Relating Theories via Renormalization

The renormalization method is specifically aimed at connecting theories describing physical processes at different length scales and thereby connecting different theories in the physical sciences. The renormalization method used today is the outgrowth of one hundred and fifty years of scientific study of thermal physics and phase transitions. Different phases of matter show qualitatively different behavior separated by abrupt phase transitions. These qualitative differences seem to be present in experimentally observed condensed-matter systems. However, the "extended singularity theorem" in statistical mechanics shows that sharp changes can only occur in infinitely large systems. Abrupt changes from one phase to another are signaled by fluctuations that show correlation over infinitely long distances, and are measured by correlation functions that show algebraic decay as well as various kinds of singularities and infinities in thermodynamic derivatives and in measured system parameters. Renormalization methods were first developed in field theory to get around difficulties caused by apparent divergences at both small and large scales. The renormalization (semi-)group theory of phase transitions was put together by Kenneth G. Wilson in 1971 based upon ideas of scaling and universality developed earlier in the context of phase transitions and of couplings dependent upon spatial scale coming from field theory. Correlations among regions with fluctuations in their order underlie renormalization ideas. Wilson's theory is the first approach to phase transitions to agree with the extended singularity theorem. Some of the history of the study of these correlations and singularities is recounted, along with the history of renormalization and related concepts of scaling and universality. Applications are summarized.Comment: This note is partially a summary of a talk given at the workshop "Part and Whole" in Leiden during the period March 22-26, 201

The Examination of Organizational Respect in Relation to Organizational Culture

This paper is an in-depth examination of the connection between organizational respect and the strong roots of organizational culture. Throughout this thesis, we will examine the importance of management recognizing and implementing respect, how respect affects behaviors and characteristics of employees, and ways in which employees tend to feel the most respected. Additionally, we will closely examine the importance of establishing feelings of support, caring, and collaboration within an organization in efforts to create an environment filled with respect. Another concept that will be examined is the idea of person-culture fit, and how the alignment of values between employees and the overall organization can ultimately make or break its success. These concepts are important, because they collaboratively determine whether or not the organization will be able to sustain itself going forward. By the end of this paper, you will have a better understanding of the importance of organizational respect and how it contributes to organizational culture, as well as how organizational respect influences organizational culture and influences employee fit in organizations

Online discussion group sustainability: Investigating the interplay between structural dynamics and social dynamics over time

Online discussion groups have become an increasingly popular way to create social networks where individuals congregate electronically to share advice and ideas. In order to better understand sustainability, we propose that research needs to go beyond examining quantitative changes in the structural dynamics of online discussion groups (such as membership size and message volume) and include investigation of the social dynamics characterizing the underlying qualities of the interactions among members. We take a mixed-methods approach to provide qualitative and empirical support for our theory by investigating the dynamics of one successful online discussion group over a five-year period. Our data set includes all 150,267 messages posted to 27,743 threads by 9,042 unique individuals over a five year period in a group that is focused on sharing advice about a medical topic (back pain). We find support for our hypotheses that 1) shifts in the structural and social dynamics underlying resource availability lead to changes in communication activities, but in unexpected ways: Fewer members contributed significantly more message volume. In turn, 2) shifts in the structural and social dynamics underlying communication activities lead to changes in coping strategies: As message volume increased and became more social, members increased their efforts and were less likely to defect. Finally, 3) shifts in the structural and social dynamics underlying coping strategies lead to changes in attraction and retention: as individual efforts increased, more individuals were retained; however, fewer new members were attracted to join the group. Our main thesis is that each online discussion group is a product of its structural and social dynamics in combination, and the influence of these factors on sustainability is best understood when they are examined in relation to each other over time

An Empirical Study on the Impact of Deep Parameters on Mobile App Energy Usage

Improving software performance through configuration parameter tuning is a common activity during software maintenance. Beyond traditional performance metrics like latency, mobile app developers are interested in reducing app energy usage. Some mobile apps have centralized locations for parameter tuning, similar to databases and operating systems, but it is common for mobile apps to have hundreds of parameters scattered around the source code. The correlation between these deep parameters and app energy usage is unclear. Researchers have studied the energy effects of deep parameters in specific modules, but we lack a systematic understanding of the energy impact of mobile deep parameters. In this paper we empirically investigate this topic, combining a developer survey with systematic energy measurements. Our motivational survey of 25 Android developers suggests that developers do not understand, and largely ignore, the energy impact of deep parameters. To assess the potential implications of this practice, we propose a deep parameter energy profiling framework that can analyze the energy impact of deep parameters in an app. Our framework identifies deep parameters, mutates them based on our parameter value selection scheme, and performs reliable energy impact analysis. Applying the framework to 16 popular Android apps, we discovered that deep parameter-induced energy inefficiency is rare. We found only 2 out of 1644 deep parameters for which a different value would significantly improve its app\u27s energy efficiency. A detailed analysis found that most deep parameters have either no energy impact, limited energy impact, or an energy impact only under extreme values. Our study suggests that it is generally safe for developers to ignore the energy impact when choosing deep parameter values in mobile apps

Developing Emotional Intelligence In MBA Students: A Case Study Of One Programs Success

Over the past two decades an escalating interest in the construct of emotional intelligence (EI) has made its way into the popular press, professional press, and peer reviewed journals.Not surprisingly, an interest in EI is also gaining ground in academic settings (Parker, Duffy, Wood, Bond & Hogan, 2002; Parker, Hogan, Eastabrook, Oke & Wood, 2006; Parker, Saklofske, Wood & Eastabrook, 2005). Several major longitudinal studies have laid a sound theoretical foundation supporting the development of EI competencies as a component of the MBA curriculum (Boyatzis, Stubbs & Taylor, 2002; Boyatzis & Saatcioglu, 2008). This paper will describe why and how one MBA program took theory to practice and piloted the integration of content designed to develop competencies related to emotional intelligence into its curriculum.It will also review the results of an applied multi-year study that measured the results of the curriculum pilot.The study was conducted using one of the most widely used instruments for measuring emotional intelligence, the Bar-On Emotional Quotient Inventory (Bar-On, 1997), to identify significant changes between the beginning and the end of the program in the aggregate measures of emotional intelligence competencies

Examination of asynchronous volumetric and frequency communication patterns in online courses and their impact on adult learner satisfaction

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship of online discussion board interactions of adult learners and their satisfaction with their experience. Specifically, this study\u27s objectives were to examine the asynchronous volumetric and frequency textual communication patterns through online discussion boards and the association to adult learner satisfaction for 102 electronically surveyed adult learners at a mid-western university during the 2005-2006 academic year. Highly reliable (Cronbach alpha = 0.97) and valid data were collected from a learner satisfaction form developed specifically for the outcome variable o f this study. Exploratory factor analysis provided evidence that the data collected from the form were asymmetrically sub-structured into four distinct factors. Communication constructs of momentum, force, and energy were created from physical parameters and determined to be the main predictor variables in this study. The communication constructs were significantly related to the outcome of learner satisfaction and collectively constituted the structural core of this study’s model as determined by correlations and linear regression modeling. Moderator variables of learner prior experience and learner prior satisfaction were found to create a highprecision model of asynchronous volumetric and frequency communication patterns and learner satisfaction through correlations and interaction effects in regression analysis. The study provides core and high-precision models that link asynchronous textual communication for discussion boards in online courses to adult learner satisfaction

Sustainable Consumption Behavior in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Conceptual Framework

This paper develops a conceptual framework for investigating the adoption patterns, inhibitors, and facilitators ( PIF ) of sustainable consumption in sub-Sahara African ( SSA ) settings. Literature evidence shows paucity of empirical studies on sustainable consumption from SSA , which partly explains lack of suitable conceptual framework to guide research in this area. Also, the existing frameworks, which were developed outside SSA may not be suitable for constructing sustainable consumption behavior in SSA because of its peculiarities. The key signifi cance of this article is the potential of providing future researchers in this area with a framework to guide and manage their studies. As a conceptual article, insight was drawn from a plethora of scholarly articles in the domain of sustainable consumption and related areas. The framework is built on four key constructs—adoption patterns, inhibitors, facilitators ( PIF ), and intention. As a guide for studies from the SSA , the article includes an empirical section, which provides preliminary empirical validation for the proposed PIF conceptual framework based on a pilot test. The result from the pilot study, using structural equation modeling ( SEM ), led to positing the PIF Sustainable Consumption model, thus giving support for the PIF Conceptual Framework, which this article puts forward. In addition, the proposed PIF conceptual framework is capable of providing insight for crafting sustainability-related policies. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc