Values Of Others Research Articles

The Gulf of Maine Ocean Observing System: Generic Lessons Learned in the First Seven Years of Operation (2001-2008)

The Gulf of Maine Ocean Observing System (GoMOOS) was established in the summer of 2001 as a prototype real-time observing system that now includes eleven solar powered buoys with physical and optical sensors, four shore-based long-range HF radar systems for surface current measurement, operational circulation and wave models, satellite observations, inshore nutrient monitoring, and hourly web delivery of data. The observing system in the Gulf of Maine (GoM) is one of the most comprehensive and operational of the Integrated Ocean Observing Systems (IOOS) systems that have been established in the United States to date. It has also been a very successful system, with data returns routinely in the 85-95% range.The Gulf of Maine is a harsh operational environment. Winter storms pose severe challenges, including high waves and the build-up of sea ice on buoy sensors, superstructure, and solar panels, and in summer its productive waters present severe biofouling problems that can affect the optical sensors. The periods of most difficult field operations often coincide with periods of greatest data value in terms of marine safety, search and rescue, and monitoring biological productivity.The challenges of the Gulf of Maine physical environment were paired with the unexpected challenges of the funding environment that have been the hallmark of the turn of this century. Funding for the system has been chronically short and subject to the unpredictable fluctuations of the congressional appropriations process. The inadequacy and variability of funding has substantially hampered the operations of many of the Integrated Ocean Observing Systems, including GoMOOS, and has hindered technological advancements and maintenance measures. As a result, the design of the GoMOOS infrastructure is little improved from that developed almost a decade ago, and it has deteriorated with age, usage, and suboptimal replacement schedules. In the absence of an adequate and reliable funding stream, the system is fast approaching the end of its expected operational lifetime. Unless this trend is reversed, the system will no longer well serve the many citizens, organizations, and agencies that have come to rely on the data it provides.In this article, we present lessons learned by the scientific and technical groups that have been responsible for the data acquisition of GoMOOS. We believe that these lessons are generic, rather than peculiar to the GoMOOS system, and that they have value for others who are embarking on similar endeavors. However, it is important to make clear that these lessons are from the perspective of the scientists, and that the views of others involved in complementary aspects of GoMOOS, including public outreach, fundraising, and providing data and products to the more general user community, are not represented here.

Individual differences in learning the affective value of others under minimal conditions.

This paper provides the first demonstration that people can learn about the positive and negative value of other people (e.g., neutral faces) under minimal learning conditions, with stable individual differences in this learning. In four studies, participants viewed neutral faces paired with sentences describing positive, negative or neutral behaviors on either two (Study 1) or four (Studies 2, 3, and 4) occasions. Participants were later asked to judge the valence of the faces alone. Studies 1 and 2 demonstrated that learning does occur under minimal conditions. Study 3 and 4 further demonstrated that the degree of learning was moderated by Extraversion. Finally, Study 4 demonstrated that initial learning persisted over a period of 2 days. Implications for affective processing and person perception are discussed.

Responsible Tourism: A Kierkegaardian Interpretation

Tourism, by its nature, emphasizes the value of one over the value of others. This axiom is supported by the fact that tourism creates innumerable negative costs that stem from the pursuit of primarily hedonistic ends. The response from the tourism community has been the development of several new forms of tourism to offset these costs. As one of these forms, responsible tourism (RT) espouses the fair and equitable distribution of benefits to local communities as well as the protection of the natural world. But what has constrained other types of tourism in their attempt to mitigate tourism's impacts in the past, is equally true of responsible tourism today: the absence of a well grounded philosophical framework which could help us better contextualize the meaning of responsible or responsibility in tourism. As such, this paper attempts to philosophically situate RT through the work of the Danish existentialist, Søren Kierkegaard; specifically his writings on love and responsibility. Although his philosophy is thought to have no social relevance because of its subjectivist, inward dimension to the self, this has recently been challenged by contemporary theorists who argue that Kierkegaard's focus on selfless love for the other can be a basis for responsible citizenship through the development of a community of ethically-oriented selves. This mindset is discussed using the example of sex tourism, and challenges conventional wisdom, i.e., that responsible tourism is merely the act of ‘doing’.

Resources on Africa at Tearfund

Tearfund (http://www.tearfund.org/) is a relief and development agency which works on development projects through local partner organisations in over sixty countries. Tearfund also provides help to people affected by disasters through its relief programmes. In 2008 Tearfund issued a special appeal to relieve the east African food crisis, it responded to the crisis in Burma and it has an ongoing appeal for Zimbabwe. Tearfund was formed as an NGO in 1968 within the Evangelical Alliance (the main grouping which unites evangelical Christians from all UK denominations) . The Knowledge and Information Management Team based at Tearfund's UK offices in Teddington, Middlesex, UK serves over 300 staff in the UK, and country staff in Africa, Asia and Latin America who number around 1,000. Increasing emphasis on having country staff managing its programmes means opportunities and challenges. Information systems, such as Tearfund's business systems, e-mail and intranet need to take on a global dimension. The question of relevance and content on the intranet is also being considered as part of this global focus. Access to UK-based servers from the field sometimes suffers from unreliable connectivity, as in Malawi, or from restricted bandwidth availability and slow response times. Much is being done to enable staff in remote areas to use laptops to access material, as visits to Tearnet from staff outside the UK are increasing. A Virtual Private Network (VPN) is being developed, as well as a Voice Over Internet Protocol (VOIP), and the goal of maintaining a sense of belonging to one organisation is also being pursued. For that reason a discussion forum has been established on Tearnet and it is moderated by the Regions Change Manager. The Knowledge and Information Management Team's emphasis has always been a multi faceted approach to information provision. 'Virtual' has value in some instances - hardcopy has value in others, all according to context. Library The Library at Tearfund's Teddington office holds around 3,500 items - books, pamphlets, CDs, DVDs, videocassettes, and posters. It is shelved together according to a classification system specially crafted for stock focussed on development and poverty issues within a Christian context. Many of the development projects supported by Tearfund are located in Africa, making the collection of Africana significant. Collection policy stresses the need for information on current situations. Historical works are acquired only when they give context (such as the background to the Darfur conflict) resulting in a working collection rather than a source for academic research. Works are acquired according to the of Tearfund involvement in countries. Thus within southern Africa: Angola, Madagascar, Malawi Mozambique, Swaziland, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe have high intensity and have priority in information sources. Relief work in Darfur also means that a wide range of resources on Sudan are acquired. Other high intensity countries which require up-to-date material are: Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Cote d'Ivoire, Chad, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Guinea, Kenya, Liberia, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Sudan, Togo and Uganda. …

Shareholders' Say on Pay: Does it Create Value?

Congress and activists recently proposed giving shareholders a say (vote) on executive pay. We find that when the House passed the Say-on-Pay Bill, the market reaction was significantly positive for firms with high abnormal CEO compensation, with low pay-for-performance sensitivity, and responsive to shareholder pressure. However, activist sponsored say-on-pay proposals target large firms, not those with excessive CEO pay, poor governance, or poor performance. The market reacts negatively to labor sponsored proposal announcements and positively when these proposals are defeated. Our findings suggest that say-on-pay creates value for companies with inefficient compensation, but can destroy value for others.

Reconstruction of multidimensional functional relations from samples of limited volume

We shall examine a typical multidimensional regression reconstruction problem [1‐7]. We assume that the object of study can be described by some ensemble of numerical parameters. The investigator is faced with the problem of predicting the values of certain parameters from the values of others and determining the error of the prediction. In the general case, the construction of the multiple nonlinear regression equations with the use of the analytic methods of mathematical statistics is usually not possible. Therefore the empirical methods that yield adequate results are often used. These methods can be reduced to three variants: the all regressions method; the exclusion of variables method; the inclusion of variables method. We note that many problems of the reconstruction of relations can be reduced to the same mathematical scheme—minimizing the average risk with respect to the empirical values [1]. We shall use for the solution of this problem the all‐ regressions method, which is based on a multifactor model of the form: y = a 0 f 1 ( x 1 ) f 2 ( x 2 ) × … × f n ( x n ). Thus, the approximating function is the product of the smooth one-dimensional basis functions f i ( x i ), i , …, n . In the classical approach, the all regressions method is used to determine the unknown functions f i ( x i ) in this expression, the parameters of the approximating functions are determined with the aid of the least squares method, and the criterion for selecting the unknown relation is the coefficient of the mean square approximation error. We shall examine a modified variant of the multifactor multiple nonlinear regression reconstruction model, the basis of which is the algorithm for constructing the polynomial approximation of a onedimensional functional relation with the aid of the method of structural minimization of the empirical risk [1].

Empathy or Intersubjectivity? Understanding the Origins of Morality in Young Children’

This article is about young children’s morality and their concern for others’ wellbeing. Questions of what the value of others’ wellbeing can signify, how this value becomes visible to children and how it is expressed in their interaction will be posed. In this analysis, children’s commitment to others’ wellbeing is discussed in terms of two theories, namely the philosopher Maurice Merleau-Ponty’s (1962, 1964) theory of intersubjectivity and the psychologist Martin Hoffman’s (1984, 1987, 2000) theory of empathy. The interaction between children and adults in pre-school, drawn from different studies of morality (Johansson, 1999, 2001, 2002, 2003), constitutes the empirical basis. In the discussion, it is claimed that children’s care for others’ wellbeing can be understood in a fruitful way as experiences of, approaches to and ways of being involved in the other’s life-world rather than as expressions of empathy.

Slow Death (Sovereignty, Obesity, Lateral Agency)

754 Many thanks to Dipesh Chakrabarty, Geoff Eley, Dana Luciano, Nasser Hussain, Roger Rouse, Adam Thurschwell, and Martha Umphrey for their meticulous engagements, as well as to audiences at Amherst, Johns Hopkins, the University of Wisconsin, the University of Chicago, American Political Science Association, American Studies Association, and Cleveland State. Special nostalgic thanks to Virginia Chang, my original collaborator in the Obesity and Poverty conference (2002). 1. See David Harvey, “The Body as Accumulation Strategy,” Spaces of Hope (Berkeley, 2000), pp. 97–116. To call Harvey polemical is not to devalue his profound contributions to understanding the productive destructiveness of capital; in his work, a polemic is a call for precision, not a way of drowning it out. Slow Death (Sovereignty, Obesity, Lateral Agency)

A comparative study of amino acid measurement in leaf extracts by gas chromatography-time of flight-mass spectrometry and high performance liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection

Gas chromatography coupled to time-of-flight mass spectrometry (GC-TOF-MS) has become a promising technique for simultaneous and rapid analysis of small metabolites in complex mixtures. The aim of this work was to establish the quantitative nature of the information generated by amino acid analysis of crude leaf extracts using GC-TOF-MS. Dried aliquots of methanol/water extracts of Arabidopsis leaves were analysed in parallel by GC-TOF-MS following trimethylsilylation or high performance liquid chromatography and fluorescence detection of o-phthaldialdehyde derivatives (OPA-HPLC). Twenty amino acids could be routinely detected in leaf extracts by both methods. Because of instability of some trimethylsilylated derivatives, all GC-TOF-MS analyses were performed within a window of 2 h 30 min following derivatization. Repeatability studies showed that relative standard deviations for multiple injections of a single extract were below 20% for both techniques, though significantly smaller for OPA-HPLC. Similar between-extract variability and condition-independent biological variation were detected by OPA-HPLC and GC-TOF-MS, and both techniques detected similar environmentally induced changes in four major amino acids. Recovery of standard compounds through the extraction procedure was between 80% and 120% for OPA-HPLC but more variable when analysed by GC-TOF-MS. When quantified on the basis of tissue fresh weight according to response factors of mixed standards, the two techniques gave consistent values for a number of amino acids but divergent values for others. Taken together, the results suggest GC-TOF-MS analysis of Arabidopsis leaves with the present protocol can be used for absolute quantification of 4–7 amino acids, accurate relative quantification of 8–11 amino acids, and more limited quantification for five compounds of this class.

Slow Death (Sovereignty, Obesity, Lateral Agency)

Slow Death (Sovereignty, Obesity, Lateral Agency)

Criteria for the Assessment of Sustainable Water Management

Pressure on the world's water resources is increasing, restraining social and economic development in many countries, and threatening ecological values in others. In order to manage water resources in a more sustainable manner, new planning methodologies/processes for river basin management need to be developed. This study attempts to construct a set of useable normative criteria for the analysis and evaluation of such processes. The criteria were designed as a response to the lack of deductive approaches in the evaluation of methodologies and working procedures used in the context of river basin management, making it possible to highlight their potential for sustainable development. The criteria are based on the twin concepts of participation and integration. These concepts function as well-established dimensions of both sustainable development and sustainable river basin management, and they are of significant methodological relevance. A synthesis of the key aspects connected to the two concepts is undertaken, based on a broad literature review. Focus is laid on how in methodological terms, and in relation to regional water management, to achieve participation and integration in a decision-making or planning process. The criteria are concerned with how knowledge and values are integrated into the planning process and how commitment, legitimacy, or acceptance for the resulting plan is generated.

SEMI‐MECHANISTIC MODELLING IN NONLINEAR REGRESSION: A CASE STUDY

SummaryThis paper discusses the use of highly parameterized semi‐mechanistic nonlinear models with particular reference to the PARJIB crop response model of Reid (2002)[Yield response to nutrient supply across a wide range of conditions 1. Model derivation. Field Crops Research77, 161–171]. Compared to empirical linear approaches, such models promise improved generality of application but present considerable challenges for estimation. Some success has been achieved with a fitting approach that uses a Levenberg–Marquardt algorithm starting from initial values determined by a genetic algorithm. Attention must be paid, however, to correlations between parameter estimates and an approach is described to identify these based on large simulated datasets. This work illustrates the value for the scientist in exploring the correlation structure in mechanistic or semi‐mechanistic models. Such information might be used to reappraise the structure of the model itself, especially if the experimental evidence is not strong enough to allow estimation of a parameter free of assumptions about the values of others. Thus statistical modelling and analysis can complement mechanistic studies, making more explicit what is known and what is not known about the processes being modelled and guiding further research.

Dual Distribution and Intangible Firm Value: Franchising in Restaurant Chains

Dual distribution systems in which firms use vertical integration and market governance simultaneously are widely used across diverse marketing contexts (e.g., restaurants, retailing, industrial selling). A prominent example of dual distribution includes business format franchising, in which firms (i.e., the franchisors) license the operation of some of their units to franchisees while owning and operating some units themselves. Despite the widespread prevalence of dual distribution, there are few insights into its performance implications. In this article, the author examines the relationship between a firm's dual distribution strategy and its intangible value. Franchising in restaurant chains serves as the empirical context for the study. It is proposed that a firm's dual distribution strategy affects its intangible value both independently and jointly with a set of firm characteristics. The author considers the firm's age, scope of vertical integration, advertising, financial leverage, and financial liquidity as firm characteristics that influence the relationship between dual distribution strategy and intangible value. The author measures the firm's dual distribution strategy by the proportion of its franchised units to its total units and intangible value by its Tobin's q. The author estimates the proposed model using panel data on 55 publicly listed U.S. restaurant chains for the period 1992–2002. Unobserved firm heterogeneity is accommodated using latent class regression analysis. The results support a four-segment model. Dual distribution increases intangible value for some firms but decreases intangible value for others, both independently and in conjunction with other firm characteristics.

Dual Distribution and Intangible Firm Value: Franchising in Restaurant Chains

Dual distribution systems where firms simultaneously use vertical integration and market governance are widely used across diverse marketing contexts (e.g., restaurants, retailing, and industrial selling). A prominent example of dual distribution includes business format franchising, where firms, the franchisors, license operation of some of its units to franchisees while simultaneously owning and operating some units themselves. Despite the widespread prevalence of dual distribution, there are few insights on their performance implications. In this paper, I examine the relationship between a firm's dual distribution strategy and its intangible value. Franchising in restaurant chains serves as the empirical context for the study. I propose that a firm's dual distribution strategy will affect its intangible value both independently and jointly with a set of firm characteristics. I consider the firm's age, the scope of its vertical integration, advertising, financial leverage, and financial liquidity as firm characteristics influencing the relationship between dual distribution strategy and intangible value. I measure the firm's dual distribution strategy by the proportion of its franchised units to its total units and intangible value by its Tobin's Q. I estimate the proposed model using panel data on 55 publicly-listed U.S. restaurant chains for the period 1992-2002. Unobserved firm heterogeneity is accommodated using latent class regression analysis. Results support a four segment model. Dual distribution increases intangible value for some firms, but decreases intangible value for others, both independently and, in conjunction with other firm characteristics.

DEVELOPMENT OF AN ANALYTICAL SOLUTION FOR COMPRESSIBLE TWO-PHASE STEAM FLOW

An analytical solution for the isentropic expansion of subsonic-supersonic two-phase steam flow is provided in this paper. The results are supported by our earlier numerical computations, and available experimental values of others (1973). The two-phase mixture is assumed to undergo an isentropic expansion. However the entropy of the vapor portion of the two-phase mixture increases as the released latent heat of the condensate, reversibly moves toward the vapor, and enhances its entropy, as well as the so called “local stagnation” temperature of the vapor. The mass flow rate of the vapor portion of the two-phase mixture is obtained based on the “local stagnation” conditions, and then corrected to give the mixture mass flow rate. Most of the attempts have been made to develop the solution in a manner similar to those of the ideal gases.

Multiple perspectives of congruence: relationships between value congruence and employee attitudes

AbstractThe relative importance of multiple types of value congruence—person–environment (P‐E), person–person (P‐P), and perceptual fit—across two hierarchical levels (workgroup and manager) and across multiple dimensions of values was investigated in a sample of 951 employees from 113 bank branches. As expected, different types of value congruence and different value dimensions were differentially important for outcomes. Both P‐E fit (between an individual's personal values and the cultural values of the organization) and perceptual fit (between an individual's perception of the organization's values and the organization's values as perceived by others) were found to be related to satisfaction, commitment, and turnover intentions, while P‐P fit (between an individual's personal values and the personal values of others) was not. Further, P‐E congruence results were generally stronger for fit with the workgroup than fit with the manager and results were stronger for the rational goal dimension which focused on external customer service. In contrast, results for perceptual fit revealed that fit was generally more important for fit with the manager than fit with the workgroup and was generally more important for the open system dimension which focused on flexibility and innovation. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Bioethicists: Practitioners of applied philosophy

Abstract Advances in science and technology have created a plethora of medical therapies in various forms including drugs, devices, and equipment. Many of these therapies are not curative, however, and patients sometimes find themselves being more burdened than benefited by them. These situations result in ethical dilemmas for which the bioethicist is sometimes consulted to resolve. Using philosophical principles of maximizing good, minimizing harm, being just, and respecting the values of others, the bioethicist counsels patients, families, and hospital personnel, sometimes functioning as advocate, arbitrator, negotiator, mediator, and teacher.

A Comparison of the Impact of Two Liberal Arts General Education Core Curricula on Student Humanitarian Values

Both institutions required traditional general education courses, and one required a supplementary curricular intervention designed to examine personal values and the values of others. Results reveal that the humanitarian values of students who completed the supplementary strategy increased more than those of students who completed only the traditional distribution.

A Comparison of the Impact of Two Liberal Arts General Education Core Curricula on Student Humanitarian Values

ABSTRACT Both institutions required traditional general education courses, and one required a supplementary curricular intervention designed to examine personal values and the values of others. Results reveal that the humanitarian values of students who completed the supplementary strategy increased more than those of students who completed only the traditional distribution.

A Comparison of the Impact of Two Liberal Arts General Education Core Curricula on Student Humanitarian Values

ABSTRACT Both institutions required traditional general education courses, and one required a supplementary curricular intervention designed to examine personal values and the values of others. Results reveal that the humanitarian values of students who completed the supplementary strategy increased more than those of students who completed only the traditional distribution.