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Best Alternative (best + alternative)
Selected AbstractsHow to Negotiate with North KoreaASIAN POLITICS AND POLICY, Issue 4 2009Yurim Yi This article evaluates the February 13th agreement at the 2007 six-party talks that officially is known as "Initial Actions for the Implementation of the Joint Statement." The agreement's effectiveness is evaluated based on the negotiating and behavioral styles of both Washington and Pyongyang. This article shows that in the pre-negotiation phase, Washington's Graduated Reciprocation in Tension-reduction strategies were more effective than the well-known Tit-for-Tat strategies to induce North Korea to engage in the six-party talks. I also show that principled negotiation strategies were effectively applied, and that the weak Best Alternative to a Negotiated Agreement led the two countries to reach an agreement. Finally, this article demonstrates that several strategic provisions were added in the post-negotiation phase in order to secure the fulfillment of the agreement. [source] Evaluation of Juglans species for resistance to Phytophthora cinnamomi:,differences in isolate virulence and response to fosetyl-AlFOREST PATHOLOGY, Issue 3 2009A. Belisario Summary Phytophthora is considered as an important pathogen on walnut, and severe losses are reported in European as well as in American walnut stands. Though several Phytophthora spp. are known to attack walnut, P. cinnamomi is considered the most virulent and widespread in southern Europe. Up to now, no walnut species or hybrid is known to have a high resistance level towards P. cinnamomi. Efforts are addressed in finding rootstock material graft compatible with English walnut and resistant/tolerant to P. cinnamomi. The extension of P. cinnamomi lesions on five Juglans species was studied to find out sources of resistance/tolerance to this pathogen. Walnut species clustered into two main groups, J. hindsii, J. nigra, and J. mandshurica were the less susceptible to the colonization of P. cinnamomi, while J. regia and J. sieboldiana were the most susceptible. On this account, J. mandshurica represents the best alternative as rootstock because its employment overcomes the risk of the occurrence of black line disease, it has good level of resistance to Agrobacterium temefaciens and Brenneria nigrifluens, and it is tolerant to Xanthomonas arboricola pv. juglandis. J. mandshurica is also compatible in cross-pollinations with J. regia and J. nigra. Differences in virulence of P. cinnamomi isolates was assessed and a marked interaction between species and isolate emerged. Treatment with fosetyl-Al by dipping was mainly efficient in reducing the length P. cinnamomi lesions, and an interaction between species and treatment was evident with the highest efficacy on J. regia and J. sieboldiana. [source] Preliminary Results from the Use of New Vascular Access (Hemaport) for HemodialysisHEMODIALYSIS INTERNATIONAL, Issue 1 2003J Ahlmén One of the most important factors for an optimal chronic hemodialysis is a well- functioning vascular access. Still the A-V-fistula is the best alternative. When repeated failures arise new access alternatives are needed. The Hemaport combines a PTFE-graft with a percutaneous housing of titan. Starting and stopping the dialysis session is simple and needle-free. The first clinical experiences are presented. Thirteen patients (m-age 60 years) in 6 centres had used the Hemaport system. Out of 11 functioning devices 7 were placed on the upper arm and 4 were located on the thigh. The total days in observation were 2.156 days with 769 dialysis sessions performed. Six patients had used the Hemaport system for more than 6 months. Mean blood flow was 364, range 100,450 ml/min with a mean venous and arterial pressure of 100 mm Hg, range 30,250, and 16 mm Hg respectively, range , 140 to + 259. Thrombosis interventions have been required in 14 percent to obtain a functioning vascular access. Two patients contributed with more than half of these events. Mechanical or pharmacological thrombolysis can be performed through the Hemaport dialysis lid without open surgery. Six implants have been removed and in 5 of these cases a new Hemaport was implanted. The reasons for removing the device were related to insufficient vascular flow, thrombosis, and/or infection. In patients with repeated access problems, a new vascular access (Hemaport) has been clinically used for about 1 year. By its design, Hemaport offers a novel approach. [source] Efficiencies of NaOH production methods in a Kraft pulp millINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENERGY RESEARCH, Issue 15 2009Tobias Richards Abstract There are several processes in a Kraft pulp mill where there is a need for sodium hydroxide, e.g. in the digester and the bleaching plant. The objective of this study is to perform a preliminary evaluation, intended to select the best alternative for producing sodium hydroxide on a Kraft pulp mill site. The first step of the evaluation consists of screening available processes for producing sodium hydroxide needed in the mill. The first step of the evaluation shows that the two best options for increasing the production of sodium hydroxide for internal use in a mill are the conventional lime cycle process or direct causticization with titanates. The second step of the evaluation compares the lime cycle and the titanate process using first and second law analyses to determine the energy requirement and the exergy efficiencies of both processes. Such analyses show a higher energy requirement and a lower exergy efficiency in the titanate process than in the lime cycle process without any heat integration. However, the titanate process shows better performance in terms of energy requirement and exergy efficiency than the lime cycle, if heat is integrated into both processes. The titanate process requires, in the best case, only 80% of the energy required for a fully heat-integrated lime cycle process. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Multicriteria group decision making under incomplete preference judgments: Using fuzzy logic with a linguistic quantifierINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF INTELLIGENT SYSTEMS, Issue 6 2007Duke Hyun Choi In the face of increasing global competition and complexity of the socioeconomic environment, many organizations employ groups in decision making. Inexact or vague preferences have been discussed in the decision-making literature with a view to relaxing the burden of preference specifications imposed on the decision makers and thus taking into account the vagueness of human judgment. In this article, we present a multiperson decision-making method using fuzzy logic with a linguistic quantifier when each group member specifies incomplete judgment possibly both in terms of the evaluation of the performance of different alternatives with respect to multiple criteria and on the criteria themselves. Allowing for incomplete judgment in the model, however, makes a clear selection of the best alternative by the group more difficult. So, further interactions with the decision makers may proceed to the extent to compensate for the initial comfort of preference specifications. These interactions, however, may not guarantee the selection of the best alternative to implement. To circumvent this deadlock situation, we present a procedure for obtaining a satisfactory solution by the use of a linguistic-quantifier-guided aggregation that implies the fuzzy majority. This is an approach that combines a prescriptive decision method via mathematical programming and a well-established approximate solution method to aggregate multiple objects. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Int Syst 22: 641,660, 2007. [source] Ranking of alternatives with ordered weighted averaging operatorsINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF INTELLIGENT SYSTEMS, Issue 5 2004M. Teresa Lamata Multiattribute decision making is an important part of the decision process for both individual and group problems. We incorporate the fuzzy set theory and the basic nature of subjectivity due to ambiguity to achieve a flexible decision approach suitable for uncertain and fuzzy environments. Let us consider the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) in which the labels are structured as fuzzy numbers. To obtain the scoring that corresponds to the best alternative or the ranking of the alternatives, we need to use a total order for the fuzzy numbers involved in the problem. In this article, we consider a definition of such a total order, which is based on two subjective aspects: the degree of optimism/pessimism reflected with the ordered weighted averaging (OWA) operators. A numerical example is given to illustrate the approach. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [source] Realism, Regularity and Social ExplanationJOURNAL FOR THE THEORY OF SOCIAL BEHAVIOUR, Issue 2 2003Stephen Kemp Stephen Kemp and John Holmwood, Realism, Regularity and Social Explanation, pp. 165,187. This article explores the difficulties raised for social scientific investigation by the absence of experiment, critically reviewing realist responses to the problem such as those offered by Bhaskar, Collier and Sayer. It suggests that realist arguments for a shift from prediction to explanation, the use of abstraction, and reliance upon interpretive forms of investigation fail to demonstrate that these approaches compensate for the lack of experimental control. Instead, it is argued that the search for regularities, when suitably conceived, provides the best alternative to experiment for the social sciences. [source] Evaluating disease management programme effectiveness: an introduction to the regression discontinuity designJOURNAL OF EVALUATION IN CLINICAL PRACTICE, Issue 2 2006Ariel Linden DrPH MS Abstract Although disease management (DM) has been in existence for over a decade, there is still much uncertainty as to its effectiveness in improving health status and reducing medical cost. The main reason is that most programme evaluations typically follow weak observational study designs that are subject to bias, most notably selection bias and regression to the mean. The regression discontinuity (RD) design may be the best alternative to randomized studies for evaluating DM programme effectiveness. The most crucial element of the RD design is its use of a ,cut-off' score on a pre-test measure to determine assignment to intervention or control. A valuable feature of this technique is that the pre-test measure does not have to be the same as the outcome measure, thus maximizing the programme's ability to use research-based practice guidelines, survey instruments and other tools to identify those individuals in greatest need of the programme intervention. Similarly, the cut-off score can be based on clinical understanding of the disease process, empirically derived, or resource-based. In the RD design, programme effectiveness is determined by a change in the pre,post relationship at the cut-off point. While the RD design is uniquely suitable for DM programme evaluation, its success will depend, in large part, on fundamental changes being made in the way DM programmes identify and assign individuals to the programme intervention. [source] Attribute-based differentiation of alternativesJOURNAL OF MULTI CRITERIA DECISION ANALYSIS, Issue 6 2002Article first published online: 5 DEC 200, Jeffrey M. Keisler Abstract An intermediate step is introduced to the dialogue decision process for decision analysis. Alternatives are refined after they have been generated within a strategy table but before they are subject to more detailed evaluation. Two or more judges create a subjective mapping from alternatives to attributes that will later be mapped to criteria. In strategy tables, each of the alternative strategies consists of a coherent set of choices made across several decisions that are to be coordinated. These strategic alternatives are modified so as to increase their differentiation in the attribute space, rather than in the decision space alone. When criteria weights are unknown, the best alternative from the modified set may be superior to the best alternative from the original set. Furthermore, analysis of the resulting alternatives may yield a better mapping of the value response surface for the action space, in the sense that this mapping leads to eventual construction of a higher value alternative. Results are reported for a consulting engagement incorporating the proposed step. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Pharmacokinetics of sulfadimethoxine and ormetoprim in a 5:1 ratio following intraperitoneal and oral administration, in the hybrid striped bass (Morone chrysops × Morone saxitalis)JOURNAL OF VETERINARY PHARMACOLOGY & THERAPEUTICS, Issue 1 2004R. S. Bakal Selected pharmacokinetic parameters for sulfadimethoxine and ormetoprim, administered in a 5:1 ratio, via the oral and intraperitoneal (i.p.) routes were determined in the hybrid striped bass (Morone chrysops × Morone saxitalis). Plasma concentrations of both drugs were determined by high-performance liquid chromatography. A first-order one-compartment model adequately described plasma drug disposition. The elimination half-lives for sulfadimethoxine following i.p. and oral administration were 26 and 10.5 h, respectively. The half-lives for ormetoprim administered via i.p. and oral routes were 7.5 and 3.9 h, respectively. Cmax for sulfadimethoxine via the i.p. and oral routes were calculated to be 27.7 (±9.0) ,g/mL at 3.6 h and 3.2 (±1.2) ,g/mL at 1.2 h, respectively. Cmax for ormetoprim via the i.p. route was calculated to be 1.2 (±0.5) ,g/mL at 9.1 h and 1.58 (±0.7) ,g/mL at 5.7 h for the oral route. The oral availability of sulfadimethoxine relative to the i.p. route was 4.6%, while the oral availability of ormetoprim relative to the i.p. route was 78.5%. Due to the nonconstant ratio of these drugs in the plasma of the animal, the actual drug ratio to use for determining minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) is unclear. Using the ratio of the total amount of each drug that is absorbed as a surrogate for the mean actual ratio may be the best alternative to current methods. Using this ratio as determined in these studies, (2.14:1 sulfadimethoxine:ormetoprim) to determine the MICs the single 50 mg/kg oral dose of the 5:1 combination of sulfadimethoxine and ormetoprim appears to provide plasma concentrations high enough to inhibit the growth of Yersinia ruckeri, Edwardsiella tarda, and Escherichia coli. [source] Combining Multiple Quantitative and Qualitative Goals When Assessing Biomanufacturing Strategies under UncertaintyBIOTECHNOLOGY PROGRESS, Issue 4 2005Suzanne S. Farid This paper reports how financial and operational results from bioprocess simulations can be combined with other criteria pertinent to decision-making predictions to provide a more holistic approach to the evaluation of biomanufacturing alternatives. The classical additive weighting method, which is a multiattribute decision-making technique that can account for both the quantitative and qualitative parameters that ultimately need to be considered, is used. Its application is demonstrated through a case study that addresses whether start-up companies should invest in a stainless steel pilot plant or use disposable equipment for the production of early phase clinical trial material. The technique is extended to allow for uncertainty in parameters. An illustration of its use to compare alternatives based on cumulative frequency curves of the aggregate scores is provided. For cases where it is difficult to discriminate between the options, plots of risk versus reward are shown to be useful for identifying the best alternative based on the risk preference of the companyapos;s management. [source] Three-dimensional conformal external beam radiotherapy or brachytherapy: Which is the "best alternative" to radical prostatectomy?,CA: A CANCER JOURNAL FOR CLINICIANS, Issue 6 2000Dr. Mack Roach III MD First page of article [source] An experimental investigation on manifold-injected hydrogen as a dual fuel for diesel engine system with different injection durationINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENERGY RESEARCH, Issue 15 2009N. Saravanan Abstract Stringent emission norms and rapid depletion of petroleum resources have resulted in a continuous effort to search for alternative fuels. Hydrogen is one of the best alternatives for conventional fuels. Hydrogen has both the benefits and limitation to be used as a fuel in an automotive engine system. In the present investigation, hydrogen was injected into the intake manifold by using a hydrogen gas injector and diesel was introduced in the conventional, mode which also acts as an ignition source for hydrogen combustion. The flow rate of hydrogen was set at 5.5,l,min,1 at all the load conditions. The injection timing was kept constant at top dead center (TDC) and injection duration was adjusted to find the optimized injection condition. Experiments were conducted on a single cylinder, four stroke, water-cooled, direct injection diesel engine coupled to an electrical generator. At 75% load the maximum brake thermal efficiency for hydrogen operation at injection timing of TDC and with injection duration of 30°CA is 25.66% compared with 21.59% for diesel. The oxides of nitrogen (NOX) emission are 21.7,g,kWh,1 for hydrogen compared with diesel of 17.9,g,k,Wh,1. Smoke emissions reduced to 1 Bosch smoke number (BSN) in hydrogen compared with diesel of 2.2 BSN. Hydrogen operation in the dual fuel mode with diesel exhibits a better performance and reduction in emissions compared with diesel in the entire load spectra. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] | |||||||||||||