Usability, Efficiency and Security of Personal Computing Technologies

New personal computing technologies such as smartphones and personal fitness trackers are widely integrated into user lifestyles. Users possess a wide range of skills, attributes and backgrounds. It is important to understand user technology practices to ensure that new designs are usable and productive. Conversely, it is important to leverage our understanding of user characteristics to optimize new technology efficiency and effectiveness. Our work initially focused on studying older users, and personal fitness tracker users. We applied the insights from these investigations to develop new techniques improving user security protections, computational efficiency, and also enhancing the user experience. We offer that by increasing the usability, efficiency and security of personal computing technology, users will enjoy greater privacy protections along with experiencing greater enjoyment of their personal computing devices. Our first project resulted in an improved authentication system for older users based on familiar facial images. Our investigation revealed that older users are often challenged by traditional text passwords, resulting in decreased technology use or less than optimal password practices. Our graphical password-based system relies on memorable images from the user\u27s personal past history. Our usability study demonstrated that this system was easy to use, enjoyable, and fast. We show that this technique is extendable to smartphones. Personal fitness trackers are very popular devices, often worn by users all day. Our personal fitness tracker investigation provides the first quantitative baseline of usage patterns with this device. By exploring public data, real-world user motivations, reliability concerns, activity levels, and fitness-related socialization patterns were discerned. This knowledge lends insight to active user practices. Personal user movement data is captured by sensors, then analyzed to provide benefits to the user. The dynamic time warping technique enables comparison of unequal data sequences, and sequences containing events at offset times. Existing techniques target short data sequences. Our Phase-aware Dynamic Time Warping algorithm focuses on a class of sinusoidal user movement patterns, resulting in improved efficiency over existing methods. Lastly, we address user data privacy concerns in an environment where user data is increasingly flowing to manufacturer remote cloud servers for analysis. Our secure computation technique protects the user\u27s privacy while data is in transit and while resident on cloud computing resources. Our technique also protects important data on cloud servers from exposure to individual users

Rural Grocers Practice Pollution Prevention

Presenters discuss what the Pollution Prevention Institute is and how rural grocers can reduce their environmental footprint and operating costs. Our footprint is a metric that allows us to calculate human pressure on the planet and businesses that evaluate and actively manage their footprint can have a competitive edge

Stakeholder Engagement in Nursing Curriculum Development and Renewal Initiatives: A Review of the Literature

Stakeholder engagement remains a critical endeavour in nursing curriculum development and renewal. Engaging stakeholders such as patients and families, students, and frontline clinicians in the development process is necessary to ensure that curricula meet the current needs of patients and are responsive to a changing healthcare environment. To inform strategies for effective stakeholder engagement a literature review was conducted to identify: 1) common roles and functions of stakeholders across nursing curricular projects, and 2) factors that promote positive stakeholder engagement in nursing curriculum development or renewal. Twelve papers were included in this review. Texts were analyzed using qualitative thematic analysis. Common roles and functions were classified according to formalized leadership roles or on an informal, as needed basis, with varying levels of engagement. Four themes emerged pertaining to factors that promote positive stakeholder engagement: positive leadership, empowerment, sense of ownership, and a culture of equality. Optimizing stakeholder contributions to nursing curricular projects can be fostered by an understanding of strategies to positively engage these partners and identifying productive and meaningful stakeholder roles. Résumé La mobilisation des parties prenantes demeure une étape cruciale du processus d’élaboration et de renouvellement des programmes d’études en sciences infirmières. Il est nécessaire de mobiliser les parties prenantes, comme les patients et les familles, les étudiantes et les cliniciennes de première ligne pour veiller à ce que les programmes d’études respectent les besoins actuels des patients et tiennent compte de l’environnement changeant des soins de santé. Pour orienter les stratégies en matière de mobilisation des parties prenantes, nous avons réalisé une recension des écrits afin d’identifier : 1) les fonctions et les rôles courants des parties prenantes dans l’ensemble des projets de programmes d’études en sciences infirmières, et 2) les facteurs qui favorisent une mobilisation positive des parties prenantes dans le processus d’élaboration ou de renouvellement des programmes d’études en sciences infirmières. Douze articles ont fait l’objet d’une analyse thématique qualitative dans le cadre de cette étude. Les fonctions et les rôles courants ont été classés selon qu’ils soient officiels et décisionnels ou de façon informelle, selon les besoins, menant à divers degrés de mobilisation. Quatre thèmes se sont dégagés relativement aux facteurs qui favorisent une mobilisation active des parties prenantes : un leadership positif, une habilitation, un sentiment d’appartenance et une culture d’égalité. Pour encourager l’optimisation des contributions des parties prenantes aux projets de programmes d’études en sciences infirmières, il est important de comprendre les stratégies qui permettent de mobiliser positivement ces partenaires et de cerner des rôles productifs et significatifs pour eux

An Exploration of Interprofessional Education in Four Canadian Undergraduate Nursing Programs

In Canada, formal inclusion of interprofessional education (IPE) curricula within undergraduate nursing programs has occurred since 2012. While there is evidence that Canadian university nursing programs are working to achieve the integration of IPE throughout undergraduate curricula, a gap exists in what is known about IPE integration within Northern Ontario nursing programs, particularly from the perspectives of faculty members and program administrators. This multiple case study explored how four undergraduate university nursing programs in Northern Ontario have integrated IPE into their curricula, including the opportunities and challenges of this work. Data collection occurred at each site between June 2016 and June 2017 and consisted of interviews with program directors (n=3), focus groups (n=10) and interviews (n=3) with faculty members, review of available program documentation and websites, and on-site program observations. Thematic analysis was undertaken for each case and during the cross-case comparison stage. The cross-case synthesis resulted in the following themes: 1) varied understandings of IPE, 2) diverse IPE learning activities within curricula, 3) the requirement for support and resources for IPE and research, 4) student participation and leadership in IPE, and 5) limited IPE evaluation. Faculty development, IPE research, student involvement, and administrative support are required to maintain and sustain IPE. Dissemination of results may encourage further research and dialogue on current IPE practices among nursing programs in Northern Ontario and beyond. Résumé Au Canada, la formation interprofessionnelle (IPE) a été intégrée formellement aux programmes de premier cycle en sciences infirmières depuis 2012. Même s’il appert que les programmes de sciences infirmières des universités canadiennes parviennent à intégrer l’IPE aux programmes de premier cycle, nous en savons peu sur l’avis des membres du corps professoral et des administratrices des programmes relativement à l’intégration de l’IPE aux programmes de sciences infirmières dans le Nord de l’Ontario. Cette étude de cas multiples a permis d’explorer comment quatre programmes de premier cycle de sciences infirmières offerts dans le Nord de l’Ontario ont intégré l’IPE, y compris les opportunités et les défis que cela comporte. Des données ont été recueillies sur chaque site entre juin 2016 et juin 2017par des entrevues auprès de directrices de programme (n=3), des groupes de discussion (n=10), des entrevues de membres du corps professoral (n=3), un examen des documents disponibles et du site Web du programme, ainsi que des observations terrain sur les programmes. Une analyse thématique a été entreprise pour chaque cas et lors de l’étape de comparaison transversale. L’analyse transversale a permis de dégager les thèmes suivants : 1) diverses interprétations de l’IPE; 2) diverses activités d’apprentissage de type IPE dans les programmes d’études; 3) nécessité de soutien et de ressources pour l’IPE et la recherche; 4) participation et leadership des étudiantes dans le cadre de l’IPE; 5) évaluation limitée de l’IPE. Le développement professionnel des membres du corps professoral, la recherche sur l’IPE, la participation des étudiantes et le soutien de l’administration sont nécessaires pour préserver et soutenir l’IPE. La diffusion des résultats pourrait encourager la tenue d’autres recherches et d’un dialogue sur les pratiques actuelles d’IPE dans les programmes de sciences infirmières dans le Nord de l’Ontario et ailleurs

Gatekeepers of Venture Growth: A Diana Project Report on the Role and Participation of Women in the Venture Capital Industry

Based on 1995 and 2000 data and interviews with women venture capitalists, examines the factors that limit women's level of influence in the industry, women entrepreneurs' connections with venture capitalists, and investment in women-led businesses

Oxytocin in pregnancy and the postpartum: relations to labor and its management.

The purpose of this study was to examine variations in endogenous oxytocin levels in pregnancy and postpartum state. We also explored the associations between delivery variables and oxytocin levels. A final sample of 272 mothers in their first trimester of pregnancy was included for the study. Blood samples were drawn during the first trimester and third trimester of pregnancy and at 8 weeks postpartum. Socio-demographic data were collected at each time point and medical files were consulted for delivery details. In most women, levels of circulating oxytocin increased from the first to third trimester of pregnancy followed by a decrease in the postpartum period. Oxytocin levels varied considerably between individuals, ranging from 50 pg/mL to over 2000 pg/mL. Parity was the main predictor of oxytocin levels in the third trimester of pregnancy and of oxytocin level changes from the first to the third trimester of pregnancy. Oxytocin levels in the third trimester of pregnancy predicted a self-reported negative labor experience and increased the chances of having an epidural. Intrapartum exogenous oxytocin was positively associated with levels of oxytocin during the postpartum period. Our exploratory results suggest that circulating oxytocin levels during the third trimester of pregnancy may predict the type of labor a woman will experience. More importantly, the quantity of intrapartum exogenous oxytocin administered during labor predicted plasma oxytocin levels 2 months postpartum, suggesting a possible long-term effect of this routine intervention, the consequences of which are largely unknown

Trust no agent: Building Strong Negotiation Skills

Let every eye negotiate for itself, And trust no agent. Much Ado About Nothing, Act II, sc. 1 Everybody negotiates, both at work and home. Negotiations in any context can have some pretty big impact on our lives, but in the work environment, they can also have impacts on our colleagues, and our users! Many of the most common areas for major-impact negotiations in libraries are related to technology and contracts, especially software and electronic resource purchases and subscriptions. But even if you don\u27t make major technology purchases, developing expertise in understanding contracts can be helpful for you and your organization - and building negotiation skills can have a positive impact throughout your life! We\u27ll start with a brief overview of contracts and how to evaluate them - then you\u27ll have the opportunity to improve all your negotiations (both formal and informal) through exercises and discussion. With lots of interaction, you\u27ll have the option to bring in examples from your own experiences, and will be encouraged to adapt and formulate your own negotiation style

Is He Being Bad? Social and Language Brain Networks during Social Judgment in Children with Autism

Individuals with autism often violate social rules and have lower accuracy in identifying and explaining inappropriate social behavior. Twelve children with autism (AD) and thirteen children with typical development (TD) participated in this fMRI study of the neurofunctional basis of social judgment. Participants indicated in which of two pictures a boy was being bad (Social condition) or which of two pictures was outdoors (Physical condition). In the within-group Social-Physical comparison, TD children used components of mentalizing and language networks [bilateral inferior frontal gyrus (IFG), bilateral medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC), and bilateral posterior superior temporal sulcus (pSTS)], whereas AD children used a network that was primarily right IFG and bilateral pSTS, suggesting reduced use of social and language networks during this social judgment task. A direct group comparison on the Social-Physical contrast showed that the TD group had greater mPFC, bilateral IFG, and left superior temporal pole activity than the AD group. No regions were more active in the AD group than in the group with TD in this comparison. Both groups successfully performed the task, which required minimal language. The groups also performed similarly on eyetracking measures, indicating that the activation results probably reflect the use of a more basic strategy by the autism group rather than performance disparities. Even though language was unnecessary, the children with TD recruited language areas during the social task, suggesting automatic encoding of their knowledge into language; however, this was not the case for the children with autism. These findings support behavioral research indicating that, whereas children with autism may recognize socially inappropriate behavior, they have difficulty using spoken language to explain why it is inappropriate. The fMRI results indicate that AD children may not automatically use language to encode their social understanding, making expression and generalization of this knowledge more difficult. © 2012 Carter et al