A statistical analysis of the impact of marital status on Nuclear Submarine Officer Retention

This thesis develops multivariate logit models to estimate the impact of marital status and the independent effect of dependent children on nuclear submarine officer retention beyond the minimum service requirement (MSR). Using data from the Navy History Promotion File, the Naval Officer Fitness Report Summary File and the Officer Loss File, logit models are specified to analyze the probability of nuclear submarine officer retention beyond the MSR. The probabilities are modeled as functions of marital and dependency status, commissioning source, undergraduate major, age and early performance evaluations. The findings reveal that being married with dependent children at the 0-3 promotion board, being older at commissioning, being commissioned via an enlisted commissioning program and being recommended for accelerated promotion at least once as an 0-2 are all positive indicators of submarine officer retention beyond the MSR Being commissioned via the Reserve Officer's Training Corps (ROTC) and the Officer Candidate School (OCS) are negatively associated with submarine officer retention. Based upon the research results, recommendations are made to conduct further research to determine retention elasticities of submarine officers based on dependency status to determine the most cost effective means of improving roving junior officer retention.http://archive.org/details/astatisticalnaly109451096

Predictors Of Babesia Microti Infection In Ixodes Scapularis Ticks In New England, Usa

Babesia microti is the primary etiological agent of human babesiosis (Vannier & Krause). Although it shares the same tick vector and mammal reservoirs as B. burgdorferi, the causative agent of Lyme disease, the geographic extent of B. microti is limited to a subset of the range of B. burgdorferi (Diuk-Wasser et al.). Despite the slower spread of B. microti, it is equally prevalent in ticks in certain areas where both B. burgdorferi and B. microti have been endemic for long periods. The slower rate of B. microti expansion as compared to B. burgdorferi has been attributed to a lower efficiency of transmission for B. microti (Dunn et al.), however, this alone does not explain the similar prevalence of both microbes in areas long endemic to both pathogens. This study assesses the relative importance of ecological conditions and pathogen interactions in B. microti and B. burgdorferi prevalence in I. scapularis nymphs from a sample of 1514 nymph-stage ticks collected at 35 sites in eastern Connecticut, western Rhode Island, and southern Massachusetts. Our results show that the odds of a tick testing positive for B. microti is not associated to the density of nymphal ticks or the prevalence of B. burgdorferi at the site level, but it is associated with the presence of B. burgdorferi in the individual tick and the geographic location of the tick. None of the covariates tested showed a strong association with the odds of a tick testing positive for B. burgdorferi

Media and the Shooter Bias: Investigating the Relationship Between Implicit Racial Biases and News Coverage

Abstract Past research has suggested that the media is likely to depict Black individuals in a more negative and/or threatening manner than White individuals (Dixon & Linz, 2000; Sommers et al., 2006). Additionally, past research investigating the effect of race on the decision to shoot or not shoot in a simple shooter videogame suggests that people are both faster and more accurate when deciding to shoot armed Black targets and when deciding to not shoot unarmed White targets (Correll et al., 2002). This phenomenon is known as shooter bias. This study investigated the effect of media exposure, specifically exposure to an online news article, on an individual’s shooter bias. Participants read an article depicting either a Black or White individual committing a crime directly before completing a shooter game. Contrary to past research, results revealed no main effects of race or item (gun vs. no gun) on reaction time. However, a race x item interaction was observed for reaction time, as was an item x condition interaction for inaccuracy. Participants were faster to react to targets if the target was Black and held a random object. They were also more inaccurate in their decisions while playing the game if they had read the media article with the White criminal and the target was holding a random object. Results revealed a main effect of item for both shooting and not shooting, such that participants were more likely to shoot armed targets and more likely to not shoot unarmed targets. A main effect of condition on participant’s likelihood to not shoot targets was also observed, such that participants who read the article with the White criminal were less likely to shoot targets while playing the shooter game. Neither explicit attitudes towards racial minorities nor explicit ratings of fear experienced while reading the media article correlated with reaction times

Formalizing artisanal and small-scale gold mining : A grand challenge of the Minamata Convention

Artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) is the world's largest source of anthropogenic mercury emissions and releases. These have devastating consequences for miners' health and the environment. Most of the >20 million ASGM miners worldwide are not officially recognized, registered, regulated, or protected by state laws. Formalization-the process of organizing, registering, and reforming ASGM-is mandated by the Minamata Convention on Mercury. Previous attempts to reduce mercury emissions from ASGM have largely failed. Our perspective argues that signatories to the Convention will only succeed in reducing ASGM mercury emissions and releases with comprehensive bottom-up formalization approaches centered around working with miners, and significant external funding from consumers, large mining corporations, and governments. The approximate global 5-year cost of this approach could be US$355 million (upper and lower estimate bounds: US$213-742 million) if scaled per country, or US$808 million (US$248 million-US$2.17 billion) if scaled per miner.Peer reviewe

Using Remotely Piloted Aircraft and Onboard Processing to Optimize and Expand Data Collection

Remotely piloted aircraft (RPA) have the potential to revolutionize local to regional data collection for geophysicists as platform and payload size decrease while aircraft capabilities increase. In particular, data from RPAs combine high-resolution imagery available from low flight elevations with comprehensive areal coverage, unattainable from ground investigations and difficult to acquire from manned aircraft due to budgetary and logistical costs. Low flight elevations are particularly important for detecting signals that decay exponentially with distance, such as electromagnetic fields. Onboard data processing coupled with high-bandwidth telemetry open up opportunities for real-time and near real-time data processing, producing more efficient flight plans through the use of payload-directed flight, machine learning and autonomous systems. Such applications not only strive to enhance data collection, but also enable novel sensing modalities and temporal resolution. NASAs Airborne Science Program has been refining the capabilities and applications of RPA in support of satellite calibration and data product validation for several decades. In this paper, we describe current platforms, payloads, and onboard data systems available to the research community. Case studies include Fluid Lensing for littoral zone 3D mapping, structure from motion for terrestrial 3D multispectral imaging, and airborne magnetometry on medium and small RPAs

A qualitative study of clinicians’ experience of a clinical trial for displaced distal radius fractures

Aims: The aim of this study was to explore clinicians’ experience of a paediatric randomized controlled trial (RCT) comparing surgical reduction with non-surgical casting for displaced distal radius fractures. Methods: Overall, 22 staff from 15 hospitals who participated in the RCT took part in an interview. Interviews were informed by phenomenology and analyzed using thematic analysis. Results: Analysis of the findings identified the overarching theme of “overcoming obstacles”, which described the challenge of alleviating staff concerns about the use of non-surgical casting and recruiting families where there was treatment uncertainty. In order to embed and recruit to the Children’s Radius Acute Fracture Fixation Trial (CRAFFT), staff needed to fit the study within clinical practice, work together, negotiate treatment decisions, and support families. Conclusion: Recruiting families to this RCT was challenging because staff were uncertain about longer-term patient outcomes, and the difficulties were exacerbated by interdisciplinary tensions. Strong family and clinician beliefs, coupled with the complex nature of emergency departments and patient pathways that differed site-by-site, served as barriers to recruitment. Cementing a strong research culture, and exploring families’ treatment preferences, helped to overcome recruitment obstacles