Verbal Paradata and Survey Error: Respondent Speech, Voice, and Question-Answering Behavior can Predict Income Item Nonresponse.

Income nonresponse is a significant problem in survey data, with rates as high as 50%, yet we know little about why it occurs. It is plausible that the way respondents answer survey questions (e.g., their voice speech, and question-answering behavior) can predict whether they will provide income data, and reflect the psychological states that produce this decision. Five questions each from 185 recorded interviews conducted by the Surveys of Consumers were selected. One was the annual household income question. Exchanges between interviewers and respondents were transcribed and coded for respondent speech and question-answering behavior. Voice pitch was extracted mechanically using the Praat software. Speech, voice, and question-answering behaviors are used as verbal paradata; characteristics of the survey process that are not captured by default. Verbal paradata are hypothesized to reflect respondents' affective and cognitive states, which then predict income nonresponse. It was hypothesized that indicators of respondent affect (e.g., pitch) and cognitive difficulty (e.g., disfluency) would be affected by sensitive and complex questions differently, and would predict whether respondents provide income in a dollar amount, a bracketed range of values, or not at all. Results show that verbal paradata can distinguish between income nonrespondents and respondents, even when only using verbal paradata that occur before the income question. Income nonrespondents have lower affective involvement and express more negativity before the income question. Bracketed respondents express more signs of cognitive difficulty. Income nonresponse is predicted by behavior before the income question, while bracketed response is predicted by indicators on the income question itself. Further, question characteristics affect respondent paradata, but largely in unpredicted ways. There is evidence for psychological resource and conversationality mechanisms through which respondents reduce verbal paradata when questions are demanding, rather than increasing it as signs of trouble. The results have implications for theory of income nonresponse, specifically the role of question characteristics and respondent paradata in understanding what subjective psychological states respondents are experiencing when they answer survey questions, and how those states predict whether income is reported. There are also potential extensions to interviewer training and design of interventions that could produce more complete income data.Ph.D.Survey MethodologyUniversity of Michigan, Horace H. Rackham School of Graduate Studieshttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/75932/1/mattjans_1.pd

The Role of Forensic Anthropological Techniques in Identifying America\u27s War Dead from Past Conflicts

The Scientific Analysis Directorate of the U.S. Department of Defense\u27s (DoD) Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) is a unique entity within the U.S. Government. This agency currently houses the world\u27s largest, accredited skeletal identification laboratory in the world, in terms of the size of the scientific staff, global mission, and number of annual identifications. Traditional forensic anthropology is used for the formation of a biological profile (biological sex, stature, population affinity/ancestry, and age) as well as trauma and pathologies that may be compared with historical records and personnel files. Since World War II, various scientists associated with DoD have conducted base-line research in support of the identification of U.S. war dead, including, but not limited to, histology, the use of chest radiography and clavicle comparison, and statistical models to deal with commingling issues. The primary goal of the identification process of the Scientific Analysis Directorate is to use all available historical, field, and forensic methods to establish the most robust and defendable identification as scientifically and legally possible

The role of forensic anthropological techniques in identifying America\u27s war dead from past conflicts

The Scientific Analysis Directorate of the U.S. Department of Defense\u27s (DoD) Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) is a unique entity within the U.S. Government. This agency currently houses the world\u27s largest, accredited skeletal identification laboratory in the world, in terms of the size of the scientific staff, global mission, and number of annual identifications. Traditional forensic anthropology is used for the formation of a biological profile (biological sex, stature, population affinity/ancestry, and age) as well as trauma and pathologies that may be compared with historical records and personnel files. Since World War II, various scientists associated with DoD have conducted base-line research in support of the identification of U.S. war dead, including, but not limited to, histology, the use of chest radiography and clavicle comparison, and statistical models to deal with commingling issues. The primary goal of the identification process of the Scientific Analysis Directorate is to use all available historical, field, and forensic methods to establish the most robust and defendable identification as scientifically and legally possible

Two-nucleon knockout contributions to the 12^{12}C(e,e′p)(e,e'p) reaction in the dip and {Δ\Delta}(1232) regions

The contributions from $^{12}$C$(e,e'pn)$ and $^{12}$C$(e,e'pp)$ to the semi-exclusive $^{12}$C$(e,e'p)$ cross section have been calculated in an unfactorized model for two-nucleon emission. We assume direct two-nucleon knockout after virtual photon coupling with the two-body pion-exchange currents in the target nucleus. Results are presented at several kinematical conditions in the dip and $\Delta$(1232) regions. The calculated two-nucleon knockout strength is observed to account for a large fraction of the measured $(e,e'p)$ strength above the two-nucleon emission threshold.Comment: 12 Revtex pages, 4 postscript figures (available upon request), University of Gent preprint SSF94-02-0

The influence of taphonomy on histological and isotopic analyses of treated and untreated buried modern human bone

The chemical (e.g., preservation/embalming) treatment of skeletal remains can reduce overall DNA quality and quantity. The histological and stable isotope examination of treated and untreated human remains improves our understanding of how chemical preservatives impact bone diagenesis and will determine if chemical treatment adversely affects stable isotope ratio analysis of collagen. Fidelity in the application(s) of stable isotope interpretations requires that the isotope delta (δ) values have not been altered postmortem. Re-associated antimeres and refits of chemically treated and untreated rib and long bones from eight casualties [thin-sectioned human bone (n = 43) and collagen extraction/stable isotope analysis (n = 42)] from the World War II Battle of Tarawa were examined to compare skeletal elements from the same individual that had different taphonomic histories. Histological analyses included scoring upon the Oxford Histological Index (OHI) and Birefringence scale, recording microbial invasion, and general observations. The collected data were analyzed via simple descriptive statistics and paired samples t-tests. Treated remains scored higher on the OHI and for Birefringence, indicating that bone quality was good to excellent. The untreated samples scored lower on the OHI and Birefringence scales suggesting poorer preservation than the treated remains. Histology results were supported by the isotope sample preparation results: the collagen % yield was higher for treated bone than untreated bone. Additionally, chemical preservation had no meaningful impact on isotope δ values of treated and untreated remains from the same element or pair-matched elements. Overall, treated remains exhibited good preservation while untreated remains exhibit poorer preservation with significant microfocal destruction to the extent that little histological analyses can be applied. Stable isotope ratio analysis is viable for both treated and untreated remains indicating this testing modality likely can be used for most treated remains, regardless of origin

Structure Of Mangrove Community On Kumo Island Tobelo Subdistrict, North Halmahera Regency

Mangroves are unique plants because they are able to survive in extreme areas with high salinity levels. Mangroves are also often referred to as tidal plants because their growth is influenced by tides. This study uses the quadrant transect line method by determining 3 observation points (stations) taking samples, and determining the condition of mangroves, the calculation of species density, species frequency, species closure, importance value index, and diversity. For environmental variables, several measurements were made, namely temperature, salinity, and type of substrate on Kumo Island. From the results of the study, it is known that mangrove species that have a high density are R.apiculata species and the highest frequency value is in the same species S.alba, while the value of diversity shows a moderate value. The temperature range on Kumo Island is around 29-30 C, as well as the salinity range of 29-30 ppt, and the dominating substrate which is muddy, causes the S.alba species to be found more than other species. Keywords: Kumo Island, Community Structure, Mangrove Abstrak Mangrove merupakan tumbuhan yang unik dan khas karena mampu bertahan hidup pada daerah yang ekstrim dengan kadar salinitas yang tinggi. Mangrove juga sering disebut dengan tumbuhan pasang surut karena pertumbuhanya dipengaruhi oleh pasang surut .Penelitian ini mengunakan metode line transek kuadran dengan menentukan 3 titik pengamatan (stasiun) pengambilan sempel,dan untuk mengetahui kondisi mangrove maka dilakukan perhitungan kerapatan jenis, frekuensi jenis, penutupan jenis, indeks nilai penting dan keanekaragam. Untuk variabel lingkungan dilakukan beberapa pengukuran yaitu suhu, salinitas dan tipe substrat yang ada di Pulau Kumo. Dari hasil penelitian diketahui jenis mangrove yang memiliki kerapatan tinggi yaitu jenis R.apiculata  dan untuk nilai frekuensi tertingi ada pada jenis S.alba, sedangkan untuk nilai  tutupan ada pada jenis S.alba, untuk keanekaragam menunjukan nilai yang sedang. Kisaran suhu di Pulau Kumo  yaitu sekitar 29-30 C, sama halnya dengan kisaran salinitas yaitu 29-30 ppt dan untuk substrat yang mendominasi yaitu berlumpur,hal ini menyebabpkan jenis S.alba banyak ditemukan dari pada jenis yang lain. Kata kunci: Pulau Kumo, Struktur Komonitas, Mangrov