The New Hero of Upper Limb Prosthetics

This paper looks at the history and future of upper extremity prosthesis. The goal of this paper was to compare three different up and coming technological advances in the field of prosthesis that may help the devices to become more life-like for their users. Of the three different approaches looked at, the Open Bionics Hero Arm is praised as being the best option

Medicaid and CHIP Eligibility, Enrollment, Renewal, and Cost-Sharing Policies as of January 2016: Findings from a 50-State Survey

January 2016 marks the end of the second full year of implementation of the Affordable Care Act's (ACA) key coverage provisions. This 14th annual 50-state survey of Medicaid and CHIP eligibility, enrollment, renewal, and cost-sharing policies provides a point-in-time snapshot of policies as of January 2016 and identifies changes in policies that occurred during 2015. Coverage is driven by two key elements -- eligibility levels determine who may qualify for coverage, and enrollment and renewal processes influence the extent to which eligible individuals are enrolled and remain enrolled over time. This report provides a detailed overview of current state policies in these areas, which have undergone significant change as a result of the ACA.Together, the findings show that, during 2015, states continued to implement the major technological upgrades and streamlined enrollment and renewal processes triggered by the ACA. These changes are helping to connect eligible individuals to Medicaid coverage more quickly and easily and to keep eligible people enrolled as well as contributing to increased administrative efficiencies. However, implementation varies across states, and lingering challenges remain. The findings illustrate that the program continues to be a central source of coverage for low-income children and pregnant women nationwide and show the growth in Medicaid's role for low-income adults through the ACA Medicaid expansion

A survey of the educational and employment experiences of the 1946-1955 Westford Academy business graduates with implications for curriculum revision

Thesis (Ed. M.)--Boston University, 195

A Study of the Effect of Strategic Planning on Student Achievement in Rural Public Schools in New York State

Many public school district leaders, including school administrators and board of education members develop and implement strategic plans in order to guide the leadership in carrying out the mission and vision of the district they serve. Although strategic planning is practiced widely among many organizations, little is known about the relationship between strategic planning and student achievement. This study used a qualitative research design and goal setting theory to determine how rural school superintendents and administrators are using the strategic planning process in their districts to affect student achievement. Data were collected using virtual interviews with public school superintendents in 11 rural school districts in New York State. Results of the study found that goals developed during the strategic planning process in districts studied supported the districts’ mission, vision, and core beliefs. Results of the study also found that the practice of strategic planning affected student achievement positively, and that districts studied implement goals through distributed leadership. This study provided recommendations for further research in strategic planning

From outsiders to insiders? Strategies and practices of American film distributors in post-war Italy

This article examines the impact of structural changes in the postwar film industry on the activities and effectiveness of the foreign distribution subsidiaries of American firms. As these subsidiaries saw their regular supply of films from their in-house Hollywood studios decline, they sought out alternative sources of product content, often from local markets. Unable to rely on the traditional “ownership” advantages bestowed on them by their parent firms, these subsidiaries increasingly needed to integrate into local networks and forge closer relationships with local producers and exhibitors. Our focus is on Italy, one of the most important film markets for US companies in the 1960s. We collect data on the box office revenues and screen time allocated to every film released into the first-run cinema market and compare the effectiveness of American versus Italian distributors in maximizing the exposure of their most popular films. We explore the attempts by US firms to form partnerships with Italian distributors and producers. Finally, we examine available archival records to reveal the detailed activities of US distribution offices in Italy and their attempts to integrate into local business networks. We conclude that while US subsidiaries did not fully succeed in becoming “insiders” within the Italian film industry in this period, they did actively work toward such an objective

The market for films in postwar Italy: evidence for both national and regional patterns of taste

The post-war market for films in Italy resembles those found in other developed capitalist economies, in which supply adjusts to demand through a set of institutional arrangements designed to maximize revenue for the film distributor. The outcome is a statistical distribution of revenues that manifests extreme levels of inequality, indicating that the hits of the day were ‘giants’ in relation to the median film and enjoyed throughout the territory. By drawing upon film industry sourced box-office data for five cities, Milan and Turin in the North; Naples and Bari in the South and Rome in the centre, the market mechanism can be observed operating at the city level, allowing the exploration of differences in preferences between the cities. A Relative Popularity Index (RelPOP) is introduced to measure variation in film popularity across the five cities and clear evidence is found to support the co-existence of national and local taste. This phenomenon is examined with respect to those films that were exceptionally popular throughout, and those with particular geographically specific audiences. The example of the many films that starred Totò, appealing in particular to South Italian audiences, is highlighted and contrasted with the Don Camillo series of films that were set in Emilia Romagna and which appealed differentially to filmgoers in the North

Small Litter Sizes and Relative Clutch Mass of Northern Watersnakes (Nerodia sipedon sipedon) in Southwestern Ohio

Author Institution: Dept of Zoology, Miami UniversityRelative clutch mass (RCM), the ratio of total mass of a clutch to the postpartum body mass of the female, is considered by many a life history trait that indirectly quantifies reproductive effort in snakes. e Northern Watersnake (Nerodia sipedon sipedon) is one of the most abundant and widespread species of snake within Ohio. Litter sizes of N. s. sipedon have been reported to range between four and 99 and RCM values typically fall between 0.20 and 0.38. Two gravid N. s. sipedon were hand collected from Collins Creek (Butler County, Ohio) and maintained in the laboratory until parturition. Females gave birth to three and six neonates with RCM values of 0.108 and 0.120, respectively. The extremely small litter sizes and RCM values are, by far, the lowest ever recorded for this species in Ohio and throughout their entire North American range. This local population should be investigated further to determine if and how reproductive output is being depressed at Collins Creek

Managing uncertainty in creative industries: film sequels and Hollywood's profitability, 1988-2015

The film industry is characterised by high levels of uncertainty, yet the firms that dominate global film distribution have remained remarkably stable over the last century. The ability to transform uncertainty into risk, and to manage these risks effectively, has arguably been the outstanding achievement of major American film studios since the 1920s. This article examines how the risk management strategies of these firms have evolved over time, with a particular focus on the growing prevalence of sequels during the last 30 years. We analyse data on the box-office earnings and budgets of over 4000 films released between 1988 and 2015, and find that sequels have become an increasingly important source of industry profits since c.2000. We place this trend in historical context, and argue that while sequels themselves are not new, their role within film portfolios has changed, and that this represents a distinctive approach to risk management within the industry