A Historical Review of Secondary School Athletic Training Coverage in West Virginia

The purpose of this research is to review the history of athletic training in the secondary schools of West Virginia, as well as to determine how appropriate the current level of athletic healthcare is for West Virginia’s secondary school athletes. Participation surveys from the WVSSAC, membership statistics from the NATA, Friday night football game reports, and documents from the WVDE were used to gather data. Since 1988 the total number of high schools with football and number of football athletes has decreased, while the total number of certified athletic trainers (ATCs) in West Virginia has increased. The number of ATCs working in West Virginia high schools sponsoring football has only minimally increased since 1991. Several reasons are proposed to explain these trends, including school consolidations, salary costs for ATCs, and lack of understanding of the value of ATCs. Future research in this area is clearly needed

A multiwavelenght study of the accretion region in magnetic cataclysmic variables

This thesis is a study of the accretion regions in magnetic cataclysmic variables (MCVs). After an overview of our current understanding of accretion regions in MCVs, I describe a model I have developed which models the polarized cyclotron emission from MCVs. I then use this model to show how different types of cyclotron light curves arise for various shaped accretion regions. I then use this model on the MCV PQ Gem. PQ Gem is an asynchronous intermediate polar (a subclass of the MCVs) with was discovered to have polarized emission on the spin period of the white dwarf. It was therefore an ideal candidate to observe and model. I found that the polarized light curves could be modelled by emission from two extended emission regions located on opposite hemispheres of the white dwarf. The model light curves could explain the observations as a combination of self occultation and absorption of the emission regions. The model is also more self consistent than other attempts in that it models the multi color observations of PQ Gem simultaneously and is in agreement with X-ray observations. I also give an estimate for the magnetic field strength of the white dwarf in this system. Several authors over the past decade have modelled cyclotron emission from MCVs using their own models. However model fits have until now been obtained by a trial and error method. I obtained the results for PQ Gem by a similar method. Therefore I have developed an optimisation technique that is more analytical and objective than previous methods. This was achieved with the combination of a genetic algorithm and a more traditional line minimisation routine. I described the technique in detail and rigorously test it on simulated light curves. Having developed the optimisation technique, I then applied it to real data in order to predict the shape and size of their emission regions. The results are compared to previous models and preconceptions on the shape of emission regions. Also, by making assumptions on the nature of the magnetic field, I then trace the magnetic field lines that feed the emission regions to the orbital plane in order to locate the threading regions in these systems. Finally, I give a summary of this thesis and discuss possible work for the future

Effects of Online Training on Aircrew Monitoring Behaviors: A Field Study

Data from aircraft accidents and line observation studies indicate that inadequate pilot monitoring is a growing safety concern. In the cockpit environment, pilots who fail to properly manage their workload commit more monitoring errors. Given the lack of training and educational programs available to pilots which emphasize improving their monitoring skills, more research is needed to assess the usefulness of types of training that can be used to improve pilots\u27 monitoring. This research project sets out to determine if the potential exists to enhance pilots\u27 monitoring skills through online training. For this study, 40 military helicopter pilots (participants) were divided into two training groups: (1) an online training group, which completed a 20-minute web-based training module, and (2) a control group, which read a 20-minute article on aviation safety. Within each group, the pilots were paired and completed two training events in a flight simulator as part of their normal duties. The effects of the training were evaluated using Kirkpatrick\u27s multi-level framework: reactions, learning, behaviors, and results. First, all pilots receiving training were surveyed to capture the trainees\u27 perceptions of satisfaction and utility of the training. Second, all pilots were given a multiple-choice test to assess the effect the training had on learners\u27 knowledge of the training objectives. Next, the researchers observed, via video recording, both groups\u27 behaviors during flight simulator events. The researchers recorded occurrences of four behavior markers as the crews flew multiple instrument approaches. The researchers used two of these markers to study transfer of training and two markers to examine positive vs. negative outcomes at critical tasks during the simulated flights. The results show positive changes in the reactions, learning, and behavior dimensions, lending support to the effectiveness of relatively inexpensive online training to teach monitoring skills

Cognitive Issues Experienced by Individuals Living with Neurofibromatosis

In this chapter, we will review cognitive issues faced by individuals living with neurofibromatosis. The chapter will discuss the complicated and sometimes inconsistent cognitive issues and adaptive functioning struggles associated with NF1, NF2, and schwannomatosis. We will review neurocognitive outcomes associated with each of these conditions across the lifespan while focusing on NF1. Specific neurocognitive domains we will review include: intellect, memory, language, nonverbal skills, attention, and executive functions. We will discuss the heterogeneity of the cognitive phenotype for each of these conditions. We will include how associated medical complications such as brain tumor, seizures, and hearing loss can impact neurocognitive outcomes. The chapter will also review the functional consequence of cognitive difficulties including academic struggles, learning disabilities, and decreased quality of life that are sometimes seen in this population

Titan's latitudinal temperature distribution and seasonal cycle

Voyager IRIS brightness temperature measurements of Titan at a wavelength of 530 cm^(−1) are crudely indicative of ground or lower tropospheric temperatures and indicate 93 K for the equator and 91 K for both northern and southern high latitudes. The symmetry between north and south is unexpected for the time of Voyager encounter (Northern Titan spring). We show that this near-symmetry can arise naturally in a model where the poles are "pinned" year-round at the dew point of CH_4-N_2 lakes or, more probably, a CH_4-N_2 rich surface layer on a deep ethane-rich ocean. For a polar temperature of 91 K, the model implies that the atmosphere contains somewhat less than 8% mole fraction of CH_4

Analysis of socio-economic aspects of local and national organic farming markets; final report for Defra

The purpose of this study was to take a fresh look at the nature of organic production, consumption and marketing in England and Wales in order to better assess its current and likely contribution to rural development and its ability to meet consumer expectations. Based on a mixed methodological approach the study consulted with 2,300 individuals to reveal a complex and multi-dimensional sector with a highly committed consumer base. The research aimed to describe and account for: (1)The socio-economic impacts of the organic farm supply chains on rural development; (2)The extent to which organic food delivers consumer expectations; and (3) The barriers affecting conversion to organic farming and expansion of existing organic farms. The research reported here is arguably one of the most integrated studies of organic consumption, production and marketing conducted to date. It throws new light on the nature of organic consumption, underlining both the on-going commitment of the majority of committed organic consumers and the gap in perceptions, degrees of ‘brand trust’ and price sensitivity between this group and the majority of consumers who rarely or never buy organic. While this degree of commitment suggests that recent declines in organic consumption may not be sustained and will soon hit a floor, this finding also points to difficulties, particularly in a time of recession, in enrolling new consumers into organic networks, particularly via the direct marketing channels that smaller producers are more likely to depend on. This group of producers, locally embedded and linked to consumers via short supply chains, fulfil the expectations of many organic consumers and exemplify the idea of alternative food producers. Managed by self selecting, entrepreneurial farmers, these organic producers make a valuable contribution towards employment and income generation within the local rural economy. As our broader analysis of food chains and multiplier effects across the regional and national rural economy shows, however, it is the large scale producers, concerned with the production of bulk commodities and integrated into long supply chains, that inevitably account for the main rural employment and income benefits of the organic sector, if measured in aggregate terms. While there is a good case to be made for the rural development benefits of organic farming, it is important to recognise these scale effects and their geographically uneven distribution in any policy assessment.Organic markets, Organic farming, Organic consumers, Rural Economy, Multiplier Analysis, Simple Value Chains, Agricultural and Food Policy, Consumer/Household Economics, Farm Management, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety, Marketing,

Using Media Messaging to Promote Healthful Eating and Physical Activity among Urban Youth

National trends show consistent increases, as well as racial and ethnic dis- parities, in the prevalence of overweight children and adolescents. Such disparity is evident regarding behaviors such as a poor diet and a lack of physical activity and in the prevalence and outcomes of associated health problems. It has been suggested that grounding interventions in cultural traditions and norms are critical for preventing obesity among ethnic and racial minority youth; however, with some notable exceptions, few community interventions have used this approach. Moreover, urban minority youth may face additional barriers to healthful eating and physical activity behaviors, such as limited environmental and social support systems. Thus, there is a great need for culturally rele- vant community-based programs to serve them

The Fire and Smoke Model Evaluation Experiment—A Plan for Integrated, Large Fire–Atmosphere Field Campaigns

The Fire and Smoke Model Evaluation Experiment (FASMEE) is designed to collect integrated observations from large wildland fires and provide evaluation datasets for new models and operational systems. Wildland fire, smoke dispersion, and atmospheric chemistry models have become more sophisticated, and next-generation operational models will require evaluation datasets that are coordinated and comprehensive for their evaluation and advancement. Integrated measurements are required, including ground-based observations of fuels and fire behavior, estimates of fire-emitted heat and emissions fluxes, and observations of near-source micrometeorology, plume properties, smoke dispersion, and atmospheric chemistry. To address these requirements the FASMEE campaign design includes a study plan to guide the suite of required measurements in forested sites representative of many prescribed burning programs in the southeastern United States and increasingly common high-intensity fires in the western United States. Here we provide an overview of the proposed experiment and recommendations for key measurements. The FASMEE study provides a template for additional large-scale experimental campaigns to advance fire science and operational fire and smoke models