Culture and concept design : a study of international teams

This paper explores the relationship between culture and performance in concept design. Economic globalisation has meant that the management of global teams has become of strategic importance in product development. Cultural diversity is a key factor in such teams, and this work seeks to better understand the effect this can have on two key aspects of the concept design process: concept generation and concept selection. To this end, a group of 32 students from 17 countries all over the world were divided into culturally diverse teams and asked to perform a short design exercise. A version of the Gallery Method allowed two kinds of activity to be monitored – the individual development of concepts and the collective filtering and selection of them. The effect of culture on these processes was the focus of the work. Using Hofstede’s cultural dimensions, the output from the sessions were reviewed according to national boundaries. The results indicate that individualism and masculinity had the most discernable effect on concept generation and concept selection respectively

Metabolic Consequences of Long-Term Rapamycin Exposure on Common Marmoset Monkeys (Callithrix Jacchus)

Rapamycin has been shown to extend lifespan in rodent models, but the effects on metabolic health and function have been widely debated in both clinical and translational trials. Prior to rapamycin being used as a treatment to extend both lifespan and healthspan in the human population, it is vital to assess the side effects of the treatment on metabolic pathways in animal model systems, including a closely related non-human primate model. In this study, we found that long-term treatment of marmoset monkeys with orally-administered encapsulated rapamycin resulted in no overall effects on body weight and only a small decrease in fat mass over the first few months of treatment. Rapamycin treated subjects showed no overall changes in daily activity counts, blood lipids, or significant changes in glucose metabolism including oral glucose tolerance. Adipose tissue displayed no differences in gene expression of metabolic markers following treatment, while liver tissue exhibited suppressed G6Pase activity with increased PCK and GPI activity. Overall, the marmosets revealed only minor metabolic consequences of chronic treatment with rapamycin and this adds to the growing body of literature that suggests that chronic and/or intermittent rapamycin treatment results in improved health span and metabolic functioning. The marmosets offer an interesting alternative animal model for future intervention testing and translational modeling

Exposing practical, psychological and pedagogical shadow sides of experiential learning

This paper is based first-person experience with Experiential Learning (EL) practices in an undergraduate introductory management course. We consider how a challenging EL activity, based on volunteering during recovery from a catastrophic flood event, exposed three shadow sides of EL. These shadow sides of EL, that often remain hidden to educators, are practical, psychological and pedagogical. We provide a characterisation of each of these shadow sides and outline strategies for managing them. We also discuss the general applicability of our insights, including tentative theoretical extensions to Kolb’s (1984) EL theory. We conclude by considering the potential for the shadow sides of EL to emerge in circumstances that are less confronting and extreme than those encountered by our students.PostprintPeer reviewe

Periodic orbit resonances in layered metals in tilted magnetic fields

The frequency dependence of the interlayer conductivity of a layered Fermi liquid in a magnetic field which is tilted away from the normal to the layers is considered. For both quasi-one- and quasi-two-dimensional systems resonances occur when the frequency is a harmonic of the frequency at which the magnetic field causes the electrons to oscillate on the Fermi surface within the layers. The intensity of the different harmonic resonances varies significantly with the direction of the field. The resonances occur for both coherent and weakly incoherent interlayer transport and so their observation does not imply the existence of a three-dimensional Fermi surface.Comment: 4 pages, RevTeX + epsf, 2 figures. Discussion of other work revised. To appear in Phys. Rev. B, Rapid Commun., October 1

Magnetoresistance and magnetic breakdown in the quasi-two-dimensional conductors (BEDT-TTF)2_2MHg(SCN)4_4[M=K,Rb,Tl]

The magnetic field dependence of the resistance of (BEDT-TTF)$_2$MHg(SCN)$_4$[M=K,Rb,Tl] in the density-wave phase is explained in terms of a simple model involving magnetic breakdown and a reconstructed Fermi surface. The theory is compared to measurements in pulsed magnetic fields up to 51 T. The value implied for the scattering time is consistent with independent determinations. The energy gap associated with the density-wave phase is deduced from the magnetic breakdown field. Our results have important implications for the phase diagram.Comment: 5 pages, RevTeX + epsf, 3 figures. To appear in Physical Review B, Rapid Communications, September 15, 199

Life-history traits maintain the genomic integrity of sympatric species of the spruce budworm (Choristoneura fumiferana) group on an isolated forest island

Identification of widespread species collected from islands can be challenging due to the potential for local ecological and phenotypic divergence in isolated populations. We sought to determine how many species of the spruce budworm (Choristoneura fumiferana) complex reside in Cypress Hills, an isolated remnant coniferous forest in western Canada. We integrated data on behavior, ecology, morphology, mitochondrial DNA, and simple sequence repeats, comparing Cypress Hills populations to those from other regions of North America to determine which species they resembled most. We identified C. fumiferana, C. occidentalis, C. lambertiana, and hybrid forms in Cypress Hills. Adult flight phenology and pheromone attraction were identified as key life-history traits involved in maintaining the genomic integrity of species. Our study highlights the importance of extensive sampling of both specimens and a variety of characters for understanding species boundaries in biodiversity research

Atherosclerosis in young Brazilians suffering violent deaths: a pathological study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Atherosclerosis is the leading cause of coronary heart disease and ischemic stroke, which can cause sudden death in adulthood. In general, the clinical manifestations of cardiovascular diseases are caused by atherosclerosis, which is a process that starts during middle age. More recent studies indicate that the atherosclerotic process begins during childhood.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>To evaluate the extent of atherosclerotic disease in young Brazilians, we conducted a study of the pathological alterations in the major arteries of victims of violent death. Samples of the right carotid artery, left coronary artery, and thoracic aorta of young victims of violent death were analyzed and graded in accordance with the histological atherosclerotic lesion types proposed by the American Heart Association. Samples were collected from 100 individuals who had died from external causes, aged from 12 to 33 years.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The majority of cases (83%) were male, and 66% of deaths were homicides caused by firearms. The median age was 20.0 years and mean body mass index was 20.9 kg/m². Of the right carotid artery specimens, 3% were normal, 55% had type I, 40% had type II, 1% had type III, and 1% had type IV atherosclerotic lesions. Of the left coronary artery specimens, 5% were normal, 48% had type I, 41% had type II, 3% had type III, and 3% had type IV lesions. Of the thoracic aorta specimens, none were normal, 13% had type I, 64% had type II, 22% had type III, and 1% had type IV lesions. Overall, 97.34% of arteries examined had some degree of atherosclerosis. The most common histological type was type II (foam cells). No thoracic aorta specimens were normal, and the coronary artery specimens had the most atherosclerosis.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Our results show a high prevalence of atherosclerotic lesions among young people in Brazil. Intervention should be undertaken to decrease the rate of sudden cardiac death in the adult population.</p