Decision support for tonnage allocation in dry bulk liner shipping

Maritime transportation represents the major transportation mode of international trade and the world seaborne trade continues to grow. There exists however an oversupply of ships representing a serious challenge for ship owners as the freight rates are at unprofitable levels. It is therefore important to have an optimal utilization of the fleet. This thesis studies the tonnage allocation problem for a liner shipping company with the purpose to illustrate how optimisation based methods can be used as decision support when planning fleet deployment in liner shipping. In the context of data from a real shipping company is an optimisation model developed. A special emphasis has been on the implementation and preprocessing in order to obtain an efficient model. The model has then been the basis for a performance study and a thorough analysis of the effects when adjusting input parameters and constraints. The company has two types of trades which they can sail; mandatory trades and optional trades. In addition all ships have to attend service once every third year. If the company is not able to sail voyages of mandatory trades themselves, they can hire spot ships. Every voyage of a trade has a time window for when the voyage can start, and there is also a requirement of fairly evenly spread voyages of the same trade. The strictness of the spread of voyages is regulated by a factor. Aspects which have been analysed in this thesis are the timing of trades with regard to spread of voyages and time windows, cost of spot ships, service trades, origin port and earliest available time for each ship and the introduction of optional trades. An alternative, shorter way of sailing a voyage has also been introduced to the model in order to try to obtain a better utilization of the fleet.The results show the value of flexibility, but also the impact it has on the computational time. Limitations should be added to the problem with careful consideration in order to not exclude possible solutions. The results also show how obligations done in one period put constraints on what a shipping company can do in the next period since the fleet is tied up

Integrating Assessment with Teaching and Learning Excellence: A Proactive Model

Is your department a pocket of excellence? Through interactive case studies and discussion, you will learn how to systematically and proactively connect student learning assessment with curriculum and instructional planning. Walk away with a plan of concrete action steps to get in the pocket to maximize student learning

Mathematical Writing Assignment for Deeper Understanding and Process Writing

Brief Description: The broad goals of this writing assignment are two-fold: 1) To delve deeper into the inner workings of a chosen proof and explore fundamental motivation of the chosen result. 2) To enhance student learning in the area of academic writing in the discipline of mathematics. By walking the students through a process of academic writing, we address the following DQP proficiencies: Specialized Knowledge, Applied and Collaborative Learning and Intellectual Skills - Use of Information Resources, Mathematics-Specific Intellectual and Practical Skills and Communicative Fluency. Background and context: This assignment has been used in a Mathematical Structures (introduction-to-proofs) course and has been modified slightly for use in a Modern Algebra I course in Spring 2016. The assignment was given near the beginning of the course in Fall 2015 and collected near the end of the course with parts. Almost all of the students in Mathematical Structures are either Mathematics majors or minors. This includes about half majors and half minors. Almost all of the students in Modern Algebra will be Mathematics majors. The assignment walks the students through a process of writing a research paper in mathematics from the selection of a topic all the way through drafting and editing. Students are given the freedom to choose a topic but papers were required to be formatted as if they were publishable mathematical research papers (which some may become). This writing assignment or a modification of it, was used in each of a sequence of three courses as part of the Math Major at Georgia Southern University. These writing assignments together have a broader goal of developing and advancing the students’ skills in argumentation, analysis and synthesis skills through writing. The assignments were scaffolded to develop the writing skills throughout the process while at the same time, producing a polished final work. Writing skills are important for getting jobs but critical for advancement within any career so the overarching goals of these assignments are to prepare our students for advancement in their future careers. Alignment and scaffolding: The assignment should be integrated into the course and discussed throughout the course. Prior to assigning, the students should have been exposed to several proof techniques and basic proof-writing skills. There should also be an activity either before the assignment or during the assignment in which students are guided through the process of a literature search, preferably using MathSciNet. This assignment was implemented in a sequence of courses within the mathematics major. The selection of topics and expectation of mathematical depth in the writing can be the determining factor in adapting this assignment for various levels. Through deepening the topics and expectations, this assignment can be built upon from one course to the next. For example, a second assignment (either later in the same course or in a subsequent course) could require that students select more advanced topics such as a proof of L’Hospital’s rule in an Analysis course. The students may also be required to satisfy additional expectations, particularly in the areas of audience awareness and clarity of presentation. Reflections: Our response to the assignment has been quite good in general. The students, for the most part, turned in quality work. One of their favorite aspects was the freedom to select a topic. They performed surprisingly well on the peer review, providing numerous excellent comments to their peers. One challenge that the students face is walking the fine line between citing others’ work and plagiarism. A strategy that we generally suggested was to copy theorem statements verbatim (with citation of course) while the rest should be original. There were still paragraphs copied from web sources but at least it seemed to help. Revisions have been made on the timing and an outline component has been removed (since these papers should generally all follow the same outline). An important aspect in the implementation is keeping the students motivated and making it clear why this (and any writing) assignment is important. We noticed that student performance and attitude was directly correlated to the motivation of the assignment and the emphasis on the importance of writing

HIV transmission risk through anal intercourse: systematic review, meta-analysis and implications for HIV prevention

Background The human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infectiousness of anal intercourse (AI) has not been systematically reviewed, despite its role driving HIV epidemics among men who have sex with men (MSM) and its potential contribution to heterosexual spread. We assessed the per-act and per-partner HIV transmission risk from AI exposure for heterosexuals and MSM and its implications for HIV prevention

Effects of Assessment Results on a Writing and Thinking Rubric

The development of the Cognitive Level and Quality of Writing Assessment online system is described in this chapter. Beginning with needs identified in a learning community program, the system evolved from a classroom analytic writing and thinking assessment rubric to an online system for classroom assessment and instructional purposes. Reflecting the assessment cycle, the system is equally appropriate for program or institutional assessment of student learning. Over a period of twelve years, assessment, survey, and research data guided changes and additions to the rubric and system. Preliminary data suggest using the system for peer review improves students’ writing and thinking.</jats:p

Decision support for tonnage allocation in dry bulk liner shipping

Maritime transportation represents the major transportation mode of international trade and the world seaborne trade continues to grow. There exists however an oversupply of ships representing a serious challenge for ship owners as the freight rates are at unprofitable levels. It is therefore important to have an optimal utilization of the fleet. This thesis studies the tonnage allocation problem for a liner shipping company with the purpose to illustrate how optimisation based methods can be used as decision support when planning fleet deployment in liner shipping. In the context of data from a real shipping company is an optimisation model developed. A special emphasis has been on the implementation and preprocessing in order to obtain an efficient model. The model has then been the basis for a performance study and a thorough analysis of the effects when adjusting input parameters and constraints. The company has two types of trades which they can sail; mandatory trades and optional trades. In addition all ships have to attend service once every third year. If the company is not able to sail voyages of mandatory trades themselves, they can hire spot ships. Every voyage of a trade has a time window for when the voyage can start, and there is also a requirement of fairly evenly spread voyages of the same trade. The strictness of the spread of voyages is regulated by a factor. Aspects which have been analysed in this thesis are the timing of trades with regard to spread of voyages and time windows, cost of spot ships, service trades, origin port and earliest available time for each ship and the introduction of optional trades. An alternative, shorter way of sailing a voyage has also been introduced to the model in order to try to obtain a better utilization of the fleet.The results show the value of flexibility, but also the impact it has on the computational time. Limitations should be added to the problem with careful consideration in order to not exclude possible solutions. The results also show how obligations done in one period put constraints on what a shipping company can do in the next period since the fleet is tied up

Bortvist : En studie av politiets arbeidsmetoder i innsatsen mot de åpne rusmiljøene i Oslo.

I denne oppgaven har jeg studert Oslo-politiet og deres innsats mot de åpne rusmiljøene i Oslo sentrum, et tema som både er kriminologisk relevant og aktuelt i tiden. Jeg har gjennom intervju, observasjon og dokumentanalyse funnet at det er noen trekk som peker seg ut som spesielt viktige ved politiinnsatsen, både når det gjelder bakgrunn, målsetninger og metode for arbeidet. Den åpenlyse omsetningen og bruken av narkotika i bybildet blir av politiet sett som et stort ordensproblem som ikke kan tolereres, samtidig som informantene presiserer at rusmisbruk er et helseproblem som det ikke er politiets oppgave å endre. En av flere målsetninger er å spre rusmiljøet slik at man ikke lenger har ansamlinger i sentrumsområdene som i dag er tungt belastet av narkotikaomsetning. For å nå disse målene kombinerer politiet flere tiltak. For det første er de synlig tilstede i bybildet, uniformert og iført gul vest for å tydeliggjøre sitt nærvær, både overfor publikum og rusmiljø. Den synlige tilstedeværelsen tenkes å være både trygghetsskapende og forebyggende for kriminalitet. For det andre er bortvisninger, som vil si et muntlig pålegg om oppholdsforbud i definerte sektorer i sentrum, et sentralt og viktig verktøy i politiinnsatsen. I tillegg til bortvisninger har politiet forhøyet foreleggssatsene i de belastede områdene, et tiltak som er både kritisert og diskutert fordi satsene ikke ble gjort offentlig kjent. Vi kan dermed se en kombinasjon av flere tiltak i politiinnsatsen som både representerer proaktive og reaktive politistrategier, og nettopp politistrategier er et sentralt tema for oppgaven når jeg søker å se dagens politiinnsats i lys av både kunnskapsbasert politiarbeid, beroligende politiarbeid og boken windows- teorien. Det viser seg at innsatsen har momenter som faller inn under alle de nevnte strategiene. Dessuten blir det klart at bortvisning er et verktøy som på mange måter er sammensatt, og som kan representere både proaktive og reaktive strategier. For øvrig er det et tiltak som har problematiske sider knyttet blant annet til rusmisbrukernes rettssikkerhet, og vi kan reise en diskusjon rundt hvorvidt politikontrollen har ekskluderende tendenser som stenger rusmisbrukere ute fra det offentlige rom. Til tross for problematiske aspekter representerer bortvisningene en sanksjonsform som kan ses å ha mindre skadelige konsekvenser enn andre alternativer, som for eksempel forenklet forelegg. Dette gjør at jeg undrer om vi kan se antydninger til skadereduserende tendenser ved dagens politiinnsats. Politiinnsatsen i Oslo er inspirert av erfaringer fra fem europeiske storbyer som etter langvarig arbeid har hatt suksess med å fjerne eller redusere åpne rusmiljø i bybildet. Derfor er det interessant å se flere likhetstrekk og fellesnevnere mellom innsatsen i Oslo og lignende arbeid i Amsterdam. I likhet med Amsterdam er det også i Oslo et nært samarbeid mellom statlige, kommunale og frivillige instanser. Politiinnsatsen er nemlig en del av et stort samarbeidsprosjekt, kjent som Sentrumsarbeidet, der man gjennom samarbeid søker å forhindre åpne rusmiljø i sentrumsområdene og forbedre levekårene for rusmisbrukerne

Transitioning Educational Program Assessment from a Requirement to a Valued Process

This presentation was given at the SACSCOC Annual Meeting