Can Economic Development Programs Be Evaluated?

The question addressed in this paper seems simple: Can economic development programs be evaluated? But the answer is not simple because of the nature of evaluation. To determine a program's effectiveness requires a sophisticated evaluation because it requires the evaluator to distinguish changes due to the program from changes due to nonprogram factors. The evaluator must focus on the outcomes caused by the program rather than the program's procedures. Evaluations can be divided into two categories process or formative evaluations and outcome, impact, or summative evaluations. Process evaluations focus on how a program is delivered. Impact evaluations focus on the program's results. Although process evaluations are important, the focus of this chapter is on program outcomes thus the concern with impact evaluations; however, both types of evaluations need to be defined.economic, development, programs, evaluate, Bartik, Bingham

Mesoscopic structure of pectin in solution

Mesoscopic structure of pectin with different molecular characteristics was investigated by means of small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS), electrokinetic measurements and data modelling. The influence of a broad range of pH (2-7) on chain conformation in the dilute and semi-diluted regime was investigated. Scattering data and concomitant analysis revealed two length scales at all environmental conditions studied. pH showed greater influence at acidic values (pH 2.0) enhancing the globular component of the structure due to association of galacturonic acid residues. Double logarithmic scattering intensity plots revealed fractal dimensions of 1.9 ±0.2 in the low-q regime and 1.5 ±0.2 in the high q-region, irrespectively of the specific environment. Increase in branching of RG-I regions of the polysaccharide chains enhanced the compact conformation irrespectively of the pH or concentration. The present work shows that radical changes in pectin conformation can be induced only under strongly acidic conditions a finding that has important consequences in tailoring the technological performance of these biopolymer

Sport participation behaviours of spectators attending major sports events and event induced attitudinal changes towards sport

Purpose: Evidence of the link between major sports events and increased participation at grassroots level is somewhat mixed. This paper examines attitudinal changes to sport participation among spectators associated with seven sports events held in Great Britain in 2014. Approach: Primary data was gathered from 4,590 spectators aged 16 and over who attended one of the events. Both positive (inspiration) effects and negative (discouragement) effects were considered through the lens of the Transtheoretical Model (TTM). Findings: The evidence from this research indicates that event audiences belong primarily to the latter (more active) stages of the TTM. It was also found that attending sports events can further fuel the existing desire of contemplators to increase participation, whereas the catalytic effect among pre-contemplators is arguably less potent. Virtually no discouragement effects were observed across the different TTM stages. Research limitations: The research stops short of measuring actual changes in sport participation post-event of individuals in the different TTM stages and any attribution of such behaviour changes to events. This is both a limitation of the current research and a natural direction for future research. Practical implications: The main implications for promoting sport participation through the medium of sports events include attracting more people in the early stages of the TTM, greater collaboration between different event stakeholders and the building of sport participation strategies into the event planning phase. Originality: Models of behaviour change such as the TTM have seldom been applied to document the current and/or planned sport participation behaviour of individuals in a sport event context or to examine attitudinal changes towards sport as a result of attending an event. An adapted version of the TTM has been proposed to overcome the limitations of the traditional model

Can Economic Development Programs Be Evaluated?

The question addressed in this paper seems simple: Can economic development programs be evaluated? But the answer is not simple because of the nature of evaluation. To determine a program\u27s effectiveness requires a sophisticated evaluation because it requires the evaluator to distinguish changes due to the program from changes due to nonprogram factors. The evaluator must focus on the outcomes caused by the program rather than the program\u27s procedures. Evaluations can be divided into two categories--process or formative evaluations and outcome, impact, or summative evaluations. Process evaluations focus on how a program is delivered. Impact evaluations focus on the program\u27s results. Although process evaluations are important, the focus of this chapter is on program outcomes--thus the concern with impact evaluations; however, both types of evaluations need to be defined

Marshall University Music Department Presents Second Annual Reed Day, Guest Artists, Jon Agazzi, clarinet, John Cipolla, saxophone, and, Marshall University Faculty, Ann Marie Bingham, clarinet, W. Edwin Bingham, saxophone, Richard Kravchak, oboe, Kay Lawson, bassoon

https://mds.marshall.edu/music_perf/1689/thumbnail.jp

Undulation instability in a bilayer lipid membrane due to electric field interaction with lipid dipoles

Bilayer lipid membranes [BLMs] are an essential component of all biological systems, forming a functional barrier for cells and organelles from the surrounding environment. The lipid molecules that form membranes contain both permanent and induced dipoles, and an electric field can induce the formation of pores when the transverse field is sufficiently strong (electroporation). Here, a phenomenological free energy is constructed to model the response of a BLM to a transverse static electric field. The model contains a continuum description of the membrane dipoles and a coupling between the headgroup dipoles and the membrane tilt. The membrane is found to become unstable through buckling modes, which are weakly coupled to thickness fluctuations in the membrane. The thickness fluctuations, along with the increase in interfacial area produced by membrane buckling, increase the probability of localized membrane breakdown, which may lead to pore formation. The instability is found to depend strongly on the strength of the coupling between the dipolar headgroups and the membrane tilt as well as the degree of dipolar ordering in the membrane.Comment: 29 pages 8 fig

Marshall University Music Department Presents a Woodwind Ensemble Recital

https://mds.marshall.edu/music_perf/1369/thumbnail.jp