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PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine the type of governance dominant within employee-owned companies established as an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOPs) and to ascertain if governance follows the agency or stewardship theory of governance.Design/methodology/approachA sequential mixed method (Quantitative/Qualitative) research design was used with a convenience sample of employee-owned companies who were members of The ESOP Association (TEA). The Stewardship Climate Scale (SCS) was used as the quantitative instrument and structured interviews were used as the qualitative instrument.FindingsA majority (96%) of ESOPs participating in the study self-identified as stewardship governance, only 6 of the 154 companies (4%) self-identified as having agency governance.Research limitations/implicationsThere is a potential of self-report bias based on the use of convenience sampling which should be minimized based on the large number of participants. The study was not able to examine the relationship between stewardship and productivity.Originality/valueThis is the first large scale research study examining governance within employee-owned companies.

International audience; Obesity is a multifactorial disease with both genetic and environmental components. The prevailing view is that obesity results from an imbalance between energy intake and expenditure caused by overeating and insufficient exercise. We describe another environmental element that can alter the balance between energy intake and energy expenditure: obesogens. Obesogens are a subset of environmental chemicals that act as endocrine disruptors affecting metabolic endpoints. The obesogen hypothesis posits that exposure to endocrine disruptors and other chemicals can alter the development and function of the adipose tissue, liver, pancreas, gastrointestinal tract, and brain, thus changing the set point for control of metabolism. Obesogens can determine how much food is needed to maintain homeostasis and thereby increase the susceptibility to obesity. The most sensitive time for obesogen action is in utero and early childhood, in part via epigenetic programming that can be transmitted to future generations. This review explores the evidence supporting the obesogen hypothesis and highlights knowledge gaps that have prevented widespread acceptance as a contributor to the obesity pandemic. Critically, the obesogen hypothesis changes the narrative from curing obesity to preventing obesity.

Improving the readiness and lethality of the U.S. fighting forces has always been a key priority, and it received renewed emphasis in the National Defense Authorization Act of 2017. A major rearrangement of the Defense Health Agency and the Military Health System is ongoing with this emphasis. Although revising features to improve our military health service is essential, the health, well-being, and readiness of our people will also rely on the culture created at the Command level where soldiers, sailors, airmen and civilians operate daily. In alignment with our military health care community and in support of our renewed emphasis on warfighting readiness, USS Missouri began a journey to address foundational mindset that drives the core behaviors, training, and procedures of the submarine force and Naval Nuclear Propulsion Principles leading to enhanced readiness, resilience, and accountability.

JEEP is a high-energy (50–150 keV) multi-purpose beamline offering polychromatic and monochromatic modes. It can accommodate large samples and experimental rigs, enabling in situ studies using radiography, tomography, energy-dispersive diffraction, monochromatic and white-beam two-dimensional diffraction/scattering and small-angle X-ray scattering., I12 is the Joint Engineering, Environmental and Processing (JEEP) beamline, constructed during Phase II of the Diamond Light Source. I12 is located on a short (5 m) straight section of the Diamond storage ring and uses a 4.2 T superconducting wiggler to provide polychromatic and monochromatic X-rays in the energy range 50–150 keV. The beam energy enables good penetration through large or dense samples, combined with a large beam size (1 mrad horizontally × 0.3 mrad vertically). The beam characteristics permit the study of materials and processes inside environmental chambers without unacceptable attenuation of the beam and without the need to use sample sizes which are atypically small for the process under study. X-ray techniques available to users are radiography, tomography, energy-dispersive diffraction, monochromatic and white-beam two-dimensional diffraction/scattering and small-angle X-ray scattering. Since commencing operations in November 2009, I12 has established a broad user community in materials science and processing, chemical processing, biomedical engineering, civil engineering, environmental science, palaeontology and physics.

Background and Purpose— On the basis of phase II trials, we considered that transcranial laser therapy could have neuroprotective effects in patients with acute ischemic stroke. Methods— We studied transcranial laser therapy in a double-blind, sham-controlled randomized clinical trial intended to enroll 1000 patients with acute ischemic stroke treated ≤24 hours after stroke onset and who did not undergo thrombolytic therapy. The primary efficacy measure was the 90-day functional outcome as assessed by the modified Rankin Scale, with hierarchical Bayesian analysis incorporating relevant previous data. Interim analyses were planned after 300 and 600 patients included. Results— The study was terminated on recommendation by the Data Monitoring Committee after a futility analysis of 566 completed patients found no difference in the primary end point (transcranial laser therapy 140/282 [49.6%] versus sham 140/284 [49.3%] for good functional outcome; modified Rankin Scale, 0–2). The results remained stable after inclusion of all 630 randomized patients (adjusted odds ratio, 1.024; 95% confidence interval, 0.705–1.488). Conclusions— Once the results of the interim futility analysis became available, all study support was immediately withdrawn by the capital firms behind PhotoThera, and the company was dissolved. Proper termination of the trial was difficult but was finally achieved through special efforts by former employees of PhotoThera, the CRO Parexel and members of the steering and the safety committees. We conclude that transcranial laser therapy does not have a measurable neuroprotective effect in patients with acute ischemic stroke when applied within 24 hours after stroke onset. Clinical Trial Registration— URL: http://www.clinicaltrials.gov . Unique identifier: NCT01120301.

A novel X-ray Beam Position Monitor has been designed and implemented on the Multimode InfraRed Imaging And Microspectroscopy (MIRIAM) beamline at Diamond. Installed in the B22 Front End and using no optical elements except for filters, it provides sub-micrometre position sensitivity and sub-microradiant angular sensitivity to Bending Magnet source vertical movements. By sampling at 100 kHz frequency, Fast Fourier Transform analysis is continuously displayed and any periodic components in the Synchrotron Radiation emission are revealed within the exceptional bandwidth of 50 kHz. Long term source drift in position or angle are monitored and recorded every 0.5 seconds.

To explore the use of chemical methods of analysis in investigating the performance of thermoplastic polyolefins (TPO), the ASTM D08.18 Subcommittee undertook a study to evaluate TPO films of known composition. These specially formulated films with varying amounts of stabilizers were heat-aged for up to 56 days according to ASTM D 6878-03 and then analyzed using dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA), thermogravimetry (TG), and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. These techniques were found to be useful in characterizing the effect of heat on the TPO films under study and it is believed that they could be used to evaluate actual TPO membranes. Please note that these are films and not roof membranes. The formulations used for the films could be modified for use in actual membranes.

Problem drinking among American lndian people is a subject of much concern. This article addresses the factors which have contributed to the attainment of sobriety among a sample of American Indian people. The findings of this study indicate that recognition and acceptance of drinking problems constitute the first phase of the recovery process. Sobriety itself is the second phase, and personal and social adjustment is the third phase. Those factors which contribute to the discontinuance of drinking and the maintenance of sobriety are highlighted.

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