SpaceX Dragon Air Circulation System

The Dragon capsule is a reusable vehicle being developed by Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX) that will provide commercial cargo transportation to the International Space Station (ISS). Dragon is designed to be a habitable module while it is berthed to ISS. As such, the Dragon Environmental Control System (ECS) consists of pressure control and pressure equalization, air sampling, fire detection, illumination, and an air circulation system. The air circulation system prevents pockets of stagnant air in Dragon that can be hazardous to the ISS crew. In addition, through the inter-module duct, the air circulation system provides fresh air from ISS into Dragon. To utilize the maximum volume of Dragon for cargo packaging, the Dragon ECS air circulation system is designed around cargo rack optimization. At the same time, the air circulation system is designed to meet the National Aeronautics Space Administration (NASA) inter-module and intra-module ventilation requirements and acoustic requirements. A flight like configuration of the Dragon capsule including the air circulation system was recently assembled for testing to assess the design for inter-module and intra-module ventilation and acoustics. The testing included the Dragon capsule, and flight configuration in the pressure section with cargo racks, lockers, all of the air circulation components, and acoustic treatment. The air circulation test was also used to verify the Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) model of the Dragon capsule. The CFD model included the same Dragon internal geometry that was assembled for the test. This paper will describe the Dragon air circulation system design which has been verified by testing the system and with CFD analysis

An empirical study of the determinants of Internet Banking adoption among Brazilians non-users

Este estudo investiga os fatores determinantes da adoção de Internet Banking entre não usuários brasileiros. Para tanto propõe-se um modelo que reúne os constructos dos modelos mais conhecidos de adoção de novas tecnologias da literatura de marketing. O modelo foi testado com amostra de 292 pessoas e os resultados revelam que os efeitos de oito variáveis sobre a intenção de usar o Internet Banking são significativos. São elas compatibilidade com estilo de vida, normas subjetivas, auto-eficácia, imagem, vantagem relativa de segurança e privacidade, vantagem relativa de controle, testagem e suporte tecnológico. Por outro lado, os efeitos das características individuais incluídas no modelo não se mostram significativos. A maior contribuição do estudo é a proposta de um modelo abrangente, simples e facilmente implementável. O estudo conclui apontando algumas implicações gerenciais, limitações e sugestões para estudos futuros.This study investigates the determinants of Internet Banking adoption among Brazilians non-users. To accomplish this objective, the study proposes a model built with constructs gathered from the most known models of new technology adoption found in the marketing literature. The model was tested among a sample of 292 people and the results show that the effects of eight variables were significant in determining the intention to adopt Internet Banking. They are compatibility with lifestyle, subjective norm, self-efficacy, image, relative advantage of security and privacy, relative advantage of control, trialability, and technological support. By the other side, none of the individual characteristics included in the model were significant. The major contribution of the study is the proposal of a comprehensive, simple, and easily implementable model. The study concludes by pointing some managerial implications, limitations, and suggestions for future studies

Development-based Trust: Proposing and Validating a New Trust Measurement Model for Buyer-Seller Relationships

This study proposes and validates a trust measurement model for buyer-seller relationships. Baptized as development-based trust, the model encompasses three dimensions of trust: calculus-based, knowledge-based and identification-based. In addition to recognizing that trust is a multidimensional construct, the model also assumes that trust can evolve to take on a different character depending on the stage of the relationship. In order to test the proposed model and compare it to the characteristic-based trust measurement model, the measure most frequently used in the buyer-seller relationship literature, data were collected from 238 clients of an IT product wholesaler. The results show that the scales are valid and reliable and the proposed development-based trust measurement model is superior to the characteristic-based trust measurement model in terms of its ability to explain certain variables of interest in buyer-seller relationships (long-term relationship orientation, information sharing, behavioral loyalty and future intentions). Implications for practice, limitations and suggestions for future studies are discussed

Competing scales for measuring the perceived quality: a comparison between the Servqual and RSQ

Não há dúvida sobre a importância da qualidade de serviços como fator de sucesso empresarial, mas mensurar essa qualidade tem se mostrado um desafio quando se consideram diferentes contextos. Diante disso, o objetivo deste estudo foi testar duas escalas de mensuração da qualidade percebida de serviços. A comparação entre a escala Service Quality (Servqual) e a Retail Service Quality (RSQ), deu-se por meio de survey junto a 351 respondentes e utilizou como ambiente de pesquisa uma rede de home centers com lojas localizadas na cidade de São Paulo. Para analisar os dados obtidos, foram utilizadas as técnicas multivariadas de análise fatorial exploratória e confirmatória. Como resultado, as duas escalas demonstraram níveis aceitáveis de confiabilidade e validade. Entretanto, no teste de validade nomológica, a escala RSQ mostrou-se superior à escala Servqual, uma vez que a primeira foi capaz de explicar 43% da lealdade em relação ao varejista, enquanto a segunda explicou apenas 11%.There is no doubt about the importance of service quality as a factor of businesses' success, but to measure this quality has proved to be a challenge when one considers different environmental contexts. Given this, the main goal of this paper was to test two measurement scales of perceived service quality. The comparison between Service Quality scale (Servqual) and Retail Service Quality (RSQ) was conducted by means of a survey with 351 participants, clients of a home center stores chain located in the city of São Paulo. The data were analyzed using both exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis. As a result, both scales demonstrated acceptable levels of reliability and validity. However, the RSQ demonstrated a better performance in the nomological test since it was able to explain 43% of the loyalty towards the retailer, while the Servqual scale explained only 11%

Regulating regret via decreasing goal level:Comparing maximizers and satisficers

Regret is an important emotion in the context of decision making and has many implications for the behavior of consumers. Although regret may be an inevitable outcome, it is possible to cope with it through various regulation strategies. This research investigates one of those strategies, namely, decrease the goal level strategy (DGL), in which one regulates regret by reevaluating the negativity of an outcome. Two properly powered and preregistered experimental studies find that the DGL strategy effectively works in regulating individuals' post-decisional regret. Besides, the DGL effect is moderated by individuals' maximizing tendency. When maximizers engaged in the DGL strategy, by reappraising their decision and recognizing positive alternative goals, they regulated their regrets more successfully. For satisficers, in contrast, who are by default more prone to adopt the protective “good enough” choice, engaging in a DGL strategy did not affect their regrets. These results contribute to the literature on regret by empirically testing DGL as an effective regret regulation strategy, showing mechanisms that can help individuals to effectively cope with regret

THE USE OF RGT (REPERTORY GRID TECHNIQUE) IN MEASURING THE IMAGE OF SHOPPING CENTERS

À medida que aumenta o número e a variedade de shopping centers existentes no Brasil, aumenta a pressão sobre os praticantes de marketing para que compreendam melhor como os consumidores escolhem os shopping centers tanto para como área de compras quanto como área de lazer. Este estudo sugere que a técnica de repertory grid (RGT) é superior a outras técnicas geralmente utilizadas para avaliar as dimensões pelas quais um consumidor avalia um shopping center. A principal vantagem da técnica de repertory grid é que as dimensões pelas quais um objeto é avaliado e as suas importâncias relativas são obtidas diretamente dos consumidores sem qualquer interferência do pesquisador. O estudo introduz alguns conceitos básicos necessários para se entender a aplicação da técnica e a teoria na qual ela se baseia, a psicologia dos constructos pessoais desenvolvida por Kelly (1955). O estudo também apresenta alguns exemplos hipotéticos de como aplicar a técnica e suas principais limitações.With the number and variety of shopping centers in Brazil increasing, there is greater pressure on the practitioners of marketing to better understand how consumers choose shopping centers both as shopping and leisure areas. This study suggests that the technique of the repertory grid (RGT) is superior to other techniques which are generally used to evaluate the dimensions which a consumer uses to evaluate a shopping center. The main advantage of the repertory grid is that the dimensions through which an object is evaluated and its relative importance are directly obtained from the consumer with no interference from the researcher. The study introduces a number of necessary basic concepts to understand the application of the technique and the theory on which it is based, the psychology of personal constructs developed by Kelly (1955). The study also presents a number of hypothetical examples of how to apply the technique and its main limitations

VALORES DE COMPRA HEDÔNICO E UTILITÁRIO: OS ANTECEDENTES E AS RELAÇÕES COM OS RESULTADOS DO VAREJO

Induced by the recent debate regarding the influence that the store environment can have on consumers and by the massive amount of resources that retailers have spent in order to create satisfied consumers, this study proposes a new model in which the relationship between store environment variables (physical environment, organization, assortment, and salesman service) and retail outcomes variables (satisfaction, repurchase intention, and word-of-mouth) is mediated by hedonic andutilitarian shopping values. To test the theoretical model, data were collected from the 399 respondents who purchased appliances at a store located in the city of São Paulo, Brazil. The results indicated that among the environmental variables of the store, only the assistance of salesman has positively influenced the values of hedonic and utilitarian shopping. Hedonic shopping value influenced positively all the retail outcomes variables while utilitarian shopping value did not influence any of them. The results suggest that in this particular case, hedonic shopping value was much more important than utilitarian shopping value to determine purchase satisfaction, repurchase intention, and intention of word-of-mouth. The results also suggest the greater importance of salesman service in situations that the store environment is not especially attractive or different.Motivado pelo crescente debate sobre a influência que o ambiente de uma loja pode exercer nos consumidores e pela enorme quantidade de recursos que os varejistas devotam para criar clientes satisfeitos e leais, este artigo propõe um novo modelo em que a relação entre as variáveis ambientais da loja (ambiente físico, organização, sortimento e  atendimento dos vendedores) e as variáveis de resultado do varejo (satisfação com a compra, intenção de recompra e intenção de boca a boca) é intermediada pelos valores de compra hedônico e utilitário. Para testar o modelo teórico, foram realizadas 399 entrevistas com pessoas que adquiriram eletrodomésticos em lojas de uma rede de varejo na cidade de São Paulo, Brasil. Os resultados indicaram que, dentre as variáveis ambientais da loja, apenas o atendimento dos vendedores influenciou positivamente os valores de compra hedônico e utilitário. Por sua vez, o valor de compra hedônico influenciou positivamente todas as variáveis de resultado do varejo enquanto que o valor de compra utilitário não influenciou nenhuma da variáveis de resultado do varejo. Os resultados sugerem que, neste caso, o valor hedônico foi muito maisimportante que o valor utilitário para a satisfação com a compra, a intenção de voltar à loja e a intenção de engajar-se em boca a boca positivo. Os resultados também sugerem a grande importância do atendimento dos vendedores em situações de varejo em que o ambiente da loja não se revela particularmente atraente ou diferenciado

New Transparent Laser-Drilled Fluorine-doped Tin Oxide covered Quartz Electrodes for Photo-Electrochemical Water Splitting

A new-designed transparent, conductive and porous electrode was developed for application in a compact laboratory-scale proton exchange membrane (PEM) photo-electrolyzer. The electrode is made of a thin transparent quartz sheet covered with fluorine-doped tin oxide (FTO), in which an array of holes is laser-drilled to allow water and gas permeation. The electrical, morphological, optical and electrochemical characterization of the drilled electrodes is presented in comparison with a non-drilled one. The drilled electrode exhibits, in the visible region, a good transmittance (average value of 62%), a noticeable reflectance due to the light scattering effect of the hole-drilled internal region, and a higher effective surface area than the non-drilled electrode. The proof-of-concept of the applicability of the drilled electrode was achieved by using it as a support for a traditional photocatalyst (i.e. commercial TiO2 nanoparticles). The latter, coupled with a polymeric electrolyte membrane (i.e.Nafion 117) and a Pt counter electrode, forms a transparent membrane electrode assembly (MEA), with a good conductivity, wettability and porosity. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) was used as a very powerful tool to gain information on the real active surface of the new drilled electrode and the main electrochemical parameters driving the charge transfer reactions on it. This new electrode architecture is demonstrated to be an ideal support for testing new anodic and cathodic photoactive materials working in tandem configuration for solar fuels production by water photo-electrolysis