Popper's Marxist: Pseudoscience As Policy Problem

10.32920/ryerson.14665263 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Aidan Hayes

Keyword(s):

Public Sector ◽

Social Contexts ◽

Critical Discussion ◽

Contemporary Culture ◽

The Public ◽

Academic Literature ◽

Policy Problem ◽

Definition Of

Contemporary culture has seen an increase in the influence of fringe beliefs, chief among them pseudosciences: doctrines that masquerade as sciences. In light of the myriad ways in which the work of the public sector is intertwined with and depends upon that of scientists, it is essential that policymakers be able to recognize these pretender sciences. However, the academic literature has yet to yield a widely accepted and easily applicable definition of “pseudoscience”. This paper proposes that pseudosciences are most adequately characterized by their origin in social contexts in which there is little open, critical discussion of ideas: hence, in contrast with genuine science, there can be no assumption by non-scientist observers that pseudosciences have withstood criticism prior to their promulgation as knowledge. The applicability of this proposal is demonstrated with a case study, where it is used to identify the pseudoscientific features of Andrew Wakefield’s “anti-vaccine” advocacy

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Asset Management of the Public Sector in Poland

Real Estate Management and Valuation ◽

10.2478/remav-2013-0001 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 21 (1) ◽

pp. 5-13 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Małgorzata Rymarzak ◽

Dariusz Trojanowski

Keyword(s):

Public Sector ◽

Asset Management ◽

Theory And Practice ◽

Real Property ◽

The Public ◽

Fixed Assets ◽

Definition Of ◽

Capital Intensive

Abstract Public sector bodies own diverse, valuable but capital-intensive assets, which require the following of all the changes taking place in their environment and their trends (conducting market analyses), as well as the anticipation of future effects of present-day actions (decisions). It seems, however, that many public bodies/entities make decisions according to current needs, hardly ever conducting market analyses or market valuation of their assets. Today, both theory and practice offer a variety of methods - instruments supporting the process of decision-making concerning the creation of a rational structure of real property, sources of its financing, evaluation of the effectiveness of using individual fixed assets and their impact on the economic situation of each body/entity. The purpose of this paper is to present the nature and scale of the problem of asset management, as well as the main elements of the process of the management of real property owned by public entities, based on a case study of the biggest Polish cities. At first, we will outline the scale of the problem, including the gross value of buildings and structures and capital expenditures of the public sector. Then, we will present the definition of asset management and classification of real property as tools and conditions for effective asset management, as well as the results of empirical research conducted with officials responsible for property management in Poland's six largest cities.

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The Reporting Entity in Private-Public Accounting Harmonisation. Is Control Enough for the Local Government Consolidated Financial Statements?

FINANCIAL REPORTING ◽

10.3280/fr2017-001001 ◽

2017 ◽

pp. 5-29 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Cristian Carini ◽

Laura Rocca ◽

Claudio Teodori ◽

Monica Veneziani

Keyword(s):

Public Sector ◽

Local Government ◽

Accounting Standards ◽

Financial Statements ◽

Consolidated Financial Statements ◽

The Public ◽

Financial Accountability ◽

Public Sector Accounting ◽

Definition Of ◽

Reporting Entity

The European Commission initiated a discussion on the expediency of using the International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS), based on the IAS/IFRS, as a common base for harmonizing the public sector accounting systems of the member states. However, literature suggests that accounting is not neutral with respect to the economic, social and political dimensions. In the perspective of evolution of the accounting regulation outlined, balanced between accountability, with the need to represent phenomena for reporting pur-poses, and decisionmaking issues, which concentrates on the quantitative importance of the values, the paper aims to analyse the effects of the application of different criteria for the definition of the reporting entity of the local government consolidated financial statements (CFS). The Italian PCA 4/4, the test of control and the financial accountability approaches are examined. The evidence that emerged from the case studies examined identifies several criticalities in the Italian PCA 4/4 and support the thesis that the financial accountability approach is more effective in providing a complete representation of the public resources entrusted to and managed by the group, whereas the control approach better approximates quantification of the group results in terms of central government surveillance. The analysis highlights the importance of the post implementation review period and the opportunity to contextualize the adoption of the consolidated financial statement in the broader spectrum of the accounting harmonization process, participating in the process of definition of the European Public Sector Accounting Standards (EPSAS).

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Sustainable public health partnerships: Results from 41 European, Asian and American regions

European Journal of Public Health ◽

10.1093/eurpub/ckaa166.1233 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 30 (Supplement_5) ◽

Author(s):

J Ese ◽

C Ihlebak

Keyword(s):

Public Health ◽

Public Sector ◽

Social Contexts ◽

Research Literature ◽

Person Fit ◽

Time Data ◽

Incentive Schemes ◽

The Public ◽

Health Partnerships ◽

Group Interviews

Abstract Background Public health problems often constitute so called “wicked problems”, and the importance of involving multiple stakeholders in order to address such problems is acknowledged, for instance through the SDG17 guidelines. Partnerships between academia and the public sector have been deemed especially promising. However, sustainable partnerships might be difficult due to divergent understandings and interests. Although there is a substantial research literature on academic-public partnerships in general, partnerships addressing public health specifically are less investigated. The aim of the project was therefore to identify enablers for sustainable public health partnerships between academia and the public sector. Methods A mixed methods design was used. A survey regarding partnerships was sent to 41 European, Asian and American regions, with a response rate of 72 %. Based on survey data, an interview guide was developed and four best cases (Canada, Bulgaria, the Netherlands and Norway) were identified. Site visits and group interviews with representatives from stakeholders of the partnerships were conducted. Interview data and answers to open ended questions from questionnaires were analysed. Results Three main findings became apparent through the analysis. Important enablers were: 1) person-to-person fit between individuals, 2) national incentive schemes for collaboration, and 3) formal partnership agreements that provided a framework that allowed for manoeuvring. The enablers identified are on a macro, miso and micro level. Furthermore, they can be categorised as political, organisational, and social. Conclusions The data support the notion that partnerships are complex social structures that need to be initiated and managed on different levels and with different measures. At the same time, data demonstrate that across different geographical, political, and social contexts the same enablers are reappearing as important for sustaining public health partnerships. Key messages Similar enablers for sustaining public health partnerships are found across geographical, political, and social contexts. Important enablers for partnerships are person-to-person fit, national incentive schemes, and formal agreements.

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Conflict dissolution in the public sector: A case-study

European Journal of Operational Research ◽

10.1016/s0377-2217(00)00037-0 ◽

2001 ◽

Vol 130 (2) ◽

pp. 388-401 ◽

Cited By ~ 38

Author(s):

Carlos A. Bana e Costa ◽

Fernando Nunes da Silva ◽

Jean-Claude Vansnick

Keyword(s):

Public Sector ◽

The Public

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Grey Clustering Evaluation for the Cooperation Efficiency of PPP Project: Taking Beijing Metro Line 4 as an Example

Mathematical Problems in Engineering ◽

10.1155/2019/8232731 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 2019 ◽

pp. 1-13 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Hui Sun ◽

Yingzi Liang ◽

Yuning Wang

Keyword(s):

Public Sector ◽

Private Sector ◽

Evaluation Model ◽

Evaluation Index System ◽

The Public ◽

Clustering Model ◽

Grey Clustering ◽

Public Products ◽

Infrastructure Project

PPP model is an important model which provides public products or services based on the coordination between the public sector and private sector. The implementation of PPP model is helpful for relieving the stress of insufficient funding for public sector and improving the efficiency of resource allocation. Comparing with traditional infrastructure project, PPP project involves many stakeholders, and the cooperation efficiency during the different stakeholders impacts the results of the project directly. Thus, it is important to explore the cooperation efficiency of PPP project. Based on grey clustering model, this paper evaluates the cooperation efficiency of PPP project. An evaluation index system including 36 indexes is established based on the aims and objectives of three stakeholders (public sector, private sector, and passengers). A case study of Beijing Metro Line 4 PPP project is implemented to verify the validity and applicability of the evaluation model. And the results showed that the cooperation efficiency of Beijing Metro Line 4 PPP project is relatively high. The model also provided insights into the shortage of the cooperation efficiency of Beijing Metro Line 4 PPP project. As such, the results can assist all stakeholders in adjusting the cooperation efficiency.

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Defining and Quantifying Intermittency in the Power Sector

Energies ◽

10.3390/en13133366 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 13 (13) ◽

pp. 3366

Author(s):

Daniel Suchet ◽

Adrien Jeantet ◽

Thomas Elghozi ◽

Zacharie Jehl

Keyword(s):

Power Source ◽

Production Data ◽

Power Sector ◽

Predictive Capacity ◽

The Public ◽

Current State ◽

Definition Of ◽

Quantitative Definition ◽

The Impact

The lack of a systematic definition of intermittency in the power sector blurs the use of this term in the public debate: the same power source can be described as stable or intermittent, depending on the standpoint of the authors. This work tackles a quantitative definition of intermittency adapted to the power sector, linked to the nature of the source, and not to the current state of the energy mix or the production predictive capacity. A quantitative indicator is devised, discussed and graphically depicted. A case study is illustrated by the analysis of the 2018 production data in France and then developed further to evaluate the impact of two methods often considered to reduce intermittency: aggregation and complementarity between wind and solar productions.

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