Earned Schedule min-max: Two new EVM metrics for monitoring and controlling projects

[EN] Earned Value Management (EVM) is a well-known project management technique for monitoring project pro-gress. Over the last 15 years, many promising EVM metrics have been proposed to get, among other improve-ments, better actual project duration and cost estimates. Papers comparing the performance of all these metricsare, however, scarce and sometimes contradictory.In this paper, a simulation and empirical comparison of 26 deterministic project duration forecasting tech-niques under the EVM framework is developed. Among them, two new metrics: Earned Schedule min (ESmin) andEarned Schedule max (ESmax) are proposed.ESminandESmaxoffer a new and simpler activity-level calculationapproach of the traditional Earned Schedule metric. Top performing (most accurate) metrics: Earned Schedule(ES), Earned Duration (ED) and Effective Earned Schedule (ES(e)) with Performance Factor 1 (PF= 1), areslightly outperformed by the new metrics which also offer some interesting applications for enhanced projectcontrol.The first author acknowledges the Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities for his Ramon y Cajal contract (RYC-2017-22222) co -funded by the European Social Fund. This work was also supported by the second author's "Estancias de movilidad en el extranjero Jose Castillejo para jovenes doctores, 2017 (grant ref. CAS17/00488)" and the fourth author's "Estancias de profesores e investigadores senior en centros extranjeros, incluido el programa "Salvador de Madariaga" 2018 (grant ref. PRX18/00381)", both also from the Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and UniversitiesBallesteros Pérez, P.; Sanz-Ablanedo, E.; Mora-Melià, D.; González-Cruz, M.; Fuentes Bargues, JL.; Pellicer, E. (2019). Earned Schedule min-max: Two new EVM metrics for monitoring and controlling projects. Automation in Construction. 103:279-290. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.autcon.2019.03.016S27929010

Fishery-Induced Selection for Slow Somatic Growth in European Eel

Both theoretical and experimental studies have shown that fishing mortality can induce adaptive responses in body growth rates of fishes in the opposite direction of natural selection. We compared body growth rates in European eel (Anguilla anguilla) from three Mediterranean stocks subject to different fishing pressure. Results are consistent with the hypotheses that i) fast-growing individuals are more likely to survive until sexual maturity than slow-growing ones under natural conditions (no fishing) and ii) fishing can select for slow-growing individuals by removing fast-growing ones. Although the possibility of human-induced evolution seems remote for a panmictic species like such as the European eel, further research is desirable to assess the implications of the intensive exploitation on this critically endangered fish

Procedure to determine the impact of the surface film resistance on the hygric properties of composite clay/fibre plasters

International audienc

National Security vs Criminal law. Perspectives, Doubts and Concerns on the Criminalisation of Organised Crime in England and Wales

This paper will interpret and critically analyse the new offence for organised crime in England and Wales (Section 45 of the Serious Crime Act 2015) from a criminological perspective in light of evidence found in research in the country. It will argue that changes in the law relate to changes in political narratives rather than to variations in the criminal panorama of organised crime. It will discuss these changes within three perspectives, which address various levels of concern: a narrative perspective, which reflects on the overlapping of meanings in the use of the words ‘organised crime’; an evolution perspective, which reflects on the origins of the new participation offences with reference to both national and international pressures; a management perspective, which reflects on some of the immediate effects of the new offences of organised crime on the criminal justice system. This paper will conclude that political narratives have indeed influenced criminal policy, while there is no significant change in the phenomenon of organised crime to justify such narratives

Accounting for transportation impacts in the environmental assessment of waste management plans

Background, aim, and scope Many recent studies on waste management have described in detail the potential impacts of recycling and final treatment of municipal waste. In public debates the attention has also been focused on the choice of final disposal technologies (e.g., landfilling vs. incineration). However, a comprehensive assessment of the impacts of waste collection and transport was still lacking. In the present study we use LCA to evaluate the potential impact of the provincial waste management plan of Varese (northern Italy). A particular attention is devoted to the estimation of environmental impacts generated during waste transport. Materials and methods A detailed Life Cycle Inventory was built for the transportation phase, based on primary data collected by interviewing the agencies involved in waste collection. To model the recycling and final disposal phase we relied on the BUWAL 250 database. Impacts were evaluated with the Eco-Indicator 99 method in its egalitarian formulation. Results The results of our analysis reveal that the major potential impacts of the plan are associated with waste collection and transport. These impacts are partially compensated by reduced resource consumption through recycling and energy recovery through incineration. Discussion The outputs of the LCIA were compared with those obtained by using other ecoindicators (Eco-Indicator 99 hierarchist and individualist, CML2, EPS2000). Although not comparable on a quantitative basis, they are qualitatively consistent. Conclusions Neglecting the effects of collection and transport might result in a severe underestimation of the environmental impacts of a waste management system, especially as refers to depletion of fossil fuels, emission of respiratory inorganics and climate change. To reduce the environmental impact of waste management systems an accurate optimisation of waste transport is required. Recommendations and perspectives Effective waste management planning requires the explicit inclusion of waste collection and transport when comparing alternative management policies. ISI CON REFEREE P.248-25

Possibile pressione selettiva della pesca sull'accrescimento dell'anguilla europea

NUMEROSI STUDI, SIA TEORICI CHE SPERIMENTALI, HANNO MOSTRATO CHE L'ATTIVITÀ ALIEUTICA PUÒ ESERCITARE UNA PRESSIONE SELETTIVA SUI TASSI DI ACCRESCIMENTO CORPOREO DEI PESCI IN DIREZIONE OPPOSTA A QUELLA DELLA SELEZIONE NATURALE. IN SPECIE IN GRADO DI ESIBIRE UNA RISPOSTA ADATTATIVA, TALE PRESSIONE PUÒ CONTRIBUIRE AL COLLASSO DEGLI STOCK E IMPEDIRE IL LORO RECUPERO ANCHE A SEGUITO DI UNA RIDUZIONE DELLA PRESSIONE DI PESCA. IN QUESTO LAVORO ABBIAMO CONFRONTATO I TASSI DI ACCRESCIMENTO CORPOREO IN INDIVIDUI DI ANGUILLA EUROPEA ANGUILLA ANGUILLA (UNA SPECIE AD ELEVATO RISCHIO DI ESTINZIONE E TUTTORA INTENSAMENTE SFRUTTATA) PROVENIENTI DA TRE DIVERSI STOCK MEDITERRANEI (BASSO CORSO DEL FIUME TEVERE, LAGUNA DI LESINA, LAGO DI FOGLIANO) SOGGETTI A DIVERSI SFORZI DI PESCA. I RISULTATI SUGGERISCONO CHE I) GLI INDIVIDUI CON TASSI DI CRESCITA PIÙ ELEVATI SIANO FAVORITI IN CONDIZIONI NATURALI E CHE II) LA PESCA, RIMUOVENDO QUESTI ULTIMI, SIA INVECE RESPONSABILE DI UNA SELEZIONE IN FAVORE DEGLI INDIVIDUI AD ACCRESCIMENTO PIÙ LENTO. LA MAGGIOR VULNERABILITÀ ALLA PESCA DELLE ANGUILLE CON ELEVATI TASSI DI ACCRESCIMENTO POTREBBE ESSERE DOVUTA A UN COMPORTAMENTO PIÙ ATTIVO (P. ES. NELLA RICERCA DI PREDE) CHE FAVORIREBBE L'INCONTRO DEI PESCI CON LE RETI