188 research outputs found
Focus and Application Options
LIAISE Policy Brief No. 5 on "Scientific tools in Europe: focus and
application options" has just been published. Policy Impact Assessment (IA)
has been an obligatory procedure in the legislative process within the EU
since 2002. It has to identify the likely impacts on sustainable development
(specifically the social, environmental and economic impacts) of all major
policy strategies and instruments prior to actual implementation. The link
between IA and sustainable development is rooted in the 2006 renewed
Sustainable Development Strategy. IA also provides the legal basis to feed
scientific evidence into the policy process and to base policy-making on
scientifically robust tools and results. In line with the recognition of the
importance of IA for sound sustainable policies, the EC (DG Research and
Innovation) has funded through the Framework Programmes (FP) 6 and 7 research
supporting knowledge creation in this field. This policy brief presents an
analysis of tools developed in the context of FP6 and FP7 undertaken by the
LIAISE project. This assessment focused on the following interests of IA
practitioners as tool users: Which policy area(s) do the tools address? Which
impact area(s) are covered by the tools? Which jurisdictional level(s) can the
tools be applied at? How can the tools be categorized? There exists a wide
variety of tools that comprises: Quantitative and qualitative tools, such as
models, scenarios, multi-criteria analysis and participatory tools, Tool
components, such as indicators, databases and comprehensive analytic methods,
Evaluation frameworks, toolboxes and platforms etc. serving as a higher level
system for tool selection or tool linkage. These results are based on an
analysis of 203 research projects designing tools for IA funded in FP6 and 7.
The results shall contribute to addressing the science-policy interface of IA
by identifying possible challenges for tool users and tool suppliers with
respect to tool development and selection
A Dual-Frequency Series-Fed Patch Array Antenna
Abstract-A novel dual-frequency concept for series-fed microstrip patch array antennas is proposed. An identical near field distribution following an identical far field characteristic was achieved at two different frequencies. The conventional series fed array comes with a uniform aperture distribution for patches of same width. By exploiting the dispersion of this periodic structure the same cosine aperture distribution at two different frequencies is obtained. Due to the cosine aperture distribution a low side lobe level of 23 dB is intrinsically achieved for the two operating frequencies, 23 GHz and 25 GHz. This concept is particularly suited for small frequency ratios (f+/f− < 1.3)
Autonomic neuropathy predisposes to rosiglitazone-induced vascular leakage in insulin-treated patients with type 2 diabetes: a randomised, controlled trial on thiazolidinedione-induced vascular leakage
Contains fulltext :
88447.pdf (publisher's version ) (Closed access)AIMS/HYPOTHESIS: The mechanism of fluid-related complications caused by thiazolidinedione derivatives is unclear. One potential mechanism is thiazolidinedione-induced arterial vasodilatation, which results in vascular leakage and a fall in blood pressure, normally counterbalanced by sympathetic activation and subsequent renal fluid retention. We hypothesised that thiazolidinedione-induced vascular leakage will be particularly prominent in patients with autonomic neuropathy. METHODS: We conducted a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel study in 40 patients with type 2 diabetes on insulin treatment recruited from a university medical centre. The randomisation was performed by a central office using a randomisation schedule. Both treatment groups, placebo (n = 21) and rosiglitazone (n = 19), were stratified for sex and level of autonomic neuropathy as assessed by Ewing score (or=2.5). We investigated the effects of 16 weeks of treatment with rosiglitazone 4 mg twice daily on vascular leakage (transcapillary escape rate of albumin, TERalb), body weight, extracellular volume and plasma volume. RESULTS: Thirty-nine patients were included in the analysis. In patients with high Ewing scores (n = 16), rosiglitazone increased TERalb significantly (DeltaTERalb: rosiglitazone +2.43 +/- 0.45%/h, placebo -0.11 +/- 0.15%/h, p = 0.002), while rosiglitazone had no effect in the patients with low Ewing scores (n = 23). Rosiglitazone-induced increases in TERalb and Ewing score at baseline were correlated (r = 0.65, p = 0.02). There was no correlation between Ewing score and rosiglitazone-induced changes in fluid variables. One subject was withdrawn from the study because of atrial fibrillation. CONCLUSIONS/INTERPRETATION: Rosiglitazone may increase vascular leakage in insulin-treated patients with type 2 diabetes with autonomic neuropathy. Autonomic neuropathy did not exaggerate rosiglitazone-induced fluid retention. Therefore, autonomic neuropathy should be considered as a risk factor for thiazolidinedione-induced oedema, not for thiazolidinedione-induced fluid retention. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT00422955. FUNDING: GlaxoSmithKline.1 september 201
‘Better late than never’: the interplay between green technology and age for firm growth
This paper investigates the relationship between green/non-green technologies and firm growth. By combining the literature on eco-innovations, industrial organisation and entrepreneurial studies, we examine the dependence of this relationship on the pace at which firms grow and the age of the firm. From a dataset of 5498 manufacturing firms in Italy for the period of 2000–2008, longitudinal fixed effects quantile models are estimated, in which the firm’s age is set to moderate the effects of green and non-green patents on employment growth. We find that the positive effect of green technologies on growth is greater than that of non-green technologies. However, this result does not apply to struggling and rapidly growing firms. With fast-growing (above the median) firms, age moderates the growth effect of green technologies. Inconsistent with the extant literature, this moderation effect is positive: firm experience appears important for the growth benefits of green technologies, possibly relative to the complexity of their management
Sustainability, innovation, and efficiency:A key relationship
Sustainability has become the emerging goal for countries, companies, and people. Sustainability usually refers to the need to develop models necessary for both human beings and our planet to survive. However, sustainability is not a short-term problem; it is above all a long-term issue, posing intergenerational equity problems. Moreover, sustainability needs efficiency. The efficient use of energy, natural, material, and informational resources is vital for sustainability and sustainable development, which should be the major goal of every country, as established in Rio in 1992, and reaffirmed at Rio+ 20 in 2012. But any strategy aiming at sustainability and efficient use of resources must focus on innovation and technological progress. Consequently, innovation is fundamental to making sustainability possible and improving efficiency. Yet, innovation for sustainability must be environmentally friendly (e.g., green technologies). The principle behind such a strategy is better instead of more. This paper aims at highlighting the key relationship among sustainability, innovation, and efficiency. First, it examines the concept of sustainability, looking at the neoclassical literature on sustainability and its relationship with innovation. Then, it analyzes different theoretical approaches and discusses the policy issues for sustainability where innovation, natural capital, human capital, population, and institutions are fundamental factors
A framework to move forward on the path to eco-innovation in the construction industry: implications to improve firms´ sustainable orientation
This paper examines key aspects in the innovative behavior of the
construction firms that determine their environmental orientation while innovating.
Structural equation modeling was used and data of 222 firms retrieved from the
Spanish Technological Innovation Panel (PITEC) for 2010 to analyse the drivers of
environmental orientation of the construction firms during the innovation process.
The results show that the environmental orientation is positively affected by the
product and process orientation of construction firms during the innovation process.
Furthermore, the positive relation between the importance of market information
sources and environmental orientation, mediated by process and product orientation,
is discussed. Finally, a model that explains these relations is proposed and validated.
Results have important managerial implications for those companies worried about
their eco-innovative focus as the types of actions and relations within firms most
suitable for improving their eco-innovative orientation are highlighted.The authors would like to thank the Spanish Economy and Competitiveness Ministry for its support through the research project (EC02011-27369) and also the Universitat Politecnica de Valencia (SP20140647).Segarra Oña, MDV.; Peiró Signes, A.; Cervelló Royo, RE. (2015). A framework to move forward on the path to eco-innovation in the construction industry: implications to improve firms´ sustainable orientation. Science and Engineering Ethics. 21(6):1469-1484. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11948-014-9620-2S14691484216Amara, N., & Landry, R. (2005). Sources of information as determinants of novelty of innovation in manufacturing firms: evidence from the 1999 statistics Canada innovation survey. Technovation, 25(3), 245–259.Anderson, J. C., & Gerbing, D. W. (1988). Structural equation modeling in practice: A review and recommended two- step approach. Psychological Bulletin, 103(3), 411–423.Ang, G. K. I. (2004). 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Green process innovation: Where we are and where we are going
Environmental pollution has worsened in the past few decades, and increasing pressure is being put on firms by different regulatory bodies, customer groups, NGOs and other media outlets to adopt green process innovations (GPcIs), which include clean technologies and end-of-pipe solutions. Although considerable studies have been published on GPcI, the literature is disjointed, and as such, a comprehensive understanding of the issues, challenges and gaps is lacking. A systematic literature review (SLR) involving 80 relevant studies was conducted to extract seven themes: strategic response, organisational learning, institutional pressures, structural issues, outcomes, barriers and methodological choices. The review thus highlights the various gaps in the GPcI literature and illuminates the pathways for future research by proposing a series of potential research questions. This study is of vital importance to business strategy as it provides a comprehensive framework to help firms understand the various contours of GPcI. Likewise, policymakers can use the findings of this study to fill in the loopholes in the existing regulations that firms are exploiting to circumvent taxes and other penalties by locating their operations to emerging economies with less stringent environmental regulations.publishedVersio
Assessing the Impact of Support Policies for Energy Efficient Technology in Switzerland
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