The change of productive skills and human work systems--function of work concept

The techniques and skills of the age are changing, but the work situation is not corresponding to these changes. Furthermore, this causes problems in human resources development. We have investigated the contents of productive skills, vocational abilities, and work conditions, and as a result, productive skills were divided into two patterns: intellectual-management skills and sensory-motor skills. The contents of intellectual-management skills are divided into measurement, examination, design and arrangement, analysis and judgment, and understanding of technical knowledge. The contents of sensory-motor skills are divided into vision, audition and touch, visual judgment, motion of limbs, judgment by hands, and quality of the product. A sensory-motor skill is defined as one that mainly depends on judgment and memory capabilities. The former includes skills related to traditional handicrafts, processing assembling, and machine operation. The latter includes skills related to programming, designing, and controlling. A connection deeply related to the human being's essence can be found in both skills. When we examine human work systems, it is important to consider this essence.     

Chimpanzee subsistence technology: Materials and skills

Beyond reviewing basic data on Primate technological behavior, the aim of this report is to document the nature of chimpanzee technical skills by examining some of the mental as well as physical expertise which chimpanzees bring to bear on subsistence activities. This task is approached along several avenues: first, an outline is drawn of current knowledge about chimpanzee subsistence technology throughout Africa; second, a sketch is made of technological variability in several chimpanzee populations; third, the results of a personal investigation into the skills needed by chimpanzees to probe for insects are provided; and fourth, a comparison is made of the baboon, chimpanzee and human techniques used to exploit termites as a food resource. Instead of focusing on the unique features of human subsistence technology, the report attempts to show that many technical skills are and probably were firmly rooted in Primate prehistory, well before the advent of the earliest hominids. An integrated model of technological achievements among extant Primates, based on a sample of African cercopithecid, pongid and hominid populations representing stages in a phylogentic sequence, is offered as a foundation for reconstructing the gradual evolution of primate subsistence technology. This approach is intended to provoke contemplation and discussion among those investigators of human behavior and society who favor the thesis that the criterion of technology, together with the cultural transmission of technical skills, separates the human from the nonhuman Primates.     

Of scales and stationarity in animal movements

With recent technological advances in tracking devices, movements of numerous animal species can be recorded with a high resolution over large spatial and temporal ranges. This opens promising perspectives for understanding how an animal perceives and reacts to the multi‐scale structure of its environment. Yet, conceptual issues such as confusion between movement scales and searching modes prevent us from properly inferring the movement processes at different scales. Here, I propose to build on stationarity (i.e. stability of statistical parameters) to develop a consistent theoretical framework in which animal movements are modelled as a generic composite multi‐scale multi‐mode random walk model. This framework makes it possible to highlight scales that are relevant to the studied animal, the nature of the behavioural processes that operate at each of these different scales, and the way in which the processes involved at any given scale can interact with those operating at smaller or larger scales. This explicitly scale‐focused approach should help properly analyse actual movements by relating, for each scale and each mode, the values of the main model parameters (speed, short‐ and long‐term persistences, degree of stochasticity) to the animal's needs and skills and its response to its environment at multiple scales.     

Influence mechanism of multi-network embeddedness to enterprises innovation performance based on knowledge management perspective

Based on network embedding, enterprise technology innovation and knowledge management theories, the study has built theoretical conceptual model of multiple network embedding influencing enterprises’ technological innovation performance from the perspective of knowledge management. The work discussed the internal mechanism of knowledge management activities affected by embedded relationship, embedded structure and embedded resource influencing technological innovation performance. Through obtaining 190 SME’s survey data in the Yangtze River Delta region, we systematically validated the conceptual model with the structural equation model. It showed that embedded relationship, embedded structure and embedded resource in enterprise organization network can effectively improve the enterprise’s knowledge management capability, bringing significant promotion in technological innovation performance. Wherein, the embedded relationship and embedded resource can promote not only the technological innovation performance of the enterprise, but also the performance by improving the knowledge management ability of the enterprise. While, the promotion effect of embedded structure to enterprises’ technological innovation majorly relies on the fully-mediated knowledge management to achieve.     

Bioelectromagnetics,Carl Durney,and dosimetry: Some historical remarks

The contributions of Carl Durney to dosimetry have decisively advanced the bioelectromagnetics field and led to significant revisions of relevant health standards. Three items come to mind while studying his work: 1. The work of Carl Durney and his colleagues in dosimetry has advanced the bioelectromagnetics field most significantly whereas more abundant work of a biomedical nature has had less impact. More biophysics work is desirable. 2. The rationale for the specific absorption rate as a basis of health standards needs further elaboration. The need for scaling animal results is stressed. 3. Dosimetry at the cellular level (microdosimetry) is essential if one cares to discuss direct field interactions at the cellular and macromolecular level. Carl Durney's recognition of this need is stated. Carl Durney's wide range of productive interests is indicated by several tables. They summarize his many contributions to electrical engineering, education, bioelectromagnetic dosimetry, hyperthermia, NMR, and field‐induced biophysical phenomena at the molecular and cellular level. His scientific work is summarized, including how his interest changed with time. His scientific accomplishment and productive interaction with students, colleagues, and society sets an example to be admired. Bioelectromagnetics 20:3–8, 1999. © 1999 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

The signs of life in architecture

Engineers, designers and architects often look to nature for inspiration. The research on 'natural constructions' is aiming at innovation and the improvement of architectural quality. The introduction of life sciences terminology in the context of architecture delivers new perspectives towards innovation in architecture and design. The investigation is focused on the analogies between nature and architecture. Apart from other principles that are found in living nature, an interpretation of the so-called 'signs of life', which characterize living systems, in architecture is presented. Selected architectural projects that have applied specific characteristics of life, whether on purpose or not, will show the state of development in this field and open up future challenges. The survey will include famous built architecture as well as students' design programs, which were carried out under supervision of the author at the Department of Design and Building Construction at the Vienna University of Technology.     

Self-reported confidence, attitudes and skills in practical procedures among medical students: questionnaire study

The aim of our study was to investigate the influence of gender, loss of academic year(s), confidence and attitudes of students on the clinical experience gained by undergraduate education. The survey was conducted during 2004 and 2005 in a sample of 182 students of the 5th and the 6th year at J.J. Strossmayer University School of Medicine in Osijek. The participants were grouped and matched according to their gender, regular studying, the number of time(s) student has performed certain practical medical procedure and the self-confidence arisen by performing one. Furthermore, participants were grouped and compared due to their own assessment of their own practical and theoretical medical knowledge, courses which provide them the least and oppositely--the most practical medical knowledge and their attitude toward current medical faculty curriculum on clinical courses as well as the possibilities of improving them. Fisher's exact test and chi2-test were used to estimate statistical differences between the groups and the parameters in research, while coefficient of contingency was introduced with the aim of defining their correlation. The results showed statistically significant differences between male students who performed more practical medical procedures than female (p < 0.001), non-repeaters performed medical procedures more often than repeaters (p < 0.001, C = 0.658) while repeaters thought higher of their theoretical knowledge than non-repeaters (p < 0.005). Data analysis showed statistically significant correlation between clinical experience and the level of confidence (C = 0.944). This study confirmed influence of male gender, regular studying, better opinion about one's own practical skills and higher confidence in one's own work on greater number of clinical skills performed during undergraduate education.     

A suggested activity to develop integrated skills and a love of nature in children

Abstract

In this study, a process was designed, in which a lemon seed grew into a seedling, using the inquiry-based science learning approach. This aimed to increase the overall development of the scientific process skills of children and their sensitivity to nature. The germination, growth and development of a plant were meticulously and systematically observed in a long period from seed to seedling. This process contributed to the children’s integration of scientific process skills based on observation and measurement and structuring of concepts related to germination, growth and development in science lessons. It also supported the development of children’s love of nature through allowing them to make meaningful connections with nature.     

珠三角地区科技创新与生态环境的耦合协调发展研究

探究科技创新与生态环境之间的耦合协调关系,是当前我国高质量发展过程中亟待解决的关键问题。通过探讨科技创新与生态环境的耦合协调机制,构建两者的综合评价指标体系,借助物理学耦合协调度模型定量测算2007—2018年珠三角地区科技创新与生态环境的耦合协调度,并对其时空演化特征进行探讨分析。结果表明：珠三角各市的科技创新综合指数与生态环境综合指数均呈现不断上升的趋势,且两者耦合度、耦合协调度也呈现出由低水平向高水平的演进特征。在空间分布上,珠三角地区科技创新与生态环境的耦合协调度呈现出以珠江入海口城市“广深佛莞”为中心,向两侧递减的空间格局。在作用类型上,珠三角多数城市在2007年的科技创新能力起到明显地滞后作用,但随着时间的推移,城市创新能力不断增强,与生态环境之间达到基本协调,甚至高级协调水平;而肇庆市发展相对缓慢,仍处于“基本失调—科技创新受阻型”。以区域高质量发展为引领,通过加大创新要素投入、控制污染物排放、合理布局生态用地等方法提高生态创新,有助于未来珠三角实现科技创新与生态环境协调可持续发展。     

Sex differences in search and gathering skills

The hunter–gatherer theory of sex differences states that female cognition has evolutionarily adapted to gathering and male cognition to hunting. Existing studies corroborate that men excel in hunting-related skills, but there is only indirect support for women excelling in gathering tasks. This study tested if women would outperform men in laboratory-based computer tests of search and gathering skills. In Experiment 1, men found target objects faster and made fewer mistakes than women in a classic visual search study. In Experiment 2, participants gathered items (fruits or letters presented on screen), and again, men performed significantly better. In Experiment 3, participants' incidental learning of object locations in a search experiment was studied, but no statistically significant sex differences were observed. These findings found the opposite of what was expected based on the hypothesis that female cognition has adapted to gathering. Alternative interpretations of the role of object location memory, female gathering roles and the division of labor between the sexes are discussed.     

A noisy signal: To what extent are Hadza hunting reputations predictive of actual hunting skills?

The measurement of hunting ability has been central to several debates about the goals of men's hunting among the Hadza and other hunter-gatherer populations. Hunting ability has previously been measured indirectly, by weighing the amount of food individuals bring back to camp over an extended period, their central place hunting return rate, and by conducting hunting ability interviews. Despite the centrality of the hunting ability concept, some authors (Hill & Kintigh, 2009) have expressed scepticism that such measures accurately capture individual differences in actual hunting ability. In the current study, we introduce a novel measure of hunting reputation which, unlike previous ones, allows fine-grained distinction between hunters of all reputations. To assess the suitability of this measure as a viable proxy for hunting ability, we address two further questions. First, to what extent do interviewees agree about the hunting ability of their present and former campmates? Second, to what extent does this measure of hunting reputation reflect success in four tasks expected to capture important components of hunting ability? We demonstrate that these measures of hunting reputation appear to reflect variation in these skills. We argue, however, that hunting reputation appears too noisy an index of these skills and, we infer, hunting ability in general for hunting to act, as some have suggested (e.g. Hawkes & Bird, 2002), as an honest signal of cryptic qualities related to hunting ability.     

The Oldowan industry of Peninj and its bearing on the reconstruction of the technological skills of Lower Pleistocene hominids

The Oldowan technology has traditionally been assumed to reflect technical simplicity and limited planning by Plio-Pleistocene hominids. The analysis of the Oldowan technology from a set of 1.6-1.4 Ma sites (ST Site Complex) in Peninj adds new information regarding the curated behavior of early hominids. The present work introduces new data to the few published monographic works on East African Oldowan technology. Its relevance lies in its conclusions, since the Peninj Oldowan assemblages show complex technological skills for Lower Pleistocene hominids, which are more complex than has been previously inferred for the Oldowan stone tool industry. Reduced variability of tool types and complex use of cores for flaking are some of the most remarkable features that identify the Oldowan assemblages from Peninj. Hominids during this period seem to have already been experimenting with pre-determination of the flaked products from cores, a feature presently assumed to appear later in time. Planning and template structuring of flaked products are integral parts of the Oldowan at Peninj.     

Predicting Survey Responses: How and Why Semantics Shape Survey Statistics on Organizational Behaviour

Some disciplines in the social sciences rely heavily on collecting survey responses to detect empirical relationships among variables. We explored whether these relationships were a priori predictable from the semantic properties of the survey items, using language processing algorithms which are now available as new research methods. Language processing algorithms were used to calculate the semantic similarity among all items in state-of-the-art surveys from Organisational Behaviour research. These surveys covered areas such as transformational leadership, work motivation and work outcomes. This information was used to explain and predict the response patterns from real subjects. Semantic algorithms explained 60–86% of the variance in the response patterns and allowed remarkably precise prediction of survey responses from humans, except in a personality test. Even the relationships between independent and their purported dependent variables were accurately predicted. This raises concern about the empirical nature of data collected through some surveys if results are already given a priori through the way subjects are being asked. Survey response patterns seem heavily determined by semantics. Language algorithms may suggest these prior to administering a survey. This study suggests that semantic algorithms are becoming new tools for the social sciences, opening perspectives on survey responses that prevalent psychometric theory cannot explain.     

Development of an 82.2 degrees C (180 degrees F) temperature indicatior system for monitoring equipment washing and sanitizing programs

A survey performed at 12 institutions showed that while the temperatures in the water tanks of mechanical cage washers were monitored, these temperatures deviated from the temperatures obtained on the items actually being washed. Most surveyed facilities were not meeting the 82.2 degrees C (180 degrees F) standard in the washing chamber. A temperature indicator was developed which revealed whether 82.2 degrees C had been reached at the surface of the items being sanitized. The indicator was a sealed glass ampule which produced a visible color change when exposed to temperatures of 82.2 degress C or higher. The indicator was located on the items being washed. Due to the variability of water heating in washing machines, it was recommended that one indicator be used in each load of equipment being sanitized.     

A field of dreams: Lignin valorization into chemicals,materials, fuels,and health-care products

Lignin is one of the most abundant renewable resources on earth and is readily produced as a sidestream during biomass fractioning. So far, these large quantities of lignin have been severely underutilized, thereby wasting this valuable renewable. Recent technological advances in lignin recovery, breakdown, and conversion have now started forming the first sustainable value chains to take advantage of lignin. Microbial cell factories, inspired by nature’s miscellaneous set of lignin-degrading microbes, are at the heart of these novel processes. Recent success stories in which the enzymes and pathways of these microbes were harnessed for biobased production from lignin hold great promise for a sustainable upgrading of this renewable polymer into value-added compounds.     

Female choice for male motor skills

Sexual selection was proposed by Darwin to explain the evolution of male sexual traits such as ornaments and elaborate courtship displays. Empirical and theoretical studies have traditionally focused on ornaments; the reasons for the evolution of elaborate, acrobatic courtship displays remain unclear. We addressed the hypothesis that females choose males on the basis of subtle differences in display performance, indicating motor skills that facilitate survival. Male golden-collared manakins (Manacus vitellinus) perform elaborate, acrobatic courtship displays. We used high-speed cameras to record the displays of wild males and analysed them in relation to male reproductive success. Females preferred males that performed specific display moves at greater speed, with differences of tens of milliseconds strongly impacting female preference. In additional males, we recorded telemetrically the heart rate during courtship using miniature transmitters and found that courtship is associated with profoundly elevated heart rates, revealing a large metabolic investment. Our study provides evidence that females choose their mates on the basis of subtle differences in motor performance during courtship. We propose that elaborate, acrobatic courtship dances evolve because they reflect motor skills and cardiovascular function of males.     

Social networks and the development of social skills in cowbirds

The complex interrelationships among individuals within social environments can exert selection pressures on social skills: those behaviours and cognitive processes that allow animals to manipulate and out-reproduce others. Social complexity can also have a developmental effect on social skills by providing individuals with opportunities to hone their skills by dealing with the challenges posed in within-group interactions. We examined how social skills develop in captive, adult male brown-headed cowbirds (Molothrus ater) that were exposed to differing levels of 'social complexity' across a 2-year experiment. After each year, subjects housed in groups with dynamic social structure (where many individuals entered and exited the groups during the year) outcompeted birds who had been housed in static groups. Exposure to dynamic structure subsequently led to substantial changes to the social networks of the home conditions during the breeding season. Static groups were characterized by a predictable relationship between singing and reproductive success that was stable across years. In dynamic conditions, however, males showed significant variability in their dominance status, their courting and even in their mating success. Reproductive success of males varied dramatically across years and was responsive to social learning in adulthood, and socially dynamic environments 'trained' individuals to be better competitors, even at an age when the development of many traits important for breeding (like song quality) had ended.     

Examining the Causes and Consequences of Short-Term Behavioral Change during the Middle Stone Age at Sibudu,South Africa

Sibudu in KwaZulu-Natal (South Africa) with its rich and high-resolution archaeological sequence provides an ideal case study to examine the causes and consequences of short-term variation in the behavior of modern humans during the Middle Stone Age (MSA). We present the results from a technological analysis of 11 stratified lithic assemblages which overlie the Howiesons Poort deposits and all date to ~58 ka. Based on technological and typological attributes, we conducted inter-assemblage comparisons to characterize the nature and tempo of cultural change in successive occupations. This work identified considerable short-term variation with clear temporal trends throughout the sequence, demonstrating that knappers at Sibudu varied their technology over short time spans. The lithic assemblages can be grouped into three cohesive units which differ from each other in the procurement of raw materials, the frequency in the methods of core reduction, the kind of blanks produced, and in the nature of tools the inhabitants of Sibudu made and used. These groups of assemblages represent different strategies of lithic technology, which build upon each other in a gradual, cumulative manner. We also identify a clear pattern of development toward what we have previously defined as the Sibudan cultural taxonomic unit. Contextualizing these results on larger geographical scales shows that the later phase of the MSA during MIS 3 in KwaZulu-Natal and southern Africa is one of dynamic cultural change rather than of stasis or stagnation as has at times been claimed. In combination with environmental, subsistence and contextual information, our high-resolution data on lithic technology suggest that short-term behavioral variability at Sibudu can be best explained by changes in technological organization and socio-economic dynamics instead of environmental forcing.     

The learning skills of great apes

Through use of a refined measurement of learning-set capacity, a comparative study of 45 great apes, six gibbons, and representative monkey groups was conducted to determine the relationship between cortical evolution and cognitive skills. The measurement employed. termed the Transfer Index, entailed criterional achievement on each of a series of two-choice visual discrimination problems, then test trials in which the initial cue values were reversed. The pre-reversal criterional mastery served as an empirical basis for matching subjects of the diverse primate groups on a performance criterion prior to the procurement of the critical measures taken on the reversal trials to assess learning and transfer-to-training capabilities. The results reveal the following: (1) general superiority of the great apes over all other primate groups tested; (2) interactions between species, pre-reversal criterional level employed, and reversal performance; and (3) support for the conclusion that learning and transfer-of-training skills are positive correlates of cortical evolution.