Choice Of Pivot Research Articles

Asan Cups: navigating blue oceans in menstrual hygiene sustainability

Learning outcomes After completion of the case study, students will be able to understand the format of for-profit social enterprise working for menstrual hygiene sustainability and its contribution toward U.N. Sustainable Development Goals, to appreciate the company’s alignment with the triple bottom line framework, to analyze the blue ocean mechanism that the company has developed to create an impact and to critique the strategies the Asan Cups company could adopt to increase its market share and growth. Case overview/synopsis Asan Cups was a for-profit social enterprise founded by Ira Guha in 2021. The company crafted reusable menstrual cups from liquid silicone, sporting a patented design in India, the UK, Europe and the USA. Successfully retailing its products in India, the UK and Europe, Asan Cups operated on a bootstrap model with a compact team of four, led by its visionary founder. From the get-go, the company embraced a compelling 1-for-1 donation initiative. For every cup sold, Asan Cups generously donated another to women who could not afford it. Collaborating with nongovernmental organizations, schools, educational institutions and social workers, the company spearheaded campaigns to heighten menstrual hygiene awareness. This proactive approach aimed to boost the acceptance of menstrual cups among rural women and championed the cause of environmental sustainability. The company did not just stop at providing an eco-friendly alternative. Asan Cups fervently educated the masses on the detrimental environmental impact of traditional disposable period products like sanitary pads and tampons. Fast-forwarding to 2023, Asan Cups had garnered approximately 30,000 users, with the adoption rate steadily climbing. The company strategically used an education-intensive model to foster awareness about period products in collaboration with partners nationwide. However, being a for-profit entity, the founder, Guha, was at a crossroads. Balancing the need for profitability, there was mounting pressure to explore additional revenue streams and expand operations and market reach. The dilemma loomed large: opt for a quicker marketing strategy or stay true to the company’s foundational education-centered approach. This case study delves into the dynamic strategies, impactful operations and growth scenarios Asan Cups navigated since its inception. It examines the pivotal choices faced by the founder and explores potential strategies for sustained growth. Complexity academic level This case study can be used at both undergraduate and master’s levels. The case study will be handy for strategic management and business strategy courses and can also be used for social entrepreneurship, marketing and entrepreneurship courses. Supplementary materials Teaching notes are available for educators only. Subject code CSS 11: Strategy.

PetroSahand International Group: the dilemma of outsourcing for EPC activities

Learning outcomes After reading the case and answering the case assignments, students will be able to understand and explain the challenges and opportunities for engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contractors and their subcontractors; understand and critically analyse the advantages and disadvantages of insourcing and outsourcing of engineering, procurement and construction in EPC projects; determine which situations merit insourcing or outsourcing within each of engineering, procurement and construction in EPC projects; understand and identify the competencies and qualifications that a subcontractor must possess if any EPC activity is outsourced to them; and develop a decision-making framework to determine which EPC activities must be kept in-house or outsourced in EPC projects. Case overview/synopsis In mid-March 2021, PetroSahand International Group, a leading EPC contractor specializing in the oil, gas and petrochemicals industries in Iran, encountered significant challenges with its subcontractors in engineering and construction. These issues resulted in widespread repercussions for the company, including project delays and mounting debts. At the peak of these crises, PetroSahand’s senior management embarked on a thorough examination of whether to insource or outsource various aspects of their operations, such as engineering, procurement and construction. Their objective was twofold: to prevent similar setbacks in future projects and to navigate existing projects with minimal disruption to the company’s reputation. To address this critical dilemma, PetroSahand enlisted the expertise of a consulting team from Sharif University of Technology. Comprising esteemed professors, graduates and students from one of Iran’s most respected institutions, this team undertook an exhaustive analysis of the insourcing versus outsourcing debate across EPC domains. Subsequently, they presented their comprehensive findings, thereby confronting PetroSahand’s senior management with a pivotal choice regarding the optimal approach for each activity. Complexity academic level The audience of this work is undergraduate and graduate students who are enrolled in project management courses, both fundamentals and advanced. In addition, this case helps senior managers of EPC contractors gain a deeper and more comprehensive understanding of insourcing or outsourcing different project activities. Supplementary materials Teaching notes are available for educators only. Subject code CSS 7: Management science.

Therapeutic Potential of Mesenchymal Stem Cell-Derived Exosomes as Nanomedicine for Peripheral Nerve Injury.

Peripheral nerve injury (PNI) is a complex and protracted process, and existing therapeutic approaches struggle to achieve effective nerve regeneration. Recent studies have shown that mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) may be a pivotal choice for treating peripheral nerve injury. MSCs possess robust paracrine capabilities, and exosomes, as the primary secretome of MSCs, are considered crucial regulatory mediators involved in peripheral nerve regeneration. Exosomes, as nanocarriers, can transport various endogenous or exogenous bioactive substances to recipient cells, thereby promoting vascular and axonal regeneration while suppressing inflammation and pain. In this review, we summarize the mechanistic roles of exosomes derived from MSCs in peripheral nerve regeneration, discuss the engineering strategies for MSC-derived exosomes to improve therapeutic potential, and explore the combined effects of MSC-derived exosomes with biomaterials (nerve conduits, hydrogels) in peripheral nerve regeneration.

His Holiness Patriarch Sergius, Metropolitan Gregory and the Theological Schools of the Moscow Patriarchy from 1944 to 2024

The article commemorates two significant events marking the 80th anniversary of the Russian Orthodox Church in 2024: the passing of His Holiness Patriarch Sergius and the establishment of the first theological schools in Moscow during the Soviet era. The question of establishing theological schools was raised by Patriarch Sergius following the Council of Bishops in 1943 and his subsequent election as patriarch. These schools were inaugurated just a month after his passing. It’s emphasized that the swift preparation for the opening of the Theological Institute and Theological and Pastoral courses was facilitated by the quarter-century journey of the patriarch’s long-time faithful colleague, Archpriest Nikolay Chukov (Archbishop Gregory of Saratov and Stalingrad), who authored the project for spiritual educational institutions of the Moscow Patriarchate. He had substantial experience in establishing and overseeing higher theological institutions in Petrograd-Leningrad from 1920 to 1925. For the first time, a diary detailing the activities of Archpriest Nikolay Chukov is published in the appendix. His endeavors, undertaken with the support of Metropolitan Sergius and the Synod from 1928 to 1930, aimed to establish a Theological Institute in Leningrad. Unfortunately, his plans were thwarted by his arrest in 1930. The entries in the published diary confirm Olga Vasilyeva’s assertion that Metropolitan Sergius’ interview, which sparked widespread protests due to its denial of Church persecution in the USSR, was a quid pro quo for allowing him to submit a memo to Pyotr Smidovich. One of the memo’s points emphasized the necessity of opening a theological school. This memo played a pivotal role in obtaining permission, which, in turn, significantly hastened the process of opening theological schools in Moscow in 1943–1944. The article concludes with excerpts from books and articles by a professor from the Department of Church History at Saint Petersburg Theological Academy. This academic offers a negative and ironic assessment of both the ascetic work of Metropolitan Gregory of Leningrad and Novgorod, and the martyrdom of Patriarch Sergius, who endured humiliation primarily to preserve a legalized church organization, which was essential for the establishment of theological schools within the Patriarchate. This aspect became particularly significant when considering the pivotal choice by the authorities between the patriarchal Church and the Renovationists in 1943.

Literature review. Pricing rule alternatives for the European day-ahead market

This literature review delves into the intricate realm of pricing rules in the day-ahead electricity market, spurred by a notable surge in 2022 electricity prices. Employing a comparative analysis of uniform pricing (UP), discriminatory pricing (DP), and the Vickrey–Clarke–Groves (VCG) pricing rule, the study navigates the complexities of these mechanisms. The evaluation unveils contrasting perspectives: the political push for consumer-friendly low prices versus the efficiency aspiration for a self-regulating market. DP, minimizing average prices but increasing volatility, and VCG, excelling in productive efficiency, are pitted against UP, the prevailing yet imperfect norm. The findings underscore the nuances of each rule; DP leads to reduced average prices and heightened volatility, while VCG ensures superior productive efficiency. Despite UP’s simplicity, it prompts inefficiencies and political costs. These insights illuminate the pivotal choice faced by policymakers, balancing efficiency, fairness, and market sustainability.

Exploiting the Social-Like Prior in Transformer for Visual Reasoning

Benefiting from instrumental global dependency modeling of self-attention (SA), transformer-based approaches have become the pivotal choices for numerous downstream visual reasoning tasks, such as visual question answering (VQA) and referring expression comprehension (REC). However, some studies have recently suggested that SA tends to suffer from rank collapse thereby inevitably leads to representation degradation as the transformer layer goes deeper. Inspired by social network theory, we attempt to make an analogy between social behavior and regional information interaction in SA, and harness two crucial notions of structural hole and degree centrality in social network to explore the possible optimization towards SA learning, which naturally deduces two plug-and-play social-like modules. Based on structural hole, the former module allows to make information interaction in SA more structured, which effectively avoids redundant information aggregation and global feature homogenization for better rank remedy, followed by latter module to comprehensively characterize and refine the representation discrimination via considering degree centrality of regions and transitivity of relations. Without bells and whistles, our model outperforms a bunch of baselines by a noticeable margin when considering our social-like prior on five benchmarks in VQA and REC tasks, and a series of explanatory results are showcased to sufficiently reveal the social-like behaviors in SA.

Relevance of Camus’ The Plague in Covid- 19 Crisis

This paper delves into a comparative examination of the novel The Plague by Albert Camus in light of the Covid-19 crisis. Through a careful analysis, this paper aims to highlight the uncanny parallels between the fictional world depicted in The Plague and the real-life circumstances surrounding the global pandemic. The paper explores the shared situations, predicaments faced by characters, and the pivotal choices they must make within the constraints of their respective crises, drawing attention to the surprising similarities with our current time. By presenting compelling arguments, this study seeks to underscore the relevance of the themes and similarities found in The Plague as they relate to the unprecedented challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Top Python-Based Deep Learning Packages: A Comprehensive Review

Deep learning has transformed artificial intelligence (AI) by empowering machines to execute intricate functions with unparalleled precision. The field claims an array of robust packages and libraries, among which Python, a prominent and celebrated programming language, has emerged as a pivotal choice for deep learning study and development. Python has become a leading language in deep learning due to its simplicity and the vast array of libraries available for developers and researchers. This article thoroughly examines the most broadly adopted deep learning packages within the Python system. The packages under scrutiny include TensorFlow, PyTorch, Keras, Theano, and Caffe. We exactly assess each of these packages to establish their typical features and capabilities. Moreover, the review explores into an in-depth analysis of the assets and weaknesses inherent in each package. This detailed exploration prepares readers with the information necessary to make informed decisions regarding the variety of the most suitable packages custom-made to their specific needs. This comprehensive review aims to propose a nuanced understanding of the landscape of popular deep learning packages and support practitioners and researchers in creation strategic and well-informed choices for their deep learning actions.

Performance evaluation and optimization of hollow fiber membrane contactors for carbon dioxide absorption: A comparative study of ammonia, ethanolamine, and diethanolamine solvents

Membrane absorption is an emerging technology that amalgamates the merits of chemical absorption and membrane separation. However, the pivotal choice of solvent profoundly influences the overall performance of the membrane contactor. In this paper, a robust two-dimensional (2D) steady-state non-wetting mathematical and physical model of a hollow fiber membrane contactor (HFMC) was established. COMSOL software was used to solve the model equation of the membrane contactor. The impacts of ammonia, ethanolamine (MEA) and diethanolamine (DEA) on carbon dioxide absorption under different operating conditions and membrane geometry properties were simulated and compared. Results showed that the utilization of NH3 as the solvent in HFMC showcases performance akin to that of MEA, a substantial advantage over DEA. Notably, the performance disparity between ammonia and MEA might alter significantly in response to varying operating parameters. For instance, the CO2 removal performance of HFMC using aqueous ammonia surpasses that of MEA when the CO2 volume fraction exceeds 19 %. Moreover, hollow fibers featuring larger inner diameters and lengths endow a heightened effective mass-transfer area, thereby facilitating superior carbon dioxide removal performance.

Topical timolol maleate 0.5% after fractional carbon dioxide laser versus fractional carbon dioxide laser alone in treatment of acne scars: split face comparative study

Acne is a common inflammatory condition that mostly involves the face, chest and back. A number of different modalities had been employed for treating scars of which laser remains to be a pivotal choice. We aimed to compare the efficacy of topical timolol maleate 0.5% after fractional CO2 (AFCO2) laser versus fractional CO2 Laser alone for treatment of atrophic acne scars. A split-face comparative clinical experiment on 30 cases of atrophic post-acne scars that were treated on one side with ablative fractional CO2 laser followed by timolol application while with only ablative fractional CO2 laser on the other side. Following treatment, both sides demonstrated significant improvement with the laser + timolol treated side showing better improvement; yet not significantly higher than the laser only treated side. In conclusion, both topical timolol maleate 0.5% after fractional CO2 laser and fractional CO2 laser may achieve comparable significant improvement. The good safety profile, easy accessibility, low cost, and non-invasive nature merits the use of timolol in acne scars pending verification by larger sample reproduced and controlled trials.

Operationalizing a Physical Education Workforce Research and Development Agenda

ABSTRACT Workforce initiatives are timely as physical education confronts multiple challenges, some of which can be reframed as opportunities. The operational research and development approach provided herewith builds on a companion analysis focused on agenda-setting. A systems framework identifies relationships among specialized components such as teacher education, doctoral programs, and school curricula/programs and highlights needs for coordinated, collective action among two or more workforce components. Operating under the banner of justifiable variability with accountability, pivotal choices must be made system wide and necessitate collective action strategies. Immediate priorities include collaborative leadership structures and quality controls provided by stronger professional associations.

Prioritizing a Physical Education Workforce Research and Development Agenda

ABSTRACT External developments and intra-professional needs, challenges, and opportunities recommend a workforce research and development agenda. In particular: (a) new models for schools necessitate customized, evidence-based curricula and school/community programs; (b) the effectiveness of every curriculum and program depends on workforce readiness, commitments, competency, adaptability, and retention; (c) the workforce thus is a social determinant for pediatric experiences and outcomes; (d) performance-based accountability requirements for evidence-based and data-informed programs and practices expose workforce-related gaps and illuminate needs for better designs; (e) because one size does not fit all, justifiable variability is a core problem for the profession’s members to address; and (f) strategic differentiation among teacher education programs in tandem with specialized school offerings necessitates better quality assurance mechanisms coordinated by state and national professional associations. Improved workforce specialization in service of better outcomes thus necessitates pivotal choices. Place-based, collaborative planning for collective action is a practical necessity.

Strategies for Achieving High Performance in R&D for Neglected Diseases: A Configurational Approach

Public laboratories pursue scientific and technological advances where private actors lack knowledge, funds, and incentives to invest. Focusing on “neglected diseases”—those which primarily affect people in poor countries—we study how funding sources and research team characteristics affect the R&D performance within a major public lab. We employ a configurational approach to analyze 195 research projects conducted in a public lab in Brazil, a country in which neglected diseases make up the majority of the disease burden. Our findings reveal three configurations to high performance and a set of pivotal choices in project funding capable of leveraging the performance of research projects. From these findings we devise strategies for achieving high performance in research on neglected diseases. We offer a midrange theory of R&D performance in the context of public labs which has implications for the design and maintenance of national innovation systems. Our results also inform literatures on the organization of science and funding for public health, and provide actionable insights for managers and policy makers.

Getting the question right: a pivotal choice for restorative justice

Getting the question right: a pivotal choice for restorative justice

Bootstrap confidence regions based on M-estimators under nonstandard conditions

Suppose that a confidence region is desired for a subvector $\theta $ of a multidimensional parameter $\xi =(\theta ,\psi )$, based on an M-estimator $\hat{\xi }_{n}=(\hat{\theta }_{n},\hat{\psi }_{n})$ calculated from a random sample of size $n$. Under nonstandard conditions $\hat{\xi }_{n}$ often converges at a nonregular rate $r_{n}$, in which case consistent estimation of the distribution of $r_{n}(\hat{\theta }_{n}-\theta )$, a pivot commonly chosen for confidence region construction, is most conveniently effected by the $m$ out of $n$ bootstrap. The above choice of pivot has three drawbacks: (i) the shape of the region is either subjectively prescribed or controlled by a computationally intensive depth function; (ii) the region is not transformation equivariant; (iii) $\hat{\xi }_{n}$ may not be uniquely defined. To resolve the above difficulties, we propose a one-dimensional pivot derived from the criterion function, and prove that its distribution can be consistently estimated by the $m$ out of $n$ bootstrap, or by a modified version of the perturbation bootstrap. This leads to a new method for constructing confidence regions which are transformation equivariant and have shapes driven solely by the criterion function. A subsampling procedure is proposed for selecting $m$ in practice. Empirical performance of the new method is illustrated with examples drawn from different nonstandard M-estimation settings. Extension of our theory to row-wise independent triangular arrays is also explored.

Influence of cataract phacoemulsification on eye hydrodynamics in patients with prior trabeculectomy

At present, phacoemulsification and trabeculectomy are the most widespread surgery methods in cataract and glaucoma treatment, generally recognized as the gold standard. Among elderly patients, comorbid glaucoma and cataract are extremely prevalent, so the order of the two surgeries and the time interval between them are pivotal choices when planning treatment strategy. The reason for it is that almost any eye surgery is considered a risk factor for long-term trabeculectomy effectiveness. In attempts to solve this problem, numerous studies have been conducted on the impact of cataract surgery on filtration bleb scarring. The problem of determining the time interval between surgeries, as well as other treatment nuances, remains relevant despite the long history of research and publications. Some results are cited as general recommendations on treatment tactics (increasing the time interval between operations, using antimetabolite and anti-inflammatory therapy, minimizing intraoperative traumatism). However, currently there are no specific recommendations for one of the most important factors - the time interval between cataract extraction and trabeculectomy.

Pivot profile method: What is the influence of the pivot and product space?

The Pivot Profile© (PP) was proposed recently by Thuillier, Valentin, Marchal, and Dacremont (2015) as an alternative to classical descriptive methods. Its principle is to describe each product by comparing it to a stable reference (called Pivot). While the method seems promising there is little data available and some issues still need to be examined. This paper proposes to evaluate two of these issues: the effects of the similarity within the product space and of the choice of pivot. We compared the pivot profiles obtained for three different sets of beers, varying in their within-set sensory similarity, using different pivots. We found that PP results are more influenced by the within-set similarity than by the choice of the pivot. We suggest that the PP method is more suitable for restricted product spaces in terms of sensory characteristics, and that the creation of a “central product” as the pivot can be a good option when the type of products allows it. However, further studies need to be conducted to assess PP in terms of assessors’ repeatability and consensus, as well as to propose alternative statistical analyses that would take into account the individual PP data.

The Group, The Photograph, The Wound, and the Writing: How a Social Worker Uses Narrative Medicine to Facilitate Groups

ABSTRACTA clinical social worker/psychotherapist demonstrates the use of the narrative method in working with groups. The foundational concepts of “attention, representation and affiliation” will be discussed and applied throughout the article. The pivotal choice of texts and prompts and their relation to trauma will be explicated. Case illustrations are provided that relate to practice of the narrative method with a group of women who are coping with chronic illness and with administrators and providers in a nursing home dedicated to the care of individuals who are experiencing dementia.

Optimal Partitioning for Dual-Pivot Quicksort

Dual-pivot quicksort refers to variants of classical quicksort where in the partitioning step two pivots are used to split the input into three segments. This can be done in different ways, giving rise to different algorithms. Recently, a dual-pivot algorithm due to Yaroslavskiy received much attention, because it replaced the well-engineered quicksort algorithm in Oracle’s Java 7 runtime library. Nebel and Wild (ESA 2012) analyzed this algorithm and showed that on average it uses 1.9 n ln n + O ( n ) comparisons to sort an input of size n , beating standard quicksort, which uses 2 n ln n + O ( n ) comparisons. We introduce a model that captures all dual-pivot algorithms, give a unified analysis, and identify new dual-pivot algorithms that minimize the average number of key comparisons among all possible algorithms up to a linear term. This minimum is 1.8 n ln n + O ( n ). For the case that the pivots are chosen from a small sample, we include a comparison of dual-pivot quicksort and classical quicksort. Specifically, we show that dual-pivot quicksort benefits from a skewed choice of pivots. We experimentally evaluate our algorithms and compare them to Yaroslavskiy’s algorithm and the recently described 3-pivot quicksort algorithm of Kushagra et al. (ALENEX 2014).

Native Brazil: beyond the convert and the cannibal, 1500-1900

The earliest European accounts of Brazil's indigenous inhabitants focused on the natives' startling appearance and conduct--especially their nakedness and cannibalistic rituals--and on the process of converting them to clothed, docile Christian vassals. This volume contributes to the unfinished task of moving beyond such polarities and dispelling the stereotypes they fostered, which have impeded scholars' ability to make sense of Brazil's rich indigenous past. This volume is a significant contribution to understanding the ways Brazil's native peoples shaped their own histories. Incorporating the tools of anthropology, geography, cultural studies, and literary analysis, alongside those of history, the contributors revisit old sources and uncover new ones. They examine the Indians' first encounters with Portuguese explorers and missionaries and pursue the consequences through four centuries. Some of the peoples they investigate were ultimately defeated and displaced by the implacable advance of settlement. Many individuals died from epidemics, frontier massacres, and forced labor. Hundreds of groups eventually disappeared as distinct entities. Yet many others found ways to prolong their independent existence or to enter colonial and later national society, making constrained but pivotal choices along the way.