Turnover Processes in a Temporal Context: It's About Time

To better understand the process of organizational withdrawal, a turnover model incorporating dynamic predictors measured at five distinct points in time was examined by following a large, occupationally diverse sample over a two-year period. Results demonstrated that turnover can be predicted by perceived costs of turnover, organizational commitment, and critical events measured soon after entry into the organization, and unemployment rates, job satisfaction, and search for alternative jobs also become significant predictors when measured over time. Critical events also predicted turnover in a manner distinct from the operation of attitudes, consistent with the unfolding model (Lee & Mitchell, 1994). The path to turnover was marked by consistently low perceived costs of turnover and satisfaction, decreases in commitment, and increases in job search over time.

Absence of Pressure-Driven Supersolid Flow at Low Frequency

An important unresolved question in supersolid research is the degree to which the non-classical rotational inertia (NCRI) phenomenon observed in the torsional oscillator experiments of Kim and Chan, is evidence for a Bose-condensed supersolid state with superfluid-like properties. In an open annular geometry, Kim and Chan found that a fraction of the solid moment of inertia is decoupled from the motion of the oscillator; however, when the annulus is blocked by a partition, the decoupled supersolid fraction is locked to the oscillator being accelerated by an AC pressure gradient generated by the moving partition. These observations are in accord with superfluid hydrodynamics. We apply a low frequency AC pressure gradient in order to search for a superfluid-like response in a supersolid sample. Our results are consistent with zero supersolid flow in response to the imposed low frequency pressure gradient. A statistical analysis of our data sets a bound, at the 68% confidence level, of 9.6$\times 10^{-4}$ nm/s for the mass transport velocity carried by a possible supersolid flow. In terms of a simple model for the supersolid, an upper bound of 3.3$\times 10^{-6}$ is set for the supersolid fraction at 25 mK, at this same confidence level. These findings force the conclusion that the NCRI observed in the torsional oscillator experiments is not evidence for a frequency independent superfluid-like state. Supersolid behavior is a frequency-dependent phenomenon, clearly evident in the frequency range of the torsional oscillator experiments, but undetectably small at frequencies approaching zero.Comment: 6 pages, 5 figure

Scholastic Economics, Classical, and Modern [védés előtt]

This thesis seeks to restore economic theory, in an updated version, to its place of origin within the Scholastic natural law. This summary of the innovations in the thesis follows the outline of the Scholastic understanding of human nature, combining insights from Aristotle Augustine and Thomas Aquinas. According to this view, derived from Scholastic moral philosophy, man is at once a ‘personal’ (meaning both ‘rational’ and ‘religious’), ‘domestic’ (comprising ‘conjugal,’ ‘money-using’ and ‘social’) and ‘political avnimal.’ Each of the three chapters considers one element in this integrated view. The conclusion instantiates the Scholastic view of human nature in a new Human Flourishing Index (HFI). The first chapter presents a brief overview of the four main economic theories in history: scholastic economic theory, and the three branches of today’s Neoclassical economic theory (summarized in Table 1-1). Then the four basic equations that describe the economic behavior of an individual according to the updated Neoscholastic Economic Theory are presented and compared with the three basic equations of the prevailing Neoclassical Economic Theory, as well as the two oversimplified equations of Adam Smith’s Classical Economics and Aristotle’s slightly more complicated, but still mathematically ‘under-determined’ system. Three of the four equations are presented in Cobb-Douglas form, greatly simplifying the notation. In his History of Economic Analysis, Joseph Schumpeter noted (though without explaining) what he called ‘The Great Gap’—the absence of any development of economic theory between Aristotle in the 4th century BC and Thomas Aquinas in the mid-13th century A.D. even though, as Schumpeter remarked, administering the Roman Empire “might have fully employed a legion of economists” (Schumpeter, 63). I suggest a reason for this lack of development: a system with fewer equations than unknown variables is“underdetermined,” and therefore has no unique solution. Hence the logical and mathematical incompleteness of Aristotle’s system prevented its fruitful development. Chapter 2 begins with Aristotle’s description of marriage, then applies it to a simple example of a business firm modeled on a children’s lemonade stand, proceeds to apply this analysis to the reproduction of the children themselves, then shows how everyone’s lifetime income is determined by sex, education, and marital status. Finally, it presents how the stylized description is confirmed by census data and recent research on the national transfer accounts. I outline the principles of a business firm using the lemonade stand example and show how the National Income and Product Accounts may be constructed by applying the same principles. Though nearly all economists regard economic transactions as limited to market exchanges, in this chapter, as elsewhere, I examine the substantial but overlooked role of transfer payments, which include both personal gifts (or their opposite, crimes) and their social analogue, distributive justice. In Chapter 3, I show that the two most importantmacroeconomic policy problems of the 21st century—unemployment and inflation—result from violations of the two kinds of justice that Aristotle outlined in the 4th Century B.C.: distributive justice and justice in exchange. To do this,I develop and apply the analysis of the French economist Jacques Rueff (1896-1978) to illustrate the principles of distributive justice and justice in exchange by using Rueff’sLaw of Unemployment and Law of Inflation. The two biggest innovations in this chapter are showing that the civilian unemployment rate is a function of net unit labor costs (that is, labor compensation after subtracting taxes on workers and adding social benefits received by workers and their dependents) as a share of national income and developing and applying Rueff’s insight that inflation (or,more rarely, deflation) is a function not of the domestic money supply (as conventional monetarist analysis maintains) but of total foreign and domestic official monetary liabilities: the world supply of base money in each nation’s currency. The key to the accuracy of the labor force regressions in Chapter 3 is a methodology that I call ‘disaggregation,” which means that each social benefit program becomes a separate variable in trying to explain the effects of economic policy on the labor market, for example,the unemployment or labor participation rates, which are treated separately for men and women. This technique permits a researcher to recognize that one kind of social benefit or tax might raise, while another reduces, the unemployment or labor force participation rate and might have a different influence on labor market behavior. Disaggregation typically raises regression correlation coefficients substantially, often from the mid-60 or 70% to the mid-to-high 90% range. I conclude the book by discussing religion and the Human Flourishing Index (HFI), beginning with an overview of religious affiliation over the past 4,000 years, including Pew Forum projections to the year 2100. Then I show that religious practice is even more important in explaining a wide range of behavior, including fertility and charitable giving. The HFI is based on the combination of three separate databases: the Maddison Project Database, which estimates national population and GDP per capita back to AD 1; the Barro-Lee database of educational attainment, back to 1820 and projected forward to 2040; and the data and demographic projections of the United Nations Population Division back to 1950 and projected forward to 2100

Asteroid Redirect Mission Concept: A Bold Approach for Utilizing Space Resources

The utilization of natural resources from asteroids is an idea that is older than the Space Age. The technologies are now available to transform this endeavour from an idea into reality. The Asteroid Redirect Mission (ARM) is a mission concept which includes the goal of robotically returning a small Near-Earth Asteroid (NEA) or a multi-ton boulder from a large NEA to cislunar space in the mid 2020's using an advanced Solar Electric Propulsion (SEP) vehicle and currently available technologies. The paradigm shift enabled by the ARM concept would allow in-situ resource utilization (ISRU) to be used at the human mission departure location (i.e., cislunar space) versus exclusively at the deep-space mission destination. This approach drastically reduces the barriers associated with utilizing ISRU for human deep-space missions. The successful testing of ISRU techniques and associated equipment could enable large-scale commercial ISRU operations to become a reality and enable a future space-based economy utilizing processed asteroidal materials. This paper provides an overview of the ARM concept and discusses the mission objectives, key technologies, and capabilities associated with the mission, as well as how the ARM and associated operations would benefit humanity's quest for the exploration and settlement of space

ANGIOGENES: knowledge database for protein-coding and noncoding RNA genes in endothelial cells

Increasing evidence indicates the presence of long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) is specific to various cell types. Although lncRNAs are speculated to be more numerous than protein-coding genes, the annotations of lncRNAs remain primitive due to the lack of well-structured schemes for their identification and description. Here, we introduce a new knowledge database "ANGIOGENES" (http://angiogenes.uni-frankfurt.de) to allow for in silico screening of protein-coding genes and lncRNAs expressed in various types of endothelial cells, which are present in all tissues. Using the latest annotations of protein-coding genes and lncRNAs, publicly-available RNA-seq data was analyzed to identify transcripts that are expressed in endothelial cells of human, mouse and zebrafish. The analyzed data were incorporated into ANGIOGENES to provide a one-stop-shop for transcriptomics data to facilitate further biological validation. ANGIOGENES is an intuitive and easy-to-use database to allow in silico screening of expressed, enriched and/or specific endothelial transcripts under various conditions. We anticipate that ANGIOGENES serves as a starting point for functional studies to elucidate the roles of protein-coding genes and lncRNAs in angiogenesis

Rookies Connected: Interpersonal Relationships Among Newcomers, Newcomer Adjustment Processes, and Socialization Outcomes

How do relationships among newcomers in the same cohort impact how quickly they develop clear understandings of their new roles and, ultimately, key socialization outcomes? We study newcomers\u27 relationships with cohort members in the same unit (i.e., intra-unit relationships) and those in different units (i.e., inter-unit relationships). While organizations invest substantial time and resources in promoting broad networking among newcomers, we offer a theoretical and empirical account of how too many connections among fellow newcomers early in the socialization process can slow their adjustment-namely, their growth in role clarity. In Study 1, we surveyed 189 newcomers in an international conglomerate from their orientations through their first 4 months and linked responses to 3 years of their job performance and turnover records. After controlling for the initial level of role clarity, we found an inverted U-shaped relationship between newcomers\u27 intra-unit peer connections and growth in role clarity, whereas their inter-unit peer connections did not significantly relate to growth in role clarity. Growth in role clarity positively related to subsequent newcomers\u27 job satisfaction and job performance, which were then negatively related to turnover. Study 2\u27s results indicated that sensemaking with fellow newcomers operated as a key mechanism linking the nonlinear relationships between intra-unit newcomer-newcomer relationships and growth in role clarity. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved)

Study of Supersolidity and Shear Modulus Anomaly of 4He in a Triple Compound Oscillator

The recently discovered shear modulus anomaly in solid 4He bears a strong similarity to the phenomenon of supersolidity in solid 4He and can lead to the period shift and dissipative signals in torsional oscillator experiments that are nearly identical to the classic NCRI signals observed by Kim and Chan. In the experiments described here, we attempt to isolate the effects of these two phenomena on the resonance periods of torsion oscillators. We have constructed a triple compound oscillator with distinct normal modes. We are able to demonstrate that, for this oscillator, the period shifts observed below 200 mK have their primary origin in the temperature dependence of the shear modulus of the solid 4He sample rather than the formation of a supersolid state

Victims as moral beacons of humanitarianism in post-conflict societies.

This paper reports on interview data amongst victims of conflict and organised violence. Despite their victimhood, they evince a level of forgivingness, civility and tolerance that constructs in the very acts of atrocity that portend its demise, a form of humanitarianism which enables victims to be moral beacons in post-conflict societies that otherwise are largely devoid of any a moral or sacred canopy. Data cover victims in Sri Lanka, South Africa and Northern Ireland. The theoretical contribution of the paper is to proffer a view that humanitarianism in societies emerging out of conflict is best understood as a social practice constituted by victims' practices for tolerance and civility. This makes humanitarianism pro-social, having the potential to affect social consciousness and social understandings in post-conflict societies and to assist in the remaking of society after conflict