Context. Until recently, camera networks designed for monitoring fireballs worldwide were not fully automated, implying that in case of a meteorite fall, the recovery campaign was rarely immediate. This was an important limiting factor as the most fragile – hence precious – meteorites must be recovered rapidly to avoid their alteration. Aims. The Fireball Recovery and InterPlanetary Observation Network (FRIPON) scientific project was designed to overcome this limitation. This network comprises a fully automated camera and radio network deployed over a significant fraction of western Europe and a small fraction of Canada. As of today, it consists of 150 cameras and 25 European radio receivers and covers an area of about 1.5 × 106 km2. Methods. The FRIPON network, fully operational since 2018, has been monitoring meteoroid entries since 2016, thereby allowing the characterization of their dynamical and physical properties. In addition, the level of automation of the network makes it possible to trigger a meteorite recovery campaign only a few hours after it reaches the surface of the Earth. Recovery campaigns are only organized for meteorites with final masses estimated of at least 500 g, which is about one event per year in France. No recovery campaign is organized in the case of smaller final masses on the order of 50 to 100 g, which happens about three times a year; instead, the information is delivered to the local media so that it can reach the inhabitants living in the vicinity of the fall. Results. Nearly 4000 meteoroids have been detected so far and characterized by FRIPON. The distribution of their orbits appears to be bimodal, with a cometary population and a main belt population. Sporadic meteors amount to about 55% of all meteors. A first estimate of the absolute meteoroid flux (mag < –5; meteoroid size ≥~1 cm) amounts to 1250/yr/106 km2. This value is compatible with previous estimates. Finally, the first meteorite was recovered in Italy (Cavezzo, January 2020) thanks to the PRISMA network, a component of the FRIPON science project.

Purpose The knowledge transfer plays a key role in the firm’s capability to develop and to maintain a strategic competitive advantage over time. The capability of the firm to develop an efficient and effective process of knowledge transfer increases the internal skills and then the capability to compete in the business with positive effects on the performance. In order to maximize the effectiveness and efficiency of the knowledge transfer process it must be consider two main variables: the amount of knowledge to be transferred and the speed of the process. In this contest, the purpose of this paper is to developed a theoretical model, defined the knowledge transfer curve, able to evaluate the knowledge transfer process on the basis of its speed. Design/methodology/approach The curve of the knowledge transfer is based on the methodology of the learning curve. The curve of the knowledge transfer process can be evaluated on the basis of two main variables: the first is the content of knowledge to be transferred. It refers to the quality and quantity of the information to be transferred within the firm; and the second is the speed of the knowledge transfer process. It refers to the time in which the knowledge transfer can be realized. The function of the knowledge transfer is defined using ordinary differential equation. Findings There is an inverse relationship between time t and the variation rate r. The higher the variable r, the faster the knowledge transfer toward the level K. Therefore, the variable r measures the efficiency and effectiveness of the knowledge transfer process. On the basis of these considerations, manager must evaluate their policies about the knowledge transfer on the basis of their effects on the variable r: only the policy that increases its value can be considered effective for the knowledge transfer process. Originality/value The originality resides in the development of a theoretical model that is able to capture and measure the effectiveness and efficiency of the knowledge transfer. It is possible to define a curve of knowledge transfer on the basis of these two variables: content of the knowledge to be transferred and the time of the transfer process, by using an ordinary differential equation.

This paper investigates the interplay between board-level governance characteristics, ownership concentration and firm performance in the Italian corporate landscape, which is characterized by high (though varying) degrees of ownership concentration. The empirical setting of this study is the Italian stock market and specifically a sample of non-financial firms included in FTSE MIB and mid-cap index of Milan stock exchange, spanning a five-year time period from 2011 up to 2015. We regressed an accounting proxy for firm performance, namely the return-on-asset (ROA) ratio, on several board-level governance variables and specifically board size, board independence, CEO-chairman duality and audit committee (ACD) full independence. In doing so, we also controlled for the impact of different levels of ownership concentration by partitioning the sample into firms with lower and-higher-than-median values of ownership concentration (OC). The empirical results indicate that board characteristics differently impact performance in firms with lower levels of OC compared to firms with higher OC. Specifically, in lower-OC firms, board independence and AC full independence have a negative impact, whereas CEO duality (either alone or interacted with board independence) has a positive impact on performance. Conversely, higher-OC firms benefit from a large board size and are negatively affected by AC independence, while the remaining variables are not significant. The key insight to be gained from our evidence is that the individual and interaction effects of board-level mechanisms may be contingent on the presence of other governance mechanisms (in this instance, the degree of ownership concentration). As such, this research adds to the existing literature questioning the ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach to corporate boards. In terms of practical implications, our findings support the notion that firms might consider the potential interaction and substitution effects between governance mechanisms and structure boards accordingly.

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