Showing papers by "Hong Kong Baptist University published in 2008"
TL;DR: The advances in the comprehension of synchronization phenomena when oscillating elements are constrained to interact in a complex network topology are reported and the new emergent features coming out from the interplay between the structure and the function of the underlying pattern of connections are overviewed.
2,953 citations
TL;DR: This article reviewed and synthesized recent research from strategy, finance, and economics on principal-principal conflicts with an emphasis on their institutional antecedents and organizational consequences, and provided a foundation upon which future research can continue to build.
Abstract: Instead of traditional principal–agent conflicts espoused in most research dealing with developed economies, principal–principal conflicts have been identified as a major concern of corporate governance in emerging economies. Principal–principal conflicts between controlling shareholders and minority shareholders result from concentrated ownership, extensive family ownership and control, business group structures, and weak legal protection of minority shareholders. Such principal–principal conflicts alter the dynamics of the corporate governance process and, in turn, require remedies different from those that deal with principal–agent conflicts. This article reviews and synthesizes recent research from strategy, finance, and economics on principal–principal conflicts with an emphasis on their institutional antecedents and organizational consequences. The resulting integration provides a foundation upon which future research can continue to build.
1,280 citations
TL;DR: It is confirmed that a social network and shared goals significantly contributed to a person's volition to share knowledge, and directly contributed to the perceived social pressure of the organization.
1,218 citations
TL;DR: An information adoption model was developed to examine the factors affecting information adoption of online opinion seekers in online customer communities and found comprehensiveness and relevance to be the most effective components of the argument quality construct.
Abstract: Purpose – Web‐based technologies have created numerous opportunities for electronic word‐of‐mouth (eWOM) communication. This phenomenon impacts online retailers as this easily accessible information could greatly affect the online consumption decision. The purpose of this paper is to examine the extent to which opinion seekers are willing to accept and adopt online consumer reviews and which factors encourage adoption.Design/methodology/approach – Using dual‐process theories, an information adoption model was developed to examine the factors affecting information adoption of online opinion seekers in online customer communities. The model was tested empirically using a sample of 154 users who had experience within the online customer community, Openrice.com. Users were required to complete a survey regarding the online consumer reviews received from the virtual sharing platform.Findings – The paper found comprehensiveness and relevance to be the most effective components of the argument quality construct ...
1,105 citations
TL;DR: Li et al. as discussed by the authors proposed an integrative framework that unbundles the benefits and risks of guanxi and delineates the organizational processes to internalize Guanxi as a corporate core competence.
Abstract: Guanxi refers to the durable social connections and networks a firm uses to exchange favors for organizational purposes. This study examines how and when guanxi operates as a governance mechanism that influences firm marketing competence and performance in the transitional economy of China. Drawing on social capital theory, the authors propose an integrative framework that unbundles the benefits and risks of guanxi and delineates the organizational processes to internalize guanxi as a corporate core competence. The authors surveyed senior executives in 282 firms in China's consumer products industries. The findings confirm guanxi's direct effects on market performance and its indirect effects mediated through channel capability and responsive capability. The authors also confirm that technological turbulence and competition intensity can be effective structure-loosening forces, thus reducing the governance effects of guanxi. The findings suggest that firms can improve market access and growth thr...
589 citations
TL;DR: Risk assessment predicted that Pb and Cu originating from circuit board recycling have the potential to pose serious health risks to workers and local residents of Guiyu, especially children, and warrants an urgent investigation into heavy metal related health impacts.
Abstract: The recycling of printed circuit boards in Guiyu, China, a village intensely involved in e-waste processing, may present a significant environmental and human health risk. To evaluate the extent of heavy metals (Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, Zn) contamination from printed circuit board recycling, surface dust samples were collected from recycling workshops, adjacent roads, a schoolyard, and an outdoor food market. ICP-OES analyses revealed elevated mean concentrations in workshop dust (Pb 110 000, Cu 8360, Zn 4420, and Ni 1500 mg/kg) and in dust of adjacent roads (Pb 22 600, Cu 6170, Zn 2370, and Ni 304 mg/kg). Lead and Cu in road dust were 330 and 106, and 371 and 155 times higher, respectively, than non e-waste sites located 8 and 30 km away. Levels at the schoolyard and food market showed that public places were adversely impacted. Risk assessment predicted that Pb and Cu originating from circuit board recycling have the potential to pose serious health risks to workers and local residents of Guiyu, especial...
518 citations
TL;DR: The findings confirmed the theoretical argument that the strength of intention to predict continuance was weakened by a high level of IS habit, and presented strong support for the theoretical links of IS continuance model, and for the new moderating effect.
480 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, a new and synthetically versatile strategy has been developed for the phosphorescence color tuning of cyclometalated iridium phosphors by simple tailoring of the phenyl ring of ppy (Hppy=2-phenylpyridine) with various main-group moieties in [Ir(ppy-X)(2)(acac)] (X=B(Mes)(2), SiPh3, GePh 3, NPh2, POPh 2, OPh, SPh, SO2Ph).
Abstract: A new and synthetically versatile strategy has been developed for the phosphorescence color tuning of cyclometalated iridium phosphors by simple tailoring of the phenyl ring of ppy (Hppy=2-phenylpyridine) with various main-group moieties in [Ir(ppy-X)(2)(acac)] (X=B(Mes)(2), SiPh3, GePh3, NPh2, POPh2, OPh, SPh, SO2Ph). This can be achieved by shifting the charge-transfer character from the pyridyl groups in some traditional iridium ppy-type complexes to the electron-withdrawing main-group moieties and these assignments were supported by theoretical calculations.
480 citations
TL;DR: The CuO nanowire modified electrode allows highly sensitive, low working potential, stable, and fast amperometric sensing of glucose, thus is promising for the future development of non-enzymatic glucose sensors.
Abstract: CuO nanowires have been prepared and applied for the fabrication of glucose sensors with highly enhanced sensitivity. Cu(OH)(2) nanowires were initially synthesised by a simple and fast procedure, CuO nanowires were then formed simply by removing the water through heat treatment. The structures and morphologies of Cu(OH)(2) and CuO nanowires were characterised by X-ray diffraction, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and transmission electron microscopy. The direct electrocatalytic oxidation of glucose in alkaline medium at CuO nanowire modified electrodes has been investigated in detail. Compared to a bare Cu electrode, a substantial decrease in the overvoltage of the glucose oxidation was observed at the CuO nanowire electrodes with oxidation starting at ca. 0.10 V vs. Ag/AgCl (saturated KCl). At an applied potential of 0.33 V, CuO nanowire electrodes produce high and reproducible sensitivity to glucose with 0.49 microA/micromol dm(-3). Linear responses were obtained over a concentration range from 0.40 micromol dm(-3) to 2.0 mmol dm(-3) with a detection limit of 49 nmol dm(-3) (S/N = 3). The CuO nanowire modified electrode allows highly sensitive, low working potential, stable, and fast amperometric sensing of glucose, thus is promising for the future development of non-enzymatic glucose sensors.
445 citations
TL;DR: The data suggest AtMKK1-AtMPK6 to be a key module in an ABA-dependent signaling cascade causing H( 2)O(2) production and stress responses, and mkk1 mutant reduced both the sensitivity to ABA during germination and the drought tolerance of seedlings, whereas the AtMkk1 overexpression line showed the opposite responses when compared with the wild type.
Abstract: Catalase controls cellular H 2 O 2 and plays important roles in the adaptation of plants to various stresses, but little is known about the signaling events that lead to the expression of CAT1 and the production of H 2 O 2 . Here we report the dependence of CAT1 expression and H 2 O 2 production on a mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) cascade. CAT1 transcript was induced in an ABA-dependent way and the induction was abolished in the T-DNA insertion mutant mkkl (SALK_015914), while AtMKK1 overexpression significantly enhanced the ABA-induced CAT1 expression and H 2 O 2 production. AtMPK6, another component in the MAPK cascade, was also involved: mpk6 mutant blocked and overexpressing AtMPK6 enhanced the ABA-dependent expression of CAT1 and H 2 O 2 production. The activity of AtMPK6 was increased by ABA in an AtMKK1-dependent manner. These data clearly suggest an ABA-dependent signaling pathway connecting CAT1 expression through a phosphorelay including AtMKK1 and AtMPK6. In further support of this view, mkkl mutant reduced both the sensitivity to ABA during germination and the drought tolerance of seedlings, whereas the AtMKKI overexpression line showed the opposite responses when compared with the wild type. The data suggest AtMKK1-AtMPK6 to be a key module in an ABA-dependent signaling cascade causing H 2 O 2 production and stress responses.
367 citations
TL;DR: The results show that academic performance was negatively correlated with the Internet addiction scores, and the degree of Internet addiction was also found to vary across different types of online activity, with people engaged in cyberrelationships and online gambling having higher Internet Addiction scores.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examined how regional diversification affects firm performance and found that it has linear and curvilinear effects on firm performance, and that firms of developed countries maximize their performance when they operate across a moderate number of developed regions and a strictly limited number of developing regions.
Abstract: This study examines how regional diversification affects firm performance. The results indicate that regional diversification has linear and curvilinear effects on firm performance. Regional diversification enhances firm performance linearly up to a certain threshold, and then its impact becomes negative. The results also show that firms of developed countries maximize their performance when they operate across a moderate number of developed regions and a strictly limited number of developing regions. This explains why internationalization by most international firms is regional rather than global.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors used an empirical survey of middle-line managers in the US and Taiwan to study the association of supply chain management components and organizational performance, and found that critical components of supply-chain management are found to have considerable effects on organizational performance.
Abstract: This study uses an empirical survey of middle-line managers in the US and Taiwan to study the association of supply chain management components and organizational performance. Through structural equation modeling, critical components of supply chain management are found to have considerable effects on organizational performance. The findings of the study are summarized as follows: • Supply chain competencies have positive effects on organizational performance in both the US and Taiwan. Supply chain competencies are developed around quality and service, operations and distribution, and design effectiveness. The goal of supply chain competencies is to satisfy customer requirements. • Supply chain practices, which are made up of supply chain features, integration, and customer services, have direct impact on organizational performance in Taiwan, but they have only indirect impact in the US. • Supply chain practices and competencies are significantly associated in both the US and Taiwan. However, supply chain concerns and practices are associated in the case of the USA only. These results help middle-line managers in both the US and Taiwan to know which components and practices of supply chain management to focus on to improve organizational performance. They also show some of the similarities between the two regions and note differences that may be situation-dependent. However, what is measured here is the perception of middle-line managers. The actual practices may be different from these perceptions. 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
TL;DR: By attaching a bulky, inductively electron-withdrawing trifluoromethyl (CF3) group on the pyridyl ring of the rigid 2-[3- (N-phenylcarbazolyl)]pyridine cyclometalated ligand, a new heteroleptic orange-emitting phosphorescent iridium(III) complex was successfully synthesized in this paper.
Abstract: By attaching a bulky, inductively electron-withdrawing trifluoromethyl (CF3) group on the pyridyl ring of the rigid 2-[3- (N-phenylcarbazolyl)]pyridine cyclometalated ligand, we successfully synthesized a new heteroleptic orange-emitting phosphorescent iridium(III) complex [Ir(L1)2(acac)] 1 (HL1 = 5-trifluoromethyl-2-[3-(N-phenylcarbazolyl)]pyridine, Hacac = acetylacetone) in good yield. The structural and electronic properties of 1 were examined by X-ray crystallography and time-dependent DFT calculations. The influence of CF3 substituents on the optical, electrochemical and electroluminescence (EL) properties of 1 were studied. We note that incorporation of the carbazolyl unit facilitates the hole-transporting ability of the complex, and more importantly, attachment of CF3 group provides an access to a highly efficient electrophosphor for the fabrication of orange phosphorescent organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) with outstanding device performance. These orange OLEDs can produce a maximum current efficiency of ∼40 cd A−1, corresponding to an external quantum efficiency of ∼12% ph/el (photons per electron) and a power efficiency of ∼24 lm W−1. Remarkably, high-performance simple two-element white OLEDs (WOLEDs) with excellent color stability can be fabricated using an orange triplet-harvesting emitter 1 in conjunction with a blue singlet-harvesting emitter. By using such a new system where the host singlet is resonant with the blue fluorophore singlet state and the host triplet is resonant with the orange phosphor triplet level, this white light-emitting structure can achieve peak EL efficiencies of 26.6 cd A−1 and 13.5 lm W−1 that are generally superior to other two-element all-fluorophore or all-phosphor OLED counterparts in terms of both color stability and emission efficiency.
TL;DR: An agglomerative fuzzy K-means clustering algorithm for numerical data is presented, an extension to the standard fuzzy K -means algorithm by introducing a penalty term to the objective function to make the clustering process not sensitive to the initial cluster centers.
Abstract: In this paper, we present an agglomerative fuzzy K-means clustering algorithm for numerical data, an extension to the standard fuzzy K-means algorithm by introducing a penalty term to the objective function to make the clustering process not sensitive to the initial cluster centers. The new algorithm can produce more consistent clustering results from different sets of initial clusters centers. Combined with cluster validation techniques, the new algorithm can determine the number of clusters in a data set, which is a well known problem in $k$-means clustering. Experimental results on synthetic data sets (2 to 5 dimensions, 500 to 5000 objects and 3 to 7 clusters), the BIRCH two-dimensional data set of 20000 objects and 100 clusters, and the WINE data set of 178 objects, 17 dimensions and 3 clusters from UCI, have demonstrated the effectiveness of the new algorithm in producing consistent clustering results and determining the correct number of clusters in different data sets, some with overlapping inherent clusters.
TL;DR: Zhang et al. as mentioned in this paper found that emotional intelligence is a significant predictor of job performance beyond the effect of the General Mental Ability (GMA) battery on performance, and that a self-reported EI scale developed for Chinese respondents, the WLEIS, is a better predictor for job performance than the scale developed in the U.S., the MSCEIT.
Abstract: To demonstrate the utility of the emotional intelligence (EI) construct in organizational studies, this study focuses on the effect of EI on job performance among research and development scientists in China. We argue that EI is a significant predictor of job performance beyond the effect of the General Mental Ability (GMA) battery on performance. This predictor effect is supported by results on a study of research and development scientists working for a large computer company in China. Our results also show that a self-reported EI scale developed for Chinese respondents, the WLEIS, is a better predictor of job performance than the scale developed in the U.S., the MSCEIT. Implications of the findings are discussed.
TL;DR: The research results show that social factors are the most significant determinant affecting the ERP system usage, and some important managerial implications in connection to promoting the usage are proposed.
TL;DR: In this article, the synthesis, structures, photophysics, electrochemistry and electrophosphorescent properties of new red phosphorescent cyclometalated iridium(III) isoquinoline complexes, bearing 9-aryl carbazolyl chromophores, are reported.
Abstract: The synthesis, structures, photophysics, electrochemistry and electrophosphorescent properties of new red phosphorescent cyclometalated iridium(III) isoquinoline complexes, bearing 9-arylcarbazolyl chromophores, are reported. The functional properties of these red phosphors correlate well with the results of density functional theory calculations. The highest occupied molecular orbital levels of these complexes are raised by the integration of a carbazole unit to the iridium isoquinoline core so that the hole-transporting ability is improved in the resulting complexes relative to those with I-phenylisoquinoline ligands. All of the complexes are highly thermally stable and emit an intense red light at room temperature with relatively short lifetimes that are beneficial for highly efficient organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs).
TL;DR: The experimental results show that the quality of restored images by the proposed method is competitive with those restored by the existing total variation restoration methods.
Abstract: In this paper, we study a fast total variation minimization method for image restoration. In the proposed method, we use the modified total variation minimization scheme to denoise the deblurred image. An alternating minimization algorithm is employed to solve the proposed total variation minimization problem. Our experimental results show that the quality of restored images by the proposed method is competitive with those restored by the existing total variation restoration methods. We show the convergence of the alternating minimization algorithm and demonstrate that the algorithm is very efficient.
27 May 2008
TL;DR: In this paper, measures of Dispersion Quadrat Analysis (MDA) and Dispersion Distance Methods Methods of Arrangements (MDF) are presented. But they do not consider the relationship between the distance and the dispersion distance.
Abstract: Introduction Measures of Dispersion Quadrat Analysis Measures of Dispersion Distance Methods Measures of Arrangements Summary
TL;DR: In this article, the authors proposed two new models (namely, the triangular and crosswise models) for survey sampling with the sensitive characteristics, and derived the maximum likelihood estimates (MLEs) and large-sample confidence intervals for the proportion of persons with sensitive characteristic.
Abstract: Sensitive topics or highly personal questions are often being asked in medical, psychological and sociological surveys. This paper proposes two new models (namely, the triangular and crosswise models) for survey sampling with the sensitive characteristics. We derive the maximum likelihood estimates (MLEs) and large-sample confidence intervals for the proportion of persons with sensitive characteristic. The modified MLEs and their asymptotic properties are developed. Under certain optimality criteria, the designs for the cooperative parameter are provided and the sample size formulas are given. We compare the efficiency of the two models based on the variance criterion. The proposed models have four advantages: neither model requires randomizing device, the models are easy to be implemented for both interviewer and interviewee, the interviewee does not face any sensitive questions, and both models can be applied to both face-to-face personal interviews and mail questionnaires.
01 Feb 2008
TL;DR: Experimental results show that the proposed GSVD-ILDA algorithm gives the same performance as the LDA/GSVD with much smaller computational complexity, and also gives better classification performance than the other recently proposed ILDA algorithms.
Abstract: Dimensionality reduction methods have been successfully employed for face recognition. Among the various dimensionality reduction algorithms, linear (Fisher) discriminant analysis (LDA) is one of the popular supervised dimensionality reduction methods, and many LDA-based face recognition algorithms/systems have been reported in the last decade. However, the LDA-based face recognition systems suffer from the scalability problem. To overcome this limitation, an incremental approach is a natural solution. The main difficulty in developing the incremental LDA (ILDA) is to handle the inverse of the within-class scatter matrix. In this paper, based on the generalized singular value decomposition LDA (LDA/GSVD), we develop a new ILDA algorithm called GSVD-ILDA. Different from the existing techniques in which the new projection matrix is found in a restricted subspace, the proposed GSVD-ILDA determines the projection matrix in full space. Extensive experiments are performed to compare the proposed GSVD-ILDA with the LDA/GSVD as well as the existing ILDA methods using the face recognition technology face database and the Carneggie Mellon University Pose, Illumination, and Expression face database. Experimental results show that the proposed GSVD-ILDA algorithm gives the same performance as the LDA/GSVD with much smaller computational complexity. The experimental results also show that the proposed GSVD-ILDA gives better classification performance than the other recently proposed ILDA algorithms.
TL;DR: This article investigates recent research work and applications that integrate RFID with sensor networks, and four classes of integration are discussed: integrating tags with sensors, integrating tagged with WSN nodes and wireless devices, integrating readers with W SN nodes and mobile devices, and a mix of RFID and WSNs.
Abstract: Radio frequency identification and wireless sensor networks are two important wireless technologies that have a wide variety of applications in current and future systems. RFID facilitates detection and identification of objects that are not easily detectable or distinguishable by using conventional sensor technologies. However, it does not provide information about the condition of the objects it detects. WSN, on the other hand, not only provides information about the condition of the objects and environment but also enables multihop wireless communications. Hence, the integration of these technologies expands their overall functionality and capacity. This article investigates recent research work and applications that integrate RFID with sensor networks. Four classes of integration are discussed: integrating tags with sensors, integrating tags with WSN nodes and wireless devices, integrating readers with WSN nodes and wireless devices, and a mix of RFID and WSNs. Finally, a discussion of new challenges and future work is presented.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examined the relationship between organizational ethical climate and the forms of organizational citizenship behavior (OCB), including in-role and extra-role behaviors, and examined the mediating effect of employee loyalty.
Abstract: This paper studies the relationship between organizational ethical climate and the forms of organizational citizenship behavior (OCB), including in-role and extra-role behaviors, and examines the mediating effect of employee loyalty. A sample of employees from a traditional Hong Kong-based company was used as a study group. The purpose of this study was to examine the causes and implications of how various ethical work climates affect employee performance. Based on a model proposed by Victor and Cullen, ethical climate is arranged from lower levels to higher levels. The results suggest that lower levels of ethical climate (instrumentality and independence), characterizing a weak relational contract between employee and employer, are associated with negative extra-role behavior. In contrast, higher levels of ethical climate (caring and law-and-code), symbolic of a strong relational contract at work, are associated with positive extra-role behavior. Moreover, normative commitment mediated a positive relationship between caring and identification with the company, whereas attitudinal loyalty mediated the negative relationship between independence and altruism. Implications for future research and practice are discussed.
TL;DR: Ozonation as a partial step of a combined treatment concept is a potential technique for biodegradability enhancement of effluents from pharmaceutical industries containing high concentration of oxytetracycline provided that the appropriate ozonation period is selected.
TL;DR: Optimal choices of the inner iteration steps in the IHSS( CG, Lanczos) and IH SS(CG, CGNE) iterations are discussed in detail by considering both global convergence speed and overall computation workload, and computational efficiencies of both inexact iterations are analyzed and compared deliberately.
TL;DR: The findings suggest that benefit attraction and shared value have significant positive effects on building participant trust, and monitoring has a significant positive effect on building institutional trust.
Abstract: In this research we investigate whether antecedent factors of participant trust and institutional trust significantly influence members' trust belief towards virtual communities. Further, we investigate how members' trust levels affect their behaviour intention. A model of factors that affect members' trust in virtual communities is constructed. We analysed 625 valid online questionnaires obtained from virtual communities related to travel, games, and computer information. The findings suggest that benefit attraction and shared value have significant positive effects on building participant trust, and monitoring has a significant positive effect on building institutional trust. Trust building influences both members' stickiness in virtual communities and their willingness to share information. This research suggests that the extent to which members trust community-based website environments significantly influences their practical behaviour in such environments.
TL;DR: The combined data from fluorescence titrations and 1H NMR measurements indicate that the new emission of the spirobenzopyran generated by Cu2+ is the result of the metal-induced ring opening and conformation restriction byCu2+ liganding with the opened merocyanine form and the subsequent reduction of the intramolecular charge transfer of the merocianine.
Abstract: In the present paper, a new spirobenzopyran derivative was synthesized and applied in simultaneously colorimetric and fluorescence ratiometric detections of Cu2+. In contrast to the virtually photochromic character of the common spirobenzopyrans in most organic solvents, this spirobenzopyran is colorless in organic aqueous solution even irradiating by ultraviolet light. The formation of red merocyanine in an ethanol-aqueous solution is only induced by Cu2+ coordination. Furthermore, the closed form of the spirobenzopyran is highly fluorescent. Upon complexation with Cu2+, it displays not only decreasing in the initial fluorescence emission band but also appearing in a new emission at long wavelength. Thus, the Cu2+ quantitative measure can be achieved by fluorescence ratiometry. With the optimum conditions described, the Cu2+ concentration can be determined from 5.13 × 10-7 M to 3.81 × 10-4 with a detection limit of 1.06 × 10-7 M. Both the color and the fluorescence changes of the spirobenzopyran are extr...
TL;DR: Wang et al. as discussed by the authors investigated the yield performance in terms of quality and quantity and water use efficiency under plastic film or straw mulching cultivation under non-flooded condition and concluded that both PM and SM could significantly increase WUE, while the SM could also maintain a high grain yield and improve quality of rice.