Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Understanding Process Improvement: Social Psychological Factors Affecting the Use of Project Management Practices

UNDERSTANDING PROCESS IMPROVEMENT: SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGICAL FACTORS AFFECTING THE USE OF PROJECT MANAGEMENT PRACTICES Russell K. Thornley Department of Psychology Doctor of Philosophy To facilitate a better understanding of the social psychological factors that influence adoption of project management practices, this study draws upon the theory of reasoned action (TRA) and the theory of planned behavior (TPB) from social psychology, and the technology acceptance model (TAM) from information systems research. These models define and relate a number of belief constructs that predict the acceptance of technologies in a variety of settings. In general, the three models each have relatively consistent empirical support, with comparison studies showing mixed support for each of the models being the moderately “better” model. In the current study, the three models are thoroughly integrated using a latent constructs approach and structural equation modeling (SEM) techniques. Overall, constructs from TRA and TAM, but not TPB, predict the use of specific project estimating, plan development, and plan commitment practices defined in the Capability Maturity Models (CMM/I). Process Improvement vi
"FEHMARN BELT: ISSUES OF ACCOUNTABILITY--LESSONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS REGARDING APPRAISAL OF A FIXED LINK ACROSS FEHMARN BELT"

This report has three main sections. First the lessons learned from the Oresund, Great Belt and English Channel projects are spelled out, together with lessons from a larger number of other major transport infrastructure projects, in Europe and around the world. The purpose is not to criticize these projects but to learn from experience by pointing out what has worked well, and not so well, for these projects. Secondly, on this basis, two main approaches to appraisal and decision making are proposed. Thirdly, recommendations are given regarding how to proceed with the Fehmarn Belt project. The intention is to contribute to the development of an overall approach, including institutional arrangements, that takes into account the very large financial, economic and environmental risks involved in such a project.
Real Earnings Management, Habitually Meeting/Closely Beating Analysts’ Forecasts and Firm Valuation

This paper values firms that utilize real earnings management (REM) to habitually meet/closely beat analysts’ earnings forecasts (HabitMBE). The results suggest that in equilibrium, while HabitMBE firms in general enjoy a market premium, HabitMBE firms that use REM repeatedly are penalized by investors, and the market premium disappears. Not surprisingly, I find that HabitMBE firms that have already used REM repeatedly try to curtail its use. Another interesting finding is that analysts’ downward forecast revision has a significantly negative effect on firms’ valuation, which prior studies have not clearly documented.
Blade-Vortex Interaction (BVI) Noise and Airload Prediction Using Loose Aerodynamic/Structural Coupling

Predictions of blade-vortex interaction (BVI) noise, using blade airloads obtained from a coupled aerodynamic and structural methodology, are presented. This methodology uses an iterative, loosely-coupled trim strategy to cycle information between the OVERFLOW-2 (CFD) and CAMRAD-II (CSD) codes. Results are compared to the HART-II baseline, minimum noise and minimum vibration conditions. It is shown that this CFD/CSD state-of-the-art approach is able to capture blade airload and noise radiation characteristics associated with BVI. With the exception of the HART-II minimum noise condition, predicted advancing and retreating side BVI for the baseline and minimum vibration conditions agrees favorably with measured data. Although the BVI airloads and noise amplitudes are generally under-predicted, this CFD/CSD methodology provides an overall noteworthy improvement over the lifting line aerodynamics and free-wake models typically used in CSD comprehensive analysis codes.
State-of-the-Art Literature Review on Permissive/Protected Left-Turn Control

In spring 2010, the Illinois Department of Transportation initiated an areawide implementation to integrate the flashing yellow arrow (FYA) as the display for the left-turn permissive interval at more than 100 intersections operating with protected/permissive left-turn (PPLT) control. Bradley University was retained to perform an effectiveness evaluation of the FYA at these locations. The purpose of this research was to evaluate the effect on safety and operations of upgrading the circular green permissive indication to FYA indications at intersections operating with PPLT phasing. The research tasks included performing comprehensive, areawide traffic crash analyses; conducting field studies of traffic operations and traffic conflicts; and assessing driver comprehension of the new traffic control through a survey instrument. To fulfill the research objectives, a comprehensive state-of-the-art literature review was conducted; the findings are documented in this report. The purpose of the literature review was to document the current knowledge and research findings involving PPLT control, and specifically, studies involving FYA indications. More than 30 journal papers, reports and other published documents were reviewed. These sources reported findings from driver comprehension studies, driving simulator studies, crash-based evaluations, and operational effects of various PPLT control strategies, including the flashing yellow arrow. This report provides a synthesis of the state-of-the-art on various left-turn traffic control strategies.
Modeling Airport and Airline Choice Behavior with Stated-Preference Survey Data

This paper describes how the majority of studies of air-travel choice behavior make use of Revealed Preference (RP) data, generally in the form of survey data collected from departing passengers. While the use of RP data has certain philosophical advantages over the use of Stated Preference (SP) data, major issues arise because of the often low quality of the data relating to the unchosen alternatives, in terms of explanatory variables as well as availability. As such, studies using RP survey data often fail to recover a meaningful fare coefficient, and are generally not able to offer a treatment of the effects of airline allegiance. This paper makes use of SP data for airport and airline choice collected in the U.S. in 2001. The analysis retrieves significant effects relating to factors such as airfare, access-time, flight-time and airline and airport allegiance, illustrating the advantages of SP data in this context. Additionally, the analysis explores the use of non-linear transforms of the explanatory variables, as well as the treatment of continuous variations in choice behavior across respondents.
Percutaneous vertebroplasty for Kummell’s disease: Short-term analysis of therapeutic effects and outcome predictors

Objective: To retrospectively investigate the short-term therapeutic effect of percutaneous vertebroplasty (PVP) for Kummell’s disease using a variable angle needle and to analyze the possible outcome predictors. Material and methods: Twenty-seven patients were included in this study. Medical records were evaluated. The following factors were analyzed on imaging data: location of lesion, the percentage of bone marrow edema, patterns of cement spreading, and post-procedural kyphosis correction. Visual analogue score (VAS) was used to analyze the clinical effect, and the improvement rate was calculated. Statistical analyses were conducted to evaluate the relationship between those factors and therapeutic outcomes using Fisher’s exact test, Chi-squared test, and Student’s un-paired t-test. Results: The effectiveness rate was 70.4% at 1 week, 74.1% after 1 month, and 63.0% after 3 months. Six months and one year after procedures, the effective rate remained steady at 70.4%. Post-procedural kyphosis correction ≥8° was a risk factor for inferior pain relief. An area of edema over 40% was a prognostic factor for superior pain relief at the first follow-up point. Cement morphology was a positive predictor for better pain relief at 1 month follow-up. Conclusions: Compared to the therapeutic effects of PVP on fresh osteoporotic vertebral compression fractures (OVCF), percutaneous vertebroplasty for Kummell’s disease was effective in only 63% to 74.1% of the patients at different follow-up points. Overemphasized kyphotic correction (over 8 degrees) was associated with poor outcomes. Areas of edema over 40% and cement morphology of mixed type were positive prognostic factors in the early stage.
A second look at substance abuse: Peer prevention and education

This paper addresses the evolution of a railroad company's effort to institutionalize peer intervention as one means to reduce alcohol and drug use in the workplace. Spurred by joint labor and management initiatives, the journey from start-up to present has produced effects both fruitful and disappointing. This paper chronicles the life course of "Operation RedBlock", a peer intervention program that was initiated on the Union Pacific Railroad in 1983. The discussion reveals an expanse of corollary issues and suggests future approaches for the program.
Automatic Visual Reading of Meters Using Deep Learning

—In this paper, we present a novel approach to the problem of reading residential meters using deep learning algorithms. As a starting point we use Faster R-CNN method and, to acquire more precise readings, we modify its functionality. As there were no databases for this kind of task, one had to be collected and properly annotated. This paper also provides a brief introduction to methods for image augmentation and a technique to augment annotated image dataset. For each part of the presented method as well as the whole method as one unit experiments were conducted to show the overall successfulness.
Mastering the machine revisited : poverty, aid and technology

ACRONYMS vii PREFACE TO THE NEW EDITION ix PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION xi PART ONE: THE FAILURE TO LEARN FROM FAILURE I A tale of two worlds 3 II Poverty in the South 22 III The best of the West: thinking big 35 IV The third sector and the Third World 48 PART TWO: WHAT WE KNOW V Technology in history: lies and promises 69 VI Small is beautiful 86 VII Farmers, food and forests 104 VIII Post-harvest technologies 121 IX Energy and power 137 X The house that Jack built: construction materials 154 XI Light engineering and the very late starters 171 PART THREE: AN ENABLING ENVIRONMENT XII Sustainability: myths and reality 189 XIII Perspectives on women and technology 200 XIV Employment and the informal sector: the economists lose control 214 XV Globalization, adjustment and all that 226 XVI Mastering the machine 246 NOTES 262 BIBLIOGRAPHY 279 INDEX 282
Design Methodologies for Space Transportation Systems

An Overview of the Systems Engineering and Vehicle Design Process The Conceptual Design and Tradeoffs Process Taking a Closer Look at the STS Design Sequence Aerothermodynamics Discipline Thermal Heating and Design Structures and Materials Propulsion Systems Flight Mechanics and Trajectories Avionics and Flight Controls Multidisciplinary Design Optimization Life Support and Human Factors/Ergonomics Payloads and Integration Launch and Mission Operations Related Topics and Programmatics Appendices
RFID For Dummies

Many companies have asked suppliers to begin using RFID (radio frequency identification) tags by 2006 RFID allows pallets and products to be scanned at a greater distance and with less effort than barcode scanning, offering superior supply-chain management efficiencies This unique plain-English resource explains RFID and shows CIOs, warehouse managers, and supply-chain managers how to implement RFID tagging in products and deploy RFID scanning at a warehouse or distribution center Covers the business case for RFID, pilot programs, timelines and strategies for site assessments and deployments, testing guidelines, privacy and regulatory issues, and more
A Mixed-Method Approach to Examining the Drivers and Outcomes of Citizens Trust towards e-government

This study investigates the antecedents and consequences of trust in e-government websites in Saudi Arabia. FSQCA and Structural equation modelling were used to analyse data collected from 504 participants. The findings indicate that our unified framework possesses some predictive ability regarding citizens' intentions to use e-government services, which was superior to existing theories. The findings indicate that (1) there is no sole factor that sufficiently motivates citizens to use e-government services; (2) three distinct settings of citizens' intention drivers are probable to lead in a significant level of citizens intending to use e-government services; and (3) Uncertainty avoidance has a moderating effect on citizens’, intention to use e-government services. The theoretical and practical implications were demonstrated.
Assessing Aging of Pretimed Traffic Signal Control Using Synchro and SimTraffic

This paper investigates the aging of pre-timed traffic control through the use of Synchro and SimTraffic. The first section of the paper presents the concept of aging of signal timing plans and the second part estimates the benefits of optimized timing plans in Synchro in the micro simulation environment of SimTraffic. The theoretical nine-node grid network is used as a test bed to model 21 scenarios of deterministic and 100 scenarios of stochastic traffic demand and distribution changes in link flows. The research does not prove the existence of unique aging measures which could correlate any change in link traffic flows with the benefits of signal retiming. The results show that for networks with unchanged traffic distributions, there is a benefit of up to 3% for up to 5% of uniform growth in traffic demand. When stochastic variations of traffic demand and distribution are introduced, the benefits rise to an average of 35%. The measured benefits from the other field retiming projects confirm that estimations from this study are within the same range.
All hands on deck. Age group differences in university employees related to work and health

Presentations Bos JT, Frijters DH, Wagner C, Carpenter GI, Finne-Soveri H, Topinkova E, Garms-Homolova V, Henrard JC, Jonsson PV, Sorbye L, Ljunggren G, Schroll M, Gambassi G, Bernabei R. Variations in quality of home care between sites across Europe, as measured by Home Care Quality Indicators. At: Vth European Congress of Gerontology in Barcelona, Spain (July 2–5, 2003) Bos JT, Donders NCGM. Workshop Leeftijdsbewust Personeelsbeleid. Verschillen en overeenkomsten tussen oudere en jongere universiteitsmedewerkers. At: SGBO & Lectoraat Arbeid en Gezondheid symposium: Duurzame inzetbaarheid, hoe houden we werknemers gezond, betrokken en vitaal tot hun pensioen, Nijmegen (April 24, 2009) Bos JT, Donders NCGM, Bouwman-Brouwer KM, Van der Gulden JWJ. Verschillen en overeenkomsten tussen oudere en jongere universiteitsmedewerkers. At: Congress BA&O, (March 26, 2010) Bos JT, Donders NCGM, Bouwman-Brouwer KM, Van der Gulden JWJ. Determinants of job satisfaction in four different age groups; employees’ point of view. At: 4 ICOH-WOPS Conference: The Changing World of Work, Amsterdam (June 14–17, 2010) Posters Donders NCGM, Bos JT, Van der Gulden JWJ. Associations between sick leave and aspects of work and family life in different age groups. Eur J Public Health 2007;17 (Suppl2): 236-237 At: 15 Eupha conference. The future of public health in united Europe, Helsinki (October 11–13, 2007) Bos JT, Donders NCGM, Van der Velden J, Van der Gulden JWJ. Associaties tussen werkfactoren en herstelbehoefte in vier leeftijdsgroepen. Bos JT, Donders NCGM, Schouteten RL, Van der Gulden JWJ. Leeftijdsverschillen in de associatie tussen ziekteverzuim en aspecten van gezondheid, psychosociale arbeidsbelasting en privé. At: 10 Nederlands Congres Volksgezondheid (NCVGZ), Amsterdam (April 11–12, 2012)
Irrigation scheduling strategies for pepper based on evaporation and reference evapotranspiration

The experiment with drip irrigated pepper was conducted at the Rimski Šančevi experimental field of the Institute of Field and Vegetable Crops in Novi Sad in 2019. The irrigation was scheduled on the basis of the water balance method. Two methods were used to compute the daily evapotranspiration of pepper (ETd): reference evapotranspiration (ETo) and evaporation from an open water surface (Eo). Crop coefficients (kc) and corrective coefficients (k) were used to convert ETo and Eo values into ETd. Kc and k were 0.3-0.4, 0.6-0.7, 0.9-1.1, 0.8-0.9 and 0.4, 0.7, 1.0 and 0.8 for initial stage, crop development, mid season, and late season, respectively. ETo was calculated by the Hargreaves equation. Eo values were measured by a Class-A pan located at a meteorological station near the experimental plot. Irrigation started when readily available water (RAW) in the 0.3 m soil layer was completely absorbed by plants. Differences in crop yield (Y) and irrigation water use efficiency (IWUE) obtained using Eo (42.58 t ha-1, 15.20 kg m-3) and ETo (40.78 t ha-1, 14.56 kg m-3) were not statistically different. Evapotranspiration rate was 364.2 mm and 337.3 mm in Eo and ETo variant, respectively. The fact that the differences in Y and IWUE between different calculations of ETd were not statistically significant indicates that both methods can be recommended for irrigation scheduling programs for pepper in the climatic conditions of the Vojvodina region. However, priority should be given to ETo due to the easy accessibility and reliability of data.
Strengthening the Cyber Terrorism Law Enforcement in Indonesia: Assimilation from Islamic Jurisdiction

The threat of terrorism is exacerbated by technology. It leads to a new term called Cyberterrorism. Apparently, this threat has not received appropriate space in the legal regulations in Indonesia. Therefore, this paper aims to strengthen legal action against cyberterrorism. This strengthening is obtained by assimilating Islamic law through the normative juridical method. The data are sourced from related news and updated journals. Researchers found that the assimilation of Islamic law products into positive law in Indonesia was in the form of Hirabah Punishment, Rebel Punishment, or Takzir. This idea is expected to be a consideration for policymakers in updating their laws so that they can reduce terrorism crimes, especially in cyberspace.
The role of transient attention in crowding and feature binding

Crowding refers to the failure to identify a peripheral object due to nearby objects (flankers). A hallmark of crowding is the inner-outer asymmetry, i.e., the outer flanker (more peripheral) produces stronger interference than the inner one. Here, by manipulating attention, we tested the predictions of two competing accounts: the attentional account, which predicts a positive attentional effect on the asymmetry (i.e., attention to the outer flanker will increase the asymmetry), and the receptive field size account, which predicts a negative attentional effect. In Experiment 1, observers estimated a Gabor target orientation. A peripheral pre-cue draws attention to one of three locations: target, inner or outer flanker. Probabilistic mixture modeling demonstrated the asymmetry by showing that observers often misreported the outer flanker orientation as the target. Interestingly, the outer cue led to a higher misreport rate of the outer flanker, and the inner cue led to a lower misreport rate of the outer flanker. Experiment 2 tested the effect of asymmetry and attention on binding errors (e.g., reporting the tilt of one presented item with the color of another item). Observers reported both the tilt and color of the target. Attention increased target reports in both dimensions and led to a decrease in target binding. However, attention did not lead to a decrease in flanker biding errors. The results are consistent with the attentional account of crowding and suggest that the locus of spatial attention plays an essential role in crowding and the inner-outer asymmetry.
Effectiveness of yoga intervention enhanced by progressive muscular
relaxation on pain in women after breast cancer surgery

Introduction. The aim of the study was to evaluate the effectiveness of yoga intervention enhanced by progressive muscular relaxation on pain in women after breast cancer surgery. Methods. overall, 84 patients after Madden mastectomy were eligible for this study. After the exclusion of 7 women, 77 participants were randomly allocated to group A (n = 38), receiving progressive muscular relaxation and visualization exercises in addition to yoga intervention, and group B (n = 39), receiving yoga intervention only. McGill Pain Questionnaire and visual analogue scale were used to evaluate pain at baseline and after the 4-week intervention. Results. Most of the investigated pain characteristics in both studied groups steadily improved during the 4-week rehabilitation. However, the 4-week monitoring indicated that using progressive muscular relaxation and visualization exercises in addition to the yoga intervention was more effective for reducing self-reported pain in women after Madden mastectomy. The post-intervention level of pain reported in the visual analogue scale and present pain intensity were statistically lower in group A compared with group B by 0.99 points (p < 0.05) and 1.68 points (p < 0.05), respectively. Conclusions. Performing progressive muscular relaxation and visualization exercises in addition to yoga intervention helped reduce pain in women after Madden mastectomy.
The possibilities of fuel economy - the hybrid traction propulsion

The utilization of installed power capacity of internal combustion engines (ICE) in motive power units (especially in shunting locomotives and locomotives for industrial transport) is very low. The mean output of ICE in this operational mode is about 15 - 20 % of its installed power. The result is that most of the time the internal combustion engine works in regimes that are far from optimum mode. It means that specific fuel consumption is high. Some examples of measured operational regimes of locomotives in shunting operation and other motive power units are given in the paper. Kinetic energy of a classic diesel locomotive as well as the DMUs and trains is transformed into thermal energy during braking process. Normally it is not possible to utilize this kinetic energy in a reasonable way. In order to improve fuel economy, the kinetic energy of train should be transformed into a suitable form and stored for subsequent use. The improvement can be achieved by using of the unconventional traction drive of rail vehicles. One of possible ways is using of the hybrid traction drive. The hybrid drive includes the ICE, generator, traction motors and the energy storage device. In this case the output of ICE can be substantially lower than in the classic traction. The parameters of such traction drive must be based on analysis of real operational regimes of vehicles. There are other ways how to save fuel on railway vehicles, e.g. by better utilization of heat released from the fuel or using of solar energy.
The Control of Traffic Using Variable Speed Limits: The UK Experience of Controlled Motorways

This paper describes the work that has been undertaken to establish the business case for Controlled Motorways. Since the introduction of the Controlled Motorways on the M25 in 1995, the Highways Agency (HA) has commissioned a number of studies to optimize system performance and to quantify the impact of the system with the aim of establishing the business case for implementation and developing guidelines for future roll-out. This paper provides a summary of the work undertaken and the key results from the M25 Controlled Motorways studies. It also describes work to develop a Generic Business Case for investment in Controlled Motorways and the development of an Assessment Tool which can be used to prioritize between alternative sites.