An Empirical Test of Competing Theories of Hazard-Related Trust: The Case of GM Food

Few scholars doubt the importance of trust in explaining variation in public perception of technological risk. Relatively little, however, is known about the particular types of judgments that people use in granting or withholding trust. This article presents findings from an empirical study that explores several dimensions of trust relevant for citizens' judgments of scientists involved in the development of GM food. The relationship between particular dimensions of trust and perceptions of GM food risk is also explored, using structural equation modeling. Results suggest that trust judgments based on the perception of shared values are most important in relation to GM food risk, but that judgments about scientists' technical competence are also important.     

Underlying Values and Consequences in Financial Services

The freeing of financial markets has brought with it increasing sophistication in regulatory regimes. Over time, a succession of frauds and financial scandals has emphasised some limitations of these complex regulatory schemes. This paper seeks to address the reasons for the events that have caused concern, and suggests that they are to be found principally in three categories: (1) the underlying values that drive financial services; (2) the assumptions and values of regulatory regimes, and (3) the increased opportunities to break or evade the rules. Some possible ways forward are sketched. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Using In Vitro High‐Throughput Screening Data for Predicting Benzo[k]Fluoranthene Human Health Hazards

Today there are more than 80,000 chemicals in commerce and the environment. The potential human health risks are unknown for the vast majority of these chemicals as they lack human health risk assessments, toxicity reference values, and risk screening values. We aim to use computational toxicology and quantitative high‐throughput screening (qHTS) technologies to fill these data gaps, and begin to prioritize these chemicals for additional assessment. In this pilot, we demonstrate how we were able to identify that benzo[k]fluoranthene may induce DNA damage and steatosis using qHTS data and two separate adverse outcome pathways (AOPs). We also demonstrate how bootstrap natural spline‐based meta‐regression can be used to integrate data across multiple assay replicates to generate a concentration–response curve. We used this analysis to calculate an in vitro point of departure of 0.751 μM and risk‐specific in vitro concentrations of 0.29 μM and 0.28 μM for 1:1,000 and 1:10,000 risk, respectively, for DNA damage. Based on the available evidence, and considering that only a single HSD17B4 assay is available, we have low overall confidence in the steatosis hazard identification. This case study suggests that coupling qHTS assays with AOPs and ontologies will facilitate hazard identification. Combining this with quantitative evidence integration methods, such as bootstrap meta‐regression, may allow risk assessors to identify points of departure and risk‐specific internal/in vitro concentrations. These results are sufficient to prioritize the chemicals; however, in the longer term we will need to estimate external doses for risk screening purposes, such as through margin of exposure methods.     

Values and Their Change During the Business Education – A Gender Perspective

Modern management and organization theory have been criticized for being based on masculine values and concepts. The theory and associated values influence not only managerial behavior in practice, but also business education's value system. In this study, we analyze the change in values during business education from a gender perspective. By values we mean feminine and masculine values. Our empirical study is based on the literature of cultural values and gender socialization theories. We surveyed 324 students. The result of our study lends support to earlier research: men are more masculine and women more feminine in their values. The change towards masculinity during business education is not supported statistically in this study. However, there may be a weak tendency towards masculinity, especially among female students. In addition, we propose that it is possible that business students have a tendency to try to fulfil masculine needs in their occupational choice. Further research is needed to investigate the empirical findings of our study. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

银行客户信用评估动态分类器集成选择模型

现实的银行客户信用评估数据常包含大量的缺失值,这在很大程度上影响了信用评估模型的性能.针对已有模型的不足,提出了面向缺失数据的动态分类器集成选择模型DCESM.该模型充分利用数据集中所包含的已知信息,在训练信用评估模型之前不需要事先对缺失数据进行预处理,从而减少了对数据缺失机制假设以及数据分布模型的依赖.从UCI数据库中选择两个银行信用卡业务信用评估数据集进行实证分析,结果表明,与4种常用的基于插补法的多分类器集成模型以及1种直接面向缺失数据建模的集成模型相比,DCESM模型能够取得更好的客户信用评估性能.     

叔本华的悲剧价值观及其现代性意义

叔本华把意志看作悲剧的本体。意志是非理性的、盲目的冲动,意志本体导致了人生必然的痛苦。把人类从苦海中拯救出来,叔本华指明了两条拯救途径。一条是艺术拯救途径,另一条是伦理拯救途径。艺术拯救只是暂时性的,伦理拯救才具有永久功效。悲剧兼具了这两种拯救功效。叔本华指出了悲剧拯救人生的价值和意义,但由他的意志本体论导出了他的悲剧因果悖论,同时悲剧关注的是人生的痛苦,艺术拯救萌芽出了现代审美本体观,以上这些使得叔本华的悲剧拯救具有了现代意味。     

Extreme value and cluster analysis of European daily temperature series

Time series of daily mean temperature obtained from the European Climate Assessment data set is analyzed with respect to their extremal properties. A time-series clustering approach which combines Bayesian methodology, extreme value theory and classification techniques is adopted for the analysis of the regional variability of temperature extremes. The daily mean temperature records are clustered on the basis of their corresponding predictive distributions for 25-, 50- and 100-year return values. The results of the cluster analysis show a clear distinction between the highest altitude stations, for which the return values are lowest, and the remaining stations. Furthermore, a clear distinction is also found between the northernmost stations in Scandinavia and the stations in central and southern Europe. This spatial structure of the return period distributions for 25-, 50- and 100-years seems to be consistent with projected changes in the variability of temperature extremes over Europe pointing to a different behavior in central Europe than in northern Europe and the Mediterranean area, possibly related to the effect of soil moisture and land-atmosphere coupling.     

价值流——企业构建质量管理体系的基础

价值流是指从开始到结束的一组活动 ,它以特定的顾客为中心 ,追求顾客满意。价值流是企业进行有效管理、取得竞争优势的基础。企业有效运用 ISO 90 0 0 :2 0 0 0标准的核心理念是以顾客为中心和持续改进。传统企业价值流的再建有其必要性和可能性 ,企业应在价值流的基础上建立质量管理体系     

含零总体中位数的经验似然

当所研究的总体中含有一定比率的零值,而其余的值大于零时,则称为含零总体。文章利用Owen的经验似然方法来构造这类总体的中位数的置信区间,所得结果不需要假设总体服从某种参数模型,并能利用样本中零值的信息,而且构造的置信区间受非零总体偏斜的影响比一些其他非参数方法小一些。同时,随机模拟的结果也显示了这一点。     

当代大学生价值观的调查与研究

笔者认为,大学生在各个方面的价值取向受其所处的社会环境的客观影响,高校应加强对大学生进行邓小平理论和江泽民同志提出的“三个代表”的教育,帮助他们树立正确的人生观和价值观。