In the run-up to the 2026 midterm elections, the political parties in many states are working to redefine their congressional district maps to gain every possible edge. From California and Texas to Tennessee and Virginia, redistricting efforts have taken center stage. The Supreme Court has sanctioned partisan gerrymandering, and the system has evolved to one in which state legislature majorities get to determine who is most likely to fill those seats in Congress.
In short, gerrymandering has become a central feature of the system, not a bug. But what if we rethink the structure entirely?
Fake Hermès Birkin bags and other counterfeit luxury goods are popular not only with people on a budget, but also with those with deeper pockets, a new study suggests.
Researchers from the National University of Singapore analyzed millions of counterfeit purchases by American consumers from more than 24,000 U.S. zip codes on a major cross-border, e-commerce platform. They found that both lower- and higher-income individuals are “significantly more likely” to buy fake luxury items than middle-income consumers, according to a press release by INFORMS on Monday.
The INFORMS Analytics+ Conference showcased how companies are turning advanced analytics and AI into measurable operational results
An audio journey of how data and analytics save lives, save money and solve problems.
Jeff Cohen
Chief Strategy Officer
INFORMS
Catonsville, MD
[email protected]
443-757-3565
Explore our resources for multiple topics including:
The Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences (INFORMS), the leading professional association in analytics and operations research, today issued a call for entries to contend for its best cases competition, the Franz Edelman Award for Achievement in Operations Research and Management Science.
CATONSVILLE, MD, September 21, 2015 – A study of early-stage supermarket adoption in India finds that upper and lower middle class consumers are most likely to favor new, modern groceries while the “middle” middle class is more likely to patronize mom and pop “kirana” stores, a phenomenon illustrated by an unusual V-shaped curve for modern retail adoption, according to a new study published in Marketing Science, a journal of the Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences (INFORMS).
Rules that encourage cooperative behavior lead people to develop altruistic responses even in new contexts, a new Yale-led research found.
This spillover effect suggests it is possible for organizations or even entire cultures to foster “habits of virtue,” said David Rand, assistant professor of psychology and economics at Yale and senior author of the paper appearing in the journal Management Science.
During the recent INFORMS Healthcare conference in Nashville (see sidebar), Mike Fabel, a senior health systems engineer with the Mayo Clinic, and Victoria Jordan, PhD, executive director of Strategic Management and Systems Engineering with the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, sat down to discuss their role in the healthcare delivery system.
“I have a manufacturing background,” said Fabel. “We just have a different way of viewing things as far as looking for waste in the process. I think we bring a simplified, team-based effort to looking for waste.”
Fabel added that in his experience, physicians, nurses and other team members have the necessary skills to rethink the status quo but need the guidance, facilitation and tools the engineering department brings to the table to help them map out new solutions.
Even pirates have their redeeming qualities.
The counterfeiter might be a profit-sapping scourge to many designers, but recently published research from a trio of academics shows that fakes can also push brands to up their game — particularly in terms of aesthetics.
A study published in Market[ing] Science academic journal looked at 31 brands that sold fashion leather and sport shoes in China from 1993 to 2004. The Chinese market proved to be something of a petri dish to the researchers, since it saw a major influx of counterfeits after 1995, when the government pivoted away from the enforcement of footwear trademarks to respond to problems in other sectors, including gas explosions and food poisonings.
“Established companies don’t sit idly by while they are copied shamelessly,” said Yi Qian, a professor at University of British Columbia Sauder School of Business, who cowrote the study. “They react by improving their products to set themselves apart from their illegal competitors.”
OR/MS Today is the INFORMS member magazine that shares the latest research and best practices in operations research, analytics and the management sciences.
Access OR/MS Today Magazine
Analytics magazine showcases articles and research reports based on big data, AI, machine learning, data analytics and other new-age technologies.
Access Analytics Magazine