bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Supply chain criticality in sustainable and resilient enterprises
Authors: Edgeman Rick , Wu Zhaohui 
Published: November 2016

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to broadly explore the contributions of supply chain proficiency in relation to sustainable enterprise excellence, resilience and robustness (SEER2).Design/methodology/approachA pre-existing SEER2 model, referred to as the Springboard to SEER2, is put under the microscope to determine specific interactions of supply chain proficiency with six key areas of the Springboard: triple top-line strategy and governance; strategy execution via policies, processes and partnerships; financial and marketplace performance and impact; sustainability performance and impact; human ecology and capital performance and impact; and social-ecological and general innovation and continuous improvement performance and impact.FindingsSupply chain proficiency is integral to attainment of SEER2. As such, supply chain proficiency must be thoughtfully and strategically approached, with success critical to enterprise contribution to mitigation or solution of wicked global challenges ranging from climate change, to food insecurity, to societal conflict.Originality/valueThis paper reveals in depth the centrality of supply chain proficiency to SEER2, suggesting that such models as those behind America's Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award and the European Quality Award might be enhanced by more deeply considering supply chain contributions to business and performance excellence. Supply chains are at present peripheral to such models, thereby providing essentially isolated views of enterprises in an age where supply chain collaboration is increasingly the norm.
Multi-level strategic alignment within a complex organisation
Authors: Lawrie Gavin , Abdullah Nur Anisah , Bragg Christopher , Varlet Guillaume 
Published: November 2016

PurposeThis paper aims to assess the utility of an approach to the design of multiple Balanced Scorecards within large/complex organisations, consider the relevance of “emergent strategising” in this kind of strategy implementation and explore project organisation and wider coordination issues that impact this type of work.Design/methodology/approachA “research-oriented – action research” approach has been adopted, comprising qualitative observations of an ongoing programme within a major organisation in the Middle East. The case is based on feedback obtained from key actors (participants, facilitators) and the analysis of documentation produced by the project.FindingsOver four years, the project engaged directly with over 200 managers from the organisation’s 35 most senior management units. Its purpose was to align the strategic aims of each unit with those of the organisation and introduce a new form of strategic control. The paper shows that consensus-forming and creation of locally relevant strategic agendas can be usefully and successfully embedded in a large-scale strategic control and alignment programme. The paper notes the large resource implications and duration of such programmes, and the challenges of integrating the resulting processes with those already in place. The paper concludes that for the case organisation, the resource investment appears to have generated useful outcomes.Research limitations/implicationsThe project relates to a continuing programme within the client organisation that was not explicitly established before it started as an action-research activity. This has limited and constrained the quality of the information reported.Originality/valueThe scale of the project, the use of design methods that emphasis consensus forming and local relevance provide novel information and insights.
Disposition decisions in reverse logistics by using AHP-fuzzy TOPSIS approach
Authors: Agrawal Saurabh , Singh Rajesh K. , Murtaza Qasim 
Published: November 2016

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explore the various disposition alternatives and to develop a framework for the optimal disposition decisions in reverse logistics.Design/methodology/approachIn reverse logistics, once the products are collected and inspected, decision is to be taken regarding their disposition for reuse, re-manufacture or recycle or other possible alternatives. A combination of analytical hierarchy process (AHP) and fuzzy technique for order preference by similarity to ideal solution (TOPSIS) approach is proposed for the selection of best disposition alternative based on criteria economic benefits, environmental benefits, corporate social responsibility, stakeholder’s needs and reverse logistics resources.FindingsA case of electronics firm was illustrated for the demonstration of the approach for the disposition of mobile phones. Returned mobile phones must be disposed for repairing or reuse in current business scenario, if possible. Otherwise, the firm may prefer to recycle them rather than dispose or remanufacture.Research limitations/implicationsThe study is limited to mobile manufacturing firm. Also, these findings may vary depending on the sector and products. Further, empirical studies and case studies can be carried out to validate the findings.Practical implicationsThe proposed framework provides useful tool to the practitioners and researchers in decision-making for disposition in reverse logistics.Originality/valueVery few studies related to disposition decisions in reverse logistics were found in the previous research literature review. The study will add value to the very limited research on reverse logistics disposition. Also, the AHP-Fuzzy TOPSIS approach is first time being used for the disposition decisions in reverse logistics.
The historical demise of Pinus nigra forests in the Northern Iberian Plateau (south‐western Europe)
Authors: Morales‐Molino César , Tinner Willy , García‐Antón Mercedes , Colombaroli Daniele 
Published: November 2016

Summary

Pinus nigra Arn. forests dominated over extensive areas of the Northern Iberian Plateau (Spain) during the Holocene, but a strong decline during the historical period (c. 1300–700 cal. bp) led to the present fragmented populations. This demise has been generally attributed to land‐use changes or climate, but the specific roles of disturbance regimes such as fire variability and grazing on the long‐term are not fully understood yet.

We combine multi‐proxy palaeoecological data (fossil pollen, spores, conifer stomata, microscopic and macroscopic charcoal) together with quantitative analyses (ordination and peak detection) from a high‐resolution sedimentary sequence (Tubilla del Lago, 900 m a.s.l.) to assess the causes of pine forests demise. A new microscopic charcoal record from an additional sequence (Espinosa de Cerrato, 885 m a.s.l.) is used to assess burning and pine decline at a more regional (100‐km radius) scale.

Pinus nigra forests could cope with drought and fire regime variability (FRI = 110–500 years), with forest recovery taking c. 100–200 years after fires. Only at 1300–1200 cal. bp a long‐lasting irrecoverable demise of P. nigra forests occurred when human‐induced fires together with arable and pastoral farming became widespread in the area. Subsequently, Quercus woodlands expanded in the remnant patchy pinewoods. This vegetation shift was primarily caused by three particularly important fire episodes in less than a century (c. 1300–1200 cal. bp).

Synthesis. Pinus nigra forests have shown a millennial resilience to the natural fire regime of the Northern Iberian Plateau that was characterized by relatively frequent small‐moderate fires and rare high‐intensity fires. However, frequent human‐caused crown fires and the onset of intensive farming caused their demise over an extensive area. Ongoing land‐use abandonment in the Iberian mountains could promote the occurrence of high‐intensity, severe fires due to the rapid build‐up of high fuel loads. Forest management could mimic the natural fire regime by periodically reducing fuel loads for a transitional period until natural disturbance variability is fully restored, thus preserving these relict native plant communities.
Spartina alterniflora genotypic identity affects plant and consumer responses in an experimental marsh community
Authors: Zerebecki Robyn A. , Crutsinger Gregory M. , Hughes A. Randall 
Published: November 2016

Summary

Competition and herbivory are ubiquitous processes known to interactively shape plant performance, distribution and community assembly. Likewise, plant genetic variation and associated trait differences can impact both plant–plant and plant–herbivore interactions individually, yet few studies have explored these interactions simultaneously.

Saltmarsh communities are an ideal system to study these questions, as they are dominated along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts of the United States by a foundation plant species, Spartina alterniflora, with high levels of genetically based trait variation. Furthermore, consumer pressure and plant competitors are known to influence both the distribution and production of Spartina. We manipulated Spartina genetic identity, neighbour identity (needlerush, Juncus roemerianus) and consumer presence (snail, Littoraria irrorata) in a 1‐year field experiment in St. Joseph Bay, FL, to test how the strength and direction of neighbour and consumer interactions vary by plant genotype.

Consumer effects on Spartina were generally stronger and more variable than those of the plant neighbourhood, and these effects were generally consistent across Spartina genotypes. However, genotype‐specific variation in morphology, phenology and palatability significantly influenced both consumer and neighbour responses to Spartina: the consumer Littoraria was more likely to climb palatable Spartina genotypes, and neighbouring Juncus had shorter stems in the presence of highly productive Spartina genotypes.

Synthesis. Our results add to the growing list of examples high‐lighting the role of intraspecific variation in species interactions and suggest that variation in these interactions may promote the maintenance of plant genetic variation and community composition.
Analysing the emergency department patient journey: Discovery of bottlenecks to emergency department patient flow
Authors: Khanna Sankalp , Boyle Justin , Good Norm , Bell Anthony , Lind James 
Published: November 2016

AbstractObjectiveDespite significant workflow reform to comply with the federally mandated National Emergency Access Target (NEAT), Australian public hospitals continue to face significant barriers in achieving good ED patient flow. This study was undertaken to identify and analyse the impact of individual waypoints on an ED patient's journey and identify which waypoints act as bottlenecks to a hospital's 4 h ED disposition performance.MethodsThis study involves retrospective analysis and simulation employing 2 years of ED administrative data from a sample of two major and two large metropolitan hospitals in Queensland, Australia. The main outcome measures included waypoint wait times (Treatment Delay and Departure Delay), ED length of stay (EDLOS) and compliance with the NEAT target, measured for all (overall NEAT) and admitted (Admitted NEAT) patients. Variations in outcome measures were analysed as functions of hour of day, day of week, departure status and triage category. Simulations identified the impact of potential ED workflow changes in the context of NEAT performance.ResultsDeparture Delay accounted for 60 and 20% of EDLOS across large and major metropolitan hospitals, respectively. Higher gains in NEAT compliance are associated with improvements in departure delay rather than treatment delay. Simulation identified that halving Departure Delay improves Admitted NEAT by up to 22 and 4% at large and major metropolitan hospitals, respectively.ConclusionsThe results reinforces the need for a whole‐of‐hospital effort to address flow bottlenecks, and identify moving a patient from emergency to inpatient care as the critical bottleneck in ED system performance.
A multistate dynamic site occupancy model for spatially aggregated sessile communities
Authors: Fukaya Keiichi , Royle J. Andrew , Okuda Takehiro , Nakaoka Masahiro , Noda Takashi 
Published: November 2016

Summary

Estimation of transition probabilities of sessile communities seems easy in principle but may still be difficult in practice because resampling error (i.e. a failure to resample exactly the same location at fixed points) may cause significant estimation bias. Previous studies have developed novel analytical methods to correct for this estimation bias. However, they did not consider the local structure of community composition induced by the aggregated distribution of organisms that is typically observed in sessile assemblages and is very likely to affect observations.

We developed a multistate dynamic site occupancy model to estimate transition probabilities that accounts for resampling errors associated with local community structure. The model applies a nonparametric multivariate kernel smoothing methodology to the latent occupancy component to estimate the local state composition near each observation point, which is assumed to determine the probability distribution of data conditional on the occurrence of resampling error.

By using computer simulations, we confirmed that an observation process that depends on local community structure may bias inferences about transition probabilities. By applying the proposed model to a real data set of intertidal sessile communities, we also showed that estimates of transition probabilities and of the properties of community dynamics may differ considerably when spatial dependence is taken into account.

Results suggest the importance of accounting for resampling error and local community structure for developing management plans that are based on Markovian models. Our approach provides a solution to this problem that is applicable to broad sessile communities. It can even accommodate an anisotropic spatial correlation of species composition, and may also serve as a basis for inferring complex nonlinear ecological dynamics.
Ecological forensics: using single point stable isotope values to infer seasonal schedules of animals after two diet switches
Authors: Jouta Jeltje , Dietz Maurine W. , Reneerkens Jeroen , Piersma Theunis , Rakhimberdiev Eldar , Hallgrímsson Gunnar T. , Pen Ido 
Published: November 2016

Summary

Animals adjust to seasonal challenges in physical, behavioural and spatial ways. Such adjustments are commonly associated with diet changes that often can be characterised isotopically.

We introduce the ‘double diet switch model’, with which the occurrence and timing of two subsequent diet switches of an individual animal can be traced with a single sample assayed for stable isotopes. We demonstrate the model for Sanderling, Calidris alba, a small shorebird that migrates from the Nearctic tundra breeding grounds to the intertidal flats of the Wadden Sea; during this migration some birds may stage in the North Atlantic areas.

The ‘double diet switch model’ successfully predicted the occurrence and timing of two diet switches in 59 Sanderlings captured in the Wadden Sea in July–September. Excluding birds that likely had over‐summered at North Atlantic staging areas, the model predicted that Sanderlings departed from the Arctic on 13 July (range: 9–17 July), had a staging duration of 18·6 days in the North Atlantic, and arrived in the Wadden Sea on 1 August (31 July–1 August).The estimated mean Arctic departure dates coincided with the mean hatching date, suggesting that many individuals failed to produce young or left the care to a partner. Estimated mean arrival date matched the main arrival period in the Wadden Sea obtained from observation data. In this study we did not use lipid‐free tissues, which may bias model predictions. After correcting for lipid components, the estimated departure date was 11 days later and the staging duration 8·5 days shorter, while arrival date was similar.

The ‘double diet switch model’ successfully identified the occurrence and timing of two subsequent diet switches. The ‘double diet switch model’ will not only apply to switches between three isotopic levels (as in the case study on Sanderling) but also to scenarios where the second switch reverses to the initial isotopic level. Due to this general applicability, the model can be adapted to a wide range of taxa and situations. Foreseeable applications include changes in habitat and food type, ontogenetic development or drastic phenotypic changes such as the metamorphosis in insects and amphibians.
Fourier analysis to detect phenological cycles using long‐term tropical field data and simulations
Authors: Bush Emma R. , Abernethy Katharine A. , Jeffery Kathryn , Tutin Caroline , White Lee , Dimoto Edmond , Dikangadissi Jean‐Thoussaint , Jump Alistair S. , Bunnefeld Nils 
Published: November 2016

Summary

Changes in phenology are an inevitable result of climate change, and will have wide‐reaching impacts on species, ecosystems, human society and even feedback onto climate. Accurate understanding of phenology is important to adapt to and mitigate such changes. However, analysis of phenology globally has been constrained by lack of data, dependence on geographically limited, non‐circular indicators and lack of power in statistical analyses.

To address these challenges, especially for the study of tropical phenology, we developed a flexible and robust analytical approach – using Fourier analysis with confidence intervals – to objectively and quantitatively describe long‐term observational phenology data even when data may be noisy. We then tested the power of this approach to detect regular cycles under different scenarios of data noise and length using both simulated and field data.

We use Fourier analysis to quantify flowering phenology from newly available data for 856 individual plants of 70 species observed monthly since 1986 at Lopé National Park, Gabon. After applying a confidence test, we find that 59% of the individuals have regular flowering cycles, and 88% species flower annually. We find time‐series length to be a significant predictor of the likelihood of confidently detecting a regular cycle from the data. Using simulated data we find that cycle regularity has a greater impact on detecting phenology than event detectability. Power analysis of the Lopé field data shows that at least 6 years of data are needed for confident detection of the least noisy species, but this varies and is often >20 years for the most noisy species.

There are now a number of large phenology datasets from the tropics, from which insights into current regional and global changes may be gained, if flexible and quantitative analytical approaches are used. However, consistent long‐term data collection is costly and requires much effort. We provide support for the importance of such research and give suggestions as to how to avoid erroneous interpretation of shorter length datasets and maximise returns from long‐term observational studies.
Using a functional approach to test trending volatility in the price of Mexican and international agricultural products
Authors: Guerrero Santiago , Hernández‐del‐Valle Gerardo , Juárez‐Torres Miriam 
Published: November 2016

AbstractIn this article, we extend the traditional GARCH(1,1) model by including a functional trend term in the conditional volatility of a time series. We derive the main properties of the model and apply it to all agricultural commodities in the Mexican CPI basket, as well as to the international prices of maize, wheat, swine, poultry, and beef products for three different time periods that implied changes in price regulations and behavior: before the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA; 1987–1993), post‐NAFTA (1994–2005), and commodity supercycle (2006–2014). The proposed model seems to adequately fit the volatility process and, according to heteroscedasticity tests, also outperforms the ARCH(1) and GARCH(1,1) models, some of the most popular approaches used in the literature to analyze price volatility. Our results show that, consistent with anecdotal evidence, price volatility trends increased from the period 1987–1993 to 1994–2005. From 1994–2005 to 2006–2014, trends decreased but the persistence of volatility increased for most products, especially for international commodities. In addition, we identify some agricultural products such as avocado, beans, and chicken that, due to their increasing price volatility trends in the 2006–2014 period, may present a risk for food inflation in the short run.
Social context and perspectives of non‐medical prescription opioid use among young adults in Rhode Island: A qualitative study
Authors: Yedinak Jesse L. , Kinnard Elizabeth N. , Hadland Scott E. , Green Traci C. , Clark Melissa A. , Marshall Brandon D.L. 
Published: November 2016

Background and ObjectivesThis pilot study examined the context of nonmedical prescription opioid (NMPO) use and related risk behaviors among young adults in Rhode Island, a New England region with markedly high prevalence of NMPO use and overdose mortality.MethodsWe conducted semi‐structured interviews (n = 13) with young adults (18–29 year‐olds) who reported current or recent NMPO use. We also conducted focus groups (two groups, n = 14 total) with professional service providers recruited from service organizations. Data were audio‐recorded, transcribed, and key themes were analyzed.ResultsParticipants discussed high levels of access to prescription opioids for nonmedical use via prescriptions originally provided to family and friends. The contexts described by participants included social environments such as parties, in which mixing opiates with benzodiazepines, alcohol or other types of drugs, and incidents of unintentional overdose were reported. Participants attributed risk for overdose to individual‐level factors (eg, users who “couldn't handle it”), rather than contextual factors, and described negative reactions to being labeled as an “addict” or “addicted.” Professional service providers had first‐hand experience with young adults in treatment settings, yet limited exposure to young adults who were treatment‐naïve.ConclusionsYoung adult NMPO users described social settings where polysubstance use and pill use were common, and highlighted an aversion to being labeled as having a substance use disorder.Scientific SignificanceTo reduce harms of NMPO use among young adults, interventions should address the social context in which drug use and risk behaviors occur. (Am J Addict 2016;25:659–665)
Postcolonial Development, (Non)Sovereignty and Affect: Living On in the Wake of Caribbean Political Independence
Authors: Pugh Jonathan 
Published: November 2016

AbstractThis paper sets out a new research agenda for work on postcolonial development, sovereignty and affect. It examines how ideals of postcolonial independence play out through the more heterogeneous affective atmospheres that disrupt neat paradigms of sovereign control and non‐sovereignty in everyday life. The example employed is everyday life in a Caribbean government office, but the paper develops a wider set of new conceptual tools and ethnographic approaches so as to facilitate research in postcolonial studies and affect more generally.