Informal dissemination scenarios and the effectiveness of evacuation warning dissemination of households:a simulation study

Timely warning of the public during large scale emergencies is essential to ensure safety and save lives. This ongoing study proposes an agent-based simulation model to simulate the warning message dissemination among the public considering both official channels and unofficial channels The proposed model was developed in NetLogo software for a hypothetical area, and requires input parameters such as effectiveness of each official source (%), estimated time to begin informing others, estimated time to inform others and estimated percentage of people (who do not relay the message). This paper demonstrates a means of factoring the behaviour of the public as informants into estimating the effectiveness of warningdissemination during large scale emergencies. The model provides a tool for the practitioner to test the potential impact of the informal channels on the overall warning time and sensitivity of the modelling parameters. The tool would help the practitioners to persuade evacuees to disseminate the warning message informing others similar to the ’Run to thy neighbour campaign conducted by the Red cross.

Challenges for expatriate managers:an exploration of cross-cultural management, adjustment, and training issues faced by Anglo-American managers in Hong Kong

This field work study furthers understanding about expatriate management, in particular, the nature of cross-cultural management in Hong Kong involving Anglo-American expatriate and Chinese host national managers, the important features of adjustment for expatriates living and working there, and the type of training which will assist them to adjust and to work successfully in this Asian environment. Qualitative and quantitative data on each issue was gathered during in-depth interviews in Hong Kong, using structured interview schedules, with 39 expatriate and 31 host national managers drawn from a cross-section of functional areas and organizations. Despite the adoption of Western technology and the influence of Western business practices, micro-level management in Hong Kong retains a cultural specificity which is consistent with the norms and values of Chinese culture. There are differences in how expatriates and host nationals define their social roles, and Hong Kong's recent colonial history appears to influence cross-cultural interpersonal interactions. The inability of the spouse and/or family to adapt to Hong Kong is identified as a major reason for expatriate assignments to fail, though the causes have less to do with living away from family and friends, than with Hong Kong's highly urbanized environment and the heavy demands of work. Culture shock is not identified as a major problem, but in Hong Kong micro-level social factors require greater adjustment than macro-level societal factors. The adjustment of expatriate managers is facilitated by a strong orientation towards career development and hard work, possession of technical/professional expertise, and a willingness to engage in a process of continuous 'active learning' with respect to the host national society and culture. A four-part model of manager training suitable for Hong Kong is derived from the study data. It consists of a pre-departure briefing, post-arrival cross-cultural training, language training in basic Cantonese and in how to communicate more effectively in English with non-native speakers, and the assignment of a mentor to newly arrived expatriate managers.

A cross-national comparison of cultural value orientations of Indian, Polish, Russian and American employees

This study examines the cultural value orientations (VOs) of employees (managerial and non-managerial) working in three categories of organizations (professional, technical and local services) in India, Poland, Russia and the USA. The analysis is conducted at both the national and organizational levels. The paper hypothesizes cultural differences at the country level and cultural similarities among employees working for professional and technical oriented organizations and divergence in the VOs of employees working for local services organizations. It also hypothesizes differences in the VOs of managerial and non-managerial employees in the four countries. The investigation has been conducted with the help of a questionnaire survey of 1,852 respondents. The outcomes of the analysis show that there are both cross-country cultural differences and similarities among the VOs of employees of the four nations. Further, significant cultural convergence emerges in the VOs of employees working for both professional and technical organizations, however, no significant cultural similarities or differences are observed for employees of service-based organizations in the four countries. There are some similarities emerging between managerial employees in the research countries. The research contributes to the fields of cross-cultural management, international management and international human resource management.

Sonogashira cross-coupling and homocoupling on a silver surface:chlorobenzene and phenylacetylene on Ag(100)

Scanning tunneling microscopy, temperature-programmed reaction, near-edge X-ray absorption fine structure spectroscopy, and density functional theory calculations were used to study the adsorption and reactions of phenylacetylene and chlorobenzene on Ag(100). In the absence of solvent molecules and additives, these molecules underwent homocoupling and Sonogashira cross-coupling in an unambiguously heterogeneous mode. Of particular interest is the use of silver, previously unexplored, and chlorobenzene—normally regarded as relatively inert in such reactions. Both molecules adopt an essentially flat-lying conformation for which the observed and calculated adsorption energies are in reasonable agreement. Their magnitudes indicate that in both cases adsorption is predominantly due to dispersion forces for which interaction nevertheless leads to chemical activation and reaction. Both adsorbates exhibited pronounced island formation, thought to limit chemical activity under the conditions used and posited to occur at island boundaries, as was indeed observed in the case of phenylacetylene. The implications of these findings for the development of practical catalytic systems are considered.