Factors affecting dwell times on digital displaying

A series of exploratory tests were conducted to investigate the effects of advanced display formats and display media on pilot scanning behavior using Langley's oculometer, a desktop flight simulator, a conventional electro-mechanical meter, and various digital displays. The primary task was for the test subject to maintain level flight, on a specific course heading, during moderate turbulence. A secondary task of manually controlling the readout of a display was used to examine the effects of the display format on a subject's scan behavior. Secondary task scan parameters that were evaluated were average dwell time, dwell time histograms, and number of dwells per meter change. The round dial meter demonstrated shorter dwell times and fewer dwells per meter change than the digital displays. The following factors affected digital display scanning behavior: (1) the number of digits; (2) the update rate of the digits; (3) the display media; and (4) the character font. The size of the digits used in these tests (0.28 to 0.50 inches) did not affect scan behavior measures

An Analysis Of Pupil Failure At I. M .Terrell High School, Fort Worth, Texas

Statement of the Problem A four-semester study of the extent and causes of pupil failure at I. M. Terrell High School, Fort Worth, Texas, revealed that approximately twenty percent of the enrolled pupils were not promoted by subject teachers. It seems possible that the reasons submitted by the teachers may be regarded as generally characterizing lack of pupil progress but that unless each individual case has been investigated thoroughly, such stated reasons may not be sufficiently valid. To attribute most of the failure of pupils to non-attendance or poor attendance without considering the facts related to lack of attendance may be likened to one\u27s telling a patient that he is ill without having concern for the improvement of his physical condition. Whether the teacher or the school has done its best to facilitate pupil growth and success is a matter of great importance. Attempts to discover the real causes of pupil failure have not been very successful. Reasons assigned by pupils or by teachers are sometimes the products of rationalization. Douglass 3ays, Failure is most likely to come about from a combination of causes, not all of which are associated with failure by the pupils Purpose of the Study Considering the implications, the writer purposes to bring into focus some causes of pupil failure as recorded in educational literature, to stimulate interest in the prevention of pupil failure, and to evaluate some proposals for reducing non-promotion

Seasonal variation in utilization of biogenic microhabitats by littorinid snails on tropical rocky shores

Mobile species may actively seek refuge from stressful conditions in biogenic habitats on rocky shores. In Hong Kong, the upper intertidal zone is extremely stressful, especially in summer when organisms are emersed for long periods in hot desiccating conditions. As a result, many species migrate downshore between winter and summer to reduce these stressful conditions. The littorinids Echinolittorina malaccana and E. vidua, for example, are found on open rock surfaces high on the shore in winter but the majority migrate downshore in summer to the same tidal height as a common barnacle, Tetraclita japonica. In the laboratory, where environmental conditions could be controlled to approximate those occurring on the shore, we tested whether the downshore migration allowed littorinids to select barnacles as biogenic habitats to reduce stress and if this behaviour varied between seasons. In summer, littorinids demonstrated a strong active preference for the barnacles, which was not observed in the cool winter conditions, when animals were found on open rock surfaces even when barnacles were present. Littorinids, therefore, only actively select biogenic habitats during the summer in Hong Kong when they migrate downshore, suggesting that such habitats may play an important, temporal, role in mitigating environmental stress on tropical shores. © 2012 The Author(s).published_or_final_versio

Reaching African American Males In Hartford, CT, Through The Use Of Black Heritage Bible Studies

Problem For the past ten years, the Faith Seventh-day Adventist Church in Hartford, Connecticut has not been very successful at winning African American males. It appears that this is because a significant number of African American males hold the Bible as “the white man’s book” and a tool of enslavement that has no relevance today. This makes our traditional evangelistic approach and materials ineffective. Method The project was to (1) raise the level of awareness about the dilemma of the African American male, (2) examine the factors that have led to the negative stereotype and their unwillingness to attend church, (3) establish a biblical foundation for the development of a strategy to reach them, and (4) develop a model for drawing African American males to the Faith Seventh-day Adventist Church in the north end section of Hartford, Connecticut, where Faith is located. The project informed and offered practical skills on how to reach the African American males. It involved a six-week seminar meeting three nights per week covering fourteen lessons known as the Black Heritage Bible Lessons which teach the Advent message from a culturally sensitive perspective by highlighting a person or nation of color in the Bible. A graduation program was planned with an appeal for baptisms at the end of the seminar. The seminar was advertised in local community papers and though it was designed to target black males, no restriction was made as to who could register. All fourteen lessons were given to the registered participant at the beginning of the seminar, and they were told to complete each lesson before returning to the next class. At the end of the classes, all participants who attended every seminar were invited to a graduation ceremony where they received a certificate and a gift. Results In the project, nineteen men and eleven women registered for the Black Heritage Bible Seminar and fifteen men and ten women eventually attended. Of the men that attended, eleven came every night and graduated from the seminar, with three getting baptized along with four women. The Black Heritage Bible Lessons used in the seminar did highlight the fact that African culture did have an impact upon the Bible. There was discussion on Moses being described as an Egyptian (Exod 2:19), Egypt being a country on the Continent of Africa, the Apostle Paul mistaken for being from the same country (Acts 21:38), and that these two men are responsible for nearly two thirds of the books of the Bible. Conclusions A higher percentage of black men are attracted by the black heritage approach to evangelism than are women. Black history and culture was very attractive to the black male. A traditional evangelistic event would have attracted nine males and twenty-one females, while the “black heritage approach” nearly reversed the trend completely by attracting nineteen men and eleven females. Seventy-five percent of the people who showed for the seminar were black men, and forty-three percent of the baptismal candidates. So the percentage of men completing the seminar and graduating nearly tripled that of the females who attended and graduated, which is unheard of in traditional evangelism

Post-Katrina Retention of Law Enforcement Officers: A Case Study of the New Orleans Police Department

This dissertation is a case study of the New Orleans Police Department and identified factors that affected the retention of law enforcement officers post-Hurricane Katrina. The NOPD was chosen because the agency was an extreme case and experienced the unprecedented separation of over 300 officers during and post- Hurricane Katrina. The variables examined included tenure, age, salary, education, and job satisfaction, as well as, race, sex, marital status, and New Orleans residency. This research is significant because in a time of decreasing budgets and increased cost to replace employees, where skills are scarce and knowledge is important, recruitment is costly, and it takes time to fill vacancies, turnover can be problematic (Loquercio, 2006). Hurricane Katrina was an unprecedented catastrophic disaster unlike any event experienced by a local police department. The impact accelerated the attrition of New Orleans Police Department officers at a time when the agency and community needed them the most. In addition to normal retention challenges experienced by law enforcement, post-Hurricane Katrina, the New Orleans Police Department experienced separation of almost a fourth of its agency post-Hurricane Katrina. This was very problematic and forced the department to operate severely short-staffed at a time when the department was trying to provide essential services to the community and recover from the storm’s affect at the same time. This dissertation explored some of the causes of attrition, examined the attrition of the NOPD pre-and post-Hurricane Katrina, and reasons most officers stayed. It was important to identify lessons learned from an agency and officers who experienced a disaster and unprecedented attrition of officers first hand. The consequences of such significant attrition will take years to overcome, especially in light of the New Orleans Police Department’s pre-and post-Hurricane Katrina recruitment and retention challenges

If and to What Extent Spirituality Impacts the Leadership Practices of Four African American Superintendents

Public school superintendents have one of the most challenging, demanding, and visible positions in American society. They provide educational leadership in approximately 15,499 school districts across the United States. Their visibility is marked by the fact that the majority of leadership positions are held by non-minority individuals (American Association of School Administrators, 1992). The underrepresentation of minorities in public school leadership positions on a national level has been thoroughly documented over the years, and the limited representation of African Americans in top positions of public school administration is glaring (AASA, 1992, 1983; Jones & Montenegro, 1988, 1985; Montenegro, 1993). The purpose of this qualitative study was to understand if and to what extent spirituality impacts the leadership practices of four African American superintendents. The focus of the study was to explore how these administrators living in the South constructed and/or defined leadership; what obstacles or barriers, if any affected their path to leadership; and if to what extent their spirituality is embedded into their leadership practices. Critical Race Theory (CRT), with its focus on defining, addressing, and exposing educational problems, was the theoretical framework used to guide this study. The sample consisted of four participants, each serving in the capacity of assistant superintendent or superintendent. Each participant was interviewed in the setting of his or her choice and then allowed the researcher to conduct field notes through participant observations. This experience allowed the researcher to observe the superintendents’ leadership practices, and how each participant was received by their staff. Interviews provided rich descriptions of how the research participants perceived these leadership practices with an emphasis being on spirituality. Through case study analysis, nine main themes and 20 subthemes were identified. The main themes included: leadership paradigm, influences on leadership, barriers and obstacles, spiritual expression, spirituality versus religiosity, spiritual influences, spirituality and the workplace, spiritual journey, and spiritual influences on leadership practices. Cross-case analysis revealed a small number of subthemes shared across cases. Differences between cases were considerable and were presented via the identification of new subthemes and unique cases. Recommendations are offered for future research and tentatively, for future African Americans who aspire to become superintendents. Most notably, participants in this study saw themselves as “visionary leaders” who are truly invested in the lives and welfare of the children and adults they serve in their prospective school districts. They did, however, give advice on essential tools needed by future African American leaders who aspire to become superintendents

Post-Katrina Retention of Law Enforcement Officers: A Case Study of the New Orleans Police Department

This dissertation is a case study of the New Orleans Police Department and identified factors that affected the retention of law enforcement officers post-Hurricane Katrina. The NOPD was chosen because the agency was an extreme case and experienced the unprecedented separation of over 300 officers during and post- Hurricane Katrina. The variables examined included tenure, age, salary, education, and job satisfaction, as well as, race, sex, marital status, and New Orleans residency. This research is significant because in a time of decreasing budgets and increased cost to replace employees, where skills are scarce and knowledge is important, recruitment is costly, and it takes time to fill vacancies, turnover can be problematic (Loquercio, 2006). Hurricane Katrina was an unprecedented catastrophic disaster unlike any event experienced by a local police department. The impact accelerated the attrition of New Orleans Police Department officers at a time when the agency and community needed them the most. In addition to normal retention challenges experienced by law enforcement, post-Hurricane Katrina, the New Orleans Police Department experienced separation of almost a fourth of its agency post-Hurricane Katrina. This was very problematic and forced the department to operate severely short-staffed at a time when the department was trying to provide essential services to the community and recover from the storm’s affect at the same time. This dissertation explored some of the causes of attrition, examined the attrition of the NOPD pre-and post-Hurricane Katrina, and reasons most officers stayed. It was important to identify lessons learned from an agency and officers who experienced a disaster and unprecedented attrition of officers first hand. The consequences of such significant attrition will take years to overcome, especially in light of the New Orleans Police Department’s pre-and post-Hurricane Katrina recruitment and retention challenges

Do hotter temperatures increase the incidence of self-harm hospitalisations?

“This is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by Taylor & Francis in Psychology, Health and Medicine on 07 Apr 2015, available online: http://www.tandfonline.com/10.1080/13548506.2015.1028945.”Publishe

Medial collateral ligament reconstruction for anteromedial instability of the knee: a biomechanical study in vitro.

BACKGROUND: Although a medial collateral ligament (MCL) injury is associated with anteromedial rotatory instability (AMRI) and often with an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury, there has been little work to develop anteromedial (AM) reconstruction to address this laxity. PURPOSE: To measure the ability of a novel "anatomic" AM reconstruction technique to restore native knee laxity for isolated AM insufficiency and combined AM plus posteromedial insufficiency. STUDY DESIGN: Controlled laboratory study. METHODS: A total of 12 cadaveric knees were mounted in a kinematic testing rig that allowed the tibia to be loaded while the knee flexed-extended 0° to 100° with 88-N anteroposterior translation, 5-N·m internal rotation-external rotation (ER), 8-N·m valgus, and combined anterior translation plus ER to simulate AMRI. Joint motion was measured using optical trackers with the knee intact, after superficial MCL (sMCL) and deep MCL (dMCL) transection, and after AM reconstruction of the sMCL and dMCL with semitendinosus autografts. The posteromedial capsule (PMC)/posterior oblique ligament (POL) was then transected to induce a grade 3 medial injury, and kinematic measurements were repeated afterward and again after removing the grafts. Laxity changes were examined using repeated-measures analysis of variance and post-testing. RESULTS: sMCL and dMCL deficiency increased valgus, ER, and AMRI laxities. These laxities did not differ from native values after AM reconstruction. Additional PMC/POL deficiency did not increase these laxities significantly but did increase internal rotation laxity near knee extension; this was not controlled by AM reconstruction. CONCLUSION: AM reconstruction eliminated AMRI after transection of the dMCL and sMCL, and also eliminated AMRI after additional PMC/POL transection. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Many MCL injuries occur in combination with ACL injuries, causing AMRI. These injuries may rupture the AM capsule and dMCL. Unaddressed MCL deficiency leads to an increased ACL reconstruction failure rate. A dMCL construct oriented anterodistally across the medial joint line, along with an sMCL graft, can restore native knee ER laxity. PMC/POL lesions did not contribute to AMRI