bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
On some Fundamental Principles in the Theory of Probability
Authors: Chrystal George 
Published: April 2013

In the Introduction to his famous Théorie Analytique des Probabilités, Laplace, after an eloquent summary of the progress of Astronomy from the days when every rare celestial phenomenon was regarded as a portent of human misery, to the verification in April 1759 of the perihelion passage of Halley's Comet, proceeds to say :—“The regularity which Astronomy shows us in the movement of Comets exists, beyond doubt, in every phenomenon of nature. The curve described by a simple molecule of air or of vapour is regulated in a manner as certain as the planetary orbits: there is no difference between the two cases save our ignorance.
Misrepresentation and Concealment as affecting Policies of Insurance
Authors: Harvey William 
Published: April 2013

It will probably conduce to clearness if I explain at the outset the order in which I propose to deal with the subject of this paper.In the first part of the paper I propose to discuss, in relation to policies of insurance, (1) the general rules of law in regard to fraud or misrepresentation in the preliminary negotiations, as invalidating contracts; and (2) the rules of law as to concealment in relation to contracts, such as contracts of insurance, in regard to which the law requires the utmost good faith on both sides. I shall also consider the effect of misrepresentation or concealment by a third party, not a party to the contract.In the second part I shall refer to the usual forms of provision in policies of life assurance, relating to the answers by the assured to the questions in the proposal, and consider their effect in modifying the rules of the common law. In this connection I shall endeavour to classify policies on well-marked lines of distinction, and will also deal with the question of the interpretation of the usual inquiries in the proposal, and the rules of construction of ambiguous or contradictory provisions in the policy or declaration.
Notes on Widows' Funds
Authors: Deuchar David 
Published: April 2013

Gentlemen,—I have to express my most sincere and cordial thanks to you for the honour which you have conferred upon me, by having for the third time elected me as President of the Actuarial Society.I have been a member of the Society almost from its commencement; and before the date of my becoming a member, I was permitted, as a young student, to attend some of the meetings. Thus it happened that I was present at the first meeting, and had the privilege of hearing the first inaugural address, delivered by the first President, the late Mr. William Thomas Thomson, a gentleman who was practically the Founder of this Society and also of the Faculty of Actuaries, and to whom both Societies are under very great obligations.When recalling what took place in the first session of the Society, I may be permitted to refer to three notable papers by Mr. James Meikle, which I also had the privilege of hearing read, on the Nature, Calculation, and Sufficiency of the Premium required for Assurance of a Sum at Death, afterwards published under the title of “The Rationale of Life Assurance Premiums.” The author of these early papers has frequently filled the Presidential Chair, and has been extremely helpful to this Society throughout its whole existence; but if (instead of being the most extensive contributor to the Transactions of the Society) he had done nothing beyond giving us these papers, he would nevertheless have placed the Society deeply in his debt.
Note on the Rate of Mortality in Sierra Leone
Authors: Sprague A. E. 
Published: April 2013

Having recently had occasion to deal with some statistics relating to lives resident in Africa—principally missionaries and traders—and being much struck with the exceedingly heavy mortality experienced by them, I thought a few notes on the subject might interest the members of this Society.The source from which I obtained the necessary data is a book by the Right Reverend E. G. Ingham, Bishop of Sierra Leone, entitled Sierra Leone after a Hundred Years, and published this year by Seeley and Co. of London. The greater part of the book is taken up with an account of missionary work, which, however important it may be in its own place, does not at present concern us; but on pp. 200–208 inclusive, there are some figures which are quite a “find” from an actuarial point of view. They consist of a list of 113 European missionaries who went out to Sierra Leone, with dates of the commencement of their residence in Africa, and of the termination of residence there by death, or by the missionary returning home. The majority of them appear to have lived in Sierra Leone itself, which has a notoriously deadly climate, though a few seem to have gone to places in the neighbourhood; and I think that an examination of the figures will convince any one that that town fully deserves its name of “the white man's grave,” besides giving an approximate measure of the risk incurred by Europeans living there. Unfortunately, the particulars given are not quite complete; the dates of termination of residence in Africa being omitted in eight cases, and the dates of death in two cases. Also in one case, although the date of termination of residence in Africa is given, that of its commencement is omitted.
A Description of certain of the Principal Stock Exchange Securities
Authors: Nicoll John 
Published: April 2013

Many valuable papers have from time to time appeared among our own Transactions and in the Journal of the Institute of Actuaries bearing upon the Amounts invested by Life Offices in various securities, and the rates of interest yielded by such investments at different epochs. So far as I can discover, however, with the exception of a short, but very instructive, paper on Railway Debenture Stock by Mr. Coles in the 15th vol. of the Journal, nothing has been written in description of the origin and character of the various securities which are usually selected for the investment of Life Offices' and other Funds. Having discovered that many others besides myself have experienced difficulty in obtaining information on this subject, I have ventured to put down in an elementary way the results of my own research in regard to it.The President of the Institute of Actuaries, in his Inaugural Address, delivered recently, impressed upon his hearers the imperative necessity for the Actuary being now a practical financier also, and I am sure that every one of us knows sufficient about the difficulties that beset the investment of money at the present day to fully indorse his remarks. No one can, however, it seems to me, be a “practical financier” without having an intelligent knowledge of the character of various securities, and it is my desire to-night to try to help in some small measure towards the attainment of that knowledge.
Some Medical Aspects of Life Assurance
Authors: Ogilvie Leslie 
Published: April 2013

Mr. President and Gentlemen,—I accepted with some misgiving the invitation with which your President honoured me to read a paper before your Society on some medical subject connected with Life Assurance, because I doubted my ability to deal with it in any way worthy of the audience. When I further reflected that some of those present might be the Managers and Actuaries and even the Chief Medical Officers of Companies for which I have examined in London, I sought a loophole for honourable escape. Now, when the eyes of some of these officials are upon me, I feel inclined to beat a dishonourable retreat.Many valuable contributions have been made to this subject, and subjects bearing upon it, of late years; and if I gave you an account of the bibliography alone, it would occupy the time at my disposal. The President probably thought that the study of this literature would be of educational advantage to me; and, if so, I can assure him that it has fulfilled the object he had in view.The title of Some Medical Aspects of Life Assurance seemed to be one which would enable me to escape the dangers of attempting to give you a statistical dissertation on my own experience, while it would admit of some general remarks on the method of Life Assurance examination.
Past and Future With some Thoughts on Heredity
Authors: Thomson Spencer C. 
Published: April 2013

Exactly twenty years have elapsed since I first had the honour of addressing the members of the Actuarial Society as their Honorary President, being then but on the threshold of my official life.Again ten years later I once more occupied this chair.And now after the lapse of another ten years, as my professional career draws somewhat near its close, and you have again kindly asked me to become your President, there comes on me in meeting you at the beginning of your session for the purpose of offering to you a few words of welcome, a desire, on the one hand, to look back over the past—to get out of the trees, as it were, and see the forest,—and on the other, already throwing loose the trammels of daily routine, to turn in the forward direction with an endeavour to peer some way into the future and see what is in store for us there.I will accordingly endeavour to ascertain in what way our science and the great practical businesses built upon it—and to promote which actuarial science mainly exists—have been tending during these more recent years, and, by carrying on the lines in the same direction, to make some forecast of the conditions that will prevail when you, who are entering on the actuarial profession, in your turn take the helm of management.
On the Mortality in certain Hazardous or Unhealthy Occupations, as shown by the Official Statistics
Authors: M'Lauchlan James J. 
Published: April 2013

The Supplement to the fifty-fifth annual report of the Registrar-General for England, issued early in 1898, contains a mass of statistical material bearing on the mortality among persons engaged in various occupations, much more important and complete than any previously available. The principal object of the following Paper, is to examine the information therein contained bearing on the mortality in certain hazardous or unhealthy occupations, with a view to obtaining some guidance in fixing the extra premiums which should be charged for insurances on the lives of persons engaged in these occupations. In some cases, the information obtained from the Supplement to the fifty-fifth report has been supplemented from other official sources.For the purpose of comparing the mortality of persons in different occupations, Dr. Tatham, the Superintendent of Statistics at the General Register Office, has, following his predecessor, Dr. Ogle, made use of the method of ‘comparative mortality figures.’
Life Office Investment—1850 to 1900
Authors: Turnbull Aw. H. 
Published: April 2013

Gentlemen,—When you did me the honour to appoint me your President, and gave me for the fourth time the privilege of addressing you from this chair, I was within a few weeks of completing the fiftieth year of my business life, and my thoughts dwelt much upon the changes I had seen in that time.Such being the case, you will not be surprised that I decided to offer you a retrospect of some one important branch of our business. I selected Life Office Investment, of which I think I can claim to have had an unusually long and varied experience.In the treatment of my subject I shall endeavour to confine myself to a narration of such facts, and to draw such inferences from them, as I can reasonably hope will interest and instruct the younger members of the Society, and which, at the same time, will serve to remind their seniors of the steps by which our present notions of what is safe and advisable in the investment of the funds of a Life Assurance Office have been arrived at.
Effects of neuromuscular function and split step on reaction speed in simulated tennis response
Authors: Nieminen Marko J. J. , Piirainen Jarmo M. , Salmi Jukka A. , Linnamo Vesa 
Published: April 2013

AbstractThe purpose of this study was to examine whether split step (small hop before step) would be more beneficial than no‐split condition in simulated tennis response situation. In addition, it was studied if movement time of the response is related to separately measured force production capabilities and reflex sensitivity of the players. Nine skilled male tennis players participated in this study. Subjects stood on a force plate and reacted to a light signal and moved to appointed direction as fast as possible. With split step the participants were 13.1% faster (P <0.05) than without split step from the start to the distal end of the so called close range movement continuum (2.70 m). This was mainly explained by 43.6% faster time (P <0.05) from the signal to the onset of force production. Greater vertical forces were observed with split step: 15.7% greater F(z) mean force (P <0.05), 60.0% greater F(z) peak force (P<0.01). In split step both mean (r= − 0.813, P <0.01) and peak (r=−0.765, P <0.05) vertical forces (Fz) correlated negatively with the time from the onset of the force production to the photocell. With split step higher EMGs were observed in muscles responsible for ankle joint movement indicating that different strategies were used. Due to the split step the players were able to start the movement faster which mostly explains the advantages over the no‐split step condition. Split step condition may also benefit from stretch shortening type of muscle action.
Predictors of Hospitals with Endemic Community-Associated Methicillin-ResistantStaphylococcus aureus
Authors: Murphy Courtney R. , Hudson Lyndsey O. , Spratt Brian G. , Elkins Kristen , Terpstra Leah , Gombosev Adrijana , Nguyen Christopher , Hannah Paul , Alexander Richard , Enright Mark C. , Huang Susan S. 
Published: April 2013

Objective.We sought to identify hospital characteristics associated with community-associated methicillin-resistantStaphylococcus aureus(CA-MRSA) carriage among inpatients.Design.Prospective cohort study.Setting.Orange County, California.Participants.Thirty hospitals in a single county.Methods.We collected clinical MRSA isolates from inpatients in 30 of 31 hospitals in Orange County, California, from October 2008 through April 2010. We characterized isolates by spa typing to identify CA-MRSA strains. Using California's mandatory hospitalization data set, we identified hospital-level predictors of CA-MRSA isolation.Results.CA-MRSA strains represented 1,033 (46%) of 2,246 of MRSA isolates. By hospital, the median percentage of CA-MRSA isolates was 46% (range, 14%–81%). In multivariate models, CA-MRSA isolation was associated with smaller hospitals (odds ratio [OR], 0.97, or 3% decreased odds of CA-MRSA isolation per 1,000 annual admissions;P<.001), hospitals with more Medicaid-insured patients (OR, 1.2;P= .002), and hospitals with more patients with low comorbidity scores (OR, 1.3;P< .001). Results were similar when restricted to isolates from patients with hospital-onset infection.Conclusions.Among 30 hospitals, CA-MRSA comprised nearly half of MRSA isolates. There was substantial variability in CA-MRSA penetration across hospitals, with more CA-MRSA in smaller hospitals with healthier but socially disadvantaged patient populations. Additional research is needed to determine whether infection control strategies can be successful in targeting CA-MRSA influx.
Exploiting joint synergy for actuation in a lower‐limb active orthosis
Authors: Sanz‐Merodio Daniel , Cestari Manuel , Carlos Arevalo Juan , Garcia Elena 
Published: April 2013

PurposeLower‐limb exoskeletons and powered orthoses are external devices that assist patients with locomotive disorders to achieve correct limb movements. Current batteries cannot meet the long‐term power requirements for these devices, which operate for long periods of time. This issue has become a major challenge in the development of these portable robots. Conversely, legged locomotion in animals and humans is efficient; to emulate this behaviour, biomimetic actuation has been designed attempting to incorporate elements that resemble biological elements, such as tendons and muscles, in the mechanical systems. The purpose of this paper is to present a mechanism that resembles a human tendon to achieve and utilise the synergic actuation of the leg joints.Design/methodology/approachIn this paper, we present a mechanism that resembles a human tendon to move the ankle joint and utilise the synergic actuation of hip and knee joints. Implementation of the proposed transmission system in the ATLAS active orthosis prototype allowed for a better ankle gait fit, which resulted in a more natural stride and, as expected, optimised energy consumption in the locomotion cycle and actuation energy requirements.FindingsThe fitted passive ankle motion provides toe‐off impulse, increases support force, and helps provide ground clearance.Originality/valueA synergetic underactuated movement in the ankle joint, implemented by two cables in each leg, improves the functionality of the device without increasing the leg weight and while maintaining a reduced size. To achieve a correct and efficient motion in the ankle of an active orthosis, two steel cables were attached in the ATLAS orthosis. These cables act as a synergic biarticular linkage and transfer motion from the hip and knee joints. Synergic ankle motion provides impulse in the toe‐off, increases support force, and provides ground clearance. These goals are achieved with low energy expenditure because of synergical actuation, and high inertia is prevented in the more distal limb.
Increased performance in a bottom‐up designed robot by experimentally guided redesign
Authors: Larsen Jorgen , Stoy Kasper , Brandt David , Grimmer Sten , Groß Martin 
Published: April 2013

PurposeUsing a bottom‐up, model‐free approach when building robots is often seen as a less scientific way, compared to a top‐down model‐based approach, because the results are not easily generalizable to other systems. The authors, however, hypothesize that this problem may be addressed by using solid experimental methods. The purpose of this paper is to show how well‐known experimental methods from bio‐mechanics are used to measure and locate weaknesses in a bottom‐up, model‐free implementation of a quadruped walker and come up with a better solution.Design/methodology/approachTo study the bottom‐up, mode‐free approach, the authors used the robotic construction kit, LocoKit. This construction kit allows researchers to construct legged robots, without having a mathematical model beforehand. The authors used no specific mathematical model to design the robot, but instead used intuition and took inspiration from biology. The results were afterwards compared with results gained from biology, to see if the robot has some of the key elements the authors were looking for.FindingsWith the use of LocoKit as the experimental platform, combined with known experimental measurement methods from biology, the authors have shown how a bottom‐up, model‐free design approach can be used to gain specific knowledge on a robotic platform, and also how knowledge can potentially be generalized from this approach.Originality/valueThis paper shows that even though a bottom‐up, model‐free approach was taken, the results can still be compared with results from, for example, biology, because solid experimental methods were used.
Design and control method for a high‐mobility in‐pipe robot with flexible links
Authors: Jeon Woongsun , Kim Inho , Park Jungwan , Yang Hyunseok 
Published: April 2013

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to propose a high‐mobility in‐pipe robot platform and its navigation strategy for navigating in T‐branch pipes efficiently.Design/methodology/approachFor high mobility, this robot is developed based on inchworm locomotion. An extensor mechanism with flexible links and clamper mechanisms enable the robot to conduct both steering and inchworm locomotion. The locomotion of the robot is modeled based on a pseudo‐rigid‐body model. From the developed model, this paper introduces a navigation strategy based on defining relay points and generating a path from a main pipe to a T‐branch pipe.FindingsWith this navigation strategy, the robot can avoid collisions and enter T‐branch pipes effectively. The path generation algorithm is verified by experiment. In addition, both the navigation strategy and mobility of the robot are demonstrated by experiments conducted in a commercial pipe configuration.Originality/valueThis paper describes the mechanism of an inchworm‐type in‐pipe robot that is able to steer and adapt to pipe diameter changes. This paper also describes navigation strategy that enables a robot to avoid collisions and enter T‐branch pipes effectively. This research will help the construction of a fully autonomous in‐pipe robot that can navigate through various types of pipes.
CEO duality: how many hats are too many?
Authors: Abels Patricia B. , Martelli Joseph T. 
Published: April 2013

PurposeThis paper aims to concentrate on the prevailing agency theory along with its complementary theory of stewardship as foundations for the authors' research. Recent economic turmoil within the USA has resulted in stakeholders demanding change within governance policies of corporations. One such adjustment has been the separation of the CEO and Chairman positions within organizations. The authors' study seeks to uncover the extent to which duality CEO relationships exist in large corporations within the USA. In light of the push towards splitting the dual roles, the authors further investigated new CEOs recently appointed into the CEO position.Design/methodology/approachCompanies selected for this study were the top 500 revenue‐producing companies in the USA as published by Fortune magazine in 2008. For comparison purposes, the authors' database included newly appointed CEOs coming on board with the original 2008 companies that had remained on the listing for both years as published by Fortune in 2010. The authors' 2008 database included 500 companies and their 2010 database included 86 companies. The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) was the product classification used in order to establish the principal industry sector for companies under analysis.FindingsThe authors' 2008 analysis reveals that 303 CEOs hold a combination title of CEO and Chairman. The most frequent title combination is CEO and Chairman, with 156 executives holding this combined title. The authors' 2010 analysis reveals that 33 new CEOs hold a combination title of CEO and Chairman. The most frequent title combination is CEO and President with 43 executives holding the title. The authors' analysis of retired CEOs reveals that 15 retired CEOs continue serving in the capacity of Chairman of the Board of Directors.Research limitations/implicationsUsing the top 500 companies in the USA, based upon sales revenue, did limit the study to large corporations within the USA.Originality/valueThe agency theory does provide an explanation of the duality movement witnessed in corporations. The practice of splitting duality roles of CEO and Chairman within public corporations appears to be becoming a reality within the USA, whether on a voluntary or a mandatory basis in order to enhance corporate independence and transparency.