scholarly journals Simulating Land Use: An Exploration of the Stability of a Two Zone City

2015 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Andy Tran

This project simulates the Concentric Zone model (Ernest Burgess, 1925) using the agent-based simulation software COBWEB, which allows comparison of transportation costs in determining the distribution of agents after a set period of time. The energy an individual uses to move one grid cell is the parameter factor used to represent transportation costs. It was hypothesized that setting up this experiment to recreate a concentric zone environment will develop a stable environment with individual agents staying in their respective zones as determined by transportation costs. However, over a period of time, the agent population would diminish or the zones won’t be as clearly expressed.In the control experiment, each agent type stayed in their respective zones and the agent count remained consistent throughout the simulation. Two more experiments were performed to observe their respective effects on the model. By increasing the number of agents, this experiment had similar averages compared the control experiment, indicating that there is a carrying capacity in order to maximize the agent’s survival. By changing AI strategies, one of the agents completely died out, suggesting that the agent’s specific AI strategy for its movement and consumption is important to consider when performing experiments.Modelling the distribution of the agents and observing the key factors affecting this distribution is useful for urban planning and transportation management. Additional research to introduce parameters for housing costs is worth exploring in future research activities to provide more interesting and detailed results from the simulation.Ce projet simule le Plan Radiocentrique, un concept qui a été créé par Ernest Burgess, un économiste influencé par von Thünen (Ernest Burgess, 1925). En particulier, ce projet utilise « COBWEB,  »  un logiciel de simulation à base d'agents qui permet la comparaison entre les coûts de transport et d'autres facteurs essentiels pour déterminer le résultat. L'énergie qu'un individu utilise pour déplacer une cellule de la grille a été le paramètre facteur utilisé pour représenter les coûts de transport. L'établissement de cette expérience avec un but de recréer un environnement de zone concentrique permettra de créer un environnement stable avec des agents individuels qui restent dans leurs zones respectives telles que déterminées par les coûts de transport. Au fil du temps, la population des agents diminuera, en affectant la stabilité de la zone.La modélisation de la distribution des agents et l'observation des facteurs clés qui influencent cette distribution sont utiles pour la planification urbaine et la gestion des transports. Des recherches supplémentaires pour introduire des paramètres pour les frais de logement méritent d'être explorées. 

2014 ◽  
Vol 18 (4) ◽  
pp. 795-811 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ingi Runar Edvardsson ◽  
Susanne Durst

Purpose – This paper aims to review research on outsourcing of knowledge processes to establish the current body of knowledge and, on this basis, to identify gaps in our understanding. This action will justify further research activities and clarify where no future research is currently needed. Design/methodology/approach – The study consists of a systematic review of 24 refereed empirical articles on outsourcing of knowledge processes. Findings – Five themes were identified: outsourcing of knowledge processes, outsourcing and collaborative agreements between knowledge-based firms, factors affecting successful knowledge outsourcing, knowledge management and knowledge outsourcing and other outsourcing issues. There seems to be a lack of understanding concerning knowledge process outsourcing. Research limitations/implications – This study may not have enabled a complete coverage of all empirical articles in the field of knowledge process outsourcing. Yet, it seems reasonable to assume that the review process covered a large share of studies available. Originality/value – To the best of the authors’ knowledge, no systematic literature review on this topic has previously been published in academic journals.


Author(s):  
Riccardo Mangiaracina ◽  
Alessandro Perego ◽  
Arianna Seghezzi ◽  
Angela Tumino

Purpose The purpose of this paper is twofold: first, to review and classify scientific publications dealing with those innovative solutions aimed at increasing the efficiency of last-mile delivery in business to consumer (B2C) e-commerce; and, second, to outline directions for future research in this field. Design/methodology/approach The review is based on 75 papers published between 2001 and 2019 in international peer-reviewed journals or proceedings of conferences, retrieved from bibliographic databases and science search engines. Findings Due to its importance in affecting the overall logistics costs and, as a consequence, the economic sustainability of a B2C e-commerce initiative, last-mile delivery process deserves particular attention in order to be optimised. The review highlights that, among the main factors affecting its cost, there are the probability to have failed deliveries, the customer density in the delivery areas and the degree of automation of the process. Innovative and viable last-mile delivery solutions – which may impact the mentioned drivers – include parcel lockers, crowdsourcing logistics, mapping the consumer presence at home and dynamic pricing policies. Eventually, some gaps and areas for further research activities have been identified (e.g. mapping customer behaviour, crowdsourcing logistics). Originality/value This review offers interesting insights to both academics and practitioners. On the academic side, it analyses and classifies relevant literature about innovative and efficiency-oriented last-mile delivery solutions, proposing directions for future research efforts. On the managerial side, it presents a holistic framework of the main factors affecting last-mile delivery cost and of viable innovative solutions that may be implemented to increase efficiency.


2017 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 361
Author(s):  
Godiva Rembeci

Now days there is a global consensus among all stakeholders that SMEs represent a driving force to the overall economic development, due to their significant contribution both on GDP and employment of national economies. SMEs also by numbers dominate the world business stage, although their contribution does vary among the countries. SMEs in Albania represents about 98% of the total enterprises with a contribution to national GDP for about 70%. The structure and the performance of national economy is depended very much on the economic performance and contribution of SME, that’s why most of the governments have strategic programmes which support the SME’s development. To measure SMEs’ performance and their ability to compete on national and international markets requires a lot of information in all aspects. Through this paper the author aims to measure and analyze the economic performance of SMEs operating in Albania. To achieve this objective, official data on business statistics published by national the statistical office (INSTAT) are used for two years period 2014-2015. In addition using an international framework addressed to the objective “improve the techniques for SMEs productivity measurement”, for the first time, a set of comparative performance indicators is established and in doing so, those results can be used as term of reference in future research activities in SMEs sector. From the results it came out that although the positive growth rate of GDP during the last years , the performance indicators of SMEs show a slightly negative trend, indicating indirectly the need for support, in order to empower their contribution in national economy.


HortScience ◽  
1998 ◽  
Vol 33 (3) ◽  
pp. 558c-558
Author(s):  
Jennifer B. Neujahr ◽  
Karen L.B. Gast

Consumer behavior research seems to play an big role in determining the wants and needs of an industry. This research helps to shape the way we market to the consumers and helps make marketing strategies more effective. In the 1950s grocery stores began to sell horticulture products in order to alleviate the growers' surplus. Supermarkets now have seem to found their niche in this market due to the fact that they can influence their consumers to buy their flowers right along with their bread, and get all of their shopping done at once. This new type of sale, commonly referred to as the impulse sale, can relate directly to how well the store is merchandised and maintained. A study was conducted at a local supermarket, to determine the following: good locations for impulse sales items, special conditions affecting impulse sales items, and what types of things could affect demand for impulse items. It was discovered that certain locations make better sales than other locations. Locations that were front and center and allowed easy access to seeing the mixed flower bouquet without having to touch it yielded the best results. The variables used to show a change in demand showed little to some variability and has raised some questions which may be used to conduct future research.


Author(s):  
Yingfeng (Eric) Li ◽  
Haiyan Hao ◽  
Ronald B. Gibbons ◽  
Alejandra Medina

Even though drivers disregarding a stop sign is widely considered a major contributing factor for crashes at unsignalized intersections, an equally important problem that leads to severe crashes at such locations is misjudgment of gaps. This paper presents the results of an effort to fully understand gap acceptance behavior at unsignalized intersections using SHPR2 Naturalistic Driving Study data. The paper focuses on the findings of two research activities: the identification of critical gaps for common traffic/roadway scenarios at unsignalized intersections, and the investigation of significant factors affecting driver gap acceptance behaviors at such intersections. The study used multiple statistical and machine learning methods, allowing a comprehensive understanding of gap acceptance behavior while demonstrating the advantages of each method. Overall, the study showed an average critical gap of 5.25 s for right-turn and 6.19 s for left-turn movements. Although a variety of factors affected gap acceptance behaviors, gap size, wait time, major-road traffic volume, and how frequently the driver drives annually were examples of the most significant.


2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 719
Author(s):  
Sarah D. Müller ◽  
Jonathan S. H. Ziegler ◽  
Tobias Piegeler

The perioperative use of regional anesthesia and local anesthetics is part of almost every anesthesiologist’s daily clinical practice. Retrospective analyses and results from experimental studies pointed towards a potential beneficial effect of the local anesthetics regarding outcome—i.e., overall and/or recurrence-free survival—in patients undergoing cancer surgery. The perioperative period, where the anesthesiologist is responsible for the patients, might be crucial for the further course of the disease, as circulating tumor cells (shed from the primary tumor into the patient’s bloodstream) might form new micro-metastases independent of complete tumor removal. Due to their strong anti-inflammatory properties, local anesthetics might have a certain impact on these circulating tumor cells, either via direct or indirect measures, for example via blunting the inflammatory stress response as induced by the surgical stimulus. This narrative review highlights the foundation of these principles, features recent experimental and clinical data and provides an outlook regarding current and potential future research activities.


2015 ◽  
Vol 2015 ◽  
pp. 1-16 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qinghua Li ◽  
Jintao Liu ◽  
Shilang Xu

As one-dimensional (1D) nanofiber, carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have been widely used to improve the performance of nanocomposites due to their high strength, small dimensions, and remarkable physical properties. Progress in the field of CNTs presents a potential opportunity to enhance cementitious composites at the nanoscale. In this review, current research activities and key advances on multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) reinforced cementitious composites are summarized, including the effect of MWCNTs on modulus of elasticity, porosity, fracture, and mechanical and microstructure properties of cement-based composites. The issues about the improvement mechanisms, MWCNTs dispersion methods, and the major factors affecting the mechanical properties of composites are discussed. In addition, large-scale production methods of MWCNTs and the effects of CNTs on environment and health are also summarized.


2012 ◽  
Vol 81 ◽  
pp. 39-48 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ha Xuan Nguyen ◽  
Christoph Edeler ◽  
Sergej Fatikow

This paper gives an overview about problems of modeling of piezo-actuated stick-slip micro-drives. It has been found that existing prototypes of such devices have been investigated empirically. There is only few research dealing with the theory behind this kind of drives. By analyzing the current research activities in this field, it is believed that the model of the drive depends strongly on the friction models, but in most cases neglecting any influences of the guilding system.These analyses are of fundamental importance for an integrated model combining friction model and mechanical model offering promising possibilities for future research.


2017 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 721-734 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthias Murawski ◽  
Markus Bick

Purpose Considering working in the digital age, questions on the consequences for the individual workers are, so far, often neglected. The purpose of this paper is to deal with the question of whether the digital competences of the workforce is a research topic. The authors argue for the thesis that it is indeed a research topic. Design/methodology/approach In addition to a literature analysis of the top IS, HR, and learning publications, non-scientific sources, as well as the opinions of the authors, are included. The authors’ thesis is challenged through a debate of corresponding pros and cons. Findings The definition of digital competences lacks scientific depth. Focussing on the workforce is valid, as a “lifelong” perspective is not mandatory for research. Digital competence research is a multidisciplinary task to which the IS field can make a valuable contribution. Research limitations/implications Although relevant references are included, some aspects are mainly driven by the opinions of the authors. The theoretical implications encompass a call for a scientific definition of digital competences. Furthermore, scholars should focus on the competences of the workforce, including occupations, roles, or industries. The authors conclude by providing a first proposal of a research agenda. Practical implications The practical implications include the alignment of multiple stakeholders for the design of “digital” curricula and the integration by HR departments of the construct of digital competences, e.g. for compensation matters and job requirements. Originality/value This paper is one of very few contributions in the area of the digital competences of the workforce, and it presents a starting point for future research activities.


2009 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 155-176 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amy L. Holliday ◽  
Rachel E. Dwyer

Suburban areas have become more diverse and stratified in the United States, with a particularly striking increase in poverty, challenging theories that conceptualize poverty predominantly as a central city phenomenon. Little scholarly work has examined suburban poverty, however, and the small existing literature focuses primarily on inner–ring suburbs in the Northeast and Midwest and relies too much on the concentric zone model of metropolitan development. We use Census 2000 summary data to examine the prevalence and form, characteristics, and determinants of suburban poverty at the neighborhood and metropolitan levels across the entire country. We draw on more sophisticated ecological and place stratification perspectives and argue that suburban poverty manifests in more varied forms than the typical model and diverges in crucial respects from central city poverty. Our results identify a particularly distinctive racial profile for suburban poverty, associated especially with Hispanic residential location, with implications for trends in racial segregation as well.


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