Effects of laser wavelength and density scalelength on absorption of ultrashort intense lasers on solid-density targets

Hot electron temperatures and electron energy spectra in the course of interaction between intense laser pulse and overdense plasmas are reexamined from a viewpoint of the difference in laser wavelength. The hot electron temperature measured by a particle-in-cell simulation is scaled by $I$ rather than $I \lambda^2$ at the interaction with overdense plasmas with fixed ions, where $I$ and $\lambda$ are the laser intensity and wavelength, respectively.Comment: 12th International Congress on Plasma Physics, 25-29 October 2004, Nice (France

Worker discontent, voice, and EI programs in Japan: Evidence from the Japanese worker representation and participation survey

Using a unique new survey, the Japanese Worker Representation and Participation Survey (JWRPS), this paper documents that there is currently an alarming degree of worker discontent in Japan. Specifically, we find that: (i) nearly one in two Japanese workers usually do not look forward to going to work; (ii) almost one third of Japanese workers are dissatisfied with their current jobs and do not at all feel loyal to their employers or feel loyal only a little; (iii) nearly one in five Japanese workers either do not at all trust information provided by their firm or trust such information only a little; and (iv) fully 40 percent of Japanese workers rate labor management relations as only fair or poor. Estimating probit models, we find systematic evidence that such worker discontent is significantly related to the lack of strong employee voice on decisions affecting workplaces, and that the lack of or weakened use of Japan's once celebrated EI programs (such as Shopfloor Committees, Small Group Activities, and Joint Labor-Management Committees) is in part responsible for weak voice and hence an alarming degree of worker discontent. An important policy implication of our findings is that weakening Japan's participatory employment system (as the popular rhetoric at times suggests) may result in exacerbating the already alarming degree of worker discontent in Japan, and ultimately weakening the competitiveness of the Japanese economy

Sabellaria tottoriensis n. sp. (Annelida: Polychaeta: Sabellariidae) from Shallow Water off Tottori, the Sea of Japan

A new species of the genus Sabellaria Lamarck, 1812 (Annelida: Polychaeta: Sabellariidae), is described from shallow water off Tottori, the Sea of Japan. Sabellaria tottoriensis n. sp., is gregarious with tubes constructed of sand and shell debris. The new species is distinguished by the character combination of 1 or 2 pairs of nuchal spines, two forms (long and short) of opercular paleae in the middle row, with the slender blades of long ones recurved outward. Detailed morphological features of the species are described and compared with other Japanese and worldwide congeners

High Performance Work Practices and Employee Voice: A Comparison of Japanese and Korean Workers

Using a unique new cross-national survey of Japanese and Korean workers, we report the first systematic evidence on the effects on employee voice of High Performance Work Practices (HPWPs) from the two economies which are noted for the wide use of HPWPs. We find for both nations that: (i) workers in firms with HPWPs aimed at creating opportunities for employees to get involved (such as shopfloor committees and small group activities) are indeed more likely to have stronger senses of influence and voice on shopfloor decision making than other workers; (ii) workers whose pay is tied to firm performance are more likely to have a stake in firm performance and hence demand such influence and voice; and (iii) consequently workers in firms with HPWPs are more likely to make frequent suggestions for productivity increase and quality improvement. As such, this paper contributes to a small yet growing new empirical literature which tries to understand the actual process and mechanism through which HPWPs lead to better enterprise performance.high performance work practices, employee voice, Japan, Korea

What Japanese Workers Want: Evidence from the Japanese Worker Representation and Participation Survey

Using a unique new survey, the Japanese Worker Representation and Participation Survey (JWRPS), this paper presents the first evidence on the representation/participation gaps among Japanese workers and its links to the degree of their discontent with work and the efficacy of celebrated participatory employment practices. We find that: (i) contrary to the popular rhetoric of the end of "participatory Japanese management", Japanese workers still desire more involvement and greater voice in firm decisions; and (ii) in spite of their strong desire to have more influence, many Japanese workers consider their current level of say at work less than adequate, resulting in significant representation/participation gaps which are comparable to what has been found for U.S. workers. Furthermore, we find an alarming degree of discontent with work among Japanese workers, measured by diverse variables, and weak employee involvement and influence are found to be significantly linked to the degree of such discontent. Finally, our analysis of the survey data yields evidence in support of the hypotheses that: (i) working in firms with strong participatory programs will significantly enhance employee voice; (ii) among those working in participatory firms, actually participating in these programs will yield an additional boost for employee voice; and (iii) financial participation schemes will align the interest of employees with the interest of the firm and thus make employees wanting to have more influence in firm decisions. Our findings suggest that weakening participatory employment practices (as the popular rhetoric at times suggests) may result in exacerbating the already alarming degree of employee dissatisfaction in Japan.