Institutional Pressures, Top Management and M-commerce Adoption in Organizations: an Empirical Study of SMEs in China

Based on the institutional theory, this paper intends to clarify the relationship of institutional pressures, top management and m-commerce adoption intention in organizations. Using the data from 204 small and medium-sized enterprises in China, we examined the effect of mimetic, coercive and normative pressures on top management support and M-commerce adoption intention. The empirical result shows that: top management support and three types of institutional pressures could positively act on the adoption intention of M-commerce in organizations; top management support partly mediates the influence of two institutional pressures (coercive pressures and normative pressures) on the adoption intention of m-commerce. Implications of these findings for research and practice are discussed

Elastic Stiffness Characterization of Anisotropic Materials by Line-focus Ultrasound Transducer

Elastic stiffness constants are critical parameters to evaluate mechanical property of solid materials, and it is of great importance to develop convenient and accurate methods that can characterize material stiffness constants in industrial applications. Line-focus ultrasound transducer has been used as one of the methods to generate surface wave in isotropic and anisotropic materials because of its accurate control on transducer-sample alignment. However, little work has been found to employ this transducer to systematically characterize stiffness constants of anisotropic solids due to the absence of the mathematic model that describes the relationship between stiffness constants and surface wave velocity. The purpose of this dissertation is to develop a new approach that enables a lens-less line focus ultrasound transducer to characterize stiffness constants of anisotropic materials through simultaneously measurement of both Rayleigh surface wave and longitudinal bulk wave. Firstly, a lens-less line focus PVDF (Polyvinylidene fluoride) ultrasound transducer and corresponding testing system have been established. This inhouse developed testing system is then experimentally calibrated using metal alloys made by both conventional and additive manufacturing methods. The comparison results demonstrate reasonably good accuracy to characterize elastic constants of isotropic materials. Secondly, mechanistic models for the relationship of wave propagation with stiffness constants are developed for more complicated Cubic and Trigonal anisotropic materials. Again, the model validation is conducted by comparing model prediction and experimental measurement using single crystal silicon and quartz as examples. Additionally, a generalized form of model development process is summarized in the end, and this form can be used as a guideline to develop numerical model for surface wave propagating along any direction on any types of crystallographic structures. As an example, the generalized model development process is utilized to develop the mechanistic model for orthorhombic materials. Based on the theoretical and experimental studies in this dissertation, a novel elastic stiffness constant characterization method is developed and characterized, which largely simplified the measurement procedure and minimized the sample used for fully characterization of stiffness constants of different types anisotropic solids

CNT-Polyimide Nanocomposite Piezoresistive Thin Film Devices for Strain and Pressure Measurement

In this thesis, piezoresistive thin film devices made of carbon nanotube (CNT)-polyimide (PI) nanocomposite were fabricated and characterized. Based on the percolation threshold, the CNT-PI nanocomposites with five different CNT weight ratios were chosen and made by suspension mixture method. The CNT-PI nanocomposite suspensions were deposited on the polyimide substrate by a drop-on-demand piezoelectric inkjet printer to fabricate piezoresistive thin film devices. The electrical impedance and the strain of the nanocomposite thin films under uniaxial tension and uniform pressure were characterized, and the strain sensor gauge factors were calculated. The temperature and humidity effect on the performance of the nanocomposite thin film devices were evaluated: the temperature coefficient was measured and the methods for temperature compensation were proposed; the resistance changes of the nanocomposites with humidity variation were monitored, and Parylene C thin film coating was used to eliminate or reduce the humidity effect. The piezoresistive nanocomposite thin film devices are used for pressure measurements. Finally, the sensitivities of the CNT-PI nanocomposite of different geometrical shapes under different types of load were defined and the values of sensitivities were evaluated by experiments. The inkjet printing method showed its advantages over the traditional thin film fabrication methods for its ability to precisely control the geometry and the uniformity of the nanocomposite thin film. The research results demonstrated that CNT-PI piezoresistive nanocomposite devices are promising candidates for flexible strain/pressure sensing applications

Regulation of retrotranslocation by p97-associated deubiquitinating enzyme ataxin-3

Misfolded proteins of the endoplasmic reticulum undergo retrotranslocation to enter the cytosol where they are degraded by the proteasome. Retrotranslocation of many substrates requires an ATPase complex consisting of the p97 ATPase and a dimeric cofactor, Ufd1-Npl4. We report that efficient elimination of misfolded ER proteins also involves ataxin-3 (atx3), a p97-associated deubiquitinating enzyme mutated in type-3 spinocerebellar ataxia. Overexpression of an atx3 mutant defective in deubiquitination inhibits the degradation of misfolded ER proteins and triggers ER stress. Misfolded polypeptides stabilized by mutant atx3 are accumulated in part as polyubiquitinated form, suggesting an involvement of its deubiquitinating activity in ER-associated protein degradation regulation. We demonstrate that atx3 transiently associates with the ER membrane via p97 and the recently identified Derlin–VIMP complex, and its release from the membrane appears to be governed by both the p97 ATPase cycle and its own deubiquitinating activity. We present evidence that atx3 may promote p97-associated deubiquitination to facilitate the transfer of polypeptides from p97 to the proteasome

Multivariate pattern analysis of electroencephalography data reveals information predictive of charitable giving

Charitable donations are an altruistic behavior whereby individuals donate money or other resources to benefit others while the recipient is normally absent from the context. Several psychological factors have been shown to influence charitable donations, including a cost-benefit analysis, the motivation to engage in altruistic behavior, and the perceived psychological benefits of donation. Recent work has identified the ventral medial prefrontal cortex (MPFC) for assigning value to options in social decision making tasks, with other regions involved in empathy and emotion contributing input to the value computation (e.g. Hare et al., 2010; Hutcherson et al., 2015; Tusche et al., 2016). Most impressively, multivariate pattern analysis (MVPA) has been applied to fMRI data to predict donation behavior on a trial-by-trial basis from ventral MPFC activity (Hare et al., 2010) while identifying the contribution of emotional processing in other regions to the value computation (e.g. Tusche et al., 2016). MVPA of EEG data may be able to provide further insight into the timing and scalp topography of neural activity related to both value computation and emotional effects on donation behavior. We examined the effect of incidental emotional states and the perceived urgency of the charitable cause on donation behavior using support vector regression on EEG data to predict donation amount on a trial by trial basis. We used positive, negative, and neutral pictures to induce incidental emotional states in participants before they made donation decisions concerning two types of charities. One category of charity was oriented toward saving people from current suffering, and the other was to prevent future suffering. Behaviorally, subjects donated more money in a negative emotional state relative to other emotional states, and more money to alleviate current over future suffering. The data-driven multivariate pattern analysis revealed that the electrophysiological activity elicited by both emotion-priming pictures and charity cues could predict the variation in donation magnitude on a trial-by-trial basis

Effects of Root-Zone Temperature and N, P, and K Supplies on Nutrient Uptake of Cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) Seedlings in Hydroponics

The nutrient uptake and allocation of cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) seedlings at different root-zone temperatures (RZT) and different concentrations of nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and potassium (K) nutrients were examined. Plants were grown in a nutrient solution for 30 d at two root-zone temperatures (a diurnally fluctuating ambient 10°C-RZT and a constant 20° C-RZT) with the aerial parts of the plants maintained at ambient temperature (10°C -30°C). Based on a Hoagland nutrient solution, seven N, P, and K nutrient concentrations were supplied to the plants at each RZT. Results showed that total plant and shoot dry weights under each nutrient treatment were significantly lower at low root-zone temperature (10°C-RZT) than at elevated root-zone temperature (20°C-RZT). But higher root dry weights were obtained at 10°C-RZT than those at 20°C-RZT. Total plant dry weights at both 10°C-RZT and 20°C-RZT were increased with increased solution N concentration, but showed different responses under P and K treatments. All estimated nutrient concentrations (N, P, and K) and uptake by the plant were obviously influenced by RZT. Low root temperature (10°C-RZT) caused a remarkable reduction in total N, P, and K uptake of shoots in all nutrient treatments, and more nutrients were accumulated in roots at 10 degrees C-RZT than those at 20°C-RZT. N, P, and K uptakes and distribution ratios in shoots were both improved at elevated root-zone temperature (20° C-RZT). N supplies were favorable to P and K uptake at both 10°C-RZT and 20°C-RZT, with no significantly positive correlation between N and P, or N and K uptake. In conclusion, higher RZT was more beneficial to increase of plant biomass and mineral nutrient absorption than was increase of nutrient concentration. Among the three element nutrients, increasing N nutrient concentration in solution promoted better tolerance to low RZT in cucumber seedlings than increasing P and K. In addition, appropriately decreased P concentration favors plant growth