Combining Sources of Preference Data

Mixtures of revealed preference and stated preference data are recognised by transportation researchers as offering a richness of behavioural input to travel choice modelling that is often absent from the isolated use of each data source. Accumulating evidence from various literatures, especially in marketing, psychology and transportation, provides support for the desirability of combining sources of preference data as a way of transferring increasing power of understanding of travel behaviour from the econometrics of a model to the underlying data inputs. Together with advances in the specification and estimation of discrete choice models, we are beginning to see that the simpler choice models such as multinomial logit (MNL) deliver an amazing amount of behavioural power providing that the underlying data specification is given a statistically rigorous treatment. There still remains however a growing role for more general choice models as a way of establishing the relevance of the simpler MNL model. This paper reviews the major contributions to the literature on combining sources of preference data and suggests new directions for fruitful research

Beer and Spirit: A Confluence of Medieval Traditions in Brewing and Monasticism

This essay argues that the famed beer brewed by the Trappist order of Catholic monks today is a reflection of two abundantly rich traditions: brewing and monasticism. Initial examination of these two traditions finds their linkage a conceptual paradox, and my essay proposes that their reconciliation lies in a legacy of the Middle Ages, in which a uniquely spiritual ambition defined the labor practices of these brewing monks. Over the course of history, Benedictine thought has imbued the lives of a sizable demographic with practical meaning – that is, the men and women of prayer who have taken the monastic vocation; and, within the tradition of brewing, such monastic thought has advanced brewing and in Carolingian Europe even allowed for the early and unprecedented flourishing of beer at an industrial scale. The confluence of monastic organization with brewing practice reveals a distinguished understanding of work and life characterized by, on one hand, the perennial pursuit of holy ideals and, on the other, the evolving social role of monastic institutions in European society over time. A number of the most significant components of this understanding – the ideals of monastic observance and the social and material conditions under which they are expressed – I argue, formed over the course of the Middle Ages and have endured since, though continually transforming amidst the dynamic phenomena of political, economic, and cultural life. My essay attempts to unite scholarly sources of modern historical literature on brewing and on monasticism, along with several primary medieval sources. With what is common amongst them, I have built a story of how and why medieval monks came to brew. Above all, the primacy of the spiritual ambition represented in the monks\u27 performance of the Divine Office, a busy leisure, has historically given meaning to monastic brewing and continues today to actively define the labor by which these beers are a byproduct, indeed producing a delightful sensorial result. The production of Trappist beers today is borne of this uniquely idealized relationship between work and leisure, devoted to Benedictine doctrine, and it evinces a remarkably enduring confluence of two traditions -- beer and spirit -- both of whose origins are deeply embedded in historical life and human experience

Persistence Impacts on Student Subgroups that Participate in the High Impact Practice of Service Learning

The university focuses on student-centered learning experiences and encourages student success through engagement and discovery. Departments and programs within universities are organized to support this mission. A major part of encouraging engagement is retaining students and helping them persist towards earning their academic degrees. Likewise, campus initiatives, resources, and activities are intended to support these same goals. This research investigated the impacts of service learning courses on student persistence to the next term. The research methods used for this study were intended to provide leaders of higher education with valid and reliable information about activities that contribute to or inhibit student success. The research findings complement prior student success research on the high impact practice of service learning. The results demonstrate that when Utah State University students who participate in service learning courses are compared to their counterparts, who did not participate, they are more likely to re-enroll the following term. The results also show differing outcomes of persistence on subgroup populations of students during various academic terms. The implications of the study results provide information to local educational administrators of the impacts on their student body resulting from their curriculum design, development, and implementation of service learning courses

Bad Puns: It’s How Eye Roll: Humor Writing as a Technique to Engage and Strengthen Writers

Much research has been done on why to use humor writing, but a lack of research on when to use humor writing exists. The researcher argues that when humor writing is used in scholarly and analytical writing, it can engage uninterested students and improve their writing through authorial voice. Previous studies support the researcher’s thesis; young adults, who frequently consume humor through social media and other modes, can appreciate writing more by combining it with a technique they are familiar with and enjoy. This appreciation also motivates students to insert more of their voice, which then improves their writing

Consumer Choice of Modularized Products: A Conjoint Choice Experiment Approach

Recent increases in flexibility and automation in the production of goods and services allow a growing number of suppliers to offer their products in flexible sets of modules from which consumers can create their own individualized packages. This paper addresses the question how consumer choices of such modularized products can be modeled and measured by applying conjoint choice experiments. We analyze conceptually the structure of individual consumers’ choices of modularized products and the role of the error component in random utility models of these choices. We propose a simple experimental conjoint choice design strategy that can support estimation of this type of models. An empirical illustration in the area of travel package choice is discussed.Marketing;Consumer choice models;Conjoint experiments;Heteroscedastic logit;Mass-customization

Analysis of consumer preferences for information and expert opinion using a discrete choice experiment

We present a study of consumer preferences for information in wine purchases. Consumers are presented with extra information in the form of qualitative product descriptions and quantitative expert ratings. We implement a discrete choice exper- iment in which we vary experimentally the presence of the descriptions and ratings and the values of the ratings themselves. Respondents are asked to choose amongst a set of 5 wine bottles in a sequence of 21 choice scenarios. We find that the presence of extra information and high expert ratings have a significant impact on the will- ingness to pay for a given wine. The dispersion of ratings for a given wine does not affect respondents’ choices. In our estimates high average ratings by experts carry a premium of AUD $10.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

The Effects of Habituation on Separation-Distress Vocalizations in the Anxiety-Depression Continuum

The chick model ofthe anxiety-depression continuum has been used to examine the disorder’s pathology and treatment outcomes. However, little is known about how habituation to different stressors affects the behavior ofthe animal. In this study, different groups ofsocially-raised chicks received habituation to the experimenter via handling, acclimation to the apparatus with a social companion, or acclimation to the apparatus under an isolated condition for 4 days prior to a 60 min isolation test in which the animal’s latency to vocalize and number of distress vocalizations were recorded. The latency to vocalize decreased and the number ofdistress vocalizations increased as a function ofincreasing habituation exposure. This information about the relationship between variables will be useful in future research using the anxiety-depression model in psychopharmacology research

Treatment of reference alternatives in stated choice surveys for air travel choice behaviour

Stated Choice (SC) surveys are increasingly being used instead of Revealed Preference (RP) surveys for the study of air travel choice behaviour. In many cases, the choice situations presented in these SC surveys are constructed around an observed trip, where this is often included as one of the alternatives. Classically, these RP alternatives have been treated in the same way as the SC alternatives. The applications presented in this paper show that this potentially leads to biased results, and that it is important to recognise the differences in the nature of the two types of alternative. Additionally, the paper discusses issues caused by respondents who consistently prefer the RP alternative over the SC alternatives, a common phenomenon in such SC data

Phased Approach to the Space Operations Center

The Space Operations Center and the Space Manufacturing and Processes Systems have major characteristics of compatibility and can be mutually influential in formulating the next major space initiative. The Phase Program Plan of the SOC provides for increasing capabilities and can be integrated with a Space Manufacturing System\u27s concept in which both the development and operational phases can be implemented. The requirements for the Space Manufacturing System appear to be suitable for SOC on-board development and then operationally as a tender of a free-flying satellite in a station-keeping orbit. The free-flying satellite can be placed in an orbit which hovers about the SOC and never exceeds line of sight communications limits. The services and reboost requirements can likewise be accommodated. The concepts of phased programs, development and operations, station-keeping orbit envelopes, propulsive Harbor Tugs and aspects of servicing will be an issue and presented