cometadata/datacite-rtg-text-other-reclassification-records huggingface dataset:
How do Voluntary Pollution Reduction Programs (VPRs) Work? An Empirical Study of Links between VPRs, Environmental Management, and Environmental Performance
Creators: name: Sam, Abdoul G.
name: Innes, Robert
name: Khanna, Madhu
name: Sam, Abdoul G.
name: Innes, Robert
name: Khanna, Madhu
Publisher: name: Unknown
Year: 2006
Subjects: Environmental Economics and Policy

description: EPA-sponsored voluntary pollution reduction programs (VPR) have gained increased prominence in U.S. environmental policy. However, as commitments to these programs are not enforceable by design, the empirical literature has mostly focused on studying the motives for their adoption and their efficacy in curbing pollution. This paper seeks (i) to shed light on the bi-directional links between participation in a VPR and adoption of firm-structured environmental management strategies (EMS), and (ii) the joint impact of VPRs and EMS adoption on the environmental performance of participant firms. Our econometric analysis reveals that participation in the 33/50 program, helped spur the adoption of Total Quality Environment Management (TQEM), which in turn had a significant negative effect on 33/50 pollutant releases. We also find that 33/50 participation produced additional direct benefits in pollution reduction both during and after the program years, and that it enhanced the effectiveness of TQEM in reducing pollution during the post-program years.
International Differences in Consumer Preferences for Food Country-of-Origin: A Meta-Analysis
Creators: name: Ehmke, Mariah D.
name: Ehmke, Mariah D.
Publisher: name: Unknown
Year: 2006
Subjects: Consumer/Household Economics

description: Over the last ten years, a large number of country-of-origin studies have been conducted as a result of new country-of-origin legislation in the United States and European Union. Many literature reviews in recent studies make observation and predictions based on this literature. This meta-analysis uses 13 country-of-origin studies with 27 consumer willingness-to-pay estimates to determine significant trends in the country-of-origin literature. Findings indicate consumers' value of country-of-origin depends on the number of other credence attributes included in product descriptions and the location of the consumer.
Machine-Learning Interatomic Potentials Enable First-Principles Multiscale Modeling of Lattice Thermal Conductivity in Graphene/Borophene Heterostructures
Creators: name: Mortazavi, Bohayra
name: Podryabinkin, Evgeny V.
name: Roche, Stephan
name: Rabczuk, Timon
name: Zhuang, Xiaoying
name: Shapeev, Alexander V.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2020
Subjects: subject: Materials Science (cond-mat.mtrl-sci)
subject: Computational Physics (physics.comp-ph)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: One of the ultimate goals of computational modeling in condensed matter is to be able to accurately compute materials properties with minimal empirical information. First-principles approaches such as the density functional theory (DFT) provide the best possible accuracy on electronic properties but they are limited to systems up to a few hundreds, or at most thousands of atoms. On the other hand, classical molecular dynamics (CMD) simulations and finite element method (FEM) are extensively employed to study larger and more realistic systems, but conversely depend on empirical information. Here, we show that machine-learning interatomic potentials (MLIPs) trained over short ab-initio molecular dynamics trajectories enable first-principles multiscale modeling, in which DFT simulations can be hierarchically bridged to efficiently simulate macroscopic structures. As a case study, we analyze the lattice thermal conductivity of coplanar graphene/borophene heterostructures, recently synthesized experimentally (Sci. Adv. 2019; 5: eaax6444), for which no viable classical modeling alternative is presently available. Our MLIP-based approach can efficiently predict the lattice thermal conductivity of graphene and borophene pristine phases, the thermal conductance of complex graphene/borophene interfaces and subsequently enable the study of effective thermal transport along the heterostructures at continuum level. This work highlights that MLIPs can be effectively and conveniently employed to enable first-principles multiscale modeling via hierarchical employment of DFT/CMD/FEM simulations, thus expanding the capability for computational design of novel nanostructures.
Identification of Consumer Segments and Its Implication on the Willingness-to-Pay Distribution: The Case of Demand for Non-Genetically Modified Vegetable Oil in the United States
Creators: name: Kaneko, Naoya
name: Chern, Wen S.
name: Kaneko, Naoya
name: Chern, Wen S.
Publisher: name: Unknown
Year: 2006
Subjects: Consumer/Household Economics

description: This paper illustrates the importance of consumer segments for the estimation of the distribution of sample willingness to pay. We find evidence that those who prefer non-GM have a different marginal utility of income and that naïve pooling of consumer segments may yield a misleading recommendation for both agribusinesses and policy makers.
Contractivity of positive and trace preserving maps under $L_p$ norms
Creators: name: Perez-Garcia, David
name: Wolf, Michael M.
name: Petz, Denes
name: Ruskai, Mary Beth
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2006
Subjects: subject: Mathematical Physics (math-ph)
subject: Quantum Physics (quant-ph)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: We provide a complete picture of contractivity of trace preserving positive maps with respect to $p$-norms. We show that for $p>1$ contractivity holds in general if and only if the map is unital. When the domain is restricted to the traceless subspace of Hermitian matrices, then contractivity is shown to hold in the case of qubits for arbitrary $p\geq 1$ and in the case of qutrits if and only if $p=1,\infty$. In all non-contractive cases best possible bounds on the $p$-norms are derived.
AN OPTIMAL CORN ROOTWORM SCOUTING PROGRAM FOR IMPROVED PROFITABILITY OF AREAWIDE PEST MANAGEMENT IN THE EASTERN CORN BELT
Creators: name: West, Amelia
name: Martin, Marshall A.
name: West, Amelia
name: Martin, Marshall A.
Publisher: name: Unknown
Year: 2003
Subjects: Crop Production/Industries

description: Economic analyses show that without cost reductions, Areawide Pest Management for corn rootworm control is not cost effective in Illinois/Indiana where a variant form of the western corn rootworm exists. This paper examines strategies for reducing scouting/costs and determining the minimal scouting effort necessary to maintain effective adult suppression.
Investigations on dynamic intensity modulated photon fields in radiation therapy
Creators: name: Parsai, Homayon
Publisher: name: University of British Columbia
Year: 2009

description: The objective of this thesis is to investigate the validity of a class of intensity modulated radiation beam delivery (IMRT) with the view towards its clinical implementation. Intensity modulated photon beam (IMB) delivery is a new radiation delivery technique in external beam radiation therapy. The technique is complex in planning, delivery and verification and frequently requires a large number of beams to achieve a desired dose distribution. Therefore, an important consideration in exploiting the advantages offered by this new technology is to study the degree of accuracy with which highly conformal dose distributions can be achieved. A methodology appropriate to dosimetry and quality assurance (QA) of dynamic fields is proposed in this thesis and the theoretical modeling was improved based on the results of this work. Dynamic fields utilizing the motion of multileaf collimators (MLCs) and backup diaphragms were used to produce 1 and 2D intensity maps arbitrary in orientation with respect to collimator axis. Dynamic wedge dose profiles produced by moving diaphragms are accurate to within ± 1% of those produced with conventional techniques. The accuracy of the omni wedge with arbitrary field orientations are found within ± 2° of calculations. A dosimetric verification technique used to monitor the dynamic beam delivery for IMRT plans is introduced. The design considerations and clinical evaluation of a QA phantom, facilitating the measurement of IMRT dose distribution and conversion of photon fluence to machine deliverable monitor units are described. Benchmark tests and clinical examples for IMRT dose verification techniques are carried out to demonstrate the accuracy of the technique, in-vitro and in-vivo dose measurements of dynamic IMB's were in good agreements with the calculation model. A theoretical error analysis on the influence of systematic and random field perturbations in highly conformal beam deliveries with emphasis on its dosimetric effects is also presented. It is shown that field inaccuracies in dynamic deliveries in the order of ±1.0 mm could lead to dose errors of 20% or more. Based on the findings of our study, we have proposed a QA procedure unique to the delivery of dynamic beams.
TRANSFER COSTS AND SPATIAL PRICE EFFICIENCY IN THE NEPALESE TOMATO MARKETS
Creators: name: Shrestha, Sundar S.
name: Frechette, Darren L.
name: Shrestha, Sundar S.
name: Frechette, Darren L.
Publisher: name: Unknown
Year: 2003
Subjects: Agribusiness

description: Many studies have addressed the issues of the price relationships between spatially separated commodity markets. Such studies, which have policy relevance, provide information on the structure and the performance of the markets. Most of these studies, however, have been criticized for not considering the transfer costs and the seasonality in their analyses. In this study, taking two spatially separated markets in Nepal, we estimate and test for the spatial pricing efficiency in tomato markets. Specifically, we estimate the speed of price adjustment in the local market in response to the price shocks in the central market, and examine the efficiency of spatial arbitrage between these two markets. The data we use is unique in that the data was collected from each market every three days. Moreover, the day of data collection was synchronized across the markets. The model we specified is an extension of Ravallion's dynamic model including both transfer costs and seasonality. The results showed that about 12% of the price shocks in the central market was transmitted to the local market on the same day, while 67 % of it was transmitted in a period of three days. However, the effect of transfer costs on the price spread between the markets was negligible. The results also showed an incomplete spatial arbitrage indicating the inefficiency of local market. The results also indicated that estimation without seasonality posed a serious autocorrelation problem. This problem was improved when the seasonality component was included in the analysis. The effect of seasonality was found to have a significant effect on the spatial price efficiency of the markets.
The distribution of wealth in the presence of altruism for simple economic models
Creators: name: Rodriguez-Achach, M.
name: Huerta-Quintanilla, R.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2005
Subjects: subject: Physics and Society (physics.soc-ph)
subject: General Finance (q-fin.GN)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences
subject: FOS: Economics and business

description: We study the effect of altruism in two simple asset exchange models: the yard sale model (winner gets a random fraction of the poorer player's wealth) and the theft and fraud model (winner gets a random fraction of the loser's wealth). We also introduce in these models the concept of bargaining efficiency, which makes the poorer trader more aggressive in getting a favorable deal thus augmenting his winning probabilities. The altruistic behavior is controlled by varying the number of traders that behave altruistically and by the degree of altruism that they show. The resulting wealth distribution is characterized using the Gini index. We compare the resulting values of the Gini index at different levels of altruism in both models. It is found that altruistic behavior does lead to a more equitable wealth distribution but only for unreasonable high values of altruism that are difficult to expect in a real economic system.
description: Accepted in Physica A: Statistical Mechanics and its Applications
Importance of EU Label Requirements: An Application of Ordered Probit Models to Belgium Beef Labels
Creators: name: Verbeke, Wim
name: Ward, Ronald W.
name: Verbeke, Wim
name: Ward, Ronald W.
Publisher: name: Unknown
Year: 2003
Subjects: Agribusiness

description: The objective of this paper is to determine which information cues related to quality and origin really attract consumer interest, specified as the level of attention paid to and perceived importance attached to label cues. The focus is (1) on indications of quality through quality marks, (2) on indications referring to the mandatory European beef labelling regulation, and (3) on indications reflecting origin. Data are collected from a sample of 278 beef consumers in Belgium. Ordered probit models are specified and estimated to assess the impact of household characteristics and a beef labeling information campaign. Findings reveal that consumer interest is generally low for traceability, moderate for origin and high for direct indications of quality. Interest in label cues is specifically low among younger males. Further, the publicity campaign had a measurable positive impact on consumer's attention to direct indications of quality and origin. Strategies including traceability for backing up on-label indications of quality are recommended.
Fermionic Quasiparticles in QCD at High Baryon Density
Creators: name: Schaefer, Thomas
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2005
Subjects: subject: High Energy Physics - Phenomenology (hep-ph)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: We study fermionic quasi-particles in QCD at very high baryon density. In the normal quark matter phase unscreened magnetic gluon exchanges lead to non-Fermi liquid behavior. Non-Fermi liquid effects manifest themselves in low energy Green functions that depend on logarithms and fractional powers of energy. In the superfluid phase there is an energy gap for fermionic excitations. Quark mass effects can cause the energy gap to vanish. Gapless fermions in the color flavor locked phase cause an instability towards a state with a non-zero supercurrent.
description: 4 pages, to appear in the proceedings of Quark Matter 2005, Budapest, Aug 4-9
Approaching the Practical Conductivity Limits of Aerosol Jet Printed Silver
Creators: name: Rosker, Eva S.
name: Barako, Michael T.
name: Nguyen, Evan
name: DiMarzio, Don
name: Kisslinger, Kim
name: Duan, Dah-Weih
name: Sandhu, Rajinder
name: Goorsky, Mark S.
name: Tice, Jesse
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2020
Subjects: subject: Applied Physics (physics.app-ph)
subject: Materials Science (cond-mat.mtrl-sci)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: Previous efforts to directly write conductive metals have been narrowly focused on nanoparticle ink suspensions that require aggressive sintering (>200 °C) and result in low-density, small-grained agglomerates with electrical conductivities <25% of bulk metal. Here, we demonstrate aerosol jet printing of a reactive ink solution and characterize high-density (93%) printed silver traces having near-bulk conductivity and grain sizes greater than the electron mean free path, while only requiring a low-temperature (80 °C) treatment. We have developed a predictive electronic transport model which correlates the microstructure to the measured conductivity and identifies a strategy to approach the practical conductivity limit for printed metals. Our analysis of how grain boundaries and tortuosity contribute to electrical resistivity provides insight into the basic materials science that governs how an ink formulator or process developer might approach improving the conductivity. Transmission line measurements validate that electrical properties are preserved up to 20 GHz, which demonstrates the utility of this technique for printed RF components. This work reveals a new method of producing robust printed electronics that retain the advantages of rapid prototyping and three-dimensional fabrication while achieving the performance necessary for success within the aerospace and communications industries.
Bone-by-bone: A detailed skull description of the White-headed dwarf gecko Lygodactylus picturatus (Peters, 1870)
Creators: name: Lobon-Rovira, Javier
name: Bauer, Aaron
Publisher: name: Taylor & Francis
Year: 2021
Subjects: subject: Biophysics
subject: Biochemistry
subject: Medicine
subject: Genetics
subject: FOS: Biological sciences
subject: Physiology
subject: Evolutionary Biology
subject: 59999 Environmental Sciences not elsewhere classified
subject: FOS: Earth and related environmental sciences
subject: Ecology
subject: Sociology
subject: FOS: Sociology
subject: 69999 Biological Sciences not elsewhere classified
subject: Hematology

description: The Lygodactylus genus is one of the most species-rich genera of gekkonid lizards in Africa. It is one of relatively few exclusively diurnal geckos’ lineages and its members include some of the smallest gekkonids. Osteological features within Lygodactylus have never been addressed in detail. We here provide a detailed bone-by-bone skull description of Lygodactylus picturatus to expand the knowledgebase on gecko cranial structure. High-Resolution X-ray Computed Tomography (HRCT) has been used, followed by bone-by-bone segmentation and description. As expected, L. picturatus presents some modifications on the basic gekkotan plan due to miniaturisation, such as an increase in the overlap area of the muzzle unit and lost or reduction of jugal bone. In addition, the skull of this species is characterised by the absence of the squamosal, fused nasals, reduced postorbitofrontal bone and extremely rounded parietal bones. Finally, we observed a reduction of the orbital space, in comparison with other miniaturised gekkotans, presumably as a consequence of their diurnal behaviour and niche preference.
Knizhnik-Zamolodchikov equations and spectral flow in AdS3 string theory
Creators: name: Ribault, Sylvain
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2005
Subjects: subject: High Energy Physics - Theory (hep-th)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: I generalize the Knizhnik-Zamolodchikov equations to correlators of spectral flowed fields in AdS3 string theory. If spectral flow is preserved or violated by one unit, the resulting equations are equivalent to the KZ equations. If spectral flow is violated by two units or more, only some linear combinations of the KZ equations hold, but extra equations appear. Then I explicitly show how these correlators and the associated conformal blocks are related to Liouville theory correlators and conformal blocks with degenerate field insertions, where each unit of spectral flow violation removes one degenerate field. A similar relation to Liouville theory holds for noncompact parafermions.
description: 21 pages, v2: "proof" section clarified and renamed "arguments", references added
PRECISION AGRICULTURE, WHOLE FIELD FARMING AND IRRIGATION PRACTICES: A FINANCIAL RISK ANALYSIS
Creators: name: Gandonou, Jean-Marc
name: Dillon, Carl R.
name: Gandonou, Jean-Marc
name: Dillon, Carl R.
Publisher: name: Unknown
Year: 2003
Subjects: Crop Production/Industries

description: One of the main advantages of precision agriculture (PA) is its potential to increase profitability by optimizing the productivity of each section of the field. Incorporating irrigation practices to the PA technology could further increase profitability. However, investing in a complete set of precision agriculture (PA) and/or irrigation equipment represents for the average Kentuckian grain producer a substantial investment that can have a significant impact on the financial risk the he/she faces. An analysis of the consequences of that investment on the farm's cash flow and debt to asset ratio is investigated here
TESTS FOR LABOR MARKET EFFICIENCY IN BURKINA FASO
Creators: name: Lamb, Russell L.
name: Worthington, Mark
name: Lamb, Russell L.
name: Worthington, Mark
Publisher: name: Unknown
Year: 2003
Subjects: Labor and Human Capital

description: In this paper, we use data from the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) survey of households in Burkina Faso, to assess market efficiency. Two methods based on testable implications of the Agricultural Household Model (AHM) are used. The first is based on the observation that if markets clear at prevailing prices, the household labor allocation will be such that shadow wages equate to market wages... The second looks for significance of household structural parameters on labor demand ... The remainder of the paper is organized as follows. In Section II, we provide a brief review of the Agricultural Household Model, highlighting the effect of market failure on separability and the role of shadow prices. Section III describes the Burkinabe villages and summarizes the ICRISAT data. In section IV, we then conduct tests of the neoclassical model in order to assess the efficiency of the labor markets. In Section V, we discuss labor supply estimation given the non-linearity of the full-budget constraint on household behavior, and we estimate male and female labor supplies.
CONSUMER PREFERENCE AND DEMAND FOR ORGANIC FOOD: EVIDENCE FROM A VERMONT SURVEY
Creators: name: Wang, Qingbin
name: Sun, Junjie
name: Wang, Qingbin
name: Sun, Junjie
Publisher: name: Unknown
Year: 2003
Subjects: Environmental Economics and Policy
Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety

description: While organic farming has been identified as an effective way to improve food safety and environment quality, the adoption of organic production and processing is highly determined by the market demand for organic food products. To assess the market potential for organic apples and milk, a conjoint analysis is conducted in the state of Vermont to examine consumer evaluation of major product attributes and their tradeoffs. Results suggest that there is likely a significant niche market for organic apples and milk and many consumers, especially people who have purchased organic food products, are willing to pay more for organic apples and milk produced locally and certified by NOFA.
Additional file 3 of A web-based educational intervention to implement trauma-informed care in a paediatric healthcare setting: protocol for a feasibility study using pre-post mixed methods design
Creators: name: Simons, Megan
name: Young, Alexandra De
name: McPhail, Steven M.
name: Harvey, Gillian
name: Kenardy, Justin
name: Sanjeewa Kularatna
name: Kimble, Roy
name: Zephanie Tyack
Publisher: name: figshare
Year: 2020
Subjects: subject: Medicine
subject: Biotechnology
subject: Sociology
subject: FOS: Sociology
subject: 69999 Biological Sciences not elsewhere classified
subject: FOS: Biological sciences
subject: Science Policy

description: Additional file 3:. Overview of Responsive CARE course content. Description: Additional information about the Responsive CARE course content
Two-Loop String Theory on Null Compactifications
Creators: name: Cove, Henry C. D.
name: Szabo, Richard J.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2006
Subjects: subject: High Energy Physics - Theory (hep-th)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: We compute the two-loop contributions to the free energy in the null compactification of perturbative string theory at finite temperature. The cases of bosonic, Type II and heterotic strings are all treated. The calculation exploits an explicit reductive parametrization of the moduli space of infinite-momentum frame string worldsheets in terms of branched cover instantons. Various arithmetic and physical properties of the instanton sums are described. Applications to symmetric product orbifold conformal field theories and to the matrix string theory conjecture are also briefly discussed.
description: 41 pages, 1 figure
Automated Identification of Thoracic Pathology from Chest Radiographs with Enhanced Training Pipeline
Creators: name: DSouza, Adora M.
name: Abidin, Anas Z.
name: Wismüller, Axel
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2020
Subjects: subject: Image and Video Processing (eess.IV)
subject: Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition (cs.CV)
subject: Machine Learning (cs.LG)
subject: FOS: Electrical engineering, electronic engineering, information engineering
subject: FOS: Computer and information sciences
subject: I.5.4; I.5.2; I.2.0

description: Chest x-rays are the most common radiology studies for diagnosing lung and heart disease. Hence, a system for automated pre-reporting of pathologic findings on chest x-rays would greatly enhance radiologists' productivity. To this end, we investigate a deep-learning framework with novel training schemes for classification of different thoracic pathology labels from chest x-rays. We use the currently largest publicly available annotated dataset ChestX-ray14 of 112,120 chest radiographs of 30,805 patients. Each image was annotated with either a 'NoFinding' class, or one or more of 14 thoracic pathology labels. Subjects can have multiple pathologies, resulting in a multi-class, multi-label problem. We encoded labels as binary vectors using k-hot encoding. We study the ResNet34 architecture, pre-trained on ImageNet, where two key modifications were incorporated into the training framework: (1) Stochastic gradient descent with momentum and with restarts using cosine annealing, (2) Variable image sizes for fine-tuning to prevent overfitting. Additionally, we use a heuristic algorithm to select a good learning rate. Learning with restarts was used to avoid local minima. Area Under receiver operating characteristics Curve (AUC) was used to quantitatively evaluate diagnostic quality. Our results are comparable to, or outperform the best results of current state-of-the-art methods with AUCs as follows: Atelectasis:0.81, Cardiomegaly:0.91, Consolidation:0.81, Edema:0.92, Effusion:0.89, Emphysema: 0.92, Fibrosis:0.81, Hernia:0.84, Infiltration:0.73, Mass:0.85, Nodule:0.76, Pleural Thickening:0.81, Pneumonia:0.77, Pneumothorax:0.89 and NoFinding:0.79. Our results suggest that, in addition to using sophisticated network architectures, a good learning rate, scheduler and a robust optimizer can boost performance.
description: 6 pages, 1 figure, 2 tables
Biodiversity hotspot revisited: reptile and amphibian assemblages of the Uluguru Mountain Forest Reserves, south-eastern Tanzania
Creators: name: Mkonyi, Felix J
Publisher: name: Taylor & Francis
Year: 2021
Subjects: subject: 59999 Environmental Sciences not elsewhere classified
subject: FOS: Earth and related environmental sciences
subject: Ecology
subject: FOS: Biological sciences

description: Although the knowledge about the Tanzanian reptiles and amphibians has drastically increased in recent years, the knowledge on the amphibian and reptile fauna of the remaining forest reserves of the Uluguru Mountains (UMs) is only partially known. Amphibians and reptiles were studied in 17 forest reserves and sampled using diurnal and nocturnal time-constrained visual encounter surveys, acoustic surveys and opportunistic searches. A total of 51 quadrats of 25 × 25 m were randomly established on the forest floor, totalling 459 person-hours of sampling effort. Overall, 54 herpetofauna species (27 amphibian and 27 reptile species) were recorded from the area, including two anurans and seven reptile species, which are new records for the region. The estimated Chao1 species richness for the study region was 51 for amphibians and 76 for reptiles. Amphibian and reptile species composition did not differ significantly across the forest reserves, but similarities in species composition of different levels were evident across the reserves. For both communities, α-diversity and relative abundance did not vary significantly across the reserves. Based on multiple regression analyses, leaf-litter anuran species richness was positively influenced by percentage canopy cover, whereas abundance was negatively influenced by total fragment size. Partial correlations showed that variation in leaf-litter anuran abundance was explained by relative humidity, percentage canopy cover and soil moisture, while controlling for altitude. Percentage canopy cover was also the best predictor of species richness of leaf-litter anurans. Overall, these findings highlight the importance of protecting the UMs forest reserves for herpetofauna conservation.
Social Force Model parameter testing and optimization using a high stress real-life situation
Creators: name: Sticco, I. M.
name: Frank, G. A.
name: Dorso, C. O.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2020
Subjects: subject: Physics and Society (physics.soc-ph)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: The escape panic version of the Social Force Model (SFM) is a suitable model for describing emergency evacuations. In this research, we analyze a real-life video, recorded at the opening of a store during a Black Friday event, which resembles an emergency evacuation (November 2017, South Africa). We measure the flow of pedestrians entering the store and found a higher value ($\langle J \rangle =6.7 \pm 0.8\,$p/s) than the usually reported in ``laboratory'' conditions. We performed numerical simulations to recreate this event. The empirical measurements were compared against simulated evacuation curves corresponding to different sets of parameters currently in use in the literature. The results obtained suggest that the set of parameters corresponding to calibrations from laboratory experiments (involving pedestrians in which the safety of the participants is of major concern) or situations where the physical contact is negligible, produce simulations in which the agents evacuate faster than in the empirical scenario. To conclude the paper, we optimize two parameters of the model: the friction coefficient $k_t$ and the body force coefficient $k_n$. The best fit we found could replicate the qualitative and quantitative behavior of the empirical evacuation curve. We also found that many different combinations in the parameter space can produce similar results in terms of the goodness of fit.
Additional file 2 of A web-based educational intervention to implement trauma-informed care in a paediatric healthcare setting: protocol for a feasibility study using pre-post mixed methods design
Creators: name: Simons, Megan
name: Young, Alexandra De
name: McPhail, Steven M.
name: Harvey, Gillian
name: Kenardy, Justin
name: Sanjeewa Kularatna
name: Kimble, Roy
name: Zephanie Tyack
Publisher: name: figshare
Year: 2020
Subjects: subject: Medicine
subject: Biotechnology
subject: Sociology
subject: FOS: Sociology
subject: 69999 Biological Sciences not elsewhere classified
subject: FOS: Biological sciences
subject: Science Policy

description: Additional file 2. Feedback questions. Description: Questions to assess confidence, satisfaction and beliefs post Responsive CARE intervention
Mobility in Rural Credit Markets: A Honduran Case Study
Creators: name: Sundaram-Stukel, Reka
name: Sundaram-Stukel, Reka
Publisher: name: Unknown
Year: 2003
Subjects: Agribusiness

description: In this paper I analyze mobility in rural credit markets. A panel data set of rural Honduran households is used to study credit market transitions; specifically, the dynamic evolution of formal and informal sector participation. Mobility patterns among four different credit market states are analyzed, namely those who have formal sector participation, informal sector participation, participation in both sectors and nonparticipation in rural credit markets. I use a random effects dynamic multinomial logit model which can accommodate unobserved heterogeneity. The main findings are that state dependence plays a significant role in ones ability to borrow.
Additional file 1 of A web-based educational intervention to implement trauma-informed care in a paediatric healthcare setting: protocol for a feasibility study using pre-post mixed methods design
Creators: name: Simons, Megan
name: Young, Alexandra De
name: McPhail, Steven M.
name: Harvey, Gillian
name: Kenardy, Justin
name: Sanjeewa Kularatna
name: Kimble, Roy
name: Zephanie Tyack
Publisher: name: figshare
Year: 2020
Subjects: subject: Medicine
subject: Biotechnology
subject: Sociology
subject: FOS: Sociology
subject: 69999 Biological Sciences not elsewhere classified
subject: FOS: Biological sciences
subject: Science Policy

description: Additional file 1. Knowledge questions. Description: Questions to assess knowledge pre and post Responsive CARE intervention
Urban Mobility Swarms: A Scalable Implementation
Creators: name: Berke, Alex
name: Nawyn, Jason
name: Lengeling, Thomas Sanchez
name: Larson, Kent
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2020
Subjects: subject: Multiagent Systems (cs.MA)
subject: Computers and Society (cs.CY)
subject: FOS: Computer and information sciences

description: We present a system to coordinate 'urban mobility swarms' in order to promote the use and safety of lightweight, sustainable transit, while enhancing the vibrancy and community fabric of cities. This work draws from behavior exhibited by swarms of nocturnal insects, such as crickets and fireflies, whereby synchrony unifies individuals in a decentralized network. Coordination naturally emerges in these cases and provides a compelling demonstration of 'strength in numbers'. Our work is applied to coordinating lightweight vehicles, such as bicycles, which are automatically inducted into ad-hoc 'swarms', united by the synchronous pulsation of light. We model individual riders as nodes in a decentralized network and synchronize their behavior via a peer-to-peer message protocol and algorithm, which preserves individual privacy. Nodes broadcast over radio with a transmission range tuned to localize swarm membership. Nodes then join or disconnect from others based on proximity, accommodating the dynamically changing topology of urban mobility networks. This paper provides a technical description of our system, including the protocol and algorithm to coordinate the swarming behavior that emerges from it. We also demonstrate its implementation in code, circuity, and hardware, with a system prototype tested on a city bike-share. In doing so, we evince the scalability of our system. Our prototype uses low-cost components, and bike-share programs, which manage bicycle fleets distributed across cities, could deploy the system at city-scale. Our flexible, decentralized design allows additional bikes to then connect with the network, enhancing its scale and impact.
57. Technology preparation for Gaia
Creators: name: Perryman, Michael
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2022

description: Why does ESA fund the development of space science missions? Why do some of these run over budget, and over schedule? And what steps were put in place during the Concept and Technology Study in the 1990s to ensure that the advanced technologies needed for Gaia would be available consistent with its target launch date of 2012?
The Low-Lying Dirac Spectrum of Staggered Quarks
Creators: name: Follana, E.
name: Hart, A.
name: Davies, C. T. H.
name: Mason, Q.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2005
Subjects: subject: High Energy Physics - Lattice (hep-lat)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: We investigate and clarify the role of topology and the issues surrounding the epsilon regime for staggered quarks. We study unimproved and improved staggered quark Dirac operators on quenched lattice QCD gluon backgrounds generated using a Symanzik-improved gluon action. For the improved Dirac operators we find a clear separation of the spectrum into would-be zero modes and others. The number of would-be zero modes depends on the topological charge as predicted by the continuum Index Theorem, and the expectation values of their chirality are large for the most improved actions (approx 0.7). The remaining modes have low chirality and show clear signs of clustering into quartets that become degenerate in the continuum limit. We demonstrate that the lattice spacing and volume dependence of the eigenvalues follow expectations. Furthermore, the non-zero modes follow the random matrix theory predictions for all topological charge sectors. The values of the chiral condensate extracted from fits to the theoretical distributions are consistent with each other, and with the results obtained from the total density of eigenvalues using the Banks-Casher relation. We conclude that staggered quarks respond correctly to QCD topology when both fermion and gauge actions are improved.
description: 17 pages, a few typos corrected, part of one figure changed
Distribution, ecology, and conservation of Philochortus zolii in Mauritania: implications for the long-term persistence of an endangered lizard
Creators: name: Naia, Marisa
name: Sow, Andack S
name: Campos, João
name: Sidatt, Zeine El Abidine
name: Brito, José C
Publisher: name: Taylor & Francis
Year: 2021
Subjects: subject: 59999 Environmental Sciences not elsewhere classified
subject: FOS: Earth and related environmental sciences
subject: Ecology
subject: FOS: Biological sciences
subject: 69999 Biological Sciences not elsewhere classified

description: Philochortus zolii is a globally endangered lizard known only from five localities scattered across North Africa. The population is thought to be decreasing, but there are almost no data about this Sahara-Sahel endemic lizard. Recently, a sixth population was found in Mauritania, at the coastal peripheral zone of the Diawling National Park, which constitutes a remarkable opportunity to gather ecological information for the first time and to plan conservation actions. Here we assess the P. zolii regional distribution in Mauritania, estimate population abundance, analyse the species activity patterns, characterise the occupied habitats, assess local threats, evaluate the national conservation status, and define an action plan for the local conservation of the species. P. zolii is locally rare and exhibits a much-localised distribution, but additional sampling is needed in other humid areas to fill out the knowledge gap on global distribution. The activity period is very restricted, limited to the central hours of the day, with low detectability and high specialisation in habitat use. The species is evaluated as Critically Endangered at the national level and is threatened by industrial and agriculture developments. These activities have degraded the suitable available habitats and hamper any dispersal possibility. Extreme climatic events related with sea-level rise could decimate the entire Mauritanian population. Any pet trade that may be stimulated by the current discovery should be carefully supervised and monitored. The discovery of this isolated population justifies that coastal habitats should be designated as integral protection zone and included inside the Diawling National Park.
ENVIRONMENTAL REGULATION AND GLOBALIZATION IN THE COASTAL FISHERY
Creators: name: Chakravorty, Ujjayant
name: Fisher, Donna K.
name: Chakravorty, Ujjayant
name: Fisher, Donna K.
Publisher: name: Unknown
Year: 2003
Subjects: Environmental Economics and Policy

description: Most coastal fisheries in the U.S. and other developed economies are going through a major transition. On the one hand, new technologies such as electronic enhancement to assist trawling have led to a decline in the unit cost of fishing, making it more economically efficient. On the other hand, this improved efficiency has possibly led to increased environmental damage. This has led to conflicts between fishermen and conservation groups. In the past, the main policy issue confronting fishery managers was the task of ensuring that stocks were managed at levels that sustained employment and profits in the fishing industry. However, in recent years, the dynamics of the coastal fishery has changed dramatically. More and more affluent people have settled into coastal areas. Recreational demand has increased faster than demand for commercial fish. Environmental concerns have often become more important than the matter of providing fish at reasonable prices to the urban consumer. This trend has been exacerbated by the globalization of the world fish industry, so that cheaper imports from overseas can now compete with higher cost domestic fish. The paper addresses this problem by developing a simple spatial model of the coastal fishery with two fleets, a traditional higher cost fleet which is environmentally less damaging (e.g., castnetting), and a modern lower cost fleet (trawling) which may have negative environmental effects. As fish move away from inshore breeding grounds to areas offshore, they grow bigger in size, attracting a price premium. The model tries to answer the question: which fleet should fish in what location? This depends on various cost and demand parameters. The optimal spatial allocation of fishing effort is derived when fleets have harvest and capacity constraints. The effect of regulation, for example to preserve inshore fishing grounds for the traditional fleet or imposing environmental taxes on the modern fleet are examined. The effect of imports on effort allocation is discussed. The paper concludes with a case study discussion of the southeastern U.S. shrimp fishery.
Ancient Australian Rocks and the Search for Life on Mars
Creators: name: Brown, Adrian J.
name: Viviano, Christina E.
name: Goudge, Timothy A.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2020
Subjects: subject: Earth and Planetary Astrophysics (astro-ph.EP)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: We discuss the results of a remote sensing study that has revealed new details about an important rock unit dominated by two minerals that can be associated with volcanism (olivine) and life (carbonate). The study, which used a new analysis technique on CRISM data, identified a region where no carbonates or clays are present, only large grain size olivine. This discovery shines new light on the formation and history of the olivine-carbonate rock within Jezero crater that will be explored by the Mars 2020 rover.
description: 11 pages, 4 figures
Semi-classical geometry of charged black holes
Creators: name: Frolov, Andrei V.
name: Kristjansson, Kristjan R.
name: Thorlacius, Larus
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2005
Subjects: subject: High Energy Physics - Theory (hep-th)
subject: General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology (gr-qc)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: At the classical level, two-dimensional dilaton gravity coupled to an abelian gauge field has charged black hole solutions, which have much in common with four-dimensional Reissner-Nordstrom black holes, including multiple asymptotic regions, timelike curvature singularities, and Cauchy horizons. The black hole spacetime is, however, significantly modified by quantum effects, which can be systematically studied in this two-dimensional context. In particular, the back-reaction on the geometry due to pair-creation of charged fermions destabilizes the inner horizon and replaces it with a spacelike curvature singularity. The semi-classical geometry has the same global topology as an electrically neutral black hole.
description: REVTeX, 4 pages, 2 figures; references added
Magnetic-field-induced reduction of the exciton polarization splitting in InAs quantum dots
Creators: name: Stevenson, R. M.
name: Young, R. J.
name: See, P.
name: Gevaux, D. G.
name: Cooper, K.
name: Atkinson, P.
name: Farrer, I.
name: Ritchie, D. A.
name: Shields, A. J.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2006
Subjects: subject: Quantum Physics (quant-ph)
subject: Other Condensed Matter (cond-mat.other)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: By the application of an in-plane magnetic field, we demonstrate control of the fine structure polarisation splitting of the exciton emission lines in individual InAs quantum dots. The selection of quantum dots with certain barrier composition and confinement energies is found to determine the magnetic field dependent increase or decrease of the separation of the bright exciton emission lines, and has enabled the splitting to be tuned to zero within the resolution of our experiments. Observed behaviour allows us to determine g-factors and exchange splittings for different types of dots.
description: 12 pages, 3 figures
A Socioeconomic Impact Analysis of Recreation at Lake Metigoshe, North Dakota
Creators: name: Helgeson, Delmer L.
name: Holte, Glenn J.
name: Helgeson, Delmer L.
name: Holte, Glenn J.
Publisher: name: Unknown
Year: 1978
Subjects: Resource /Energy Economics and Policy

description: This report presents results covering the socioeconomic phase of an interdisciplinary study directed at an evaluation of the utilization and management of water resources in the Lake Metigoshe watershed.
Longitudinal effects of evidence-based physical education in Maltese children
Creators: name: Fenech, Amanda
name: Chockalingam, N.
name: Formosa, C.
name: Gatt, A.
Publisher: name: Taylor & Francis
Year: 2021
Subjects: subject: Medicine
subject: Biotechnology
subject: 59999 Environmental Sciences not elsewhere classified
subject: FOS: Earth and related environmental sciences
subject: 69999 Biological Sciences not elsewhere classified
subject: FOS: Biological sciences
subject: Science Policy
subject: 111714 Mental Health
subject: FOS: Health sciences

description: Background:Malta is an obesogenic country with low levels of daily moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) reported amongst Maltese children. Schools play a significant cost-effective role in delivering and encouraging physical activity and thus contributing to population health. So far, there were no specific school-based physical activity interventions in Malta. This creates a public health action gap. The study will assess the feasibility of Maltese children engaging in MVPA in more than 50% of Physical Education lesson time through an evidence-based PE curriculum. Its longitudinal effects on school children's anthropometric factors, cardiorespiratory fitness and biomechanical variables are evaluated.Methods:One-hundred twenty 9-to-10-year-old children, attending state primary schools, participated in a time-series study design over one scholastic year. The intervention group (n = 76) had Sports, Play and Active Recreation for Kids (SPARK) PE curriculum. The control group (n = 44) was taught the national PE curriculum. The functional outcome measures included vertical jump height and posturography. Lesson MVPA levels were measured with the System for Observing Fitness Instruction Time (SOFIT). Other measurements included: BMI z-scores, waist circumference and resting heart rate (RHR).Results:Achievement of >50% of PE lesson time in MVPA intensity is feasible through an evidence-based PE curriculum (60.43% from a baseline of 36.43% in intervention group vs 39.06% from a baseline of 39.89% in control). The intervention group reported improvements in BMI z-scores (p = 0.007; CI = 0.02, 0.15), RHR (p = 0.009; CI = 1.10, 7.46), balance parameters and jump height (p = 0.020; CI = −2.42, −0.23).Conclusions:MVPA levels were successfully increased through the evidence-based physical education curriculum with resultant positive health effects. Force platform analysis allows objective fitness monitoring in schoolchildren. This study recommends the integration of evidence-based PE curricula as a public health initiative against childhood obesity.