PurposeThe purpose of this study is to examine whether a company’s sustainability practices affect job seekers’ perceptions of the attractiveness of the company as a potential employer.Design/methodology/approachA survey completed by 259 university students assessed the respondents’ attitudes toward sustainability. Participants were then presented a series of scenarios describing the sustainable practices of hypothetical companies using the triple bottom line factors of sustainability (economic, environmental and social) and were asked how attractive they found the company to be and the likelihood that they would accept a job offer from the company.FindingsThe findings indicate that sustainability as a single concept and each sustainability factor individually influenced the attractiveness of a company to potential employees.Research limitations/implicationsThe results of the study add to the body of job choice research, specifically as related to sustainability practices of companies. It furthers the body of work related to signaling theory and job attractiveness.Practical implicationsThe results of this study indicate that sustainability performance is an important factor in determining the attractiveness of a company to potential applicants.Social implicationsThe research highlights the importance of sustainability to potential job applicants. Companies should be aware that positive sustainability performance can make it more attractive to these applicants. The results reported from this research provides additional motivation for companies to pursue efforts in sustainability.Originality/valueThe research builds upon existing research in the fields of sustainability and job choice. While previous research has looked at many factors regarding applicants and job choice including, no other research was found which explicitly considered the triple bottom line factors of sustainability.

: A high redundancy actuator (HRA) is composed of a high number of actuation elements, increasing both the travel and the force above the capability of an individual element. This provides inherent fault tolerance: if one of the elements fails, the capabilities of the actuator may be reduced, but it does not become dysfunctional. This paper analyses the likelihood of reductions in capabilities. The actuator is considered as a multi-state system, and the approach for k-out-of-n:G systems can be extended to cover the case of the HRA. The result is a probability distribution that quantifies the capability of the HRA. By comparing the distribution for different configurations, it is possible to identify the optimal configuration of an HRA for a given situation.

A high-redundancy actuator (HRA) is an actuation system composed of a high number of actuation elements, increasing both travel and force above the capability of an individual element. This approach provides inherent fault tolerance: if one of the elements fails, the capabilities of the whole actuator may be reduced, but it retains core functionality. Many different configurations are possible, with different implications for the actuator capability and reliability. This article analyses the reliability of the HRA based on the likelihood of an unacceptable reduction in capability. The analysis of the HRA is a highly structured problem, but it does not fit into known reliability categories (such as the k-out-of-n system), and a fault-tree analysis becomes prohibitively large. Instead, a multi-state systems approach is pursued here, which provides an easy, concise and efficient reliability analysis of the HRA. The resulting probability distribution can be used to find the optimal configuration of an HRA for a given set of requirements.

Markov models are essential for modeling systems in safety and reliability calculations. Unfortunately, these models become exponentially more complex with an increasing number of components. This makes manual modeling time-consuming, complicated, and prone to error. This paper introduces a method to systematically and automatically generate Markov models. The system model is made up of components models. Then, we identify the dangerous and the productive system states. Next, we model the interdependencies of the components, as well as operating and repair strategies, and common cause failures. To counter the exponential increase in states, we simplify the model. By solving the differential equations of the simplified model, we calculate the probability of dangerous failure per hour (PFH) and availability characteristics. The simplified Markov model can be used to optimize system configurations for safety and reliability.

This paper seeks to expand the knowledge of the influence of job embeddedness using a sample of Albanian employees working in the banking industry. Findings from the Albanian sample differed from previous findings in embeddedness research conducted in the US. The influence that the affective components of turnover, that of commitment and satisfaction, have on intent to leave as well as the highly predictive (in U.S. samples) job embeddedness construct influenced turnover in this sample of Albanian bank employees. Demographic and cultural explanations for these findings suggest that job embeddedness may have differential effects cross-culturally.

A high redundancy actuator (HRA) is composed of a high number of actuation elements, increasing both the travel and the force above the capability of an individual element. This provides inherent fault tolerance: if one of the elements fails, the capabilities of the actuator may be reduced, but it does not become dysfunctional. This paper analyses the likelihood of reductions in capabilities. The actuator is considered as a multi-state system, and the approach for k-out-of-n:G systems can be extended to cover the case of the HRA. The result is a probability distribution that quantifies the capability of the HRA. By comparing the distribution for different configurations, it is possible to identify the optimal configuration of an HRA for a given situation.

A high redundancy actuator (HRA) is composed of a high number of actuation elements, increasing both the travel and the force above the capability of an individual element. This provides inherent fault tolerance: if one of the elements fails, the capabilities of the actuator may be reduced, but it does not become dysfunctional. This paper analyses the likelihood of reductions in capabilities. The actuator is considered as a multi-state system, and the approach for k-out-of-n:G systems can be extended to cover the case of the HRA. The result is a probability distribution that quantifies the capability of the HRA. By comparing the distribution for different configurations, it is possible to identify the optimal configuration of an HRA for a given situation.

Kurzfassung Die effiziente Umsetzung von Sicherheitsfunktionen ist das Hauptziel des BMBF-Projekts ZuverSicht. Neben der Bewertung der Sicherheit in Bezug auf deren Nachweis zur Erfüllung vorgeschriebener Anforderungen steht hier zusätzlich der Einfluss der Sicherheitsfunktionalität auf die Anlagenverfügbarkeit im Fokus. Ziel ist der Einsatz von vorgefertigten Mustern zur Umsetzung von Sicherheitsfunktionen. Diese Muster sind mit Rechenmodellen hinterlegt, die den Nachweis der Sicherheit für den Maschinen- und Anlagenbauer vereinfachen und für Aussagen zur Anlagenverfügbarkeit verwendet werden können. In diesem Artikel wird ein besonderer Fokus auf die Modellierung der Sicherheitssysteme gesetzt. Es werden Ansätze zur Vereinfachung des quantitativen Sicherheitsnachweises sowie zur einfachen Ableitung von Verfügbarkeitsaussagen vorgestellt.

With the possibility to configure new cars completely individual almost no premium-class vehicle with the same configuration exists twice. As a consequence the cars differ not only in design but also have different functional features as well, which usually are provided by the interplay between a huge number of software and hardware components. Consequently the compatibility of all of these subsystems becomes a more and more pressing topic within the automotive industry.The main contribution of this paper is to provide a precise definition of the term compatibility and to show how to furnish proof of compatibility of concerning software functions in a model based development process.

The objectives of the project are (1) to define the skills necessary for students to work effectively with others to achieve common goals, and (2) to develop an assessment instrument to measure student progress toward achieving these skills. The defined skill set will form a basis for common expectations related to team skills that will be shared with students and be used by faculty for setting goals, planning curriculum and pedagogy, and assessing student progress. Assessment data will be incorporated into the Division of Business and Accountancy’s Continuous Improvement Plan and assessment cycle. The significance of this project is to ensure and demonstrate student learning related to teamwork, which is one of the key elements of the Division’s newly adopted vision statement. The ability to demonstrate continuous improvement related to the Division’s mission is vital to the re-accreditation of the business program. This project incorporated input from the entire faculty of the Division, and the results will be used by the entire faculty and shared with students in order to communicate expectations. This participative process will serve to enhance the culture of assessment in the Business Division among faculty and students.

One hundred fifty-eight patients (76 men and 82 women) presenting to an outpatient cardiology clinic with a new complaint of angina were prospectively followed to determine if there was a gender bias in the management of suspected coronary artery disease when physicians trained in cardiology managed their care. Overall, there were no differences in the percentage of women who underwent noninvasive evaluation, invasive evaluation, and treatment of suspected coronary artery disease compared with men.

NASA at Ames Research Center operates the world’s largest motion-base flight simulator, the Vertical Motion Simulator. This simulation facility supports a wide variety of research by allowing flexibility in both hardware and software. As part of a VMS Modernization Plan, NASA Ames elected to consider major alterations to the motion-base configuration. One of these was the incorporation of a hexapod on the lateral carriage of the vertical beam. This would replace both the longitudinal carriage (that provides ±4 feet of surge) as well as the rotational gimbal (that simultaneously provides ±18 degrees pitch, ±18 degrees roll, and ±24 degrees yaw). However, standard off-the-shelf hexapod geometries did not meet the requirement for this large simultaneous motion capability. New geometric designs were created based on optimization of the geometry to maximize workspace and flight metrics. This paper describes the development and implementation of these optimization and evaluation metrics. Design solutions are explored from workspace and simulation fidelity perspectives. Kinematic design issues of the hexapod are presented, including the trade-offs necessary to ensure high performance within a safe operational environment. Integration of the design with the VMS presented its own challenges, and the most relevant of these are also presented.

Figure 1. A 74-year-old woman presented to the emergency department two hours after the development of slurred speech and weakness of the left arm and leg. The blood pressure was 154/66 mm Hg, and the platelet count was 203,000 per cubic millimeter. A neurologic examination revealed a right-gaze preference, left hemiplegia, and a left hemisensory deficit. Computed tomography (CT) of the brain revealed no abnormalities, and the results of coagulation studies were normal. Tissue plasminogen activator was administered intravenously over a one-hour period for acute ischemia of the right middle cerebral artery. The blood pressure remained below 185/110 mm Hg . . .

To increase the efficiency of diffraction data collection for protein crystallographic studies, an automated system designed to store frozen protein crystals, mount them sequentially, align them to the X-ray beam, collect complete data sets, and return the crystals to storage has been developed.Advances in X-ray data collection technology including more brilliant X-ray sources, improved focusing optics, and faster-readout detectors have reduced diffraction data acquisition times from days to hours at a typical protein crystallography laboratory [1, 2]. In addition, the number of high-brilliance synchrotron X-ray beam lines dedicated to macromolecular crystallography has increased significantly, and data collection times at these facilities can be routinely less than an hour pier crystal. Because the number of protein crystals that may be collected in a 24 hr period has substantially increased, unattended X-ray data acquisition, including automated crystal mounting and alignment, is a desirable goal for protein crystallography. The ability to complete X-ray data collection more efficiently should impact a number of fields, including the emerging structural genomics field [3], structure-directed drug design, and the newly developed screening by X-ray crystallography [4], as well as small molecule applications.

Interpretation of satellite imagery, field mapping, stratigraphie and sedimentologic investigations, and a series of radiocarbon and optically- stimulated luminescence dates (OSL) define a record of Late Pleistocene and Holocene landscape change along 100 km of the Loire and Arroux Rivers in southern Burgundy, France. Seven informally designated allostratigraphic units have been differentiated, each representing time periods when rivers were adjusted to prevailing hydrological regimes. Surface morphology of Late- and Post-glacial deposits are well-preserved, showing a distinct trend from braided to meandering channel plan-forms, coupled with overall decreases in channel amplitude and sinuosity through time. Two distinct Late-Pleistocene braided stream channel deposits were emplaced ca. 86-40 ka and 23-1 1 ka, followed by a post-glacial transition to a meandering regime between 11 ka and 7,3 ka. Mid-Late Holocene units show evidence of increasing amounts of overbank deposition, with a peak in fluvial activity ca 3 ka. The youngest meanderbelt terminated around 1.53 ka, coincident with channel straightening, in-filling of abandoned channels, and development of the present gravelly meandering pattern.

Using structural equation modeling, this paper compares the intertemporal sequences of the burnout components proposed by Maslach (1982) and Golembiewski (1989) using responses from 354 human resource professionals. The relationship between the burnout components and several critical variables that are theoretically linked to the phenomenon are also investigated. Studying human resource professionals allows us to examine the generalizability of burnout. This group of employees provides a range of services to a largely internal client group, and thus experience strain from interpersonal interactions. Results support Maslach's three-factor sequential model of burnout, although its superiority over the Golembiewski sequential model is not definitive. A post hoc analysis reveals a significant path between emotional exhaustion and personal accomplishment, and an insignificant path between depersonalization and personal accomplishment. Investigation of the relationship between the burnout components and several critical, theoretically linked variables indicates significant paths between (a) role overload and emotional exhaustion, (b) noncontingent punishment and depersonalization, and (c) contingent rewards and personal accomplishment. The work documents the generalizability of burnout to managers and professionals in corporate settings. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Between 1975 and 1980, 392 patients with a palpable mass or masses were referred for breast evaluation, including risk factor assessment, physical examination, and selective utilization of aspiration cytology and mammography. Three-hundred and thirty-one (85%) were biopsied, with a benign diagnosis in 65% of the patients and cancer in 35%. The 61 patients (15%) who were not biopsied consisted of 32 patients in whom the mass disappeared on follow-up examination, 20 with stabilization on long-term follow-up, and nine with decreased mass size. Most breast masses must be biopsied, but a few can be followed and biopsy avoided. However, a decision not to biopsy requires more precise clinical judgement and experience than a decision to proceed with biopsy. Absolute indications for breast biopsy include a clinically suspicious mass, a mammogram considered malignant or suspicious, aspiration cytologic findings reported as malignant or suspicious, and a persisting, dominant mass, even if clinically benign.