Antenna design and development for the microwave subsystem experiments for the terminal configured vehicle project

The feasibility of classifying an airport terminal area for multipath effects, i.e., fadeout potentials or limits of video resolution, is examined. Established transmission links in terminal areas were modeled for landing approaches and overflight patterns. A computer program to obtain signal strength based on a described flight path was written. The application of this model to evaluate the signal transmission obtained in an actual flight equipped with additional signal strength monitoring equipment is described. The actual and computed received signal are compared, and the feasibility of the computer simulation for predicting signal amplitude fluctuation is evaluated

Disability Inclusion Toolkit

For years, philanthropy and social justice movements have failed to include disabled people as partners, leaders, and agents of change. Despite the deep inequality facing the community, philanthropy and movement organizers do not often recognize people with disabilities as a powerful community to engage, organize, and advocate with. Most social justice and human rights organizations have little experience or expertise to advance disability inclusion in their organizing or policy work, even when they have the best intentions.The toolkit includes introductory disability definitions and language guidelines, in addition to guidance on creating accessible in-person and virtual events, social media, and disability inclusive employment practices from recruitment to retention. The toolkit serves as a public good available to any organization that can benefit from the tools, tips, and guidance offered within

Worksite Wellness for UMaine Dining Employees: Healthful Eating for the Holidays

The objective of this study was to identify change in knowledge and intent to change behavior among University of Maine dining services employees (n=5 females) attending a three-session nutrition education program. The study was a one-group design with a pre- post- assessment. Participants were recruited through flyers distributed at their worksite. The intervention consisted of three one-hour nutrition education sessions implemented outside work hours one day per week over three weeks. Sessions were designed to address healthful holiday cooking and eating, with a focus on 100% whole grains. At pre-assessment, based on a five-point scale from 1= “not likely at all” to 5= “very likely,” the mean score for the 10-item questionnaire (possible range 10-50) was 31±5.2, indicating the participants were “neutral” on their knowledge and intent to change behavior regarding whole grains around the holidays. At post-assessment, the mean score was 43.2±2.2, indicating the participants were “somewhat likely” that their knowledge had changed and that they intended to change behavior. Frequencies and percents by response categories for knowledge of whole grains and intent to change behavior were computed at both pre- and post- assessment. At pre-assessment, distribution was spread among the response categories; however, at post-assessment, the distribution was at the higher end of the response category scale. Statistical tests were not reliable due to the small sample size; however, there were positive trends. The intervention could be an effective worksite wellness program for dining services employees to effect health-promoting behavior change during holiday cooking and eating

Enhancing Accessibility in U.S. Elections

In 2020, voters with disabilities turned out in force in one of the most consequential elections in U.S. history. According to data compiled by the U.S. Census Bureau, nearly 62 percent of disabled voters cast a ballot in the November 2020 election, compared with just about 56 percent of disabled voters who participated in the 2016 presidential election. 2020's high turnout is demonstrative of disabled voters' unwavering resolve to make their voices heard and to fully participate in American democracy. While all voters—regardless of disability status—experienced difficulties in registering to vote and casting ballots last year due to the coronavirus pandemic, disabled voters faced particularly significant challenges. This report examines the barriers disabled voters face when participating in elections and proposes solutions for improving the voting experience and encouraging voter participation

Feature tracking for automated volume of interest stabilization on 4D-OCT images

A common representation of volumetric medical image data is the triplanar view (TV), in which the surgeon manually selects slices showing the anatomical structure of interest. In addition to common medical imaging such as MRI or computed tomography, recent advances in the field of optical coherence tomography (OCT) have enabled live processing and volumetric rendering of four-dimensional images of the human body. Due to the region of interest undergoing motion, it is challenging for the surgeon to simultaneously keep track of an object by continuously adjusting the TV to desired slices. To select these slices in subsequent frames automatically, it is necessary to track movements of the volume of interest (VOI). This has not been addressed with respect to 4DOCT images yet. Therefore, this paper evaluates motion tracking by applying state-of-the-art tracking schemes on maximum intensity projections (MIP) of 4D-OCT images. Estimated VOI location is used to conveniently show corresponding slices and to improve the MIPs by calculating thin-slab MIPs. Tracking performances are evaluated on an in-vivo sequence of human skin, captured at 26 volumes per second. Among investigated tracking schemes, our recently presented tracking scheme for soft tissue motion provides highest accuracy with an error of under 2.2 voxels for the first 80 volumes. Object tracking on 4D-OCT images enables its use for sub-epithelial tracking of microvessels for image-guidance. © 2017 SPIE

Comparing the policy narratives of Angela Merkel and Boris Johnson during the Covid-19 pandemic

The Covid-19 pandemic has required citizens to adhere to strict restrictions to help tackle infection rates. Drawing on a new study, Michael Mintrom, Maria Rost Rublee, Matteo Bonotti and Steven T. Zech compare the effectiveness of the policy narratives used by German Chancellor Angela Merkel and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson to encourage citizens to follow their advice

The association of comorbidities, utilization and costs for patients identified with low back pain

BACKGROUND: Existing studies have examined the high prevalence of LBP along with the high treatment costs of patients with low back pain (LBP). Various factors have been shown to be correlated or predictive of chronic or episodic LBP including the characteristics of the initial episode, pain, comorbid conditions, psychosocial issues, and opiate use. This study replicates and extends earlier studies by examining the association of patient characteristics including baseline comorbidities with patterns of healthcare service use and cost. METHODS: This is a retrospective analysis of measures of comorbidities, healthcare use, and cost for patients identified with LBP, stratified by the number of LBP episodes. Administrative data associated with outpatient and hospital based care for the years 1996 through 2001, were used to identify adult patients with LBP. LBP patients continuously enrolled for 12 months prior and 24 months after their initial LBP event were included in the study. A LBP episode was identified as the number of 30-day periods where a patient had one or more healthcare events with a diagnosis consistent with LBP. Chi-square and multivariate regression analyses were employed to estimate the variation in utilization and costs. RESULTS: Of 16,567 patients enrolled, 67% were identified with only one LBP episode and 4.5% had ≥6. The prevalence of comorbidities, analgesic use, and healthcare service use, varied by the number of back pain episodes. Diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, anxiety, psychotic illness, depression, use of opiates and NSAIDs were associated with significant incremental increases in costs (P < .003). CONCLUSION: Physical and mental health co-morbidities and measures of analgesic use were associated with chronicity, healthcare utilization and costs. Given the association of comorbidities and cost for patients with LBP, management approaches that are effective across chronic illnesses may prove to be beneficial for high cost patients identified with LBP

Providing Nutrition Education at a Food Pantry Affects Food-Related Behavior of Participants

We investigated effects of nutrition education provided to food pantry clients by trained volunteers. Specifically, we assessed effects on food security, nutrition practices, and food safety by examining the food pantry clients\u27 intent to use beneficial kitchen practices and self-reported behavior following the education. Participants who engaged in at least one educational lesson completed an intent survey after the education. After the 4-month period during which the lessons were provided, participants and members of a comparison group completed retrospective questionnaires. Participants reported both high intent to use resources and behavior change (p ≤ .05). Offering nutrition education in food pantries is useful for participants and constitutes worthwhile Extension programming

Measuring Quality of Mental Health Care: An International Comparison

The International Initiative for Mental Health Leadership (IIMHL) (www.iimhl.com) is a unique international collaborative that focuses on improving mental health and addiction services. IIMHL is a collaboration of eight countries including Australia, England, Canada, New Zealand, Republic of Ireland, Scotland, Sweden and USA. The project, “Measuring Quality of Mental Health Care: An International Comparison”, was initiated by a group of clinical experts under the auspices of the IIMHL Clinical Leaders Group. Led by Prof. Harold Pincus from Columbia University in New York, the project aims to not only raise awareness among clinicians and policymakers regarding the quality of care of the mental health systems they are working in, but ultimately to be able to compare system performance across countries to inform initiatives for transformation of mental health services