GLOBAL JOB SHOP SCHEDULING WITH A GENETIC ALGORITHM

This paper describes a global job shop scheduling procedure that uses a genetic algorithm to find a good schedule. Unlike previously considered algorithms, this procedure has been implemented in the scheduling system for a manufacturing facility and has led to improved scheduling. This facility is a semiconductor test area. The test area is a job shop and has sequence-dependent setup times at some operations. The concern of management is to meet their customer due dates and to increase throughput. This requires the coordination of many resources, a task beyond the ability of simple dispatching rules. We discuss a centralized procedure that can find a good schedule through the use of a detailed scheduling model and a genetic algorithm that searches over combinations of dispatching rules. We discuss our effort in developing a system that models the shop, creates schedules for the test area personnel, and makes a number of contributions to test area management.     

21世纪东亚价值观--从比较思想的角度

任何思想和文化的本质都不是独自形成的,而是与其他思想和文化有着密切的关联.所以通过比较韩国、中国、日本的思想和文化的本质,找出东亚三国思想的差异性,通过与西欧中心主义的比较找出其普遍性,从而使相对独立发展的,不强求相互同一化,但相互促进的东亚文化,成为21世纪东西方思想文化的共同价值.     

Corporate interests within transnational advocacy networks: The International Coalition Against Plain Packaging

Most of the research on transnational advocacy networks documents progressive, voluntary movements, motivated by values associate with human rights and public goods. There is little critical reflection on the role of corporations within such networks or on the material motivations behind movements. Meanwhile literature on corporate political strategies related to partnerships with civil society is limited to national level analysis. This article presents a case study of the International Coalition Against Plain Packaging, which is conceptualized as a transnational advocacy network, and documents its links to the tobacco industry. We find that, not only have tobacco companies provided network members – publicly presented and perceived as independent – with financial resources, but they have also been involved in producing the information used by the network to debate the benefits of plain packaging. In return, the tobacco industry is able to propagate ideas favorable to its interests through organizations perceived as legitimate experts, and to maintain a network of allies ready to counter tobacco control regulations when and where they arise. Considering the multiple benefits corporations might derive from engaging with transnational advocacy networks, there is need for greater research on private actors’ influence within advocacy networks and on those networks that aim to counter or advance alternatives to progressive ideals.     

Abstinence-Only: Are You Not Working the Program or Is the Program Not Working for You?

Low retention rates are common in substance use treatment programs. The dominant model of service delivery in the United States is abstinence-only, a high-threshold service delivery model requiring abstinence. What “doesn’t work” for the client—from the client point of view—is an overlooked source of insight about client engagement and disengagement. We report client counter-narratives about the choice to disengage from abstinence-based services, shifting from a story of “dropouts” to one of self-respect. Understanding why clients choose to disengage from treatment can help us as practitioners to “meet clients where they are” and enhance engagement in substance abuse treatment.     

Question-Order Effects on Presidential Popularity

A methodological experiment is conducted on the same questionthat is used virtually every month in the Gallup Poll to measurepresidential popularity. The point of the experiment is to determinewhether presidential popularity is affected by the placementof the question within the survey, in response to a recent chargethat alternations in the order in which this question has beenasked invalidate time-series analyses of presidential popularity.The primary finding is that the order in which the questionis presented does not significantly affect the direction ofresponse (the balance between approval and disapproval), butit does affect opinionation (the willingness to make a directionalresponse, whether positive or negative). This effect is foundto be particularly pronounced for less educated respondents.The implications of these findings for time series analysisof presidential popularity are spelled out.     

COMMODITY TAXATION IN WELFARE STATES

Unemployment is a central policy issue in countries with a “generous” welfare system that is hard to reform. This paper addresses why these countries tend to adopt high commodity tax rates in the optimal taxation context. We explore the role of commodity taxation in alleviating moral hazard and hence involuntary unemployment and then provide supportive evidence from a quantitative analysis. Unlike the usual full employment models, at the heart of this paper is a new dimension of distortion, the “between‐states” (employment state vs. unemployment state) consumption choice distortion, which can be dealt with by a certain optimal combination of commodity and income taxation. Our results therefore offer an explanation for the widely observed coexistence of direct and indirect taxation. (JEL D61, D81, H21)     

李玄逸的四端七情论

在朝鲜中期的"四端七情之辩"中,李退溪与李栗谷之间虽未直接交锋,但他们对于"四端七情"的不同看法却分别为后世儒者所继承,而形成所谓"主理派"(岭南学派)与"主气派"(畿湖学派)之对垒。李玄逸是所谓的"主理学者",在"四端七情"的问题上继承退溪的观点。他撰有《栗谷李氏论四端七情辨》。李玄逸的辩驳文字,当中显现三重混淆:首先,他并未意识到,朱子以其理气二分、心性情三分的性理学架构来诠释孟子的"四端"说,其实偏离了孟子的基本观点。其次,他未意识到,在理气论及"四端七情"方面,李退溪的观点已逸出了朱子的性理学架构,反倒是李栗谷更忠于朱子的观点。最后,他也未意识到,当李退溪的观点逸出了朱子的性理学架构时,李退溪反而比李栗谷更接近孟子的基本观点。     

宋诗语词拾诂三例

本文以排比文例之法,对出现于《全宋诗》中“鼎鼎”、“堂堂”、“力贫”等语词加以考释,旨在说明阅读宋诗,有必要了解一下宋代语言变化。     

THE ECONOMICS OF CARPOOLS

The paper shows how separate parts of a work trip enter the decision to carpool, and examines how the size of a carpool is related to the gasoline price, the wage rate, speed limits, and other factors. The paper also suggests that policies designed to promote carpooling may produce perverse effects on gasoline consumption.