bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Research report
Authors: Ingholt Liselotte , Sørensen Betina Bang , Axel Erik , Frank Vibeke Asmussen
Published: February 2013

Drug Use within Vocational Education: Health Promotion, Social Relations and Institutional Organization

Aim

The article explores the significance of drug use and peer relations for students’ participation in vocational education.

Design

From 22 qualitative interviews two girls’ case stories are analyzed, one still being in, the other having left vocational education. The article is rooted in theory of social practice and critical psychology. Key concepts include institutional and personal trajectories of participation.

Results

Learning in vocational education is part of how young people develop and coordinate their trajectory of everyday social life. Additionally drug use may become important in the process of forming peer relations. For some students, the focus is drifting from vocational to social interactions with drugs. School institutional organization including the significance of other students, teachers, and student counselors play an important role with regard to students’ participation in and dropout of vocational school.

Conclusions

Organizing social life in vocational schools influences students’ learning as well as dropout and tobacco, alcohol, and drug use.
Women, work and wine
Authors: Buvik Kristin , Sagvaag Hildegunn
Published: February 2013

Aims

There are many grey zones between work and leisure time, where colleagues drink together. Managers are more often involved in grey-zone situations than other employees, and the managerial arena is dominated by men. What is the significance of female managers’ visibility in their understanding of their own consumption of alcohol? What leads female managersto moderate their work-related alcohol consumption?

Data and Methods

To capture the female managers’ perspectives, we conducted 13 in-depth interviews. The female managers represented various kinds of work within care or nursing, media or publishing, public administration and commodity trading.

Results

The female managers’ reflections and experiences of consuming alcohol in grey zones explain how their heightened visibility as women leads them to moderate their alcohol consumption. Three themes were especially salient: (1) need to be in control, (2) concern about stigmatisation, and (3) life stages marked with caring tasks.

Conclusions

The results show the importance of external factors in work-related drinking. Women's visibility is significant in relation to cultural dimensions, moderating work-related drinking even when women are managers. The women place demands upon themselves based on their own conceptions of others’ expectations of female managers.
Research report
Authors: Tryggvesson Kalle
Published: February 2013

Aims

The purpose of this article is to demonstrate how Swedish authorities and politicians have related to syringe exchange in Sweden during the last 25 years. As the syringe exchange in Sweden still is very limited, this study focuses on the arguments for and against syringe exchange, and how the question has been formulated in the political proposals during the period studied.

Methods and Data

Since 1988 the National Board of Health and Welfare conducted three major studies on the effects and relevance of syringe exchange. These studies, and the policy documents that followed, are qualitatively analyzed in this paper.

Results

The processes have all looked the same; NBHW has proposed syringe exchange programs, which are a mix of drug policy and infection control aspects. During the political process the proposals have changed so that the infections control aspects has been downgraded on behalf of drug-policy interests. The arguments for this change have to their nature been abstract.

Conclusions

Even though Sweden established its first experiments with syringe exchange already in the mid-1980s, it is not before the year 2006 that the country's all counties by law are allowed to provide clean syringes to their drug users. However, the law is modeled on a fear of harmful effects of drug use, and a will to rather encourage drug treatment than other measures. Thereby the importance of the infections control aspect is heavily undermined.
A Proposed Model to Study Immunologic Changes during Chronic Rhinosinusitis Exacerbations: Data from a Pilot Study
Authors: Rank Matthew A. , Hagan John B. , Samant Shefali A. , Kita Hirohito
Published: February 2013

Background

One way to gain insight into the pathophysiology of chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) is to study the immunologic changes that occur with exacerbation. This study describes the immunologic changes during CRS exacerbation

Methods

We performed a prospective study to investigate the immunologic changes seen during exacerbation of CRS with nasal polyposis. We recruited adult subjects who met clinical criteria for CRS with sinus CT scan within the past 5 years with Lund-Mackay score of >5 and nasal polyps. Subjects underwent a baseline visit with collection of nasal secretion and nasal wash. With acute worsening of symptoms, subjects underwent 6 near-consecutive-day collections and one follow-up collection 2 weeks later. IL-6, IL-33, eosinophil major basic protein (MBP), eosinophil-derived neurotoxin (EDN), myeloperoxidase (MPO), and uric acid were measured on the nasal samples from each visit.

Results

A total of 10 subjects were recruited and 9 had acute worsening of CRS during the study period. Eight of the nine subjects were women and ages ranged from 26 to 56 years. At baseline, most inflammatory parameters were low and eight of the nine subjects were on intranasal corticosteroids. Compared with baseline measurements, IL-6, MBP, MPO, EDN, and uric acid were significantly elevated during CRS exacerbation. Levels of IL-6 and MBP (r = 0.47) levels as well as IL-6 and MPO (r = 0.75) were both significantly correlated (p < 0.01).

Conclusion

Prospective study of CRS exacerbations is feasible and provides insights into the immunologic mechanisms of CRS.
Achilles Tendon Rupture
Authors: Cruz Mario F. , Jordan Susan S. , Bolgla Lori A.
Published: February 2013

The patient was a 30-year-old man who was referred to a physical therapist for a chief complaint of a painful, swollen left lower leg that had caused difficulty with walking in the previous 3 weeks. Prior to physical therapist referral, the patient's primary care provider ordered radiographs of the left ankle, which were interpreted as normal. Due to history and physical examination findings that were concerning for an Achilles tendon rupture, the physical therapist immediately referred the patient to an orthopaedic surgeon. Magnetic resonance imaging confirmed the presence of a complete rupture of the Achilles tendon.

J Orthop Sports Phys Ther 2013;43(2):105. doi:10.2519/jospt.2013.0403
Hip Pain in a Young Athlete
Authors: Kovacs Christopher J. , Paterno Mark V. , Chandran Sheila
Published: February 2013

The patient was an 11-year-old boy who was referred to a physical therapist for a chief complaint of left anterior/lateral hip pain. Prior to referral to the physical therapist, radiographs were completed and interpreted as normal. Initially, his hip pain did not limit his participation in athletic activities; however, following a prescription of an exercise program, the patient reported worsening left hip pain that caused an inability to participate in lacrosse, as well as 2 episodes of severe night pain. The patient was immediately referred to his physician, where magnetic resonance imaging revealed signs most concerning for an infectious process/osteomyelitis in the region of the proximal femur and greater trochanter.

J Orthop Sports Phys Ther 2013;43(2):106. doi:10.2519/jospt.2013.0404
Equity Evaluation of Fees for Vehicle Miles Traveled in Texas
Authors: Larsen Lisa , Burris Mark , Pearson David , Ellis Patricia
Published: February 2013

The Texas state gas tax has been 20 cents per gallon since 1991, and the federal gas tax has been 18.4 cents per gallon since 1993. The gas tax is not only stagnant but also depreciating in value because of inflation. Thus, the money needed to maintain the infrastructure and improve roadways is not being adequately generated. One proposed alternative to the gas tax is the creation of a fee for vehicle miles traveled (VMT), with equity being a crucial issue. This research used Texas data from the 2009 National Household Travel Survey to consider the equity impacts of four VMT-fee scenarios. Data were filtered and weighted to reflect results representative of Texas vehicle-owning households in 2008. Each scenario was run both statically and dynamically under the assumption that the VMT fee would replace the state gas tax. On the basis of quantitative measures, the vertical equity of all proposed VMT-fee scenarios and that of the current state gas tax were similar. In terms of horizontal equity, Scenario 4 was designed to be inherently horizontally equitable: charging different rates for travel on urban roadways and rural roadways corresponding to funding needs associated with that roadway type. Scenario 3, which favored fuel-efficient vehicles, was found to be the least horizontally equitable and caused rural households to contribute the highest percentage of revenue of all scenarios considered. All other scenarios were found to be more horizontally equitable than the current state gas tax.
Relationship between Vehicle Miles Traveled and Economic Activity
Authors: McMullen B. Starr , Eckstein Nathan
Published: February 2013

Vehicle miles traveled (VMT) in the United States has exhibited an upward trend over time similar to that observed for the gross domestic product (GDP) and personal income. Although conventional wisdom suggests that economic growth leads to more driving and thus higher VMT, it is theoretically possible that the causation could be the other way around. If causation is from VMT to GDP, a directive from legislation such as the Federal Surface Transportation Policy and Planning Act of 2009 to reduce national per capita VMT annually could have an adverse impact on the overall economic activity. This study uses times series techniques to test empirically for Granger causality between VMT and various measures of the national economic activity over time. In most circumstances the causal relationship is found to be from economic activity to VMT; this relationship confirms conventional wisdom and suggests that exogenous shocks to VMT will not negatively affect the national GDP. The relationship between national VMT and GDP is found to be dependent on the stage of the business cycle, in particular, when GDP leads VMT in economic upturns or normal times but VMT tends to lead GDP recessions. For the 98 urban areas included in this study, no significant causal relationship was found between VMT and economic activity in either direction.
Effects of Impact Fees on Urban Form and Congestion in Florida
Authors: Blanco Andres G. , Steiner Ruth L. , Kim Jeongseob , Chung Hyungchul
Published: February 2013

This study analyzes the effects of impact fees on urban form and congestion through econometric analysis. The results show that there is some evidence that impact fees might reduce congestion by creating disincentives to residential development and job creation. However, direct evidence of a negative effect of impact fees in development and job growth is not found. There is no evidence that the difference in impact fees between central cities and outer areas promotes a more compact urban form. Likewise, there is no evidence that more road impact fees decrease congestion through more investment in infrastructure. This finding might be because impact fees usually finance local roads but congestion is concentrated on freeways and arterials or because there is a spatial, temporal, or financial mismatch between the collection and investment of impact fees. There is a clear, significant, and substantial positive relationship between density and congestion; this relationship indicates a weak increase in transit use in denser environments or a potential increase in automotive travel through higher trip frequency. However, other urban form variables related to the distribution of that density have a negative effect on congestion, indicating that certain urban configurations could decrease congestion. Finally, changes in congestion are negatively correlated with the congestion levels at the beginning of the period; this finding suggests that congestion is increasing faster in those areas that used to be less congested.
Impact of Peak and Off-Peak Tolls on Traffic in San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge Corridor in California
Authors: Barnes Ian C. , Frick Karen Trapenberg , Deakin Elizabeth , Skabardonis Alexander
Published: February 2013

The San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge is located in the heart of the San Francisco Bay Area in California and connects two of the largest cities in northern California over San Francisco Bay. In July 2010, the Bay Area Toll Authority (BATA) increased tolls on the San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge from a flat toll collected westbound only to weekday peak and off-peak tolls. BATA also instituted a carpool toll of $2.50 (previously carpools crossed for free) payable by FasTrak electronic toll collection tag only. With floating-car data provided by BATA, the change in travel time for the I-80, I-580, and I-880 approaches was computed by payment type (cash, FasTrak, and high-occupancy vehicle access lanes) and hour. Travel times were found to have been reduced by 0 to 16 min for cash customers (varying by time of day and approach), with varying results for FasTrak customers and little change for high-occupancy vehicle customers. Data collected by BATA at the toll plaza were analyzed by hour and payment type. The analysis found that the number of vehicles in the carpool lanes was reduced by more than 20% at times, whereas FasTrak volumes remained steady or increased and cash volumes were slightly lower than before the toll switch.
Risk Allocation in Toll Highway Concessions in Spain: Lessons from Economic Recession
Authors: Vassallo José Manuel , Ortega Alejandro , de los Ángeles Baeza María
Published: February 2013

Spain has a long tradition of encouraging toll highways by granting concessions to private companies. Concessions in Spain have been characterized by a willingness to transfer considerable risk to the private sector. Traffic demand, acquisition of the right-of-way, and financial risk have often been allocated to the private sector. From 1996 to 2011, 16 toll highway concessions, covering a total distance of 835 km, were awarded by the central government of Spain with this approach. Some of those highways started their operations just before the economic recession began. The recession had negative consequences for Spain's economy. The gross domestic product per capita plummeted, and the unemployment rate increased from 9% to 20% of the working population in just 2 years. The recession also had severe consequences for the economic performance of toll highway concessions. Traffic levels declined at a much greater rate than did the gross domestic product. In addition, the conditions imposed by the financial markets on borrowers became much stricter because of the liquidity crisis. This study analyzes the impact that the economic recession ultimately had on the performance of toll highway concessions in Spain and the actions that the government adopted to avoid the bankruptcy of the concessionaires. It was found that the economic recession helped identify some deficiencies in how risk had been allocated in Spain. The measures that both Spain and the European Union are adopting so as to improve risk allocation are discussed.
Measuring per Mile Risk for Pay-As-You-Drive Automobile Insurance
Authors: Ferreira Joseph , Minikel Eric
Published: February 2013

This study examines the relationship between accident costs and annual miles driven with mileage and claims data representing approximately 3 million individual car years of insurance exposure for private passenger automobiles in Massachusetts in the 2006 policy year. Poisson and linear models relating pure premium to annual mileage estimates demonstrate that mileage is a significant predictor of insurance risk, that mileage alone cannot replace traditional rating factors such as class and territory, and that mileage gains in explanatory power when used in conjunction with those traditional rating factors. These findings provide a strong actuarial basis for pay-as-you-drive insurance, in which drivers are charged rates per mile that differ depending on the driver's class and territory. A model of consumer response to pay-as-you-drive insurance based on studies of miles elasticity to gasoline prices suggests that if all drivers in Massachusetts switched to per mile insurance policies, aggregate vehicle miles traveled in the state would drop by 5.0% to 9.5%. Greenhouse gas emissions from private passenger automobiles would be reduced by a similar amount, and the social equity implications of pay-as-you-drive insurance would be positive. On the basis of sound actuarial justification and positive social benefits, this study finds a strong argument in favor of the regulatory approval of pay-as-you-drive insurance.
Risk-Based Benefit–Cost Analysis of Information Technology Tools for Program Management
Authors: Ford Mark , Cox Jim , Hagar Jim , Kirkman Robb
Published: February 2013

A risk-based benefit–cost approach was used to evaluate the impact of nine information technology (IT) tools on a $1.3 billion bridge repair and replacement program. The IT tools included four tools based on geographic information systems, two document control systems, and three reporting and database systems. The risk-based approach allowed users to deal with the uncertainties around staff time savings and other factors that are imprecise and subject to variation. Taken as a whole, the IT tools had a positive benefit–cost ratio, although four of the tools taken individually did not generate enough benefits to cover their costs. The tangible benefit of these systems was the time saved by agency staff and contractors. The study concluded that organizational structure, contractual and legal requirements, timing, and coordination with existing IT systems were critical factors affecting the benefits of IT systems in support of major transportation programs. The major contribution of this study is to demonstrate the application of risk-based benefit–cost analysis to programs and to take account of the uncertainties in benefits and costs.
The Chicago Skyway in Illinois
Authors: Dyble Louise Nelson
Published: February 2013

The history of the Chicago Skyway in Illinois, from its inception in 1953 to its 99-year lease in 2005, is examined in this paper. As one of the last U.S. toll roads to be built before the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956, the skyway's administration reflects the decentralized and relatively flexible institutions of highway administration that prevailed at the time. Chicago officials were able to finance the skyway with revenue bonds to address an anticipated traffic crisis resulting from uncoordinated planning for the Indiana Toll Road. However, Chicago's independent initiative came with a lack of oversight and resulted in questionable design parameters, traffic projections, and financing. Skyway bonds went into default in 1963, and decades of financial shortfalls and deferred maintenance followed. In the 1990s, improved traffic and revenue allowed for debt retirement and physical rehabilitation. Its lease to an investment group led by Australia's Macquarie Bank indicated a new paradigm of decentralized highway administration that included an important private-sector role. The $1.83 billion deal was hailed as a triumph for Chicago and a model for future transactions, but once again, its value for investors was questionable. A half-century of skyway history reveals some of the advantages and risks of a decentralized and relatively unregulated system of highway financing and administration.
Accounting for Correlations
Authors: Zhou Xue , Damnjanovic Ivan D.
Published: February 2013

Macroeconomic conditions, such as commodity prices, affect the cost of construction projects. In a volatile market environment, contractors respond by adding premiums in bid prices when highway agencies pass such risk on to contractors by using fixed-price contracts. How much of the commodity cost risk should highway agencies pass on to contractors? More specifically, this study aims to investigate the impact of correlation among commodity prices on optimal risk-hedging decisions. A weighted least-squares regression model is used to estimate the risk premium; both univariate time series and vector time series models are estimated and applied to simulate changes in commodity prices over time, including the effect of correlation. A genetic algorithm is used as a solution approach to a multiobjective optimization problem (cost versus future risk exposure). In a case study, project cost risks are shown to be significantly underestimated if correlations are not accounted for.
Integrating Transportation and Economic Models to Assess Impact of Infrastructure Investment
Authors: Duncan Chandler , Landau Steven , Cutler Derek , Alstadt Brian , Petraglia Lisa
Published: February 2013

This study explores how different asset management, traffic forecasting, performance, and economic models can be integrated to show the national economic implications of transportation funding and performance gaps under different scenarios. Asset management models have often been utilized to assess and forecast the condition and performance of current infrastructure. Travel demand models have been used to anticipate how traffic volumes are likely to develop over time depending on capacity improvements. User-cost models have been used for cost–benefit analysis and the management of trade-offs, and economic impact models have been used to characterize transportation choices in terms of earnings, output, and employment. This study explores how a sequence of these models when applied to a consistent data set with consistent assumptions can address the overall relationship between physical transportation system conditions and performance, traffic patterns, transportation costs, and economic impacts. The results point to a vertically integrated and economically defensible approach to needs-based planning with an understanding of the national economic significance of transportation investment choices.
Effects of Road Investments on Economic Output and Induced Travel Demand
Authors: Melo Patricia C. , Graham Daniel J. , Canavan Shane
Published: February 2013

The objective of this study is to analyze the effects of road transportation investment on economic output and induced travel demand. Data for U.S. urbanized areas are analyzed within a dynamic panel vector auto-regression model to test whether the effects of transportation-induced economic growth and travel demand can be empirically validated. The results show that investment in road capacity increases average economic growth while simultaneously inducing additional growth in traffic (vehicle miles traveled). Indeed, a general failure of investment to alleviate levels of congestion is found; this finding suggests that productivity shifts are brought about through a net increase in the scale of travel and associated interactions rather than improved network performance as measured by travel times. The evidence also shows that congestion forms part of the decision criterion used to allocate investments in road capacity. If improvements in network performance are to be achieved in a climate of travel demand growth, demand management techniques may be more effective than capacity expansion.
Impact of Regulation and Network Topology on Effectiveness of Roadway Privatization
Authors: Zhang Lei , Yusufzyanova Dilya
Published: February 2013

An agent-based model of roadway privatization is developed to evaluate pricing and capacity decisions for private toll roads when they compete with existing public roads. The model is demonstrated on a hypothetical grid and beltway structure network. Several simulation scenarios are presented to illustrate the effects of regulation policy packages of privatized roads and the influence of public and private network hierarchy on network growth patterns. From the simulation results of the developed agent-based model, several insights are provided on the impacts of ownership and network structures on the socioeconomic performance of transportation systems. Both the analytical findings and the application results on test networks are in favor of introducing private toll roads to current public road systems characterized by growing congestion, insufficient public funding, and inefficient pricing practices. When properly regulated, a privatized transportation network can achieve net social benefits close to the theoretical optimum and distribute a high percentage of welfare gains to travelers. Although the public sector is still able to expand roadway capacity gradually over time, additional revenue sources from privatization help to increase network capacity and to bring it closer to the optimal levels on public roads.
Composition of Vehicle Occupancy for Journey-to-Work Trips
Authors: Belz Nathan P. , Lee Brian H. Y.
Published: February 2013

Ridesharing serves to mitigate pollution and congestion with minimal investment of public capital while also increasing the efficiency of the transportation system. This research addresses the gaps in the literature on the structure and formation of ridesharing by identifying individual, household, and physical-environment characteristics that correspond with an individual's choice to rideshare instead of drive alone. For a fuller understanding of ridesharing behavior, there first must be a better understanding of who is in the vehicle, not just how many. A distinction is made between intrahousehold (internal) and interhousehold (external) ridesharing. With the Vermont add-on sample of the 2009 National Household Travel Survey, a multinomial logit model and nested logit model were developed to examine the determinants of ridesharing. The analysis in this research stresses the importance of the way ridesharing behavior is extracted from survey data. Further, a new method for calculating household vehicle availability is presented; the method places less importance on drivers who are not full-time workers. Results indicate that employment density, longer distance traveled to work, and working in a small urban area have positive influences on the likelihood of ridesharing. Higher vehicle availability in the household, age, sex (male), and a longer time spent per trip on the journey to work were all found to influence the propensity to rideshare negatively. Cost of travel does not significantly affect ridesharing.
Hybrid Compensatory–Noncompensatory Choice Sets in Semicompensatory Models
Authors: Kaplan Sigal , Bekhor Shlomo , Shiftan Yoram
Published: February 2013

Semicompensatory models represent a choice process consisting of an elimination-based choice set formation on satisfaction of criterion thresholds and a utility-based choice. Current semicompensatory models assume a purely noncompensatory choice set formation and therefore do not support multinomial criteria that involve trade-offs between attributes at the choice set formation stage. This study proposes a novel behavioral paradigm consisting of a hybrid compensatory–noncompensatory choice set formation process, followed by compensatory choice. The behavioral paradigm is represented by a mathematical model that combines multinomial-response and ordered-response thresholds with a utility-based choice. The proposed model is applied to a stated preference experiment of off-campus rental apartment choices by students. Results demonstrate the applicability and feasibility of incorporating multinomial-response thresholds into semicompensatory models.
Integrating Walkability into Planning Practice
Authors: Weinberger Rachel , Sweet Matthias N.
Published: February 2013

This study used data from www.walkscore.com to assess walking behavior in four U.S. cities. Walk scores measuring the so-called walkability of neighborhoods are ubiquitous, and although the relationship between walk scores and real estate values has been established, the relationship between walk scores and walking has not. In this research three models were developed to understand the correlation between walk scores (as indicators of walkability; i.e., opportunity to walk) and walking. The models looked at walk scores and walk mode share for different trip types. What changes should be expected with changing walk scores along different parts of the walk score spectrum are illustrated. Results suggest that walk scores may be used as a reasonable heuristic to assist with assessing trip impacts for individual projects. With the universal availability of such data, planners can establish a consistent, cost-effective tool for assessing walking behavior with robust and transferable results.
Behavioral Insights Model
Authors: Schaap Nina T. W. , van de Riet Odette A. W. T.
Published: February 2013

The behavioral changes that people exhibit in response to policy measures often differ from what policymakers expected ex ante, and behavioral changes are difficult to realize. However, information about behavioral mechanisms and insights clarifying behavioral responses to policy measures are currently dispersed. This paper is the result of an attempt to gather these insights, starting with mechanisms deriving from social psychology and behavioral economics. An overarching framework consisting of three clusters of behavioral mechanisms is presented. This framework can be of assistance in shaping evidence-based policy measures that make optimally efficient use of the available means, as well as helping to explain why certain policy measures have had the intended effect, while others failed to reach their full potential. At the framework's theoretical base lies the insight that behavior can originate from conscious and subconscious decisions. The three clusters consist of numerous behavioral mechanisms on the individual, social, and physical levels. The framework was discussed in a session by experts with backgrounds in social psychology, behavioral economics, and transport policy analysis who reviewed the framework's validity, coherence, and completeness. This discussion resulted in a set of five additional mechanisms that can be used in shaping policy measures and in explaining their behavioral effects. The extended framework, the behavioral insights model (BIM), was subsequently applied in a test case workshop involving practitioners from the field of transport policy, who concluded that the BIM was useful for working systematically and helpful in developing policy measures. The paper concludes with a discussion of the BIM's completeness and applicability.
Young-Old Elderly and Baby Boomers
Authors: Karimi Behzad , Rashidi Taha Hossein , Mohammadian Abolfazl (Kouros) , Sturm Karl
Published: February 2013

At the beginning of 2011, the first generation of more than 77 million baby boomers began to turn 65. In this study, researchers explore the situation in which those baby boomers who are currently 55 to 64 years old will replace current senior citizens, 65- to 74-year-olds. This study presents a detailed descriptive analysis of activity generation and the planning and scheduling behavior of these two age groups. Global Positioning System–based data from a prompted recall activity-travel survey (the Urban Travel Route and Activity Choice Survey) are used in this study. This highly disaggregate survey with detailed activity attributes has made it possible to distinguish the preferences and flexibilities of preretirement baby boomers (55 to 64) and senior citizens (65 to 74) with respect to their daily activities. The study focuses on a diverse set of activity categories that include the following: work, school, personal, religious, health care, services, errands, discretionary, and shopping. For these activities, activity durations, times of day, and planning time horizons were studied, compared, and analyzed for both age groups. It was revealed that the main difference between these two age groups was the difference in the participation in mandatory activities. Although the two age groups had very similar behavior in choice of activity duration, their time-of-day choice behavior was very different. In addition, both age groups executed a major part of their activities impulsively. Seniors and baby boomers planned 61.6% and 56.9%, respectively, of their activities on “less than 1 h” and “same-day” planning time horizons.
Dynamic Analysis of Japanese Tourists’ Three Stage Choices
Authors: Wu Lingling , Zhang Junyi , Fujiwara Akimasa
Published: February 2013

Finding ways to encourage people to participate in domestic tourism has been a central political issue in Japan for many years. One issue is the unbalanced regional trend in domestic tourist destinations. Various transport policies have been proposed. Under such policy considerations, jointly representing tourism participation, destination choice, and travel mode choice becomes important. However, tourism demand shows monthly variations. To date, the above three aspects have not been satisfactorily analyzed in a dynamic fashion. This study seeks to gain a better understanding of interrelated tourist behavior and provide a scientific tool to support tourism policy decisions by jointly analyzing these choice aspects to build a dynamic nested logit model while taking the influence of state dependence into account. Empirical analysis confirmed the effectiveness of the model with the use of retrospective panel survey data collected from 1,253 respondents in Japan in 2010. To the authors’ best knowledge, this was the first panel survey in Japan to investigate tourists’ behavior over the course of 1 year on a monthly basis. Model estimation results confirmed significantly negative effects of state dependence with respect to tourism participation behavior (implying a decreasing tendency of continuous tourism participation at the monthly level), but positive effects with respect to destination and travel mode choice behaviors. The positive value of state dependence for the travel mode choice behavior suggests that people prefer to use the same type of travel modes when they travel. The influence of travel mode choice on destination choice shows largely regional variations. Results also clarified effects of tourism motivation, individual characteristics, destination-specific attributes, and travel mode–specific attributes on the three choice aspects. Implications of model estimations for policy decisions are discussed.
Car Drivers’ Compliance with Route Advice and Willingness to Choose Socially Desirable Routes
Authors: Kerkman Kasper , Arentze Theo , Borgers Aloys , Kemperman Astrid
Published: February 2013

This study describes the results of a stated choice experiment conducted to analyze route choice behavior of car drivers under the influence of advice and feedback on environmental consequences of their trips. Framing of the route advice is varied in regard to the goal of the agency providing the advice (system or individual optimality) and extent to which it is generic or tailored to the specific preferences of the person. Findings suggest that under conditions of rich information about the attributes of choice alternatives, advice is discarded when it is supposed to serve the driver's own interests, and information allows the individuals to evaluate outcomes independently, but advice is taken into account when it is said to serve traffic management objectives. In line with expectations, the effect of advice is larger when it is labeled as personal compared with when it is labeled as generic. Another finding is that the effect of advice on evaluations of route alternatives is not uniform across attributes. Whereas some attributes become suppressed in the evaluation, others become more salient. The study further provides evidence that travelers are willing to trade social objectives against individual-level objectives. Implications of these findings for the design and use of travel information systems as an instrument for traffic management are discussed and problems for future research are identified.
Another Look at Vehicle Miles Traveled
Authors: Akar Gulsah , Guldmann Jean-Michel
Published: February 2013

This study analyzed the determinants of vehicle miles traveled (VMT) with data from the 2009 National Household Travel Survey. First, total VMT models were estimated across all households. Next, the survey sample was segmented by the number of vehicles owned, and separate models were estimated for each sample segment. Finally, with a focus on two-vehicle households, a seemingly unrelated regression model was formulated to analyze total household VMT and the VMT share of each vehicle. Household increases in income and number of vehicles, workers, adults, and children all led to higher VMT. Population density and gasoline cost negatively affected VMT. Other findings of the total VMT models were related to telecommuting and vehicle characteristics. Results indicate that having the option to telecommute and owning SUVs, pickup trucks, vans, or hybrid vehicles increase VMT. If the driver of a vehicle was a female, older, unemployed, or did not hold a bachelor's degree, that vehicle's share of the total household VMT decreased. If this vehicle was an SUV, a pickup truck, a van, or a hybrid, it was likely to be used more. These significant effects have important implications for understanding the substitution patterns in multivehicle households.
What can be Learned from Analyzing University Student Travel Demand?
Authors: Wang Xin , Khattak Asad J. , Son Sanghoon
Published: February 2013

To improve regional travel demand models, transportation engineers and planners desire appropriate representation of subpopulations. University students are a relatively neglected group of the population, often missed in regional behavioral surveys and not well represented in travel demand models. Many students attending a university reside, take classes, work, and perform other activities in the university environment, which is often mixed use, alternative mode friendly, higher density, and livable. The purpose of this paper is to understand the travel behavior of university students and to model associations with their attributes that include personal characteristics, residential location (residing on campus or off campus), and academic status. The data used in this study are from a unique Internet-based survey (N = 1,468) of students at Old Dominion University in Virginia. This effort was conducted in 2010 and was part of the Virginia University Student Travel Survey (USTS) supplement. With USTS data combined with spatial data, rigorous statistical models of automobile and walk–bicycle trip rates are estimated to explore associated factors. Results showed that students living on campus or near campus were significantly more likely to walk and bicycle and less likely to drive automobiles and indicated the value of living in a campus environment with greater accessibility to activities and a walk-and bicycle-friendly network. The behavioral models provide helpful information that can be used to represent better the behavior of university students in regional travel demand models and to improve strategic transportation planning.
The molecular biology of WHO Grade II gliomas
Authors: Marko Nicholas F. , Weil Robert J.
Published: February 2013

The WHO grading scheme for glial neoplasms assigns Grade II to 5 distinct tumors of astrocytic or oligodendroglial lineage: diffuse astrocytoma, oligodendroglioma, oligoastrocytoma, pleomorphic xanthoastrocytoma, and pilomyxoid astrocytoma. Although commonly referred to collectively as among the “low-grade gliomas,” these 5 tumors represent molecularly and clinically unique entities. Each is the subject of active basic research aimed at developing a more complete understanding of its molecular biology, and the pace of such research continues to accelerate. Additionally, because managing and predicting the course of these tumors has historically proven challenging, translational research regarding Grade II gliomas continues in the hopes of identifying novel molecular features that can better inform diagnostic, prognostic, and therapeutic strategies. Unfortunately, the basic and translational literature regarding the molecular biology of WHO Grade II gliomas remains nebulous. The authors' goal for this review was to present a comprehensive discussion of current knowledge regarding the molecular characteristics of these 5 WHO Grade II tumors on the chromosomal, genomic, and epigenomic levels. Additionally, they discuss the emerging evidence suggesting molecular differences between adult and pediatric Grade II gliomas. Finally, they present an overview of current strategies for using molecular data to classify low-grade gliomas into clinically relevant categories based on tumor biology.
Clinical value of O-(2-[18F]-fluoroethyl)-L-tyrosine positron emission tomography in patients with low-grade glioma
Authors: Rapp Marion , Floeth Frank W. , Felsberg Jörg , Steiger Hans-Jakob , Sabel Michael , Langen Karl-Josef , Galldiks Norbert
Published: February 2013

Progress in morphological imaging has facilitated the diagnosis of low-grade glioma (LGG) and plays a decisive role in therapeutic decisions. To date, the method of choice is contrast-enhanced MRI including T1-/T2-weighted and FLAIR sequences. However, tumor delineation and the differentiation between neoplastic and normal brain tissue can be difficult when using morphological MRI and may complicate the identification of anaplastic foci for biopsy and further treatment planning. Furthermore, therapy monitoring and the differentiation of tumor recurrence from unspecific post-therapeutic changes in the tissue are challenging. Additional information about tumor metabolism may be very helpful for the diagnostic assessment of LGG and can be provided by PET. In recent years, the PET amino acid tracer O-(2-[18F]-fluoroethyl)-L-tyrosine (18F-FET) has been clinically validated for brain tumor diagnosis. This tracer has logistical advantages over the widely used PET tracer 11C-methyl-L-methionine due to the longer half-life of the 18F-label (109 vs 20 minutes, respectively). Additionally, it has been demonstrated that both tracers provide comparable diagnostic information. The authors provide an overview of the recent literature regarding the value of various clinical applications of 18F-FET PET in patients with LGG.
Improved survival in the largest national cohort of adults with cerebellar versus supratentorial low-grade astrocytomas
Authors: Bagley Jacob H. , Babu Ranjith , Friedman Allan H. , Adamson Cory
Published: February 2013

Object

Low-grade gliomas (LGGs) are indolent tumors that have the potential to dedifferentiate into malignant high-grade tumors. Recent studies have demonstrated that cerebellar low-grade tumors have a better prognosis than supratentorial tumors, although no study has focused on the risk factors for poor prognosis in cerebellar LGGs in adults. The authors of the current study aimed to address both of these concerns by using a large cohort derived from a national cancer registry and a smaller cohort derived from their institution's experience.

Methods

Adults with diagnosed Grade I and Grade II gliomas of the cerebellum were identified in the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database. Multivariate Cox proportional hazard models were used to predict rates of survival, and the log-rank test was applied to evaluate differences in Kaplan-Meier survival curves. An institutional cohort was created by isolating all patients whose surgical pathology revealed an LGG of the cerebellum. Excluded from analysis were patients in whom a glioma was first diagnosed under the age of 18 years and those whose tumors could not be definitively determined to arise from the cerebellum.

Results

Data from the local cohort (11 patients) demonstrated that the most common presenting symptom was headache, which occurred in more than 70% of the cohort. Approximately half of the patients in this cohort had symptomatic improvement after treatment. Results from the SEER cohort (166 patients) revealed that adults with Grade I gliomas were slightly younger than those with Grade II tumors (p < 0.01), but no other demographic differences were observed. Patients with Grade I tumors were twice as likely to undergo gross-total resection (54% vs 21%), and those with Grade II gliomas were much more likely to receive postoperative radiation (3% vs 48%). Five-year survival was greater in the patients with Grade I gliomas than in those with Grade II lesions (91% vs 70%). Multivariate analysis revealed that an age ≥ 40 years (HR 7.30, 95% CI 3.55–15.0, p < 0.0001) and Grade II tumors (HR 2.76, 95% CI 1.12–6.84, p = 0.028) were risk factors for death, whereas female sex was protective (HR 0.28, 95% CI 0.14–0.59, p < 0.001). Log-rank tests revealed that a cerebellar location was protective (p < 0.0001), but this relationship was only true for Grade II tumors (p < 0.0001). Survival in patients with Grade I gliomas was not different based on the various lesion locations (p = 0.21).

Conclusions

Taken together, adults with cerebellar WHO Grade I and II astrocytomas have a much more favorable survival curve than those with similar supratentorial tumors. Research demonstrates that the primary driver of this phenomenon is the improved survival in patients with cerebellar Grade II gliomas.
The Cancer Genome Atlas expression profiles of low-grade gliomas
Authors: Gonda David D. , Cheung Vincent J. , Muller Karra A. , Goyal Amit , Carter Bob S. , Chen Clark C.
Published: February 2013

Differentiating between low-grade gliomas (LGGs) of astrocytic and oligodendroglial origin remains a major challenge in neurooncology. Here the authors analyzed The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) profiles of LGGs with the goal of identifying distinct molecular characteristics that would afford accurate and reliable discrimination of astrocytic and oligodendroglial tumors. They found that 1) oligodendrogliomas are more likely to exhibit the glioma-CpG island methylator phenotype (G-CIMP), relative to low-grade astrocytomas; 2) relative to oligodendrogliomas, low-grade astrocytomas exhibit a higher expression of genes related to mitosis, replication, and inflammation; and 3) low-grade astrocytic tumors harbor microRNA profiles similar to those previously described for glioblastoma tumors. Orthogonal intersection of these molecular characteristics with existing molecular markers, such as IDH1 mutation, TP53 mutation, and 1p19q status, should facilitate accurate and reliable pathological diagnosis of LGGs.
From genomics to the clinic: biological and translational insights of mutant IDH1/2 in glioma
Authors: Dunn Gavin P. , Andronesi Ovidiu C. , Cahill Daniel P.
Published: February 2013

The characterization of the genomic alterations across all human cancers is changing the way that malignant disease is defined and treated. This paradigm is extending to glioma, where the discovery of recurrent mutations in the isocitrate dehydrogenase 1 (IDH1) gene has shed new light on the molecular landscape in glioma and other IDH-mutant cancers. The IDH1 mutations are present in the vast majority of low-grade gliomas and secondary glioblastomas. Rapidly emerging work on the consequences of mutant IDH1 protein expression suggests that its neomorphic enzymatic activity catalyzing the production of the oncometabolite 2-hydroxyglutarate influences a range of cellular programs that affect the epigenome, transcriptional programs, hypoxia-inducible factor biology, and development. In the brief time since its discovery, knowledge of the IDH mutation status has had significant translational implications, and diagnostic tools are being used to monitor its expression and function. The concept of IDH1-mutant versus IDH1-wild type will become a critical early distinction in diagnostic and treatment algorithms.