The Impact of Financial Crises on the Poor

Financial crises have detrimental impacts on the economy via depressed economic growth and rising unemployment, however, their impact on the poorest in society is relatively under-researched. This paper investigates the impact of three different types of financial crises on the income of the poor. Using a variety of estimation techniques and controlling for a lagged dependent variable, the results suggest that currency crises are the most harmful to the poor, followed by banking crises. Debt crises only have a statistically significant effect on the income of the poor in richer countries

Using GIS technology to identify areas of tuberculosis transmission and incidence

BACKGROUND: Currently in the U.S. it is recommended that tuberculosis screening and treatment programs be targeted at high-risk populations. While a strategy of targeted testing and treatment of persons most likely to develop tuberculosis is attractive, it is uncertain how best to accomplish this goal. In this study we seek to identify geographical areas where on-going tuberculosis transmission is occurring by linking Geographic Information Systems (GIS) technology with molecular surveillance. METHODS: This cross-sectional analysis was performed on data collected on persons newly diagnosed with culture positive tuberculosis at the Tarrant County Health Department (TCHD) between January 1, 1993 and December 31, 2000. Clinical isolates were molecularly characterized using IS6110-based RFLP analysis and spoligotyping methods to identify patients infected with the same strain. Residential addresses at the time of diagnosis of tuberculosis were geocoded and mapped according to strain characterization. Generalized estimating equations (GEE) analysis models were used to identify risk factors involved in clustering. RESULTS: Evaluation of the spatial distribution of cases within zip-code boundaries identified distinct areas of geographical distribution of same strain disease. We identified these geographical areas as having increased likelihood of on-going transmission. Based on this evidence we plan to perform geographically based screening and treatment programs. CONCLUSION: Using GIS analysis combined with molecular epidemiological surveillance may be an effective method for identifying instances of local transmission. These methods can be used to enhance targeted screening and control efforts, with the goal of interruption of disease transmission and ultimately incidence reduction

Order recall in verbal short-term memory: The role of semantic networks

In their recent article, Acheson, MacDonald, and Postle (Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition 37:44-59, 2011) made an important but controversial suggestion: They hypothesized that (a) semantic information has an effect on order information in short-term memory (STM) and (b) order recall in STM is based on the level of activation of items within the relevant lexico-semantic long-term memory (LTM) network. However, verbal STM research has typically led to the conclusion that factors such as semantic category have a large effect on the number of correctly recalled items, but little or no impact on order recall (Poirier & Saint-Aubin, Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology 48A:384-404, 1995; Saint-Aubin, Ouellette, & Poirier, Psychonomic Bulletin & Review 12:171-177, 2005; Tse, Memory 17:874-891, 2009). Moreover, most formal models of short-term order memory currently suggest a separate mechanism for order coding-that is, one that is separate from item representation and not associated with LTM lexico-semantic networks. Both of the experiments reported here tested the predictions that we derived from Acheson et al. The findings show that, as predicted, manipulations aiming to affect the activation of item representations significantly impacted order memory

Promoting Research Between Communities of Practice

One of the reasons that we conduct research is to provide a body of research findings and theories that can inform practitioners (Williamson 2000). This article highlights research approaches that are typically used to bridge the gap between two well-known communities of practice, the academic communities of practice, the academic community and the practitioner community. It examines how knowledge may be transferred between the two communities and then discusses two research approaches, action research and case studies that can be used to bridge the gap

Learning Lessons In Government Sponsored Projects

This exploratory research investigates the effectiveness of an attempt to benefit from ‘lessons learned’ through the implementation of a formal project management methodology. A synthesis of the relevant literature forms a basis for the research and identifies existing weaknesses. Building on research to date, a series of pilot interviews relating to government sponsored information systems projects is used to develop a conceptual model, and this is used to illustrate the transfer and conversion of knowledge through a full or partial cycle of identification, storage, access, absorption and finally ‘knowledge in action’. The research which this ‘research in progress’ paper introduces, aims to facilitate improved knowledge management for both academic and practitioner audiences through identifying what has worked well in previous projects, as well as issues that could have been managed better. It develops a conceptual model which will be improved and developed further through a series of case studies