Preventing children’s death by heatstroke: How alternative accident theories affect policy design and evaluation

When public policies are designed from scratch, with no or limited possibility of learning from past experience, decision makers rely on their creativity and lateral thinking to counterbalance cognitive biases. One of the crucial issues for both evaluators and policy makers in such situations is not only to elaborate a sound theory of the programme but also to be aware of the existence of competing theories to solve the same problem. Being able to detect such theories constitutes an essential step to avoid ‘Type III errors’, that is, enacting the right solution for the ‘wrong’ problem. Reflecting on the analysis of two programmes aimed at preventing the death of children by heatstroke, this article illustrates the implications of alternative ‘accident theories’ for the evaluation of safety policies.

A method to predict the flow-induced noise of an open cavity of a complex geometry

Shear flow past a cavity involves a complex fluid dynamic process. Of vital importance is the occurrence of self-sustained oscillations that give rise to tones and the amplitudes of which may be further amplified if the hydrodynamic mode is coupled with the cavity mode. Extensive efforts have been made to investigate the mechanisms of such a simple yet compelling system as well as to predict the noise generated, while most of them are focused on geometry of rectangular shape. For an irregular shaped cavity, numerical methods are usually used which are computationally expensive. A method is developed to predict the tones generated by the shear flow past an open cavity of a complex geometry. In view of the feedback process involved within the system, a describing-function method decomposing the system into a non-linear part and a linear part is used. The linear description function is established by the patch mobility method where the transfer function between patches is extracted from finite element results, while the nonlinear description function is established based on the vortex sound theory. The proposed method showed a superb computation efficiency over CFD method and its accuracy was justified by comparing with the results of public literature.

Nonlinear Control Strategies for an Autonomous Wing-In-Ground-Effect Vehicle

Autonomous vehicles are nowadays one of the most important technologies that will be incorporated to every day life in the next few years. One of the most promising kind of vehicles in terms of efficiency and sustainability are those known as Wing-in-Ground crafts, or WIG crafts, a family of vehicles that seize the proximity of ground to achieve a flight with low drag and high lift. However, this kind of crafts lacks of a sound theory of flight that can lead to robust control solutions that guarantees safe autonomous operation in all the cruising phases.In this paper we address the problem of controlling a WIG craft in different scenarios and using different control strategies in order to compare their performance. The tested scenarios include obstacle avoidance by fly over and recovering from a random disturbance in vehicle attitude. MPC (Model Predictive Control) is tested on the complete nonlinear model, while PID, used as baseline controller, LQR (Linear Quadratic Regulator) and adaptive LQR are tested on top of a partial feedback linearization. Results show that LQR has got the best overall performance, although it is seen that different design specifications could lead to the selection of one controller or another.

State Role And Securities Market Development In Uzbekistan

In the Uzbekistan capital market, the state has a significant role as regulator and principal shareholder. The state actively participates in the capital market through its SOEs and banks that issue, own, manage various securities, and render intermediary services in the financial market. As well as the state sets rules to regulate market relations through authorized bodies that are also responsible for the fairness of dispute resolution. Consequently, a high level of direct and indirect state participation in securities market relations suggests the prevalence of general administrative principles over market principles. In such conditions, one of the main tasks of implementing market principles in the securities market and improve equity financing would be to reduce state share and administrative methods. Thus, it is necessary to hold extensive and comprehensive reforms underpinned by sound theory to get proper understanding and direction. In this regard, this chapter provides an outline of the theoretical bases of state participation in the economy, an overview of the state’s role and the extent of state ownership, an analysis of the main SOE problems, and provides perspectives of future SOE reforms in selected CIS countries.

Use of TIME in treating a hard-to-heal localised scleroderma wound

Objective: Localised scleroderma is a rare disease and the wound is difficult to heal because of tissue fibrosis. We present the case of a patient with localised scleroderma treated using the TIME (tissue, infection or inflammation, moisture and edge of wound) clinical decision support tool (CDST) for wound management. This includes: assessment, bringing, control, decision and evaluation (the ABCDE approach). The patient was fully evaluated and multidisciplinary teams were involved in wound treatment. Complications of wound healing were controlled and treated, and the wound was continuously assessed until it healed. Conclusion: This method of wound management provides a sound theory for the evaluation and management of hard-to-heal wounds and is worthy of clinical application.

Liveness and Mediatization

Chapter 3 approaches liveness as an effect of immediacy. It analyzes how hypermedial opera constructs an opposition between live performance and that which is “mediatized,” that is, generated or reproduced by media technology. Relying, among others, on film sound theory, the chapter shows how the effect of liveness becomes a function of a particular relationship between sound and its source, and especially voice and body. Where some scholars have played up the discrepancy between the voice heard and the body seen in opera, this chapter is attentive to how an apparent unity of voice and body is maintained within the context of hypermediacy. With the help of Louis Andriessen and Peter Greenaway’s opera Writing to Vermeer, the chapter suggests that an alignment of liveness with femininity and body-voice unity subverts some of the critical claims that have been made with respect to both live performance and the embodied singing voice.

An Emergency Management Perspective for First-Time Leaders

Emergency management requires exhaustive leadership that is based on principles, sound theory, and practice. These three bedrocks provide an opportunity for leaders to be cognizance, respectful, and at the same time, nimble in leading during a disaster—manmade or natural. Although leadership in emergency management is important, existing literature does not discuss the topic so well. In this chapter, the authors consider leadership from an emergency management perspective based on the four phases of disaster management: preparedness, response, mitigation, and recovery. Leading and managing unsettling events, such as pandemics, which may become the new normal, require eschewing destructive leadership behaviors. This chapter presents a conceptual model that lists and discusses using examples innate and learned leadership characteristics necessary for effective and efficient disaster management through the four phases of disaster management. Guidelines for first-time leaders handling unexpected situations are provided, together with future research directions.

Methods and design of empirical research into inter-generational socio-cultural interaction

Introduction. The author discusses the data sources and design of a J. A. Maxwell validity-system-based study into inter-generational socio-cultural interaction. To form a comprehensive vision of the phenomenon of socio-cultural interaction and achieve the validity of the results, data triangulation (evidence collected from different sources) and methodological triangulation (use of different methods of information collection) should be used. Aim. To present a set of methods for empirical research into inter-generational socio-cultural interaction. Methods. A set of qualitative / quantitative instruments has been used to conduct the study. Results. The author describes the step-by-step strategy of empirical research, the inter-generational socio-cultural interaction analysis instruments, and the mixed research strategy methods / instruments. The quantitative block is presented by the author's questionnaire "Reflections", which is aimed at determining the main aspects of inter-generational interaction. The quality block is made up of: - The matrices method (M. B. Miles & A. M. Huberman) to determine the parameters of the inter-generetional unity; - The sound theory method (modified by K. Charmaz) needed to systematize inter-generational interactions in the socio-cultural context; - The discourse analysis method to find out the features of macro-social level generational practices; - The data integration method. Conclusions. The author considers the design of empirical research into inter-generational socio-cultural interaction, the quantitative and qualitative methods of mixed research and possibilities of data generalization by means of triangulation. The proposed research design allows exploring a complex process of inter-generational socio-cultural interaction, which has no a clear conceptual basis and standardized analysis system.

Digital Twins: A Critical Discussion on Their Potential for Supporting Policy-Making and Planning in Urban Logistics

Poor logistics efficiency, due to low load factors caused by high demand fragmentation, will have relevant negative consequences for cities in terms of pollution, congestion and overall city liveability. Policy-makers should equip themselves with appropriate tools to perform reliable, comprehensive and timely analyses of urban logistics scenarios, also considering upcoming (i) technological changes, (ii) business model evolutions and (iii) spatial-temporal changes these innovations will produce. This paper discusses the Digital Twin (DT) concept, illustrating the role it might play and clarifying how to properly conceive it with respect to urban freight transport policy-making and planning. The main message is that without a sound theory and knowledge with respect to the relationships linking contextual reality and choice/behaviour, it is not possible to make sense of what happens in the real world. Therefore, the joint use of behavioural and simulation models should characterise a DT within a Living Lab approach so to stimulate effective, well-informed and participated planning processes, but also to forecast both behaviour and reactions to structural changes and policy measures implementations.