A Personnel Study--The Role of the Program Manager in a Northern Utah Aerospace Company

The prime interest of this study was to measure and analyze the authority/responsibility conceptions the program managers had of themselves as compared to that held by the line or functional personnel with whom the program managers were in day-to-day contact. A questionnaire consisting of 22 questions was distributed to 20 program managers and 73 line personnel. Of these 93 distributed questionnaires, 92 were returned and analyzed. The questionnaire asked to what degree, in the opinion of the respondent, did the program manager have the authority to perform 22 different functions. Categories of Always, Frequently, Seldom and Never were offered. The hypothesis tested was that there was no difference between the conception the program manager held of his authority and responsibility as compared to what the line organization personnel held it to be. A chi square test was applied using a significant level of five percent to accept or reject the hypothesis. The Program Management responses were considered as the theoretical frequency and the line personnel responses as the observed frequency . The null hypothesis was accepted 59 percent of the time. Percentage relationships of the responses to each question were also computed. On a percentage basis the program managers typically viewed their authority to be greater than did the line personnel. The basic conclusion was that no clear pat tern of agreement emerged between the program managers and the line personnel as to the degree of authority held by the program manager and that the company involved i n the study should improve the authority/responsibility relationships involving the Program Management and line organization personnel

Partial Core Transformer for Energization of High Voltage Arc-Signs

paper T3-304A high voltage partial core resonating transformer has been designed and constructed such that its magnetising current reactance is matched to the reactive current drawn by the capacitance of an arc-sign. The supply only provides the real power losses of the transformer plus any reactive power mismatch between the magnetizing reactance and the capacitance of the arc-sign. A mathematical model of the transformer is developed using a reverse design modelling technique. The model is then used to design a 50Hz, 8kVA, 230V/80kV, partial core transformer to meet the required electrical demand of the load. The transformer was constructed and tested. The transformer successfully resonated with the load and provided 68VAr of compensation when operating at 10kV while being supplied from a domestic 230V, 10A, power outlet. The completed transformer has a finished weight of 69kg and has been successfully used for powering an arc-sign at an exhibition of electric sculptures

Sex distribution of offspring-parents obesity: Angel's hypothesis revisited

This study, which is based on two cross sectional surveys' data, aims to establish any effect of parental obesity sex distribution of offspring and to replicate the results that led to the hypothesis that obesity may be associated with sex-linked recessive lethal gene. A representative sample of 4,064 couples living in Renfrew/Paisley, Scotland was surveyed 1972-1976. A total of 2,338 offspring from 1,477 of the couples screened in 1972-1976, living in Paisley, were surveyed in 1996. In this study, males represented 47.7% among the total offspring of the couples screened in 1972-1976. In the first survey there was a higher male proportion of offspring (53%, p < 0.05) from parents who were both obese, yet this was not significant after adjustment for age of parents. Also, there were no other significant differences in sex distribution of offspring according to body mass index, age, or social class of parents. The conditions of the original 1949 study of Angel (1949) (which proposed a sex-linked lethal recessive gene) were simulated by selecting couples with at least one obese daughter. In this subset, (n = 409), obesity in fathers and mothers was associated with 26% of offspring being male compared with 19% of offspring from a non-obese father and obese mother. Finally we conclude that families with an obese father have a higher proportion of male offspring. These results do not support the long-established hypotheses of a sex-linked recessive lethal gene in the etiology of obesity

Phenotypic variation and differentiated gene expression of Australian plants in response to declining rainfall

Declining rainfall is projected to have negative impacts on the demographic performance of plant species. Little is known about the adaptive capacity of species to respond to drying climates, and whether adaptation can keep pace with climate change. In fire-prone ecosystems, episodic recruitment of perennial plant species in the first year postfire imposes a specific selection environment, offering a unique opportunity to quantify the scope for adaptive response to climate change. We examined the growth of seedlings of four fire-killed species under control and drought conditions for seeds from populations established in years following fire receiving average-to-above-average winter rainfall, or well-below-average winter rainfall. We show that offspring of plants that had established under drought had more efficient water uptake, and/or stored more water per unit biomass, or developed denser leaves, and all maintained higher survival in simulated drought than did offspring of plants established in average annual rainfall years. Adaptive phenotypic responses were not consistent across all traits and species, while plants that had established under severe drought or established in years with average-to-above-average rainfall had an overall different physiological response when growing either with or without water constraints. Seedlings descended from plants established under severe drought also had elevated gene expression in key pathways relating to stress response. Our results demonstrate the capacity for rapid adaptation to climate change through phenotypic variation and regulation of gene expression. However, effective and rapid adaptation to climate change may vary among species depending on their capacity to maintain robust populations under multiple stresses

Restrictions of generalized Verma modules to symmetric pairs

We initiate a new line of investigation on branching problems for generalized Verma modules with respect to complex reductive symmetric pairs (g,k). Here we note that Verma modules of g may not contain any simple module when restricted to a reductive subalgebra k in general. In this article, using the geometry of K_C orbits on the generalized flag variety G_C/P_C, we give a necessary and sufficient condition on the triple (g,k, p) such that the restriction X|_k always contains simple k-modules for any g-module $X$ lying in the parabolic BGG category O^p attached to a parabolic subalgebra p of g. Formulas are derived for the Gelfand-Kirillov dimension of any simple k-module occurring in a simple generalized Verma module of g. We then prove that the restriction X|_k is multiplicity-free for any generic g-module X \in O if and only if (g,k) is isomorphic to a direct sum of (A_n,A_{n-1}), (B_n,D_n), or (D_{n+1},B_n). We also see that the restriction X|_k is multiplicity-free for any symmetric pair (g, k) and any parabolic subalgebra p with abelian nilradical and for any generic g-module X \in O^p. Explicit branching laws are also presented.Comment: 31 pages, To appear in Transformation Group

Visualisation of BioPAX Networks using BioLayout Express (3D).

BioLayout Express (3D) is a network analysis tool designed for the visualisation and analysis of graphs derived from biological data. It has proved to be powerful in the analysis of gene expression data, biological pathways and in a range of other applications. In version 3.2 of the tool we have introduced the ability to import, merge and display pathways and protein interaction networks available in the BioPAX Level 3 standard exchange format. A graphical interface allows users to search for pathways or interaction data stored in the Pathway Commons database. Queries using either gene/protein or pathway names are made via the cPath2 client and users can also define the source and/or species of information that they wish to examine. Data matching a query are listed and individual records may be viewed in isolation or merged using an 'Advanced' query tab. A visualisation scheme has been defined by mapping BioPAX entity types to a range of glyphs. Graphs of these data can be viewed and explored within BioLayout as 2D or 3D graph layouts, where they can be edited and/or exported for visualisation and editing within other tools

Defining forgiveness: Christian clergy and general population perspectives.

The lack of any consensual definition of forgiveness is a serious weakness in the research literature (McCullough, Pargament &amp; Thoresen, 2000). As forgiveness is at the core of Christianity, this study returns to the Christian source of the concept to explore the meaning of forgiveness for practicing Christian clergy. Comparisons are made with a general population sample and social science definitions of forgiveness to ensure that a shared meaning of forgiveness is articulated. Anglican and Roman Catholic clergy (N = 209) and a general population sample (N = 159) completed a postal questionnaire about forgiveness. There is agreement on the existence of individual differences in forgiveness. Clergy and the general population perceive reconciliation as necessary for forgiveness while there is no consensus within psychology. The clergy suggests that forgiveness is limitless and that repentance is unnecessary while the general population suggests that there are limits and that repentance is necessary. Psychological definitions do not conceptualize repentance as necessary for forgiveness and the question of limits has not been addressed although within therapy the implicit assumption is that forgiveness is limitless.</p

Superconvergant interpolants for the collocation solution of boundary value ordinary differential equations

Publisher's version/PDFA long-standing open question associated with the use of collocation methods for boundary value ordinary differential equations is concerned with the development of a high order continuous solution approximation to augment the high order discrete solution approximation, obtained at the mesh points which subdivide the problem interval. It is well known that the use of collocation at Gauss points leads to solution approximations at the mesh points for which the global error is O(h[superscript 2k]), where k is the number of collocation points used per subinterval and h is the subinterval size. This discrete solution is said to be superconvergent. The collocation solution also yields a C[superscript 0] continuous solution approximation that has a global error of O(h[supercript k+1]). In this paper, we show how to efficiently augment the superconvergent discrete collocation solution to obtain C[superscript 1] continuous "superconvergent" interpolants whose global errors are O(h[superscript 2k]). The key ideas are to use the theoretical framework of continuous Runge-Kutta schemes and to augment the collocation solution with inexpensive monoimplicit Runge-Kutta stages. Specific schemes are derived for k = 1, 2, 3, and 4. Numerical results are provided to support the theoretical analysis

Performance of nonparametric species richness estimators in a high diversity plant community

The efficiency of four nonparametric species richness estimators - first-order Jackknife, second-order Jackknife, Chao2 and Bootstrap - was tested using simulated quadrat sampling of two field data sets (a sandy 'Dune' and adjacent 'Swale') in high diversity shrublands (kwongan) in south-western Australia. The data sets each comprised > 100 perennial plant species and < 10 000 individuals, and the explicit (x-y coordinate) location of every individual. We applied two simulated sampling strategies to these data sets based on sampling quadrats of unit sizes 1/400th and 1/100th of total plot area. For each site and sampling strategy we obtained 250 independent sample curves, of 250 quadrats each, and compared the estimators' performances by using three indices of bias and precision: MRE (mean relative error), MSRE (mean squared relative error) and OVER (percentage overestimation). The analysis presented here is unique in providing sample estimates derived from a complete, field-based population census for a high diversity plant community. In general the true reference value was approached faster for a comparable area sampled for the smaller quadrat size and for the swale field data set, which was characterized by smaller plant size and higher plant density. Nevertheless, at least 15-30% of the total area needed to be sampled before reasonable estimates of St (total species richness) were obtained. In most field surveys, typically less than 1% of the total study domain is likely to be sampled, and at this sampling intensity underestimation is a problem. Results showed that the second-order Jackknife approached the actual value of St more quickly than the other estimators. All four estimators were better than Sobs (observed number of species). However, the behaviour of the tested estimators was not as good as expected, and even with large sample size (number of quadrats sampled) all of them failed to provide reliable estimates. First- and second-order Jackknives were positively biased whereas Chao2 and Bootstrap were negatively biased. The observed limitations in the estimators' performance suggests that there is still scope for new tools to be developed by statisticians to assist in the estimation of species richness from sample data, especially in communities with high species richness

Comparison of spirometry criteria for the diagnosis of COPD: results from the BOLD study

To access publisher full text version of this article. Please click on the hyperlink in Additional Links fieldPublished guidelines recommend spirometry to accurately diagnose chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). However, even spirometry-based COPD prevalence estimates can vary widely. We compared properties of several spirometry-based COPD definitions using data from the international Burden of Obstructive Lung Disease (BOLD)study. 14 sites recruited population-based samples of adults aged > or =40 yrs. Procedures included standardised questionnaires and post-bronchodilator spirometry. 10,001 individuals provided usable data. Use of the lower limit of normal (LLN) forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV(1)) to forced vital capacity (FVC) ratio reduced the age-related increases in COPD prevalence that are seen among healthy never-smokers when using the fixed ratio criterion (FEV(1)/FVC <0.7) recommended by the Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease. The added requirement of an FEV(1) either <80% predicted or below the LLN further reduced age-related increases and also led to the least site-to-site variability in prevalence estimates after adjusting for potential confounders. Use of the FEV(1)/FEV(6) ratio in place of the FEV(1)/FVC yielded similar prevalence estimates. Use of the FEV(1)/FV