Perceived Work Status and Turnover Intentions of Casual-Dining Restaurant Employees

The current research examined the effects of perceived work status of hourly employees on the established relationships between turnover intentions and the constructs of autonomy, affective organizational commitment, perceived management concern for employees, and perceived management concern for customers in the casual-dining restaurant industry. Surveys were collected from 296 employees of a multi-unit casual-dining restaurant franchise, part of a large, national, casual-dining restaurant chain. Employeeswith perceived part-time work status revealed a generally negative trend in factors shown to contribute to turnover. Employees who perceived their work status as parttime also showed significantly lower levels of affective organizational commitment than those who perceived their work status as full-time. Additionally, the mean scores of the desirable attributes trended lower for those employees who perceived themselves as part-time. Even more, helping behaviors, so crucial in a casual-dining environment, were lower when employees perceived their work status to be part-time. The current study discusses managerial implications of the research findings and gives suggestions for future research

A numerical comparison of high order transformation and isoparametric transformation methods

AbstractA numerical comparison is made between the quadratic isoparametric transformation method and a second order example of a high order transformation method for the model problem of Laplace's equation on curved domains. Three curved domains are considered and numerical results for several trial solutions are given. Significantly improved accuracy is attained by the high order transformation method. A finer element discretisation is chosen for one of the domains resulting in more than twice the number of variables. The errors using the high order transformation method on the original mesh remain significantly smaller than those given by the isoparametric method used on the finer mesh

Integration techniques for isoparametric and higher order bases on finite elements with a curved side

AbstractEfficient integration techniques are developed for a class of integrals over finite elements bounded by two straight sides and a parabolic arc. The techniques can be used to speed up the evaluation of the element matrices for both high order transformation bases and for isoparametric bases

Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) of the Woodlands Cree and Denesuline Peoples of northern Saskatchewan, Canada: The land as teacher and healer

The purpose of this article is to explore and outline the Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) of First Nation peoples in northern Saskatchewan, Canada. TEK and Western science are increasingly combined for a fuller portrait and understanding of the natural world. However, more research is needed using Indigenous protocols, methodologies, methods, and languages for conceptual clarity. For the Woodlands Cree and Denesuline (Dene) peoples, the land is a giver of life and is both a teacher and healer as represented in this article

Timeshare Owner Preferences - An Analysis of Program and Service Relationships during Recessionary Times

Since the 1970s various industry studies have indicated that the vacation ownership industry has enjoyed unprecedented growth in unit sales, resort growth, and the number of owners (American Resort Devleopment Association [ARDA], 2007; ARDA, 2009a; ARDA, 2009b). However, due to the recent economic downturn these growth metrics are no longer obtainable. This external impact has caused developers to retrench and therefore reflect upon their existing product and service offerings, financial metrics, and consumer markets (ARDA, 2010a; ARDA 2010b). The crux of these findings indicates that the industry has shifted to maintaining and enhancing product and service offerings as a reaction to changing economic conditions. The findings reported in the body of this manuscript represent product and service preferences as collected from a random data pull of their existing ownership base. The study also revealed current preferences of timeshare owners with relation to services provided and products/amenities offered. Management implications and limitations of the current study are discussed

Genus Drop in Hyperelliptic Feynman Integrals

The maximal cut of the nonplanar crossed box diagram with all massive internal propagators was long ago shown to encode a hyperelliptic curve of genus 3 in momentum space. Surprisingly, in Baikov representation, the maximal cut of this diagram only gives rise to a hyperelliptic curve of genus 2. To show that these two representations are in agreement, we identify a hidden involution symmetry that is satisfied by the genus 3 curve, which allows it to be algebraically mapped to the curve of genus 2. We then argue that this is just the first example of a general mechanism by means of which hyperelliptic curves in Feynman integrals can drop from genus $g$ to $\lceil g/2 \rceil$ or $\lfloor g/2 \rfloor$, which can be checked for algorithmically. We use this algorithm to find further instances of genus drop in Feynman integrals.Comment: 5+2 pages, 4 figure

Design and introduction of a quality of life assessment and practice support system: perspectives from palliative care settings

Background: Quality of life (QOL) assessment instruments, including patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) and patient-reported experience measures (PREMs), are increasingly promoted as a means of enabling clinicians to enhance person-centered care. However, integration of these instruments into palliative care clinical practice has been inconsistent. This study focused on the design of an electronic Quality of Life and Practice Support System (QPSS) prototype and its initial use in palliative inpatient and home care settings. Our objectives were to ascertain desired features of a QPSS prototype and the experiences of clinicians, patients, and family caregivers in regard to the initial introduction of a QPSS in palliative care, interpreting them in context. Methods: We applied an integrated knowledge translation approach in two stages by engaging a total of 71 clinicians, 18 patients, and 17 family caregivers in palliative inpatient and home care settings. Data for Stage I were collected via 12 focus groups with clinicians to ascertain desirable features of a QPSS. Stage II involved 5 focus groups and 24 interviews with clinicians and 35 interviews with patients or family caregivers during initial implementation of a QPSS. The focus groups and interviews were recorded, transcribed, and analyzed using the qualitative methodology of interpretive description. Results: Desirable features focused on hardware (lightweight, durable, and easy to disinfect), software (simple, user-friendly interface, multi-linguistic, integration with e-health systems), and choice of assessment instruments that would facilitate a holistic assessment. Although patient and family caregiver participants were predominantly enthusiastic, clinicians expressed a mixture of enthusiasm, receptivity, and concern regarding the use of a QPSS. The analyses revealed important contextual considerations, including: (a) logistical, technical, and aesthetic considerations regarding the QPSS as a technology, (b) diversity in knowledge, skills, and attitudes of clinicians, patients, and family caregivers regarding the integration of electronic QOL assessments in care, and (c) the need to understand organizational context and priorities in using QOL assessment data. Conclusion: The process of designing and integrating a QPSS in palliative care for patients with life-limiting conditions and their family caregivers is complex and requires extensive consultation with clinicians, administrators, patients, and family caregivers to inform successful implementation

Recent developments from Feynman integrals

This talk reviews recent developments in the field of analytical Feynman integral calculations. The central theme is the geometry associated to a given Feynman integral. In the simplest case this is a complex curve of genus zero (aka the Riemann sphere). In this talk we discuss Feynman integrals related to more complicated geometries like curves of higher genus or manifolds of higher dimensions. In the latter case we encounter Calabi-Yau manifolds. We also discuss how to compute these Feynman integrals.Comment: 11 pages, talk given at the conference Matter to the Deepest 2023. arXiv admin note: substantial text overlap with arXiv:2309.0753

Brain regions concerned with perceptual skills in tennis: An fMRI study

Sporting performance makes special demands on perceptual skills, but the neural mechanisms underlying such performance are little understood. We address this issue, making use of fMRI to identify the brain areas activated in viewing and responding to video sequences of tennis players, filmed from the opponent’s perspective. In a block-design, fMRI study, 9 novice tennis players watched video clips of tennis play. The main stimulus conditions were (1) serve sequences, (2) non-serve behaviour (ball bouncing) and (3) static control sequences. A button response was required indicating the direction of serve (left or right for serve sequences, middle button for non-serve and static sequences). By comparing responses to the three stimulus conditions, it was possible to identify two groups of brain regions responsive to different components of the task. Areas MT/MST and STS in the posterior part of the temporal lobe responded either to serve and to non-serve stimuli, relative to static controls. Serve sequences produced additional regions of activation in parietal lobe (bilateral IPL, right SPL) and in right frontal cortex (IFGd, IFGv), and these areas were not activated by non-serve sequences. These regions of parietal and frontal cortex have been implicated in a “mirror neuron” network in the human brain. It is concluded that the task of judgement of serve direction produces two different patterns of response: activations in MT/MST and STS concerned with primarily with the analysis of motion and body actions, and activations in parietal and frontal cortex associated specifically with the task of identification of direction of serve