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Biological systems such as insects have often been used as a source of inspiration when developing walking robots. Insects' ability to nimbly navigate uneven terrain, and their observed behavioral complexity have been a beacon for engineers who have used behavioral data and hypothesized control systems to develop some remarkably agile robots. The purpose of this paper is to show how it is possible to implement models of relatively recent discoveries of the stick insect's local control system (its thoracic ganglia) for hexapod robot controllers.

Walking control based on a model of the stick insect's thoracic ganglia, and not just observed insect behavior, has now been implemented in a complete hexapod able to walk, perform goal‐seeking behavior, and obstacle surmounting behavior, such as searching and elevator reflexes. Descending modulation of leg controllers is also incorporated via a head module that modifies leg controller parameters to accomplish turning in a role similar to the insect's brain and subesophageal ganglion.

While many of these features have been previously demonstrated in robotic subsystems, such as single‐ and two‐legged test platforms, this is the first time that the neurobiological methods of control have been implemented in a complete, autonomous walking hexapod.

The methods introduced here have minimal computation complexity and can be implemented on small robots with low‐capability microcontrollers. This paper discusses the implementation of the biologically grounded insect control methods and descending modulation of those methods, and demonstrates the performance of the robot for navigating obstacles and performing phototaxis.

The purpose of this paper is to inform the readers of the design process and practical implications of a new gripping device created by the authors.

We have developed a novel gripping device based on the biomechanics of the feeding apparatus of the marine mollusk, Aplysia californica. The gripping device uses modified McKibben artificial muscles arranged in rings and placed in parallel. The rings contract sequentially to produce peristalsis, which moves a grasping mechanism back and forth through the rings.

The central grasper is capable of conforming to soft and irregular material.

This device could have novel applications both for removal of tissue in medical applications and for removing material from clogged plumbing lines.

This paper demonstrates the utility of using biological inspiration for developing novel robotic devices and suggests new ways of handling slippery, irregular, and fragile material.

Entomology is a useful tool when applied to engineering challenges that have been solved in nature. Especially when these special abilities of olfactory sensation, vision, auditory perception, fly, jump, navigation, chemical synthesis, exquisite structure and others were connected with mechanization, informationization and intelligentization of modern science and technology, and produced innumerable classical bionic products. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

All kinds of special abilities of insects and application status have been described and discussed in order to summarize the advanced research examples and supply bibliographic reference to the latters. Future perspectives and challenges in the use of insect bionics were also given.

In the period of life sciences and information sciences, insect bionics not only promoted the development of modern science and technology on the sides of mechanics, molecule, energy, information and control greatly but also provided new ideas and technologies for the crisis of science and technology, food, environment and ecosystem.

It may provide strategies to solve the problems and be a source of good ideas for researchers.

To consider the power of psychological well-being, empathy and coping style in predicting staff attitudes towards young people in looked after accommodation, involved in or at risk of offending behaviour. The purpose of this paper is to understand more about staff attitudes which have a significant role in the care and rehabilitation of this client group.

Psychological well-being, empathy and coping style are discussed in terms of their impact on attitudes towards young people. The predictive power of each factor is considered using multiple regression analysis of participants’ responses on an adapted version of the Attitudes to Prisoners (ATP) scale, the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ), the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI) and the Coping Styles Questionnaire (CSQ).

Multiple regression analyses showed that empathic concern (affective empathy) was the only factor predictive of attitudes towards young people. The paper discusses the applied implications for employers, including the possibility of empathy training for staff members and highlights the need for further consideration of the factors impacting on staff attitudes.

The outcome suggests that empathy may serve as a protective factor against the development of negative attitudes. This highlights the importance of fostering staff empathy and the possible use of empathy training.

The research findings question the robustness of the relationships between staff psychological well-being, empathy, coping styles and attitudes towards their client group. The outcome suggests that empathy may serve as a protective factor against the development of negative attitudes.

The worldwide imposition of lockdown measures to control the 2020 coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak has shifted most executive communications with external stakeholders online, resulting in quick responses from stakeholders. This study aims to understand how presentational styles exhibited in online communication induce immediate audience responses and empirically test the effectiveness of reactive impression management tactics.

The authors analyze presentational styles using MP3 files containing executive utterances during earnings call conferences held by S&P 100-listed firms after June 2020, the quarter after the World Health Organization declared the COVID-19 outbreak a pandemic on March 11, 2020. Using timestamps, the authors link each utterance to a 1-minute interval change in the ask/bid prices of the stocks that occurs a minute after the corresponding utterance begins.

Exhibiting an informational presentation style in earnings calls leads to positive and immediate audience responses. Managers tend to increase their reliance on promotional presentation styles rather than on informational ones when quarterly earnings exceed market forecasts.

Drawing on organizational genre theory, this research identifies the discrepancy between the presentation styles that audiences positively respond to and those that managers tend to exhibit in earnings calls and provides a reactive impression management typology for immediate responses from online audiences.

Introduced into the literature a decade ago, grit originally defined as perseverance and passion for long-term goals has stimulated considerable research on positive effects primarily in the academic and military contexts, as well as attracted widespread media attention. Despite recent criticism regarding grit’s construct and criterion-related validity, research on grit has begun to spill over into the work context as well. In this chapter, the authors provide an overview of the initial theoretical foundations of grit as a motivational driver, and present newer conceptualizations on the mechanisms of grit’s positive effects rooted in goal-setting theory. Furthermore, the authors also draw attention to existing shortcomings of the current definition and measurement of grit, and their implications for its scientific and practical application. After establishing a theoretical understanding, the authors discuss the potential utility of grit for human resource management, related to staffing and recruitment, development and training, and performance management systems as well as performance evaluations. The authors conclude this chapter with a discussion of necessary and potential future research, and consider the practical implications of grit in its current state.

The paper proposes a model that will enable us to go deeper into the study of organizations, bringing forth a framework that will allow us to make many propositions explicit and thus provide a contrast to the alignment theory. We test the model in the Spanish hotel industry. We have been able to identify the internal processes and behavior that fit into each strategic pattern, which go deeper into the process of putting each strategy into practice (first objective: first set of hypotheses). Furthermore, the analysis of the internal processes and behavior that bring about the different degrees of effectiveness in each strategic type makes it possible to build or maintain the complementary nature of business strategy and internal process, and guarantee its success (second objective: second and third sets of hypotheses).

Many manufacturing firms (e.g. Apple and Nike) now outsource some or all of their manufacturing activities to independent suppliers rather than continuing to undertake them in-house. Clearly these firms perceive this externalisation of production to be a performance-enhancing strategy, but what are the performance consequences in practice? In this chapter, we review and critique the extant academic literature on the performance consequences of manufacturing outsourcing, and note that the empirical findings have yielded mixed results. We argue that outsourcing has potential impacts upon a number of ‘performance’ outcomes, including inter alia financial performance, productivity/efficiency, sales/market share, costs of production, business performance and innovation. We further argue that many of the empirical studies have flawed designs, and make a series of methodological recommendations to guide future empirical work.