Game Playing Behavior in Requirements Analysis, Evaluation, and System Choice for Enterprise Resource Planning Systems

Historically, using legacy software, each major branch of a company could have their own system that met their particular needs. Unlike legacy software, enterprise resource planning (ERP) software requires that the same software be implemented in each branch or office. As a result, now branches must somehow come to agreement on software choices. A number of firms have employed ranking mechanisms where branches or their representatives effectively vote, via their rankings, to determine which software is used. Unfortunately, this can mean the introduction of gaming behavior as branches try to get the software that they think best meets their particular needs. The purpose of this paper is to review some of that gaming behavior and investigate the impact of those behaviors in the ERP requirements analysis process, ERP evaluation process, and with ERP system choice, based in the context of three real world cases

Virtual Organizations: Two Choice Problems

This paper reviews some virtual organizations and the costs and benefits of being in a virtual organization. Particular emphasis is given to those costs and benefits deriving from the information technology and processes required to facilitate communication and transaction processing in virtual organizations. Using analytic models, this paper analyzes two problems faced by companies joining virtual organizations and by virtual organizations: • Under what circumstances should a firm join a virtual organization and when should they do extensive information search regarding joining that virtual organization? • Is it possible to chose a set of standards that are optimal for each company and the virtual organization? Arrow’s impossibility theorem is used to find that there is no standard that meets the optimal needs of the virtual organization and each individual company in the virtual organization

Audit and security issues with expert systems;

https://egrove.olemiss.edu/aicpa_guides/1016/thumbnail.jp

Vibrational Analysis of a Rate-Slowing Conformational Kinetic Isotope Effect

An enthalpy-entropy approach to analyzing a rate-slowing conformational kinetic isotope effect (CKIE) in a deuterated doubly-bridged biaryl system is described. The computed isotope effect (kH/kD = 1.075, 368 K) agrees well with the measured value (kH/kD = 1.06, 368 K). The rateslowing (normal isotope effect) nature of the computed CKIE is shown to originate from a vibrational entropy contribution defined by the twenty lowest frequency normal modes in the ground state and transition state structures. This normal entropy contribution is offset by an inverse vibrational enthalpy contribution, which also arises from the twenty lowest frequency normal modes. Zero point vibrational energy contributions are found to be relatively small when all normal modes are considered. Analysis of the HZPE, Hvib, and Svib energy terms arising from the low frequency vibrational modes reveals their signs and magnitudes are determined by larger vibrational energy differences in the labeled and unlabeled ground state structures

1H and 13C NMR Assignments for (N-methyl)-(−)-(α)-Isosparteinium Iodide and (N-methyl)-(−)-Sparteinium Iodide

(‒)-Sparteine (1) and (–)-(α)-isosparteine (2) are members of the lupine alkaloid family.[1-2] Sparteine has found extensive use in asymmetric organic transformations, including lithiations[3] and Pd-catalyzed oxidations.[4-7] (α)-Isosparteine, which can be made from sparteine, has been utilized as a chiral ligand for a limited number of stereoselective reactions.[8-9] The two compounds differ in that 1 displays an exo-endo arrangement of the bridgehead hydrogens at C-11 and C-6, respectively, while 2 retains an exo-exo arrangement of these atoms (Figure 1). This study is focused on assigning 1H chemical shifts and coupling constants and 13C chemical shifts for N-methyl derivatives of sparteine and isosparteine, both of which have been fully characterized by X-ray crystallography. X-ray analysis of (N-methyl)-(–)-sparteinium iodide (3) revealed a chair-chair-boat-chair conformation (Figure 1),[10-11] and its 1H and 13C NMR chemical shift assignments were reported by Duddeck and co-workers in 1995.[12] An X-ray analysis of (N-methyl)-(α)-isosparteinium iodide (4) showed an all-chair conformation in which the N-CH3 group is positioned in close proximity to the transannular nitrogen lone pair, resulting in a +NCH•••N hydrogen bond.[13] Our group has harnessed the bridging geometry in 4 with an equilibrium isotope effect to investigate 1H and 3H chemical shift differences in (N-CH2D) and (N-CHDT) isotopologs of 4.[14-15] Simeonov, Duddeck, and co-workers have previously reported 1H and 13C NMR chemical shift assignments for 4 dissolved in DMSO-d6.[16] We noticed discrepancies between our 1H and 13C assignments for 3 and 4 and values reported in the earlier studies. This was especially true for the 1H data for 4, where 16 out of 27 assignments differ from the previously reported values. Spectral assignments for 3 and 4 are also compared with quantum-mechanically computed 13C and 1H NMR chemical shifts[17-21] to further validate the assignments reported here

Risk Factors for Physical Violence Against Partners in the U.S.

Objective: To examine unique and relative predictive values of demographic, social learning, developmental, psychopathology, and dyadic variables as risk factors for perpetration of intimate partner physical aggression in a national sample of married or cohabiting individuals. Method: Men (n = 798) and women (n = 770) were selected from the public use data file of the 2003 National Comorbidity Survey Replication (NCS-R) which used a multistage cluster sampling design. Results: Eight percent of women and 5% of men reported perpetrating physical aggression in the past year. Based on multivariable regression analyses, among men, the unique risk factors for perpetrating physical aggression were parental violence, dating before age 14, dating aggression, Intermittent Explosive Disorder (IED) before and after age 20, and being victimized by partner. Among women, significant risk factors were younger age, dating aggression, IED before age 20, cohabiting, victimization by partner, and marital/relationship strain. Conclusions: A number of social learning, developmental, adult psychopathology, and dyadic factors were significant. Two dyadic variables, victimization and marital strain, had by far the strongest associations with perpetration of partner aggression. Given that dating aggression and early IED were risk factors for male and female IPV much later in life suggests early interventions for those at risk

Treatment impact on recidivism of family only vs. generally violent partner violence perpetrators

Background/objective: The outcome of a treatment program for a large sample of male perpetrators on probation for intimate partner violence (IPV) was evaluated with particular reference to the differential impact on family only (FO) versus generally violent (GV) perpetrators. Method: Official rates of recidivism for three years post termination of treatment and probation were examined for 456 perpetrators after they were classified as FO and GV. Results: Both treatment completion and type of perpetrator were predictive of IPV recidivism and time to recidivism. However, analyses conducted separately for the two groups indicated that participation in the intervention predicted both recidivism and time to recidivism for the GV but not FO perpetrators who participated in treatment. Specifically, GV men were responsive to treatment whereas FO men were not. Results were somewhat different depending on who was included in the no treatment comparison group. Conclusions: Implications of these findings for one size fits all interventions in IPV are discussed with specific reference to the need to develop different interventions for GV and FO perpetrators

Risk Factors of Female-Perpetrated Intimate Partner Violence among Hispanic Young Adults: Attachment Style, Emotional Dysregulation, and Negative Childhood Experiences

This paper examined whether risk factors commonly associated with intimate partner violence (IPV) are associated with female-perpetrated physical IPV and female physical IPV victimization among young Hispanic women. It also examined how emotion dysregulation, impulsivity, and attachment style exacerbated these relationships. Furthermore, it investigates how these associations differ by the type of self-reported physical violence against their romantic partner. Based on the participants\u27 self-reported physical violence, they were classified into one of four groups: nonviolent, victim-only, perpetrator-only, and bidirectionally violent. Bidirectional violence was by far the most common form of violence reported. Utilizing self-report data from 360 young Hispanic women, we used binary logistic regression to examine potential predictors of physical IPV perpetration and victimization for each group. Results demonstrated that women in the bidirectionally violent group reported the highest levels of perpetration and victimization. Parental violence victimization, witnessing interparental violence, insecure attachment styles, and emotional dysregulation predicted physical IPV perpetration and victimization. These findings emphasize the need for effective interventions that include both members of the dyad and acknowledge the impact of women\u27s attachment style, emotion dysregulation, and adverse childhood experiences on female-perpetrated IPV and female IPV victimization

Contributors to the January Issue/Notes

Notes by Leon L. Lancaster, Edwin Daniel O\u27Leary, Richard F. Sullivan, Edward F. Grogan, Jr., and Samuel L. Devine

Emerging dynamics of human campylobacteriosis in Southern Ireland

Infections with Campylobacter spp. pose a significant health burden worldwide. The significance of Campylobacter jejuni/Campylobacter coli infection is well appreciated but the contribution of non-C. jejuni/C. coli spp. to human gastroenteritis is largely unknown. In this study, we employed a two-tiered molecular study on 7194 patient faecal samples received by the Microbiology Department in Cork University Hospital during 2009. The first step, using EntericBio® (Serosep), a multiplex PCR system, detected Campylobacter to the genus level. The second step, utilizing Campylobacter species-specific PCR identified to the species level. A total of 340 samples were confirmed as Campylobacter genus positive, 329 of which were identified to species level with 33 samples containing mixed Campylobacter infections. Campylobacter jejuni, present in 72.4% of samples, was the most common species detected, however, 27.4% of patient samples contained non-C. jejuni/C. coli spp.; Campylobacter fetus (2.4%), Campylobacter upsaliensis (1.2%), Campylobacter hyointestinalis (1.5%), Campylobacter lari (0.6%) and an emerging species, Campylobacter ureolyticus (24.4%). We report a prominent seasonal distribution for campylobacteriosis (Spring with C. ureolyticus (March) preceeding slightly C. jejuni/C. coli (April/May)