OR/MS Today articles from August 2003

OR/MS Today archives from August 2003

Weapons of mass (insert pun here).(Inside Story)
August 1, 2003... They say that puns are the lowest form of comedy; I disagree. I think whatever it was that Jerry Lewis used to do set the comedy bar so low, the world's shortest limbo dancer couldn't get underneath it. Puns may not be comedy classics, but...

The OR/IT interface.(President's Desk)
August 1, 2003... The Edelman Prize has been described as the "Nobel Prize of Operations Research." Those of us who have been involved in the competition over the years recognize that without exception, the finalists in the competition created huge value for...

Patently labyrinthine.(Informs Online)(Column)
August 1, 2003... Patents and copyrights are intended to be tools to foster innovation by granting limited monopolies to inventors and authors. The promotion of innovation through patents relies on a delicate balance between the monopoly rights of the innovators...

Teaching OR/MS in biz school.(operations research/management science)
August 1, 2003... In the June issue of OR.MS Today, Tom Cook [1] and Peter Horner [2] focus on the revised MBA guidelines of the Association of Advanced Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB, www. aacsb.edu). These now require the coverage of "statistical data...

Every CEO's worst nightmare.(Was It Something I Said?)(chief executive officers)
August 1, 2003... Recently, during a daylong meeting, I heard some surprising information from one of our guest speakers. His firm had conducted a recent poll of business leaders (CEOs, VPs, directors, managers and business owners) during the late 2001/early...

Prom night.(Oracle)(crisis management)
August 1, 2003... Spring was in the air. The sun was shining, the flowers were blooming, the birds were singing, and the two OR/MS analysts were beaming with pride. Darlin' Daughter, their first-born, was almost ready to graduate from high school. She had been...

Physicians not 'easy marks' for drug sales reps.(Real World)
August 1, 2003... Doctors are far more wary of pharmaceutical companies' aggressive marketing than generally believed and don't easily yield to pressure to switch prescriptions. That's the conclusion of two separate studies presented by researchers at a recent...

NSF funding falls short of expectations.(Real World)(National Science Foundation)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2003... President Bush's proposed federal budget for fiscal year 2004 includes a request of $5.5 billion for the National Science Foundation (NSF). The request represents an increase of $171 million, or 3.2 percent, over the FY 2003 level of $5.3...

William J. Browning, president of Applied Mathematics, Inc., was honored.(Names in the News)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2003... William J. Browning, president of Applied Mathematics, Inc., was honored as the Naval Submarine League Distinguished Civilian for 2003 at the annual symposium in Alexandria, Va. The award, presented by Admiral Frank Kelso, USN (ret),...

Erhan Erkut, a professor of management science in the University of Alberta School of Business.(Names in the News)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2003... Erhan Erkut, a professor of management science in the University of Alberta School of Business, has been selected as one of the four winners of the 2003 Leaders in Management Education award. The award was announced on June 11 in the National...

The following individuals will comprise the Canadian Operational Research Society's Executive Board for 2003-2004.(Names in the News)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2003... The following individuals will comprise the Canadian Operational Research Society's Executive Board for 2003-2004: David Martell (past president), Faculty of Forestry, University of Toronto; Belaid Aouni (president), School of Commerce and...

Getting down to business: the changing landscape of AACSB accreditation presents new opportunities and challenges for OR/MS at business schools.(Innovative Education)(American Assembly of Collegiate Schools of Business)(operational researh/management science)
August 1, 2003... BUSINESS SCHOOL ACCREDITATION IS SOMETHING the operations research/management science community once took for granted. Prior to 1991, AACSB--by far the most important business school accreditation entity--virtually required that accredited...

Up to standard: how should management science faculty respond to the new accreditation guidelines?(Innovative Education)
August 1, 2003... THERE IS AN OLD SAYING, THAT THOSE WHO DO not learn from the mistakes of the past are doomed to repeat them. Before I discuss the implications of the 2003 accreditation standards, it is important that we understand the mistakes that led to the...

Course of action: top 10 reasons why management science belongs in business schools.(Innovative Education)
August 1, 2003... NOW THAT AACSB INTERNATIONAL (the organization of business school deans that accredits business schools) has approved new accreditation standards for business schools that require coverage of statistical data analysis and management science in...

The Executive MBA: a "target rich" teaching opportunity for OR/MS.(Innovative Education)(operational research/management science)
August 1, 2003... EXECUTIVE MBA (OR EMBA) PROGRAMS, OFTEN known as "MBA lights," have proliferated in recent years but only a few of these programs include an OR/MS course. I am convinced that OR/MS can add much to the educational experience of the EMBA, but...

Weapons of mass instruction: connecting the seat of the intellect to the seat of the pants.(Innovative Education)
August 1, 2003... ROBERT SELMAN, A PSYCHOLOGIST AT Harvard University, has coined the term "Weapon of Mass Instruction" (or WMI) for a pedagogy that yields widespread educational impact over a short period of time. In this article I will present some thoughts...

Education journal takes off: thanks to electronic medium, INFORMS Transactions on Education brings refereed content to readers in record time.(Innovative Education)(Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences)
August 1, 2003... WHERE DO YOU FIND A PROVOCATIVE ESSAY ON the art and science of simulation, a new and convenient method for implementing project networks on a spreadsheet, and IP formulations of delightful logical puzzles of Smullyan? Or how about an article...

Simulation reloaded: sixth biennial survey of discrete-event simulation software tools that empower users to imagine new systems, and study and compare alternative designs.(2003 Software Survey)(Directory)(Illustration)
August 1, 2003... THE BLOCKBUSTER MOVIE "THE MATRIX" AND ITS recent sequel "The Matrix Reloaded" portray an interactive simulation environment so realistic that the participants remain ignorant that their "reality" is only a simulation, and only the hacker...

GoldSim: versatile modeling package bridges the gap between system dynamics and discrete-event simulation.(Software Review)(Product/Service Evaluation)
August 1, 2003... Product Summary GoldSim is distributed by the GoldSim Technology Group of Golder Associates 18300 NE Union Hill Road, Suite 200, Redmond, WA 98052-3333 USA Phone: 425-883-0777 Fax: 425-882-5498 Web site: www.goldsim.com....

Annual meeting in Atlanta: OR/MS in the community.(Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences)(operational science/ management science)
August 1, 2003... The INFORMS Annual Meeting 2003 Atlanta will be held Oct. 19-22 with a full program and an abundance of opportunities to network, learn and exchange ideas with other OR/MS professionals. The Atlanta meeting promises to be one of the largest...

Position statement.(Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences)(operational research)
August 1, 2003... Born of applications, operations research is the world's greatest profession. As far as careers to choose, I can't imagine you or myself selecting a better one. I thank INFORMS for nominating me as a candidate for the presidency of INFORMS. I...

Meetings.(Calendar)
August 1, 2003... INFORMS Meetings 2003 Oct. 19-22 INFORMS Annual Meeting 2003 Atlanta Westin Peachtree Plaza General Chair: Donna Llewellyn Georgia Institute of Technology www.informs.org/ContTAtlanta2003 2004 April 25-27 INFORMS...

Combined Colloquia nominations.
August 1, 2003... The 2003 INFORMS Combined (Doctoral and Teaching Effectiveness) Colloquia will be held Oct. 17 18 in Atlanta, immediately preceding the INFORMS Annual Meeting. Participation is by nomination only. See the call for nominations at...

The supremes rock quantitative methods.(The Last Word)
August 1, 2003... The Supreme Court handed down decisions recently that: 1) racial diversity is "a compelling interest" that can justify using race in university admissions (upholding the University of Michigan law school's policy), and 2) a point system such as...