Education CREATIVE THINKING AND INNOVATIVE EDUCATION IN THE DECISION SCIENCES

Creative problem solving is seldom addressed directly in the decision sciences literature. The first half of this paper reviews current thinking about creativity and its educational importance. The remainder addresses creative problem-solving processes and, in particular, the process developed by Parnes, Noller and Biondi [24] and Osborn [23]. This process has been integrated into an OR/MS problem-solving course which is described. Conclusions and implications for decision sciences education and practice in general are discussed.     

A NOTE ON HOLDING COSTS AND LOT-SIZE ERRORS

This note examines the sensitivity of the basic economic-order-quantity inventory model to lot-size errors when holding costs are assumed to be a strictly increasing (though not necessarily linear) function of average inventory. In particular, we show that the penalty associated with ordering either too much or too little is a function not only of the size of the error but of the shape of the holding-cost curve as well. We demonstrate that, under certain conditions, even relatively small lot-size errors can be extremely costly.     

THE IMPACT OF EXTREME OBSERVATIONS ON SIMPLE FORECASTING METHODS*

In general linear modeling, an alternative to the method of least squares (LS) is the least absolute deviations (LAD) procedure. Although LS is more widely used, the LAD approach yields better estimates in the presence of outliers. In this paper, we examine the performance of LAD estimators for the parameters of the first-order autoregressive model in the presence of outliers. A simulation study compared these estimates with those given by LS. The general conclusion is that LAD does not deal successfully with additive outliers. A simple procedure is proposed which allows exception reporting when outliers occur.     

A LOWER BOUND FOR THE SINGLE-LEVEL DYNAMIC HORIZON LOT-SIZING PROBLEM

Conventional production planning methods assume the existence of a medium- or longrange demand horizon. However, demand usually is known over a much shorter range; scheduling decisions must be made within this “decision window,” which rolls forward in time. This paper presents a new lower bound for lot-sizing heuristics in a rolling-horizon framework and compares it to the well-known Wagner-Whitin bound. The new bound indicates heuristic schedules that have costs close to the optimum. Rolling-horizon schedule costs are compared to corresponding static-horizon schedule costs (assuming the whole horizon is known in advance), using the ratio of decision-window size to the natural order cycle as a parameter. For values below unity, the rolling-horizon policy is significantly more costly. For values above one, the two policies have similar costs and actually converge as the parameter value increases.     

A DISCRETE DYNAMIC OPTIMIZATION MODEL FOR MADE-TO-ORDER COST ANALYSIS

A model is presented that yields optimal production rates for a firm producing a contracted order. The model is unique in that it considers the influence of production rate and learning on total program cost. An application to the specific characteristics of two military production programs is presented. As demonstrated by the application, models of this type may be used as decision-making tools when negotiating the cost impact of contract modifications.     

论21世纪大学生理想信念体系的建构

大学生的思想政治教育以理想信念教育为核心.理想信念体系可划分为个人的理想信念,社会共同的理想信念,以及世界或人类的理想信念.个人的理想信念一般包括生活理想信念、道德理想信念、职业理想信念三个主要方面.理想信念教育要贴近大学生个人的理想信念,围绕社会共同的理想信念,导向世界共同的理想信念.     

从执行主体角度探寻政策执行失真的原因

政策在执行过程中存在着"有令不行、有禁不止","上有政策,下有对策"等严重妨碍政策目标有效实现的不良情形.公共选择理论认为,把作为微观经济分析出发点的个人作为集体行为的出发点,将个人的选择或决策当作公共选择或集体决策的基础.从个体的角度看,政策执行主体的素质缺陷、信息垄断和利益追求导致了政策执行失真.     

高校新设专业学生思想特点及教育对策分析

高校新设专业的学生相对老专业的学生而言,思想波动性更大,思想状况更复杂,思想负担亦更重.高校新专业班主任工作要充分体现人文关怀精神,以学生为本,深入学生了解情况,及时掌握学生思想动向,做好思想引导工作;要注重与专业教师的联系与交流,提高学生对新专业的认知程度;要加强学习引导,培养专业兴趣,调动学生的学习积极性.只有这样,才能促进高校新设专业的大学生全面健康的成长.     

COST INCREASES DUE TO DEMAND UNCERTAINTY IN MRP LOT SIZING

This paper analyzes the cost increases due to demand uncertainty in single-level MRP lot sizing on a rolling horizon. It is shown that forecast errors have a tremendous effect on the cost effectiveness of lot-sizing techniques even when these forecast errors are small. Moreover, the cost differences between different techniques become rather insignificant in the presence of forecast errors. Since most industrial firms face demand uncertainty to some extent, our findings may have important managerial implications. Various simulation experiments give insight into both the nature and the magnitude of the cost increases for different heuristics. Analytical results are developed for the constant-demand case with random noise and forecasting by exponential smoothing. It is also shown how optimal buffers can be obtained by use of a simple model. Although the analysis in this paper is restricted to simplified cases, the results merit further consideration and study. This paper is one of the first to inject forecast errors into MRP lot-sizing research. As such it attempts to deal with one of the major objections against the practical relevance of previous research in this area.     

A SIMULATION ANALYSIS OF THE JAPANESE JUST-IN-TIME TECHNIQUE (WITH KANBANS) FOR A MULTILINE,MULTISTAGE PRODUCTION SYSTEM

The Japanese “just-in-time with kanban” technique reduces in-process inventory to absolute minimal levels, in concert with the Japanese belief that inventory is an unnecessary evil. Due to the success of Japanese firms that employ this type of system, American firms would like to import this technique and emulate Japanese successes. But this Japanese success may be attributable not only to the just-in-time with kanban technique but also to the production environment in which the technique is employed. This paper simulates the just-in-time with kanban technique for a multiline, multistage production system in order to determine its adaptability to an American production environment that might include such characteristics as variable processing times, variable master production scheduling, and imbalances between production stages. The results have practical implications for those firms considering adoption of the Japanese technique.