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We show that providing a low (vs. no) price discount can lower purchase propensity of low-priced products under certain conditions--when purchases are nonessential and purchase volume is small. Based on the theory of purchase value (Grewal, Monroe, and Krishnan 1998; Thaler 1983), we argue that offering a low price discount for nonessential purchases decreases perceived transaction value that in turn lowers consumers' purchase propensity. However, this boomerang effect reverses when purchase volume is larger or when the purchase is essential. We demonstrate this effect with secondary scanner panel data sets (with six different product categories) and in five laboratory experiments (with real purchases). We also document the process and delineate boundary conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Most of the Uniform Commercial Code revision and amendment projects of recent decades have drawn invaluable input and energy from the committees, subcommittees, task forces, and working groups of the ABA's Business Law Section. The projects addressed in this article are the initial promulgation of Article 2A on Leases; the repeal and revision of Article 6 on Bulk Sales; the revisions to Article 8 on Investment Securities; the revision of Article 9 on Secured Transactions; and the "Terrible Two's" projects involving UETA, the unfulfilled amendments to Articles 2 and 2A on Sales and Leases, and UCITA. Drawing on their firsthand experiences among many other sources, the authors show the wide variety of beneficial forms that the Section's input has taken. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Price quantity discount schedules are shown to present opportunities to buyers beyond those explicit in the discount schedule itself. The authors propose a taxonomy of price quantity discount schedules, and within that taxonomy examine the implications of price quantity discounts for the ordering behavior of buyers and the formation of alternative channels of distribution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT We consider a firm that owns a limited capacity for the delivery of services or for the production of customized products. Potential buyers specify the amount of capacity they will require for the execution of their intended services, goods or projects. Based on the size of the requirement, the firm makes a bid while being challenged in various ways: (1) it only knows the underlying probability function from which its customers' reservation prices are drawn, (2) arrival of additional future requests is stochastic, and, (3) the firm knows in advance neither the magnitude of these potential requests nor the buyer's reservation price. The firm aims to maximize its expected profit by choosing its pricing mechanism. The fact that capacity is demanded in varying amounts distinguishes this problem from most available literature in which standard sizes are sold or partial fulfillment and displacement are permitted. Lacking such allowances presents a new challenge to the firm as in conjunction with pricing it should also address the issue of various sizes requests' compatibility to achieve optimal utilization of its capacity in order to maximize expected profit. In this article, we consider two approaches of handling this problem: myopic and foresighted. We formulate and analyze the problem to obtain the firm's optimal bidding decisions as well as managerial insight about the optimal bid level and its important role in coordinating buyers' requests. Furthermore, due to this role, pricing patterns in this environment are different than those in standard unit sales. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article evaluates the TIP-TITE bulk transfer system from Flexicon Corp., the FMC-5000 Series Coriolis flowmeter from Omega, and the Simatic human machine interface (HMI) TP 1500 comfort outdoor panel from Siemens.

One of the major challenges in cloud computing is the development of a service-level agreement (SLA) negotiation framework using an intelligent third-party broker negotiation strategy. Current frameworks exploit various negotiation strategies using game theoretic, heuristic, and argumentation-based approaches for obtaining optimal negotiation with a better success rate (negotiation commitment). However, these approaches fail to optimize the negotiation round (NR), total negotiation time (TNT), and communication overhead (CO) involved in the negotiation strategy. To overcome these problems, certain researchers have exploited trade-off, concession, and behavioral learning strategies with varying degrees of sacrifices (reductions) in their concerned proposal generation. Such sacrifices can prevent negotiation break-off and optimize the negotiation strategy to an extent with fewer NRs, less TNT, and less CO. It maximizes the utility value and the success rate. To further optimize the negotiation strategy and prevent negotiation break-off, a bulk negotiation behavioral learning (BNBL) approach is proposed. This approach uses the reinforcement learning negotiation strategy to provide varying degrees of sacrifice for obtaining an optimal result. Hence, the proposed automated dynamic SLA negotiation framework (ADSLANF) using the BNBL approach will reduce the NRs, TNT, and CO. It also significantly maximizes the utility value and success rate (SLA commitment) among negotiation parties such as service consumers and service providers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We address the problem of transferring bulk data in environmentally-powered wireless sensor networks where duty cycle compliance is critical for their uninterrupted operation. We propose Pump-and-Nap , a packet train forwarding technique that maximizes throughput while simultaneously enforcing compliance to dynamic duty cycle limitations. A node using Pump-and-Nap operates by pumping a train of packets followed by a napping period where the node forgoes any transmission. Pump-and-Nap employs an adaptive controller to periodically compute the optimal capacity , that is, the maximum number of packets a node can receive and transmit in a train, given its duty cycle constraint. The controller uses prior input-output observations (capacity allocations and their corresponding duty cycle usage) to continuously tune its performance and adapt to wireless link quality variations. Its use of local information makes the controller easily deployable in a distributed fashion. We implemented Pump-and-Nap in TinyOS and evaluated its performance through experiments and testbed simulations. Results show that Pump-and-Nap provides high transfer throughput while it simultaneously tracks the target duty cycle. More importantly, Pump-and-Nap enables sustainable bulk transfer compared to state-of-the-art techniques that greedily maximize throughput at the expense of downtime due to energy depletion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In northern landscapes, peatlands are widespread and their hydrological processes are complex. Furthermore, they are typically remote, limiting the amount and accuracy of in situ measurements. This is especially the case for evapotranspiration ET, which strongly influences watershed hydrology. The objective of this paper is to demonstrate the validity of the bulk-transfer approach to estimate ET over boreal peatlands. The simplicity of the model relies on four assumptions: (i) near-neutral atmospheric conditions; (ii) wet surface; (iii) constant momentum roughness length depending on vegetation height; and (iv) constant water vapor roughness length, with the last two assumptions implying a constant water vapor transfer coefficient C E. Using eddy covariance data from three Canadian peatlands-Necopastic (James Bay, Québec), Mer Bleue (Ottawa, Ontario), and Western Peatland (Athabasca, Alberta)-this paper shows that these sites are characterized by frequent occurrences of near-neutral atmospheric conditions, especially the Necopastic site, with nearly 76% of the 30-min data segments occurring under near-neutral stratification. The analysis suggests these near-neutral conditions occur as a result of strong mechanical turbulence and weak buoyancy effects. The bulk-transfer approach gives promising results for 30-min and daily ET in terms of mean error and correlation, with performances similar to the Penman equation, without requiring net radiation data. The accuracy of the approach is likely related to the number of near-neutral periods and the elevated position of the water table, which backs up the wet surface assumption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We consider a two-dimensional strongly localized system defined in a half-plane and whose transfer integral in the edge can be different than in the bulk. We predict an unbinding transition, as the edge transfer integral is varied, from a phase where conduction paths are distributed across the bulk to a bound phase where propagation is mainly along the edge. At criticality the logarithm of the conductance follows the F1 Tracy-Widom distribution. We verify numerically these predictions for both the Anderson and the Nguyen, Spivak, and Shklovskii models. We also check that for a half-plane, i.e., when the edge transfer integral is equal to the bulk transfer integral, the distribution of the conductance is the F4 Tracy-Widom distribution. These findings are strong indications that random sign directed polymer models and their quantum extensions belong to the Kardar-Parisi-Zhang universality class. We have analyzed finite-size corrections at criticality and for a half-plane. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary Snowpack accumulation and melting, including the role of the heat flux underground, were investigated by employing the bulk transfer method and setting roughness lengths of Z O = Z T = 0.005 m and Z T = 0.007 m. Heat balance data were recorded for a period of 4 years, from the fall of 2009 to the spring of 2013, at a forest experiment station in the Hokuriku region, which lies along the Japan Sea. The findings of the research are as follows: (1) The observed temporal changes in the snowpack depth were well reproduced by our model using observed and estimated densities. (2) The importance and roles of the heat balance components were clarified. The total heat input during the 4 years was 252.2 MJ/m 2 on average; 41.4% was provided by net radiation ( R n ), 37.8% by sensible heat flux ( H ), and 13.2% by underground heat flux ( G ). The total output was 120.7 MJ/m 2 , of which 56.2% was accounted for by R n and 31.1% by latent heat flux ( lE ). (3) Of the total heat input, 45.2% was released as freezing energy from the surface side and 2.6% was released from the bottom. (4) In the very cold season (December–February), the total input energy was 115.8 MJ/m 2 on average; 75.0% was supplied by the surface and the remaining 25.0% from underground. In an anomalous year, 40.8% of the energy was supplied from underground. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Systems with a bulk first-order transition can display diverging correlation lengths close to a surface. This surface induced disordering yields a special type of surface criticality. Using extensive numerical simulations we study surface quantities in the two-dimensional Potts model with a large number of states q which undergoes a discontinuous bulk transition. The surface critical exponents are thereby found to depend on the value of q, which is in contrast to prior claims that these exponents should be universal and independent of q. It follows that surface-induced disordering at first-order transitions is characterized by exponents that depend on the details of the model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, we consider the goal of achieving high throughput in a wireless sensor network. Our work is set in the context of those wireless sensor network applications which collect and transfer bulk data. We present PIP (Packets in Pipe), a MAC primitive for use by the transport module to achieve high throughput. PIP has a unique set of features: (a) it is a multihop connection-oriented primitive, (b) it is TDMA based, (c) it uses multiple radio channels, and (d) it is centrally controlled. This represents a significant shift from prior MAC protocols for bulk data transfer. PIP has several desirable properties: (a) its throughput degrades only slightly with increasing number of hops, (b) it is robust to variable wireless error rates, (c) it performs well even without any flow control, and (d) requires only small queue sizes to operate well. We substantiate these properties with a prototype implementation of PIP on the Tmote-Sky CC2420-based platform. PIP achieves about eleven times better throughput than the state-of-the-art prior work, over a network depth of 24 hops. We also show that PIP can be interagted with duty cycling, and that PIP can support streaming data from/to flash at little overhead. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fast lateral proton migration along membranes is of vital importance for cellular energy homeostasis and various proton-coupled transport processes. It can only occur if attractive forces keep the proton at the interface. How to reconcile this high affinity to the membrane surface with high proton mobility is unclear. Here, we tested whether a minimalistic model interface between an apolar hydrophobic phase (n-decane) and an aqueous phase mimics the biological pathway for lateral proton migration. The observed diffusion span, on the order of tens of micrometers, and the high proton mobility were both similar to the values previously reported for lipid bilayers. Extensive ab initio simulations on the same water/n-decane interface reproduced the experimentally derived free energy barrier for the excess proton. The free energy profile GH+ adopts the shape of a well at the interface, having a width of two water molecules and a depth of 6 ± 2RT. The hydroniums in direct contact with n-decane have a reduced mobility. However, the hydroniums in the second layer of water molecules are mobile. Their in silico diffusion coefficient matches that derived from our in vitro experiments, (5.7 ±0.7) x 10-5 cm2 s-1. Conceivably, these are the protons that allow for fast diffusion along biological membranes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on the bulk production of lower-quality wines in Spain for its domestic and international markets between 1950 and 1990. Investments in finer wine production during this period were scarce, according to the author. The expansion of the international market for finer wines between 1950-1960 and its effect on Spain's wine production is addressed by the author. The issues of duality in the international wine market, globalization and the difficulties it caused for the conversion to finer wines by Spain are discussed.

Abstract: In this paper, we have investigated the structural, electrical and magnetic characterizations of Ni/Cu/p-Si Schottky diode prepared by liquid phase epitaxy (LPE). Current density–voltage (J–V), capacitance–voltage (C–V) and capacitance–frequency (C–f) measurements were performed to determine the conduction mechanisms as well as extracting the important diode parameters. Rectifying properties were obtained, which definitely of the Schottky diode type. At low voltages, (0

This paper presents a planning problem faced by many shipping companies dealing with the transport of bulk products. These shipping companies typically have a certain amount of contract cargoes that they are committed to carry, while trying to maximize their profit from optional spot cargoes. The cargo quantities are often flexible within an interval. Therefore, interwoven with the routing and scheduling decisions, the planner also has to decide the optimal cargo quantities. A tabu search algorithm embedding a specialized heuristic for deciding the optimal cargo quantities in each route is proposed to solve the problem. Computational results show that the heuristic gives optimal or near-optimal solutions to real-life cases of the problem within reasonable time. It is also shown that utilizing the flexibility in cargo quantities gives significantly improved solutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sensible and latent heat fluxes are often calculated from bulk transfer equations combined with the energy balance. For spatial estimates of these fluxes, a combination of remotely sensed and standard meteorological data from weather stations is used. The success of this approach depends on the accuracy of the input data and on the accuracy of two variables in particular: aerodynamic and surface conductance. This paper presents a Bayesian approach to improve estimates of sensible and latent heat fluxes by using a priori estimates of aerodynamic and surface conductance alongside remote measurements of surface temperature. The method is validated for time series of half-hourly measurements in a fully grown maize field, a vineyard and a forest. It is shown that the Bayesian approach yields more accurate estimates of sensible and latent heat flux than traditional methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper studies a periodic-review, serial supply chain in which materials are ordered and shipped according to R, nQ policies. Three information scenarios are considered, depending on the level of information available: echelon, local, and quasilocal. In the echelon scenario, each stage can access the inventory and cost information within its echelon (comprising the stage itself and all downstream stages); in the local scenario, each stage only accesses its own local information. Finally, in the quasilocal scenario, each stage knows its local information, plus the actual customer demands. We propose coordination schemes that regulate the stages to achieve the supply chain's optimal cost under each information setting. All these coordination schemes fit comfortably within an emerging practice called supply chain finance, which includes the organization and technology needed to implement them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The forward pick area of a distribution center is a cache of conveniently located products from which order pickers can quickly draw, but which must be replenished from bulk or reserve storage. The quantities stored forward determine the amount of work required to sustain the forward pick area. Two stocking strategies that are commonly used in industry are analyzed and compared with the optimal stocking strategy for small parts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report the spatio-temporal variability of surface-layer turbulent fluxes of heat, moisture and momentum over the Bay of Bengal (BoB) and the Arabian Sea (AS) during the Integrated Campaign for Aerosols, gases Radiation Budget (ICARB) field experiment. The meteorological component of ICARB conducted during March – May 2006 onboard the oceanic research vessel Sagar Kanya forms the database for the present study. The bulk transfer coefficients and the surface-layer fluxes are estimated using a modified bulk aerodynamic method, and then the spatio-temporal variability of these air-sea interface fluxes is discussed in detail. It is observed that the sensible and latent heat fluxes over the AS are marginally higher than those over the BoB, which we attribute to differences in the prevailing meteorological conditions over the two oceanic regions. The values of the wind stress, sensible and latent heat fluxes are compared with those obtained for the Indian Ocean Experiment (INDOEX) period. The variation of drag coefficient (C D ), exchange coefficients of sensible heat and moisture (C H = C E ) and neutral drag coefficient (C DN ) with wind speed is also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines aspects of short sea shipping on the Great Lakes, focusing on the current Great Lakes domestic cargo-carrying ship fleet. The age, capacity, and speed characteristics of the Great Lakes fleet are reviewed, and their implications on short sea shipping are discussed. We conclude that Great Lakes short sea shipping has it best potential for success in two areas: the bulk commodity market and short-distance Ro/Ro and container service. A case study illustrates some of the operational characteristics of successful short sea shipping, including the existence of a champion; simple, general-purpose loading and unloading; and few involved parties. Comparisons with European short sea vessels and experience are given. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Australian wine industry has been suffering the effects of oversupply for many years. Many industry analysts have expressed opinions on which varieties are the greatest contributors to the problem. This paper presents a hedonic price analysis of the Australian bulk wine market, to determine if empirical evidence verifies the opinions of industry groups and participants. The bulk wine market is chosen because it is the market for stored wine, and it is where surplus production often eventuates. Results appear broadly in line with analysts' assertions, and suggest that, although many varieties are overproduced, some may be experiencing excess demand. Solutions to the problem that involve reducing grapewine area by the level of surplus production may not be fully required. A more appropriate alternative may be to reallocate production from varieties that are in oversupply, to those that are experiencing excess demand. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Presents a study which identified a number of the scalability limitations that affect the full utilization of peak theoretical network bandwidth. Requirement in bulk data transfer in wide are networks (WAN); Approaches offered to overcome some of the identified limitations and increase network bandwidth among grid components in WAN; Background on the emergence of the computational grid.

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Since most land surfaces are non-uniform on meteorological model scales, usually applied flux-profile relationships to obtain surface flux densities cannot be used. Therefore, some modellers assume that these relations are scale-invariant if the local bulk transfer parameters are replaced by effective parameters. This approach leads to wrong results for grid cells that contain subgrid areas that differ largely with respect to stability. Hence, in such cases, the surface energy balance needs to be solved for each subgrid area separately. Therefore, to obtain the correct flux densities in all situations, for each grid cell in the horizontal domain of meteorological models, subgrid areas that differ with respect to stability need to be identified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT. Discussions of rural development in the highlands of Papua New Guinea have often centred on coffee, and been couched either in narrowly economic terms or in class analysis terms. Fresh food marketing has received less attention, although it is an important activity for many highland people. An approach which takes into account the subjectivity of actors, and the contests of power which permeate markets, is explored in this paper. The history and present forms of fresh food marketing in the Eastern Highlands Province of Papua New Guinea are then outlined. The author concludes by arguing for a geography of rural development, which is based on close attention to social interaction at the local level, coupled with an awareness of global structures provided by non-universalist political economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Focuses on the legal opinions of the counsel regarding commercial transactions in Florida. Enforceability of contracts; Issuance and transfer of securities; Opinions in acquisitions and bulk transfers.

Examines the revision of the bulk transfer law by the Subcommittee on article six of the Uniform Commercial Code. Adoption of a Final Report; Position of the Commercial Law League of America on the bulk transfer law; Provisions of the article six in the Uniform Commercial Code.

Proposes revision to the article six in the Uniform Commercial Code by the Uniform Law Committee in the United States. Historical accounts on the creation of the code; Aims to promulgate a bulk sales law; Provisions in the article six embodied in the code.

Focuses on the revision of the Uniform Commercial Code article six on bulk transfer law by the subcommittee of the Uniform Commercial Code in the United States. Protection to creditors; Consequences of noncompliance in bankruptcy of the bulk seller; Provisions of the Uniform Commercial Code.

Focuses on the Uniform Commercial Code (UCC) annual survey on sales and bulk transfers in the United States. Determination of governing laws using point of departure for UCC conflict-of-laws principles; Imposition of financial burden on inventory supplying consignors; Rules for the compliance of bulk transfers.

Focuses on the impact of commercial cases on commercial law in the United States. Dispute on the distinction between sales and transactions; Requirements of statute; Terms in confirmation and acceptance of provisions; Definition of bulk transfers.

Focuses on the general provision, sale, bulk transfers and documents of title in the United States. Irrelevance of Article two to sales of goods; Stipulation of additional terms in acceptance or confirmation; Limitation of warranty problems; Inapplicability of the remedy limiting clauses upon failure in carrying out its purpose.

Focuses on the different transaction of provisions, sales, bulk transfers and document titles in United States. Relevance of the sale of business; Exclusion of liability for consequential damages; Establishment of the principles of the state commercial law.

Discusses various aspects of the Bulk Sales Law in the U.S. Practice of extending credit to a customer in reliance on the net worth of his business; Initiation of legal proceedings against the debtor; Regulation of bulk transfers; Lack of specific coverage of auction sales.

Discusses the practical and legal problems raised by Article 6 of the Uniform Commercial Code the United States. Failure of the statute in the management of bulk transfers; Consequence of the use of inexact language in a uniform statute; Ambiguity of compliance procedure of the statutory scheme.

Focuses on the survey of the general provisions, sales, bulk transfers and documents of title in the United States. Refusal of enforcement of a contract; Application of the Code to service, rental and construction contracts; Expression of acceptance conditioned on assent to changes.

Outlines the bulk transfers of commercial goods under the Article 6 of the Uniform Commercial Code. Scope of Article 6; Lists of required documentation; Procedures involved before and after transfer of goods.

Focuses on the issues related to the Uniform Acts, sales, bulk transfers, and document of titles in the United States. Statute of sales fraud; Business contract formation and readjustment; Decision for express warranties.