The Relative Importance of Determinants of the Solar Photovoltaic Industry in China: Analyses by the Diamond Model and the Analytic Hierarchy Process

Within China’s renewable energy industry, the importance of the solar photovoltaic industry has been increasingly recognized. Many Chinese provinces have adopted various measures to develop the solar photovoltaic industry. This study used the diamond model and the analytic hierarchy process to clarify the relative importance of the determinants of the development of the solar photovoltaic industry. A total of 22 determinants in six categories (i.e., factor condition; demand condition; firm strategy, structure, and rivalry; related and support industries; government; and chance) were analyzed. The results show that besides factor condition, demand condition and firm strategy, structure, and rivalry have also had a strong influence on the development of China’s photovoltaic industry. The findings also indicate that some traditional factors, such as labor costs and acquiring land, are very important to the development of the solar photovoltaic industry. The relative importance of the determinants clarified through this study provides a standard for the actions of policymakers and decision makers.

DAYA SAING KARET ALAM SUMATERA SELATAN DALAM PERDAGANGAN INTERNASIONAL

Rubber is the leading commodity in South Sumatra which provides the largest income in the non-oil and gas sector. South Sumatra itself is an area that has the largest rubber production and plantations in Indonesia and can even compete with other rubber-producing countries in the international market. However, in its development, South Sumatra's rubber commodity faces various obstacles to compete in international trade. The purpose of this study was to examine how the competitiveness of South Sumatra's natural rubber commodities in international trade. The concept of competitiveness and the theory of competitive advantage is used to describe the research results. The method used in this study is descriptive explanatory, data collection was obtained by interviewing the South Sumatra Province Plantation Service and GAPKINDO of South Sumatra, as well as through the results of a literature study. The findings of this study are seen through 4 determinants of competitive advantage, factor conditions, demand condition, related and supporting Industries, then firm strategy, structure, and rivalry. As well as additional factors, governance. Production of rubber plantations in South Sumatra has decreased. Rubber demand also declined based on data on the volume of rubber exports. South Sumatra's downstream industry has not yet developed. Then the strategy applied is less than optimal and the role of the Government of South Sumatra is lacking. So it can be concluded that the competitiveness of South Sumatran rubber commodities in international trade is low.

Meditation-induced cognitive-control states regulate working memory task performance

Single-bout focused-attention meditation (FAM) and open-monitoring meditation (OMM) are assumed to bias metacontrol states towards more persistent versus more flexible processing, respectively. In Experiment 1, we tested whether monitoring and updating of working memory (WM) representations in an N-back task with high (3-back), medium (2-back), and low (1-back) WM demands (varied within participants) is affected by preceding single-bout FAM or OMM meditation (varied between participants and compared with a control group). The results showed that FAM promotes WM performance in the medium (2-back), but not in the high (3-back) or low (1-back) demand condition, whereas OMM did not affect WM performance. A replication of the 2-back condition only (Experiment 2) showed no meditation effect, but a replication of the 3-back condition only (Experiment 3) produced a similar pattern as the 2-back condition in Experiment 1, with FAM promoting performance compared with OMM and the control condition. Taken together, these findings suggest that the single-bout FAM does promote WM performance but only if the capacity demands are neither too high nor too low.

Visual Scanning Techniques and Mental Workload of Helicopter Pilots During Simulated Flight

INTRODUCTION: The visual scanning techniques used by helicopter pilots are a critical skill to accomplish safe and correct landing. According to the human information processing theory, visual scanning techniques can be analyzed as a function of fixation location, number, and duration of fixations.METHODS: This study assessed these techniques in expert and novice pilots during an open sea flight simulation in a low-workload condition, consisting of a daylight and good weather simulation, and in a high-workload condition of night-time, low visibility, and adverse weather conditions. Taking part in the study were 12 helicopter pilots. Mental workload was assessed through psychological measures (NASA-TLX). The pilots performance was assessed and eye movements were recorded using an eye-tracker during four phases of the flight simulations.RESULTS: Overall, pilots made more fixations out of the window (OTW; 22.54) than inside the cockpit (ITC; 11.08), Fixations were longer OTW (830.17 ms) than ITC (647.97 ms) and they were shorter in the low-demand condition (626.27 ms). Further, pilots reported higher mental workload (NASA-TLX) in the high-demand condition compared to the low-demand condition, regardless of their expertise, and expert pilots reported a lower mental workload compared to novice pilots.DISCUSSION: Pilots performance and perceived mental workload varied as a function of expertise and flight conditions. Pilots rely on instrument support during the cruise phase and external visual cues during the landing phase. The implications for a new visual landing system design are discussed.Rainieri G, Fraboni F, Russo G, Tul M, Pingitore A, Tessari A, Pietrantoni L. Visual scanning techniques and mental workload of helicopter pilots during simulated flight. Aerosp Med Hum Perform. 2021; 92(1):1119.

Peningkatan Kinerja Inventory Planning pada Mitra 10 Melalui Pelatihan Demand Planning Management

Companies such as PT Mitra 10, in a competitive business world, need the role of the right business strategy, especially in supply-demand. Therefore, to avoid unbalanced supply-demand conditions, it is necessary to do supply-demand planning which always starts from demand planning. Planning that prioritizes demand in determining the amount of supply will produce a more balanced supply-demand condition than providing supply without prioritizing demand.Partner Company 10 requires superior HR competencies, to implement demand planning in its business processes. This competency is needed so that every HR is reliable in carrying out demand planning. Training is one of the ways expected to improve HR competencies.Demand Planning Management training is considered capable of being a solution to partner problems. The training was also considered capable of meeting the needs of Partner 10, with the aim of providing participants with techniques and methods for effective and integrated logistics management, which included purchasing, warehousing, inventory control and distribution of goods. This training is expected to improve the performance of PT Mitra 10.

Enhanced Recruitment During Executive Control Processing in Cognitively Preserved Patients With Pediatric-Onset MS

Objectives: Youth and young adults with pediatric-onset multiple sclerosis (MS) are vulnerable to executive dysfunction; however, some patients do not demonstrate functional deficits despite showing abnormalities on structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Cognitively intact adults with MS have shown enhanced activation patterns relative to healthy controls on working memory tasks. We aim to evaluate whether cognitively preserved pediatric-onset MS patients engage compensatory recruitment strategies to facilitate age-normative performance on a task of working memory. Methods: Twenty cognitively preserved patients (mean age=18.7±2.7 years; 15 female) and 20 age- and sex-matched controls (mean age=18.5±2.9 years; 15 female) underwent neuropsychological testing and 3.0 Tesla MRI, including structural and functional acquisitions. Patterns of activation during the Alphaspan task, a working memory paradigm with two levels of executive control demand, were examined via whole-brain and region of interest (ROI) analyses. Results: Across all participants, lower accuracy and greater activation of regions implicated in working memory were observed during the high demand condition. MS patients demonstrated 0.21 s longer response time than controls. ROI analyses revealed enhanced activation for pediatric-onset MS patients relative to controls in the right middle frontal, left paracingulate, right supramarginal, and left superior parietal gyri during the low executive demand condition, over and above differences in response time. MS patients also demonstrated heightened activation in the right supramarginal gyrus in the high executive demand condition. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that pediatric-onset MS patients may engage compensatory recruitment strategies during working memory processing. (JINS, 2019, 25, 432–442)