Paving The Way: Recruiting Students into the Transportation Professions, MTI Report 08-03

The transportation industry faces a growing shortage of professional engineers and planners. One key strategy in solving this problem will be to encourage more civil engineering and urban planning students to specialize in transportation while completing their degrees, so that employers have a larger pool of likely recruits. However, very little is known about how these students choose a specialization. To help fill that gap, this report examines the factors that lead civil engineering undergraduates and urban planning masters students to specialize in transportation, as opposed to other sub-disciplines within the two fields. The primary data collection methods were web-based surveys of 1,852 civil engineering undergraduates and 869 planning masters students. The study results suggest steps the transportation community can take to increase the number of civil engineering and planning students who choose to specialize in transportation

“Green” Transportation Taxes and Fees: A Survey Of Californians, MTI Report 08-05

This report explores public opinion on a new and promising concept—green transportation taxes and fees. These are taxes and fees set at variable rates, with higher rates for more polluting vehicles and lower rates for those that pollute less. This approach to transportation taxes and fees adapts the traditional transportation finance system to achieve two critical public benefits at once: encouraging drivers to choose more environmentally-friendly transportation options and raising revenue for needed transportation programs. To test public support for green transportation taxes and fees, the authors conducted a random telephone survey of 1,500 Californians that asked respondents their views on five hypothetical tax and fee options: a flat-rate and a green vehicle registration fee, a flat-rate and a green mileage fee, and a “feebate” program for new vehicle purchases under which more-polluting vehicles would be charged a tax and less-polluting vehicles would receive a rebate. The survey results show that the concept of green transportation taxes and fees strongly appeals to Californians. The survey tested this in two ways: by testing support for the three hypothetical green transportation tax and fee policies, and also by comparing support levels for flat-rate versus green versions of two taxes. Majorities of the respondents supported all three green taxes and fees tested. Another striking finding from the survey is that support for the green taxes and fees did not vary greatly by population subgroups; a diverse range of Californians supported the green taxes and fees. An analysis comparing support for the green and flat-rate vehicle registration fee and feebate proposals confirmed that in every subgroup, more people within that subgroup supported the green than the flat version of the two taxes tested

The Intersection of Urban Form and Mileage Fees: Findings from the Oregon Road User Fee Pilot Program, Research Report 10-04

This report analyzes data from the 2006-2007 Oregon Road User Fee Pilot program to assess if and how urban form variables correlate with travel behavior changes that participants made in response to the mileage-based fee program. It finds that charging a noticeably higher fee for driving in congested conditions can successfully motivate households to reduce their VMT in those times and places where congestion is most a problem. Households in both traditional (mixed use, dense, transit-accessible) and suburban (single-use, low density) neighborhoods will likely reduce their peak-hour and overall travel under a charging scheme that charges a high-rate for peak-hour travel, though households in the traditional neighborhoods will do so more. It also finds that a mileage fee program that charges a high rate during the peak hour is likely to strengthen the underlying influence of urban form on travel behavior. In other words, land use probably will matter more to transportation planning if the nation shifts to a new paradigm of mileage-based financing and pricing system. For transportation policy-makers, this raises another layer of consideration when designing the optimal rate structure to achieve policy goals—either reduced VMT and congestion or sustained funding sources. For urban planners, this offers a wonderful opportunity to move towards a sustainable built environment through revised and compatible land use regulation under the context of a mileage-based fee. The research also reveals that program design could significantly affect a household’s response to a mileage-based fee program. Particularly in Portland, the establishment of an endowment account for participants actually increased household VMT when a flat-rate fee was charged, the opposite to policy-makers’ expectation. One possible explanation is that paying the mileage-based fees once a month, instead of paying the gas tax at each visit to the pump, may have encouraged households to drive more due to the reduced gas price at the pump

Dopamine, time perception, and future time perspective.

RationaleImpairment in time perception, a critical component of decision-making, represents a risk factor for psychiatric conditions including substance abuse. A therapeutic that ameliorates this impairment could be advantageous in the treatment of impulsivity and decision-making disorders.ObjectivesHere we hypothesize that the catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) inhibitor tolcapone, which increases dopamine tone in frontal cortex (Ceravolo et al Synapse 43:201-207, 2002), improves time perception, with predictive behavioral, genetic, and neurobiological components.MethodsSubjects (n = 66) completed a duration estimation task and other behavioral testing in each of two sessions after receiving a single oral dose of tolcapone (200 mg) or placebo in randomized, double-blind, counterbalanced, crossover fashion. Resting state fMRI data were obtained in a subset of subjects (n = 40). Subjects were also genotyped for the COMT (rs4680) polymorphism.ResultsTime perception was significantly improved across four proximal time points ranging from 5 to 60 s (T(524) = 2.04, p = 0.042). The degree of this improvement positively correlated with subjective measures of stress, depression, and alcohol consumption and was most robust in carriers of the COMT Val158 allele. Using seed regions defined by a previous meta-analysis (Wiener et al Neuroimage 49:1728-1740, 2010), we found not only that a connection from right inferior frontal gyrus (RIFG) to right putamen decreases in strength on tolcapone versus placebo (p < 0.05, corrected), but also that the strength of this decrease correlates inversely with the increase in duration estimation on tolcapone versus placebo (r = - 0.37, p = 0.02).ConclusionsCompressed time perception can be ameliorated by administration of tolcapone. Additional studies should be conducted to determine whether COMT inhibitors may be effective in treating decision-making disorders and addictive behaviors

Green Transportation Taxes and Fees: A Survey of Californian

This report explores public opinion on a new and promising concept—green transportation taxes and fees. These are taxes and fees set at variable rates, with higher rates for more polluting vehicles and lower rates for those that pollute less. This approach to transportation taxes and fees adapts the traditional transportation finance system to achieve two critical public benefits at once: encouraging drivers to choose more environmentally-friendly transportation options and raising revenue for needed transportation programs. To test public support for green transportation taxes and fees, the authors conducted a random telephone survey of 1,500 Californians that asked respondents their views on five hypothetical tax and fee options: a flat-rate and a green vehicle registration fee, a flat-rate and a green mileage fee, and a “feebate” program for new vehicle purchases under which more-polluting vehicles would be charged a tax and less-polluting vehicles would receive a rebate. The survey results show that the concept of green transportation taxes and fees strongly appeals to Californians. The survey tested this in two ways: by testing support for the three hypothetical green transportation tax and fee policies, and also by comparing support levels for flat-rate versus green versions of two taxes. Majorities of the respondents supported all three green taxes and fees tested. Another striking finding from the survey is that support for the green taxes and fees did not vary greatly by population subgroups; a diverse range of Californians supported the green taxes and fees. An analysis comparing support for the green and flat-rate vehicle registration fee and feebate proposals confirmed that in every subgroup, more people within that subgroup supported the green than the flat version of the two taxes tested

FITW Module Demos

This session is for representatives from partner colleges on the U. S. Department of Education FIPSE\u27s First in the World grant-funded project to develop a just-in-time, blended approach to mathematics fundamentals support in introductory STEM courses. Partner colleges are Allegheny, Bryn Mawr, Denison, Franklin & Marshall, Grinnell, Lafayette, Mills, Oberlin, Smith, St. Olaf, Vassar, and Wellesley. In this session members from the Bryn Mawr team will demonstrate the prototype modules we have developed using Khan Academy and WeBWorK materials. Our goal is to get feedback on these prototypes, partners envision implementing them to support our target courses (introductory calculus, chemistry and physics) and what kinds of features will be most useful for students, faculty, tutors and other support staff

A conducive environment? The role of need support in the higher education workplace and its effect on academics' experiences of research assessment in the UK

Little is known about how researchers in higher education institutions (HEIs) experience and respond to support received from their departments. The present study investigated how support for researchers' autonomy (choice and self‐expression), relatedness (through connections with colleagues) and competence (feeling effective in one's work) influenced their attitudes towards an external assessment of research. To do so, we surveyed 598 academics from four HEIs in the UK about their attitudes towards one such external assessment: the Research Excellence Framework (REF), a nationwide assessment of research quality and the subject of debate about research evaluation. Our findings, drawing on self‐determination theory, show that departments can shape responses to the REF: individuals whose psychological needs were supported by their academic departments held more positive, and less negative, attitudes towards the REF. This occurred both directly and indirectly through researchers' recognition that the REF had a more positive influence on their research activities and outputs

The Homestead of James Taylor White II: Historical, Archaeological, and Geophysical Investigations at Two Proposed Safety Rest Areas, Interstate Highway (IH) 10, Chambers County, Texas

Personnel from Coastal Environments, Inc. (CEI), Moore Archeological Consulting, Inc. (MAC), and the University of Mississippi conducted archaeological and geophysical investigations at the locations of two proposed safety rest areas on opposite sides of Interstate Highway (IH) 10 in Chambers County, Texas. The research was carried out from late August 2006 until late February 2007, under contract to the Environmental Affairs Division of the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT). MAC archaeologists had previously examined the two rest area tracts in 2001. Their research indicated that the north tract contained a late-nineteenth- through early-twentieth-century cemetery, identified as the Broussard Cemetery site (41CH370). Buried within the cemetery are the remains of several members of the locally prominent White family and relatives. The south tract included the remains of a below-ground cistern that likely marked the location of the main house associated with the homestead and ranch of James Taylor White II. It was estimated that this house location, labeled the White Family Cistern site (41CH371), was occupied from ca. 1854 until sometime in the early 1900s. The field investigations examined three specific areas within the two tracts: (1) A small 20-by-45-m area situated about 10 m north of the Broussard Cemetery site where a truck-entrance road is to be built. It was considered possible that unmarked graves located outside the cemetery proper might be present in that area. (2) A 40-by-40-m area within the south tract where MAC personnel had located a piece of whiteware during their earlier investigations. It was thought that a possible outbuilding related to the White homestead might be present in that area. (3) A 110-by-115-m area in the south tract where the main house and most of the White family occupation occurred. The area in the north tract was examined by ground-penetrating radar, resistivity surveys and mechanical stripping of anomalies recognized by the geophysical research. The small square area in the south tract was examined by systematic shovel tests. The large area in the south tract was investigated by systematic shovel tests, a metal detector survey, a geophysical search that included magnetometer and electromagnetic susceptibility surveys, a limited ground-truth assessment of selected anomalies that had been identified by the geophysical surveys, mechanical stripping of other anomalies recognized by the geophysical research, plus the controlled excavation of a few small units in locations where the stripping uncovered potential cultural features. Overall, the various investigations identified the location, orientation, and dimensions of the White family house and its associated kitchen, a rich sheet midden situated to the rear of the house, and several possible outbuildings located to the sides of the structure. Numerous artifacts indicative of the period of suspected occupation were collected, including hundreds of pieces of metal, ceramic fragments, and glass. A few animal bones and plant remains also were obtained. Although the present study did not call for a detailed analysis of these items, such should prove useful in the future. Given these results, it is clear that site 41CH371 is eligible for inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places. Additional archaeological investigations at selected portions of the site are recommended, along with further archival and historical research. Accordingly, construction of the rest area in the south tract should be delayed until the recommended investigations are completed. The small area examined in the north tract near site 41CH370 failed to yield any evidence of burials. Since the cemetery itself will be avoided during construction, no further archaeological work is considered necessary in the north tract. Thus, construction of the rest area within the north tract may proceed as planned

Measuring the costs of outreach motivational interviewing for smoking cessation and relapse prevention among low-income pregnant women

Background: Economic theory provides the philosophical foundation for valuing costs in judging medical and public health interventions. When evaluating smoking cessation interventions, accurate data on costs are essential for understanding resource consumption. Smoking cessation interventions, for which prior data on resource costs are typically not available, present special challenges. We develop a micro-costing methodology for estimating the real resource costs of outreach motivational interviewing (MI) for smoking cessation and relapse prevention among low-income pregnant women and report results from a randomized controlled trial (RCT) employing the methodology. Methodological standards in cost analysis are necessary for comparison and uniformity in analysis across interventions. Estimating the costs of outreach programs is critical for understanding the economics of reaching underserved and hard-to-reach populations. Methods: Randomized controlled trial (1997-2000) collecting primary cost data for intervention. A sample of 302 low-income pregnant women was recruited from multiple obstetrical sites in the Boston metropolitan area. MI delivered by outreach health nurses vs. usual care (UC), with economic costs as the main outcome measures. Results: The total cost of the MI intervention for 156 participants was $48,672 or$312 per participant. The total cost of $311.8 per participant for the MI intervention compared with a cost of$4.82 per participant for usual care, a difference of $307 ([CI],$289.2 to $322.8). The total fixed costs of the MI were$3,930 and the total variable costs of the MI were $44,710. The total expected program costs for delivering MI to 500 participants would be 147,430, assuming no economies of scale in program delivery. The main cost components of outreach MI were intervention delivery, travel time, scheduling, and training. Conclusion: Grounded in economic theory, this methodology systematically identifies and measures resource utilization, using a process tracking system and calculates both component-specific and total costs of outreach MI. The methodology could help improve collection of accurate data on costs and estimates of the real resource costs of interventions alongside clinical trials and improve the validity and reliability of estimates of resource costs for interventions targeted at underserved and hard-to-reach populations