信息资源共享系统可靠性模型的研究

信息资源共享系统可以充分利用信息的传递性、共享性,支持异地协同工作,使人们获取信息更为经济、便利、迅速。信息资源共享系统有其自身的脆弱性,系统安全可靠是最重要、最基本的需求。提高系统可靠性,预防不可靠因素是信息资源共享系统设计的关键之一。笔者提出了信息资源共享系统可靠性的概念。由信息资源共享系统可靠性理论导出信息资源共享系统可靠度,建立了信息资源共享系统可靠性优化的多目标数学规划模型。为信息资源共享系统可靠性建立了定量分析方法。最后以可靠度、成本和时间3个优化目标为例,进行了计算、分析。为信息资源共享系统可靠性设计提供了新方法。     

Recent developments in the application of risk analysis to waste technologies

The European waste sector is undergoing a period of unprecedented change driven by business consolidation, new legislation and heightened public and government scrutiny. One feature is the transition of the sector towards a process industry with increased pre-treatment of wastes prior to the disposal of residues and the co-location of technologies at single sites, often also for resource recovery and residuals management. Waste technologies such as in-vessel composting, the thermal treatment of clinical waste, the stabilisation of hazardous wastes, biomass gasification, sludge combustion and the use of wastes as fuel, present operators and regulators with new challenges as to their safe and environmentally responsible operation. A second feature of recent change is an increased regulatory emphasis on public and ecosystem health and the need for assessments of risk to and from waste installations. Public confidence in waste management, secured in part through enforcement of the planning and permitting regimes and sound operational performance, is central to establishing the infrastructure of new waste technologies. Well-informed risk management plays a critical role. We discuss recent developments in risk analysis within the sector and the future needs of risk analysis that are required to respond to the new waste and resource management agenda.     

Exploring the information literacy of professionals in safety management

With the rapid development of increasingly complex technology and large scale industrial projects, all kinds of safety problems become extremely intricate in daily safety management (SM). It is therefore indispensable to effectively collect, analyze, assess, and synthesize information that is relevant to accident risk. In this paper, the concept of the information literacy (IL) of professionals in SM is proposed, and a conceptual framework is put forward. Further, determinants of the IL of safety professionals are suggested, including individual attributes, safety climate and culture, information infrastructure, information technology (IT) human resources, production technology and management, and national information policy, law and ethics. Of course, further research on the IL of safety professionals should be carried out for effective SM.     

Good news for environmental self-regulation? Finding the right link

We investigate the stock market response to firm disclosure of positive environmental information and the link from that information to environmental outcomes. We classify environmental media releases by informational content and value relevance, and assess the abnormal stock returns of each type of event. While announcements of future environmental activities lead to the largest favorable stock market reactions, there is no guaranteed link from this type of information to environmental outcomes. Further analysis of the abnormal returns shows that the magnitude of the stock market reaction depends on firm financial characteristics across all event types rather than on firm environmental performance. Our results indicate that the ability for voluntary environmental information disclosure to induce environmental self-regulation is limited to the extent that firms are able to follow through with their announcements of planned environmental activities.     

Ammonium nitrate thermal decomposition with additives

Runaway reactions present a potentially serious threat to the chemical process industry and the community; such reactions occur time and time again often with devastating consequences. The main objective of this research is to study the root causes associated with ammonium nitrate (AN) explosions during storage. The research focuses on AN fertilizers and studies the effects of different types of fertilizer compatible additives on AN thermal decomposition. Reactive Systems Screening Tool (RSST) has been used for reactivity evaluation and to better understand the mechanisms that result in explosion hazards. The results obtained from this tool have been reported in terms of parameters such as “onset” temperature, rate of temperature and pressure rise and maximum temperature. The runaway behavior of AN has been studied as a solid and solution in water. The effect of additives such as sodium sulfate (Na₂SO₄) and potassium chloride (KCl) has also been studied. Multiple tests have been conducted to determine the characteristics of AN decomposition accurately. The results show that the presence of sodium sulfate can increase the “onset” temperature of AN decomposition thus acting as AN thermal decomposition inhibitor, while potassium chloride tends to decrease the “onset” temperature thus acting as AN thermal decomposition promoter.     

A study of the precursors leading to ‘organisational’ accidents in complex industrial settings

This study aggregates the narrative findings from the investigation of 12 accidents or ‘near hits’ across a wide range of industrial settings to build a catalogue of organisational and cultural precursors to accidents. It was found that many were important factors in multiple events. It is argued that by addressing these potential vulnerabilities using the findings and proposed tools based upon them, organisations undertaking safety related activities will not only develop greater awareness of these deeper-lying issues but should be able to better control the risks associated with them.The precursors have been classified under eight headings and examples of key findings from three of these are presented. Statements providing potential defences against the identified vulnerabilities have been developed which should enable organisations to scrutinise the adequacy of existing expectations or requirements within their business. Probing questions have been developed based on the statements which should allow an assessment to be made as to whether these have been ‘embedded’ in the organisation.It is argued that organisational vulnerability tools should be developed to enable a systematic approach to ‘diagnosing’ incubating precursors. It is also argued that there is the potential for further resilience to be achieved through the use of models of the complex dynamics of socio-technical processes within organisations.     

Social network theory in the behavioural sciences: potential applications

Social network theory has made major contributions to our understanding of human social organisation but has found relatively little application in the field of animal behaviour. In this review, we identify several broad research areas where the networks approach could greatly enhance our understanding of social patterns and processes in animals. The network theory provides a quantitative framework that can be used to characterise social structure both at the level of the individual and the population. These novel quantitative variables may provide a new tool in addressing key questions in behavioural ecology particularly in relation to the evolution of social organisation and the impact of social structure on evolutionary processes. For example, network measures could be used to compare social networks of different species or populations making full use of the comparative approach. However, the networks approach can in principle go beyond identifying structural patterns and also can help with the understanding of processes within animal populations such as disease transmission and information transfer. Finally, understanding the pattern of interactions in the network (i.e. who is connected to whom) can also shed some light on the evolution of behavioural strategies.     

Onsets of schooling behavior and social transmission in chub mackerel Scomber japonicus

Grouping behavior has various types of antipredator functions. Some of these functions require social transmission of information, such as the many-eyes effect, whereas others do not, such as the dilution and confusion effects. Functions of grouping behavior would enhance with social transmission among group members. We investigated and compared the onsets of schooling behavior and social transmission of information in chub mackerel Scomber japonicus. Onset of schooling behavior was observed in rearing tanks by calculating the degree of parallel swimming. Onset of social transmission was examined by using visual cues from conspecifics. A group of five individuals was put in each of three experimental chambers from which they could see a group of conspecifics in the neighboring chamber. A weak electric stimulus was given to one of these chambers, and information transfer among individuals was observed. We found that social transmission by visual cues started on 30 days posthatching (25.1 mm in standard length), which was 2 weeks after the onset of schooling behavior. The late onset of social transmission relative to schooling behavior might be attributed to different predation pressure with development, or by underdevelopment of optic tectum, as the volume of the optic tectum did not increase just after the onset of schooling behavior.