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The term "Centre of Excellence" is increasingly used by Ontario's colleges with the expectation of portraying a superior level of proficiency, expertise, or investment in a particular academic discipline or program cluster. This paper proposes that the term Centre of Excellence should have a clearer definition so that when one of Ontario's colleges uses it, the reader will have a better sense of its meaning by initiating a discussion as to how this definition might be framed from a measurement perspective. Creating a Centre of Excellence in a college in Ontario can be an important method of enhancing reputation since it differentiates a college from other colleges and universities in its catchment area. As such, it is an important strategic asset. The purpose of this paper is to broaden the discussion about the casual and possible over trivialization of the use of the term "Centre of Excellence" by forwarding measures and categories of measures that will help determine whether such a condition has developed or is emerging.

Research performance is a critical component of the understanding of university prestige, yet measuring it is complex. This paper proposes using "real dollars of research expenditures per article published" as a measure of research productivity because it is more accurate than other quantitative measures of research productivity, including "articles published per capita," for certain applications, especially financial and economic analyses. In tracking this measure, a decline in the research productivity of US colleges and universities was observed during the period 1996 to 2002.

A prestigious reputation is the primary success factor in higher education because it attracts resources necessary to sustain growth. Among research-intensive universities (RIUs), research performance is a key driver of institutional reputation. Achieving an accelerating rate of growth of research performance is the desired objective of all RIUs which, in turn, is contributing to intensification in the competition for research funds. In competitive environments, the use of strategy is widely used to enhance competitive effectiveness. The question arises as to whether some expressions of strategy are more closely associated with increased research performance than others? This paper provides insight into this question by presenting a model demonstrating that the strategic emphases of individual RIUs in the USA are highly correlated to changes in the shares of federally financed research funding actually realized by the institutions. (Contains 1 figure, 2 tables, and 1 note.)

Viewed through a market paradigm, universities can appear as the aggregation of numerous and varied markets. While universities' primary markets focus on teaching and research, they are active in many other markets, most of which support and contribute to their smooth, effective and efficient operation. Using financial and real estate markets as examples, the purpose of this article is to articulate some details that further validate the deepening complexity of the modern multiversity and to help clarify the extent to which market-like activities have infiltrated the institution, creating opportunities and posing threats. The cultural impact of the trend towards marketisation increases the need to protect the academic core of the academy.

Aims: Cladribine tablets have shown significant efficacy for the treatment of relapsing multiple sclerosis, a chronic and debilitating immune‐mediated disorder. This study was conducted to examine acute and/or cumulative effects of cladribine tablets 10 mg (3.5 or 5.25 mg/kg cumulative dose over 2 years) on heart rate, AV conduction and cardiac repolarization in patients with relapsing–remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS). Methods: CLARITY was a 96‐week, double‐blind, placebo‐controlled, multicentre trial which evaluated the safety and efficacy of cladribine tablets 3.5 and 5.25 mg/kg body weight in patients with RRMS. A total of 135 patients were included in the ECG substudy, providing a total of 1534 post‐dose ECGs. ECG data were collected 15 minutes pre‐dose and between 0.5 and 3 hours post‐dose at pre‐study evaluation, study Day 1 and Weeks 5, 9, 13, 48 and 52. Results: For cladribine tablets 3.5 mg/kg, the maximum change in placebo‐adjusted post‐dose QTcF vs. visit‐baseline (BL) was −0.42 ms (90% CI: −3.61–4.44) at Week 1 (acute effects), and 3.20 ms (90% CI: −0.08–6.33) for cladribine tablets 5.25 mg/kg. The greatest observed differences in post‐dose QTcF vs. study BL occurred at Week 48 for both the 3.5 and 5.25 mg/kg doses of cladribine tablets with 5.99 ms (90% CI: 0.53–11.44) and 8.74 ms (90% CI: 3.18–14.31), respectively. No significant changes were observed in T‐wave morphology in either treatment group. Conclusions: Cladribine tablets 3.5 mg/kg (approved dose in Europe/other regions) did not confer clinically meaningful effects on heart rate, AV conduction and ventricular repolarization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research performance is a critical component of the understanding of university prestige, yet measuring it is complex. This paper proposes using ‘real dollars of research expenditures per article published’ as a measure of research productivity because it is more accurate than other quantitative measures of research productivity, including ‘articles published per capita,’ for certain applications, especially financial and economic analyses. In tracking this measure, a decline in the research productivity of US colleges and universities was observed during the period 1996 to 2002. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Canada's research policy has aimed to facilitate technology transfer from universities and induce innovation in industry for the past three decades. This article examines the policy instruments currently employed by the federal government in Canada to stimulate university-industry research linkages. First, the article examines the national landscape of industry R&D and its interface with university research. Then, multiple policy instruments are identified, and their goals and functions are examined. Finally, the article discusses the main features and implications of Canada's policy approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the developments in the higher education sector in Ontario as of October 2012. It examines the growing use by colleges of the term "Centre of Excellence" to portray a superior level of proficiency, expertise or investment in a specific academic discipline or program cluster. It defines Centre of Excellence as a self-sustaining virtuous cycle that reflects the symbiotic relationship between the college and industry.

A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, 4-period crossover study was conducted in 52 healthy adults to assess the effect of delafloxacin on the corrected QT (QTc) interval. The QT interval, corrected for heart rate using Fridericia's formula (QTcF), was determined predose and at 0.5, 1, 1.25, 1.5, 1.75, 2, 2.5, 3, 4, 5, 6, 12, 18, and 24 h after dosing with delafloxacin at 300 mg intravenously (i.v.; therapeutic), delafloxacin at 900 mg i.v. (supratherapeutic), moxifloxacin at 400 mg orally (p.o.; positive control), and placebo. The pharmacokinetic profile of delafloxacin was also evaluated. At each time point after delafloxacin administration, the upper limit of the 90% confidence interval (CI) for the placebo-corrected change from the predose baseline in QTcF (ΔΔQTcF) was less than 10 ms (maximum, 3.9 ms at 18 h after dosing), indicating an absence of a clinically meaningful increase in the QTc interval. The lower limit of the 90% CI of ΔΔQTcF for moxifloxacin versus placebo was longer than 5 ms at all 5 time points selected for assay sensitivity analysis, demonstrating that the study was adequately sensitive to assess QTc prolongation. There was no positive relationship between delafloxacin plasma concentrations and ΔΔQTcF. Treatment-emergent adverse events (AEs) were more frequent among subjects receiving a single supratherapeutic dose of 900 mg delafloxacin. There were no deaths, serious AEs, or AEs leading to study discontinuation and no clinically meaningful abnormalities in laboratory values or vital signs observed at any time point after any dose of the study drug., (Copyright © 2015, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.)