An Economic Impact Analysis of a Youth Softball World Series

Sporting events can have a large impact on an economy. From the Olympics to the Super Bowl to the World Cup, these events bring in millions of dollars of new revenue to a region. Extensive research has been conducted on the economic impact of these mega-events. However, smaller sporting events, such as a fishing tournament, youth sports tournament, or 5K race, can also boost local economies and influence future tourism choices. However, limited research has been conducted to understand the economic impact of these events, despite the significant resources needed by communities to host these smaller events. This economic impact analysis study focuses on the estimated impact of hosting a smaller, annual sporting event, the 2013 Dixie Angels Softball World Series in Petal, Mississippi. The study determined that the regional hotel and restaurant industries benefited from the tourists attracted to the area by the event, but because the city lacks hotels and has limited restaurants, the county, rather than the city, received the majority of the economic benefit. In the future, other cities might consider their assets, before bidding to host similar events. These events can have an impact on a local economy, but the hospitality assets need to be in place

Valley Thunder: The Battle of New Market and the Opening of the Shenandoah Valley Campaign, May 1864

Fresh Perspective on the Opening of the 1864 Shenandoah Valley Campaign Charles R. Knight is a former historical interpreter at the New Market Battlefield in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley, and his time spent in the area has been excellently applied to this new study of the May 15, 1864 b...

Locally Adaptive Nonparametric Binary Regression

A nonparametric and locally adaptive Bayesian estimator is proposed for estimating a binary regression. Flexibility is obtained by modeling the binary regression as a mixture of probit regressions with the argument of each probit regression having a thin plate spline prior with its own smoothing parameter and with the mixture weights depending on the covariates. The estimator is compared to a single spline estimator and to a recently proposed locally adaptive estimator. The methodology is illustrated by applying it to both simulated and real examples.Comment: 31 pages, 10 figure

Analysis of a distributed fiber-optic temperature sensor using single-photon detectors

We demonstrate a high-accuracy distributed fiber-optic temperature sensor using superconducting nanowire single-photon detectors and single-photon counting techniques. Our demonstration uses inexpensive single-mode fiber at standard telecommunications wavelengths as the sensing fiber, which enables extremely low-loss experiments and compatibility with existing fiber networks. We show that the uncertainty of the temperature measurement decreases with longer integration periods, but is ultimately limited by the calibration uncertainty. Temperature uncertainty on the order of 3 K is possible with spatial resolution of the order of 1 cm and integration period as small as 60 seconds. Also, we show that the measurement is subject to systematic uncertainties, such as polarization fading, which can be reduced with a polarization diversity receiver

Surveillance and response systems for elimination of tropical diseases : summary of a thematic series in infectious diseases of poverty

The peer-reviewed journal Infectious Diseases of Poverty provides a new platform to engage with, and disseminate in an open-access format, science outside traditional disciplinary boundaries. The current piece reviews a thematic series on surveillance-response systems for elimination of tropical diseases. Overall, 22 contributions covering a broad array of diseases are featured - i.e. clonorchiasis, dengue, hepatitis, human immunodeficiency virus/acquired immune deficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS), H7N9 avian influenza, lymphatic filariasis, malaria, Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS), rabies, schistosomiasis and tuberculosis (TB). There are five scoping reviews, a commentary, a letter to the editor, an opinion piece and an editorial pertaining to the theme "Elimination of tropical disease through surveillance and response". The remaining 13 articles are original contributions mainly covering (i) drug resistance; (ii) innovation and validation in the field of mathematical modelling; (iii) elimination of infectious diseases; and (iv) social media reports on disease outbreak notifications released by national health authorities. Analysis of the authors' affiliations reveals that scientists from the People's Republic of China (P.R. China) are prominently represented. Possible explanations include the fact that the 2012 and 2014 international conferences pertaining to surveillance-response mechanisms were both hosted by the National Institute of Parasitic Diseases (NIPD) in Shanghai, coupled with P.R. China's growing importance with regard to the control of infectious diseases. Within 4 to 22 months of publication, three of the 22 contributions were viewed more than 10 000 times each. With sustained efforts focusing on relevant and strategic information towards control and elimination of infectious diseases, Infectious Diseases of Poverty has become a leading journal in the field of surveillance and response systems in infectious diseases and beyond

Evolution of Salmonella within Hosts

Within-host evolution has resulted in thousands of variants of Salmonella that exhibit remarkable diversity in host range and disease outcome, from broad host range to exquisite host restriction, causing gastroenteritis to disseminated disease such as typhoid fever. Within-host evolution is a continuing process driven by genomic variation that occurs during each infection, potentiating adaptation to a new niche resulting from changes in animal husbandry, the use of antimicrobials, and emergence of immune compromised populations. We discuss key advances in our understanding of the evolution of Salmonella within the host, inferred from (i) the process of host adaptation of Salmonella pathovars in the past, and (ii) direct observation of the generation of variation and selection of beneficial traits during single infections

Raytheon -- Stability of Mooring Lines and Strain Relief

The Inter-Dimensional Cables team was tasked by Raytheon to design, manufacture, and test a vibration isolation module and a strain relief jacket to use on their undersea transducer cables. The vibration isolation module must reduce the amplitude of the vibrations propagating throughout the cable and the strain relief jacket must reduce the amount of strain the cable experiences at the point of connection with the transducer by 20%. The Inter-Dimensional Cables team researched extensively in the fields of vibration and stress and strain. Numerous patents and literature reports were found regarding these topics and concepts studied in these papers were used as a foundation of Team 15’s work. The team found that towed array systems used by naval submarines made extensive use of vibration isolation modules that used a viscous damping fluid and a damping material. 90 total concepts were generated and were rated based on their anticipated success, ease of manufacturing, and how well they would be able to meet the design specifications. The team decided to design a vibration isolation module that would feature a Polyurethane outer casing of a circular cylindrical design. Polyurethane was used since it is a shock absorbing material in itself and is a common exterior material on underwater cables and cable components. The interior will be filled with a silicone dampening gel to provide viscous damping of the cable. The Inter-Dimensional Cables team also created a strain relief jacket to be featured at connection point along the cable where it feeds into the transducers. This device is crucial to longevity of the cable as it help prevents wear and tear on the cable as it gets rolled up onto ships. Engineering analysis was done on the vibration isolation module and the strain relief jacket to prove the two products would be able to meet the required design specifications. A financial analysis was also completed to ensure the team would stay within their $3000 budget