Current status of metric reduction of (passive) scanner data

The extraction of metric information from scanner (particularly multispectral) data is presented. Data from both aircraft and spacecraft; singly scanned areas and areas with multiple coverage; various mathematical models used up to the present time; and published numerical results are considered. Future trends are also discussed

Minimal exercise, maximum benefit? Comparing incidental physical activity with structured exercise participation on three measures of well-being in a group of corporate employees

In response to increasingly sedentary workplaces, many organizations utilise employee well-being programmes that include physical activity. Physical activity is purported to have physiological benefits and improve overall mental well-being and is assumed will benefit the organization through reduced absenteeism rates and enhanced job satisfaction. Whilst research found associations between engagement in exercise and increased levels of well-being, conflicting support exists for reduced absenteeism and little support was found for enhanced job satisfaction. Much research has also failed to consider any mediating effects that stress may have had on the outcome. In addition, there exists little research that compared the effects of general physical activity with structured exercise participation on reports of well-being, which may be of use for wellbeing programme policy. This paper will review the literature regarding exercise and physical activity and the effects on factors of subjective well-being, job satisfaction and stress. Weaknesses as well as strengths in the body of knowledge will be reviewed, it will be suggested that it is timely and important to further investigations in this area. Objectives: Whilst the world health organisation (WHO) asserts that western societies show insufficient levels of physical activity (PA), research has paid little attention to the contribution of non regimented activities to well-being. The current study compared global well-being (GWB), job satisfaction (JS) and perceived stress (PS) between corporate employees who engage in sport and those, less active, whose PA is intertwined in their daily routine. Four predictions were tested. Firstly, the sport group would report significantly higher GWB. Secondly, there would be a significant positive correlation between PA and GWB. Thirdly, there would be a significant negative correlation between PS and PA levels. Fourthly, there would be a significant negative correlation between PS and JS. Design: Cross sectional survey Methods: Participants were 216 corporate employees (n =162 females & n =54 males). They completed sport and leisure indexes of a sport questionnaire. GWB was assessed with the satisfaction with life scale, JS with a job satisfaction scale, and PS using a four item perceived stress scale. Data analysis comprised two MANOVAs and bivariate correlations. Results: The first hypothesis was not supported as the leisure group reported a statistically higher level of GWB. Hypotheses two and three were both supported. Hypothesis four was not supported as a non significant negative correlation was found. Conclusion: The findings suggest that whilst physical activity overall does contribute to enhanced GWB and reduced PS, the activities are optimally rewarding when incorporated into daily routine. JS, however, was significantly higher for the sport group

Turning Point: The 2016 Salukis

An ABSTRACT OF THE THESIS OF SAMUEL J. MCGLONE, for the MASTERS OF SCIENCE degree in PROFESSIONAL MEDIA AND MEDIA MANEGMENT presented on *MARCH 30, 2017, at Southern Illinois University - Carbondale. TITLE: TURNING POINT: THE 2016 SALUKIS MAJOR PROFESSOR: JAN THOMPSON The purpose of this project was to document the journey of a football team through fall practice, but as camp ended it was clear the story was still unfolding. As a result, Turning Point follows the team through an entire season. Turning Point was borne because of a graduate student’s exposure to video services and athletics. During the assignment, it became apparent that following the team would make a great story. The graduate student status provided unfettered access to the SIU sports teams and promised insight for both the reader and the researcher. The football team was and still is going through an image change with a new head coach and staff and thus a renaissance in the culture of the program. Capturing that process on film will hopefully fill a gap in the research for football teams, coaches, and filmmakers. There are out takes of the players, coaches in meeting, practices and game day activities. The footage within Turning Point contains scenes that most are not privileged to as an average fan. Turning Point was designed to tell the story off the field to supplement and help tell the story on the field. Seeing what the players and coaches go through on a day to day basis invests the viewer into being much more than a fan, making the viewer a part of the reverence of what Saluki football truly is. The complexity of this team and the multiple story lines presented made this team the perfect final test for a thesis and the project tested all of the researcher’s skills to document a diverse and compelling story

Macrofossils and pollen representing forests of the pre-Taupo volcanic eruption (c. 1850 yr BP) era at Pureora and Benneydale, central North Island, New Zealand.

Micro- and macrofossil data from the remains of forests overwhelmed and buried at Pureora and Benneydale during the Taupo eruption (c. 1850 conventional radiocarbon yr BP) were compared. Classification of relative abundance data separated the techniques, rather than the locations, because the two primary clusters comprised pollen and litter/wood. This indicates that the pollen:litter/wood within-site comparisons (Pureora and Benneydale are 20 km apart) are not reliable. Plant macrofossils represented mainly local vegetation, while pollen assemblages represented a combination of local and regional vegetation. However, using ranked abundance and presence/absence data, both macrofossils and pollen at Pureora and Benneydale indicated conifer/broadleaved forest, of similar forest type and species composition at each site. This suggests that the forests destroyed by the eruption were typical of mid-altitude west Taupo forests, and that either data set (pollen or macrofossils) would have been adequate for regional forest interpretation. The representation of c. 1850 yr BP pollen from the known buried forest taxa was generally consistent with trends determined by modern comparisons between pollen and their source vegetation, but with a few exceptions. A pollen profile from between the Mamaku Tephra (c. 7250 yr BP) and the Taupo Ignimbrite indicated that the Benneydale forest had been markedly different in species dominance compared with the forest that was destroyed during the Taupo eruption. These differences probably reflect changes in drainage, and improvements in climate and/or soil fertility over the middle Holocene

NASA Desert RATS 2011 Education Pilot Project and Classroom Activities

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA's) Desert Research and Technology Studies (Desert RATS) is a multi-year series of tests of hardware and operations carried out annually in the high desert of Arizona, as an analog to future exploration activities beyond low Earth orbit [1]. For the past several years, these tests have occurred in the San Francisco Volcanic Field, north of Flagstaff. For the 2011 Desert RATS season, the Exploration Systems Mission Directorate (ESMD) at NASA headquarters provided support to develop an education pilot project that would include student activities to parallel the Desert RATS mission planning and exploration activities in the classroom, and educator training sessions. The development of the pilot project was a joint effort between the NASA Johnson Space Center (JSC) Astromaterials Research and Exploration Science (ARES) Directorate and the Aerospace Education Services Project (AESP), managed at Penn State University

Effectiveness of a social support intervention on infant feeding practices : randomised controlled trial

Background: To assess whether monthly home visits from trained volunteers could improve infant feeding practices at age 12 months, a randomised controlled trial was carried out in two disadvantaged inner city London boroughs. Methods: Women attending baby clinics with their infants (312) were randomised to receive monthly home visits from trained volunteers over a 9-month period (intervention group) or standard professional care only (control group). The primary outcome was vitamin C intakes from fruit. Secondary outcomes included selected macro and micro-nutrients, infant feeding habits, supine length and weight. Data were collected at baseline when infants were aged approximately 10 weeks, and subsequently when the child was 12 and 18 months old. Results: Two-hundred and twelve women (68%) completed the trial. At both follow-up points no significant differences were found between the groups for vitamin C intakes from fruit or other nutrients. At first follow-up, however, infants in the intervention group were significantly less likely to be given goats’ or soya milks, and were more likely to have three solid meals per day. At the second follow-up, intervention group children were significantly less likely to be still using a bottle. At both follow-up points, intervention group children also consumed significantly more specific fruit and vegetables. Conclusions: Home visits from trained volunteers had no significant effect on nutrient intakes but did promote some other recommended infant feeding practices

The role of gentle touch in perinatal osteopathic manual therapy.

Osteopathic medicine is a system of manual diagnosis and treatment. While there is growing evidence that osteopathy is effective in a range of clinical conditions, the underlying biological basis of its therapeutic effects remain largely unknown. Given that the sense of touch plays a critical role in osteopathy, in this perspective article, with a particular focus on perinatal care, we explore the potential mechanisms by which stimulation of the skin senses can exert beneficial physiological and psychological effects, aiding growth and development. We propose that a class of low threshold mechanosensitive c-fibre, named c-tactile afferents, which respond optimally to gentle, slow moving touch are likely to play a direct and significant role in the efficacy of manual therapies. A greater understanding of the impact the type and quality of touch plays in therapeutic tactile interventions and in particular the neuroscience underpinning these effects will aid the development of more targeted, population specific interventions