Explore the vast range of titles available.

Quantum mechanics predicts the existence of intrinsically random processes. Contrary to classical randomness, this lack of predictability can not be attributed to ignorance or lack of control. Here we find the optimal method to quantify the amount of local or global randomness that can be extracted in two scenarios: (i) the quantum steering scenario, where two parties measure a bipartite system in an unknown state but one of them does not trust his measurement apparatus, and (ii) the prepare-and-measure scenario, where additionally the quantum state is known. We use our methods to compute the maximal amount of local and global randomness that can be certified by measuring systems subject to noise and losses and show that local randomness can be certified from a single measurement if and only if the detectors used in the test have detection efficiency higher than 50%.

Spin is one of the major challenges faced by modern civil aviation flight safety, which can lead to serious consequences such as loss of control and crashes. In this paper, by analyzing the mechanism of spin and studying the requirements of spin airworthiness certification, the spin airworthiness certification test flight method of some airplanes is designed in detail. Through the flight test, the spin characteristics of some light, small, and normal-category airplanes are deeply studied. The flight test results show that the test airplane does not easily enter the spin inadvertently from the stall when the engine is idle. Even if the test airplane enters the spin inadvertently from the stall in the power state, it belongs to the initial development stage of the spin, which is not stable and easy to recover. In addition, the test airplane using abnormal manoeuvring into and out of the spin will not cause uncontrollable spin, and the anti-rudder push rod can recover to normal. The methods of spin test flight designed in this paper and the conclusion of the spin characteristics study can guide other CCAR-23 light and small normal category airplanes.

PurposeThe performance of vision-language models (VLMs) with image interpretation capabilities, such as GPT-4 omni (GPT-4o), GPT-4 vision (GPT-4V), and Claude-3, has not been compared and remains unexplored in specialized radiological fields, including nuclear medicine and interventional radiology. This study aimed to evaluate and compare the diagnostic accuracy of various VLMs, including GPT-4 + GPT-4V, GPT-4o, Claude-3 Sonnet, and Claude-3 Opus, using Japanese diagnostic radiology, nuclear medicine, and interventional radiology (JDR, JNM, and JIR, respectively) board certification tests.Materials and methodsIn total, 383 questions from the JDR test (358 images), 300 from the JNM test (92 images), and 322 from the JIR test (96 images) from 2019 to 2023 were consecutively collected. The accuracy rates of the GPT-4 + GPT-4V, GPT-4o, Claude-3 Sonnet, and Claude-3 Opus were calculated for all questions or questions with images. The accuracy rates of the VLMs were compared using McNemar’s test.ResultsGPT-4o demonstrated the highest accuracy rates across all evaluations with the JDR (all questions, 49%; questions with images, 48%), JNM (all questions, 64%; questions with images, 59%), and JIR tests (all questions, 43%; questions with images, 34%), followed by Claude-3 Opus with the JDR (all questions, 40%; questions with images, 38%), JNM (all questions, 42%; questions with images, 43%), and JIR tests (all questions, 40%; questions with images, 30%). For all questions, McNemar’s test showed that GPT-4o significantly outperformed the other VLMs (all P < 0.007), except for Claude-3 Opus in the JIR test. For questions with images, GPT-4o outperformed the other VLMs in the JDR and JNM tests (all P < 0.001), except Claude-3 Opus in the JNM test.ConclusionThe GPT-4o had the highest success rates for questions with images and all questions from the JDR, JNM, and JIR board certification tests.

In response to unsustainable timber production in tropical forest concessions, voluntary forest management certification programs such as the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) have been introduced to improve environmental, social, and economic performance over existing management practices. However, despite the proliferation of forest certification over the past two decades, few studies have evaluated its effectiveness. Using temporally and spatially explicit village-level data on environmental and socio-economic indicators in Kalimantan (Indonesia), we evaluate the performance of the FSC-certified timber concessions compared to non-certified logging concessions. Employing triple difference matching estimators, we find that between 2000 and 2008 FSC reduced aggregate deforestation by 5 percentage points and the incidence of air pollution by 31%. It had no statistically significant impacts on fire incidence or core areas, but increased forest perforation by 4 km2 on average. In addition, we find that FSC reduced firewood dependence (by 33%), respiratory infections (by 32%) and malnutrition (by 1 person) on average. By conducting a rigorous statistical evaluation of FSC certification in a biodiversity hotspot such as Indonesia, we provide a reference point and offer methodological and data lessons that could aid the design of ongoing and future evaluations of a potentially critical conservation policy.

Purpose - The purpose of this study is to examine the deployment of pro-active and re-active practices in the implementation of green supply chain management (GSCM) and analyze their impact on environmental, economic, and intangible performance by considering business strategy as organizational focus.Design methodology approach - Data were collected from a sample of 190 ISO 14001 certified manufacturing companies in Thailand and used to test the research hypotheses. Factor analysis was used to examine the construct validity while multivariate linear regression was used to test criteria validity.Findings - The threat of legislation and regulation (re-active practices) was a consideration that resulted in companies enhancing their environmental, economic, and intangible performance. Reverse logistics practices (pro-active practices) had low levels of adoption and do not have a significant impact on GSCM performance.Research limitations implications - This study did not consider some aspects of organizational culture interaction between key customers and suppliers in the supply chain.Originality value - The results of this study suggest that organizations need to be aware that pursuing a low-cost strategy may impact negatively on their ability to invest in GSCM.

Background COVID-19 significantly impacted physician assistant/associate (PA) education programs. Most programs transitioned didactic and clinical education from in-person to remote, and clinical training opportunities diminished. Graduates of accredited PA programs take the Physician Assistant National Certifying Examination (PANCE), a five-hour exam with 300 multiple-choice questions, and must attain or exceed the scaled passing score of 350 (range: 200–800). We examined first-time examinees’ trends in PANCE scores and passing rates three years prior to the pandemic and three years during. Methods We analyzed data ( N  = 59,459) from the National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants. The two primary outcomes were PANCE scores and pass rates. The main exposure was the timeframe: three years pre-pandemic (2017–2019) and three years during the pandemic (2020–2022). The 2017–2018 scores were equated to the new passing standard implemented in 2019. Covariates included age, gender, years the PA program has been accredited, program region, and rural-urban setting. Analyses consisted of descriptive, bivariate, and multivariate statistics. Results The mean PANCE score and pass rate during the six-year study period were 463 and 93%, respectively. In unadjusted analyses comparing each year individually, mean PANCE score was highest in 2020 and lowest in 2022 than in all other years except for 2017. When comparing each pandemic year to the pooled three pre-pandemic years and adjusting for test-taker and PA program covariates, examinees scored significantly higher in 2020; there was no difference in 2021, and they scored lower in 2022. When controlling for covariates, examinees had 1.24 higher odds of failing in 2022 compared to the pooled pre-pandemic period. Conclusion Findings suggest that PANCE scores and pass rates were impacted during the third year of the pandemic. PANCE assesses if examinees have the essential clinical knowledge to enter the PA profession. It is crucial to determine whether the pandemic affected PANCE scores and pass rates to ensure PAs provide safe and high-quality patient care.

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the relationship between the acquisition of an ISO 9000 certification and the overall financial performance of the certified firms. More specifically, the study proposes a multidimensional conceptual framework, including “customers’ demand”, “ISO adoption”, “operation efficiency”, “market efficiency” and “overall financial performance”. Such a multidimensional approach has randomly been explored in the existing literature, making the examination of the proposed conceptual framework an interesting research topic. Design/methodology/approach – The proposed conceptual framework was tested on a sample of Greek ISO 9000-certified companies of various economic sectors. Quality managers were used as key respondents. The final sample consisted of 168 companies. The reliability and the validity of the questionnaire were thoroughly examined. Empirical data were analyzed using the structural equation modelling technique. The findings are based on the 2000 version of the ISO series, which is generally accepted and has widespread use, as it has eliminated most of the disadvantages of the 1994 version. The present study is empirical (it is based on primary data), explanatory (examines cause and effect relationships), deductive (tests research hypotheses) and quantitative (includes the analysis of quantitative data collected with the use of a structured questionnaire). Findings – The findings of the study provide strong evidence that ISO 9000 implementation is highly associated with improvements in overall financial performance. Moreover, it was found that ISO implementation is directly associated with significant improvements in quality awareness, operations execution, market share, customer satisfaction and sales revenue. Finally, customers’ demand was not found to be the most important motivation for implementing an ISO certification. Rather, it seems that companies seek for quality improvement due to internal motives. Research limitations/implications – A limitation stemming from the implemented methodology is the use of self-report scales to measure the constructs of the proposed model. Moreover, the present paper lacks a longitudinal approach, since it is cross-sectional and provides a static picture of ISO implementation. Practical implications – The paper makes an analytical effort in order to point out areas that companies should emphasize in order to successfully implement ISO 9000 and, therefore, harvest its potential benefits. Certain practical implications are offered in the final part of the paper. Originality/value – The paper proposes an enhanced conceptual framework that examines vital issues concerning the successful implementation of ISO 9000, thus, providing valuable outcomes for decision makers and academics. Moreover, the results of the study may be generalized in other developed countries whose economy faces similar significant challenges as Greece.

This research note introduces a new global dataset, the Citizenship, Migration and Mobility in a Pandemic (CMMP). The dataset features systematic information on border closures and domestic lockdowns in response to the COVID-19 outbreak in 211 countries and territories worldwide from 1 March to 1 June 2020. It documents the evolution of the types and scope of international travel bans and exceptions to them, as well as internal measures including limitations of non-essential movement and curfews in 27 countries. CMMP can be used to study causes and effects of policy restrictions to migration and mobility during the COVID-19 pandemic. The dataset is available through Cadmus and will be regularly updated until the last pandemic-related restriction has been lifted or become long-term.

Most U.S. states that have regulated and taxed cannabis have imposed some form of mandatory safety testing requirements. In California, the country's largest and oldest legal cannabis market, mandatory testing was first enforced by state regulators in July 2018, and additional mandatory tests were introduced at the end of 2018. All cannabis must be tested and labeled as certified by a state-licensed cannabis testing laboratory before it can be legally marketed in California. Every batch that is sold by licensed retailers must be tested for more than 100 contaminants, including 66 pesticides with tolerance levels lower than the levels allowable for any other agricultural product in California. This paper estimates the costs of compliance with mandatory cannabis testing laws and regulations, using California's testing regime as a case study. We use state government data, data collected from testing laboratories, and data collected from lab equipment suppliers to run a set of Monte Carlo simulations and estimate the cost per pound of compliance with California's new cannabis testing regulations. We find that cost per pound is highly sensitive to average batch size and testing failure rates. We present results under a variety of different assumptions about batch size and failure rates. We also find that under realistic assumptions, the loss of cannabis that must be destroyed if a batch fails testing accounts for a larger share of total testing costs than does the cost of the lab tests. Using our best estimates of average batch size (8 pounds) and failure rate (4%) in the 2019 California market, we estimate testing cost at $136 per pound of dried cannabis flower, or about 10 percent of the reported average wholesale price of legal cannabis in the state. Our findings explain effects of the testing standards on the cost of supplying legal licensed cannabis, in California, other U.S. states, and foreign jurisdictions with similar testing regimes.

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the impact of ISO 9001 certification on US firms’ financial operating performance for a period of five years including one-year prior to certification, year of certification, and three fiscal years after certification. Design/methodology/approach – The paper is based on an examination of a sample of 397 firms that had received ISO 9001 certification from 1991 to 2002. Certified-firm, non-certified-firm, and matched-control-firm operating performances were examined over the same period based on the ratio of pre-tax operating income to total assets (EBITA/TA). Wilcoxon signed-rank test was used to test for significant differences in operating performance among the certified, non-certified, and matched-control firms. Findings – The paper concludes that there was significant improvement performance from prior year to year of certification. The certified firms performed better than the non-certified firms. The certified firms also performed better than the matched-control firms. Research limitations/implications – Based on the research approach and the findings, the paper recommends the use of newer ISO data; any additional certifications; and further research into the lack of significant operating values by the certified firms in the post-certification years. Practical implications – The paper shows that ISO 9001 certification is statistically related to operating performance. Certified firms have better operating performance. The positive significance in decile operating performance from prior year to certification year is an important finding for the implementation of ISO 9001. Originality/value – The paper satisfies the need to study when ISO 9001 certification impacts firms’ financial operating performance.