Seniors Count Follow-Up Study

Seniors Count is an ongoing outreach initiative under the direction of Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino with the leadership and support of Joyce Williams, Boston\u27s Commissioner on Affairs of the Elderly. The program\u27s purpose is to identify and reach out to those members of the city\u27s elderly population who live in private housing arrangements and help provide them with the information and services they [may] need (Boston Commission on Affairs of the Elderly, 2002). Since the program\u27s inception in 1999, it has reached over 5,500 community-dwelling elders in the City of Boston (Boston Commission on Affairs of the Elderly, 2002). The purpose of this study was to conduct a follow-up assessment of the first phase of Seniors Count. This follow-up study provides insights into Seniors Count participants\u27 satisfaction with the program, how well participants felt their needs had been addressed, and whether new needs had arisen since their 1999 in-person household interviews. In addition, respondents were asked about health status, neighborhoods, safety, voting behavior, and their perception of Boston as an elder-friendly city. The current report provides information and data collected from the Seniors Count Phase I Follow-Up Study and will share information about elders\u27 experiences with Seniors Count, as well as descriptive information about these other areas of interest

Progressive stage transition does mean getting better: a further test of the Transtheoretical Model in recovery from alcohol problems

Aims To test two central assumptions of the Transtheoretical Model (TTM) regarding recovery from alcohol problems: (i) individuals making a forward transition from pre-action to action stages will show greater drinking improvements than those remaining in pre-action stages; and (ii) individuals remaining in pre-action stages will not demonstrate improvements in drinking outcomes. Design and setting Large, multi-centre, randomized controlled trial of treatment for alcohol problems [United Kingdom Alcohol Treatment Trial (UKATT)]. Measurements Stage of change, drinks per drinking day and percentage days abstinent at baseline, 3- and 12-month follow-ups. Findings In support of TTM assumption 1, improvements in drinking outcomes were consistently greater among clients who showed a forward stage transition (Cohen's d = 0.68) than among those who did not (d = 0.10). Two tests of assumption 2 showed a significant improvement in drinking outcomes in non-transition groups, inconsistent with the TTM; one test showed a significant deterioration and the other showed equivalent drinking outcomes across time. An explanation is offered as to why, under the relevant assumption of the TTM, clients in non-transition groups showed small changes in drinking outcomes. Conclusions In contrast to a previous study by Callaghan and colleagues, our findings largely support the TTM account of recovery from alcohol problems in treatment. The discrepancy can be explained by the use in our study of a more reliable and valid method for assigning stage of change

The Simons Observatory: Magnetic Shielding Measurements for the Universal Multiplexing Module

The Simons Observatory (SO) includes four telescopes that will measure the temperature and polarization of the cosmic microwave background using over 60,000 highly sensitive transition-edge bolometers (TES). These multichroic TES bolometers are read out by a microwave RF SQUID multiplexing system with a multiplexing factor of 910. Given that both TESes and SQUIDs are susceptible to magnetic field pickup and that it is hard to predict how they will respond to such fields, it is important to characterize the magnetic response of these systems empirically. This information can then be used to limit spurious signals by informing magnetic shielding designs for the detectors and readout. This paper focuses on measurements of magnetic pickup with different magnetic shielding configurations for the SO universal multiplexing module (UMM), which contains the SQUIDs, associated resonators, and TES bias circuit. The magnetic pickup of a prototype UMM was tested under three shielding configurations: no shielding (copper packaging), aluminum packaging for the UMM, and a tin/lead-plated shield surrounding the entire dilution refrigerator 100 mK cold stage. The measurements show that the aluminum packaging outperforms the copper packaging by a shielding factor of 8-10, and adding the tin/lead-plated 1K shield further increases the relative shielding factor in the aluminum configuration by 1-2 orders of magnitude.Comment: 7 pages, 4 figure, conference proceedings submitted to the Journal of Low Temperature Physic

The Simons Observatory: Magnetic Sensitivity Measurements of Microwave SQUID Multiplexers

The Simons Observatory (SO) will be a cosmic microwave background (CMB) survey experiment with three small-aperture telescopes and one large-aperture telescope, which will observe from the Atacama Desert in Chile. In total, SO will field $\sim$70,000 transition-edge sensor (TES) bolometers in six spectral bands centered between 27 and 280 GHz in order to achieve the sensitivity necessary to measure or constrain numerous cosmological quantities. The SO Universal Focal Plane Modules (UFMs) each contain a 150 mm diameter TES detector array, horn or lenslet optical coupling, cold readout components, and magnetic shielding. SO will use a microwave SQUID multiplexing ($\mu$MUX) readout at an initial multiplexing factor of $\sim$1000; the cold (100 mK) readout components are packaged in a $\mu$MUX readout module, which is part of the UFM, and can also be characterized independently. The 100 mK stage TES bolometer arrays and microwave SQUIDs are sensitive to magnetic fields, and their measured response will vary with the degree to which they are magnetically shielded. We present measurements of the magnetic pickup of test microwave SQUID multiplexers as a study of various shielding configurations for the Simons Observatory. We discuss how these measurements motivated the material choice and design of the UFM magnetic shielding.Comment: 5 pages, 6 figures, conference proceedings submitted to IEEE Transactions on Applied Superconductivit

The Simons Observatory microwave SQUID multiplexing detector module design

Advances in cosmic microwave background (CMB) science depend on increasing the number of sensitive detectors observing the sky. New instruments deploy large arrays of superconducting transition-edge sensor (TES) bolometers tiled densely into ever larger focal planes. High multiplexing factors reduce the thermal loading on the cryogenic receivers and simplify their design. We present the design of focal-plane modules with an order of magnitude higher multiplexing factor than has previously been achieved with TES bolometers. We focus on the novel cold readout component, which employs microwave SQUID multiplexing ($\mu$mux). Simons Observatory will use 49 modules containing 60,000 bolometers to make exquisitely sensitive measurements of the CMB. We validate the focal-plane module design, presenting measurements of the readout component with and without a prototype detector array of 1728 polarization-sensitive bolometers coupled to feedhorns. The readout component achieves a $95\%$ yield and a 910 multiplexing factor. The median white noise of each readout channel is 65 $\mathrm{pA/\sqrt{Hz}}$. This impacts the projected SO mapping speed by $< 8\%$, which is less than is assumed in the sensitivity projections. The results validate the full functionality of the module. We discuss the measured performance in the context of SO science requirements, which are exceeded.Comment: Accepted to The Astrophysical Journa

The Simons Observatory Large Aperture Telescope Receiver

The Simons Observatory (SO) Large Aperture Telescope Receiver (LATR) will be coupled to the Large Aperture Telescope located at an elevation of 5,200 m on Cerro Toco in Chile. The resulting instrument will produce arcminute-resolution millimeter-wave maps of half the sky with unprecedented precision. The LATR is the largest cryogenic millimeter-wave camera built to date with a diameter of 2.4 m and a length of 2.6 m. It cools 1200 kg of material to 4 K and 200 kg to 100 mk, the operating temperature of the bolometric detectors with bands centered around 27, 39, 93, 145, 225, and 280 GHz. Ultimately, the LATR will accommodate 13 40 cm diameter optics tubes, each with three detector wafers and a total of 62,000 detectors. The LATR design must simultaneously maintain the optical alignment of the system, control stray light, provide cryogenic isolation, limit thermal gradients, and minimize the time to cool the system from room temperature to 100 mK. The interplay between these competing factors poses unique challenges. We discuss the trade studies involved with the design, the final optimization, the construction, and ultimate performance of the system

Models of classroom assessment for course-based research experiences

Course-based research pedagogy involves positioning students as contributors to authentic research projects as part of an engaging educational experience that promotes their learning and persistence in science. To develop a model for assessing and grading students engaged in this type of learning experience, the assessment aims and practices of a community of experienced course-based research instructors were collected and analyzed. This approach defines four aims of course-based research assessment—(1) Assessing Laboratory Work and Scientific Thinking; (2) Evaluating Mastery of Concepts, Quantitative Thinking and Skills; (3) Appraising Forms of Scientific Communication; and (4) Metacognition of Learning—along with a set of practices for each aim. These aims and practices of assessment were then integrated with previously developed models of course-based research instruction to reveal an assessment program in which instructors provide extensive feedback to support productive student engagement in research while grading those aspects of research that are necessary for the student to succeed. Assessment conducted in this way delicately balances the need to facilitate students’ ongoing research with the requirement of a final grade without undercutting the important aims of a CRE education

Post-treatment stage of change predicts 12-month outcome of treatment for alcohol problems.

AIMS: To evaluate relationships between clients' self-reported 'stage of change' and outcomes after treatment for alcohol problems. METHODS: Using data from the 'United Kingdom Alcohol Treatment Trial', clients who had received at least one session of treatment and who had complete data (n = 392) entered the analysis. Two continuous measures of drinking behaviour (% days abstinent (PDA) and drinks per drinking day (DDD)) and categorical outcomes at the 12-month follow-up were compared between clients in Pre-action and Action stages of change at either pre- or post-treatment assessment. Multiple and logistic regression analyses examined the relationships between stage of change and treatment outcomes, evaluating the strength of these relationships by controlling for likely confounders. RESULTS: Pre-treatment stage of change did not predict outcome but post-treatment stage of change predicted PDA and DDD at the 12-month follow-up. In unadjusted and adjusted analyses, clients in Action at post-treatment were two to three times more likely to show a favourable categorical outcome, variously defined, than those in Pre-action. There were no differences between clients who had received Motivational Enhancement Therapy and those who had received Social Behaviour and Network Therapy in proportions maintaining or moving towards Action from before to after treatment. CONCLUSIONS: These findings confirm previous reports that motivational variables predict outcome of treatment but add that such a relationship is seen for post-treatment stage of change. For therapists, it would seem important to monitor the client's stage of change-which in good clinical practice often occurs in informal ways-and have strategies to deal with low motivation to change whenever it occurs throughout treatment. The findings are also consistent with a 'common factors' perspective on effective treatment for alcohol problems

Seniors Count Follow-Up Study

Seniors Count is an ongoing outreach initiative under the direction of Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino with the leadership and support of Joyce Williams, Boston\u27s Commissioner on Affairs of the Elderly. The program\u27s purpose is to identify and reach out to those members of the city\u27s elderly population who live in private housing arrangements and help provide them with the information and services they [may] need (Boston Commission on Affairs of the Elderly, 2002). Since the program\u27s inception in 1999, it has reached over 5,500 community-dwelling elders in the City of Boston (Boston Commission on Affairs of the Elderly, 2002). The purpose of this study was to conduct a follow-up assessment of the first phase of Seniors Count. This follow-up study provides insights into Seniors Count participants\u27 satisfaction with the program, how well participants felt their needs had been addressed, and whether new needs had arisen since their 1999 in-person household interviews. In addition, respondents were asked about health status, neighborhoods, safety, voting behavior, and their perception of Boston as an elder-friendly city. The current report provides information and data collected from the Seniors Count Phase I Follow-Up Study and will share information about elders\u27 experiences with Seniors Count, as well as descriptive information about these other areas of interest