Russian Sanctions Snarl Shipping Even as Pandemic Pressure Eases
Russian ships banned from docking in Britain. Cargo containers piling up at European ports. Airfreight rerouted around Ukraine and Russia.
The INFORMS Analytics+ Conference showcased how companies are turning advanced analytics and AI into measurable operational results
In most emergency departments, beds are a hot commodity. But some patients don’t actually need a bed for their treatment – and accurately identifying those people is a low-lift but effective way to increase efficiency without sacrificing care quality, finds a study recently published in the journal Management Science.
The researchers developed a simple decision tree, informed by mathematical and machine learning models, to help staff decide whether a patient truly needs a bed or can be routed to a “vertical processing pathway” – that is, an area where they can be treated sitting up. Many hospitals already have such an area but don’t necessarily have a systematic way to decide which patients are treated there.
American teenagers start their school day too early.
Medical experts have been clear for years: sleep cycle changes during puberty make it hard for teenagers to learn in the early morning. Later school start times have been linked to better sleep, improved mental health, stronger academic performance and even safer driving.
Most school district leaders know about this problem and care about fixing it. But changing the schedule can feel operationally impossible.
An audio journey of how data and analytics save lives, save money and solve problems.

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Russian ships banned from docking in Britain. Cargo containers piling up at European ports. Airfreight rerouted around Ukraine and Russia.
New audio is available for media use featuring supply chain expert Anna Nagurney on providing support to Ukraine. She speaks about providing humanitarian and food supply chain support. Dr. Nagurney is Ukrainian-American. Ukrainian was her first language. This content is made available by INFORMS, the largest association for the decision and data sciences. All sound should be attributed to Anna Nagurney. She is the Eugene M. Isenberg Chair in Integrative Studies and is PhD Coordinator in Management Science as well as the Director, Virtual Center for Supernetworks Operations & Information Management at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. There are four questions and responses. These responses were provided on March 15, 2021.
This past October, in Baltimore, high school students had to show proof that they were fully vaccinated against COVID-19 or submit to weekly testing, in order to play sports. While Baltimore has made that call, the story is different in other neighboring districts, like Cecil County and Allegany County, where public schools are not asking for vaccination status or doing surveillance testing of any kind. Like many states across the U.S. there are no longer unified COVID protocols. Decisions on vaccine and mask mandates, events, field trips, and even if parents are allowed in school buildings are left to the individual school districts to decide.
Supply chains continue to be the defining economic story in the U.S. Our most basic economic inputs — energy, semiconductors, and raw materials, e.g., lumber, metals, plastics — are still hitting snags. Meanwhile, as the previous issue of electroindustry covered, the country is poised to embark on a once-in-generation infrastructure buildout. Yes, it’s time to build. But for our supply chains, it’s time to rebuild and rethink.
BARCELONA, Spain (AP) – The Russian tanks and missiles besieging Ukraine also are threatening the food supply and livelihoods of people in Europe, Africa and Asia. Those people rely on the vast, fertile farmlands of the Black Sea region – known as the “breadbasket of the world.”

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