47 research outputs found
FINANCING COMMUNITY FACILITIES: A CASE STUDY OF THE PARKS AND RECREATIONAL GENERAL OBLIGATION BOND MEASURE OF SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA
Get PDFThis study of the City of San Jose’s Parks and Recreation General Obligation (GO) Bond Measure seeks to identify the politics-, management-, and planning-related lessons learned by the City as it developed its community facilities using the GO bonds proceeds. The study finds that these lessons include: be conservative in what you promise the residents; be prepared for changes in economic environment by identifying supplementary funding sources should the primary source not yield adequate funds; make sure that the jurisdiction is organizationally capable of handling the increased workload; and prepare detailed project plans prior to the bond issuance.Community Infrastructure and Services; Municipal Bonds; Public Finance
Stability and optimal control analysis of a stage-structured SVIHRS model with isolation, infection based media awareness and media-induced vaccination
No full textSometimes vaccination is reported through media awareness and behavioral responses through different life stages on epidemic outbreaks. But how much awareness is required for effective implementation of vaccination is important from the public health standpoint. To validate this fact, we propose a deterministic SVIHRS stage-structured epidemic model with isolation, infection based media awareness and media-induced vaccination. In the absence of disease, no media campaign is required and hence the disease-free equilibrium exists under a sufficient condition, which is independent of the media awareness coefficient. To study the effect of awareness campaigns by media on the outbreak of an epidemic, a basic reproduction number RVusing the next-generation matrix approach is determined, which shows that an endemic equilibrium point exists when RV>1. The local stability of both equilibrium points is analyzed by the corresponding characteristic equations and sufficient conditions are also determined for global stability using Lyapunov second method. A sensitivity analysis for the basic reproduction number is performed to inform target parameters to be controlled. Further, an optimal control problem is studied using Pontryagin’s minimum principle to identify an optimal implementation rate of awareness campaigns so that disease can be controlled with minimal possible expenditure on awareness campaigns. Finally, using MATLAB, some numerical simulations are carried out in support of the stability, sensitivity, and optimal control results
An investigative and evaluative study of factors affecting quality of agricultural and farm information services in Kerala
Get PDFAgriculture is not only a country’s backbone of food, livelihood and ecological security systems, but is also the very soul of its sovereignty. In Kerala population density is high and land is scarce. To achieve sustainable advancement in quality of human life, meeting the domestic food requirement is to be given foremost priority in development plans. As the area of cultivation cannot be increased and growth of population cannot be controlled growth in food production is to be achieved by qualitative improvement in farming. This requires improvements in material inputs, farming techniques, storage technology and research. Effective integration of these factors is tied closely to adequate information flow, which can be ensured only by an efficient information system for agricultural education, research, extension and development. So evaluation and improvement of existing information services is very crucial for sustainable agricultural growth. The study evaluates the existing information resources, facilities, services, possibilities for resource sharing, accessibility of external sources, and the factors that affect the quality and efficiency of information services in agricultural sector. Coverage is limited to the State of Kerala. Sample consist 105 institutions of different levels, and information users consisting of 426 scientists and 220 farmers. Different sets of questionnaires and interview schedule were used to elicit information. The study found that agricultural research conducted at various institutions in the region at huge public expense has generated knowledge for improving production. Along with these huge collections of acquired content is also stored in the sector. But when a farmer, an extension worker, a scientist or an administrator needs information it is not easily accessible. The study found that agricultural sector fails to effectively bank on information resources available due to the lack of an information system and network. Recommends an Agricultural and Farm Information System for Kerala. Suggests a model plan for a computer communication network for resource sharing between the agricultural institutions in the State, which will also ensure, smooth flow of results of research down to the grassroots level to achieve maximum productivity in agriculture
The Value of Cooperation: Studies on the Performance Outcomes of Interorganizational Alliances.
Get PDFStrategic alliances have gradually emerged over the last decades as a primary vehicle for corporate growth. Firms increasingly use strategic alliances to enter new markets, develop new products and obtain access to relevant knowledge and technological capabilities. Hoewever, while alliances can promote growth and create value they can also destroy it. The prevalence of alliances coupled with the considerable variation in their success rates has led to an increased effort by both scholars and practitioners to find out whether firms benefit from emerging alliances and what makes for a succesful alliance. Yet, despite the large number of studies conducted to date, past empirical research provides no consensus on (a) whether on average, firms benefit from entering alliances, (b) why some alliances create more firm value than others, and (c) the determinants of the performance of alliances themselves. Research presented in this dissertation uses meta-analysis to address these questions and obtain firm empirical generalizations on the performance outcomes of strategic alliances.
The association between the public reporting of individual operator outcomes with patient profiles, procedural management, and mortality after percutaneous coronary intervention: an observational study from the Pan-London PCI (BCIS) Registry using an interrupted time series analysis.
Get PDFThis is a pre-copyedited, author-produced version of an article accepted for publication in European Heart Journal,, following peer review. The version of record: Daniel A Jones, Krishnaraj S Rathod, Sudheer Koganti, Pitt Lim, Sam Firoozi, Richard Bogle, Ajay K Jain, Philip A MacCarthy, Miles C Dalby, Iqbal S Malik, Anthony Mathur, Ranil DeSilva, Roby Rakhit, Sundeep Singh Kalra, Simon Redwood, Peter Ludman, Andrew Wragg, The association between the public reporting of individual operator outcomes with patient profiles, procedural management, and mortality after percutaneous coronary intervention: an observational study from the Pan-London PCI (BCIS) Registry using an interrupted time series analysis, European Heart Journal, Volume 40, Issue 31, 14 August 2019, Pages 2620–2629 is available online at: https://doi.org/10.1093/eurheartj/ehz152AIMS: The public reporting of healthcare outcomes has a number of potential benefits; however, unintended consequences may limit its effectiveness as a quality improvement process. We aimed to assess whether the introduction of individual operator specific outcome reporting after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in the UK was associated with a change in patient risk factor profiles, procedural management, or 30-day mortality outcomes in a large cohort of consecutive patients. METHODS AND RESULTS: This was an observational cohort study of 123 780 consecutive PCI procedures from the Pan-London (UK) PCI registry, from January 2005 to December 2015. Outcomes were compared pre- (2005-11) and post- (2011-15) public reporting including the use of an interrupted time series analysis. Patients treated after public reporting was introduced were older and had more complex medical problems. Despite this, reported in-hospital major adverse cardiovascular and cerebrovascular events rates were significantly lower after the introduction of public reporting (2.3 vs. 2.7%, P < 0.0001). Interrupted time series analysis demonstrated evidence of a reduction in 30-day mortality rates after the introduction of public reporting, which was over and above the existing trend in mortality before the introduction of public outcome reporting (35% decrease relative risk 0.64, 95% confidence interval 0.55-0.77; P < 0.0001). CONCLUSION: The introduction of public reporting has been associated with an improvement in outcomes after PCI in this data set, without evidence of risk-averse behaviour. However, the lower reported complication rates might suggest a change in operator behaviour and decision-making confirming the need for continued surveillance of the impact of public reporting on outcomes and operator behaviour
Synthesis and characterisation of nanostructured BiFeO3 for photodecolourisation of azo dyes using visible light
Get PDFIn this work, effort is being made to synthesize a narrow band gap ferroelectric perovskite nanostructure semiconductor that is BiFeO3 (BFO). The BFO nanopowders were synthesized at 650ºC using a self-combustion method with glycine as the fuel. The effect of the different fuel concentrations, annealing temperatures and the duration of annealing are all demonstrated to influence the phase and crystallography of the synthesized nanoparticles. The author has demonstrated that the self-combustion process can be used to produce high purity BFO nanopowders which exhibit good absorption in the visible-light regime as determined by the UV-Vis-NIR spectroscopy with a measured optical band gap of 2.22 eV. Cont/d
Women in forestry in India
Get PDFThe increasingly visible impact of the fuelwood and fodder crisis on the household has called attention to the need to involve women in forestry planning. In this paper, women have been classified into four groups based on farming system and habitat: tribal women; hill women; plains women; and poor urban women. This paper attempts to make a few basic points. First, it is essential to document women's relationship to forests both in the context of the household and the outside economy. For projects to succeed, the linkages must be drawn between women's roles in the different farming systems, the food supply system, domestic tasks and their income-earning activities. A second major thrust of the paper is to demonstrate that an overriding concern with the impact of the fuelwood and fodder crisis on women as actors in the domestic subsistence economy has blinded planners to their equally important role in the non-domestic forestry economy. The paper also points out the importance of forest resources for poor households and as a source of income for resource-poor women. Finally, through an examination of women's roles in different farming systems, this paper shows women's substantial involvement with forests and makes the case for strengthening their involvement in the entire forestry sector.Forestry,Agricultural Knowledge&Information Systems,Health Monitoring&Evaluation,Environmental Economics&Policies,Crops&Crop Management Systems
A cross-institutional analysis of the effects of broadening trainee professional development on research productivity
Get PDF© The Author(s), 2021. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License. The definitive version was published in Brandt, P. D., Sturzenegger Varvayanis, S., Baas, T., Bolgioni, A. F., Alder, J., Petrie, K. A., Dominguez, I., Brown, A. M., Stayart, C. A., Singh, H., Van Wart, A., Chow, C. S., Mathur, A., Schreiber, B. M., Fruman, D. A., Bowden, B., Wiesen, C. A., Golightly, Y. M., Holmquist, C. E., Arneman, D., Hall, J. D., Hyman, L. E., Gould, K. L., Chalkley, R., Brennwald, P. J., Layton, R. L. A cross-institutional analysis of the effects of broadening trainee professional development on research productivity. Plos Biology, 19(7), (2021): e3000956, https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.3000956.PhD-trained scientists are essential contributors to the workforce in diverse employment sectors that include academia, industry, government, and nonprofit organizations. Hence, best practices for training the future biomedical workforce are of national concern. Complementing coursework and laboratory research training, many institutions now offer professional training that enables career exploration and develops a broad set of skills critical to various career paths. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) funded academic institutions to design innovative programming to enable this professional development through a mechanism known as Broadening Experiences in Scientific Training (BEST). Programming at the NIH BEST awardee institutions included career panels, skill-building workshops, job search workshops, site visits, and internships. Because doctoral training is lengthy and requires focused attention on dissertation research, an initial concern was that students participating in additional complementary training activities might exhibit an increased time to degree or diminished research productivity. Metrics were analyzed from 10 NIH BEST awardee institutions to address this concern, using time to degree and publication records as measures of efficiency and productivity. Comparing doctoral students who participated to those who did not, results revealed that across these diverse academic institutions, there were no differences in time to degree or manuscript output. Our findings support the policy that doctoral students should participate in career and professional development opportunities that are intended to prepare them for a variety of diverse and important careers in the workforce.Funding sources included the Common Fund NIH Director’s Biomedical Research Workforce Innovation Broadening Experiences in Scientific Training (BEST) Award. The following institutional NIH BEST awards (alphabetical by institution) included: DP7OD020322 (Boston University; AFB, ID, BMS, LEH); DP7OD020316 (University of Chicago; CAS); DP7OD018425 (Cornell University; SSV); DP7OD018428 (Virginia Polytechnic Institute; AVW, BB); DP7OD020314 (Rutgers University; JA); DP7OD020315 (University of Rochester; TB); DP7OD018423 (Vanderbilt University; KAP, AMB, KLG, RC); DP7OD020321 (University of California, Irvine; HS, DAF); DP7OD020317 (University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill; PDB, PJB, RLL); DP7 OD018427 (Wayne State University; CSC, AM). National Institutes of Health (NIH) General Medical Sciences - Science of Science Policy Approach to Analyzing and Innovating the Biomedical Research Enterprise (SCISIPBIO) Award (GM-19-011) - 1R01GM140282-01 (University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; RLL, PDB, PJB)
How well do India's social service programs serve the poor?
Get PDFReaching India's poor calls for greatly improved social service delivery systems, better targeting of the poor, more coordination between agencies, policies aimed at income generation, and more involvement of the poor and of nongovernmental organizations. The authors of this paper found that India's social services were used relatively little by the poor. The health and education of the poor has improved but not as much for the population as a whole. The reasons that all social service programs did so little to alleviate poverty are similar. Physical access to education and health services has improved but inequalities exist because of biases in locating facilities. The access of the poor to housing, social security, and social welfare services has been limited because these services were inadequate relative to needs and because services leak to the nonpoor. Social service policies are not comprehensive enough and the quality of services is low. Issues common to the social sector delivery systems are weak management, ineffective targeting, and inflexible service delivery systems that result in a mismatch between perceived needs and services delivered. The bureaucracy is inadequate to reach the poor. Existing capacity and resources are inadequate, particularly for education and health.Health Monitoring&Evaluation,Health Economics&Finance,Poverty Assessment,Safety Nets and Transfers,Rural Poverty Reduction
Corporate political activity and firm performance - a systematic review
Get PDFCorporate political activity (CPA) has been recognized as a source of sustainable competitive advantage. Its proponents, mostly nonmarket strategy researchers, argue that political capital enables firms to influence their regulatory and policy environments, shape their competitive space, and improve their performance. Consequently, there is a widely held view that the performance of firms depends not only on the ability of managers to exploit economic markets but also on their ability to succeed in political markets. To test the value of political activism, recent scholarship has probed the relationship between CPA and firm performance. However, random mixed findings and the fragmented nature of the field raise more questions than provide answers to the nature of this relationship. This systematic review examines scholarly articles for evidence of the impact of CPA on firm value.
Drawing on 56 articles contributing to the topic and applying the CIMO-logic method of synthesis, this study discusses the findings within a framework of four elements. First, it examines the contexts within which CPA has been investigated. Second, it presents findings on the strategies that are studied. Third, it investigates the performance outcomes of CPA. Fourth, it explores the mechanisms that underpin the performance outcomes of CPA. The findings suggest that CPA is positively related to firm performance, an indication that there is value in political activism. However, counter evidence is reported by a few studies. The evidence also reveals that institutional contexts impact the political strategies used by firms or studied by researchers. Even though most of the studies lack theoretical grounding, social capital, cronyism and agency relationships are the popularly cited or implied mechanisms underlying the CPA-firm performance relationship. Following from the discussion, two propositions linking contexts, interventions, and outcomes are developed. The study suggests future research directions based on the gaps/limitations identified in the literature
