Search results
1 – 10 of 61D. Maddalena, M. Zampato and M. Favaretto
In the paper, “TV‐trackmeter”, a stereoscopic measuring system developed by Tecnomare, is presented, some recent innovations and upgrading are described, and its reliable use in…
Abstract
In the paper, “TV‐trackmeter”, a stereoscopic measuring system developed by Tecnomare, is presented, some recent innovations and upgrading are described, and its reliable use in hostile environments proved. The latest release of the device implements highlighted featuring capabilities such as 3D measuring, automatic mapping, false colour depth‐maps, geometric modelling, multi‐point tracking, recording/retrieving of stereo pair images, and use of new and more powerful hardware. A theoretical introduction to the operating mode of a stereoscopic device, followed by an error propagation analysis is included. A brief description is also given of the accuracy of the device, i.e. pose detection (position and attitude estimation) of the scene objects. An evaluation of the tracking speed capability is provided. Some examples are shown of trials carried out within a nuclear power plant and underwater. Two further applications for this system are described.
Details
Keywords
Seyedmohammad Mirhosseini, Milad Bazghaleh, Mohammad Hasan Basirinezhad, Ali Abbasi and Hossein Ebrahimi
Students’ academic achievement is a multifaceted phenomenon. While depression can suppress academic performance, academic satisfaction can promote it. This study aims to…
Abstract
Purpose
Students’ academic achievement is a multifaceted phenomenon. While depression can suppress academic performance, academic satisfaction can promote it. This study aims to investigate the relationship between depression and academic satisfaction among students studying at Shahroud University of Medical Sciences.
Design/methodology/approach
This cross-sectional study was carried out on 312 undergraduate students of Shahroud University of Medical Sciences. Data collection tools included demographic data form, University Student Depression Inventory and academic satisfaction scale. Data were collected by a simple random sampling method and self-reporting by the participants. Data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics (multivariate multiple regression analysis and multivariate linear regression).
Findings
The participants’ mean depression and academic satisfaction scores were 71.92 ± 22.94 and 53.70 ± 9.69, respectively. In addition, the depression score was significantly and inversely correlated with students' academic satisfaction (r = −0.122, p-value = 0.031). Moreover, there was a significant correlation between students’ depression with marital status, level of the semester, interest in the field of study and study topic.
Research limitations/implications
This study emphasizes improving education, spiritual and social support and strengthens strategies to deal with depression and medical science students’ related factors.
Originality/value
Students of medical sciences are exposed to depression during their college years, which is related to their academic satisfaction.
Details
Keywords
José M. Díaz-Puente, Susana Martín-Fernández, Diego Suárez, Verónica De Castro-Muñoz and Maddalena Bettoni
European rural development programmes are driving multi-actor interactive innovation initiatives and alliances to create an environment in which innovation acts as a tool for…
Abstract
Purpose
European rural development programmes are driving multi-actor interactive innovation initiatives and alliances to create an environment in which innovation acts as a tool for accelerating rural development processes. In Europe, where rural areas are facing many challenges, identifying which challenges, difficulties, obstacles or risk factors that interactive innovation projects have had to face in rural areas while being planned and set up would be interesting. The objective of this research work was to, therefore, identify and analyse the risk factors of 200 rural projects and initiatives that were selected as case studies from the whole of Europe.
Design/methodology/approach
The employed methodology consisted in conducting interviews to subsequently perform statistical independence analyses of the qualitative variables characterising the found projects and risk factors.
Findings
The findings indicated that most of the risks that rural projects and initiatives faced were related to the social domain which was, in turn, the fundamental pillar of interactive innovation. Dependence was found between social risk factors appearing and the innovation type carried out; the risk factors corresponding to the political–legal risks category and the project or initiative coordinating country; and the economic–technical risks category and the initiatives' geographic magnitude.
Originality/value
This paper exposes the main risks identified within various rural innovation initiatives and projects around Europe. For this purpose, a statistical analysis of independence was performed, allowing us to generate reliable and accurate results of the main risks associated with certain descriptive characteristics (coordinating region, domain, innovation type, gender balance and geographic magnitude) of the initiatives studied.
Details
Keywords
Duygu Sezgin, Anne Hendry, Aaron Liew, Mark O'Donovan, Mohamed Salem, Ana María Carriazo, Luz López-Samaniego, Rafael Rodríguez-Acuña, Siobhan Kennelly, Maddalena Illario, Cristina Arnal Carda, Marco Inzitari, Teija Hammar and Rónán O'Caoimh
To identify transitional palliative care (TPC) interventions for older adults with non-malignant chronic diseases and complex conditions.
Abstract
Purpose
To identify transitional palliative care (TPC) interventions for older adults with non-malignant chronic diseases and complex conditions.
Design/methodology/approach
A systematic review of the literature was conducted. CINAHL, Cochrane Library, Embase and Pubmed databases were searched for studies reporting TPC interventions for older adults, published between 2002 and 2019. The Crowe Critical Appraisal Tool was used for quality appraisal.
Findings
A total of six studies were included. Outcomes related to TPC interventions were grouped into three categories: healthcare system-related outcomes (rehospitalisation, length of stay [LOS] and emergency department [ED] visits), patient-related outcomes and family/carer important outcomes. Overall, TPC interventions were associated with lower readmission rates and LOS, improved quality of life and better decision-making concerning hospice care among families. Outcomes for ED visits were unclear.
Research limitations/implications
Positive outcomes related to healthcare services (including readmissions and LOS), patients (quality of life) and families (decision-making) were reported. However, the number of studies supporting the evidence were limited.
Originality/value
Studies examining the effectiveness of existing care models to support transitions for those in need of palliative care are limited. This systematic literature review identified and appraised interventions aimed at improving transitions to palliative care in older adults with advanced non-malignant diseases or frailty.
Details
Keywords
The purpose of this paper is to describe and discuss the way internships are currently evaluated in Campania Universities by host institutions.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to describe and discuss the way internships are currently evaluated in Campania Universities by host institutions.
Design/methodology/approach
The author collected and described questionnaires used by the universities of the Regional Observatory of Campania University System. These questionnaires are given by the host institutions to interns to fill out, and they evaluate skills growth in terms of initial and final assessment. Data related to these questionnaires are not publicly available, therefore the main data source comes from 732 post-internship questionnaires collected by the University of Suor Orsola Benincasa in 2013-2014.
Findings
Out of the 732 participants considered, 65 per cent rated excellent for motivation and interest, 55 per cent were rated excellent for the responsibility demonstrated, but only 37 per cent were rated excellent for the level of work autonomy achieved: a signal of the need to better prepare students for internships. Cross-technical and professional skills, which increase of +37 and +32 per cent, suggest that the experience has a very positive value. Regarding the experience outcome, the author detected a positive indicator: in 6 per cent of cases, an early employment occurred.
Research limitations/implications
It has only been possible to analyze the questionnaires from one of the Campania universities. The results encourage us to explore further, extending instruments and research methods at a national level, too.
Originality/value
The author built a research database form to compare current questionnaires in Campania. The author collected internship evaluation data from Suor Orsola University to propose a common questionnaire among Campania Universities. By sharing the findings, other universities, national and international, could benefit from the results.
Details
Keywords
THE “Do.X 1” was launched on July 12, 1929, hence we can now look back on the experience collected in the operation of this new aircraft over two and a half years. This experience…
Abstract
THE “Do.X 1” was launched on July 12, 1929, hence we can now look back on the experience collected in the operation of this new aircraft over two and a half years. This experience has been gained with three different types: the original type aircraft, or “Do X.1” (Fig. 1), with air‐cooled engines; the same aircraft in its modified form, the “Do.X.1a” (Fig 2), with water‐cooled engines, and the “Do.X.2” (Umberta Maddalena), the first of two flying boats built on behalf of an Italian firm, with water‐cooled Fiat engines. (Fig. 3.)
Mara Del Baldo, Daniele Giampaoli, Maddalena Macrellino and Nick Bontis
This study aims to provide empirical evidence on the link between intellectual capital and a firm's ability to attract funding and financing in Italian companies.
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to provide empirical evidence on the link between intellectual capital and a firm's ability to attract funding and financing in Italian companies.
Design/methodology/approach
Data from 125 Italian companies was collected through an online survey and analysed using structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM).
Findings
Results show that structural capital has a positive, direct impact on both human and relational capital. At the same time, relational capital is the only intellectual capital component that has a positive, direct impact on a firm's ability to attract funding and financing. Finally, we found that a firm's ability to attract funding and financing impacts both innovation and financial performance.
Originality/value
This novel study is among the first to provide empirical evidence of how human, relational and structural capital interact with each other and enhance a firm's ability to attract funding and financing.
Details
Keywords
Qiong Bu, Elena Simperl, Adriane Chapman and Eddy Maddalena
Ensuring quality is one of the most significant challenges in microtask crowdsourcing tasks. Aggregation of the collected data from the crowd is one of the important steps to…
Abstract
Purpose
Ensuring quality is one of the most significant challenges in microtask crowdsourcing tasks. Aggregation of the collected data from the crowd is one of the important steps to infer the correct answer, but the existing study seems to be limited to the single-step task. This study aims to look at multiple-step classification tasks and understand aggregation in such cases; hence, it is useful for assessing the classification quality.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors present a model to capture the information of the workflow, questions and answers for both single- and multiple-question classification tasks. They propose an adapted approach on top of the classic approach so that the model can handle tasks with several multiple-choice questions in general instead of a specific domain or any specific hierarchical classifications. They evaluate their approach with three representative tasks from existing citizen science projects in which they have the gold standard created by experts.
Findings
The results show that the approach can provide significant improvements to the overall classification accuracy. The authors’ analysis also demonstrates that all algorithms can achieve higher accuracy for the volunteer- versus paid-generated data sets for the same task. Furthermore, the authors observed interesting patterns in the relationship between the performance of different algorithms and workflow-specific factors including the number of steps and the number of available options in each step.
Originality/value
Due to the nature of crowdsourcing, aggregating the collected data is an important process to understand the quality of crowdsourcing results. Different inference algorithms have been studied for simple microtasks consisting of single questions with two or more answers. However, as classification tasks typically contain many questions, the proposed method can be applied to a wide range of tasks including both single- and multiple-question classification tasks.
Details
Keywords
Ulpiana Kocollari, Alessia Pedrazzoli, Maddalena Cavicchioli and Andrea Girardi
The authors investigate the contributions of social capital (SC) dimensions (bridging, bonding and linking) in crowdfunding campaigns by comparing the dynamics of agri-food…
Abstract
Purpose
The authors investigate the contributions of social capital (SC) dimensions (bridging, bonding and linking) in crowdfunding campaigns by comparing the dynamics of agri-food businesses with those of two other sectors – cultural and technological.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors develop linear regressions on a proprietary data set of 5,290 projects launched on the Italian platform “Produzionidalbasso.com”, from 2014 to 2020.
Findings
The authors’ findings suggest that combining the three social capital dimensions (bridging, bonding and linking) has a more substantial overall effect on the number of backers involved in agri-food projects than in cultural and technological projects. Agri-food entrepreneurs effectively mobilize all resources embedded in the SC dimensions and therefore create the conditions to develop new ties that financially support the project.
Practical implications
Agri-food entrepreneurs may benefit from those results improving their funding strategies. Therefore, agri-food entrepreneurs can explore and exploit the instruments available on the CFD platform – video and rewards associated with the campaign – gaining more benefit from the backers involved compared with other project categories.
Originality/value
The study proposes a broader perspective regarding SC that encompasses the proponent, the company and the campaign with three different types of ties: bonding, bridging and linking. These SC dimensions can differently shape diverse sectors and this eclectic configuration can differentiate the effects of SC in crowdfunding campaigns. This study pinpoints how crowdfunding determinants change, based on project categories.
Details
Keywords
Gordon Barbour, Ombretta Romice and Sergio Porta
The failure of conventional, post-war development to bring about the housing-led regeneration of much of Glasgow’s vacant and derelict inner-city land has exacerbated the loss of…
Abstract
The failure of conventional, post-war development to bring about the housing-led regeneration of much of Glasgow’s vacant and derelict inner-city land has exacerbated the loss of middle-income households to car-dominated suburbs built on green-field sites. Plot-based urbanism offers an innovative approach to development, based on an urban structure made up of fine-grained elements, in the form of plots, capable of incremental development by a range of agencies. The historical and morphological study of traditional, pre-war masterplanning methods in Glasgow suggests that a typically disaggregated pattern of land subdivision remains of great relevance for development, and that the physical form and organisation of urban land may relate to the capacity for neighbourhood self-organisation. This study assists future masterplanning and investment in the regeneration of inner-city neighbourhoods by suggesting ways of making investment more informed, and the development process more responsive to urban change. We argue that the publicly-funded sector could take on the role of lead provider of development opportunity through the adoption of methods derived from traditional masterplanning processes, providing opportunities for small-scale house building, and thereby supporting resilient and adaptable communities in the sustainable reuse of vacant inner-city land.
Details