Crea-Space — eine Methode zur Entwicklung des kreativen Potenzials in Teams und größeren Gruppen

Crea-space — a method to develop the creative potentials in teams and larger groups Crea-Space is a kind of group-intervention, suitable for mid-size groups. The technique is derived from Open Space and offers an instrument to generate creativity in the process of elaborating future-visions. The technique consists of five steps, step one to four provide a frame for opening up the creative potential of the group, the fifth is a commitment for the next steps towards realization of the creative ideas.     

Linear censored quantile regression: A novel minimum-distance approach

In this article, we investigate a new procedure for the estimation of a linear quantile regression with possibly right-censored responses. Contrary to the main literature on the subject, we propose in this context to circumvent the formulation of conditional quantiles through the so-called “check” loss function that stems from the influential work of Koenker and Bassett (1978). Instead, our suggestion is here to estimate the quantile coefficients by minimizing an alternative measure of distance. In fact, our approach could be qualified as a generalization in a parametric regression framework of the technique consisting in inverting the conditional distribution of the response given the covariates. This is motivated by the knowledge that the main literature for censored data already relies on some nonparametric conditional distribution estimation as well. The ideas of effective dimension reduction are then exploited in order to accommodate for higher dimensional settings as well in this context. Extensive numerical results then suggest that such an approach provides a strongly competitive procedure to the classical approaches based on the check function, in fact both for complete and censored observations. From a theoretical prospect, both consistency and asymptotic normality of the proposed estimator for linear regression are obtained under classical regularity conditions. As a by-product, several asymptotic results on some “double-kernel” version of the conditional Kaplan–Meier distribution estimator based on effective dimension reduction, and its corresponding density estimator, are also obtained and may be of interest on their own. A brief application of our procedure to quasar data then serves to further highlight the relevance of the latter for quantile regression estimation with censored data.     

Tests for stochastic ordering under biased sampling

In two-sample comparison problems it is often of interest to examine whether one distribution function majorises the other, that is, for the presence of stochastic ordering. This paper develops a nonparametric test for stochastic ordering from size-biased data, allowing the pattern of the size bias to differ between the two samples. The test is formulated in terms of a maximally selected local empirical likelihood statistic. A Gaussian multiplier bootstrap is devised to calibrate the test. Simulation results show that the proposed test outperforms an analogous Wald-type test, and that it provides substantially greater power over ignoring the size bias. The approach is illustrated using data on blood alcohol concentration of drivers involved in car accidents, where the size bias is due to drunker drivers being more likely to be involved in accidents. Further, younger drivers tend to be more affected by alcohol, so in making comparisons with older drivers the analysis is adjusted for differences in the patterns of size bias.     

Regularized Bayesian quantile regression

A number of nonstationary models have been developed to estimate extreme events as function of covariates. A quantile regression (QR) model is a statistical approach intended to estimate and conduct inference about the conditional quantile functions. In this article, we focus on the simultaneous variable selection and parameter estimation through penalized quantile regression. We conducted a comparison of regularized Quantile Regression model with B-Splines in Bayesian framework. Regularization is based on penalty and aims to favor parsimonious model, especially in the case of large dimension space. The prior distributions related to the penalties are detailed. Five penalties (Lasso, Ridge, SCAD0, SCAD1 and SCAD2) are considered with their equivalent expressions in Bayesian framework. The regularized quantile estimates are then compared to the maximum likelihood estimates with respect to the sample size. A Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) algorithms are developed for each hierarchical model to simulate the conditional posterior distribution of the quantiles. Results indicate that the SCAD0 and Lasso have the best performance for quantile estimation according to Relative Mean Biais (RMB) and the Relative Mean-Error (RME) criteria, especially in the case of heavy distributed errors. A case study of the annual maximum precipitation at Charlo, Eastern Canada, with the Pacific North Atlantic climate index as covariate is presented.     

Toward the evaluation of P(X(t) > Y(t)) when both X(t) and Y(t) are inactivity times of two systems

The inactivity time, also known as reversed residual life, has been a topic of increasing interest in the literature. In this investigation, based on the comparison of inactivity times of two devices, we introduce and study a new estimate of the probability of the inactivity time of one device exceeding that of another device. The problem studied in this paper is important for engineers and system designers. It would enable them to compare the inactivity times of the products and, hence to design better products. Several properties of this probability are established. Connections between the target probability and the reversed hazard rates of the two devices are established. In addition, some of the reliability properties of the new concept are investigated extending the well-known probability ordering. Finally, to illustrate the introduced concepts, many examples and applications in the context of reliability theory are included.     

Probabilities of electoral outcomes: from three-candidate to four-candidate elections

The main purpose of this paper is to compute the theoretical likelihood of some electoral outcomes under the impartial anonymous culture in four-candidate elections by using the last versions of software like LattE or Normaliz. By comparison with the three-candidate case, our results allow to analyze the impact of the number of candidates on the occurrence of these voting outcomes.

     

Vegetated roofs in boreal climate support mobile open habitat arthropods,with differentiation between meadow and succulent roofs

Urban Ecosystems - Vegetated roofs are hoped to benefit urban wildlife, yet there are few empirical results regarding the conservation potential of such roofs. In this paper, we focus on arthropods...     

Post‐Marxist Trajectories: Diagnosis,Criticism, Utopia*

In this article, I examine the troublesome notion of “post‐Marxism.” First, I read post‐Marxism as an expression of the transformations entailed by our post‐1968 entry into what world‐systems thinkers call “an age of transition.” Second, drawing on Tormey and Townshend's work, I explore the thematic unity of post‐Marxism in terms of six problems posed to Marxism—the problems of history, revolutionary subjectivity, ethics, positivism, vanguardism, and democracy. Third, I suggest that, given the many questions raised by post‐Marxist efforts to go beyond these problems, and given the passing of the phase of what Holmes has called “happy globalization,” serious doubts are raised about the theoretical and utopian gains achieved by post‐Marxism and the distance we might want to travel from the suggestions offered by the Marxian tradition.     

The march for gender equality of Algerian women: The struggle for spatial and historical recognition

Social and political anti-government movements have been major headlines across the globe in recent years, with a noticeable participation of women. In the MENA region, such movements spanned Egypt, Tunisia, Algeria, and Lebanon among others. Through an ethnographic inquiry into the Algerian pro-democracy movement Hirak (2019–2021), we delve into women's experiences of the Hirak to show how women remain marginalized politically, economically, and socially despite their heavy and praised participation. Using a recognition theory lens, we unveil dialectics of unity and division in the struggle for recognition among women in Algeria, a post-colonial context charged with conflicting ideological stances. We detect two structural dimensions of the struggle, a spatial/physical dimension and a historical/temporal dimension that help surface different gender positionalities and their dynamics as they vie for recognition. We stress the importance of not homogenizing women's political struggles, especially in the Global South.     

Institutions and the shaping of different forms of entrepreneurship

Entrepreneurship is a broad concept encompassing a wide range of activities, from the Schumpertian ideal associated with innovation to simply creating a job for oneself. Because we ask about national differences in entrepreneurship, we consider national differences for entrepreneurship, the institutions, and if these relate to the emergence of different types of enterprise. We propose that national patent grants represent innovation and that national self-employment rates represent job replacement. Interestingly, we found that institutional factors that determine self-employment and innovation may act in opposite directions: what encourages self-employment might discourage innovation and vice-versa.