Competition For Space Research Articles

Exposing the “shadow”: an empirical scrutiny of the “shadowing process“ of private tutoring in India

ABSTRACT A growing body of research shows that private tutoring is a globally pervasive phenomenon. A common way in which tutoring provisions are defined is with the use of the metaphor “shadow education”, signifying that tutoring centres “shadow” formal schools. Despite the popularity of this metaphor in the field, how “shadowing” occurs as a process and what implications this process has for formal schooling and society have seldom been put through empirical scrutiny. To redress this gap in the literature, this article draws on the data produced through an ethnography of schooling in Dehradun (India) between 2014–15. The discussion on specific ways in which the institutional arrangement of private tutoring aligns with that of formal schooling reveals the socio-educational embeddedness of private tutoring within the mainstream schooling experience in India. The article argues that “shadowing” is not a neutral process, it is executed tactically and strategically with an aim to provide private tutoring a valued, legitimised, and competitive space in an increasingly marketised education sector. Importantly, this analysis of “shadowing” exposes problematic practices within formal schooling and suggests that by mirroring these practices in its structure, private tutoring reproduces social inequality. The insights into understanding the “shadowing process” that this article offers may be of value to the analysis of the organisational arrangements of tutoring businesses within India and in other societies. Through demonstrating that tutoring is part of everyday schooling, this article makes a case for recognising it as integral to mainstream education in India.

A centuries-old manmade reef in the Caribbean does not substitute natural reefs in terms of species assemblages and interspecific competition

With increasing maritime activities in the proximity of coral reefs, a growing number of manmade structures are becoming available for coral colonisation. Yet, little is known about the sessile community composition of such artificial reefs in comparison with that of natural coral reefs. Here, we compared the diversity of corals and their competitors for substrate space between a centuries-old manmade structure and the nearest natural reef at St. Eustatius, eastern Caribbean. The artificial reef had a significantly lower species richness and fewer competitive interactions than the natural reef. The artificial reef was dominated by a cover of crustose coralline algae and zoantharians, instead of turf algae and fire corals on the natural reef. Significant differences in species composition were also found between exposed and sheltered sites on both reefs. Our study indicates that even a centuries-old manmade reef cannot serve as a surrogate for natural reefs.

Differential Symbiodiniaceae Association With Coral and Coral-Eroding Sponge in a Bleaching Impacted Marginal Coral Reef Environment

Marginal reefs are known for severe stress-inducible perturbations such as high sedimentation, eutrophication, ocean warming, and acidification from anthropogenic climate change. The corals striving in such stressful environments develop physiological adaptations induced by differential genomic expressions or association with thermal stress-tolerant algal symbionts (Symbiodiniaceae). Despite such adaptations, corals are threatened by other space competitors such as algae and sponges. Coral-eroding sponges belonging to the Cliona viridis complex are one such space competitors that also associate with Symbiodiniaceae algal photosymbiont. The diversity of Symbiodiniaceae associates with the coral and sponge from the same ecosystems is scarcely known. In the present study, Symbiodiniaceae community structure in the coral Turbinaria mesenterina, a newly described coral-eroding sponge Cliona thomasi, and their surrounding seawater was determined from the nearshore marginal reef along the central west coast of India. The results revealed a significantly higher relative abundance of Durusdinium and Gerakladium than Symbiodinium and Cladocopium in the seawater. Interestingly, both investigated host species showed differential Symbiodiniaceae association with significantly higher abundance of Durusdinium in coral and Gerakladium in sponge. The beta diversity analysis by Permutational multivariate analysis of variance (PERMANOVA) confirmed significant differences in Symbiodiniaceae profiles between sponge and coral. Durusdinium and Gerakladium are thermotolerant genera known to associate with different hosts in suboptimal conditions. Our field surveys suggested the bleaching resistance of the coral T. mesenterina despite the fact that the sea surface temperature reached the coral thermal threshold of 31°C during different periods of the years 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, and 2019. Therefore, the thermal tolerance of the investigated coral and sponge species may be attributed to their respective thermotolerant photosymbiont associations. Furthermore, the results also indicated the host-specific photosymbiont selection from the local environment. Although these observations provide valuable biological insight, more research is needed to understand the tripartite association of sponge-coral-symbiont together to evaluate the competitive fitness of holobionts.

Toward competitive multi-agents in Polo game based on reinforcement learning

The learning of agents in a competitive space such as a game is a challenging task. The aim of the proposed research is to improve the reinforcement learning techniques in a competitive multi-agent for the Polo game. First, the video dataset is prepared. Then, the rules of the Polo game are extracted as a class diagram. An architecture is designed for multi-agent team in the Polo game. Therefore, an algorithm is proposed for the temporal difference in the game belief space for improving reward catching. The reward function is implemented in the agent team. Finally, the research improvement is evaluated by increasing 31 units in comparison with previous work. Therefore, competitive learning in the agent team has been improved.

Increasing the agricultural enterprises’ competitiveness based on its components and indicators accounting, evaluation and modelling

The subject of the research is the theoretical, methodological principles, and practical proposals for increasing the agricultural enterprises’ competitiveness based on improving its components accounting, evaluation, and modeling. The purpose of the article is to substantiate the increase of agricultural enterprises’ competitiveness and managing it through improving accounting, evaluation, and modeling of its quantitative indices and indicators. The methodological basis of the article is the fundamentals of economic theory, business economics, and accounting; works of leading scientists on competitiveness issues; legal regulations on various aspects of agricultural enterprises and markets development. The historical and monographic methods and methods of system-structural analysis and synthesis, rating evaluation and ranking, accounting, model of competitive space are used. The results of the article. The essence of agricultural enterprises’ competitiveness is generalized, the problems of its formation are revealed and directions of improving its management are offered based on building the model of competitive space taking into account indicators of financial and economic sustainability of agribusiness, market share, and products competitiveness, and involvement of the marketing plan as well. Field of application of results. The results obtained should be used in the management of agribusiness enterprises; in the educational process of the faculties of economics and management of higher education institutions. Conclusions. Modeling of increasing the agricultural enterprises’ competitiveness and its forward-looking management is based on improving the accounting and evaluation of indicators of its factors and components. Its result can be a three-factor model of competitive space based on the following indicators: the level of competitiveness of products, the level of financial and economic sustainability, the market share size. The key to increasing the competitiveness of agricultural entities depending on the model chosen and strategies of functioning in the market space is called innovation, compliance with specialization, marketing plans.

Factors affecting consumers’ willingness to subscribe to over-the-top (OTT) video streaming services in India

PurposeThe introduction of Over-the-Top (OTT) video streaming services through national and international providers like Netflix, Amazon Prime, etc. has changed consumer behaviour towards entertainment subscription. The study aims to identify the reasons for subscribing and not subscribing to OTT services. The main objective is to test the factors affecting consumers' OTT subscription decisions. Design/methodology/approachOne hundred and sixty-eight responses were collected through snowball sampling technique and three hundred responses through Mturk. Consumers are categorized into three groups having only cable/DTH services, only OTT, and having both cable & OTT. The study adopted a cross-sectional descriptive approach. FindingsFourteen reasons for subscribing and eleven reasons for not subscribing were identified and reported. Five factors, i.e., content, convenience, features, price & quality were extracted using Exploratory Factor Analysis. The effect of these five factors along with demographics of age, education, occupation is tested on subscription decisions using a logistic regression analysis. All the five factors affected consumer's decisions along with price inversely. Household structure was the major influencer along with age, occupation, and education. Originality/valueThe study not only comprehensively attempted to identify the reasons for subscribing and not subscribing OTT services, but also identified five major factors and their effect on consumers’ online subscription preferences. The context of the study is the Indian OTT service market which is highly heterogenous and therefore, this descriptive research provides useful insights to the OTT streaming service providers operating in this competitive space.

Our Ethical Obligation to Planetary Science in the Age of Competitive Space Exploration

Our Ethical Obligation to Planetary Science in the Age of Competitive Space Exploration

Development of a methodological basis for assessing the effectiveness of value-oriented management of development of a restaurant business enterprise

The object of research is the process of value-oriented management of the development of a restaurant business. The article argues that value-oriented management of the development of a restaurant business is aimed at achieving the goal of maximizing the key determinants of value. The parameters and elements of the configuration of the value concept (strategic assets, nomadic competencies, the consumer value frame of the restaurant service) are determined, the content and nature of which reflects the individual elements of the value-oriented management of the restaurant business. The research methodology is based on theoretical and methodological analysis of scientific literature, economic methods, and observations, comparable, measurement, analysis and matrix modeling. To develop a Y-matrix model for assessing the effectiveness of value-based development management, which represents the relationship between strategic assets, key competencies and the value frame, the expert method and the method of multivariate comparative analysis are used. The results of this research show that the elements of consumer value that are basic for the development of restaurant businesses in the modern competitive space are: the uniqueness of the restaurant concept, originality of the menu, pricing policy, service, safety standards, atmosphere, innovation and emotions. For the empirical convergence of the concept of value, a Y-matrix is built. Based on the use of the method of multivariate comparative analysis, the implementation degree of key competencies and strategic assets in the creation of structural elements of consumer value is assessed. To determine the efficiency level of value-based development management at the restaurant business, the value resonance coefficient is calculated. Based on the research results, a list of key competencies is determined, on the development of which it is necessary to focus the attention of the management of the restaurant business. The practical significance of research lies in the possibility of its use as a tool for strategic value analysis in the restaurant business. The proposed approach allows to determine the emphasis of management impact in order to maximize the value of restaurant services.

The Arctic as a potential space for Great Power Competition

At the turn of the 20th and 21st centuries, the Arctic Ocean experienced a short reduction in both the extent and the amount of sea ice. These events, triggered by a global rise in temperature, have opened the door to more active use of new sea shipping routes and the possibilities of extraction of natural resources from deposits previously inaccessible. Such changes led to an increase in the activity of states both belonging to the Arctic region and outside it. The result of these processes was a gradual increase in rivalry between the key actors in the Arctic region. The author analyzes how the state of relations between the great powers affects the Arctic region. Using the example of relations between US and Russia, which are key in the Arctic, it is shown that, despite the growing rivalry between the two states, they least of all affect the Russian-American relations in this region. Against this background, there is growing and interesting another great power to this region - the PRC. In contrast to the Russian Federation and the United States, China uses a non-confrontational path in its activities in the Arctic region, advocates the preservation of peace and stability in it. As a result, the rivalry of states in the northern latitudes can be called a semblance of a Cold War on a regional scale.

Comparison of expandable hospital competitions in Turkey and USA and space programs

The reason behind this article is the idea that “Expandable Hospital Competitions” are significant architectural events due to their organization in two different countries. Additionally, the research topic becomes much important due to the differences in “Hospital Design Standards” arising from the lapse of time as almost half a century since such competitions are organized at different times. The first competition, called “Expandable Hospital,” is organized in Turkey in the year 1975, while the second competition is named “Small Hospital-Big Idea,” which was organized in the USA in the year 2011. Due to such a year gap, the research becomes more multi-dimensional, with significant differences in the competition space programs. At the same time, there have been some improvements socially, general health conditions due to the changes in welfare and communication conditions, etc., hospital organization, medical practices, pharmaceutical manufacturing, medical devices, and medical equipment. All of such factors have changed the space standards that affect the hospital organization in the long year gap. Based on such developments, this study aims to identify the differences between hospital competitions and space programs under the existing conditions through the performance of comparison

Current situation in the competitiveness of Russian industrial enterprises

This article examines the characteristic features of the concept of "competitiveness" of the region. The key methods for assessing competitiveness, their advantages and disadvantages are considered. The factors influencing the competitiveness of the region are analyzed, the main directions of increasing the competitiveness are formed. The conceptual approaches of scientists-economists on the development of the competitive market space in the region are formulated (in comparison). An overview of the dynamics of the level of competitiveness of the federal districts of the Russian Federation in the production of electricity and raw materials for the period from 2008 to 2019 is presented. A brief comparison of the assessment of the state of the competitive environment in Russia using data from the reports of the analytical center under the Government of the Russian Federation for 2016 and 2020 is given. In 2020, a typical representative of the sample looks like this: the owner of his own business (68%), the age of this business is more than 5 years (77.8%), the target markets for it are the markets of individual Russian regions or municipalities (62%) or the market The Russian Federation as a whole (33%). The market model of competition that has developed in the country (including in a separate region) forms the state and determines the further development of the competitive space in the economic sphere of both the region and the country as a whole. The article examines the factors on which the situation of the competitive environment of the region depends. The subsequent development of the competitive market space in the region will be influenced by both positive and negative factors. The task of the state in this case is to ensure the competitive potential of the region, that is, its readiness for normal competition and stable functioning of a specific competitive market environment.

Online tools to synthesize real-world evidence of comparative effectiveness research to enhance formulary decision making.

Results of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) provide valuable comparisons of 2 or more interventions to inform health care decision making; however, many more comparisons are required than available time and resources to conduct them. Moreover, RCTs have limited generalizability. Comparative effectiveness research (CER) using real-world evidence (RWE) can increase generalizability and is important for decision making, but use of nonrandomized designs makes their evaluation challenging. Several tools are available to assist. In this study, we comparatively characterize 5 tools used to evaluate RWE studies in the context of making health care adoption decision making: (1) Good Research for Comparative Effectiveness (GRACE) Checklist, (2) IMI GetReal RWE Navigator (Navigator), (3) Center for Medical Technology Policy (CMTP) RWE Decoder, (4) CER Collaborative tool, and (5) Real World Evidence Assessments and Needs Guidance (REAdi) tool. We describe each and then compare their features along 8 domains: (1) objective/user/context, (2) development/scope, (3) platform/presentation, (4) user design, (5) study-level internal/external validity of evidence, (6) summarizing body of evidence, (7) assisting in decision making, and (8) sharing results/making improvements. Our summary suggests that the GRACE Checklist aids stakeholders in evaluation of the quality and applicability of individual CER studies. Navigator is a collection of educational resources to guide demonstration of effectiveness, a guidance tool to support development of medicines, and a directory of authoritative resources for RWE. The CMTP RWE Decoder aids in the assessment of relevance and rigor of RWE. The CER Collaborative tool aids in the assessment of credibility and relevance. The REAdi tool aids in refinement of the research question, study retrieval, quality assessment, grading the body of evidence, and prompts with questions to facilitate coverage decisions. All tools specify a framework, were designed with stakeholder input, assess internal validity, are available online, and are easy to use. They vary in their complexity and comprehensiveness. The RWE Decoder, CER Collaborative tool, and REAdi tool synthesize evidence and were specifically designed to aid formulary decision making. This study adds clarity on what the tools provide so that the user can determine which best fits a given purpose. DISCLOSURES: This work was supported by the Health Tech Fund, which was provided to the University of Washington School of Pharmacy by its Corporate Advisory Board. This consortium of pharmaceutical and biotech companies supports the research program of the University of Washington School of Pharmacy across the competitive space. The sponsors seeded the idea for the project and contributed to study design and improvement. The authors had full control of all content development, manuscript drafting, and submission for publication. The REAdi tool was developed by the authors. Chen, Bansal, Barthold, Carlson, Veenstra, Basu, Devine, Yun, Ta, and Beal were supported by a training grant from the University of Washington-Allergan Fellowship, unrelated to this work. Basu reports personal fees from Salutis Consulting, unrelated to this work. Graff is an employee of the National Pharmaceutical Council, which was a partner in the development of the CER Collaborative and funding partner for the CMTP RWE Decoder and the GRACE Checklist. A previous version of this work was presented as an invited workshop at AMCP Nexus 2018; October 22-25, 2018; Orlando, FL.

Социально и экологически ответственные инвестиции в российском промышленном секторе

Subject/topic. The article presents a theoretical and practical understanding of the concepts of ESG (ecological, social, government) and SRI (socially responsible investing) regarding the specifics and prospects for the development of the Russian industrial sector. The purpose of the article was to demonstrate the potential of these concepts in the practice of managing Russian industrial enterprises. Methodology. Methodologically, the article is based on the integration of statistical, econometric and content research methods on the problem associated with ensuring the dynamically sustainable development of Russian industrial enterprises. Results. The results of the study showed that despite the significant government support received by Russian industrial enterprises in recent years, the sustainability of their development cannot be considered unconditional. Inertia, extensiveness, financial instability and limited rationality in managerial decision-making are evidently traced. There are two external main reasons for this situation: institutional turbulence and shrinking market space for free market competition. For industrial enterprises that are part of public or private corporations, the possibility of using the concepts of environmentally and socially responsible investment, to increase, among other things, their own investment attractiveness, is limited. But high-tech small and medium-sized businesses in the Russian industrial sector can use the ESG and SRI concepts both to obtain investment resources and to increase their own investment attractiveness, and the sources of investment here will be platforms that are non-traditional for the Russian market (business angels, small collective investment funds, entrepreneurial fundraising, etc.). Conclusions/Relevance. The principles of socially and environmentally responsible investment developed in the article can be used as the basis for methodological developments, the creation of indicators that allow simultaneously calculating environmental safety, pro-sociality and economic efficiency of various projects of Russian industrial enterprises.

Public Procurement as a Safeguard for Competition:

Through the adoption of the European Union’s Digital Strategy, the European Commission aims to tackle pressing issues specific to markets of data-intensive services. One of these issues is the substantial and durable competitive advantage that emerges from having exclusive access to large sets of data. The Digital Markets Act proposal, a prime pillar of the Digital Strategy, allows for the identification of gatekeepers. These gatekeepers would then be subject to additional obligations, for example enabling wider data access. This article focuses on the market for smart city services and proposes the adoption of a more proactive approach through public procurement. We argue the onus should be on preventing service providers from becoming gatekeepers, rather than attempting to repair a competitive space once a gatekeeper has arisen. Keywords: smart city, public procurement, data protection, data sharing, EU Digital Strategy

Antlions in interaction: confrontation of two competitors in limited space

Abstract The study focused on the behaviour of sit-and-wait antlion larvae in interspecific interactions. Antlion larvae usually occur in clusters with a high density of individuals; therefore, competition can be intense. We observed two abundant antlion species, E. nostras and M. formicarius, which co-occur in some habitats. In a simple habitat choice experiment where substrates differed according to sand particle size, we found that E. nostras exhibited dominance over M. formicarius. Most E. nostras larvae remained in the more suitable substrate and constructed pits, while all the M. formicarius larvae moved out of the suitable area, and did not build pits. In the second experiment, we observed the characteristics of the pit-fall traps and scored the occurrence of larval relocation in relation to interactions and in the control group, where larvae were kept in containers separately. In interactions, the larvae of E. nostras constructed smaller pits, but pit enlargement was greater in comparison to the control group. M. formicarius larvae constructed similar sized pits in both groups; however, enlargement was greater in the control group. Relocation of larvae occurred only during interactions. In direct interactions, we found 15 behavioural patterns, which are described in detail for the first time. In the presence of a competitor, larvae showed intense territorial behaviour. We recorded several behavioural patterns during larval confrontation, and interestingly, intraguild predation rarely occurred. In most cases, E. nostras larvae outcompete M. formicarius, which was evident from the larger pits and the rate of pit-construction.

URGENSI PENGATURAN FINANCIAL TECHNOLOGY DI INDONESIA

Fintech is a combination of a financial system with digital technology. Fintech's goal is to provide financial services by making use of modern software and technology. This type of research is normative juridical research. The nature of descriptive research. Qualitative data analysis. Based on the results of the research that the existence of urgency will provide clarity on the competitive space and legal Fintech climate. The existing Fintechs really understand the problems they are facing. For this reason, the clarity of the urgency of Fintech regulation can further convince the public that their interests are well protected. Therefore, the government issued the urgency of regulating Financial Technology in Indonesia, including the Financial Services Authority Regulation (POJK), Law Number 8 of 1999 concerning Consumer Protection (UUPK), Law Number 21 of 2008 concerning Banking, Law Number 19 2016 Amendments to Law Number 11 of 2008 concerning Electronic Information and Transactions, Government Regulation Number 71 of 2019 concerning Electronic Systems and Transactions.

Customer Churn Prediction in Telecommunication Industry Using Data Mining Methods

At present, in competitive space between companies and organizations, customers churn is their most important challenge. When a customer becomes churn, organizations lose one of their most important assets, which can lead to financial losses and even bankruptcy. Customer churn prediction using data mining techniques can alleviate these problems to some extent. The aim of the present study is to provide a hybrid method based on Genetic Algorithm and Modular Neural Network to customer churn prediction in telecommunication industries and use Irancell data as a sample. The accuracy result of this study which is 95.5% get the highest accuracy rank in comparisons with the result of other methods, which shows using modular neural network with two modules of feedforward neural network and also using genetic algorithm to obtain optimal structure for modules of the neural network are the most important indicators of this method to each the highest accuracy result among the rest of methods.

Heritage as soft power: Japan and China in international politics

ABSTRACT The recent development of heritage industries and national heritage promotions in non-Western countries opens a new space for international cooperation and competition in ways that directly link to the power-political relations between states. What motivates these countries to accelerate their efforts to promote their cultural heritage internationally? Are such dynamics different from how cultural heritage is constructed and used in Western countries? This study conceptualises heritage as soft power in terms of culture, values and foreign policies, and by focusing on Japan and China, it examines the ways and motives of using cultural heritage as soft power. Although Japan and China are distinctly different countries, both share a remarkably similar approach to the construction and promotion of national heritage when participating in international heritage platforms. The present study’s findings suggest that the promotion of cultural heritage is not only a feature of nation-building and nation-branding but also feeds into global and regional competitions over the attainment of cultural and moral supremacy.

Implikasi Sistem Kepemiluan terhadap Pembiayaan Partai Politik di Indonesia

Every general election is always accompanied by legal products that are regulated in law. The experience of implementing general elections in Indonesia since the old order, the new order, and the reform order has always been changing. Every amendment to the Election law is always carried out prior to the implementation of the Election on the grounds of the evaluation results of the previous Election. Changes to the electoral law are also always carried out by a package of changes to the election administration law and the law on political parties. This package of changes to laws is also called the package of changes to political laws. Then how about the changes in the post-reform election law? As in the previous elections, there have been changes in laws. A fundamental change in the post-reform Election system is the Decision of the Constitutional Court (MK) number No. 22-24 / PUU-VI / 2008 regarding judicial review of Article 214 letters a, b, c, d, and e of Law 10/2008. That is, with this Constitutional Court decision, of course there has been a change in the Election system from a closed proportional system to an open list proportional system. However, without realizing it, this change has actually opened the space for candidate competition to widen. Because candidates no longer depend on the serial number but depend on the ability to get the most grassroots votes. Changes in the Election system will be followed by changes in campaign strategies and changes in campaign finance by individual candidates and political parties. As a result, the campaign strategy of distributing money towards the end of the campaign was carried out massively. This fact cannot be covered up, which has implications for party financing. Massive open wars of money politics encourage political political parties to be able to provide financial access assistance for candidates to win the competition. This is where the dynamics of campaign finance begin, which implies that campaign finance is very expensive.

Prescribers’ opinions to identify competitive groups: a comparative analysis in the pharmaceutical industry

ABSTRACT Background A firm must identify its key competitors (those that belong to the same competitive group), especially when operating in highly competitive industries, such as drug products. Experts who prescribe products to the final consumer play a crucial role in identifying the key competitors of a firm. In this context, the present paper aimed to determine if significant differences exist between two groups of prescribers (commercial and social) regarding the competitive structure that both groups identify using subjective information obtained through (i) categorization methods and (ii) evaluation methods. Method A sample of 104 prescribers related to the sale of cosmetic pharmaceuticals was interviewed (53 commercials and 51 social prescribers). Multidimensional scaling was used to obtained perceptual maps that visually represented the competitive space for each group of prescribers. Cluster analysis was employed to identify the competitive structure (competitive clusters) for each group of prescribers. Bilateral Pearson correlations and Mobility Rates were applied to compare the perceptual maps and the identified clusters, respectively. Result Competitive spaces and structures from both groups of prescribers were partially convergent, regardless the information was collected with categorization methods or evaluation ones. The competitive perceptual map identified by the commercial prescribers converges, to a certain extent, with the competitive perceptual map identified by the social prescribers when categorization data is used (correlation between maps = 0.322; p < 0.01). The same occurs when both targets (commercial prescribers and social prescribers) are compared using evaluation data (correlation between maps = 0.69; p < 0.01). In addition, the mobility rate (MR) shows 31.25% of convergence between the clusters identified on these maps using categorization methods; and 6.25% of convergence when evaluation data are used. Conclusions There are certain perceptual differences depending on prescribers’ occupation, although these differences are not significant. On the contrary, some differences due to the information collecting method (categorization versus evaluation) have been identified.