OPTIMIZING THE POTENTIAL OF HIGHWAY SAFETY INVESTMENT

Highway safety management aims to prevent crashes and reduce the resulting frequency and severity within the limit of available resources. The identification of potentially hazardous sites and investment on safety treatments have been fundamental to fulfill this goal. However, having many highway safety improvement projects in hand, safety professionals need to evaluate several different alternatives and allocate the limited funds to the ones that would provide the highest return on investment. Hence, prioritizing the safety projects based on their potential to achieve the greatest safety benefit is crucial. Ineffective prioritization can distribute funds to locations with less potential for improvement while higher-risk sites remain untreated. Prior to the widespread use of the Highway Safety Manual (HSM), highway safety analysts prioritized candidate safety improvement projects using simplistic safety metrics based only on past performance (e.g., crash history, rates, and costs). However, these metrics lack precision and are limited by several methodological weaknesses. Published in 2010, the HSM provides a comprehensive guideline for evaluating safety improvements that facilitates the use of advanced safety performance measures including “Excess Expected Crashes (EEC)”. This metric is dependent on two estimates: expected crashes by Empirical Bayes (EB) method and predicted crashes by Safety Performance Functions (SPFs). It is obtained by taking the difference between these estimates and better reflect a site’s safety improvement potential. Nowadays, several agencies and state departments of transportation use EEC for prioritizing projects. While EEC is a preferred measure, it comes with a few limitations. The use of EEC alone may not identify all sites with promise, as it purposefully ignores the real maximum potential reduction, that is, to zero. Further, if SPFs (and EEC) are based on combined crashes of all severities, the focus may be placed on the less serious crashes that comprises the substantial proportion. However, focusing only on the most severe crashes often leads to small sample size problems that hinders the development of meaningful prediction models. Moreover, EEC compares the safety performance of a site to the average location for that roadway type and traffic volume but fails to represent the magnitude of the overall number of crashes occurring at that site, more preciously EB estimates. Additionally, the ever-present need for choosing the most appropriate SPFs that can balance between the model quality and available data remains. The research conducted in this dissertation aims to propose a more comprehensive approach to prioritize the potential for safety improvement of proposed projects. To illustrate the concepts developed in this work, a case study (a project prioritization scheme named Strategic Highway Investment Formula for Tomorrow (SHIFT) by Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC)) is presented using crash and roadway data from state-maintained roads in Kentucky. This scheme used EEC of total crashes for project ranking. Their desire to further improve the safety ranking methodology manifested the impetus for this research. This dissertation offers recommendations regarding the choice of SPFs and integration of crash severity and EB estimate for project prioritization. It also offers a novel technique of considering severity by incorporating future goals of fatalities into the project prioritization metric-EEC. Finally, it presents a framework for developing a multifactor safety scoring technique using Kentucky data and recommends replacing the dependency on EEC only with this new safety score for prioritizing safety projects. In the process of conducting the research, a tool was developed that automates the safety score estimation and ranking with efficiency. This technique and tool can be customized according to a jurisdiction’s safety needs and therefore, can be used for any state or country’s safety investment

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN ROADWAY HOMOGENEITY AND NETWORK COVERAGE FOR NETWORK SCREENING

In the context of transportation safety engineering, network screening is a method of identifying and prioritizing high-risk locations for potential safety investment. Since its release, the Highway Safety Manual (HSM) has facilitated the adoption of Safety Performance Functions (SPF) to predict the number of crashes for the network screening of any facility type. The predictive model becomes more reliable when developed from crash data with homogeneous roadway segments and this homogeneity can be attained by applying specific geometric attributes to the dataset. The caveat to this method is the requirement of adjustment factors (AFs) to adjust the predicted estimate for the segments which have different geometric characteristics compared to the base attributes. Though AFs are available from several sources, particularly the HSM and CMF Clearinghouse, there are still many attributes for various roadways for which the AFs have not been estimated yet. The absence of appropriate AFs limits the use of such crash prediction models for network screening. In that case, a generic SPF can be developed from the entire network without applying any base conditions and, the reliability of the model is compromised. The goal of this study is to evaluate the trade-offs between a more reliable SPF (that requires more AFs) and a relatively less reliable SPF (that requires fewer AFs). This leads to the following question this research attempts to answer: “Are the benefits of AFs for network screening worth the cost of developing them?” Recommended by the HSM, this study uses “Excess Expected Crashes (EEC)”, a metric derived from the SPF and historical crash data for ranking potential sites for improvement. The study analyses found that segment rank is nearly insensitive to the choice of the SPF and developing AFs may not justify the cost of network screening. On the other hand, an SPF developed from the entire roadway data might not work as well for project-level analysis (a combination of several segments) or estimating the benefit-cost ratio for a site. This is because the magnitudes of the EEC are crucial for such cases and the generic SPF overestimates the EEC compared to SPFs developed from specific sets of attributes. for most of the segments. Therefore, the major finding of the thesis is that a generic SPF is sufficient when sites are needed to be ranked, but specific SPFs perform better when a benefit-cost analysis is required

Incorporating Crash Severity and Continuous Improvement of SHIFT

The Strategic Highway Investment Formula for Tomorrow (SHIFT) is the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet\u27s data-informed approach for comparing capital improvement projects and prioritizing limited transportation funds. SHIFT 2022 incorporates advancements in methods and flexibility. This project revises the SHIFT crash data safety metric. The crash data safety metric from the previous version of SHIFT was excess expected crashes (EECs). It is computed using the total number of crashes of all severities. Locations with a higher proportion of severe (fatal and injury) crashes received the same weight as locations with an equal number of property damage only crashes. This project redefines the SHIFT crash data safety metric, increasing the weight of serious (KAB) crashes while still accounting for the potential to reduce less serious crashes. It also attends to the five-year and ultimate goals of Kentucky’s Strategic Highway Safety Plan by developing a metric sensitive to these policy goals. The five-year goal is represented by a new definition of EEC (the difference between expected crashes, the Empirical Bayes estimate, and the number of systemwide crashes when the goal is achieved). The ultimate goal is represented by the potential to reduce crashes on all road sections to zero, which is the EB estimate itself

Dance: subjective and psychobiological effects

Tanzen ist eine Form des Umgangs mit Musik, die in allen Kulturen weltweit existiert. Eine der vielen Funktionen, die dem Tanzen im Laufe der Geschichte zugeschrieben wurden, ist sein Nutzen als heilkräftiges Medium. Bisher gibt es jedoch nur wenige Untersuchungen, die sich mit den potenziellen Effekten des Tanzens als gesundheitsfördernde Tätigkeit beschäftigt haben. Ziel der vorliegenden Arbeit war es einerseits, eine Orientierung in diesem zersplitterten und gleichwohl viel versprechendem Forschungsfeld zu bieten und andererseits die subjektiven Wirkungen des Amateur Tanzens, seine psychobiologischen Korrelaten, sowie die dabei zu Grunde liegenden Einflüsse von Musikstimulation und Partner zu untersuchen. Es wurde gezeigt, dass Tanzen eine multidimensionale Tätigkeit darstellt, die verschiedene gesundheitsfördernden Komponenten, nämlich Körperbewegung, soziale Interaktion und Musikstimulation, einschließt. Wahrgenommen werden positive Wirkungen des Tanzens auf das emotionale Befinden, das körperliche Wohlergehen, das Selbstwertgefühl, das Sozialempfinden sowie das spirituelle Wohlbefinden. Tanzen wird darüber hinaus als wichtige Strategie zur Stressbewältigung anerkannt. Die Untersuchung der Wirkung des Paartanzens auf den emotionalen Zustand sowie auf Cortisol- und Testosteronkonzentrationen ergab, dass Tanzen zu einem Anstieg des positiven und einem Absinken des negativen Affektes führt. In Bezug auf die psychobiologischen Parameter wurden Cortisolreduktionen nach dem Tanzen nachgewiesen, welche von der Musikstimulation abhängig waren, während Testosteronerhöhungen zu Beginn der Untersuchung mit der Präsenz des Partners assoziiert waren. Die hier skizzierten Studien geben Hinweise auf die gesundheitsfördernde Bedeutung des Amateurtanzens sowie auf seine subjektiven und neuroendokrinen Korrelate. Darüber hinaus trägt diese Arbeit dazu bei, die differentiellen Einflüsse von Musik und Partner beim Tanzen zu verstehen. Diese Befunde sollen zukünftige Forschungsvorhaben fördern, die den Nutzen des Tanzens als gesundheitsfördernde Tätigkeit weiter verdeutlichen und das Verständnis der dahinter liegenden psychobiologischen Mechanismen erweitern.Dance is a form of musical activity that is part of every known human culture worldwide. One of the several functions attributed to dancing over the human history is its function as a healing activity. To date there are few empirical studies that have examined the potential effects of dancing on health and well-being. The aim of this study was to investigate both the subjective and neurohumoral (cortisol and testosterone) effects of amateur dancing. Moreover, the specific influences of the presence of partner and music on these effects were considered. Results showed that dancing appears to be a multidimensional activity that integrates potential health-promoting elements, such as body movement, social interaction and music stimulation. Beneficial effects of dancing on subjective well-being were found related to the emotional dimension, as well as physical, social and spiritual dimensions. In addition, the positive benefits were also linked to self-esteem and coping strategies. The investigation of the effects of dancing on emotional state, cortisol and testosterone showed that dancing leads to increases in positive affect and decreases in negative affect as well as to reduced cortisol concentrations and enhanced testosterone concentrations. In particular, motion with a partner to music has a more positive effect on affective state than motion without music or motion without a partner. Moreover, decreases of cortisol concentrations were found with the presence of music, whereas increases of testosterone levels were associated with the presence of a partner. This research provides evidence for the health-promoting benefits of dancing as well as for its subjective and neuroendocrine correlates. In addition, this investigation contributes to understanding the differential influence of partner and music. These findings should encourage future research that highlight further potential benefits of dancing on well-being and expand the understanding of its underlying psychobiological mechanisms

Tanz der Dinge/Things that dance: Jahrbuch TanzForschung 2019

Tanzen erweckt Dinge zum Leben - Tanzen ist verkörpertes Leben in Beziehung zu vielen anderen Lebensformen, Materialien und Substanzen, die sich in einem animierten Kosmos bewegen und transformieren. Dieses Buch untersucht die transformativen Choreographien von Wesen, Elementen und Körpern, die in Atmosphären des Werdens schweben. Es vereint die Perspektiven von Künstler_innen und Forscher_innen auf die Welt der Materialien - organisch und künstlich, menschlich und nicht-menschlich. Ihre Essays und Kunstwerke richten den Fokus auf die Eigenschaften von Materialien, auf die Wahrnehmung dessen, was sich bewegt und bewegt werden kann, auf den Fluss der Beziehungen von Körpern und Dingen, auf Verstrickungen mit unserer Umwelt

Nicole Copeland, mezzo-soprano and Anna Carr, piano, April 25, 2015

This is the concert program of the Nicole Copeland, mezzo-soprano and Anna Carr, piano performance on Saturday, April 25, 2015 at 4:00 p.m., at the Opera Space, 808 Commonwealth Avenue. Works performed were Der Arme Peter by Robert Schumann, Sure on This Shining Night by Samuel Barber, Monk and his Cat by S. Barber, Slumber of the Madonna by S. Barber, L'Énamourée by Reynaldo Hahn, Le Rossignol des lilas by R. Hahn, Quand je fus pris au pavillon by R. Hahn, and Se Romeo t'uccise un figlio by Vincenzo Bellini. Digitization for Boston University Concert Programs was supported by the Boston University Humanities Library Endowed Fund

Boston University Symphony Orchestra, February 17, 1994

This is the concert program of the Boston University Symphony Orchestra performance on Boston University Symphony Orchestra, February 17, 1994, at the Tsai Performance Center, 685 Commonwealth Avenue. Works performed were Overture to "Die Geschopfe des Prometheus," Op. 43 by Ludwig van Beethoven, Concerto for Violin and Orchestra by Paul Hindemith, and Symphony No. 4 in G major by Gustav Mahler. Digitization for Boston University Concert Programs was supported by the Boston University Humanities Library Endowed Fund

Bedeutung des Rhythmus beim tanzen

The relations between rhythmic abilities and dance performance have been established on the sample of 57 male and 47 female undergraduate physical education students. The data related to the rhythmic ability have been obtained by the test composed of three different rhythmic sequences, and the data related to the dance performance have been obtained by the standard procedure for the evaluation of practical and theoretical knowledge pertaining to the course subject Dance. The results of the research have shown that it is to a relatively high degree feasible to predict the dance performance on the basis of the evaluation of rhythmic abilities, while the remaining percentage of the dance performance is probably incorporated in other motor knowledge and abilities.Die Relationen zwischen dem Rhythmus und der Tanzeffektivität wurden auf dem Muster von 104 Studenten (57 Studentinnen und 47 Studenten) der Fakultät fiir Körperkultur in Zagreb festgestellt. Die Daten über die rhythmische Fähigkeit wurden mittels eines Rhythmus-Tests erzielt, der aus 3 Rhythmus-Beispiele bestand. Die Daten über die Tanzeffektivität wurden mittels eines Standardverfahrens für die Beurteilung sowohl der praktischen als auch der theoretischen Kenntnisse im Studienfach ’Tänze’ angesammelt. Die Forschungsergebnisse haben gezeigt, daß es zum größten Teil möglich ist, aufgrund der Beurteilung von rhythmischen Fähigkeiten, die Tanzeffektivität zu antizipieren. Der Rest der Tanzeffektivität ist vermutlich in anderen motorischen Fähigkeiten und Kenntnissen ausdauernd

Incorporating Variability in KYTC Planning and Project Development

Transportation planning and design decisions are typically made using point estimates of traffic and safety measures. This report addresses the uncertainty of data used to make these decisions. It focuses on two data elements — project safety ratings and volume estimates from traffic counts. For safety ratings, the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet’s Strategic Highway Investment Formula for Tomorrow (SHIFT) crash history score is used as a case study. Confidence intervals are developed for the Cabinet’s new safety metric, which incorporates estimates of future crashes by severity as well as excess expected crashes above safety goals. For traffic counts, the report develops confidence intervals based on daily and monthly expansion factors across multiple permanent count recording stations. Results should help users of these data better understand the range of data the point estimates represent and the likelihood that projects based on these plans and designs will function as expected