian randomisation framework to examine whether obesity-related traits influence glioma risk. This methodology reduces bias from confounding and is not affected by reverse causation. METHODS: Genetic instruments were identified for 10 key obesity-related risk factors, and their association with glioma risk was evaluated using data from a genome-wide association study of 12,488 glioma patients and 18,169 controls. The estimated odds ratio of glioma associated with each of the genetically defined obesity-related traits was used to infer evidence for a causal relationship. RESULTS: No convincing association with glioma risk was seen for genetic instruments for body mass index, waist-to-hip ratio, lipids, type-2 diabetes, hyperglycaemia or insulin resistance. Similarly, we found no evidence to support a relationship between obesity-related traits with subtypes of glioma-glioblastoma (GBM) or non-GBM tumours. CONCLUSIONS: This study provides no evidence to implicate obesity-related factors as causes of glioma

Human immunoglobulin G levels of viruses and associated glioma risk

Few consistent etiological factors have been identified for primary brain tumors. Inverse associations to asthma and low levels of varicella-zoster virus, immunoglobulin (Ig) levels in prevalent cases have indicted a role for the immune system in the development of glioma. Because samples from prevalent cases of glioma could be influenced by treatments such as steroids and chemotherapy, we investigated pre-diagnostic samples from three large Scandinavian cohorts. To test the hypothesis that immune response levels to these viruses are associated etiologically with glioma risk, we investigated pre-diagnostic immunoglobulin levels for cytomegalovirus (CMV), varicella-zoster virus (VZV), adenovirus (Ad), and Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) including the nuclear antigen (EBNA1) using plasma samples from 197 cases of adult glioma and 394 controls collected from population-based cohorts in Sweden and Denmark. Low VZV IgG levels were marginally significantly more common in glioma cases than the controls (odds ratio (OR) = 0.68, 95% CI 0.41–1.13) for the fourth compared with the first quartile (p = 0.06 for trend). These results were more prominent when analyzing cases with blood sampling at least 2 years before diagnosis (OR = 0.63, 95% CI 0.37–1.08) (p = 0.03). No association with glioma risk was observed for CMV, EBV, and adenovirus

Etest® versus broth microdilution for ceftaroline MIC determination with Staphylococcus aureus: results from PREMIUM, a European multicentre study

Objectives: To compare the concordance of ceftaroline MIC values 24 by reference broth microdilution (BMD) and Etest (BioMérieux, France) for MSSA and MRSA isolates, respectively, in isolates from PREMIUM (D372SL00001), a European multi-centre study.  Methods: Ceftaroline MICs were determined by reference BMD and by Etest for 1,242 MSSA and MRSA from adult patients with community-acquired pneumonia or complicated skin and soft tissue infections collected between February and May 2012; tests were performed across six European laboratories. Selected isolates with ceftaroline resistance in broth (MIC >1 mg/L) were retested in three central laboratories to confirm their behaviour.  Results: Overall concordance between BMD and Etest was good, with >97% essential agreement and >95% categorical agreement. Nevertheless, 12 of the 26 MRSA isolates found resistant by BMD scored as susceptible by Etest, with MICs ≤1 mg/L, thus counting as very major errors, whereas only five of 380 MRSA found ceftaroline susceptible in BMD were mis-categorised as resistant by Etest. Twenty-one of the 26 isolates with MICs of 2 mg/L by BMD were then re-tested twice by each of three central laboratories: BMD MICs of 2 mg/L were consistently found for 19 of the 21 isolates. Among 147 Etest results for these 21 isolates (original plus six repeats per isolate) 112 were >1 mg/L.  Conclusions: BMD and Etest have good overall agreement for ceftaroline against Staphylococcus aureus; nevertheless, reliable Etest-based discrimination of the minority of ceftaroline-resistant (MIC 2 mg/L) MRSA is extremely challenging, requiring careful reading of strips, ideally with duplicate testing