Aircrew coordination and decisionmaking: Peer ratings of video tapes made during a full mission simulation

Six professionally active, retired captains rated the coordination and decisionmaking performances of sixteen aircrews while viewing videotapes of a simulated commercial air transport operation. The scenario featured a required diversion and a probable minimum fuel situation. Seven point Likert-type scales were used in rating variables on the basis of a model of crew coordination and decisionmaking. The variables were based on concepts of, for example, decision difficulty, efficiency, and outcome quality; and leader-subordin ate concepts such as person and task-oriented leader behavior, and competency motivation of subordinate crewmembers. Five-front-end variables of the model were in turn dependent variables for a hierarchical regression procedure. The variance in safety performance was explained 46%, by decision efficiency, command reversal, and decision quality. The variance of decision quality, an alternative substantive dependent variable to safety performance, was explained 60% by decision efficiency and the captain's quality of within-crew communications. The variance of decision efficiency, crew coordination, and command reversal were in turn explained 78%, 80%, and 60% by small numbers of preceding independent variables. A principle component, varimax factor analysis supported the model structure suggested by regression analyses

GLOBALIZATION AND INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS SYSTEM IN NIGERIA

Abstract: Globalization has a major impact on the management of human resources in developing countries including Nigeria. With accelerating globalization organizations have had to change and new trends have set in even in the industrial relations system and the management of. .human .resources . . The fundamental .. issue . addressed. .in . this . .paper . .is .. the extent to which Nigeria has restructured her industrial and trade systems for effective industrialisation within the on-going trade globalisation process. Globalization can therefore be said to have had a phenomenal impact on a developing economy like Kenya that is both positive and negative as explored in the paper

Impact of Organizational Change to Achieve Competitive Edge

The purpose of this paper is to analyze that organization which changes its ways of doing things an or before time is either better able to achieve competitive edge. A model is design based on the literature, linking factors of organizational change to achieve competitive edge. The literature and various studies concluded that factors: employee empowerment, leadership style and culture at workplace play an essential role in achieving edge in hyper competitive environment when any changes occur in the organization. More the employee empowered, leader's communication and flexible organizational culture supports positively towards organizational change. The study focuses on the practice and observance of the three central factors, employee empowerment, leadership style and organizationtJ/ culture for enhancing positive organizational change that gives the organizations competitive ed9e relative to others. The organizations should design their rules, policies and organizational structures that give space to work well and appreciate them on their tasks fulfillment and achievements. This will surely lead to organizational growth

Trade Union and Conflict Resolution in the Public Sector

This paper discusses the review of literature related to the subject of the role of trade union in conflict resolution. It is embarked upon in order to know the position of experts and the direction of research. The literature review covers areas that include industrial relations, the trade union, conflict and conflict resolution, causes of industrial conflict in the public sector, conflict resolution mechanisms. The paper argues that Industrial conflicts expressed in lil'hatever form pose cost to all industrial relations actors. It recommends that government should engage the union early enough on all issues that may likely affect the workers. The Unions should also engage their members early enough to obtain their mandate, buy-in and understanding. Both parties should work together to resolve issues fairly, effectively and expeditiously. The paper concludes that the quality of labour-management relations in any organisation determine whether the enterprise will harness the positive co~tributions of labour unions on product{vity and by extension, the achievement of the enterprise strategic blfsiness plans or whether the enterprise will n.ot benefit from the labour unions

Enhancing the Mechanical Properties of Lateritic Brick for Better performance

The research considered the production of improved stabilized lateritic Bricks (ISLB) with enhanced mechanical properties. The research data were derived from laboratory experiments which include capillary test, erosion test, abrasion test, density test and compressive strength test. Three batches of 290mm x 140mm x 100mm brick samples were produced which are: the Adobe Unstabilized Lateritic Bricks (AULB), Improved Stabilized Lateritic Brick (ISLB) and the Control Stabilized Lateritic Bricks (CSLB). Brick stabilization was maintained at 5% by weight of cement. Compaction of the bricks were carried out manually; the moulded bricks were carefully extruded in good shape and placed on clean, hard flat surface to allowed to dry under normal atmospheric temperature and pressure . The ISLB was divided into four groups of 12 bricks samples immersed in solution of zycosil and water in the following proportion by volume: (1:100),(1:200),(1:300) and (1:400) for 30 minutes and dried under normal atmospheric temperature and pressure before curing commenced. The result of the capillary test on bricks samples after 24 hours showed that AULB and CSLB has (0.35 and 0.15)kg weight difference equivalent of (0.00599 and 0.00256) kg/m2/min suction rate while the ISLB have 0.05kg weight difference equivalent to 0.000855kg/m2/min suction rate. The result of erosion test for brick durability ranked between very firm for ISLB of 1:100, 1:200 and 1:300 Zycosil Water Solution (ZWS), firm for ISLB of 1:400 ZWS; firm for CSLB and loose for AULB. The abrasion test result showed that the ISLB have abrasion value of (1,2,2 and 2)% while the CSLB and AULB have (3 and 12)% abrasion value. The density of ISLB are (1933.50, 1921.18, 1916.26 and 1908.87) kgm-3 at 28 days while the density of CSLB and AULB were (1926.11 and 1800.49) kgm-3. Density results conform to minimum specification requirement for lateritic bricks of bulk density of 1810kgm-3 as recommended by the Nigeria Building and Road Research Institute (NBRRI). Compressive strength test for the ISLB are (3.16, 3.10, 3.07 and 3.08) Nmm-2 at 28 days while the compressive strength test for CSLB and AULB stood at (3.15 and 2.41) Nm-2 which conforms to NBRRI recommended value of compressive strength ranges of (3 to 3.5) Nmm-2 at 5% stabilization level. It was concluded that the mechanical properties of improved stabilized lateritic brick are better than CSLB and AULB in terms of capillary rise, erosion, abrasion, density and compressive strength

Investigating the functionality of an OCT4-short response element in human induced pluripotent stem cells.

Pluripotent stem cells offer great therapeutic promise for personalized treatment platforms for numerous injuries, disorders, and diseases. Octamer-binding transcription factor 4 (OCT4) is a key regulatory gene maintaining pluripotency and self-renewal of mammalian cells. With site-specific integration for gene correction in cellular therapeutics, use of the OCT4 promoter may have advantages when expressing a suicide gene if pluripotency remains. However, the human OCT4 promoter region is 4 kb in size, limiting the capacity of therapeutic genes and other regulatory components for viral vectors, and decreasing the efficiency of homologous recombination. The purpose of this investigation was to characterize the functionality of a novel 967bp OCT4-short response element during pluripotency and to examine the OCT4 titer-dependent response during differentiation to human derivatives not expressing OCT4. Our findings demonstrate that the OCT4-short response element is active in pluripotency and this activity is in high correlation with transgene expression in vitro, and the OCT4-short response element is inactivated when pluripotent cells differentiate. These studies demonstrate that this shortened OCT4 regulatory element is functional and may be useful as part of an optimized safety component in a site-specific gene transferring system that could be used as an efficient and clinically applicable safety platform for gene transfer in cellular therapeutics