Learning from Other Communities

This paper reflects a synopsis of the work in person/family-centered planning representative of its implementation across a variety of disability service systems, including prisons, schools, community-based service agencies and institutional settings. The authors who have contributed to this paper have direct experience in the field working with individuals who have disability labels of severe and persistent mental illness, mental retardation and developmental disabilities, and learning disabilities. It is their hope that this paper will serve to guide the emerging best practice in the design and delivery of person-centered service delivery systems

Raising the bar on the foreign portfolio to 25 per cent: Strategic implications for South African investors

Regulation 28 of the Pension Funds Act now permits an increased allocation of 25 per cent to foreign investments. The regulation previously only permitted a 20 per cent allocation. Establishing the optimal foreign allocation for South African portfolio managers given the 25 per cent upper bound is an important consideration for strategic portfolio planning. In this paper we consider two methodological approaches to establish a strategic foreign allocation weight. Our first approach considers the strategic role of foreign investment in South African global balanced portfolios by using a mean-variance efficient frontier framework over a long-term period. We also implement a second assessment methodology that utilises a nonparametric procedure. Both the mean-variance and the non-parametric methodology yield compelling evidence for the foreign allocation to be set at the maximum allowable bound of 25 per cent

COVID-19 Information on YouTube in the Early Pandemic

As people sheltered globally during the COVID-19 pandemic, many YouTube videos and channels pivoted to providing COVID-19 information. But were these videos helpful and constructive or did they undermine official public health messaging? This paper addresses these questions through a mixed methods study of COVID-19 videos on YouTube produced from January to May 2020. We find that a preponderance of YouTube COVID-19 videos either came from major news studio outlets or offered official public health communication. While YouTube moved quickly against obvious false messages, other more subtle ones still managed to leak through. Medical information channels presented conflicting information at times, reflecting factors such as medical uncertainties, political currents, and audience pressures associated with uncertain information around a novel pandemic

Sky Variability in the y Band at the LSST Site

We have measured spatial and temporal variability in the y band sky brightness over the course of four nights above Cerro Tololo near Cerro Pachon, Chile, the planned site for the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST). Our wide-angle camera lens provided a 41 deg field of view and a 145 arcsec pixel scale. We minimized potential system throughput differences by deploying a deep depletion CCD and a filter that matches the proposed LSST y_3 band (970 nm-1030 nm). Images of the sky exhibited coherent wave structure, attributable to atmospheric gravity waves at 90 km altitude, creating 3%-4% rms spatial sky flux variability on scales of about 2 degrees and larger. Over the course of a full night the y_3 band additionally showed highly coherent temporal variability of up to a factor of 2 in flux. We estimate the mean absolute sky level to be approximately y_3 = 17.8 mag (Vega), or y_3 = 18.3 mag (AB). While our observations were made through a y_3 filter, the relative sky brightness variability should hold for all proposed y bands, whereas the absolute levels should more strongly depend on spectral response. The spatial variability presents a challenge to wide-field cameras that require illumination correction strategies that make use of stacked sky flats. The temporal variability may warrant an adaptive y band imaging strategy for LSST, to take advantage of times when the sky is darkest.Comment: 8 pages, 5 figures, accepted to PASP. Minor changes from referee report and editor's revisions

FRESH VEGETABLE PRICE LINKAGE BETWEEN GROWER/SHIPPERS, WHOLESALERS AND RETAILERS

This study focused on the transmission of price adjustments between grower/shippers and wholesalers and between wholesale handlers and retailers of nine fresh vegetables (only the results associated with bell peppers are reported in this paper). Results among the nine vegetable products were not consistent with respect to the magnitude of adjustments or the time periods involved in the adjustments. In response to wholesale price changes, upward price adjustments at the retail level occur more quickly than do downward price adjustments. Price transmission relationships also varied among the vegetable products between the wholesaler and grower. Overall, the results indicate that factors in addition to changes in upstream prices are impacting retailers' and wholesalers' pricing decisions.Demand and Price Analysis,

Returning to Learning: Adults' Success in College Is Key to America's Future

Provides an overview of research on adult learners' characteristics, risk factors, and needs at four-year institutions and in for-credit and non-credit courses, and what changes institutions and governments can implement to help adult students succeed

A pragmatic multi-centre randomised controlled trial of fluid loading and level of dependency in high-risk surgical patients undergoing major elective surgery : trial protocol

Peer reviewedPublisher PD