Distrust And Dominance In Managing Alternative Work Arrangements: A Micro-Analytic Test Of Transaction Cost Theory

Organizations that successfully outsource may see better value-creation in creating a sustainable competitive advantage.  The objectives of this study were threefold:  a) provide a framework for studying the effects of perceived distrust that leads to dominance, b) analyze how opportunism parlays into the concept of dominance, and c) determine if the relationship between outsource partners varies by analyzing transaction characteristics.  Our research shows that firms should take caution to fully understand the effects that contract size has on a firm’s resources.&nbsp

Deploying the WTO Agreement on Government Procurement (GPA) to Enhance Sustainability and Accelerate Climate Change Mitigation

Mitigating climate change and promoting sustainability are defining challenges of our time. Public procurement has a vital role to play in responding to the current crises. This article makes the case that the World Trade Organization’s (WTO) Agreement on Government Procurement (GPA), and specifically the Work Programme on Sustainable Procurement that has been initiated pursuant to the Agreement, can serve as important instruments to promote sustainable approaches to public procurement internationally, consistent with the goals of climate change mitigation. The Work Programme, which was established at the time of the GPA’s modernization in 2012 and on which important work has already been done but which has recently been relatively dormant, mandates the Organization’s Committee on Government Procurement to study, inter alia, “the ways in which sustainable procurement can be practiced in a manner consistent with Parties’ international trade obligations ”and to prepare a report that sets out best practices concerning relevant measures and polices. This provides an essential and attractive platform for responding to the crisis. The article sets out important related background, including with respect to: (i) a “change of mindset” with respect to environmental sustainability which is already embodied in the amended GPA text adopted in 2012; (ii) existing GPA provisions that provide windows of opportunity for the advancing of related objectives; and (iii) importantly, ongoing developments in key GPA Parties and at the international level that both: (a) point the way toward meaningful change; and (b) suggest, in our view, a need for a modest degree of international coordination to avoid conflict and ensure continuing market openness. These developments portend a rich agenda of possibilities for further discussions in the WTO Work Programme

4,4′-Imino­dipyridinium bis­(hydrogen phthalate)

In the title salt, C10H11N3 2+·2C8H5O4 −, doubly protonated 4,4′-dipyridylamine (dpa) cations participate in N—H⋯O hydrogen bonding with two hydrogen phthalate anions to form a neutral unit. Both anions contain an intramolecular O—H⋯O hydrogen bond. In the crystal structure, these units form two-dimensional layers through π–π stacking inter­actions with a centroid-to-centroid distance of 3.763 (3) Å. In turn, these layers aggregate in three dimensions by additional N—H⋯O hydrogen bonding. The assignment to the noncentrosymmetric space group P1 is corroborated by chemically unreasonable aromatic ring bond distances and poor K scale factor distributions for a disordered model in the centrosymmetric P space group

Total lung capacity by plethysmography and high-resolution computed tomography in COPD

Jamie L Garfield, Nathaniel Marchetti, John P Gaughan, Robert M Steiner, Gerard J CrinerDepartment of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine and Department of Radiology, Temple University School of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USAAim: To characterize and compare total lung capacity (TLC) measured by plethysmography with high-resolution computed tomography (HRCT), and to identify variables that predict the difference between the two modalities.Methods: Fifty-nine consecutive patients referred for the evaluation of COPD were retrospectively reviewed. Patients underwent full pulmonary function testing and HRCT within 3 months. TLC was obtained by plethysmography as per American Thoracic Society/European Respiratory Society standards and by HRCT using custom software on 0.75 and 5 mm thick contiguous slices performed at full inspiration (TLC).Results: TLC measured by plethysmography correlated with TLC measured by inspiratory HRCT (r = 0.92, P < 0.01). TLC measured by plethysmography was larger than that determined by inspiratory HRCT in most patients (mean of 6.46 ± 1.28 L and 5.34 ± 1.20 L respectively, P < 0.05). TLC measured by both plethysmography and HRCT correlated significantly with indices of airflow obstruction (forced expiratory volume in 1 second/forced vital capacity [FVC] and FVC%), static lung volumes (residual volume, percent predicted [RV%], total lung capacity, percent predicted [TLC%], functional residual capacity, percent predicted [FRC%], and inspiratory capacity, percent predicted), and percent emphysema. TLC by plethysmography and HRCT both demonstrated significant inverse correlations with diffusion impairment. The absolute difference between TLC measured by plethysmography and HRCT increased as RV%, TLC%, and FRC% increased. Gas trapping (RV% and FRC%) independently predicted the difference in TLC between plethysmography and HRCT.Conclusion: In COPD, TLC by plethysmography can be up to 2 L greater than inspiratory HRCT. Gas trapping independently predicts patients for whom TLC by plethysmography differs significantly from HRCT.Keywords: lung capacity, plethysmography, high-resolution computed tomography, gas trapping, lung volume measurement error

Biogenic 2‐methyl‐3‐buten‐2‐ol increases regional ozone and HO x sources

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/95042/1/grl23505.pd

Preserving entanglement under decoherence and sandwiching all separable states

Every entangled state can be perturbed, for instance by decoherence, and stay entangled. For a large class of pure entangled states, we show how large the perturbation can be. Our class includes all pure bipartite and all maximally entangled states. For an entangled state, E, the constucted neighborhood of entangled states is the region outside two parallel hyperplanes, which sandwich the set of all separable states. The states for which these neighborhoods are largest are the maximally entangled ones. As the number of particles, or the dimensions of the Hilbert spaces for two of the particles increases, the distance between two of the hyperplanes which sandwich the separable states goes to zero. It is easy to decide if a state Q is in the neighborhood of entangled states we construct for an entangled state E. One merely has to check if the trace of EQ is greater than a constant which depends upon E and which we determine.Comment: Corrected first author's e-mail address. All the rest remains unchange

Pediatric Critical Care Transfusion and Anemia Expertise Initiative

Introduction/Hypothesis: Despite evidence that a lower hemoglobin threshold is safe in hemodynamically stable children, studies have shown that transfusion thresholds in practice are higher, exposing these children to the morbidity and mortality associated with RBC transfusion. Therefore, there is increased need for evidence-based blood management strategies for clinicians caring for critically ill children. Methods: The Pediatric Critical Care Transfusion and Anemia Expertise Initiative has brought together a group of 49 international experts in pediatric transfusion/critical care in collaboration with the Pediatric Critical Care Blood Research Network (BloodNet), and the Pediatric Acute Lung Injury and Sepsis Investigators (PALISI), to conduct a consensus conference series on pediatric critical care blood management. The methodology is modeled after that used in the Pediatric Acute Lung Injury and Consensus Conference and will create consensus statements via a structured process outlining existing data in RBC transfusion. Novel features include engagement with implementation science experts to enable consensus uptake. Results: Two of the three expert meetings have been successfully conducted. Ten topics were identified and include recommendations on indications for RBC transfusion in critically ill children 1) based on hemoglobin triggers in the general population, 2) based on physiological triggers in the general population, 3) traumatic brain injury, 4) congenital heart disease, 5) hematologic/oncologic disease, 6) respiratory failure, 7) shock, 8) bleeding, 9) extracorporeal support, and 10) alternative processing. The systematic review was performed. The short text recommendations were generated, discussed at the second meeting and will undergo voting using the RAND UCLA Appropriateness Method to achieve consensus. Conclusions: The TAXI consensus series is the first consensus series to convene international and multidisciplinary experts to create consensus statements on transfusion practices to improve outcomes and safety for critically ill children at risk for, or who require, RBC transfusions