21 |
To Lead or to Follow? : A case study of an internationalization processKaukonen, Ulla, Haapanen, Heta-Liisa January 2008 (has links)
<p>This Bachelor thesis studies the internationalization strategy of a Finnish label stock company, UPM Raflatac, in China during the late 1990’s. The purpose of this descriptive study is to facilitate the understanding of companies’ internationalization processes. This was done by studying UPM Raflatac’s internationalization strategy’s connection to the internationalization theories of the Uppsala model and the eclectic paradigm. The findings were established by presenting an Internet based questionnaire for the employees of the company. The results showed that the company did not have a country specific strategy and that the resemblance to the reference material was therefore limited.</p>
|
22 |
The role of SYN1 in early Arabidopsis meiosisTiang, Choon Lin January 2011 (has links)
SYN1 is a meiosis-specific Arabidopsis homologue of yeast REC8. REC8 is an important component of the meiotic cohesion complex which maintains cohesion between sister chromatids. Cytological analysis of syn1\(^{-/-}\) has shown chromosome fragmentation at metaphase I. To determine the basis of chromosome fragmentation in the syn1\(^{-/-}\), three double mutants were constructed. I have demonstrated that chromosome fragmentation in syn1 is AtSPO11-1-dependent. Moreover, I have also shown that SYN1 has a role in DSB repair by analysing Atdmc1\(^{-/-}\)/syn1\(^{-/-}\) meiocytes. To investigate this further, immunolocalization studies in wild-type and syn1\(^{-/-}\) were conducted. Distribution of ASY1 and AtZYP1 was affected in syn1\(^{-/-}\). Both proteins appeared as aggregates, developing into an abnormal short linear signal in early prophase I, suggesting that both axis formation and synapsis are compromised. Distribution of the recombination proteins AtRAD51 and AtMLH1 was also aberrant. Localization of SYN1 in wild-type nuclei revealed a continuous signal along the chromosome axes. However, careful inspection revealed that this was accompanied by patches of more intense signals, possibly corresponding to DSB regions. To investigate this further I analysed SYN1 distribution in an Atspo11-1-4\(^{-/-}\) mutant. Whilst faint SYN1 signals were apparent along the axis, no patches of intense signals were visible. Cisplatin-induced DSBs restored AtZYP1 foci in Atspo11-1-4\(^{-/-}\) and also resulted in restoration of intense patches of the SYN1 signals. This is consistent with the recruitment of SYN1 to DSB sites.
|
23 |
Migrants' health beliefs and their impact on general practice encounters : an in-depth interview study of French- and Swahili-speaking Africans and general practitioners working with migrant patientsCooper, Maxwell John Francis January 2014 (has links)
Background. The growing population of migrants (including sub-Saharan Africans) in the United Kingdom poses challenges to British general practice. First, migrants tend to seek health care at times of crisis rather than for preventive measures. This is despite being at increased risk of certain chronic conditions compared with the indigenous population. For sub-Saharan Africans this includes hypertension-related diseases and some cancers. Little has been published about Africans’ awareness of this risk or their knowledge of associated causative factors. Second, discordant health beliefs and healthcare expectations between migrants and doctors in the UK have been found to undermine trust during consultations with general practitioners and to lead to poor patient satisfaction. Little is known about the health behaviours of African migrants whose expectations are not met by primary care in the UK. A related area where health beliefs and practices differ between African migrants and their GPs is in the use of traditional medicines. A final challenge lies in considering the wider issues that GPs must address when consulting with migrant patients, including time pressures, organisational factors and the complex nature of problems presented by migrant patients. These issues are the focus of this study. Aims. To examine African migrants’ perceptions of chronic disease and their experience of seeking primary health care in the UK. To explore the impact upon GPs of caring for migrants. Objectives. To explore: 1) perceptions of chronic disease risk facing African migrants and their underlying explanatory models; 2) experiences of consultations about antibiotic prescriptions; 3) traditional African medicine use in the UK; and (4) to consider the effect of workload and work patterns on GP consultations with migrants. Design. In-depth interviews were conducted with 19 Africans from French- or Swahili- speaking countries, one African key informant and 13 GPs working with migrants. African participant recruitment was from community organisations and GPs were approached via an informal network of doctors. Interviews were transcribed and ten were translated by the principal investigator (three Swahili and seven French). Data analysis was undertaken following the approach of applied thematic analysis using the Nvivo software package. Data collection and analyses were underpinned by the following theoretical frameworks: Kleinman’s explanatory models of illness and of cultural health care systems and Lipsky’s street-level bureaucracy. Results. Narratives suggested low awareness of chronic disease risk amongst Africans. Infectious diseases were considered the dominant health threat for African migrants, mainly HIV but also tuberculosis and ‘flu’. Chronic diseases were sometimes described by Africans as contagious. Explanatory models of chronic disease included bodily/dietary imbalance, stress/exertion, heredity/predisposition and food contamination. Cancer was feared but not considered a major threat. Cancer was considered more common in Europe than in Africa and was attributed by Africans to chemical contamination from fertilizers, food preservatives and industrial pollution. Evidence cited for these chemicals was rapid livestock/vegetable production, large size of farmed products (e.g. fish), softness of meat and flavourless food. Chemicals were reported to circulate silently inside the body and cancer to develop in the part where they deposit, sometimes years later. Africans’ belief in infective explanations of disease extended to minor illnesses and was manifested in an expectation of antibiotics from GPs for problems such as a sore throat. This arose from participants’ experience in Africa, witnessing life-threatening infectious diseases and experience of unregulated access to antibiotics. Africans described various alternative measures to fulfil their unmet expectations, including approaching other National Health Service doctors, importing medication, and using private healthcare services in London, francophone Europe and east Africa. A further option was the use of traditional African medicine, reported by one quarter of African participants. Traditional African herbal medicine use was based upon a perception of its purity and natural origin in African soil and a deep belief in its efficacy. Consulting traditional African healers in the UK was reported to be undertaken in secret. Some GPs and Africans described consultations in terms of pressure, processing and conflict. Migrants were reported to present with complex health problems that were frequently compounded by language barriers. GPs described a need to remain in control of consultations and this included some use of personal discretion to render their tasks easier to complete. The most common example was accepting patients’ family and friends as informal interpreters – a choice that ran contrary to formal policy of only using professional interpreters. Burnout was reported to be one consequence of excessive workload for patient-centred GPs working with vulnerable groups like asylum seekers. Conclusions. There is a need to improve health literacy amongst African migrants in order to promote preventive behaviours for chronic disease and alternatives to antibiotics for minor illnesses. As part of this, further research is required into the use and properties of traditional African medicine. Interventions should be built upon participants’ existing knowledge of disease causation, their self-reliance in the pursuit of a healthy lifestyle and desire to retain cultural practices. One challenge to improving migrant health lies in the service dilemmas facing GPs, including excessive workload, the complex nature of migrants’ presenting problems and professional dilemmas. GPs who act as advocates for vulnerable migrant patients may be at increased risk of burnout and greater consideration should be given to providing them with appropriate support.
|
24 |
Calculus of One Variable: An Eclectic ApproachHelfgott, Michel 01 January 2012 (has links)
This textbook is intended for a two-semester course on calculus of one variable. The target audience is comprised of first-year students in biology, chemistry, physics and other related disciplines. The title of the book reflects the fact that it is not limited to one single approach to calculus. Rather, we use graphing calculators or applications whenever they are necessary to introduce certain topics. Nonetheless, as expected, a conceptual framework permeates the whole book. A distinctive characteristic of the book is the early introduction of sequences and geometric series, and a gradual development of simple differential equations, as well as the use of linear regression to analyze data. The core of the book is to be found in the first three chapters, in which examples from biology, chemistry and physics are analyzed with care, emphasizing the close links between calculus and the natural sciences. The last two chapters, or sections thereof, can be used as a sort of capstone in order to show how mathematics helps in the understanding of enzyme kinetics and transport across cell membranes. / https://dc.etsu.edu/etsu_books/1064/thumbnail.jpg
|
25 |
To Lead or to Follow? : A case study of an internationalization processKaukonen, Ulla, Haapanen, Heta-Liisa January 2008 (has links)
This Bachelor thesis studies the internationalization strategy of a Finnish label stock company, UPM Raflatac, in China during the late 1990’s. The purpose of this descriptive study is to facilitate the understanding of companies’ internationalization processes. This was done by studying UPM Raflatac’s internationalization strategy’s connection to the internationalization theories of the Uppsala model and the eclectic paradigm. The findings were established by presenting an Internet based questionnaire for the employees of the company. The results showed that the company did not have a country specific strategy and that the resemblance to the reference material was therefore limited.
|
26 |
Location moving decision of Taiwan's multinational companies in China: An observation from institutional theoryCheng, Peng-jen 24 July 2012 (has links)
Institutional environments and the following institutional factors are viewed as the important characteristics in examining firm¡¦s strategic choices as well as the firm¡¦s endogenous resources and the industrial factors. In addressing the multinational company¡¦s location choices issues, institutional factor and the MNC¡¦s reactive strategies are seldom examined since the data limitation. This research tries to discuss the possible institutional sources impact on multinational company¡¦s location choices in China from the institutional theory viewpoint. There are giant institutional transitions in China since the open-market policies in the early 1990s. The announcement of the 12th ¡§five year plan¡¨ in China has estimated to generate great impact on multinational company¡¦s location choices. Thus, this research tries to addressing the multinational company¡¦s location choice issues in China context.
Utilizing the in-depth interviewing method from Taiwanese multinational companies, this research supports the arguments from the institutional theory in location choice issues. In that, the higher coercive forces, or the formal forces instead, in a host country, the more likely that the multinational company will choose the acquiesce strategy to move. Moreover, the multinational company¡¦s acquiesce strategy in reaction will also generate economic side-effect in decision-making process. Additionally, in deciding the new location choice, the formal as well as the informal institutional forces will generate impact in multinational company¡¦s location choice, as argued from revised eclectic paradigm. The results provide a beginning in addressing location choice issues in China from the institutional viewpoint.
|
27 |
In vitro analysis of potential anticancer effects associated with watercressCavell, Breeze E. January 2012 (has links)
Epidemiological studies indicate that there is an inverse relationship between consumption of cruciferous vegetables and risk of cancer. As a result there is much interest in understanding the anticancer potential not only of cruciferous vegetables themselves but also of the key phytochemicals contained in them. This project focuses on the potential anticancer properties of watercress, a cruciferous vegetable which is cultivated around the world and eaten raw as a salad vegetable as well as in cooked dishes. Watercress is the most abundant source of gluconasturtiin, a precursor to the phytochemical phenethyl isothiocyanate (PEITC), and is also a rich source of indole-3- carbinol (13C) and quercetin. This project addressed the hypothesis that the in vitro anticancer activity of watercress can be enhanced by altering the growth environment. To investigate this it was necessary to develop assays that can be used to assess the in vitro anticancer activity of watercress-derived compounds, to explore the mechanisms by which PEITC exhibits its anticancer effects, and to determine potential effects of altered growth conditions on in vitro anticancer properties. The activity of watercress-derived phytochemicals was analysed in a series of in vitro assays. Based on these results, inhibition of MCF7 cell growth and activation of Nrf2-dependent transcription were selected as potential assays for subsequent analysis of watercress extracts. Mechanistic studies demonstrated that PEITC inhibited the transcriptional activity of hypoxia inducible factor (HIF), a key positive regulator of angiogenesis in malignant cells. Inhibition of HIF function was associated with inhibition of mammalian target of rapamycin complex 1 (mTORC1) activity and decreased HIF1 a mRNA translation, and was dependent on the presence of the mTORC1 regulator, tuberous sclerosis complex 2 (TSC2). I also demonstrated that, in addition to effects on HIF1 a mRNA translation, PEITC inhibited general protein synthesis and modulated two other key regulators of translation, eukaryotic initiation factor 2 (eIF2) and eukaryotic elongation factor 2 (eEF2). In proof-of-principle experiments, I demonstrated that growth inhibition and Nrf2 activation assays were suitable for the analysis of crude watercress extracts and that a natural variety of "red" watercress displayed approximately 10-fold more potent in vitro anticancer activity than standard, commercial "green" watercress. However, in a series of field trials, modulation of time of harvest, water availability or sulfur fertilisation did not alter the in vitro effects of watercress extracts in growth inhibition/Nrf2 activation assays. In conclusion, this study suggests that, rather than altering environmental factors, selective breeding might be a better approach to increase the in vitro anticancer activity of watercress. Moreover, my findings have increased our understanding of the mechanisms underlying the anticancer activity of PEITC, uncovering a novel role for PEITC in inhibiting HIF1 a and total protein synthesis, and identifying several key regulators of these processes that are modulated by PEITC
|
28 |
Lokalisering av utländskadirektinvesteringar : En fallstudie av svenska företags beslut / Localization of foreign direct investment : A case study of Swedish companies' decisionsSletteng, Oliver, Egelius, Tor January 2021 (has links)
The purpose of this essay is to find how Location specific factors affect the FDI of MNEs.This is done through the use of Dunning's eclectic paradigm, mainly the L-factor of OLI. TheL-factor is then combined with market agglomeration and unexploited markets as aframework to find location as a motivator for companies´ FDI. We also use Dunning’s fourmotivations for FDI when trying to find how Location affected FDI.Three companies are interviewed in semi-structured interviews to ensure their views on thesubject can transpire but still keep them within the subject at hand. We found that all thecompanies we interviewed mainly looked for agglomerated markets, access to markets,customers and access to competent people within the markets when deciding which market tosettle in. We also found that unexploited markets were not something the companies weinterviewed were searching for nor valued highly in their investment decision. This has to dowith the fact that we only interviewed three companies and did not interview in a wideenough range of industries to be able to conclude our findings.
|
29 |
Juvenal Galeno and its popular songs: reflection of the romantic educational purpose under the spirits of eclectical spiritualism (1836 - 1889) / Juvenal Galeno e suas canÃÃes populares: reflexo do propÃsito educacional romÃntico sob os auspÃcios do espiritualismo eclÃtico (1836 - 1889)JoÃo Batista de Andrade Filho 16 December 2016 (has links)
nÃo hà / Anseios por fazer do Brasil uma naÃÃo impulsionaram a formaÃÃo de setores mÃdios intelectualizados capazes de conduzir o ideal formativo humano necessÃrio ao chamado projeto civilizatÃrio brasileiro no sÃculo XIX. A historiografia brasileira registra, para o perÃodo, diversos casos e aÃÃes de intelectuais e grupos, que coadunam bem com o que se pode chamar de exercÃcio intelectual como atitude polÃtica. Mas, hà casos em que o exercÃcio intelectual configurava-se tambÃm como atitude eminentemente educativa, dado que o ideal de nacionalidade perseguido era impresso pelos cÃdigos civilizatÃrios somente alcanÃÃveis pelos processos formativos, sendo estes a imprensa ou a escola. Notemos que o perÃodo do qual tratamos, aqui delimitado a partir de fins da RegÃncia, registra diversas forÃas que se contrapunham. Dentre aquelas pautadas nas novas ideias cujos matizes se encontravam na IlustraÃÃo, ressaltamos a vertente romÃntica fortemente influenciada pelo Espiritualismo EclÃtico, corrente filosÃfica francesa estabelecida por Victor Cousin. Intelectuais romÃnticos brasileiros, advogando a defesa das ideias cousinianas puderam estabelecer um debate com o tradicionalismo alegando a necessidade de construÃÃo da PÃtria, a partir da instituiÃÃo de sua educaÃÃo, sua cultura, incluindo-se aà a literatura, notadamente a poesia, e, principalmente, de sua histÃria. Pode-se dizer, portanto, que alguns desses intelectuais delegaram a si mesmos uma missÃo social e pedagÃgica porque, no referido projeto de pÃtria, tinham nÃtida a compreensÃo da necessidade de forja do novo homem com uma nova mentalidade, desenredada da mentalidade colonialista. Desenvolveram, portanto, a figura do intelectual educador bem caracterizado como escritor de missÃo. Diversos foram os intelectuais e suas defesas, porÃm, sabe-se que o ideal de educaÃÃo romÃntica, pautada no Espiritualismo EclÃtico, fez parte da tÃnica e dos desejos de todos que se lanÃaram nessa missÃo. O poeta e folclorista Juvenal Galeno, com sua literatura, em forma de canÃÃes populares, està muito bem caracterizado como o intelectual que compartilhou dessa mentalidade e que, portanto, fez da literatura sua missÃo educadora. / Anxieties for making Brazil a nation have boosted the formation of intellectualized middle
sectors capable of conducting the human formative ideal necessary for the so
-
called Brazilian
civilizational project in the nineteenth century. The Brazilian histori
ography records, for the
period, several cases and actions of intellectuals and groups, which go well with what can be
called an intellectual exercise as a political attitude. But there are cases in which the intellectual
exercise was also an eminently edu
cational attitude, given that the ideal of nationality pursued
was imprinted by the civilizational codes only achievable by the formative processes, being
these the press or the school. It should be noted that the period we are dealing with, here
delimited
from the ends of the Regency, registers several opposing forces. Among those based
on the new ideas whose nuances were in the Illustration, we emphasize the romantic side
strongly influenced by the Eclectic Spiritualism, French philosophical current estab
lished by
Victor Cousin. Brazilian romantic intellectuals, advocating the defense of Cousin's ideas, were
able to establish a debate with traditionalism, alleging the need to construct the homeland, from
the institution of its education, its culture, inclu
ding literature, notably poetry, and, above all, ,
Of its history. It can be said, therefore, that some of these intellectuals delegated to themselves
a social and pedagogical mission because in the said project of country they had a clear
understanding of
the forging of the new man with a new mentality, unraveled from the
colonialist mentality. They developed, therefore, the figure of the intellectual educator well
characterized like writer of mission. Many were the intellectuals and their defenses, howeve
r,
it is known that the ideal of romantic education, based on Eclectic Spiritualism, was part of the
tonic and desires of all who launched this mission. The poet and folklorist Juvenal Galeno, with
his literature, in the form of popular songs, is very well
characterized as the intellectual who
shared this mentality and who, therefore, made of literature its educative mission.
|
30 |
中國市場進入策略與佈局之個案分析 / A Case Study on the Entry and Configuration Strategies of Mainland China顏睿甫, Yen, Jui Pu Unknown Date (has links)
本研究以個案公司切入中國市場,採取個案研究法討論個案公司如何配合產業的特性進行策略轉換,進一步達到擴張階段布局的效果;並討論B2B軟體產業如何應付價格與價值的兩難,切入新興市場,並且享受高門檻軟體產品所帶來的套牢(Lock-in)效果。以期待能夠複製此種模式至其他開發中國家,或提供不同產業策略啟發之用。
研究了解除巨觀的進入策略外,必須同時透過細部交易分析考量微觀的交易成本。在面對國際市場的進入策略選擇時,通常會藉由進入策略的分析,期待能在各種不同的進入模式中,挑到合適的選項。但必須更深入考慮,不論是採行獨資、合資、授權等方式,對客戶而言產業所獨有的交易模式與在地企業沒有兩樣。因此必須要針對交易本身進行深入的分析,即使是採取獨資設立子公司的方式,也必須考慮與客戶進行交易的模式,才是完整的進入策略。
而針對交易模式的特性,必須分階段破解交易成本的限制,當中又以專屬資產最是重要。既有大型系統軟體可利用模組分割,採取近似免費增殖(Freemium)的作法分階段獲利。在銷售前期以基礎功能模組的方式,降低使用者的採購成本以換取快速的市場佔有率,並且可以藉此建立使用者的專屬資產,有利後續再銷售的獲利模式。而在進行模組分割的同時,除藉此降低前期銷售的單價外,必須考慮如何降低再銷售時所衍生的系統擴充成本。因此遠端試用及軟體授權開通的設計,就對中國市場幅員遼闊差旅費用高的困難,有很大的幫助。
且除了銷售與再銷售的系統設計外,藉由系統整合建立與經銷商和使用者間的專屬資產,則是確保經銷商在較長時間的採購頻率中,仍會選擇同一企業作為優先合作的對象,以達到策略目標中的獲得再銷售收益的效果。
|
Page generated in 0.0603 seconds