阿卡迪亚大学

The 'presidentialisation' of prime ministers has become a prominent theory in political science, particularly within the study of executive politics. The central claim that prime ministers and their agents exert increasing authority over government has sparked considerable definitional and theoretical debate. Empirical testing, however, has largely been limited to case studies of individual leaders and countries. Using a reliable metric for prime ministerial power across 21 countries over 40 years, we provide a large-N testing of the thesis. Our analysis finds no secular trend towards increasing prime ministerial power. In some countries, we observe a sharp decline in prime ministerial control over policy, potentially linked to the fragmentation of party systems in Western democracies. At the same time, the data point to a broader trend toward centralisation and personalisation, suggesting that the growing focus on leaders is subtly and profoundly transforming the exercise of executive power in contemporary democracies. The findings indicate that caution is warranted about unidirectional claims of presidentialisation.

There may be differences in marine migratory patterns between Gaspereau River (GR), Nova Scotia, Canada, Atlantic salmon and salmon originating from other rivers in the inner Bay of Fundy (iBoF) Designatable Unit (DU). Marine migratory patterns are one of several metrics used by managers to determine if the GR Atlantic salmon should remain in the Species At Risk Act protected iBoF DU or if it should be included within the outer Bay of Fundy (oBoF) DU. In this study, 25 female Atlantic salmon kelts of GR genetic strain were obtained from the Coldbrook Biodiversity Facility. The kelts were tagged with acoustic tags and released at the mouth of the GR in May 2019. Of the 25 kelts, 10 were recorded at acoustic receivers on the Scotian Shelf. Five kelts returned to the GR and were recaptured, found to be ripe, and deemed to be consecutive spawners. This included a kelt that logged onto receivers on the Scotian Shelf during June and July, before returning to the GR in October. Depth and migration speed indicated that three kelts may have suffered predation in the oBoF or on the Scotian Shelf, with the tags ingested by a predator. Four kelts moved rapidly out of the Bay of Fundy (BoF) and past the Halifax Line of acoustic receivers in early June 2019. This group migrating early and at characteristic oceanic migratory speeds may represent kelts moving to distant feeding grounds. If so, GR Atlantic salmon may be the only river population in the iBoF inclined to escape high coastal mortality regions for distant oceanic feeding grounds.

Zone-based and flexible bay layout concepts are essential tools for facility designers, particularly in job shop manufacturing environments characterised by medium-to-high product variety and flexible routing. While traditional approaches focus primarily on optimising zone dimensions and allocating departments within zones, this paper advances the design process by investigating the subsequent steps required to finalise layout configurations in zone-based job shop systems. Specifically, these steps include identifying material-handling input/output points along cell boundaries, determining appropriate aisle dimensions, and selecting suitable material-handling transporters. To address these interrelated decisions, the study proposes a cascading methodology that integrates design of experiments (DOE), discrete-event simulation, supervised deep learning, and multi-objective optimisation. The optimisation process employs the Non-Dominated Sorting Genetic Algorithm II (NSGA-II) in conjunction with an adaptive direct-search strategy implemented through NOMAD, a black-box optimisation solver. A numerical case study of a zone-based job shop system is presented. Computational results show that the optimised layouts achieve substantial reductions in material-handling time and work-in-process (WIP); for instance, one solution reduces average transport time by approximately 25% and WIP by approximately 35%, with only a modest increase in handling cost. These findings highlight the practical value of the proposed multi-objective approach.

We extend the classical distributionally robust optimization framework by introducing set valued probabilities along with an ordering between sets based on convex, pointed cones where we define A ≤ _C B A ⊆ B - C, with C a closed convex pointed cone. This ordering generalizes inclusion and allows for the modeling of directional preferences and asymmetries. Within this framework, we redefine robustness, convexity, and minimizers; we establish scalarization results, derive optimality conditions, and prove stability theorems. The framework offers a unifying perspective linking robust optimization, set-valued analysis, and cone ordering preferences. An application to the notion of Certainty Equivalent is provided at the end.

Apoqnmatulti'k (Mi'kmaw for "we help each other") is a collaboration among the Unama'ki Institute of Natural Resources, the Confederacy of Mainland Mi'kmaq, the Marine Institute of Natural and Academic Science, the Ocean Tracking Network, Dalhousie University, Acadia University, and Fisheries and Oceans Canada. Guided by the Mi'kmaw principle of Etuaptmumk (Two-Eyed Seeing), this initiative pairs Mi'kmaw, local and western scientific ways of knowing to co-design and implement research to track the movements and seasonal habitat use of mutually valued aquatic species in two regions of Mi'kma'ki (Nova Scotia). The success and impact of Apoqnmatulti'k lies in commitment to its partnership model rooted in equity, mutual respect, and open dialogue at all levels. Apoqnmatulti'k approaches Etuaptmumk with three core tenets: Netukulimk (shared stewardship), Msit no'kmaq (all relationships), and Aknutema'ti'k (understandings). Here, we examine Apoqnmatulti'k as a tangible example of Etuaptmumk in practice to provide researchers with insights into fostering successful partnerships that bridge Indigenous, local and western knowledge systems.