Performance effects of innovative IT applications over time

There is evidence to indicate that the effects of new product and service innovations change over time as a result of learning and competition. However, there have not been any studies of the effects of learning and competition on the impacts of innovative information technology (IT) applications. This paper presents the results of an extensive study of the effects of very early investments in automated teller machines (ATMs) by banks, on market share and overall bank performance. The study spans the period from 1971 to 1984 and includes 2534 banks from across the United States. The results indicate that the impacts of early ATM investments can best be described by exponential and logistic models, indicating that the benefits were very small at first, but increased rapidly after a few years. In addition, the benefits obtained by the earliest adopters were larger than those obtained by the banks that adopted later. These results have important implications for IT investment decisions. The results also suggest that cross-sectional studies, conducted soon after an application is installed, may fail to find benefits even if large benefits are obtained     

Blocage par injection de modes sous- harmoniques d’un oscillateur utilisant une ligne à retard à ondes de surface

A nonlinear regeneration pulsed oscillator driven by a monochromatic source has been built. Subharmonics of the resonance carrier/modulation are measured with an accuracy of 10^-10 thanks to the use of a double beats measurement set-up. The multiscale analysis of frequency readings reveals a rich fine structure which is in agreement with the nonlinear topological approach of synchronized states.     

Numerical modelling in wave energy conversion systems

This paper deals with a numerical modelling devoted to predict the flow characteristics in the components of an oscillating water column (OWC) system used for the wave energy capture. In the present paper, the flow behaviour is modelled by using the FLUENT code. Two numerical flow models have been elaborated and tested independently in the geometries of an air chamber and a turbine, which is chosen of a radial impulse type. The flow is assumed to be three-dimensional (3D), viscous, turbulent and unsteady. The FLUENT code is used with a solver of the coupled conservation equations of mass, momentum and energy, with an implicit time scheme and with the adoption of the dynamic mesh and the sliding mesh techniques in areas of moving surfaces. Turbulence is modelled with the k–ε model. The obtained results indicate that the developed models are well suitable to analyse the air flows both in the air chamber and in the turbine. The performances associated with the energy transfer processes have been well predicted. For the turbine, the numerical results of pressure and torque were compared to the experimental ones. Good agreements between these results have been observed.     

Handover management in integrated WLAN and mobile WiMAX networks [recent advances and evolution of WLAN and WMAN standards]

Recently there has been much effort, in both academia and industry, to integrate a plethora of wireless technologies in order to provide ubiquitous broadband access to mobile users. Handover management is still one of the most challenging issues to be solved for seamless integration of wireless networks. This article addresses the integration of IEEE 802.11 WLANs and IEEE 802.16 WMANs, focusing mainly on the handover management aspects. First, we describe architectures, futuristic application scenarios such as the envisioned heterogeneous multihop wireless networks (HMWNs) and moving networks, as well as the related research issues. Second, we present IEEE 802.21, a new emerging standard aimed at providing a framework for media-independent handover (MIH) among heterogeneous networks. Finally, we discuss how the MIH framework can help handover management for the integrated network.     

Simultaneous measurement of temperature and strain based on arc-induced long-period fibre gratings

A study on arc-induced long-period fibre gratings (LPFGs) revealed that their strain sensitivity depends on the electric current of the arc discharge. Based on that property, a sensor scheme comprising two concatenated LPFGs was implemented for discrimination of temperature and strain effects. This sensor presented resolutions of /spl plusmn/0.1/spl deg/C//spl radic/Hz and /spl plusmn/35 /spl mu//spl epsiv///spl radic/Hz, respectively.     

On‐the‐Spot Immobilization of Quantum Dots,Graphene Oxide,and Proteins via Hydrophobins

Class I hydrophobin Vmh2, a peculiar surface active and versatile fungal protein, is known to self‐assemble into chemically stable amphiphilic films, to be able to change wettability of surfaces, and to strongly adsorb other proteins. Herein, a fast, highly homogeneous and efficient glass functionalization by spontaneous self‐assembling of Vmh2 at liquid–solid interfaces is achieved (in 2 min). The Vmh2‐coated glass slides are proven to immobilize not only proteins but also nanomaterials such as graphene oxide (GO) and quantum dots (QDs). As models, bovine serum albumin labeled with Alexa 555 fluorophore, anti‐immunoglobulin G antibodies, and cadmium telluride QDs are patterned in a microarray fashion in order to demonstrate functionality, reproducibility, and versatility of the proposed substrate. Additionally, a GO layer is effectively and homogeneously self‐assembled onto the studied functionalized surface. This approach offers a quick and simple alternative to immobilize nanomaterials and proteins, which is appealing for new bioanalytical and nanobioenabled applications.     

Analysis of delay mean and variance of collision-free WDM rings with segment recirculation of blocked traffic

In Tunable-Transmitter Fixed-Receiver (TT-FR)-based Wavelength Division Multiplexed (WDM) ring topologies, each node is provided with a dedicated wavelength (home channel) for reception, which must be shared by the upstream nodes willing to communicate with it. Thus, to avoid channel collisions, it is necessary to define a Medium Access Control (MAC) mechanism that arbitrates access to a given destination wavelength. This work proposes and analyses a simple MAC mechanism that avoids channel collisions by recirculating traffic on the upstream ring segment where congestion was detected. Essentially, whenever a given node has got any traffic to transmit, it must first block access to in-transit traffic, which is reflected back to the upstream node over a second optical fibre. Such blocked traffic is given a second chance to pass through the congested node after a round segment delay, thus making use of the ring topology as buffering units. This work analyses the performance operation of such a MAC protocol under two policies applied to recirculated traffic: (1) recirculation bypass and (2) recirculation store-and-forward.     

Information and Telecommunications Project for a Digital City: A Brazilian case study

Making information and telecommunications available is a permanent challenge for cities concerned to their social, urban and local planning and development, focused on life quality of their citizens and on the effectiveness of public management. Such a challenge requires the involvement of everyone in the city. The objective is to describe the information and telecommunications project from the planning of a digital city carried out in Vinhedo-SP, Brazil. It was built as a telecommunications infrastructure of the kind of “open access metropolitan area networks” which enables the integration of citizens in a single telecommunications environment. The research methodology was emphasized by a case study which turned to be a research-action, comprising the municipal administration and its local units. The results achieved describe, by means of a methodology, the phases, sub-phases, activities, approval points and resulting products, and formalize their respective challenges and difficulties. The contributions have to do with the practical feasibility of the project and execution of its methodology. The conclusion reiterates the importance of the project, collectively implemented and accepted, as a tool to help the management of cities, in the implementation of Strategic Digital City Projects, in the decisions of public administration managers, and in the quality of life of their citizens.     

Large‐Area Fabrication of Periodic Arrays of Nanoholes in Metal Films and Their Application in Biosensing and Plasmonic‐Enhanced Photovoltaics

Plasmonics is a fast developing research area with a great potential for practical applications. However, the implementation of plasmonic devices requires low cost methodologies for the fabrication of organized metallic nanostructures that covers a relative large area (～1 cm²). Here the patterning of periodic arrays of nanoholes (PANHs) in gold films by using a combination of interference lithography, metal deposition, and lift off is reported. The setup allows the fabrication of periodic nanostructures with hole diameters ranging from 110 to 1000 nm, for 450 and 1800 nm of periodicity, respectively. The large areas plasmonic substrates consist of 2 cm × 2 cm gold films homogeneously covered by nanoholes and gold films patterned with a regular microarray of 200 μm diameter circular patches of PANHs. The microarray format is used for surface plasmon resonance (SPR) imaging and its potential for applications in multiplex biosensing is demonstrated. The gold films homogeneously covered by nanoholes are useful as electrodes in a thin layer organic photovoltaic. This is first example of a large area plasmonic solar cell with organized nanostructures. The fabrication approach reported here is a good candidate for the industrial‐scale production of metallic substrates for plasmonic applications in photovoltaics and biosensing.