Operation Warp Speed: Projects responding to the COVID-19 pandemic

The 2020 COVID-19 pandemic has profound socio-economic consequences. Extraordinary times call for extraordinary measures, so this paper focuses on radical changes to accepted practice in project organizing in response. In particular, we focus on schedule compression to deliver outputs to mitigate the immediate impact of the pandemic on health. In the spirit of engaged scholarship, which is problem-driven rather than theory-driven, we address directly the evidence of what happened in two empirical vignettes and one more substantial case study – the CoronavirusUY app; emergency field hospitals; and vaccine development. We then suggest the implications for project management theory in discussion

Searching for Earth analogues around the nearest stars: the disk age-metallicity relation and the age distribution in the Solar Neighbourhood

The chemical composition of Earth's atmosphere has undergone substantial evolution over the course of its history. It is possible, even likely, that terrestrial planets in other planetary systems have undergone similar changes; consequently, the age distribution of nearby stars is an important consideration in designing surveys for Earth-analogues. Valenti & Fischer (2005) provide age and metallicity estimates for 1039 FGK dwarfs in the Solar Neighbourhood. Using the Hipparcos catalogue as a reference to calibrate potential biases, we have extracted volume-limited samples of nearby stars from the Valenti-Fischer dataset. Unlike other recent investigations, our analysis shows clear evidence for an age-metallicity relation in the local disk, albeit with substantial dispersion at any epoch. The mean metallicity increases from -0.3 dex at a lookback time of ~10 Gyrs to +0.15 dex at the present day. Supplementing the Valenti-Fischer measurements with literature data to give a complete volume-limited sample, the age distribution of nearby FGK dwarfs is broadly consistent with a uniform star-formation rate over the history of the Galactic disk. In striking contrast, most stars known to have planetary companions are younger than 5 Gyrs; however, stars with planetary companions within 0.4 AU have a significantly flatter age distribution, indicating that those systems are stable on timescales of many Gyrs. Several of the older, lower metallicity host stars have enhanced [alpha/Fe] ratios, implying membership of the thick disk. If the frequency of terrestrial planets is also correlated with stellar metallicity, then the median age of such planetary system is likely to be ~3 Gyrs. We discuss the implications of this hypothesis in designing searches for Earth analogues among the nearby stars.Comment: Accepted for publication in Ap

Technology-Based Behavioral Interventions for Daily Activities and Supported Ambulation in People With Alzheimer's Disease:

Objectives:These 2 studies evaluated technology-based behavioral interventions for promoting daily activities and supported ambulation in people with mild-to-moderate and moderate-to-severe Alzheimer's disease, respectively.Methods:Study 1 included 8 participants who were taught to start and carry out daily activities on their own using a tablet or smartphone device, which provided activity reminders, step instructions, and praise. Study 2 included 9 participants who were taught to engage in brief periods of ambulation using a walker combined with a tilt microswitch and a notebook computer, which monitored step responses and provided stimulation and prompts.Results:The participants of study 1 succeeded in starting the activities independently and carrying them out accurately. The participants of study 2 largely increased their ambulation levels and also showed signs of positive involvement (eg, smiles and verbalizations).Conclusion:The aforementioned technology-based interventions may represent practical means for supporting people with Alzheimer's disease

Effect of Different Numbers of Interset Antagonist Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation Stretching on the Total Number of Repetitions for the Agonists

International Journal of Exercise Science 15(4): 498-506, 2022. Recent studies have observed that stretching applied to antagonist muscles can promote improvement in agonist muscle performance. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of different numbers of interset proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation (PNF) stretching for the antagonists on the total number of repetitions completed for the agonists (quadriceps) in the leg extension exercise. Fourteen physically active individuals (age: 29.35 ± 10.5 years; body mass: 79.1 ± 11.34 kg; height: 170.4 ± 8.7 cm) participated in this study. The following experimental protocols were performed: 1) Traditional protocol (Traditional) – without previous stretching; 2) PNF with lesser duration (PNF1—3 sets of 20 secs.); 3) PNF with greater duration (PNF2—3 sets of 30 secs.). Within the experimental protocols (PNF1 and PNF2), stretching exercises for the antagonists were performed before and between the four sets of the unilateral leg extension exercise. All tests were performed on the dominant limb only. The results showed that there was a significant difference in the total number of repetitions for the PNF2 protocol versus the Traditional protocol (p = 0.026). However, there was no significant difference between the PNF1 protocol versus the Traditional protocol (p = 0.577). In conclusion, in the leg extension exercise, an extended duration of interset PNF stretching for the hamstrings, promoted greater contractile performance for the quadriceps as demonstrated by significantly greater total repetitions over four sets

Persons with moderate Alzheimer's disease improve activities and mood via instruction technology.

Background: Three studies assessed the (a) effectiveness of verbal instructions presented via technology in helping persons with moderate Alzheimer's disease perform daily activities and (b) impact of activity engagement on mood. Methods: The 3 studies targeted coffee preparation with 2 women, use of make-up with 2 women, and use of make-up and tea preparation with 3 women. Intervention effects on activity performance were assessed through nonconcurrent multiple baseline designs across participants or multiple baseline designs across activities. The impact of activity on mood was assessed by recording indices of happiness during activity trials and parallel nonactivity periods. Results: Verbal instructions presented via technology were effective in helping all participants perform the target activities. The participants also showed mood improvement (ie, increases in indices of happiness) during the activity. Conclusion: These results suggest that the approach reported may be a useful strategy for helping persons with Alzheimer's disease

Experiences of assessment in data and security courses using personal response systems

This paper details an experience report of two interventions which explored the use of a audience response system in summative assessment in two different ways within a conversion Masters degree programme. One course explored students understanding of topics and self-assessment of ability through small multiple-choice quizzes. The other course was based around cyber security and used the audience response system to ensure engagement with the pre-class reading material. Both interventions were designed in an attempt to encourage students to engage more effectively with the material. This paper aims to identify and contrast the ways in which the audience response system was used in assessment in higher education computing science with a view to suggesting key considerations for implementing such an intervention