The Use of Geospatial Modeling and Novel Diagnostics to Detect and Map Risk Factors of Soil-Transmitted Helminths in Feira de Santana, Brazil

Soil-transmitted helminth (STH) infections impact billions of people worldwide. The traditional STH control approach is a morbidity control strategy implementing mass drug administration (MDA) programs targeting school-aged children (SAC). In Brazil, this control strategy has decreased STH prevalence to less than 20% in most of the country and providing an opportunity to transition from the morbidity control program and towards a surveillance and response system geared towards STH elimination. Surveillance and response systems geared towards elimination require the implementation higher accuracy diagnostics to detect infection in low-transmission communities, surveillance of entire households, high-resolution modeling at the household-habitat scale, and targeted treatment approaches tailored to specific communities. This study proposed to create a STH elimination surveillance and response system for the city of Feira de Santana, Brazil. Three communities were evaluated using three diagnostic techniques, entire households were sampled, and high resolution (30 m2) and very high-resolution (VHR) (m2) satellite products were utilized to produce STH ecological niche models (ENMs). In a separate study, a zoonotic Ascaris case in the southern United States was examined. The comparison of the mini-FLOTAC, quantitative PCR (qPCR) and the Ministry of Health Kato-Katz thick smear diagnostic tests revealed that the qPCR diagnostic quantified a significantly greater number of hookworm eggs in stool samples than either the Kato-Katz or the NaCl mini-FLOTAC. Sampling revealed the need to test whole families, as the mean age of STH (29.03), hookworm (29.0), Ascaris lumbricoides (22.29), and Trichuris trichiura (19.2) infections demonstrated. The production of ENMs using the VHR satellites GeoEye-1 (GE1) and WorldView-2 (WV2), and the high-resolution satellite Landsat 8, demonstrated that GE1 provided either superior or comparable model performed compared to WV2, and provided the resolution needed to effectively model STH niches at the household and its surrounding habitat. The differing STH prevalence and environmental risk factors between the 3 communities demonstrated the need to evaluate communities individually and craft targeted interventions. Genetic analysis in the case study determined that the cause of infection was zoonotic Ascaris suum. This study outlined steps towards implementing an STH elimination surveillance and response system for Fiera de Santana, Brazil

Trans∗Vulnerability And Digital Research Ethics: A Qubit Ethical Analysis Of Transparency Activism

Trans communities across the United States are under assault. Researchers seeking to work with trans people and other multiply marginalized and underrepresented communities must attend to ethical research practices within the communities in which they participate. Digital research ethics is particularly murky with issues of embodiment, vulnerability, and unclear IRB guidance. Comparing two transparency activist organizations-Wikileaks and DDoSecrets-we introduce qubit ethics, a trans material, trans-corporeal ethics of care as praxis within vulnerable online communities. We then demonstrate how this unique approach to research design allows for the complex entanglements that is trans life, particularly digital life. Finally, we present clear take-Aways for qubit-ethics informed social justice research

Global Measurements of Optically Thin Ice Clouds Using CALIOP

Optically thin ice clouds have been shown to have a net warming effect on the globe but, because passive instruments are not sensitive to optically thin clouds, the occurrence frequency of this class of clouds is greatly underestimated in historical passive sensor cloud climatology. One major strength of CALIOP (Cloud-Aerosol Lidar with Orthogonal Polarization), onboard the CALIPSO (Cloud-Aerosol Lidar and Infrared Pathfinder Satellite Observations) spacecraft, is its ability to detect these thin clouds, thus filling an important missing piece in the historical data record. This poster examines the full mission of CALIPSO Level 2 data, focusing on those CALIOP retrievals identified as thin ice clouds according to the definition shown to the right. Using this definition, thin ice clouds are identified and counted globally and vertically for each season. By examining the spatial and seasonal distributions of these thin clouds we hope to gain a better understanding these thin ice clouds and how their global distribution has changed over the mission. This poster showcases when and where CALIOP detects thin ice clouds and examines a case study of the eastern pacific and the effects seen from the El Nino-Southern Oscillation (ENSO)

Does Augmented Reality Augment the Experience? A Qualitative Analysis of Enjoyment for Sports Spectators

This study examined users' attitudes and opinions of using augmented reality technology in comparison to other non-augmented reality technologies. Broadly, there were differences between users when using different devices. These differences help shed light onto the process of implementation of such new technologies in various sports settings, from arenas and stadiums to at-home viewership. From the results of this study, it is likely that this technology may not lead to better fan experience, but instead might leave them feeling frustrated and potentially isolated. Particularly given the expense of technology like Google Glass, this study suggests such technology should be implemented selectively and carefully. Additionally, the effects of using Google Glass in stadiums and arenas may not simply be on the users, but also on those seated around them, who may be bothered by the deliberate actions of those wearing such augmented reality devices. Notably, this may shift as the devices become more prevalent

Blackjack Player Choice, Superstition, and Calculated Odds of Winning

Given the prevalence of gambling and preponderance of gaming options, efforts to curb problem gambling and promote responsible play for recreational players are of value. The current experiment analyzed choice behavior in the context of blackjack, the associated odds produced by these choices, and the influence of accurate rules (instructions) regarding gameplay. Results found novice players deviate significantly from optimal strategy and adjusted payout rates change as a function of this deviation. For these players, the predicted losses incurred following such strategies deviated significantly from the anticipated outcomes predicted by the odds that are commonly advertised. Next, participants viewed a video that addressed common misconceptions about gambling e.g., “It is good advice to stay in the same seat when I am winning,” the chance nature of gambling, as well as strategy and choice behavior that does influence the odds. Following instruction, self-reported measures of superstition and illusion of control decreased while player choice and odds of winning improved. Simply educating individuals on strategy and expected outcomes may improve gameplay as well as reduce the role of superstition, inaccurate rules, and contextual variables that contribute to problem or pathological gambling

SBG Applications: Public Health and Urban Environments

No abstract availabl