Quality program induced change: its impact on stress, fear and anxiety

Organizational change has historically been a stimulus for increased fear/anxiety. A precept of quality movement intervention, as conceived by Deming (1986)1 is that if the intervention is properly implemented there will be less fear within the organization. This investigation assesses the impact of level of quality program implementation, sex, years of employment (tenure), years of formal education, organization size, individual\u27s age and job type on the level of fear/anxiety within the studied organizations. The level of quality program implementation was determined using an instrument developed for the purposes of this study. Fear/anxiety were assumed to be sufficiently correlated to occupational stress to allow use of the Job Stress Survey (JSS) for data collection. Data were collected from 1796 respondents in twenty-two organizations that had participated or were participating in a continuous quality improvement education program. Findings included: (1) Level of quality implementation or the sex of the respondent did not have an impact on the level of fear/anxiety in the studied organizations. (2) Organization size, years of employment, years of education, age and job type were all significantly related to the level of fear/anxiety in the studied organizations. (3) The supervisor had a higher level of stress than the other four job types (manager, professional, clerical, worker);Conclusions and recommendations include: (1) The finding with regard to level of quality implementation should not necessarily be taken as evidence that there is no relationship between level of quality implementation and fear/anxiety within individual organizations. Since there was no control group available, the instrument used to assess the level of quality implementation may not have had sufficient face validity and rater reliability. (2) The demographics found to affect fear/anxiety levels should not be ignored when considering organizational change. (3) Future research is needed to assess methodologies and procedures used to evaluate the interactions between variables without their being confounded by multicollinearity. (4) Further research is needed to assess the reasons for the difference in the level of fear/anxiety experienced by those in supervisory positions. (5) Separate training programs should be considered for supervisors when implementing programs that involve organizational change;1Deming W. E. (1986). Out of the crisis. Cambridge: Massachusetts Institute of Technology Center for Advanced Engineering Study

Measuring the effects of using partially-populated notes in first-year calculus

Pedagogical innovation in post-secondary mathematics has not progressed at the same rate as other disciplines. Recent poor results in international standardized testing and a high number of students failing in post-secondary mathematics, among other factors, has created an urgent need to examine post-secondary mathematics pedagogy and innovations in student-centred curricula, assessment and teaching practices. In this research, we explored the use of partially-populated notes (PPNs) in a first-year calculus course, and we consider PPNs to likely be an effective teaching method in many other disciplines in Science. PPNs are lecture notes containing pre-filled low-level content and have strategically placed empty spaces for students to fill-in during class time with the instructor. The method affords great time savings on low-level material, leaving more time/attention to be spent on challenging course material and learning activities. In terms of effectiveness, qualitative analysis (Tonkes et al, 2009) has been done and here we examine both qualitative and quantitative aspects of using PPNs. Student data (both in-course and high school) were considered when comparing two sections of a calculus course (1-control class and 2-PPN class) in order to measure the effect of the PPNs. Other variables were also considered: participation in remediation, lab results, and placement test scores. Comparative data will be presented, as well as results from an exit survey measuring the student experience. We will also share examples of PPNs, discuss the important factors of successful writing in undergraduate Science courses, and discuss the instructor perspective. Tonkes et al. (2009). International Journal of Mathematical Education in Science and Technology, 40(4), 495-504

The informal news network.

The purpose of this research thesis was to study the transmission of informal news including rumours and gossip on a grapevine network in a large private utility. The subject of internal communications within organizations has had considerable discussion in the literature but little factual research has been attempted to measure the various communication networks within an organization. The informal network system (referred to as grapevines) contains the following: factual news, rumours, and gossip. Organizations contain both formal and informal communication networks. The formal one is usually represented by an organizational flow chart corresponding to the chain-of-command. Such a flow chart establishes a control system for the transmission of all officially derived messages. The informal network or grapevine, supplements the formal network and can have either a positive or negative effect on the organization and in contrast to the formal network, it emerges spontaneously and is situationally derived. The major problems are: How does the grapevine work? Does the information contained in the grapevine move vertically down through a department or does it move horizontally through other departments? Does the information move primarily down from the top levels of management to the lower levels? Finally, does an increase in scientific management bring about a growth in grapevine activities? This research project took place within a large private public utility in a division located in Southwestern Ontario. The division was broken down into two separate branches, with a total of 225 employees. Of this total, 151 were males and 74 were females. The theoretical approach was the, exchange theory as defined and developed by Homans (1958) and Blau (1964).Dept. of Sociology and Anthropology. Paper copy at Leddy Library: Theses & Major Papers - Basement, West Bldg. / Call Number: Thesis1994 .C374. Source: Masters Abstracts International, Volume: 34-02, page: 0612. Adviser: J. Ferguson. Thesis (M.A.)--University of Windsor (Canada), 1994

36% Reduction in Fuel Resupply Using a Hybrid Generator & Battery System for an Austere Location

The DOD energy policy is to increase energy security resiliency, and mitigate costs in the use and management of energy[1] Forward operating bases (FOBs) are remote, austere base camps that support an operationally defined mission with a limited or no ability to draw from an energy grid and have historically relied on diesel-powered generators for the primary production of energy.[2] Generators are sized to meet a theoretical peak demand, but steady state loads are far below this peak, resulting in under-loaded generators.[3] Under-loaded diesel generators decrease efficiency and increase the need for maintenance, affecting the lifespan of the systems[4,5] This article analyzes the coupling of current power generation technology with energy storage. The addition of optimized energy storage to current diesel generators reduces fuel consumption by 36 percent and reduces energy system costs by 24 percent. Decreased fuel requirements at outlying FOBs equates to fewer resupply convoys, reducing operational fuel use, time spent outside the wire by service members and associated combat casualties. Abstract © Marine Corps Association

Laboratory Evaluation of Dynamic Routing of Air Traffic in an En Route Arrival Metering Environment

Arrival air traffic operations in the presence of convective weather are subject to uncertainty in aircraft routing and subsequently in flight trajectory predictability. Current management of arrival operations in weather-impacted airspace results in significant flight delay and suspension of arrival metering operations. The Dynamic Routing for Arrivals in Weather (DRAW) concept provides flight route amendment advisories to Traffic Management Coordinators to mitigate the impacts of convective weather on arrival operations. DRAW provides both weather conflict and schedule information for proposed route amendments, allowing air traffic managers to simultaneously evaluate weather avoidance routing and potential schedule and delay impacts. Subject matter experts consisting of retired Traffic Management Coordinators and retired Sector Controllers with arrival metering experience participated in a simulation study of Fort Worth Air Route Traffic Control Center arrival operations. Data were collected for Traffic Management Coordinator and Sector Controller participants over three weeks of simulation activities in October, 2017. Traffic Management Coordinators reported acceptable workload levels, a positive impact on their ability to manage arrival traffic while using DRAW, and initiated weather mitigation reroutes earlier while using DRAW. Sector Controllers also reported acceptable workload levels while using DRAW

Electron-electron interaction corrections to the thermal conductivity in disordered conductors

We evaluate the electron-electron interaction corrections to the electronic thermal conductivity in a disordered conductor in the diffusive regime. We use a diagrammatic many-body method analogous to that of Altshuler and Aronov for the electrical conductivity. We derive results in one, two and three dimensions for both the singlet and triplet channels, and in all cases find that the Wiedemann-Franz law is violated.Comment: 8 pages, 2 figures Typos corrected in formulas (15) and (A.4) and Table 1; discussion of previous work in introduction extended; reference clarifying different definitions of parameter F adde

Evaluating the validity and applicable domain of the toxic load model: Impact of concentration vs. time profile on inhalation lethality of hydrogen cyanide

The ten Berge model (or ‘‘toxic load’’ model) is often used to estimate the acute toxicity for varying combinations of inhaled concentration and duration. Expressed as Cn X t = toxic load (TL), TLs are assumed constant for various combinations of concentration (C) and time (t). Experimental data in a recent acute inhalation study of rats exposed to time-varying concentrations of hydrogen cyanide (HCN) supported the validity of the toxic load model except under very brief, discontinuous, high concentration exposures. In the present investigation, experiments were conducted to extend the evaluation of the applicable domain of the model for acute lethality of HCN in the rat (cumulative exposure range of 2900–11,000 ppm min). The lethality of HCN over very short (\u3c5 min) durations of high concentrations did not conform to the toxic load model. A value of n = 1.57 was determined for uninterrupted exposures P5 min. For 30-min exposures, the presence or absence of a gap between two exposure pulses of different concentrations, the relative duration, relative height, and the ordering of the pulses (low then high, vs. high then low) did not appear to have a meaningful impact on the toxic load required for median lethality

Simulation and Flight Test Data Collection to Support Phase 1 Detect-and-Avoid MOPS

The UAS Integration into the NAS (UASNAS) project is studying the minimum operational performance standards for unmanned aerial system (UAS) detect-and-avoid (DAA) systems in order to operate in the National Airspace System (NAS). The project is executing a series of fast-time simulation, human-in-the-loop experiments, and flight tests in support of this effort. Armstrong Flight Research Center is hosting a VIP Day in conjunction with the UAS-NAS Project's Flight Test 4 activity, and the Ames Project Engineer (or designate) will be presenting a briefing. This briefing will review the data collection and analysis activities for Flight Test 4 within the Separation assurance-Sense-and-avoid Interoperability (SSI) team

Statement of the Trustees of the AIG Credit Facility Trust

Before the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform U.S. House of Representatives Hearing on the collapse and Federal rescue of AIG