Cluster Cooperation Research Articles

Formation of Community as a Component of Culture of Cooperation of Students of Higher Education in the Process of Cluster Cooperation

Formation of Community as a Component of Culture of Cooperation of Students of Higher Education in the Process of Cluster Cooperation

INNOVATIVE PEDAGOGY AT HIGHER SCHOOL IN THE CONTEXT OF GLOBAL TRENDS OF EDUCATION SYSTEMS DEVELOPMENT

In the present article the analysis of scientific literature enabled to define innovative pedagogy not only as a science that studies essence, origin and patterns of development of pedagogical innovations, but also as a holistic social phenomenon in education that combines ideas and theories of various branches of science. The general problems of the support of the innovations in education are determined upon the foundation of the analysis of the modern state of introduction and extension of innovations and innovative education projects; their general characteristics are given. Modern ways to introduction of the innovations in the system of higher school in Ukraine are characterized. It is discovered that specifics of the up-to-day tendencies of the development of the higher school are caused by necessity of training of highly professional and competent specialist, the one, who correspond to new demands of the socio-cultural and information situation. It is outlined that modern innovative education is the surpassing education, the main peculiarity of which is working out of the advanced methods and means of the knowledge obtaining that form individuality in the information and education space of the common world. It is stressed upon the need of development of innovative activity of the higher school institutions, as well as necessity of its introduction by the members of the educational process on the basis of the word freedom and creativity, knowledge and information spreading, scientific researches and using of the results. It is mentioned that the main attention is drawn to the international integration of the system of higher school of Ukraine, and at the same time to preserving and development of the achievements of the progressive traditions of the national higher school. The importance of creation of the conditions for keeping, development and using of national scientific-technical and innovative potential; as well as cooperation of science, education, production and finance-credit clusters in development of innovating activity is underlined. The urgency of the problem of forming and spreading of innovations in pedagogical process, the necessity of determination of pedagogic innovative trends from the point of view of the modern world tendencies in the system of higher school is emphasized with understanding that modern humanistic and democratic dimensions of education have to assist to creation of integral educational system with advanced content and forms. The analysis of the methodological foundations of innovative pedagogy has been carried out; its object, subject, principles and regularities, and the terminology apparatus have been specified. The organisational and methodical provision of innovative pedagogy has been considered at the higher education level on the basis of identifying global trends of educational systems development. The example of the innovative educational project “English for Universities” initiated by the British Council and supported by the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine has been provided. The above-mentioned project has been described as a procedure and a complex of measures of national and institutional character that ensure transition of the educational process to a qualitatively new level, in particular in the context of teaching and learning English for professional purposes. It has been revealed that the main condition for the introduction of innovative educational activities in higher education institutions is the appropriate training of academic and pedagogical staff.

Air pollution is associated with the development of atherosclerosis via the cooperation of CD36 and NLRP3 inflammasome in ApoE-/- mice

Previous studies have indicated that the main air pollutant fine particulate matter (≤2.5 μm; PM2.5) exposure is associated with the development of atherosclerosis. Although the mechanism is not fully illustrated, the inflammatory responses play an important role. The present study aimed to explore whether PM2.5-exacerbated atherosclerosis was mediated by the cooperation of cluster of differentiation 36 (CD36) and nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain-like receptor protein (NLRP3) inflammasome in apolipoprotein E-/- (ApoE-/-) mice. Thirty-two ApoE-/- mice were randomly divided into two groups. One group was fed with high fat chow (HFC) for 10 weeks to establish atherosclerotic model, and the other was fed with normal chow (NC). From week 11, the mice were exposed to concentrated PM2.5 (PM) or filtered air (FA) using Shanghai Meteorological and Environmental Animal Exposure System for 16 weeks. In both NC and HFC groups, PM2.5 exposure induced the formation of atherosclerosis plaque. Similarly, PM mice appeared higher lipid content in the aortic root than that in the FA mice. Compared with the FA mice, PM mice appeared a decrease in high density lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-C) and apolipoprotein A1 along with an increase in apolipoprotein B, low density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-C) and oxidized low-density lipoprotein (ox-LDL). Moreover, PM2.5 exposure induced increase of CD36 in serum and aorta. In both NC and HFC groups, NLRP3 inflammasome activation-related indicators were activated or increased in the aorta of the PM mice when compared with the FA mice. The cooperation of CD36 and NLRP3 inflammasome activation may be the potential mechanisms linkixposed to concentrated PM2.5 (PM) or filtered air (FA) using Shanghai Meteorological and Environmental Animal Exposure System for 16 weeks. In both NC and HFC groups, PM2.5 exposure induced the formation of atherosclerosis plaque. Similarly, PM mice appeared higher lipid content in the aortic root than that in the FA mice. Compared with the FA mice, PM mice appeared a decrease in high density lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-C) and apolipoprotein A1 along with an increase in apolipoprotein B, low density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-C) and oxidized low-density lipoprotein (ox-LDL). Moreover, PM2.5 exposure induced increase of CD36 in serum and aorta. In both NC and HFC groups, NLRP3 inflammasome activation-related indicators were activated or increased in the aorta of the PM mice when compared with the FA mice. The cooperation of CD36 and NLRP3 inflammasome activation may be the potential mechanisms linking air pollution and HFC-induced atherosclerosis even in the mice with NC intake.

Nature of bonding and cooperativity in linear DMSO clusters: A DFT, AIM and NCI analysis

This study aims to cast light on the nature of interactions and cooperativity that exists in linear dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) clusters using dispersion corrected density functional theory. In the linear DMSO, DMSO molecules in the middle of the clusters are bound strongly than at the terminal. The plot of the total binding energy of the clusters vs the cluster size and mean polarizabilities vs cluster size shows an excellent linearity demonstrating the presence of cooperativity effect. The computed incremental binding energy of the clusters remains nearly constant, implying that DMSO addition at the terminal site can happen to form an infinite chain. In the linear clusters, two σ-hole at the terminal DMSO molecules were found and the value on it was found to increase with the increase in cluster size. The quantum theory of atoms in molecules topography shows the existence of hydrogen and SO⋯S type in linear tetramer and larger clusters. In the dimer and trimer SO⋯OS type of interaction exists. In 2D non-covalent interactions plot, additional peaks in the regions which contribute to the stabilization of the clusters were observed and it splits in the trimer and intensifies in the larger clusters. In the trimer and larger clusters in addition to the blue patches due to hydrogen bonds, additional, light blue patches were seen between the hydrogen atom of the methyl groups and the sulphur atom of the nearby DMSO molecule. Thus, in addition to the strong H-bonds, strong electrostatic interactions between the sulphur atom and methyl hydrogens exists in the linear clusters.

Competitive or cooperative relationships in clusters

PurposeAn efficient policy supporting clustered business operations necessitates an appreciation of the dynamics of rivalry and collaborations among businesses. This paper postulates that variation in competition and cooperation can significantly influence the nature of business relationships among clustered businesses, which is essential for cluster policy particularly (Newlands, 2003) as most research on rivalry and cooperation in clusters have been in developed economies. The purpose of this paper is to seek to fill the gap in the literature in African clusters based on original empirical research.Design/methodology/approachThe study adopts a mixed-method research design allowing for data triangulation to study two food processing clusters. The approach comprises a survey and in-depth interview with key actors along the supply chain.FindingsThe findings show that business clusters with more formal business structures tend to have minimal horizontal competition but higher vertical cooperation. Comparatively, clusters with more socially embedded milieu tend to have higher levels of cooperation and minimal competition in both vertical and horizontal relationships. The research also shows that such variations in inter-business relationships have an effect on cluster operations in terms of business access to finance, formal contract, sharing of innovation and the way they relate to different stakeholders in their supply chain.Originality/valueThis paper advances a critical case for international business theory on clusters in Africa to incorporate the distinctive business relationships in small and medium enterprises (SME) clusters. It also demonstrates how unique location-specific attributes of developing economies hold the key to sustaining the operations of SME-based clusters.

Coopetition in regional clusters: Keep calm and expect unexpected changes

This study focuses on changes over time in inter-firm cooperation of an export-oriented regional cluster within a Latin American emerging economy. The study was conducted in the Chilean salmon industry. A longitudinal study, collecting primary data from managers, was conducted over ten years. Unexpectedly, findings revealed that as the cluster matured, firm's members tended towards more individual behaviour than strategic inter-firm cooperation though, they continued to cooperate in more basic cost-reducing strategies. This result extends the industry cluster literature and provides insights into the cooperative and competitive changes that take place over time.

Gadd45a opens up the promoter regions of miR-295 facilitating pluripotency induction

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) play crucial roles in the establishment of pluripotent state by controlling pluripotent network. However, the molecular mechanisms controlling miRNAs during somatic cell reprogramming remain obscure. In this study, we show Gadd45a (growth arrest and DNA-damage-inducible protein 45a) enhances reprogramming by activating miR-295. Furthermore, we show that Gadd45a binds the promoter regions of miR-295. Nuclease accessibility assay indicates that Gadd45a opens the promoter regions of miR-295. Levels of H3K9Ac and H3K27Ac on the promoter regions of miR-295 were also increased. In conclusion, our results indicate that Gadd45a relaxes the promoter regions of miR-295 and promotes the expression of miR-295 during reprogramming, implying a concise mechanism of Gadd45a and miR-290 cluster cooperation in cell-fate determination.

Cluster Cooperation in Wireless-Powered Sensor Networks: Modeling and Performance Analysis.

A wireless-powered sensor network (WPSN) consisting of one hybrid access point (HAP), a near cluster and the corresponding far cluster is investigated in this paper. These sensors are wireless-powered and they transmit information by consuming the harvested energy from signal ejected by the HAP. Sensors are able to harvest energy as well as store the harvested energy. We propose that if sensors in near cluster do not have their own information to transmit, acting as relays, they can help the sensors in a far cluster to forward information to the HAP in an amplify-and-forward (AF) manner. We use a finite Markov chain to model the dynamic variation process of the relay battery, and give a general analyzing model for WPSN with cluster cooperation. Though the model, we deduce the closed-form expression for the outage probability as the metric of this network. Finally, simulation results validate the start point of designing this paper and correctness of theoretical analysis and show how parameters have an effect on system performance. Moreover, it is also known that the outage probability of sensors in far cluster can be drastically reduced without sacrificing the performance of sensors in near cluster if the transmit power of HAP is fairly high. Furthermore, in the aspect of outage performance of far cluster, the proposed scheme significantly outperforms the direct transmission scheme without cooperation.

Research on Complex Network Characters of Weighted Industrial Cluster

There are many enterprises with the division of labor and cooperation in industrial clusters. These enterprises connect to each other according to the division of labor and cooperation relationship, forming a complex industrial clusters network. In this paper, we construct a weighted industrial cluster network model. In this model, the enterprises in the industrial cluster network is divided into the upstream enterprise, midstream enterprise and downstream enterprise according to collaborative relationship, and these enterprises are simulated as different types of point of the network. The logistics relationship between enterprises is simulated as the edge, and the logistics quantity between different enterprises is simulated as the edge weight of the network. New nodes are added into cluster network according to the node type and preferential attachment. In this paper we simulated the evolution process of the industrial cluster network, and analyze the network characteristics such as degree distribution, the average clustering coefficient and the average network shortest path.

Development of methodology for efficiency evaluation of cluster interaction of industrial enterprise

The object of research is efficiency evaluation of the cluster interaction. World experience convinces that cluster interaction significantly reduces the amount of costs and efforts for competitive rivalry and allows combining the advantages of enterprises. For efficient industrial enterprise business activity within the cluster it is necessary to develop and apply modern methods of efficiency evaluation of a cluster interaction at the level of an industrial enterprise. The lack of a scientifically based methodology for a comprehensive efficiency evaluation of the cluster interaction of an industrial enterprise does not allow an enterprise to determine the most promising areas of such interaction with cluster participants. An analysis of existing methodological approaches has shown that most scientists propose an evaluation either on a cluster scale or at a regional level. Effectiveness evaluation of the cluster cooperation on enterprise-participant of the cluster paid insufficient attention level. In addition, traditional methods of multifactor analysis of complex economic systems do not allow describing the cause-effect relationship between the parameters of impact and the predicted value using factors that take into account qualitative indicators. Therefore, to evaluate the cluster interaction, the authors proposed to use fuzzy set theory, which allows to make optimal management decisions taking into account the quantitative and qualitative parameters. As a result of the research, a comprehensive methodology is developed that takes into account the basic directions of cluster interaction based on quantitative and qualitative indicators of production, technology, innovation, financial and economic, personnel, information, marketing and management interactions based on fuzzy set theory, which will allow making optimal management decisions about effectiveness of cluster interaction of industrial enterprise as a complex and separately for its directions. The theoretical value of the research is to develop a methodology and tool to ensure the effective functioning of the processes of the industrial enterprise in the cluster. The practical significance of obtained results is that they can be used by specific industrial enterprises when choosing the forms and directions of cluster interaction.

Cooperation in Clusters and Networks – Creativity and Innovativeness Challenges: An Introduction

Cooperation in Clusters and Networks – Creativity and Innovativeness Challenges: An Introduction

The issues of risk management in the case of cluster cooperation

The paper is conceived as a theoretical and methodological study on the process of risk management in terms of cluster cooperation. In recent years the collaboration among different regional entities through their involvement in clusters has become increasingly important in Slovak Republic. The participation of particular subjects in clusters and their subsequent cooperation is observed by certain risks. The correct risk approach helps eliminate the negative trends in activities carried out by the cluster and because of that it may increase the interest of other stakeholders to take part in this form of cooperation. The goal of this paper is to characterize the risk management in a specific environment of cluster cooperation.

Conceptual foundations of innovation clusters development

The article is devoted to topical issues of regional management development and the accumulation of knowledge on the formation of conceptual bases of the organization and support of innovative clusters. It is proved that the development of innovative and cluster model of Ukrainian economy at the same time takes into account and uses a number of conceptual provisions. These are interrelated provisions of the modern innovation theory, postulates of market economy, methods and technologies of regional management. It is proved that conceptual provisions of innovation clusters development ensure the progress and systemic changes of economic activities in regions, this result is logical and appropriate to such strategic perspectives. The key problems of the formation of the concept and cluster model in regional and industrial formations with innovative orientation are outlined. The vision of innovative cluster features from the position of integration and organizational processes; industry specialization and market priorities is defined. The idea, goal, objectives, management mechanisms and activities tools, approaches to the evaluating of the effectiveness and efficiency of the cluster are proved. As approaches and technologies of the development it is recommended to recognize: comprehensive and high-quality scientific and information support of decision- making process by authorities; effectiveness control and accounting of positive and negative consequences of current decisions; openness and transparency in collective actions, decision-making taking into account positions of all cluster members; formation of positive impact on the image of the region and the industry. The definition of the key principles of the integrated cluster cooperation is given.

CLUSTER COOPERATION AND RISK LEVEL IN SMALL AND MEDIUM-SIZED ENTERPRISES

One of the most important stages in the process of risk management is the risk identification and classification, which are required in each entity located and operating in the environment that is: dynamic, influenced by various external and internal factors and exposed to some types of risks. The main research aim is to identify the most important categories of risk and to develop knowledge about risk management in cluster cooperation. The proposal of the methodology is based on the results of the survey conducted in small and medium sized enterprises in Slovakia in 2016 and the literature review. Risk categories will be analyzed and evaluated with the use of quantification method – non-parametric multi-selective Kruskal-Wallis test. The contribution of the paper consists in pointing out the types of risk the entities have to consider in the framework of cluster cooperation. The results of the paper show that the most important categories of risk are mainly market, political and technical risks.

Research on the Regional Cooperation of Technological Innovation in Food Industry Cluster

This study analyzes the technological innovation in food industry cluster cooperation and the noncooperative game phenomenon between two regions and uses the tools of dynamic differential equations to ensure the realization of time consistency. This study solves the problem of optimal strategies of inter-regional cooperation by differential equations, achieves a reasonable distribution of income under the respective optimal trajectory and explains the cooperation between regional innovation in food industry cluster of food industry cluster from a new perspective, which is an effective way to promote inter-regional cooperation according to the required layout and style.

Opportunities for Cross-Border Entrepreneurship Development in a Cluster Model Exemplified by the Polish–Czech Border Region

The subject of the paper is the analysis and evaluation of cross-border entrepreneurship development opportunities on the basis of cross-border cooperation, which has gradually evolved from consisting of bilateral partnerships to a networking model or even a cluster. The study conducted at the Polish–Czech border area indicates that, in terms of the development of cross-border cooperation, the economic sphere is lagging far behind social activities such as culture, education and tourism. At the same time, Polish and Czech enterprises are not sufficiently mobilized to develop cross-border entrepreneurship, although a number of support instruments in this regard have been proposed. Sustainable development of the border should take into account both social and economic aspects. An important research problem therefore becomes determining the possibility of boosting the development of cross-border entrepreneurship on the basis of the existing forms of cross-border cooperation, including cooperation in the social sphere. The aim of this paper is to define the conditions and opportunities for the development of cluster cooperation in the area of cross-border entrepreneurship. The author has attempted to resolve whether the intensity of cross-border cooperation can be a factor which mobilizes companies to develop their cross-border entrepreneurship and whether cross-border entrepreneurship can be further developed within the cluster model.

Backhaul-Constrained Multicell Cooperation Leveraging Sparsity and Spectral Clustering

Multicell cooperative processing with limited backhaul traffic is studied for cellular uplinks. Aiming at reduced backhaul overhead, a sparse multicell linear receive-filter design problem is formulated. Both unstructured distributed cooperation and clustered cooperation, in which base station groups are formed for tight cooperation, are considered. Dynamic clustered cooperation, where the sparse equalizer and the cooperation clusters are jointly determined, is solved via alternating minimization based on spectral clustering and group-sparse regression. Furthermore, decentralized implementations of both unstructured and clustered cooperation schemes are developed for scalability, robustness, and computational efficiency. Extensive numerical tests verify the efficacy of the proposed methods.

INNOVATIVE APPROACHES TO THE REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT IN UKRAINE

The purpose of the paper is the detection, theoretical study and the analysis of key innovative approaches to regional development in modern conditions and the justification of a necessity of their use in practice. Methodology. The study is based on theoretical methods to study this problem. Theoretical and methodological basis of the study are works of scientists on the innovative approaches to the regional development in modern conditions. The dialectical method of cognition, as well as such methods as a systematic and structural analysis, logical generalization are used to study the formation of scientific positions and forming the methodological foundations of the innovative approaches to regional development. Results of the survey showed that among the existing innovative approaches to the regional development two are considered to be the most suitable in the present conditions – interregional cooperation and cluster approach. Theoretical, methodological and practical aspects of regional development, which determine the transformation of the socio-economic relations in the context of sustainability of regional development and are caused by using innovative approaches to the regional development, are described. Practical implications. The priorities of the dynamic regional development through activization of interregional economic cooperation and development of regional and interregional clusters are defined. The development of interregional and international cooperation, implementation of the potential of regional cluster initiatives, development of the system of innovation-oriented investment projects, innovative development of the industry and the realization of its export potential can lead to the qualitative structural shifts in the socio-economic development of regions and Ukraine as a whole. Value/originality. Despite the existing considerable experience of the implementation of these processes in highly developed countries, the assumption is made that the most suitable alternative for Ukraine’s economy is not mechanical copying of foreign experience but taking into account only the main features. Considerable interest shows the experience and peculiarities of using innovative approaches to the regional development especially in countries with economies in transition and in developing countries.

Research on Cooperative Innovation Behavior of Industrial Cluster Based on Subject Adaptability

From the perspective of the interactive cooperation among subjects, this paper portrays the process of cooperative innovation in industrial cluster, in order to capture the correlated equilibrium relationship among them. Through the utilization of two key tools, evolutionary stable strategy and replicator dynamics equations, this paper considers the cost and gains of cooperative innovation and the amount of government support as well as other factors to build and analyze a classic evolutionary game model. On this basis, the subject’s own adaptability is introduced, which is regarded as the system noise in the stochastic evolutionary game model so as to analyze the impact of adaptability on the game strategy selection. The results show that, in the first place, without considering subjects’ adaptability, their cooperation in industrial clusters depends on the cost and gains of innovative cooperation, the amount of government support, and some conditions that can promote cooperation, namely, game steady state. In the second place after the introduction of subjects’ adaptability, it will affect both game theory selection process and time, which means that the process becomes more complex, presents the nonlinear characteristics, and helps them to make faster decisions in their favor, but the final steady state remains unchanged.

Performance Analysis and Optimal Cooperative Cluster Size for Randomly Distributed Small Cells Under Cloud RAN

One major advantage of cloud/centralized radio access network is the ease of implementation of multi-cell coordination mechanisms to improve the system spectrum efficiency (SE). Theoretically, large number of cooperative cells lead to a higher SE; however, it may also cause significant delay due to extra channel state information feedback and joint processing computational needs at the cloud data center, which is likely to result in performance degradation. In order to investigate the delay impact on the throughput gains, we divide the network into multiple clusters of cooperative small cells and formulate a throughput optimization problem. We model various delay factors and the sum-rate of the network as a function of cluster size, treating it as the main optimization variable. For our analysis, we consider both base stations’ as well as users’ geometric locations as random variables for both linear and planar network deployments. The output signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio and ergodic sum-rate are derived based on the homogenous Poisson point processing model. The sum-rate optimization problem in terms of the cluster size is formulated and solved. Simulation results show that the proposed analytical framework can be utilized to accurately evaluate the performance of practical cloud-based small cell networks employing clustered cooperation.