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The purpose of this paper is to propose a framework for data analytics where everything is grey in nature and the associated uncertainty is considered as an essential part in data collection, profiling, imputation, analysis and decision making.

A comparative study is conducted between the available uncertainty models and the feasibility of grey systems is highlighted. Furthermore, a general framework for the integration of grey systems and grey sets into data analytics is proposed.

Grey systems and grey sets are useful not only for small data, but also big data as well. It is complementary to other models and can play a significant role in data analytics.

The proposed framework brings a radical change in data analytics. It may bring a fundamental change in our way to deal with uncertainties.

The proposed model has the potential to avoid the mistake from a misleading data imputation.

The proposed model takes the philosophy of grey systems in recognising the limitation of our knowledge which has significant implications in our way to deal with our social life and relations.

This is the first time that the whole data analytics is considered from the point of view of grey systems.

This paper aims to propose an integration of the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) and data envelopment analysis (DEA) methods in a multiattribute grey relational analysis (GRA) methodology in which the attribute weights are completely unknown and the attribute values take the form of fuzzy numbers.

This research has been organized to proceed along the following steps: computing the grey relational coefficients for alternatives with respect to each attribute using a fuzzy GRA methodology. Grey relational coefficients provide the required (output) data for additive DEA models; computing the priority weights of attributes using the AHP method to impose weight bounds on attribute weights in additive DEA models; computing grey relational grades using a pair of additive DEA models to assess the performance of each alternative from the optimistic and pessimistic perspectives; and combining the optimistic and pessimistic grey relational grades using a compromise grade to assess the overall performance of each alternative.

The proposed approach provides a more reasonable and encompassing measure of performance, based on which the overall ranking position of alternatives is obtained. An illustrated example of a nuclear waste dump site selection is used to highlight the usefulness of the proposed approach.

This research is a step forward to overcome the current shortcomings in the weighting schemes of attributes in a fuzzy multiattribute GRA methodology.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the extent of voluntary disclosures in UK higher education institutions’ (HEIs) annual reports and examine whether internal governance structures influence disclosure in the period following major reform and funding constraints.

The authors adopt a modified version of Coy and Dixon’s (2004) public accountability index, referred to in this paper as a public accountability and transparency index (PATI), to measure the extent of voluntary disclosures in 130 UK HEIs’ annual reports. Informed by a multi-theoretical framework drawn from public accountability, legitimacy, resource dependence and stakeholder perspectives, the authors propose that the characteristics of governing and executive structures in UK universities influence the extent of their voluntary disclosures.

The authors find a large degree of variability in the level of voluntary disclosures by universities and an overall relatively low level of PATI (44 per cent), particularly with regards to the disclosure of teaching/research outcomes. The authors also find that audit committee quality, governing board diversity, governor independence and the presence of a governance committee are associated with the level of disclosure. Finally, the authors find that the interaction between executive team characteristics and governance variables enhances the level of voluntary disclosures, thereby providing support for the continued relevance of a “shared” leadership in the HEIs’ sector towards enhancing accountability and transparency in HEIs.

In spite of significant funding cuts, regulatory reforms and competitive challenges, the level of voluntary disclosure by UK HEIs remains low. Whilst the role of selected governance mechanisms and “shared leadership” in improving disclosure, is asserted, the varying level and selective basis of the disclosures across the surveyed HEIs suggest that the public accountability motive is weaker relative to the other motives underpinned by stakeholder, legitimacy and resource dependence perspectives.

This is the first study which explores the association between HEI governance structures, managerial characteristics and the level of disclosure in UK HEIs.

The feasibility and desirability of reverse logistics in market-motivated contexts are examined in China. Interactions between the major barriers, that hinder or prevent the application of reverse logistics in China are analyzed. Management’s key task is to diagnose barriers to the application of reverse logistics that could be crucial to the organization’s future survival. Simultaneity, a value delivery system exists to create value for customers and environments by supplying needed products and services. Value delivery systems are at the heart of every firm and, more than anything else, determine that, whether the firm survives in the marketplace or disappears into bankruptcy or takeover. The processes and model of market-motivated reverse logistics value delivery system are discussed, and the processes content and model are presented. Simultaneity, based on the advantage of the Third Party Reverse Logistics Providers (3PRLs) and Outsourced Service Providers, an integrated evaluation model is built to select 3PRLs by using the integrated decision-making methods. Reflecting the comprehensive information requirement, the Analytic Hierarchy Process and entropy approaches are applied to calculate the objective weights. A new kind of relative similarity degree is established by combining the Euclidean distance with the grey correlation degree. An example demonstrates the model’s efficiency.

This paper presents an alternative approach to evaluating the overall efficiency and performance of Taiwanese container ports. Specifically, a parallel activity with series structure concept in the form of data envelopment analysis (MNDEA) is used to construct a model that applies to three different activities: harbor management, stevedoring and warehousing operations. We will further divide each activity into two process types, production processes and services processes. We will also adopt a Delphi survey approach and use the Analytic Network Process (ANP) to identify these processes’influence dependence and their degree of importance for the MNDEA model setting. An empirical application demonstrates the performance of Taiwanese container ports by using MNDEA with window analysis techniques via the directional distance functionThe results demonstrate that the application is effective in indicating and/or suggesting resource-adjustments, while considering which undesirable output levels and shared inputs were involved. The results also present directions for possible improvements in workplace efficiency.

Container shipping is generally considered a global business. This truth may not hold from a single-company perspective. The companies’ physical operation networks show that container carriers operate differently and follow different paths in their internationalisation development. Additionally, the degree of internationalisation, measured on the basis of sea-oriented operations, differs from that measured according to land-oriented front-end marketing and sales activities. The purpose of this study is to further examine the internationalisation patterns of shipping lines.

An examination of the front-end activities and the structures of leading container-shipping companies is conducted. The sales office networks of the sector’s 20 largest companies worldwide (by twenty-foot equivalent unit capacity) are analysed as key indicators. The numbers of sales offices are measured by analysing the websites of the sample (20 companies), as well as annual reports and other publicly available data sources.

The findings show that not all shipping companies are international, by virtue of the industry. While it is difficult to observe differences in the overall patterns of the sales networks at a macro level, some companies differ in their activities. The data set also shows that market share and total capacity are not necessarily good indicators of a carrier’s worldwide presence.

This research is based on secondary data. Other important transactional and market-oriented considerations should be examined before drawing conclusions about the internationalisation of container-shipping companies and of the industry.

This paper contributes to the relevant existing research, particularly by adding its view on the demand-oriented criteria as suggested by Dunning and Lundan (2008).

This study aims to deepen the understanding of the challenges and implications entailed by deploying mobile clinics in conflict zones to reach populations affected by violence and cut off from health-care services.

This research combines an integrated literature review and an instrumental case study. The literature review comprises two targeted reviews to provide insights: one on conflict zones and one on mobile clinics. The case study describes the process and challenges faced throughout a mobile clinic deployment during and after the Iraq War. The data was gathered using mixed methods over a two-year period (2017–2018).

Armed conflicts directly impact the populations’ health and access to health care. Mobile clinic deployments are often used and recommended to provide health-care access to vulnerable populations cut off from health-care services. However, there is a dearth of peer-reviewed literature documenting decision support tools for mobile clinic deployments.

This study highlights the gaps in the literature and provides direction for future research to support the development of valuable insights and decision support tools for practitioners.

At present numerical simulation of seismicity, used in mining and hydraulic fracturing practice, is quite time expensive what hampers its combined employing with observed seismicity in real time. The purpose of this paper is to suggest a mean for drastic speeding up numerical modeling seismic and aseismic events.

The authors propose the means to radically decrease the time expense for the bottleneck stage of simulation: calculations of stresses, induced by a large group of already activated flaws (sources of events), at locations of flaws of another large group, which may be activated by the stresses. This is achieved by building a hierarchical tree and properly accounting for the sizes of activated flaws, excluding check of their influence on flaws, which are beyond strictly defined near-regions of strong interaction.

Comparative simulations of seismicity by conventional and improved methods demonstrate high efficiency of the means developed. When applied to practical mining and hydrofracturing problems, it requires some two orders less time to obtain practically the same output results as those of conventional methods.

The proposed improvement provides a means for simulation of seismicity in real time of mining steps and hydrofracture propagation. It can be also used in other applications involving seismic and aseismic events and acoustic emission.