Integrating Operational and Organizational Aspects in Interdependent Infrastructure Network Recovery

Managing risk in infrastructure systems implies dealing with interdependent physical networks and their relationships with the natural and societal contexts. Computational tools are often used to support operational decisions aimed at improving resilience, whereas economics‐related tools tend to be used to address broader societal and policy issues in infrastructure management. We propose an optimization‐based framework for infrastructure resilience analysis that incorporates organizational and socioeconomic aspects into operational problems, allowing to understand relationships between decisions at the policy level (e.g., regulation) and the technical level (e.g., optimal infrastructure restoration). We focus on three issues that arise when integrating such levels. First, optimal restoration strategies driven by financial and operational factors evolve differently compared to those driven by socioeconomic and humanitarian factors. Second, regulatory aspects have a significant impact on recovery dynamics (e.g., effective recovery is most challenging in societies with weak institutions and regulation, where individual interests may compromise societal well‐being). And third, the decision space (i.e., available actions) in postdisaster phases is strongly determined by predisaster decisions (e.g., resource allocation). The proposed optimization framework addresses these issues by using: (1) parametric analyses to test the influence of operational and socioeconomic factors on optimization outcomes, (2) regulatory constraints to model and assess the cost and benefit (for a variety of actors) of enforcing specific policy‐related conditions for the recovery process, and (3) sensitivity analyses to capture the effect of predisaster decisions on recovery. We illustrate our methodology with an example regarding the recovery of interdependent water, power, and gas networks in Shelby County, TN (USA), with exposure to natural hazards.     

Risk Modeling of Interdependent Complex Systems of Systems: Theory and Practice

The emergence of the complexity characterizing our systems of systems (SoS) requires a reevaluation of the way we model, assess, manage, communicate, and analyze the risk thereto. Current models for risk analysis of emergent complex SoS are insufficient because too often they rely on the same risk functions and models used for single systems. These models commonly fail to incorporate the complexity derived from the networks of interdependencies and interconnectedness (I–I) characterizing SoS. There is a need to reevaluate currently practiced risk analysis to respond to this reality by examining, and thus comprehending, what makes emergent SoS complex. The key to evaluating the risk to SoS lies in understanding the genesis of characterizing I–I of systems manifested through shared states and other essential entities within and among the systems that constitute SoS. The term “essential entities” includes shared decisions, resources, functions, policies, decisionmakers, stakeholders, organizational setups, and others. This undertaking can be accomplished by building on state‐space theory, which is fundamental to systems engineering and process control. This article presents a theoretical and analytical framework for modeling the risk to SoS with two case studies performed with the MITRE Corporation and demonstrates the pivotal contributions made by shared states and other essential entities to modeling and analysis of the risk to complex SoS. A third case study highlights the multifarious representations of SoS, which require harmonizing the risk analysis process currently applied to single systems when applied to complex SoS.     

Decision‐making under uncertainty in child protection: Creating a just and learning culture

The argument is made for having a positive error culture in child protection to improve decision‐making and risk management. This requires organizations to accept that mistakes are likely and to treat them as opportunities for learning and improving. In contrast, in many organizations, a punitive reaction to errors leads to workers hiding them and developing a defensive approach to their practice with children and families. The safety management literature has shown how human error is generally not simply due to a “bad apple” but made more or less likely by the work context that helps or hinders good performance. Improving safety requires learning about the weaknesses in the organization that contribute to poor performance. To create a learning culture, people need to feel that when they talk about mistakes or weak practice, there will be a constructive response from their organization. One aspect of reducing the blame culture is to develop a shared understanding of how practice will be judged and how those appraising practice will avoid the hindsight bias. To facilitate a positive error culture, a set of risk principles are presented that offer a set of criteria by which practice should be appraised.     

论观点采择与皮亚杰的去自我中心化

关于儿童对个人的心理过程、心理特征的认知的研究始于皮亚杰。皮亚杰提出了“自我中心化”和“去自我中心化”的概念 ,在社会认知发展的研究中占有重要的地位。观点采择的本质特征在于个体认识上的去自我中心化 ,即能够站在他人的角度 ,从他人的角度看待问题。对观点采择的研究是对皮亚杰关于儿童自我中心化和去自我中心化发展研究的继承和发展     

论邓小平的国家利益观

邓小平的国家利益观是邓小平外交思想的重要组成部分 ,对我国正确处理国家关系具有重要的指导意义。邓小平国家利益观的主要内容表现为国家利益是处理国家关系的最高准则 ,国家之间的利益关系是一种平等的关系 ,寻求国家间的共同利益是和平解决国家之间冲突的关键。     

浅谈移情对儿童攻击性行为的影响

儿童的攻击性行为是儿童发展过程中表现出的一种不良社会性行为 ,对儿童攻击行为的控制与纠正一直是发展心理学研究的重要领域。移情作为儿童亲社会行为的重要促动因素 ,同时对攻击性行为具有较好的抑制作用。因此探讨利用移情减少攻击性以及培养提高儿童的移情能力对儿童的良性社会性发展具有重要的理论和实践意义。     

翻译研究与翻译文化观

如果以国外近半个世纪来翻译研究的进展为背景,回顾国内近３０年翻译研究的历程,可以发现重技轻道、重语言轻文化和重微观轻宏观等值得反思的问题以及翻译语言学途径的不足与局限。因此,在翻译研究中应加强翻译的文化意识,进一步确立文化观,进而在翻译文化观的指导下,在多元文化的语境下深化我们的翻译研究。     

冯梦龙《山歌》的女性话语解析

以女性视角来解读晚明时期的《山歌》，其充满一种女权主义的隐喻，是在封建伦理式微前夕男权中心的退位及女权意识的崛起在民间的映证。     

王安忆小说中的童年意象

童年意象的运用是王安忆小说独树一帜的重要原因."成长中的儿童"是王安忆小说中特有的形象.以儿童形象为象征载体进行文化批判是对童年意象的出色运用.儿童视角的发掘使王安忆的小说取得了"陌生化"的审美效果,也使细节化呈现文本的艺术表达方式与文本的精神内涵完美地结合起来.儿童视角的运用还让作家能以旁观者的眼光看世界,保持了独立、警醒的创作立场.     

Challenge of multi-level governance in developing countries and possible GIS applications

Of the three most prominent issues in governance discourse—the horizontal coordination of markets, government hierarchies and networks, global governance and multi-level governance—this paper argues that the last, developing and sustaining structures of multi-level governance, constitutes the most profound governance challenge for most developing countries.The paper identifies the major forces promoting change in favor of multi-level governance in developing countries. Using the growing literature and comparative national experiences (illustrated with the examples of India, the Philippines, Colombia and Nigeria), it highlights the key achievements of democratic decentralization as well as its nagging problems in these countries. Finally, the paper demonstrates the significance of these developments for democracy and development in these countries and shows some of the ways by which external partners—especially experts associated with the Geographic Information Systems for Developing Countries can assist and possibly benefit from this process.