Semi-quantitative seismic risk screening tool for existing buildings in Canada

The National Research Council Canada (NRC) recently developed a semi-quantitative seismic risk screening tool (SQST) for existing buildings in Canada. The SQST aims to supersede the Manual for Screening of Buildings for Seismic Investigation developed by NRC in the early 1990s. The SQST consists of three key components: (1) a structural scoring system that quantitatively assesses the structural seismic risk based on probability of collapse; (2) a non-structural component scoring system that qualitatively assesses the seismic risk of non-structural components based on seismic demand; and (3) a ranking procedure that prioritizes potentially hazardous buildings for seismic evaluations and possible upgrading. The SQST intends to inexpensively identify and exempt buildings with acceptable life safety risk and optimize the allocation of resources to assess the seismic risk of portfolios of buildings. Seismic screening with the SQST can be completed with either paper-based screening forms or a web-based application. The applicability of the SQST is demonstrated by conducting a pilot study for 33 existing buildings across Canada.

Pigouvian vs. Coasian approach: Ideas, values, perspectives

The paper reveals the characteristics of competing approaches — Pigouvian and Coasian — to identify the grounds for state regulation. We outline the connections between Pigouvian and Coasian approaches with the values and prospects for their advancement in the field of political decision-making in the context of demand for economic knowledge and the possibilities of organizing compensating transactions. These connections are considered in the light of the externalities problem as one of the manifestations of market failure, as well as different internalization options. We also clarify the provisions from the theory of externalities in terms of their definition, classification and correlation with the conditions for optimal allocation of resources. The key types of structural alternatives for correcting market flaws are considered, and the main properties of the Pigouvian and Coasian approaches in economics, as they relate to the problem of market and government flaws, are determined. This helps explain why the Coasian approach cannot be considered synonymous with liberal fundamentalism. Finally, we indicate the relationship between normative conclusions and prospects of functionalism and two types of fundamentalism in the field of political decision-making. Using the example of intertemporal externalities, the difference in the approaches of Coasianism and Pigouvianism to their internalization is demonstrated.

Basic Signs of the Concepts of Bogatstvo and Wealth in Russian and English Language Pictures of the World

The article compares the motivating signs of the concepts of bogatstvo and wealth based on eleven Russian etymological dictionaries and seven English etymological and four explanatory dictionaries. The author analyzed the words bogatstvo and wealth as the main representatives of the concepts in question and identified their motivating signs. The interpretation relied on the theory of mentality. The Russian concept of bogatstvo appeared to have 15 motivating sings that could be grouped into five blocks: 1) material wealth, 2) allocation of resources, 3) a share of property, 4) spiritual wealth, 5) values. The English concept of wealth demonstrated fourteen motivating signs represented as three blocks: 1) material wealth, 2) values, 3) spiritual wealth.

Research on the construction of rural public sports service system in Sichuan province from the perspective of urban-rural integration

From the perspective of urban-rural integration, this paper analyzes the current situation of public sports service system in rural areas of Sichuan Province. In order to break through the dilemma of the Rural Public Sports Service System in Sichuan Province, we must seize the opportunity of the integration of urban and rural areas, conform to the regional characteristics of Sichuan, plan the steps of the supporting reform between urban and rural areas as well as the farmers’ personal sports needs; and increase the farmers’ economic income, meanwhile, we should introduce and attract social enterprises and social forces to invest a lot in the human, material and financial resources of rural public sports. Promoting the development of rural public sports service in Sichuan Province by optimizing the allocation of resources.

Evaluation of the effect of JSC RZD transportation infrastructure availability on the risks of losses in the process of transportation

Aim. The availability of transportation infrastructure facilities affects the quality of the transportation services provided by JSC RZD. At the same time, this effect may significantly differ depending on the operating conditions of the transportation infrastructure or a specific railway line and can cause various degrees of risk of damage to the transportation process. Such risks are defined as risks of train-hour losses due to transportation infrastructure failures. Planning dependability management activities under conditions of scarce resources requires targeted identification of the transportation infrastructure facilities whose availability most significantly affects the magnitude of the risks of damage to the transportation process. The aim of the paper is to develop a method for evaluating daily availability and identifying its correlation with the risk of train-hour losses. Methods. The authors used the methods of risk management, probability theory and mathematical statistics, correlation and regression analysis. Results. The paper suggests representing the daily availability indicator of JSC RZD’s transportation infrastructure facilities as a two-parameter gamma distribution and describing its effect on the risks of the transportation process with a regression model. Conclusions. The paper’s findings can be used as part of transportation infrastructure dependability planning and targeted allocation of resources, as well as for substantiating the dependability indicator when evaluating the practical capacity of railway lines and utilization ratio and in a number of other operational tasks.

subway advertising, service system, travel purpose, precise placement

From the perspective of the establishment of the subway media service system, the corresponding relationship between passenger travel purpose and advertising location is studied. The characteristics of convenient and efficient advertising in subway media to serve the crowd are used to form an optimized allocation of resources to maximize the effectiveness of advertising. Study the constituent factors of the subway media service system, and expound the relationship among the three areas of media, station cars, and crowds. Among them, it focuses on analyzing the occupations of passengers, economic income, viewing advertisements and travel purposes, etc., Using new interactive design methods to implement subway advertising strategies. Increasing the economic benefits and social influence of subway advertising.

Population-Adjusted Egalitarianism

Egalitarianism focuses on the well-being of the worst-off person. It has attracted a lot of attention in economic theory, for instance when dealing with the sustainable intertemporal allocation of resources. Economic theory has formalized egalitarianism through the Maximin and Leximin criteria, but it is not clear how they should be applied when population size may vary. In this paper, I present possible justifications of egalitarianism when considering populations with variable sizes. I then propose new versions of egalitarianism that encompass many views on how to trade-off population size and well-being. I discuss some implications of egalitarianism for optimal population size. I first describe how population ethical views affects population growth. In a model with natural resources, I then show that utilitarianism always recommend a larger population for low levels of resources, but that this conclusion may not hold true for larger levels.

Quality Practitioners’ Differing Perspectives on Future Software Quality Assurance Practices

Constant changes in a business context and software development make it important to understand how software quality assurance (SQA) should respond. Examining SQA from supplier and client perspectives, this study explores how different groups of SQA practitioners perceive future needs. A survey (n = 93) conducted in fall 2017 explored the views of SQA organizations on future trends. The results indicate that SQA organizations differ slightly in their attitudes to quality categories, as do different groups of SQA practitioners. It is argued that these differences should be taken into account when developing and implementing future SQA strategy. It is further argued that the found basic enables SQA management, evaluation of new practices, and allocation of resources to ensure that all quality categories remain balanced in the future.

Equity or Equality? Which Approach Brings More Satisfaction in a Kidney-Exchange Chain?

In United States (U.S.), government-funded organizations, such as NLDAC, reimburse travel and subsistence expenses incurred during living-organ donation process. However, in Iran, there is a non-governmental organization called Iranian Kidney Foundation (IKF) that funds the direct and indirect costs of donors through charitable donations and contributions from participants in the exchange program. In this article, for countries outside the U.S. that currently use an equality approach, we propose a potential new compensation-apportionment approach (equitable approach) for kidney-exchange chains and compare it with the currently available system (equality approach) in terms of the apportionment of compensation in a kidney-exchange chain to cover the expenses incurred by the initiating living donor of the chain in the act of donation. To this end, we propose a mechanism to apportion compensation among all participating pairs based on the equity approach by utilizing a prediction model to calculate the probability of graft survival in each transplant operation. These probabilities are then used to define the utility of any transplantation, considering the quality of each pair’s donated and received kidney in the chain. Afterward, the corresponding cost is apportioned by a mechanism based on the normalized differences between the utility of donated and received kidneys for each incompatible pair of the chain. In summary, we demonstrate that by utilizing the equitable approach, there is more fairness and equity in the allocation of resources in organ-procurement systems, which results in more satisfaction among incompatible pairs. Additional future prospective studies are needed to assess this proposed equitable approach for kidney-exchange chains in countries outside the U.S., such as Iran, that currently use an equality approach.

Expanding the Conception of Giftedness to Talent Development

To determine if a person is gifted or not, the government sets the criteria of identification since giftedness is an abstract concept. However, the standard has always been decided and affected by the attitudes of the education authority and the allocation of resources. The opportunities for some potential learners to participate in gifted programs are often closed because of high identification criteria on standardized tests, especially intelligence tests. To bridge the achievement and the opportunity gaps between regular and gifted students with disabilities or different cultural backgrounds, educators are encouraged to apply the talent development model to develop hidden potential rather than focus on identification or labeling students as “gifted.” Every child is unique and has strengths and weakness. It is time to change the rigid concept of giftedness and expand the concept to discover multiple talents. The most important aspect is no longer defining intelligence merely as g or IQ.