Measuring the Relative Importance of Different Agricultural Inputs to Global and Regional Crop Yield Growth Since 1975

We identify the agricultural inputs that drove the growth in global and regional crop yields from 1975 to the mid-2000s. We find that improvements in agricultural technology, increased fertilizer use, and changes in crop mix around the world explained most of the gain in global crop yields, although impacts varied across the latitude gradient. Climate change over this time period caused yields to be only slightly lower than they would have been otherwise. In some cases cropland extensification had as much of a negative impact on global and regional yields as climate change. To maintain the momentum in yield growth across the globe 1) use of agricultural chemicals and investment in agricultural technology in the tropics must increase rapidly and 2) international trade in agricultural products must expand significantly

A Data Driven Analysis of Rural Equity and Cost Concerns for Mileage-Based User Fees in Vermont

Examining substitutes to the current state and federal gasoline and diesel fuel excise taxes has become a pressing issue, exacerbated by the rise of high efficiency and alternative fuel vehicles threatening the revenue generating capacity of these taxes. A mileage-based user fee has been frequently proposed in the literature as an alternative which would offer greater benefits to rural and low-income populations than to urban and higher income populations. However, most prior analyses relied on small data sets and aggregated data. This study examined the impact of replacing the Vermont state fuels tax with a revenue-neutral mileage-based user fee using mileage and fuel economy data for over 300,000 registered passenger vehicles. We find that, on average, Vermont households would pay an additional $23 per year, with rural households and low-income households facing smaller tax burdens than their urban and high-income counterparts. The impacts of a$180 flat fee replacing the Vermont state motor fuels tax was also examined due to state interest. Findings indicate a flat fee would result in much larger price fluctuations, with most households paying an additional $47 per year. The disaggregated data approach presented here directly addresses public misconceptions of inequitable cost differences and provides context for public education campaigns to garner mileage-based user fee policy support. Based on our results, there is political ground for further research into the implementation of a mileage-based user fee, including the logistics of an administrative transition to mileage charging and the associated program implementation and technological costs

The Role of Information and Education on Modifying Support for Gas Tax Alternatives using an Informed Choice Questionnaire

In the United States, transportation fuel excise taxes commonly referred to as the “gas tax” provide a large share of funding to state agencies for transportation maintenance and construction projects. The revenue generating capacity of the gas tax is threatened by increasing vehicle fuel efficiency, electric vehicles adoption and inflation. Alternative funding schemes are necessary, but public acceptance of tax changes is low. We surveyed residents of Vermont, Maine, and New Hampshire to gauge understanding of and support for a mileage-based user fee and a flat fee as potential replacements for the current gas tax and the potential to modify support through education. Throughout the survey, respondents were provided information and learning opportunities to “myth bust” common misconceptions about the gas tax and the potential policy alternatives. We find that, before education, respondents knew very little about how the current gas tax works and showed minimal support for the proposed policy alternatives. Post education, support for mileage-based user fees increased by 11%. Using regression modelling, we determined that respondent attitudes and beliefs, travel behavior, community type, and personalized cost estimates were all highly significant predictors of policy support. Overall, we find responding to common public concerns with up-to-date and non-biased information within a relatively simple learning experience can cause substantial changes in policy support. Our findings offer an avenue to understand how support for gas tax alternatives varies amongst different groups of people and the role that education can play in increasing policy support in the face of widespread misconceptions

Comparing Travel Behavior and Opportunities to Increase Transportation Sustainability in Small Cities, Towns and Rural Communities

The vast majority of travel behavior and sustainable transportation research has focused on urban areas. A rural perspective is lacking. This paper aims to dive deeper into understanding how people travel and their perceptions and opinions about various components of travel in a majority rural state. By speaking directly with Vermonters through in-person interviews, uniquely personal points of view were discovered and analyzed to find commonalities and differences between urban, suburban, and rural Vermonters. Questions on day-to-day challenges of traveling, suggestions for reducing greenhouse gas emissions, responses to fuel prices, and opinions on electric vehicles were asked. Some key findings were illuminated over the interview and analysis processes. Rural areas struggle most with traveling long distances to reach services, while urban areas are more concerned with traffic, opinions on EV ownership were consistent across the state, with people being likely to consider owning an EV if costs of ownership were to decrease. These interviews highlighted additional questions that need to be answered so that states can develop practical and effective policies aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions in rural areas. Further in-depth surveys are recommended coming out of this study so that a more complete picture of potential behavioral shifts can be attained. A reduction in GHG emissions is paramount to the world’s survival and this research will add to the body of knowledge in a historically understudied population so that we can work more closely with small and rural communities to help combat climate change through widespread emission reduction

Hazardous Chemicals in the Workplace: The Employer\u27s Obligation to Inform Employees and the Community.

Significant changes have recently occurred in reporting requirements for employers who have hazardous chemicals in their workplaces. The amended Federal Hazard Communication Standard requires private employers, engaged in a business using hazardous chemicals, to communicate to employees the potential hazards. The Standard requires employers to use: 1) a Hazard Communication Program, 2) labels and other forms of warning, 3) material safety data sheets, and 4) information and training about hazardous chemicals. Local and state governments must compare and reconcile the various and complex provisions relating to the Standard to ensure compliance with all requirements of the respective laws. The Texas Hazard Communication Act (the Act), passed in 1985, attempted to bridge any potential gap if the Federal Hazard Communication Standard did not take effect or remain in effect. The expansion of the Federal Standard has preempted the Texas Act to the extent that it deals with employee right-to-know requirements or makes Federal Standard compliance impossible. Therefore, the Texas Act presumably will be effective as to provisions concerning public employees and communication of hazard material information to public officials or to the public. The Emergency Planning and Community Right to Know Act of 1986, commonly referred to as SARA Title III, establishes requirements for reporting to federal, state and local governments. Unlike the Federal Standard, Title III specifically provides that state and local community right-to-know laws are not preempted by the Act. However, the preemption exception under Title III does not apply to the form in which facilities must submit material safety data sheets in compliance with Section 311 of the Act

Animating Volcanic Processes

Animation is a powerful tool for making scientific processes accessible to non-specialists. Volcanic processes, for example, often require animated visualizations to explain the physics of what occurs beneath the Earth’s surface. We are partnering with geoscience professor Jeffrey Johnson to tell the story of Santiaguito Volcano (Guatemala), where eruptions occur approximately hourly and specialized sensors are used to detect pre-eruptive activity. Specifically, we are working to illustrate subtle slope changes caused by fluctuation in the volcano\u27s pressure, which are detected by devices called tiltmeters. We use vector animation to create stylized representations of these Earth processes. Our work combines digitally-hand-drawn frames with the use of automatic interpolation to create smooth and graphical animations. Annotations and visual cues are added to draw focus to important sequences. Our goal is to make educational animations more entertaining by incorporating artistic flourishes like characters, a stylish color palette, and a hand-drawn look. Animation permits creative freedom to incorporate artistic touches to scientific materials. The Santiaguito project is expected to be the first of several volcano STEM stories that could be produced using the same stylization. The project is especially gratifying in that it is able to bring together the departments of science and art; we believe collaboration between different disciplines is a fantastic way to engage with what exists outside our everyday lives

Avoiding Revenue Collapse: The Need for Immediate and Equitable Transportation Funding Reform in the United States

The revenue generating ability of state and federal motor fuels taxes, colloquially “gas taxes”, is declining due to decreasing fuel consumption and rising inflation. These taxes make up the largest proportion of transportation funding for most state governments and the federal government, so assessing ways to close these existing and ever-growing funding gaps is a pressing issue across the United States (U.S.). Mileage fees are a frequently proposed solution, so road users would pay proportional to their mileage rather than the gas tax where drivers pay proportional to the gallons of fuel they consume. While nearly three quarters of the U.S. states are considering mileage fees in some capacity, public support remains low. Generally, public uncertainty about mileage fees stems from perceptions that mileage fees would cost households more than their current gas tax expenditures, mileage fees would be inequitable for rural and low income households, and mileage collection technologies would impede on privacy through invasive forms of data collection. In this study, we examine low public support for mileage fees using two research approaches. In our initial work, we assess the validity of mileage fee equity concerns using Vermont vehicle registration and inspection data. These data contain vehicle addresses, mileage from odometer readings, and fuel economy. We examine the real change in costs for over 180,000 Vermont households assuming the state gas tax is replaced with either a) a $220 fee per vehicle (i.e., flat fee) or b) a 1.5 cent per mile fee (i.e., mileage fee). We find replacing the state gas tax with a flat fee result in Vermont households paying an average of$47 more per year, while a mileage fee results in an average of $23 more per year. We also find a mileage fee would result in rural and low-income households facing smaller tax burdens than their urban and high-income counterparts. Overall, the findings imply mileage fee equity concerns are largely ungrounded, and there is a disconnect between public opinion and research findings. The disaggregated data approach presented here directly addresses public misconceptions of inequitable cost differences and provides context for public education campaigns to garner mileage fee policy support. Based on our identification of a disconnect between public opinion and research findings, we hypothesize low levels of public support may be more indicative of voters holding low levels of information or misguided assumptions about mileage fees rather than genuine distaste for the policy. We design a survey to assess how individuals may shift their policy opinions when provided with policy-relevant information and tailored, personal cost estimates for both gas taxes and mileage fees. Through our survey, respondents engage with this controversial transportation policy in a way that governing bodies may be able to replicate with voters at scale and contribute to the academic literature on the interplay between ideologies, material self-interests, and policy opinion formation. In the educational survey, 44% of respondents changed from their initial opinion at least once. We find the educational experiences were statistically significantly associated with increases in support for a mileage fee, and specifically, respondents who felt a mileage fee was fair and learned a mileage fee would likely save them money were more likely to increase their support after the education. From these studies, we suggest states looking to close the motor fuels funding gap consider mileage fees as an alternative revenue-generating scheme. They present an opportunity to save rural and low-income households money and result in relatively small annual cost differences for households. For states looking to implement mileage fees and facing public support as a barrier to implementation, we recommend public outreach with policy-relevant information, and when possible, personalized cost estimates, to address common public misconceptions about mileage fees and, more generally, policy knowledge gaps

Offloading devices for the prevention of heel pressure ulcers: a realist evaluation

Background Heel pressure ulcers can cause pain, reduce mobility, lead to longer hospital stays and in severe cases can lead to sepsis, amputation, and death. Offloading boots are marketed as heel pressure ulcer prevention devices, working by removing pressure to the heel, yet there is little good quality evidence about their clinical effectiveness. Given that evidence is not guiding use of these devices, this study aims to explore, how, when, and why these devices are used in hospital settings. Objective To explore how offloading devices are used to prevent heel pressure ulcers, for whom and in what circumstances. Methods A realist evaluation was undertaken to explore the contexts, mechanisms, and outcomes that might influence how offloading devices are implemented and used in clinical practice for the prevention of heel pressure ulcers in hospitals. Eight Tissue Viability Nurse Specialists from across the UK (England, Wales, and Northern Ireland) were interviewed. Questions sought to elicit whether, and in what ways, initial theories about the use of heel pressure ulcers fitted with interviewee's experiences. Results Thirteen initial theories were refined into three programme theories about how offloading devices are used by nurses ‘proactively’ to prevent heel pressure ulcers, ‘reactively’ to treat and minimise deterioration of early-stage pressure ulcers, and patient factors that influence how these devices are used. Conclusions Offloading devices were used in clinical practice by all the interviewees. It was viewed that they were not suitable to be used by every patient, at every point in their inpatient journey, nor was it financially viable. However, the interviewees thought that identifying suitable ‘at risk’ patient groups that can maintain use of the devices could lead to proactive and cost-effective use of the devices. This understanding of the contexts and mechanisms that influence the effective use of offloading devices has implications for clinical practice and design of clinical trials of offloading devices. Tweetable abstract How, for whom, and in what circumstances do offloading devices work to prevent heel pressure ulcers? Tissue viability nurses' perspectives

Comparative effectiveness of heel-specific medical devices for the prevention of heel pressure ulcers: a systematic review

Background Pressure ulcers (PUs) impact on patient's quality of life and are costly for healthcare providers. Heels are a particular concern due to specific risk factors. Relative effectiveness of medical devices, e.g., dressings, off-loading devices, heel cushioning devices, to reduce PU development is unknown. Methods Systematic review of the effectiveness of heel-specific medical devices for the prevention of heel PU (HPU)s. Database searches were performed from inception to June 2021 for RCTs. The primary outcome was incidence of new HPUs. Trials were assessed for risk of bias and data analysed with risk ratios, mean difference or hazard ratios as appropriate. Results Fifteen RCTs (4724 participants) were identified. Dressings, as constant low pressure (CLP) devices vs standard care: eight trials (very low quality) showed no-significant difference in effectiveness (RR 0.31, 95%CI 0.10 to 1.01). Off-loading devices vs standard care: three trials (low quality), showed significant reduction in development of Category≥1 HPUs (RR 0.20, 95%CI 0.05 to 0.80) two trials (medium quality), showed significant reduction in development of Category≥2 HPUs (RR 0.08, 95%CI 0.01 to 0.67). Comparisons between off-loading devices: two trials (low quality) showed no clear difference in HPU incidence. In a paediatric post-surgical population, one trial of off-loading device and one of a dressing (CLP device), both versus standard care, showed no clear difference in HPU incidence (RR 0.19 95%CI 0.02 to 1.55 and RR 0.89 95%CI 0.56 to 1.42 respectively). Conclusions Off-loading devices may reduce HPU incidence, from low-quality evidence. There is insufficient evidence to suggest that dressings reduce HPU incidence