Research on the Innovative Decisions of Supermarket Private Brands and Designated Manufacturers

One of the core competencies of a supermarket lies in its branding.With the continuous development of the market economy and the ongoing evolution of consumer demand,private brands have progressively emerged as significant contributors to supermarket growth.However,a pivotal developmental challenge for supermarkets is navigating the innovative decision-making process between private brands and designated manufacturers.This paper aims to investigate the innovative decisions between private brands and designated manufacturers,along with the relevant promotional strategies employed during entry into the United States market.

A Building Information Modeling-Life Cycle Cost Analysis Integrated Model to Enhance Decisions Related to the Selection of Construction Methods at the Conceptual Design Stage of Buildings

Life Cycle Cost Analysis (LCCA) provides a systematic approach to assess the total cost associated with owning, operating, and maintaining assets throughout their entire life. BIM empowers architects and designers to perform real-time evaluations to explore various design options. However, when integrated with LCCA, BIM provides a comprehensive economic perspective that helps stakeholders understand the long-term financial implications of design decisions. This study presents a methodology for developing a model that seamlessly integrates BIM and LCCA during the conceptual design stage of buildings. This integration allows for a comprehensive evaluation and analysis of the design process, ensuring that the development aligns with the principles of low carbon emissions by employing modular construction, 3D concrete printing methods, and different building design alternatives. The model considers the initial construction costs in addition to all the long-term operational, maintenance, and salvage values. It combines various tools and data through different modules, including energy analysis, Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), and Life Cycle Cost Analysis (LCCA) to execute a comprehensive assessment of the financial implications of a specific design option throughout the lifecycle of building projects. The development of the said model and its implementation involves the creation of a new plug-in for the BIM tool (i.e., Autodesk Revit) to enhance its functionalities and capabilities in forecasting the life-cycle costs of buildings in addition to generating associated cash flows, creating scenarios, and sensitivity analyses in an automatic manner. This model empowers designers to evaluate and justify their initial investments while designing and selecting potential construction methods for buildings, and enabling stakeholders to make informed decisions by assessing different design alternatives based on long-term financial considerations during the early stages of design.

Relationships between Features of EmergingAdulthood, Situated Decisions toward PhysicalActivity, and Physical Activity among CollegeStudents: The Moderating Role of ExerciseIntensity Tolerance

A significant portion of emerging adults do not achieve recommended levels of physical activity (PA). Previous studies observedassociations between features of emerging adulthood and PA levels, while the potential psychological mechanisms that mightexplain this phenomenon are not fully understood. In this context, there is some evidence that situated decisions towardphysical activity (SDPA) and exercise-intensity tolerance might influence PA level. To provide empirical support for thisassumption, the current study investigated whether (i) features of emerging adulthood are linked to SDPA, which, in turn,might affect PA engagement;(ii) exercise-intensity tolerance moderate the relationship between SDPA and PA level;and (iii)SDPA is a mediator of the relationship between features of emerging adulthood and PA levels under the prerequisite thatexercise-intensity tolerance moderates the link between SDPA and PA engagement. In this study a group of 1,706 Chinesecollege students was recruited and asked to complete a set of questionnaires assessing their SDPA, PA levels, exercise-intensitytolerance, and features associated with emerging adulthood, namely Self-exploration, Instability, and Possibility. Our resultsindicated that SDPA positively predicted PA levels and this relationship became stronger when exercise-intensity tolerance wasused as a moderator. Furthermore, it was observed that individuals with a higher level of Instability and a lower level ofPossibility during emerging adulthood exhibited a lower level of SDPA. Taken together, the results of our study providefurther insights on a potential psychological mechanism linking features of emerging adulthood and physical activity.

Multicriteria game approach to air-to-air combat tactical decisions for multiple UAVs

Air-to-air combat tactical decisions for multiple unmanned aerial vehicles(ACTDMU)are a key decision-making step in beyond visual range combat.Complex influencing factors,strong antagonism and real-time requirements need to be considered in the ACTDMU problem.In this paper,we propose a multicriteria game approach to ACTDMU.This approach consists of a multicriteria game model and a Pareto Nash equilibrium algorithm.In this model,we form the strategy profiles for the integration of air-to-air combat tactics and weapon target assignment strategies by considering the correlation between them,and we design the vector payoff functions based on predominance factors.We propose a algorithm of Pareto Nash equilibrium based on preference relations using threshold constraints(PNE-PRTC),and we prove that the solutions obtained by this algorithm are refinements of Pareto Nash equilibrium solutions.The numerical experiments indicate that PNE-PRTC algorithm is considerably faster than the baseline algorithms and the performance is better.Especially on large-scale instances,the Pareto Nash equilibrium solutions can be calculated by PNEPRTC algorithm at the second level.The simulation experiments show that the multicriteria game approach is more effective than one-side decision approaches such as multiple-attribute decision-making and randomly chosen decisions.

Opening up the Economy of Turkey to the Outside World： The Stabilization Decisions of January 24th 1980, Economic Situation in pre and Post January 24th Period

As a result of the fact that the stabilization program put into force in 1978 and 1979 in the Economy of Turkey could not be efficiently implemented due to the political instability and weak governments, a need to draft a new stabilization program emerged. The stabilization program of January 24th, 1980 was prepared in this environment. This is a program which includes the structural transformations in the long term as well as the aims foreseen to be realized in the short term. The program adopted the implementation of significant changes in the structure of the economy and the price mechanism in the market which becomes the only guide as the basic principle. The difference from the previous programs is an economic development program intending to provide a very permanent and structural change in the economy rather than to realize the short-term goals. With the decisions, a large devaluation was implemented, the exchange rate policy and importation were liberated, foreign capital and exportation were encouraged, the subsidies with the exception of energy, fertilizer, and transportation were removed, restrictions were imposed on the support purchases in agricultural products, and the overseas contracting services were supported. There are two structural objectives desired to be performed in the long term, shrinking the public sector and removing the intervention in the markets. The basic philosophy is to decrease the state intervention to the minimum level in the economy and to bring functionality to the market economy and to validate the price mechanism. In this paper, the stabilization decisions in the economy of Turkey belonging to pre- and early post-January 24th period will be comparatively analysed.

石竹科技与CRYSTAL DECISIONS携手开拓中国市场

世界上领先的信息管理软件公司Crystal Decisions宣布与石竹科技正式签定合作协议，共同在中国市场推广其企业报表、分析和信息交付解决方案。

Impact of cash crop cultivation on household income and migration decisions:Evidence from low-income regions in China

This study examines the impact of cash crop cultivation on household income and migration decisions,using survey data collected from low-income regions in China.Given farmers decide themselves whether to cultivate cash crops,an endogenous treatment regression model that accounts for potential selection bias issue is used to analyze the data.The empirical results show that cash crop cultivation exerts a positive and statistically significant impact on household income,but it does not affect household migration decisions significantly.The disaggregated analyses reveal that cash crop cultivation significantly increases farm income but decreases off-farm income.

Autonomous Maneuver Decisions via Transfer Learning Pigeon-Inspired Optimization for UCAVs in Dogfight Engagements

This paper proposes an autonomous maneuver decision method using transfer learning pigeon-inspired optimization(TLPIO)for unmanned combat aerial vehicles(UCAVs)in dogfight engagements.Firstly,a nonlinear F-16 aircraft model and automatic control system are constructed by a MATLAB/Simulink platform.Secondly,a 3-degrees-of-freedom(3-DOF)aircraft model is used as a maneuvering command generator,and the expanded elemental maneuver library is designed,so that the aircraft state reachable set can be obtained.Then,the game matrix is composed with the air combat situation evaluation function calculated according to the angle and range threats.Finally,a key point is that the objective function to be optimized is designed using the game mixed strategy,and the optimal mixed strategy is obtained by TLPIO.Significantly,the proposed TLPIO does not initialize the population randomly,but adopts the transfer learning method based on Kullback-Leibler(KL)divergence to initialize the population,which improves the search accuracy of the optimization algorithm.Besides,the convergence and time complexity of TLPIO are discussed.Comparison analysis with other classical optimization algorithms highlights the advantage of TLPIO.In the simulation of air combat,three initial scenarios are set,namely,opposite,offensive and defensive conditions.The effectiveness performance of the proposed autonomous maneuver decision method is verified by simulation results.

How time-inconsistent preferences influence venture capital exit decisions?A new perspective for grandstanding

Considering that the assumption of time consistency does not adequately reveal the mechanisms of exit decisions of venture capital(VC),this study proposes two kinds of time-inconsistent preferences(i.e.,time-flow inconsistency and time-point incon-sistency)to advance research in this field.Time-flow inconsistency is in line with the previous time inconsistency literature,while time-point inconsistency is rooted in the VC fund’s finite lifespan.Based on the assumption about the strategies guiding future behaviors,we consider four types of venture capitalists:time-consistent,time-point-inconsistent,naïve,and sophisticated venture capitalists,of which the latter three are time-inconsistent.We derive and compare the exit thresholds of these four types of venture capitalists.The main results include:(1)time-inconsistent preferences acceler-ate the exits of venture capitalists;(2)the closer the VC funds expiry dates are,t`he more likely time-inconsistent venture capitalists are to accelerate their exits;and(3)future selves caused by time-flow inconsistency weaken the effect of time-point inconsist-ency.Our study provides a behavioral explanation for the empirical fact of young VCs’grandstanding.

Intelligent Decisions Modeling for Energy Saving in Lifts:An Application for Kleemann Hellas Elevators

The present work proposes a methodological approach for modeling decisions regarding energy reduction in an elevator. This is achieved with the integration of existing as well as acquired knowledge, in a decision module implemented in the electronics of an elevator. So far, elevators do not exploit information regarding their recent usage. In the developed system decisions are driven based on information arising from monitoring the use of the elevator. Monitoring provides various records of usage which consequently are used to predict elevator’s future usage and to adapt accordingly its functioning. Till now, there are only elevators that encompass in their electronics algorithms with if then rules in order to control elevator’s functioning. However, these if then rules are based only on good practice knowledge of similar elevators installed in similar buildings. Even this knowledge which unavoidably is associated with uncertainty is not encoded in a mathematically consisted way in the algorithms. The design, the implementation and a first pilot evaluation study of an elevator’s intelligent decision module are presented. The study concludes that the presented application sufficiently reduces energy consumption through properly controlled functioning.

超级决策软件(Super Decisions)在体育综合评价中的应用研究

通过教练员能力综合评价案例,运用网络分析法(ANP法)构建指标框架,使用Super Decision软件计算指标权重,为Super Deci-sions和(ANP法)更好地应用于体育综合评价提供参考。

Corporate governance and financing decisions by Saudi companies

This paper aims to contribute to the corporate governance literature in emerging economies by examining the effect of some corporate governance mechanisms on financing decisions in Saudi Arabian listed companies. A multiple regression model is used to examine the association between financing decisions and corporate governance mechanisms for a sample of 37 listed Saudi companies. In particular, we examine the effect of board size, ownership concentration and corporate governance reporting on the debt-to-equity ratio. Corporate governance reporting is measured by the content analysis approach. After controlling for companies＇ profitability and their growth opportunities, we found that both board size and ownership concentration are positively associated with debt-to-equity ratio. We limit our analysis to a small sample of firms that use the internet to communicate corporate governance information between October 2005 and January 2006. The findings suggest that managers are likely to choose higher financial leverage when they have stronger corporate governance （large number of directors on the board and higher ownership concentration）. However, we did not find any statistical association between corporate governance disclosure and debt-to-equity ratio. This suggests that firm＇s asymmetric information is not an important driver of the financing decision of Saudi Arabian companies. This might be due to the nature of the Saudi business environment. We strongly believe that this paper provides a novel contribution to the existing literature as we are the first to examine this issue in Saudi Arabia.

Pregnancy decisions of married women living with HIV during wide access to antiretroviral therapy in southern Malawi

Availability of antiretroviral therapy and prevention of mother to child transmission of HIV programmes have increased childbearing decisions in people living with HIV. However, pregnancy decisions of married women living with HIV have not been adequately reported in Malawi. In order to provide information to inform the development of antiretroviral and family planning services targeted to the unique needs of women living with HIV, this study explored pregnancy decisions of women living with HIV in rural southern Malawi. Twenty in-depth interviews on married women living with HIV selected purposively were conducted in two antiretroviral clinics of patrilineal Chikhwawa and matrilineal Chiradzulu districts in 2010. With their pregnancy and child rearing experiences, the women who got pregnant after a positive HIV diagnosis decided to never get pregnant again. Their lived experiences of motherhood when living with HIV play a major role in their pregnancy decisions despite free access to antiretroviral therapy, which has improved the quality of their life’s and survival. Societies in Malawi must accept this behavioural change by married women living with HIV and their needs for family planning. Health care workers must be knowledgeable and sensitive about it and assist women living with HIV who are willing to adapt their pregnant decisions based on living experiences.

Regulation of neural stem cell fate decisions by mitochondrial dynamics

Stem cells possess the ability to divide symmetrically or asymmet- rically to allow for maintenance of the stem cell pool or become committed progenitors and differentiate into various cell lineages. The unique self-renewal capabilities and pluripotency of stem cells are integral to tissue regeneration and repair （Oh et al., 2014）. Mul- tiple mechanisms including intracellular programs and extrinsic cues are reported to regulate neural stem cell （NSC） fate （Bond et al., 2015）. A recent study, published in Cell Stern Cell, identified a novel mechanism whereby mitochondrial dynamics drive NSC fate （Khacho et al., 2016）.

An Empirical Test of Optimism Bias in Capital Budgeting Decisions

Behavioral finance is a field that is scrutinizing the adequacy of traditional financial theories using insights from the disciplines of psychology and sociology. Many studies within its realm test the stock market behaviors, and behavioral phenomena are still to be tested in the area of corporate finance. This study aims to contribute to the behavioral corporate finance literature by a research in one of the psychological phenomena affecting the decision makers＇ abilities to reach conclusions rationally. In this study, it is aimed to investigate one of the biases, namely, the optimism bias in corporate capital budgeting decisions. Optimism in decision making can be associated with estimating lower costs and higher revenues. Thus, by assessing the forecasts of decision makers, the existence of optimism in their decisions is tried to be seen. This study aims at contributing to the literature in that it is conducted in an emerging country like Turkey.

Influence of decision makers＇ characteristics on risk analysis in strategic investment decisions

This study empirically examines the influence of decision makers＇ （DMs） characteristics on risk analysis in strategic investment decisions （SIDs） of companies operating automotive industry in India. This study has developed and tested a structural model that linking select demographics, risk propensity and risk analysis in SIDs. The primary data were collected from Senior Finance Professionals （CFOs, GMs, VPs and so on） representing 36 listed automotive companies operating in India. Based on the responses collected from a single cross-sectional mailed survey, this study finds that risk propensity has a significant positive influence on the extent of usage of risk analysis in SIDs.

Hidden Constructs on Graduate Employability Decisions: The Principal Component Factor

This study adopted the quantitative research design to unearth hidden factors which go into graduate employability decisions. Purposive sampling technique was used to select graduates, institutions and industries within Takoradi, Cape Coast, Kumasi and Accra metropolis all in Ghana. Three different questionnaires inter-spaced with interviews were designed and used to collect data from the field according to a pre-determined stratified scheme. A total of 200 informants including 68 industries, 120 graduates and 12 institutions were used. The data was coded and keyed into SPSS version 20. Tables and Charts were used to explore the data. Principal component (PC) analysis was employed to extract hidden factors industries consider in graduate employability decisions. The PC method identified and extracted six hidden factors: ability to set SMART goals and structure actions;ability to demonstrate a willingness to embrace new systems, processes, technology and ideas;a determined, committed, resilient, and focused person;a person with passion for driving profit;ability to deconstruct a problem or situation;and clear and unprompted ability to present information to a group. These six hidden factors could explain 68.8% of the variances in graduate employability decisions. We recommend that internships be properly planned and executed with the involvement of industry players, facilitators of learning, and the ministry of trade and industries. In addition, facilitators should inculcate into students’ important traits and attributes identified in this study.

Algorithms for Increasing of the Effectiveness of the Making Decisions by Intelligent Fuzzy Systems

There are considered rule-based intelligent systems using fuzzy inference. Comparative analysis of different approaches and algorithms of making decisions on the base of fuzzy logic is given. Using of the parallel calculations can reduce the time of making decision in case of large-scale systems. Effectiveness of parallel calculations depends on the grouping of the rules and variables. Building of the graph of the dependence of the rules and the graph of dependence of the linguistic variables are suggested. On the base of the developed groups of rules and defuzzification of the linguistic variables we suggest to reduce the time of making decision and therefore to increase the effectiveness of the decision making with using of parallel calculations for each group.

Making Decisions

WHEN I was a senior in university,I did an internship at an international food chain company.It was my first job,and I was always afraid of doing something wrong.I was shy to communicate with others,and sometimes scolded by my boss for being inexperienced and passive.It was at that time that Lin appeared. He was the very helpful and always encouraging assistant manager.All the staff liked him.