bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Two Approaches To Estimating Public Expenditures
Authors: Pommerehne Werner W. , Frey Bruno S.
Published: March 2007

Traditionally, the demand for public expenditures has been estimated using for explanatory variables the average values of per capita income, as well as other variables. The results of this approach are disappointing, due to the lack of a theoretical basis. The public choice model, on the other hand, uses the political decision-making process (median voter model) to explain expenditures. Taking the same set of data, it can be shown that the public choice approach yields superior results. It also offers a solution to the unfruitful discussion about the influence of "political" determinants of public expenditures
Geographic Differentials in Property Tax Rates: a Test of the Backward Shifting Hypothesis
Authors: Levin Sharon G.
Published: March 2007

The hypothesis that local rates of property taxes levied on the value of industrial property may be shifted backward onto labor is formulated and tested with inferences drawn from a sample of labor market areas in Michigan. The analysis is carried out in the context of a two-factor production fuaction for property and labor, for two goods, home and export Products, in a two-sector world comprising the differentially taxed community and all other communities. No a priori assumption about the direction of the backward shifting effect is made. The regression analysis suggests that labor in the differentially taxed area is not burdened by an onerous local property tax charge. Rather wages tend to be higher, the higher the net property tax differential, in labor market areas comprised of firms possessing extensive market power.
Distributional Considerations of Property Tax Exemption: an Analytical Framework
Authors: Hellman Daryl A. , Sifniotis Costas
Published: March 2007

The paper outlines a methodology for examining gains and losses from exempting nonprofit land users from the local property tax, Gainers and losers are identified by geographic areas (i.e., resident versus nonresident of the exemption-granting community), by income group, and by race. Gains and losses are calculated by comparing exemption against taxation of existing land users. Costs considered are tax revenues foregone and negative externalities. Benefits considered are price effects, direct and indirect employment effects, and positive externalities. The methodology is applied to the case of a large university in Boston: results are presented and the implications discussed.
An Analysis of Resource Allocation in Public School Districts
Authors: Chambers Jay G.
Published: March 2007

This paper presents a theoretical and empirical analysis of the process of resource allocation in public school districts including the determination of the demand for school inputs, the salaries of school personnel, and the level of local educational expenditures. Some of the issues investigated in the empirical analysis include (1) the price and income elasticity of the demand for teachers, (2) the effects of tenure on the demand for certain teacher quality character istics, (3) the determinants of the equilibrium salaries of teachers and public school administrators, (4) the differences between the effects of changes in community income and federal and state grants-in-aid on local school spending, (5) and the compensatory effects of grants-in-aid on school spending, the demand for school inputs, and salaries of school personnel in high and low income districts.
Tax Reforms With the Oklahoma Tax Model
Authors: Liew Chong K. , Kim Kwangok
Published: March 2007

This article evaluates the ex ante forecasting performance of the Oklahoma tax model It is compared with that of the model-free Box-Jenkins methods. The Oklahoma model outperforms the Box-Jenkins methods in forecastings of various tax revenues. The model is also simulated to see the tax reforms and tax revenues both in a short-run and in a long-run. The model concludes that the effective way to collect the tax revenues for Oklahoma is through a tax reform on state income tax followed by the corporation income tax, general sales tax, and motor fuel tax.
All “NG” up an Clubs?/ some Notes on the Current Status of Club Theory
Authors: Brennan Geoffrey , Flowers Marilyn
Published: March 2007

This article aims to analyze two aspects of the theory of clubs which are currently matters of some controversy: the question of optimal club size and the distinction between clubs and firms. Both aspects become of interest when the optimal number of clubs is small relative to population. In the case where population is relatively large, the original Buchanan determination of "optimal" club size is essentially correct, but there is no substantive difference between clubs and firms. In the case where optimal club size is relatively large, the Ng criticism of Buchanan's analysis is somewhat more appropriate— though, as we show, only strictly valid in one rather special case. In this quasi-monopoly setting, the distinction between clubs and firms becomes substantive, and is explored in this article under plausible assumptions.
The Mexican Tax Burden By Family Income Class
Authors: Mann Arthur J.
Published: March 2007

Very little statistical research has been done on the overall burden of taxation in Mexico. This article presents estimates by family income class of effective Mexican tax rates in 1975 at the federal and overall levels. Even after adjusting for different income bases and shifting assumptions, what emerges is an essentially proportional tax incidence pattern.
Optimal Taxation and Public Goods
Authors: Moreh J.
Published: March 2007

In this article I construct a simple optimal income tax model in which I include a public good in the beliefthat it is a better approximation to reality than models that exclude it. The model comprises a Social Welfare Function (SWF), a government budget, and a constant elasticity of substitution utility function, whose arguments are: a private good, a public good, and leisure. The SWF can in principle be maximized with respect to the labor supply and to the amount of public good. My estimate of the optimal tax rate is higher and more realistic than are the predictions of models that do not allow for a public good. My results are consistent with the finding of empirical research, namely that the substitution parameter of the CES utility function is negative. Howew, the proposition derived from it (which forms the basis of recent work on income redistribution)—that the expenditure on public goods is regressive—has little significance, since it is the progressivity of the entire fiscal system that counts.
Tax Exemption and Resource Allocation: Implications for Prices, Production, and Factor Choice
Authors: Fortune Peter
Published: March 2007

The exemption of coupon payments by state and local governments from federal income taxes in the United States is examined from the vantage point of its effects on resource allocation—that is, its impact on the consumer's choice between goods produced privately and goods produced by the local government sector, on the choice between capital and labor in each sector, and on the relative prices of both goods and factors of production. The results raise questions about the value of tax exemption as a method of subsidizing local government provision of services.
Is a Consumption Tax Equivalent to a Wage Tax?
Authors: Seidman Laurence S.
Published: March 2007

Is a consumption tax equivalent to a wage tax? This article examines this question in a two-period life-cycle model with Cobb-Douglas production and utility functcons. Three taxes are compared: income, wage, and consumption. The article shows how equivalence depends crucially on government debt policy. If the government varies the government-debt/capital-stock ratio so that each tax achieves the same steady-state capital per worker, then the consumption tax is equivalent to the wage tax: The representative individual chooses the same consumption path and attains the same lifetime utility. However, if the government maintains the same debt/capital ratio under the three taxes, then the consumption tax is not equivalent to the wage tax: The consumption tax achieves a higher capital per worker than the income tax, while the wage tax achieves a lower capital per worker, and the representative individual chooses a different consumption path under all three taxes. Economists should therefore indicate the crucial role of government debt policy in any discussion of tax equivalence.
A Note on Private Corporate Investment and Effective Tax Rates
Authors: Jha Raghbendra , Wadhwa Nisha
Published: March 2007

This article examines the controversy (concerning the relationship between private Abstract corporate investment and effective tax rates) between Feldstein (1982, 1987) and Chirinko (1987), with Indian data. The evidence supports the net rate of return model proposed by Feldstein but does not support the refinements to this model proposed by Chirinko.
The Cost-Benefit Analysis of Government Loams
Authors: Brent Robert J.
Published: March 2007

A neglected area of cost-benefit theory is the evaluation of federal government loans Abstract to finance private investment. This article builds on a model by Feldstein (1973) which disaggregated public investment decisions into two parts; one is the expenditure on the good to be purchased by the loan, and the other is the loan itself. The main new result is that distributional considerations can be divorced from economic efficiency in making the first (expenditure) decision. Distributional factors are used to help determine the second (financing) decision. The two-decision framework is applied to FmHA loans made in New York State.
State Growth Rates: Taxes, Spending, and Catching Up
Authors: Wei Yu  , Wallace Myles S. , Nardinelli Clark
Published: March 2007

The American states have grown at different rates throughout the twentieth century. Abstract Although many explanations have been proposed, the authors focus on two: catching up and state fiscal policies. The authors find that catching up provides the most powerful explanation for differing state growth rates. As real state incomes con verge, states with relatively low real per capita incomes grow more rapidly than states with relatively high per capita incomes. In the years since 1975, however, the evidence indicates that catching up may be slowing down. Regression results nevertheless provide little support for the hypothesis that differences in state taxes now play the more important role.
Intergovernmental Grants and the Demand for Local Educational Expenditures
Authors: Addonizio Michael F.
Published: March 2007

Intergovernmental grant programs can create offsetting economic incentives for recipients. This article examines the response of local school district voters to Michigan's Guaranteed Tax Base (GTB) school-aid formula and its Homestead Property Tax Credit program ("circuit breaker"). While some response was found to the price effects of both grant programs, econometric evidence suggests that efforts to reduce interdistrict spending disparities by means of GTB formula price effects will prove futile for two reasons. First, these effects are offset by the counter effects of the circuit breaker. Second, because their demand for school spending is inelastic, voters in "in-formula" districts will convert increased GTB matching aid into property tax relief by reducing tax effort. Further, the finding of statistically different price and income elasticities of demand for local expenditures in high- and low-spending districts, which are also high- and low-property wealth and income districts, suggests that the constant elasticity formulation often used in studies of local education demand is problematic.
Urban Transit Provision in Ontario: a Public/Private Sector Cost Comparison
Authors: Kitchen Harry
Published: March 2007

This article finds statistically significant higher per-unit costs of delivering urban transit services through the public sector when compared with the private sector. This differential, it is suggested, is partially explained by lower hourly wages for transit operators (drivers) and greater vehicle use in privately contracted systems.
Donor-Determined Intergovernmental Grants Structure
Authors: Leyden Dennis Patrick
Published: March 2007

The lack of simple language to describe the structure of intergovernmental grant programs and a failure to recognize that such programs are chosen by legislators whose preferences differ from those of recipients has led to an inability to develop a theory of why intergovernmental grants exist and why grant programs take the forms that they do. By reducing the complexities of grant programs to a simple structure of rates, bases, and purposes, this article is able to provide a conceptual framework for viewing individual grant programs as components of a comprehensive intergovernmental grants structure chosen through a legislative process in which individual legislators have preferences that are distinct from those of their recipients. Administrative costs play an important role in keeping the resulting grants structure simple, and the existence of categorical grants is shown to depend on the existence of spillover effects, fiscal illusion, or political asymmetry.
Central City-Suburban Fiscal Disparities
Authors: Bahl Roy , Martinez-Vazquez Jorge , Sjoquist David L.
Published: March 2007

Updated estimates of various measures of central city-suburban fiscal disparities are presented for 1987, along with previously published ACIR estimates for selected years. The estimates show that central city-suburban fiscal disparities have not changed dramatically over the past 30 years. Cross-sectional regressions estimated for four different years suggest that the explanations for the existence of fiscal disparities have not changed over time.
The Cross Effects of Lottery Taxes On Alternative State Tax Revenue
Authors: Borg Mary O. , Mason Paul M. , Shapiro Stephen L.
Published: March 2007

This article both theoretically and empirically identifies sizable cross effects of lottery taxes on other sources of state tax revenue. Specifically, those states without income taxes and those with high sales and excise tax rates may lose as much as 23 cents in alternative state revenue for every dollar of lottery revenue they collect. Even though this extreme still implies that the state receives 77 cents more tax revenue than before the lottery was imposed, those states that earmark their lottery dollars likely see significant reductions in their nonlottery revenue sources that need to be accounted for in their budgets. Otherwise, a bonanza in one area of the budget causes a sizable and likely unexpected shortfall elsewhere.
Optimal Taxation: the Mix of Alcohol and Other Taxes
Authors: Sgontz Larry G.
Published: March 2007

This article compares the effects of two policies aimed at promoting efficiency in the taxation of alcoholic beverages. One policy is to set alcohol tax rates at a level that corrects for excessive social costs of alcohol consumption. The second is to view alcohol taxes as a substitute for other taxes and apply the prescriptions of optimal tax theory to attain the efficient mix of tax revenues. Estimates of the differential effects of the two policies suggest that the second policy requires a higher tax rate on alcohol and produces a greater welfare gain.
Interest Rates, Government Purchases, and Budget Deficits: a Forward-Looking Model
Authors: Dua Pami
Published: March 2007

This article describes aforward-looking modelfor long-term interest rates. It shows that movements in expected deficits relative to movements in actual deficits are a statistically significant determtnant of changes in long-term interest rates. Other determinants include changes in actual government purchases, movements in the expected unemployment rate relative to changes in the actual unemployment rate, the expected rate of growth in the money supply, and inflation uncertainty.
Drug Enforcement and the Deterrence of Property Crime Among Local Jurisdictions
Authors: Sollars David L. , Benson Bruce L. , Rasmussen David W.
Published: March 2007

This article investigates the relationships among property crime, police resources, and the allocation of police resources in a model using data from Florida jurisdic tions. Crime spillovers among local jurisdictions are also investigated in this context. Significant spillovers are revealed, and the evidence suggests that allocating scarce police resources to drug enforcement reduces the deterrence of property crime. The results also suggest that police may capture rents by increasing drug enforcement. Increasing the relative number of drug arrests raises the property crime rate, and both of these variables are positively correlated with police resources.
The Influence of State Taxation and Regulation On Selected Bank Activities
Authors: Fox William F. , Black Harold A.
Published: March 2007

The effects of state tax and regulatory policies on the location of real, financial, and portfolio choice activity of banks are investigated. The results show that banks have increased their efforts to avoid tax and regulatory policies since the 1980 Depository Institutions Deregulation and Monetary Control Act. Delaware and South Dakota have been very effective in designing policies to attract banking, but they appear to have benefited from first-mover advantages. Overall, the effects of taxes and regulations remain small, probably because the regulatory and technological environments have only recently become conducive to interstate tax-avoidance behavior.
A Note On Escalation Requirements, Cost-of-Living Comparisons, and Homeownership Costs
Authors: Barkume Anthony J.
Published: March 2007

The correct procedure for indexing income transfers in social insurance programs such as social security depends on the escalation objective. In particular, implement ing the objective of maintaining the base period living standards of transfer recipients requires information on how the recipients' sources of income have changed as well as on changes in the cost of living. This article considers implementing this escalation objective for homeowners, to whom housing is a source of implicit income. In this situation, should homeowners be compensated for increases in living costs? The answer should, in part, depend on whether homeowners are fully hedged against increases in the cost of housing (when increases in housing costs are always fully offset by increases in potential rental income). The author argues that this hedging assumption is implacit in the "rental equivalence" approach to measuring housing costs for homeowners used in the consumer price index.
Application of a Distribute d nEtwork in Computational Fluid Dynamic Simulations
Authors: Deshpande Manish , Jinzhang Feng  , Merkle Charles L. , Deshpande Ashish
Published: March 2007

A general-purpose 3-D, incompressible Navier-Stokes algorithm is implemented on a network of concur rently operating workstations using PVM and com pared with its performance on a CRAY Y-MP and on an Intel iPSC/860. The problem is relatively computa tionally intensive, and has a communication structure based primarily on nearest-neighbor communication, making it ideally suited to message passing. Such problems are frequently encountered in CFD, and their solution is increasingly in demand. The communica tion structure is explicitly coded in the implementation to fully exploit the regularity in message passing in order to produce a near-optimal solution. Results are presented for various grid sizes using up to eight pro cessors.
A Bayesian Network Model of the Consumer Complaint Process
Authors: Blodgett Jeffrey G. , Anderson Ronald D.
Published: March 2007

The purpose of this article is to present a Bayesian network model of the consumer complaint process. The outputs of the Bayesian model—conditional probabilities—provide much insight into the determinants and subsequent behavioral outcomes (e.g., full repatronage, limited repatronage, and exit; negative word-of-mouth behavior [WOM], no WOM, and positive WOM) of the complaint process. By distinguishing between (a) noncomplainers, (b) satisfied complainants, and (c) dissatisfied complainants, the model provides a rich, descriptive overview of the broader complaining behavior process. The model revealed several interesting findings; for example, the probability that a noncomplainer or a dissatisfied complainant will completely exit is quite low. The probabilities that a satisfied complainant will intend to fully repatronize the retailer and engage in positive word of mouth, on the other hand, are quite high. The advantages and limitations of Bayesian network models are discussed vis-à-vis structural equations models and partial least squares.
Modeling and Managing Student Loyalty
Authors: Hennig-Thurau Thorsten , Langer Markus F. , Hansen Ursula
Published: March 2007

The loyalty of customers is widely accepted as a critical factor in the long-term success of a service firm. In this article, the authors develop a model of student loyalty by combining the growing body of knowledge on relationship marketing in the context of services with insights from more traditional educational research. Their relationship quality-based student loyalty (RQSL) model proposes that student loyalty is mainly determined by the dimensions of relationship quality. The model also includes students’ integration into the university system and external commitment as second-order factors. The authors test the RQSL model using the structural equation modeling approach and empirical data from a survey of several German universities. Among other things, the results indicate that the quality of teaching and the students’ emotional commitment to their institution are crucial for student loyalty. However, there are clear differences between the results obtained from different courses of study.
The Role of Culture in the Service Evaluation Process
Authors: Mattila Anna S.
Published: March 2007

This research examined the impact of culture on customer evaluations of complex services. The goal was to underStand the trade-offs that Western and Asian customers are willing to make between personalized service and pleasant physical environment in a context of luxury hotels. Overall, the results from the conjoint analysis suggest that customers with Western cultural backgrounds might be more likely than their Asian counterparts to rely on the tangible cues from the physical environment. Furthermore, the hedonic dimension of the consumption experience might be more important for Western consumers, whose core values include fun and enjoyment, than for Asians, whose value structures tend to reflect duty in life.
The Service Provider Switching Model (SPSM)
Authors: Bansal Harvir S. , Taylor Shirley F.
Published: March 2007

Building on Keaveney’s work and using related studies from the disciplines of marketing and psychology, a model of service provider switching was developed. It was empirically examined using structural equation modeling with data from customers of mortgage services of various Canadian financial institutions. Factors deemed responsible for switching behavior, along with switching intentions, were measured from mortgage customers. Self-reports of their actual behavior were also collected via telephone.
Mama's Boys
Authors: HOLDEN JONATHAN
Published: March 2007

In this narrative, the author compares identical twin brothers—one gay, one straight—to the character Jaromil in Milan Kundera's novel Life Is Elsewhere. He describes in some detail various rebellious experiments that one brother conducted and the way in which mother, Jaynet, managed the two brothers. The essay examines, implicitly, the notion that gay men come from families with a distant father and a strong mother. It is, coincidentally, also a critique of American upper middle-class liberalism, in the same sense as that Betty Freidan advanced in The Feminine Mystique. The methodological assumptions behind this essay agree with what sociologist Richard Sennett proposed in his book Authority, in which he asserted, boldly and perhaps heretically, that when a sociological study can capture the inner life of the individual under historical and psychological stress with the authenticity of a good novel, then the science of sociology might have a valid raison d'être.
Determination of Rate of Formaldehyde Release From Urea-Formaldehyde and Phenol-Formaldehyde Foams
Authors: Rybicky Jaroslav , Kambanis Stamatis M.
Published: March 2007

An apparatus and procedures are described for eval uating the rate of formaldehyde release from urea-formaldehyde and phenol-formaldehyde foams. The method consists of two steps: 1. Collection of formaldehyde from a box containing a block of foam - the main subject of this paper, and -2. Deter mination of the collected foamaldehyde. The collection step is extremely simple and straightforward. The method provides the amount of formaldehyde that is released from a given quantity of foam in a given time, and under given conditions of test.
How To Ensure Good Thermal Performance of Blown Mineral Fibre Insulation in Horizontal and Vertical Installations
Authors: Bomberg M. , Solvason K.R.
Published: March 2007

Information and techniques regarding the proper use of blown mineral fibre insulation are presented.
Toxic Effects From Phenolic Foam At Various Temperatures
Authors: Hilado Carlos J. , Huttlinger Patricia A.
Published: March 2007

A rising temperature program appears to be a rea sonably precise means of integrating the effects of successive fixed temperatures on animal survival times upon exposure to off-gases from phenolic foam under closed-system conditions.
The Effect of Basement Insulation on the Depth of Frost Penetration Adjacent to Insulated Foundations
Authors: Figley D.A. , Snodgrass L.J.
Published: March 2007

Insulating house basements is becoming a popular method of reducing space heating energy consumption and improving the basement environment. With a reduced heat flow to the surrounding soil, the soil temperatures are lowered and the depth of the frost penetration increases. Insulation strategies must be considered carefully, otherwise foundations bearing on soils that experience volume changes upon freezing can be shifted and building damage may occur.

This study reports on frost penetration measurements adjacent to nine dif ferent house basement configurations. The maximum depth of frost penetra tion against the exterior wall and 1.5 m (5 ft.) from the wall are reported for a number of winters with a range of freezing indices from 1249°C days to 2409°C days (2248°F days to 4336°F days).

Initial observations show that only shallow, highly insulated basements with both wall and floor insulation have frost depths extending below the footings.
Moisture Content and Thermal Conductivity in Soil Insulation
Authors: Sandberg Per Ingvar
Published: March 2007

In polystyrene boards used as soil insulation there is a deterioration of the thermal conductivity caused by moisture accumulation and changes in the composition of the cell gas (aging). This study presents results from laboratory measurements of thermal conductivity and moisture content of specimens taken from Scandinavian roads. The actual moisture accumulation is compared to calculated and a simple model for prediction of the thermal conductivity under service conditions is devel oped.
Thermal Resistance Measurements of Well-Insulated and Superinsulated Residential Walls Using a Calibrated Hot Box
Authors: Zarr R.R. , Burch D.M. , Faison T.K. , Arnold C.E.
Published: March 2007

Thermal resistance measurements of two highly insulated residential walls are made using a calibrated hot box operated under winter and summer climatic condi tions. The well-insulated wall consists of two insulated wood-frame sections with staggered framing, having a nominal thermal resistance of R-27 F·ft2·h/Btu (4.8 K· m2/W). The superinsulated wall is identical in construction, except for additional in sulation placed between the two wood-frame sections increasing the wall thermal re sistance to a nominal value of R-39 F·ft2·h/Btu (6.9 K·m2/W).

The measured thermal resistance for both walls is examined as a function of mean wall temperature and compared with predictions using the ASHRAE parallel-path method, the ASHRAE isothermal-plane method, and a finite-difference model with temperature-dependent thermal conductivities. Good agreement between measured and predicted values is obtained using both ASHRAE methods and the finite- difference model. At mean wall temperatures above 40°F (4.4°C), the ASHRAE parallel-path method tends to overpredict, while the ASHRAE isothermal-plane method tends to underpredict the overall thermal resistance. The effects of the com pression of glass-fiber blanket insulation and nail penetrations on the overall thermal resistance are investigated.
A Thermocouple Device for Determination of Average Surface Temperature
Authors: Hust J.G. , Smith David R.
Published: March 2007

A thermocouple-based device for the measurement of average surface temperature is described. The device requires the measurement of only two emfs and yields the average temperature over the entire surface instrumented with the device. It consists of a single (normal) thermocouple and a thermopile-like element which performs the averaging. A particular use of the device is described to illustrate its utility.
Wetting of Polystyrene and Urethane Roof Insulations in the Laboratory and on a Protected Membrane Roof
Authors: Tobiasson Wayne , Greatorex Alan , Van Pelt Doris
Published: March 2007

When subjected to a sustained temperature gradient in the presence of moisture in laboratory wetting tests, urethane and expanded polystyrene roof insulations accu mulate enough moisture to significantly reduce their insulating ability. Extruded polystyrene is quite resistant to moisture in such tests. But the vapor drive is not as great in actual roofs and it may reverse direction, thereby seasonally drying the msu lation. To determine how well the laboratory tests could predict the wetting rate of insulation in actual protected membrane roofs, extruded and expanded polystyrene and urethane insulations were installed in a protected membrane roof in Hanover, NH. After three years of exposure, little moisture had accumulated in the extruded polystyrene and it still retained essentially all of its initial insulating ability. Moisture progressively accumulated in 16 kg/m3 (1 pcf) and 30 kg/m3 (1.9 pcf) expanded poly styrene and at the end of the test they retained only about 30 and 40 percent of their initial thermal resistance respectively. The urethane accumulated enough moisture to reduce its insulating ability to about 30 percent of its dry value. The laboratory tests provided a valuable indication of the potential long-term moisture gain of these insu lations when installed in protected membrane roofs in cold regions.
Aging of Cellular Plastics: A Comprehensive Bibliography
Authors: Tye Ronald P.
Published: March 2007

Fluorocarbon blown cellular plastics are used widely for insulating building and industrial systems because of their potentially high thermal resistance per unit thick ness characteristics. However, due to gas diffusion and other environmental and prac tical factors involved both during and after installation, changes involving especially the phenomenon described as "aging" take place whereby this high thermal resistance decreases with time to lower values.

This "aging" subject has been, and is being, studied extensively worldwide, partic ularly in the laboratory. More recently, in situ results are becoming available and con troversies exist about the results. In order to assist those involved and those planning to become involved in the subject, a comprehensive bibliography has been prepared and is being maintained. This contains well over two hundred and fifty (250) cita tions of information relating to this complex subject involving materials and prod ucts behavior, installed system performance, and testing and evaluation issues.
The Use of an Array of Heat Flux Transducers to Study Thermal Property Variations
Authors: Graves R.S. , Yarbrough D.W.
Published: March 2007

An array of 30 heat flux transducers (HFTs) has been fabricated and installed in a heat flow meter apparatus in order to measure heat flow across inhomo geneous specimens. Calibration of the individual transducers was accomplished with a 25.4-mm-thick piece of NIST SRM 1450b and a sufficient number of temperature differences to establish a linear relationship between individual transducer output and heat flux.

The HFT array was used to determine apparent thermal conductivity, ka, as a function of position on a test specimen. The measured ka of a foamboard specimen cut to fit into a high-density fiberglass frame was within 2.4% of the ka of the uncut foamboard. The HFT array has also been used to study the change in ka with time of faced and partially unfaced specimens of foamboard insulation. The array was used to monitor changes in ka specimens with 0 to 100% of the facer removed for approx imately five months.

The calibration of the HFT array and the heat flux measurements that have been completed are discussed in this paper. The HFT array provides a way to study the thermal resistance of a specimen as a function of time, temperature, and position.
Metal-Coated Vacuum Panels as Thermal Insulation
Authors: Brodt K.H. , Bart G.C.J.
Published: March 2007

Evacuated panels are one possible alternative to chlorofluorocarbon blown rigid polyurethane foam as thermal insulation. These panels are covered with a vacuum tight foil to sustain the required vacuum, which influences performance. To evaluate the effective thermal conductivity, calculations on the total heat transfer of both metal-free and fully metal-coated vacuum panels were performed. These panels or walls containing a vacuum panel were applied in air and it turned out that different boundary conditions can have a remarkable effect, we employed boundary condi tions of the third kind including heat transfer coefficients of 6 W m-2 K-1 and 12 W m-2 K-1, respectively.
A Comparison between Actual and Published k-Values for Saudi Insulation Materials
Authors: Al-Hammad Abdul-Mohsen , Abdelrahman M.A. , Grondzik W. , Hawari Aiman
Published: March 2007

The objective of this technical note is to compare the tested results of the k-values of Saudi manufacturers' insulation materials with the same manufactur ers published values. The test insulation materials include expanded polystyrene, polyurethane, extruded polystyrene, light weight concrete (Siporex), polyiso cyanurate, glass fiber, and perlite from different Saudi manufacturers.

The ASTM test for "Steady-State Thermal Transmission Properties by Means of the Guarded-Hot-Plate" (C-177) was utilized for testing the insulation samples. A guarded-hot-plate thermal conductance measuring system was utilized for conduct ing the tests.

Insulation material samples from over 14 Saudi insulation manufacturers were ob tained. The results indicate that published thermal conductivity values do not necessarily represent the proper values for Saudi climatic conditions.
Control Stability of a Heat-Flow-Meter Apparatus
Authors: Zarr Robert R.
Published: March 2007

Calibration measurements of a commercial heat-flow-meter appara tus are presented. The apparatus has been calibrated using the same specimen of high-density fibrous-glass board over a period of four years, from 1989 to 1993. Seventy-three tests have been conducted, generally at ambient conditions of 24°C with a moderate temperature difference of either 15, 22 or 27°C across the specimen. Variations within a set of data for each test have been examined to verify underlying assumptions of randomness, normal frequency distribution of errors, repeatability, and stability of the data. Variations between test data indicate a small drift, on the order of one percent over four years, in the calibration factor of the apparatus. A model has been developed to describe the small drift with time. The analysis of varia tions between test data has also identified intermittent shifts in the precision of the calibration factor of the apparatus.
A Conversation with Gerald L. Barkdoll
Authors: Sporn Douglas
Published: March 2007

Interviewees should be persons who are important stakeholders for evaluations and those with views of general interest to practicing evaluators. Interviewers and interviewees may be one person or several; for example, one person may interview one individual or a panel of individuals, a panel of interviewers may interview one or more interviewees, and so forth. Douglas L. Sporn of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is coordinating the interview section of Evaluation Practice.
The Social Experiment and the Future of Evaluative Research
Authors: Suchman Edward A.
Published: March 2007

TRACES are what evaluators left behind—discoveries, records, tracks—which made marks on the profession of program evaluation. Published here are excerpts from our past (e.g., articles, passages from books, speeches) that show where we have been or affected where we are g(r)o(w)ing. Suggestions for inclusion should be sent to the Editor, along with rationale for their import. Photocopies of the original printed versions are preferred with full bibliographic information. Copying rights will be secured by the Editor.
Book Reviews : The Program Evaluation Standards: How to Assess Evaluations of Educational Programs, by The Joint Committee on Standards for Educational Evaluations, Newbury Park, CA: Sage, (In Press)
Authors: Patton Michael Quinn
Published: March 2007

Books applicable to the broad field of program evaluation are reviewed. Books may be reviewed singly or in groups to illuminate similarities and differences in intent, philosophy, and usefulness. Persons with suggestions of books to be reviewed or those who wish to submit a review should contact Dr. Byron R. Burnham, Evaluation Specialist ( Cooperative Extension Service, Utah State University, Logan, UT 84322-4900; phone: 801-750-1637 ) for specific instructions. In general, a review of an individual book should not exceed four double-spaced typewritten pages; groups of books may require additional lengths.
Outreach and Program Evaluation: Some Measurement Issues1
Authors: Richard Alan J. , Bell David C. , Elwood William N. , Dayton-Shotts Cheryl
Published: March 2007

Literally, the word "outreach" evokes the image of "reaching out," attempting to touch what is currently beyond one's grasp. Activities that help organizations to "reach out" are important elements of most services, and some organizations employ outreach paraprofessionals whose primary function is to help recruit participants into a program. Because outreach is supposed to occur before individuals receive the goods or services offered by an organization, evaluations generally do not measure the amount of outreach contact. However, outreach and program intervention activities tend to overlap when an organization encounters resistance from a population of potential consumers. Drawing on 10 years of experience evaluating HIV risk-reduction interventions for drug users who are not in treatment, the authors argue that outreach workers are part of the intervention continuum, and have important effects not only on recruitment, but also on service delivery. We argue that the evaluation and measurement issues raised by pre-enrollment outreach contacts can be best addressed by improving quantitative pre-enrollment data collection. Finally, we present and discuss specific elements of a system for measuring pre-enrollment contacts.
Current and Developing Conceptions of Use: Evaluation Use TIG Survey Results
Authors: Preskill Hallie , Caracelli Valerie
Published: March 2007

This article presents the results of a survey sent to Evaluation Use Topical Interest Group (TIG) members for the purpose of ascertaining their perceptions about and experiences with evaluation use. Fifty-four percent ( n = 282) of the 530 members surveyed responded. These respondents agree that the major purposes of evaluation are to facilitate organizational learning, provide information for decision making, improve programs, and determine the merit or worth of the evaluand. Performance-results oriented Hallie Preskill evaluations, formative evaluations, as well as evaluations with a participatory emphasis, organizational learning emphasis, and practitioner-centered action research or empowerment approaches were all viewed as more important today than they were 10 years ago. Survey findings revealed that the most important strategies for facilitating use are planning for use at the beginning of an evaluation, identifying and prioritizing intended users and intended uses of the evaluation, designing the evaluation within resource limitations, involving stakeholders in the evaluation process, communicating findings to stakeholders as the evaluation progresses, and developing a communication and reporting plan. This survey represents a comprehensive effort to understand TIG respondents' views on evaluation use and should help further discussion on developing and advancing our theoretical and practical knowledge.
Warrantless Search in the Law Enforcement Workplace
Authors: Bloss William P.
Published: March 2007

One of the earliest areas of employee Fourth Amendment privacy juris prudence in the law enforcement workplace was employer warrantless search. In O'Connor v. Ortega (1987), the United States Supreme Court clarified the doctrine permitting public employers to conduct warrantless searches in the workplace. Using federal and state case law, this paper ana lyzes lower court interpretation and application of the Ortega doctrine re garding employer warrantless search in the law-enforcement workplace. The paper examines current lower court doctrine and discusses allowable warrantless search practices by law enforcement employers. This study concludes that lower courts, relying on a "balancing of competing inter ests" test between government and individual privacy, have found employer warrantless noncriminal searches permissible because of a diminished employee "expectation of privacy" in the public workplace. Further, in supplanting traditional Fourth Amendment warrant and probable-cause requirements with a reasonableness standard, the courts have expanded law enforcement employer search authority to include areas such as em ployee offices, desks, briefcases, lockers and government-issued vehicles.
A Case Study of Community Policing in a Southern Sheriff's Office
Authors: Bromley Max L. , Cochran John K.
Published: March 2007

The majority of research regarding community-oriented policing (COP) has focused on municipal police agencies. Conspicuously missing is information with respect to community policing in sheriff's offices. The present study examines the perceptions of deputies in a sheriff's office located in the south-eastern United States. The findings lend general support to Falcone and Wells' hypothesis that sheriff's offices are by their very nature interactive with and accountable to their community. Theoretically, it is within this type of organizational context that COP may find the most support.
How Enteral Feeding Options Influence Corticosterone Patterns in Rats
Authors: Westfall Una E.
Published: March 2007

Even with all the nutritional research conducted to date, it is not clear which enteral nutrition delivery and composition options are most physiologically sound. Glucocorticoid temporal patterns are reported to be shifted or disrupted with restricted feeding schedules, but because of intermittent sampling, temporal patterns have not been completely depicted. The purpose of this study was to characterize corticosterone temporal patterns while systematically varying selected enteral feeding options in a well-established nutritional animal model. A 2 • 2 • 2 • 2 randomized block experimental design was used in which enteral feeding schedules, delivery methods, kilocalorie levels (kcal), and fiber contents were systematically varied in rats (n = 80), and plasma corticosterone was measured by125 I radioimmunoassay. Blood samples were drawn hourly over 24 h. With cosinor analysis, 24-h and 12-h corticosterone rhythmic components were tested in each feeding group. Five of 16 feeding groups had a significant (p £ 0.05) 24-h rhythmic component, and 3 more showed a trend (p> 0.05< 0.10); 7 of these groups were on 24-h feeding schedules. When rhythmic components were detectable, groups receiving high-fiber formula displayed more uniform rhythm characteristics than did no-fiber groups. Only 1 group had a significant 12-h rhythmic component, and 1 showed a trend. Both were on 12-h, high-fiber restricted kcal feedings. In this small animal sample, no one enteral feeding option guaranteed a 24-h corticosterone pattern. The option coming closest was formula delivered on a 24-h schedule. This temporal pattern is one aspect to consider in enteral nutrition. The underlying mechanisms have yet to be elucidated.
Iron-Overload Cardiomyopathy: Evidence for a Free Radical– Mediated Mechanism of Injury and Dysfunction in a Murine Model
Authors: Bartfay Wally J. , Bartfay Emma
Published: March 2007

Iron-overload cardiomyopathy is a restrictive cardiomyopathy that manifests itself as systolic or diastolic dysfunction secondary to increased deposition of iron in the heart and occurs with common genetic disorders such as primary hemochromatosis and betathalassemia major. Although the exact mechanism of iron-induced heart failure remains to be elucidated, the toxicity of iron in biological systems is believed to be attributed to its ability to catalyze the generation of oxygen-free radicals. In the current investigation, the dose-dependent effects of chronic iron-loading on heart tissue concentrations of iron, glutathione peroxidase (GPx) activity, free-radical production, and cardiac dysfunction were investigated in a murine model of iron-overload cardiomyopathy. It was shown that chronic iron-overload results in dose-dependent (a) increases in myocardial iron burden, (b) decreases in the protective antioxidant enzyme GPx activity, (c) increased free-radical production, and (d) increased mortality. These findings show that the mechanism of iron-induced heart dysfunction involves in part free radical–mediated processes.
Influence of Adjuvant Chemotherapy on Skeletal Muscle and Fatigue in Women with Breast Cancer
Authors: Kasper Christine E. , Sarna Linda P.
Published: March 2007

The purpose of this pilot study was to investigate the changes in skeletal muscle size and strength and perception of fatigue in women undergoing adjuvant chemotherapy for breast cancer. The findings of this pilot study suggest that changes in muscle size and strength can occur during chemotherapy. Quadricep muscle size increased for two subjects. These subjects also experienced an increase in muscle strength. This is the first known study to address change in muscle size and fatigue in women during adjuvant chemotherapy for breast cancer from an integrated biobehavioral perspective. Our findings may indicate that muscle size can increase during chemotherapy, but this may not diminish the subjective experiences of fatigue. As the potential for causing serious damage to striated muscle exists, further research into muscle changes and activity during chemotherapy and its role in fatigue is crucial.