Ideas of establishing the information system for emergence decisions on the protection against earthquakes and disaster reduction in cities (application of GIS)

ith urban reformation and opening becoming deeper,the work of protection against earthquake and disaster reduction would be more important.In this paper,some ideas are suggested about establishing the information system for emergency decisions on protection against earthquake and disaster reduction in cities .The information system mainly includes a subsystem for rapid evaluation of damage loss from earthquake (which includes input of seismic information,distribution of earthquake intensity,evaluation of seismic fragility on all social factors and etc.) and a subsystem for the decisive information of seismic emergency(which mainly includes project of disaster relief,project of personnel evacuation,dangerous degree warning for the dangerous articlesstoring places and protection measures against them,assistant decision on fire due to earthquake,location of headquarter for providing disaster relief,and etc.). It is thought that the data investigation and collection about all kinds of buildings(including lifeline engineering)are the most important and difficult work as establishing this system.

Understanding Applications and Best Practices of DEMATEL:A Method for Prioritizing Key Factors in Multi-Criteria Decision-Making

Decision Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory(DEMATEL)method is a powerful tool for understanding and visualizing the causal relationships among factors in complex decision-making problems.The method uses diagrams and matrixes to map out the causal relationships and interdependencies among factors,allowing decision-makers to identify key drivers and potential solutions to the problem.DEMATEL has a wide range of application areas,including supply chain management,environmental planning,healthcare,finance,and engineering,among others.The DEMATEL method is a valuable tool for decision-makers who need to understand the complex causal relationships among factors in order to make informed decisions.The method provides a structured approach for analyzing and prioritizing factors and for identifying potential solutions to complex problems.This paper describes the main features of this method,its application areas as well as the main process steps in the DEMATEL method.

System failure analysis based on DEMATEL–ISM and FMECA

A new method of system failure analysis was proposed. First, considering the relationships between the failure subsystems,the decision making trial and evaluation laboratory(DEMATEL) method was used to calculate the degree of correlation between the failure subsystems, analyze the combined effect of related failures, and obtain the degree of correlation by using the directed graph and matrix operations. Then, the interpretative structural modeling(ISM) method was combined to intuitively show the logical relationship of many failure subsystems and their influences on each other by using multilevel hierarchical structure model and obtaining the critical subsystems. Finally, failure mode effects and criticality analysis(FMECA) was used to perform a qualitative hazard analysis of critical subsystems, determine the critical failure mode, and clarify the direction of reliability improvement.Through an example, the result demonstrates that the proposed method can be efficiently applied to system failure analysis problems.

Manufacturing Process Oriented Environmental Friendly Assessment with Fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Process and Fuzzy Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution

Green manufacturing is a mode to realize environmental friendliness by considering the environmental impact and energy consumption in manufacturing process.In order to make an environmental friendly assessment for manufacturing process,a multi-criteria decision making( MCDM) model combined with fuzzy analytic hierarchy process( FAHP) and fuzzy technique for order preference by similarity to ideal solution( FTOPSIS) is proposed in this work.The environmental and resource criteria and manufacturing process objects are identified as the first step.Then,the weights of the criteria are calculated by FAHP.Finally,based on experts' evaluation using fuzzy words,the manufacturing process objects are ranked by FTOPSIS.The proposed methodology is applied to a gear shaft manufacturing.The sensitivity analysis and comparisons are implemented to prove its robustness and effectiveness for the ecofriendly assessment for process objects.

A Conceptually-Based Empirical Analysis on Quality Differences Between UK Annual Reports and US 10-K Reports

The International Accounting Standards Board （IASB） and the Financial Accounting Standards Board （FASB） stress the importance of high-quality ＇financial reports. From a scientific point of view, however, major methodological drawbacks can arise when trying to arrive at a comprehensive assessment and evaluation of the decision usefulness of financial reports. In this conceptually-based exploratory study, the authors construct a 33-item index aimed at operationalizing decision usefulness in terms of the fundamental and enhancing qualitative characteristics laid out in the conceptual framework （CF） of the IASB （2010）. Using a matched-pairs sample design, which includes 70 UK annual reports and 70 US 10-K reports for 2010, the results of test-retest and inter-rater reliability tests show that these multiple items, which were based on items used in previous research, can be measured in a reliable manner. At the same time, the results of an exploratory factor analysis indicate that the IASB qualitative characteristics cannot be measured separately when the 33-item index is applied. At an aggregate level, the results of paired-sample t-tests reveal that UK reports score on average higher than US 10-K reports, which suggests that the overall quality of UK reports is better. The findings of this study add to the existing literature on the empirical evaluation of the effects of international accounting standards, showing that, as compared with 10-K reports, UK annual reports provide more information on topics such as corporate social responsibility （CSR）, corporate governance, and annual bonus schemes. On the other hand, US reports outperform UK reports with respect to the content of fair value information, cash flow statements, off-balance financing, and audit reporting.

Assessing and Mapping Land Suitability Units for Maize (Zea mays L) Production Using Integrated DEMATEL-ANP Model and GIS in the Foumbot Agricultural Basin (Cameroon Western Highlands)

Land suitability assessment (LSA) is an essential step in the process of determining environmental limits for sustainable crop production. Up to date, studies on LSA for crop production in Cameroon have been based on empirical methods which are limited as they consider similar singnificance levels for all evaluation criteria and do not consider the interrelationships of criteria in the best-fit models. In the present study a qualitative land suitability evaluation by an integrated multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) approach and geographic information system (GIS) was tested to assess and map suitable land units for maize (Zea mays L) production in Cameroon Western highland. Eight environmental criteria identified as the most relevant for maize production in the area of interest (AOI) saw their thematic maps prepared using ArcGIS 10.8. The relationship between criteria was considered by the DEMATEL method. The criteria were weighted using the ANP method. Thereafter, the land suitability map was obtained using the weighted overlay analysis (WOA) in ArcGIS. The results obtained indicated that slope has the highest specific weight and consequently the greatest influence on land suitability for maize production in the locality. The land suitability map generated showed that Foumbot’s agricultural land suitability for maize production varies from very high to marginally suitable (99% of the surface area). Specifically, 11% (8056 ha) is very highly suitable, 29% (21,119 ha) is highly suitable, 38% (27,405 ha) are moderately suitable and 20% (14,422 ha) are marginally suitable. The remaining 1% that falls under non suitable class represents 606 ha and is located on the steep slopes around the Mount Mbappit. The kappa analysis reveals a total overall accuracy of 78.67% and a kappa value of 0.7256 with an asymptotic error of 0.058 which is good. Then the model used in this research is highly recommended for future land evaluation works in Cameroon and similar ecosystems around the world.

A Study on the Factors Influencing Value-Added in the Cruise Ship Value Chain Based on the DEMATEL-ISM Model

Cruise value chain is to take the exchange of cruise products and services as the core in a certain spatial scope,and enterprises with core advantages within or between different industries establish associations in accordance with certain technical and economic conditions,so as to realise the multi-dimensional extension and value appreciation of the cruise value chain in the vertical and horizontal links,and ultimately establish a chain-network type of enterprise strategic alliance.This paper tries to analyse the value-added factors of the cruise industry chain by constructing a multi-level hierarchical structural model with reference to the influencing factor analysis methods of relevant literature-DEMATEL(Decision Making Experiment and Evaluation Experiment)and ISM(Interpretative Structural Model).The study shows that the innovation and scale value-added module in the upstream of the cruise industry chain is the core module of value-added of the whole cruise industry chain,and the value-added mainly originates from the design and manufacturing of cruise ships.The middle reaches of the cruise industry chain are mainly cruise operation enterprises,and the specificity of cruise operation determines that its brand value-added is mainly accomplished through the global layout of multinational corporations,and the cruise brand is able to drive the consumption demand and has value-added ability.The downstream value-added of the cruise industry chain is mainly realised through the increase in profits of cruise tourism service products.