An 800-year paleoflood record from the Sacramento Valley, California [abstract]

EXTRACT (SEE PDF FOR FULL ABSTRACT): Four cores recovered from Little Packer Lake in Glenn County, California, have provided a paleoflood record for the past 800 years. ... The sequence of flood deposits in the top 2 meters of the record shows a reasonable agreement with the known history of floods during the past 150 years. At least three major flood events are indicated for AD 1400-1525, although these dates may have to be revised when more dates become available.

An analysis of the experimental pole and line fishery conducted around Sri Lanka by Nichiro Fishing Company of Japan

Under a joint agreement the Government of Sri Lanka and the Nichiro Fishing Company of Japan have undertaken an experimental pole and line fishery around Sri Lanka with a view to determining the feasibility of establishing a joint commercial venture. 3 Japanese vessels conducted trials during the period March 1973-October 1974. Details of the vessels and cruises are given. A variety of fish were tried as bait, and the selection of appropriate bait is discussed. Catches and catch and effort statistics are presented, with tables showing distribution of the tuna. The results of the trials were below expectations, and are in part attributed to bait availability, and unfavorable weather conditions. Seasonal variation of the type of fishery is suggested in order to take account of this, and it is concluded that a fishery based on 45/50 ft combined pole and line and drift net fishing vessels might prove feasible.

Managing without measuring: A study of an electricity distribution company

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to present an exception to the common belief "If you can't measure it, you can't manage it". It aims to show how in certain situations particular practices, attitudes and cultures can remove the need for individual performance measurement. Design/methodology/approach: First, the paper identifies the usual roles of performance measurement in managing individual employees as described by control and motivation theorists. Second, it identifies a market-leading organisation where managers deliberately refuse to use their top-level performance measurement system to manage the performance of individual employees. A case study is carried out to test what non-measurement mechanisms fulfil the roles of individual performance measurement in this organisation. Findings: Building on situations observed at this company, a set of possible characteristics of companies that do not require formalised individual performance measurement systems in order to achieve high performance standards is put forward. Practical implications: Managers should not always assume that individual performance measurement is the only way to achieve excellent performance. This study shows that, by granting responsibilities and providing appropriate support, managers can channel workers' enhanced motivation towards meeting wider organisational goals. Originality/value: This work broadens the understanding of how excellent performance can be achieved. It shows that excellence can be achieved through practices based on shared values linked to motivation, trust, and a common sense of mission, without the need to install individual performance measurement systems based on cybernetic principles. © Emerald Group Publishing Limited.

The effect of a twin tunnel on the propagation of ground-borne vibration from an underground railway

Accurate predictions of ground-borne vibration levels in the vicinity of an underground railway are greatly sought after in modern urban centres. Yet the complexity involved in simulating the underground environment means that it is necessary to make simplifying assumptions about this system. One such commonly made assumption is to ignore the effects of neighbouring tunnels, despite the fact that many underground railway lines consist of twin-bored tunnels, one for the outbound direction and one for the inbound direction. This paper presents a unique model for two tunnels embedded in a homogeneous, elastic fullspace. Each of these tunnels is subject to both known, dynamic train forces and dynamic cavity forces. The net forces acting on the tunnels are written as the sum of those tractions acting on the invert of a single tunnel, and those tractions that represent the motion induced by the neighbouring tunnel. By apportioning the tractions in this way, the vibration response of a two-tunnel system is written as a linear combination of displacement fields produced by a single-tunnel system. Using Fourier decomposition, forces are partitioned into symmetric and antisymmetric modenumber components to minimise computation times. The significance of the interactions between two tunnels is quantified by calculating the insertion gains, in both the vertical and horizontal directions, that result from the existence of a second tunnel. The insertion-gain results are shown to be localised and highly dependent on frequency, tunnel orientation and tunnel thickness. At some locations, the magnitude of these insertion gains is greater than 20 dB. This demonstrates that a high degree of inaccuracy exists in any surface vibration prediction model that includes only one of the two tunnels. This novel two-tunnel solution represents a significant contribution to the existing body of research into vibration from underground railways, as it shows that the second tunnel has a significant influence on the accuracy of vibration predictions for underground railways. © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Simulating intertwined design processes that have similar structures: A case study of a small company that creates made-to-order fashion products

The authors use simulation to analyse the resource-driven dependencies between concurrent processes used to create customised products in a company. Such processes are uncertain and unique according to the design changes required. However, they have similar structures. For simulation, a level of abstraction is chosen such that all possible processes are represented by the same activity network. Differences between processes are determined by the customisations that they implement. The approach is illustrated through application to a small business that creates customised fashion products. We suggest that similar techniques could be applied to study intertwined design processes in more complex domains. Copyright © 2011 Inderscience Enterprises Ltd.

An investigation into the information exchange between a consultant and client company: a case study

This report deals with collaborations of engineering consultants and clients in the automobile industry.

In these relationships three main challenges have been identified which have to be addressed by the consultancies. Therefore, the research takes the viewpoint of the consulting side. The challenges are

(i) the appropriate project goal definition;

(ii) achieving client satisfaction; and

(iii) dealing with international clients.

An investigation of such a relationship carried out on a case study shows that improvements can be achieved through communication support. The ways to do that are proposed.

Grouper, mudcrab and company

The paper discusses aquaculture practices on the three other high-value commodities which can be cultured as an alternative to shrimp. These species are grouper, mud crab and sea bass, it also discusses milkfish aquaculture practices.