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Entrepreneurial workaround practices in severe institutional voids: Evidence from Kenya
Entrepreneurs in developing economies try to cope with weak or absent formal institutions – often referred to as ‘institutional voids’ – by relying extensively on intermediary organizations such as business incubators and development organizations or informal institutions such as political, kinship, or family relationships. However, in many African countries, intermediary support is limited and informal institutions are also unreliable, adding risks and costs to doing business and increasing the severity of institutional voids in the surrounding ecosystem. We investigate the practices followed by 47 commercial entrepreneurs in Kenya to ‘work around’ these severe institutional voids to achieve their goals of business creation and growth. We find that severe institutional voids stimulate the hybridization of goals to include social value creation, create a need for a more strategic orchestration of business relationships, and motivate entrepreneurs to proactively cross-brace the institutional infrastructure around them. We contribute by unveiling the important role of entrepreneurs as microinstitutional agents in developing economies and by detailing how commercial and social goals become intertwined in the context of African entrepreneurship
Hydrodynamic Simulations of Oscillating Shock Waves in a Sub-Keplerian Accretion Flow Around Black Holes
We study the accretion processes on a black hole by numerical simulation. We
use a grid based finite difference code for this purpose. We scan the parameter
space spanned by the specific energy and the angular momentum and compare the
time-dependent solutions with those obtained from theoretical considerations.
We found several important results (a) The time dependent flow behaves close to
a constant height model flow in the pre-shock region and a flow with vertical
equilibrium in the post-shock region. (c) The infall time scale in the
post-shock region is several times higher than the free-fall time scale. (b)
There are two discontinuities in the flow, one being just outside of the inner
sonic point. Turbulence plays a major role in determining the locations of
these discontinuities. (d) The two discontinuities oscillate with two different
frequencies and behave as a coupled harmonic oscillator. A Fourier analysis of
the variation of the outer shock location indicates higher power at the lower
frequency and lower power at the higher frequency. The opposite is true when
the analysis of the inner shock is made. These behaviours will have
implications in the spectral and timing properties of black hole candidates.Comment: 19 pages, 13 figures, 1 Table MNRAS (In press
Backscattering Differential Ghost Imaging in Turbid Media
In this Letter we present experimental results concerning the retrieval of
images of absorbing objects immersed in turbid media via differential ghost
imaging (DGI) in a backscattering configuration. The method has been applied,
for the first time to our knowledge, to the imaging of small thin black objects
located at different depths inside a turbid solution of polystyrene nanospheres
and its performances assessed via comparison with standard imaging techniques.
A simple theoretical model capable of describing the basic optics of DGI in
turbid media is proposed.Comment: 5 pages, 6 figure
Hardware simulator for optical correlation spectroscopy with Gaussian statistics and arbitrary correlation functions
We present a new hardware simulator (HS) for characterization, testing and benchmarking of digital correlators used in various optical correlation spectroscopy experiments where the photon statistics is Gaussian and the corresponding time correlation function can have any arbitrary shape. Starting from the HS developed in [Rev. Sci. Instrum. 74, 4273 (2003)], and using the same I/O board (PCI-6534 National Instrument) mounted on a modern PC (Intel Core i7-CPU, 3.07GHz, 12GB RAM), we have realized an instrument capable of delivering continuous streams of TTL pulses over two channels, with a time resolution of Δt = 50ns, up to a maximum count rate of 〈I〉 ∼ 5MHz. Pulse streams, typically detected in dynamic light scattering and diffuse correlation spectroscopy experiments were generated and measured with a commercial hardware correlator obtaining measured correlation functions that match accurately the expected ones.Peer ReviewedPostprint (published version
In-plane structure and ordering at liquid sodium surfaces and interfaces from ab initio molecular dynamics
Atoms at liquid metal surfaces are known to form layers parallel to the
surface. We analyze the two-dimensional arrangement of atoms within such layers
at the surface of liquid sodium, using ab initio molecular dynamics (MD)
simulations based on density functional theory. Nearest neighbor distributions
at the surface indicate mostly 5-fold coordination, though there are noticeable
fractions of 4-fold and 6-fold coordinated atoms. Bond angle distributions
suggest a movement toward the angles corresponding to a six-fold coordinated
hexagonal arrangement of the atoms as the temperature is decreased towards the
solidification point. We rationalize these results with a distorted hexagonal
order at the surface, showing a mixture of regions of five and six-fold
coordination. The liquid surface results are compared with classical MD
simulations of the liquid surface, with similar effects appearing, and with ab
initio MD simulations for a model solid-liquid interface, where a pronounced
shift towards hexagonal ordering is observed as the temperature is lowered
Minilaparoscopic Colorectal Resections: Technical Note
Laparoscopic colorectal resections have been shown to provide short-term advantages in terms of postoperative pain, general morbidity, recovery, and quality of life. To date, long-term results have been proved to be comparable to open surgery irrefutably only for colon cancer. Recently, new trends keep arising in the direction of minimal invasiveness to reduce surgical trauma after colorectal surgery in order to improve morbidity and cosmetic results. The few reports available in the literature on single-port technique show promising results. Natural orifices endoscopic techniques still have very limited application. We focused our efforts in standardising a minilaparoscopic technique (using 3 to 5 mm instruments) for colorectal resections since it can provide excellent cosmetic results without changing the laparoscopic approach significantly. Thus, there is no need for a new learning curve as minilaparoscopy maintains the principle of instrument triangulation. This determines an undoubted advantage in terms of feasibility and reproducibility of the procedure without increasing operative time. Some preliminary experiences confirm that minilaparoscopic colorectal surgery provides acceptable results, comparable to those reported for laparoscopic surgery with regard to operative time, morbidity, and hospital stay. Randomized controlled studies should be conducted to confirm these early encouraging results
Fat Embolism: What We Have Learned from Animal Models
Pulmonary fat embolism may not be diagnosed before unrelated autopsy and have little clinical impact or lead to acute lung injury with fulminant fat embolism syndrome (FES). The fat may come from various anatomic locations, bone marrow being the most common. There is no specific treatment. This review discusses animal models that can lead to a better understanding of pathophysiological mechanisms underlying this condition and indicates the importance of specific cellular constituents. A hypothesis is postulated that there is a vicious cycle involving oleic acid and angiotensin II (both of which are pulmonary toxicants): oleic acid is derived from lipid embolism by pulmonary lipases that are stimulated by angiotensin; oleic acid also promotes local generation of angiotensin. The potential role of fatty acid receptors and the resolution of this cycle are discussed. Studies show there is potential for long-term effects that might not be revealed in the immediate post-recovery period. Evidence is reviewed that animals are vulnerable to “second hit” effects at a time remote from the initial event. Some beneficial pharmacological treatments are described. These include different drugs acting on the renin-angiotensin system (RAS) that could eventually serve alone or in combination for treatment or prevention. Future therapeutic developments are discussed
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