Crowdfunding:A disruptive innovation in entrepreneurial finance?

Is crowdfunding a disruptive innovation in entrepreneurial finance? This dissertation consist of three chapters that explore the emergence of crowdfunding as a viable financing alternative for entrepreneurial ventures. More specifically, I study the evolution, dynamics, and impact of the crowdfunding phenomenon. I find that crowdfunding has grown exponentially over the years and has proven to be an essential tool for supplying capital to entrepreneurs. It has played an important role in fostering innovation, facilitating business creation, supporting early-stage ventures, and stimulating job creation. Furthermore, crowdfunding has enabled the financial inclusion of different types of investors, who were previously restricted from investing in young early-stage businesses. This has openedup opportunities, but also poses risks. Especially in equity crowdfunding, where “crowd investors” become shareholders in typically early-stage companies, “tapping the right crowd” is essential for the survival and further development of entrepreneurial ventures. Taken together, the insights derived from this dissertation suggest that crowdfunding has indeed emerged as a game-changing force in entrepreneurial finance.<br/

(Dis)closed : Tabernacle Altarpieces in the Rhineland

Most of the tabernacle altarpieces preserved throughout Europe are fragmented, overpainted, and reconstructed, thus impeding a closer analysis of their image program. A detailed study of the earliest fully preserved representatives of this altarpiece type originating from the Lower and Middle Rhine as well as some other little-known late medieval examples from this region will cast some light upon topics such as the construction and evolution of the form as well as the iconography and media used in its creation and its possible impact on the spectator. This study concentrates on a small group of almost completely preserved tabernacle altarpieces, which allows detailed observation of their all-around design. This enables an examination of the ensemble of sculpture and painting, the strategies of emphasizing the venerated sculpture as well as points of reference between the images on the interior and on the exterior. Another aspect of this survey addresses questions regarding the different ways an altar could be adjusted and displayed spatially (with the wings fully open or partially closed) and the perception of these objects, most of which are designed to be viewed from all sides - issues that have received little attention in the research on tabernacle-altarpieces so far. The results of this brief survey will also serve as groundwork for answering questions about the long durability of the tabernacle altarpieces alongside new forms such as winged altarpieces.La mayoría de los retablos-tabernáculo conservados por toda Europa presentan un carácter fragmentario o están repintados y reutilizados, lo que impide un análisis profundo de su programa iconográfico. Un estudio detallado de los ejemplares más antiguos conservados en su integridad procedentes del Bajo y Medio Rin, así como de algún ejemplo tardomedieval de esta región, arrojará algo de luz sobre asuntos tales como la construcción y evolución de sus formas, así como la iconografía y las técnicas empleadas en su creación y su posible impacto en el espectador. Este estudio se centra en un pequeño grupo de retablos-tabernáculo preservados casi por completo, lo que permite una observación detallada de todos los aspectos de su diseño. Esto posibilita un examen del conjunto de la escultura y de la pintura, de las estrategias desplegadas para resaltar la imagen de culto en su interior, así como de los puntos de conexión entre las imágenes en el interior y en el exterior. Otro aspecto de este estudio apunta a cuestiones relativas a los diferentes modos en que un altar puede adaptarse y mostrarse en un espacio (con los paneles laterales completamente abiertos o parcialmente cerrados) y a la percepción de estos artefactos, la mayoría de los cuales están diseñados para ser vistos desde todos sus lados -aspectos que hasta ahora han recibido escasa atención en los estudios sobre retablos-tabernáculos-. Los resultados de este breve estudio servirán también como trabajo preliminar para responder cuestiones acerca de la larga persistencia de los retablos-tabernáculo junto a nuevos tipos como los retablos con alas

Crowdfunding:A disruptive innovation in entrepreneurial finance?

Is crowdfunding a disruptive innovation in entrepreneurial finance? This dissertation consist of three chapters that explore the emergence of crowdfunding as a viable financing alternative for entrepreneurial ventures. More specifically, I study the evolution, dynamics, and impact of the crowdfunding phenomenon. I find that crowdfunding has grown exponentially over the years and has proven to be an essential tool for supplying capital to entrepreneurs. It has played an important role in fostering innovation, facilitating business creation, supporting early-stage ventures, and stimulating job creation. Furthermore, crowdfunding has enabled the financial inclusion of different types of investors, who were previously restricted from investing in young early-stage businesses. This has openedup opportunities, but also poses risks. Especially in equity crowdfunding, where “crowd investors” become shareholders in typically early-stage companies, “tapping the right crowd” is essential for the survival and further development of entrepreneurial ventures. Taken together, the insights derived from this dissertation suggest that crowdfunding has indeed emerged as a game-changing force in entrepreneurial finance.<br/

NEUROLOGICAL PROBLEMS IN CHILDREN WITH BRAIN DAMAGE SYNDROME

No abstrac

Headache in Children with Epilepsy

Headache is a common comorbidity in pediatric epileptic patients. The relationship between headache and epilepsy is considered complex and though there is evidence of association, its mechanisms are not yet completely clear. Numerous studies of comorbidity focus on primary headaches, such as migraine and tension-type headache, describing them as the most prevalent in patients with epilepsy. Some authors, though, report similar prevalence of headache and specifically migraine in epilepsy patients as compared to that of the general population. When describing this comorbidity, it should be noted that secondary headaches can also be frequent in patients with structural epilepsy, e.g. in brain tumors or other space-occupying lesions.In this paper we summarize literature data on the problem of epilepsy and headache comorbidity, and also present two clinical cases of patients with tension-type and with secondary headache, respectively

La modificación física de ejemplares y los derechos de autor

Análisis de la problemática actual relacionada con la paulatina expansión de la protección de los autores: consecuencias en el derecho de acceso a la cultura, el papel de las nuevas tecnologías en el proceso creativo, tratamiento jurídico de la modificación física de ejemplares y de las obras derivadas. Propuestas de medidas con el objetivo de restablecer el equilibrio entre los incentivos a la creación y el libre acceso al acervo cultural

Agricultural Academy

Abstract MONEVA, P., S. POPOVA-RALCHEVA, D. GUDEV, V. SREDKOVA and I. YANCHEV, 2008. Study on the metabolic implication of supplemental tryptophan in exposed to stress chickens. Bulg. J. Agric. Sci., The effect of supplemental tryptophan (5g/1Kg -1 diet) on some indices of stress, heterophil-to-lymphocyte ratios (H:L), leukocyte and erythrocyte numbers in chickens under stress induced by alternating periods of normal feeding with periods of feed and water withdrawal was investigated. Twenty chickens at the age of six weeks were randomly allocated into two groups-control and experimental. Experimental birds were deprived of feed and water and their legs tied for seventeen hours each day in four consecutive days. Body weight was registered on d 0 (baseline value), d 7 (preliminary period-free of stress) and on d 11 (experimental period). Blood samples were taken on d 0 and d 11. Relative weights of some immunobiological organs were also measured at the end of the experimental period. Supplemental tryptophan alleviated body weight decline, decreased spleen (P&gt;0.05) and liver (P&lt;0.05) relative weights, but had no significant effect on those of adrenal glands and bursa of Fabricius. Plasma urea levels were not influenced by supplemental tryptophan but plasma glucose levels declined by 14h and cholesterol levels by 17h in comparison with control group. Tryptophan supplementation prevented H: L ratio increment caused by stressor treatment. Leukocyte numbers and hematocrit values were not significantly influenced by tryptophan. Interleukin-1α response to stress declined in triptophan supplemented chickens by 14 h following the start of stressor treatment but corticosterone response was not influenced. Our results indicate that tryptophan is implicated in white blood cells dynamics and influences the pattern of the observed stress indices in chickens

Agricultural Academy

Abstract Moneva, P., S. PoPova-Ralcheva, v. SRedkova, M. kRuSteva and d. Gudev, 2011. Reliability of some endocrine and behavioral indices of stress. Bulg. J. Agric. Sci., this investigation accentuates on the reliability of some endocrine (cortisol and prolactin), behavioral (bleating frequency, prevalence of feed and defense response) and immune (heterophil/lymphocyte ratio) indices of stress. our study comprised several experimental designs with laying hens, cows, does and kids. We found sizable stress response to blood sampling procedures that was registered as early as the first minutes after catching of the bird. there were pronounced individual differences in stress-sensitivity demonstrated by plasma cortisol levels which varied from low to high values. heterophil to lymphocyte ratio, unlike cortisol began to change after a latent period of 10-15 min. following the start of stress stimuli. When combined with cortisol this ratio allowed us to differentiate stress stimuli induced by the handling procedures from those induced by a certain environmental and technological factors. Plasma cortisol level turned out to be reliable stress indicator in does, previously habituated to blood sampling procedures. However, kid separation at the time of weaning caused significant plasma cortisol enhancement. there was no stress when the kids were prevented from suckling but remained to their mothers. the frequency of bleating did not correspond to plasma cortisol dynamics indicating that it is not reliable stress indicator in this particular case. exposure of cows to heat stress elicited short-term increase of plasma cortisol followed by a quick decline to values that were within the normal range in spite of the elevated rectal temperature. Plasma prolactin increased and remained high throughout the heat load period. these results demonstrate that plasma cortisol level can not be used as a universal stress-indicator