Demonstrating the Value of the Public Library: Economic Valuation and the Advocacy Imperative

Promising developments in the field of library valuation over the last fifteen years are providing new options for demonstrating library value. Metrics-gathering has moved away from counting inputs and outputs toward measuring the value of the public library in monetary terms using increasingly sophisticated quantitative methods formerly reserved for business and industry. While it is premature to draw a firm conclusion as to the impact of economic valuation efforts on the success of library advocacy, the adoption of private sector concepts represents a new window of opportunity for library advocates. This critical review synthesizes the library valuation literature, exploring the various frameworks through which library value is being articulated, and finds that econometrics will be most useful to advocates when: 1) library valuation efforts are united with advocacy plans; 2) library services are linked to the achievement of public policy goals; and 3) public libraries are able to connect to a wider funding base

Comparison of Provisions from Colorado's Blue Ribbon Commission for Health Care Reform and Federal Health Care Reform

A new issue brief commissioned by The Colorado Trust, and authored by the two lead staff members of the Colorado's Blue Ribbon Commission on Healthcare Reform (the 208 Commission), Tracy L. Johnson, PhD, Health Policy Solutions and Sarah Schulte, MHSA, Schulte Consulting, shows that there is significant agreement between our state's recommendations and the new federal law

Networked Families

Presents survey results on the use of the Internet and ownership of cell phones and computers, by household type. Examines how technology ownership affects the frequency, form, purpose, and quality of communications among family members and friends

The Power of SOFIA/FORCAST in Estimating Internal Luminosities of Low Mass Class 0/I Protostars

With the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) routinely operating science flights, we demonstrate that observations with the Faint Object infraRed CAmera for the SOFIA Telescope (FORCAST) can provide reliable estimates of the internal luminosities, $L_{\rm int}$, of protostars. We have developed a technique to estimate $L_{\rm int}$ using a pair of FORCAST filters: one "short-wavelength" filter centered within 19.7-25.3 $\mu$m, and one "long-wavelength" filter within 31.5-37.1 $\mu$m. These $L_{\rm int}$ estimates are reliable to within 30-40% for 67% of protostars and to within a factor of 2.3-2.6 for 99% of protostars. The filter pair comprised of F25.3$\mu$m and F37.1$\mu$m achieves the best sensitivity and most constrained results. We evaluate several assumptions that could lead to systematic uncertainties. The OH5 dust opacity matches observational constraints for protostellar environments best, though not perfectly; we find that any improved dust model will have a small impact of 5-10% on the $L_{\rm int}$ estimates. For protostellar envelopes, the TSC84 model yields masses that are twice those of the Ulrich model, but we conclude this mass difference does not significantly impact results at the mid-infrared wavelengths probed by FORCAST. Thus, FORCAST is a powerful instrument for luminosity studies targeting newly discovered protostars or suspected protostars lacking detections longward of 24 $\mu$m. Furthermore, with its dynamic range and greater angular resolution, FORCAST may be used to characterize protostars that were either saturated or merged with other sources in previous surveys using the Spitzer Space Telescope or Herschel Space Observatory.Comment: 17 pages, 9 figures. Accepted for publication in Ap

Comparisons between the squash bug egg parasitoids Ooencyrtus anasae and O. sp. (Hymenoptera: Encyrtidae): development, survival,and sex ratio in relation to temperature

Citation: Tracy, J. L., and J. R. Nechols. 1987. “Comparisons Between the Squash Bug Egg Parasitoids Ooencyrtus Anasae and O. Sp. (Hymenoptera: Encyrtidae): Development, Survival, and Sex Ratio in Relation to Temperature.” Environmental Entomology 16 (6): 1324–29. https://doi.org/10.1093/ee/16.6.1324.Laboratory investigations of the gregarious squash bug egg parasitoids Ooencyrtus anasae and O. n. sp. near anasae (O. sp.) were conducted at 20.8, 23.0, and 26.6°C. In both species, total developmental periods (egg to eclosed adult) were inversely related to temperature. Temperature had no significant influence on survivorship, progeny production, or sex ratio. At each temperature, O. anasae developed and emerged about a day earlier and produced a significantly higher percentage of female progeny (77%) than did O. sp. (60%). Both parasitoids deposited an average of three (2-7) progeny per host. However, O. anasae consistently deposited more female eggs per host than did O. sp. Proportion of females produced per host by O. anasae tended to increase directly with number of hosts parasitized, but no such relationship was observed in O. sp. Total preimaginal survivorship in both parasitoids was about 89%. In O. sp., male progeny that developed without females emerged about a day later at all temperatures and had a lower pharate adult survivorship than did males that developed in hosts with female siblings