Analysis and testing of a hidden stepladder hazard - excessive twist flexibility

Accidental falls from stepladders are responsible for tens of thousands of injuries in the US each year. This paper augues recent research concerning excessive stepladder twist flexibility, which can lead to ladder falls. Such falls can easily occur when only three of a ladder's four legs are in contact with the ground and an unknowing climber shifts his weight, causing the ladder's raised leg to move suddenly downward and the climber to lose his balance. The static and dynamic test and analysis results presented show a major cause of this hazard, its effect on climbers and the influence of ladder design on the likelihood of its occurrence. The inadequacy of existing stepladder safety standards to protect against such accidents is noted and a call for a new testing standard is outlined. It would be prudent to develop and implement a new racking test and stiffer ladder twist requirements to reduce the likelihood of inadvertent ladder racking.     

度量35个大中城市的房地产泡沫——基于需求基本面的分析

市场进入持续快速发展时期,对拉动经济增长起到重要作用。1998—2009年,房地产市场价格出现了几次快速上涨的时期。比较明显的是,2007年第四季度和2008年第二季度全国商品房价格分别上涨了10．2％、9．2％。     

Questionnaire based mortality assessment: an exploratory analysis of NHANES III

The need for speed and efficiency in life insurance underwriting has never been greater. With increasing acquisition costs, the need for timeliness to complete the sales process, and the need for accurate mortality prediction a great deal of resources have been devoted to the development of non-traditional underwriting processes and criteria in hopes of streamlining the process. In this paper, we describe an exploratory analysis of mortality linked data from the US NHANES III study. Our goal for this analysis was to identify mortality predictors that would be good candidates for further investigation in insurance applicants, especially in the context of simplified issue products which focus on younger age applicants. We identified aerobic exercise, dental health, alcohol beverage type and quantity, and dietary components and patterns as factors that may hold promise as mortality predictors in persons age 17-65. Though the limitations of this analysis preclude the immediate use of these factors as underwriting criteria, it does appear that several of these hold promise, and should be tested in an insurance application context. Focus groups, market testing, or even insertion as non-actionable questions in a subset of applications may be ways to collect further data on them.     

CEO incentives-its not how much you pay, but how

The arrival of spring means yet another round in the national debate over executive compensation. But the critics have it wrong. The relentless attention on how much CEOs are paid diverts public attention from the real problem-how CEOs are paid. The authors present an in-depth statistical analysis of executive compensation. The study incorporates data on thousands of CEOs spanning five decades. Their surprising conclusions are at odds with the prevailing wisdom on CEO pay: Despite the headlines, top executives are not receiving record salaries and bonuses. Cash compensation has increased over the past 15 years, but CEO pay levels are just now catching up to where they were 50 years ago. Annual changes in executive compensation do not reflect changes in corporate performance. For the median CEO in the 250 largest public companies, a $1,000 change in shareholder value corresponds to a change of just 6.7 cents in salary and bonus over a two-year period. With respect to pay for performance, CEO compensation is getting worse rather than better. CEO stock ownership-the best link between shareholder wealth and executive well-being-was ten times greater in the 1930s than in the 1980s. Compensation policy is one of the most important factors in an organization's success. Not only does it shape how top executives behave but it also helps determine what kind of executives an organization attracts. That's why it's so urgent that boards of directors reform their compensation practices and adopt systems that reward outstanding performance and penalize poor performance.     

Effective evaluation of team performance

Teams are not the only option an organization has. There are four types of solutions that an organization could use in response to a challenge. The organization could buy a solution, could hire an external consultant to develop a solution, could use an internal consultant to develop a solution, or an organization can bring the power of a team to develop a solution. Each of these solutions has strengths and weaknesses, and the right one must be selected. It isn't always teams!     

从M1、M2的内、外生性分析我国货币政策中介目标的选择——解读央行货币政策中介目标调整的含义

本文运用1994—2008年的季度数据,在VECM模型框架下,实证分析货币供给M1、M2与GDP、CPI、利率等宏观经济变量之间的长期均衡关系和短期动态调整系数,目的在于检验我国货币政策的有效性,以及M1和M2,哪个指标更适合作为货币政策的中介目标。结果显示,在样本期间,央行的货币政策是积极有效的。同时,从可控性和相关性看,M1应当成为货币政策的中介目标。此外．本文对央行2007年以来货币政策中介目标调整的含义进行了解析。