Effective Lever Research Articles

Tensions undermining equitable school funding: insights from Australia

ABSTRACT School funding policy in Australia not only promotes educational equity in some ways but also creates substantial between-school resource inequalities due to its embrace of market ideologies. School funding policies are designed to promote school choice and competition, based on the assumption that they are both a right and an effective lever for improving educational outcomes. School funding is used to create an educational marketplace with varying ‘price points’, leading to the acceptance of a two-tiered system of basic provision via the public sector and enhanced provision for those willing to pay via the private sector. Political commitment to making school funding more equitable has been largely absent. Marketisation is the mechanism by which schooling maintains its capacity to reproduce social inequality without evoking class-based discourse or anxiety.

Exploring Urban Heritage: Leveraging Space Syntax for the Digitization and Preservation of Climat de France in Algiers

Research on modern heritage is attracting interest nowadays. For this research, we focused on the large housing estateof Climat de France, designed by Fernand Pouillon. We aim with this participation to provide alternatives like digitalinstruments to enhance these dwellings, articulating our research on the following problematic: How can thecontribution of space syntax be useful for carrying out a diagnosis and digitization of the Climat de France? Theresearch will be based on an integrated urban approach that combines spatial and geographical analysis. We will focuson understanding the different elements of space (roads, public spaces, the built environment, and physical attitudes)and describing the relationships between them in terms of connectivity, accessibility, nodality, and density, theseparameters will therefore require the use of software such as depthmapx. In conclusion, the study of the Climat deFrance using syntaxe could be an effective lever for safeguarding and valorization of this modern heritage.

Industry 5.0: Challenges and Opportunities for Sustainable Development of Russian Industry

The implementation of the task of economic and social development at the present stage of social progress by the state is entrusted to innovative technologies used in various fields. The most advanced, competitive, allowing to promote the economy into Industry 5.0, technical and technological innovations become an effective lever for the formation of a steadily growing economic system. The selection of such innovations takes place according to well-defined parameters, among which the return on scale is important. Institutional and evolutionary economics, based on the position of the influence of institutions with specified properties on the behavior of market actors, determine the mandatory increasing effect of using high technologies for the successful development of industry as the basis of the country's economic economy. The paper presents an argument supporting this position in the manufacturing sector and the industry of a "new" type – the knowledge economy. But defining the criteria for promotion to Industry 5.0 is not enough to form tactics for the transition to a new high-tech stage of development. Innovative goals and intellectual technological tasks in the field of industry are being created and implemented in Russia. As part of this, priority areas of economic modernization are being implemented at the level of industrial policy, which makes it possible to respond to the challenges arising adequately and successfully in the paradigm of modern technological innovations.

Conditions for adherence to videoconference-based programs promoting adapted physical activity in cancer patients: a realist evaluation

BackgroundAlthough moderate physical activity (PA) during cancer treatment has been associated with improved quality of life, reduced side effects, and even lower mortality, many barriers to successful implementation remain. Digital technology has been perceived as an effective lever for overcoming access and motivational issues but few studies have been performed to confirm this assumption. The “VISIO-AJUST” study explored the factors affecting the conditions of adherence to video-conference-based PA programs in patients undergoing cancer treatment.MethodsThe VISIO-AJUST study was based on a qualitative successive case approach, guided by the principles of the realist evaluation, and applied to two French programs of PA, following three main steps: (1) Identification of factors likely to influence conditions of patients’ adherence; (2) Elaboration and testing of explanatory “Context-Mechanism-Outcome (CMO)” configurations; (3) Refinement of CMO configurations, in order to understand what, how, for whom, and under what circumstances video-conference-based PA programs work.ResultsFive main CMO configurations were found to be associated with adherence to video-conferencing-based PA programs, promoting (i) accessibility and a supportive environment for adapted physical activity, (ii) a setting conducive to sociability despite distance, (iii) Confidence and security of practice, (iv) a combination of several motivational levers in favor of continuity of effort and progress, (v) regularity of the sessions, progressiveness in the effort and evaluation of progress as a basis for the adoption of a regular physical practice.ConclusionThis study provides original insights into the use of videoconferencing to enable patients to improve their PA during cancer treatment. Future research with long-term follow-up would allow for a better understanding of the key conditions promoting sustainable behavior change.

Collaborative financing as a source of funding for entrepreneurship in Morocco

Small and medium-sized businesses face several challenges, the most important of which is the problem of access to traditional financing. It is in this context that crowdfunding appears to be a promising financing alternative. However, despite the potential of crowdfunding, there are still challenges and questions regarding its implementation and effectiveness in Morocco. It is therefore essential to carry out a thorough study. To answer our main problem: Could crowdfunding be an effective financing lever for entrepreneurship in Morocco? We used the descriptive method which is characterized by the description of the phenomenon studied in all its clarity.

Driving the career readiness agenda in Hong Kong higher education

The concept of “career readiness” can trace its origin to earlier studies about learning and employability in higher education as well as management of student life cycle. Since then, career readiness has evolved into a major concern for public funders and regulators of higher education. Policy researchers contend that following the expansion of higher education and subsequent institutional commitment to ensuring student success, the current stage is about emphasizing employability as the primary indicator of graduate outcomes. This policy shift projects the university-employer interface into the spotlight and creates a favorable condition for promoting work-based experiential learning in higher education. While all postsecondary education institutions in Hong Kong give due regard to graduate employment as a measure of successful “university to work transition,” most of them however do not offer structured courses to train their students in skills for lifetime employability. This leads to the question of whether the status quo is desirable and what would be an effective lever for effecting change. Should coaching students for career readiness remain the responsibility of career development office or can academic staff also have a role to play in supporting it? What are the different approaches for teaching about “work life” in the crowded undergraduate curriculum space? Answers to the above would depend on how much the higher education sector in Hong Kong is prepared to embark on a “whole-of-life” approach to develop “work conscious” and not just “work ready” graduates. The new direction will help to generate a positive effect on higher education institutions in Hong Kong for them to compete through curricular and pedagogical innovations in support of the career-readiness agenda.

Impact of fintech usages on financial inclusion initiatives: perspective from Urban slum dwellers of Uttarakhand

ABSTRACT This study explores awareness levels, the factors influencing awareness, and the impact of actual usages of fintech services on the acceleration of financial inclusion initiatives among the urban poor of the disadvantaged geographic segment of society. Data have been gathered from a sample of 100 individuals residing in urban slums in Uttarakhand, and analysis has been conducted utilizing the Partial Least Square Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) technique. The study finds that there is a moderate-to-low level of awareness except awareness of digital methods of payments, which is very high. Income and education are the prominent factors affecting awareness. Lastly, fintech is an effective lever that significantly accelerates the financial inclusion initiatives among urban slum dwellers.

Dynamics of crop category choices reveal strategies and tactics used by smallholder farmers in India to cope with unreliable water availability

CONTEXTChanging cropping pattern is a potentially effective lever to cope with unreliable water resources, but given the multiple factors driving crop choices, assessing if farmers actually use it specifically for this objective remains difficult. OBJECTIVEWe aimed at analyzing whether and how farmers choose crop categories with different water requirements to cope with limited water resources in peninsular India. METHODSWe monitored over a 10 year period crop choices, weather, and groundwater level for the three cropping seasons in 205 irrigable farms in the Berambadi watershed, in southern India. We categorized crops according to their seasonal water requirement. We built farm types based of Sequence Analysis and Agglomerative Hierarchical Clustering of crop category sequences over 10 years for each cropping season. For each type, we correlated the variation in crop category choices to variations in rainfall and groundwater availability, to identify tactical adaptations. Finally, we grouped the crop category choices of the three seasons to identify the main strategic pathways followed by farmers. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONSSequence analysis of crop category choices revealed different types of crop category sequences, reflecting farmers' different strategies, which were not significantly linked with groundwater availability. We identified five main pathways across the three cropping seasons, including combining long-cycle irrigated crop and other crop categories, specializing in short-cycle irrigated crops over two or three seasons, specializing in rainfed crops or abandoning agriculture. Within each type, correlations between variation in water availability and crop categories highlighted specific tactical adaptations. SIGNIFICANCEThe opportunity for farmers to choose their crops among a variety of species encompassing a large range of water requirements allows them to base their system resilience on a large diversity of strategies and tactics. This suggests that some farmers empirically estimate the water balance of their cropping systems at seasonal scale to take tactical decisions. Providing them with science-based tools to refine this estimation could therefore improve their decision-making. This also implies that modelling farmer decisions must account for their diversity. Maintaining or increasing the capacity of farmers to cultivate a broad range of crops with different seasonal water requirements is important for farming system resilience, and should therefore be part of the agenda of policy makers for agricultural or environmental regulations.

Scaling nonhierarchically: A theory of conflict‐free organizational growth with limited hierarchical growth

AbstractResearch SummaryWe propose a theory that explains variations in the relationship between an organization's size and the extent of its authority hierarchy (as captured in managerial intensity). Conceptualizing authority hierarchy as a means to manage conflicts among subordinates, we formulate a model in which the number of managers required depends on the magnitude of conflicts generated between and within groups of workers. Our analysis shows that scaling non‐hierarchically can be accomplished either by creating low conflict “self‐managing” teams or reducing conflicts between many “self‐contained” teams, but which path is more effective varies by situation. Small initial differences in terms of their emphasis on within vs. between team conflict mitigation can lead to large differences as firms scale over time in the extent of their authority hierarchies.Managerial SummaryManaging without an extensive hierarchy can be attractive for a variety of reasons, but under what conditions is it possible in large scale organizations? We build on the premise that the managerial hierarchy of authority serves to resolve conflicts that employees cannot resolve peer‐to‐peer (i.e., there are limits to scaling groups that manage themselves consensually). We develop a formal theory that predicts that there are three levers that can slow down the growth of managerial hierarchy even as the organization scales: investing in the technology and culture needed to (a) expand managerial capacity particularly toward the apex of the hierarchy (b) create “self‐managed” teams that produce few conflicts in need of managerial resolution and (c) create “self‐contained” teams that generate few conflicts between them that need escalation up the hierarchy for resolution. The third is likely to be the most effective lever as organizations grow.

Hydration of Portland slag cement in the presence of nano silica

The cement industry accounts for nearly 7% of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions globally and is facing tremendous pressure to reduce the emission intensity. Supplementary cementitious materials (SCM) are a quick and effective lever to lower CO2 emissions. The cement hydration process is a sensitive mechanism and is greatly influenced by many factors such as hydration environment, type of SCM, and the amount used in the cement, which affect the cement's physical and mechanical performance. The SCM adversely impacts cement performance, especially prolonged setting and slow initial compressive strength development, compared to ordinary Portland cement (OPC). The importance of nanomaterials has been known for decades; their usage in cementitious materials is now accelerated as they can play an essential role by offsetting the adverse effects of the high usage of SCMs in cement. They help in reducing the intensity of CO2 and offer value-added features. A lab experiment is carried out to understand the role of nano SiO2 at different dosages on the Portland slag cement (PSC) hydration by studying heat evolution profiles, compressive strengths, TG-DTA, XRD, and SEM images. Results have revealed that 1% nano SiO2 accelerates early settings time and compressive strength compared to OPC. It will promote slag-based blended cement (PSC) and replace ordinary Portland cement in the construction industry to reduce the CO2 footprint of the cement and construction industry. A model of NS's role during PSC hydration is also given.

Effect of a relative pricing intervention and active merchandising on snack purchases: interrupted time series analysis of a hospital retailer-led strategy

BackgroundPricing policies have been shown to be an effective lever for promoting healthier dietary choices in consumer food environments. It is not yet well understood how pricing can be used to encourage healthier substitute purchases. The aim of the study was to assess the effect of a retailer-led relative pricing intervention on weekly purchases of targeted snack foods and beverages.MethodsThis was an ecological analysis in a real-world large tertiary hospital consumer food environment setting in urban Canada, comprised of four retail outlets: two large cafeterias, one smaller cafeteria, and one grab-and-go café. An interrupted time series analysis was designed to evaluate the effect of Snacking Made Simple, a retailer-led relative pricing intervention applied to 10 popular snack foods and beverages (n = 87 weeks, 66 weeks baseline and 21 weeks intervention, April 2018 to December 2019), on weekly purchase differences between healthier and less healthy targeted items, adjusted for weekly sales volume. Five healthier items were price discounted, alongside a price increase for five less healthy items. The intervention was actively merchandised in keeping with behaviour change theory.ResultsWeekly purchases of targeted snacks became healthier during the intervention period (β = 21.41, p = 0.0024). This followed a baseline period during which weekly purchases of less healthy targeted snacks had outpaced over time those of healthier targeted snacks (β = -11.02, p = 3.68E-14). We estimated that, all else being equal, a hypothetical 9.43 additional weeks of the intervention would be required to transition to net-healthier targeted snack purchases in this environment. The effects of the intervention varied by retail outlet, and the outcome appears driven by specific food items; further, examining merchandising implementation, we posited whether direct versus indirect substitution may have affected purchasing outcomes.ConclusionsRelative pricing may be a promising way to incentivize healthier substitute purchasing in the consumer food environment. Added attention to merchandising strategy as well as value-add factors within food categories and their effects on price salience may be an important factor in effective intervention design.

I Really Know You: How Influencers Can Increase Audience Engagement by Referencing Their Close Social Ties

Abstract Despite firms’ continued interest in using influencers to reach their target consumers, academic and practical insights are limited on what levers an influencer can use to enhance audience engagement using their posts. We demonstrate that posting stories with or about people whom they share close ties with—such as family, friends, and romantic partners—can be one effective lever. Content that incorporates close social ties can be effective for several reasons: it may increase perceptions of authenticity, enhance perceived similarity, increase the perception that the influencer possesses more warmth, and could satisfy viewers’ interpersonal curiosity. We analyze texts and photographs of 55,631 posts of 763 influencers on Instagram, and after controlling for several variables, we find robust support that consumers “like” posts that reference close social ties. Furthermore, this effect enhances when first-person pronouns are used to describe special moments with these close ties. We supplement the Instagram data with an experimental approach and confirm the relationship between close ties and consumer engagement. Managerially, this is a useful insight as we also show that sponsored posts tend to be perceived negatively compared to non-sponsored posts; yet, embedding social ties on the sponsored posts can mitigate consumers’ negative responses.

STUDY OF THEORETICAL AND METHODOLOGICAL ASPECTS OF CRATIVE MANAGEMENT

The article defines the role of creative management in ensuring sustainable competitive advantages for the organization. It is emphasized that intellectual activity plays a vital role in the management of the business processes of the organization.
 The concept of creative management, which performs an organizational and guiding role in achieving the set goals in the organization, has been developed.
 The significance of using creative management tools as an effective lever for solving complex problems and making unconventional and original management decisions at enterprises in the conditions of the innovative economy is revealed. It has been proven that the introduction of modern methods of creative thinking and decision-making into the management process, the creation of a creative atmosphere within the team stimulates the development of the process of self-realization and self-improvement of employees, which leads to the successful resolution of problems in the organization, the adoption of extraordinary unique decisions, the creation of an innovative product, i.e., the increased efficiency of modern business.
 The proposed concept of creative management and the collective solution of creative problems are a source of practical recommendations regarding the development of creative thinking of personnel and the adoption of competitive decisions.

THE WEBSITE OF THE HIGHER EDUCATION INSTITUTION AND ITS IMPORTANCE IN THE INFORMATION AND EDUCATIONAL ENVIRONMENT

The article examines the importance of creating an informational and educational environment of a higher education institution as a condition for quality provision of educational services for its applicants and informing potential users. The role of the informational competence of the educational worker in the innovative educational environment for orientation in today's variety of information sources is revealed. The theoretical and practical aspects of the functioning of the information and educational environment and the essence of the concept itself are considered. The functions and tasks of the educational website as an element of the informational and educational environment, which occupies the key place of an effective organizational lever, are analyzed. The structure of the University website was studied and the principles of filling it with public access information depending on the category of users were highlighted. A scheme for filling the official website of the Higher Education Institution with data is proposed. It has been established that in order to effectively solve the tasks that rely on the website of the Higher Education Institution, its structure must be competent and clear, as optimized and logical as possible, which affects its perception by users and ranking in the global Internet. The information content should take into account the category of users, the navigation should be as clear as possible, and the visual component should be attractive and recognizable.

Design for reusability and product reuse under radical innovation

Many industries, including consumer electronics and telecommunications equipment, are characterized with short product life-cycles, constant technological innovations, rapid product introductions, and fast obsolescence. Firms in such industries need to make frequent design changes to incorporate innovations, and the effort to keep up with the rate of technological change often leaves little room for the consideration of product reuse. In this paper, we study the design for reusability and product reuse decisions in the presence of both a known rate of incremental innovations and a stochastic rate of radical innovations over time. We formulate this problem as a Markov Decision Process. We provide both analytical and numerical results, the latter based on over 425,000 problem instances generated over the entire range of model parameters. Our steady-state results confirm the conventional wisdom that a higher probability of radical innovations would lead to reductions in the firm’s investments in reusability as well as the amount of reuse the firm ends up doing. Interestingly, the design for reusability decreases much more slowly than the actual reuse. We identify some specific scenarios, however, where there is no tradeoff between the possibility of radical innovations and the firms reusability and reuse decisions. Through computational experiments, we also provide insights into the negative impact of radical innovations on firm profits, but show that the environmental impact of increased radical innovation is not necessarily negative. Our results also have several implications for policy makers seeking to encourage reuse. In particular, increasing end-of-life costs through take-back legislation is a safe and effective policy lever.

ОСМАНО-ПАПСЬКІ ВІДНОСИНИ ТА ЗАГАЛЬНОЄВРОПЕЙСЬКИЙ КОНТЕКСТ ЧЕРЕЗ ПРИЗМУ ЧИННИКА ПРИНЦА ДЖЕМА

The traditional view of historiography that the relations between the Ottoman Empire and the classical West were consistently hostile is partly justified, but still in a large part of aspects it does not correspond to reality. This can best be traced on the example of its relationship with the Holy See, which ideologically was its main opponent, as well as the center responsible for the organization of the crusade against the Ottomans and the organization of the entire anti-Ottoman struggle. Nevertheless, the Roman Popes did not hesitate to enter into political agreements with the Ottoman Sultan when the question arose of keeping his brother Jem in honorary captivity. Moreover, the Prince Jem factor caused an increase in internal contradictions within Christendom, leading to a direct confrontation between Pope Alexander VI Borgia and the French King Charles VIII, resulting in the Pope entering into a de facto alliance with Bayezid II. During these events, the Holy See lost a significant part of its authority among the states of Christian Europe, which, moreover, did not hesitate to protect their interests to its detriment, in particular, demanding Jem to bypass the Vatican in order to play their own political-diplomatic game with the Ottomans. These events show how deep intra-European contradictions were and how much they affected the general system of diplomatic relations with the Ottoman Empire. In addition to this, from now on the Ottoman Empire took its place in the pan-European system of international relations, ceasing to be the image of an all-encompassing enemy, and becoming a very real situational partner and an organic element of inter-European diplomacy, which was actively used for mutual blackmail and sometimes as an effective lever of a peculiar system of restraints and counterbalance within Christendom.

Technology transfer network system in Ukraine

Introduction. The technology transfer system is an effective lever of innovative activity and a driver of the innovative economy. The study of the network system of technology transfer in Ukraine is an important problem of innovative development and commercialization of innovative developments. The formation of an effective network system of technology transfer is the foundation of innovative development of Ukraine's economy, which is key to determining Ukraine's place in global innovative development. Goal. Determination of the theoretical and methodological basis of the formation of a model of the network system of technology transfer in Ukraine Method (methodology). The methodological basis of the research is a system of general scientific and special methods, namely deduction (in the construction of the structure of the work in a logical relationship and study of the subject in general, the unity and interdependence of its components), induction (in the formation of general conclusions of the conducted research), abstract science and synthesis (in clarification of interpretations of categorical tools). The results. Based on the results of the research, the concepts of technology transfer center and technology transfer network are summarized, the role of the technology transfer network in the innovative development of Ukraine is determined, and a structural and logical scheme of the model of the network system of technology transfer for Ukraine is proposed. It was determined that the main tasks of the technology transfer network are activities aimed at commercializing the results of scientific research and development, promoting cooperation and cooperation between science and industry, as well as providing services and consulting to companies in certain scientific fields. The network system of technology transfer acts as a transferable mechanism for the development, implementation of innovations and their introduction into life. The formation of technology transfer centers on the basis of large research universities and scientific institutions creates a very powerful mechanism that carries out scientific, innovative, educational, and marketing activities. In this way, a multi-component structure is formed, which combines all processes related to the commercialization of innovations, knowledge and technologies.

Destruction of tolerance in Olzhas Zhanaydarov's play “Aldar”

The author deals with the refraction of the category of “tolerance” in O. Zhanaydarov's play “Aldar” through the interpretation of the image of the Migrant Other. The analysis of the work is built from the standpoint of the new drama and communicative violence as one of its main principles. The depiction of a migrant in the play is subject to a number of characteristics that contribute to the overall idea - to reflect acute inequality, global chaos, and the deconstruction of moral attitudes. Hence, the concept of tolerance undergoes complete decomposition, degradation - destruction. The discourse of the Other allows the playwright to narrate on the basis of a performative principle using a certain cultural code, which is also considered as the Other. By constructing a character's conflict with a system that is based on the foundation of violence, the author implements the principle of hyperrealism, which in turn exposes previously hidden problems that corrode society. The Other in this case turns out to be a signal of the need to reshape the “sick,” destructive world order, which is interpreted by society as something self-evident, unshakable. However, whether the Other can become an effective lever for understanding tolerance in its “healthy” meanings by changing the violent, perverted principles of reality - this question has not yet been answered.

РАЦІОНАЛІЗАТОРСЬКА ПРОПОЗИЦІЯ: ПРОБЛЕМИ ОХОРОНИ І ЗАХИСТУ

The purpose of this scientific article is to justify the need to create a new law of intellectual property, which would protect and defence the rights of the rationalizers and successors of the creator of the rationalization proposal. It has been noted that lately, some scientists have underestimated the importance of our chosen to study the intellectual property object. It is emphasized that it is worth studying the experience of legal regulation of innovation in the production of economically developed countries, in particular, Germany. It is emphasized that during the post -war reconstruction of Ukraine and the creation of an innovative economy, stimulating the development of rationalization is an effective lever of the above process. On the basis of the analysis of the current legal acts and scientific achievements of modern scientists, an attempt was made to find out the main shortcomings of the modern regulatory framework and the determination of ways of overcoming them. It is noted that in the future law it is necessary to pay special attention to the conceptual apparatus, the conditions of protection of the rationalization proposal, the personal non - property rights of the rationalizer, his property rights and defence rights of the successors. Since the rationalizer is usually an employee, it is suggested to think about providing him with greater preferences in labor law compared to current standards. It is emphasized that it is necessary to create the conditions for realization of the ability to register a transformed rationalization proposal into a utility model or invention. It is also necessary to stimulate employers to quickly introduce the specified intellectual property object into production. Therefore, in the future, the law must be laid by mechanisms of such incentives. In the rules for the protection of the rights of the subjects of the rationalization proposal, it will be right to specify the main offenses and to provide responsibility for seeming co - authorship.

Foot arch rigidity in walking: In vivo evidence for the contribution of metatarsophalangeal joint dorsiflexion

Human foot rigidity is thought to provide a more effective lever with which to push against the ground. Tension of the plantar aponeurosis (PA) with increased metatarsophalangeal (MTP) joint dorsiflexion (i.e., the windlass mechanism) has been credited with providing some of this rigidity. However, there is growing debate on whether MTP joint dorsiflexion indeed increases arch rigidity. Further, the arch can be made more rigid independent of additional MTP joint dorsiflexion (e.g., when walking with added mass). The purpose of the present study was therefore to compare the influence of increased MTP joint dorsiflexion with the influence of added mass on the quasi-stiffness of the midtarsal joint in walking. Participants walked with a rounded wedge under their toes to increase MTP joint dorsiflexion in the toe-wedge condition, and wore a weighted vest with 15% of their body mass in the added mass condition. Plantar aponeurosis behavior, foot joint energetics, and midtarsal joint quasi-stiffness were compared between conditions to analyze the mechanisms and effects of arch rigidity differences. Midtarsal joint quasi-stiffness was increased in the toe-wedge and added mass conditions compared with the control condition (both p < 0.001). In the toe-wedge condition, the time-series profiles of MTP joint dorsiflexion and PA strain and force were increased throughout mid-stance (p < 0.001). When walking with added mass, the time-series profile of force in the PA did not increase compared with the control condition although quasi-stiffness did, supporting previous evidence that the rigidity of the foot can be actively modulated. Finally, more mechanical power was absorbed (p = 0.006) and negative work was performed (p < 0.001) by structures distal to the rearfoot in the toe-wedge condition, a condition which displayed increased midtarsal joint quasi-stiffness. This indicates that a more rigid foot may not necessarily transfer power to the ground more efficiently.