Active Travel Co-Benefits of Travel Demand Management Policies that Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions, MTI Report 12-12

There is increasing evidence that improved health outcomes may be significant co-benefits of land use plans and transport policies that increase active transport (or walking and biking for purposeful travel) and reduce greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) from vehicle miles traveled (VMT). A greater understanding of these benefits may broaden the constituency for regional planning that supports local and national GHG reduction goals. In this study, California’s activity-based travel demand model (ABM) is applied to (1) demonstrate how this new generation of travel models can be used to produce the active travel data (age and sex distributions) required by comparative risk assessment models to estimate health outcomes for alternative land use and transport plans and to (2) identify the magnitude of change in active travel that may be possible from land use, transit, and vehicle pricing policies for California and its five major regions for a future 2035 time horizon. The results of this study suggest that distance-based vehicle pricing may increase walking by about 10% and biking by about 17%, and concurrently GHG from VMT may be reduced by about 16%. Transit expansion and supportive development patterns may increase active travel by about 2% to 3% for both walk and bike modes while also reducing VMT by about 4% on average. The combination of all three policies may increase time spent walking by about 13% and biking by about 19%, and reduce VMT by about 19%

An analysis of tobacco cessation quit aids and quit attempts from a national study on tobacco cessation

BACKGROUND: Since the initial report on the negative effects of smoking by the Surgeon General's Advisory Committee, the components of cigarettes and tobacco smoke and the mechanisms by which these cause disease have been studied extensively. Despite the well-documented health consequences associated with tobacco use, nearly 70 million Americans over the age of 12 actively use tobacco products, with 57.5 million of these (22.1% of the U.S. population in this age range) actively smoking cigarettes. Understanding how nicotine addiction develops and reinforces itself is important context for understanding the high prevalence of quit interest among smokers and the high relapse rates associated with quit attempts. While the increased availability of different, clinically proven tobacco cessation aids should lower the barrier associated with tobacco abstinence, the prevalence of quit aid use still remains low among those attempting to quit smoking. This study examines quit interest in active smokers, the quit attempts attempted by current and former smokers, the prevalence of tobacco cessation aid use in these quit attempts, and the perceived efficacy of certain quit aids. METHODS: This study was conducted in the Emergency Departments of ten hospitals nationwide by the National Association of Research Associates Programs in 2012. This study utilized trained research staff to enroll non-emergent patients and visitors over the age of 18 years old, obtaining demographical information and a detailed history of tobacco use from the participant. This included such information as current tobacco use status, how many cigarettes were consumed during a typical day, how many times they had attempted to abstain from tobacco use in the past, if they had used any tobacco cessation aids during those quit attempts, and, if so, how effective they believed these aids were. Participants were also asked to rate their readiness to quit smoking and intent to quit smoking, markers this study used to analyze quit interest. RESULTS: Of those approached, 10,303 study participants were selected for inclusion in this study, reporting tobacco use for longer than one month at any point in their life. 50.5% reported current tobacco use, while 46.8% reported current abstention from smoking. A majority of active smokers expressed interest in initiating tobacco cessation, with 55.2% reporting they were ready to quit smoking, though a smaller majority (51.9%) of active smokers reported that they intended to quit smoking. Most smokers reported at least 1 quit attempt in the past, with 76.5% of former smokers reporting that they quit within 1 to 5 attempts. Only 30.7% of study participants reported ever using some form of tobacco cessation aid in previous quit attempts, with nicotine replacement therapy use being the most commonly reported, and with pharmacological interventions more commonly reported than counseling-based cessation interventions. A majority of participants who reported using nicotine replacement gum and lozenges (57.8% and 49.5%, respectfully) reported that they were not helpful in aiding their cessation attempts, with only 30.1% of gum and 38.7% of lozenge users reporting a positive effect. CONCLUSIONS: The results indicated that among active smokers, smokers that reported smoking less (only some days or fewer cigarettes per day) were more likely to express interest (readiness and intent) in initiating tobacco cessation than those that reported smoking more (every day or more cigarettes per day). Quit interest also appeared to be lowest in 18-25 year olds, with this age group also reporting the lowest proportion of quit attempts, a finding that differed from another national tobacco survey. The prevalence of quit aid use in our study was comparable to another national tobacco survey, but our findings for the prevalence of unassisted quit attempts did not coincide with results found in other studies. These results also indicated that cessation aid use increased with increased number of quit attempts. Though we found that former smokers were more likely to indicate that NRT products were helpful than active smokers were, we were unable to fully analyze the perceived effects of cessation aid use due to the loss of some of this data. In light of the limitations of this study, further study needs to be conducted to better understand the perceived effect of tobacco cessation aids and how this might differ from the efficacy values found in clinical trials. In order to make findings more comparable to other tobacco surveys, future studies should also be designed around clear and common definitions for active tobacco use and quit interest, and a focus on quit attempts should be modulated by some degree of recency (e.g., quit attempts made within the previous year or two years)

WHY DO FARMERS FORWARD CONTRACT IN FACTOR MARKETS?

This study investigated farmers' incentives to forward purchase inputs. A model of farmer decision making was used to derive an optimal forward contracting rule. Explicit in the model was the tradeoff between the quantity of input to be purchased in advance, and the remaining portion to be purchased later on the spot market. Results indicated that the primary reasons farmers contract inputs are to reduce risk and to speculate on favorable price moves. A numerical example of fertilizer used in corn production indicated that the size of the price discount was the dominant factor in forward contracting decisions.Farm Management,

I Am Prosper, I Am Ariel, I Am Caliban: A Metatheatrical Approach to Neil Gaiman’s The Sandman

In this paper, I use a primarily close-reading approach to examine the metatheatrical elements of William Shakespeare’s representation in Neil Gaiman’s comic book series The Sandman. This involves examinations of individual panels throughout three different issues of the series in order to uncover how Shakespeare is presented, as well as how he, in turn, affects the presentation of other characters, and how these both affect the view which the reader might form of not only Shakespeare, but of Gaiman himself. In doing so, I establish the existence of a new, related genre: metacomics. Similar to metatheatrics, this approach relates to the control Shakespeare and other characters within this comic exert on each other above and beyond that specifically dictated to them through Gaiman and his artists, and is carried out predominantly through the interplay between text and artwork which is the main focus of my discussion

Accuracy of pelvis repositioning in individuals with and without low back pain

Proprioception allows the body to maintain proper orientation during static and dynamic activities. In the upper and lower extremities, research has demonstrated a loss of some aspects of proprioception and improvement in proprioception with retraining. It was hypothesized that persons with low back pain lose some elements of proprioception, although research in this area is relatively new. One aspect of proprioception, repositioning accuracy, was examined in this study. The primary purpose of this study was to compare repositioning accuracy of individuals with CLBP and healthy controls. Specifically, the ability to reposition the pelvis into a neutral position was examined in standing and seated positions. A secondary purpose of the study was to examine the inter-relationships between low back pain, repositioning accuracy and physical measurements. The ability to repositioning the pelvis into neutral in both standing and seated positions was tested in 19 volunteers aged 35-55 years old from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville and surrounding community. The participants were divided into two groups based on their Oswestry Low Back Pain Disability Questionnaire score (ODQ). Individuals with an ODQ score of zero were placed in the control group (n = 10). The chronic low back pain group (CLBP; n = 9) included individuals with an ODQ score greater than zero. The groups were similar with regards to age, height, weight, and body mass index. An electronic goniometer (elgon) was used to measure total lumbar range of motion (TROM), baseline neutral position, and neutral repositioning in both standing and seated positions. Each participant underwent a neutral spine training session following anthropometric, flexibility and strength measurements. Standing TROM was calculated as the sum of extreme anterior tilt and extreme posterior tilt. Following TROM testing, baseline standing neutral spine position was recorded for each individual. The participants then attempted to replicate their standing neutral position. Repositioning error was calculated as the absolute difference between the baseline neutral position and the repositioned neutral position. The same protocol was repeated in an unsupported seated position. The results of the repeated measures ANOVA demonstrated no significant differences in repositioning accuracy between the CLBP group and the healthy control group in either standing or seated positions. However, there was a significant difference between the standing and seated positions for the sample (p \u3c 0.05). Overall, for all subjects, the mean absolute repositioning error was greater in a seated position than in standing. In addition, the groups were no statistically different in TROM or baseline neutral positions in either standing or seated positions. To examine the difference in lumbar lordosis before and after neutral spine training, a single factor (time) repeated measures ANOVA was performed on the measurements obtained with the flexible ruler. There was a significant time effect for both the CLBP and control groups; the lumbar lordosis measures were significantly reduced with neutral spine posture. The between group effect was not significant. MANOVA indicated significant differences between the groups for trunk extension strength and abdominal strength. In both cases the CLBP group had statistically weaker trunk extension and trunk flexion strength

The Economic Impact of the Green Industry in the United States

This study estimates the economic impacts of the U.S. environmental horticulture industry (also known as the Green Industry) to be $147.8 billion in output, 1,964,339 jobs,$95.1 billion in value added, $64.3 billion in labor income, and$6.9 billion in indirect business taxes, with these values expressed in 2004 dollars.Environmental Economics and Policy,

Biomechanics of the lower extremity during a windmill style fast-pitch

The windmill style fastpitch involves an array of motor skills requiring sequential coordination of the upper and lower extremities. Characteristic of the motion is a powerful drive and rapid transfer offeree on to the striding lower extremity. This may result in a substantial breaking force over a short period of time. The purpose of this study was to determine the kinematic responses and magnitude of ground reaction forces (GRF) created by the stride leg in selected windmill pitches. Five female intercollegiate fastpitch softball pitchers (age: 22.6 yrs, body mass: 69.0 kg) performed 5 pitches of the fastball (FB), changeup (CH), dropball (DB), curveball (CB) and riseball (RB). Simultaneous recordings of video (60hz) and GRF (1000 hz) were obtained and synchronized for each trial. Kinematic variables evaluated included stride length, ball velocity, joint angle at contact (JAC), maximum angle (MAX), time to maximum angle (TMAX), minimum angle (MIN) and time to minimum angle (TMIN). Primary kinetic variables evaluated were first peak force (F1), second peak force (F2) and maximum brake force (Fb). Single factor ANOVAs revealed significant kinematic differences (p \u3c 0.05) between pitches for MAX and MIN for hip, knee and ankle, as well as, differences in JAC for hip and knee. Stride lengths of the participants in this study indicate that different strategies were used in the delivery of the various pitches. Stride lengths were longest for the riseball and shortest for the change-up. In general, the pitchers adopted a style characterized by extended hip and knee joint and plantarflexed ankle joint. Comparison of stride lengths to total body range of motion at contact indicated that longer stride lengths are associated with a less upright position of the body. In general the fastball, curveball and riseball had longer stride lengths and greater total body range of motion. In contrast, the body assumes a more upright position in pitches with a shorter stride length, such as the change-up and dropball. The results also indicated trends of slower ball velocities with a more upright body position. Peak vertical forces during pitching are higher than those reported in walking and low impact aerobics. In addition, peak vertical forces experienced during pitching appear to be similar to those reported in distance running and high impact aerobics. However, peak forces are lower than those reported in jump/landing skills in basketball and volleyball. Maximum braking forces of pitching are higher than those reported in running and walking. In addition, the braking forces produced in pitching are higher than common movements performed in basketball, with the exception of landing after a layup shot. The riseball had the highest braking force followed by the fastball, whereas the lowest braking force occured in the change-up. The findings indicate a trend that pitches with the highest F1 values are accompanied by high maximum braking forces and vice versa for pitchers with the lowest F1 values. These findings indicate trends that the pitches with the highest F1 values are accompanied by high maximum braking forces and vice versa for pitchers with the lowest F1 values

A ferritin szerepe a szőlő stressztűrő képességének fokozásában = The role of ferritin in enhancing the stress tolerance of grapevine

Embriogén kalluszt állítottuk elő Richter110 (alany) és Chardonnay (nemes) szőlő fajták portokajiból. Ezeket Medicago sativa ferritint (MsFerr) tartalmazó Agrobacterium vektorokkal transzformáltunk. A DNS beépülését genomikus PCR-rel ellenőriztük. Poliklonális ellenanyagot állítottunk elő, mellyel megállapítottuk, hogy a transzláció magas szintű volt, a transzkriptumból nagy mennyiségű, megfelelően processzált fehérjetermék keletkezett. A transzgenikus szőlő növények elkészültéig dohányban teszteltük az MsFerr gént tartalmazó konstrukciókat. A teljes növényeken végzett UV-B kezelés, ill. levélkorongok közvetlen oxidatív stresszre adott válaszai alapján megállapítottuk, hogy az MsFerr növények toleránsabbak voltak, mint a nem expresszáló kontrollok. Az MsFerr Richter 110 növények regenerálása, szelekciója és felszaporítása sikeres volt, az MsFerr Chardonnay növények felszaporítása azonban hajtásnövekedési problémák miatt nem sikerült. Három MsFerr Richter 110 vonalat vizsgáltunk. Gyökér stresszként fás szárú dugványok tápoldatához hidrogénkarbonátot adtunk, ami klorotikus és levél száradási tünetek okozott Ebben nem kaptunk lényeges különbséget a transzgenikus és transzformálatlan növények között. Ezzel szemben, a leveleket érő hatásokkal: paraquat, NaCl só-stressz és tBHP indukált lipid peroxidációval szemben az MsFerr expresszáló vonalak toleránsabbak voltak (kisebb stressz-indukált fotoszintézis csökkenést mutattak) mint a transzformálatlanok. | Embryogenic calli were started from anthers of Richter 110 (rootstock) and Chardonnay (scion) grapevine and transformed with Agrobacterium harbouring Medicago sativa ferritin gene (MsFerr). Genomic PCR and protein immunoblotting using a polyclonal antibody confirmed that the transcription and processing of MsFerr was successful. Regeneration, selection and propagation of MsFerr Richter 110 plants was successful, but transformed MsFerr Chardonnay plants did not grow sufficiently. Until transgenic grapevine plants became available, preliminary experiments were carried out with MsFerr expressing tobacco. UV-B irradiation of whole plants as well as treatments of leaf disks with various chemical elicitors showed that MsFerr plants were more stress tolerant than non-expressing controls. After regeneration and propagation, three transgenic MsFerr Richter 110 lines were tested. Roots of green cuttings were stressed by flooding and in this experiment transgenic plants did not show significantly higher tolerance to hypoxia/bicarbonate than non-transferred ones. Leaves, however, showed increased tolerance to paraquat, salt stress and tBHP induced lipid peroxidation: their photosynthesis was less affected by these stressors than those from non-transformed plants