Pricing in the hotel and catering sector

A model explaining gross margins in the hotel and catering sector is developed. A cost-mark-up model for the retail sector is used as a starting point. Although we have to reject the hypothesis of mark-up pricing in the hotel and catering sector, the model proves a useful instrument to discriminate between such influences as sales composition, costs and their various components, scale and demand conditions on price setting. Our empirical evidence stems from the Dutch hotel and catering sector (1977 through 1981)

Circulating angiopoietin-2 levels in the course of septic shock: relation with fluid balance, pulmonary dysfunction and mortality

Contains fulltext : 79899.pdf (publisher's version ) (Closed access)PURPOSE: To investigate whether angiopoietin-2, von Willebrand factor (VWF) and angiopoietin-1 relate to surrogate indicators of vascular permeability, pulmonary dysfunction and intensive care unit (ICU) mortality throughout the course of septic shock. METHODS: In 50 consecutive mechanically ventilated septic shock patients, plasma angiopoietin-2, VWF and angiopoietin-1 levels and fluid balance, partial pressure of oxygen/inspiratory oxygen fraction and the oxygenation index as indicators of vascular permeability and pulmonary dysfunction, respectively, were measured until day 28. RESULTS: Angiopoietin-2 positively related to the fluid balance and pulmonary dysfunction, was higher in non-survivors than in survivors and independently predicted non-survival throughout the course of septic shock. VWF inversely related to the fluid balance and pulmonary dysfunction throughout the course of septic shock, was comparable between survivors and non-survivors and predicted non-survival on day 0 only. Angiopoietin-1 positively related to pulmonary dysfunction throughout the course, but did not differ between survivors and non-survivors. CONCLUSIONS: In contrast to VWF, plasma angiopoietin-2 positively relates to fluid balance, pulmonary dysfunction and mortality throughout the course of septic shock, in line with a suggested mediator role of the protein

Elementary Teachers’ Comprehension of Flooding through Inquiry-based Professional Development and Use of Self-regulation Strategies

This study focuses on elementary teachers’ comprehension of flooding before and after inquiry-based professional development (PD). There was an improvement in teachers’ understanding toward a normative view from pre- to post-test (n = 17, mean gain = 4.3, SD = 3.27). Several misunderstandings and a general lack of knowledge about flooding emerged from the geoscience content two-tier pre-test, some of which persisted throughout the PD seminar while other responses provided evidence of teachers’ improved understanding. The concepts that teachers struggled with were also apparent upon examining teachers’ reflections upon their learning and teaching practices throughout the seminar. Teachers were challenged as they attempted to add new academic language, such as storm surge and discharge, to their prior understandings. Flooding concepts that teachers showed the least improvement on included analyzing a topographic region, reading a map image, and hydrograph interpretation. Teachers’ greatest areas of improved understanding occurred in understanding the probability and role of ground conditions in flooding events. Teachers demonstrated considerable growth in their understanding of some flooding concepts through scaffolded inquiry lessons modeled throughout the PD. Those teachers who had greater prior knowledge and demonstrated more use of self-regulated learning showed the most change toward a normative view of flooding. The explicit modeling and participation in inquiry-based science activities and written responses to self-regulatory learning prompts throughout the seminar supported teachers’ learning

Extended preservation and effect of nitric oxide production in liver transplantation

Liver transplantation (Ltx) has become a routine procedure for patients with end-stage liver disease. Despite ongoing progress on short- and long-term graft survival, primary dysfunction (PDF) remains a major problem. PDF is significantly associated with the duration of cold ischemia- and, possibly, with reperfusion-related injury. Nitric oxide (NO) has many physiological functions and plays an important role in modulating tissue injury. However, the mechanism of NO action in ischemia/reperfusion injury after Ltx is thus far unknown. In this study we investigated the role of inducable NO synthase (iNOS) in the liver after preservation with UW solution using the orthotopic Ltx model in the rat. Male Brown Norway rats were used for the Ltx procedure. After donor hepatectomy, livers were stored on ice-cold UW solution for 24 or 40 h and subsequently transplanted. A control group consisted of rats with Ltx after less than 1 h storage. Posttransplant blood samples were taken at 48 h to determine standard parameters for liver injury (aspartate transaminase, lactate dehydrogenase). Liver biopsies were obtained for detection of expression of iNOS (western blot) 24 and 48 h posttransplant. We observed that a preservation time of 24 h in UW solution presents no problem for graft survival after Ltx in rats with some brain function and in healthy animals. After 40 h preservation, liver damage is obvious and graft survival reduced, indicating the limits of cold storage may be within reach. With longer preservation times, more NOs was detected in liver tissue. This finding suggests that NO has a role in ischemia/reperfusion-related injury. Current intervention with NOS inhibitors will reveal whether NO has a negative or a positive effect on graft survival after Ltx.</p

Bridging the Gap: 3D Real-Space Characterization of Colloidal Assemblies via FIB-SEM Tomography

Insight in the structure of nanoparticle assemblies up to a single particle level is key to understand the collective properties of these assemblies, which critically depend on the individual particle positions and orientations. However, the characterization of large, micron sized assemblies containing small, 10-500 nanometer, sized colloids is highly challenging and cannot easily be done with the conventional light, electron or X-ray microscopy techniques. Here, we demonstrate that focused ion beam-scanning electron microscopy (FIB-SEM) tomography in combination with image processing enables quantitative real-space studies of ordered and disordered particle assemblies too large for conventional transmission electron tomography, containing particles too small for confocal microscopy. First, we demonstrate the high resolution structural analysis of spherical nanoparticle assemblies, containing small anisotropic gold nanoparticles. Herein, FIB-SEM tomography allows the characterization of assembly dimensions which are inaccessible to conventional transmission electron microscopy. Next, we show that FIB-SEM tomography is capable of characterizing much larger ordered and disordered assemblies containing silica colloids with a diameter close to the resolution limit of confocal microscopes. We determined both the position and the orientation of each individual (nano)particle in the assemblies by using recently developed particle tracking routines. Such high precision structural information is essential in the understanding and design of the collective properties of new nanoparticle based materials and processes.Comment: 17 pages, 4 figures, Supplemental Information at articles webpage: https://doi.org/10.1039/C8NR09753

A six question screen to facilitate primary cardiovascular disease prevention

Background: European guidelines on primary prevention of cardiovascular disease (CVD) recommend the SCORE risk charts for determining CVD risk, which include blood pressure and serum cholesterol as risk parameters. To facilitate cost-effective large-scale screening, we aimed to construct a risk score with 'non-invasive' parameters as a first screening step to identify persons at increased CVD risk requiring further risk assessment. Methods: We used data of Dutch employees from 25 organisations participating in a health risk assessment between August 2007 and January 2013. Backward multivariate logistic regression analysis was employed to select non-invasive, independent predictors of high CVD risk, defined as the 10-year risk of fatal CVD of ≥5 % based on the SCORE formula. The total CVD risk score was calculated as the summed coefficients of the retained variables. Results: Data of 6189 male participants was used for the development and validation of the risk score. Age, tobacco use, history of hypertension, alcohol consumption, BMI, and waist circumference were independent predictors of high CVD risk. Ten-fold cross-validation resulted in an area under the curve of 0.95 (SE 0.01, 95 % confidence interval 0.94-0.96). A cut-off score ≥45 on the CVD risk score yielded a sensitivity of 0.93, and a specificity of 0.85. Conclusions: We developed a simple, non-invasive risk score that accurately identifies persons at increased CVD risk according to the SCORE formula in a population of working men. The risk score enables a stepwise approach in large screening programmes, strongly reducing the number of persons that require full risk estimation including blood pressure and cholesterol measures

Development of muscle ultrasound density in healthy fetuses and infants

Muscle ultrasound density (MUD) is a non-invasive parameter to indicate neuromuscular integrity in both children and adults. In healthy fetuses and infants, physiologic MUD values during development are still lacking. We therefore aimed to determine the physiologic, age-related MUD trend of biceps, quadriceps, tibialis anterior, hamstrings, gluteal and calf muscles, from pre- to the first year of postnatal life. To avoid a bias by pregnancy-related signal disturbances, we expressed fetal MUD as a ratio against bone ultrasound density. We used the full-term prenatal MUD ratio and the newborn postnatal MUD value as reference points, so that MUD development could be quantified from early pre- into postnatal life. Results: During the prenatal period, the total muscle group revealed a developmental MUD trend concerning a fetal increase in MUD-ratio from the 2nd trimester up to the end of the 3rd trimester [median increase: 27% (range 16-45), p < .001]. After birth, MUD-values increased up to the sixth month [median increase: 11% (range -7-27), p = 0.025] and stabilized thereafter. Additionally, there were also individual MUD characteristics per muscle group and developmental stage, such as relatively low MUD values of fetal hamstrings and high values of the paediatric gluteus muscles. These MUD trends are likely to concur with analogous developmentally, maturation-related alterations in the muscle water to peptide content ratios

Labour productivity and profitability in the Dutch flower trade

This paper makes an attempt to illustrate the use of econometric models as frame of reference for diagnosing small firm performance. For this purpose, two models are developed explaining differences in labour productivity and profitability among Dutch flower exporters. In addition, we show how these models can be used for inter-firm performance comparisons