Home About us Contact
|
Home About us Contact | ||
|
|
||
Theoretical Level (theoretical + level)
Selected AbstractsThe Politics of Social Learning: Finance, Institutions, and Pension Reform in the United States and CanadaGOVERNANCE, Issue 4 2006DANIEL BÉLANDArticle first published online: 27 OCT 200 Because the traditional concept of social learning has faced significant criticism in recent years, more analytical work is required to back the claim that the lessons drawn from existing institutional legacies can truly impact policy outcomes. Grounded in the historical institutionalist literature, this article formulates an amended concept of social learning through the analysis of the relationship between finance, social learning, and institutional legacies in the 1990s debate over the reform of earnings-related pension schemes in the United States and Canada. The article shows how social learning related to specific ideological assumptions and policy legacies in the public and the private sectors has affected policymaking processes. At the theoretical level, this contribution stresses the political construction of learning processes, which is distinct from the technocratic model featured in the traditional literature on social learning. This article also distinguishes between high- and low-profile social learning while emphasizing the impact of private policy legacies on learning processes. [source] The infant protection system in France: How does it work?,INFANT MENTAL HEALTH JOURNAL, Issue 1 2008Antoine Guedeney The French system for protection of infants and toddlers relies on the collaboration of several different partners for preventing, screening, assessing, intervening in, and treating cases of infant abuse and neglect. This article first provides a brief historic overview and some data about the protection of infants in France, with data focused on the Parisian area. We then describe the tasks and interconnections of these different agencies and administrations, and offer some reflections on the actual functioning of the system. Finally, some suggestions for changes are provided. Discussion should begin on a theoretical level regarding whether we should continue with institutionalization of infants for long periods of time, as is still the case in Paris. Discussion also should take place regarding which is the higher priority when infants and children are in situations of danger, abuse, and/or neglect of infants: (a) the hope of reestablishing parental rights or (b) the need of the infant for a secure and stable attachment relationship. The process of evaluating parental caregiving skills would benefit from more clinical observation as well as structured methods of assessment. [source] Fuzzy quantification in two real scenarios: Information retrieval and mobile roboticsINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF INTELLIGENT SYSTEMS, Issue 6 2009Félix Díaz-Hermida Fuzzy quantification supplies powerful tools for handling linguistic expressions. Nevertheless, its advantages are usually shown at the theoretical level without a proper empirical validation. In this work, we review the application of fuzzy quantification in two application domains. We provide empirical evidence on the adequacy of fuzzy quantification to support different tasks in the context of mobile robotics and information retrieval. This practical perspective aims at exemplifying the actual benefits that real application can get from fuzzy quantifiers. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [source] Some Recent Developments in Futures HedgingJOURNAL OF ECONOMIC SURVEYS, Issue 3 2002Donald Lien The use of futures contracts as a hedging instrument has been the focus of much research. At the theoretical level, an optimal hedge strategy is traditionally based on the expected,utility maximization paradigm. A simplification of this paradigm leads to the minimum,variance criterion. Although this paradigm is quite well accepted, alternative approaches have been sought. At the empirical level, research on futures hedging has benefited from the recent developments in the econometrics literature. Much research has been done on improving the estimation of the optimal hedge ratio. As more is known about the statistical properties of financial time series, more sophisticated estimation methods are proposed. In this survey we review some recent developments in futures hedging. We delineate the theoretical underpinning of various methods and discuss the econometric implementation of the methods. [source] Deprotonation and radicalization of glycine neutral structuresJOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ORGANIC CHEMISTRY, Issue 1 2008Gang Yang Abstract Ab initio calculations at MP2/6-311++G(d,p) theoretical level were performed to study the deprotonation and radicalization processes of 13 glycine neutral structures (A. G. Császár, J. Am. Chem. Soc. 1992; 114: 9568). The deprotonation processes to glycine neutral structures take place at the carboxylic sites instead of , -C or amido sites. Two carboxylic deprotonated structures were obtained with the deprotonation energies calculated within the range of 1413.27,1460.03,kJ,·,mol,1, which are consistent with the experimental results. However, the radicalization processes will take place at the , -C rather than carboxylic O or amido sites, agreeing with the experimental results. Seven , -C radicals were obtained with the radical stabilization energies calculated within the range of 44.87,111.78,kJ,·,mol,1. The population analyses revealed that the main conformations of the neutral or radical state are constituted by several stable structures, that is, the other structures can be excluded from the future considerations and thus save computational resources. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Prisoners' Adjustment, Correctional Officers, and Context: The Foreground and Background of Punishment in Late ModernityLAW & SOCIETY REVIEW, Issue 2 2008Mike Vuolo Past research indicates that front-line criminal justice workers are the critical players in determining whether innovations in penal policy are realized. Recent attempts to understand the diversity in the application of the penal harm movement have, however, sidestepped the primary audience of these policies, the population of convicted offenders. This article uses data from two prisons to examine the effects of correctional officers on women prisoners' adjustment to prison life. Using regression models and interview data, we find that correctional officer behavior has a profound impact on women's ability to adjust to prison, and this effect is largely independent of the prisoners' characteristics and the institutions in which they are housed. On a theoretical level, the findings speak to recent calls to examine the background and foreground of penal culture. On a practical level, they highlight the need to understand the environments from which women are emerging, not just the communities into which they are released. [source] Time evolution and temperatures of hypervelocity impact-generated tracks in aerogelMETEORITICS & PLANETARY SCIENCE, Issue 10 2009Gerardo Dominguez Due to the fragile and heterogeneous nature of cometary dust grains, their fragments are found along the walls of tracks that are formed during the capture process. These fragments appear to experience a wide range of thermal alteration and the causes of this variation are not well understood at a theoretical level as physical models of track formation are not well developed. Here, a general model of track formation that allows for the existence of partially and completely vaporized aerogel material in tracks is developed. It is shown that under certain conditions, this general track model reduces to the kinetic "snowplow" model that has previously been proposed. It is also shown, based on energetic considerations, that track formation is dominated by an expansion that is snowplow-like in the later stages of track formation. The equation of motion for this snowplow-like stage can be solved analytically, thus placing constraints on the amount of heating experienced by cometary dust fragments embedded in track walls. It is found that the heating of these fragments, for a given impact velocity, is expected to be greater for those embedded in larger tracks. Given the expected future use of aerogels for sample return missions, the results presented here imply that the choice of aerogel compositions can have a significant effect on the modification of samples captured and retrieved by these collectors. [source] Focus on Economic Theory Keynes on the "Nature of Economic Thinking": The Principle of Non-Neutrality of Choice and the Principle of Non-Neutrality of MoneyAMERICAN JOURNAL OF ECONOMICS AND SOCIOLOGY, Issue 4 2001Giuseppe Fontana In the last two decades there has been a flourishing of writings on the methodological approach of Keynes. Whereas broad interpretations of Keynes's work may have a role to play for future economics the main argument of this paper is to propose a return to the theoretical foundations of a truly Keynesian economics. In the main economic writings of Keynes it is possible to discern a body of beliefs, which is (a) consistent in its own terms and (b) susceptible of being used in the explanation of different realities. That body of beliefs is grounded on (1) the principle of non-neutrality of choice and (2) the principle of non-neutrality of money. Both principles were essential parts of the core of Keynes's A Treatise on Money (1930) and The General Theory (1936), and should be used as foundation for future development of Keynesian economics at the methodological as well as at the theoretical level. [source] DEMOCRACY AND GOVERNANCE NETWORKS: COMPATIBLE OR NOT?PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION, Issue 3 2007ERIK-HANS KLIJN This paper investigates the relationship between representative democracy and governance networks at a theoretical level. It does so by offering four conjectures and their implications for theory and practice. The incompatibility conjectures rests on the primacy of politics and sees governance networks as a threat. The complementarity conjecture presents governance networks as a means of enabling greater participation in the policy process and sensitivity in programme implementation. The transitional conjecture posits a wider evolution of governance forms towards network relationships. The instrumental conjecture views governance networks as a powerful means through which dominant interests can achieve their goals. Illustrative implications for theory and practice are identified, in relation to power in the policy process, the public interest, and the role of public managers. The heuristic potential of the conjectures is demonstrated through the identification of an outline research agenda. [source] Mass spectrometric characterization of 4-oxopentanoic acid and gas-phase ion fragmentation mechanisms studied using a triple quadrupole and time-of-flight analyzer hybrid system and density functional theoryRAPID COMMUNICATIONS IN MASS SPECTROMETRY, Issue 14 2008Basem Kanawati 4-Oxopentanoic acid was characterized experimentally by electrospray ionization using a triple quadrupole and time-of-flight analyzer hybrid system. This compound was chosen as a model substance for small organic compounds bearing an acetyl and a carboxyl group. Collision-induced dissociation experiments at different activation energies were performed to elucidate possible fragmentation pathways. These pathways were also studied on the theoretical level using density functional theory (DFT) B3LYP/6-311++G(3df,3pd)//B3LYP/6-31+G(d)+ZPVE calculations. CO2 ejection from the [M,H], anion of 4-oxopentanoic acid was observed and the fragmentation pathway studied by DFT reveals a new concerted mechanism for CO2 elimination accompanied by an intramolecular proton transfer within a pentagonal transition state structure. Successive elimination of water and CO from the [M,H], anion of 4-oxopentanoic acid was also observed. A rearrangement in the primary deprotonated ketene anion produced after water elimination was found on the theoretical level and leads to CO elimination from the primary product anion [M,H,H2O],. Energy diagrams along the reaction coordinates of the fragmentation pathways are presented and discussed in detail. Mulliken charge distributions of some important structures are presented. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] On the trail of 007: media pilgrimages into the world of James BondAREA, Issue 3 2010Stijn Reijnders Visiting the settings of popular films and TV series has become a growing niche in the tourist market; however, little is known about what makes these visits so appealing. The present research used the case of James Bond ,pilgrims' to explore this issue. Twenty-three interviews were conducted with James Bond fans who had visited one or more Bond film locations in recent years. These interviews indicate that the ,media pilgrimage' into the world of Bond contains playful as well as serious elements. By tracing the world of Bond and temporarily becoming part of this liminal landscape, fans create the opportunity to embody and perform an imagined masculinity. On a theoretical level, this paper contributes to the literature on media pilgrimages, by showing how the symbolic boundary between inside and outside the media is tightly interwoven with other power configurations , in this case, patriarchal notions of masculinity. [source] The Australian grocery industry: a competition perspective,AUSTRALIAN JOURNAL OF AGRICULTURAL & RESOURCE ECONOMICS, Issue 1 2006Rhonda L. Smith This article discusses whether at a theoretical level the large and growing role of the vertically integrated supermarket chains raises a buyer-power concern because of potential harm to other retailers, suppliers, and/or consumers. Even if this is possible, whether it is a real concern depends on whether provision exists to constrain the exercise of that power through market responses, such as entry, or through regulatory provisions, such as those contained in the Trade Practices Act. [source] Writing Experience: Does Ethnography Convey a Crisis of Representation, or an Ontological Break with the Everyday World?CANADIAN REVIEW OF SOCIOLOGY/REVUE CANADIENNE DE SOCIOLOGIE, Issue 4 2008WING-CHUNG HOArticle first published online: 18 DEC 200 L'auteur pose comme prémisse la «brisure ontologique», telle qu'imaginée par Alfred Schutz, qui sépare deux champs: le «monde des coassociés», dans lequel la réalité sociale est directement expérimentée en face à face avec le présent intense, et l'«univers des contemporanéités», dans lequel l'autre est représenté selon des «types». Il soutient que cette coupure constitue un véhicule incitant à présenter une méta-exposition de revendications majeures problématisant l'autorité traditionnelle en ethnographie. À la lumière de cette brisure, les tentatives postmodernistes d'acquérir ou de conserver la compréhension ici et maintenant de la signification subjective, ou de la «voix» des ethnographies, ne forment que des impossibilités épistémologiques. L'auteur conclut que le privilège postmoderniste accordéà une «ethnographie naïve» insistant sur les processus «expérimentaux», «interprétatifs», «dialogiques» et «polyphoniques» ne peut remplir sa promesse sur le plan méthodologique, pas plus qu'il n'est adaptable à la brisure ontologique de Schutz sur le plan théorique. This paper is premised on the "ontological break" as coined by Alfred Schutz that disconnects two realms: the "world of consociates" where social reality is directly experienced face-to-face in the vivid present, and the "world of contemporaries" where the other is interpreted in terms of "types." It is argued that this break is a suggestive vehicle for conducting a meta-exposition of major claims which problematize the traditional authority of ethnography. In the light of the break, the postmodernist attempts to attain or retain the here-and-now understanding of subjective meaning, or "voice" in ethnographies are but epistemological impossibilities. It is concluded that the postmodernist privileging of a "naive ethnography" which emphasizes "experiential,""interpretive,""dialogical," and "polyphonic" processes is neither able to deliver on its promise at the methodic level, nor amendable to Schutz's ontological break at the theoretical level. [source] Ab initio investigation of the solvent and electron correlation effects on the geometries and first hyperpolarizabilities of push,pull oligomersINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF QUANTUM CHEMISTRY, Issue 11 2007Eric A. Perpète Abstract Using the HF and MP2 approaches, we have determined the ground-state geometry and first hyperpolarizability of increasingly long push,pull polyacetylene oligomers. The bulk solvent effects have been assessed at both levels of theory through the Polarizable Continuum Model. For the first hyperpolarizability, the resulting 16 combination of theoretical levels of computation have been compared to evaluate the importance of individual corrections, as well as their additive/ multiplicative character. It turns out that the inclusion of bulk solvent effects is essential for an accurate estimate of the nonlinear optics properties of these push,pull derivatives. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Quantum Chem, 2007 [source] Relative energies of conformations and sulfinyl oxygen-induced pentacoordination at silicon in 4-bromo- and 4,4-dibromo-4-silathiacyclohexane 1-oxide: A computational studyINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF QUANTUM CHEMISTRY, Issue 4 2005Fillmore Freeman Abstract The equilibrium geometries and relative energies of the chair, twist, and boat conformations of cis - and trans -4-bromo-4-silathiacyclohexane 1-oxide and 4,4-dibromo-4-silathiacyclohexane 1-oxide have been calculated at the B3LYP/6-311G(d,p) and MP2/6-311+G(d,p) theoretical levels. The axial (SO) chair conformers of the sulfoxides are of lower energy than the chair conformers of the corresponding equatorial (SO) sulfoxides. The chair conformer of the axial (SO) trans -4-bromo-4-silathiacyclohexane 1-oxide is only 0.10 kcal/mol more stable than the corresponding 1,4-boat conformer which is stabilized by a transannular coordination of the sulfinyl oxygen with silicon that results in trigonal bipyramidal geometry at silicon. The 1,4-boat structure of equatorial (SO) trans -4-bromo-4-silathiacyclohexane 1-oxide is a transition state and is 5.77 kcal/mol higher in energy than the respective chair conformer. The 1,4-boat conformer of axial (SO) 4,4-dibromo-4-silathiacyclohexane 1-oxide is also stabilized by transannular coordination of the sulfinyl oxygen and silicon, but it is 4.31 kcal/mol higher in energy than the corresponding chair conformer. The relatively lower stability of the 1,4-boat conformer of 4,4-dibromo-4-silathiacyclohexane 1-oxide may be due to repulsive interactions of the axial halogen and sulfinyl oxygen atom. The relative energies of the conformers and transition states are discussed in terms of hyperconjugative interactions, orbital interactions, nonbonded interactions, and transannular sulfinyl oxygen-silicon coordination. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Quantum Chem, 2005 [source] Effects of entropy on the gas-phase pyrolysis of ethyl N,N -dimethylcarbamateJOURNAL OF COMPUTATIONAL CHEMISTRY, Issue 3 2007Chang K. Kim Abstract In this study, we examined the gas-phase pyrolysis of ethyl N,N -dimethylcarbamate theoretically at various theoretical levels. The reaction consists of a two-step mechanism, with N,N -dimethylcarbamic acid and ethylene as reaction intermediates. In the first step, the reaction proceeds via a six-membered cyclic transition state (TS), which is more favorable than that via a four-membered cyclic TS. Here, the contribution of entropy to the overall potential energy surface was found to play an important role in determining the rate-limiting step, which was found to be the second step when viewed in terms of the enthalpy of activation (,H,), but the first step when entropy changes (,T,S,) were considered. These results are consistent with experimental findings. Moreover, the experimental activation entropy can be reproduced by using the hindered rotor approximation, which converts some low vibration frequencies that correspond to internal rotational modes into hindered rotors. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Comput Chem 28: 625,631, 2007 [source] | ||||||||||||||||