The Cost of Certainty

Cost Certainty and Time Certainty: an International Investigation

Cost certainty and time certainty are major concerns to both clients and contractors, as they have a direct impact on resources. An international study of contractors’ cost certainty and time certainty is presented. Based on the performance and practice of contractors in Japan, the UK and the US, the multiple regression analysis reveals cost certainty to be influenced by time certainty and its ...

the illusion of certainty and the certainty of illusion: a caution when reading scientific articles

critical thinking is necessary to read the scientific literature. however, in addition to questions about the science, often one must also question the meaning of the text. this article provides an example of the analyses needed to understand a single sentence. in so doing, it raises several interesting issues of meaning, measurement, statistical analyses, and the form in which results are pres...

The fallibility of certainty.

An old-timer physician of New York, who was forever questioning the methods and purpose of his colleagues, concluded a Grand Rounds in his department with the observation, “No patient is in real danger until all his doctors agree on his diagnosis.” Those of us at the session dutifully applauded and laughed, left the meeting, but never forgot his perceptive warning. We all crave certainty, yet s...

the effect of taftan pozzolan on the compressive strength of concrete in the environmental conditions of oman sea (chabahar port)

cement is an essential ingredient in the concrete buildings. for production of cement considerable amount of fossil fuel and electrical energy is consumed. on the other hand for generating one tone of portland cement, nearly one ton of carbon dioxide is released. it shows that 7 percent of the total released carbon dioxide in the world relates to the cement industry. considering ecological issu...

Raising the Cost of Affordability: Guaranteed Tuition Programs and the Economic Value of Certainty