Knitting as art.

Hand knitting is my chosen technique for making art. Because knitting is traditionally thought of as craft, my work must overcome several obstacles in order to be valued as art. First, objects made using craft techniques and materials are often functional; even when it is not, we view them as such and value them less than art. Second, the materials and techniques used for knitting are not traditional fine art materials. This has changed; process and materials are what much contemporary art is about. Yet the bias against craft techniques and materials persists. Finally, knitting is viewed as woman\u27s work and so is undervalued. I have resolved this in several, first by using materials which create work that is much larger than typical knitting and second by using a material that creates a fabric not easily identifiable as knitting

Spitzer Science operations: the good, the bad, and the ugly

We review the Spitzer Space Telescope Science Center operations teams and processes and their interfaces with other Project elements -- what we planned early in the development of the science center, what we had at a launch and what we have now and why. We also explore the checks and balances behind building an organizational structure that supports constructive airing of conflicts and a timely resolution that balances the inputs and provides for very efficient on-orbit operations. For example, what organizational roles are involved in reviewing observing schedules, what constituency do they represent and who has authority to approve or disapprove the schedule

Leading in a Gen Y World - A Corporate Essay

The purpose of this paper is to describe the leadership challenges in a Gen Y world and propose changes needed to capitalize on the new realities of this important element of the workforce. The summary information and propositions described in this paper are based on over 140 interviews collected as part of a research project led by Deborah S. Levine at AGL Resources, a Fortune 1000 energy-based company located in Atlanta, Georgia. The interview data includes Gen Y individuals currently employed by AGL Resources, as well as students in Louisiana, Georgia and Ohio at post-secondary schools

LSST Science Data Quality Analysis Subsystem Design

The Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST) will have a Science Data Quality Analysis (SDQA) subsystem for vetting its unprecedented volume of astronomical image data. The SDQA subsystem inhabits three basic realms: image processing, graphical-user-interface (GUI) tools, and alarms/reporting. During pipeline image processing, SDQA data are computed for the images and astronomical sources extracted from the images, and utilized to grade the images and sources. Alarms are automatically sent, if necessary, to initiate swift response to problems found. Both SDQA data and machine-determined grades are stored in a database. At the end of a data-processing interval, e.g., nightly processing or data-release reprocessing, automatic SDQA reports are generated from SDQA data and grades queried from the database. The SDQA reports summarize the science data quality and provide feedback to telescope, camera, facility, observation-scheduling and data-processing personnel. During operations, GUI tools facilitate visualization of image and SDQA data in a variety of ways that allow a small SDQA-operations team of humans to quickly and easily perform manual SDQA on a substantial fraction of LSST data products, and possibly reassign SDQA grades as a result of the visual inspection

Spitzer Science operations: the good, the bad, and the ugly

We review the Spitzer Space Telescope Science Center operations teams and processes and their interfaces with other Project elements -- what we planned early in the development of the science center, what we had at a launch and what we have now and why. We also explore the checks and balances behind building an organizational structure that supports constructive airing of conflicts and a timely resolution that balances the inputs and provides for very efficient on-orbit operations. For example, what organizational roles are involved in reviewing observing schedules, what constituency do they represent and who has authority to approve or disapprove the schedule

Evaluation of a Patient Communication Program and Patient Appointment Reminder Calls in a Community Health Center Setting

Community health centers across the country struggle with patients who frequently miss appointments. Missed and unused appointment slots represent lost revenue for health centers and disruption in care continuity. The medical home model recognizes these challenges and establishes patient access as a core element, key components of which include more efficient scheduling functions and capacity for same-day appointments. Identifying effective and feasible strategies to reduce the no-show rate is a critical component of these efforts. The Massachusetts League of Community Health Centers, the University of Massachusetts Medical School, and the Edward M. Kennedy Community Health Center came together to launch a patient communications pilot program that involved outsourcing and centralizing patient communication functions. With grant funding, the collaborators were able to evaluate the effectiveness of the pilot program and the performance of the appointment reminder system. Secondary data sources - call reminder disposition data merged with data on patients and other characteristics - were analyzed to assess the performance of the call reminder system and the factors associated with a patient showing up for an appointment. The collaborators will present their innovative partnership approach and findings on patient demographics and other factors that can result in missed appointments

Encouraging Healthy Lifestyle Choices Among At-Risk Youth: The RESOLVE Program

This study describes results for the second year of RESOLVE, a federally-funded (U.S. Administration for Children and Families, CBAE) program designed to teach healthy lifestyles, goal setting, refusal skills, and abstinence education to at-risk youth that was developed and implemented by the Jewish Child Care Association. These data examine changes in content knowledge, self-esteem, attitudes and intentions regarding pre-marital sexual behavior from pre- to post-test, as well as self-report data on actual sexual activity. Results for the 303 youth who completed the program indicate positive changes in content-knowledge, attitudes and intentions regarding sexual behavior. Qualitative results highlight the importance of health educators as role models and mentors for youth, enhancing the information provided by the formal curriculum