Improving WIC Retention in Vermont: Beneficiary attitudes toward co-location in medical homes

Introduction: The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) is a national program aimed at improving the nutrition and health of pregnant women and children. Those eligible for Vermont WIC include anyone pregnant or with children under 5 that has an income below 185% of federal poverty level or is enrolled in Vermont Medicaid. WIC has been shown to improve birth outcomes1, breast feeding rates2, infant growth and development, and consumption of important nutrients. Those enrolled in WIC report high levels of satisfaction Despite the benefits of WIC, retention rates of eligible families remain low. Studies have shown that mandatory bi-annual recertification appointments pose logistical problems. Rescheduling missed appointments and long waiting times at the WIC offices were also barriers. Other states have found that integration of WIC recertification appointments with the family’s primary care medical visits may improve retention. A limited scale co-localization of WIC and the medical home in Vermont showed some promise.https://scholarworks.uvm.edu/comphp_gallery/1213/thumbnail.jp

Integer optimization methods for machine learning

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Sloan School of Management, Operations Research Center, 2012.This electronic version was submitted by the student author. The certified thesis is available in the Institute Archives and Special Collections.Cataloged from student-submitted PDF version of thesis.Includes bibliographical references (p. 129-137).In this thesis, we propose new mixed integer optimization (MIO) methods to ad- dress problems in machine learning. The first part develops methods for supervised bipartite ranking, which arises in prioritization tasks in diverse domains such as information retrieval, recommender systems, natural language processing, bioinformatics, and preventative maintenance. The primary advantage of using MIO for ranking is that it allows for direct optimization of ranking quality measures, as opposed to current state-of-the-art algorithms that use heuristic loss functions. We demonstrate using a number of datasets that our approach can outperform other ranking methods. The second part of the thesis focuses on reverse-engineering ranking models. This is an application of a more general ranking problem than the bipartite case. Quality rankings affect business for many organizations, and knowing the ranking models would allow these organizations to better understand the standards by which their products are judged and help them to create higher quality products. We introduce an MIO method for reverse-engineering such models and demonstrate its performance in a case-study with real data from a major ratings company. We also devise an approach to find the most cost-effective way to increase the rank of a certain product. In the final part of the thesis, we develop MIO methods to first generate association rules and then use the rules to build an interpretable classifier in the form of a decision list, which is an ordered list of rules. These are both combinatorially challenging problems because even a small dataset may yield a large number of rules and a small set of rules may correspond to many different orderings. We show how to use MIO to mine useful rules, as well as to construct a classifier from them. We present results in terms of both classification accuracy and interpretability for a variety of datasets.by Allison An Chang.Ph.D

Uncertainties in Estimating the Indirect Production of BcB_c and Its Excited States Via Top Quark Decays at CERN LHC

Main theoretical uncertainties in estimating the indirect production of $(b\bar{c})$-quarkonium ($B^-_c$ meson and its excited states) via top quark decays, $t\to (b\bar{c})+c+W^{+}$, are studied within the non-relativistic QCD framework. It is found that the dimensionless reduced decay width for a particular $(b\bar{c})$-quarkonium state, $\bar\Gamma_{n}=\Gamma_{n} /\Gamma_{t\to W^{+}+b}$, is very sensitive to the $c$-quark mass, while the uncertainties from the $b$-quark and $t$-quark masses are small, where $n$ stands for the eight $(b\bar{c})$-quarkonium states up to ${\cal O}(v^4)$: $|(b\bar{c})(^1S_0)_1>$, $|(b\bar{c})(^3S_1)_1>$, $|(b\bar{c})(^1P_1)_1>$, $|(b\bar{c})(^3P_J)_1>$ (with $J=(1,2,3)$), $|(b\bar{c})(^1S_0)_{8}g>$ and $|(b\bar{c})(^3S_1)_{8}g>$ respectively. About $10^8$ $t\bar{t}$-pairs shall be produced per year at CERN LHC, if adopting the assumption that all the higher Fock states decay to the ground state with 100% probability, then we shall have $(1.038^{+1.353}_{-0.782})\times 10^5$ $B^-_c$ events per year. So the indirect production provides another important way to study the properties of $B^-_c$ meson in comparison to that of the direct hadronic production at CERN LHC.Comment: 11 pages, 3 figures. References and some more discussions added. To be published in Phys.Lett.

Coronary Artery Calcification (CAC) and Post-Trial Cardiovascular Events and Mortality Within the Women's Health Initiative (WHI) Estrogen-Alone Trial.

BackgroundAmong women aged 50 to 59 years at baseline in the Women's Health Initiative (WHI) Estrogen-Alone (E-Alone) trial, randomization to conjugated equine estrogen-alone versus placebo was associated with lower risk of myocardial infarction and mortality, and, in an ancillary study, the WHI-CACS (WHI Coronary Artery Calcification Study) with lower CAC, measured by cardiac computed tomography ≈8.7 years after baseline randomization. We hypothesized that higher CAC would be related to post-trial coronary heart disease (CHD), cardiovascular disease (CVD), and total mortality, independent of baseline randomization or risk factors.Methods and resultsWHI-CACS participants (n=1020) were followed ≈8 years from computed tomography scan in 2005 (mean age=64.4) through 2013 for incident CHD (myocardial infarction and fatal CHD, n=17), CVD (n=69), and total mortality (n=55). Incident CHD and CVD analyses excluded women with CVD before scan (n=89). Women with CAC=0 (n=54%) had very low age-adjusted rates/1000 person-years of CHD (0.91), CVD (5.56), and mortality (3.45). In comparison, rates were ≈2-fold higher for women with any CAC (>0). Associations were not modified by baseline randomization to conjugated equine estrogen-alone versus placebo. Adjusted for baseline randomization and risk factors, the hazard ratio (95% confidence interval) for CAC >100 (19%) was 4.06 (2.11, 7.80) for CVD and 2.70 (1.26, 5.79) for mortality.ConclusionsAmong a subset of postmenopausal women aged 50 to 59 years at baseline in the WHI E-Alone Trial, CAC at mean age of 64 years was strongly related to incident CHD, CVD, and to total mortality over ≈8 years, independent of baseline randomization to conjugated equine estrogen-alone versus placebo or CVD risk factors.Clinical trial registrationURL: https://www.clinicaltrials.gov. Unique identifier: NCT00000611

Extent of pollen-mediated gene flow and seed longevity in switchgrass (Panicum virgatum L.): Implications for biosafety procedures

New switchgrass (Panicum virgatum L.) bioenergy cultivars are being bred through genetic engineering; however, baseline information is urgently needed to establish guidelines for small scale field trials prior to commercialization. In this study, we documented the pattern of pollen mediated gene flow and the extent of seed longevity in field experiments. To mimic crop-to wild, pollen-mediated gene flow, we planted wild recipient switchgrass ramets at various distances away from cultivar donor ramets at two sites in Ohio. Percent hybridization at each distance was estimated from seed set on recipient ramets, which were self-incompatible clones. The pattern of gene flow was best described by negative exponential models, and the minimum isolation distance for a 0.01% gene flow threshold was predicted to be 69 m and 109 m away from the pollen source at the two sites. To investigate seed longevity, we buried seeds of six cultivars and ten wild biotypes in Ohio and Iowa in 2011. A subset of the seeds were exhumed, germinated, and tested for dormancy over three years. Cultivars lost seed viability and dormancy significantly sooner than wild biotypes at both locations in the first year, and most biotypes lost dormancy by the second year. Cultivar seeds buried in the cooler, drier Iowa site had an overall greater longevity than those buried in Ohio. Our findings suggest that substantial amounts of pollen-mediated gene flow could occur in the immediate vicinity of switchgrass pollen sources, and current switchgrass cultivars are unlikely to persist in the seed bank for more than three years

Total Sitting Time and Sitting Pattern in Postmenopausal Women Differ by Hispanic Ethnicity and are Associated With Cardiometabolic Risk Biomarkers.

Background Sedentary behavior is pervasive, especially in older adults, and is associated with cardiometabolic disease and mortality. Relationships between cardiometabolic biomarkers and sitting time are unexplored in older women, as are possible ethnic differences. Methods and Results Ethnic differences in sitting behavior and associations with cardiometabolic risk were explored in overweight/obese postmenopausal women (n=518; mean±SD age 63±6 years; mean body mass index 31.4±4.8 kg/m2). Accelerometer data were processed using validated machine-learned algorithms to measure total daily sitting time and mean sitting bout duration (an indicator of sitting behavior pattern). Multivariable linear regression was used to compare sitting among Hispanic women (n=102) and non-Hispanic women (n=416) and tested associations with cardiometabolic risk biomarkers. Hispanic women sat, on average, 50.3 minutes less/day than non-Hispanic women (P<0.001) and had shorter (3.6 minutes less, P=0.02) mean sitting bout duration. Among all women, longer total sitting time was deleteriously associated with fasting insulin and triglyceride concentrations, insulin resistance, body mass index and waist circumference; longer mean sitting bout duration was deleteriously associated with fasting glucose and insulin concentrations, insulin resistance, body mass index and waist circumference. Exploratory interaction analysis showed that the association between mean sitting bout duration and fasting glucose concentration was significantly stronger among Hispanic women than non-Hispanic women (P-interaction=0.03). Conclusions Ethnic differences in 2 objectively measured parameters of sitting behavior, as well as detrimental associations between parameters and cardiometabolic biomarkers were observed in overweight/obese older women. The detrimental association between mean sitting bout duration and fasting glucose may be greater in Hispanic women than in non-Hispanic women. Corroboration in larger studies is warranted

Social Science Considerations for Integrating Aviation Technology, Emergency Services, and Human Resilience

Unmanned aerial systems (UAS) have a range of innovative applications within the field of disaster management, underscoring the potential to enhance human security by integrating UAS across phases of disasters. This paper highlights important social science challenges that must be addressed to ensure the effective integration of UAS, the complex team of teams that respond to disasters, and the populations affected by disasters. Expanding upon points of intersection between UAS capabilities and disaster management identified in recent research, UAS uses in disaster management and corresponding psychosocial considerations are discussed. Broadly, these considerations focus on the training and development of the disaster management multiteam system (MTS) as well as the well-being of disaster responders and the populations they serve. Considerations for mitigation (resilient team infrastructure), preparation (education and training), response (an integrated MTS; responder health), and recovery (population resilience) phases of disaster management are discussed to pave the way for future research and application in this area

Integrating Aviation Technology, Emergency Services, and Human Resilience: Considerations from Social Scientists

Unmanned aerial systems (UAS) have a range of applications within the field of disaster response. This presentation offers a novel framework of psychosocial considerations designed to advance UAS and disaster management integration. Social scientists highlight important challenges to the effective integration of three primary entities: UAS, the team of teams that responds to disasters, and populations affected by disasters. The presentation adopts an emerging theoretical perspective on the intersection between UAS capabilities and disaster phases and extends it by bringing necessary attention to social science issues. Specifically, the framework outlines psychosocial considerations and areas of improvement for preparation (training), response (incident command), and recovery (occupational health; population resilience) phases of disaster management. First, training curricula must involve the full disaster response multiteam system (MTS; i.e., team of teams) in cross-training that builds a shared identity by operationalizing UAS as a component team. Second, disaster response MTSs must establish incident command structures that incorporate UAS into team communication and coordination networks. Third, the implications of stressors unique to UAS operation need to be better understood in the context of existing cyclical effects of work stress on disaster responder performance and well-being. Finally, as crisis communication affects disaster-impacted communities, populations must be able to leverage UAS as a mechanism for, and not a barrier against, recovery from disaster. Across the globe, disasters threaten human security. This presentation provides a necessary interdisciplinary perspective on implementing UAS in disaster management to help the world better prepare for, respond to, recover from, and mitigate disasters

Absence of kdr resistance alleles in the Union of the Comoros,East Africa

Knockdown resistance (kdr) and CYP9K1 genotypes were detected by a MOLDI-TOF based SNP genotyping assay (Sequenom iPLEX) in samples of Anopheles gambiae collected at 13 sites throughout the Union of the Comoros and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania during February and March 2011. All A. gambiae specimens collected in the Comoros were homozygous for the susceptible kdr alleles (+/+) while 96% of A. gambiae from Dar es Salaam were homozygous for the East African kdr resistant genotype (E/E). In contrast, all specimens from Dar es Salaam and the Comoros were homozygous for the cyp3 allele (c3/c3) at the CYP9K1 locus; the locus has been implicated in metabolic resistance against pyrethroid insecticides in West Africa. All specimens had typical A. gambiae genotypes for SNPs within the divergence Islands on all three chromosomes. Although further spatial and temporal studies are needed, the distribution of kdr genotypes between the Comoros and Tanzania further supports isolation of the Comoros populations from A. gambiae populations on mainland Africa