Indifference Curves Research Articles

Soft order topology and graph comparison based on soft order

<abstract><p>Soft sets provide a suitable framework for representing and dealing with vagueness. A scenario for vagueness can be that alternatives are composed of specific factors and these factors have specific attributes. Towards this scenario, this paper introduces soft order and its associated order topology on the soft sets with a novel approach. We first present the definitions and properties of the soft order relations on the soft sets via soft elements. Next, we define soft order topology on any soft set and provide some properties of this topology. In order to implement what we introduced about the soft orders, we describe soft preference and soft utility mapping on the soft sets and we finally demonstrate a decision-making application over the soft orders intended for comparing graphs.</p></abstract>

Differential Calculus and its Application in Economics- A Study with Reference to Consumer Demand Theory

Calculus is one of the important components of mathematical tools used in economics. This enables understanding, improving and problem-solving tools for economic variables. The mathematical analysis contains differential calculus and integral calculus. Calculus is mostly expressed in functions and derivatives. The two-consumer demand theories are cardinal and ordinal. The former is the marginal utility approach and the latter is indifference curve analysis popularised by authors like Gossen (1854), William Jevons (1871), Leon Walras (1874), Carl Marshall (1890), Menger (1950), Hicks (1956), Pareto (1909), P.A. Samuelson (1949), and Robbins (1984) etc. These models analysed the relationship between the price of a commodity and the quantity demanded of the same commodity for deriving individual and market demand curves. The coefficient of price, income and cross elasticities and price, income and substitution effects are also part of these theories.

Developing a nutritious soup product using purple sweet potatoes supplemented with composite of vegetables and freezed-dried chicken

This research aimed to develop a nutritious instant purple sweet potato soup (PSP) combination with a variety of vegetables and freeze-dried chicken. The nutritional characteristics of the product were evaluated. The current study employs principal component analysis (PCA), consumer preference mapping, and check-all-that-apply (CATA) data processing to describe sensory instant mixed soup attributes. The results showed that the soup was made from the formula F2 (PSP flour 47.5%, orange-fleshed sweet potato flour 12.5%, potatoes 6%, banana 7%, mushroom 8%, petit poise 3%, pumpkin 5%, protein powder 5% and cream powder 6%) gave good quality, high sensory value and attractive colors product. The PCA identified important soup attributes such as sweetness, milk flavor, vegetable odor, and color. Adding 15% freeze-dried chicken improved the quality of mixed soup products with energy distribution from macronutrients: proteins 24%, carbohydrates 65%, and lipids 10%. The anthocyanin and β-carotene content analyzed from the product was 13.1 mg/100 g and 370.2 μg/100 g. Score analysis according to the CATA model with two main components accounting for 95.57% of the variance in sensory attribute data, showing liking attributes of mixed soup sample that the panelists preferred in color, flavor, chicken meat distribution, and sweetness. The essential nutritional characteristics of mixed soup have been carefully analyzed.

Avaliação nutricional e aceitação pelo consumidor de extrato de soja de cultivares especiais e convencionais

Abstract The soymilk is a ready-to-eat, nutritious and naturally cholesterol-free product. Several soybean specialty cultivars were developed in Brazil in order to increase the human consumption of soybean products. The aim of this work was to evaluate the nutritional composition and consumer acceptance of soymilk from three soybean cultivars with special features such as high-protein and isoflavone contents, mild flavor and lipoxygenase-free compared to three conventional ones. The soymilk was obtained after blanching with a bicarbonate solution, grinding, centrifugation and pasteurization. The physicochemical and nutritional evaluation data were analyzed using Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) and Tukey’s test to check differences among means, and the consumer data through cluster analysis and internal preference mapping. The lipoxygenases were inactivated after thermal processing. There were significant differences among soybean cultivars and soymilks related to the protein, isoflavones, oil, and sugar contents and soymilk yield (p < 0.05). The BRS 133 and BRS 284 cultivars and soymilks presented the highest total isoflavone content (p < 0.05). Regarding the overall consumer acceptance, there were significant differences among cultivars (p < 0.05) with means ranging from 5.9 to 6.7 and the lower score was obtained by BRS 267. However, the cluster analysis identified three consumer segments according to preference similarity. The cultivars BRS 284 and BRS 267 reached the highest mean among the consumers of segment 1 (6.8 and 6.7 respectively). The consumers of segment 2 preferred the cultivar without lipoxygenases, BRS 213 (mean of 7.5) while segment 3 preferred the BRS 133 (mean of 7.4). The process of blanching of soybean with bicarbonate solution, grinding with boiling water and pasteurization mitigated the differences between conventional and specialty cultivars and the six cultivars evaluated were suitable for soymilk production.

Impact of the divestment of Spanish FDI on economic growth of Morocco: an econometric analysis of 13 country-of-origin

PurposeThis study aims to identify the impact of foreign direct investment (FDI) on economic growth in Morocco depending on each origin country, including Spain. This study uses a linear model to measure the marginal impact of FDI on the growth of Morocco. This marginal effect allows to compare the different effects of FDI among countries of origin. Also, the marginal effect helps to measure the rate of substitution between FDI in an easier way than the other specifications of the model. The second step determines the substitute for Spain in case he decides to divest its FDI from Morocco to maintain the economic growth.Design/methodology/approachUsing data of FDI from 13 countries of origin from 1995 to 2020 and two estimation methods (Dynamic Ordinary Least Squares and Autoregressive model), this study aims to measure the marginal impact of the divestment of FDI from Spain on growth. Then this study estimates how much Morocco should attract FDI from other countries when Spain divests. This study uses the differential calculus, assuming a perfect substitution between FDI from different countries. This calculus implies an indifference curve between FDI from Spain and FDI from another country where we deduct the substitution rates between FDI.FindingsThe results indicate that the FDI from Spain and France are the only ones to impact positively Moroccan economic growth. The FDI coming from Germany, Holland, China and Turkey have a negative impact, whereas those from the USA, Italy, UK, Switzerland and Gulf countries: Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and UAE have an insignificant effect. Second, using the differential calculus, the result indicates that when Spain divests 1m dirhams of its investments from Morocco, France would have to increase its own by 0.1509m dirhams so that Morocco could maintain its economic growth.Research limitations/implicationsThe research focuses only on economic growth, neglecting the impact on other aggregates, such as total factor productivity, technology transfer and employment. Also, this research marginalized the sectorial analysis of FDI by the source to better understand the divergent effects.Originality/valueThis paper fills a research gap when analyzing the effect of FDI on the host economy depending on country-of-origin. In addition, it contributes to the body of literature by constructing the rate of substitution between the different sources of FDI to adapt to divestment policy.

A unifying approach to wheat beer flavour by chemometric analyses. Could we speak of ‘terroir’?

Raw materials are recognized to affect the sensory profile of ‘Blanche’ craft beers and their ‘terroir’. Two common wheat (Triticum aestivum, L.) were harvested in three experimental fields with different pedo-climatic conditions and altitudes, and then used for beer production. The taste and flavour of wheat beers were analysed by sensory (panel and consumer test) and SPME GC-MS analyses. Panel dataset was processed by multivariate statistical analyses: a principal component analysis (PCA) revealed that formulation was the main source of variation of sensory profile in wheat beers and a generalized Procrustes analysis (GPA) showed how wheat origin affected the sensory profiles of wheat craft beers based on the consensus among panelists. Moreover, a partial least-squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) on VOCs permitted to discriminate and characterize beers selected by a panel-driven approach. By comparing panel and VOCs results, it was possible to highlight that higher altitudes of wheat cultivation determine an increase of pleasant notes such as fruity and herbal. A PCA on consumer test data confirmed that formulation was the main factor affecting liking scores and that the preferences were affected by age, involvement and frequency of use. An internal preference map combining panel and consumer data suggested that the majority of preferences are driven by a few key sensory attributes. Differences in liking among the considered beers revealed two main consumer groups.

Biscuits Enriched with Monofloral Bee Pollens: Nutritional Properties, Techno-Functional Parameters, Sensory Profile, and Consumer Preference.

Bee pollens are potential functional food ingredients as they contain essential nutrients and a wide range of bioactive compounds. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of enrichment with monofloral bee pollens on the nutritional properties, techno-functional parameters, sensory profile, and consumer preference of biscuits. Biscuits were prepared according to the AACC-approved method by substituting wheat flour with pollens of rapeseed (Brassica napus L.), phacelia (Phacelia tanacetifolia Benth.) and sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.) at 2%, 5% and 10% levels. The macronutrient composition of the biscuits was determined: crude protein content (Kjeldahl method), crude fat content (Soxhlet extraction), ash content (carbonization), moisture content (drying), carbohydrate content (formula). Their total phenolic content (TPC) and in vitro antioxidant capacity (FRAP, TEAC, DPPH) were determined spectrophotometrically. The colour of the biscuits was measured using a tristimulus-based instrument, and their texture was characterized by using a texture analyser. Sensory profile of biscuits was determined by qualitative descriptive analysis (QDA). The consumer acceptance and purchase intention of the biscuits were also evaluated, based on the responses of 100 consumers. Additionally, an external preference map was created to illustrate the relationship between consumer preference and the sensory profile of the biscuits, and penalty analysis was conducted to identify directions for product development. Phacelia pollen appeared to be the most effective for improving the nutritional quality of biscuits. The addition of phacelia pollen at the 10% substitution level increased the protein content and TPC of the control biscuit by 21% and 145%, respectively. Significant changes (p < 0.05) were also observed regarding the colour and texture of biscuits. The results of the QDA revealed that biscuits containing pollens of different botanical sources have heterogeneous sensory attributes. The biscuit containing sunflower pollen at the 2% substitution level was preferred the most (overall liking = 6.9 ± 1.6), and purchase intentions were also the highest for this product. Based on the results of the present study, it is recommended to use sunflower pollen for developing pollen-enriched foods in the future.

USING MULTIDIMENSIONAL SCALING IN COMBINATION WITH CLUSTER ANALYSIS TO STRUCTURE THE PELI-D QUESTIONNAIRE

Abstract Background One way to contribute person-centered care is the use of a preference-based approach. In our project PELI-D the original PELI USA-version for Nursing Homes was (1) translated into German (2) and structured to explore construct validity of the instrument. Objective and Method: The PELI-D instrument (72-items) is used to illustrate how structuring procedures can be used for concept analysis. The approach allows to analyze the instrument from the perspective of the professional caregivers and to identify theoretical relations in further steps, which can be finally validated. For this purpose, the data of 58 professional nurses are analyzed. Results We computed a three-dimensional concept map of preferences enabled us in a second step to identify an appropriate cluster solution. The five-cluster solution, which explained 79 percent of the total variance, seemed to offer the best balance between statistical analysis and detailed categorisation through qualitative interpretation.

Atributos sensoriales y preferencia de conserva de trucha arcoíris con salsas de ají amarillo – aguaymanto y rocoto - tomate de árbol mediante mapeo de preferencia

The objective of this study was to evaluate the sensory attributes and the preference of six canned rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) with the addition of government liquid based on yellow chili (Capsicum baccatum) – aguaymanto (Physalis peruviana L.) and hot pepper (Capsicum pubescens) – tree tomato (Cyphomandra betacea) sauces through the preference mapping technique (external and internal mapping). The canned rainbow trout were made with the addition of the governing liquid (corresponding to 4% of the formulation) of 3 types of sauces based on yellow chili - aguaymanto in the proportions of 3/1 (AA-3/1), 2/2 (AA-2/2) and 1/3 (AA-1/3) and 3 types of sauces based on hot pepper – tree tomato 3/1 (RT-3/1), 2/2 (RT-2 /2) and 1/3 (RT-1/3). The evaluation of the sensory attributes was carried out by 10 trained descriptive panelists and the preference by 50 regular consumers of canned and trout meat. The preference mapping indicated that the canned with yellow chili - aguaymanto 3/1 (AA-3/1) presented a greater preference of consumers being greater than 80%, it was also represented in a greater amount by three clusters (2, 1 and 3), this canned was characterized by being more spicy, low sensory acidity, less texture and less salty taste.

Obtaining EQ-5D-3L utility index from the health status scale of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM-HSS) based on a mapping study

BackgroundAlmost all traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) quality of life measures are non-preference-based measures (non-PBMs), which do not provide utilities for cost-utility analysis in pharmacoeconomic evaluation. Whereas the mapping has become a new instrument to obtain utilities, which builds a bridge between non-PBMs and PBMs.PurposeTo develop mapping algorithms from the health status scale of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM-HSS) onto the three-level EuroQol five-dimensional questionnaire (EQ-5D-3L).MethodsThe cross-sectional data were collected by questionnaire survey from a tertiary hospital visit population and community residents in China, and randomly divided into training and validation set by 2:1. Based on the training set, direct and indirect mapping methods (7 regression methods and 4 model specifications) were conducted to establish alternative models, which were comprehensively evaluated based on the validation set by mean absolute error, root mean square error, and Spearman correlation coefficient between predicted and observed values. Based on the whole sample, the preferred mapping algorithm was developed.ResultsA total of 639 samples were included, with an average age of 45.24 years and 61.66% of respondents were female. The mean EQ-5D-3L index was 0.9225 [SD = 0.1458], and the mean TCM-HSS index was 3.4144 [SD = 3.1154]. The final mapping algorithm was a two-part regression model including the TCM-HSS subscales, interaction terms, and demographic covariates (age and gender). The prediction performance was good. The mean error was 0.0003, the mean absolute error was 0.0566, the root mean square error was 0.1039, and 83.10% of the prediction errors were within 0.1; the Spearman correlation coefficient between predicted and observed EQ-5D-3L values was 0.6479.ConclusionIt is the first study to develop a mapping algorithm between the TCM-HSS and EQ-5D-3L, which demonstrates excellent prediction accuracy and estimates utility value for economic evaluation from TCM quality of life measures.

Sensory properties, preference mapping and shelf life stability of linear programmed quelea meat based instant complementary food for children aged 6–23 months in Tanzania

Linear programming has been reported to be a good technique that can be used to develop and optimize complementary foods to curb children's malnutrition. Despite some studies using it to develop and assess the nutritional quality of linear programmed instant complementary foods based on high proteinous red-billed quelea bird meat, information on the sensory and shelf life stability of these foods is limited in the country. The objective of this study was to develop and assess the sensory properties, preference mapping and shelf life of the developed and optimized quale birds meat-based complementary flour and porridge. Four formulations; control containing birds meat only, banana mixed with meat (Banana_meat), potatoes mixed with meat (potatoes_meat) and rice mixed with meat (rice_meat) were developed by mixing with other ingredients and extruded separately using a barrel extrude to get flour. The extruded flours were assessed for shelf life and also used to develop porridge samples for sensory properties, consumer acceptance and preference mapping analyses using standard methods. There were significant (p < 0.05) differences in mean intensity scores between the formulation with potatoes mixed with meat samples having higher colour (7.5 ± 1.5), aroma (7.3 ± 1.6), viscosity (5.3 ± 3.0) and smoothness (7.65.3 ± 2.5) values than other samples with respective lower values of 4.4 ± 2.1–6.5 ± 1.5.2.6 ± 0.6–6.4 ± 2.4), 4.8 ± 0.2–5.2 ± 1.8 and 2.7 ± 0.6–6.3 ± 2.3. Rice mixed with meat sample had significantly highest whiteness (4.5 ± 1.5) and sweetness (7.5 ± 1.9) intensities scores while the control meat only samples had significantly highest oiliness intensity scores (5.0 ± 1.4) compared to other samples. Moreover, the potatoes mixed with meat sample was the most acceptable formulation (7.7 ± 0.3) compared to other samples with aroma, smoothness sweetness, colour and viscosity attributes being the main drivers for consumer liking of complementary porridge samples. The shelf life study revealed that the overall acceptability scores of complementary flour samples decreased progressively with storage days with the longest predicted shelf life of 140 days observed in rice mixed with meat sample followed by potatoes mixed with meat with 48 days and the shortest shelf life of 23.7 days in control samples. This suggests that quelea bird meat could be combined with cereal, tubers, and other minor ingredients like vegetables, optimized using the linear programming technique and extruded into complementary instant flour and porridge for children between the ages of 6 and 23 months with long shelf lives, appealing sensory properties, and consumer acceptance, respectively. Hence, it is advised to use the method and consume the developed formulations. • Linear programming resulted in complementary foods with appealing sensory properties and consumer acceptability. • The mean intensity score of sensory attributes differed significantly (p < 0.05) between the linear programmed complementary porridge samples. • Control (meat only) and potatoes_meat samples were the least and most acceptable formulations respectively. • Aroma, sweetness, smoothness, and colour were the main attributes driving consumers' acceptance of the porridge samples. • Rice_ meat and control samples had the longest and shortest shelf lives of 140 and 23.7 days respectively.

The Risk Preferences Of Graduates Of Islamic Educational Institutions In Indonesia

Indonesia as a Muslim-majority country and the survey results show that the most Indonesian are religious. Religious education also gets facilities from the state as a form of support for people's needs for religion. Religiosity, and education are hypothesized to be determinants of risk preference. This study aims to uncover the relationship between risk preferences and Islamic faith-based education in the Indonesian context. This research tries to combine aspects of religiosity and educational aspects in one framework, namely Islamic faith-based education where previous studies do not unite aspects of religiosity and education. This research is expected to provide a more complete picture or map of the risk preferences of graduates of Islamic educational institutions.

Earth system science applications of next-generation SEM-EDS automated mineral mapping

Sedimentary rocks contain a unique record of the evolution of the Earth system. Deciphering this record requires a robust understanding of the identity, origin, composition, and post-depositional history of individual constituents. Petrographic analysis informed by Scanning Electron Microscope - Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy (SEM-EDS) mineral mapping can reveal the mineral identity, morphology and petrological context of each imaged grain, making it a valuable tool in the Earth Scientist’s analytical arsenal. Recent technological developments, including quantitative deconvolution of mixed-phase spectra (producing “mixels”), now allow rapid quantitative SEM-EDS-based analysis of a broad range of sedimentary rocks, including the previously troublesome fine-grained lithologies that comprise most of the sedimentary record. Here, we test the reliability and preferred mineral mapping work flow of a modern Field-Emission scanning electron microscope equipped with the Thermofisher Scientific Maps Mineralogy mineral mapping system, focusing on mud/siltstones and calcareous shales. We demonstrate that SEM-EDS mineral mapping that implements 1) a strict error minimization spectral matching approach and 2) spectral deconvolution to produce ‘mixels’ for mixed-phase X-ray volumes can robustly identify individual grains and produce quantitative mineralogical data sets comparable to conventional X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis (R2 &amp;gt; 0.95). The correlation between SEM-EDS and XRD-derived mineralogy is influenced by mineral abundance, processing modes and mapped area characteristics. Minerals with higher abundance (&amp;gt;10 wt%) show better correlation, likely the result of increased uncertainty for XRD quantification of low-abundance phases. Automated spectral deconvolution to produce ‘mixels’ greatly reduces the proportion of unclassified pixels, especially in the fine-grained fraction, ultimately improving mineral identification and quantification. Mapping of larger areas benefits bulk mineralogy analysis, while customized area size and shape allows high-resolution in situ mineralogical analysis. Finally, we review SEM-EDS-based mineral mapping applications in the Earth Sciences, via case studies illustrating 1) approaches for the quantitative differentiation of various mineral components including detrital (allogenic), syndepositional (authigenic) and burial diagenetic phases, 2) the origin and significance of lamination, 3) the effectiveness and appropriateness of sequential leaching in geochemical studies, and 4) the utility of mineral maps to identify target grains within specific petrological contexts for in situ geochemical or geochronological analysis.

Natural scene sampling reveals reliable coarse-scale orientation tuning in human V1

Orientation selectivity in primate visual cortex is organized into cortical columns. Since cortical columns are at a finer spatial scale than the sampling resolution of standard BOLD fMRI measurements, analysis approaches have been proposed to peer past these spatial resolution limitations. It was recently found that these methods are predominantly sensitive to stimulus vignetting - a form of selectivity arising from an interaction of the oriented stimulus with the aperture edge. Beyond vignetting, it is not clear whether orientation-selective neural responses are detectable in BOLD measurements. Here, we leverage a dataset of visual cortical responses measured using high-field 7T fMRI. Fitting these responses using image-computable models, we compensate for vignetting and nonetheless find reliable tuning for orientation. Results further reveal a coarse-scale map of orientation preference that may constitute the neural basis for known perceptual anisotropies. These findings settle a long-standing debate in human neuroscience, and provide insights into functional organization principles of visual cortex.

Giffen behavior and duality from the viewpoint of the relation between the shapes of price indifference and indifference curves

Giffen behavior and duality from the viewpoint of the relation between the shapes of price indifference and indifference curves

Exploring the Sensory Characteristics of Virginia Ciders through Descriptive Analysis and External Preference Mapping

The cider industry has experienced recent growth within the USA and Virginia in particular. However, the sensory characteristics and drivers of consumer acceptance of ciders are largely uncharacterized. Therefore, this work describes the sensory profiles of commercial Virginia ciders and links these to consumer acceptance. In study 1, a descriptive analysis (DA) of 24 representative ciders from 16 producers in Virginia was conducted: six panelists defined 48 descriptive terms for ciders. In study 2, a consumer acceptance study was conducted on eight ciders from the DA with 67 subjects. For the DA study, 22 descriptors were found to be significant, and multivariate analyses identified six groups. In the consumer study, external preference mapping was conducted to identify three clusters of consumers with distinctive patterns of sensor preference. The largest cluster favored sweet ciders without off-flavors; a second, smaller cluster favored sweetness even in the presence of off-flavors; and the smallest cluster disliked sweetness in ciders and was intolerant of off-flavors. These groups’ demographic and consumption profiles are described. All ciders’ basic chemistry was within previously reported ranges and expected relationships between flavor and chemistry were observed. We were able to establish sensory profiles for Virginia ciders and to tentatively link sensory profiles and consumer acceptance. Overall, this work adds to a small-but-growing body of knowledge about ciders’ sensory properties. Producers can use the sensory profiles in comparison to other regions’ ciders to establish regional sensory profiles and the consumer preference map to understand how to capitalize on their ciders’ distinct profiles.

Descriptive sensory analysis, consumer acceptability, and conjoint analysis of beef sausages prepared from a pigeon pea protein binder

The objective of this study was to assess the sensory profile, consumer acceptance, and internal and extrinsic factors influencing the acceptability of beef sausages made at varying levels of pigeon pea protein (2, 4, and 6% w/w) as a binder. Sausages prepared without binders (CNB) and sausages made with a chemical phosphate binder served as controls (PoB). A panel of 12 trained panelists performed descriptive analysis using the quantitative descriptive analysis (QDA) approach on a 9-point line scale, while 70 consumers participated in a consumer test utilizing a 9-point hedonic scale. Preference mapping was done by linking descriptive sensory and hedonic data using partial least squares regression analysis (PLSR) and the conjoint analysis was conducted by 90 panelists using a 9-point scale. The 6% pea protein sausages had the significantly lowest (p < 0.05) mean hardness, aroma, and color intensity but statistically similar (p > 0.05) highest moistness intensity to the phosphate sausages. Phosphate sausages had the highest mean color and saltiness intensity (p < 0.05) compared to the lowest mean values in 6% pea protein sausages. The phosphate sausages were the most accepted by consumers (p < 0.05), followed by the 6% pea protein sausages, with aroma, saltiness, moistness, and firmness being the key drivers in consumer acceptability of sausages. Furthermore, formulation and price had a significant (p < 0.05) effect on consumer acceptability. In conclusion, employing pea protein as a binder in sausage formulations improves sensory profiles and increases consumer acceptance, making it a possible food industry alternative. Further studies to determine the optimal amount of pea protein binder that will perform better than phosphate binder are recommended.

The Effects of bride price on the Chinese marriage market

This paper will mainly focus on the marriage market of China and how bride price affects it through diverse methods like analyzing the amount of bride price in different parts of China, using the economics models including demand and supply curve and the indifference curves to figure out whether bride price will affect the marriage rate, and finally developing a theory to depict a females’ psychological and economics evaluation on whether a male is worth marrying. The author finds that if the bride price is too high, then it will negatively affect the marriage rate. The bride price will also affect some of the females’ decisions in choosing their lifestyles. However, for more educated women, the theory suggests that the bride price is no longer the most important factor in their marriage decision.

Image-Guided Cochlear Implant Programming: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.

To review studies evaluating clinically implemented image-guided cochlear implant programing (IGCIP) and to determine its effect on cochlear implant (CI) performance. PubMed, EMBASE, and Google Scholar were searched for English language publications from inception to August 1, 2021. Included studies prospectively compared intraindividual CI performance between an image-guided experimental map and a patient's preferred traditional map. Non-English studies, cadaveric studies, and studies where imaging did not directly inform programming were excluded. Seven studies were identified for review, and five reported comparable components of audiological testing and follow-up times appropriate for meta-analysis. Demographic, speech, spectral modulation, pitch accuracy, and quality-of-life survey data were collected. Aggregate data were used when individual data were unavailable. Audiological test outcomes were evaluated as standardized mean change (95% confidence interval) using random-effects meta-analysis with raw score standardization. Improvements in speech and quality-of-life measures using the IGCIP map demonstrated nominal effect sizes: consonant-nucleus-consonant words, 0.15 (-0.12 to 0.42); AzBio quiet, 0.09 (-0.05 to 0.22); AzBio +10 dB signal-noise ratio, 0.14 (-0.01 to 0.30); Bamford-Kowel-Bench sentence in noise, -0.11 (-0.35 to 0.12); Abbreviated Profile of Hearing Aid Benefit, -0.14 (-0.28 to 0.00); and Speech Spatial and Qualities of Hearing Scale, 0.13 (-0.02 to 0.28). Nevertheless, 79% of patients allowed to keep their IGCIP map opted for continued use after the investigational period. IGCIP has potential to precisely guide CI programming. Nominal effect sizes for objective outcome measures fail to reflect subjective benefits fully given discordance with the percentage of patients who prefer to maintain their IGCIP map.

Multidimensional risk aversion: the cardinal sin

Attitudes towards multidimensional risk depend both on the shape of the indifference map under certainty and on the degree of concavity of the utility function representing preferences under risk. A decomposition of the risk premium is built on the new notion of “compensated risk aversion”. The balance between the two components is shown to depend on the association of the risks. Several applications are also presented, including the intertemporal model.