How foreign firms achieve competitive advantage in the Chinese emerging economy: Managerial ties and market orientation

As China experience unprecedented changes in its social, legal, and economic institutions, on what should foreign firms focus more to overcome this challenge, managerial ties or market orientation? This study investigates how managerial ties and market orientation affect competitive advantage and, consequently, firm performance in China. On the basis of a survey of 179 foreign firms in China, we find that both managerial ties and market orientation can lead to firm success-but in different ways. Market orientation enhances firm performance by providing differentiation and cost advantages, whereas managerial ties improve performance through an institutional advantage (i.e., superiority in securing scarce resources and institutional support). Institutional advantage, in turn, leads to differentiation and cost advantages and consequently superior performance. © 2009 Elsevier Inc.postprin

How strategic orientations influence the building of dynamic capability in emerging economies

Under the fierce pressures of the fast changing environments that characterize emerging economies, firms must develop dynamic capabilities to survive the competition. This study examines how strategic orientation helps build dynamic capability and its contingencies in China's emerging economy. A survey of 380 firms indicates strategic orientations are important drivers of adaptive capability, a key element of dynamic capabilities. The effectiveness of strategic orientations is contingent on market dynamics. In particular, when market demand becomes increasingly uncertain, customer orientation has a weaker impact, whereas technology orientation has a stronger effect on adaptive capability. As competition intensifies, both competitor and technology orientations build adaptive capability more effectively. © 2009 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.postprin

When Can You Trust ‘Trust'? Calculative Trust, Relational Trust, and Supplier Performance

Our research empirically assesses two distinct bases for trust: calculative trust, based on a structure of rewards and penalties, versus relational trust, a judgment anchored in past behavior and characterized by a shared identity. We find that calculative trust and relational trust positively influence supplier performance, with calculative trust having a stronger association than relational trust. Yet, important boundary conditions exist. If buyers invest in supplier-specific assets or when supply side market uncertainty is high, relational trust, not calculative trust, is more strongly associated with supplier performance. In contrast, when behavioral uncertainty is high, calculative trust, not relational trust, relates more strongly to supplier performance. These results highlight the value of examining distinct forms of trust. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.postprin

Compact, Low-Profile, Bandwidth-Enhanced Substrate Integrated Waveguide Filtenna

© 2011 IEEE. In this letter, a compact, low-profile, bandwidth-enhanced, dual-cavity substrate integrated waveguide (SIW) filtenna is demonstrated. Two SIW cavities are stacked vertically on top of each other. A complementary split-ring resonator slot is etched in the top surface of the uppermost cavity, causing the top surface to act as a patch antenna. The operational impedance bandwidth is significantly enhanced by merging the three resonances that arise from this configuration. One is introduced by the patch, and the other two are inherently generated by the two cavities. A metallized coupling post is introduced from the ground plane through both cavities to the upper surface to excite the fundamental resonant mode of the patch, as well as to electromagnetically couple the two cavities. The optimized filtenna was fabricated by a standard printed circuit board technology and tested. It has a low profile λ 0 and a compact size 0.62λ 0×0.62λ0 at its center frequency, f0=2.95GHz. The measured results agree well with their simulated values. They demonstrate a 6.3% fractional bandwidth, a maximum realized gain of 6.73 dBi, a flat gain profile within its passband, and an excellent out-of-band selectivity

Design of Broadband Non-Foster Circuits Based on Resonant Tunneling Diodes

A non-Foster circuit (NFC) based on the resonant tunneling diode (RTD) is proposed for application to broadband impedance matching of electrically small antennas (ESAs). NFCs have traditionally been implemented with transistor pairs to achieve negative impedance, but these have limitations with respect to performance and operational bandwidth at high frequencies. At certain biasing voltages, double barrier RTDs behave as negative differential resistance (NDR) devices, which may be transformed to exhibit negative impedance. In contrast to the transistor-based NFC, these structures serve to gyrate or invert the load impedance, such that an inductive load will lead to a negative capacitance, and vice versa. This device is termed a negative impedance inverter (NII). We demonstrate negative impedance behavior for prototypes with measurements of negative resistance at up to 3 GHz, and device gain of around 5 dB from DC to 4 GHz. Design for stability of the RTD is performed using the Nyquist stability criterion. Stabilized negative capacitance NFCs show optimum performance from DC to the GHz range depending upon the load value. These NFCs are used to impedance match an antenna at low frequencies. An antenna with only one resonance at 3.5 GHz has been transformed with two different matching circuits: to an antenna encompassing the 1 to 2 GHz range; as well as the VHF/UHF bands from 300 MHz to 1 GHz. Additionally, RTDs have been demonstrated for operation at up to THz frequencies, so this topology can be extended to higher frequencies subject to fabrication constraints

Development of HIV-1 rectal-specific microbicides and colonic tissue evaluation

The gastrointestinal tract is structurally and functionally different from the vagina. Thus, the paradigm of topical microbicide development and evaluation has evolved to include rectal microbicides (RMs). Our interest was to create unique RM formulations to safely and effectively deliver antiretroviral drugs to mucosal tissue. RMs were designed to include those that spread and coat all surfaces of the rectum and distal colon rapidly (liquid) and those that create a deformable, erodible barrier and remain localized at the administration site (gel). Tenofovir (TFV) (1%) was formulated as an aqueous thermoreversible fluid and a carbopol-based aqueous hydrogel. Lipid-based liquid and gel formulations were prepared for UC781 (0.1%) using isopropyl myristate and GTCC (Caprylic/Capric Triglycerides), respectively. Formulations were characterized for pH, viscosity, osmolality, and drug content. Pre-clinical testing incorporated ex vivo colonic tissue obtained through surgical resections and flexible sigmoidoscopy (flex sig). As this was the first time using tissue from both sources side-by-side, the ability to replicate HIV-1 was compared. Efficacy of the RM formulations was tested by applying the products with HIV-1 directly to polarized colonic tissue and following viral replication. Safety of the formulations was determined by MTT assay and histology. All products had a neutral pH and were isoosmolar. While HIV-1BaL and HIV-1 JR-CSF alone and in the presence of semen had similar replication trends between surgically resected and flex sig tissues, the magnitude of viral replication was significantly better in flex sig tissues. Both TFV and UC781 formulations protected the colonic tissue, regardless of tissue source, from HIV-1 and retained tissue viability and architecture. Our in vitro and ex vivo results show successful formulation of unique RMs. Moreover, the results of flex sig and surgically resected tissues were comparable suggesting the incorporation of both in pre-clinical testing algorithms. © 2014 Dezzutti et al

Compact, Low-Profile, Linearly and Circularly Polarized Filtennas Enabled with Custom-Designed Feed-Probe Structures

© 1963-2012 IEEE. Compact, low-profile, linearly polarized (LP), and circularly polarized (CP) patch-based filtennas are realized with a custom-designed coupling probe. It introduces a deep null at both the lower and upper band edges of the filter response. These two nulls facilitate a quasi-elliptic bandpass behavior and can be independently controlled to achieve sharp band-edge skirts and high out-of-band suppression levels. The CP version evolves from the LP design by introducing a T-shaped near-field resonant parasitic (NFRP) element near the probe to create two transmission paths with an inherent 90° phase difference. Its presence facilitates the simultaneous excitation of the TM10 and TM01 modes of the patch without the need for any power divider or phase delay line, reducing the design complexity and lowering the insertion loss. Prototypes were fabricated, assembled, and tested. The measured results agree well with their simulated values. They are low profile (0.03 \lambda _{0} height) and compact in size ( 0.04~\lambda _{0}^{2} footprint). The LP and CP prototypes exhibit, respectively, a -10-dB fractional impedance bandwidth of 7% and an overlapping axial ratio fractional bandwidth of 4.5%. Excellent measured performance characteristics are demonstrated, including flat passband realized gain values and filter responses with sharp roll-off rates and high out-of-band suppression levels

The optical afterglow of the short gamma-ray burst GRB 050709

It has long been known that there are two classes of gamma-ray bursts (GRBs), mainly distinguished by their durations. The breakthrough in our understanding of long-duration GRBs (those lasting more than ~2 s), which ultimately linked them with energetic Type Ic supernovae, came from the discovery of their long-lived X-ray and optical afterglows, when precise and rapid localizations of the sources could finally be obtained. X-ray localizations have recently become available for short (duration <2 s) GRBs, which have evaded optical detection for more than 30 years. Here we report the first discovery of transient optical emission (R-band magnitude ~23) associated with a short burst; GRB 050709. The optical afterglow was localized with subarcsecond accuracy, and lies in the outskirts of a blue dwarf galaxy. The optical and X-ray afterglow properties 34 h after the GRB are reminiscent of the afterglows of long GRBs, which are attributable to synchrotron emission from ultrarelativistic ejecta. We did not, however, detect a supernova, as found in most nearby long GRB afterglows, which suggests a different origin for the short GRBs.Comment: 11 pages, 3 figures, press material at http://www.astro.ku.dk/dark

Development of a reactive stroma associated with prostatic intraepithelial neoplasia in EAF2 deficient mice

ELL-associated factor 2 (EAF2) is an androgen-responsive tumor suppressor frequently deleted in advanced prostate cancer that functions as a transcription elongation factor of RNA Pol II through interaction with the ELL family proteins. EAF2 knockout mice on a 129P2/OLA-C57BL/6J background developed late-onset lung adenocarcinoma, hepatocellular carcinoma, B-cell lymphoma and high-grade prostatic intraepithelial neoplasia. In order to further characterize the role of EAF2 in the development of prostatic defects, the effects of EAF2 loss were compared in different murine strains. In the current study, aged EAF2-/- mice on both the C57BL/6J and FVB/NJ backgrounds exhibited mPIN lesions as previously reported on a 129P2/OLA-C57BL/6J background. In contrast to the 129P2/OLA-C57BL/6J mixed genetic background, the mPIN lesions in C57BL/6J and FVB/NJ EAF2-/- mice were associated with stromal defects characteristic of a reactive stroma and a statistically significant increase in prostate microvessel density. Stromal inflammation and increased microvessel density was evident in EAF2-deficient mice on a pure C57BL/6J background at an early age and preceded the development of the histologic epithelial hyperplasia and neoplasia found in the prostates of older EAF2 -/- animals. Mice deficient in EAF2 had an increased recovery rate and a decreased overall response to the effects of androgen deprivation. EAF2 expression in human cancer was significantly down-regulated and microvessel density was significantly increased compared to matched normal prostate tissue; furthermore EAF2 expression was negatively correlated with microvessel density. These results suggest that the EAF2 knockout mouse on the C57BL/6J and FVB/NJ genetic backgrounds provides a model of PIN lesions associated with an altered prostate microvasculature and reactive stromal compartment corresponding to that reported in human prostate tumors. © 2013 Pascal et al