bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
MS/OR Education
Authors: Greenberg Irwin 
Published: October 2008

In my earlier columns I have discussed required management science courses for nonmajors, usually business students, most of whom do not become scientists or operations researchers. Our role in their education is to help create well-rounded managers who are as cognizant of benefits to be realized from management science as they are of the benefits to be realized from cost accounting or industrial relations. Little has been said about training our own professionals; how well are we doing? I have no comments from industry or the public sector on this question. I hope that employers can and will tell us what was right and what was wrong with our graduates' academic training. However, when I was hiring operations research analysts, I don't think I ever attributed their strengths or weaknesses to their academic backgrounds. The qualities that I was seeking in analysts went beyond what they had studied.
Editorial: Shared Information and the Zero-Sum Mentality
Authors: Lilien Gary L. 
Published: October 2008

In a slightly different context, Lester Thurow (Thurow, Lester. 1980. The Zero-Sum Society. Basic Books, New York.) developed a view of America as a zero-sum society. His thesis (oversimplified) is that since political decisions produce losers along with winners, the expected losers, endowed with specific lobbying powers, can forestall decisions that might be for the general good of society. His prescription, redistribution of income, need not concern us here (and I will not discuss it further, wishing only to stimulate controversy and not open rebellion among readers). The zero-sum concept, while perhaps new to macroeconomists, has long been gospel among business strategists. Whole batallions of those most productive members of our society, attorneys, are employed to protect our corporations from releasing any bit of knowledge that might benefit a competitor.
From the Shadows
Authors: Hirshfeld David S. 
Published: October 2008

This is a new column in Interfaces. Its subject is the practical application of linear programming (LP) in what we rather wistfully call “the real world”: industry, commerce, finance, government, and other institutions. The column will focus on the practice of LP for the analysis of live problems and issues; on how it's done in “the real world.” Its primary audience will be MS/OR practitioners, and (I hope) their clients. I will be treating such topics as model formulation, model management, LP-related software, solution interpretation, specific applications, and sometimes nonapplications.
Book Reviews
Authors: Sobol Marion G. 
Published: October 2008

Rosenmüller, J., The Theory of Games and Markets, North-Holland Publishing Company, Amsterdam, 1981, $73.25—reviewed by Kalyan Chatterjee Goldberg, Harold, Extending the Limits of Reliability Theory, John Wiley & Sons, New York, 1981, 263 pp., $30.00—reviewed by D. H. Withers
A Lease Portfolio Planning Model
Authors: Smith Bruce D. 
Published: October 2008

Full payout leasing, including leveraged leasing, is widely used to finance major capital investments. This is the type of leasing engaged in by banks and other financial institutions. From the lessor's perspective the profitability of a lease investment derives largely from the fact that the lease generates substantial tax shelter during the early years of the lease term. A given lease will be both a source as well as a use of tax shelter at different stages during the lease term, so careful planning is required to maximize profitability in a tax-constrained environment. New England Merchants Leasing Corporation, a subsidiary of a bank holding company, recently completed developing a computer-based planning model to aid in the management of its overall portfolio, and to support the evaluation of specific investment proposals. The model has been successfully implemented and integrated into the management decision process, and is now the basis for all long range planning for a total portfolio in excess of $200 million.
Editorial: Interfaces: An International Journal
Authors: Lilien Gary L. 
Published: October 2008

Beginning with the October 1982 issue, a number of changes were made in Interfaces. One of those changes is in the cover: Interfaces is now called an International TIMS/ORSA Journal. Another change is the addition of contents and abstracts in French and German, as well as in English. These changes in style will, we hope, soon be reflected in substantive changes. MS/OR is international and we hope this journal reflects that international character more and more in the issues ahead. Several recent actions should help bring this about.
Misapplications Reviews: The Linear Model and Some of its Friends
Authors: Barnett Arnold 
Published: October 2008

Most university courses in mathematical programming and multivariate statistics start with a treatment of the linear model. This makes pedagogical sense, for the underlying theory is both conceptually easier and more fully developed in the linear than the nonlinear case. Moreover, linear relationships abound in nature (for example, the gravitational attraction of an object is proportional to its mass). We MS/OR types know that the world can be cruel, and that an error in functional form can both reverse the sign and distort the magnitude of the effect one is trying to estimate. Thus I have sometimes asked researchers, both verbally and in writing, why they thought it appropriate to proceed with a linear model. Rarely has the answer been a theoretical defense of an assumption of proportionality; the more typical response is a withering stare, a dose of content-free jargon, or an all-purpose argument that, while thought-provoking, is ultimately dissatisfying. Often I get a (er … linear) combination of these things.
Bells and Whistles
Authors: Say Jean-Baptiste Leon 
Published: October 2008

The real author wrote this paper under the pseudonym Jean-Baptiste Leon Say. At times, the language used to present an argument can be as much of an obstacle to the success of a presentation as the substance of what is being said. Our clients and client organizations all have their own reserved “code words.” By inadvertently using them, we can set off reactions that we did not anticipate. Described here is an incident where the consultants added the wrong bells and whistles to their project report.
Implementation Exchange: The Implementation Profile
Authors: Schultz Randall L. , Slevin Dennis P. 
Published: October 2008

It all started ten years ago. First, there was a perceived need. MS/OR researchers had discovered by the early 70's that, in spite of the technical sophistication and instrinsic beauty of many of their models, a relatively small percentage were being used by practicing managers. Better understanding of the implementation process was needed. We became interested in the problem as an aspect of behavioral science. And finally, a research site emerged. A major US corporation was implementing a computerized sales forecasting model. Great care was taken to make sure that the research was rigorous and “correctly done.” The research questions were straightforward: 1. What basic attitudes affect implementation success? 2. How can these attitudes be measured? 3. How do these attitudes affect implementation success?
On Kissing Toads
Authors: Say Jean-Baptiste Leon 
Published: October 2008

The real author wrote this paper under the pseudonym Jean-Baptiste Leon Say. “Turnaround managers” specialize in re-organizing faltering companies. Sometimes, consultants are asked to do a “turn-around” job on projects that are in trouble. The trick is to improve the situation as much as possible while upsetting as few people as possible. It requires the faith of the princess in the old fable who kissed a toad and turned it into a prince.
20/30 Hindsight: If the President Likes a New Product Program a Model Won't Kill It
Authors: Lilien Gary L. 
Published: October 2008

A product champion can be a prime factor in the success of a new product. He can gum up the works, too, especially if the champion is a senior officer of the firm. Here, a model-based new product analysis suggested that the proposed advertising program be reformulated before introduction. And, with 20/30 hindsight …. Consultants like to believe that their status gives them special credibility. Implementation, however, (as well as analysis) must be planned, as the following true story shows. Names have been changed to protect the author, even if he is not innocent.
Parkinson's Law Revisited
Authors: Say Jean-Baptiste Leon 
Published: October 2008

The real author wrote this paper under the pseudonym Jean-Baptiste Leon Say. The industrial engineer (IE) was going to carry out a work study in a company that provided services to the transportation industry. The company was happy with its employees, but expected an increase in business over the next few years, and wanted to know the extent to which this would require an increase in personnel.
Organizational Physics and the Black Hole Data Base Theory
Authors: Courtney James F. 
Published: October 2008

Since the discovery of organizational atoms in 1958 by the late Emma I. Ess, many organizational particles have been isolated and studied, especially various types of humanoid particles including beanoids, decisionoids, and various types of staffoids. The structure of conventional organizational atoms, basic laws of organizational physics (Emma's Lemmas) and recent discoveries by Emma's cousins, Dee S. Ess and Dee Bea M. Ess are discussed. The recent laboratory creation of organizational atoms with integrated data base nuclei has led to the discovery of other types of organizational nuclei which form under special conditions.
Editorial: A Progress Report
Authors: Lilien Gary L. 
Published: October 2008

This is not really an editorial. It is a progress report to Interfaces readers. Our mail has indicated that many of you do notice the difference in the journal. We have tried to increase readability while at the same time increasing quality. Those who write feel we have had some success. What has happened in the last year? From April 1, 1982 to March 31, 1983, we received 206 articles. Of those, we accepted 83 for publication, for an acceptance rate of 40%. An easy publication journal, right? Wrong. Those figures are distorted because they include six CPMS prize papers, 15 solicited papers on strategic management, and about 20 papers that were in a state of revision from the previous editor. A more telling ratio is that, since February, we have accepted seven articles and rejected 28, for an acceptance rate of 7/35 or 20%. Authors should expect that acceptance rate to be closer to the norm.
Seen Elsewhere
Authors: Morgan J. I. 
Published: October 2008

“Seen Elsewhere” consists of digests of articles on the application and implementation of management science seen in other publications. Digest presented: —Von Dobschütz, L., Müller-Merbach, H., and Weber, H. (eds.), Modellgestützte Planung im Unternehmen (Model-Supported Planning within the Corporation), German Society for Operations Research (DGOR), Henstedt-Ulzburg, Federal Republic of Germany, 1982, 102 pp.
Misapplications Reviews: The Capital Punishment Controversy: Part II
Authors: Barnett Arnold 
Published: October 2008

In the first installment of this two-part series, I discussed some studies on the deterrent effect of the death penalty that I view as clearly unreliable. Here I will consider some other analyses that seem worthy of greater attention. That done, I'll move on to some general musings (broodings?) on what the capital punishment controversy tells us about the conduct of social science research. A whole host of social, demographic, and economic factors can cause homicide rates to differ over time and across regions. And given the historical rarity of executions, variations in their use would at most seem among the lesser causes of any differences observed. Thus, careful researchers on capital punishment have recognized that, unless the major influences on murder levels have been accurately identified and measured, there is little hope for any trustworthy answer to a question about deterrence.
Implementation Exchange: Reconciling Science and Affairs
Authors: Emanuel David 
Published: October 2008

The June “Implementation Exchange” identified five classifications arrayed along a spectrum ranging from Pure Science to Pure Affairs. (1) pure science, (2) pseudoscience, (3) management science, (4) pseudoaffairs, (5) pure affairs. I am quite happy with this nominal representation. However, I think it is inappropriate to view the five areas as being on an ordinal scale, with pure science and pure affairs as the polar extremes. Where does management science fit in this picture? Why, in the intersection between pure science and pure affairs, of course.
Editorial: Practitioners Wha Hae
Authors: Lilien Gary L. 
Published: October 2008

What practice the practitioners? They don't practice writing articles for this journal. They do complain, though, that we don't print enough articles by practitioners. We all know why academics write and practitioners don't. For our profession (and this journal) to remain healthy we must redress this imbalance. But I don't know how to encourage practitioners to write more applications articles for this journal. The annual TIMS/CPMS awards competition is the best vehicle we have so far and a number of our other applications articles are from entrants in that competition.
20/30 Hindsight: OR in Public Policy in India—Who Cares?
Authors: Patkar Vivek N. 
Published: October 2008

OR applications in India have been mostly confined to large manufacturing industries and to a limited class of problems. OR has rarely had a role in the formulation of government policy. Indifference, aversion to change, and lack of will to experiment or to make an effort characterize Indian public life. The decision-making process is so diffuse that no one in particular can be found to be responsible, with the result that situations drift until solutions emerge on their own. These factors make implementing OR study results difficult, especially through the decision-making apparatus of the government. I describe here a study on staggering office hours in Bombay; all our efforts to implement the results were nullified by a combination of these factors.
MS/OR Education: Meeting the New Demands on MS Education
Authors: Zahedi Fatemeh 
Published: October 2008

The evolution of the field of management science and the new demands on it call for a new look at the MS curriculum. Courses that offer greater contact with real-world problems are needed, and curriculums that reflect the widespread use of computers and softwares must be offered, not, however, at the expense of theory. The MS curriculum should be designed to incorporate all these components in an appropriate sequence of courses. Management sciences (MS) consists of both scientific detail and real-world applicability. Thus, there are two opposite domains in MS that Geoffroin calls “the world of action and affairs and the world of ideas and study”. The opposition of the two is vividly demonstrated in the controversy over approaches to MS education.
Meet Our New Vice-President
Authors: Lear Robert W. 
Published: October 2008

When I wrote this article in 1981, corporate interest in productivity was just beginning to perk. I felt confident that it would grow and enlarge, so I predicted that there would be lots more vice-presidents of productivity. This didn't happen. Why? The reason is, I believe, that corporations became so intensely and broadly interested in the whole subject of efficient management of their operations that it became a corporate-wide surge and not a staff fetish. Most companies I know are now greatly concerned with the cost effectiveness of their plants and the measures needed to bring them up to competitive equality or superiority. So, productivity is becoming an integrated part of the management function — and I'm glad to see it happen.
Editorial: MS/OR on Thin Ice
Authors: Lilien Gary L. 
Published: October 2008

I recently attended a meeting of the Management Science Roundtable on the impact of new technologies on the MS/OR professions. The details and action plan of that meeting will be the subject of a further article or editorial; I would like to speculate on what I learned from conversations during coffee breaks and cocktails. The MS/OR environment is changing rapidly. MS/OR users are everywhere, calling what they are doing everything but MS/OR. Perhaps these two suggestions—certification and selling the profession at high levels—may help prevent a major decline in the credibility and the value of what MS/OR offers management practice.
Note: Further Notes on Lagging Forecasts
Authors: Gardner Everette S. 
Published: October 2008

In Gardner [Gardner, E. S. 1984. The strange case of the lagging forecasts. Interfaces 14(3) 47–50.], I pointed out that erroneous versions of exponential smoothing models have been repeated in the literature for the last 20 years. Some 23 errors were cited in journal articles and textbooks. All of the errors were in linear-trend models and caused the forecasts to lag the data. Since Gardner [Gardner, E. S. 1984. The strange case of the lagging forecasts. Interfaces 14(3) 47–50.] appeared, I have received a number of letters requesting information on other model formulations for exponential smoothing. Gardner [Gardner, E. S. 1985. Exponential smoothing: The state of the art. J. Forecasting 4(1) 1–38.] is my attempt to provide a complete reference on the subject. This paper includes 29 models along with details on starting values, parameter choice, and forecast monitoring.
Misapplications Reviews: Speed Kills?
Authors: Barnett Arnold 
Published: October 2008

If there is anything more irritating than an analysis that belabors the obvious, it is one that denies the obvious. After the national speed limit was cut to 55 miles per hour in the early 1970s, the vehicular fatality rate dropped substantially in the US. Both common sense and the laws of physics suggest that at least some of the decline can be attributed to slower driving. And yet, I have in front of me an article [55: The first decade. 1985 Road and Trace, Vol. 36, (June) pp. 68–77.] that, focusing almost exclusively on the 55 mph policy, summarizes its conclusions as follows: Do reduced speeds reduce accidents? No. Do reduced speeds reduce fatalities? No. Anyone who would advance statements so conspicuously lacking in nuance has a bit of explaining to do. In 1974, the first year covered by the lower speed limits, there were 46,600 US road deaths; the corresponding number for the previous year was 55,700. If the policy change had nothing to do with the 16 percent fall in fatalities, then what did?
A Note on “Management Science/Operations Research in Greece” by John C. Papageorgiou
Authors: Papoulias Demetrios B. 
Published: October 2008

The recent paper by Professor J. Papageorgiou [Papageorgiou, J. C. 1986. Management science/operations research in Greece. Interfaces 16(4, July–August) 24–30.] entitled “Management science/operations research in Greece” has impressed me with its thorough analysis and clear argument. I am also impressed with the author's knowledge of the evolution of MS/OR in Greece. I want to discuss some other factors that influence MS/OR in Greece and my slightly different opinion of the condition of MS/OR in Greece today.
Misapplications Reviews: High Road to Glory
Authors: Barnett Arnold 
Published: October 2008

The talk these days at TIMS/ORSA is of outreach, of devising a way to inform the world how central we are to its functioning. TIMS has backed its commitment to reaching out with a large financial investment. Trying as always to be helpful, let me propose a simple project that might measurably advance this cause. It concerns frequent-flyer programs. We should not underrate the obsessions these programs have created among those we would most like to influence.
What MS/OR Groups Do: The Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas
Authors: Siems Thomas F. , Urban Timothy L. 
Published: October 2008

Everyone is, or should be, interested in the Federal Reserve Bank, which influences all our daily lives. While we tremulously await the next prime rate adjustment, this article provides a fascinating insight into the origins, structure, and contributions of MS/OR within the “11th District” of this famous institution. This paper has been written jointly by Thomas F. Siems, currently project leader in the Operations Analysis Department of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas and Timothy L. Urban, who formerly held a similar post in the same group but is now at the University of Tulsa—Alan Kitchener.
Applications Reviews
Authors: Hall John R. , Millen Roger N. , Dale Charles , Martinich Joseph S. , Kamakura Wagner A. 
Published: October 2008

“Applications Reviews” is a guide to accomplished or partial MS/OR applications cited in articles appearing in many of the major journals of the field. We cover only applications—except for the occasional brief mention of a survey article or special issue—and so do not claim to cover all the best articles in MS/OR. The abstracts are purposely kept short to emphasize breadth of coverage over depth; we try to tell you what modeling approach has been applied to what problem, and if possible the size and character of the improvements achieved as a result. If an issue of one of our regularly covered journals contains no applications articles, we give the one-line citation for the issue with no articles shown under it. Readers who know of applications articles we may have missed or improperly slighted are invited to let us know. “Applications Reviews” is cosponsored by the TIMS College on Public Programs and Processes, the TIMS College on Marketing, and the ORSA Military Applications Section.
Note: Some Remarks on the Paper by J. Telgen, “How to Schedule Meetings with a Traveling Salesman Q & D, and Why We Didn't”
Authors: Sierksma Gerard 
Published: October 2008

It was a pity for the manager Mr. Jenson that the young management trainee Tom did not offer him the optimal solution for the meetings scheduling problem that bothered Mr. Jensen so much. Below, three possible optimal solutions are offered using Apex, the cheapest insertion rule, and the three-Opt heuristic. Response from J. Telgen, author of the original paper, follows.
What MS/OR Groups Do: Management Science Pays Off at International Paper Company
Authors: Falk Patrick G. 
Published: October 2008

International Paper Company (IPCo.) is one of the largest industrial enterprises in North America, with sales of about $5 billion. The company is the world's largest manufacturer of pulp, paper, and paper products and a major producer of lumber and plywood. The nation's largest industrial owner of timberland, IPCo. owns over 8.4 million acres of timberland and has rights over another 11.6 million acres. To generate higher future returns from these renewable assets, the company is consolidating its land base through sales, acquisitions, swaps, and donations and growing genetically superior trees, which produce more wood fiber per acre more quickly. The company relies heavily on the quantitative techniques of management science and biometrics to evaluate timberland sites and to plan and budget forest prescriptions to be used in planting, managing, harvesting, and regenerating the timberlands.