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With a globalized economy, traditional boundaries are becoming both unclear and uncertain, and it is necessary to analytically measure business globalization to estimate the results of the production activity of resident producer units. The value chains that have bound the world economy are now under new strain. This study presents an analysis of data relating to the activities carried out by a company in multinational territories. We study the distribution of the added value of companies and the relationship with their non-domestic activities for statistical purposes; the type of foreign affiliate known as a branch is considered a quasi-enterprise (Eurostat − Manual on Business Demography Statistics, 2007), resident in one country and controlled by a unit resident in another nation. We use two separate sources of sectoral information for a specific year (2019): Foreign Affiliates Statistics (FATS), covering activities of permanent establishments operating among Italian borders under foreign control, and outward FATS covering the activities of Italian branches abroad. Hence it can be difficult to untangle these complex chains of control; as we detail in this work, the integrated use of archives, statistical, administrative, and tax sources, as well as other information (company sites, profiling of the main multinational groups) allows to select the subset of companies potentially interested in the reality of foreign production a priori, to identify affiliates that are not constituting separate legal entities. This study can be used by public decision maker to highlight fiscal elusive strategies and estimate the real share of domestic and foreign (through stable organizations) production.

Mountaintop removal coal mining (MTR) has been a major source of landscape change in the Central Appalachians of the United States (US). Changes in stream hydrology, channel geomorphology and water quality caused by MTR coal mining can lead to severe impairment of stream ecological integrity. The objective of the Clean Water Act (CWA) is to restore and maintain the ecological integrity of the Nation's waters. Sensitive, readily measured indicators of ecosystem structure and function are needed for the assessment of stream ecological integrity. Most CWA assessments rely on structural indicators; inclusion of functional indicators could make these assessments more holistic and effective. The goals of this study were: (1) test the efficacy of selected carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) cycling and microbial structural and functional indicators for assessing MTR coal mining impacts on streams; (2) determine whether indicators respond to impacts in a predictable manner; and (3) determine if functional indicators are less likely to change than are structural indicators in response to stressors associated with MTR coal mining. The structural indicators are water quality and sediment organic matter concentrations, and the functional indicators relate to microbial activity and biofilm production. Seasonal measurements were conducted over the course of a year in streams draining small MTR-impacted and forested watersheds in the Twentymile Creek watershed of West Virginia (WV). Five of the eight structural parameters measured had significant responses, with all means greater in the MTR-impacted streams than in the forested streams. These responses resulted from changes in source or augmentation of the original source of the C and N structural parameters because of MTR coal mining. Nitrate concentration and the stable carbon isotopic ratio of dissolved inorganic carbon were the most effective indicators evaluated in this study. Only three of the fourteen functional indicators measured had significant responses to MTR coal mining, with all means greater in the forested streams than in the MTR-impacted streams. These results suggest that stressors associated with MTR coal mining caused reduction in some aspects of microbial cycling, but resource subsidies may have counterbalanced some of the inhibition leading to no observable change in most of the functional indicators. The detritus base, which is thought to confer functional stability, was likely sustained in the MTR-impacted streams by channel storage and/or leaf litter inputs from their largely intact riparian zones. Overall, our results largely support the hypothesis that certain functional processes are more resistant to stress induced change than structural properties but also suggest the difficulty of identifying suitable functional indicators for ecological integrity assessment.

Abstract Background To be able to provide high-quality palliative care, there need to be a number of organizational structures available in the nursing homes. It is unclear to what extent such structures are actually present in nursing homes in Europe. We aim to examine structural indicators for quality of palliative care in nursing homes in Europe and to evaluate the differences in terms of availability of and access to palliative care, infrastructure for residents and families, multidisciplinary meetings and quality improvement initiatives. Methods A PACE cross-sectional study (2015) of nursing homes in Belgium, England, Finland, Italy, the Netherlands and Poland. Nursing homes (N = 322) were selected in each country via proportional stratified random sampling. Nursing home administrators (N = 305) filled in structured questionnaires on nursing home characteristics. Organization of palliative care was measured using 13 of the previously defined IMPACT structural indicators for quality of palliative care covering four domains: availability of and access to palliative care, infrastructure for residents and families, multidisciplinary meetings and quality improvement initiatives. We calculated structural indicator scores for each country and computed differences in indicator scores between the six countries. Pearson’s Chi-square test was used to compute the p-value of each difference. Results The availability of specialist palliative care teams in nursing homes was limited (6.1–48.7%). In Finland, Poland and Italy, specialist advice was also less often available (35.6–46.9%). Up to 49% of the nursing homes did not provide a dedicated contact person who maintained regular contact with the resident and relatives. The 24/7 availability of opioids for all nursing home residents was low in Poland (37.5%). Conclusions This study found a large heterogeneity between countries in the organization of palliative care in nursing homes, although a common challenge is ensuring sufficient structural access to specialist palliative care services. Policymakers and health and palliative care organizations can use these structural indicators to identify areas for improvement in the organization of palliative care.

There is increasing recognition that indicators of ecosystem functioning are needed to improve current stream monitoring schemes. However, to date, no attempt has been made to include functional metrics in large-scale routine monitoring programs under the European Water Framework Directive (WFD). One reason is the uncertainty if functional indicators really carry new and independent information about stream status or, to the contrary, remain broadly redundant with existing indicators of biological stream quality (based on stream communities). A second reason is that, despite increasing scientific knowledge on how anthropogenic pressures influence ecosystem process rates, no ‘ready for use’ tool is available to translate them into stream ecosystem status. Litter decomposition probably ranges among the most documented stream ecosystem processes, and its potential for bioindication has been repeatedly demonstrated during the past decade. Here we report an extensive comparison of routine French structural indicators (I2M2, IBGN, IBD) with alder litter (microbial and total) decomposition rates in 83 streams located in south-western France. Expectedly, microbial decomposition rates were positively correlated with fungal biomass and activity (conidial production rate), while total and invertebrate-driven decomposition rates increased together with detritivore density and diversity in litter bags. By contrast, correlations between litter decomposition rates and routine structural indicators were clearly weak (Spearman’s ρ

Similar to other comprehensive dictionaries, the Woordeboek van die Afrikaanse Taal (Dictionary of the Afrikaans Language) has been planned and compiled in a print format. Although some completed comprehensive dictionaries have been adapted to some kind of electronic dictionary they can often only be regarded as print dictionaries in digital format because there is not an optimal utilisation of the possibilities offered by the online environment. Changing such a dictionary to a fully fledged online dictionary demands critical thinking, the formulation of a new dictionary conceptualisation plan and a meticulous awareness of insights from both the lexicographic practice and metalexicography. Work on the comprehensive Woordeboek van die Afrikaanse taal (WAT) was commenced in 1926 and the last volume of this dictionary should be completed in 2028. During the last decades the editors adapted the dictionary to the digital format to complement the printed version. The final volumes of this dictionary will only be produced in electronic format. After 2028 the editors will have the opportunity to embark on a complete revision of the dictionary -- also to ensure that work done in the previous century is on par with the latest version of the lexicographic process of this dictionary and that presentation and treatment are executed in a consistent way. It will also be an opportunity for the editors to make a transition to a true online dictionary in which the possibilities of this medium are optimally used. This paper focuses on this transition to a complete online version. In this regard attention is given to the typological nature of a comprehensive dictionary and some of the possible adjustments the editors might consider when revising this dictionary are discussed. It is shown how important it is to introduce a data distribution structure that can ensure that lexicographic data are accommodated in the best possible venues. The use of outer features to complement the central list is briefly discussed. The online environment allows a transition from a static to a dynamic and multi-layered article structure. Suggestions are made to use such a multilayered article structure in which non-typographical indicators are replaced by data-identifiers to assist the user in a rapid access to the required data. Using a new type of article structure can also be supported by new ventures with regard to the microstructure. Instead of the integrated microstructure currently prevailing in the WAT a new version of a semi-integrated microstructure is suggested. This structure will accommodate a limited number of co-text items in integrated text blocks in the various sub-comments on semantics to ensure that the text production function can be achieved. In addition, nonintegrated text blocks will be introduced to accommodate the majority of co-text items. Seeing the dictionary as a component of a search universe, lexicographers could give their users access not only to the curated co-text items in the dictionary but also to non-curated data in the corpus of the dictionary. This approach will strengthen the WAT as reference source and will be an added value for researchers in linguistics. Although the default articles in the WAT do not contain items giving the etymology of words, the editors of this dictionary have already compiled an etymological dictionary. The WAT and the etymological dictionary can both feature in a dictionary portal and from the articles of the WAT users can be referred to an item in the etymological dictionary. Such a search domain will also be able to accommodate other lexicographic products to which dictionary users can be referred. Lexicographic functions need to be negotiated in the planning of the online WAT. Currently this multifunctional dictionary responds to the diverse needs of users by achieving both communicative and cognitive functions. Due to the original planning of this dictionary, users often are not aware of its functions. In this contribution it is shown how various procedures could be followed to enhance the multifunctional value of an online version of this comprehensive dictionary. Besides the use of outer texts, it is shown how a semi-integrated microstructure could be used in an innovative way to separate semantic and encyclopaedic data in dictionary articles. A text block that focuses on encyclopaedic data can enhance the response of the WAT to the cognitive needs of its users. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: To be able to provide high-quality palliative care, there need to be a number of organizational structures available in the nursing homes. It is unclear to what extent such structures are actually present in nursing homes in Europe. We aim to examine structural indicators for quality of palliative care in nursing homes in Europe and to evaluate the differences in terms of availability of and access to palliative care, infrastructure for residents and families, multidisciplinary meetings and quality improvement initiatives. Methods: A PACE cross-sectional study (2015) of nursing homes in Belgium, England, Finland, Italy, the Netherlands and Poland. Nursing homes (N = 322) were selected in each country via proportional stratified random sampling. Nursing home administrators (N = 305) filled in structured questionnaires on nursing home characteristics. Organization of palliative care was measured using 13 of the previously defined IMPACT structural indicators for quality of palliative care covering four domains: availability of and access to palliative care, infrastructure for residents and families, multidisciplinary meetings and quality improvement initiatives. We calculated structural indicator scores for each country and computed differences in indicator scores between the six countries. Pearson's Chi-square test was used to compute the p-value of each difference. Results: The availability of specialist palliative care teams in nursing homes was limited (6.1–48.7%). In Finland, Poland and Italy, specialist advice was also less often available (35.6–46.9%). Up to 49% of the nursing homes did not provide a dedicated contact person who maintained regular contact with the resident and relatives. The 24/7 availability of opioids for all nursing home residents was low in Poland (37.5%). Conclusions: This study found a large heterogeneity between countries in the organization of palliative care in nursing homes, although a common challenge is ensuring sufficient structural access to specialist palliative care services. Policymakers and health and palliative care organizations can use these structural indicators to identify areas for improvement in the organization of palliative care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Due to the presence of valuable and expensive equipments in hospitals’ warehouses, scientific management and continuous evaluation plays an important role to improve the performance of warehouses and whereby the performance of hospitals’ wards. This study aimed to evaluate the performance of the central stores of hospitals affiliated to Tehran University of Medical Sciences (TUMS). Materials and Methods: In order to conduct this cross-sectional study, a checklist was designed and validated to examine the warehouses’ status considering structural, process and outcome dimensions of 39 depots in 14 hospitals. The status of hospitals’ warehouses were assessed using descriptive analysis and in order to assess association between performance evaluation score and charchetristics of warehouses and its staff Pearson Correlation Coefficient was utilized. Results: Although, warehouses’ performance of studied hospitals in general was satisfactory, there were some items in unsuitable condition particularly in structural and process dimensions which should be addressed quickly. Also, performance of warehouses revealed a positive and significant correlation with number of beds, area and size of warehouse and number of staff (p

Antibiotic resistance has become a global health issue, negatively affecting the quality and safety of patient care, and increasing medical expenses, notably in Indonesia. Antibiotic stewardship programs (ASPs) aim to reduce resistance rates and their implementation in hospitals, has a high priority worldwide.We aimed to monitor the progress in the organizational implementation of ASPs in Indonesian hospitals by an Antimicrobial Resistance Control Program (ARCP) team and to identify possible hurdles. We conducted a cross-sectional study with structured interviews based on a checklist designed to assess the achievement of structural indicators at the organizational level in four private and three public hospitals in four regions (Surabaya, Sidoarjo, Mojokerto, Bangil) in East Java, Indonesia.The organizational structure of public hospitals scored better than that of private hospitals. Only three of the seven hospitals had an ARCP team. The most important deficiency of support appeared to be insufficient funding allocation for information technology development and lacking availability and/or adherence to antibiotic use guidelines. The studied hospitals are, in principle, prepared to adequately implement ASPs, but with various degrees of eagerness. The hospital managements have to construct a strategic plan and to set clear priorities to overcome the shortcomings.

Abstract Background The quality of nursing homes (NHs) has attracted a lot of interest in recent years and is one of the most challenging issues for policy-makers. Nutritional care should be considered an important variable to be measured from the perspective of quality management. The aim of this systematic review is to describe the use of structural, process, and outcome indicators of nutritional care in NHs and the relationship among them. Methods The literature search was carried out in Pubmed, Embase, Scopus, and Web of Science. A temporal filter was applied in order to select papers published in the last 10 years. All types of studies were included, with the exception of reviews, conference proceedings, editorials, and letters to the editor. Papers published in languages other than English, Italian, and Spanish were excluded. Results From the database search, 1063 potentially relevant studies were obtained. Of these, 19 full-text articles were considered eligible for the final synthesis. Most of the studies adopted an observational cross-sectional design. They generally assessed the quality of nutritional care using several indicators, usually including a mixture of many different structural, process, and outcome indicators. Only one of the 19 studies described the quality of care by comparing the results with the threshold values. Nine papers assessed the relationship between indicators and six of them described some significant associations—in the NHs that have a policy related to nutritional risk assessment or a suitable scale to weigh the residents, the prevalence or risk of malnutrition is lower. Finally, only four papers of these nine included risk adjustment. This could limit the comparability of the results. Conclusion Our findings show that a consensus must be reached for defining a set of indicators and standards to improve quality in NHs. Establishing the relationship between structural, process, and outcome indicators is a challenge. There are grounds for investigating this theme by means of prospective longitudinal studies that take the risk adjustment into account.

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Background: Due to the presence of valuable and expensive equipments in hospitals’ warehouses, scientific management and continuous evaluation plays an important role to improve the performance of warehouses and whereby the performance of hospitals’ wards. This study aimed to evaluate the performance of the central stores of hospitals affiliated to Tehran University of Medical Sciences (TUMS). Materials and Methods: In order to conduct this cross-sectional study, a checklist was designed and validated to examine the warehouses’ status considering structural, process and outcome dimensions of 39 depots in 14 hospitals. The status of hospitals’ warehouses were assessed using descriptive analysis and in order to assess association between performance evaluation score and charchetristics of warehouses and its staff Pearson Correlation Coefficient was utilized. Results: Although, warehouses’ performance of studied hospitals in general was satisfactory, there were some items in unsuitable condition particularly in structural and process dimensions which should be addressed quickly. Also, performance of warehouses revealed a positive and significant correlation with number of beds, area and size of warehouse and number of staff (p <0.05). Conclusion: Given that fair warehouses status, some items particularly in structural and process dimensions were in inappropriate condition which needed rapid consideration. Furthermore, hospitals with more beds have more and bigger warehouses achieved better evaluation score, but some of warehouses without these condition should be addressed in priority. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article argues that a distinct focus on background system supports can take place through structural indicators, at both national and institutional levels. Development of structural indicators is already taking place for the UN right to the highest attainable standard of health and in recent publications of the European Commission in education contexts. Structural indicators are generally framed as potentially verifiable yes/no answers, they address whether or not key structures, mechanisms or principles are in place in a system. As relatively enduring features or key conditions of a system, they are, however, potentially malleable. A systems of care focus is resonant with structural indicators and moves beyond isolated, fragmented service provision to an integrated whole system of supports. Structural indicators can aid such strategic planning for systems of care. This focus on structural indicators goes beyond a traditional qualitative/quantitative distinction and beyond reliance on sharing models of good practice to seek to identify key structural conditions for good practice. Structural indicators offer a bridge between central strategic direction and local flexibility. The weight of evidence required for a structural indicator may depend on its scope and purpose. Structural indicators can combine a rights, principles and strategic policy based focus with one that is informed by implementation science issues and evidence. They offer a policy relevant bridge between research and practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Urgency of the research. Increasing the efficiency of an enterprise as a set of business processes is possible only if accuracy of the assessment of all the system components improves. This factor determines relevance of the research carried out, which deals with improvement of the methodological principles of business processes quantitative assessment. Target setting. A large number of indicators for assessing business processes in accordance with different characteristics have been proposed by researchers in this field of science, but insufficient attention is paid to the issue of quantitative assessment of importance of a particular business process in the enterprise system. Actual scientific researches and issues analysis. The scientists who made the greatest contribution to the study of the assessment indicators of enterprise business process are V. G. Yeliferov, V. V Repin, K. K. Chuprov, L. A., Koserod, S. V. Kovalyov, V. V. Kovalyov. Uninvestigated parts of general matters defining. Assessment of the business processes importance for the enterprise is considered in the works of D.V. Khlebnikov, A. Ye. Makhmetova, but only the methods of expert estimation are used in the process of measurement. This approach significantly reduces objectivity and reliability of the research results. The research objective. The purpose of the article is to form methodical principles of quantitative assessment of the business processes importance in the enterprise system. The statement of basic materials. The methodical principles of determination of structural indicators of the business processes importance in accordance with their contribution to the added value are suggested in the article. The structural importance of the business process can be determined by the reverse method, particularly by the difference between the value of resources and the price of the business process product in case of its purchase at the market. Also, the article gives an example of application of the proposed approach to the machine-building enterprise. Conclusions. Structural indicators of the business processes importance can be used to optimize the enterprise business system, for instance, to make strategic decisions about integrating a particular process into the system, or vice versa, extracting a process from the system on the basis of outsourcing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The quality of nursing homes (NHs) has attracted a lot of interest in recent years and is one of the most challenging issues for policy-makers. Nutritional care should be considered an important variable to be measured from the perspective of quality management. The aim of this systematic review is to describe the use of structural, process, and outcome indicators of nutritional care in NHs and the relationship among them.Methods: The literature search was carried out in Pubmed, Embase, Scopus, and Web of Science. A temporal filter was applied in order to select papers published in the last 10 years. All types of studies were included, with the exception of reviews, conference proceedings, editorials, and letters to the editor. Papers published in languages other than English, Italian, and Spanish were excluded.Results: From the database search, 1063 potentially relevant studies were obtained. Of these, 19 full-text articles were considered eligible for the final synthesis. Most of the studies adopted an observational cross-sectional design. They generally assessed the quality of nutritional care using several indicators, usually including a mixture of many different structural, process, and outcome indicators. Only one of the 19 studies described the quality of care by comparing the results with the threshold values. Nine papers assessed the relationship between indicators and six of them described some significant associations-in the NHs that have a policy related to nutritional risk assessment or a suitable scale to weigh the residents, the prevalence or risk of malnutrition is lower. Finally, only four papers of these nine included risk adjustment. This could limit the comparability of the results.Conclusion: Our findings show that a consensus must be reached for defining a set of indicators and standards to improve quality in NHs. Establishing the relationship between structural, process, and outcome indicators is a challenge. There are grounds for investigating this theme by means of prospective longitudinal studies that take the risk adjustment into account. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main role of corporate governance is to restore market confidence and in this process plays an important role the audit committee. The purpose of this case study is to analyze the correlations between the Audit Committee and structural indicators. Considering the achievement of the objectives proposed in this research, our research is based on a deductive approach from general aspects to particular aspects that combines quantitative and qualitative studies. Theoretical knowledge is used for a better understanding of a phenomenon and not for making assumptions. Thus, in order to achieve our study, we selected 25 companies listed on Berlin Stock Exchange. Following this study, we concluded that the role of the audit committee is crucial.

The paper is devoted to propose a public debt risk assessment model, which allows predicting country's economic well-being trends. The proposed model evaluates different aspects of public debt-related structural indicators. Evaluation of research results enables to use multi-objective evaluation method to determine the risk of public debt. The data analysis indicates EU's ability to cope with the increasing level of public debt and predict long term fiscal consequences.

The Lisbon Strategy is a key document of the EU, which deals with the priorities and measures for the stimulation of economic, social and ecological renewal of member states in the period 2000-2010. There are more than 130 structural measures from the fields of national development, employment, research and innovations, economic reforms, social coherence and living environment, which can be used for the evaluation and quantification as well as the modernization of European economics and the improvement of its global competitiveness. The structural measures for international comparisons have been developed by Eurostat and they are used by the European Council as the basic data for the evaluation of the level of attainments of the goals of the Lisbon Strategy. In the last few years, a list of 15 key indicators has been developed. They are: GDP per head in parity of purchasing capacity, labour productivity in parity of purchasing capacity, employment rate, employment rate of women, employment rate of elderly people, number of persons with secondary school certificate from the ages between 20 and 24, science and research expenditures as a share of GDP, investments as a share of GDP, price level, exposure to poverty, level of long term unemployment, emission of glasshouse effect, energy consumption as a share of GDP, goods traffic as a share of GDP and regional dispersion of the unemployment rate. The goal of this paper is to propose some methodological approaches that are suitable for analyzing these indicators. The proposal for a correct methodology is highly complicated due to the miscellanea of the variables involved. The multiple dimensional statistical methods seem to be useful especially because of its ability to evaluate complex sets of variables.

This paper presents a critical investigation on the applicability within e-dictionaries of basic microstructural concepts and typologies proposed by Wiegand. Focusing on information accessibility for the user, the categories developed for printed dictionaries are put to the test in the electronic environment analysing monolingual online dictionaries of the English, French, German, and Italian languages. As Gouws has already pointed out, new types of data organization are to be found among innovative online dictionaries. They make, in fact, an extensive use of structural indicators and data-identifying entries, thus taking charge of some of the coherence functions that were previously fulfilled by microstructures, typically using strict bipartitions between comments on form and comments on semantics. Therefore, since the microstructure is no longer chiefly responsible for marking the general data typology, i.e. items on form and items on meaning, it is used in the electronic environment to provide other types of coherent arrangements. On the other hand, microstructural typologies of printed dictionaries seem to offer parameters that are still of use in order to identify the type of data integration presented by the dictionary, provided that the concept of some basic structural categories, such as comments, is extended and gains a wider range of possible applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Litter decomposition exhibits large variability at the regional scale (83 streams). • Litter decomposition does not correlate with the European WFD structural indicators. • Functional and structural indicators are complementary. • A grid is given to translate decomposition rates into functional quality classes. There is increasing recognition that indicators of ecosystem functioning are needed to improve current stream monitoring schemes. However, to date, no attempt has been made to include functional metrics in large-scale routine monitoring programs under the European Water Framework Directive (WFD). One reason is the uncertainty if functional indicators really carry new and independent information about stream status or, to the contrary, remain broadly redundant with existing indicators of biological stream quality (based on stream communities). A second reason is that, despite increasing scientific knowledge on how anthropogenic pressures influence ecosystem process rates, no 'ready for use' tool is available to translate them into stream ecosystem status. Litter decomposition probably ranges among the most documented stream ecosystem processes, and its potential for bioindication has been repeatedly demonstrated during the past decade. Here we report an extensive comparison of routine French structural indicators (I 2 M 2 , IBGN, IBD) with alder litter (microbial and total) decomposition rates in 83 streams located in south-western France. Expectedly, microbial decomposition rates were positively correlated with fungal biomass and activity (conidial production rate), while total and invertebrate-driven decomposition rates increased together with detritivore density and diversity in litter bags. By contrast, correlations between litter decomposition rates and routine structural indicators were clearly weak (Spearman's ρ < 0.20), providing evidence that functional indicators bring new information. We devised a new interpretation grid to translate litter decomposition rates into stream ecological quality in a WFD-compatible design. This system considers the litter decomposition rates measured in both coarse (total decomposition) and fine (microbial decomposition) mesh bags as uncorrelated metrics of ecosystem functioning (P = 0.898). Streams are considered functionally impaired when total and/or microbial decomposition rates are either higher or lower than in a reference condition. Applying our classification system to the 83 study sites allowed to assign them to 5 functional quality classes: bad (4 streams), poor (26), fair (29), good (21) and high (3). This classification did not match the classes obtained by conventional WFD structural indicators, reflecting that both functional and structural indicators are needed to obtain a comprehensive assessment of stream ecosystem integrity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mountaintop removal coal mining (MTR) has been a major source of landscape change in the Central Appalachians of the United States (US). Changes in stream hydrology, channel geomorphology and water quality caused by MTR coal mining can lead to severe impairment of stream ecological integrity. The objective of the Clean Water Act (CWA) is to restore and maintain the ecological integrity of the Nation's waters. Sensitive, readily measured indicators of ecosystem structure and function are needed for the assessment of stream ecological integrity. Most CWA assessments rely on structural indicators; inclusion of functional indicators could make these assessments more holistic and effective. The goals of this study were: (1) test the efficacy of selected carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) cycling and microbial structural and functional indicators for assessing MTR coal mining impacts on streams; (2) determine whether indicators respond to impacts in a predictable manner; and (3) determine if functional indicators are less likely to change than are structural indicators in response to stressors associated with MTR coal mining. The structural indicators are water quality and sediment organic matter concentrations, and the functional indicators relate to microbial activity and biofilm production. Seasonal measurements were conducted over the course of a year in streams draining small MTR-impacted and forested watersheds in the Twentymile Creek watershed of West Virginia (WV). Five of the eight structural parameters measured had significant responses, with all means greater in the MTR-impacted streams than in the forested streams. These responses resulted from changes in source or augmentation of the original source of the C and N structural parameters because of MTR coal mining. Nitrate concentration and the stable carbon isotopic ratio of dissolved inorganic carbon were the most effective indicators evaluated in this study. Only three of the fourteen functional indicators measured had significant responses to MTR coal mining, with all means greater in the forested streams than in the MTR-impacted streams. These results suggest that stressors associated with MTR coal mining caused reduction in some aspects of microbial cycling, but resource subsidies may have counterbalanced some of the inhibition leading to no observable change in most of the functional indicators. The detritus base, which is thought to confer functional stability, was likely sustained in the MTR-impacted streams by channel storage and/or leaf litter inputs from their largely intact riparian zones. Overall, our results largely support the hypothesis that certain functional processes are more resistant to stress induced change than structural properties but also suggest the difficulty of identifying suitable functional indicators for ecological integrity assessment., Competing Interests: Conflict of interest All authors were employed by USEPA and CEMM at the time the study was conducted. RP is currently employed by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. Mention of trade names or commercial products does not constitute endorsement or recommendation for use by the USEPA.

Loss of biodiversity is one of the most severe threats to sustainability, and land use and land use changes are still the single most important factor. Still, there is no sign of any consensus on how to include impacts on biodiversity from land use and land use changes in LCIA. In this paper, different characteristics of biodiversity are discussed and related to proposals on how to include land use and land use changes in LCIA. We identify the question of why we should care about biodiversity as a key question, since different motivations will result in different choices for the indicators, and we call for more openness in the motivation for indicator selection. We find a promising trend in combining pressure indicators with geographic weighting and regard this as a promising way ahead. More knowledge on the consequences of different choices, such as the selection of a reference state, is still needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this article is to identify diversity between the EU-15 and the New Members in their implementation of the Lisbon Strategy in the period 2000- 2010. By analyzing a set of structural indicators, we aim to fill a gap in the literature: the lack of publications providing complex evaluation of the implementation of the Lisbon Strategy using measurable indicators. Given their suitability for international comparisons, we use two taxonomic methods: Ward's cluster analysis and the synthetic variable method proposed by Hellwig. The results of our analyses confirm the hypothesis of a large gap between the EU-15 countries and the 12 New Members in the key areas of the Lisbon Strategy. According to rankings given by our taxonomic analyses, a high level of the indicators selected is confirmed only for the EU-15 countries and only three New Members belong to a group presenting the average level of these indicators. This study demonstrates a need for a significant intensification of the EU cohesion policy, which is one of the main tools for achieving the Lisbon Strategy goals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Few researchers have assessed the important management questions regarding the sensitivity of indicators of aquatic ecosystem condition and the specificity with which anthropogenic development activities are described. Furthermore, there is limited knowledge as to the potential of structural and functional indicators to generate complementary knowledge about ecological condition that can be used to inform watershed management. We assessed 20 metrics of ecological structure and function at 19 riverine sites across the Red River watershed in the summer of 2010 using a gradient approach to test predictions that: (1) indicator sensitivity would vary with the specificity at which landscape development is described (i.e., coarse - land use [e.g., agriculture], medium - specific human activities [e.g., crop cultivation] and fine - management practices [e.g., crop rotation]); and (2) structural and functional indicators respond to different types and specificity of anthropogenic development. Evaluation of indicators revealed that indicator sensitivity was frequently greater for assessment of specific human activities (i.e., wastewater treatment, crop cultivation or livestock production), than for broad land-use categories (i.e., agriculture or urban). Structural and functional indicators were often associated with different types of anthropogenic development suggesting additive rather than redundant assessment information. Structural indicators were almost exclusively associated with crop cultivation and agricultural land cover. In contrast, functional indicators were generally associated with gradients of wastewater treatment and urban land cover. Our results demonstrate that aquatic ecosystem assessment programs would benefit from considering the specific anthropogenic development activity to be assessed and managed in order to evaluate and select the most sensitive indicators of stream condition. Furthermore, combined use of structural and functional indicators in aquatic monitoring program appears to improve detection of anthropogenic impacts in a multiple stressor environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fuzzy logic handles vague problems in various areas. The fuzzy numbers can represent either quantitative or qualitative variables. The quantitative fuzzy variables can embody crisp numbers, aggregates of historical data or forecasts. The qualitative fuzzy variables may be applied when dealing with ordinal scales. The MULTIMOORA method (Multiplicative and Multi-Objective Ratio Analysis) was updated with fuzzy number theory. The MULTIMOORA method consists of three parts, namely Ratio System, Reference Point and Full Multiplicative Form. Accordingly, each of them was modified with triangular fuzzy number theory. The fuzzy MULTIMOORA summarizes the three approaches. The problem remains how to summarize them. It cannot be done by summation as they are composed of ranks (ordinal). Indeed summation of ranks is against any mathematical logic. Another method, the Dominance Method, is used to rank the EU Member States according to their performance in reaching the indicator goals of the Lisbon Strategy 2000–2008. This ranking will group the best performing countries in a Core Group, followed by a Second Group, the Semi-periphery Group. Group 3, the Periphery Group, will encompass the less performing states. Santrauka Neraiškioji logika padeda įvertinti ir spręsti neapibrežtas problemas įvairiose srityse. Neraiškieji skaičiai gali išreikšti tiek kiekybinius, tiek kokybinius kintamuosius. Kiekybiniai neraiškieji kintamieji gali apimti tradicinius realiuosius skaičius, susintetintus istorinius duomenis (laiko eilutes) ar prognozuojamas tendencijas. Kokybiniai neraiškieji kintamieji gali būti naudojami dirbant su rangų skalėmis (lingvistiniai kintamieji). Taigi daugiakriterinio vertinimo metodų praplėtimas neraiškiųjų skaičių aibių teorija yra svarbus klausimas. MULTIMOORA metodas buvo papildytas neraiškiųjų skaičių teorija. Viršūnės metodas pritaikytas skaičiuojant atstumus tarp neapibrėžtųjų skaičių. Ploto centro metodas pritaikytas konvertuojant neraiškiuosius skaičius į realiuosius. MULTIMOORA metodą sudaro trys dalys: santykių sistema, atskaitos taškas ir pilnoji sandaugos forma. Kiekviena dalis buvo modifikuota papildant ją trečiojo laipsnio neraiškiaisiais skaičiais. Neraiškioji santykių sistema apima vidinį normalizavimą, kriterijų apibendrinimą ir konvertavimą į apibrėžtuosius skaičius. Neraiškioji atskaitos taško sistema remiasi atskaitos taško (vektoriaus) nustatymu ir kiekvienos alternatyvos atstumo iki jo matavimu taikant viršūnės metodą. Neraiškioji pilnoji sandaugos forma sujungia grynosios multiplikatyvinės naudingumo funkcijos maksimizavimą ir konvertavimą į realiuosius skaičius. Neraiškusis MULTIMOORA metodas apibendrina šiuos tris požiūrius. Straipsnyje išspręsta rangų apibendrinimo problema, iškylanti apibendrinant keliais daugiakriterinio optimizavimo metodais gautus rangus. Šiam tikslui pasiųlyta ir pritaikyta dominavimo teorija, apibūdinanti įvairias alternatyvų palyginimo procedūras remiantis skirtingais tos pačios alternatyvos rangais. ES valstybių narių pažanga įgyvendinant Lisabonos strategijos tikslus 2000–2008 m. įvertinta taikant neraiškųjį MULTIMOORA metodą ir dominavimo teoriją. Analizes rezultatai rodo, kad pirmauja Švedija, Liuksemburgas, Suomija, Austrija, Nyderlandai, Danija, Belgija, Jungtinė Karalystė ir Vokietija. Antrajai grupei priklauso Prancūzija, Airija, Ispanija, Italija, Slovėnija, Portugalija, Čekija, Graikija ir Estija. Labiausiai atsilieka Vengrija, Kipras, Lenkija, Lietuva, Slovakija, Latvija, Malta, Rumunija ir Bulgarija. Reikšminiai žodžiai: daugiakriterinis optimizavimas, MOORA, MULTIMOORA, struktūriniai rodikliai, Lisabonos strategija, strateginis valdymas, Europos Sąjunga, darnus vystymas, neraiškieji skaičiai, trečiojo laipsnio skaičiai, dominavimo teorija, tranzityvumas

According to the Lisbon Strategy, which was adopted in 2000, the European Union (EU) should become the most competitive region in the World. Goals, defined in the strategy, and instruments for seeking them are identified by structural indicators as well as their systems. It is possible to evaluate specific country's situation and compare it with other countries by using various specific indexes or applying statistical – mathematical methods. The aim of this article is to describe main structural indicators, which identify the implementation of Lisbon Strategy as well as progress in sustainable development and to evaluate Lithuania's and other Baltic States’ position in the EU using statistical methods. In order to achieve this aim, the following tasks were raised: 1) to describe and classify structural indicators; 2) to overview main methods of quantitative analysis and to apply them when evaluating Lithuania's and other Baltic States’ position in the EU. Lithuania's progress in achieving Lisbon Strategy goals was evaluated using the system of 13 shortlist structural indicators from Eurostat database and applying MULTIMOORA (Multi‐Objective Optimization by Ratio Analysis plus Full Multiplicative Form) method. The analysis showed that Lithuania is among top EU countries by such indicators as employment rate, youth education attainment rate, comparative price level and greenhouse gas emission. Thus there are no serious environmental problems in Lithuania and its production can successfully compete at international markets due to relative low production costs. Lithuania is backward by GDP per capita, labour productivity and employment rate of older workers. In addition, energy intensity of the economy needs to be optimized. Considering all the above, technologic backwardness is characteristic for Lithuania's industry (due to low labour productivity on the one hand and high energy intensity on the other) which can be eradicated by encouraging innovations and R&D activities. Baltic region is quite homogenous in innovation and research as well as in economic reform areas, thus it can become attractive for investors. Lithuania and Estonia could be assigned to medium performance group and Latvia is on the very limit of the low performance group. Santrauka Pagrindinis Lisabonos strategijos, priimtos 2000 m., tikslas – Europos Sąjunga turi tapti konkurencingiausiu regionu pasaulyje. Tikslai, nurodyti šioje strategijoje, ir jiems siekti naudojamos priemones identifikuojamos remiantis struktūriniais rodikliais ir ju sistemomis. Įvertinti tam tikros valstybės situaciją ir palyginti ją su kitomis valstybėmis galima naudojantis specifiniais indeksais arba universaliais matematiniais‐statistiniais metodais. Straipsnio tikslas – nurodyti pagrindinius Lisabonos strategijoje numatytu tikslų įgyvendinimą identifikuojančius struktūrinius rodiklius ir įvertinti Lietuvos padėti Europos Sąjungoje. Tikslui pasiekti keliami šie uždaviniai: 1) apibūdinti ir klasifikuoti struktūrinius rodiklius; 2) apžvelgti pagrindinius struktūriniais rodikliais paremtus kiekybinės analizės metodus ir pritaikyti juos vertinant Lietuvos padėti Europos Sąjungoje. Naudojantis daugiatiksles optimizacijos metodais MOORA ir MULTIMOORA įvertinta Lietuvos pažangą (2008 m.) siekiant Lisabonos strategijoje numatytu tikslų. Tyrimo rezultatai parodė, kad Lietuva yra tarp pirmaujančių ES valstybiu tokiose srityse, kaip užimtumo lygis, jaunimo išsilavinimo lygis, santykinis kainų lygis ir šiltnamio efekta sukeliančių dujų emisiją. Taigi Lietuva neturi didelių aplinkosaugos problemų ir gali sekmingai konkuruoti tarptautineje rinkoje dėl palyginti mažų produkcijos sąnaudu. Labiausiai atsiliekama pagal BVP, tenkanti 1 gyventojui, darbo jėgos našumą ir vyresnių darbuotojų užimtumo lygį. Taip pat reikia mažinti energijos vartojimo intensyvumą (skatinti moderniu energetikos technologijų diegimą). Taigi Lietuvos ūkiui būdingas technologinis atsilikimas (žemas darbo jėgos našumas ir didelis energijos vartojimo intensyvumas), kuri galima panaikinti skatinant inovacijas ir MTEP veikla. Tam tikslui tūretų būti skiriama didžiausia ES struktūrines paramos dalis. Baltijos valstybiu rodikliu, identifikuojančiu inovacijų ir ekonominių reformų procesus, reikšmes yra panašios ir gana dideles tarp ES valstybių, taigi šis regionas gali tapti patraukliu investicijoms. Visas ES valstybes salygiškai galima suskirstyti į tris grupes, atsižvelgiant į jų pažangą siekiant Lisabonos strategijos tikslų. Lietuva ir Estija priskirtinos vidutinės pažangos grupei, o Latvija yra ties žemos pažangos grupės riba. First published online: 10 Feb 2011 Reikšminiai žodžiai: daugiatiksle optimizacija, MOORA, MULTIMOORA, struktūriniai rodikliai, Lisabonos strategija, strateginis valdymas, darnus vystymas, Europos Sąjunga, tarptautinis palyginimas

There are significant lacunae in the otherwise highly progressive documents on early school leaving prevention from the European Commission and Council in 2011, as part of the EU2020 headline target of 10% early school leavers across the EU. These documents offer no explicit account or analysis of the voices of children and young people, nor vision of systemic accountability of schools to students' needs. This article argues that key problems of early school leaving can be interpreted as system level blockages in communication, including blockage in communication of children's voices. It seeks to develop a conceptual framework for understanding relational systems by reinterpreting a particular dimension of the structuralist anthropology of Lévi- Strauss' cross-cultural examination of systems of relation, namely, the interplay between diametric oppositional and concentric relational spaces. The theoretical framework proposed in this article will also seek to translate structural features of system change into structural indicators for system scrutiny and accountability. Identification of key structural indicators is to facilitate change beyond blocked, diametric school space and towards concentric relational spaces in the school system - based on diverse accounts of students' voices and needs in specific European contexts, as part of a potential strategy at European level to prevent early school leaving. Emerging issues highlighted as an agenda for reform include authoritarian teaching, alternatives to suspension, splits in communication, emotional supports, teacher conflict resolution skills and substantive structures and processes for active student voices in school. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents information about the impact of bioenergy harvesting on stand structure, including characteristics important for biodiversity and habitat functions. It mentions that biometrics generated from field data were analyzed by using nonparametric, unistatistical and multivariate statistical approach. It also states that harvesting impacts were highly variable and harvesting guidelines must aim at encouraging retention of ecologically important structural attributes.

New indicators, including the outgrow index, characterizing an article in its ego citation network are introduced. We take full advantage of the existing duality (cites-is cited by) in a citation network. Although algebraic aspects are emphasized, a first step towards their interpretation is attempted. Examples of their calculation and of future applications are provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In a network of six old-growth and three managed beech forests, distributed over a wide altitudinal range in the Central Apennines, we used principal component analysis to analyse a set of 15 commonly used structural and chronological indicators of old-growthness, related to both live trees and deadwood. Our goals were to (1) quantify the effectiveness of such indicators for ranking forests according to their degree of old-growthness and (2) disentangle the effects of site-related (e.g. elevation) and human-related (e.g. past management) factors on their variation. We selected eight indicators as best descriptors of forest old-growthness: mean age of the five oldest trees; snag volume; coarse woody debris (CWD) volume; density of medium-size snags [diameter at breast height (DBH) ≥ 47.5 cm]; forest stature; basal area; established regeneration and density of large trees (DBH ≥ 67.5 cm). We analysed their relative importance in informing us about the degree of old-growthness in our forests. Our findings suggest that several old-growthness indicators are to be considered carefully, because they are strongly linked to site conditions and particularly to the biogeoclimatic context. Moreover, we provide evidence for how past management can produce negative effects on some indicators. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This article reviews and assesses, in terms of availability, reliability and transparency, existing policy and outcome indicators that have been found to be linked both directly and indirectly to economic growth and living standards. Indicators aiming at capturing the political and social situation of countries, as well as governance-related issues, are examined (e.g., political system, political stability, corruption, crime and violence). Topics also include product and labour markets, infrastructure, trade, financial indicators and composite indices of reform. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In Europe, sustainable development (SD) is pursued with not one but two overarching strategies, i.e., the so-called Lisbon and SD strategies. While the Lisbon Strategy is a genuinely European response to global economic and social pressures, SD strategies are national efforts corresponding with international (mainly United Nations) guidance to better coordinate and integrate economic, social and, in particular, environmental policies. The present paper explores the vertical coordination and coherence of the two pan-European strategies. After reviewing the international background of SD strategies and the EU origins of the Lisbon strategy, the paper characterizes and compares the governance architectures of the two strategies. With a solid background on how vertical policy integration functions in the two processes, the paper then shows how this affects the coherence of respective strategy structures and monitoring indicators. Based on an extensive empirical stocktaking study of the objectives and indicators in Lisbon and SD strategies across Europe it is shown that, despite the stronger European coordination through the Open Method of Coordination, the Lisbon process entailed only slightly more coherent national strategies than international guidance did in the context of SD strategies. Thus, the paper concludes that the influence international organizations such as the UN and the OECD have on national policy-making must not be underestimated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Little research has been done on the implementation of structural indicators for economic comparative analyses and on implications of the European Union (EU) enlargement in 2004 on the competitiveness of the EU countries. In this paper we use structural indicators to quantitatively assess competitiveness of the Polish economy before and after its accession to the European Union compared to the situation in the leading EU countries. Results can be helpful to more effectively allocate available resources and to improve the efficiency in terms of strategic planning in enterprises and political organisations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, we discuss how to monitor the structural and functional attributes of old growth, as well as its associated plant communities and wildlife, both to determine the possible need for treatment and to assess post-treatment progress toward desired conditions. Monitoring can be used to detect conditions (or agents) that threaten existing old growth and also to document indicators of healthy, functioning old-growth systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: As European integration increasingly affects pan-European nature conservation, indicators for the assessment of habitats are urgently needed to support ecosystem integrity monitoring as well as the target of halting biodiversity loss by 2010. The Natura 2000 network of protected sites with a strong focus on the protection of habitat types and strict monitoring obligations is now legally binding for all Member States. From a set of indicators that have been proposed for habitat monitoring by the SPIN project (Spatial Indicators for European Nature Conservation) we describe measures of landscape structure and soil function and their potential for the monitoring and management of protected areas and the surrounding landscape. In a case study from Austria, we show that structure-related indicators hold potential for the documentation of local-scale changes on a degraded raised bog Natura 2000 site. In a regional scale case study in northern Germany, we show how landscape metrics relate agricultural statistics, e.g. farm size and livestock density to landscape structure. In a third case study from Slovenia, we show how coarse-scale soil data can be disaggregated to finer scale by integrating topographic information and additional parameters for modelling, and production of soil-related habitat suitability maps. From these case studies we provide an overview of some of the critical issues affecting the selection and application of spatial indicators for nature conservation monitoring tasks. End users of spatial indicators work at different scales and in different biogeographical regions. The indicator selection and application demonstrated in our three case studies reveals the capability to contribute to a more quantitative evidence base for monitoring and management of biodiversity in Europe. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Given the expansion of plantation forests in Ireland over recent years, there is a need to assess their impact on biodiversity and to identify how sustainable forest management strategies can incorporate biodiversity. We aimed to assess the impact of plantation forests on spider communities and identify structural indicators of their diversity. Pitfall traps were used to sample spiders in Sitka spruce (Picea sitchensis) and ash (Fraxinus excelsior) plantations at different stages of the forest cycle and cover of vegetation, dead wood and soil organic content were measured within each site. Ordinations revealed that spider assemblages were separated by both forest development and canopy species across the forest cycle. The pre-thicket ash and spruce assemblages were similar, whereas canopy species had a greater effect in the more structurally developed stands. The mature ash plots formed a distinct group from the other stands. Overall species richness was highest in the spruce and ash pre-thicket stands, and in the mature spruce stands with a more open canopy. Mature ash stands had the lowest species richness. Lower field layer vegetation was positively correlated with total spider species richness and open habitat specialist species richness whereas canopy closure had a negative effect on these species variables. Forest spider species were positively correlated with litter cover, litter depth and twig cover. To enhance the diversity of open and forest spider species within a stand, the growth of lower field layer vegetation should be encouraged at all stages of the forest cycle, whilst retaining features typical of a mature forest. Within a plantation, a mosaic of different aged stands will sustain both open and forest specialists to enhance diversity. The distinct assemblages found in the mature plantations indicate that on a landscape scale, the establishment of both ash and spruce plantations will enhance overall diversity. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

In 1999 Minnesota was ranked as one of ten states that provide quality child care and education, based primarily on licensing requirements. Yet in response to growing concerns about staff turnover and low quality, a partnership of child care resource and referral staff and university researchers conducted an assessment of the quality of child care in four Minnesota counties. The study provides a framework for assessing child care quality at the local level based on structural indicators using data from multiple sources and methods. The study finds that most child care in Minnesota is not likely to meet the standards for high quality care. Highly qualified teaching staff are difficult to recruit and retain, staff turnover is high and few child care homes and centers are accredited. Additional quality incentives and mandates are needed to insure that the quality of child care fully supports children's developmental and educational success. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, we discuss how to monitor the structural and functional attributes of old growth, as well as its associated plant communities and wildlife, both to determine the possible need for treatment and to assess post-treatment progress toward desired conditions. Monitoring can be used to detect conditions (or agents) that threaten existing old growth and also to document indicators of healthy, functioning old-growth systems.