6 research outputs found
RESTRUKTURISASI ORGANISASI PADA SEKERTARIAT DAERAH KABUPATEN ENDE PROVINSI NUSA TENGGARA TIMUR
No full textThis paper discusses the process of organizational restructuring that occurred at the Regional Secretariat of Ende District as a result of the policy of regional apparatus arrangement in Ende District, East Nusa Tenggara Province. Although it has gone through various changes, a number of regulatory tools have been replaced with the consequences of changing the concept of organizational restructuring from downsizing to rightsizing, but have not been able to significantly improve the performance of the Regional Secretariat of Ende District. In this study the author uses the concept of restructuring derived from the 4R theory (Gouilarrt & Kelly, 1995) with the indicators namely building an organizational model, integrating physical infrastructure, and redesigning the work architecture. The research method used is descriptive with a qualitative approach that is carried out through observation and interviews and reinforced secondary data studies from relevant agency documents and the results of previous competent research. The results show that indicators build economic models, integration of physical infrastructure, and redesign the work architecture have not run optimally. The restructuring was apparently not balanced with the availability of human resources and pre-facility facilities as well as good financial management . Keywords: Regional Secretariat of Ende District, Restructuring, Local Government Organizatio
Hilbert transformation of waveforms to determine shear wave velocity in concrete
No full textWOS: 000269268000009Given the density value, elastic properties of a homogeneous and isotropic material can be determined provided that primary and shear wave (P- and S-wave) velocities are known. P-waves are easier to monitor and detect compared to the S-waves. In concrete, along with P-wave velocity, shear wave velocity measurement is important in determining the elastic properties. These elastic properties could be implemented in assessing the quality of in-situ concrete. After an extensive literature survey, this study focused on the applicability of Hilbert transformation of waveforms to determine shear wave velocity in concrete material. The experimental work consisted of a set of ultrasonic measurements on the surface of a reinforced concrete deck. The recorded waveforms were then analyzed to obtain the arrival times of P- and S-waves. Hilbert transformation of the waveforms proved to yield reliable and repeatable results. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.Wayne State University of Detroit, MIThe author wishes to express his deep appreciation to the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department of Wayne State University of Detroit, MI for the financial support to complete this study. The author is also grateful to Prof. Haluk Aktan and Assoc. Prof. Ozgur Yaman for their constructive criticisms. Invaluable help from Mr. Jason Rutyna and Mr. Hakan Karaca are greatly appreciated in obtaining the experimental data
COMB-ASSISTED QCL DOPPLER-BROADENED THERMOMETRY IN NH SAMPLES
No full textAuthor Institution: IMRA America, Ann Arbor, MI; Dipartimento di Fisica del Politecnico di Milano, Milano, Italy; Seconda Universita Di Napoli, Caserta, Italy; Deutsches Eleketronen-Synchrotron, Hamburg, Germany; IMRA America, Ann Arbor, MIThe thermodynamic temperature of a gaseous medium at thermodynamic equilibrium can be extracted from molecular spectra by examining: the relative intensities of rotational structures, the relative intensity of vibrational satellites, or the Doppler width of individual rovibrational lines. Of these methods, Doppler broadening thermometry (DBT), measuring the Doppler width of a single, well-isolated absorption profile, represents a primary method providing the most accurate optical determinations. DBT requires highly precise, accurate and repeatable frequency scanning of a narrow-linewidth probe laser around a given center frequency. This requirement often calls for complicated sideband-based approaches or frequency-locking techniques. We describe here an elegant implementation of Doppler broadening thermometry in which a room-temperature continuous-wave quantum cascade laser at 9.07 m is coherently phase-locked to a thulium frequency comb centered at 2 m. Repeated tuning of the repetition-rate enables wide and highly accurate frequency scans throughout multiple rovibrational lines of ammonia. Hence, the thermodynamic temperature is retrieved from a manifold of profiles, rather than from a single, isolated line, taking advantage of the simple scaling law that relates Doppler width and line-center frequency. This is realized, regardless of the complexity of the adopted lineshape model, by implementing a multiple-line fitting procedure with some relevant physical constraints. The precision attained for the retrieved gas temperature, even in the absence of an accurate control of the thermodynamic conditions of the ammonia sample, is as high as 50 ppm, even from an analysis of a restricted number of spectra (100), acquired at different gas pressures. This represents a particularly relevant result as compared to previous DBT based upon Doppler-width retrievals from an isolated spectral line
Attitudes towards vaccines and intention to vaccinate against COVID-19: a cross-sectional analysis - implications for public health communications in Australia
No full textObjective To examine SARS-CoV-2 vaccine confidence, attitudes and intentions in Australian adults as part of the iCARE Study. Design and setting Cross-sectional online survey conducted when free COVID-19 vaccinations first became available in Australia in February 2021. Participants Total of 1166 Australians from general population aged 18-90 years (mean 52, SD of 19). Main outcome measures Primary outcome: responses to question € If a vaccine for COVID-19 were available today, what is the likelihood that you would get vaccinated?'. Secondary outcome: analyses of putative drivers of uptake, including vaccine confidence, socioeconomic status and sources of trust, derived from multiple survey questions. Results Seventy-eight per cent reported being likely to receive a SARS-CoV-2 vaccine. Higher SARS-CoV-2 vaccine intentions were associated with: increasing age (OR: 2.01 (95% CI 1.77 to 2.77)), being male (1.37 (95% CI 1.08 to 1.72)), residing in least disadvantaged area quintile (2.27 (95% CI 1.53 to 3.37)) and a self-perceived high risk of getting COVID-19 (1.52 (95% CI 1.08 to 2.14)). However, 72% did not believe they were at a high risk of getting COVID-19. Findings regarding vaccines in general were similar except there were no sex differences. For both the SARS-CoV-2 vaccine and vaccines in general, there were no differences in intentions to vaccinate as a function of education level, perceived income level and rurality. Knowing that the vaccine is safe and effective and that getting vaccinated will protect others, trusting the company that made it and vaccination recommended by a doctor were reported to influence a large proportion of the study cohort to uptake the SARS-CoV-2 vaccine. Seventy-eight per cent reported the intent to continue engaging in virus-protecting behaviours (mask wearing, social distancing, etc) postvaccine. Conclusions Most Australians are likely to receive a SARS-CoV-2 vaccine. Key influencing factors identified (eg, knowing vaccine is safe and effective, and doctor's recommendation to get vaccinated) can inform public health messaging to enhance vaccination rates
Understanding national trends in COVID‐19 vaccine hesitancy in Canada – April 2020 to March 2021
No full textObjective: Key to reducing COVID‐19 morbidity and mortality and reducing the need for further lockdown measures in Canada and worldwide is widespread acceptance of COVID‐19 vaccines. Vaccine hesitancy has emerged as a key barrier to achieving optimal vaccination rates, for which there is little data among Canadians. This study examined rates of vaccine hesitancy and their correlates among Canadian adults. Methods: This study analyzed data from five age, sex and province‐weighted population‐based samples to describe rates of hesitancy between April 2020 and March 2021 among Canadians who completed online surveys as part of the iCARE Study, and various sociodemographic, clinical and psychological correlates. Vaccine hesitancy was assessed by asking: “If a vaccine for COVID‐19 were available today, what is the likelihood that you would get vaccinated?” Responses were dichotomized into ‘very likely’, ‘unlikely’, ‘somewhat unlikely’ (reflecting some degree of vaccine hesitancy) vs ‘extremely likely’ to get the vaccine, which was the comparator. Results: Overall, 15,019 respondents participated in the study. A total of 42.2% of respondents reported vaccine hesitancy over the course of the study, which was lowest during surveys 1 (April 2020) and 5 (March 2021) and highest during survey 3 (November 2020). Fully adjusted multivariate logistic regression analyses revealed that women, those aged 50 and younger, non‐Whites, those with high school education or less, and those with annual household incomes below the poverty line in Canada (i.e., $60,000) were significantly more likely to report being vaccine hesitant over the study period, as were essential and healthcare workers, parents of children under the age of 18, and those who do not get regular flu vaccines. Believing engaging in infection prevention behaviours (like vaccination) is important for reducing virus transmission and high COVID‐19 health concerns (being infected and infecting others) were associated with 77% and 54% reduction in vaccine hesitancy, respectively, and having high personal financial concerns (worried about job or income loss) was associated with 1.33 times increased odds of vaccine hesitancy. Conclusion: Results point to the importance of targeting vaccine efforts to women, younger people and socioeconomically disadvantaged groups, and that vaccine messaging should emphasize the benefits of getting vaccinated, and how the benefits (particularly to health) far outweigh the risks. Future research is needed to monitor ongoing changes in vaccine intentions and behaviour, as well as to better understand motivators and facilitators of vaccine acceptance, particularly among vulnerable groups. The copyright holder for this preprint is the author/funder, who has granted medRxiv a license to display the preprint in perpetuity. It is made available under a CC-BY-NC-ND 4.0 International license
How well do covariates perform when adjusting for sampling bias in online COVID-19 research? Insights from multiverse analyses
No full textCOVID-19 research has relied heavily on convenience-based samples, which-though often necessary-are susceptible to important sampling biases. We begin with a theoretical overview and introduction to the dynamics that underlie sampling bias. We then empirically examine sampling bias in online COVID-19 surveys and evaluate the degree to which common statistical adjustments for demographic covariates successfully attenuate such bias. This registered study analysed responses to identical questions from three convenience and three largely representative samples (total N = 13,731) collected online in Canada within the International COVID-19 Awareness and Responses Evaluation Study (www.icarestudy.com). We compared samples on 11 behavioural and psychological outcomes (e.g., adherence to COVID-19 prevention measures, vaccine intentions) across three time points and employed multiverse-style analyses to examine how 512 combinations of demographic covariates (e.g., sex, age, education, income, ethnicity) impacted sampling discrepancies on these outcomes. Significant discrepancies emerged between samples on 73% of outcomes. Participants in the convenience samples held more positive thoughts towards and engaged in more COVID-19 prevention behaviours. Covariates attenuated sampling differences in only 55% of cases and increased differences in 45%. No covariate performed reliably well. Our results suggest that online convenience samples may display more positive dispositions towards COVID-19 prevention behaviours being studied than would samples drawn using more representative means. Adjusting results for demographic covariates frequently increased rather than decreased bias, suggesting that researchers should be cautious when interpreting adjusted findings. Using multiverse-style analyses as extended sensitivity analyses is recommended
