Socio-technical IS design science research: developing design theory for IS integration management

Design science research is an essential part of IS research since the field should not only try to understand how the world is, but also how to change it. We argue that the aim of IS design science research should be to develop practical knowledge not only for the design of novel information technology (IT), but also for IS governance and management. Whereas at least some methodological support exists for researchers engaged in IT-centric design science research, limited support is available for researchers who want to develop design knowledge and theory for IS governance and management. To overcome this shortcoming, we suggest a socio-technical IS design science research approach. The approach has four main activities: (1) identifying problem situations and desired outcomes, (2) reviewing extant theories, knowledge and data, (3) proposing/refining design theory and knowledge, and (4) testing design theory and knowledge. The applicability and usefulness of the proposed approach is shown by means of a design science research project concerning IS integration management in the context of mergers and acquisitions.     

An approach to analyzing and planning post-merger IS integration: Insights from two field studies

Information systems (IS) integration is among the most challenging tasks in corporate mergers and acquisitions (M&As). In this paper we propose and illustrate the use of an approach to analyzing and planning post-merger IS integration that extends general theory for IS planning, considering the specific characteristics of the M&A context. We highlight that planning effectiveness is possible to achieve in fundamentally different ways, dependent on the characteristics of the merger or acquisition at hand.

Integrating Ecological,Social and Cultural Dimensions in the Implementation of the Landscape Convention

Implementation of the European Landscape Convention requires new tools that link ecological, social and cultural dimensions in practical planning. Here, we propose connectivity as a conceptual tool to include different dimensions into landscape and spatial planning. We present a short review of the connectivity concept in relation to ecological, social and cultural dimensions and illustrate it by examples from a real landscape planning case.     

Time-resolved vortex wake of a common swift flying over a range of flight speeds

The wake of a freely flying common swift (Apus apus L.) is examined in a wind tunnel at three different flight speeds, 5.7, 7.7 and 9.9 m s⁻¹. The wake of the bird is visualized using high-speed stereo digital particle image velocimetry (DPIV). Wake images are recorded in the transverse plane, perpendicular to the airflow. The wake of a swift has been studied previously using DPIV and recording wake images in the longitudinal plane, parallel to the airflow. The high-speed DPIV system allows for time-resolved wake sampling and the result shows features that were not discovered in the previous study, but there was approximately a 40 per cent vertical force deficit. As the earlier study also revealed, a pair of wingtip vortices are trailing behind the wingtips, but in addition, a pair of tail vortices and a pair of ‘wing root vortices’ are found that appear to originate from the wing/body junction. The existence of wing root vortices suggests that the two wings are not acting as a single wing, but are to some extent aerodynamically detached from each other. It is proposed that this is due to the body disrupting the lift distribution over the wing by generating less lift than the wings.     

See-saw rocking: an in vitro model for mechanotransduction research

In vitro mechanotransduction studies, uncovering the basic science of the response of cells to mechanical forces, are essential for progress in tissue engineering and its clinical application. Many varying investigations have described a multitude of cell responses; however, as the precise nature and magnitude of the stresses applied are infrequently reported and rarely validated, the experiments are often not comparable, limiting research progress. This paper provides physical and biological validation of a widely available fluid stimulation device, a see-saw rocker, as an in vitro model for cyclic fluid shear stress mechanotransduction. This allows linkage between precisely characterized stimuli and cell monolayer response in a convenient six-well plate format. Models of one well were discretized and analysed extensively using computational fluid dynamics to generate convergent, stable and consistent predictions of the cyclic fluid velocity vectors at a rocking frequency of 0.5 Hz, accounting for the free surface. Validation was provided by comparison with flow velocities measured experimentally using particle image velocimetry. Qualitative flow behaviour was matched and quantitative analysis showed agreement at representative locations and time points. Maximum shear stress of 0.22 Pa was estimated near the well edge, and time-average shear stress ranged between 0.029 and 0.068 Pa. Human tenocytes stimulated using the system showed significant increases in collagen and GAG secretion at 2 and 7 day time points. This in vitro model for mechanotransduction provides a versatile, flexible and inexpensive method for the fluid shear stress impact on biological cells to be studied.     

The complex aerodynamic footprint of desert locusts revealed by large-volume tomographic particle image velocimetry

Particle image velocimetry has been the preferred experimental technique with which to study the aerodynamics of animal flight for over a decade. In that time, hardware has become more accessible and the software has progressed from the acquisition of planes through the flow field to the reconstruction of small volumetric measurements. Until now, it has not been possible to capture large volumes that incorporate the full wavelength of the aerodynamic track left behind during a complete wingbeat cycle. Here, we use a unique apparatus to acquire the first instantaneous wake volume of a flying animal''s entire wingbeat. We confirm the presence of wake deformation behind desert locusts and quantify the effect of that deformation on estimates of aerodynamic force and the efficiency of lift generation. We present previously undescribed vortex wake phenomena, including entrainment around the wing-tip vortices of a set of secondary vortices borne of Kelvin–Helmholtz instability in the shear layer behind the flapping wings.     

Ring Network Design by Lagrangean Based Column Generation

We discuss the problem of designing a telecommunication network with the survivability requirement that the network should be composed of connected rings of links. The network design problem is then to choose links from a given network, and compose them into a number of rings. Furthermore, the rings should be connected at certain transit nodes. The traffic between rings may pass through other rings. Each ring is associated with a certain fixed cost depending on the length of the ring. We describe the problem, modeled as a linear integer programming problem, and a heuristic solution method, based on column generation and Lagrangean relaxation.     

Diamines and polyamines in DMBA-induced breast carcinoma containing mast cells resistant to compound 48/80

Obstetric factors were studied in an unselected series of mothers of LBW-children and compared with those in a corresponding control series. Both groups consisted of 161 women with single pregnancies and 16 with twin pregnancies. Of the 188 LBW-children, 14% were twins. Of the single infants, 42% were appropriate for gestational age (AGA), i.e. within the 10th to 90th percentile according to Swedish curves for intrauterine growth, and 58% small for gestational age (SGA). The commonest causes of low birthweight (LBW) in the AGA-group were bleeding (34%) and premature rupture of the membranes (28%). In the SGA-group toxaemia was found in 15%, but in 50% of the SGA-group no cause of LBW was demonstrable. In this latter group the average placental weight was low. The mortality was noted and 89% of the living children were examined neurologically at 5 years of age. The prognosis of the child depended on the duration of pregnancy. Bleeding during pregnancy was a prognostically unfavourable sign, but even serious bleeding complications did not exclude a normal development of the child. The prognosis was best for those infants in whom no cause of LBW was demonstrable.     

Heme oxygenase and carbon monoxide: regulatory roles in islet hormone release: a biochemical, immunohistochemical, and confocal microscopic study

Two randomized, double-blind, parallel-group single-dose 2 x 2 factorial analgesic studies compared a single-dose or a 2-tablet dose of a combination of 7.5 mg hydrocodone bitartrate with 200 mg ibuprofen with each constituent alone and with a placebo in women with moderate or severe postoperative pain from abdominal or gynecologic surgery. A nurse-observer recorded patient reports of pain intensity and pain relief periodically for 8 hours. In both studies, the combination was significantly superior to placebo for sum of the pain intensity differences (SPID), total pain relief (TOTPAR), peak pain intensity difference (PID) and pain relief, global evaluation, and time to remedication. The combination was likewise significantly superior to both hydrocodone and ibuprofen for most of these summary measures of analgesia. In a factorial analysis, both the hydrocodone and ibuprofen effects were significant for most summary measures of analgesia, whereas results of the interaction contrast were consistent with the concept that the analgesic effect of the combination represents the additive analgesia of its 2 constituents.     

Developing ecological sustainability: a green IS response model

Growing private and public concern with the environment is pushing businesses to increase their awareness and action. Using the Nordic bank Nordea as a case study and a Green information systems (IS) organizational response model developed on the basis of extant literature, we investigate how Green IS initiatives become part of a firm's overall strategy and part of the organizational sustainability process. We find that Green IS initiatives are initiated through a bottom‐up process where environmentally concerned individuals identify issues and become Green IS champions. They use their authority and edification skills to promote Green IS to the organizational agenda. If the issue is aligned with the organizational agenda, it receives management's endorsement. The empirical case also shows two types of systemic feedback that can fuel a self‐reinforcing sustainability process. The first type of feedback increases the champion's ability to promote Green IS in the future through authority and edification. The second type leads to the transformation of organizational value through reinforcement and extension. Finally, we identify interrelationships between organizational response processes, where higher‐order response processes, e.g. change of corporate values, function as gatekeepers or pre‐conditions for when and which issues are promoted to the organizational agenda. © 2016 Wiley Publishing Ltd