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More comparative research in industrial relations is needed. Whilst there maybe valid criticisms of the adequacy of existing work, it is nevertheless useful in enhancing the cumulative development of the discipline. Apart from being of assistance in the development and testing of hypotheses, it can also make us more aware that aspects of our own system require explanation rather than being taken for granted.

Human space exploration to date has been limited to low Earth orbit and the moon. The International Space Station (ISS) provides a unique opportunity for researchers to prove out the technologies that will enable humans to safely live and work in space for longer periods and venture farther into the solar system. The ability to manufacture parts in-space rather than launch them from earth represents a fundamental shift in the current risk and logistics paradigm for human space exploration. The purpose of this mission is to prove out the fused deposition modeling (FDM) process in the microgravity environment, evaluate microgravity effects on the materials manufactured, and provide the first demonstration of on-demand manufacturing for space exploration.

In 2014, NASA, in cooperation with Made in Space, Inc., launched a 3D printer to the ISS with the goal of evaluating the effect of microgravity on the fused deposition modeling (FDM) process and prove out the technology for use on long duration, long endurance missions where it could leveraged to reduce logistics requirements and enhance crew safety by enabling a rapid response capability. This paper presents the results of testing of the first phase of prints from the technology demonstration mission, where 21 parts where printed on orbit and compared against analogous specimens produced using the printer prior to its launch to ISS.

Mechanical properties, dimensional variations, structural differences and chemical composition for ground and flight specimens are reported. Hypotheses to explain differences observed in ground and flight prints are also developed. Phase II print operations, which took place in June and July of 2016, and ground-based studies using a printer identical to the hardware on ISS, will serve to answer remaining questions about the phase I data set. Based on Phase I analyses, operating the FDM process in microgravity has no substantive effect on the material produced.

Demonstrates that there is no discernable, engineering significant effect on operation of FDM in microgravity. Implication is that material characterization activities for this application can be ground-based.

Summary of results of testing of parts from the first operation of 3D printing in a microgravity environment.

Presents over sixty abstracts summarising the 1999 Employment Research Unit annual conference held at the University of Cardiff. Explores the multiple impacts of globalization on work and employment in contemporary organizations. Covers the human resource management implications of organizational responses to globalization. Examines the theoretical, methodological, empirical and comparative issues pertaining to competitiveness and the management of human resources, the impact of organisational strategies and international production on the workplace, the organization of labour markets, human resource development, cultural change in organisations, trade union responses, and trans‐national corporations. Cites many case studies showing how globalization has brought a lot of opportunities together with much change both to the employee and the employer. Considers the threats to existing cultures, structures and systems.

According to John Grant’s New Marketing Manifesto, contemporary consumers “act their shoe size not their age” by resolutely refusing to grow up. They are not alone. Managers too are adopting a kiddy imperative, as the profusion of primers predicated on children’s literature – and storytelling generally – bears witness. Winnie the Pooh, the Wizard of Oz, Alice in Wonderland and Hans Christian Andersen are the marketing gurus du jour, or so it seems. This paper adds to the juvenile agenda by examining the Harry Potter books, all four of which are replete with references to market‐place phenomena, and contending that scholarly sustenance can be drawn from J.K. Rowling’s remarkable, if ambivalent, marketing imagination.

Presents a special issue, enlisting the help of the author’s students and colleagues, focusing on age, sex, colour and disability discrimination in America. Breaks the evidence down into manageable chunks, covering: age discrimination in the workplace; discrimination against African‐Americans; sex discrimination in the workplace; same sex sexual harassment; how to investigate and prove disability discrimination; sexual harassment in the military; when the main US job‐discrimination law applies to small companies; how to investigate and prove racial discrimination; developments concerning race discrimination in the workplace; developments concerning the Equal Pay Act; developments concerning discrimination against workers with HIV or AIDS; developments concerning discrimination based on refusal of family care leave; developments concerning discrimination against gay or lesbian employees; developments concerning discrimination based on colour; how to investigate and prove discrimination concerning based on colour; developments concerning the Equal Pay Act; using statistics in employment discrimination cases; race discrimination in the workplace; developments concerning gender discrimination in the workplace; discrimination in Japanese organizations in America; discrimination in the entertainment industry; discrimination in the utility industry; understanding and effectively managing national origin discrimination; how to investigate and prove hiring discrimination based on colour; and, finally, how to investigate sexual harassment in the workplace.

Electronic scanning check‐out systems now operate in most New Zealand supermarkets, and three‐quarters of all grocery products bought by New Zealand households are optically scanned. With the introduction of optical scanning technology at point‐of‐sale comes the debate on price accuracy. Based on a sample of 18.129 products bought in 86 New Zealand supermarkets, the level of pricing errors and the monetary value of pricing errors are examined. Previous research in the USA has suggested that consumers suspect pricing errors may disadvantage them rather than the retailer. However, the monetary consequences of price inaccuracy resulted in a net average undercharge to the consumer of 31 cents in every NZ$100 spent; half of this net average undercharge resulted from uncharged goods, that is, goods free to the consumer. Price inaccuracy in the New Zealand supermarket industry is disadvantaging the supermarket retailer. Extrapolation of the results of this research shows that this industry could be losing nearly NZ$18 million per annum from pricing errors. Recommends detection of pricing errors and greater emphasis on staff training and supervision for check‐out operators and for those responsible for price changes.

You wonder: What does it mean to live with an emotional spirit, a spirit that cares about what others are feeling, that feels with and for them, a spirit that is “helplessly attached to being human” (Pelias, 2004, p. 141). To discover the heart of such questions, you follow Ron Pelias's lead and track your day.

Notes increasing investment by US pension funds in foreign currency denominated assets and briefly outlines previous research on the links between various types of assets/currencies. Uses cointegration methodologies on 1978‐1996 futures data for commodities and four currencies (Swiss, German, British and Canadian) to assess the long‐run stochastic relationships between them; and suggests that currencies are more closely cointegrated with soft commodities and precious metals than with livestock. Considers the implications for hedging and diversification by pension fund managers trying to manage risk.

We have repeatedly dealt with the question of the differences which are from time to time exhibited in the certificates issued by Public Analysts, when compared with those emanating from the Somerset House Laboratory in regard to the analyses of samples which purport to be representative portions of one and the same article, and we have shown that if due regard be given to the principles of evidence, it is not only wholly unjustifiable, but utterly absurd to conclude that such difference, as a matter of course, indicate error or carelessness on the part of the Public Analyst. In season and out of season we shall continue to expose the fallacies which underlie the abominably unjust assumption referred to, and to urge that in each case of the kind every possible step should be taken by those concerned on behalf of prosecuting authorities, to make all the conditions affecting the case as clear as they can be made to the lay mind.

Purpose: This paper discusses some of the contending issues in the legal environment of business in Sub‐Saharan Africa (SSA) as they relate to Foreign Direct Investment (FDI). Given that ‘fear of national laws’ has been consistently cited as a major factor inhibiting foreign investments in the region, this paper argues that ‘arbitration/alternative dispute resolution’ (A/ADR) offers a strategically complementary adjudicative system to mitigate this adverse perception. Design/methodology/approach: Based on a synthesis of the literature, the paper, first, outlines the emerging A/ADR‐driven trends in global business. From this premise, it focuses the market transition challenges facing SSA and identifies the disparate regional legal systems, with their backgrounds and origins in common, civil and Islamic laws, as primary issues of concern. Findings: Apart from lacking uniformity in application, the legal strictures have made the resolution of legal and contractual obligations much more cumbersome and expensive, thereby discouraging significant FDI flow to SSA. Research limitations/implications: The need to secure the confidence of investors by reforming the law and the adjudication process appears compelling. However, the socio‐cultural considerations that should naturally embed effective arbitral protocols are not addressed in this paper. Originality/value: A/ADR mechanism is not presently a key feature in the legal environment of business in SSA. However, it is likely to prove a more functional adjudication process than the procedural formalities of litigation. By its characterization, this approach promotes the creative implementation of a “home‐grown” frame work for commercial dispute resolution, thus avoiding the drudgeries of litigation but at the same time providing the needed catalysts for enabling FDI.