Mezcal: indigenous Saccharomyces cerevisiae strains and their potential as starter cultures

Food Science and Biotechnology - In this study, 19 indigenous mezcal Saccharomyces cerevisiae strains were screened for their tolerance to grow under different stress conditions and their potential...     

The presence of governance: A system assessment based on innovative core regulatory principles for Brazilian regulators

Regulatory governance is considered as a new era in the state's intervention, and it is vital to foster both qualitative and quantitative performances of regulators. In this paper, the authors argue that the absence of governance principles allows regulators to justify the adoption of instruments to improve it. Five core regulatory principles, particularly accountability, administrative capacity, open government, regulatory quality, and rule of law build the bridge between regulatory governance and regulatory substance. The authors propose the application of a multicriteria modelling method (ELECTRE TRI‐C) in order to conduct the assessment and categorization of Brazilian subnational regulators according to the presence of governance, encompassing the opinions of legitimate stakeholders. The levels of regulatory governance are calculated for the regulators in order to provide some determinants of good governance, which could be stimulated by regulatory impact assessment, as a policy tool that improves institutional environments.     

Coping with different types of innovation: What do metaphors reveal about how entrepreneurs describe the innovation process?

Entrepreneurs play a central role in generating and adopting both technological and non‐technological innovations. However, existing research provides little guidance on how entrepreneurs interpret their endeavours to generate and implement different types of innovation. This paper addresses this void by bringing metaphor analysis into the field of innovation. We argue that the role of figurative language is important in describing the complexity that characterizes the innovation process. Examining qualitative data from episodes of innovation narrated by a sample of Italian entrepreneurs, this paper provides insights into how each type of innovation (product, marketing, process, organizational and strategic) is described differently, through the use of metaphorical language. This research advances the literature by providing a conceptualization of the different metaphor themes entrepreneurs ascribe to each type of innovation, and discusses practical implications for how the metaphorical language can be analysed and interpreted so that the innovation process can be improved.     

The impact of a participatory ergonomics intervention: the value of involvement

This article presents the implementation of a participatory ergonomics (PE) approach in a multinational company in the northern side of Italy, aiming to improve ergonomics, well-being and production outcomes. The methodology used is based on the creation of a multi-disciplinary team to provide and discuss ergonomics’ solutions according to the physical problems of the workers involved and better manage the re-introduction of the workers in the line of production. The study consists of a longitudinal analysis before and after the plant redesign and the PE intervention. Some psychosocial variables as job satisfaction, perceived fatigue, perceived usefulness, repetitiveness, occupational safety and company attention to safety have been monitored to verify the impact of the PE intervention. The results show how the PE intervention positively influences the perception of workers regarding the level of fatigue and repetitiveness and increasing job satisfaction, usefulness and occupational safety with a positive impact on productivity.     

Performance Analysis of 3D Localization for a Launch Vehicle Using TOA,AOA, and TDOA

Wireless Personal Communications - In general, a ground telemetry station for a launch vehicle (LV) includes a tracking function only; therefore, position measurements for LV depend on received...     

Adaptive Channel Estimation Scheme Based on LTE Uplink in V2V Environments

Wireless Personal Communications - Vehicle communication can facilitate efficient coordination among vehicles on the road and enable future vehicular applications such as vehicle safety...     

Are cellulose nanocrystals “alien particles” to human experience?

A wide family of cellulose‐based additives are authorized worldwide as fillers and thickening agents in foods, pills, and tablets, and microcrystalline cellulose (MCC) is, among these, the most important one. Since MCC manufacturing is similar to the main production route of cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs), it is reasonable to wonder whether the MCC would contain CNCs as minor components. In this Short Communication, we provide first results about the occurrence of CNCs in MCC, observed by dynamic light scattering and transmission electron microscopy after serial filtrations of MCC suspensions. The incidence of cellulose nanoparticles has been proved in several different trials in our ongoing works on diverse MCC samples, and the nanoparticles isolated showed shape and dimensions similar to those commonly produced by acidic hydrolysis at laboratory level. Therefore, the presence of CNCs in many products is considered as a certainty. The foods and the pharmaceuticals we have been consuming so far do indeed contain traces of CNCs to such an extent that this wide presence in consumed products should be taken into account when considering possible limitations of the use of these nanoparticles in food contact materials manufacture.     

Unraveling Structural Information of Turkevich Synthesized Plasmonic Gold–Silver Bimetallic Nanoparticles

For the synthesis of gold–silver bimetallic nanoparticles, the Turkevich method has been the state‐of‐the‐art method for several decades. It is presumed that this procedure results in a homogeneous alloy, although this has been debatable for many years. In this work, it is shown that neither a full alloy, nor a perfect core–shell particle is formed but rather a core–shell‐like particle with altering metal composition along the radial direction. In‐depth wet‐chemical experiments are performed in combination with advanced transmission electron microscopy, including energy‐dispersive X‐ray tomography, and finite element method modeling to support the observations. From the electron tomography results, the core–shell structure can be clearly visualized and the spatial distribution of gold and silver atoms can be quantified. Theoretical simulations are performed to demonstrate that even though UV–vis spectra show only one plasmon band, this still originates from core–shell type structures. The simulations also indicate that the core–shell morphology does not so much affect the location of the plasmon band, but mainly results in significant band broadening. Wet‐chemistry experiments provide the evidence that the synthesis pathway starts with gold enriched alloy cores, and later on in the synthesis mainly silver is incorporated to end up with a silver enriched alloy shell.