The effects of cyclic queues on the balance of flow lines

This paper considers a flow line with different numbers of parallel machines at each stage and discusses findings regarding the effect of cyclic queues of containers on line balance. Three types of containers for holding work-in-process following different routes are stored in the cyclic queues. The degree of line imbalance is measured by the level of starving and blocking delays occurring through the line. Stage utilization rates are taken as the measure of performance. The structure of the flow line, which occurs in the cotton spinning industry, and some features of the simulation model are also presented.     

Homosexuality and heterosexism: views from academics in the helping professions

Summary This study describes and analyses attitudes towards homosexualityamong faculty in departments of three helping professions: socialwork, psychology and education. The sample consists of 235 facultymembers in the five main universities in Israel. Out of 849questionnaires that were sent to all faculty members of therelevant departments of social work, psychology and education,103 were completed and returned from social work, 56 from psychologyand 76 from education, representing a 27.7 per cent total responserate. The instrument used was the Index of Homophobia (IHP)(Hudson and Ricketts, 1980) in addition to professional backgroundand demographic information. Findings show that, overall, membersof academic departments of the helping professions present 'low-gradehomophobic' attitudes (Hudson and Ricketts, 1980). Statisticallysignificant differences surfaced among the three departments,with faculty members in schools of education emerging as mosthomophobic, followed by social work and psychology. Severalexplanations are put forward in an attempt to account for suchdifferences, including the theoretical framework of marginality,the variables traditionally associated with homophobia, andprofessional training.     

Emerging population issues among adolescents and youth

The authors "examine the emerging population issues of adolescents and youth [in Sri Lanka]. The demographic pressures have resulted in the expansion of the numbers in this age category which in turn has caused problems of employment creation. The educational expansion has brought about changes in the age at marriage and life styles, which in turn has created the need for greater attention on reproductive health issues among adolescents and youth."     

Population,environment and sustainable development

The present population of Sri Lanka (17.7 million) is sufficient to create concern about the use, limitations, and waste of natural resources. Between 1871 and 1946, the population grew at an average rate of 1.4% annually, with high fertility and mortality. The population doubled between 1946 and 1981, and mortality declined. Between 1971 and 1991, the rate of growth declined due to a decrease in fertility and an increase in emigration. With a growth rate of 1.4%, the population will again double to 35 million by 2040. Technological improvements in Sri Lanka have led to an eight-fold increase in metric tons of rice production, but the growth in population has caused a deficiency in output so that basic per capita caloric requirements are not being met. Increased productivity has almost depleted the area available for cultivation, and the use of fertilizers to increase yields has environmental drawbacks. The high fertility of the 1970s contributed to increased labor force participation rates of 2.2%, which resulted in more people joining the labor force than leaving. Thus, the employment market has been unable to absorb the unemployed or potential new workers. Growth of the employment market may also conflict with environmental protection, as exemplified by the mining of the coral reef on the southwestern coast. The conversion of forests to agriculture resulted in forest losses of about 42,000 hectares per year during 1956-83. Deforestation is also occurring in the high forests due to increased pressure for fuelwood. In the wet zone, the use of forests for fuelwood is declining, but rubber wood is being harvested for industrial production. In order to slow population growth to replacement levels by the year 2000 (with a total population of 25 million), contraceptive prevalence must be increased to 72% at a cost of about $25 million.     

Measurement of changes: What criteria do we adopt?

Many changes in industrial working methods are now under discussion which are not easily evaluated and management is concerned about the probable return from investing in these methods. It is proposed that, whilst it is clear that improving work performance is a benefit, it is also of benefit to achieve changes in attitudes which correlate more closely with the objectives and state of the enterprise. Increased agreement in this respect is stated to lead to increased stability for the production process as there is less likelihood of disruption of output due to inappropriate decisions and actions. Since the loss due to various forms of interruption in output can be assessed it is described how the benefit of attitude change might thus be measured. A model for the relationships relevant to ergonomic and behavioural science changes in industry is given and its potential is illustrated by examples.