Efficiency of European public higher education institutions: a two-stage multicountry approach

The purpose of this study is to examine efficiency and its determinants in a set of higher education institutions (HEIs) from several European countries by means of non-parametric frontier techniques. Our analysis is based on a sample of 259 public HEIs from 7 European countries across the time period of 2001–2005. We conduct a two-stage DEA analysis (Simar and Wilson in J Economet 136:31–64, 2007), first evaluating DEA scores and then regressing them on potential covariates with the use of a bootstrapped truncated regression. Results indicate a considerable variability of efficiency scores within and between countries. Unit size (economies of scale), number and composition of faculties, sources of funding and gender staff composition are found to be among the crucial determinants of these units’ performance. Specifically, we found evidence that a higher share of funds from external sources and a higher number of women among academic staff improve the efficiency of the institution

Compressed representation of a partially defined integer function over multiple arguments

In OLAP (OnLine Analitical Processing) data are analysed in an n-dimensional cube. The cube may be represented as a partially defined function over n arguments. Considering that often the function is not defined everywhere, we ask: is there a known way of representing the function or the points in which it is defined, in a more compact manner than the trivial one

Good quality care for patients with cancer dying in hospitals, but information needs not met : bereaved relatives’ survey within seven countries

Background Recognized disparities in quality of end-of-life care exist. Our aim was to assess the quality of care for patients dying from cancer, as perceived by bereaved relatives, within hospitals in seven European and South American countries. Materials and Methods Postbereavement survey by post, interview, or via tablet in Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, U.K., Germany, Norway, and Poland. Next of kin to cancer patients were asked to complete the international version of the Care Of the Dying Evaluation (i-CODE) questionnaire 6–8 weeks postbereavement. Primary outcomes were (a) how frequently the deceased patient was treated with dignity and respect, and (b) how well the family member was supported in the patients’ last days of life. Results From 1,683 potential participants, 914 i-CODE questionnaires were completed (response rate 54%). Approximately 94% reported the doctors treated their family member with dignity and respect “always” or “most of the time”; similar responses were given about nursing staff (94%). Additionally, 89% participants reported they were adequately supported; this was more likely if the patient died on a specialist palliative care unit (odds ratio, 6.3; 95% confidence interval, 2.3–17.8). Although 87% participants were told their relative was likely to die, only 63% were informed about what to expect during the dying phase. Conclusion This is the first study assessing quality of care for patients dying from cancer from the bereaved relatives’ perspective across several countries on two continents. Our findings suggest many elements of good care were practiced but improvement in communication with relatives of imminently dying patients is needed. Clinical trial information: NCT03566732 Implications for Practice Previous studies have shown that bereaved relatives’ views represent a valid way to assess care for dying patients in the last days of their life. The Care Of the Dying Evaluation questionnaire is a suitable tool for quality improvement work to help determine areas where care is perceived well and areas where care is perceived as lacking. Health care professionals need to sustain high quality communication into the last phase of the cancer trajectory. In particular, discussions about what to expect when someone is dying and the provision of hydration in the last days of life represent key areas for improvement

Measurement of the triple-differential cross section for photon plus jets production in proton-proton collisions at √s = 7 TeV

Peer reviewe

Evidence for the 125 GeV Higgs boson decaying to a pair of tau leptons

Peer reviewe

Search for massive resonances in dijet systems containing jets tagged as W or Z boson decays in pp collisions at √s=8 TeV

Peer reviewe

Measurement of the t-channel single-top-quark production cross section and of the |V tb| CKM matrix element in pp collisions at √s = 8 TeV

Peer reviewe

Schadevergoeding bij overlijden: een stoel die een soort tafeltje is

In het aansprakelijkheidsrecht heeft een benadeelde in beginsel recht op volledige vergoeding van zijn schade. De gevolgen van de schadetoebrengende gebeurtenis dienen zoveel als mogelijk te worden weggenomen of te worden gecompenseerd. Daarbij wordt gekeken naar de situatie waarin de benadeelde zou hebben verkeerd indien de schadetoebrengende gebeurtenis niet zou hebben plaatsgevonden. Dat is bij overlijden per definitie problematisch. Er is iemand weggevallen, wat vele gevolgen heeft. De schade als gevolg van het overlijden komt maar beperkt voor vergoeding in aanmerking. In artikel 6:108 BW is een drietal beperkingen te vinden. Het gaat hier om beperkingen ten aanzien van de aard van de schade, de kring van gerechtigden en de omvang van de schade. Daarbij hinkt het recht op schadevergoeding bij overlijden op twee gedachten. Aan de ene kant is er het aansprakelijkheidsrecht, maar de geleden schade komt niet volledig voor vergoeding in aanmerking. Aan de andere kant is er het recht op alimentatie uit het familierecht, maar dat wordt bij overlijden niet consequent toegepast. De motieven voor de beperkingen van het recht op schadevergoeding zijn achterhaald en niet (langer) overtuigend. Het recht is niet bij de tijd, het sluit niet aan bij de maatschappelijke ontwikkelingen. De beperkingen die het recht op schadevergoeding bij overlijden in de huidige samenleving met zich meebrengt zorgen voor complexe methoden om de nabestaanden tegemoet te komen en oogsten daardoor veel kritiek. In deze bijdrage wordt die kritiek besproken. De bijdrage wordt afgesloten met enkele denkrichtingen voor nader onderzoek

Jet and underlying event properties as a function of charged-particle multiplicity in proton-proton collisions at √s=7 TeV

This is the pre-print version of the final published paper that is available from the link belowCharacteristics of multi-particle production in proton-proton collisions at √s=7 TeV are studied as a function of the charged-particle multiplicity, N. The produced particles are separated into two classes: those belonging to jets and those belonging to the underlying event. Charged particles are measured with pseudorapidity |η|0.25 GeV/c. Jets are reconstructed from charged-particles only and required to have p>5 GeV/c. The distributions of jet p, average p of charged particles belonging to the underlying event or to jets, jet rates, and jet shapes are presented as functions of N and compared to the predictions of the pythia and herwig event generators. Predictions without multi-parton interactions fail completely to describe the N-dependence observed in the data. For increasing N, pythia systematically predicts higher jet rates and harder p spectra than seen in the data, whereas herwig shows the opposite trends. At the highest multiplicity, the data-model agreement is worse for most observables, indicating the need for further tuning and/or new model ingredients