Strategic Scheme Research Articles

An OGSM-based multi-objective optimization model for partner selection in fresh produce supply chain considering carbon emissions

Incorporating partner selection with environmental commitment is recognized as a crucial aspect of green development in fresh produce supply chains. This paper presents a multi-objective programming (MOP) model for partner selection considering carbon emissions based on the ‘Objectives, Goals, Strategies, Measures’ (OGSM) framework. The OGSM serves as a strategic scheme to identify the long-term green development vision of a supply chain, ensuring that the activities of supply chain partners are aligned with common goals. Driven by the OGSM design, the MOP model is formulated with three conflicting objective functions to maximize profit, minimize carbon emission, and maximize the quality of fresh produce. The model helps decision-makers address decisions on partner selection with determined logistics volumes, transportation modes and packaging types under carbon emission constraints. To tackle the NP-hard problem, we develop an effective hybrid meta-heuristic algorithm called ɛ-NSGA, which complements the advantages of the ɛ-constraint method and NSGA-II (Non-dominated Sorting Genetic Algorithm-II). The experimental results based on parameter calibration of the Taguchi method and the Kruskal–Wallis test demonstrate that the proposed ɛ-NSGA outperforms other four heuristic algorithms in terms of the performance indices of GD (Generational Distance), spacing, IGD (Inverted Generational Distance), and HV (Hyper Volume). The implementation of the OGSM-MOP together with ɛ-NSGA in a real-world apple supply chain illustrates the effectiveness and practicality of the model. Finally, managerial insights into the utilization of the model are discussed and suggestions for decision-making to fulfill corporate environmental obligations are provided.

The “Human Emotions” and the new “Perrotta Human Emotions Model” (PHEM-2): Structural and functional updates to the first model

Background: The first version of the Perrotta Human Emotions Model (PHEM) responded to the need for better structuring, in a functional framework, of emotions and sentiments, giving the proper role to anxiety, according to a neurobiological perspective, in a strategic scheme, but needs structural and functional corrections. Methods: Clinical interview, based on narrative-anamnestic and documentary evidence, and battery of psychometric tests. Results: Statistical comparison of data obtained by administering PHEM-1 versus data obtained by administering PHEM-2 reported an R = 0.999, with p = ≤0.001, as is the case when testing clinical utility by assessing it using MMPI-2-RF and PICI-2. Conclusion: This research confirms the clinical usefulness of administering the PHEM-2, compared with the previous version, during psychotherapeutic encounters conducted according to the brief or otherwise integrated strategic approach.

An enhanced scanning technique for flexible power point tracking under partial shading condition

Flexible power point tracking (FPPT) terminology has recently emergedto support additional functionality for grid-connected systems. Despite having a well-developed operation under uniform irradiance conditions, the FPPT algorithm's operation under partial shading conditions(PSC) reveals substantial challenges. The presented article introduces a global FPPT (GFPPT) algorithm that can operate under the PSC with a fast-trackingspeed. The proposed GFPPT algorithm employs the conventional search-skip-judge global maximum power point trackingmethod and the essential strategic scheme. The method conducts on the left side of the power-voltage curve to avoid the less robust nature ofthe right-sideoperation. Simulation and experimental tests are employed to validate the adequacy of the proposed approach. The simulation and experimental study adopted an indirect control approach using a proportional-integral controller and a buck-boost dc-dc converter. The uniform irradiance condition and PSC patterns with various peaks are chosen, and the presented GFPPT method is applied underdistinct criteria. The proposed method's effectiveness has been adequately validated based on the simulation and experimental outcomes.

УЧЕТ ВОДОПОЛЬЗОВАНИЯ ИЛИ ВОДОПОТРЕБЛЕНИЯ – ГДЕ ПУТЬ К ВОДОСБЕРЕЖЕНИЮ?

Water-saving forms a base for reallocation of water resources and more balanced integrated development of economic sectors of Central Asian countries. Implementation of water-saving programs can highly contribute to objectives laid down in the Strategic Scheme of Integrated Use and Protection of Water Resources of the Republic of Kazakhstan. All three scenarios of water and land use studied in the scheme relay on water-saving, however an approach of water-saving is not clarified. This study discusses benefits and shortages of potential approaches to achieve water-saving at a basin scale using lessons from countries implemented basin scale water-saving projects. Three water use accounting methods discussed are as follows: (a) accounting efficiency; (б) accounting water use; (с) accounting water consumption. It is argued that the strategic scheme has to relay on real water-savings to meet growing water demand of different sectors of the economy.

A strategic scheme for partnership supply networks focusing on green multi-agent transportations: a game theory approach.

Competition to gain more market share leads to the development of a dynamic environment and the fulfillment of an improvement cycle in supply networks. In this paper, as the first attempt, two strategic periods based on the introduction and growth phases of supply networks are considered. Each of these periods has its own characteristics and develops different competitive structures. The allocation of market share between competing supply networks is carried out on the extent of their relationships with green orientations in the network. The ownership of supply sources in these networks is replaced by that of relationships (partnership supply) developed by some parent brands. The efforts of each parent brand towards establishing green supply relationships lead to a greater market share for it. Further to competition between the supply networks, co-petition within each network also results in the emergence of different virtual alliance structures. The performance history of each brand and its subsidiary partners in the first period is included in the second period's assessments and leads to the development or decline of the network. Another dimension of the paper lies in the development of multi-agent transportation arising from the green requirements. Two gaming-based heuristic algorithms are proposed for handling the decentralized decision-making structures in the multi-period multi-stage platform under discussion. To evaluate the taken approach, a real-world inspired case is taken into account. The numerical results prove the better performance of the proposed scheme towards green coverage of the network and, thereupon, increased market share.

RACE: QoI-Aware Strategic Resource Allocation for Provisioning Se-aaS

In this work, the problem of ensuring profitability for multiple sensor-owners in sensor-cloud, while satisfying the service-requirements of end-users, is studied. In traditional sensor-cloud, Sensor-Cloud-Service-Provider (SCSP) solely dictates the service-provisioning process. However, the SCSP cannot always ensure high profits for sensor-owners, who incur significant maintenance costs for their sensor-nodes. Contrarily, it is highly essential to meet the Quality-of-Information (QoI) requirements of end-users to ensure their service-satisfaction. In the existing literature, researchers proposed few node-allocation schemes which neither consider the cost incurred by sensor-owners nor the QoI of sensed-data in sensor-cloud. To address this problem, a strategic resource-allocation scheme, named RACE, is proposed, which introduces the participation of sensor-owners in the node-allocation process. Firstly, utility theory is used to calculate the optimum number-of-nodes to be allocated for a service. Thereafter, single-leader-multiple-followers Stackelberg game is formulated to decide the number-of-nodes to be contributed by each sensor-owner and the price to be charged. Through simulations, we observed that, using RACE, the profits of the sensor-owners and those of the SCSP increase by 86.11-89.26% and 41.95-80.82%, respectively, as compared to existing benchmark schemes, while considering that each sensor-node is capable of serving multiple applications simultaneously. Moreover, service-availability in sensor-cloud increases by 31.70-96.96% using RACE.

IMPLEMENTASI IMPLEMENTASI METODE ANALYTICAL HIERARCHY PROCESS (AHP) DALAM PERANCANGAN MATRIKS PENILAIAN KINERJA

- PT. Perkebunan Nusantara VI Timber Business Unit Aro Kerinci is a company engaged in processing. Customer satisfaction is a major key in the service development process. Therefore, increasing the performance of a company is to increase the quality of a company. Performance is a description of the level of implementation of an activity, program, realizing the goals, objectives, mission and vision of the organization which are contained in the formulation of an organization's strategic scheme (strategic planning). Retrieval of performance results at PT. Perkebunan Nusantara VI Aro Kerinci Timber Business Unit has four perspectives and ten indicators, namely financial indicators with increasing profit perspective, customer indicators, consumer loyalty and increasing number of consumers, internal business indicators, number perspective, work accident rate and employee attendance and learning perspective and satisfaction indicators growth. employees, increase employee competition and rewards or rewards. To determine the level of service at PT. Perkebunan Nusantara VI Aro Kerinci Timber Business Unit is carried out using the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) method with hierarchical stages, pair comparisons and consistency checks in carrying out this consistency check carried out by several stages of Weight Sum Factor (WSF), Consistency Factor (CF), index consistency (CI), index ratio (RI) and Consistency Ratio (CR).

IMPLEMENTASI IMPLEMENTASI METODE ANALYTICAL HIERARCHY PROCESS (AHP) DALAM PERANCANGAN MATRIKS PENILAIAN KINERJA

- PT. Perkebunan Nusantara VI Timber Business Unit Aro Kerinci is a company engaged in processing. Customer satisfaction is a major key in the service development process. Therefore, increasing the performance of a company is to increase the quality of a company. Performance is a description of the level of implementation of an activity, program, realizing the goals, objectives, mission and vision of the organization which are contained in the formulation of an organization's strategic scheme (strategic planning). Retrieval of performance results at PT. Perkebunan Nusantara VI Aro Kerinci Timber Business Unit has four perspectives and ten indicators, namely financial indicators with increasing profit perspective, customer indicators, consumer loyalty and increasing number of consumers, internal business indicators, number perspective, work accident rate and employee attendance and learning perspective and satisfaction indicators growth. employees, increase employee competition and rewards or rewards. To determine the level of service at PT. Perkebunan Nusantara VI Aro Kerinci Timber Business Unit is carried out using the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) method with hierarchical stages, pair comparisons and consistency checks in carrying out this consistency check carried out by several stages of Weight Sum Factor (WSF), Consistency Factor (CF), index consistency (CI), index ratio (RI) and Consistency Ratio (CR).

IMPLEMENTASI IMPLEMENTASI METODE ANALYTICAL HIERARCHY PROCESS (AHP) DALAM PERANCANGAN MATRIKS PENILAIAN KINERJA

- PT. Perkebunan Nusantara VI Timber Business Unit Aro Kerinci is a company engaged in processing. Customer satisfaction is a major key in the service development process. Therefore, increasing the performance of a company is to increase the quality of a company. Performance is a description of the level of implementation of an activity, program, realizing the goals, objectives, mission and vision of the organization which are contained in the formulation of an organization's strategic scheme (strategic planning). Retrieval of performance results at PT. Perkebunan Nusantara VI Aro Kerinci Timber Business Unit has four perspectives and ten indicators, namely financial indicators with increasing profit perspective, customer indicators, consumer loyalty and increasing number of consumers, internal business indicators, number perspective, work accident rate and employee attendance and learning perspective and satisfaction indicators growth. employees, increase employee competition and rewards or rewards. To determine the level of service at PT. Perkebunan Nusantara VI Aro Kerinci Timber Business Unit is carried out using the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) method with hierarchical stages, pair comparisons and consistency checks in carrying out this consistency check carried out by several stages of Weight Sum Factor (WSF), Consistency Factor (CF), index consistency (CI), index ratio (RI) and Consistency Ratio (CR).

The Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Nephrology and Transplant Services and Clinical Training in India

COVID-19 has emerged as a global pandemic with significant impacts on health care systems. The present study was conducted to analyze the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on nephrology and transplant services and clinical training at our center. This observational study was conducted at the Institute of Kidney Disease and Research Centre (Ahmedabad, India). Our institute is one of the largest tertiary care centers of its kind in India with around 400 total inpatient beds for nephrology, urology, and transplant patients. In 2019, our center had annual outpatient and inpatient numbers of 132 181 and 7471, respectively, and conducted 412 renal transplant procedures. For this study, monthly data on number of outpatients, inpatients, and patients undergoing renal transplant, as well as various nonelective procedures, conducted in 2019 and 2020 were collected and analyzed. We investigated the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on various non-COVID-19-related health care facilities and on clinical training and research activities at our institute. During the 2020 COVID-19 period, the number of outpatients and inpatients was greatly reduced compared with data from 2019. A similar decrease was seen in patients undergoing hemodialysis, renal transplant, and nonelective procedures at our center. The COVID-19 period also greatly affected clinical training of residents enrolled at our institute and research activities, as a result of focus on COVID-19 as a priority. The effects of reduced numbers of outpatients and inpatients on workflow, as well as reduced numbers of renal transplants and nonelective procedures on the health of our patients, are unknown. Hence, a strategic scheme is needed to develop new health care models that can help manage the COVID-19 pandemic at present and any further waves arising in the future.

Implementasi Metode Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) Dalam Perancangan Matriks Penilaian Kinerja (Studi Kasus Pada PT.Perkebunan Nusantara VI Unit Usaha Kayu Aro Kerinci)

PT. Perkebunan Nusantara VI Timber Business Unit Aro Kerinci is a company engaged in processing. Customer satisfaction is a major key in the service development process. Therefore, increasing the performance of a company is to increase the quality of a company. Performance is a description of the level of implementation of an activity, program, realizing the goals, objectives, mission and vision of the organization which are contained in the formulation of an organization's strategic scheme (strategic planning). Retrieval of performance results at PT. Perkebunan Nusantara VI Aro Kerinci Timber Business Unit has four perspectives and ten indicators, namely financial indicators with increasing profit perspective, customer indicators, consumer loyalty and increasing number of consumers, internal business indicators, number perspective, work accident rate and employee attendance and learning perspective and satisfaction indicators growth. employees, increase employee competition and rewards or rewards. To determine the level of service at PT. Perkebunan Nusantara VI Aro Kerinci Timber Business Unit is carried out using the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) method with hierarchical stages, pair comparisons and consistency checks in carrying out this consistency check carried out by several stages of Weight Sum Factor (WSF), Consistency Factor (CF), index consistency (CI), index ratio (RI) and Consistency Ratio (CR).

Tactical factor allocation for multifactor portfolios

ABSTRACT Factor investing comprises selecting the set of factors and the right amount of each factor for investment. While past research provides a better guidance on which factors to invest, deciding the right factor allocation has remained relatively elusive. Motivated by the superior performance provided by the equal-weighted strategy compared to the more sophisticated ones, we choose the former as the baseline or the strategic allocation scheme for factor investing and investigate if improvements can be established. Specifically, exploiting the momentum property exhibited by the factors, we propose a simple tactical factor allocation scheme for the equity-based multifactor portfolios. Empirical results reveal that the proposed tactical factor allocation outperforms the strategic one persistently over time and pervasively across different markets.

The Impact of COVID-19 on Neurosurgeons and the Strategy for Triaging Non-emergent Operations

INTRODUCTIONThe COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted all aspects of society globally. As healthcare resources had to be preserved for infected patients, and the risk of in-hospital procedures escalated for uninfected patients and staff, neurosurgeons around the world have had to postpone non-emergent procedures. Under these unprecedented conditions, the decision to defer cases became increasingly difficult as COVID-19 cases skyrocketed.METHODSData was collected by self-reporting surveys during two discrete periods: the principal survey accrued responses during 2 weeks at the peak of the global pandemic, and the supplemental survey accrued responses after that to detect changes in opinions and circumstances. Nine hypothetical surgical scenarios were used to query neurosurgeons' opinion on the risk of postponement and the urgency to re-schedule the procedures. An acuity index was generated for each scenario, and this was used to rank the nine cases.RESULTSThere were 494 respondents to the principal survey from 60 countries. 258 (52.5%) reported that all elective cases and clinics have been shut down by their main hospital. A total of 226 respondents (46.1%) reported that their operative volume had dropped more than 50%. For the countries most affected by COVID-19, this proportion was 54.7%. There was a high degree of agreement among our respondents that fast-evolving neuro-oncological cases are non-emergent cases that nonetheless have the highest risk in postponement, and selected vascular cases may have high acuity as well.CONCLUSIONWe report on the impact of COVID-19 on neurosurgeons around the world. From their ranking of the nine case scenarios, we deduced a strategic scheme that can serve as a guideline to triage non-emergent neurosurgical procedures during the pandemic. With it, hopefully, neurosurgeons can continue to serve their patients without endangering them either neurologically or risking their exposure to the deadly virus.

ТЕХНОЛОГІЯ РОЗВИТКУ ПІДПРИЄМНИЦЬКОЇ КОМПЕТЕНТНОСТІ МАЙБУТНІХ КВАЛІФІКОВАНИХ КАДРІВ ІЗ ВИКОРИСТАННЯМ ЕЛЕМЕНТІВ САМОМЕНЕДЖМЕНТУ

Актуальність статті зумовлена потребою постпандемічного ринку праці у фахівцях, здатних до саморозвитку, самовдосконалення і самозайнятості, зі сформованими навичками ефективного використання часових та психологічних ресурсів, готовністю до побудови успішної підприємницької кар’єи.
 Мета: охарактеризувати технологію розвитку підприємницької компетентності майбутніх кваліфікованих кадрів із використанням елементів самоменеджменту
 Методи: аналіз і синтез – з метою з’ясування рівня розробленості досліджуваної проблеми; узагальнення – для формулювання висновків і рекомендацій щодо використання елементів самоменеджменту у процесі розвитку підприємницької компетентності.
 Результати. Обґрунтовано основні детермінанти необхідності ознайомлення майбутніх фахівців з основами самоменеджменту для розвитку підприємницької компетентності (конкуренція, запит на креативність, інтенсивна діджиталізація ведення бізнесу, стресовість бізнесу, кризовий стан вітчизняної економіки). У структурі підприємницької компетентності особистості виокремлено основні компоненти (ціннісно-мотиваційний, когнітивний, рефлексивно-оцінний, діяльнісний) і в кожному з них виділено пов’язані з самоменеджментом особистісні утворення, необхідні для формування підприємницької компетентності (самосвідомість, система особистісних цінностей, самомотивація, знання про себе, світ, ринок праці і підприємницьку діяльність, рівень домагань і самооцінка особистості, самовиховання, самоактуалізація та самопрезентація). Представлено науковий та процесуально-описовий аспекти педагогічної технології розвитку підприємницької компетентності майбутніх кваліфікованих кадрів із використанням елементів самоменеджменту. Охарактеризовано основні етапи досягнення очікуваного результату – формування в учнівської молоді підприємницької компетентності засобами самоменеджменту (мотиваційно-стимулюючий, стратегічно-планувальний, координуючий, організаційно-виконавчий, процесуально-дієвий).
 Висновки: Педагогічна технологія розвитку підприємницької компетентності майбутніх кваліфікованих кадрів із використанням елементів самоменеджменту представлена як система поетапних педагогічних дій з навчання, виховання й розвитку особистості, спрямованих на використання форм, методів, прийомів самоменеджменту для гарантованого розвитку у майбутніх фахівців якостей, умінь і навичок, необхідних для відкриття й успішного ведення власної справи. Сформульовано мету застосування технологій самоменеджменту у процесі розвитку підприємницької компетентності (формування готовності і здатності особистості досягати особистісного та професійного успіху) та основні завдання (оптимізація особистістю часових витрат, раціональне використання інтелектуальних, фізичних та емоційних ресурсів, зростання продуктивності діяльності). Ключові слова: професійна освіта, самоменеджмент, підприємницька компетентність, кар’єрна компетентність, ключові компетентності.

Adapting Universities for Sustainability Education in Industry 4.0: Channel of Challenges and Opportunities

The emergence of Industry 4.0, also referred to as the fourth industrial revolution, has entirely transformed how the industry or business functions and evolves. It can be attributed to its broadening focus on automation, decentralization, system integration, cyber-physical systems, etc. Its implementation promises numerous benefits in terms of higher productivity, greater volatility, better control and streamlining of processes, accelerated enterprise growth, sustainable development, etc. Despite the worldwide recognition and realization of Industry 4.0, its holistic adoption is constrained by the requirements of specific skills among the workforce. The personnel are expected to acquire adaptive thinking, cognitive and computational skills, predominantly in the area of information technology, data analytics, etc. Thus, the universities that laid the foundation for future talents or trends in society have to adapt and modernize the existing programs, facilities, and infrastructure. This reshaping of higher education in consonance with the vision of Industry 4.0 possesses its opportunities and challenges. There are, of course, a multitude of factors involved and they need a reasonable assessment to strategically plan this metamorphosis. Therefore, this work aims to explore and analyze the different factors that influence the progression and enactment of Industry 4.0 in universities for sustainable education. For this purpose, a systematic approach based on a questionnaire as well as a SWOT (strengths (S), weaknesses (W), opportunities (O), and threats (T)) integrated with the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) is adopted. The questionnaires are administered to university employees and students (or stakeholders) to assess their viewpoint, as well as to estimate the priority values for individual factors to be included in SWOT. The AHP is implemented to quantify the different factors in terms of weights using a pairwise comparison matrix. Finally, the SWOT matrix is established depending on the questionnaire assessment and the AHP weights to figure out stakeholders’ perspectives, in addition to the needed strategic scheme. The SWOT implementation of this research proposes an aggressive approach for universities, where they must make full use of their strengths to take advantage of the emerging opportunities in Industry 4.0. The results also indicate that there are fundamental requirements for universities in Industry 4.0, including effective financial planning, skilled staff, increased industrial partnerships, advanced infrastructure, revised curricula, and insightful workshops. This investigation undoubtedly underlines the importance of practical expertise and the implementation of digital technologies at the university level to empower novices with the requisite skills and a competitive advantage for Industry 4.0.

The impact of COVID-19 on neurosurgeons and the strategy for triaging non-emergent operations: a global neurosurgery study.

ObjectThe COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted all aspects of society globally. As healthcare resources had to be preserved for infected patients, and the risk of in-hospital procedures escalated for uninfected patients and staff, neurosurgeons around the world have had to postpone non-emergent procedures. Under these unprecedented conditions, the decision to defer cases became increasingly difficult as COVID-19 cases skyrocketed.MethodsData was collected by self-reporting surveys during two discrete periods: the principal survey accrued responses during 2 weeks at the peak of the global pandemic, and the supplemental survey accrued responses after that to detect changes in opinions and circumstances. Nine hypothetical surgical scenarios were used to query neurosurgeons’ opinion on the risk of postponement and the urgency to re-schedule the procedures. An acuity index was generated for each scenario, and this was used to rank the nine cases.ResultsThere were 494 respondents to the principal survey from 60 countries. 258 (52.5%) reported that all elective cases and clinics have been shut down by their main hospital. A total of 226 respondents (46.1%) reported that their operative volume had dropped more than 50%. For the countries most affected by COVID-19, this proportion was 54.7%. There was a high degree of agreement among our respondents that fast-evolving neuro-oncological cases are non-emergent cases that nonetheless have the highest risk in postponement, and selected vascular cases may have high acuity as well.ConclusionWe report on the impact of COVID-19 on neurosurgeons around the world. From their ranking of the nine case scenarios, we deduced a strategic scheme that can serve as a guideline to triage non-emergent neurosurgical procedures during the pandemic. With it, hopefully, neurosurgeons can continue to serve their patients without endangering them either neurologically or risking their exposure to the deadly virus.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1007/s00701-020-04342-5) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Efficient Resource Allocation with Improved Interference Mitigation in FFR-Aided OFDMA Heterogeneous Networks

Fractional frequency reuse (FFR) has recently emerged as an efficient inter-cell interference coordination technique for orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) based multi-tier cellular networks due to its low complexity, minimal signaling over-head, and coverage improvement. In this work, an intermediary region (IR) at the border of the center region (CR) and edge region (ER) is defined, which prevents severe cross-tier interference and is usually ignored by other schemes. Furthermore, a strategic resource allocation scheme is proposed, which allows macro users in this new region to be served more resources due to their good channel conditions close to the serving base station (BS), while femto users are assigned resource blocks from sub-bands that receive the least net interference from a set of usable sub-bands in any region. We find by analysis and simulation the optimal threshold for IR, which minimizes the cross-tier interference, and show that the femto throughput is also maximized for this threshold. Numerical results show the proposed scheme outperforms other notable schemes in terms of throughput and outage performances.

Deployment Optimization of Small Cell Networks With Sleep Mode

Demand for mobile data services is increasing exponentially and operators have responded by expanding and upgrading their networks to enhance capacity. One promising technique is to densify the network with low-power and small-coverage base stations (BSs) to provide significant capacity gains. In this paper, we develop a multi-user connectivity model for a Poisson Point Process (PPP)-based homogeneous network to facilitate a realistic study of its energy performance subject to blocking constraints. We then derive the average rate per channel and per user and compute the average sum rate of the network. An area power consumption (APC)-minimization framework is then formulated subject to appropriate coverage and average rate constraints to determine the optimal deployment configuration of BS density and associated transmit power. Furthermore, a new sleep mode mechanism called centralized strategic scheme is analyzed to determine its ability to adapt energy consumption to variable user density. Our results show that sleep mode is a viable solution for managing network energy consumption in dense networks.

Energy efficiency analysis of multi-antenna cellular networks with strategic sleep relay

Energy efficiency (EE) of cellular networks has attracted considerable attention recently. However, EE of relay-assisted cellular networks where the macro base stations (MBSs) are equipped with the multi-antenna has not been thoroughly addressed. This paper considered the downlink transmission of multi-antenna relay-assisted cellular networks, meanwhile, a strategic sleep scheme was used in relay stations (RSs), which dynamically adjusted the RS working mode according to whether the number of users serviced by the relay exceeds a given threshold. A geometric model was built to derive the coverage probability and mean achievable rate from the MBSs to user (UE), the MBS to RS, the RS to UE links and analyze the system EE. It is shown that the energy efficiency of cellular network with strategic sleep RS is slightly higher than that of cellular network with non-sleeping strategy. Furthermore, the MBS equipped with multi-antenna has better impact on energy efficiency and spectral efficiency than the MBS with single antenna.

A quantitative framework for evaluating the impact of biodiversity offset policies

We propose an impact evaluation framework for biodiversity offsetting that can be used to determine the impacts attributable to developments and their associated offsets under a range of assumptions. This framework is used in conjunction with two hypothetical models of the offsetting process to illustrate a number of issues that can arise when conducting impact evaluations of biodiversity offsetting, where the ‘intervention’ comprises a development and its associated offsets. We establish that including gains due to avoided losses (i.e. development that would have otherwise happened) in the intervention impact calculation results in a reduction in the offset requirements per unit of development. This occurs regardless of whether the biodiversity at the development or offset sites is declining, stable, or improving. We also show how including gains due to avoided loss requires the consideration of offsets that might otherwise have occurred. These ‘avoided offsets’ increase the offset requirements per unit of development regardless of the background site dynamics. Finally, we examine offsetting as part of a larger, spatially strategic scheme and show that when the development and offset regions are separated, including avoided loss in the impact calculations can result in a situation where the development impact goes to zero and a system that attains ‘net gain’ regardless of the development and offsetting activities. The proposed framework can be used to inform offset policy by providing a transparent and logical methodology for the determining the offset requirements for the impacts attributed to development.