The magic matrix as a smart machine evaluator: Machine performance measurement,level of competitiveness

Today's competitive environment compels companies to be the best at the work they do. Machining efficiency establishes the plant level of performance and thus the ability to compete in the market. However, as product mix changes, and new machines possessing more and better capabilities are introduced, machining efficiency varies over time. Therefore, continuous evaluation of machine fitness for product mix has to be made. This is a huge task and is seldom done due to a lack of efficient tools to perform such an evaluation. This paper presents a computerized method that may be used to perform the evaluation task and establish the company level of competitiveness in an honest, and just way, free from improper influence. Conclusions drawn, and actions and decisions made as a result of the evaluation, are the prerogative of management. The evaluation method employs a matrix concept, which is fully described in this paper.     

Generalized Steiner Problems and Other Variants

In this paper, we examine combinatorial optimization problems by considering the case where the set N (the ground set of elements) is expressed as a union of a finite number of m nonempty distinct subsets N ₁,...,N _m. The term we use is the generalized Steiner problems coined after the Generalized Traveling Salesman Problem. We have collected a short list of classical combinatorial optimization problems and we have recast each of these problems in this broader framework in an attempt to identify a linkage between these “generalized” problems. In the literature one finds generalized problems such as the Generalized Minimum Spanning Tree (GMST), Generalized Traveling Salesman Problem (GTSP) and Subset Bin-packing (SBP). Casting these problems into the new problem setting has important implications in terms of the time effort required to compute an optimal solution or a “good” solution to a problem. We examine questions like “is the GTSP “harder” than the TSP?” for a number of paradigmatic problems starting with “easy” problems such as the Minimal Spanning Tree, Assignment Problem, Chinese Postman, Two-machine Flow Shop, and followed by “hard” problems such as the Bin-packing, and the TSP.     

A “Jewish Study Hall” Influenced Approach to Social Work Professional Identity Development: A Qualitative Study

The article presents the findings of a qualitative research study focused on the ancient “Jewish study hall” (Beit Midrash in Hebrew) approach. The research was conducted in the context of the Beit Midrash for Social Work and Judaism established at one school of social work in Israel. Twenty participants were included in the study. Content analysis of transcribed Beit Midrash sessions revealed four central themes: reflection on participant identities; expansion, stabilisation, and acceptance of one’s personal identity; clarification of professional identity; and convergence between Jewish and professional identity. Study results raise questions as to both the place and the space for exploration of religious and spiritual identity in social work education. Findings suggest that alternative learning spaces such as the Beit Midrash can enable social work students and practitioners to reflect honestly and profoundly on their religious and spiritual identity, helping them to integrate their different identities towards becoming “whole persons” better prepared to meet the challenges of the social work profession.     

Does the age of offenders and victims in crime scenarios affect perceptions of crime seriousness and punitiveness among students?

The extent to which the age of the offender or the victim influences respondents' respective evaluations of crime seriousness and punitiveness has rarely been studied. This study hypothesizes that evaluations of the severity of offenses with intrapersonal and interpersonal social implications and the estimation of their punitiveness will be more serious when the offenses are performed by younger than by older offenders and less serious when they harm younger as opposed to older victims. Results from 129 undergraduate students who were administered the Multidimensional Social Transgressions Scale (MSTS) confirm the hypotheses. The findings are discussed in light of crime theories, social theories, and ageism studies.     

Mental Health and Coping Patterns in Jewish Gay Men in Israel: The Role of Dual Identity Conflict,Religious Identity,and Partnership Status

This study examined the effects of dual-identity conflict, religious identity (religious/spiritual vs. sexual), and partnership status on the coping strategies and mental health of gay Jewish men in modern Israeli society. Participants were 73 religious and 71 secular gay men recruited via e-mail, social networking sites, and online resources targeting sexual minority men. Participants were assessed via measures of identity conflict, mental health, and coping strategies. Jewish gay men who reported more severe identity conflict also reported using less problem-focused and avoidance coping and more emotion-focused coping strategies and reported poorer mental health than their less identity-conflicted counterparts. Furthermore, gay men who self-identified as religious reported poorer mental health as well as less problem-focused coping and more emotion-focused coping compared to secular men. Religious gay men in romantic relationships reported lower intensities of dual-identity conflict and better mental health compared to their nonpartnered counterparts.     

Climbing the Family Tree: Working with Genograms

The genogram is a practical and widely adopted tool for mapping families in therapy. Its use can be easily learnt and is recommended for beginners in family therapy. The genogram promotes thinking In system and transactional terms, and shifts emphasis away from individual problems to relational issues. A family system can be given a visual focus, and this often reveals patterns and connections previously unnoticed. A set of conventions for constructing genograms is suggested, with ways of elaborating on this basic frame. The applications of the genogram in joining families, in planning interventions, as a clinical communication medium, and in learning family therapy are discussed. Other types of network diagrams are briefly listed, and a clinical example of a genogram is given. Finally, limits and cautions on the use of genograms are discussed.     

中国国有企业和中外合资企业中的领导风格及异化:比较与启示

本文是一项对中国国有企业与中外合资企业的比较研究,我们用组织行为学和人力资源管理中的两个重要指标——领导风格和异化来比较两类企业的管理和社会效益。对相关企业员工所回答的问卷的统计分析显示出国有企业和中外合资企业不同的领导风格和员工异化状态,文章讨论了差别的原因及其对于国有企业管理变革的启示。     

School Refusal An Empirical Study and System Analysis

The empirical, clinical and theoretical literature on School Refusal is reviewed. A study is reported in which a comprehensive group of forty severe school refusers was compared with a matched control group. They differed on a wide range of variables. The school refusing children were more depressed, anxious, introverted, neurotic, over protected and less intelligent. Their parents' educational attainment and levels of intelligence were lower; they were older and had larger families; father's occupational status was lower and he was often absent from home. The results are discussed. A three level system theory interpretation is presented:

• (i) child;
• (ii) family;
• (iii) beyond the family.

Some therapeutic implications are offered.     

Using partially observed Markov processes to select optimal termination time of TV shows

This paper presents a method for optimal control of a running television show. The problem is formulated as a partially observed Markov decision process (POMDP). A show can be in a “good” state, i.e., it should be continued, or it can be in a “bad” state and therefore it should be changed. The ratings of a show are modeled as a stochastic process that depends on the show's state. An optimal rule for a continue/change decision, which maximizes the expected present value of profits from selling advertising time, is expressed in terms of the prior probability of the show being in the good state. The optimal rule depends on the size of the investment in changing a show, the difference in revenues between a “good” and a “bad” show and the number of time periods remaining until the end of the planning horizon. The application of the method is illustrated with simulated ratings as well as real data.