Using DEMATEL and ISM for designing green public policies based on the system of systems approach

In this paper, we propose a novel approach to the development of green public policies. We emphasize the significance of the system of systems (SoSs) methodology, which concentrates on understanding and managing complex systems by contemplating their interdependencies and interactions as a single integrated system. Based on this perspective, we consider green public policy as a system interacting with the energy, health, pollutants, and economic systems of the SoSs. As a method of systematic structural analysis, we use both decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory (DEMATEL) and interpretive structural modeling (ISM) techniques to understand the relationships between the systems listed above. We provide a literature review on the application of these soft operation research (SOR) techniques. We note that SOR methods are suitable for the formulation of effective public policies. Using an example, we demonstrate the primary advantage of DEMATEL and ISM, which is the establishment of easily comprehendible causal relationships between the systems in the SoSs.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Dynamic resectorization to improve utility of healthcare systems

This study discusses a regional healthcare system including several hospitals with different characteristics. We define a utility function for the system based on the sectorization concept to form a balance between hospitals in terms of important outputs such as waiting times and demands. Since the determined system is dynamic, the balance state is lost over time; consequently, resectorization is done over time. We simulate the system utilizing the data of a case study. We characterize multiple periods and calculate the utility of the system's current state. We design resectorization scenarios based on boosting the capacity and quality of hospitals. Numerical results demonstrate that substantial improvement of utility with resectorization is achievable.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Using DEMATEL and ISM to design green public policies based on the system of system approach

In this paper, we propose a novel approach to the development of green public policies. We emphasize the significance of the System of Systems (SoSs) methodology, which concentrates on understanding and managing complex systems by contemplating their interdependencies and interactions as a single integrated system. Based on this perspective, we view green public policy as a system interacting with the energy, health, pollutants, and economic systems of the SoSs. We employ both Decision-Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory (DEMATEL) and Interpretive Structural Modeling (ISM) techniques as a method of systematic structural analysis to comprehend the relationships between the aforementioned systems. We provide a comprehensive literature review on the application of these soft operation research (SOR) techniques. We note that SOR methods are suitable for the formulation of effective and long-lasting public policies. Using an example, we demonstrate the primary advantage of DEMATEL and ISM, which is the establishment of easily comprehendible causal relationships between the systems in the SoSs.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Assigning patients to healthcare centers using dispatching rules

This study proposes a model for the balanced assignment of patients to healthcare centers in a region. In the suggested model, it is supposed that patients want to go to the nearest center, which causes an imbalance in the workloads of resources between centers. This disproportion is undesirable not only for the centers but also for the patients. Thus, balancing assignments is targeted. This goal is expressed in a model with a multi-objective function. Since balancing is one of the main goals of the sectorization concept, we characterize the model based on it. Unlike studies in the literature, we do sectorization employing dispatching rules. This diminishes the problem's complexity and makes it suitable for solving actual, large, and dynamic problems. We simulated the system using the Rockwell Arena software. We consider the effect of different seasons, days, and hours on the system. The dispatching rule used for sectorization is optimized using the OptQuest software. The numerical results demonstrate that by optimizing the dispatching rule, it is possible to enhance the objective function significantly.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Improving order-picking operations with precedence constraints through efficient storage location assignment: evidence from a retail company

This paper is inspired by a manual picking retail company where shape and weight constraints affect the order-picking process. We proposed an alternative clustering similarity index that considers the similarity, the weight and the shape of products. This similarity index was further incorporated in a storage allocation heuristic procedure to set the location of the products. We test the procedure in a retail company that supplies over 191 stores, in Northern Portugal. When comparing the strategy currently used in the company with this procedure, we found out that our approach enabled a reduction of up to 40% on the picking distance; a percentage of improvement that is 32% higher than the one achieved by applying the Jaccard index, a similarity index commonly used in the literature. This allows warehouses to save time and work faster.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Aclimatação ex vitro de pereira (Pyrus communis L.) microporopagada. Estudo de substratos

A pereira (Pyrus communis L.) é uma espécie frutícola de elevada importância na fruticultura Portuguesa. A produção nacional em 2005-6 foi de 129 mil toneladas para uma área cultivada de 12 mil hectares. Em 2010-11 a produção ascendeu às 220 mil toneladas. A cultivar “Rocha” é das mais importantes em termos de exportação com um volume de vendas em 2005 de 26 milhões de euros para 45 mil toneladas de pêra correspondente a 35 % da produção total. O presente estudo avaliou uma cultivar de pereira proveniente de uma “semente do acaso” originada numa quinta em Tábua, Distrito de Coimbra, Portugal entre 1990 e 2000. Foi testado o efeito do uso de diferentes substratos na aclimatação ex vitro de plantas micropropagadas. Usaram-se três tipos de substratos: substrato orgânico (SO); SO + perlite (½ + ½, v/v) e perlite. Fez-se a análise do desenvolvimento radicular e da parte aérea: número e comprimento das raízes; peso fresco e seco das raízes e parte aérea. Em todos os tratamentos obtiveram-se 100% de plantas aclimatadas. Os tratamentos com substrato orgânico e mistura SO + perlite deram origem a plantas mais vigorosas em termos de peso fresco das raízes e parte aérea.The common pear (Pyrus communis L.) is one of the most widely cultivated fruit crop in Portugal. The national production in 2005 was 129 thousand tons, to a cultivated area of 12 thousand ha. “Rocha” is the economically most important Portuguese cultivar accounting for 75% of pear production in Portugal, in 2005. Total exports amounted to 26 million euro, corresponding to approximately 45 thousand tons. This study was conducted with a pear-chance seedling originated on a farm located at Tábua, central Portugal, between 1999 and 2000. The main aim of the study was to determine the effects of three substrates: organic compost (SO); perlite + SO (½ + ½, v/v) and perlite on the ex vitro survival and development (roots and leaflets) of pear plantlets. All the treatments had a 100 % survival rate, and the highest ex vitro development was observed on SO and perlite + SO

Transnational cooperation in enhancing researchers’ wider employability: the TRANSPEER project

The purpose of this paper is to provide an example of best practice towards enhancing employability in the cross-sectoral labour market for doctorate-holders. This was achieved through an Erasmus+ KA2 (Strategic Partnership) skills development project which created a training programme (TRANSPEER) involving a multi-disciplinary cohort of researchers at a range of career stages, drawn from universities in Norway, Portugal, Sweden and the UK.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Improved in vitro rooting of Prunus dulcis Mill. cultivars

A highly reproducible system was developed for efficient rooting of cultivars Boa Casta (BC) and Peneda and a BC seedling-derived clone (BC VII) of almond (Prunus dulcis Mill.). Twenty-four accessions derived from the clone BC VII and subjected to various in vitro culture treatments were screened. The long induction pre-treatment (LIP, 5 d), the brief induction pre-treatment (BIP, 16 h) and the hormonal shock by short dipping in hormone solution (1 min), were tested. BIP was the only that allowed rooting of cultivars. In BC VII, it induced high rooting frequencies (47 - 100 %) when using a solution of 0.4 mM indole-3-butyric acid solidified with 2 g dm-3 gellam gum for 16-h. The response to the auxin type was variable depending on the cultivar and the root induction pre-treatment used. Root number was significantly different between the two cultivars and BC VII. Root length was significantly higher when using 0.005 mM IBA in LIP but this concentration induced apical necrosis. The improved acclimatization procedure for up to 4 weeks increased the survival to 45 %. The initiation and development of adventitious roots were proved to be asynchronou

Maternal dietary patterns during pregnancy and intelligence quotients in the offspring at 8years of age: Findings from the ALSPAC cohort

© 2017 The Authors. Maternal & Child Nutrition Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd Dietary intake during pregnancy may influence child neurodevelopment and cognitive function. This study aims to investigate the associations between dietary patterns obtained in pregnancy and intelligence quotients (IQ) among offspring at 8years of age. Pregnant women enrolled in the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children completed a food frequency questionnaire at 32weeks' gestation (n=12,195). Dietary patterns were obtained by cluster analysis. Three clusters best described women's diets during pregnancy: “fruit and vegetables,” “meat and potatoes,” and “white bread and coffee.” The offspring's IQ at 8years of age was assessed using the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children. Models, using variables correlated to IQ data, were performed to impute missing values. Linear regression models were employed to investigate associations between the maternal clusters and IQ in childhood. Children of women who were classified in the meat and potatoes cluster and white bread and coffee cluster during pregnancy had lower average verbal (β=−1.74;