RECENT YEARS have witnessed the proliferation of applications of cost‐benefit analysis to public sector expenditure. Cost‐benefit analysis is a method of decision‐making which…
Abstract
RECENT YEARS have witnessed the proliferation of applications of cost‐benefit analysis to public sector expenditure. Cost‐benefit analysis is a method of decision‐making which seeks to quantify the benefits that are obtainable from a given course of action, to express them in financial terms (or in terms of financial equivalents) and then to deduct the estimated social and financial costs so that the results of the course of action may be assessed, valued and expressed in monetary terms. Quantification of actual financial costs and benefits poses no difficulties, but it has been shown elsewhere that the quantification of social costs and benefits often poses considerable problems. Some social benefits, such as the value of time‐saving, can be quantified reasonably successfully (using, for example, financial equivalents of time saved in terms of average wages or average salaries of the individuals concerned), but others, such as the measurement of alleviation of suffering or the assessment of degrees of incapability in nursing care, have no adequate financial equivalents.
CRUS (the Centre for Research on User Studies) started operations on 5 January 1976 as an independent research institute attached to the University of Sheffield and funded for its…
Abstract
CRUS (the Centre for Research on User Studies) started operations on 5 January 1976 as an independent research institute attached to the University of Sheffield and funded for its first five years by a grant from the British Library. From a purely utilitarian and financial aspect any library and information centre has to justify its existence from a cost‐benefit point of view, and therefore has to be responsive to the information needs of the community it serves. Thus the ‘determination of users' needs is absolutely essential to the management of an information center …. [It] exists only to provide service to user groups, and its monetary value is in terms of the service to the group[s] that it helps’.
Manik Kumar, Joe Sgarrella and Christian Peco
This paper develops a neural network surrogate model based on a discrete lattice approach to investigate the influence of complex microstructures on the emergent behavior of…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper develops a neural network surrogate model based on a discrete lattice approach to investigate the influence of complex microstructures on the emergent behavior of biological networks.
Design/methodology/approach
The adaptability of network-forming organisms, such as, slime molds, relies on fluid-to-solid state transitions and dynamic behaviors at the level of the discrete microstructure, which continuum modeling methods struggle to capture effectively. To address this challenge, we present an optimized approach that combines lattice spring modeling with machine learning to capture dynamic behavior and develop nonlinear constitutive relationships.
Findings
This integrated approach allows us to predict the dynamic response of biological materials with heterogeneous microstructures, overcoming the limitations of conventional trial-and-error lattice design. The study investigates the microstructural behavior of biological materials using a neural network-based surrogate model. The results indicate that our surrogate model is effective in capturing the behavior of discrete lattice microstructures in biological materials.
Research limitations/implications
The combination of numerical simulations and machine learning endows simulations of the slime mold Physarum polycephalum with a more accurate description of its emergent behavior and offers a pathway for the development of more effective lattice structures across a wide range of applications.
Originality/value
The novelty of this research lies in integrating lattice spring modeling and machine learning to explore the dynamic behavior of biological materials. This combined approach surpasses conventional methods, providing a more holistic and accurate representation of emergent behaviors in organisms.
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A VERY interesting winter lies ahead for all students and other librarians; for, we suppose, almost immediately attempts will be made to harmonize the practice of the Library…
Abstract
A VERY interesting winter lies ahead for all students and other librarians; for, we suppose, almost immediately attempts will be made to harmonize the practice of the Library Association with the expressed wishes of its last Annual Meeting. We publish some notes in Letters on Our Affairs on the crisis, if it may be so called, but we would add such voice as we have to that of those who plead for moderation. Violent changes are rarely justified, and violent expressions still less rarely, and as there appears to be now a disposition to bury hatchets and to get to work we hope that every advantage will be taken of it.
Aim of the present monograph is the economic analysis of the role of MNEs regarding globalisation and digital economy and in parallel there is a reference and examination of some…
Abstract
Aim of the present monograph is the economic analysis of the role of MNEs regarding globalisation and digital economy and in parallel there is a reference and examination of some legal aspects concerning MNEs, cyberspace and e‐commerce as the means of expression of the digital economy. The whole effort of the author is focused on the examination of various aspects of MNEs and their impact upon globalisation and vice versa and how and if we are moving towards a global digital economy.
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Aarhus Kommunes Biblioteker (Teknisk Bibliotek), Ingerslevs Plads 7, Aarhus, Denmark. Representative: V. NEDERGAARD PEDERSEN (Librarian).
Presents the scientific methodology from the enlarged cybernetical perspective that recognizes the anisotropy of time, the probabilistic character of natural laws, and the entry…
Abstract
Presents the scientific methodology from the enlarged cybernetical perspective that recognizes the anisotropy of time, the probabilistic character of natural laws, and the entry that the incomplete determinism in Nature opens to the occurrence of innovation, growth, organization, teleology communication, control, contest and freedom. The new tier to the methodological edifice that cybernetics provides stands on the earlier tiers, which go back to the Ionians (c. 500 BC). However, the new insights reveal flaws in the earlier tiers, and their removal strengthens the entire edifice. The new concepts of teleological activity and contest allow the clear demarcation of the military sciences as those whose subject matter is teleological activity involving contest. The paramount question “what ought to be done”, outside the empirical realm, is embraced by the scientific methodology. It also embraces the cognitive sciences that ask how the human mind is able to discover, and how the sequence of discoveries might converge to a true description of reality.
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The Bureau of Economics in the Federal Trade Commission has a three-part role in the Agency and the strength of its functions changed over time depending on the preferences and…
Abstract
The Bureau of Economics in the Federal Trade Commission has a three-part role in the Agency and the strength of its functions changed over time depending on the preferences and ideology of the FTC’s leaders, developments in the field of economics, and the tenor of the times. The over-riding current role is to provide well considered, unbiased economic advice regarding antitrust and consumer protection law enforcement cases to the legal staff and the Commission. The second role, which long ago was primary, is to provide reports on investigations of various industries to the public and public officials. This role was more recently called research or “policy R&D”. A third role is to advocate for competition and markets both domestically and internationally. As a practical matter, the provision of economic advice to the FTC and to the legal staff has required that the economists wear “two hats,” helping the legal staff investigate cases and provide evidence to support law enforcement cases while also providing advice to the legal bureaus and to the Commission on which cases to pursue (thus providing “a second set of eyes” to evaluate cases). There is sometimes a tension in those functions because building a case is not the same as evaluating a case. Economists and the Bureau of Economics have provided such services to the FTC for over 100 years proving that a sub-organization can survive while playing roles that sometimes conflict. Such a life is not, however, always easy or fun.