Theory of optimal power budget in quasi-linear dispersion-managed fibre links

A theory of an optimal distribution of the gain of in-line amplifiers in dispersion-managed transmission systems is developed. As an example of the application of the general method, a design of the line with periodically imbalanced in-line amplification is proposed.

Experts:the knowledge and power of expertise

In this book, Stehr and Grundmann outline the theoretical significance and practical importance of the growing stratum of experts, counsellors and advisors in contemporary society, and claim that the growing spectrum of knowledge-based occupations has led to the pluralisation of expertise. As decision makers in organizations and private citizens, for various reasons, increasingly seek advice from experts, the authors examine the nature of expert activity, and suggest that the role of experts needs to be distinguised from other roles such as professionals, scientists, or intellectuals. Experts, they argue, perform knowledge based activities that mediate between the context of knowledge creation and application. Existing approaches tend to restrict the role of the expert to scientists, or to conflate the roles of professionals with experts. In avoiding such restrictions, this book sets out a framework to understanding the growing role of expertise in a better way. Experts provides thought-provoking discussion that will be of interest to postgraduate students and academics working within the fields of social theory, knowledge, and consumption.

The dynamics of organizational change : an analysis of power, professions and new managerialism in the case of CoastElectric

It is widely accepted that the Thatcher years and their immediate aftermath were associated with substantive social and organizational change. The privatisation programme, 'the rolling back of the State', prosecuted by the successive Conservative Governments from 1979-1997 was a central pillar of Governmental policy. This thesis seeks to engage with privatization through the of CoastElectric, a newly privatised Regional Electricity Company. This thesis contributes to the extant understanding of the dynamics of organizational change in four major ways. Firstly, the study into CoastElectric addresses the senior management decision making within the organization: in particular, it will attempt to make sense of 'why' particular decisions were made. The theoretical backdrop to this concern will draw on the concepts of normalization, cultural capital and corporate fashion. The argument presented in this thesis is that the decision-making broadly corresponded with that which could be considered to be at the vanguard of mangerialist thought. However, a detailed analysis suggested that at different junctures in CoastElectric's history there were differences in the approach to decision making that warranted further analysis. The most notable finding was that the relative levels of new managerialist cultural capital possessed by the decision-making elite had an important bearing upon whether the decision was formulated either endogenously or exogenously, with the assistance of cultural intermediaries such as management consultants. The thesis demonstrates the importance of the broader discourse of new managerialism in terms of shaping what is considered to be a 'commonsensical, rational' strategy. The second concern of this thesis is that of the process of organizational change. The study of CoastElectric attempts to provide a rich account of the dynamics of organizational change. This is realized through, first, examining the pre-existing context of the organization; second, through analyzing the power politics of change interventions. The master concepts utilised in this endeavour are that of: dividing practices, the establishment of violent hierarchies between competing discourses; symbolic violence; critical turning points; recursiveness; creative destruction; legitimation strategies and the reconstitution of subjects in the workplace.

Does stakeholder orientation matter? : empirical evidence about power and influence in local government decision-making

Despite being in the business agenda for almost thirty years, stakeholder management is still an under explored field in the public management context. The investigation presented in this doctoral thesis aims to ensure that stakeholder management is a useful technique able to raise issues about power and interests to public organisation’s strategic management processes. Stakeholder theory is tested in an exploratory study carried out with English Local Authorities whose focus is place on decision-making. The findings derive from two distinct and complementary studies: a cross-sectional survey undertaken with chief executives based on the quantitative approach and a qualitative investigation based on cross-sectional case studies and in-depth interviews of validation. While the first study aimed to produce a reliable and comprehensive list of stakeholders able to raise issues in decision-making, the second study aimed to depict the arena in which decision-making comes about. The findings indicate that local government decision-making is a multistakeholder process in which influences are exerted according to stakeholders’ power and interest. The findings also indicate that local government managers should take into account these tissues to avoid losing resources and legitimacy from its environmental supporters. Another issue raised by the investigation is related to the ethics upon which these types of relationships are based. According to the evidence gathered throughout the investigation, the formal model of accountability does not cover the whole set of stakeholders engaged in the process.

Intracavity dynamics in high-power mode-locked fiber lasers

A theoretical model is developed which characterizes the intracavity pulse evolutions in high-power fiber lasers. It is shown that experimentally observed dynamics of the key pulse parameters can be described by a reduced model of ordinary differential equations. Critical in driving the intracavity dynamics is the amplitude and phase modulations generated by the discrete elements in the laser. The theory gives a simple geometrical description of the intracavity dynamics and possible operation modes of the laser cavity. Furthermore, it provides a simple and efficient method for optimizing the performance of complex multiparametric laser systems.

Beyond power:unbridging Foucault and Weber

Today, very few would doubt that there are plenty of reasons to liken Weber’s and Foucault’s theories of power. Nevertheless, their respective works have divergent ethical and ontological preoccupations which should be reconsidered. This paper explores Foucault’s account of a historical episode in Discipline and Punish and Weber’s theory of life spheres, uncovering evidence that there is a need to reassess the conceptual bridges which have been built so far. The exploration reveals a radical difference between a monological theory of power (Foucault) and a multidimensional approach to power (Weber). Yet by unbridging the two thinkers and focusing on other aspects of their theories along with their ideas about power, we also find that alternative links between the two frameworks may offer a more promising critical theory.

Leadership in American Evangelical churches:an explanatory theory

DUE TO COPYRIGHT RESTRICTIONS ONLY AVAILABLE FOR CONSULTATION AT ASTON UNIVERSITY LIBRARY AND INFORMATION SERVICES WITH PRIOR ARRANGEMENT This study is about leadership in American Evangelical Churches, which as a sub-set of American Christianity, are growing, while American Christianity as a whole is in decline. As a result evangelicalism is quickly becoming the dominate iteration of American Christianity. It is anecdotal that well led churches grow while poorly led churches do not, yet no one has identified what leadership, in the evangelical church context, is. Researchers have investigated a number of aspects of church leadership (much of it without identifying whether or not the churches under investigation were evangelical or not) but no one has put forth a unified theory linking these aspects together. The purpose of this research is to address that gap and develop a theory that explains how evangelicals view leadership in their local churches. In this study of three churches, dissimilar in size and governance, a purely qualitative approach to data collection and analysis was employed. The study involved 60 interviews that sought points-of-view from top and mid-level leadership along with congregant followers. The study borrowed heavily from Glaser and Strauss (1967) Grounded Theory approach to data analysis. The results developed a theory which provides a unified explanation of how leadership actually works in the three evangelical churches. Several implications for practice are discussed as to the theory's usefulness as a method of leadership education and evaluation. An original discovery was found that an individual's incumbency within the organization was identified as a social power. Limitations to this research are the limitations generally imputed to purely qualitative research in that questions are raised about the theory's applicability to evangelical churches beyond the three studied. The suggestions for further research involve addressing those limitations

Theory of parabolic pulse generation in tapered fiber

We examine similarities and differences between high-power parabolic pulse generation in an active medium and in tapered fiber with decreasing normal dispersion. Using a realistic tapered fiber design, we demonstrate the possibility of parabolic pulse generation without an external pump and determine the limitations of this approach. © 2007 Optical Society of America.

Optimal power budget in quasi-linear dispersion-managed fiber links

We develop a theory of an optimal distribution of the gain of in-line amplifiers in dispersion-managed transmission systems. As an example of the application of the general method we propose a design of the line with periodically imbalanced in-line amplification.

Diversifying into technical clothing manufacture as entrepreneurial learning:a situated learning theory perspective

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate analytically how entrepreneurial action as learning relating to diversifying into technical clothing - i.e. a high-value manufacturing sector - can take place. This is particularly relevant to recent discussion and debate in academic and policy-making circles concerning the survival of the clothing manufacture industry in developed industrialised countries. Design/methodology/approach - Using situated learning theory (SLT) as the major analytical lens, this case study examines an episode of entrepreneurial action relating to diversification into a high-value manufacturing sector. It is considered on instrumentality grounds, revealing wider tendencies in the management of knowledge and capabilities requisite for effective entrepreneurial action of this kind. Findings - Boundary events, brokers, boundary objects, membership structures and inclusive participation that addresses power asymmetries are found to be crucial organisational design elements, enabling the development of inter- and intracommunal capacities. These together constitute a dynamic learning capability, which underpins entrepreneurial action, such as diversification into high-value manufacturing sectors. Originality/value - Through a refinement of SLT in the context of entrepreneurial action, the paper contributes to an advancement of a substantive theory of managing technological knowledge and capabilities for effective diversification into high-value manufacturing sectors. Copyright © 2014 Emerald Group Publishing Limited. All rights reserved.

Managing imbalanced supply chain relationships for sustainability:a power perspective

This study adopts a power perspective to investigate sustainable supply chain relationships and specifically uses resource-dependence theory (RDT) to critically analyze buyer-supplier-supplier relationships. Empirical evidence is provided, extending the RDT model in this context. The concept of power relationships is explored through a qualitative study of a multinational company and agricultural growers in the UK food industry that work together to implement sustainable practices. We look at multiple triadic relationships involving a large buyer and its small suppliers to investigate how relative power affects the implementation of sustainable supply-management practices. The study highlights that power as dependence is relevant to understanding compliance in sustainable supply chains and to identifying appropriate relationship-management strategies to build more sustainable supply chains. We show the influences of power on how players manage their relationships and how it affects organizational responses to the implementation of sustainability initiatives. Power notably influences the sharing of sustainability-related risks and value between supply chain partners. From a managerial perspective, the study contributes to developing a better understanding of how power can become an effective way to achieve sustainability goals. This article offers insights into the way in which a large organization works with small and medium size enterprises to implement sustainable practices and shows how power management-that is, the way in which power is used-can support or hinder effective cooperation around sustainability in the supply chain. © 2014 Decision Sciences Institute.

Credibility theory-based available transfer capability assessment

Since the development of large scale power grid interconnections and power markets, research on available transfer capability (ATC) has attracted great attention. The challenges for accurate assessment of ATC originate from the numerous uncertainties in electricity generation, transmission, distribution and utilization sectors. Power system uncertainties can be mainly described as two types: randomness and fuzziness. However, the traditional transmission reliability margin (TRM) approach only considers randomness. Based on credibility theory, this paper firstly built models of generators, transmission lines and loads according to their features of both randomness and fuzziness. Then a random fuzzy simulation is applied, along with a novel method proposed for ATC assessment, in which both randomness and fuzziness are considered. The bootstrap method and multi-core parallel computing technique are introduced to enhance the processing speed. By implementing simulation for the IEEE-30-bus system and a real-life system located in Northwest China, the viability of the models and the proposed method is verified.

The complements towards developing a new risk management framework and Its applicability to the Nigerian power sector

The availability of regular supply has been identified as one of the major stimulants for the growth and development of any nation and is thus important for the economic well-being of a nation. The problems of the Nigerian power sector stems from a lot of factors culminating in her slow developmental growth and inability to meet the power demands of her citizens regardless of the abundance of human and natural resources prevalent in the nation. The research therefore had the main aim of investigating the importance and contributions of risk management to the success of projects specific to the power sector. To achieve this aim it was pertinent to examine the efficacy of risk management process in practice and elucidate the various risks typically associated with projects (Construction, Contractual, Political, Financial, Design, Human resource and Environmental risk factors) in the power sector as well as determine the current situation of risk management practice in Nigeria. To address this factors inhibiting the proficiency of the overarching and prevailing issue which have only been subject to limited in-depth academic research, a rigorous mixed research method was adopted (quantitative and qualitative data analysis). A review of the Nigeria power sector was also carried out as a precursor to the data collection stage. Using purposive sampling technique, respondents were identified and a questionnaire survey was administered. The research hypotheses were tested using inferential statistics (Pearson correlation, Chi-square test, t-test and ANOVA technique) and the findings revealed the need for the development of a new risk management implementation Framework. The proposed Framework was tested within a company project, for interpreting the dynamism and essential benefits of risk management with the aim of improving the project performances (time), reducing the level of fragmentation (quality) and improving profitability (cost) within the Nigerian power sector in order to bridge a gap between theory and practice. It was concluded that Nigeria’s poor risk management practices have prevented it from experiencing strong growth and development. The study however, concludes that the successful implementation of the developed risk management framework may help it to attain this status by enabling it to become more prepared and flexible, to face challenges that previously led to project failures, and thus contributing to its prosperity. The research study provides an original contribution theoretically, methodologically and practically which adds to the project risk management body of knowledge and to the Nigerian power sector.

The critical role of intracavity dynamics in high-power mode-locked fiber lasers

We present a theoretical description of the generation of ultra-short, high-energy pulses in two laser cavities driven by periodic spectral filtering or dispersion management. Critical in driving the intra-cavity dynamics is the nontrivial phase profiles generated and their periodic modification from either spectral filtering or dispersion management. For laser cavities with a spectral filter, the theory gives a simple geometrical description of the intra-cavity dynamics and provides a simple and efficient method for optimizing the laser cavity performance. In the dispersion managed cavity, analysis shows the generated self-similar behavior to be governed by the porous media equation with a rapidly-varying, mean-zero diffusion coefficient whose solution is the well-known Barenblatt similarity solution with parabolic profile. © 2010 Copyright SPIE - The International Society for Optical Engineering.

Intracavity dynamics for power and energy enhancement in mode-locked lasers

We present a theoretical description of the generation of ultra-short, high-energy pulses in two laser cavities driven by periodic spectral filtering or dispersion management. Critical in driving the intra-cavity dynamics is the nontrivial phase profiles generated and their periodic modification from either spectral filtering or dispersion management. For laser cavities with a spectral filter, the theory gives a simple geometrical description of the intra-cavity dynamics and provides a simple and efficient method for optimizing the laser cavity performance. In the dispersion managed cavity, analysis shows the generated self-similar behavior to be governed by the porous media equation with a rapidly-varying, mean-zero diffusion coefficient whose solution is the well-known Barenblatt similarity solution with parabolic profile.