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Existing Gaps (existing + gap)

Distribution by Scientific Domains

Business, Economics, Finance and Accounting	50%

Selected Abstracts

Relationship between legitimation, competition and organizational death: current state of the art

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MANAGEMENT REVIEWS, Issue 1 2004
Manuel Núñez Nickel
There is agreement among ecology researchers that the concepts of legitimation and competition are partly responsible for organizational selection. Finding adequate measures to represent these concepts, however, has been elusive and has been the main obstacle to the development of this stream of investigation. On the basis of the germinal density dependence model, we identify two lines of research, which have generated seven distinct models. This survey shows that there has been a general tendency to use only three variables to measure legitimation and competition, which are often measured together. However, we argue that fruitful results have emerged when efforts have been made to separate both concepts and that there is some potential in using new measures (mass or concentration) which have so far only found limited application in the field of population demography. These findings, together with the inconclusive results of this stream of research, allow us to identify the existing gaps in the literature and comment on directions for future research. [source]

Grasping at the routes of biological invasions: a framework for integrating pathways into policy

JOURNAL OF APPLIED ECOLOGY, Issue 2 2008
P. E. Hulme
Summary 1Pathways describe the processes that result in the introduction of alien species from one location to another. A framework is proposed to facilitate the comparative analysis of invasion pathways by a wide range of taxa in both terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. Comparisons with a range of data helped identify existing gaps in current knowledge of pathways and highlight the limitations of existing legislation to manage introductions of alien species. The scheme aims for universality but uses the European Union as a case study for the regulatory perspectives. 2Alien species may arrive and enter a new region through three broad mechanisms: importation of a commodity, arrival of a transport vector, and/or natural spread from a neighbouring region where the species is itself alien. These three mechanisms result in six principal pathways: release, escape, contaminant, stowaway, corridor and unaided. 3Alien species transported as commodities may be introduced as a deliberate release or as an escape from captivity. Many species are not intentionally transported but arrive as a contaminant of a commodity, for example pathogens and pests. Stowaways are directly associated with human transport but arrive independently of a specific commodity, for example organisms transported in ballast water, cargo and airfreight. The corridor pathway highlights the role transport infrastructures play in the introduction of alien species. The unaided pathway describes situations where natural spread results in alien species arriving into a new region from a donor region where it is also alien. 4Vertebrate pathways tend to be characterized as deliberate releases, invertebrates as contaminants and plants as escapes. Pathogenic micro-organisms and fungi are generally introduced as contaminants of their hosts. The corridor and unaided pathways are often ignored in pathway assessments but warrant further detailed consideration. 5Synthesis and applications. Intentional releases and escapes should be straightforward to monitor and regulate but, in practice, developing legislation has proved difficult. New introductions continue to occur through contaminant, stowaway, corridor and unaided pathways. These pathways represent special challenges for management and legislation. The present framework should enable these trends to be monitored more clearly and hopefully lead to the development of appropriate regulations or codes of practice to stem the number of future introductions. [source]

Interpolymer Complexes of Water-Soluble Nonionic Polysaccharides with Polycarboxylic Acids and Their Applications

MACROMOLECULAR BIOSCIENCE, Issue 6 2003
Zauresh S. Nurkeeva
Abstract Literature data as well as our own experimental results devoted to the complexation of polycarboxylic acids with various water-soluble polysaccharides (methylcellulose, hydroxyethylcellulose, hydroxypropylcellulose, hydroxypropylmethylcellulose, starch, and dextran) by means of hydrogen bonding are systematized and analyzed. The specific peculiarities of interpolymer complexes based on polysaccharides-polycarboxylic acids are demonstrated. The perspectives for the application of these interpolymer complexes are considered. It was shown that these materials possess good biocompatibility and adhesive properties. The promising directions for further study of interpolymer complexes between polycarboxylic acids and nonionic polysaccharides as well as existing gaps in the knowledge in this field are pointed out. Formation of compact IPCs and hydrophilic interpolymer associates. [source]

Australasian environmental economics: contributions, conflicts and ,cop-outs',

AUSTRALIAN JOURNAL OF AGRICULTURAL & RESOURCE ECONOMICS, Issue 3 2005
Jeff Bennett
Australian and New Zealand environmental economists have played a significant role in the development of concepts and their application across three fields within their subdiscipline: non-market valuation, institutional economics and bioeconomic modelling. These contributions have been spurred on by debates within and outside the discipline. Much of the controversy has centred on the validity of valuations generated through the application of stated preference methods such as contingent valuation. Suggestions to overcome some shortcomings in the work of environmental economists include the commissioning of a sequence of non-market valuation studies to fill existing gaps to improve the potential for benefit transfer. [source]