Project management : learning by breaking the rules

The paper explores project management in action in a large public research organisation – NLAT which decided to change its internal organisation from team-based to project-based organisation a few years ago. A systematic and comparative analysis of 8 projects reveals that adherence to the ISO 9000’s standardized rules of project management - specific staffing and project leaders, definition of milestones ex ante, procedure manuals, and formalized learning accumulation mechanisms - had little to do with the organisations success over recent years: Looking for explanations for this success, the paper focuses on the process of transferring from one project to another, enhancing organisational learning through rules breaking. We identify three elements which encourage the accumulation of knowledge and competencies, as organisational learning: low project core staffing levels which stimulates the circulation of engineers and researchers between projects and blurs project boundaries, implementing and managing thematic projects which build on specific competencies developed in dedicated projects and encouraging ‘bricolage’ to hybridise project management with traditional hierarchical management practices.PROJECT MANAGEMENT;R&D;HIGH TECH;MANAGEMENT PRACTICES

Bubbles from Nothing

Within the framework of flux compactifications, we construct an instanton describing the quantum creation of an open universe from nothing. The solution has many features in common with the smooth 6d bubble of nothing solutions discussed recently, where the spacetime is described by a 4d compactification of a 6d Einstein-Maxwell theory on S^2 stabilized by flux. The four-dimensional description of this instanton reduces to that of Hawking and Turok. The choice of parameters uniquely determines all future evolution, which we additionally find to be stable against bubble of nothing instabilities.Comment: 19 pages, 6 figure

Decay of flux vacua to nothing

We construct instanton solutions describing the decay of flux compactifications of a $6d$ gauge theory by generalizing the Kaluza-Klein bubble of nothing. The surface of the bubble is described by a smooth magnetically charged solitonic brane whose asymptotic flux is precisely that responsible for stabilizing the 4d compactification. We describe several instances of bubble geometries for the various vacua occurring in a $6d$ Einstein-Maxwell theory namely, AdS_4 x S^2, R^{1,3} x S^2, and dS_4 x S^2. Unlike conventional solutions, the bubbles of nothing introduced here occur where a {\em two}-sphere compactification manifold homogeneously degenerates.Comment: 31 pages, 15 figure

Miami is Setting the Expectation on How Coastal Communities in Florida Should Respond to Protect Homeowners from the Sinking State

This note begins by explaining what environmental factors are causing the sea level rise to increase at just a rapid pace and how coastal communities are ultimately affected. Because Florida is a slice of paradise within the states, it causes the population to increase vastly. Thus, millions of homeowners could face tragic consequences, such as total inundation of residential homes, flooding within the community, and a drastic decrease in home value. In response to this natural disaster, in 2021, Governor Ron DeSantis passed Senate Bill 1954 into law, which requires the Department of Environmental Protection to complete a statewide flood risk and sea-level rise data assessment to submit to the Governor. Senate Bill 1954 also gives $100 million in grants to aid local governments in combating the rising sea levels. Moreover, the note assesses what Miami is currently doing with the funding since the city is extremely vulnerable and how Miami sets an example for other coastal communities to respond similarly. Lastly, the note concludes by exploring environmentally friendly alternatives to protect homeowners from the rising sea level, such as comparing how other parts of the world are responding and how feasible it is for Florida to respond alike

Notas sobre el género Entoloma en el noroeste de la Península Ibérica (IV): Entoloma legionense, una nueva especie del subgénero Leptonia

Notes about the genus Entoloma in the Northwest of the Iberian Peninsula (IV): Entoloma legionense, a new species of subgenus Leptonia. A new species of the genus Entoloma, found in León (Northwest of the Iberian Peninsula) is described. Entoloma legionense, sp. nov. differs from the most affine taxa of the subgenus Leptonia by the following combination of characters: stipe partially green-blackish, cheilocystidia frequently thick-walled, a more diverse in forms that in the neighbouring taxa, presence of encrusting pigment in numerous hyphae, presence of caulobasidia and caulocystidia and fructification on rotten wood of beech.Notas sobre el género Entoloma en el Noroeste de la Península Ibérica (IV): Entoloma legionense, una nueva especie del subgénero Leptonia. Se describe una especie nueva del género Entoloma, encontrada en León (Noroeste de la Península Ibérica). Entoloma legionense, sp. nov. se diferencia de los taxones más próximos del subgénero Leptonia en el que se encuadra, por presentar la siguiente combinación de caracteres: estipe parcialmente verdenegruzco, queilocistidios frecuentemente de pared gruesa, con una mayor diversidad de formas respecto a los taxones más cercanos, presencia de pigmento incrustante en numerosas hifas, presencia de caulobasidios y caulocistidios y fructificación sobre madera de haya, en descomposición

Cheimonophyllum pontevedrense, a new species found in the northwest of the Iberian Peninsula

A full description is given of Cheimonophyllum pontevedrense, a new species found in Galicia (NW of the Iberian Peninsula). After a review of the species currently included in this genus, we concluded that this taxon does not correspond to any of the species known so far and, consequently, we describe it as a new species. Morphological description and drawings of macro- and microscopic characters of the basidiomata are presented. A key, an amendment of original diagnose of Cheimonophyllum and a discussion about the taxa of this genus are provided.Se describe Cheimonophyllum pontevedrense, una nueva especie encontrada en Galicia (NW de la Península Ibérica). Tras una revisión de las otras especies de este género, hemos concluido que este taxón no se corresponde con ninguna de las especies conocidas, por lo que se describe aquí como una nueva especie. Se presenta una descripción morfológica e iconográfica de este taxón. Se adjunta una clave, una modificación de la diagnosis del género Cheimonophyllum y una discusión sobre los taxones encuadrados en este género

Cheimonophyllum pontevedrense, a new species found in the northwest of the Iberian Peninsula

A full description is given of Cheimonophyllum pontevedrense, a new species found in Galicia (NW of the Iberian Peninsula). After a review of the species currently included in this genus, we concluded that this taxon does not correspond to any of the species known so far and, consequently, we describe it as a new species. Morphological description and drawings of macro- and microscopic characters of the basidiomata are presented. A key, an amendment of original diagnose of Cheimonophyllum and a discussion about the taxa of this genus are provided.Se describe Cheimonophyllum pontevedrense, una nueva especie encontrada en Galicia (NW de la Península Ibérica). Tras una revisión de las otras especies de este género, hemos concluido que este taxón no se corresponde con ninguna de las especies conocidas, por lo que se describe aquí como una nueva especie. Se presenta una descripción morfológica e iconográfica de este taxón. Se adjunta una clave, una modificación de la diagnosis del género Cheimonophyllum y una discusión sobre los taxones encuadrados en este género

Notas sobre el género Entoloma en el noroeste de la Península Ibérica (IV): Entoloma legionense, una nueva especie del subgénero Leptonia

Notes about the genus Entoloma in the Northwest of the Iberian Peninsula (IV): Entoloma legionense, a new species of subgenus Leptonia. A new species of the genus Entoloma, found in León (Northwest of the Iberian Peninsula) is described. Entoloma legionense, sp. nov. differs from the most affine taxa of the subgenus Leptonia by the following combination of characters: stipe partially green-blackish, cheilocystidia frequently thick-walled, a more diverse in forms that in the neighbouring taxa, presence of encrusting pigment in numerous hyphae, presence of caulobasidia and caulocystidia and fructification on rotten wood of beech.Notas sobre el género Entoloma en el Noroeste de la Península Ibérica (IV): Entoloma legionense, una nueva especie del subgénero Leptonia. Se describe una especie nueva del género Entoloma, encontrada en León (Noroeste de la Península Ibérica). Entoloma legionense, sp. nov. se diferencia de los taxones más próximos del subgénero Leptonia en el que se encuadra, por presentar la siguiente combinación de caracteres: estipe parcialmente verdenegruzco, queilocistidios frecuentemente de pared gruesa, con una mayor diversidad de formas respecto a los taxones más cercanos, presencia de pigmento incrustante en numerosas hifas, presencia de caulobasidios y caulocistidios y fructificación sobre madera de haya, en descomposición

Glycosylated haemoglobin is markedly elevated in new and known diabetes patients with hyperglycaemic ketoacidosis

Background: Glycosylated haemoglobin (HbA1c) and random blood glucose are markers of chronic and acute hyperglycaemia respectively.Objective: We compared HbA1c levels in ketoacidosis (DKA) occurring in known and newly diagnosed diabetes.Methods: Retrospective review of medical records for 83 DKA admissions in 2008 and 2009 with results for HbA1c at presentationResults: There were 52 and 31 DKA admissions in known and newly diagnosed diabetes patients respectively. Fifty of the 83 DKA admissions were in females. The mean age (per admissions) and HbA1c of all admissions are 43.4 ± 20.3 years (n=83) and 12.7 ± 3.4 % (n=83) respectively. Mean HbA1c in known Type 1, known Type 2 and newly diagnosed diabetes patients were similarly very high: 12.4 ± 3.3 %, 12.5 ± 3.3 %, 13.1 ± 3.7 %; P = 0.6828. The HbA1c levels in newly diagnosed diabetes patients less than 30 years (likely Type 1 diabetes) and ≥ 30 years (likely Type 2 diabetes) were similar. There was a tendency to significantly positive correlation between blood glucose and HbA1c in new diabetes patients.Conclusions: In our setting, DKA is associated with markedly elevated HbA1c levels in known type 1, known type 2 and new onset diabetes.Key words: Glycosylated haemoglobin, ketoacidosis, Known and newly diagnosed diabete