Innovative capacity in micro, small and medium enterprises: Review of international articles on empirical research

The purposes of the article are to evaluate the current status of innovation capacity studies and propose directions for future research. Thirty - six articles in international empirical research on business, in particular micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) were identified from Springer, Emerald, and ScienceDirect. Findings reveal most studies on innovation capacity focus on two lines of research: determinants of innovation capacity (process) and consequences on innovation capacities (outcome). The quantitative approach is the dominant research method. Some research directions are proposed that cover outstanding themes as follows: (1) considering quantitative research method, (2) exploring innovation capacity on the service sector, (3) identifying innovation capacity on stakeholders in supply chain perspectives, (4) delving into how firm results can be affected in each type of innovation capacity, (5) examining the mediator of specific types of innovation capacities in the relationship between many other factors such as customer orientation, or market orientation or/and corporate social responsibility and / knowledge management and networking with business outcomes in term of the supply chain perspectives

Safety and efficacy of fluoxetine on functional outcome after acute stroke (AFFINITY): a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial

Background Trials of fluoxetine for recovery after stroke report conflicting results. The Assessment oF FluoxetINe In sTroke recoverY (AFFINITY) trial aimed to show if daily oral fluoxetine for 6 months after stroke improves functional outcome in an ethnically diverse population. Methods AFFINITY was a randomised, parallel-group, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial done in 43 hospital stroke units in Australia (n=29), New Zealand (four), and Vietnam (ten). Eligible patients were adults (aged ≥18 years) with a clinical diagnosis of acute stroke in the previous 2–15 days, brain imaging consistent with ischaemic or haemorrhagic stroke, and a persisting neurological deficit that produced a modified Rankin Scale (mRS) score of 1 or more. Patients were randomly assigned 1:1 via a web-based system using a minimisation algorithm to once daily, oral fluoxetine 20 mg capsules or matching placebo for 6 months. Patients, carers, investigators, and outcome assessors were masked to the treatment allocation. The primary outcome was functional status, measured by the mRS, at 6 months. The primary analysis was an ordinal logistic regression of the mRS at 6 months, adjusted for minimisation variables. Primary and safety analyses were done according to the patient's treatment allocation. The trial is registered with the Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry, ACTRN12611000774921. Findings Between Jan 11, 2013, and June 30, 2019, 1280 patients were recruited in Australia (n=532), New Zealand (n=42), and Vietnam (n=706), of whom 642 were randomly assigned to fluoxetine and 638 were randomly assigned to placebo. Mean duration of trial treatment was 167 days (SD 48·1). At 6 months, mRS data were available in 624 (97%) patients in the fluoxetine group and 632 (99%) in the placebo group. The distribution of mRS categories was similar in the fluoxetine and placebo groups (adjusted common odds ratio 0·94, 95% CI 0·76–1·15; p=0·53). Compared with patients in the placebo group, patients in the fluoxetine group had more falls (20 [3%] vs seven [1%]; p=0·018), bone fractures (19 [3%] vs six [1%]; p=0·014), and epileptic seizures (ten [2%] vs two [<1%]; p=0·038) at 6 months. Interpretation Oral fluoxetine 20 mg daily for 6 months after acute stroke did not improve functional outcome and increased the risk of falls, bone fractures, and epileptic seizures. These results do not support the use of fluoxetine to improve functional outcome after stroke

The influence of delta formation mechanism on geotechnical property sequence of the late Pleistocene–Holocene sediments in the Mekong River Delta

The aim of the study was to characterize a variety of microstructure development-levels and geotechnical property sequences of the late Pleistocene–Holocene deposits in the Mekong River delta (MRD), and the paper furthermore discusses the influences of delta formation mechanisms on them. The survey associated the geotechnical engineering and the sedimentary geology of the late Pleistocene–Holocene deposits at five sites and also undifferentiated Pleistocene sediments. A cross-section which was rebuilt in the delta progradation-direction and between the Mekong and Bassac rivers represents the stratigraphy. Each sedimentary unit was formed under a different delta formation mechanism and revealed a typical geotechnical property sequence. The mechanical behaviors of the sediment succession in the tide-dominated delta with significant fluvial-activity and material source tend to be more cohesionless soils and strengths than those in the tide- and wave-dominated delta and even the coast. The particular tendency of the mechanical behavior of the deposit succession can be reasonably estimated from the delta formation mechanism. The characteristics of the clay minerals from the Mekong River produced the argillaceous soil which does not have extremely high plasticity. The microstructure development-levels are low to very high indicating how to choose hydraulic conductivity value, k, for estimating overconsolidation ratio, OCR, by the piezocone penetration tests (CPTU). The OCR of sediments in the delta types strangely change with depth but none less than 1. The post-depositional processes significantly influenced the microstructure development, particularly the dehydrating and oxidizing processes

CÁC NHÂN TỐ ẢNH HƯỞNG ĐẾN LỰA CHỌN ÁP DỤNG GIỐNG LÚA CHỊU HẠN TRONG BỐI CẢNH KHAN HIẾM NƯỚC: MỘT NGHIÊN CỨU SO SÁNH CHO NÔNG HỘ Ở TỈNH THỪA THIÊN HUẾ VÀ AN GIANG

This study analyzes the factors affecting the selection of drought-tolerant rice varieties and their impact on the income of farmers. Based on a survey sample of 120 rice-growing households in the two study areas, we used Probit and linear regression models to estimate the factors affecting the choice of farmers. The results show that the factors that have an impact on the probability of using drought-tolerant rice varieties include the age of the household head, the number of family members, the monthly income of the household, the number of production crops in a year, and the total land area. The study also shows that the group of households applying drought-resistant rice varieties have higher income and selling prices than the group of households that do not, through the results of the t-test. From our findings, we highly recommend the adoption of drought-resitant rice varieties to mitigate the adverse impact of the increasing threats associated with climate change in general and water scarcity in particular.Nghiên cứu này phân tích các nhân tố ảnh hưởng đến lựa chọn áp dụng giống lúa chịu hạn và tác động đến thu nhập của hộ nông dân. Dựa vào mẫu điều tra 120 hộ trồng lúa ở hai địa bàn nghiên cứu, chúng tôi đã sử dụng mô hình hồi quy Probit và hồi quy tuyến tính để ước lượng các nhân tố tác động đến sự lựa chọn của nông hộ. Kết quả chỉ ra rằng các nhân tố có tác động đến xác xuất sử dụng giống lúa chịu hạn bao gồm tuổi chủ hộ, số thành viên trong gia đình, thu nhập hàng tháng của hộ, số vụ sản xuất trong một năm, và tổng diện tích đất. Kết quả cũng chỉ ra nhóm hộ áp dụng giống lúa chịu hạn có thu nhập và giá bán cao hơn so với nhóm hộ không áp dụng, thông qua kết quả kiểm định t-test. Từ kết quả nghiên cứu, chúng tôi khuyến nghị mở rộng áp dụng giống lúa chịu hạn nhằm giảm thiểu tác động tiêu cực của biến đổi khí hậu nói chung và sự khan hiếm nguồn nước trong sản xuất nói riêng đang có xu hướng gia tăng trong thời gian gần đây

Kinetics of Organic Biodegradation and Biogas Production in the Pilot-Scale Moving Bed Biofilm Reactor (MBBR) for Piggery Wastewater Treatment

In this research, the kinetics of COD biodegradation and biogas production in a moving bed biofilm reactor (MBBR) at pilot scale (10 m3) for piggery wastewater treatment were investigated. Polyethylene (PE) was used as a carrying material, with organic loading rates (OLRs) of 10, 15, and 18 kgCOD/m3 day in accordance to hydraulic retention times (HRTs) of 0.56, 0.37, and 0.3 day. The results showed that a high COD removal efficiency was obtained in the range of 68–78% with the influent COD of 5.2–5.8 g/L at all 3 HRTs. About COD degradation kinetics, in comparison to the first- and second-order kinetics and the Monod model, Stover–Kincannon model showed the best fit with R2 0.98 and a saturation value constant (KB) and a maximum utilization rate (Umax) of 52.40 g/L day and 82.65 g/L day, respectively. The first- and second-order kinetics with all 3 HRTs and Monod model with the HRT of 0.56 day also obtained high R2 values. Therefore, these kinetics and models can be further considered to be used for predicting the kinetic characteristics of the MBBR system in piggery wastewater treatment process. The result of a 6-month operation of the MBBR was that biogas production was mostly in the operating period of days 17 to 80, around 0.2 to 0.3 and 0.15–0.20 L/gCODconverted, respectively, and then reduction at an OLR of 18 kgCOD/m3. After the start-up stage, day 35 biogas cumulative volume fluctuated from 20 to 30 m3/day and reached approximately 3500 m3 for 178 days during the whole digestive process. Methane is accounted for about 65–70% of biogas with concentration around 400 mg/L

Formation and Evaluation of Complete Blood Count Proficiency Testing Program

Introduction: The haematology external quality assessment (EQA) scheme is the most commonly used service of quality assurance. The provision of complete blood count (CBC) materials must meet the quality requirements at a reasonable cost. These requirements are the most significant challenges for EQA organisers in Vietnam. This study’s objective was to evaluate the homogeneity, long-term stability, and peer-group performance of 10-parameter stabilised CBC EQA samples. Methods: The CBC EQA material was prepared using the following steps, including (1) adjusting levels of stabilised erythrocyte, leukocyte, and platelet samples, (2) mixing those cells into batches at three levels, and (3) dispensing and storing them at 2–6 °C. A set of 10 and 30 specimens were randomly chosen from each batch to study the homogeneity and long-term stability following ISO 13528:2015. In total, 166 samples at two levels were randomly distributed to 40 participants, which reported 83 automatic cell counters among six automated analyser models in the CBC EQA program. Results: The 10-parameter stabilised CBC EQA materials at three levels became homogeneous and stable in 12 weeks when preserved at 2–6 °C. Meanwhile, for five parameters (RBC, Hb, MCH, MCV, and MPV), this process was prolonged for up to 16 weeks in stock condition. In terms of peer-group performance, the CV (%) values increased at the low concentration for almost all parameters, especially in platelet counts. Conclusions: The stabilised CBC EQA samples prepared using the partial fixation method with aldehyde and gutaraldehyde in this study meet the ISO 13528:2015 requirements of homogeneity and long-term stability for the CBC EQA scheme. Analytical performance evaluation should categorise participant methods into peer groups