Scoping Future Nuclear Proliferation Risks: Leveraging Emerging Trends in Socio-Cultural Modeling and Analysis

The key objective of this project has been to identify and then refine cutting-edge sociocultural analytic models tailored to anticipate aspiring WMD actors and identify points of leverage within their national communities. In doing so, we hope to supply insights for strategic planners seeking to thwart, disrupt, or productively shift nuclear weapons activity. In order to achieve that end, our team: ✦ (Section I) Combined key features of two socio-cultural models successfully employed within the intelligence community into a framework designed to identify and capture critical components of WMD decisionmaking within a regime; ✦ (Section II) Commissioned a set of papers employing the Cultural Topography Analytic Framework (CTAF) in order to draw out key insights for the effective application of assurance, deterrence, dissuasion, and denial, with an eye toward an era in which the US may be engaging both an ally and an adversary at the same time. These papers delivered specific country insights in three key areas: ✦ Key cultural components of the narratives driving WMD decisionmaking within the regime; ✦ Decision vectors that may provide windows of opportunity for US policymakers; ✦ Tailored policy recommendations for the way ahead in engaging this regime. ✦ (Section III) Drawing on our collective findings, this report offers primary takeaways and promising avenues for the way ahead in anticipating nuclear activity and forging tailored strategies in order to achieve US policy ends.Naval Postgraduate School’s Project on Advanced Systems and Concepts for Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction (PASCC) via Assistance Grant No. N00244-15-1-0033 awarded by the NAVSUP Fleet Logistics Center San Diego (NAVSUP FLC San Diego).Naval Postgraduate School’s Project on Advanced Systems and Concepts for Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction (PASCC) via Assistance Grant No. N00244-15-1-0033 awarded by the NAVSUP Fleet Logistics Center San Diego (NAVSUP FLC San Diego

The Relevance Of United States GAAP Information Provided By Foreign Firms In SEC’s Form 6-K

This study examines SEC Form 6-K to determine whether foreign firms report U.S. GAAP adjusted financial information before filing their annual SEC Form 20-F. This study then performs tests to determine whether the financial information in Form 6-K provides relevant information to investors. The results are inconclusive concerning the relevance of this information to investors. Other tests were performed to determine whether there was a difference between the relevance of the information provided in Form 20-F for those companies not disclosing any U.S. GAAP information prior to the Form 20-F filing date and those companies providing prior U.S. GAAP data in Form 6-K. These tests did not reveal a significant difference, an unexpected finding. Overall, results indicate that SEC Form 6-K rather than annual Form 20-F contains more timely, financial information for most foreign companies

Exploring the Supervision Expectations and Experiences of Rural School Counselors

The purpose of this qualitative study was to addresses the gap in knowledge and seek to understand the supervision experiences of rural school counselors. In this study, the similarities and differences between their expectations and received supervision were specifically explored as well as how these counselors cope with and manage their role of implementing comprehensive school counseling programs in a rural area. Data was collected from six participants via phone interviews and analyzed utilizing a hermeneutic phenomenological approach. Selection criteria included licensed or certified school counselors actively practicing in rural areas. For the purposes of this study, rural areas were defined as an area that is not heavily populated or urbanized. Rural areas are often difficult to define and usually characterized by comparison to urban areas, which have specific population size and density, such as more than 50,000 people. A hermeneutic phenomenological approach was used to address the central research question focused on the lived experiences of rural school counselors regarding their expectations and experiences of clinical supervision while implementing comprehensive school counseling programs and what could enhance their supervision experiences. The following 4 major themes emerged: disconnect in expectations versus experiences, clarifying roles and responsibilities, collaboration, and desire for increased support. The implications of this study for positive social change include increasing the professional knowledge of successful strategies that school counselors can employ to effectively manage supervision needs as well as ways counselor educators can provide additional skills, support, options, and training to prepare future school counselors for working in rural areas

Stormwater Notice of Intent Interactive Map Service

2012 S.C. Water Resources Conference - Exploring Opportunities for Collaborative Water Research, Policy and Managemen

Examining sense of belonging among first-year undergraduates from different racial/ethnic groups

This study examined sense of belonging among a national sample of 2,967 first-year students. Guided by the work of Hurtado and Carter (1997), relationships between several aspects of the college environment and sense of belonging were examined. Findings indicated that African American, Hispanic/Latino, and Asian Pacific American students reported a less strong sense of belonging than White/Caucasian students. The social dimensions of the transition to college and residence hall climate and perceptions of the campus racial climate had strong significant relationships to students' sense of belonging. Implications for practice and future research are discussed

Population-Level Benefits from Providing Effective HIV Prevention Means to Pregnant Women in High Prevalence Settings

Background:HIV prevalence among pregnant women in Southern Africa is extremely high. Epidemiological studies suggest that pregnancy increases the risk of HIV sexual acquisition and that HIV infections acquired during pregnancy carry higher risk of mother-to-child transmission (MTCT). We analyze the potential benefits from extending the availability of effective microbicide to pregnant women (in addition to non-pregnant women) in a wide-scale intervention.Methods and Findings:A transmission dynamic model was designed to assess the impact of microbicide use in high HIV prevalence settings and to estimate proportions of new HIV infections, infections acquired during pregnancy, and MTCT prevented over 10 years. Our analysis suggests that consistent use of microbicide with 70% efficacy by 60% of non-pregnant women may prevent approximately 40% and 15% of new infections in women and men respectively over 10 years, assuming no additional increase in HIV risk to either partner during pregnancy (RRHIV/preg = 1). It may also prevent 8-15% MTCT depending on the increase in MTCT risk when HIV is acquired during pregnancy compared to before pregnancy (RRMTCT/preg). Extending the microbicides use during pregnancy may improve the effectiveness of the intervention by 10% (RRHIV/preg = 1) to 25% (RRHIV/preg = 2) and reduce the number of HIV infections acquired during pregnancy by 40% to 70% in different scenarios. It may add between 6% (RRHIV/preg = 1, RRMTCT/preg = 1) and 25% (RRHIV/preg = 2, RRMTCT/preg = 4) to the reduction in the residual MTCT.Conclusion:Providing safe and effective microbicide to pregnant women in the context of wide-scale interventions would be desirable as it would increase the effectiveness of the intervention and significantly reduce the number of HIV infections acquired during pregnancy. The projected benefits from covering pregnant women by the HIV prevention programs is more substantial in communities in which the sexual risk during pregnancy is elevated. © 2013 Dimitrov et al

Modeling global transfusion medicine education

This document provides an analysis and oversight of the necessary educational infrastructure at national level needed for successful and sustainable education programs undergraduate and post-graduate and is focused on desired outcomes needed to secure general Transfusion Medicine (TM) competence and basic skills when appointed in a professional TM position. It provides a global model framework for TM education allowing individual countries to tailor the context and contents of the institutional curriculum. Education in transfusion medicine is a complex set of intimately interrelated and interconnected components that allow student and fellow exposure to knowledge and skills, the ultimate curriculum. The extent to which knowledge and skills, professionalism and leadership principles are offered depends on the expected outcomes needed for the desired roles, tasks and functions. A model for the development and implementation of an education (teaching and training) curriculum in Transfusion Medicine aimed at medical students and doctors, nurses and midwives, and laboratory professionals should ideally include an outcomes-based component, with clear recommendations on the required roles, skills, attitudes, and knowledge of a trainee completing such a curriculum. This should correspond to the environment and scope of practice required from such a vocational or academic professional and should address deficiencies in knowledge, skills and attitudes present before the curriculum is completed, while taking into account fundamental international standards of knowledge and the needs of their working climate and environment. Therefore, it is considered more practical to provide a set of outcomes that would be useful in most contexts and settings, while equipping students, as adult learners, with the tools for advancing their educational, professional and leadership development suited to their availability and socio-economic environment. The framework or model recognizes that no one set of education or training initiatives will be appropriate in all countries or settings and should be tailored to specific settings based on the assessment of local needs and available environments

Skunk River Review September 1993, vol 5

https://openspace.dmacc.edu/skunkriver/1008/thumbnail.jp

Population-level impact and herd effects following the introduction of human papillomavirus vaccination programmes: updated systematic review and meta-analysis

Background More than 10 years have elapsed since human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination was implemented. We did a systematic review and meta-analysis of the population-level impact of vaccinating girls and women against human papillomavirus on HPV infections, anogenital wart diagnoses, and cervical intraepithelial neoplasia grade 2+ (CIN2+)to summarise the most recent evidence about the effectiveness of HPV vaccines in real-world settings and to quantify the impact of multiple age-cohort vaccination.Methods In this updated systematic review and meta-analysis, we used the same search strategy as in our previous paper. We searched MEDLINE and Embase for studies published between Feb 1, 2014, and Oct 11, 2018. Studies were eligible if they compared the frequency (prevalence or incidence) of at least one HPV-related endpoint (genital HPV infections, anogenital wart diagnoses, or histologically confirmed CIN2+) between pre-vaccination and post-vaccination periods among the general population and if they used the same population sources and recruitment methods before and after vaccination. Our primary assessment was the relative risk (RR) comparing the frequency (prevalence or incidence) of HPV-related endpoints between the pre-vaccination and post-vaccination periods. We stratified all analyses by sex, age, and years since introduction of HPV vaccination. We used random-effects models to estimate pooled relative risks.Findings We identified 1702 potentially eligible articles for this systematic review and meta-analysis, and included 65 articles in 14 high-income countries: 23 for HPV infection, 29 for anogenital warts, and 13 for CIN2+.After 5\u20138 years of vaccination, the prevalence of HPV 16 and 18 decreased significantly by 83% (RR 0\ub717, 95% CI 0\ub711\u20130\ub725) among girls aged 13\u201319 years, and decreased significantly by 66% (RR 0\ub734, 95% CI 0\ub723\u20130\ub749) among women aged 20\u201324 years. The prevalence of HPV 31, 33, and 45 decreased significantly by 54% (RR 0\ub746, 95% CI 0\ub733\u20130\ub766) among girls aged 13\u201319 years. Anogenital wart diagnoses decreased significantly by 67% (RR 0\ub733, 95% CI 0\ub724\u20130\ub746) among girls aged 15\u201319 years, decreased significantly by 54% (RR 0\ub746, 95% CI 0.36\u20130.60) among women aged 20\u201324 years, and decreased significantly by 31% (RR 0\ub769, 95% CI 0\ub753\u20130\ub789) among women aged 25\u201329 years. Among boys aged 15\u201319 years anogenital wart diagnoses decreased significantly by 48% (RR 0\ub752, 95% CI 0\ub737\u20130\ub775) and among men aged 20\u201324 years they decreased significantly by 32% (RR 0\ub768, 95% CI 0\ub747\u20130\ub798). After 5\u20139 years of vaccination, CIN2+ decreased significantly by 51% (RR 0\ub749, 95% CI 0\ub742\u20130\ub758) among screened girls aged 15\u201319 years and decreased significantly by 31% (RR 0\ub769, 95% CI 0\ub757\u20130\ub784) among women aged 20\u201324 years.Interpretation This updated systematic review and meta-analysis includes data from 60 million individuals and up to 8 years of post-vaccination follow-up. Our results show compelling evidence of the substantial impact of HPV vaccination programmes on HPV infections and CIN2+ among girls and women, and on anogenital warts diagnoses among girls, women, boys, and men. Additionally, programmes with multi-cohort vaccination and high vaccination coverage had a greater direct impact and herd effects