Industrial policy: The case for national strategies for world markets

This article considers the objectives of an industrial policy that would develop national strategies for world markets. It describes the tools used to implement such strategies and how the strategies would be organized. The author also considers some of the advantages and disadvantages of developing national strategies for world markets.     

The size of the nonstationary component and its effect on tests for unit roots

We consider a nonstationary time series that is composed of a stationary and nonstationary component. Monte Carlo experiments show that common unit root tests have probabilities of committing a type I error that significantly exceed the level of significance. We find that the probabilities vary according to the relative size of the nonstationary component.     

Automatic starting point selection for function optimization

Traditional (non-stochastic) iterative methods for optimizing functions with multiple optima require a good procedure for selecting starting points. This paper illustrates how the selection of starting points can be made automatically by using a method based upon simulated annealing. We present a hybrid algorithm, possessing the accuracy of traditional routines, whilst incorporating the reliability of annealing methods, and illustrate its performance for a particularly complex practical problem.Now at the Statistical Laboratory, University of Cambridge, 16 Mill Lane, Cambridge, CB2 1SB, UK.     

THE SOCIAL CONTEXT OF TECHNOLOGICAL CHANGE: The Case of the Retail Food Industry

Technological innovations result not just from advances in science, but also social system reorganization. Reorganization is problematic, as various organizations and constituents pursue their interests and causes. Expanding on previous work in the economics and sociology of innovation, three cases from the retail food industry (frozen meat, boxed beef, and scanners) illustrate the process described in a politicized-context model of innovation. Market context, political contingencies, and established social relations all influence innovations. Thus, including these factors in the politicized-context model provides better understanding of the particular paths of innovation.     

Some practical considerations on multi-server queues with multiple poisson arrivals

A simple approximate formula is presented and evaluated in this paper for the steady-state average number of customers in the M^(x)/G/r queueing system. The derivation of the formula is based on a heuristic argument. Comparisons between approximate results and the ones obtained analytically or by extensive simulation experiments seem to suggest that the degree of approximation achieved is satisfactory for most practical purposes.     

Self-management competencies in self-managing teams: Their impact on multi-team system productivity

This research examined how composition of individual capabilities within self-managed teams translates into greater effectiveness for multi-team systems (MTS) in which teams are embedded. We investigated how a broad range of self-management competencies by team members aggregate to form a collective construct that influences productivity of a team network. In a semiconductor plant, we surveyed 716 members from 97 self-managed teams in 21 MTS. We found that MTS comprising teams whose members widely practice self-management strategies attain higher productivity gains and that multi-team systems consisting of highly cohesive teams of self-managers are the most productive.