Effectiveness of In-Person Versus Online Negotiation Teaching for Practitioners

Most negotiation courses have been taught in person. However, online education has become more prevalent over the past decade due to its flexibility, cost and time efficiency, and new digital technologies designed to compensate for the lack of personal contact. The global pandemic has accelerated this trend, raising the question of whether negotiation courses taught online are as effective as those taught in person. The few studies that have examined the effect of teaching modality on student performance were limited to undergraduate and graduate student samples and the results have been mixed. To contribute to this discussion, we conducted two studies with practitioners to examine whether online or in-person instruction is more effective for teaching negotiation skills to experienced negotiators

Atomistic insights into lubricated tungsten/diamond sliding contacts

The reinforcement of coatings with diamond particles results in superior tribological performance for automotive applications. In addition to improving the coating’s bulk properties, sliding of diamond on metallic counter bodies contributes to improved tribological performance. Therefore, in order to design better diamond reinforced coatings, it is imperative to understand the atomistic mechanisms at sliding metal/diamond interfaces. Here, we investigate the interfacial tribo-chemical mechanisms leading to low friction in lubricated tungsten/diamond sliding contacts by combining reactive atomistic simulations with on-line tribometry experiments linked to chemical analysis. Reactive classical molecular dynamics simulations reveal the dehydrogenation of hexadecane lubricant molecules between tungsten/diamond contacts by proton transfer from the hexadecane to octahedral sites of the tungsten surface. Subsequent chemisorption of the radicalized hexadecane on dangling C-bond sites of the diamond surface leads to the formation of low-density hydrocarbon films, which significantly lower frictional resistance in the tribo-contact. Quasi-static density functional theory calculations confirm the classical molecular dynamics results and reveal that radicalized hydrocarbon molecules can also bond via C-O bonds on a WO3 layer covering the tungsten counter surface. The on-line tribometry experiments confirm the reduction of friction under hexadecane lubrication and ex situ chemical analysis by means of XPS, AES and EELS provide evidence of the formation of a carbon-rich tribofilm on the diamond and tungsten-oxide surfaces as predicted by the atomistic simulations

On the Origin of Reversible and Irreversible Reactions in LiNix_{x}Co(1−x)/2_{(1-x)/2}Mn(1−x)/2_{(1-x)/2}O2_{2}

Bond formation and breakage is crucial upon energy storage in lithium transition metal oxides (LiMeO$_{2}$, Me = Ni, Co, Mn), i.e., the conventional cathode materials in Li ion batteries. Near-edge X-ray absorption finestructure spectroscopy (NEXAFS) of the Me L and O K edge performed upon the first discharge of LiNi$_{x}$Co$_{(1-x)/2}$Mn$_{(1-x)/2}$O$_{2}$ (x = 0.33: NCM111, x = 0.6: NCM622, x = 0.8: NCM811) in combination with charge transfer multiplet (CTM) calculations provide unambiguous evidence that redox reactions in NCMs proceed via a reversible oxidation of Ni associated with the formation of covalent bonds to O neighbors, and not, as widely assumed, via pure cationic or more recently discussed, pure anionic redox processes. Correlating these electronic changes with crystallographic data using operando synchrotron X-ray powder diffraction (SXPD) shows that the amount of ionic Ni limits the reversible capacity— at states of charge where all ionic Ni is oxidized (above 155 mAh g$^{-1}$), the lattice parameters collapse, and irreversible reactions are observed. Yet the covalence of the Ni–O bonds also triggers the electronic structure and thus the operation potential of the cathodes

Predicting the influence of a p2-symmetric substrate on molecular self-organization with an interaction-site model

An interaction-site model can a priori predict molecular selforganisation on a new substrate in Monte Carlo simulations. This is experimentally confirmed with scanning tunnelling microscopy on Fre´chet dendrons of a pentacontane template. Local and global ordering motifs, inclusion molecules and a rotated unit cell are correctly predicted

Dynamics of collective modes in an unconventional charge density wave system BaNi2As2

BaNi 2As 2 is a non-magnetic analogue of BaFe2 As2 , the parent compound of a prototype pnictide high-temperature superconductor, displaying superconductivity already at ambient pressure. Recent diffraction studies demonstrated the existence of two types of periodic lattice distortions above and below the triclinic phase transition, suggesting the existence of an unconventional charge-density-wave (CDW) order. The suppression of CDW order upon doping results in a sixfold increase in the superconducting transition temperature and enhanced nematic fluctuations, suggesting CDW is competing with superconductivity. Here, we apply time-resolved optical spectroscopy to investigate collective dynamics in BaNi 2 As 2. We demonstrate the existence of several CDW amplitude modes. Their smooth evolution through the structural phase transition implies the commensurate CDW order in the triclinic phase evolves from the high-temperature unidirectional incommensurate CDW, and may indeed trigger the structural phase transition. Excitation density dependence reveals excep- tional resilience of CDW against perturbation, implying an unconventional origin of the underlying electronic instability

Methodology to Assess Clinical Liver Safety Data

Analysis of liver safety data has to be multivariate by nature and needs to take into account time dependency of observations. Current standard tools for liver safety assessment such as summary tables, individual data listings, and narratives address these requirements to a limited extent only. Using graphics in the context of a systematic workflow including predefined graph templates is a valuable addition to standard instruments, helping to ensure completeness of evaluation, and supporting both hypothesis generation and testing. Employing graphical workflows interactively allows analysis in a team-based setting and facilitates identification of the most suitable graphics for publishing and regulatory reporting. Another important tool is statistical outlier detection, accounting for the fact that for assessment of Drug-Induced Liver Injury, identification and thorough evaluation of extreme values has much more relevance than measures of central tendency in the data. Taken together, systematical graphical data exploration and statistical outlier detection may have the potential to significantly improve assessment and interpretation of clinical liver safety data. A workshop was convened to discuss best practices for the assessment of drug-induced liver injury (DILI) in clinical trials

Atomistic Insights Into Lubricated Tungsten/Diamond Sliding Contacts

The reinforcement of coatings with diamond particles results in superior tribological performance in automotive applications. In addition to improving the coating's bulk properties, sliding of diamond on metallic counter bodies contributes to improved tribological performance. Therefore, in order to design better diamond-reinforced coatings, it is imperative to understand the atomistic mechanisms at sliding metal/diamond interfaces. Here, we investigate the interfacial tribochemical mechanisms leading to low friction in lubricated tungsten/diamond sliding contacts by combining reactive atomistic simulations with on-line tribometry experiments linked to chemical analysis. Reactive classical molecular dynamics simulations reveal the dehydrogenation of hexadecane lubricant molecules between tungsten/diamond contacts by proton transfer from the hexadecane to octahedral sites of the tungsten surface. Subsequent chemisorption of the radicalized hexadecane on dangling C-bond sites of the diamond surface leads to the formation of low-density hydrocarbon films, which significantly lower frictional resistance in the tribo-contact. Quasi-static density functional theory calculations confirm the classical molecular dynamics results and reveal that radicalized hydrocarbon molecules can also bond via C–O bonds on a WO3 layer covering the tungsten counter surface. The on-line tribometry experiments confirm the reduction of friction under hexadecane lubrication, and ex situ chemical analysis by means of X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), Auger electron spectroscopy (AES), and electron energy loss spectroscopy (EELS) provides evidence of the formation of a carbon-rich tribofilm on the diamond and tungsten-oxide surfaces as predicted by the atomistic simulations

Random Geometric Graphs

We analyse graphs in which each vertex is assigned random coordinates in a geometric space of arbitrary dimensionality and only edges between adjacent points are present. The critical connectivity is found numerically by examining the size of the largest cluster. We derive an analytical expression for the cluster coefficient which shows that the graphs are distinctly different from standard random graphs, even for infinite dimensionality. Insights relevant for graph bi-partitioning are included.Comment: 16 pages, 10 figures. Minor changes. Added reference