Management control systems in not-for-profit organizations: a case study

Management control has been defined as "the process by which management assures that an organization carries out its strategies effectively and efficiently." Rapidly rising costs evidenced over the past decade have resulted in increased emphasis on these qualities in all organizations, particularly those in the public sector or similar nonprofit, service-oriented organizations where management controls have historically been lacking. This thesis investigates the requirement for and feasibility of developing a formal management control systems in these organizations. The key traits, characteristics and standards important to management control are developed from a literature survey and contrasted against procedures identified in a field study as existing in a nonprofit organization. The authors conclude that a requirement for a formal management control system exists and make recommendations for implementing such a system utilizing tailored output measures and a program budget structure.http://archive.org/details/managementcontro00beneCommander, United States NavyLieutenant Commander, United States NavyApproved for public release; distribution is unlimited

Limiting fragmentation from scale-invariant merging of fast partons

Exploiting the idea that the fast partons of an energetic projectile can be treated as sources of color radiation interpreted as wee partons, it is shown that the recently observed property of extended limiting fragmentation implies a scaling law for the rapidity distribution of fast partons. This leads to a picture of a self-similar process where, for fixed total rapidity Y, the sources merge with probability varying as 1/y.Comment: 10 pages, 1 figure (2 eps files). Final version, also updated w.r.t. the published version in Phys. Lett. B665/1 (2008) pp. 35-3

Jet Energy Density in Hadron-Hadron Collisions at High Energies

The average particle multiplicity density dN/deta is the dynamical quantity which reflects some regularities of particle production in low-pT range. The quantity is an important ingredient of z-scaling. Experimental results on charged particle density are available for pp, pA and AA collisions while experimental properties of the jet density are still an open question. The goal of this work is to find the variable which will reflect the main features of the jet production in low transverse energy range and play the role of the scale factor for the scaling function psi(z) and variable z in data z-presentation. The appropriate candidate is the variable we called "scaled jet energy density". Scaled jet energy density is the probability to have a jet with defined ET in defined xT and pseudorapidity regions. The PYTHIA6.2 Monte Carlo generator is used for calculation of scaled jet energy density in proton-proton collisions over a high energy range (sqrt s = 200-14000 GeV) and at eta = 0. The properties of the new variable are discussed and sensitivity to "physical scenarios" applied in the standard Monte Carlo generator is noted. The results of scaled jet energy density at LHC energies are presented and compared with predictions based on z-scaling.Comment: 11 pages, LaTeX, 8 figures, Presented at the XVII International Baldin Seminar on High Energy Physics Problems "Relativistic Nuclear Physics & Quantum Chromodynamics", Dubna, Russia, September 27 - October 2, 200

Quantifying the Temperature of Maggot Masses and its Relationship to Decomposition

Numerous Calliphoridae species have been observed to form larval aggregations during the feeding stage of development, resulting in localized increases in temperature. This study investigates the relationship between maggot numbers in a mass and heat generation. Single-species aggregations (Lucilia sericata) of various sizes (50–2500 individuals) were reared in the laboratory at a constant ambient temperature of 22°C. Internal mass temperatures were recorded every 5 min throughout the feeding stage of development. Results showed that mass temperatures increased with mass numbers (p-value < 0.001), ranging from 2.5 to 14°C above ambient. A minimum mass size of 1200 produced overall temperatures that were significantly warmer than ambient, diverging away from 22°C after c. 26 h. These results indicate that the microclimate of a mass has the potential to differ significantly from ambient, which may be influencing larval development rates and should therefore be factored into mPMI estimates to increase accuracy

Probability landscapes for integrative genomics

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The comprehension of the gene regulatory code in eukaryotes is one of the major challenges of systems biology, and is a requirement for the development of novel therapeutic strategies for multifactorial diseases. Its bi-fold degeneration precludes brute force and statistical approaches based on the genomic sequence alone. Rather, recursive integration of systematic, whole-genome experimental data with advanced statistical regulatory sequence predictions needs to be developed. Such experimental approaches as well as the prediction tools are only starting to become available and increasing numbers of genome sequences and empirical sequence annotations are under continual discovery-driven change. Furthermore, given the complexity of the question, a decade(s) long multi-laboratory effort needs to be envisioned. These constraints need to be considered in the creation of a framework that can pave a road to successful comprehension of the gene regulatory code.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We introduce here a concept for such a framework, based entirely on systematic annotation in terms of probability profiles of genomic sequence using any type of relevant experimental and theoretical information and subsequent cross-correlation analysis in hypothesis-driven model building and testing.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Probability landscapes, which include as reference set the probabilistic representation of the genomic sequence, can be used efficiently to discover and analyze correlations amongst initially heterogeneous and un-relatable descriptions and genome-wide measurements. Furthermore, this structure is usable as a support for automatically generating and testing hypotheses for alternative gene regulatory grammars and the evaluation of those through statistical analysis of the high-dimensional correlations between genomic sequence, sequence annotations, and experimental data. Finally, this structure provides a concrete and tangible basis for attempting to formulate a mathematical description of gene regulation in eukaryotes on a genome-wide scale.</p

Superposition effect and clan structure in forward-backward multiplicity correlations

The main purpose of this paper is to discuss the link between forward-backward multiplicity correlations properties and the shape of the corresponding final charged particle multiplicity distribution in various classes of events in different collisions. It is shown that the same mechanism which explains the shoulder effect and the H_n vs. n oscillations in charged particle multiplicity distributions, i.e., the weighted superposition of different classes of events with negative binomial properties, reproduces within experimental errors also the forward-backward multiplicity correlation strength in e+e- annihilation at LEP energy and allows interesting predictions for pp collisions in the TeV energy region, to be tested at LHC, for instance with the ALICE detector. We limit ourselves at present to study substructures properties in hadron-hadron collisions and e+e- annihilation; they are examined as ancillary examples in the conviction that their understanding might be relevant also in other more complex cases.Comment: 16 page

Effects of Repeated Intrathecal Triamcinolone-Acetonide Application on Cerebrospinal Fluid Biomarkers of Axonal Damage and Glial Activity in Multiple Sclerosis Patients

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is the most common inflammatory disease of the central nervous system in young adults. Over time, the disease progresses and, with accumulating disability, symptoms such as spasticity may occur. Although several treatment options are available, some patients may not respond to first-line therapeutics. However, some of these patients may benefit from intrathecally administered triamcinolone-acetonide (TCA), a derivative of glucocorticosteroids (GCS).GCSmay have neurotoxic effects, and cell apoptosis may occur. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of TCA on biomarkers in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) suggestive of neurodegeneration

Striatal dopamine D2/D3 receptor binding in pathological gambling is correlated with mood-related impulsivity

AbstractPathological gambling (PG) is a behavioural addiction associated with elevated impulsivity and suspected dopamine dysregulation. Reduced striatal dopamine D2/D3 receptor availability has been reported in drug addiction, and may constitute a premorbid vulnerability marker for addictive disorders. The aim of the present study was to assess striatal dopamine D2/D3 receptor availability in PG, and its association with trait impulsivity. Males with PG (n=9) and male healthy controls (n=9) underwent [11C]-raclopride positron emission tomography imaging and completed the UPPS-P impulsivity scale. There was no significant difference between groups in striatal dopamine D2/D3 receptor availability, in contrast to previous reports in drug addiction. However, mood-related impulsivity (‘Urgency’) was negatively correlated with [11C]-raclopride binding potentials in the PG group. The absence of a group difference in striatal dopamine binding implies a distinction between behavioural addictions and drug addictions. Nevertheless, our data indicate heterogeneity in dopamine receptor availability in disordered gambling, such that individuals with high mood-related impulsivity may show differential benefits from dopamine-based medications