DePaul University

About: DePaul University is a education organization based out in Chicago, Illinois, United States. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Poison control. The organization has 5658 authors who have published 11562 publications receiving 295257 citations.

Manufacturing flexibility at the plant level

Abstract: Managers have two basic alternatives for addressing the challenge posed by variable demand: (1) build manufacturing plants with excess capacity and /or stock excess goods in inventory to help smooth over fluctuations in demand, or (2) increase the flexibility of their manufacturing plants so that production can be varied more easily to match changes in demand. This paper focuses on the second alternative and examines two types of flexibility using two examples based on the automobile industry. First, process flexibility is defined as the ability of a single manufacturing plant to make more than a single product (in this case products are different car models), and its is shown that a limited degree of process flexibility is very valuable for dealing with variations in demand. Second, machine flexibility is defined in terms of a changeover cost, measured in terms of the capacity or production which is lost when a plant must produce more than a single car model. Machine flexibility is shown to have a moderating effect on process flexibility, but one which does not necessarily cancel out the benefits of process flexibility.

Generic model abstraction from examples

Abstract: The recognition community has typically avoided bridging the representational gap between traditional, low-level image features and generic models. Instead, the gap has been artificially eliminated by either bringing the image closer to the models using simple scenes containing idealized, textureless objects or by bringing the models closer to the images using 3D CAD model templates or 2D appearance model templates. In this paper, we attempt to bridge the representational gap for the domain of model acquisition. Specifically, we address the problem of automatically acquiring a generic 2D view-based class model from a set of images, each containing an exemplar object belonging to that class. We introduce a novel graph-theoretical formulation of the problem in which we search for the lowest common abstraction among a set of lattices, each representing the space of all possible region groupings in a region adjacency graph representation of an input image. The problem is intractable and we present a shortest path-based approximation algorithm to yield an efficient solution. We demonstrate the approach on real imagery.

Analysis of Topology Aggregation techniques for QoS routing

Abstract: We study and compare topology aggregation techniques used in QoS routing. Topology Aggregation (TA) is defined as a set of techniques that abstract or summarize the state information about the network topology to be exchanged, processed, and maintained by network nodes for routing purposes. Due to scalability, aggregation techniques have been an integral part of some routing protocols. However, TA has not been studied extensively except in a rather limited context. With the continuing growth of the Internet, scalability issues of QoS routing have been gaining importance. Therefore, we survey the current TA techniques, provide methodology to classify, evaluate, and compare their complexities and efficiencies.

Empathy, Narrative, and Victim Impact Statements

Abstract: Part I of this Article considers the topic of emotion in the law. In large part, it is an appreciation of the current scholar ship, which has laid to rest the notions that law can be an emotionless endeavor and that reason can operate in a sphere untouched by emotion. However, it also identifies the need for a more nuanced exploration of these issues. Specifically, Part I notes that the current scholarship tends to treat emotions as monolithic, unambiguous entities; it has yet to contend with - much less incorporate in any meaningful way - the complex, unruly field of emotion theory. Part I concludes that the recent scholarly focus on benign emotions such as empathy, compassion, and caring has been crucial in challenging the marginalization of these emotional modes in the legal context. Nevertheless, we must avoid placing undue faith in the power of these benign emotions and ask the difficult questions of what role these emotions ought to play and in which legal contexts they ought to play that role. Part II follows a similar pattern. It is largely an appreciation of the scholarship on narrative, which has illuminated the pervasive narrative structure of legal discourse. Much of the narrative scholarship has focused on outsider narratives, which might be defined as stories by members of groups usually subordinated in, or excluded from, mainstream legal discourse. These stories both challenge preconscious assumptions about such subordinated or excluded groups and expose the partiality of the dominant narrative - that which masquerades as the universal perspective. Part II argues that the notion of outsider narrative is significant, first, because it provides a crucial normative grounding for narrative scholarship, and second, because in doing so it reveals the limiting principle that explains why more narrative is not always better. I conclude that neither narratives nor benign emotions such as caring, empathy, or compassion are always helpful or appropriate in the legal arena. Whether a particular narrative ought to be heard, or a particular emotion expressed, depends on the context and the values we seek to advance. Part III applies the normative analysis and the limiting principle developed in Parts I and II in the concrete context of victim impact statements. In Part III, I argue that victim impact statements are narratives that should be suppressed because they evoke emotions inappropriate in the context of criminal sentencing. Specifically, victim impact statements appeal to hatred, the desire for undifferentiated vengeance, and even bigotry. In doing so, they may block the sentencer's ability to perceive the essential humanity of the defendant. More subtly, victim impact statements, in their insistence on evaluating the worth of victims, offend the dignity of the victim as well.