Finishing the euchromatic sequence of the human genome

The sequence of the human genome encodes the genetic instructions for human physiology, as well as rich information about human evolution. In 2001, the International Human Genome Sequencing Consortium reported a draft sequence of the euchromatic portion of the human genome. Since then, the international collaboration has worked to convert this draft into a genome sequence with high accuracy and nearly complete coverage. Here, we report the result of this finishing process. The current genome sequence (Build 35) contains 2.85 billion nucleotides interrupted by only 341 gaps. It covers ∼99% of the euchromatic genome and is accurate to an error rate of ∼1 event per 100,000 bases. Many of the remaining euchromatic gaps are associated with segmental duplications and will require focused work with new methods. The near-complete sequence, the first for a vertebrate, greatly improves the precision of biological analyses of the human genome including studies of gene number, birth and death. Notably, the human enome seems to encode only 20,000-25,000 protein-coding genes. The genome sequence reported here should serve as a firm foundation for biomedical research in the decades ahead

Assessing contribution of research in business to practice

This editorial offers some thoughts on wider criteria of evaluation than journal and article impact metrics. The editorial suggests that the measurement of journal and article impact metrics simply confirms the status quo rather than the promotion of resonance between practice, research and theory. The editorial proposes a more holistic recognition of impact, influence and usefulness that elevates the importance of three further dimensions of application, context and involvement. The editorial considers the value of scientific research to business practitioners and students concluding that an ingenuous and on-going scheme of exchange between scholars and practitioners would lead to cross-fertilization of ideas and experience and enhance empathy, learning and understanding. The alternative pursuit of scientific “respectability” by scholars in the most myopic academic sense has become less and less useful to students as well as the business community leaving the suspicion of business schools obsessed with making money whilst pretending to pursue knowledge and produce future citizens to make the world a better place

Culture and positioning as determinants of strategy: personality and the business organization

This book offers an alternative to the traditional process of segmentation, targeting and positioning, highlighting some important implications for management and marketing practitioners as well as academics. Strategic positioning is the assertion of an organization's personality on decisions of how and where to compete. Operational positioning is an exercise in communication that concentrates on perception and image. The book suggests that the principal drivers of strategic positioning play a fundamental role in the determination of strategy at all levels and play a pivotal role in differentiating competitors and generating competitive advantage. In particular, strategic positioning requires awareness and sometimes adjustment and changes in an organization's culture rather than just the cosmetic approach sometimes sought through promotion, advertising and communications plans

Can we live without a dog? Consumption life cycles in dog-owner relationships

Purpose - To relate the relationship between pet dogs and their owners to the marketing of pet-related products. Design/methodology/approach - Reflects on the author's own experiences of dog ownership, directly or in terms of family members' dogs, and the impact of acquiring a new dog on existing owned pets and on family life. Details the practical issues of feeding, living space, grooming, cleaning up mess, exercising, neighbours and the law, medical care, holidays, old age, and death. Outlines other aspects: why a dog rather than a cat, what a dog contributes, pedigree or mutt, buying products and services for the new dog. Findings - Unlike children, dogs do not grow up and leave home; this suggests companionship rather than an unequal relationship, and that dogs remain part of the family. There is also a separation of what is the dog's property as opposed to the owner's, and what is acceptable dog behaviour. Originality/value - Shows that dog ownership is based on reciprocal altruism