Showing papers by "University of Wisconsin–Eau Claire published in 2000"

Customer Satisfaction and the Services Marketing Mix

Abstract: As the U.S. economy continues to shift from a manufacturing to a service orientation, it is important for marketers to understand the importance of reactively adapting to customers through the marketing concept. This manuscript deals with one aspect of that adaptive process: customer service satisfaction. The purpose of this paper is to develop a model (see Figure 1) that suggests the possible effect of each individual element of the services marketing mix on the customer's perception of the service. The customer experiences the service through the marketing mix; the critical elements in the services marketing mix that influence customer expectations being place, physical evidence, participants, and process. The customer's experience of the service, the feelings and perceptions, have a pervasive influence on attracting new customers and retaining existing customers. The proposed model is formulated on the basis of propositions that relate marketing mix variables to the customer's perception of se...

Lossy image codec based on adaptively scanned wavelet difference reduction

Abstract: This paper describes a new method of lossy still image compression, called Adaptively Scanned Wavelet Difference Reduction (ASWDR). The ASWDR method produces an embedded bit stream with region of interest capability. It is a simple generalization of the compression method developed by Tian and Wells, which they have dubbed Wavelet Difference Reduction (WDR). While the WDR method employs a fixed ordering of the positions of wavelet coefficients, the ASWDR method employs a varying order which aims to adapt itself to specific image features. This image adaptive approach enables ASWDR to outperform WDR in a rate-distortion sense, and to essentially match the rate-distortion performance of the widely used codec, SPIHT, of Said and Pearlman. ASWDR compressed images exhibit better perceptual qualities, especially at low bit rates, than WDR and SPIHT compressed images. ASWDR retains all of the important features of WDR: low complexity, region of interest capability, embeddedness, and progressive SNR.

Electric-Octupole and Pure-Electric-Quadrupole Effects in Soft-X-Ray Photoemission

Abstract: Second-order [ O(k(2)), k = omega/c] nondipole effects in soft-x-ray photoemission are demonstrated via an experimental and a theoretical study of angular distributions of neon valence photoelectrons in the 100-1200 eV photon-energy range. A newly derived theoretical expression for nondipolar angular distributions characterizes the second-order effects using four new parameters with primary contributions from pure-quadrupole and octupole-dipole interference terms. Independent-particle calculations of these parameters account for a significant portion of the existing discrepancy between experiment and theory for Ne 2p first-order nondipole parameters.

Copper(II) complexes of pyridyl-appended diazacycloalkanes: synthesis, characterization, and application to catalytic olefin aziridination.

Abstract: As part of an ongoing effort to rationally design new copper catalysts for olefin aziridination, a family of copper(II) complexes derived from new tetradentate macrocyclic ligands are synthesized, characterized both in the solid state and in solution, and screened for catalytic nitrene transfer reactivity with a representative set of olefins. The pyridylmethyl-appended diazacycloalkane ligands L6(py)2, L7(py)2, and L8(py)2 are prepared by alkylation of the appropriate diazacycloalkane (piperazine, homopiperazine, or diazacyclooctane) with picolyl chloride in the presence of triethylamine. The ligands are metalated with Cu(ClO4)(2).6H2O to provide the complexes [(L6(py)2)Cu(OClO3)]ClO4 (1), [(L7(py)2)Cu(OClO3)]ClO4 (2), and [(L8(py)2)Cu](ClO4)2 (3), which, after metathesis with NH4PF6 in CH3CN, afford [(L6(py)2)Cu(CH3CN)](PF6)2 (4), [(L7(py)2)Cu(CH3CN)](PF6)2 (5), and [(L8(py)2)Cu](PF6)2 (6). All six complexes are characterized by X-ray crystallography, which reveals that complexes supported by L6(py)2 and L7(py)2 (1, 2, 4, 5) adopt square-pyramidal geometries, while complexes 3 and 6, ligated by L8(py)2 feature tetracoordinate, distorted-square-planar copper ions. Tetragonal geometries in solution and d(x2 - y2), ground states are confirmed for the complexes by a combination of UV-visible and EPR spectroscopies. The divergent flexibility of the three supporting ligands influences the Cu(II)/Cu(I) redox potentials within the family, such that the complexes supported by the larger ligands L7(py)2 and L8(py)2 (5 and 6) exhibit quasi-reversible electron transfer processes (E1/2 approximately -0.2 V vs Ag/AgCl), while the complex supported by L6(py)2 (4), which imposes a rigid tetragonal geometry upon the central copper(II) ion, is irreversibly reduced in CH3CN solution. Complexes 4-6 are efficient catalysts (in 5 mol % amounts) for the aziridination of styrene with the iodinane PhINTs (in 80-90% yields vs PhINTs), while only 4 exhibits significant catalytic nitrene transfer reactivity with 1-hexene and cyclooctene.

Assessing the determinants of safety in the trucking industry

Abstract: Using data from the 1997 survey of drivers conducted by the University of Michigan Trucking Industry Program, factors were identified which substantially affect three safety measures: accidents, moving violations, and hours of service violations. The variables used include both operational characteristics (firm size, trailer type) and personal characteristics (age, race, union status). Using both basic descriptive statistics and probit estimation, it was found that the variables that have the most impact on the three safety measures are operational in nature, not individual characteristics.

Enhancing parent-child interaction with a prenatal couple intervention.

Abstract: Purpose To determine the effect of a prenatal couple group intervention on parent-child interaction postbirth. Design Quasiexperimental study. Method A nonrandomized convenience sample of treatment group (TG) couples (n = 35) who attended an additional prenatal three-class series was compared to a control group (CG) from childbirth education classes on measures of videotaped parent-child interaction using the NCATS tool. The intervention class series was based on individual and couple changes in meaning/identity, roles, and relationship/interaction during the transition to parenthood. It addressed mother/father roles, infant communication abilities, and patterns of the first 3 months of life in a mutually enjoyable, possibility-focused way. Results T-tests and ANCOVA on NCATS scores between groups showed higher TG scores for mothers in sensitivity to cues, for fathers in social-emotional growth fostering, and for couple mean scores in social-emotional growth fostering, couple mean response to child distress, caregiver total, and caregiver-child total. Higher contingency scores were also found in the TG group. Fewer TG mothers and fathers fell below NCATS lower cutoff scores. Clinical implications Interventions that enhance mutual parent-child interaction through increased sensitivity to cues and responsiveness to infant needs or signals are important avenues for facilitating secure attachment, father and mother involvement, optimal development, and prevention of child abuse and neglect. The positive approach to this intervention invites couples to see themselves as developing with their infants over time, and to view their infants in new ways that will help develop satisfying, self-reinforcing patterns of interaction.

Student characteristics and computer-mediated communication

Abstract: Use of computer-mediated communication systems (CMCS) to support coursework is increasing, both as a means for students to prepare for using CMCS in their careers and as a mechanism for delivering distance education. But it is not clear whether the same student characteristics lead to academic success using CMCS as with traditional face-to-face (FTF) communication. This paper reports the results of a correlational study of the relationship between individual characteristics and use of CMCS in a team project situation. On most measures the results suggest CMCS will be adopted and used successfully by the same types of students who do well in courses conducted via FTF communication, e.g., students with high-achievement or high-aptitude characteristics. However, personality type was linked to substantial deviations in CMCS usage, suggesting that personality may influence academic success in unanticipated ways.

A comparison of the correlation structure in GPR images of deltaic and barrier‐spit depositional environments

Abstract: We have used geostatistical analysis of radar reflections to quantify the correlation structures found in 2-D ground‐penetrating radar (GPR) images. We find that the experimental semivariogram, the product of the geostatistical analysis of the GPR data, is well‐defined and can be modeled using standard geostatistical models to obtain an estimate of the range or correlation length, and the maximum correlation direction, in the 2-D GPR image. When we compare the results from geostatistical analysis of GPR data from selected deltaic and barrier‐spit depositional environments we find different correlation structures in GPR images from different depositional environments. GPR images from braid deltas have near‐horizontal correlation directions and correlation lengths on the order of a few meters. In contrast, the GPR image of a fan‐foreset delta has a very long (>24 m) correlation length and a maximum correlation direction plunging 20°. In the GPR images from barrier spits, we find maximum correlation directio...

Interpersonal discrimination against Hmong Americans : Parallels and variation in microlevel racial inequality

Abstract: Different racial and ethnic minorities are commonly compared across various measures of macrolevel inequality but have thus far not been compared with respect to microlevel inequality. Using data f...

Consumer perceptions of generic products: a Mexican study

Abstract: Previous research studies on generic products focus mainly on mature markets such as the USA. These studies measure consumer perceptions of all generic products as a whole, with respect to price and quality. With the passing of the NAFTA, retailers’ interest in the relatively young Mexican market has increased. The purpose of this study is to determine Mexican consumers’ overall perceptions of generic grocery products, to examine if there are any differences in perception across demographic groups and to determine if there are differences in the perception of generic products across product categories. Two variables were examined: risk perception of generic products and satisfaction with generic products.

Structural Effects on Intermolecular Electron Transfer Reactivity

Abstract: Rate constants (kij) measured by stopped flow are reported for 50 additional intermolecular electron transfer reactions between 0 and 1+ oxidation states of various compounds, enlarging our data set to 141 reactions between 45 couples in acetonitrile containing 0.1 M tetrabutylammonium perchlorate at 25 °C. Hydrazines with both saturated and unsaturated substituents, ferrocene derivatives, and heteroatom-substituted aromatic compounds are included in the couples studied. Least-squares fit of all the reactions to simple Marcus cross-reaction theory provides an internally consistent set of best fit intrinsic barriers ΔG‡ii(fit) (for self-electron transfer of each couple) covering a range of over 19 kcal/mol (rate constant range 2 × 1014) that predicts the kij rather accurately. All reactions have ratios of calculated to observed kij in the range 0.3−3.3 and 95% fall in the range 0.5−2.0. These results require that the preexponential factor for a cross reaction is close to the geometric mean of those for the...

Discriminative power of inflammatory markers for prediction of tumor necrosis factor-alpha and interleukin-6 in ICU patients with systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS) or sepsis at arbitrary time points.

Abstract: Objectives To determine the correlations and predictive strength of surrogate markers (body temperature, leukocyte count, C-reactive protein (CRP) and procalcitonin (PCT)) with elevated levels of tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) in septic patients on randomly chosen days.

Compensating Plaintiffs and Punishing Defendants: Is Bifurcation Necessary?

Abstract: Critics of the civil jury have proposed several procedural reforms to address the concern that damage awards are capricious and unpredictable. One such reform is the bifurcation or separation of various phases of a trial that involves multiple claims for damages. The purpose of this study was to assess the effects of bifurcating the compensatory and punitive damages phases of a civil tort trial. We manipulated the wealth of the defendant and the reprehensibility of the defendant's conduct (both sets of evidence theoretically related to punitive but not to compensatory damages) across three cases in a jury analog study. We wondered whether jurors would misuse the punitive damages evidence in fixing compensatory damages and whether bifurcation would effectively undo this practice. Our findings indicated that mock jurors did not improperly consider punitive damages evidence in their decisions about compensation. Moreover, bifurcation had the unexpected effect of augmenting punitive damage awards. These findings raise questions about the merits of bifurcation in cases that involve multiple claims for damages.

Student-Led Conferences in Inclusive Settings

Abstract: Student-led conferences offer many advantages for students with and without disabilities and their families. When student-led conferences are coupled with the use of portfolios, students assume more responsibility for their learning and see connections among and between their learning in and outside of school. This article describes the steps and results from one school district that has adopted the student-led conference approach for all students.

Data Graphs in Introductory and Upper Level Psychology Textbooks: A Content Analysis

Abstract: In this article, we report a content analysis of data graphs in introductory and upper level psychology textbooks. Three raters classified data graphs as either line, bar, scatter, 100%, or picture graphs. The results indicated that (a) only 5 types of data graphs appear in psychology textbooks, (b) the number of data graphs per page varies considerably in both types of textbook, and (c) comparisons of observed and expected frequencies revealed that proportions of 100% graphs were greater in introductory textbooks and proportions of scatter graphs were greater in upper level textbooks. We discuss implications of these findings for teachers of psychology and authors of undergraduate psychology textbooks.

Accurate optical positions for 2978 objects from the Second Byurakan Survey (SBS) with the Digitized Sky Survey

Abstract: Optical positions of 2978 objects listed in the Second Byurakan Survey (SBS) were obtained using the Digitized Sky Survey (DSS), and are given with an rms uncertainty arcsec in each coordinate.

Angular distributions of s-subshell electrons in open-shell atoms: 3s photoionization of atomic chlorine

Abstract: A determination of the angular distribution parameter {beta} of the atomic chlorine 3s photoelectrons over the photon-energy range from 29 to 70 eV has been carried out using electron spectrometry in conjunction with synchrotron radiation. Our results confirm the basic theoretical predictions that {beta} , for s -subshell photoionization in open-shell atoms, is in general term and photon-energy dependent, in contrast to closed-shell atoms where {beta} is always 2 nonrelativistically. However, our measurements of {beta} for the Cl{sup +} 3s({sup 1,3}P) channels demonstrate that significant details are not handled well by simple Hartree-Fock theory. (c) 2000 The American Physical Society.

Image denoising using tree-based wavelet subband correlations and shrinkage

Abstract: We describe new methods of denoising images that combine wavelet shrinkage with properties related to the statistics of quad-trees of wavelet transform values for natural images. They are called tree- adapted wavelet shrinkage (TAWS) methods. The shift-averaged ver- sion of TAWS produces denoisings that are comparable to state of the art denoising methods, such as cycle-spin thresholding and the cycle- spin version of the hidden Markov tree method. The nonshift averaged version of TAWS is superior to the classic wavelet shrinkage method, and fits naturally into a signal compression algorithm. These TAWS methods bear some relation to the recently proposed hidden Markov tree methods, but are deterministic rather than probabilistic. They may prove useful in settings where speed is critical and/or signal compression is required. © 2000 Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers. (S0091-3286(00)00111-2)

Web-based knowledge management

Abstract: The importance of knowledge management has been recognized both in academia and in practice. Meanwhile, the web technology is being used as a new and common medium to support the collective nature of knowledge management. In this chapter, 4 types of web-based knowledge management models are identified and discussed. It is believed that more models exist and could be identified. Nonetheless, these 4 models are believed to be able to reflect the current level of web-based knowledge management, which can be basically described as content-based information retrieval and topic-oriented information association and organization. This chapter concludes that the current web-based knowledge management is at a lower level, and, the potential of the web technology based knowledge management has just started to be realized. The study of the models identified in this paper would provide insights on leveled knowledge management, what should be contained in a higher level of knowledge management system, and how knowledge management support systems can be technically implemented.

Messages of Shame and Guilt

Abstract: U.S. society seems to be experiencing a dramatic wave of interest and public debate about shame and guilt. On one side, scholars decry the destruction of pride and self-esteem that shame and guilt can wreak on individuals, relationships, organizations, and nations; on the other side, scholars argue that aretum to shame and guilt represents an attitude of awe or respect toward the values that are central to culture and to all human interaction. This review draws on the scholarly and popular literature on messages about shame and guilt to address this debate. Specifically, the authors review the grounds or bases for inducing shame and guilt in messages and then the consequences that messages of shame or guilt have for esteem, control, and connection at four levels of analysis: intimate dyads, families, organizations, and public messages. Finally, the authors pose a series of questions that can be used to frame the discussion of an ethics of shame and guilt messages.

Three-dimensional investigation of geomorphic environments using ground penetrating radar

Abstract: Ground penetrating radar datasets were collected from a variety of sites to provide three-dimensional (3D) images of coastal and eolian geomorphic environments. The images will aid in better understanding tectonically active coastlines and the internal geometry of eolian sandstones. An ancient eolian dune complex, consisting of two bedset packages with distinct truncation surfaces, was imaged at Zion National Park, Utah. The 200 MHz 3D dataset shows the internal stratigraphy with southwest dipping reflections ranging from 13 to 20 degrees. A second dataset was collected along the coastline in the southwest portion of Washington State. This 225 MHz dataset reveals the 3D structure of an erosional scarp caused by earthquake activity in the area. Results from the surveys indicate that the imaging in 3D is an effective means of analyzing internal stratigraphy of geomorphic features by allowing the user to more easily interpret spatial relationships within a dataset.© (2000) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.

Evaluating Community Collaboration in Writing Interagency Agreements on the Age 3 Transition

Abstract: Representatives from 34 local interagency coordinating councils participated in a training on the development of interagency agreements. Coordinators of these councils or their designated representative participated in an interview about the process and 29 of the councils submitted written agreements within 9 months of the final training date. Results indicate that most communities included the majority of the legal requirements of transition in their agreements. Communities whose agreements were signed by agency administrators were rated somewhat higher for the number of legal requirements and quality indicators contained, when compared to those that remained unsigned. Interview participants identified policy issues such as ensuring continuity of services and interpretations of regulations as significant barriers to the writing of an agreement.

Manifestation of spin-orbit interactions in photoemission from free atoms

Abstract: Fine-structure resolved electron spectrometry in conjunction with highly resolved synchrotron radiation have been used to observe in detail some of the consequences of the spin-orbit interaction on the decay of the Ar 3s ! np autoionizing resonances. The ® ndings include (a) a 20% enhancement in the ratio of the partial cross-sections for the isolated 6p singleelectron excitation, (b) the presence of a previously unidenti® ed two-electron excitation in the vicinity of the 8p resonance, and (c) di€ erent resonance widths in 1⁄4tot, 1⁄43=2, and 1⁄41=2 for the 10p excitation, namely, 1.64 meV, 1.9 meV, and 1.0 meV, respectively. These data, and the experimental capabilities they re ̄ ect, highlight the importance of the spin± orbit interaction in determining the dynamics of photoemission from free atoms.

Re-writing history: hanif kureishi and the politics of black britain

Abstract: In There Ain’t No Black in the Union Jack Paul Gilroy points out that despite the large percentage of non-white immigrants in post-WorldWar-Two England and the overtly racist legislation that has been passed to their disadvantage, the marginalization of race continues to be a feature of the work of researchers even within the Ž eld of cultural studies where scholars align themselves with feminist and socialist aspirations. Gilroy makes it his project to rescue black British culture from a sociologism that portrays ethnic minorities as historyless, victimized, subcultural pawns. This project necessarily involves opening up traditional class analysis so that it can be supplemented by additional categories re ecting diVerent histories of subordination, thus creating a space for alliances between diVerent members of minority communities who often occupy con icting class positions. As Gilroy points out “it would be foolish to deny the black petit bourgeois the capacity to ‘change sides’” particularly as “journalists, teachers, sociologists and other members of the professional and managerial classes take up the needs of the working-classes by joining its political institutions, perhaps even becoming its organic intellectuals” (24). What connects these members of disparate classes is a “common history, culture, and language . . . and racism” (24). Writers like Salman Rushdie, Hanif Kureishi, and Farukh Dhondy have, over the last decade, played in uential roles in re-presenting the Asian community in England. In her controversial essay “Can the Subaltern Speak?” Gayatri Spivak states that the subaltern has no voice and that any attempt at giving her/him a voice involves speaking for or “re-presenting” the marginalized subject. Hanif Kureishi’s comments on the making of Sammy and Rosie get Laid suggest a similar awareness of the problematics of representation. Kureishi writes,

A Coupled Scanning and Optimization Scheme for Analyzing Molecular Interactions

Abstract: The past decade has brought major advances in the quality and variety of methods for computerized drug design and molecular docking, making the area ripe for the implementation of hybrid algorithms. Hybrid methods create improved algorithms from existing ones by mixing techniques in a way that maximizes advantages and minimizes disadvantages. Here, we outline a hybrid method for molecular docking which couples the rapid-scanning algorithm DOT with the global optimization algorithm CGU.