Generic Settings Research Articles

The economics of hybrid manufacturing systems in a closed-loop supply chain

This paper deals with the economics of a closed-loop supply chain and the decision-making in a hybrid manufacturing system. We develop analytic models and quantify the potential profits gain generated by such a hybrid system that collects, remanufactures, and remarkets the end-of-use products as perfect substitutes of brand-new products while facing a price-dependent demand function. The research objective behind developing analytic models is to investigate the following research questions: Can the hybrid system incorporating reverse logistics operate cost-effectively? Can it outperform the manufacturing-only system without reverse logistics? If not, does it persist in certain decision bias that leads to a lower profit and inefficiency? If yes, to what extent and under which conditions--lower remanufacturing cost or higher price sensitivity coefficients? We model the decision-making of the system as an appropriate optimization problem. Our analysis shows that the hybrid system does not outperform the manufacturing-only counterpart under generic settings; it only performs better under the condition with a higher price sensitivity coefficient and/or a lower remanufacturing cost. In addition, the pricing decisions for the brand-new and remanufactured products differ significantly, which is consistent with the industrial practice. In addition, numerical results suggest that it may be worth adopting such a hybrid strategy when the remanufacturing cost is low, in comparison with that of the new product manufacturing. Another favorable factor to adopt the hybrid strategy is higher completion intensity between the two versions of the same product. In such scenarios, participating in remanufacturing operations is not only an issue of being environmentally conscious but a profit-improving opportunity.

Locally robust implementation and its limits

We study a notion of locally robust implementation that captures the idea that the planner may know agents’beliefs well, but not perfectly. Locally robust implementation is a weaker concept than ex-post implementation, but we show that no regular allocation function is locally robust implementable in generic settings with quasi-linear utility, interdependent and bilinear

Use of a consensus-based process to develop international guidelines to decrease recreational open water drowning deaths

Many drowning deaths in high income countries occur while recreating in open water. Multiple agencies, often working in isolation, promote a plethora of messages to address this health issue. Our objective was to develop a consensus-based set of simple, generic guidelines, applicable to the general public, to standardize international recreational open water drowning prevention messages. We describe the processes of forming a Task Force of 18 international drowning prevention experts, of defining the scope of the guidelines and their development, of using a modified Delphi technique to prioritize, and of achieving approval of final wording of each guideline by consensus. Task Force participants agreed to develop guidelines for primary prevention of non-craft or competition-related recreational water activities in generic open water settings and to base guidelines on best practice and evidence. After compiling 125 guidelines, a modified Delphi technique was used to prioritize the guidelines into two categories: Keep yourself Safe and Keep others safe. Task Force participants agreed on eight key guidelines for each category. In both categories, Learn swimming and water safety survival skills was the highest priority guideline; other guidelines given high priority included Swim in areas with lifeguards, Know how and when to use life jackets, and Obey safety signs and flags. Use of consensus-based processes, including a modified Delphi technique, by a Task Force of diverse international drowning prevention experts, led to a set of simple, concise drowning prevention guidelines that promote uniform and consistent educational messages to the public. The process led to expanded definitions of supervision, provided a research agenda and basis for a policy agenda on open water drowning prevention, and maximized dissemination of the guidelines to decrease open water drowning deaths. Moreover, the processes represented a step toward coordinating drowning prevention efforts internationally to focus efforts on decreasing open water recreational drowning.

The influence of types of training on service system performance in mass service and service shop operations

This research specifically examines the direct and indirect effects of job specific training and training in quality management techniques, on service system performance. To further explicate these relationships and to provide more specific managerial relevance, we examine these relationships across two common, but under-researched types of service processes, i.e., mass services and service shops. Survey data collected from 281 service firms in China was analyzed utilizing a Partial Least Squares (PLS) approach to structural equation modeling and multi-group model comparisons. Our results indicate that in generic service settings, quality management related training has a larger positive impact on service system performance than does job specific training. However, this effect is not universal. In “Service Shop” settings, job specific training was found to have a larger impact on service system performance, while in “Mass Service” settings quality management training was found to have the higher total impact on service system performance. This study is the first to distinguish between job specific training and quality management training and their differential effects on employee capability and service system performance. Additionally, through examining these relationships across two under-researched service process types, not only are greater managerial insights gained, but also the context-specific nature of our findings is further explicated. Finally, the emerging importance of China in global operations makes this study all the more important.

Optimum Power and Rate Allocation for Coded V-BLAST: Instantaneous Optimization

Several instantaneous optimization strategies for rate and/or power allocation in the coded V-BLAST are studied analytically. Outage probabilities and system capacities of these strategies in a spatial multiplexing system are compared under generic settings. The conventional waterfilling algorithm is shown to be suboptimal for the coded V-BLAST and a new algorithm (fractional water-filling) is proposed, which simultaneously maximizes the system capacity and minimizes the outage probability. Closed-form performance analysis of the considered algorithms is given, and the fractional water-filling algorithm is shown to attain the full MIMO channel diversity, significantly outperforming other strategies. Many of the results also apply to generic multi-stream transmission systems (e.g. spatial multiplexing on the channel eigenmodes, OFDM) or the systems relying on successive interference cancelation (multi-user detection, channel equalization).

Building social and cultural capital through learning about equality in youth work

The changing lives of young people provided the context for the Scottish Government to publish, ‘Moving Forward – a strategy for improving young people's chances through Youth Work’. This strategy reported young peoples' aspirations to be treated equally and to know their opinions count. Contemporary theories on youth work suggested that equality was at its heart, yet little had been done to examine equality within generic youth work settings, although there was information on targeted interventions, such as youth work with Muslim young women or young black men. This article draws on a study that examined what young people learned about equality in a generic youth work setting. Theories of critical pedagogy provided a framework through which to explore how problem-posing youth work enabled young people to articulate voice and influence decisions. Youth work is argued as border pedagogy and proposed as enhancing the egalitarian nature of practices that enabled young people to interrogate their beliefs, values and identities and to act in ways that supported the development of cultural and social capitals.

Performance analysis of downlink traffic in WiMAX networks by considering a shadowing radio propagation model

We investigate in this paper the implications of scheduling and adaptive modulation and coding AMC on the performance of downlink traffic in OFDMA-based IEEE 802.16 cells. To this end, we model the downlink traffic as a discrete-time Markov chain by assuming exponential interarrival times of packets at the upstream of the unidirectional unbuffered connection maintained by the base station with each associated subscriber station SS. Various performance metrics are derived by considering two usual scheduling policies: equal-slot sharing ESS and equal-throughput sharing ETS. In particular, the estimated packet access delays provide a lower bound on the achieved delays in case of buffering. Besides, our model considers the adaptivity of the modulation and coding schemes MCSs used by the base station. By assuming uniform distribution of the SSs over the cell and shadowing log-normal radio propagation, we derive the probability density function of the signal-to-noise ratios measured at the level of the SSs. Albeit defined in the context of WiMAX networks, this second contribution can be exploited in more generic wireless settings. Several numerical results are presented and discussed to expose the effects of system parameters and scheduling policies on performance.

Digitally tunable, wide-band amplitude, phase, and frequency detection for atomic-resolution scanning force microscopy

Frequency-modulation atomic force microscopy (FM-AFM) relies on an accurate tracking of the resonance frequency of a scanning probe. It is now used in environments ranging from ultrahigh vacuum to aqueous solutions, for slow and for fast imaging, with probes resonating from a few kilohertz up to several megahertz. Here we present a versatile experimental setup that detects amplitude, phase, and frequency of AFM probes for resonance frequencies up to 15 MHz and with >70 kHz maximum bandwidth for amplitude/phase detection. We provide generic parameter settings for variable-bandwidth frequency detection and test these using our setup. The signal-to-noise ratio of the frequency detector is sufficiently high to record atomic-resolution images of mica by FM-AFM in aqueous solution.

Topiramate in the New Generation of Drugs: Efficacy in the Treatment of Alcoholic Patients

Predicated upon a neuropharmacological conceptual model, there is now solid clinical evidence to support the efficacy of topiramate for the treatment of alcohol dependence. Topiramate treatment can be initiated whilst the alcohol-dependent individual is still drinking - just when crisis intervention is most likely to be needed by a patient with or without his or her family asking the health practitioner for assistance. Because topiramate can be paired with a brief intervention, there is now the exciting possibility of treating most alcohol- dependent individuals in office-based practice or generic treatment settings. Topiramate's additional effects on other impulsedyscontrol disorders make it a particularly interesting compound for the treatment of other comorbid drug or psychiatric disorders. Additionally, future studies should explore whether topiramate can be combined with other putative therapeutic agents to increase its efficacy. One notable clinical challenge in the development of topiramate as a pharmacotherapy to treat alcohol dependence is the determination of the smallest dose that can result in efficacy, thereby achieving the optimum balance between therapeutic benefit and adverse event profile. Animal data do provide support for topiramate's general anti-drinking effects but also indicate that its mechanisms of action might rely on several complex pharmacobehavioral changes. Additional preclinical studies are needed to elucidate more clearly the basic mechanistic processes that underlie topiramate's efficacy as a treatment for alcohol dependence. Preclinical information that topiramate may have differential effects based on genetic vulnerability opens up the possibility of future methods to optimize treatment.

Towards an organizational culture framework in construction

Organizational culture gives identity to an organization. Notwithstanding the individuality of the staff members, their actions are collectively bound by the organizational culture. A review of the literature in this topic reveals that despite a number of organizational culture models have been developed, these are mainly for generic business settings and there has yet one developed for construction contracting organizations. This paper reports a study for this purpose conducted in Hong Kong. Firstly, artifacts of organizational culture were long-listed through a literature review. Construction professionals working for developers, consultant offices and contractors assessed the appropriateness of using these artifacts to identify organizational culture in construction. Through a principal component factor analysis, these artifacts are arranged into a seven-factor organizational culture framework. The seven factors are ‘Goal settings and accomplishment’, ‘Team orientation’, ‘Coordination and integration’, ‘Performance emphasis’, ‘Innovation orientation’, ‘Members’ participation’ and ‘Reward orientation’. The ANOVA result suggests no significant difference in the rankings across respondents working for developers, consultants and contractors. The relative importance rankings among these factors were also assessed according to their significance scores. The findings of the study suggest that the construction contracting organizations in Hong Kong favor culture of clear goals with stability. They are less externally focused with a relatively lower emphasis on innovation. These findings suggest construction maintains a local industry mentality.

In defense of body CT.

Rapid technical developments and an expanding list of applications that have supplanted less accurate or more invasive diagnostic tests have led to a dramatic increase in the use of body CT in medical practice since its introduction in 1975. Our purpose here is to discuss medical justification of the small potential risk associated with the ionizing radiation used in CT and to provide perspectives on practice-specific decisions that can maximize overall patient benefit. In addition, we review available dose management and optimization techniques. Dose reduction strategies described in this article must be well understood and properly used, but also require broad-based practice strategies that extend beyond the CT scanner console and default, generic manufacturer settings. In the final analysis, physicians must request the imaging examination that best addresses the specific medical question without allowing worries about radiation to dissuade them or their patients from obtaining needed CT examinations. Ongoing efforts to ensure that CT examinations are both medically justified and optimally performed must continue, and education must be provided to the medical community and general public that put both the potential risks--and benefits--of CT examinations into proper perspective.

Non-Urban Noirs: Rural Space in <i>Moonrise</i>, <i>On Dangerous Ground</i>, <i>Thieves’ Highway</i>, and <i>They Live by Night</i>

Despite the now-traditional tendency of noir scholarship to call attention to the retrospective and constructed nature of this genre— James Naremore argues that film noir is best regarded as a “mythology”— one feature that has rarely come under question is its association with the city (2). Despite the existence of numerous rural noirs, the depiction of urban space is associated with this genre more consistently than any other element. Even in critical accounts that attempt to deconstruct the solidity of the noir genre, the city is left as an implicit inclusion, and the country, an implict exclusion. Naremore, for example, does not include the urban environment in a list of the central tenets of film noir that he calls into question: “nothing links together all the things described as noir—not the theme of crime, not a cinematographic technique, not even a resistance to Aristotelian narratives or happy endings” (10). Elizabeth Cowie identifies film noir a “fantasy,” whose “tenuous critical status” has been compensated for “by a tenacity of critical use” (121). As part of Cowie’s project, to revise the assumption that noirs are almost exclusively male-centered, she cites character types, visual style, and narrative tendencies, but never urban spaces, as familiar elements of noir that ought to be reconsidered. If the city is rarely tackled as an unnecessary or part-time element of film noir in discursive studies, it is often the first trait identified by critics in the kind of formative, characteristic-compiling studies that Cowie and Naremore work against.

Electric charge in interaction with magnetically charged black holes

We examine the angular momentum of an electric charge e placed at rest outside a dilaton black hole with magnetic charge Q. The electromagnetic angular momentum which is stored in the electromagnetic field outside the black hole shows several common features regardless of the dilaton coupling strength, though the dilaton black holes are drastically different in their spacetime structure depending on it. First, the electromagnetic angular momentum depends on the separation distance between the two objects and changes monotonically from eQ to 0 as the charge goes down from infinity to the horizon, if rotational effects of the black hole are discarded. Next, as the black hole approaches extremality, however, the electromagnetic angular momentum tends to be independent of the distance between the two objects. It is then precisely $eQ$ as in the electric charge and monopole system in flat spacetime. We discuss why these effects are exhibited and argue that the above features are to hold in widely generic settings including black hole solutions in theories with more complicated field contents, by addressing the no hair theorem for black holes and the phenomenon of field expulsion exhibited by extremal black holes.

An Automated High Throughput Liquid Chromatography–Mass Spectrometry Process to Assess the Metabolic Stability of Drug Candidates

An automated high throughput process, termed the MetFast assay, is described to assess in vitro the general microsomal cytochrome P450 beta-nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate-mediated first-pass metabolic stability of potential drug candidates as a utility for pharmaceutical profiling. Utilizing robotic protocols with a multiprobe liquid handler, compounds are incubated with liver microsomes from different species. Samples are then analyzed by in-line liquid chromatography (LC)-mass spectrometry (MS) to determine the amount of compound remaining after a certain time, which allows calculation of metabolism rates. To quantitatively assess large numbers of structurally diverse compounds by LC-MS, a strategy based on an iterative two-step process was devised. Initially compounds are qualitatively analyzed by LC-ultraviolet (UV)/MS (step 1) to determine purity (UV detection) and structural integrity (MS detection). This step ensures that only correct and verified compounds with sufficient purity are being assayed to obtain reproducible high data quality. In addition, all necessary information is gathered to automatically generate specific quantitative methods for the subsequent bioanalytical analysis of metabolic stability samples by LC-UV/MS (step 2). In-house-developed, highly flexible and sophisticated data management software, termed SmartReport, is utilized for automated qualitative and quantitative LC-MS analysis set-up, data processing, and results reporting. The integration of key aspects, inherent "universal" collision-induced dissociation settings of ion trap mass spectrometers for tandem mass spectrometric scan functions utilized for compound-specific and sensitive quantitative MS methods, generic fast-LC conditions, generic MS instrument settings, and the functionality of SmartReport software resulted in an analytical process that routinely provides reproducible high-quality metabolic stability data on structurally diverse compounds. Described here is the setup of the MetFast assay, and metabolic stability data from assay validation compounds are given.

On the existence of potential landscape in the evolution of complex systems

AbstractA recently developed treatment of stochastic processes leads to the construction of a potential landscape for the dynamical evolution of complex systems. Since the existence of a potential function in generic settings has been frequently questioned in literature, here we study several related theoretical issues that lie at core of the construction. We show that the novel treatment, via a transformation, is closely related to the symplectic structure that is central in many branches of theoretical physics. Using this insight, we demonstrate an invariant under the transformation. We further explicitly demonstrate, in one‐dimensional case, the contradistinction among the new treatment to those of Ito and Stratonovich, as well as others. Our results strongly suggest that the method from statistical physics can be useful in studying stochastic, complex systems in general. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Complexity 12: 19–27, 2007

An Overview and Assessment of Contemporary Management Accounting Research in China

This paper reviews 283 management accounting research articles published in 18 major Chinese academic journals from 1997 to 2005. We classify these articles by seven major topic areas, and find significantly different topic mixes between 1997-2001 and 2002-2005. In terms of research method, normative/conceptual papers dominate the sample, followed in descending order by case studies, surveys, field-archival studies, and analytical modeling research. While most of the studies assume a generic setting, there is an increasing focus on specific industries in the later (2002-2005) period. Significantly, about 80 percent of the papers do not have any explicit or detectable application of theory. Among the theory-based articles, finance and economic theories are most often applied. Finally, we find considerable overlap between the topics of research and those considered important by managers. Overall, this body of work has too many weaknesses - including insufficient application of theory and many methodological limitations - to provide a strong basis for understanding and leading management accounting development in China. Yet there also are glimpses of hope in that the number and proportion of theory-based studies, as well as applications to specific rather than generic settings are increasing over time. Also, researchers seem to be aware of topics which are important to managers. We discuss these factors and suggest directions for the future development of management accounting research in China.

Psychotherapy and mental health teams

Mental health teams in different configurations and settings are under increasing pressure to offer formal psychotherapies as well as psychologically informed management to large numbers of ‘difficult’ patients with severe and complex presentations. This pressure has arisen variously from consumers, governmental agencies and commissioning bodies. Although these teams are an important resource, they receive limited training, supervision or support in models of psychotherapy, especially those incorporating a relational dimension and offering a coherent ‘common language’. This commonly results in impairment of collective team function, including the quality and consistency of assessments, and may result in stress, splitting and ‘burn out’ for team members. This situation is due in part to their burden of casework and responsibility but also to prevailing, largely symptom-based and biomedical, models of mental disorder which tend to minimize the importance of psychosocial dimensions in either aetiology or treatment. Formulating and delivering appropriate, evidence-based and robust models of psychotherapy in generic team settings represents a significantly different challenge from that posed by delivery of psychotherapy in specialist settings. Approaches to this important challenge are discussed and summarized drawing on general considerations and the limited direct research evidence, and are illustrated by a cognitive analytic therapy (CAT)-based training project.

Imagining the City: The Cultural Dimensions of Urban Computing

Much urban computing research focuses on cities as generic settings and containers of action. However, cities can also be viewed as products of historically and culturally situated practices and flows. When we view urban areas in this context, rather than as collections of people and buildings, infrastructure and practice are closely entwined. The emergence of urban computing as a topic within pervasive computing research is fascinating and important. Cities are complex social ecosystems, and this complexity makes them a rich site for understanding how pervasive computing technologies can be put to use and brought to life

Development of a specialised forensic service for women with learning disability: the first three years

In recent years there has been growing interest in the fate of those women with mental disorder who come into contact with the criminal justice system. This interest has stemmed from growing recognition that traditional forensic services could not offer the appropriate care required by this group in a conventional mixed‐gender environment. Women‐only services have begun to be developed in generic psychiatric settings, spurred on by the national service framework (NSF) which set a time limit for the development of segregated in‐patient facilities. Forensic services for those with learning disability have been slower to take up the challenge of how best to place women with learning disability who offend and require an in‐patient secure environment. This article describes how one such service attempted to rise to this challenge and build a service for this often neglected group

Transference and Countertransference in Therapy with Lesbian Patients

ABSTRACT Like gender, sexual orientation is an important determinant of one's perception of human relationships, therefore influencing the therapeutic process. Through a framework derived from cross-cultural therapy literature, this article explores how lesbian patients' transferences are influenced by their perception of their therapists' sexual orientations and how therapists' countertransferences differ according to their sexual orientations. This analysis took shape through dialogue with heterosexual and lesbian therapists working in a variety of settings, some generic mental health settings and some lesbian, gay, and bisexual identified.