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1 – 10 of over 16000Stéphanie Giamporcaro and George Kuk
This study aims to make a distinction between actualized and claimed affordances of blockchain by examining how a specified user group interprets and translates the actualized…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to make a distinction between actualized and claimed affordances of blockchain by examining how a specified user group interprets and translates the actualized affordances from a known use context into their existing practices. This allows us to develop and advance the concept of affordances-in-practice as an enactment of action possibilities through practices in a specified use context.
Design/methodology/approach
We focus on the field of sustainable investment (SI) and its relation to emerging blockchain technologies in the pursuit of sustainable development goals (SDGs). We used a field study involving 29 interviews with SI practitioners and blockchain entrepreneurs in South Africa, supplemented with an analysis of 91 practitioner and industry documents.
Findings
Our findings show that when there is a lack of actual use cases in the field of SI, the claimed affordances of blockchain are subject to a sensemaking process, which considers how action possibilities can be enacted and transformed through practices and how institutional constraints and socio-cognitive barriers can determine the available action possibilities.
Research limitations/implications
A notable limitation relates to the relative novelty and emerging status of blockchain. As affordances are based on available information and experience, this leaves room for claimed affordances. We discuss the implications of the interplay of the actualized and claimed affordances in blockchain applications in the field of SI.
Practical implications
We discuss the practical implications of addressing claimed affordances and field opacity in the SI field.
Originality/value
To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study to examine blockchain affordances for good in the context of achieving SDGs through SI. Our affordances-in-practice framework holds theoretical promise to pinpoint and explain how practices can shape action possibilities despite having difficulties in evaluating the underlying technological potentialities.
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H. Siddhi Jailani, A. Rajadurai, B. Mohan and T. Sornakumar
Metal matrix composites (MMCs) are commonly used in many aerospace and industrial applications. MMCs possess significantly improved properties including high specific strength…
Abstract
Purpose
Metal matrix composites (MMCs) are commonly used in many aerospace and industrial applications. MMCs possess significantly improved properties including high specific strength, specific modulus, damping capacity and good wear resistance compared to unreinforced alloys. The purpose of this paper is to describe the tribological studies of Al-Si alloy–fly ash composites manufactured using powder metallurgy technique.
Design/methodology/approach
Al-Si (12 Wt.%) alloy–fly ash composites were developed using powder metallurgy technique. Al-Si alloy powder was used as matrix material, and the fly ash was used as reinforcement. The particle size of Al-Si alloy powder was in the range of 75-300 μm, and the fly ash was in the range of 1-15 μm. The friction and wear characteristics of the composites were studied using a pin-on-disc set up. The test specimen was mated against cast iron disc, and the tests were conducted with the loads of 10, 20 and 30 N, sliding speeds of 0.5, 1 and 1.5 m/s for a sliding distance of 2,000 m.
Findings
The effects of load and sliding speed on tribological properties of the base alloy and Al-Si alloy–fly ash composites pins on sliding with cast iron disc are evaluated. The wear rate of Al-Si alloy–fly ash composites is lower than that of base alloy, and it increases with increasing load and sliding speed. The coefficient of friction of Al-Si alloy–fly ash composites is increased as compared with base alloy.
Practical implications
The development of Al-Si alloy–fly ash composites produced by powder metallurgy technique will modernize the automobile and other industries because near net shape at low cost and good mechanical properties are obtained.
Originality/value
There are few papers available on the development and tribological studies of Al-Si alloy–fly ash composites produced by powder metallurgy technique.
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Maryam Amirhoseiny, Zainuriah Hassan and Sha Shiong Ng
The purpose of this paper was to investigate the growth dependence of InN on Si substrate with different orientation through RF reactive magnetron sputtering in ambient…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper was to investigate the growth dependence of InN on Si substrate with different orientation through RF reactive magnetron sputtering in ambient temperature.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors fabricated indium nitride (InN) thin films by radio frequency (RF) sputtering. The InN thin films were deposited on Si (100), Si (110) and Si (111) substrates at room temperature. The crystalline structure and surface morphology of the InN films were characterized by X‐ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM), energy‐dispersive X‐ray spectroscopy (EDX) and atomic force microscopy (AFM).
Findings
X‐ray diffraction results revealed that the wurtzite InN with preferential (101) orientation are deposited. Through the Scherrer structural analysis revealed nanocrystalline structure for InN films grown on Si (110), Si (100) and Si (111) orientation with crystallite size of 42.3, 33.8 and 24.1, respectively. The optical properties of InN layers were examined by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) and micro‐Raman reflectance spectroscopy at room temperature. The observation of the E1(TO), A1(LO), and E2(high) phonon modes of the InN from the IR and Raman results confirmed that the deposited InN thin film has hexagonal structure.
Originality/value
Si (110) surface is not isotropic and it may offer a unique orientation plane for the nitride films which could reduce the defect density and the resulting tensile stress responsible for film cracking. Therefore, it is absolutely worth exploring the growth of InN on Si (110) by using relatively simple and cheap reactive sputtering technique.
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Rajesh Kumar Bhushan and Deepak Sharma
Sound microstructure components are necessary for reliability and safety; hence, these components are used in aircraft, satellite, automobiles and ships, where many commercial…
Abstract
Purpose
Sound microstructure components are necessary for reliability and safety; hence, these components are used in aircraft, satellite, automobiles and ships, where many commercial alloys are not suitable. The paper aims to discuss this issue.
Design/methodology/approach
AA6082/Si3N4 and AA6082/SiC composites were fabricated using the stir-casting process considering 5, 10 and 15 vol.% of reinforcement particles. Density and porosity of AA6082/Si3N4 and AA6082/SiC composites were calculated. Characterization was done using an X-ray (EDX) detector, attached to SEM. The effect of addition of Si3N4 and SiC particulates in the AA6082 was investigated.
Findings
Results showed that Si3N4 and SiC particulates had good wettability with AA6082 and were uniformly distributed in AA6082 matrix. No adverse effects of reactions were noticed in the microstructure of AA6082/Si3N4 and AA6082/SiC composites.
Research limitations/implications
AA6082 with more than 15 vol.% of Si3N4 and AA6082/SiC reinforcement particles do not find industrial application where high hardness and tensile strength are required.
Practical implications
Components made from AA6082/Si3N4 and AA6082/SiC composites find their application where high hardness with better tensile strength is required.
Social implications
Naturally and locally available materials are utilized for fabrication.
Originality/value
Little work is available in the literature on fabrication and characterization of AA6082/Si3N4 and AA6082/SiC composites. The authors have identified the process parameters at which proper fabrication is done and sound microstructure is obtained.
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Ki Seong Park, Gyeong Lyeob Cho, Yong Min Kim and Heikki Hiilamo
This case study focuses on an alternative minimum-security model, the Safety Income (SI) Model, representing a nuanced departure from both established policies and UBI. StI is a…
Abstract
Purpose
This case study focuses on an alternative minimum-security model, the Safety Income (SI) Model, representing a nuanced departure from both established policies and UBI. StI is a welfare system that supplements households earning below the standard median income with 50% of the difference between the standard median and their current earnings. The quantitative case study presents the set-up of SI and assesses the cost of its implementation in South Korea. By employing a computable general equilibrium model method, the study compares the impacts of SI, UBI and the existing scheme in South Korea on income disparities, labor market outcomes and Gross Domestic Product.
Design/methodology/approach
In the past decade, the Universal Basic Income (UBI) concept has gained international significant traction as a potential remedy for poverty and inequality. However, the practical implications of UBI implementation remain under extensive debate. It is unclear if UBI is an effective model for poverty alleviation.
Findings
The analyses show that SI outperforms the other two welfare systems across all studied economic indicators. SI demonstrates more substantial reductions in income inequality compared with UBI and the existing scheme, minimal impact on unemployment rates compared with other schemes and a relatively modest decrease in GDP, making it a more favorable choice for South Korea when developing the minimum-security system within the specified budget constraint.
Originality/value
This research contributes to the discourse surrounding basic income, economic security, poverty alleviation and inclusive social policies.
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Gloria Thomas, Lahna Roche, Melissa Brocato and Saundra McGuire
The Center for Academic Success (CAS) at Louisiana State University (LSU), certified as a Center of Excellence by the National College Learning Center Association, has utilized…
Abstract
The Center for Academic Success (CAS) at Louisiana State University (LSU), certified as a Center of Excellence by the National College Learning Center Association, has utilized Supplemental Instruction© (SI) for the past 20 years to provide student support for historically difficult courses – those courses with D, F, or withdrawal rates of greater than 30%. In this model, peers called “SI leaders” facilitate study sessions outside of class time to help the enrolled students develop effective learning strategies and better understand and master course concepts. SI relies upon collaboration with faculty and is supported by cognitivism and social constructivism learning theories.
Benefits of the successful model include supporting students to become self-directed independent learners, reducing the stigma associated with using academic support and reducing the demands for tutoring. Outcomes observed at LSU include positive correlations between the course-passing rates and six-year graduation rates of women, underrepresented minorities and first-generation college students who participated in SI compared to the peers who participate less frequently and those who do not participate.
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The basic idea of this chapter is to utilize spiritual information in empirically exploring how its purported source beings view the impacts of such information upon various…
Abstract
The basic idea of this chapter is to utilize spiritual information in empirically exploring how its purported source beings view the impacts of such information upon various phenomena. This chapter aims at discovering and describing the most central effect dimensions in this context and, by so doing, at building theoretical constructs. The empirical work was done during 2005–2009 in Finland. Because of the relative novelty of the research topic, an inductive approach was applied. The research data were composed of a representative sample of 62 spiritual texts (printed books and articles, as well as Web and e-mail articles). The chapter examines the discovered categories and their subcategories, shows the most salient connections between them and discusses the findings in the context of previous research. The investigation explored two dimensions: the targets and actuality of the impacts of spiritual information. The impact targets were classified as organisms (human individuals, human communities, extraterrestrials, spirits), things (parts of beings, objects, information, situations), processes (events, practices, life) and spaces (areas, Earth, universe). The actuality of the impacts of spiritual information fell under these categories: desired (implicitly desired, intended, explicitly desired, requisitioned) impacts, real (possible, believed, factual, alternative) impacts, nonexistent (hypothetical, no) impacts, as well as conditional (on supernatural sender, information, humans, situation) and unconditional impacts. This inquiry revealed several new varieties of information impact and even built whole new typologies, because quite little was known about both the targets and actuality of the impacts of information before the present study.
Both the history and the historiography of SI show that multiple “different definitions and boundaries” have been applied to the subject of study (Atkinson & Housley, 2003, p. vii…
Abstract
Both the history and the historiography of SI show that multiple “different definitions and boundaries” have been applied to the subject of study (Atkinson & Housley, 2003, p. vii). Yet, despite the commonly agreed-upon understanding of SI's heterogeneity, in practice the institutional and disciplinary core of SI unmistakeably resides in its American heartland. For instance, Reynolds and Herman-Kinney (2003a, 2003b, p. ix) preface their fine Handbook of Symbolic Interactionism by aiming at making it “a fine addition to the sociological literature” (my emphasis). Maines (2001, 2003) himself – the most visible critic of the dissolution of SI – focuses on the growing invisibility of interactionism across American sociological theory and research while Fine (1993) and Sandstrom and Fine (2003, p. 1041) find that the “glorious triumph” of SI is due to its successes in “social psychology, medical sociology, deviance, social problems, collective behavior, cultural studies, media studies, the sociology of emotions, the sociology of art, environmental sociology, race relations, social organization, social movements, and political sociology” – hardly an interdisciplinary outlook.
Anjaly A. and Nemat Sheereen S.
The present study examines the effect of supervisor incivility on service employee creativity and the mediating mechanism of negative affect state on the said relationship with…
Abstract
Purpose
The present study examines the effect of supervisor incivility on service employee creativity and the mediating mechanism of negative affect state on the said relationship with the aid of Affective Events Theory (AET) and Social Power Theory. Additionally, the study explores the mitigating role of core self-evaluation in the dual stage of the moderated mediation model.
Design/methodology/approach
Survey data were collected from 420 frontline employees working in four-star and five-star hotels across India and PROCESS macro in SPSS 23.0 was employed to test the hypotheses proposed in the study.
Findings
The study findings observe that frontline employees experiencing supervisor incivility face a negative affect state and it further diminishes service employee creativity. Also, the indirect effect gets attenuated at dual stages when frontline employees are equipped with a high level of core self-evaluation.
Practical implications
The study findings provide various insights to the managers to understand the deleterious effect of supervisor incivility at work and to develop interventions to manage supervisor incivility and the negative affect state among frontline hotel employees.
Originality/value
The present study is the first and unique attempt to investigate the role of supervisor incivility experienced by frontline hotel employees in India with reference to their creativity towards customers and mediating mechanism of negative affect state. The study adds value to the literature by establishing the role of core self-evaluation in the moderated mediation model. Further, the study also provides a unique contribution to the management of frontline hospitality employees.
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A. Alegra Eroy-Reveles, Eric Hsu, Kenneth A. Rath, Alan R. Peterfreund and Frank Bayliss
Supplemental Instructions (SIs) were introduced into the San Francisco State University College of Science & Engineering curriculum in 1999. The goal was to improve student…
Abstract
Supplemental Instructions (SIs) were introduced into the San Francisco State University College of Science & Engineering curriculum in 1999. The goal was to improve student performance and retention and to decrease the time to degree in STEM majors. While for the most part we followed the structure and activities as developed by the International Center for Supplemental Instruction at the University of Missouri, Kansas City, we discovered several variations that significantly improved our outcomes. First and foremost, we created SI courses that require attendance, which results in higher students’ performance outcomes compared to drop-in options. Second, at SFSU the SI courses are led by pairs of undergraduate student facilitators (who are all STEM majors) trained in active learning strategies. Each year, more than half of our facilitators return to teach for another year. Thus, each section has a returning “experienced” facilitator who works with a new “novice” facilitator. Third, the SI courses were created with a distinct course prefix and listed as courses that generate revenue and make data access available for comparison studies. Results are presented that compare SI impact by gender and with groups underrepresented in STEM disciplines.
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