American Indian/Alaska Native Elders: A Growing Demographic that Is Changing How We View Aging

Today, AIAN Elders are more actively engaged in their families and communities, encouraging the development of intergenerational programs, language and cultural revitalization, being stewards in research conducted in their communities, as well passing on their knowledge and experiences on how to live as healthy Native people. Elders have traditionally been quiet and observant of their environment, but the current and future cohorts of Elders are advocates, leaders, and culture bearers for their families and communities and they are now in positions of leadership. Western society acknowledges the value of traditional knowledge and AIAN Elders are viewed as exemplars of healthy aging and their lessons and experiences can be attributed to our own lives. This commentary highlights the paradigm shift in how society views older adults, specifically AIAN Elders and their role in health and wellbeing.     

深化高等教育质量改革的几点思考

高等教育质量是高校得以存在与发展的命脉。中国高等教育转型给高校目标定位、优质教育资源、高等教育活动、教学管理与考试制度等方面带来了困扰，影响了高等教育质量的提升。战略上重塑教学中心地位，战术上瞄准高等教育自身活动的改革，引入竞争淘汰制，激发师生教与学的潜能，建构灵活开放的高等教育制度体系，根据人性理论以外力激活大学生学习的内力与自律，是提高高等教育质量的有效路径。     

知识产权“十二五”发展规划实施的关键难题与机遇研究

知识产权＂十二五＂发展规划具有多重属性与复杂性、制定组织结构多元化、地区发展不平衡及其与环境匹配较难等特点,较薄弱的知识产权基础因素与国际发展动态影响下,使得我国知识产权＂十二五＂发展规划实施挑战与机遇并存。     

Agreements About Extra-Dyadic Sex in Gay Men's Relationships: Exploring Differences in Relationship Quality by Agreement Type and Rule-Breaking Behavior

Research comparing the quality of monogamous and non-monogamous (“open”) relationships among gay men has produced mixed findings. In addition, little is known about the consequences of breaking the rules of relationship agreements about extra-dyadic sex. Results from a survey of 229 gay men in romantic relationships showed that open relationships were less passionate, but no less intimate or committed, than monogamous or “threesome-only” relationships. However, men who broke rules reported lower relationship quality overall, regardless of the relationship agreement. Thus, it is less the nature of the agreement itself than adhering to the conditions of it that influences relationship quality.     

A Design of Attributes Double Sampling Plans for Three-class Products

In this article, a new attributes double sampling plan for three-class products (ADSPTP) is presented, and the corresponding operating characteristic function is constructed based on the given procedure of performing ADSPTP. Average sample numbers (ASN) for complete inspection and curtailed inspection of the second sample are derived and the extreme point is discussed on the three-dimensional ASN surface. In addition, the differences arising from different parameters are studied. Sampling plans are designed by a nonlinear optimization model. Finally, numerical examples and discussions are given to illustrate the obtained results, and tables of the designed plans under various conditions are provided.     

Modelling of connected processes

The problem of comparing, contrasting and combining information from different sets of data is an enduring one in many practical applications of statistics. A specific problem of combining information from different sources arose in integrating information from three different sets of data generated by three different sampling campaigns at the input stage as well as at the output stage of a grey-water treatment process. For each stage, a common process trend function needs to be estimated to describe the input and output material process behaviours. Once the common input and output process models are established, it is required to estimate the efficiency of the grey-water treatment method. A synthesized tool for modelling different sets of process data is created by assembling and organizing a number of existing techniques: (i) a mixed model of fixed and random effects, extended to allow for a nonlinear fixed effect, (ii) variogram modelling, a geostatistical technique, (iii) a weighted least squares regression embedded in an iterative maximum-likelihood technique to handle linear/nonlinear fixed and random effects and (iv) a formulation of a transfer-function model for the input and output processes together with a corresponding nonlinear maximum-likelihood method for estimation of a transfer function. The synthesized tool is demonstrated, in a new case study, to contrast and combine information from connected process models and to determine the change in one quality characteristic, namely pH, of the input and output materials of a grey-water filtering process.     

论中日茶道文化的意境与精神气质

中日茶道文化是东方文化中的两朵奇葩,但是由于诸多原因,中日茶道文化在意境和精神气质上有着较大区别:中国的茶道仪式自然随和,圆润融通,日本的茶道仪式则过于拘于程序和礼节;中国将饮茶发展为日常生活艺术,日本则将饮茶变为俨然清规;中国茶文化是雅俗共赏的大众文化,日本茶文化则是高高在上的仪式文化。     

二级院系教学质量监控体系

在校院两级管理体系下,二级院系教学质量监控尤为重要。通过对二级院系教学质量监控现状的分析,提出二级院系要做好教学质量监控必须明确建设目标和建设内容,从监控体系的组织、人员构成、监控制度、监控内涵到信息反馈、改进系统,以及运行保障措施等几个方面采取措施,从而保证教学质量监控工作的持续、有效进行。     

Revisiting the effectiveness of the employment‐oriented welfare state: Considering the quality of employment achievement

The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of an employment‐oriented welfare state. While previous studies have focused on employment growth, this study considers the quality of employment, especially its mediating impact between public social expenditure and fiscal soundness. Three‐step mediated regression analysis was conducted on a data sample from 19 developed countries from 1991 to 2013. The results show that while public social expenditure negatively affects fiscal soundness, if it promotes total and part‐time employment, it can positively affect fiscal soundness. However, when the incidence of involuntary part‐time employment is high, public social expenditure and its impact on employment performance no longer guarantee fiscal soundness. This study addresses the importance of promoting not only employment growth but also employment quality to secure fiscal soundness.     

Job quality,industrial relations and the crisis in Europe

This paper reports results from recent Eurofound research on the impact of the crisis on industrial relations and working conditions in Europe, based on the output of Eurofound's European Working Conditions Observatory and European Industrial Relations Observatory and data from the European Working Conditions Survey. Overall, the crisis – even if it is sometimes difficult to separate the effect of the crisis from megatrends in working conditions and industrial relations – seems to have had an impact on both domains. With reference to industrial relations, the impact of the crisis has influenced actors, processes, and outcomes. Regarding working conditions, the results appear to be in line with the literature on the topic, which relates the crisis to an increase in job insecurity, a decrease in work intensity, in working hours, and in anti-social working time arrangements, and a general improvement in terms of health risks and related outcomes.