Investitionen, Weiterbildung und betriebliche Reorganisation (Investments, further training and company reorganization)

"The correlations between investments, reorganization and further training existing at company level are examined in this paper. A production theory approach in conjunction with an optimisation calculation of the companies shows that the variables focused on here are mutually dependent on one another. If the model analysis is expanded by a few plausibility considerations on possible company developments, the initially simple and clearly manageable structure becomes more complex and counter-effects can occur. This is why it is not possible to formulate any clear hypotheses on the interdependency effects of the variables of investments, reorganization and further training as a point of departure for an empirical analysis. The empirical study is based on the data of the IAB establishment panel of the years 1997-2000. The focus of research is a simultaneous triangular equation model with further training, reorganization and investments as the variables to be studied. The key results are: there is a mutually interdependent relationship between reorganization measures and investments. Although further training is encouraged by real capital investments, the reverse correlation cannot be found. Clear relationships between further training and reorganization measures only exist if individual measures are analysed. All in all, simultaneous relationships between investments, reorganization measures and further training schemes can be empirically proven. Delayed adjustment processes partly interfere with them." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))organisatorischer Wandel, IAB-Betriebspanel, Unternehmensorganisation, Arbeitsorganisation, Investitionen, betriebliche Weiterbildung, Produktinnovation, Westdeutschland, Ostdeutschland, Bundesrepublik Deutschland

Decoupling Transport from Economic Growth

This paper reports on a research project that aimed to identify and assess measures which could be used to reduce travel demand while maintaining economic growth and enhancing environmental quality. The research methodology involved a detailed review of past research; contact with over 600 experts from around Europe and elsewhere for ideas on potential measures; detailed questionnaires from over 100 of these experts; and a series of three panel sessions held in different parts of Europe, each of which involved around 16 experts debating the merits of different measures and identifying case study evidence of their effectiveness. The end result was a shortlist of 13 measures, indicative of broad types, which are considered to be effective, and an indication of their effectiveness if applied across the European Union. Seven illustrative measures are discussed which stand out from the results as having proven potential (though not necessarily at a European scale) to influence transport intensity and/or unit environmental load whilst not having large detrimental effects on GDP. These are the areas where it is felt that European transport policy could most usefully be focussed in terms of decoupling of transport demand and economic growth

Composition of Efficient Nested BSP Algorithms: Minimum Spanning Tree Computation as an Instructive Example

We report on the results of an automatic configuration approach for implementing complex parallel BSP algorithms. For this approach, a parallel algorithm is described by a sequence of instructions and of subproblems that have to be solved by other parallel algorithms called as subroutines, together with a mathematical description of its own running time. There also may be free algorithmic parameters as, e. g., the degree of trees in used data structures that have an impact on the running time. As the running time of an algorithm depends on several machine parameters, on some fixed and on the choice of the free algorithmic parameters and on the choice of the parallel subroutines for which the same statement applies in turn, the actual composition of the parallel program for an actual parallel machine from all these ingredients is a difficult task. We have implemented such a configuration system using the Paderborn University BSP library and present as an instructive example the theoretical and experimental results of implementations of sophisticated minimum spanning tree algorithms.

Diurnal self-aggregation

Convective self-aggregation is a modelling paradigm for thunderstorm organisation over a constant-temperature tropical sea surface. This setup can give rise to cloud clusters over timescales of weeks. In reality, sea surface temperatures do oscillate diurnally, affecting the atmospheric state. Over land, surface temperatures vary more strongly, and rain rate is significantly influenced. Here, we carry out a substantial suite of cloud-resolving numerical experiments, and find that even weak surface temperature oscillations enable qualitatively different dynamics to emerge: the spatial distribution of rainfall is only homogeneous during the first day. Already on the second day, the rain field is firmly structured. In later days, the clustering becomes stronger and alternates from day-to-day. We show that these features are robust to changes in resolution, domain size, and surface temperature, but can be removed by a reduction of the amplitude of oscillation, suggesting a transition to a clustered state. Maximal clustering occurs at a scale of $\mathbf{l_{max}\approx 180\;km}$, a scale we relate to the emergence of mesoscale convective systems. At $\mathbf{l_{max}}$ rainfall is strongly enhanced and far exceeds the rainfall expected at random. We explain the transition to clustering using simple conceptual modelling. Our results may help clarify how continental extremes build up and how cloud clustering over the tropical ocean could emerge much faster than through conventional self-aggregation alone.Comment: 27 pages, 4 main figures, 7 supplementary figures, 2 main tables, 1 supplementary tabl

Impact of the "Guidelines for infection prevention in dentistry" (2006) by the Commission of Hospital Hygiene and Infection Prevention at the Robert Koch-Institute (KRINKO) on hygiene management in dental practices – analysis of a survey from 2009

Aim: To assess trends in hygiene management in dental practices in comparison to an earlier survey in 2002/2003 and to point out key aspects for future efforts

Is a Long Essay Always a Good Essay? The Effect of Text Length on Writing Assessment

The assessment of text quality is a transdisciplinary issue concerning the research areas of educational assessment, language technology, and classroom instruction. Text length has been found to strongly influence human judgment of text quality. The question of whether text length is a construct-relevant aspect of writing competence or a source of judgment bias has been discussed controversially. This paper used both a correlational and an experimental approach to investigate this question. Secondary analyses were performed on a large-scale dataset with highly trained raters, showing an effect of text length beyond language proficiency. Furthermore, an experimental study found that pre-service teachers tended to undervalue text length when compared to professional ratings. The findings are discussed with respect to the role of training and context in writing assessment