The age of digital entrepreneurship

Understanding the circumstances and reasons which facilitate digital entrepreneurship (DE) is of interest to academic research, and guides business practice, as well as public policies aiming at supporting this phenomenon given its positive impacts in terms of job creation and economic growth. We define some relevant concepts and briefly map current research using a perspective that focuses on the way digital entrepreneurs create digital value by acquiring, processing, and distributing digital information. Through the adoption of a digital information processing perspective, we provide a micro-level approach to research on digital entrepreneurship (DE) that complements existing literature on DE focused at the systemic level (digital entrepreneurship ecosystems and in the digital platforms economy). We show how these two approaches can be jointly used to identify major research streams on DE: digital business models, the digital entrepreneurship process and the creation of digital start-ups, DE in digital platforms, and entrepreneurial digital ecosystems. As is the case with existing DE frameworks, our approach concurs in putting emphasis on the new collaborative and social dynamics enabled by digital tools to support knowledge sharing and facilitate opportunity recognition

How mobile technologies support business models: Case study-based empirical analysis

[Otros] Les technologies mobiles ont poussé la connectivité des systèmes informatiques à la limite, permettant aux personnes et aux objets de se connecter les uns aux autres à tout moment. La quantité d'informations dont disposent les entreprises a augmenté de façon exponentielle, en grande partie grâce à la géolocalisation et à la vaste gamme de capteurs intégrés dans les appareils mobiles. Ces informations peuvent être utilisées pour améliorer les activités et les processus métier, mais également pour créer de nouveaux modèles d'affaires. En nous concentrant sur les modèles d'affaires, nous analysons les technologies mobiles comme catalyseurs des changements d'activité. Nous examinons les caractéristiques distinctives des technologies mobiles et examinons comment celles¿ci peuvent supporter différentes fonctions de l'entreprise. Une étude basée sur une analyse qualitative comparée d'ensemble floue (fsQCA) de 30 cas, de différents secteurs, a permis d'identifier les facteurs de succès de la technologie mobile pour différentes activités du cœur de métier des firmes. Les résultats montrent que plusieurs combinaisons de technologie mobile procurent un avantage concurrentiel lorsqu'elles correspondent au modèle d'affaire.[EN] Mobile technologies have pushed the connectivity of IT systems to the limit, enabling people and things to connect to one another at all times. The amount of information companies have at their disposal has increased exponentially, thanks largely to geolocation and to the vast array of sensors that have been integrated into mobile devices. This information can be used to enhance business activities and processes, but it can also be used to create new business models. Focusing on business models, we analyze mobile technologies as enablers of activity changes. We consider the differentiating characteristics of mobile technologies and examine how these can support different business functions. A study based on fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) of 30 cases across different industries allows us to identify mobile technology success factors for different core activities. The results show that several combinations of mobile technology initiatives provide a competitive advantage when these initiatives match the business model.Peris-Ortiz, M.; Devece Carañana, CA.; Hikkerova, L. (2020). How mobile technologies support business models: Case study-based empirical analysis. Canadian Journal of Administrative Sciences / Revue Canadienne des Sciences de l Administration. 37(1):95-105. https://doi.org/10.1002/cjas.1550S95105371Al-Debei, M. M., & Avison, D. (2010). Developing a unified framework of the business model concept. 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Comprehensive phylogenomic time tree of bryophytes reveals deep relationships and uncovers gene incongruences in the last 500 million years of diversification

Premise: Bryophytes form a major component of terrestrial plant biomass, structuring ecological communities in all biomes. Our understanding of the evolutionary history of hornworts, liverworts, and mosses has been significantly reshaped by inferences from molecular data, which have highlighted extensive homoplasy in various traits and repeated bursts of diversification. However, the timing of key events in the phylogeny, patterns, and processes of diversification across bryophytes remain unclear. Methods: Using the GoFlag probe set, we sequenced 405 exons representing 228 nuclear genes for 531 species from 52 of the 54 orders of bryophytes. We inferred the species phylogeny from gene tree analyses using concatenated and coalescence approaches, assessed gene conflict, and estimated the timing of divergences based on 29 fossil calibrations. Results: The phylogeny resolves many relationships across the bryophytes, enabling us to resurrect five liverwort orders and recognize three more and propose 10 new orders of mosses. Most orders originated in the Jurassic and diversified in the Cretaceous or later. The phylogenomic data also highlight topological conflict in parts of the tree, suggesting complex processes of diversification that cannot be adequately captured in a single gene-tree topology. Conclusions: We sampled hundreds of loci across a broad phylogenetic spectrum spanning at least 450 Ma of evolution; these data resolved many of the critical nodes of the diversification of bryophytes. The data also highlight the need to explore the mechanisms underlying the phylogenetic ambiguity at specific nodes. The phylogenomic data provide an expandable framework toward reconstructing a comprehensive phylogeny of this important group of plantsFunding was provided by the NSF collaborative project “Building a Comprehensive Evolutionary History of Flagellate Plants” (DEB #1541506 to J.G. Burleigh, E.C. Davis, S.F. McDaniel, and E.B. Sessa, and #1541545 to M von Konrat). B.G. acknowledges DEB‐1753811. J.C.V.A. acknowledges the Canada Research Chair (950‐232698); the CRNSG‐RGPIN 05967–2016 and the Canadian Foundation for Innovation (projects 36781, 39135). The authors thank the two anonymous reviewers and the Associate Editor for their constructive comments on previous versions of the manuscrip

Contrasting Patterns of Sequence Evolution at the Functionally Redundant bric à brac Paralogs in Drosophila melanogaster

Genes with overlapping expression and function may gradually diverge despite retaining some common functions. To test whether such genes show distinct patterns of molecular evolution within species, we examined sequence variation at the bric à brac (bab) locus of Drosophila melanogaster. This locus is composed of two anciently duplicated paralogs, bab1 and bab2, which are involved in patterning the adult abdomen, legs, and ovaries. We have sequenced the 148 kb genomic region spanning the bab1 and bab2 genes from 94 inbred lines of D. melanogaster sampled from a single location. Two non-coding regions, one in each paralog, appear to be under selection. The strongest evidence of directional selection is found in a region of bab2 that has no known functional role. The other region is located in the bab1 paralog and is known to contain a cis-regulatory element that controls sex-specific abdominal pigmentation. The coding region of bab1 appears to be under stronger functional constraint than the bab2 coding sequences. Thus, the two paralogs are evolving under different selective regimes in the same natural population, illuminating the different evolutionary trajectories of partially redundant duplicate genes

Cushing's Syndrome and Fetal Features Resurgence in Adrenal Cortex–Specific Prkar1a Knockout Mice

Carney complex (CNC) is an inherited neoplasia syndrome with endocrine overactivity. Its most frequent endocrine manifestation is primary pigmented nodular adrenocortical disease (PPNAD), a bilateral adrenocortical hyperplasia causing pituitary-independent Cushing's syndrome. Inactivating mutations in PRKAR1A, a gene encoding the type 1 α-regulatory subunit (R1α) of the cAMP–dependent protein kinase (PKA) have been found in 80% of CNC patients with Cushing's syndrome. To demonstrate the implication of R1α loss in the initiation and development of PPNAD, we generated mice lacking Prkar1a specifically in the adrenal cortex (AdKO). AdKO mice develop pituitary-independent Cushing's syndrome with increased PKA activity. This leads to autonomous steroidogenic genes expression and deregulated adreno-cortical cells differentiation, increased proliferation and resistance to apoptosis. Unexpectedly, R1α loss results in improper maintenance and centrifugal expansion of cortisol-producing fetal adrenocortical cells with concomitant regression of adult cortex. Our data provide the first in vivo evidence that loss of R1α is sufficient to induce autonomous adrenal hyper-activity and bilateral hyperplasia, both observed in human PPNAD. Furthermore, this model demonstrates that deregulated PKA activity favors the emergence of a new cell population potentially arising from the fetal adrenal, giving new insight into the mechanisms leading to PPNAD

Aldo Keto Reductase 1B7 and Prostaglandin F2α Are Regulators of Adrenal Endocrine Functions

Prostaglandin F2α (PGF2α), represses ovarian steroidogenesis and initiates parturition in mammals but its impact on adrenal gland is unknown. Prostaglandins biosynthesis depends on the sequential action of upstream cyclooxygenases (COX) and terminal synthases but no PGF2α synthases (PGFS) were functionally identified in mammalian cells. In vitro, the most efficient mammalian PGFS belong to aldo-keto reductase 1B (AKR1B) family. The adrenal gland is a major site of AKR1B expression in both human (AKR1B1) and mouse (AKR1B3, AKR1B7). Thus, we examined the PGF2α biosynthetic pathway and its functional impact on both cortical and medullary zones. Both compartments produced PGF2α but expressed different biosynthetic isozymes. In chromaffin cells, PGF2α secretion appeared constitutive and correlated to continuous expression of COX1 and AKR1B3. In steroidogenic cells, PGF2α secretion was stimulated by adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) and correlated to ACTH-responsiveness of both COX2 and AKR1B7/B1. The pivotal role of AKR1B7 in ACTH-induced PGF2α release and functional coupling with COX2 was demonstrated using over- and down-expression in cell lines. PGF2α receptor was only detected in chromaffin cells, making medulla the primary target of PGF2α action. By comparing PGF2α-responsiveness of isolated cells and whole adrenal cultures, we demonstrated that PGF2α repressed glucocorticoid secretion by an indirect mechanism involving a decrease in catecholamine release which in turn decreased adrenal steroidogenesis. PGF2α may be regarded as a negative autocrine/paracrine regulator within a novel intra-adrenal feedback loop. The coordinated cell-specific regulation of COX2 and AKR1B7 ensures the generation of this stress-induced corticostatic signal

Female Institutional Directors on Boards and Firm Value

The aim of this research is to examine what impact female institutional directors on boards have on corporate performance. Previous research shows that institutional female directors cannot be considered as a homogeneous group since they represent investors who may or may not maintain business relations with the companies on whose corporate boards they sit. Thus, it is not only the effect of female institutional directors as a whole on firm value that has been analysed, but also the impact of pressure-resistant female directors, who represent institutional investors (investment, pension and mutual funds) that only invest in the company, and do not maintain a business relation with the firm. We hypothesize that there is a non-linear association, specifically quadratic, between institutional and pressure-resistant female directors on boards and corporate performance. Our results report that female institutional directors on boards enhance corporate performance, but when they reach a certain threshold on boards (11.72 %), firm value decreases. In line with female institutional directors, pressure-resistant female directors on boards also increase firm value, but only up to a certain figure (12.71 % on boards), above which they have a negative impact on firm performance. These findings are consistent with an inverted U-shaped relationship between female institutional directors and pressure-resistant female directors and firm performance

Razão, religião e revolução: luzes e sombras nas telas de Jacques-Louis David

O artigo analisa a produção pictórica de Jacques-Louis David entre o final da década de 1770 e 1793, destacando o entrelaçamento entre arte, religião e política nas obras do artista francês. Em sua luta contra o Antigo Regime, “filósofos artistas”, como Jacques-Louis David, apossaram-se das armas que eram manipuladas, há séculos, por um de seus principais inimigos: a Igreja. A transmissão do ideário iluminista não poderia ficar restrita à “aridez” dos textos acadêmicos, devendo buscar na religião e nas artes o “encantamento” indispensável à conquista de olhos, ouvidos, cérebros e corações. Depois de recorrer aos heróis das antigas Grécia e Roma, Jacques-Louis David debruçou-se sobre os homens do seu tempo: os deputados de O juramento do jogo de pela e os mártires que sacrificaram suas vidas em prol da revolução. Entrelaçando a arte clássica com a cristã, razão, revolução e religião, Jacques-Louis David forjou estratégias que seriam mobilizadas na propagação de líderes e ideários políticos nos séculos XIX e XX.The article analyzes the pictorial production of Jacques-Louis David between the late 1770s and 1793, highlighting the links between art, religion and politics in the works of the French artist. In their struggle against the Old Regime “philosophers artists,” as Jacques-Louis David, they took possession of the weapons that were manipulated for centuries by one of its main enemies: the Church. The transmission of Enlightenment ideas could not be restricted to “aridity” of academic papers and should seek in religion and the arts the “enchantment” indispensable to the conquest of eyes, ears, brains and hearts. After resorting to the heroes of ancient Greece and Rome, Jacques-Louis David leaned across the men of his time: the deputies of Tennis Court Oath and the martyrs who sacrificed their lives for the sake of revolution. Interweaving classical art with Christian art, reason, revolution and religion, Jacques-Louis David forged strategies that would be mobilized in the spread of political leaders and ideologies in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries

Prediction of second neurological attack in patients with clinically isolated syndrome using support vector machines

The aim of this study is to predict the conversion from clinically isolated syndrome to clinically definite multiple sclerosis using support vector machines. The two groups of converters and non-converters are classified using features that were calculated from baseline data of 73 patients. The data consists of standard magnetic resonance images, binary lesion masks, and clinical and demographic information. 15 features were calculated and all combinations of them were iteratively tested for their predictive capacity using polynomial kernels and radial basis functions with leave-one-out cross-validation. The accuracy of this prediction is up to 86.4% with a sensitivity and specificity in the same range indicating that this is a feasible approach for the prediction of a second clinical attack in patients with clinically isolated syndromes, and that the chosen features are appropriate. The two features gender and location of onset lesions have been used in all feature combinations leading to a high accuracy suggesting that they are highly predictive. However, it is necessary to add supporting features to maximise the accuracy. © 2013 IEEE