Marketing and the Common Good: Implications of \u3cem\u3eCaritas in Veritate\u3c/em\u3e

This paper extends the authors’ previous work on applying Catholic Social Teachings to issues in marketing to the specific question of the common good. Approaches to studying the social impact of marketing and the challenge of adequately defining the common good are discussed. Attention is next given to key vectors of Catholic Social Teaching and their application to ethical issues in marketing. The focus of the analysis is on specific sections in Caritas in Veritate, Pope Benedict XVI’s recent encyclical devoted to providing principles for dealing with the ongoing global economic crisis. A discussion of how these principles might be applied to business and public policy follows. We close with an evaluation of this application

Ethical Marketing: A Look on the Bright Side

This article offers an alternative to conventional approaches to ethical analysis in business and marketing. We submit that studying companies with exemplary records of ethical conduct and social responsibility offers useful and compelling guidance to marketing students and managers. It provides another needed perspective beyond simply examining examples of misconduct or offering normative advice that may not reflect the specifics of corporate situations. Based on examples presented in a recent text by the authors and Better Business Bureau Torch Awardees, we present information on thirteen companies of varying size and from several different industries. That information includes ethics policies, management practices, environmental practices, and company reputation. From these examples, we draw lessons that should offer ethical guidance to marketing managers

The evolving world of pseudoenzymes: proteins, prejudice and zombies

Pseudoenzymes are catalytically deficient variants of enzymes that are represented in all major enzyme families. Their regulatory functions in signalling pathways are shedding new light on the non-catalytic functions of active enzymes, and are suggesting new ways to target cellular signalling mechanisms with drugs

Pilot Sensitivity to Simulator Flight Dynamics Model Formulation for Stall Training

A piloted simulation study was performed in the Cockpit Motion Facility at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Langley Research Center. The research was motivated by the desire to reduce the commercial transport airplane fatal accident rate due to in-flight loss of control. The purpose of this study, which focused on a generic T-tail transport airplane, was to assess pilot sensitivity to flight dynamics model formulation used during a simulator stall recognition and recovery training/demonstration profile. To accomplish this, the flight dynamics model was designed with many configuration options. The model options were based on recently acquired static and dynamic stability and control data from sources that included wind tunnel, water tunnel, and computational fluid dynamics. The results, which are specific to a transport airplane stall recognition and recovery guided demonstration scenario, showed the two most important aerodynamic effects (other than stick pusher) to model were stall roll- off and the longitudinal static stability characteristic associated with the pitch break

A mean-field model for nematic alignment of self-propelled rods

In this paper we develop a model for nematic alignment of self-propelled rods interacting through binary collisions. We avoid phenomenological descriptions of rod interaction in favor of rigorously using a set of microscopic-level rules. Under the assumption that each collision results in a small change to a rod's orientation, we derive the Fokker-Planck equation for the evolution of the kinetic density function. Using analytical and numerical methods, we study the emergence of the nematic order from a homogeneous, uniform steady-state of the mean-field equation.Comment: https://journals.aps.org/pre/abstract/10.1103/PhysRevE.106.03461

Simulated Dynamics of Mixed Versus Uniform Grain Size Sediment Pulses in a Gravel-Bedded River

Mountain rivers often receive sediment in the form of episodic, discrete pulses from a variety of natural and anthropogenic processes. Once emplaced in the river, the movement of this sediment depends on flow, grain size distribution, and channel and network geometry. Here, we simulate downstream bed elevation changes that result from discrete inputs of sediment (10,000 m3), differing in volume and grain size distribution, under medium and high flow conditions. We specifically focus on comparing bed responses between mixed and uniform grain size sediment pulses. This work builds on a Lagrangian, bed-material sediment transport model and applies it to a 27 km reach of the mainstem Nisqually River, Washington, USA. We compare observed bed elevation change and accumulation rates in a downstream lake to simulation results. Then we investigate the magnitude, timing, and persistence of downstream changes due to the introduction of synthetic sediment pulses by comparing the results against a baseline condition (without pulse). Our findings suggest that bed response is primarily influenced by the sediment-pulse grain size and distribution. Intermediate mixed-size pulses (~50% of the median bed gravel size) are likely to have the largest downstream impact because finer sizes translate quickly and coarser sizes (median bed gravel size and larger) disperse slowly. Furthermore, a mixed-size pulse, with a smaller median grain size than the bed, increases bed mobility more than a uniform-size pulse. This work has important implications for river management, as it allows us to better understand fluvial geomorphic responses to variations in sediment supply

Breakdown of Boltzmann-type Models for Nematic Alignment of Self-propelled Rods

Studies in active matter systems and in the collective motility of organisms utilize a range of analytical approaches to formulate continuous kinetic models of collective dynamics from the rules or equations describing agent interactions. However, the derivation of these models often relies on Boltzmann's hypothesis of "molecular chaos", often simply called statistical independence. While it is often the simplest way to derive tractable models it is not clear whether the statistical independence assumption is valid in practice. In this work, we develop a Boltzmann-type kinetic model for the nematic alignment of self-propelled rods where rod reorientation occurs upon binary collisions. We identify relevant parameters and derive kinetic equations for the corresponding asymptotic regime. By comparing numerical solutions of the kinetic equations to an agent-based model that implements our microscopic alignment rules, we examine the accuracy of the continuous model. The results indicate that our kinetic model fails to replicate the underlying dynamics due to the formation of clusters that violate statistical independence. Additionally, we show that a mechanism limiting cluster formation helps to improve the agreement between the analytical model and agent simulations. These results highlight the need to improve modeling approaches for active matter systems

Extracorporeal life support in pediatric trauma: a systematic review

Introduction Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) was once thought to be contraindicated in trauma patients, however ECMO is now used in adult patients with post-traumatic acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and multisystem trauma. Despite acceptance as a therapy for the severely injured adult, there is a paucity of evidence supporting ECMO use in pediatric trauma patients. Methods An electronic literature search of PubMed, MEDLINE, and the Cochrane Database of Collected Reviews from 1972 to 2018 was performed. Included studies reported on ECMO use after trauma in patients ≤18 years of age and reported outcome data. The Institute of Health Economics quality appraisal tool for case series was used to assess study quality. Results From 745 studies, four met inclusion criteria, reporting on 58 pediatric trauma patients. The age range was <1–18 years. Overall study quality was poor with only a single article of adequate quality. Twenty-nine percent of patients were cannulated at adult centers, the remaining at pediatric centers. Ninety-one percent were cannulated for ARDS and the remaining for cardiovascular collapse. Overall 60% of patients survived and the survival rate ranged from 50% to 100%. Seventy-seven percent underwent venoarterial cannulation and the remaining underwent veno-venous cannulation. Conclusion ECMO may be a therapeutic option in critically ill pediatric trauma patients. Consideration should be made for the expansion of ECMO utilization in pediatric trauma patients including its application for pediatric patients at adult trauma centers with ECMO capabilities