Persuasive communication about AIDS prevention: need for cognition determines the impact of message format.

PubMed

Bakker, A B

1999-04-01

Adolescents were classified as being high or low in need for cognition (NFC) (Cacioppo & Petty, 1982) and expressed their knowledge about AIDS, attitudes toward condom use, and perceived supportive norms after being exposed to a cartoon or a written message about safe sex. Both messages have a positive impact on knowledge and attitudes. Theoretically interesting is the finding that the cartoon message is more effective in bringing about change in attitudes and subjective norms than the written message for low-NFC adolescents, and that the written message is more effective than the cartoon message for high-NFC adolescents. These results are consistent with the theory-based prediction that a persuasive communication will be most effective when the format of the message is tailored to people's information-processing proclivities. The practical implications of the findings for AIDS education are discussed.

Streamlining Tsunami Messages (e.g., Warnings) of the US National Tsunami Warning Center, Palmer, Alaska

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gregg, C. E.; Sorensen, J. H.; Vogt Sorensen, B.; Whitmore, P.; Johnston, D. M.

2016-12-01

Spurred in part by world-wide interest in improving warning messaging for and response to tsunamis in the wake of several catastrophic tsunamis since 2004 and growing interest at the US National Weather Service (NWS) to integrate social science into their Tsunami Program, the NWS Tsunami Warning Centers in Alaska and Hawaii have made great progress toward enhancing tsunami messages. These include numerous products, among them being Tsunami Warnings, Tsunami Advisories and Tsunami Watches. Beginning in 2010 we have worked with US National Tsunami Hazard Mitigation Program (NTHMP) Warning Coordination and Mitigation and Education Subcommittee members; Tsunami Program administrators; and NWS Weather Forecast Officers to conduct a series of focus group meetings with stakeholders in coastal areas of Alaska, American Samoa, California, Hawaii, North Carolina, Oregon, US Virgin Islands and Washington to understand end-user perceptions of existing messages and their existing needs in message products. We also reviewed research literature on behavioral response to warnings to develop a Tsunami Warning Message Metric that could be used to guide revisions to tsunami warning messages of both warning centers. The message metric is divided into categories of Message Content, Style, Order, Formatting, and Receiver Characteristics. A sample message is evaluated by cross-referencing the message with the operational definitions of metric factors. Findings are then used to guide revisions of the message until the characteristics of each factor are met, whether the message is a full length or short message. Incrementally, this work contributed to revisions in the format, content and style of message products issued by the National Tsunami Warning Center (NTWC). Since that time, interest in short warning messages has continued to increase and in May 2016 the NTWC began efforts to revise message products to take advantage of recent NWS policy changes allowing use of mixed-case text format and expanded punctuation, a practice which the NWS first started in 2010. Here we describe our application of a modification of the warning message metric to develop new streamlined messages using mixed-case text. These messages reflect current state-of-the-art knowledge on warning message effectiveness.

Managing fear in public health campaigns: a theory-based formative evaluation process.

PubMed

Cho, Hyunyi; Witte, Kim

2005-10-01

The HIV/AIDS infection rate of Ethiopia is one of the world's highest. Prevention campaigns should systematically incorporate and respond to at-risk population's existing beliefs, emotions, and perceived barriers in the message design process to effectively promote behavior change. However, guidelines for conducting formative evaluation that are grounded in proven risk communication theory and empirical data analysis techniques are hard to find. This article provides a five-step formative evaluation process that translates theory and research for developing effective messages for behavior change. Guided by the extended parallel process model, the five-step process helps message designers manage public's fear surrounding issues such as HIV/AIDS. An entertainment education project that used the process to design HIV/AIDS prevention messages for Ethiopian urban youth is reported. Data were collected in five urban regions of Ethiopia and analyzed according to the process to develop key messages for a 26-week radio soap opera.

Interaction Patterns of Nurturant Support Exchanged in Online Health Social Networking

PubMed Central

Yang, Christopher C

2012-01-01

Background Expressing emotion in online support communities is an important aspect of enabling e-patients to connect with each other and expand their social resources. Indirectly it increases the amount of support for coping with health issues. Exploring the supportive interaction patterns in online health social networking would help us better understand how technology features impacts user behavior in this context. Objective To build on previous research that identified different types of social support in online support communities by delving into patterns of supportive behavior across multiple computer-mediated communication formats. Each format combines different architectural elements, affecting the resulting social spaces. Our research question compared communication across different formats of text-based computer-mediated communication provided on the MedHelp.org health social networking environment. Methods We identified messages with nurturant support (emotional, esteem, and network) across three different computer-mediated communication formats (forums, journals, and notes) of an online support community for alcoholism using content analysis. Our sample consisted of 493 forum messages, 423 journal messages, and 1180 notes. Results Nurturant support types occurred frequently among messages offering support (forum comments: 276/412 messages, 67.0%; journal posts: 65/88 messages, 74%; journal comments: 275/335 messages, 82.1%; and notes: 1002/1180 messages, 84.92%), but less often among messages requesting support. Of all the nurturing supports, emotional (ie, encouragement) appeared most frequently, with network and esteem support appearing in patterns of varying combinations. Members of the Alcoholism Community appeared to adapt some traditional face-to-face forms of support to their needs in becoming sober, such as provision of encouragement, understanding, and empathy to one another. Conclusions The computer-mediated communication format may have the greatest influence on the supportive interactions because of characteristics such as audience reach and access. Other factors include perception of community versus personal space or purpose of communication. These results lead to a need for further research. PMID:22555303

Interaction patterns of nurturant support exchanged in online health social networking.

PubMed

Chuang, Katherine Y; Yang, Christopher C

2012-05-03

Expressing emotion in online support communities is an important aspect of enabling e-patients to connect with each other and expand their social resources. Indirectly it increases the amount of support for coping with health issues. Exploring the supportive interaction patterns in online health social networking would help us better understand how technology features impacts user behavior in this context. To build on previous research that identified different types of social support in online support communities by delving into patterns of supportive behavior across multiple computer-mediated communication formats. Each format combines different architectural elements, affecting the resulting social spaces. Our research question compared communication across different formats of text-based computer-mediated communication provided on the MedHelp.org health social networking environment. We identified messages with nurturant support (emotional, esteem, and network) across three different computer-mediated communication formats (forums, journals, and notes) of an online support community for alcoholism using content analysis. Our sample consisted of 493 forum messages, 423 journal messages, and 1180 notes. Nurturant support types occurred frequently among messages offering support (forum comments: 276/412 messages, 67.0%; journal posts: 65/88 messages, 74%; journal comments: 275/335 messages, 82.1%; and notes: 1002/1180 messages, 84.92%), but less often among messages requesting support. Of all the nurturing supports, emotional (ie, encouragement) appeared most frequently, with network and esteem support appearing in patterns of varying combinations. Members of the Alcoholism Community appeared to adapt some traditional face-to-face forms of support to their needs in becoming sober, such as provision of encouragement, understanding, and empathy to one another. The computer-mediated communication format may have the greatest influence on the supportive interactions because of characteristics such as audience reach and access. Other factors include perception of community versus personal space or purpose of communication. These results lead to a need for further research.

Driver memory for in-vehicle visual and auditory messages

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1999-12-01

Three experiments were conducted in a driving simulator to evaluate effects of in-vehicle message modality and message format on comprehension and memory for younger and older drivers. Visual icons and text messages were effective in terms of high co...

Effect of Message Format and Content on Attitude Accessibility Regarding Sexually Transmitted Infections.

PubMed

Jain, Parul; Hoffman, Eric; Beam, Michael; Xu, Shan Susan

2017-11-01

Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) are widespread in the United States among people ages 15-24 years and cost almost $16 billion yearly. It is therefore important to understand message design strategies that could help reduce these numbers. Guided by exemplification theory and the extended parallel process model (EPPM), this study examines the influence of message format and the presence versus absence of a graphic image on recipients' accessibility of STI attitudes regarding safe sex. Results of the experiment indicate a significant effect from testimonial messages on increased attitude accessibility regarding STIs compared to statistical messages. Results also indicate a conditional indirect effect of testimonial messages on STI attitude accessibility, though threat is greater when a graphic image is included. Implications and directions for future research are discussed.

Flight Deck Data Link Displays: An Evaluation of Textual and Graphical Implementations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

McGann, Alison; Lozito, Sandy; Corker, Kevin; Ashford, Rose (Technical Monitor)

2001-01-01

In Experiment 1, 16 pilots participated in a part-task simulation study that evaluated pilot data link communication for short and long message types and for two textual formats. No differences were found between the two textual formats when evaluating data link transaction times and pilot performance on a secondary task. Pilots initiated flight changes more quickly with the T-Scan format, where location of clearance information roughly corresponded to the cockpit instrument layout. Longer messages were less problematic than two short messages sent in close succession as pilots required more verbal clarification for closely spaced messages. 24 pilots participated in a second experiment that evaluated pilot communication performance for textual data link, two implementations of graphical data link, and a combined graphical and textual information modality. The two modalities incorporating text resulted in significantly faster transaction times and better performance on the secondary task than the two graphical-only implementations. The interval between messages was also more systematically varied in Experiment 2, and a short interval between messages significantly increased the access time for the second message. This delay in access was long enough to increase significantly the total transaction time of the second message, and this effect was exaggerated for the graphical-only implementations. Time to view the message before acknowledgement and time to initiate flight changes were not affected by the interval manipulation, This suggests that pilots adopt a sequential message handling strategy, and presenting messages closely in succession may present operational problems in a data link Air Traffic Control (ATC) environment. The results of this study also indicate that the perceived importance of message content is currently a crucial element in pilot data link communication.

System and method for transferring telemetry data between a ground station and a control center

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ray, Timothy J. (Inventor); Ly, Vuong T. (Inventor)

2012-01-01

Disclosed herein are systems, computer-implemented methods, and tangible computer-readable media for coordinating communications between a ground station, a control center, and a spacecraft. The method receives a call to a simple, unified application programmer interface implementing communications protocols related to outer space, when instruction relates to receiving a command at the control center for the ground station generate an abstract message by agreeing upon a format for each type of abstract message with the ground station and using a set of message definitions to configure the command in the agreed upon format, encode the abstract message to generate an encoded message, and transfer the encoded message to the ground station, and perform similar actions when the instruction relates to receiving a second command as a second encoded message at the ground station from the control center and when the determined instruction type relates to transmitting information to the control center.

The effects of integrating instrumental and affective arguments in rhetorical and testimonial health messages.

PubMed

Keer, Mario; van den Putte, Bas; de Wit, John; Neijens, Peter

2013-01-01

Recent research highlights the superior influence of affect over cognition in health decision making. The present study examined the independent and combined effects of 2 message characteristics that are thought to tap into the cognition-affect distinction: message format (rhetorical vs. testimonial) and argument type (instrumental vs. affective). In this 2 × 2 experiment, 81 college students were randomly assigned to 1 of 4 health messages discouraging binge drinking. The results indicated that messages containing affective arguments were judged more positively and perceived as more effective than were messages containing instrumental arguments. The results further revealed an interaction effect between message format and argument type. Testimonials were more persuasive when they contained affective arguments than when they contained instrumental arguments. Type of arguments did not influence the efficacy of rhetorical messages. Mediation analyses revealed that instrumental arguments reduce the efficacy of testimonials because they prevent individuals from being transported into the story, and increase psychological reactance. In conclusion, testimonial messages more effectively discourage binge drinking among college students when they contain affective, as opposed to instrumental, arguments.

Framing life and death on YouTube: the strategic communication of organ donation messages by organ procurement organizations.

PubMed

VanderKnyff, Jeremy; Friedman, Daniela B; Tanner, Andrea

2015-01-01

Using a sample of YouTube videos posted on the YouTube channels of organ procurement organizations, a content analysis was conducted to identify the frames used to strategically communicate prodonation messages. A total of 377 videos were coded for general characteristics, format, speaker characteristics, organs discussed, structure, problem definition, and treatment. Principal components analysis identified message frames, and k-means cluster analysis established distinct groupings of videos on the basis of the strength of their relationship to message frames. Analysis of these frames and clusters found that organ procurement organizations present multiple, and sometimes competing, video types and message frames on YouTube. This study serves as important formative research that will inform future studies to measure the effectiveness of the distinct message frames and clusters identified.

Promoting stair use: single versus multiple stair-riser messages.

PubMed

Webb, Oliver J; Eves, Frank F

2005-09-01

Message banners attached to stair risers produced a significant increase in pedestrian stair use, exceeding effects previously reported for conventional posters. Multiple instances of the same message banner, however, were as effective as banners featuring different messages. Therefore, greater visibility, rather than message variety, appears to account for the superiority of the banner format. Our findings indicate the feasibility of simple stair-use promotion campaigns based around the repetition of a single message.

[Interview Questions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Smith, Dan

2007-01-01

The Goddard Mission Services Evolution Center, or GMSEC, was started in 2001 to create a new standard approach for managing GSFC missions. Standardized approaches in the past involved selecting and then integrating the most appropriate set of functional tools. Assumptions were made that "one size fits all" and that tool changes would not be necessary for many years. GMSEC took a very different approach and has proven to be very successful. The core of the GMSEC architecture consists of a publish/subscribe message bus, standardized message formats, and an Applications Programming Interface (API). The API supports multiple operating systems, programming languages and messaging middleware products. We use a GMSEC-developed free middleware for low-cost development. A high capacity, robust middleware is used for operations and a messaging system with a very small memory footprint is used for on-board flight software. Software components can use the standard message formats or develop adapters to convert from their native formats to the GMSEC formats. We do not want vendors to modify their core products. Over 50 software components are now available for use with the GMSEC architecture. Most available commercial telemetry and command systems, including the GMV hifly Satellite Control System, have been adapted to run in the GMSEC labs.

DICE: An Object Oriented Programming Environment for Cooperative Engineering Design

DTIC Science & Technology

1989-03-20

environment called PARMENIDES /FRULEKIT; PARMENIDES /FRULEKIT supports programming in frames and rules and was developed in LISP at Carnegie-Mellon...the domain of building design and construction. The Blackboard in DICEY-BUILDER is represented as frames in PARMENIDES , while the KMs are implemented... PARMENIDES fo rart omat format d a b C /envelope BLACKBOAR D machine to machine (’BLACKBOARD l m message f il transfer message p read •d message format J

Use of Qualitative Research to Inform Development of Nutrition Messages for Low-Income Mothers of Preschool Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

White, Alicie H.; Wilson, Judy F.; Burns, Adam; Blum-Kemelor, Donna; Singh, Anita; Race, Patricia O.; Soto, Valery; Lockett, Alice F.

2011-01-01

Objective: To develop and test nutrition messages and supporting content with low-income mothers for use with theory-based interventions addressing fruit and vegetable consumption and child-feeding practices. Design: Six formative and 6 evaluative focus groups explored message concepts and tested messages, respectively. Setting: Research…

Driver memory retention of in-vehicle information system messages

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1997-01-01

Memory retention of drivers was tested for traffic- and traveler-related messages displayed on an in-vehicle information system (IVIS). Three research questions were asked: (a) How does in-vehicle visual message format affect comprehension? (b) How d...

76 FR 74067 - Agency Forms Undergoing Paperwork Reduction Act Review

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-11-30

... Project Formative Research to Support the Development of Sickle Cell Disease Educational Messages and... seeks to improve the quality of life of people living with sickle cell disease (SCD). To accomplish this... associated with sickle cell disease. To develop valuable messages and materials, CDC will conduct formative...

78 FR 3429 - Proposed Data Collections Submitted for Public Comment and Recommendations

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-01-16

... Disease Educational Messages and Materials for the Division of Blood Disorders (0920-0915, Expiration 01... sickle cell disease. To develop valuable messages and materials, CDC will conduct formative focus groups... remote, rural areas. Based on the findings from the formative focus groups, CDC will develop and test...

78 FR 27391 - Agency Forms Undergoing Paperwork Reduction Act Review

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-05-10

... Materials for the Division of Blood Disorders (0920-0915, Expired 01/31/2013)--Reinstatement--National... messages and materials, CDC will conduct formative focus groups with people with SCD across the country... the formative focus groups, CDC will develop and test draft messages. A total of 10 focus groups will...

Texting for Health: The Use of Participatory Methods to Develop Healthy Lifestyle Messages for Teens

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hingle, Melanie; Nichter, Mimi; Medeiros, Melanie; Grace, Samantha

2013-01-01

Objective: To develop and test messages and a mobile phone delivery protocol designed to influence the nutrition and physical activity knowledge, attitudes, and behavior of adolescents. Design: Nine focus groups, 4 classroom discussions, and an 8-week pilot study exploring message content, format, origin, and message delivery were conducted over…

Comparison of the Invasion of Crete and the Proposed Invasion in Malta

DTIC Science & Technology

2006-01-01

North Africa for Rommel’s upcoming offensive codenamed “ Theseus .”71 These transfers reflected the strategic and operational focus of the German High... Theseus II Luftflotte transferred 260 aircraft to North Africa. This left 115 aircraft in Sicily to work with the Italians to hinder the British... Theseus was completed. The next day another message was issued saying that Hercules was “suspended until further notice” and “if a deadline for the

How much importance do we give to target audiences in article writing?

PubMed

Nedjat, Sima; Nedjat, Saharnaz; Gholami, Jaleh; Ashoorkhani, Mahnaz; Maleki, Katayoun; Hejrie, Soroush Mortaz; Majdzadeh, Reza

2010-01-01

Writing papers can be used as a means to convey a message. Knowledge transfer is also about conveying the right message to the right target audience. The aim of this study was to determine the proportion of articles that had mentioned a clear message and the target audience in the abstract and the article as a whole, and also to examine their association with different determinant factors. Articles published from 2001 to 2006 that were based on clinical and health system research conducted on Iranian populations and on maternal care, diabetes and tuberculosis were searched systematically in domestic and international databases. Eventually checklists (Additional file 1) were completed for 795 articles. Overall, 98.5% of articles had a clear message, whereas 12.5% had addressed the direct target audience. Presence of a clear message in formatted abstracts were seen 3.6 times more (CI95%: 1.5-8.7) than in articles without formatted abstracts (p = 0.005). Addressing of the direct target audience was seen twice as much in health system research articles as compared to clinical studies, odds ratio was 2.3 (CI95%: 1.47-3.48, p<0.001). Creating a format for journal abstracts seems to be an effective intervention for presenting the message in articles.

Race and gender moderation of the relationship between cessation beliefs and intentions: is race or gender message segmentation necessary in anti-smoking campaigns?

PubMed Central

Parvanta, S.; Gibson, L.; Moldovan-Johnson, M.; Mallya, G.; Hornik, R. C.

2013-01-01

Debate persists over whether different message strategies in anti-smoking campaigns are needed for audiences of different races or genders. This study considers the need for ‘message segmentation’, which is the process of differentiating the beliefs that might be the focus of messages for population subgroups. We have two aims: (i) lay out an approach that yields evidence about the necessity for message segmentation and (ii) demonstrate and assess findings from this approach using the formative evaluation for the Philadelphia Anti-Smoking Campaign. We examine whether associations between beliefs about quitting smoking and intention to quit are moderated by race (black/white) or gender. Data came from a representative sample of 501 adult smokers (46% black; 56% female) surveyed in July 2010 for the campaign’s formative evaluation. Out of 26 beliefs about cessation, 8 were significantly related to cessation intention regardless of subgroup affiliation, suggesting that these would be promising beliefs for messages in a unified campaign. Four beliefs were significant for white smokers only, and three beliefs were significant for female smokers only. The evidence justified a unified message approach because subgroups shared enough beliefs that could become message strategies to increase cessation across smokers without the added costs associated with message segmentation. PMID:23720493

Race and gender moderation of the relationship between cessation beliefs and intentions: is race or gender message segmentation necessary in anti-smoking campaigns?

PubMed

Parvanta, S; Gibson, L; Moldovan-Johnson, M; Mallya, G; Hornik, R C

2013-10-01

Debate persists over whether different message strategies in anti-smoking campaigns are needed for audiences of different races or genders. This study considers the need for 'message segmentation', which is the process of differentiating the beliefs that might be the focus of messages for population subgroups. We have two aims: (i) lay out an approach that yields evidence about the necessity for message segmentation and (ii) demonstrate and assess findings from this approach using the formative evaluation for the Philadelphia Anti-Smoking Campaign. We examine whether associations between beliefs about quitting smoking and intention to quit are moderated by race (black/white) or gender. Data came from a representative sample of 501 adult smokers (46% black; 56% female) surveyed in July 2010 for the campaign's formative evaluation. Out of 26 beliefs about cessation, 8 were significantly related to cessation intention regardless of subgroup affiliation, suggesting that these would be promising beliefs for messages in a unified campaign. Four beliefs were significant for white smokers only, and three beliefs were significant for female smokers only. The evidence justified a unified message approach because subgroups shared enough beliefs that could become message strategies to increase cessation across smokers without the added costs associated with message segmentation.

Launch Control System Master Console Event Message Reduction

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Nguyen, Uyen

2014-01-01

System monitoring and control (SMC) message browsers receive so many messages daily that operators do not need to see. Important messages are often mixed up among the less important ones. My job is to reduce the messages displayed in the message browser so that warning and emergency messages can be seen easily and therefore, responded promptly. There are multiple methods to achieve this. Firstly, duplicate messages should not appear many times in the message browser. Instead, the message should appear only once but with a number that counts the times that it appears. This method is called duplicate message suppression. Secondly, messages that update the most recent state (e.g. up/down) of a component should replace the old-state messages. This method is called state based message correlation. Thirdly, messages that display "normal" alarm level should be suppressed unless it's a response to an operator action. In addition to message reduction, I also work on correcting the severity level and text formats on messages.

Memorable Messages for Navigating College Life

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nazione, Samantha; Laplante, Carolyn; Smith, Sandi W.; Cornacchione, Jennifer; Russell, Jessica; Stohl, Cynthia

2011-01-01

This manuscript details an investigation of memorable messages that help students navigate college life using a control theory framework. Researchers conducted face-to-face interviews with 61 undergraduate students who recalled a specific memorable message that helped them as they navigated college. Results of this formative study show the…

Formative Research regarding Kidney Disease Health Information in a Latino American Sample: Associations among Message Frame, Threat, Efficacy, Message Effectiveness, and Behavioral Intention

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Maguire, Katheryn C.; Gardner, Jay; Sopory, Pradeep; Jian, Guowei; Roach, Marcia; Amschlinger, Joe; Moreno, Marcia; Pettey, Gary; Piccone, Gianfranco

2010-01-01

Using prospect theory and the extended parallel process model, this study examined the effect of gain/loss message framing on perceptions of severity, susceptibility, response efficacy, and self efficacy (derived from the extended parallel process model), as well as perception of message effectiveness and behavioral intention in a community based…

Learning Messages Notification System to Mobile Devices

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jimenez, M. Lourdes

2005-01-01

The work presents a new method to send educational messages in e-learning systems. The communication tools are one of the main characteristics of the virtual formative actions, in addition of the contents and the evaluation. The system must help to motivate the students, mainly those who do not leave the formative action and continue it until the…

Message Formats, Numeracy, Risk Perceptions of Alcohol-Attributable Cancer, and Intentions for Binge Drinking among College Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chen, Yixin; Yang, Z. Janet

2015-01-01

We conducted an experiment to examine whether risk perceptions of alcohol-attributable cancer influence college students' binge-drinking intention and to explore how message formats (text, table, and graph) and numeracy influence risk perceptions of alcohol-attributable cancer. We found that a majority of participants (87%) perceive some risks of…

The relative persuasiveness of narrative versus non-narrative health messages in public health emergency communication: Evidence from a field experiment.

PubMed

Bekalu, Mesfin A; Bigman, Cabral A; McCloud, Rachel F; Lin, Leesa K; Viswanath, K

2018-06-01

Previous studies indicated that narrative health messages are more effective than non-narrative messages in influencing health outcomes. However, this body of evidence does not account for differences in health domain, and little is known about the effectiveness of this message execution strategy during public health emergencies. In this study, we examined the relative effectiveness of the two formats in influencing knowledge and perceived response efficacy related to prevention of pandemic influenza, and determined whether effects of message format vary across population sub-groups. Data for the study come from an experiment fielded in 2013 that involved a nationally representative sample of 627 American adults. Participants were randomly assigned to view either a narrative (n=322) or a non-narrative (n=305) video clip containing closely matched information about knowledge and preventive actions related to pandemic influenza, and completed pre- and post-viewing questions assessing knowledge and perceived response efficacy related to the prevention of pandemic influenza. Results indicated that participants in the non-narrative condition reported greater knowledge and rated pandemic influenza prevention measures as more effective compared with those in the narrative condition. Message format effects did not vary across population sub-groups; post-viewing scores of knowledge and perceptions related to pandemic influenza were consistently higher in the non-narrative condition compared with the narrative condition across five socio-demographic groups: age, gender, education, race/ethnicity and income. We concluded that didactic, non-narrative messages may be more effective than narrative messages to influence knowledge and perceptions during public health emergencies. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Risk Belief and Attitude Formation From Translated Scientific Messages About PFOA, an Environmental Risk Associated With Breast Cancer.

PubMed

Smith, Sandi W; Hitt, Rose; Russell, Jessica; Nazione, Samantha; Silk, Kami; Atkin, Charles K; Keating, David

2017-03-01

Evidence regarding possible environmental causes of breast cancer is advancing. Often, however, the public is not informed about these advances in a manner that is easily understandable. This research translates findings from biologists into messages at two literacy levels about perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), a possible environmental contributor to breast cancer. The Heuristic Systematic Model (HSM) was used to investigate how ability, motivation, and systematic and heuristic processing lead to risk beliefs and, ultimately, to negative attitudes for individuals receiving translated scientific messages about PFOA. Participants (N = 1,389) came from the Dr. Susan Love Research Foundation's Army of Women. Findings indicated that ability, in the form of translated messages, predicted systematic processing, operationalized as knowledge gain, which was negatively associated with formation of risk beliefs that led to negative attitudes toward PFOA. Heuristic processing cues, operationalized as perceived message quality and source credibility, were positively associated with risk beliefs, which predicted negative attitudes about PFOA. Overall, more knowledge and lower literacy messages led to lower perceived risk, while greater involvement and ratings of heuristic cues led to greater risk perceptions. This is an example of a research, translation, and dissemination team effort in which biologists created knowledge, communication scholars translated and tested messages, and advocates were participants and those who disseminated messages.

LCS Master Console Event Message Reduction

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Nguyen, Uyen

2014-01-01

System monitoring and control (SMC) message browsers receive so many messages daily that operators are unable to keep track all of them. Important messages are often mixed up among the less important ones. My job is to reduce the messages so that warning and emergency messages can be seen easily and therefore, responded promptly. There are multiple methods to achieve this. Firstly, messages that look the same should not appear many times in the message browser. Instead, the message should appear only once but with a number that counts the times that it appears. This method is called duplicate message suppression. Messages that display "normal" or "advisory" alarm level should be suppressed. Secondly, messages that update the most recent status of a system should replace the old-status messages. This method is called state based message correlation. Thirdly, some unnecessary messages should be sent straight to history after being displayed or not displayed at all. For an example, normal messages that are not a response to an operator's action should not be displayed. I also work on fixing messages that are not color-coded and formatted properly.

Development of a smoking prevention mass media program using diagnostic and formative research.

PubMed

Worden, J K; Flynn, B S; Geller, B M; Chen, M; Shelton, L G; Secker-Walker, R H; Solomon, D S; Solomon, L J; Couchey, S; Costanza, M C

1988-09-01

The process of developing a mass media campaign to prevent smoking among adolescents is described in detail. This campaign supplements a school smoking prevention program and shares educational objectives with the school program but is otherwise independent. It comprises various television and radio 30- and 60-sec "spot" messages. The campaign development process includes identifying educational objectives and strategies for appealing to young people; conducting diagnostic surveys and focus groups to determine target audience interests and perceptions about smoking and media content; suggesting approaches to producers to create preliminary television and radio messages for testing; conducting formative pretests with target groups to select optimal messages and suggest improvements to those messages; producing final messages for media presentation; and developing a media exposure plan to place messages in local media at optimal times for reception by target audiences. The media campaign is being evaluated in a 5-year project with 5,500 adolescents in four communities to determine the additional effect of mass media over a school program alone in preventing smoking.

Personal Involvement of Young People in HIV Prevention Campaign Messages: The Role of Message Format, Culture, and Gender

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Geary, Cynthia Waszak; Burke, Holly M.; Johnson, Laura; Liku, Jennifer; Castelnau, Laure; Neupane, Shailes; Niang, Cheikh

2008-01-01

To examine young people's reactions to and understanding of HIV prevention messages developed for MTV's global HIV prevention campaign Staying Alive, videotaped campaign materials were shown to focus group discussion (FGD) participants living in urban areas of Brazil, Kenya, Nepal, and Senegal. Responses related to "personal involvement"…

Distinguishing detection from identification in subliminal auditory perception: a review and critique of Merikle's study.

PubMed

Harris, J L; Salus, D; Rerecich, R; Larsen, D

1996-01-01

Assertions made by Merikle (1988) regarding audio subliminal messages were tested. Seventeen participants were presented subliminal messages embedded in a white-noise cover, and three signal-to-noise (S/N) detection ratios were examined. Participants were asked to guess message presence and message content, to determine subjective/objective thresholds. Results showed that participants were unable to identify target words presented in this audio subliminal stimulus format beyond chance levels.

Developing and Pretesting a Text Messaging Program for Health Behavior Change: Recommended Steps.

PubMed

Abroms, Lorien C; Whittaker, Robyn; Free, Caroline; Mendel Van Alstyne, Judith; Schindler-Ruwisch, Jennifer M

2015-12-21

A growing body of evidence demonstrates that text messaging-based programs (short message service [SMS]) on mobile phones can help people modify health behaviors. Most of these programs have consisted of automated and sometimes interactive text messages that guide a person through the process of behavior change. This paper provides guidance on how to develop text messaging programs aimed at changing health behaviors. Based on their collective experience in designing, developing, and evaluating text messaging programs and a review of the literature, the authors drafted the guide. One author initially drafted the guide and the others provided input and review. Steps for developing a text messaging program include conducting formative research for insights into the target audience and health behavior, designing the text messaging program, pretesting the text messaging program concept and messages, and revising the text messaging program. The steps outlined in this guide may help in the development of SMS-based behavior change programs.

Effects of color scheme and message lines of variable message signs on driver performance.

PubMed

Lai, Chien-Jung

2010-07-01

The advancement in variable message signs (VMS) technology has made it possible to display message with various formats. This study presented an ergonomic study on the message design of Chinese variable message signs on urban roads in Taiwan. Effects of color scheme (one, two and three) and number of message lines (single, double and triple) of VMS on participants' response performance were investigated through a laboratory experiment. Results of analysis showed that color scheme and number of message lines are significant factors for participants' response time to VMS. Participants responded faster for two-color than for one- and three-color scheme. Participants also took less response time for double line message than for single and triple line message. Both color scheme and number of message lines had no significant effect on participants' response accuracy. The preference survey after the experiment showed that most participants preferred two-color scheme and double line message to the other combinations. The results can assist in adopting appropriate color scheme and number of message lines of Chinese VMS. Copyright 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Engine monitoring display study

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hornsby, Mary E.

1992-01-01

The current study is part of a larger NASA effort to develop displays for an engine-monitoring system to enable the crew to monitor engine parameter trends more effectively. The objective was to evaluate the operational utility of adding three types of information to the basic Boeing Engine Indicating and Crew Alerting System (EICAS) display formats: alphanumeric alerting messages for engine parameters whose values exceed caution or warning limits; alphanumeric messages to monitor engine parameters that deviate from expected values; and a graphic depiction of the range of expected values for current conditions. Ten training and line pilots each flew 15 simulated flight scenarios with five variants of the basic EICAS format; these variants included different combinations of the added information. The pilots detected engine problems more quickly when engine alerting messages were included in the display; adding a graphic depiction of the range of expected values did not affect detection speed. The pilots rated both types of alphanumeric messages (alert and monitor parameter) as more useful and easier to interpret than the graphic depiction. Integrating engine parameter messages into the EICAS alerting system appears to be both useful and preferred.

Telemetry Standards, RCC Standard 106-17. Chapter 9. Telemetry Attributes Transfer Standard

DTIC Science & Technology

2017-07-01

or the direct recorder track/ channel MIL-STD-1553 or ARINC 429 bus format characteristics. (4) Message Data Attributes: Specifies the message...R group to the P group is from the Channel Data Link Name (R) to the Data Link Name (P). g. The tie from the R group to the B group is from the... Channel Data Link Name or Sub- Channel Name (R) to the Data Link Name (B). h. The tie from the R group to the Message Data group (S) is from the Channel

Melodrama with a message.

PubMed

Felsenthal, M

1987-01-01

Recognizing the communication potential of commercial cinema, John and Louise Riber make entertaining films with development messages for audiences in less-developed countries. Their form of social marketing stresses the use of locally-recognized popular styles and actors to convey development messages in a cinema format. The Ribers have produced films in Bangladesh promoting literacy and the use of birth control, and are presently working on a film in Zimbabwe addressing teen pregnancy.

Asking mom: formative research for an HPV vaccine campaign targeting mothers of adolescent girls.

PubMed

Shafer, Autumn; Cates, Joan R; Diehl, Sandra J; Hartmann, Miriam

2011-10-01

Vaccination against the types of human papillomavirus (HPV) that cause about 70% of cervical cancers is approved for use in girls and women between 9 and 26 years of age and recommended routinely in 11-12-year-old girls. This article reports on the systematic theory-based formative research conducted to develop HPV vaccine messages for a campaign targeting racially diverse mothers of nonvaccinated 11-12-year-old girls in rural Southeastern United States. A consortium of 13 county health departments concerned about high rates of cervical cancer in their region relative to state and national averages initiated the campaign. The research examined behavioral determinants for vaccination decisions as well as mothers' reactions to message frames and emotional appeals. On the basis of focus groups and intercept interviews (n = 79), the authors demonstrated how preproduction message research and production message testing were used to develop messages that would motivate mothers of preteen girls. Core emotional truths that emerged were a mother's instinct to protect her daughter from harm and to embrace aspirations for her daughter's future. Mothers also reacted more positively to text about preventing cervical cancer than about preventing HPV, a sexually transmitted disease. Mothers preferred message concepts with photos of minorities and Caucasian mothers and daughters.

BabeLO--An Extensible Converter of Programming Exercises Formats

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Queiros, R.; Leal, J. P.

2013-01-01

In the last two decades, there was a proliferation of programming exercise formats that hinders interoperability in automatic assessment. In the lack of a widely accepted standard, a pragmatic solution is to convert content among the existing formats. BabeLO is a programming exercise converter providing services to a network of heterogeneous…

Formative research: pretesting, revising, and more pretesting.

PubMed

Zimmerman, M; Steckel, L

1985-01-01

Thorough and extensive pretesting is the formative research technique that the Program for the Introduction and Adaptation of Contraceptive Technology (PIACT) and its sister organization, the Program for Appropriate Technology in Health (PATH), rely on to develop well-understood and culturally appropriate print materials. Formative research is defined as evaluation activities that occur during a project to determine if the objectives are being met and, if not, to modify the project's direction to ensure that they are. Before materials are finalized or printed, an interviewer should pretest them with representatives of the target population to determine if the intended message is being conveyed and if it is clear and acceptable to them. Pretesting should be done while the materials are still in an unfinished state so audience-generated alterations can be made easily. Revised materials also should be tested until they communicate the inforamtion as intended. Due to the fact that PIACT/PATH work with countries where large percentages of the population are illiterate, its motivational and instructional materials rely on pictures to convey the message. Often, pictures are augmented by a line or 2 of simple text in the local language. This text also requires careful pretesting. Examples from the field demonstrate the importance of pretesting to assure that print materials are appropriate to the group for whom they are being developed. The examples deal with sympbols, positive messages, the use of common objects, extraneous detail, messages about time, and text. Through pretesting, PIACT/PATH has learned that there can be a large discrepancy between what materials developers intend to convey and what the audience understands. Pretesting is an essential formative technique that builds upon information gathered during the materials development process, ensuring the message designer that the materials will effectively address the needs of the target audience.

Auditory, visual, and bimodal data link displays and how they support pilot performance.

PubMed

Steelman, Kelly S; Talleur, Donald; Carbonari, Ronald; Yamani, Yusuke; Nunes, Ashley; McCarley, Jason S

2013-06-01

The design of data link messaging systems to ensure optimal pilot performance requires empirical guidance. The current study examined the effects of display format (auditory, visual, or bimodal) and visual display position (adjacent to instrument panel or mounted on console) on pilot performance. Subjects performed five 20-min simulated single-pilot flights. During each flight, subjects received messages from a simulated air traffic controller. Messages were delivered visually, auditorily, or bimodally. Subjects were asked to read back each message aloud and then perform the instructed maneuver. Visual and bimodal displays engendered lower subjective workload and better altitude tracking than auditory displays. Readback times were shorter with the two unimodal visual formats than with any of the other three formats. Advantages for the unimodal visual format ranged in size from 2.8 s to 3.8 s relative to the bimodal upper left and auditory formats, respectively. Auditory displays allowed slightly more head-up time (3 to 3.5 seconds per minute) than either visual or bimodal displays. Position of the visual display had only modest effects on any measure. Combined with the results from previous studies by Helleberg and Wickens and Lancaster and Casali the current data favor visual and bimodal displays over auditory displays; unimodal auditory displays were favored by only one measure, head-up time, and only very modestly. Data evinced no statistically significant effects of visual display position on performance, suggesting that, contrary to expectations, the placement of a visual data link display may be of relatively little consequence to performance.

[The effect of the use of mobile phone text messages on freshmen's loneliness during the transition to college].

PubMed

Igarashi, Tasuku; Yoshida, Toshikazu

2003-10-01

This longitudinal study investigated the extent to which the use of mobile phone text messages, including e-mail and short message service, affected freshmen's loneliness during the transition to college. A total of 83 freshmen completed measures of loneliness and social network at the beginning and end of their first semester. Perceived utility of mobile phone text messages was assessed at the beginning of the semester. Results showed that perceived functional usefulness and affiliation fulfillment of text messages affected formation of social network during the period. It was found that the higher the functional usefulness, the larger increase in the number of messages to college friends, and the higher the affiliation fulfillment, the less important the text messages to pre-college friends. Furthermore, it was noted that the more important the relationship with pre-college and college friends that was not dependent on text messages, and the fewer messages to pre-college friends, the less the loneliness. In contrast, greater importance of text messages to pre-college friends was associated with an increase in loneliness.

Validating the content of a brief informational intervention to empower patients and spouses facing breast cancer: perspectives of both couple members.

PubMed

Blais, Marie-Claude; Maunsell, Elizabeth; Grenier, Sophie; Lauzier, Sophie; Dorval, Michel; Pelletier, Sylvie; Guay, Stéphane; Robidoux, André; Provencher, Louise

2014-09-01

The study objectives were to identify key information components that would be the basic content of a brief informational intervention, developed from a population perspective, to empower individual couple members facing breast cancer and to validate the relevance and acceptability of these components. A review of information relevant to couples facing cancer presented in internet sites and documents of national cancer organizations was made to identify information components to include in a brief informational intervention. These information components were framed as messages, that is, very brief sentences or tips. To validate the relevance and acceptability of these messages, six focus groups were conducted in Quebec City and Montreal among women who had had breast cancer and their spouses. Reactions to the messages were synthesized by analyzing the verbatim transcripts. A total of 70 individuals (35 women with an average of 14 months since diagnosis and 35 spouses) participated in the groups. The content of almost all messages was seen as relevant, although nuances and improvements were discussed. However, the message format provoked irritation and will need improvement. Findings provide validation of the relevance, from the viewpoint of women and their spouses, of the message content to be part of a brief informational intervention intended to empower couples as they cope with breast cancer. Couples approved of the idea of being guided in their adjustment to breast cancer. However, the message format requires adaptation and further testing.

Targeting anti-smoking messages: Does audience race matter?

PubMed Central

Tharp-Taylor, Shannah; Fryer, Craig S.; Shadel, William G.

2012-01-01

This study examined whether an adolescent’s self-identified race moderates the perceived effectiveness of anti-smoking messages. A sample of 94 never smoking adolescents (59% African-American; 41% European-American) participated in this two-part study. First, they rated the persuasive strength of a series of five decontextualized anti-smoking messages (i.e., messages delivered in text format). Second, they were exposed to five sets of anti-smoking public service announcements (PSAs; viewed as TV advertisements) that had embedded in them the five anti-smoking messages used in the first part of the study and rated their smoking refusal self-efficacy after each one. Although race moderated participants’ ratings of the decontextualized messages, there were no significant moderating effects of race when those messages were embedded in PSAs. The results of this study support the notion that anti-smoking PSAs should not be targeted to adolescent racial background, but suggests that decontextualized anti-smoking messages may be more effective if targeted to adolescent race. PMID:22481049

Promoting Mental Health Help-Seeking Behavior Among First-Year College Students.

PubMed

Pace, Kristin; Silk, Kami; Nazione, Samantha; Fournier, Laura; Collins-Eaglin, Jan

2018-02-01

Awareness and utilization of mental health services on college campuses is a salient issue, particularly for first-year students as they transition into college life. The current study uses focus groups and surveys to test help-seeking messages for first-year students. In this formative research, Phase 1 focus-group participants (N = 47) discussed four message concepts related to awareness of symptoms of mental health problems and services available to students. Phase 2 participants (N = 292) viewed one of three message concepts and then completed items that measured their perceptions of the message. Focus-group results helped prioritize likely effectiveness of messages based on responses to message features and provided an understanding of mental health help-seeking perceptions among college students. The quantitative results indicate the messages have potential for increasing awareness of mental health issues, as well as promoting availability of campus resources. Implications for tailoring campaign messages to first-year students are discussed.

76 FR 60498 - Agency Forms Undergoing Paperwork Reduction Act Review

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-09-29

... in all instances, the same kinds of questions are asked in most message testing. This package includes generic questions and formats that can used to develop health message testing data collection instruments. These include a list of screening questions, comprised of demographic and introductory questions...

Creative Analytics of Mission Ops Event Messages

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Smith, Dan

2017-01-01

Historically, tremendous effort has been put into processing and displaying mission health and safety telemetry data; and relatively little attention has been paid to extracting information from missions time-tagged event log messages. Todays missions may log tens of thousands of messages per day and the numbers are expected to dramatically increase as satellite fleets and constellations are launched, as security monitoring continues to evolve, and as the overall complexity of ground system operations increases. The logs may contain information about orbital events, scheduled and actual observations, device status and anomalies, when operators were logged on, when commands were resent, when there were data drop outs or system failures, and much much more. When dealing with distributed space missions or operational fleets, it becomes even more important to systematically analyze this data. Several advanced information systems technologies make it appropriate to now develop analytic capabilities which can increase mission situational awareness, reduce mission risk, enable better event-driven automation and cross-mission collaborations, and lead to improved operations strategies: Industry Standard for Log Messages. The Object Management Group (OMG) Space Domain Task Force (SDTF) standards organization is in the process of creating a formal standard for industry for event log messages. The format is based on work at NASA GSFC. Open System Architectures. The DoD, NASA, and others are moving towards common open system architectures for mission ground data systems based on work at NASA GSFC with the full support of the commercial product industry and major integration contractors. Text Analytics. A specific area of data analytics which applies statistical, linguistic, and structural techniques to extract and classify information from textual sources. This presentation describes work now underway at NASA to increase situational awareness through the collection of non-telemetry mission operations information into a common log format and then providing display and analytics tools to provide in-depth assessment of the log contents. The work includes: Common interface formats for acquiring time-tagged text messages Conversion of common files for schedules, orbital events, and stored commands to the common log format Innovative displays to depict thousands of messages on a single display Structured English text queries against the log message data store, extensible to a more mature natural language query capability Goal of speech-to-text and text-to-speech additions to create a personal mission operations assistant to aid on-console operations. A wide variety of planned uses identified by the mission operations teams will be discussed.

Patient knowledge and recall of health information following exposure to "facts and myths" message format variations.

PubMed

Cameron, Kenzie A; Roloff, Michael E; Friesema, Elisha M; Brown, Tiffany; Jovanovic, Borko D; Hauber, Sara; Baker, David W

2013-09-01

To assess if exposure to varying "facts and myths" message formats affected participant knowledge and recall accuracy of information related to influenza vaccination. Consenting patients (N=125) were randomized to receive one of four influenza related messages (Facts Only; Facts and Myths; Facts, Myths, and Refutations; or CDC Control), mailed one week prior to a scheduled physician visit. Knowledge was measured using 15 true/false items at pretest and posttest; recall accuracy was assessed using eight items at posttest. All participants' knowledge scores increased significantly (p<0.05); those exposed to the CDC Control message had a higher posttest knowledge score (adjusted mean=11.18) than those in the Facts Only condition (adjusted mean 9.61, p=<0.02). Participants accurately recalled a mean of 4.49 statements (SD=1.98). ANOVA demonstrated significant differences in recall accuracy by condition [F(3, 83)=7.74, p<.001, η(2)=0.22]. Messages that include facts, myths, and evidence to counteract myths appear to be effective in increasing participants' knowledge. We found no evidence that presenting both facts and myths is counterproductive to recall accuracy. Use of messages containing facts and myths may engage the reader and lead to knowledge gain. Recall accuracy is not assured by merely presenting factual information. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Birth preparedness and complication readiness - a qualitative study among community members in rural Tanzania.

PubMed

August, Furaha; Pembe, Andrea B; Kayombo, Edmund; Mbekenga, Columba; Axemo, Pia; Darj, Elisabeth

2015-01-01

Birth preparedness and complication readiness (BP/CR) strategies are aimed at reducing delays in seeking, reaching, and receiving care. Counselling on birth preparedness is provided during antenatal care visits. However, it is not clear why birth preparedness messages do not translate to utilisation of facility delivery. This study explores the perceptions, experiences, and challenges the community faces on BP/CR. A qualitative study design using Focused Group Discussions was conducted. Twelve focus group discussions were held with four separate groups: young men and women and older men and women in a rural community in Tanzania. Qualitative content analysis was used to analyse the data. The community members expressed a perceived need to prepare for childbirth. They were aware of the importance to attend the antenatal clinics, relied on family support for practical and financial preparations such as saving money for costs related to delivery, moving closer to the nearest hospital, and also to use traditional herbs, in favour of a positive outcome. Community recognised that pregnancy and childbirth complications are preferably treated at hospital. Facility delivery was preferred; however, certain factors including stigma on unmarried women and transportation were identified as hindering birth preparedness and hence utilisation of skilled care. Challenges were related to the consequences of poverty, though the maternal health care should be free, they perceived difficulties due to informal user fees. This study revealed community perceptions that were in favour of using skilled care in BP/CR. However, issues related to inability to prepare in advance hinder the realisation of the intention to use skilled care. It is important to innovate how the community reinforces BP/CR, such as using insurance schemes, using community health funds, and providing information on other birth preparedness messages via community health workers.

SETI-EC: SETI Encryption Code

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Heller, René

2018-03-01

The SETI Encryption code, written in Python, creates a message for use in testing the decryptability of a simulated incoming interstellar message. The code uses images in a portable bit map (PBM) format, then writes the corresponding bits into the message, and finally returns both a PBM image and a text (TXT) file of the entire message. The natural constants (c, G, h) and the wavelength of the message are defined in the first few lines of the code, followed by the reading of the input files and their conversion into 757 strings of 359 bits to give one page. Each header of a page, i.e. the little-endian binary code translation of the tempo-spatial yardstick, is calculated and written on-the-fly for each page.

Enhancing Mobile Access to Information with the Short Message Service

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brown, Jeff; Vetter, Ron; Saunders-White, Debra

2008-01-01

This article describes the development of interactive text message applications at the University of North Carolina Wilmington. We describe how the university's information technology innovation program led to the formation of a faculty owned company in which the university holds an equity interest. Next, we discuss the collaborative development…

47 CFR 80.1131 - Transmissions of urgency communications.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... communications. (a) In a terrestrial system the announcement of the urgency message must be made on one or more... transmitted through the maritime mobile-satellite service. (b) The urgency signal and message must be... the mobile unit carrying the mobile station or mobile earth station. (h) The urgency call format or...

47 CFR 80.1131 - Transmissions of urgency communications.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... communications. (a) In a terrestrial system the announcement of the urgency message must be made on one or more... transmitted through the maritime mobile-satellite service. (b) The urgency signal and message must be... the mobile unit carrying the mobile station or mobile earth station. (h) The urgency call format or...

47 CFR 80.1131 - Transmissions of urgency communications.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... communications. (a) In a terrestrial system the announcement of the urgency message must be made on one or more... transmitted through the maritime mobile-satellite service. (b) The urgency signal and message must be... the mobile unit carrying the mobile station or mobile earth station. (h) The urgency call format or...

47 CFR 80.1131 - Transmissions of urgency communications.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... communications. (a) In a terrestrial system the announcement of the urgency message must be made on one or more... transmitted through the maritime mobile-satellite service. (b) The urgency signal and message must be... the mobile unit carrying the mobile station or mobile earth station. (h) The urgency call format or...

47 CFR 80.1131 - Transmissions of urgency communications.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... communications. (a) In a terrestrial system the announcement of the urgency message must be made on one or more... transmitted through the maritime mobile-satellite service. (b) The urgency signal and message must be... the mobile unit carrying the mobile station or mobile earth station. (h) The urgency call format or...

Expressing Emotions as Evidence in Osteoporosis Narratives: Effects on Message Processing and Intentions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Volkman, Julie E.; Parrott, Roxanne L.

2012-01-01

This study examined the use of different narratives expressing positive or negative emotions, and varying the narrator's perspective on the arousal of discrete emotions, dominant cognitions, perceived evidence quality, and perceived message effectiveness related to osteoporosis behavioral intentions. Formative research led to the creation of…

76 FR 44589 - Proposed Data Collections Submitted for Public Comment and Recommendations

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-07-26

... instances, the same kinds of questions are asked in most message testing. This package includes generic questions and formats that can be used to develop health message testing data collection instruments. These include a list of screening questions, comprised of demographic and introductory questions, along with...

Calcium, Vitamin D, Iron, and Folate Messages in Three Canadian Magazines.

PubMed

Cooper, Marcia; Zalot, Lindsay; Wadsworth, Laurie A

2014-12-01

Data from the Canadian Community Health Survey showed that calcium, vitamin D, iron, and folate are nutrients of concern for females 19-50 years of age. The study objectives were to assess the quantity, format, and accuracy of messages related to these nutrients in selected Canadian magazines and to examine their congruency with Canadian nutrition policies. Using content analysis methodology, messages were coded using a stratified sample of a constructed year for Canadian Living, Chatelaine, and Homemakers magazines (n = 33) from 2003-2008. Pilot research was conducted to assess inter-coder agreement and to develop the study coding sheet and codebook. The messages identified (n = 595) averaged 18 messages per magazine issue. The most messages were found for calcium, followed by folate, iron, and vitamin D, and the messages were found primarily in articles (46%) and advertisements (37%). Overall, most messages were coded as accurate (82%) and congruent with Canadian nutrition policies (90%). This research demonstrated that the majority of messages in 3 Canadian magazines between 2003 and 2008 were accurate and reflected Canadian nutrition policies. Because Canadian women continue to receive much nutrition information via print media, this research provides important insights for dietitians into media messaging.

Research review of nongovernmental organizations' security policies for humanitarian programs in war, conflict, and postconflict environments.

PubMed

Rowley, Elizabeth; Burns, Lauren; Burnham, Gilbert

2013-06-01

To identify the most and least commonly cited security management messages that nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) are communicating to their field staff, to determine the types of documentation that NGOs most often use to communicate key security messages, and to distinguish the points of commonality and divergence across organizations in the content of key security messages. The authors undertook a systematic review of available security policies, manuals, and training materials from 20 international humanitarian NGOs using the InterAction Minimum Operating Security Standards as the basis for a review framework. The most commonly cited standards include analytical security issues such as threat and risk assessment processes and guidance on acceptance, protection, and deterrence approaches. Among the least commonly cited standards were considering security threats to national staff during staffing decision processes, incorporating security awareness into job descriptions, and ensuring that national staff security issues are addressed in trainings. NGO staff receive security-related messages through multiple document types, but only 12 of the 20 organizations have a distinct security policy document. Points of convergence across organizations in the content of commonly cited standards were found in many areas, but differences in security risk and threat assessment guidance may undermine communication between aid workers about changes in local security environments. Although the humanitarian community has experienced significant progress in the development of practical staff security guidance during the past 10 years, gaps remain that can hinder efforts to garner needed resources, clarify security responsibilities, and ensure that the distinct needs of national staff are recognized and addressed.

Reaching the hearts and minds of illiterate women in the Amhara highland of Ethiopia: Development and pre-testing of oral HIV/AIDS prevention messages.

PubMed

Bogale, Gebeyehu W; Boer, Henk; Seydel, Erwin R

2010-07-01

In the style of radio programmes, we developed three episodes of audio HIV prevention education for illiterate women in Ethiopia. We used social-oriented presentation formats, such as discussion between women on HIV prevention, and expert-oriented presentation formats, such as an interview with a male doctor. The aim of this study was to assess the relation between evaluation of presentation formats and overall liking of episodes, which is important for persuasive effects. Thirty women from rural Amhara listened to the episodes and, after listening, female data collectors interviewed the women on evaluation of presentation formats, overall liking of episodes, identification with the characters and convincingness. Evaluation of social-oriented presentation formats was strongly related to overall liking of episodes, but evaluation of expert-oriented presentation formats was not. This relation was mediated through convincingness and not through identification. We conclude that social-oriented presentation formats make messages more convincing and, consequently, improve overall liking and persuasive impact.

Opting out or denying discrimination? How the framework of free choice in American society influences perceptions of gender inequality.

PubMed

Stephens, Nicole M; Levine, Cynthia S

2011-10-01

American women still confront workplace barriers (e.g., bias against mothers, inflexible policies) that hinder their advancement at the upper levels of organizations. However, most Americans fail to recognize that such gender barriers still exist. Focusing on mothers who have left the workforce, we propose that the prevalent American assumption that actions are a product of choice conceals workplace barriers by communicating that opportunities are equal and that behavior is free from contextual influence. Study 1 reveals that stay-at-home mothers who view their own workplace departure as an individual choice experience greater well-being but less often recognize workplace barriers and discrimination as a source of inequality than do mothers who do not view their workplace departure as an individual choice. Study 2 shows that merely exposing participants to a message that frames actions in terms of individual choice increases participants' belief that society provides equal opportunities and that gender discrimination no longer exists. By concealing the barriers that women still face in the workplace, this choice framework may hinder women's long-term advancement in society.

Adventitious Root Formation of Forest Trees and Horticultural Plants - From Genes to Applications

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Adventitious root formation is a key step in the clonal propagation of forest trees and horticultural crops. Difficulties in forming adventitious roots (ARs) on stem cuttings and plants produced in vitro hinders the propagation of elite trees and efficient production of many horticultural plant spec...

Framing Effects in Narrative and Non-Narrative Risk Messages.

PubMed

Steinhardt, Joseph; Shapiro, Michael A

2015-08-01

Narrative messages are increasingly popular in health and risk campaigns, yet gain/loss framing effects have never been tested with such messages. Three experiments examined framing in narrative messages. Experiment 1 found that only the character's decision, not framing, influenced judgments about characters in a narrative derived from a prospect theory context. Experiment 2 found that a framing effect that occurred when presented in a decision format did not occur when the same situation was presented as a narrative. Using a different story/decision context, Experiment 3 found no significant difference in preference for surgery over radiation therapy in a narrative presentation compared to a non-narrative presentation. The results suggest that health and risk campaigns cannot assume that framing effects will be the same in narrative messages and non-narrative messages. Potential reasons for these differences and suggestions for future research are discussed. © 2015 Society for Risk Analysis.

Developing Concurrency Messages for the Black Community in Seattle, Washington

PubMed Central

Chapman, Caitlin Hughes; Clad, Rachel; Murray, Kate; Foster, Jennifer; Morris, Martina; Parks, Malcolm R.; Kurth, Ann Elizabeth

2013-01-01

In the United States, Blacks are disproportionately impacted by HIV/AIDS. Sexual networks and concurrent relationships have emerged as important contributors to the heterosexual transmission of HIV. To date, Africa is the only continent where an understanding of the impact of sexual concurrency has been conveyed in HIV prevention messaging. This project was developed by researchers and members of the Seattle, WA African American and African-Born communities, using the principles of community-based participatory research (CBPR). Interest in developing concurrency messaging came from the community and resulted in the successful submission of a community-academic partnership proposal to develop and disseminate HIV prevention messaging around concurrency. We describe: (a) the development of concurrency messaging through the integration of collected formative data and findings from the scientific literature; (b) the process of disseminating the message in the local Black community; and (c) important factors to consider in the development of similar campaigns. PMID:23206202

Media depictions of health topics: challenge and stigma formats.

PubMed

Smith, Rachel

2007-01-01

This article explored the notion that media depictions of health concerns come in one of two formats: challenge and stigma. After explicating the five features that should appear in challenge format and the seven features of stigma formats, we analyzed the content of health messages in magazines, brochures, and posters (n = 75) in a metropolitan area. The results of a two-factor confirmatory factor model showed that the five suggested features for challenge formats did, indeed, appear together (alpha = .76), and the seven features for stigma formats, also, appeared together (alpha = .90), and showed no residual relationship. In other words, the results suggest that media depictions of health topics appear in either challenge or stigma formats (r = - .87). Health issues appearing in magazine advertisements and articles presented messages in challenge formats, while brochures and posters from largely nonprofit and government groups depicted health issues in stigma formats. Some health topics appeared most often in challenge formats (including cancer, heart disease, and scoliosis), while others appeared in stigma formats (including tuberculosis, hepatitis, smoking, and sexually transmitted diseases [STDs]). Findings suggest that media depictions of health differ, and the implications of stigma and challenge formats are discussed.

Becoming Embedded: Incorporating Instant Messaging and the Ongoing Evolution of a Virtual Reference Service

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stormont, Sam

2010-01-01

The creation of an instant messaging (IM) service is described. The challenges encountered in developing, launching, and maintaining the project are examined and include technical support, archiving, balancing different formats, privacy, assessment, training, and the effectiveness of the IM channel. The process of choosing an aggregator and a…

77 FR 49819 - Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection; Comment Request; Pretesting of...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-08-17

.... Knowledge of these decisionmaking processes will be applied by FDA to help design effective communication... effectively design messages and select formats that have the greatest potential to influence the target... each new pretest will vary, depending on the nature of the material or message being tested and the...

The Obsolescence of DMS in an Information Centric World

DTIC Science & Technology

2011-04-13

system. DMS does this today already for submarines. It would only require a change in the programming of the existing Tactical Messaging Gateway ( TMG ...and NATO. The TMG , MFI and National Gateways convert the message into a format that can be read by the intended recipient. DMS is a fire and

Students' Experiences and Engagement with SMS for Learning in Higher Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brett, Paul

2011-01-01

This article presents an evaluation of students' experiences and engagement with Short Message Service (SMS) (text) messages. SMS was used to support learning through engaging students in formative assessment objective questions with feedback, as well as SMS-based collaborative learning tasks. The rationale was derived from a perceived benefit of…

I'm Giving You the Chocolate Factory! 2017 President's Message

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reeve, Edward M.

2017-01-01

In this article, the newly elected 2017-2018 President of the International Technology and Engineering Educators Association (ITEEA), Edward M. Reeve, presents his welcome message in the format of Willy Wonka giving Charlie the Chocolate Factory. Upon becoming a member of ITEEA, one automatically gets a "golden ticket" as a professional…

Poultry Disease Risk Management: Biosecurity Instructional CD-ROM

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vaillancourt, Jean-Pierre; Lambert, Gene; Popovich, Laura W.

2007-01-01

Delivery and formatting techniques for technical materials have traditionally been determined by common sense, not cognitive theory. In fact, for hundreds of years, verbal messages in the form of lecture and print have been the primary method of disseminating information to the learner. To move beyond verbal messages and toward the assimilation of…

Nature and Impact of Alcohol Messages in a Youth-Oriented Television Series

PubMed Central

Russell, Cristel Antonia; Russell, Dale W.; Grube, Joel W.

2008-01-01

This research contributes to the extant literature on television influence by pairing a stimulus-side approach documenting how information is presented within a TV series with a response-side assessment of whether connectedness and exposure to a series influence the processing of that information differently depending on its format. The inquiry focuses on the nature and impact of messages about alcohol contained within a youth oriented TV program. The findings indicate that the recall and perception of the more overt negative messages increase with exposure and that receptiveness to the subtle and less remembered positive messages increases with levels of program connectedness. Highly connected viewers are both more receptive to and in greater agreement with the underlying positive alcohol message communicated in the series. PMID:21113396

Nature and Impact of Alcohol Messages in a Youth-Oriented Television Series.

PubMed

Russell, Cristel Antonia; Russell, Dale W; Grube, Joel W

2009-01-01

This research contributes to the extant literature on television influence by pairing a stimulus-side approach documenting how information is presented within a TV series with a response-side assessment of whether connectedness and exposure to a series influence the processing of that information differently depending on its format. The inquiry focuses on the nature and impact of messages about alcohol contained within a youth oriented TV program. The findings indicate that the recall and perception of the more overt negative messages increase with exposure and that receptiveness to the subtle and less remembered positive messages increases with levels of program connectedness. Highly connected viewers are both more receptive to and in greater agreement with the underlying positive alcohol message communicated in the series.

A Text Messaging Intervention to Support Option B+ in Kenya: A Qualitative Study.

PubMed

Musoke, Pamela; Gakumo, C Ann; Abuogi, Lisa L; Akama, Eliud; Bukusi, Elizabeth; Helova, Anna; Nalwa, Wafula Z; Onono, Mariciannah; Spangler, Sydney A; Wanga, Iris; Turan, Janet M

Key challenges in providing lifelong antiretroviral therapy (ART) to pregnant and breastfeeding women (Option B+) in sub-Saharan Africa include achieving long-term adherence and retention in care. One intervention that may help address these challenges is mobile text messaging. We evaluated the acceptability of a text messaging intervention to support women's ART adherence and retention in care in rural western Kenya. Forty in-depth interviews with 20 pregnant/postpartum women infected with HIV, their male partners, and four focus groups with 30 health care providers were conducted during September-November 2014. Data were coded and analyzed using thematic analysis. Findings revealed the following themes: (a) overall acceptability of the text messaging intervention; (b) proposed content of text messages; (c) format, timing, and language of text messages; and (d) potential challenges of the text messaging intervention. Findings were used to refine a text messaging intervention being evaluated at Kenyan study sites rolling out Option B+. Copyright © 2017 Association of Nurses in AIDS Care. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Sexuality sells: a content analysis of lesbian and heterosexual women's bodies in magazine advertisements.

PubMed

Milillo, Diana

2008-01-01

Controversies in the literature suggest varied views as to whether lesbian and heterosexual women accept different cultural norms about body shape and size. This article explores whether messages about the body from lesbian media deviate from mainstream, heterosexually focused media. In particular, I differentiate the messages within both media by the physical appearance of the model in the photo, and how the body is positioned in the type and context of the ad itself. Three hundred randomly selected photo advertisements from lesbian and mainstream women's magazines were examined. Lesbian models varied more in age and weight than mainstream models, and were more likely to be androgynous in gender appearance. In turn, mainstream models were more likely to be wearing revealing clothing that hindered their mobility, such as a tight skirt or stiletto heels. Advertisements in lesbian magazines placed their models in more defined contexts, such as in travel ads, and with more of a purpose than mainstream advertisements, where models were more likely to be placed in front of a non-descript backdrop. Lesbian advertisements were more likely to sell products that engendered community (e.g., travel, book club), whereas mainstream advertisements more often sold products that emphasized the self (e.g., clothing, beauty products). I consider how lesbian and heterosexual bodies are reproduced and impart messages about "doing" gender.

Issues of cause and control in patient accounts of Type 2 diabetes.

PubMed

Parry, O; Peel, E; Douglas, M; Lawton, J

2006-02-01

Patients experience considerable difficulties in making and sustaining health-related lifestyle changes. Many Type 2 diabetes patients struggle to follow disease risk-management advice even when they receive extensive information and support. Drawing on a qualitative study of patients with Type 2 diabetes, the paper uses discourse analysis to examine their accounts about disease causation and disease management, and the implications for how they respond to their condition and health services advice. As it is a multifactorial disease, biomedical discourse around Type 2 diabetes is complex. Patients are encouraged to grasp the complicated message that both cause and medical outcomes related to their condition are partly, but not wholly, within their control. Discursive constructions identified from respondent accounts indicate how these two messages are deployed variously by respondents when accounting for disease causation and management. While these constructions (identified in respondent accounts as 'Up to me' and 'Down to them') are a valuable resource for patients, equally they may be deployed in a selective and detrimental way. We conclude that clear messages from health professionals about effective disease management may help patients to position themselves more effectively in relation to their condition. More importantly, they might serve to hinder the availability of inappropriate and potentially harmful patient positions where patients either relinquish responsibility for disease management or reject all input from health professionals.

Development of an HL7 interface engine, based on tree structure and streaming algorithm, for large-size messages which include image data.

PubMed

Um, Ki Sung; Kwak, Yun Sik; Cho, Hune; Kim, Il Kon

2005-11-01

A basic assumption of Health Level Seven (HL7) protocol is 'No limitation of message length'. However, most existing commercial HL7 interface engines do limit message length because they use the string array method, which is run in the main memory for the HL7 message parsing process. Specifically, messages with image and multi-media data create a long string array and thus cause the computer system to raise critical and fatal problem. Consequently, HL7 messages cannot handle the image and multi-media data necessary in modern medical records. This study aims to solve this problem with the 'streaming algorithm' method. This new method for HL7 message parsing applies the character-stream object which process character by character between the main memory and hard disk device with the consequence that the processing load on main memory could be alleviated. The main functions of this new engine are generating, parsing, validating, browsing, sending, and receiving HL7 messages. Also, the engine can parse and generate XML-formatted HL7 messages. This new HL7 engine successfully exchanged HL7 messages with 10 megabyte size images and discharge summary information between two university hospitals.

When "Promotoras" and Technology Meet: A Qualitative Analysis of "Promotoras'" Use of Small Media to Increase Cancer Screening among South Texas Latinos

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Arvey, Sarah R.; Fernandez, Maria E.; LaRue, Denise M.; Bartholomew, L. Kay

2012-01-01

Computer-based multimedia technologies can be used to tailor health messages, but "promotoras" (Spanish-speaking community health workers) rarely use these tools. "Promotoras" delivered health messages about colorectal cancer screening to medically underserved Latinos in South Texas using two small media formats: a…

Risk Comprehension and Judgments of Statistical Evidentiary Appeals: When a Picture Is Not Worth a Thousand Words

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Parrott, Roxanne; Silk, Kami; Dorgan, Kelly; Condit, Celeste; Harris, Tina

2005-01-01

Too little theory and research has considered the effects of communicating statistics in various forms on comprehension, perceptions of evidence quality, or evaluations of message persuasiveness. In a considered extension of Subjective Message Construct Theory (Morley, 1987), we advance a rationale relating evidence form to the formation of…

Why Should I Care? Exploring the Use of Environmental Concern as a Frame of Communication in Zoos

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yocco, Victor S.; Bruskotter, Jeremy; Wilson, Robyn; Heimlich, Joseph E.

2015-01-01

Effectively communicating environmental issues to motivate visitors' behavior is critical for zoos to accomplish their missions. We examined the relationship between zoo visitors' environmental concern and agreement with messages framed by environmental concern. Findings from two zoos (N = 298; N = 400), using two message formats, provided nearly…

Keeping the Spirits Up: The Effect of Teachers' and Parents' Emotional Support on Children's Working Memory Performance.

PubMed

Vandenbroucke, Loren; Spilt, Jantine; Verschueren, Karine; Baeyens, Dieter

2017-01-01

Working memory, used to temporarily store and mentally manipulate information, is important for children's learning. It is therefore valuable to understand which (contextual) factors promote or hinder working memory performance. Recent research shows positive associations between positive parent-child and teacher-student interactions and working memory performance and development. However, no study has yet experimentally investigated how parents and teachers affect working memory performance. Based on attachment theory, the current study investigated the role of parent and teacher emotional support in promoting working memory performance by buffering the negative effect of social stress. Questionnaires and an experimental session were completed by 170 children from grade 1 to 2 ( M age = 7 years 6 months, SD = 7 months). Questionnaires were used to assess children's perceptions of the teacher-student and parent-child relationship. During an experimental session, working memory was measured with the Corsi task backward (Milner, 1971) in a pre- and post-test design. In-between the tests stress was induced in the children using the Cyberball paradigm (Williams et al., 2000). Emotional support was manipulated (between-subjects) through an audio message (either a weather report, a supportive message of a stranger, a supportive message of a parent, or a supportive message of a teacher). Results of repeated measures ANOVA showed no clear effect of the stress induction. Nevertheless, an effect of parent and teacher support was found and depended on the quality of the parent-child relationship. When children had a positive relationship with their parent, support of parents and teachers had little effect on working memory performance. When children had a negative relationship with their parent, a supportive message of that parent decreased working memory performance, while a supportive message from the teacher increased performance. In sum, the current study suggests that parents and teachers can support working memory performance by being supportive for the child. Teacher support is most effective when the child has a negative relationship with the parent. These insights can give direction to specific measures aimed at preventing and resolving working memory problems and related issues.

Keeping the Spirits Up: The Effect of Teachers’ and Parents’ Emotional Support on Children’s Working Memory Performance

PubMed Central

Vandenbroucke, Loren; Spilt, Jantine; Verschueren, Karine; Baeyens, Dieter

2017-01-01

Working memory, used to temporarily store and mentally manipulate information, is important for children’s learning. It is therefore valuable to understand which (contextual) factors promote or hinder working memory performance. Recent research shows positive associations between positive parent–child and teacher–student interactions and working memory performance and development. However, no study has yet experimentally investigated how parents and teachers affect working memory performance. Based on attachment theory, the current study investigated the role of parent and teacher emotional support in promoting working memory performance by buffering the negative effect of social stress. Questionnaires and an experimental session were completed by 170 children from grade 1 to 2 (Mage = 7 years 6 months, SD = 7 months). Questionnaires were used to assess children’s perceptions of the teacher–student and parent–child relationship. During an experimental session, working memory was measured with the Corsi task backward (Milner, 1971) in a pre- and post-test design. In-between the tests stress was induced in the children using the Cyberball paradigm (Williams et al., 2000). Emotional support was manipulated (between-subjects) through an audio message (either a weather report, a supportive message of a stranger, a supportive message of a parent, or a supportive message of a teacher). Results of repeated measures ANOVA showed no clear effect of the stress induction. Nevertheless, an effect of parent and teacher support was found and depended on the quality of the parent–child relationship. When children had a positive relationship with their parent, support of parents and teachers had little effect on working memory performance. When children had a negative relationship with their parent, a supportive message of that parent decreased working memory performance, while a supportive message from the teacher increased performance. In sum, the current study suggests that parents and teachers can support working memory performance by being supportive for the child. Teacher support is most effective when the child has a negative relationship with the parent. These insights can give direction to specific measures aimed at preventing and resolving working memory problems and related issues. PMID:28421026

Predictors of psychological improvement on non-professional suicide message boards: content analysis.

PubMed

Niederkrotenthaler, T; Gould, M; Sonneck, G; Stack, S; Till, B

2016-12-01

Suicide message boards have been at the core of debates about negative influences of the Internet on suicidality. Nothing is currently known about communication styles that may help users to psychologically improve in these settings. In all, 1182 archival threads with 20 499 individual postings from seven non-professional suicide message boards supporting an 'against-suicide', 'neutral' or 'pro-suicide' attitude were randomly selected and subject to content analysis. Initial needs of primary posters (i.e. individual who open a thread), their psychological improvement by the end of the thread, their responses received and indicators of suicidality were coded. Differences between 'pro-suicide', 'neutral' and 'against suicide' boards, and correlations between primary posters and respondents in terms of suicidality were assessed. Logistic regression was used to test associations with psychological improvement. 'Pro-suicide' boards (n = 4) differed from 'neutral' (n = 1) and 'against-suicide' (n = 2) boards in terms of communicated contents. Indicators of suicidality correlated moderately to strongly between primary posters and respondents on 'pro-suicide' message boards, but less on other boards. Several communicative strategies were associated with psychological improvement in primary posters, including the provision of constructive advice [adjusted odds ratio (aOR) 4.10, 95% confidence interval (CI) 2.40-7.03], active listening (aOR 1.60, 95% CI 1.12-2.27), sympathy towards the poster (aOR 2.22, 95% CI 1.68-2.95) and provision of alternatives to suicide (aOR 2.30, 95% CI 1.67-3.18). Respondents resemble primary posters with regard to suicidality in 'pro-suicide' boards, which may hinder psychological improvement. Still, opportunities to intervene in these settings using simple communication techniques exist and need to be taken and evaluated.

The Time for Doing is Not the Time for Change: Effects of General Action and Inaction Goals on Attitude Retrieval and Attitude Change

PubMed Central

Albarracín, Dolores; Handley, Ian M.

2011-01-01

Implicit in many informal and formal principles of psychological change is the understudied assumption that change requires either an active approach or an inactive approach. This issue was systematically investigated by comparing the effects of general action goals and general inaction goals on attitude change. As prior attitudes facilitate preparation for an upcoming persuasive message, general action goals were hypothesized to facilitate conscious retrieval of prior attitudes and therefore hinder attitude change to a greater extent than general inaction goals. Experiment 1 demonstrated that action primes (e.g., “go,” “energy”) yielded faster attitude report than inaction primes (e.g., “rest,” “still”) among participants who were forewarned of an upcoming persuasive message. Experiment 2 showed that the faster attitude report identified in Experiment 1 was localized on attitudes towards a message topic participants were prepared to receive. Experiments 3, 4, and 5 showed that, compared to inaction primes, action primes produced less attitude change and less argument scrutiny in response to a counterattitudinal message on a previously forewarned topic. Experiment 6 confirmed that the effects of the primes on attitude change were due to differential attitude retrieval. That is, when attitude expression was induced immediately after the primes, action and inaction goals produced similar amounts of attitude change. In contrast, when no attitude expression was induced after the prime, action goals produced less attitude change than inaction goals. Finally, Experiment 7 validated the assumption that these goal effects can be reduced or reversed when the goals have already been satisfied by an intervening task. PMID:21639651

Engineered cell-cell communication via DNA messaging

PubMed Central

2012-01-01

Background Evolution has selected for organisms that benefit from genetically encoded cell-cell communication. Engineers have begun to repurpose elements of natural communication systems to realize programmed pattern formation and coordinate other population-level behaviors. However, existing engineered systems rely on system-specific small molecules to send molecular messages among cells. Thus, the information transmission capacity of current engineered biological communication systems is physically limited by specific biomolecules that are capable of sending only a single message, typically “regulate transcription.” Results We have engineered a cell-cell communication platform using bacteriophage M13 gene products to autonomously package and deliver heterologous DNA messages of varying lengths and encoded functions. We demonstrate the decoupling of messages from a common communication channel via the autonomous transmission of various arbitrary genetic messages. Further, we increase the range of engineered DNA messaging across semisolid media by linking message transmission or receipt to active cellular chemotaxis. Conclusions We demonstrate decoupling of a communication channel from message transmission within engineered biological systems via the autonomous targeted transduction of user-specified heterologous DNA messages. We also demonstrate that bacteriophage M13 particle production and message transduction occurs among chemotactic bacteria. We use chemotaxis to improve the range of DNA messaging, increasing both transmission distance and communication bit rates relative to existing small molecule-based communication systems. We postulate that integration of different engineered cell-cell communication platforms will allow for more complex spatial programming of dynamic cellular consortia. PMID:22958599

Addressing medication nonadherence by mobile phone: development and delivery of tailored messages.

PubMed

Gatwood, Justin; Balkrishnan, Rajesh; Erickson, Steven R; An, Lawrence C; Piette, John D; Farris, Karen B

2014-01-01

Medication nonadherence remains a significant public health problem, and efforts to improve adherence have shown only limited impact. The tailoring of messages has become a popular method of developing communication to influence specific health-related behaviors but the development and impact of tailored text messages on medication use is poorly understood. The aim of this paper is to describe an approach to developing theory-based tailored messages for delivery via mobile phone to improve medication adherence among patients with diabetes. Kreuter's five-step tailoring process was followed to create tailored messages for mobile phone delivery. Two focus group sessions, using input from 11 people, and expert review of message content were used to adapt the survey instrument on which the messages were tailored and edit the developed messages for the target population. Following established tailoring methods a library of 168 theory-driven and 128 medication-specific tailored messages were developed and formatted for automated delivery to mobile phones. Concepts from the Health Belief Model and Self-Determination Theory were used to craft the messages and an algorithm was applied to determine the order and timing of messages with the aim of progressively influencing disease and treatment-related beliefs driving adherence to diabetes medication. The process described may be applied to future investigations aiming to improve medication adherence in patients with diabetes and the effectiveness of the current messages will be tested in a planned analysis. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Black youth's personal involvement in the HIV/AIDS issue: does the public service announcement still work?

PubMed

Keys, Truman R; Morant, Kesha M; Stroman, Carolyn A

2009-03-01

Recent public service announcements (PSAs) directed toward Black youth utilize various formats and appeals to stimulate a motivated cognitive process that engenders personal involvement in the HIV/AIDS issue. The Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM) by Petty and Cacioppo argues that engagement with messages that consist of substantive content causes the audience member to critically analyze the message, which can produce awareness and attitude change. An efficient way to add emphasis to the message and seize the attention of the target audience is to insert the message into an entertainment context. Our study attempted to analyze the impact of the peripheral cue, character appeal, on audience members' attitude change in response to analyzing high- and low-involvement message content. A2 x 4 factorial design was used, with message involvement (high/low) and character appeal (White/Black and celebrity/noncelebrity) as independent variables. The findings showed that celebrity status is the salient factor, with source perception inducing attitude change as a main effect or in an interaction effect with high- and low message content.

Application of a Tsunami Warning Message Metric to refine NOAA NWS Tsunami Warning Messages

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gregg, C. E.; Johnston, D.; Sorensen, J.; Whitmore, P.

2013-12-01

In 2010, the U.S. National Weather Service (NWS) funded a three year project to integrate social science into their Tsunami Program. One of three primary requirements of the grant was to make improvements to tsunami warning messages of the NWS' two Tsunami Warning Centers- the West Coast/Alaska Tsunami Warning Center (WCATWC) in Palmer, Alaska and the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center (PTWC) in Ewa Beach, Hawaii. We conducted focus group meetings with a purposive sample of local, state and Federal stakeholders and emergency managers in six states (AK, WA, OR, CA, HI and NC) and two US Territories (US Virgin Islands and American Samoa) to qualitatively asses information needs in tsunami warning messages using WCATWC tsunami messages for the March 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami event. We also reviewed research literature on behavioral response to warnings to develop a tsunami warning message metric that could be used to guide revisions to tsunami warning messages of both warning centers. The message metric is divided into categories of Message Content, Style, Order and Formatting and Receiver Characteristics. A message is evaluated by cross-referencing the message with the operational definitions of metric factors. Findings are then used to guide revisions of the message until the characteristics of each factor are met. Using findings from this project and findings from a parallel NWS Warning Tiger Team study led by T. Nicolini, the WCATWC implemented the first of two phases of revisions to their warning messages in November 2012. A second phase of additional changes, which will fully implement the redesign of messages based on the metric, is in progress. The resulting messages will reflect current state-of-the-art knowledge on warning message effectiveness. Here we present the message metric; evidence-based rational for message factors; and examples of previous, existing and proposed messages.

Use of qualitative research to inform development of nutrition messages for low-income mothers of preschool children.

PubMed

White, Alicie H; Wilson, Judy F; Burns, Adam; Blum-Kemelor, Donna; Singh, Anita; Race, Patricia O; Soto, Valery; Lockett, Alice F

2011-01-01

To develop and test nutrition messages and supporting content with low-income mothers for use with theory-based interventions addressing fruit and vegetable consumption and child-feeding practices. Six formative and 6 evaluative focus groups explored message concepts and tested messages, respectively. Research facilities in Maryland, Texas, California, Florida, North Carolina, New York, Alabama, and Illinois. Ninety-five low-income mothers of 2- to 5-year-old children; over half from households participating in a federal nutrition assistance program. Preference for and comprehension of nutrition messages. Qualitative data analysis procedures to generate common themes from transcripts and observers' notes. Messages on role modeling, cooking and eating together, having patience when introducing new food items, and allowing children to serve themselves were well received. Mothers preferred messages that emphasized their role as a teacher and noted benefits such as their children becoming more independent and learning new skills. Mothers commonly doubted children's ability to accurately report when they are "full" and disliked messages encouraging mothers to allow children to "decide" whether and how much to eat. This study generated 7 audience-tested messages for incorporation into nutrition education interventions targeting low-income mothers of preschool-age children. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Crossmodal Congruency Benefits of Tactile and Visual Signalling

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-11-12

modal information format seemed to produce faster and more accurate performance. The question of learning complex tactile communication signals...SECURITY CLASSIFICATION OF: We conducted an experiment in which tactile messages were created based on five common military arm and hand signals. We...compared response times and accuracy rates of novice individuals responding to visual and tactile representations of these messages, which were

Unequal Activities of Enantiomers via Biological Receptors: Examples of Chiral Drug, Pesticide, and Fragrance Molecules

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mannschreck, Albrecht; Kiesswetter, Roland; von Angerer, Erwin

2007-01-01

A molecule coming from outside an organism can form a ligand-receptor complex. Upon its formation, a message is transmitted, for example, to certain cells. In this way, two enantiomers can emit messages that differ, either quantitatively or qualitatively. In the present article, these facts are taken as a common basis for the actions of chiral…

Avoiding a knowledge gap in a multiethnic statewide social marketing campaign: is cultural tailoring sufficient?

PubMed

Buchthal, O Vanessa; Doff, Amy L; Hsu, Laura A; Silbanuz, Alice; Heinrich, Katie M; Maddock, Jay E

2011-03-01

In 2007, the State of Hawaii, Healthy Hawaii Initiative conducted a statewide social-marketing campaign promoting increased physical activity and nutrition. The campaign included substantial formative research to develop messages tailored for Hawaii's multiethnic Asian and Pacific Islander populations. The authors conducted a statewide random digital dialing telephone survey to assess the campaign's comparative reach among individuals with different ethnicities and different levels of education and income. This analysis suggests that the intervention was successful in reaching its target ethnic audiences. However, a knowledge gap related to the campaign appeared among individuals with incomes less than 130% of the poverty level and those with less than a high school education. These results varied significantly by message and the communication channel used. Recall of supermarket-based messages was significantly higher among individuals below 130% of the poverty level and those between 18 and 35 years of age, 2 groups that showed consistently lower recall of messages in other channels. Results suggest that cultural tailoring for ethnic audiences, although important, is insufficient for reaching low-income populations, and that broad-based social marketing campaigns should consider addressing socioeconomic status-related channel preferences in formative research and campaign design.

Formative Assessment in Confucian Heritage Culture Classrooms: Activity Theory Analysis of Tensions, Contradictions and Hybrid Practices

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Thanh Pham, Thi Hong; Renshaw, Peter

2015-01-01

Formative assessment has recently become a preferred assessment strategy in educational institutions worldwide. However, it is not easy to implement in Asian classrooms, because local cultures and institutional constraints potentially hinder the practice. This one-semester study aimed to use the "third space", as the core of the third…

Potential effects of the introduction of the discrete address beacon system data link on air/ground information transfer problems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Grayson, R. L.

1981-01-01

This study of Aviation Safety Reporting System reports suggests that benefits should accure from implementation of discrete address beacon system data link. The phase enhanced terminal information system service is expected to provide better terminal information than present systems by improving currency and accuracy. In the exchange of air traffic control messages, discrete address insures that only the intended recipient receives and acts on a specific message. Visual displays and printer copy of messages should mitigate many of the reported problems associated with voice communications. The problems that remain unaffected include error in addressing the intended recipient and messages whose content is wrong but are otherwise correct as to format and reasonableness.

A lightweight messaging-based distributed processing and workflow execution framework for real-time and big data analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Laban, Shaban; El-Desouky, Aly

2014-05-01

To achieve a rapid, simple and reliable parallel processing of different types of tasks and big data processing on any compute cluster, a lightweight messaging-based distributed applications processing and workflow execution framework model is proposed. The framework is based on Apache ActiveMQ and Simple (or Streaming) Text Oriented Message Protocol (STOMP). ActiveMQ , a popular and powerful open source persistence messaging and integration patterns server with scheduler capabilities, acts as a message broker in the framework. STOMP provides an interoperable wire format that allows framework programs to talk and interact between each other and ActiveMQ easily. In order to efficiently use the message broker a unified message and topic naming pattern is utilized to achieve the required operation. Only three Python programs and simple library, used to unify and simplify the implementation of activeMQ and STOMP protocol, are needed to use the framework. A watchdog program is used to monitor, remove, add, start and stop any machine and/or its different tasks when necessary. For every machine a dedicated one and only one zoo keeper program is used to start different functions or tasks, stompShell program, needed for executing the user required workflow. The stompShell instances are used to execute any workflow jobs based on received message. A well-defined, simple and flexible message structure, based on JavaScript Object Notation (JSON), is used to build any complex workflow systems. Also, JSON format is used in configuration, communication between machines and programs. The framework is platform independent. Although, the framework is built using Python the actual workflow programs or jobs can be implemented by any programming language. The generic framework can be used in small national data centres for processing seismological and radionuclide data received from the International Data Centre (IDC) of the Preparatory Commission for the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO). Also, it is possible to extend the use of the framework in monitoring the IDC pipeline. The detailed design, implementation,conclusion and future work of the proposed framework will be presented.

The Influence of Statistical versus Exemplar Appeals on Indian Adults' Health Intentions: An Investigation of Direct Effects and Intervening Persuasion Processes.

PubMed

McKinley, Christopher J; Limbu, Yam; Jayachandran, C N

2017-04-01

In two separate investigations, we examined the persuasive effectiveness of statistical versus exemplar appeals on Indian adults' smoking cessation and mammography screening intentions. To more comprehensively address persuasion processes, we explored whether message response and perceived message effectiveness functioned as antecedents to persuasive effects. Results showed that statistical appeals led to higher levels of health intentions than exemplar appeals. In addition, findings from both studies indicated that statistical appeals stimulated more attention and were perceived as more effective than anecdotal accounts. Among male smokers, statistical appeals also generated greater cognitive processing than exemplar appeals. Subsequent mediation analyses revealed that message response and perceived message effectiveness fully carried the influence of appeal format on health intentions. Given these findings, future public health initiatives conducted among similar populations should design messages that include substantive factual information while ensuring that this content is perceived as credible and valuable.

Preference for gain- or loss-framed electronic cigarette prevention messages.

PubMed

Kong, Grace; Cavallo, Dana A; Camenga, Deepa R; Morean, Meghan E; Krishnan-Sarin, Suchitra

2016-11-01

Effective electronic cigarette (e-cigarette) prevention messages are needed to combat the rising popularity/uptake of e-cigarettes among youth. We examined preferences for e-cigarette prevention messages that either emphasized gains (e.g., You save money by not using e-cigarettes) or losses (e.g., You spend money by using e-cigarettes) among adolescents and young adults. Using surveys in two middle schools, four high schools, and one college in CT (N=5405), we assessed students' preferences for gain- or loss-framed e-cigarette prevention messages related to four themes: financial cost, health risks, addiction potential, and social labeling as a smoker. We also assessed whether preferences for each message framing theme differed by sex, school level, cigarette-use status, and e-cigarette use-status. We also examined whether preference for message framing differed by cigarette and e-cigarette susceptibility status among never e-cigarette users. Overall, loss-framing was preferred for message themes related to health risks, addiction potential, and social labeling as a smoker, whereas gain-framing was preferred for message themes related to financial cost. Logistic regression analyses showed that 1) females preferred loss-framed messages for all themes relative to males, 2) lifetime e-cigarette users preferred loss-framed health risks and social labeling messages relative to never users, and 3) high school students preferred gain-framed social labeling messages relative to college students. The preference for message framing did not differ by cigarette or e-cigarette susceptibility. Preference for message framing differed by themes and individual characteristics. This formative research could inform the construction of persuasive e-cigarette prevention messages. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

An Image Archive With The ACR/NEMA Message Formats

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Seshadri, Sridhar B.; Khalsa, Satjeet; Arenson, Ronald L.; Brikman, Inna; Davey, Michael J.

1988-06-01

An image archive has been designed to manage and store radiologic images received from within the main Hospital and a from a suburban orthopedic clinic. Images are stored on both magnetic as well as optical media. Prior comparison examinations are combined with the current examination to generate a 'viewing folder' that is sent to the display station for primary diagnosis. An 'archive-manager' controls the database managment, periodic optical disk backup and 'viewing-folder' generation. Images are converted into the ACR/NEMA message format before being written to the optical disk. The software design of the 'archive-manager' and its associated modules is presented. Enhancements to the system are discussed.

The Relation of Source Credibility and Message Frequency to Program Evaluation and Self-Confidence of Students in a Job Shadowing Program

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Linnehan, Frank

2004-01-01

Using a pre- and post-test design, this study examined the relation of an adult's credibility and message frequency to the beliefs of female high school students participating in a job-shadowing program. Hypotheses were based on the Elaboration Likelihood Model of attitude formation and change. Findings indicate that credibility of the adult…

Design of a Threat-Based Gunnery Performance Test: Issues and Procedures for Crew and Platoon Tank Gunnery

DTIC Science & Technology

1990-06-01

Uses visual communication . _._Changes direction/formation __Crews transmit timely, accurate quickly. messages. NOTES. Figure 22. Sample engagement...and concise. The network control station (NCS) effectively maintains network discipline. Radio security equipment, visual communication , wire...net discipline, (c) clarity and brevity of radio messages, (d) use of transmission security equipment, (e) use of visual communication , (f) use of wire

Task-Appropriate Visualizations: Can the Very Same Visualization Format Either Promote or Hinder Learning Depending on the Task Requirements?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Soemer, Alexander; Schwan, Stephan

2016-01-01

In a series of experiments, we tested a recently proposed hypothesis stating that the degree of alignment between the form of a mental representation resulting from learning with a particular visualization format and the specific requirements of a learning task determines learning performance (task-appropriateness). Groups of participants were…

Shaping Core Health Messages: Rural, Low-Income Mothers Speak Through Participatory Action Research.

PubMed

Mammen, Sheila; Sano, Yoshie; Braun, Bonnie; Maring, Elisabeth Fost

2018-04-23

Rural, low-income families are disproportionately impacted by health problems owing to structural barriers (e.g., transportation, health insurance coverage) and personal barriers (e.g., health literacy). This paper presents a Participatory Action Research (PAR) model of co-created Core Health Messages (CHMs) in the areas of dental health, food security, health insurance, and physical activity. The research project engaged a multi-disciplinary team of experts to design initial health messages; rural, low-income mothers to respond to, and co-create, health messages; and stakeholders who work with families to share their insights. Findings reveal the perceptions of mothers and community stakeholders regarding messages and channels of message dissemination. By using PAR, a learner engagement approach, the researchers intend to increase the likelihood that the CHMs are culturally appropriate and relevant to specific populations. The CHM-PAR model visually illustrates an interactive, iterative process of health message generation and testing. The paper concludes with implications for future research and outreach in a technological landscape where dissemination channels are dynamic. This paper provides a model for researchers and health educators to co-create messages in a desired format (e.g., length, voice, level of empathy, tone) preferred by their audiences and to examine dissemination methods that will best reach those audiences.

"Yo! This is no lie, if you smoke, you die": a content analysis of anti-smoking posters created by adolescents.

PubMed

Banerjee, Smita C; Greene, Kathryn

2013-01-01

Exposure to anti-smoking messages is strongly associated with lower smoking initiation by adolescents. However, few anti-smoking efforts have involved message generation by adolescents themselves. This article presents a content analysis of anti-smoking posters created by middle school students in two northeastern schools in the United States. Understanding how smoking prevention messages should be framed from the perspective of young teens will provide us with formative information about what kinds of smoking prevention messages teens believe are effective. 50 anti-smoking posters created by adolescents (11-14 years) were content analysed, with a focus around three broad areas: effects of smoking portrayed in posters, specific ways of message depiction in posters and use of slogans. Results of content analysis reveal that appearance-related factors (44%) were most commonly used to convey harmful health effects of smoking, followed by messages about death and dying (30%), before-after effects of smoking (22%), other sickness-related effects of smoking (20%) and cancer (12%). Supplemental thematic analysis revealed that in a majority of posters pictures were exaggerated and were dominant part of the posters. These results provide information about anti-smoking messages/themes perceived as efficacious by young adolescents and have implications for developing anti-smoking messages for adolescents.

Video messaging: what works to persuade mothers to supervise young children more closely in order to reduce injury risk?

PubMed

Morrongiello, Barbara A; Zdzieborski, Daniel; Sandomierski, Megan; Lasenby-Lessard, Jennifer

2009-03-01

Recent research reveals that supervision can be a protective factor for childhood injury. Parents who closely supervise young children at home have children who experience fewer injuries. What is not known, however, is what messaging approaches (e.g., injury statistics, graphic images of injured children, personal testimonials by parents) are best to persuade parents to supervise more closely. Using video as the medium, the present focus group study of urban Canadian mothers explored their reactions to different formats and messages in order to: identify best practices to convince mothers that childhood injury prevention is important; determine how best to communicate messages about supervision to mothers; and identify what the nature and scope of these messages should be for motivating and empowering mothers to supervise closely. Results suggest that those who become aware of the scope of childhood injuries are motivated to pay attention to messaging about supervision, that such messages must be delivered with care so that parents do not feel guilty or blamed for acknowledging they could more closely supervise than they already are, that certain messages are not useful for encouraging closer supervision, and that both the content and presentation characteristics (images, accompanying sound) of messages are important determinants of effectiveness for motivating mothers to supervise more closely. Implications for developing interventions that effectively communicate information about child-injury risk and supervision to mothers are discussed.

To think or not to think: two pathways towards persuasion by short films on AIDS prevention.

PubMed

Igartua, Juan José; Cheng, Lifen; Lopes, Orquídea

2003-01-01

Health messages are designed to stimulate an active cognitive process in those audiences generally with little involvement. The Elaboration Likelihood Model by Petty and Cacioppo sustains that subjects with high involvement and those with low involvement react differently to the persuasive message to which they are exposed. One efficient way to capture the attention of the low involvement audiences is to insert the messages within an entertainment context. Our study attempted to analyze affective and cognitive processes to explain the impact of these new formats, fictional shorts for HIV/AIDS prevention. A 2 x 2 factorial design was used, with involvement in the AIDS issue (high/low) and the type of format (musical/dialogue) as independent variables. The finding showed the better the quality of the short (with dialogue style) the more negative affectivity was stimulated, also the more cognitive processing was induced, and a more favorable attitude towards preventive behavior was stimulated.

Steganalysis based on JPEG compatibility

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fridrich, Jessica; Goljan, Miroslav; Du, Rui

2001-11-01

In this paper, we introduce a new forensic tool that can reliably detect modifications in digital images, such as distortion due to steganography and watermarking, in images that were originally stored in the JPEG format. The JPEG compression leave unique fingerprints and serves as a fragile watermark enabling us to detect changes as small as modifying the LSB of one randomly chosen pixel. The detection of changes is based on investigating the compatibility of 8x8 blocks of pixels with JPEG compression with a given quantization matrix. The proposed steganalytic method is applicable to virtually all steganongraphic and watermarking algorithms with the exception of those that embed message bits into the quantized JPEG DCT coefficients. The method can also be used to estimate the size of the secret message and identify the pixels that carry message bits. As a consequence of our steganalysis, we strongly recommend avoiding using images that have been originally stored in the JPEG format as cover-images for spatial-domain steganography.

Cassini/Huygens your messages en route for Titan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

1997-02-01

This unprecedented operation will soon be coming to an end. The Internet site will not be accepting messages after 1 March 1997, although it will remain active to incorporate regularly updated information on the Cassini/Huygens mission at least until the launch in October 1997. ESA has decided to open the site to audio messages as well until 1 March 1997. Files, which must be no larger than 250 KB, should sent to the electronic letterbox sound@huygens.com in WAV or AIFF format. We shall be concluding this exceptional operation by producing a CD-ROM containing written and audio messages within the limits of the space available. We therefore propose that all media announce the forthcoming end of the operation and stress the additional possibility of sending in audio as well as written messages that will leave for Titan in October 1997. Radio or television stations wishing to offer listeners or viewers the opportunity to transmit their messages over the air can forward them to us on audio or video (Betacam) cassettes. N.B. No more than three twenty-second messages per station. For further information, please contact : ESA Public Relations Division Tel: +33.1.53.69.71.55 Fax : +33.1.53.69.76.90

An analysis of absorbing image on the Indonesian text by using color matching

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hutagalung, G. A.; Tulus; Iryanto; Lubis, Y. F. A.; Khairani, M.; Suriati

2018-03-01

The insertion of messages in an image is performed by inserting per character message in some pixels. One way of inserting a message into an image is by inserting the ASCII decimal value of a character to the decimal value of the primary color of the image. Messages that use characters in letters, numbers or symbols, where the use of letters of each word is different in number and frequency of use, as well as the use of letters in various messages within each language. In Indonesian language, the use of the letter A to be the most widely used, and the use of other letters greatly affect the clarity of a message or text presented in the language. This study aims to determine the capacity to absorb the message in Indonesian language from an image and what are the things that affect the difference. The data used in this study consists of several images in JPG or JPEG format can be obtained from the image drawing software or hardware of the image makers at different image sizes. The results of testing on four samples of a color image have been obtained by using an image size of 1200 X 1920.

Birth preparedness and complication readiness – a qualitative study among community members in rural Tanzania

PubMed Central

August, Furaha; Pembe, Andrea B.; Kayombo, Edmund; Mbekenga, Columba; Axemo, Pia; Darj, Elisabeth

2015-01-01

Background Birth preparedness and complication readiness (BP/CR) strategies are aimed at reducing delays in seeking, reaching, and receiving care. Counselling on birth preparedness is provided during antenatal care visits. However, it is not clear why birth preparedness messages do not translate to utilisation of facility delivery. This study explores the perceptions, experiences, and challenges the community faces on BP/CR. Design A qualitative study design using Focused Group Discussions was conducted. Twelve focus group discussions were held with four separate groups: young men and women and older men and women in a rural community in Tanzania. Qualitative content analysis was used to analyse the data. Results The community members expressed a perceived need to prepare for childbirth. They were aware of the importance to attend the antenatal clinics, relied on family support for practical and financial preparations such as saving money for costs related to delivery, moving closer to the nearest hospital, and also to use traditional herbs, in favour of a positive outcome. Community recognised that pregnancy and childbirth complications are preferably treated at hospital. Facility delivery was preferred; however, certain factors including stigma on unmarried women and transportation were identified as hindering birth preparedness and hence utilisation of skilled care. Challenges were related to the consequences of poverty, though the maternal health care should be free, they perceived difficulties due to informal user fees. Conclusions This study revealed community perceptions that were in favour of using skilled care in BP/CR. However, issues related to inability to prepare in advance hinder the realisation of the intention to use skilled care. It is important to innovate how the community reinforces BP/CR, such as using insurance schemes, using community health funds, and providing information on other birth preparedness messages via community health workers. PMID:26077145

Literature review of visual representation of the results of benefit-risk assessments of medicinal products.

PubMed

Hallgreen, Christine E; Mt-Isa, Shahrul; Lieftucht, Alfons; Phillips, Lawrence D; Hughes, Diana; Talbot, Susan; Asiimwe, Alex; Downey, Gerald; Genov, Georgy; Hermann, Richard; Noel, Rebecca; Peters, Ruth; Micaleff, Alain; Tzoulaki, Ioanna; Ashby, Deborah

2016-03-01

The PROTECT Benefit-Risk group is dedicated to research in methods for continuous benefit-risk monitoring of medicines, including the presentation of the results, with a particular emphasis on graphical methods. A comprehensive review was performed to identify visuals used for medical risk and benefit-risk communication. The identified visual displays were grouped into visual types, and each visual type was appraised based on five criteria: intended audience, intended message, knowledge required to understand the visual, unintentional messages that may be derived from the visual and missing information that may be needed to understand the visual. Sixty-six examples of visual formats were identified from the literature and classified into 14 visual types. We found that there is not one single visual format that is consistently superior to others for the communication of benefit-risk information. In addition, we found that most of the drawbacks found in the visual formats could be considered general to visual communication, although some appear more relevant to specific formats and should be considered when creating visuals for different audiences depending on the exact message to be communicated. We have arrived at recommendations for the use of visual displays for benefit-risk communication. The recommendation refers to the creation of visuals. We outline four criteria to determine audience-visual compatibility and consider these to be a key task in creating any visual. Next we propose specific visual formats of interest, to be explored further for their ability to address nine different types of benefit-risk analysis information. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Automatic Traffic-Based Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP) Model Generation for ns-3

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-12-01

through visiting the inferred automata o Fuzzing of an implementation by generating altered message formats We tested with 3 versions of Netzob. First...relationships. Afterwards, we used the Automata module to generate state machines using different functions: “generateChainedStateAutomata...The “generatePTAAutomata” takes as input several communication sessions and then identifies common paths and merges these into a single automata . The

Ada (Trademark) Case Studies II.

DTIC Science & Technology

1984-01-01

number ( CSN ) in that character set’s "transmission identifier". The array is named START CSN , but a better name would be STARTOFCSN. The word of...protocols), CSN (Channel Sequence Number), EON (End of Message), LMF (Line Media Format), MCB (Message Control Block), RI (Routing Indicator), and TI...component names should end with -PART, - FIELD , or COMPONENT.El - Package names should end with PACKAGE. - Enumeration literals should have suffixes

Investigation of passive films on nickel Alloy 690 in lead-containing environments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Peng, B.; Lu, B. T.; Luo, J. L.; Lu, Y. C.; Ma, H. Y.

2008-09-01

Passive films formed on Alloy UNS N06690 were investigated in simulated crevice chemistries. It was found the role of lead in corrosion processes is strongly dependent on the pH value of the testing solutions. At pH 1.5 the effect of lead is narrowly noticeable; while at pH 12.7, lead has a significant influence on the electrochemical performance of alloy UNS N06690. The lead alters the surface morphologies at both pH and account for higher hydroxide content in the surface film at pH 12.7. The lead incorporation hinders the formation of spinel oxides during the passivation in alkaline solution. Nanoindentation tests indicate a significant lead-induced degradation in the mechanical properties of passive films. The passivation degradation is attributed to detrimental effects of lead via interrupting the dehydration process and hindering the formation of protective layers on the alloy surface.

Conspicuity, memorability, comprehension, and priming in road hazard warning signs.

PubMed

Charlton, Samuel G

2006-05-01

This study assessed driver reactions to 16 road hazard warning signs of various formats by projecting life-sized video of road scenes to drivers in a driving simulator. A range of measures, including attentional and search conspicuity, implicit and explicit recognition, dynamic and static comprehension, and sign priming were collected. Of the signs tested, road works and school warning signs were most often detected, remembered, and understood. Slippery surface warnings were associated with some of the lowest detection and comprehension rates. The effectiveness of the different formats depended on the type of hazard sign. In the case of road works warnings, a flashing variable message format was only slightly more conspicuous than the large dimension format, equal in comprehensibility, and perhaps somewhat worse in terms of memorability. For the school warnings, however, the flashing variable message format appeared to convey a greater sense of potential hazard, produced superior search conspicuity and priming, and was equal in terms of memorability and comprehensibility. The range of measures worked well as a whole with the two measures of conspicuity and the measure of static comprehension showing the greatest consistency.

CISN Display - Reliable Delivery of Real-time Earthquake Information, Including Rapid Notification and ShakeMap to Critical End Users

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rico, H.; Hauksson, E.; Thomas, E.; Friberg, P.; Given, D.

2002-12-01

The California Integrated Seismic Network (CISN) Display is part of a Web-enabled earthquake notification system alerting users in near real-time of seismicity, and also valuable geophysical information following a large earthquake. It will replace the Caltech/USGS Broadcast of Earthquakes (CUBE) and Rapid Earthquake Data Integration (REDI) Display as the principal means of delivering graphical earthquake information to users at emergency operations centers, and other organizations. Features distinguishing the CISN Display from other GUI tools are a state-full client/server relationship, a scalable message format supporting automated hyperlink creation, and a configurable platform-independent client with a GIS mapping tool; supporting the decision-making activities of critical users. The CISN Display is the front-end of a client/server architecture known as the QuakeWatch system. It is comprised of the CISN Display (and other potential clients), message queues, server, server "feeder" modules, and messaging middleware, schema and generators. It is written in Java, making it platform-independent, and offering the latest in Internet technologies. QuakeWatch's object-oriented design allows components to be easily upgraded through a well-defined set of application programming interfaces (APIs). Central to the CISN Display's role as a gateway to other earthquake products is its comprehensive XML-schema. The message model starts with the CUBE message format, but extends it by provisioning additional attributes for currently available products, and those yet to be considered. The supporting metadata in the XML-message provides the data necessary for the client to create a hyperlink and associate it with a unique event ID. Earthquake products deliverable to the CISN Display are ShakeMap, Ground Displacement, Focal Mechanisms, Rapid Notifications, OES Reports, and Earthquake Commentaries. Leveraging the power of the XML-format, the CISN Display provides prompt access to earthquake information on the Web. The links are automatically created when product generators deliver CUBE formatted packets to a Quake Data Distribution System (QDDS) hub (new distribution methods may be used later). The "feeder" modules tap into the QDDS hub and convert the packets into XML-messages. These messages are forwarded to message queues, and then distributed to clients where URLs are dynamically created for these products and linked to events on the CISN Display map. The products may be downloaded out-of-band; and with the inclusion of a GIS mapping tool users can plot organizational assets on the CISN Display map and overlay them against key spectral data, such as ground accelerations. This gives Emergency Response Managers information useful in allocating limited personnel and resources after a major event. At the heart of the system's robustness is a well-established and reliable set of communication protocols for best-effort delivery of data. For critical users a Common Object Request Broker Architecture (CORBA) state-full connection is used via a dedicated signaling channel. The system employs several CORBA methods that alert users of changes in the link status. Loss of connectivity triggers a strategy that attempts to reconnect through various physical and logical paths. Thus, by building on past application successes and proven Internet advances the CISN Display targets a specific audience by providing enhancements previously not available from other applications.

Joint Interoperability of Tactical Command and Control Systems (JINTACCS) Technical Interface Design Plan (Test Edition). Appendix C. Glossary

DTIC Science & Technology

1981-03-01

m u z r- Z > H < m ff -< C 2 C) 2 3 r- c is o 1 L_ • o > • en • • • Ŕ O > 00 o 30 n 30 T r- 1> - n o > IDE N T S E LIN E D IT...responsibilities to the Defense Intelligence Agency ( DIA ), the Services, and the unified and specified commands for carrying out that guidance. 3 - JCS...Testing 1-2 1.4 JINTACCS Message Text Eorinats (MTF) and TADIL Messages 1-2 1.4.1 JINTACCS Message Text Formats (MTF) 1- 3 1.4.2 Developmental TADIL

Why should health be a central argument in climate negotiations? Can a MOOC help to bring the message across?

PubMed

Sauerborn, Rainer

There are four key messages from health for climate negotiations. Two positive ones include (i) health as a motivator for action and policy and (ii) huge health co-benefits to be included in the cost-benefit trade-offs of climate negotiations. Two warning messages: (iii) there are health-based absolute limits of adaptations and (iv) hotter average temperatures will cut work productivity of farmers and other outdoor workers as well as workers in non-air conditioned factories in poor countries. This paper will examine how massive open online courses (MOOCs) have been used in the run-up to this COP to disseminate these four messages to the audience of high-level policy-makers. This required a departure from the classic MOOC format in several ways: duration, focus on decision-making rationale, policy-relevant messages presented in big brush, leaving "traceable accounts" to evidence in two layers of resources provided: essential and "deep dive".

A volunteer citizen-servant pilot program using tailored messages to empower Alabamians to live healthier lives.

PubMed

McMillan, Libba R; Smith-Hendricks, Constance; Gore, Teresa

2010-01-01

This study examines the use of tailored messages as a learning tool to volunteer citizen servants to promote health and empower Alabama citizens to live healthier lives. Descriptive data of formative and summative questionnaires were analyzed from convenience sampling in this study, which encompassed 12 months. Researchers formed unique partnerships among community service organizations (CSO), faith-based organizations (FBO), author affiliated school of nursing, and community organizations to implement Healthy People 2010 goals. The program provided "health information stations" to focus on delivery of monthly culturally relevant messages to meet the health needs in the community. This program provided tailored health messages to 11 CSO and FBO. Outcome measures include an increase in health promotion knowledge, desire for furtherance and expansion of programs, and improved contacts within the community. The results from this study provide achievement of overall program goals, suggestions for improved evaluation strategies, implementation plans, and examples of specific topical messages. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

The perceived effectiveness of persuasive messages: questions of structure, referent, and bias.

PubMed

Dillard, James Price; Ye, Sun

2008-03-01

To gain a sense of the persuasive efficacy of a message prior to implementation of a campaign, researchers often gather judgments of perceived effectiveness (PE). At present, they do so without much knowledge of the conceptual meaning or empirical properties of PE. In the spirit of construct explication, we report a study intended to address a series of questions about PE. Using student (N = 155) and community samples (N = 100), we found the following: (a) PE is a two-dimensional judgment involving global evaluations of message impact and specific judgments of message attributes, but it may be reducible to a single second-order factor, (b) most individuals reported using more than one referent (i.e., person or group) when making PE judgments, but the choice of referents varies by message and judge, and (c) judgments of PE are biased upward as a function of the number of referents chosen. Suggestions are offered for enhancing the validity of PE judgments in formative campaign research.

Using animated computer-generated text and graphics to depict the risks and benefits of medical treatment.

PubMed

Tait, Alan R; Voepel-Lewis, Terri; Brennan-Martinez, Colleen; McGonegal, Maureen; Levine, Robert

2012-11-01

Conventional print materials for presenting risks and benefits of treatment are often difficult to understand. This study was undertaken to evaluate and compare subjects' understanding and perceptions of risks and benefits presented using animated computerized text and graphics. Adult subjects were randomized to receive identical risk/benefit information regarding taking statins that was presented on an iPad (Apple Corp, Cupertino, Calif) in 1 of 4 different animated formats: text/numbers, pie chart, bar graph, and pictograph. Subjects completed a questionnaire regarding their preferences and perceptions of the message delivery together with their understanding of the information. Health literacy, numeracy, and need for cognition were measured using validated instruments. There were no differences in subject understanding based on the different formats. However, significantly more subjects preferred graphs (82.5%) compared with text (17.5%, P<.001). Specifically, subjects preferred pictographs (32.0%) and bar graphs (31.0%) over pie charts (19.5%) and text (17.5%). Subjects whose preference for message delivery matched their randomly assigned format (preference match) had significantly greater understanding and satisfaction compared with those assigned to something other than their preference. Results showed that computer-animated depictions of risks and benefits offer an effective means to describe medical risk/benefit statistics. That understanding and satisfaction were significantly better when the format matched the individual's preference for message delivery is important and reinforces the value of "tailoring" information to the individual's needs and preferences. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

“Yo! This is no lie, if you smoke, you die”: a content analysis of anti-smoking posters created by adolescents

PubMed Central

Banerjee, Smita C.; Greene, Kathryn

2016-01-01

Introduction Exposure to anti-smoking messages is strongly associated with lower smoking initiation by adolescents. However, few anti-smoking efforts have involved message generation by adolescents themselves. This article presents a content analysis of anti-smoking posters created by middle school students in two northeastern schools in the United States. Understanding how smoking prevention messages should be framed from the perspective of young teens will provide us with formative information about what kinds of smoking prevention messages teens believe are effective. Methods 50 anti-smoking posters created by adolescents (11–14 years) were content analysed, with a focus around three broad areas: effects of smoking portrayed in posters, specific ways of message depiction in posters and use of slogans. Result Results of content analysis reveal that appearance-related factors (44%) were most commonly used to convey harmful health effects of smoking, followed by messages about death and dying (30%), before–after effects of smoking (22%), other sickness-related effects of smoking (20%) and cancer (12%). Supplemental thematic analysis revealed that in a majority of posters pictures were exaggerated and were dominant part of the posters. Discussion These results provide information about anti-smoking messages/themes perceived as efficacious by young adolescents and have implications for developing anti-smoking messages for adolescents. PMID:28133435

Development of a replicable process for translating science into practical health education messages.

PubMed

Tyus, Nadra C; Freeman, Randall J; Gibbons, M Christopher

2006-09-01

There has been considerable discussion about translating science into practical messages, especially among urban minority and "hard-to-reach" populations. Unfortunately, many research findings rarely make it back in useful format to the general public. Few innovative techniques have been established that provide researchers with a systematic process for developing health awareness and prevention messages for priority populations. The purpose of this paper is to describe the early development and experience of a unique community-based participatory process used to develop health promotion messages for a predominantly low-income, black and African-American community in Baltimore, MD. Scientific research findings from peer-reviewed literature were identified by academic researchers. Researchers then taught the science to graphic design students and faculty. The graphic design students and faculty then worked with both community residents and researchers to transform this information into evidence-based public health education messages. The final products were culturally and educationally appropriate, health promotion messages reflecting urban imagery that were eagerly desired by the community. This early outcome is in contrast to many previously developed messages and materials created through processes with limited community involvement and by individuals with limited practical knowledge of local community culture or expertise in marketing or mass communication. This process may potentially be utilized as a community-based participatory approach to enhance the translation of scientific research into desirable and appropriate health education messages.

Defining the ATC Controller Interface for Data Link Clearances

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rankin, James

1998-01-01

The Controller Interface (CI) is the primary method for Air Traffic Controllers to communicate with aircraft via Controller-Pilot Data Link Communications (CPDLC). The controller, wearing a microphone/headset, aurally gives instructions to aircraft as he/she would with today's voice radio systems. The CI's voice recognition system converts the instructions to digitized messages that are formatted according to the RTCA DO-219 Operational Performance Standards for ATC Two-Way Data Link Communications. The DO-219 messages are transferred via RS-232 to the ATIDS system for uplink using a Mode-S datalink. Pilot acknowledgments of controller messages are downlinked to the ATIDS system and transferred to the Cl. A computer monitor is used to convey information to the controller. Aircraft data from the ARTS database are displayed on flight strips. The flight strips are electronic versions of the strips currently used in the ATC system. Outgoing controller messages cause the respective strip to change color to indicate an unacknowledged transmission. The message text is shown on the flight strips for reference. When the pilot acknowledges the message, the strip returns to its normal color. A map of the airport can also be displayed on the monitor. In addition to voice recognition, the controller can enter messages using the monitor's touch screen or by mouse/keyboard.

Communicating Breast Cancer Screening With Young Women: An Experimental Test of Didactic and Narrative Messages Using Video and Infographics.

PubMed

Occa, Aurora; Suggs, L Suzanne

2016-01-01

Cancer is one of the leading causes of death around the world. Mortality from breast cancer can be reduced if the cancer is detected early enough. It is important to find effective communication that encourages early detection of breast cancer. This study aimed to measure differences between narrative and didactic communication on breast cancer awareness, knowledge of appropriate diagnostic exams, attitude toward breast self-exam, and intention to screen for breast cancer through a breast self-exam. It further aimed to test whether any differences in outcomes were associated with the format used to deliver the communication: video or infographic. The effects of the communication strategies were tested using an experimental design with a control group and four experimental groups: narrative video, didactic video, narrative infographic, or didactic infographic. A total of 194 Italian-speaking women ages 18-30 years completed questionnaires before and after exposure. Positive increases were found for all outcome variables after exposure to any communication strategy tested. The didactic message delivered in video format had the most positive effect on awareness and knowledge, whereas the narrative video message had the most positive effect on attitude and intention. For both message types, videos had a more positive influence than infographics when communicating breast cancer information for this audience. This was the first study of message effects of breast cancer communication with Italian-speaking young women. Further research is warranted to understand how to maximize communication strategies so that they are the most effective in influencing behaviors and if these results are consistent with other linguistic populations.

Development of a set of community-informed Ebola messages for Sierra Leone

PubMed Central

de Bruijne, Kars; Jalloh, Alpha M.; Harris, Muriel; Abdullah, Hussainatu; Boye-Thompson, Titus; Sankoh, Osman; Jalloh, Abdul K.; Jalloh-Vos, Heidi

2017-01-01

The West African Ebola epidemic of 2013–2016 was by far the largest outbreak of the disease on record. Sierra Leone suffered nearly half of the 28,646 reported cases. This paper presents a set of culturally contextualized Ebola messages that are based on the findings of qualitative interviews and focus group discussions conducted in 'hotspot' areas of rural Bombali District and urban Freetown in Sierra Leone, between January and March 2015. An iterative approach was taken in the message development process, whereby (i) data from formative research was subjected to thematic analysis to identify areas of community concern about Ebola and the national response; (ii) draft messages to address these concerns were produced; (iii) the messages were field tested; (iv) the messages were refined; and (v) a final set of messages on 14 topics was disseminated to relevant national and international stakeholders. Each message included details of its rationale, audience, dissemination channels, messengers, and associated operational issues that need to be taken into account. While developing the 14 messages, a set of recommendations emerged that could be adopted in future public health emergencies. These included the importance of embedding systematic, iterative qualitative research fully into the message development process; communication of the subsequent messages through a two-way dialogue with communities, using trusted messengers, and not only through a one-way, top-down communication process; provision of good, parallel operational services; and engagement with senior policy makers and managers as well as people in key operational positions to ensure national ownership of the messages, and to maximize the chance of their being utilised. The methodological approach that we used to develop our messages along with our suggested recommendations constitute a set of tools that could be incorporated into international and national public health emergency preparedness and response plans. PMID:28787444

Development of targeted messages to promote smoking cessation among construction trade workers

PubMed Central

Strickland, J. R.; Smock, N.; Casey, C.; Poor, T.; Kreuter, M. W.; Evanoff, B. A.

2015-01-01

Blue-collar workers, particularly those in the construction trades, are more likely to smoke and have less success in quitting when compared with white-collar workers. Little is known about health communication strategies that might influence this priority population. This article describes our formative work to develop targeted messages to increase participation in an existing smoking cessation program among construction workers. Using an iterative and sequential mixed-methods approach, we explored the culture, health attitudes and smoking behaviors of unionized construction workers. We used focus group and survey data to inform message development, and applied audience segmentation methods to identify potential subgroups. Among 144 current smokers, 65% reported wanting to quit smoking in the next 6 months and only 15% had heard of a union-sponsored smoking cessation program, despite widespread advertising. We tested 12 message concepts and 26 images with the target audience to evaluate perceived relevance and effectiveness. Participants responded most favorably to messages and images that emphasized family and work, although responses varied by audience segments based on age and parental status. This study is an important step towards integrating the culture of a high-risk group into targeted messages to increase participation in smoking cessation activities. PMID:25231165

Google glass: a driver distraction cause or cure?

PubMed

Sawyer, Ben D; Finomore, Victor S; Calvo, Andres A; Hancock, P A

2014-11-01

We assess the driving distraction potential of texting with Google Glass (Glass), a mobile wearable platform capable of receiving and sending short-message-service and other messaging formats. A known roadway danger, texting while driving has been targeted by legislation and widely banned. Supporters of Glass claim the head-mounted wearable computer is designed to deliver information without concurrent distraction. Existing literature supports the supposition that design decisions incorporated in Glass might facilitate messaging for drivers. We asked drivers in a simulator to drive and use either Glass or a smartphone-based messaging interface, then interrupted them with an emergency brake event. Both the response event and subsequent recovery were analyzed. Glass-delivered messages served to moderate but did not eliminate distracting cognitive demands. A potential passive cost to drivers merely wearing Glass was also observed. Messaging using either device impaired driving as compared to driving without multitasking. Glass in not a panacea as some supporters claim, but it does point the way to design interventions that effect reduced load in multitasking. Discussions of these identified benefits are framed within the potential of new in-vehicle systems that bring both novel forms of distraction and tools for mitigation into the driver's seat.

Theory-Based Formative Research on an Anti-Cyberbullying Victimization Intervention Message.

PubMed

Savage, Matthew W; Deiss, Douglas M; Roberto, Anthony J; Aboujaoude, Elias

2017-02-01

Cyberbullying is a common byproduct of the digital revolution with serious consequences to victims. Unfortunately, there is a dearth of empirically based methods to confront it. This study used social cognitive theory to design and test an intervention message aimed at persuading college students to abstain from retaliation, seek social support, save evidence, and notify authorities-important victim responses identified and recommended in previous research. Using a posttest-only control group design, this study tested the effectiveness of an intervention message in changing college students' perceived susceptibility to and perceived severity of cyberbullying as well as their self-efficacy, response efficacy, attitudes, and behavioral intentions toward each recommended response in future episodes of cyberbullying. Results indicated that the intervention message caused participants in the experimental condition to report significantly higher susceptibility, but not perceived severity, to cyberbullying than those in the control condition. The intervention message also caused expected changes in all outcomes except self-efficacy for not retaliating and in all outcomes for seeking social support, saving evidence, and notifying an authority. Implications for message design and future research supporting evidence-based anti-cyberbullying health communication campaigns are discussed.

Raising Public Awareness of Clinical Trials: Development of Messages for a National Health Communication Campaign.

PubMed

Massett, Holly A; Dilts, David M; Bailey, Robert; Berktold, Jennifer; Ledsky, Rebecca; Atkinson, Nancy L; Mishkin, Grace; Denicoff, Andrea; Padberg, Rose Mary; Allen, Marin P; Silver, Karen; Carrington, Kelli; Johnson, Lenora E

2017-05-01

Clinical trials are essential for developing new and effective treatments and improving patient quality of life; however, many trials cannot answer their primary research questions because they fall short of their recruitment goals. This article reports the results of formative research conducted in two populations, the public and primary care physicians, to identify messages that may raise awareness and increase interest in clinical trials and be used in a national communication campaign. Results suggested that participants were primarily motivated to participate in clinical trials out of a self-interest to help themselves first. Messages illustrated that current treatments were tested via clinical trials, helped normalize trials as routine practices, and reduced concerns over trying something new first. Participants wanted messages that portray trials as state-of-the-art choices that offer some hope, show people like themselves, and are described in a clear, concise manner with actionable steps for them to take. The study revealed some differences in message salience, with healthy audiences exhibiting lower levels of interest. Our results suggest that targeted messages are needed, and that communication with primary health-care providers is an important and necessary component in raising patient awareness of the importance of clinical trials.

"It Makes You Rethink Your Choice of the Pill": Theory-Based Formative Research to Design a Contraceptive Choice Campaign.

PubMed

Sundstrom, Beth; DeMaria, Andrea L; Meier, Stephanie; Jones, Annabel; Moxley, Grace E

2015-01-01

Half of all pregnancies in the United States remain unplanned despite improved access to highly effective long-acting reversible contraception, including the intrauterine device and the implant. This study conducted theory-based formative research to develop a contraceptive choice campaign aimed at increasing long-acting reversible contraception uptake by women ages 18-44 years in Charleston, South Carolina, an urban area in the southeastern United States. Researchers developed and tested message concepts and designs. Six focus groups and 18 interviews were conducted among reproductive-age women (n = 79). Qualitative data analysis revealed messages and designs that resonated with these women. Emphasizing long-acting reversible contraception as the healthy option, highlighting long-acting reversible contraception effectiveness, including relatable and trustworthy characters, and using language of control emerged as themes. Women reported a preference for statistics illustrating effectiveness combined with empowering messages of control over contraceptive decision making. Findings from this study offer practical recommendations for developing contraceptive choice campaigns targeting long-acting reversible contraception use and further the goal of reducing unintended pregnancy among women.

HIV Prevention Messages Targeting Young Latino Immigrant MSM.

PubMed

Solorio, Rosa; Norton-Shelpuk, Pamela; Forehand, Mark; Martinez, Marcos; Aguirre, Joel

2014-01-01

Young Latino immigrant men who have sex with men (MSM) are at risk for HIV and for delayed diagnosis. A need exists to raise awareness about HIV prevention in this population, including the benefits of timely HIV testing. This project was developed through collaboration between University of WA researchers and Entre Hermanos, a community-based organization serving Latinos. Building from a community-based participatory research approach, the researchers developed a campaign that was executed by Activate Brands, based in Denver, Colorado. The authors (a) describe the development of HIV prevention messages through the integration of previously collected formative data; (b) describe the process of translating these messages into PSAs, including the application of a marketing strategy; (c) describe testing the PSAs within the Latino MSM community; and (c) determine a set of important factors to consider when developing HIV prevention messages for young Latino MSM who do not identify as gay.

The Role of Text Messaging in Cardiovascular Risk Factor Optimization.

PubMed

Klimis, Harry; Khan, Mohammad Ehsan; Kok, Cindy; Chow, Clara K

2017-01-01

Many cases of CVD may be avoidable through lowering behavioural risk factors such as smoking and physical inactivity. Mobile health (mHealth) provides a novel opportunity to deliver cardiovascular prevention programs in a format that is potentially scalable. Here, we provide an overview of text messaging-based mHealth interventions in cardiovascular prevention. Text messaging-based interventions appear effective on a range of behavioural risk factors and can effect change on multiple risk factors-e.g. smoking, weight, blood pressure-simultaneously. For many texting studies, there are challenges in interpretation as many texting interventions are part of larger complex interventions making it difficult to determine the benefits of the separate components. Whilst there is evidence for text messaging improving cardiovascular risk factor levels in the short-term, future studies are needed to examine the durability of these effects and whether they can be translated to improvements in clinical care and outcomes.

Center for Disease Control's Diethylstilbestrol Update: a case for effective operationalization of messaging in social marketing practice.

PubMed

Mattson, Marifran; Basu, Ambar

2010-07-01

The Center for Disease Control's (CDC) Diethylstilbestrol (DES) Update, a campaign to educate people who may have been exposed to the drug DES, is framed on the premises of the social marketing model, namely formative research, audience segmentation, product, price, placement, promotion, and campaign evaluation. More than that, the campaign takes a critical step in extending the social marketing paradigm by highlighting the need to situate the messaging process at the heart of any health communication campaign. This article uses CDC's DES Update as a case study to illustrate an application of a message development tool within social marketing. This tool promotes the operationalization of messaging within health campaigns. Ultimately, the goal of this project is to extend the social marketing model and provide useful theoretical guidance to health campaign practitioners on how to accomplish stellar communication within a social marketing campaign.

HIV Prevention Messages Targeting Young Latino Immigrant MSM

PubMed Central

Solorio, Rosa; Forehand, Mark; Aguirre, Joel

2014-01-01

Young Latino immigrant men who have sex with men (MSM) are at risk for HIV and for delayed diagnosis. A need exists to raise awareness about HIV prevention in this population, including the benefits of timely HIV testing. This project was developed through collaboration between University of WA researchers and Entre Hermanos, a community-based organization serving Latinos. Building from a community-based participatory research approach, the researchers developed a campaign that was executed by Activate Brands, based in Denver, Colorado. The authors (a) describe the development of HIV prevention messages through the integration of previously collected formative data; (b) describe the process of translating these messages into PSAs, including the application of a marketing strategy; (c) describe testing the PSAs within the Latino MSM community; and (c) determine a set of important factors to consider when developing HIV prevention messages for young Latino MSM who do not identify as gay. PMID:24864201

Using theory-based messages to motivate U.S. pregnant women to prevent cytomegalovirus infection: results from formative research.

PubMed

Levis, Denise M; Hillard, Christina L; Price, Simani M; Reed-Gross, Erika; Bonilla, Erika; Amin, Minal; Stowell, Jennifer D; Clark, Rebekah; Johnson, Delaney; Mask, Karen; Carpentieri, Cynthia; Cannon, Michael J

2017-12-14

An estimated 1 in 150 infants is born each year with congenital cytomegalovirus (CMV); nearly 1 in 750 suffers permanent disabilities. Congenital CMV is the result of a pregnant woman becoming infected with CMV. Educating pregnant women about CMV is currently the best approach to prevention. Limited research is available on how to effectively communicate with women about CMV. We conducted formative research on fear appeals theory-based messages about CMV and prevention with U.S. women. Fear appeal theories suggest that message recipients will take action if they feel fear. First, we conducted in-depth interviews (N = 32) with women who had young children who tested positive for CMV. Second, we conducted eight focus groups (N = 70) in two phases and two cities (Phase 2: Atlanta, GA; Phase 3: San Diego, CA) with pregnant women and non-pregnant women who had young children. Few participants knew about CMV before the focus groups. Participants reviewed and gave feedback on messages created around fear appeals theory-based communication concepts. The following concepts were tested in one or more of the three phases of research: CMV is severe, CMV is common, CMV is preventable, CMV preventive strategies are similar to other behavior changes women make during pregnancy, CMV preventive strategies can be incorporated in moderation to reduce exposure, and CMV is severe but preventable. Participants recommended communicating that CMV is common by using prevalence ratios (e.g., 1 in 150) or comparing CMV to other well-known disabilities. To convey the severity of CMV, participants preferred stories about CMV along with prevention strategies. Participants also welcomed prevention strategies when it included a message about risk reduction. In general, participants said messages were motivating, even if they felt that it could be difficult to make certain behavior changes. Findings from this research can contribute to future efforts to educate pregnant women about CMV, especially regarding use of fear appeals-based messages. Pregnant women may face certain challenges to practicing prevention strategies but, overall, are motivated make changes to increase their chances of having a healthy baby.

Recent Developments in Hardware-in-the-Loop Formation Navigation and Control

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mitchell, Jason W.; Luquette, Richard J.

2005-01-01

The Formation Flying Test-Bed (FFTB) at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) provides a hardware-in-the-loop test environment for formation navigation and control. The facility is evolving as a modular, hybrid, dynamic simulation facility for end-tc-end guidance, navigation, and control (GN&C) design and analysis of formation flying spacecraft. The core capabilities of the FFTB, as a platform for testing critical hardware and software algorithms in-the-loop, are reviewed with a focus on many recent improvements. Two significant upgrades to the FFTB are a message-oriented middleware (MOM) architecture, and a software crosslink for inter-spacecraft ranging. The MOM architecture provides a common messaging bus for software agents, easing integration, arid supporting the GSFC Mission Services Evolution Center (GMSEC) architecture via software bridge. Additionally, the FFTB s hardware capabilities are expanding. Recently, two Low-Power Transceivers (LPTs) with ranging capability have been introduced into the FFTB. The LPT crosslinks will be connected to a modified Crosslink Channel Simulator (CCS), which applies realistic space-environment effects to the Radio Frequency (RF) signals produced by the LPTs.

Formative research to develop theory-based messages for a Western Australian child drowning prevention television campaign: study protocol

PubMed Central

Denehy, Mel; Crawford, Gemma; Leavy, Justine; Nimmo, Lauren; Jancey, Jonine

2016-01-01

Introduction Worldwide, children under the age of 5 years are at particular risk of drowning. Responding to this need requires the development of evidence-informed drowning prevention strategies. Historically, drowning prevention strategies have included denying access, learning survival skills and providing supervision, as well as education and information which includes the use of mass media. Interventions underpinned by behavioural theory and formative evaluation tend to be more effective, yet few practical examples exist in the drowning and/or injury prevention literature. The Health Belief Model and Social Cognitive Theory will be used to explore participants' perspectives regarding proposed mass media messaging. This paper describes a qualitative protocol to undertake formative research to develop theory-based messages for a child drowning prevention campaign. Methods and analysis The primary data source will be focus group interviews with parents and caregivers of children under 5 years of age in metropolitan and regional Western Australia. Qualitative content analysis will be used to analyse the data. Ethics and dissemination This study will contribute to the drowning prevention literature to inform the development of future child drowning prevention mass media campaigns. Findings from the study will be disseminated to practitioners, policymakers and researchers via international conferences, peer and non-peer-reviewed journals and evidence summaries. The study was submitted and approved by the Curtin University Human Research Ethics Committee. PMID:27207621

Unpacking the Black Box: A Formative Research Approach to the Development of Theory-Driven, Evidence-Based, and Culturally Safe Text Messages in Mobile Health Interventions.

PubMed

Maar, Marion A; Yeates, Karen; Toth, Zsolt; Barron, Marcia; Boesch, Lisa; Hua-Stewart, Diane; Liu, Peter; Perkins, Nancy; Sleeth, Jessica; Wabano, Mary Jo; Williamson, Pamela; Tobe, Sheldon W

2016-01-22

Mobile-cellular subscriptions have increased steadily over the past decade. The accessibility of SMS messages over existing mobile networks is high and has almost universal availability even on older and unsophisticated mobile phones and in geographic settings where wireless coverage is weak. There is intensive exploration of this inexpensive mobile telecommunication technology to improve health services and promote behavior change among vulnerable populations. However, a neglected area of research is the documentation and critical analysis of the formative research process required in the development and refinement of effective SMS messages. The objective of this qualitative research study was to identify major factors that may impact on the effectiveness of evidence-based SMS messages designed to reduce health inequities in hypertension management in low resource settings, including Aboriginal populations in high-income countries and rural populations in low-income countries. Specifically, we were interested in uncovering the range of mediators that impact on appropriate message content transmission and, ultimately, on health behavior improvements in a range of these sociocultural settings. Collaborative qualitative research with Canadian Aboriginal and Tanzanian participants was conducted to deconstruct the content and transmission of evidence-based health information contained in SMS messages in the context of an international research project designed to address health inequalities in hypertension, and to develop a grounded theory of the major factors that mediate the effectiveness of this communication. We also examined the interrelationship of these mediators with the three essential conditions of the behavior system of the Behavioral Change Wheel model (capability, opportunity, and motivation) and cultural safety. Four focus groups with a total of 45 participants were conducted. Our grounded theory research revealed how discrepancies develop between the evidence-based text message created by researchers and the message received by the recipient in mobile health interventions. These discrepancies were primarily generated by six mediators of meaning in SMS messages: (1) negative or non-affirming framing of advocacies, (2) fear- or stress-inducing content, (3) oppressive or authoritarian content, (4) incongruity with cultural and traditional practices, (5) disconnect with the reality of the social determinants of health and the diversity of cultures within a population, and (6) lack of clarity and/or practicality of content. These 6 mediators of meaning provide the basis for sound strategies for message development because they impact directly on the target populations' capability, opportunity, and motivation for behavior change. The quality of text messages impacts significantly on the effectiveness of a mobile health intervention. Our research underscores the urgent need for interventions to incorporate and evaluate the quality of SMS messages and to examine the mediators of meaning within each targeted cultural and demographic group. Reporting on this aspect of mobile health intervention research will allow researchers to move away from the current black box of SMS text message development, thus improving the transparency of the process as well as the quality of the outcomes.

Unpacking the Black Box: A Formative Research Approach to the Development of Theory-Driven, Evidence-Based, and Culturally Safe Text Messages in Mobile Health Interventions

PubMed Central

Yeates, Karen; Toth, Zsolt; Barron, Marcia; Boesch, Lisa; Hua-Stewart, Diane; Liu, Peter; Perkins, Nancy; Sleeth, Jessica; Wabano, Mary Jo; Williamson, Pamela; Tobe, Sheldon W

2016-01-01

Background Mobile-cellular subscriptions have increased steadily over the past decade. The accessibility of SMS messages over existing mobile networks is high and has almost universal availability even on older and unsophisticated mobile phones and in geographic settings where wireless coverage is weak. There is intensive exploration of this inexpensive mobile telecommunication technology to improve health services and promote behavior change among vulnerable populations. However, a neglected area of research is the documentation and critical analysis of the formative research process required in the development and refinement of effective SMS messages. Objective The objective of this qualitative research study was to identify major factors that may impact on the effectiveness of evidence-based SMS messages designed to reduce health inequities in hypertension management in low resource settings, including Aboriginal populations in high-income countries and rural populations in low-income countries. Specifically, we were interested in uncovering the range of mediators that impact on appropriate message content transmission and, ultimately, on health behavior improvements in a range of these sociocultural settings. Methods Collaborative qualitative research with Canadian Aboriginal and Tanzanian participants was conducted to deconstruct the content and transmission of evidence-based health information contained in SMS messages in the context of an international research project designed to address health inequalities in hypertension, and to develop a grounded theory of the major factors that mediate the effectiveness of this communication. We also examined the interrelationship of these mediators with the three essential conditions of the behavior system of the Behavioral Change Wheel model (capability, opportunity, and motivation) and cultural safety. Results Four focus groups with a total of 45 participants were conducted. Our grounded theory research revealed how discrepancies develop between the evidence-based text message created by researchers and the message received by the recipient in mobile health interventions. These discrepancies were primarily generated by six mediators of meaning in SMS messages: (1) negative or non-affirming framing of advocacies, (2) fear- or stress-inducing content, (3) oppressive or authoritarian content, (4) incongruity with cultural and traditional practices, (5) disconnect with the reality of the social determinants of health and the diversity of cultures within a population, and (6) lack of clarity and/or practicality of content. These 6 mediators of meaning provide the basis for sound strategies for message development because they impact directly on the target populations’ capability, opportunity, and motivation for behavior change. Conclusions The quality of text messages impacts significantly on the effectiveness of a mobile health intervention. Our research underscores the urgent need for interventions to incorporate and evaluate the quality of SMS messages and to examine the mediators of meaning within each targeted cultural and demographic group. Reporting on this aspect of mobile health intervention research will allow researchers to move away from the current black box of SMS text message development, thus improving the transparency of the process as well as the quality of the outcomes. PMID:26800712

Enhancing a Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program with text messaging: engaging minority youth to develop TOP ® Plus Text.

PubMed

Devine, Sharon; Bull, Sheana; Dreisbach, Susan; Shlay, Judith

2014-03-01

To develop and pilot a theory-based, mobile phone texting component attractive to minority youth as a supplement to the Teen Outreach Program(®), a youth development program for reducing teen pregnancy and school dropout. We conducted iterative formative research with minority youth in multiple focus groups to explore interest in texting and reaction to text messages. We piloted a month-long version of TOP(®) Plus Text with 96 teens at four sites and conducted a computer-based survey immediately after enrollment and at the end of the pilot that collected information about teens' values, social support, self-efficacy, and behaviors relating to school performance, trouble with the law, and sexual activity. After each of the first three weekly sessions we collected satisfaction measures. Upon completion of the pilot we conducted exit interviews with twelve purposively selected pilot participants. We successfully recruited and enrolled minority youth into the pilot. Teens were enthusiastic about text messages complementing TOP(®). Results also revealed barriers: access to text-capable mobile phones, retention as measured by completion of the post-pilot survey, and a need to be attentive to teen literacy. Piloting helped identify improvements for implementation including offering text messages through multiple platforms so youth without access to a mobile phone could receive messages; rewording texts to allow youth to express opinions without feeling judged; and collecting multiple types of contact information to improve follow-up. Thoughtful attention to social and behavioral theory and investment in iterative formative research with extensive consultation with teens can lead to an engaging texting curriculum that enhances and complements TOP(®). Copyright © 2014 Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Closed-Loop Lifecycle Management of Service and Product in the Internet of Things: Semantic Framework for Knowledge Integration.

PubMed

Yoo, Min-Jung; Grozel, Clément; Kiritsis, Dimitris

2016-07-08

This paper describes our conceptual framework of closed-loop lifecycle information sharing for product-service in the Internet of Things (IoT). The framework is based on the ontology model of product-service and a type of IoT message standard, Open Messaging Interface (O-MI) and Open Data Format (O-DF), which ensures data communication. (1) BACKGROUND: Based on an existing product lifecycle management (PLM) methodology, we enhanced the ontology model for the purpose of integrating efficiently the product-service ontology model that was newly developed; (2) METHODS: The IoT message transfer layer is vertically integrated into a semantic knowledge framework inside which a Semantic Info-Node Agent (SINA) uses the message format as a common protocol of product-service lifecycle data transfer; (3) RESULTS: The product-service ontology model facilitates information retrieval and knowledge extraction during the product lifecycle, while making more information available for the sake of service business creation. The vertical integration of IoT message transfer, encompassing all semantic layers, helps achieve a more flexible and modular approach to knowledge sharing in an IoT environment; (4) Contribution: A semantic data annotation applied to IoT can contribute to enhancing collected data types, which entails a richer knowledge extraction. The ontology-based PLM model enables as well the horizontal integration of heterogeneous PLM data while breaking traditional vertical information silos; (5) CONCLUSION: The framework was applied to a fictive case study with an electric car service for the purpose of demonstration. For the purpose of demonstrating the feasibility of the approach, the semantic model is implemented in Sesame APIs, which play the role of an Internet-connected Resource Description Framework (RDF) database.

Closed-Loop Lifecycle Management of Service and Product in the Internet of Things: Semantic Framework for Knowledge Integration

PubMed Central

Yoo, Min-Jung; Grozel, Clément; Kiritsis, Dimitris

2016-01-01

This paper describes our conceptual framework of closed-loop lifecycle information sharing for product-service in the Internet of Things (IoT). The framework is based on the ontology model of product-service and a type of IoT message standard, Open Messaging Interface (O-MI) and Open Data Format (O-DF), which ensures data communication. (1) Background: Based on an existing product lifecycle management (PLM) methodology, we enhanced the ontology model for the purpose of integrating efficiently the product-service ontology model that was newly developed; (2) Methods: The IoT message transfer layer is vertically integrated into a semantic knowledge framework inside which a Semantic Info-Node Agent (SINA) uses the message format as a common protocol of product-service lifecycle data transfer; (3) Results: The product-service ontology model facilitates information retrieval and knowledge extraction during the product lifecycle, while making more information available for the sake of service business creation. The vertical integration of IoT message transfer, encompassing all semantic layers, helps achieve a more flexible and modular approach to knowledge sharing in an IoT environment; (4) Contribution: A semantic data annotation applied to IoT can contribute to enhancing collected data types, which entails a richer knowledge extraction. The ontology-based PLM model enables as well the horizontal integration of heterogeneous PLM data while breaking traditional vertical information silos; (5) Conclusion: The framework was applied to a fictive case study with an electric car service for the purpose of demonstration. For the purpose of demonstrating the feasibility of the approach, the semantic model is implemented in Sesame APIs, which play the role of an Internet-connected Resource Description Framework (RDF) database. PMID:27399717

Two-Way Social Media Messaging in Postoperative Cataract Surgical Patients: Prospective Interventional Study

PubMed Central

Sanguansak, Thuss; Morley, Michael G; Thinkhamrop, Kavin; Thuanman, Jaruwan; Agarwal, Isha

2017-01-01

Background Social media offers a new way to provide education, reminders, and support for patients with a variety of health conditions. Most of these interventions use one-way, provider-patient communication. Incorporating social media tools to improve postoperative (postop) education and follow-up care has only been used in limited situations. Objective The aim of this study was to determine the feasibility and efficacy of two-way social media messaging to deliver reminders and educational information about postop care to cataract patients. Methods A total of 98 patients undergoing their first eye cataract surgery were divided into two groups: a no message group receiving usual pre- and postop care and a message group receiving usual care plus messages in a mobile social media format with standardized content and timing. Each patient in the message group received nine messages about hand and face hygiene, medication and postop visit adherence, and links to patient education videos about postop care. Patients could respond to messages as desired. Main outcome measures included medication adherence, postop visit adherence, clinical outcomes, and patients’ subjective assessments of two-way messaging. The number, types, content, and timing of responses by patients to messages were recorded. Results Medication adherence was better in the message group at postop day 7, with high adherence in 47 patients (96%, 47/49) versus 36 patients (73%, 36/49) in the no message group (P=.004), but no statistically significant differences in medication adherence between the groups were noted at preop and postop day 30. Visit adherence was higher at postop day 30 in the message group (100%, 49/49) versus the no message group (88%, 43/49; P=.03) but was 100% (49/49) in both groups at postop day 1 and 7. Final visual outcomes were similar between groups. A total of 441 standardized messages were sent to the message group. Out of 270 responses generated, 188 (70%) were simple acknowledgments or “thank you,” and 82 (30%) responses were questions that were divided into three general categories: administrative, postop care, and clinical issues. Out of the 82 question responses, 31 (11%) were about administrative issues, 28 (10%) about postop care, and 23 (9%) about clinical symptoms. All the messages about symptoms were triaged by nurses or ophthalmologists and only required reassurance or information. Patients expressed satisfaction with messaging. Conclusions Two-way social media messaging to deliver postop information to cataract patients is feasible and improves early medication compliance. Further design improvements can streamline work flow to optimize efficiency and patient satisfaction. PMID:29258973

The Use of Facebook Advertising for Communicating Public Health Messages: A Campaign Against Drinking During Pregnancy in New Zealand

PubMed Central

2017-01-01

Background Social media is gaining recognition as a platform for delivering public health messages. One area attracting attention from public health researchers and professionals is Facebook’s advertising channel. This channel is reported to have a broad reach and generate high user engagement with the disseminated campaign materials. However, to date, no study has examined the communication process via this channel which this study aimed to address. Objective The specific objectives of the study were to (1) examine user engagement for a public health campaign based on the metadata provided by Facebook, (2) analyze comments generated by the campaign materials using text mining, and (3) investigate the relationship between the themes identified in the comments and the message and the sentiments prevalent in the themes that exhibited significant relationships. Methods This study examined a New Zealand public health pilot campaign called “Don’t Know? Don’t Drink,” which warned against drinking alcohol during pregnancy. The campaign conveyed the warning through a video and three banner ads that were delivered as news feeds to women aged 18-30 years. Thematic analysis using text mining performed on the comments (n=819) identified four themes. Logistic regression was used to identify meaning-making themes that exhibited association with the message. Results The users’ engagement was impressive with the video receiving 203,754 views. The combined likes and shares for the promotional materials (video and banner ads) amounted to 6125 and 300, respectively. The logistic regression analysis showed two meaning-making themes, namely, risk of pregnancy (P=.003) and alcohol and culture (P<.001) exhibited association with the message. The sentiment analysis carried out on the two themes revealed there were more negative than positive comments (47% vs 28%). Conclusions The user engagement observed in this study was consistent with previous research. The numbers reported for views, likes, and shares may be seen as unique interactions over the fixed period of the campaign; however, survey research would be required to find out the true evaluative worth of these metadata. A close examination of the comments, employing text mining, revealed that the message was not accepted by a majority of the target segment. Self-identity and conformity theories may help to explain these observed reactions, albeit warrant further investigations. Although the comments were predominantly negative, they provide opportunities to engage back with the women. The one-way communication format followed in this campaign did not support any two-way engagement. Further investigation is warranted to establish whether using a two-way communication format would have improved the acceptability of such public health messages delivered via social media. The findings of this study caution using a one-way communication format to convey public health messages via Facebook’s advertising channel. PMID:28798011

coNCePTual

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Pakin, Scott

2004-05-13

A frequently reinvented wheel among network researchers is a suite of programs that test a network’s performance. A problem with having umpteen versions of performance tests is that it leads to a variety in the way results are reported; colloquially, apples are often compared to oranges. Consider a bandwidth test. Does a bandwidth test run for a fixed number of iterations or a fixed length of time? Is bandwidth measured as ping-pong bandwidth (i.e., 2 * message length / round-trip time) or unidirectional throughput (N messages in one direction followed by a single acknowledgement message)? Is the acknowledgement message ofmore » minimal length or as long as the entire message? Does its length contribute to the total bandwidth? Is data sent unidirectionally or in both directions at once? How many warmup messages (if any) are sent before the timing loop? Is there a delay after the warmup messages (to give the network a chance to reclaim any scarce resources)? Are receives nonblocking (possibly allowing overlap in the NIC) or blocking? The motivation behind creating coNCePTuaL, a simple specification language designed for describing network benchmarks, is that it enables a benchmark to be described sufficiently tersely as to fit easily in a report or research paper, facilitating peer review of the experimental setup and timing measurements. Because coNCePTuaL code is simple to write, network tests can be developed and deployed with low turnaround times -- useful when the results of one test suggest a following test that should be written. Because coNCePTuaL is special-purpose its run-time system can perform the following functions, which benchmark writers often neglect to implement: * logging information about the environment under which the benchmark ran: operating system, CPU architecture and clock speed, timer type and resolution, etc. * aborting a program if it takes longer than a predetermined length of time to complete * writing measurement data and descriptive statistics to a variety of output formats, including the input formats of various graph-plotting programs coNCePTuaL is not limited to network peformance tests, however. It can also be used for network verification. That is, coNCePTuaL programs can be used to locate failed links or to determine the frequency of bit errors --even those that may sneak past the networks CRC hardware. In addition, because coNCePTuaL is a very high-level language, the coNCePTuaL compiler’s backend has a great deal of potential. It would be possible for the backend to produce a variety of target formats such as Fortran + MPI, Perl + sockets, C + a network vendor’s low-level messaging layer, and so forth. It could directly manipulate a network simulator. It could feed into a graphics program to produce a space-time diagram of a coNCePTuaL program. The possibilities are endless.« less

The Use of Facebook Advertising for Communicating Public Health Messages: A Campaign Against Drinking During Pregnancy in New Zealand.

PubMed

Parackal, Mathew; Parackal, Sherly; Eusebius, Shobhit; Mather, Damien

2017-08-10

Social media is gaining recognition as a platform for delivering public health messages. One area attracting attention from public health researchers and professionals is Facebook's advertising channel. This channel is reported to have a broad reach and generate high user engagement with the disseminated campaign materials. However, to date, no study has examined the communication process via this channel which this study aimed to address. The specific objectives of the study were to (1) examine user engagement for a public health campaign based on the metadata provided by Facebook, (2) analyze comments generated by the campaign materials using text mining, and (3) investigate the relationship between the themes identified in the comments and the message and the sentiments prevalent in the themes that exhibited significant relationships. This study examined a New Zealand public health pilot campaign called "Don't Know? Don't Drink," which warned against drinking alcohol during pregnancy. The campaign conveyed the warning through a video and three banner ads that were delivered as news feeds to women aged 18-30 years. Thematic analysis using text mining performed on the comments (n=819) identified four themes. Logistic regression was used to identify meaning-making themes that exhibited association with the message. The users' engagement was impressive with the video receiving 203,754 views. The combined likes and shares for the promotional materials (video and banner ads) amounted to 6125 and 300, respectively. The logistic regression analysis showed two meaning-making themes, namely, risk of pregnancy (P=.003) and alcohol and culture (P<.001) exhibited association with the message. The sentiment analysis carried out on the two themes revealed there were more negative than positive comments (47% vs 28%). The user engagement observed in this study was consistent with previous research. The numbers reported for views, likes, and shares may be seen as unique interactions over the fixed period of the campaign; however, survey research would be required to find out the true evaluative worth of these metadata. A close examination of the comments, employing text mining, revealed that the message was not accepted by a majority of the target segment. Self-identity and conformity theories may help to explain these observed reactions, albeit warrant further investigations. Although the comments were predominantly negative, they provide opportunities to engage back with the women. The one-way communication format followed in this campaign did not support any two-way engagement. Further investigation is warranted to establish whether using a two-way communication format would have improved the acceptability of such public health messages delivered via social media. The findings of this study caution using a one-way communication format to convey public health messages via Facebook's advertising channel. ©Mathew Parackal, Sherly Parackal, Shobhit Eusebius, Damien Mather. Originally published in JMIR Public Health and Surveillance (http://publichealth.jmir.org), 10.08.2017.

Supporting decision-making by a health promotion programme: experiences of persons ageing in the context of migration

PubMed Central

Barenfeld, Emmelie; Gustafsson, Susanne; Wallin, Lars; Dahlin-Ivanoff, Synneve

2017-01-01

ABSTRACT This study is part of the Promoting Aging Migrants’ Capabilities programme that applied person-centred group meetings and one individual home visit to prolong independence in daily activities among people ≥70 years who had migrated to Sweden from Finland or the Western Balkan region. With the purpose to understand programme outcomes, the study aimed to explore the participants’ everyday experiences of using health-promoting messages exchanged during the programme. Using a grounded theory approach, 12 persons aged 70–83 years were interviewed six months to one year after their participation in the programme. The participants experienced how using health-promoting messages was a dynamic process of how to make decisions on taking action to satisfy health-related needs of oneself or others immediately or deferring action. Five sub-processes were also identified: gaining inner strength, meeting challenges in available resources, being attentive to what is worth knowing, approaching health risks, and identifying opportunities to advocate for others. The results suggest that the programme could develop personal skills to support older people who have migrated to overcome health-related challenges. They further demonstrate the importance of supporting their health literacy before personal resources hinder action, and call for research on programmes to overcome environmental barriers to health. PMID:28639481

Insights into targeting young male drivers with anti-speeding advertising: An application of the Step approach to Message Design and Testing (SatMDT).

PubMed

Lewis, I; White, K M; Ho, B; Elliott, B; Watson, B

2017-06-01

In Australia, young drivers aged 17-25 years comprise 13% of the population yet account for 22% of all road deaths with young males over-represented in such trauma. Speeding represents a major contributing factor and advertising campaigns have long focused on promoting anti-speeding messages in the effort to reduce drivers' speeds. Positioned within a larger program of research aimed at developing, piloting, and evaluating a range of theoretically-informed anti-speeding messages, the current study reports results relating to the final phase of the research, the evaluation. Six messages were devised in accordance with the guiding framework, the Step approach to Message Design and Testing ([SatMDT]; Lewis et al., 2016) and based on the findings emerging from earlier qualitative and quantitative studies within the program of research. N=938 licensed drivers (n=455 males, 48%) aged 17-62 years completed an online survey. To ensure a controlled test of the persuasiveness of the message content, the messages were presented in an audio-based format and thus were devoid of potential confounds, such as images. The messages sought to address a particular belief (i.e., behavioural, normative, control) and to focus either on emphasising the positive aspects which make speeding less likely or challenging the negative aspects which make speeding more likely. Thus, key to this evaluation was to test the persuasiveness of the message content in terms of the particular belief and focus it was addressing. Participants were randomly assigned to either the Control condition (i.e., no exposure to a message) or the Intervention condition (i.e., exposed to one of the six messages presented as an audio-recorded message within the survey). Persuasiveness was assessed via a range of outcome measures including both direct (i.e., third-person perceptions, message rejection) as well as indirect measures (i.e., intentions, willingness to speed). Age, gender, and message type were independent variables (IVs), together with issue involvement as a covariate (or IV) in the study's analyses. Overall, positive persuasive effects, and a relative absence of any negative, dissuasive effects, were found for two messages, Glass Cars and The Lift. These messages addressed the same salient belief, control beliefs, with the former emphasising the factors which discourage speeding and the latter message challenging those factors which encourage speeding. The implications of the findings are discussed in terms of the insights they offer for the key content of future anti-speeding messages. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A change of course: The importance to DoD of international standards for electronic commerce

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Payne, Judith E.

1991-12-01

The U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) is committed to using electronic commerce in the future with the over 300,000 vendors interested in doing business with DoD. Electronic commerce will move DoD from a paper-based world to one based on electronic transactions enabled by the exchange of formatted, electronic messages referred to as electronic data interchange (EDI). With electronic commerce, DoD plans to reduce costs, increase effectiveness, and make it easier for vendors to deal with DoD. Benefits from electronic commerce are enhanced when many businesses use the same standards for EDI messages themselves and their transmission. The fewer standards used, the less time and resources must be spent translating messages and agreeing on how to use different standards. To enhance benefits and smooth the transition to electronic commerce for itself and its vendors, DoD has chosen to use the widely accepted American National Standards Institute (ANSI) X12 standards for EDI messages, coupled with international standards for delivering messages and organizing addresses. In the past 18 months, EDI standards sponsored by a United Nations body and serving the same purpose as ANSI X12 message standards have begun to gain wider acceptance internationally.

Disclaimer labels on fashion magazine advertisements: Does timing of digital alteration information matter?

PubMed

Bury, Belinda; Tiggemann, Marika; Slater, Amy

2017-04-01

The study aimed to investigate whether a message informing readers about digital alteration read before exposure to thin ideal advertisements would enhance the effectiveness of disclaimer labels. Participants were 280 female undergraduate students who viewed eleven thin ideal fashion magazine advertisements. Half viewed the advertisements in their original format, and half viewed the same advertisements with a digital alteration disclaimer label. Prior to viewing the advertisements, participants read either a brief message informing them that advertisements are commonly digitally altered, or a control message. Irrespective of experimental condition, exposure to the thin ideal advertisements led to increased body dissatisfaction, with social comparison predicting this increase. Neither the disclaimer label nor the pre-exposure message, nor their combination, led to reductions in perceived realism, social comparison, or body dissatisfaction. However, trait appearance comparison moderated the effect of pre-exposure message on perceived realism, such that women high on trait appearance comparison in the digital alteration pre-exposure message condition rated the models as relatively more realistic than did women low on this trait. It was concluded that more research is needed to identify brief and easy-to-implement universal prevention strategies that can reduce the negative effects of thin ideal media imagery on women's body image. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Use of Online Focus Groups to Design an Online Food Safety Education Intervention

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mayer, Ashley Bramlett; Harrison, Judy A.

2012-01-01

In the development of an online food safety education intervention for college students, online focus groups were used to determine the appropriate format and messages. Focus groups are often used in qualitative research and formative evaluation of public health programs, yet traditional focus groups can be both difficult and expensive to…

Another Face of the Hero: "The Matrix" as Modern Hero-Quest.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stroud, Scott R.

This paper analyzes the interesting narrative structure of the hero-quest myth contained within the 1999 film, "The Matrix," and explicates the implications of this message upon the audience. Initially, the relevance of myth to movies and the format of Joseph Campbell's hero-quest is illustrated. This format is then applied to "The…

Opinion Formation on Environmental Protection: Understanding the Origins of Attitudes toward Resource Enhancement and Protection in Iowa.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rodriguez, Lulu; Farnall, Olan; Geske, Joel; Peterson, Jane W.

1998-01-01

A study of 483 Iowa citizens and state legislators found that self-interest had the strongest effect on formation of opinions toward environmental protection; sociotropic and symbolic politics models were also effective. Results indicate that campaign messages must stress the benefits of environmental protection to the individual. (JOW)

Improving Instructor Response to Student E-Mails Using Template and Reminder Interventions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Elbeck, Matthew; Song, Minjung

2011-01-01

Student e-mails without the student's name, message, file attachment, and other identifying information may impede a timely and thorough instructor response. To help resolve this issue, we apply template and reminder interventions to improve student e-mail format defined as the degree of agreement between a student's e-mail format and an…

Women's Perceptions of Participation in an Extended Contact Text Message-Based Weight Loss Intervention: An Explorative Study.

PubMed

Job, Jennifer R; Spark, Lauren C; Fjeldsoe, Brianna S; Eakin, Elizabeth G; Reeves, Marina M

2017-02-27

Extending contact with participants after the end of an initial weight loss intervention has been shown to lead to maintained weight loss and related behavioral change. Mobile phone text messaging (short message service, SMS) offers a low-cost and efficacious method to deliver extended contact. In this rapidly developing area, formative work is required to understand user perspectives of text message technology. An extended contact intervention delivered by text messages following an initial telephone-delivered weight loss intervention in breast cancer survivors provided this opportunity. The aim of this study was to qualitatively explore women's perceptions of participation in an extended contact intervention using text messaging to support long-term weight loss, physical activity, and dietary behavioral change. Following the end of an initial 6-month randomized controlled trial of a telephone-delivered weight loss intervention (versus usual care), participants received a 6-month extended contact intervention via tailored text messages. Participant perceptions of the different types of text messages, the content, tailoring, timing, and frequency of the text messages, and the length of the intervention were assessed through semistructured interviews conducted after the extended contact intervention. The interviews were transcribed verbatim and analyzed with key themes identified. Participants (n=27) were a mean age of 56.0 years (SD 7.8) and mean body mass index of 30.4 kg/m2 (SD 4.2) and were at a mean of 16.1 months (SD 3.1) postdiagnosis at study baseline. Participants perceived the text messages to be useful behavioral prompts and felt the messages kept them accountable to their behavioral change goals. The individual tailoring of the text message content and schedules was a key to the acceptability of the messages; however, some women preferred the support and real-time discussion via telephone calls (during the initial intervention) compared with the text messages (during the extended contact intervention). Text message support was perceived as acceptable for the majority of women as a way of extending intervention contact for weight loss and behavioral maintenance. Text messages supported the maintenance of healthy behaviors established in the intervention phase and kept the women accountable to their goals. A combination of telephone calls and text message support was suggested as a more acceptable option for some of the women for an extended contact intervention. ©Jennifer R Job, Lauren C Spark, Brianna S Fjeldsoe, Elizabeth G Eakin, Marina M Reeves. Originally published in JMIR Mhealth and Uhealth (http://mhealth.jmir.org), 27.02.2017.

Product Manuals: A Consumer Perspective.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Showers, Linda S.; And Others

1993-01-01

Qualitative analysis of insights from consumer focus groups on product manual usage reveals consumer perceptions and preferences regarding manual and safety message format. Results can be used to improve manual design and content. (JOW)

Surface Topography Hinders Bacterial Surface Motility.

PubMed

Chang, Yow-Ren; Weeks, Eric R; Ducker, William A

2018-03-21

We demonstrate that the surface motility of the bacterium, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, is hindered by a crystalline hemispherical topography with wavelength in the range of 2-8 μm. The motility was determined by the analysis of time-lapse microscopy images of cells in a flowing growth medium maintained at 37 °C. The net displacement of bacteria over 5 min is much lower on surfaces containing 2-8 μm hemispheres than on flat topography, but displacement on the 1 μm hemispheres is not lower. That is, there is a threshold between 1 and 2 μm for response to the topography. Cells on the 4 μm hemispheres were more likely to travel parallel to the local crystal axis than in other directions. Cells on the 8 μm topography were less likely to travel across the crowns of the hemispheres and were also more likely to make 30°-50° turns than on flat surfaces. These results show that surface topography can act as a significant barrier to surface motility and may therefore hinder surface exploration by bacteria. Because surface exploration can be a part of the process whereby bacteria form colonies and seek nutrients, these results help to elucidate the mechanism by which surface topography hinders biofilm formation.

The relationship between organisational communication and perception.

PubMed

Marynissen, H M F

2011-01-01

Both researchers and managers search for the most appropriate form of organisational communication. The aim of such an organisational communication is to influence the receivers' perception to confirm, adapt or change behaviour according to the sender's intention. This paper argues that to influence the receivers' perception, a specific form of communication that is embedded in a specific organisational culture is required. It also demands prior knowledge of the existing organisational schemata and the current perception concerning the topic that has to be communicated. The rationale is that three obstacles hinder the objectives of traditional communication strategies to influence perception according to the sender's objectives. The first challenge is that a receiver of a certain message never garners one single, clearly pronounced message conveyed by one single person. Yet, few studies are based on multiple messages from various sources. This makes most of the communication strategies in use obsolete. The second strain is the dual mode of thinking that forms organisational members' perceptions: the heuristic and the cogitative (Taleb, 2010). Most organisational communication theories are based on the paradigm in which receivers of information process this information in a rational way, while research in the field of neurobiology (Lehrer, 2009) indicates that rationality is dominated by emotions. The third difficulty is that organisational members constrain to well-established, ingrained schemas (Labianca et al., 2000; Balogun and Johnson, 2004). Based on these existing schemas, the scattered information from multiple sources, and the inability to process that information through cognitive reasoning, organisational members construct perceptions that are not in line with the objectives of the sender's communication. This article reviews different communication theories, points out key concepts in the literature on individual and collective perceptions, and suggests directions to further research.

Increasing Accessibility by Pooling Digital Resources

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cushion, Steve

2004-01-01

There are now many CALL authoring packages that can create interactive websites and a large number of language teachers are writing materials for the whole range of such packages. Currently, each product stores its data in different formats thus hindering interoperability, pooling of digital resources and moving between software packages based in…

Strategy Instruction and Maintenance of Basic Multiplication Facts through Digital Game Play

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Denham, André R.

2013-01-01

Formative instruction on multiplication primarily focuses on rote memorization. This leads to factual fluency, but also develops a narrow view of multiplication and hinders the development of conceptual understanding. Theory and research recommend the concurrent development of conceptual understanding and factual fluency during the initial stages…

Provoking Reflective Thinking in Post Observation Conversations

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kim, Younhee; Silver, Rita Elaine

2016-01-01

We present a micro-analysis of post observation conversations between classroom teachers and mentors. Using the approach of conversation analysis, we show how the sequential organization of an episode (i.e., who initiates the interaction, question format used by mentors) could potentially serve to provoke or hinder teacher reflection. Our analysis…

Making the message meaningful: a qualitative assessment of media promoting all-terrain vehicle safety.

PubMed

Brann, Maria; Mullins, Samantha Hope; Miller, Beverly K; Eoff, Shane; Graham, James; Aitken, Mary E

2012-08-01

Millions of all-terrain vehicles (ATV) are used around the world for recreation by both adults and youth. This increase in use has led to a substantial increase in the number of injuries and fatalities each year. Effective strategies for reducing this incidence are clearly needed; however, minimal research exists regarding effective educational interventions. This study was designed to assess rural ATV riders' preferences for and assessment of safety messages. 13 focus group discussions with youth and adult ATV riders were conducted. 88 formative research participants provided feedback on existing ATV safety materials, which was used to develop more useful ATV safety messages. 60 evaluative focus group participants critiqued the materials developed for this project. Existing ATV safety materials have limited effectiveness, in part because they may not address the content or design needs of the target population. ATV riders want educational and action-oriented safety messages that inform youth and adult riders about their responsibilities to learn, educate and implement safety behaviours (eg, appropriate-sized ATV, safety gear, solo riding, speed limits, riding locations). In addition, messages should be clear, realistic, visually appealing and easily accessible. Newly designed ATV safety materials using the acronym TRIPSS (training, ride off-road, impairment, plan ahead, safety gear, single rider) meet ATV riders' safety messaging needs. To reach a target population, it is crucial to include them in the development and assessment of safety messages. Germane to this particular study, ATV riders provided essential information for creating useful ATV safety materials.

Reading Text While Driving

PubMed Central

Horrey, William J.; Hoffman, Joshua D.

2015-01-01

Objective In this study, we investigated how drivers adapt secondary-task initiation and time-sharing behavior when faced with fluctuating driving demands. Background Reading text while driving is particularly detrimental; however, in real-world driving, drivers actively decide when to perform the task. Method In a test track experiment, participants were free to decide when to read messages while driving along a straight road consisting of an area with increased driving demands (demand zone) followed by an area with low demands. A message was made available shortly before the vehicle entered the demand zone. We manipulated the type of driving demands (baseline, narrow lane, pace clock, combined), message format (no message, paragraph, parsed), and the distance from the demand zone when the message was available (near, far). Results In all conditions, drivers started reading messages (drivers’ first glance to the display) before entering or before leaving the demand zone but tended to wait longer when faced with increased driving demands. While reading messages, drivers looked more or less off road, depending on types of driving demands. Conclusions For task initiation, drivers avoid transitions from low to high demands; however, they are not discouraged when driving demands are already elevated. Drivers adjust time-sharing behavior according to driving demands while performing secondary tasks. Nonetheless, such adjustment may be less effective when total demands are high. Application This study helps us to understand a driver’s role as an active controller in the context of distracted driving and provides insights for developing distraction interventions. PMID:25850162

DIRECT secure messaging as a common transport layer for reporting structured and unstructured lab results to outpatient providers.

PubMed

Sujansky, Walter; Wilson, Tom

2015-04-01

This report describes a grant-funded project to explore the use of DIRECT secure messaging for the electronic delivery of laboratory test results to outpatient physicians and electronic health record systems. The project seeks to leverage the inherent attributes of DIRECT secure messaging and electronic provider directories to overcome certain barriers to the delivery of lab test results in the outpatient setting. The described system enables laboratories that generate test results as HL7 messages to deliver these results as structured or unstructured documents attached to DIRECT secure messages. The system automatically analyzes generated HL7 messages and consults an electronic provider directory to determine the appropriate DIRECT address and delivery format for each indicated recipient. The system also enables lab results delivered to providers as structured attachments to be consumed by HL7 interface engines and incorporated into electronic health record systems. Lab results delivered as unstructured attachments may be printed or incorporated into patient records as PDF files. The system receives and logs acknowledgement messages to document the status of each transmitted lab result, and a graphical interface allows searching and review of this logged information. The described system is a fully implemented prototype that has been tested in a laboratory setting. Although this approach is promising, further work is required to pilot test the system in production settings with clinical laboratories and outpatient provider organizations. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Two-Way Social Media Messaging in Postoperative Cataract Surgical Patients: Prospective Interventional Study.

PubMed

Sanguansak, Thuss; Morley, Katharine E; Morley, Michael G; Thinkhamrop, Kavin; Thuanman, Jaruwan; Agarwal, Isha

2017-12-19

Social media offers a new way to provide education, reminders, and support for patients with a variety of health conditions. Most of these interventions use one-way, provider-patient communication. Incorporating social media tools to improve postoperative (postop) education and follow-up care has only been used in limited situations. The aim of this study was to determine the feasibility and efficacy of two-way social media messaging to deliver reminders and educational information about postop care to cataract patients. A total of 98 patients undergoing their first eye cataract surgery were divided into two groups: a no message group receiving usual pre- and postop care and a message group receiving usual care plus messages in a mobile social media format with standardized content and timing. Each patient in the message group received nine messages about hand and face hygiene, medication and postop visit adherence, and links to patient education videos about postop care. Patients could respond to messages as desired. Main outcome measures included medication adherence, postop visit adherence, clinical outcomes, and patients' subjective assessments of two-way messaging. The number, types, content, and timing of responses by patients to messages were recorded. Medication adherence was better in the message group at postop day 7, with high adherence in 47 patients (96%, 47/49) versus 36 patients (73%, 36/49) in the no message group (P=.004), but no statistically significant differences in medication adherence between the groups were noted at preop and postop day 30. Visit adherence was higher at postop day 30 in the message group (100%, 49/49) versus the no message group (88%, 43/49; P=.03) but was 100% (49/49) in both groups at postop day 1 and 7. Final visual outcomes were similar between groups. A total of 441 standardized messages were sent to the message group. Out of 270 responses generated, 188 (70%) were simple acknowledgments or "thank you," and 82 (30%) responses were questions that were divided into three general categories: administrative, postop care, and clinical issues. Out of the 82 question responses, 31 (11%) were about administrative issues, 28 (10%) about postop care, and 23 (9%) about clinical symptoms. All the messages about symptoms were triaged by nurses or ophthalmologists and only required reassurance or information. Patients expressed satisfaction with messaging. Two-way social media messaging to deliver postop information to cataract patients is feasible and improves early medication compliance. Further design improvements can streamline work flow to optimize efficiency and patient satisfaction. ©Thuss Sanguansak, Katharine E Morley, Michael G Morley, Kavin Thinkhamrop, Jaruwan Thuanman, Isha Agarwal. Originally published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research (http://www.jmir.org), 19.12.2017.

47 CFR 11.52 - EAS code and Attention Signal Monitoring requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... technologies, such as instant messaging and email) the distribution of Common Alert Protocol (CAP)-formatted... Integrated Public Alert and Warning System (IPAWS) to enable (whether through “pull” interface technologies...

47 CFR 11.52 - EAS code and Attention Signal Monitoring requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... technologies, such as instant messaging and email) the distribution of Common Alert Protocol (CAP)-formatted... Integrated Public Alert and Warning System (IPAWS) to enable (whether through “pull” interface technologies...

47 CFR 11.52 - EAS code and Attention Signal Monitoring requirements.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... technologies, such as instant messaging and email) the distribution of Common Alert Protocol (CAP)-formatted... Integrated Public Alert and Warning System (IPAWS) to enable (whether through “pull” interface technologies...

Preventing teen pregnancy through persuasive communications: realities, myths, and the hard-fact truths.

PubMed

Witte, K

1997-04-01

Effective campaigns are desperately needed to combat the serious social problem of teen pregnancy. However, public health campaigns are most often noted for failures, rather than successes. One reason for a campaign failing to have the intended effect is lack of theoretical guidance at the formative evaluation stage. The study reported here is a theoretically-based formative evaluation with inner city teens. Six focus groups were conducted to determine knowledge, attitudes, beliefs, and recommendations for effective campaigns to deter teen pregnancy. The results indicate that campaign messages need to combat positive attitudes toward pregnancy, negative attitudes toward birth control, the perception of personal invulnerability, and emphasize the negative consequences of sexual intercourse. This study's findings also suggest that campaigns with these messages need to start at an early age in order to effectively prevent teen pregnancy.

Converting the unconverted: the effect of inclination and opportunity to discount health-related fear appeals.

PubMed

Keller, P A

1999-06-01

Two experiments indicated that the conventional wisdom for designing fear appeals, higher fear arousal, and a consequences-recommendations ordering, was more persuasive for adherents, or those who were already following the advocated recommendations. Instead, lowering the level of fear arousal and reversing the order of the consequences and recommendations were more effective for persuading the unconverted. The unconverted were more persuaded by the latter message format because it reduced the level of message discounting. Specifically, unconverted participants who received either a low fear appeal or recommendations preceding consequences perceived themselves to be more susceptible, perceived the consequences as more severe, regarded the recommendations as more efficacious, believed they were more able to follow the recommendations, and were less likely to refute the message claims.

Messages influencing college women's tanning bed use: statistical versus narrative evidence format and a self-assessment to increase perceived susceptibility.

PubMed

Greene, Kathryn; Brinn, Laura S

2003-01-01

Understanding the effect of messages and other influences on health decision-making has the potential to decrease risky behavior such as tanning bed use. This study explores the effect of type of evidence, self-assessments of risk for skin cancer, and personality factors on intention to use and use of tanning beds among Caucasian female college students. Specifically, it targeted the perceived susceptibility component of the Health Belief Model and its impact on intention to tan as well as changes in actual tanning behavior. College students (N=141) in the southeast United States read randomly assigned messages and self-assessments, filled out surveys, and were later contacted for a follow-up telephone survey. The statistical message was rated higher on information value and also resulted in decreased intention to tan, decreased tanning behavior, and increased perceived susceptibility to skin cancer. The narrative message, in contrast, increased perceptions of realism and also worked to decrease intentions to tan. Additionally, the self-assessment manipulation resulted in increased susceptibility and decreased intention to tan and post tanning behavior. Personality factors explained small portions of variance. Key limitations and directions for future research are also addressed.

An audience-channel-message-evaluation (ACME) framework for health communication campaigns.

PubMed

Noar, Seth M

2012-07-01

Recent reviews of the literature have indicated that a number of health communication campaigns continue to fail to adhere to principles of effective campaign design. The lack of an integrated, organizing framework for the design, implementation, and evaluation of health communication campaigns may contribute to this state of affairs. The current article introduces an audience-channel-message-evaluation (ACME) framework that organizes the major principles of health campaign design, implementation, and evaluation. ACME also explicates the relationships and linkages between the varying principles. Insights from ACME include the following: The choice of audience segment(s) to focus on in a campaign affects all other campaign design choices, including message strategy and channel/component options. Although channel selection influences options for message design, choice of message design also influences channel options. Evaluation should not be thought of as a separate activity, but rather should be infused and integrated throughout the campaign design and implementation process, including formative, process, and outcome evaluation activities. Overall, health communication campaigns that adhere to this integrated set of principles of effective campaign design will have a greater chance of success than those using principles idiosyncratically. These design, implementation, and evaluation principles are embodied in the ACME framework.

Evidence-informed recommendations for constructing and disseminating messages supplementing the new Canadian Physical Activity Guidelines

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

Background Few validated guidelines exist for developing messages in health promotion practice. In clinical practice, the Appraisal of Guidelines, Research, and Evaluation II (AGREE II) Instrument is the international gold standard for guideline assessment, development, and reporting. In a case study format, this paper describes the application of the AGREE II principles to guide the development of health promotion guidelines for constructing messages to supplement the new Canadian Physical Activity Guidelines (CPAG) released in 2011. Methods The AGREE II items were modified to suit the objectives of developing messages that (1) clarify key components of the new CPAG and (2) motivate Canadians to meet the CPAG. The adapted AGREE II Instrument was used as a systematic guide for the recommendation development process. Over a two-day meeting, five workgroups (one for each CPAG – child, youth, adult, older adult – and one overarching group) of five to six experts (including behavior change, messaging, and exercise physiology researchers, key stakeholders, and end users) reviewed and discussed evidence for creating and targeting messages to supplement the new CPAG. Recommendations were summarized and reviewed by workgroup experts. The recommendations were pilot tested among end users and then finalized by the workgroup. Results The AGREE II was a useful tool in guiding the development of evidence-based specific recommendations for constructing and disseminating messages that supplement and increase awareness of the new CPAG (child, youth, adults, and older adults). The process also led to the development of sample messages and provision of a rationale alongside the recommendations. Conclusions To our knowledge, these are the first set of evidence-informed recommendations for constructing and disseminating messages supplementing physical activity guidelines. This project also represents the first application of international standards for guideline development (i.e., AGREE II) to the creation of practical recommendations specifically aimed to inform health promotion and public health practice. The messaging recommendations have the potential to increase the public health impact of evidence-based guidelines. PMID:23634998

Cross-Cultural Adaptation of a Text Message-Based Program for Smoking Cessation in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

PubMed

Colantonio, Lisandro D; Peña, Lorena; Whittaker, Robyn; Mejia, Raul M

2016-03-01

Few individual-level nonpharmacological interventions are available in Argentina to support smokers who attempt to quit. We conducted a cross-cultural adaptation of Stop Smoking with Mobile Phones, an English text message-based tobacco cessation program, in Buenos Aires. The process included English-Spanish translation and back-translation, face validity checking by two local tobacco cessation experts, and a complete review using a structured questionnaire and discussion groups with potential users (current smokers who want to quit or former smokers who quit in the past 6 months). An editing group was responsible for analyzing information collected and preparing adapted messages. Readability of final messages was assessed. Tobacco cessation experts found translated messages suitable for the local setting, although mention of "mate" (a local infusion which can trigger cravings) was recommended. Review of messages by two potential users confirmed most of the messages would help smokers to quit and resulted in minor edits. Potential users who participated in two discussion groups (n = 17, 64.7% female, age range: 30-73) found the content of messages was relevant for cessation and related to their own experiences, although they suggested adding information regarding the negative consequences of smoking. Participants emphasized that messages should be formatted using voseo and informal style and provided feedback on specific words and expressions. Readability of final messages was easy/very easy (Fernández Huerta Index: 79.93). The cross-cultural adaptation of Stop Smoking with Mobile Phones resulted in relevant revisions for the study population, including tone, wording, and pertinent information (eg, smoking consequences). Local acceptability and effectiveness should be confirmed in future studies. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Women’s Perceptions of Participation in an Extended Contact Text Message–Based Weight Loss Intervention: An Explorative Study

PubMed Central

Spark, Lauren C; Fjeldsoe, Brianna S; Eakin, Elizabeth G; Reeves, Marina M

2017-01-01

Background Extending contact with participants after the end of an initial weight loss intervention has been shown to lead to maintained weight loss and related behavioral change. Mobile phone text messaging (short message service, SMS) offers a low-cost and efficacious method to deliver extended contact. In this rapidly developing area, formative work is required to understand user perspectives of text message technology. An extended contact intervention delivered by text messages following an initial telephone-delivered weight loss intervention in breast cancer survivors provided this opportunity. Objective The aim of this study was to qualitatively explore women’s perceptions of participation in an extended contact intervention using text messaging to support long-term weight loss, physical activity, and dietary behavioral change. Methods Following the end of an initial 6-month randomized controlled trial of a telephone-delivered weight loss intervention (versus usual care), participants received a 6-month extended contact intervention via tailored text messages. Participant perceptions of the different types of text messages, the content, tailoring, timing, and frequency of the text messages, and the length of the intervention were assessed through semistructured interviews conducted after the extended contact intervention. The interviews were transcribed verbatim and analyzed with key themes identified. Results Participants (n=27) were a mean age of 56.0 years (SD 7.8) and mean body mass index of 30.4 kg/m2 (SD 4.2) and were at a mean of 16.1 months (SD 3.1) postdiagnosis at study baseline. Participants perceived the text messages to be useful behavioral prompts and felt the messages kept them accountable to their behavioral change goals. The individual tailoring of the text message content and schedules was a key to the acceptability of the messages; however, some women preferred the support and real-time discussion via telephone calls (during the initial intervention) compared with the text messages (during the extended contact intervention). Conclusions Text message support was perceived as acceptable for the majority of women as a way of extending intervention contact for weight loss and behavioral maintenance. Text messages supported the maintenance of healthy behaviors established in the intervention phase and kept the women accountable to their goals. A combination of telephone calls and text message support was suggested as a more acceptable option for some of the women for an extended contact intervention. PMID:28242595

Using Sphinx to Improve Onion Routing Circuit Construction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kate, Aniket; Goldberg, Ian

This paper presents compact message formats for onion routing circuit construction using the Sphinx methodology developed for mixes. We significantly compress the circuit construction messages for three onion routing protocols that have emerged as enhancements to the Tor anonymizing network; namely, Tor with predistributed Diffie-Hellman values, pairing-based onion routing, and certificateless onion routing. Our new circuit constructions are also secure in the universal composability framework, a property that was missing from the original constructions. Further, we compare the performance of our schemes with their older counterparts as well as with each other.

Design of a clinical notification system.

PubMed

Wagner, M M; Tsui, F C; Pike, J; Pike, L

1999-01-01

We describe the requirements and design of an enterprise-wide notification system. From published descriptions of notification schemes, our own experience, and use cases provided by diverse users in our institution, we developed a set of functional requirements. The resulting design supports multiple communication channels, third party mappings (algorithms) from message to recipient and/or channel of delivery, and escalation algorithms. A requirement for multiple message formats is addressed by a document specification. We implemented this system in Java as a CORBA object. This paper describes the design and current implementation of our notification system.

Development of targeted messages to promote smoking cessation among construction trade workers.

PubMed

Strickland, J R; Smock, N; Casey, C; Poor, T; Kreuter, M W; Evanoff, B A

2015-02-01

Blue-collar workers, particularly those in the construction trades, are more likely to smoke and have less success in quitting when compared with white-collar workers. Little is known about health communication strategies that might influence this priority population. This article describes our formative work to develop targeted messages to increase participation in an existing smoking cessation program among construction workers. Using an iterative and sequential mixed-methods approach, we explored the culture, health attitudes and smoking behaviors of unionized construction workers. We used focus group and survey data to inform message development, and applied audience segmentation methods to identify potential subgroups. Among 144 current smokers, 65% reported wanting to quit smoking in the next 6 months and only 15% had heard of a union-sponsored smoking cessation program, despite widespread advertising. We tested 12 message concepts and 26 images with the target audience to evaluate perceived relevance and effectiveness. Participants responded most favorably to messages and images that emphasized family and work, although responses varied by audience segments based on age and parental status. This study is an important step towards integrating the culture of a high-risk group into targeted messages to increase participation in smoking cessation activities. © The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Kinetic manipulation of silicide phase formation in Si nanowire templates.

PubMed

Chen, Yu; Lin, Yung-Chen; Zhong, Xing; Cheng, Hung-Chieh; Duan, Xiangfeng; Huang, Yu

2013-08-14

The phase formation sequence of silicides in two-dimensional (2-D) structures has been well-investigated due to their significance in microelectronics. Applying high-quality silicides as contacts in nanoscale silicon (Si) devices has caught considerable attention recently for their potential in improving and introducing new functions in nanodevices. However, nucleation and diffusion mechanisms are found to be very different in one-dimensional (1-D) nanostructures, and thus the phase manipulation of silicides is yet to be achieved there. In this work, we report kinetic phase modulations to selectively enhance or hinder the growth rates of targeted nickel (Ni) silicides in a Si nanowire (NW) and demonstrate that Ni31Si12, δ-Ni2Si, θ-Ni2Si, NiSi, and NiSi2 can emerge as the first contacting phase at the silicide/Si interface through these modulations. First, the growth rates of silicides are selectively tuned through template structure modifications. It is demonstrated that the growth rate of diffusion limited phases can be enhanced in a porous Si NW due to a short diffusion path, which suppresses the formation of interface limited NiSi2. In addition, we show that a confining thick shell can be applied around the Si NW to hinder the growth of the silicides with large volume expansion during silicidation, including Ni31Si12, δ-Ni2Si, and θ-Ni2Si. Second, a platinum (Pt) interlayer between the Ni source and the Si NW is shown to effectively suppress the formation of the phases with low Pt solubility, including the dominating NiSi2. Lastly, we show that with the combined applications of the above-mentioned approaches, the lowest resistive NiSi phase can form as the first phase in a solid NW with a Pt interlayer to suppress NiSi2 and a thick shell to hinder Ni31Si12, δ-Ni2Si, and θ-Ni2Si simultaneously. The resistivity and maximum current density of NiSi agree reasonably to reported values.

The influence of size, structure and hydrophilicity of model surfactants on the adsorption of lysozyme to oil-water interface--interfacial shear measurements.

PubMed

Baldursdottir, Stefania G; Jorgensen, Lene

2011-10-01

The flexibility and aggregation of proteins can cause adsorption to oil-water interfaces and thereby create challenges during formulation and processing. Protein adsorption is a complex process and the presence of surfactants further complicates the system, in which additional parameters need to be considered. The purpose of this study is to scrutinize the influence of surfactants on protein adsorption to interfaces, using lysozyme as a model protein and sorbitan monooleate 80 (S80), polysorbate 80 (T80), polyethylene-block-poly(ethylene glycol) (PE-PEG) and polyglycerol polyricinoleate (PG-PR) as model surfactants. Rheological properties, measured using a TA AR-G2 rheometer equipped with a double wall ring (DWR) geometry, were used to compare the efficacy of the surfactant in hindering lysozyme adsorption. The system consists of a ring and a Delrin® trough with a circular channel (interfacial area=1882.6 mm(2)). Oscillatory shear measurements were conducted at a constant frequency of 0.1 Hz, a temperature of 25°C, and with strain set to 1%. The adsorption of lysozyme to the oil-water interface results in the formation of a viscoelastic film. This can be prevented by addition of surfactants, in a manner depending on the concentration and the type of surfactant. The more hydrophilic surfactants are more effective in hindering lysozyme adsorption to oil-water interfaces. Additionally, the larger surfactants are more persistent in preventing film formation, whereas the smaller ones eventually give space for the lysozyme on the interface. The addition of a mixture of two different surfactants was only beneficial when the two hydrophilic surfactants were mixed, in which case a delay in the multilayer formation was detected. The method is able to detect the interfacial adsorption of lysozyme and thus the hindering of film formation by model surfactants. It can therefore aid in processing of any delivery systems for proteins in which the protein is introduced to oil-water interfaces. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

THERMALLY STABLE PERFLUORINATED POLYMERS.

DTIC Science & Technology

Ring closure of the N ( perfluoroacylimidoyl ) perfluoroalkyl amidine by acylation with perfluoroacyl chloride was apparently hindered by formation of...quantitatively. The reaction of perfluoroadiphydrazidine with perfluoroadiponitrile produced the intermediate polyimidoylhydrazidine as a step in a... perfluoroalkyltriazole polymer synthesis. Reaction of perfluoroglutaronitrile with N2H4 produced a cyclic compound which may be useful as a single monomer for

Message Formats and Their Influence on Perceived Risks of Tobacco Use: A Pilot Formative Research Project in India

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pischke, Claudia R.; Galarce, Ezequiel M.; Nagler, Eve; Aghi, Mira; Sorensen, Glorian; Gupta, Prakash C.; Pednekar, Mangesh S.; Sinha, Dhirendra N.; Viswanath, K.

2013-01-01

In India, tobacco kills 900 000 people every year though the burden of tobacco is faced disproportionately in poorer states such as Bihar. Teachers may be a particularly influential group in setting norms around tobacco use in the Indian context. However, tobacco use among teachers remains high and perceptions of tobacco-related health risks are…

Development of the behaviorally focused fruits & Veggies--More Matters public health initiative.

PubMed

Pivonka, Elizabeth; Seymour, Jennifer; McKenna, Jeff; Baxter, Suzanne Domel; Williams, Simon

2011-10-01

Due to changing recommendations for fruit and vegetable (F/V) intake, public health and private organizations recognized the need to revise communications and programs that promote F/V consumption. This article describes formative research conducted in 2005 to develop a new identity for the 5 A Day Program, updated to the Fruits & Veggies--More Matters program. The objective was to re-brand the 5 A Day Program's campaign message to be adaptable, sustainable, and compelling, while leveraging the program's existing message dissemination infrastructure. Formative research included interviews with representatives from government, nonprofit organizations, and industry, and consumer perspectives from interviews, focus groups, and an online survey. Public health and private organizations agreed that a compelling emotional benefit was needed to motivate consumers to eat more F/V and that messaging needed to be used consistently among national, state, and local programs. Interviews and focus groups targeted mothers who believed they and their families were getting enough F/V, knew they could eat more, but needed to be convinced why they should do so. The most effective messages appealed to mothers' emotional needs to be responsible, leveraged functional intrinsic values of F/V, did not try to quantify "enough," and focused on small steps. When the Fruits & Veggies-More Matters slogan and graphic were viewed together, the majority (62%) said it increased their interest in eating more F/V. The Fruits & Veggies-More Matters brand offers numerous opportunities for promoting F/V consumption through this public health initiative. Copyright © 2011 American Dietetic Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Development and Preliminary Pilot Testing of a Peer Support Text Messaging Intervention for HIV-Infected Black Men Who Have Sex With Men.

PubMed

Senn, Theresa E; Braksmajer, Amy; Coury-Doniger, Patricia; Urban, Marguerite A; Rossi, Adam; Carey, Michael P

2017-02-01

Black men who have sex with men (MSM) are disproportionately infected with HIV and are less well retained along the HIV continuum of care. We report on the feasibility of a peer support text messaging intervention designed to increase retention in HIV care and HIV medication adherence among HIV-infected black men who have sex with men. Based on formative research, a cell phone app was developed to support a peer-based text messaging intervention. The app allowed the researchers to view text messages sent between mentors and mentees, but did not allow them to view other text messages sent by these phones. Three HIV-infected black men who have sex with men were recruited to serve as volunteer peer mentors. They were trained in motivational techniques, peer support skills, and skills for improving appointment attendance and medication adherence. Mentees (N = 8) received the intervention for 1 month. Mentees completed a postintervention survey and interview. The peer mentor text messaging intervention was feasible. Mentors delivered support in a nonjudgmental, motivational way. However, technical and other implementation problems arose. Some mentees desired more frequent contact with mentors, and mentors reported that other commitments made it difficult at times to be fully engaged. Both mentors and mentees desired more personalized contact (ie, phone calls). A text messaging peer mentor intervention was feasible. Additional research with a larger sample is needed to determine optimal ways to improve mentors' engagement in the intervention and to determine intervention acceptability and efficacy. In future studies, peer support phone calls could be incorporated.

Development and Preliminary Pilot Testing of a Peer Support Text Messaging Intervention for HIV-Infected Black Men Who Have Sex with Men

PubMed Central

Senn, Theresa E.; Braksmajer, Amy; Coury-Doniger, Patricia; Urban, Marguerite A.; Rossi, Adam; Carey, Michael P.

2016-01-01

Background Black men who have sex with men (MSM) are disproportionately infected with HIV, and are less well retained along the HIV continuum of care. We report on the feasibility of a peer support text messaging intervention designed to increase retention in HIV care and HIV medication adherence among HIV-infected Black MSM. Methods Based on formative research, a cellphone app was developed to support a peer-based text messaging intervention. The app allowed the researchers to view text messages sent between mentors and mentees, but did not allow them to view other text messages sent by these phones. Three HIV-infected Black MSM were recruited to serve as volunteer peer mentors. They were trained in motivational techniques, peer support skills, and skills for improving appointment attendance and medication adherence. Mentees (N = 8) received the intervention for one month. Mentees completed a post-intervention survey and interview. Results The peer mentor text messaging intervention was feasible. Mentors delivered support in a nonjudgmental, motivational way. However, technical and other implementation problems arose. Some mentees desired more frequent contact with mentors, and mentors reported that other commitments made it difficult at times to be fully engaged. Both mentors and mentees desired more personalized contact (i.e., phone calls). Conclusions A text messaging peer mentor intervention was feasible. Additional research with a larger sample is needed to determine optimal ways to improve mentors’ engagement in the intervention, as well as to determine intervention acceptability and efficacy. In future studies, peer support phone calls could be incorporated. PMID:28079722

Reading text while driving: understanding drivers' strategic and tactical adaptation to distraction.

PubMed

Liang, Yulan; Horrey, William J; Hoffman, Joshua D

2015-03-01

In this study, we investigated how drivers adapt secondary-task initiation and time-sharing behavior when faced with fluctuating driving demands. Reading text while driving is particularly detrimental; however, in real-world driving, drivers actively decide when to perform the task. In a test track experiment, participants were free to decide when to read messages while driving along a straight road consisting of an area with increased driving demands (demand zone) followed by an area with low demands. A message was made available shortly before the vehicle entered the demand zone. We manipulated the type of driving demands (baseline, narrow lane, pace clock, combined), message format (no message, paragraph, parsed), and the distance from the demand zone when the message was available (near, far). In all conditions, drivers started reading messages (drivers' first glance to the display) before entering or before leaving the demand zone but tended to wait longer when faced with increased driving demands. While reading messages, drivers looked more or less off road, depending on types of driving demands. For task initiation, drivers avoid transitions from low to high demands; however, they are not discouraged when driving demands are already elevated. Drivers adjust time-sharing behavior according to driving demands while performing secondary tasks. Nonetheless, such adjustment may be less effective when total demands are high. This study helps us to understand a driver's role as an active controller in the context of distracted driving and provides insights for developing distraction interventions. © 2014, Human Factors and Ergonomics Society.

Use of the Persuasive Health Message framework in the development of a community-based mammography promotion campaign

PubMed Central

Johnson-Turbes, Ashani

2015-01-01

Purpose We describe how the Persuasive Health Message (PHM) framework was used to guide the formative evaluation informing development of messages and materials used in a community-based multi-media campaign intended to motivate low-income African American women to obtain low- or no-cost mammograms through the CDC’s National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program. Methods Seventy-eight African American women were recruited for eight focus groups that discussed breast cancer screening. The moderator guide was developed in accordance with the PHM framework and solicited information on perceived threat and efficacy, cues, salient beliefs and referents, and barriers to self-efficacy. Results We created persuasive messages to emphasize that African American women are susceptible to the threat of breast cancer, but that their personal action in obtaining regular mammograms may lead to early detection, subsequent treatment, and reduced cancer mortality. The messages addressed concerns of self-efficacy by emphasizing that uninsured women can also obtain high-quality low- or no-cost mammograms. In an attempt to combat the sentiment that breast cancer is a death sentence, the messages indicated that breast cancer can be successfully treated, especially when detected early. Conclusions The PHM framework consists of three steps: (1) determine information about threat and efficacy; (2) develop an audience profile; and (3) construct a persuasive message. It offered our team easy-to-follow, flexible steps to create a persuasive and effective campaign promoting awareness and use of mammogram screening among low-income African American women. PMID:25724414

Development and Evaluation of a Social Media Health Intervention to Improve Adolescents’ Knowledge About and Vaccination Against the Human Papillomavirus

PubMed Central

Shafer, Autumn; Cates, Joan; Coyne-Beasley, Tamera

2018-01-01

This study describes the formative research, execution, and evaluation of a social media health intervention to improve adolescents’ knowledge about and vaccination against human papillomavirus (HPV). Based on the results from formative focus groups with adolescents (N = 38) to determine intervention feasibility, parameters, and message preferences, we developed and conducted a pretest/posttest evaluation of a 3-month social media health intervention for adolescents who had not completed the HPV vaccine series (N = 108). Results revealed that adolescents who fully engaged with the intervention improved in their knowledge compared with a control group, and many were also likely to have interpersonal discussions with others about what they learned. Adolescents are generally interested in receiving information about HPV and the vaccine, along with other relevant health information, through social media channels if messages are considered interesting, their privacy is protected, and the source is credible. PMID:29872667

Non-invasive lightweight integration engine for building EHR from autonomous distributed systems.

PubMed

Angulo, Carlos; Crespo, Pere; Maldonado, José A; Moner, David; Pérez, Daniel; Abad, Irene; Mandingorra, Jesús; Robles, Montserrat

2007-12-01

In this paper we describe Pangea-LE, a message-oriented lightweight data integration engine that allows homogeneous and concurrent access to clinical information from disperse and heterogeneous data sources. The engine extracts the information and passes it to the requesting client applications in a flexible XML format. The XML response message can be formatted on demand by appropriate Extensible Stylesheet Language (XSL) transformations in order to meet the needs of client applications. We also present a real deployment in a hospital where Pangea-LE collects and generates an XML view of all the available patient clinical information. The information is presented to healthcare professionals in an Electronic Health Record (EHR) viewer Web application with patient search and EHR browsing capabilities. Implantation in a real setting has been a success due to the non-invasive nature of Pangea-LE which respects the existing information systems.

Non-invasive light-weight integration engine for building EHR from autonomous distributed systems.

PubMed

Crespo Molina, Pere; Angulo Fernández, Carlos; Maldonado Segura, José A; Moner Cano, David; Robles Viejo, Montserrat

2006-01-01

Pangea-LE is a message oriented light-weight integration engine, allowing concurrent access to clinical information from disperse and heterogeneous data sources. The engine extracts the information and serves it to the requester client applications in a flexible XML format. This XML response message can be formatted on demand by the appropriate XSL (Extensible Stylesheet Language) transformation in order to fit client application needs. In this article we present a real use case sample where Pangea-LE collects and generates "on the fly" a structured view of all the patient clinical information available in a healthcare organisation. This information is presented to healthcare professionals in an EHR (Electronic Health Record) viewer Web application with patient search and EHR browsing capabilities. Implantation in a real environment has been a notable success due to the non-invasive method which extremely respects the existing information systems.

The TextBase project--implementation of a base level message supporting electronic patient record transfer in English general practice.

PubMed

Booth, N; Jain, N L; Sugden, B

1999-01-01

The TextBase project is a laboratory experiment to assess the feasibility of a common exchange format for sending a transcription of the contents of the Electronic Patient Record (EPR) between different general practices, when patients move from one practice to another in the NHS in England. The project was managed using a partnership arrangement between the four EPR systems vendors who agreed to collaborate and the project team. It lasted one year and consisted of an iterative design process followed by creation of message generation and reading modules within the collaborating EPR systems according to a software requirement specification created by the project team. The paper describes the creation of a common record display format, the implementation of transfer using a floppy disk in the lab, and considers the further barriers before a national implementation might be achieved.

A formative evaluation of social media campaign to reduce adolescent dating violence.

PubMed

Lambert, Danielle N; Bishop, Lauren E; Guetig, Stephanie; Frew, Paula M

2014-11-12

The Emory Jane Fonda Center implemented the Start Strong Atlanta social marketing campaign, "Keep It Strong ATL", in 2007 to promote the development of healthy adolescent relationships and to foster the prevention of adolescent dating abuse among 11-14 year olds. A formative evaluation was conducted to understand whether messages directed at the target audience were relevant to the program's relationship promotion and violence prevention goals, and whether the "Web 2.0" social media channels of communication (Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Flickr, Tumblr, and Pinterest) were reaching the intended audience. Mixed methodologies included qualitative interviews and a key informant focus group, a cross-sectional survey, and web analytics. Qualitative data were analyzed using constant comparative methodology informed by grounded theory. Descriptive statistics were generated from survey data, and web analytics provided user information and traffic patterns. Results indicated that the Keep It Strong ATL social marketing campaign was a valuable community resource that had potential for broader scope and greater reach. The evaluation team learned the importance of reaching adolescents through Web 2.0 platforms, and the need for message dissemination via peers. Survey results indicated that Facebook (ranked 6.5 out of 8) was the highest rated social media outlet overall, and exhibited greatest appeal and most frequent visits, yet analytics revealed that only 3.5% of "likes" were from the target audience. These results indicate that the social media campaign is reaching predominantly women (76.5% of viewership) who are outside of the target age range of 11-14 years. While the social media campaign was successfully launched, the findings indicate the need for a more focused selection of communication channels, timing of media updates to maximize visibility, balancing message tone and delivery, and incorporating differentiated messaging for the target audiences. Collaboration with parents and community partners is also emphasized in order to expand the campaign's reach and create more channels to disseminate relationship promotion and dating violence prevention messaging to the intended audience.

Beyond Basic Feedback in Mobile Brief Interventions: Designing SMS Message Content for Delivery to Young Adults During Risky Drinking Events

PubMed Central

Dietze, Paul M; Lim, Megan S C

2017-01-01

Background Brief interventions can reduce alcohol consumption in young people through screening and delivery of personally relevant feedback. Recently, Web and mobile platforms have been harnessed to increase the reach of brief interventions. Existing literature on mobile-based alcohol brief interventions indicates mixed use of theory in developing interventions. There is no research available to guide the development of SMS text messaging (short message service, SMS) interventions delivered during risky drinking events. Objective The aim of this study was to develop and pilot an alcohol-related risk-reduction brief intervention delivered by SMS to Australian young adults during drinking events. This paper describes the development of intervention message content, with specific focus on the context of delivery during drinking events. Methods A sample of 42 young adults attended 4 workshops; these comprised focus-group style discussion on drinking habits and motivations, discussion of intervention design, analysis of existing alcohol media campaigns, and participant development of message content. Data were analyzed thematically. Results Participants described a focus on having fun and blocking out any incongruent negative influences during drinking episodes. For content to be acceptable, nonjudgmental and non-authoritative language was deemed essential. A preference for short, actionable messages was observed, including suggestions for reminders around drinking water, organizing transport home, checking on friends, and plans the next day. Participants were excited about the potential for messages to be tailored to individuals, as previous alcohol-related campaigns were deemed too generic and often irrelevant. Normative-based messages were also perceived as largely irrelevant as participants felt that they understood the drinking-related norms of their immediate peers already. Conclusions Findings from this study offer insights into young adults’ drinking events and practical advice for designing alcohol-related brief interventions. During our formative development process, we demonstrated a neat correspondence between young people’s preferences for alcohol harm reduction interventions and the theoretical principles of brief interventions, including acceptable topics and message style. PMID:28634153

From (Un)Willingness to InvolveMENt: Development of a Successful Study Brand for Recruitment of Diverse MSM to a Longitudinal HIV Research.

PubMed

Frew, Paula M; Williams, Victoria A; Shapiro, Eve T; Sanchez, Travis; Rosenberg, Eli S; Fenimore, Vincent L; Sullivan, Patrick S

2013-11-21

HIV continues to be a major concern among MSM, yet Black MSM have not been enrolled in HIV research studies in proportionate numbers to White MSM. We developed an HIV prevention research brand strategy for MSM. Questionnaires and focus groups were conducted with 54 participants. Descriptive statistics and chi-square analyses were performed and qualitative data were transcribed and content analyzed to identify common themes. Formative research results indicated that younger Black MSM (18-29 years) were less likely to think about joining prevention studies compared to older (≥30 years) Black MSM ( x 2 = 5.92, P = 0.015). Qualitative and quantitative results indicate four prominent themes related to brand development: (1) communication sources (message deliverer), (2) message (impact of public health messaging on perceptions of HIV research), (3) intended audience (underlying issues that influence personal relevance of HIV research), and (4) communication channels (reaching intended audiences). The findings highlight the importance of behavioral communication translational research to effectively engage hard-to-reach populations. Despite reservations, MSM in our formative study expressed a need for active involvement and greater education to facilitate their engagement in HIV prevention research. Thus, the brand concept of "InvolveMENt" emerged.

From (Un)Willingness to InvolveMENt: Development of a Successful Study Brand for Recruitment of Diverse MSM to a Longitudinal HIV Research

PubMed Central

Frew, Paula M.; Williams, Victoria A.; Shapiro, Eve T.; Sanchez, Travis; Rosenberg, Eli S.; Fenimore, Vincent L.; Sullivan, Patrick S.

2014-01-01

Background HIV continues to be a major concern among MSM, yet Black MSM have not been enrolled in HIV research studies in proportionate numbers to White MSM. We developed an HIV prevention research brand strategy for MSM. Methods Questionnaires and focus groups were conducted with 54 participants. Descriptive statistics and chi-square analyses were performed and qualitative data were transcribed and content analyzed to identify common themes. Results Formative research results indicated that younger Black MSM (18–29 years) were less likely to think about joining prevention studies compared to older (≥30 years) Black MSM (x2 = 5.92, P = 0.015). Qualitative and quantitative results indicate four prominent themes related to brand development: (1) communication sources (message deliverer), (2) message (impact of public health messaging on perceptions of HIV research), (3) intended audience (underlying issues that influence personal relevance of HIV research), and (4) communication channels (reaching intended audiences). Conclusion The findings highlight the importance of behavioral communication translational research to effectively engage hard-to-reach populations. Despite reservations, MSM in our formative study expressed a need for active involvement and greater education to facilitate their engagement in HIV prevention research. Thus, the brand concept of “InvolveMENt” emerged. PMID:24639900

Formative research to develop theory-based messages for a Western Australian child drowning prevention television campaign: study protocol.

PubMed

Denehy, Mel; Crawford, Gemma; Leavy, Justine; Nimmo, Lauren; Jancey, Jonine

2016-05-20

Worldwide, children under the age of 5 years are at particular risk of drowning. Responding to this need requires the development of evidence-informed drowning prevention strategies. Historically, drowning prevention strategies have included denying access, learning survival skills and providing supervision, as well as education and information which includes the use of mass media. Interventions underpinned by behavioural theory and formative evaluation tend to be more effective, yet few practical examples exist in the drowning and/or injury prevention literature. The Health Belief Model and Social Cognitive Theory will be used to explore participants' perspectives regarding proposed mass media messaging. This paper describes a qualitative protocol to undertake formative research to develop theory-based messages for a child drowning prevention campaign. The primary data source will be focus group interviews with parents and caregivers of children under 5 years of age in metropolitan and regional Western Australia. Qualitative content analysis will be used to analyse the data. This study will contribute to the drowning prevention literature to inform the development of future child drowning prevention mass media campaigns. Findings from the study will be disseminated to practitioners, policymakers and researchers via international conferences, peer and non-peer-reviewed journals and evidence summaries. The study was submitted and approved by the Curtin University Human Research Ethics Committee. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/

Development and pilot testing of daily Interactive Voice Response (IVR) calls to support antiretroviral adherence in India: A mixed-methods pilot study

PubMed Central

Swendeman, Dallas; Jana, Smarajit; Ray, Protim; Mindry, Deborah; Das, Madhushree; Bhakta, Bhumi

2015-01-01

This two-phase pilot study aimed to design, pilot, and refine an automated Interactive Voice Response (IVR) intervention to support antiretroviral adherence for people living with HIV (PLH), in Kolkata, India. Mixed-methods formative research included a community advisory board (CAB) for IVR message development, one-month pre-post pilot, post-pilot focus groups, and further message development. Two IVR calls are made daily, timed to patients’ dosing schedules, with brief messages (<1-minute) on strategies for self-management of three domains: medical (adherence, symptoms, co-infections), mental health (social support, stress, positive cognitions), and nutrition and hygiene (per PLH preferences). Three ART appointment reminders are also sent each month. One-month pilot results (n=46, 80% women, 60% sex workers) found significant increases in self-reported ART adherence, both within past three days (p=0.05) and time since missed last dose (p=0.015). Depression was common. Messaging content and assessment domains were expanded for testing in a randomized trial is currently underway. PMID:25638037

An Efficient Method for Image and Audio Steganography using Least Significant Bit (LSB) Substitution

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chadha, Ankit; Satam, Neha; Sood, Rakshak; Bade, Dattatray

2013-09-01

In order to improve the data hiding in all types of multimedia data formats such as image and audio and to make hidden message imperceptible, a novel method for steganography is introduced in this paper. It is based on Least Significant Bit (LSB) manipulation and inclusion of redundant noise as secret key in the message. This method is applied to data hiding in images. For data hiding in audio, Discrete Cosine Transform (DCT) and Discrete Wavelet Transform (DWT) both are used. All the results displayed prove to be time-efficient and effective. Also the algorithm is tested for various numbers of bits. For those values of bits, Mean Square Error (MSE) and Peak-Signal-to-Noise-Ratio (PSNR) are calculated and plotted. Experimental results show that the stego-image is visually indistinguishable from the original cover-image when n<=4, because of better PSNR which is achieved by this technique. The final results obtained after steganography process does not reveal presence of any hidden message, thus qualifying the criteria of imperceptible message.

Extracting the Textual and Temporal Structure of Supercomputing Logs

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Jain, S; Singh, I; Chandra, A

2009-05-26

Supercomputers are prone to frequent faults that adversely affect their performance, reliability and functionality. System logs collected on these systems are a valuable resource of information about their operational status and health. However, their massive size, complexity, and lack of standard format makes it difficult to automatically extract information that can be used to improve system management. In this work we propose a novel method to succinctly represent the contents of supercomputing logs, by using textual clustering to automatically find the syntactic structures of log messages. This information is used to automatically classify messages into semantic groups via an onlinemore » clustering algorithm. Further, we describe a methodology for using the temporal proximity between groups of log messages to identify correlated events in the system. We apply our proposed methods to two large, publicly available supercomputing logs and show that our technique features nearly perfect accuracy for online log-classification and extracts meaningful structural and temporal message patterns that can be used to improve the accuracy of other log analysis techniques.« less

Development and Pilot Testing of Daily Interactive Voice Response (IVR) Calls to Support Antiretroviral Adherence in India: A Mixed-Methods Pilot Study.

PubMed

Swendeman, Dallas; Jana, Smarajit; Ray, Protim; Mindry, Deborah; Das, Madhushree; Bhakta, Bhumi

2015-06-01

This two-phase pilot study aimed to design, pilot, and refine an automated interactive voice response (IVR) intervention to support antiretroviral adherence for people living with HIV (PLH), in Kolkata, India. Mixed-methods formative research included a community advisory board for IVR message development, 1-month pre-post pilot, post-pilot focus groups, and further message development. Two IVR calls are made daily, timed to patients' dosing schedules, with brief messages (<1-min) on strategies for self-management of three domains: medical (adherence, symptoms, co-infections), mental health (social support, stress, positive cognitions), and nutrition and hygiene (per PLH preferences). Three ART appointment reminders are also sent each month. One-month pilot results (n = 46, 80 % women, 60 % sex workers) found significant increases in self-reported ART adherence, both within past three days (p = 0.05) and time since missed last dose (p = 0.015). Depression was common. Messaging content and assessment domains were expanded for testing in a randomized trial currently underway.

SmartMom Text Messaging for Prenatal Education: A Qualitative Focus Group Study to Explore Canadian Women’s Perceptions

PubMed Central

Munro, Sarah; Hui, Amber; Salmons, Vanessa; Solomon, Carolyn; Gemmell, Emily; Torabi, Nahal

2017-01-01

Background We engaged Canadian women in the development of a prenatal education program delivered via one-way text messaging called SmartMom. SmartMom is the first peer-reviewed, evidence-based mHealth program for prenatal education in Canada and the first to be endorsed by the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada. Objective To explore women’s preferences for a prenatal education program by text messaging. Methods We conducted a qualitative focus group study in three Canadian communities in the Northern Health Authority. Women completed a demographic questionnaire, participated in a guided discussion about their pregnancy information-seeking behavior, reviewed a printed copy of the SmartMom text messages, and then engaged in a moderated discussion about their perceptions of the usability of the SmartMom program. Open-ended questions explored women’s perceptions regarding the message content, acceptability of receiving information by text message, positive health behaviors they might engage in after receiving a message, modifiable program factors, and intention to use the program. Thematic analysis of transcribed audio recordings was undertaken and modifications were made to the SmartMom program based on these findings. Results A total of 40 women participated in seven focus groups in three rural northern communities. The vast majority had a mobile phone (39/40, 98%), used text messages “all the time” (28/40, 70%), and surfed the Internet on their phone (37/40, 93%). Participants perceived SmartMom to be highly acceptable and relevant. The text message modality reflected how participants currently sought pregnancy-related information and provided them with local information tailored to their gestational age, which they had not received through other pregnancy resources. Women recommended adding the opportunity to receive supplemental streams of messages tailored to their individual needs, for example, depression, pregnancy after previous cesarean, >35 years of age, new immigrants, and harm reduction for smoking and alcohol. Conclusions This formative qualitative evaluation provides evidence that a prenatal education program by text messaging, SmartMom, is acceptable to the end users. These findings support the usability of the SmartMom program at a population level and the development of an evaluation program exploring the effects of the text messages on adoption of health-promoting behaviors and maternal-child health outcomes. PMID:28174149

Influence of Shell Thickness on the Colloidal Stability of Magnetic Core-Shell Particle Suspensions

PubMed Central

Neville, Frances; Moreno-Atanasio, Roberto

2018-01-01

We present a Discrete Element study of the behavior of magnetic core-shell particles in which the properties of the core and the shell are explicitly defined. Particle cores were considered to be made of pure iron and thus possessed ferromagnetic properties, while particle shells were considered to be made of silica. Core sizes ranged between 0.5 and 4.0 μm with the actual particle size of the core-shell particles in the range between 0.6 and 21 μm. The magnetic cores were considered to have a magnetization of one tenth of the saturation magnetization of iron. This study aimed to understand how the thickness of the shell hinders the formation of particle chains. Chain formation was studied with different shell thicknesses and particle sizes in the presence and absence of an electrical double layer force in order to investigate the effect of surface charge density on the magnetic core-shell particle interactions. For core sizes of 0.5 and 4.0 μm the relative shell thicknesses needed to hinder the aggregation process were approximately 0.4 and 0.6 respectively, indicating that larger core sizes are detrimental to be used in applications in which no flocculation is needed. In addition, the presence of an electrical double layer, for values of surface charge density of less than 20 mC/m2, could stop the contact between particles without hindering their vertical alignment. Only when the shell thickness was considerably larger, was the electrical double layer able to contribute to the full disruption of the magnetic flocculation process. PMID:29922646

Influence of Shell Thickness on the Colloidal Stability of Magnetic Core-Shell Particle Suspensions.

PubMed

Neville, Frances; Moreno-Atanasio, Roberto

2018-01-01

We present a Discrete Element study of the behavior of magnetic core-shell particles in which the properties of the core and the shell are explicitly defined. Particle cores were considered to be made of pure iron and thus possessed ferromagnetic properties, while particle shells were considered to be made of silica. Core sizes ranged between 0.5 and 4.0 μm with the actual particle size of the core-shell particles in the range between 0.6 and 21 μm. The magnetic cores were considered to have a magnetization of one tenth of the saturation magnetization of iron. This study aimed to understand how the thickness of the shell hinders the formation of particle chains. Chain formation was studied with different shell thicknesses and particle sizes in the presence and absence of an electrical double layer force in order to investigate the effect of surface charge density on the magnetic core-shell particle interactions. For core sizes of 0.5 and 4.0 μm the relative shell thicknesses needed to hinder the aggregation process were approximately 0.4 and 0.6 respectively, indicating that larger core sizes are detrimental to be used in applications in which no flocculation is needed. In addition, the presence of an electrical double layer, for values of surface charge density of less than 20 mC/m 2 , could stop the contact between particles without hindering their vertical alignment. Only when the shell thickness was considerably larger, was the electrical double layer able to contribute to the full disruption of the magnetic flocculation process.

BOPACE 3-D addendum: The Boeing plastic analysis capabilities for 3-dimensional solids using isoparametric finite elements

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Vos, R. G.; Straayer, J. W.

1975-01-01

Modifications and additions incorporated into the BOPACE 3-D program are described. Updates to the program input data formats, error messages, file usage, size limitations, and overlay schematic are included.

Wireless Roadside Inspection Proof-of-Concept Test

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2009-09-01

This project was undertaken to determine the feasibility of gathering vehicle, driver, and carrier data to be used to format and wirelessly transmit from a commercial motor vehicle a Safety Data Message Set (SDMS). The Wireless Roadside Inspection (W...

77 FR 28857 - Development of the State and Local Implementation Grant Program for the Nationwide Public Safety...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-05-16

..., .pdf, or Word format (please specify version), which should be labeled with the name and organizational... workers have long been hindered by incompatible, and often outdated, communications equipment and this Act... broadband network (PSBN), based on a single, national network architecture.\\2\\ FirstNet is responsible for...

47 CFR 11.56 - Obligation to process CAP-formatted EAS messages.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

...), and Common Alerting Protocol, v. 1.2 USA Integrated Public Alert and Warning System Profile Version 1...) “Common Alerting Protocol, v. 1.2 USA Integrated Public Alert and Warning System Profile Version 1.0” (Oct...

47 CFR 11.56 - Obligation to process CAP-formatted EAS messages.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

...), and Common Alerting Protocol, v. 1.2 USA Integrated Public Alert and Warning System Profile Version 1...) “Common Alerting Protocol, v. 1.2 USA Integrated Public Alert and Warning System Profile Version 1.0” (Oct...

47 CFR 11.56 - Obligation to process CAP-formatted EAS messages.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

...), and Common Alerting Protocol, v. 1.2 USA Integrated Public Alert and Warning System Profile Version 1...) “Common Alerting Protocol, v. 1.2 USA Integrated Public Alert and Warning System Profile Version 1.0” (Oct...

Media Literacy Is the Message.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Trampiets, Frances

1995-01-01

Highlights the importance of using music, multimedia, video, and computers to enrich and enhance religious education, and of integrating media education into faith formation. Suggests that media literacy plays an important role in increasing awareness of the influence of mass media on society. (DJM)

Efficient Tracing for On-the-Fly Space-Time Displays in a Debugger for Message Passing Programs

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hood, Robert; Matthews, Gregory

2001-01-01

In this work we describe the implementation of a practical mechanism for collecting and displaying trace information in a debugger for message passing programs. We introduce a trace format that is highly compressible while still providing information adequate for debugging purposes. We make the mechanism convenient for users to access by incorporating the trace collection in a set of wrappers for the MPI (message passing interface) communication library. We implement several debugger operations that use the trace display: consistent stoplines, undo, and rollback. They all are implemented using controlled replay, which executes at full speed in target processes until the appropriate position in the computation is reached. They provide convenient mechanisms for getting to places in the execution where the full power of a state-based debugger can be brought to bear on isolating communication errors.

A combination SMS and transportation reimbursement intervention to improve HIV care following abnormal CD4 test results in rural Uganda: a prospective observational cohort study.

PubMed

Siedner, Mark J; Santorino, Data; Lankowski, Alexander J; Kanyesigye, Michael; Bwana, Mwebesa B; Haberer, Jessica E; Bangsberg, David R

2015-07-06

Up to 50 % of HIV-infected persons in sub-Saharan Africa are lost from care between HIV diagnosis and antiretroviral therapy (ART) initiation. Structural barriers, including cost of transportation to clinic and poor communication systems, are major contributors. We conducted a prospective, pragmatic, before-and-after clinical trial to evaluate a combination mobile health and transportation reimbursement intervention to improve care at a publicly operated HIV clinic in Uganda. Patients undergoing CD4 count testing were enrolled, and clinicians selected a result threshold that would prompt early return for ART initiation or further care. Participants enrolled in the pre-intervention period (January - August 2012) served as a control group. Participants in the intervention period (September 2012 - November 2013) were randomized to receive daily short message service (SMS) messages for up to seven days in one of three formats: 1) messages reporting an abnormal result directly, 2) personal identification number-protected messages reporting an abnormal result, or 3) messages reading "ABCDEFG" to confidentially convey an abnormal result. Participants returning within seven days of their first message received transportation reimbursements (about $6USD). Our primary outcomes of interest were time to return to clinic and time to ART initiation. There were 45 participants in the pre-intervention period and 138 participants in the intervention period (46, 49, and 43 in the direct, PIN, and coded groups, respectively) with low CD4 count results. Median time to clinic return was 33 days (IQR 11-49) in the pre-intervention period and 6 days (IQR 3-16) in the intervention period (P < 0.001); and median time to ART initiation was 47 days (IQR 11-75) versus 12 days (IQR 5-19), (P < 0.001). In multivariable models, participants in the intervention period had earlier return to clinic (AHR 2.32, 95 %CI 1.53 to 3.51) and earlier time to ART initiation (AHR 2.27, 95 %CI 1.38 to 3.72). All three randomized message formats improved time to return to clinic and time to ART initiation (P < 0.01 for all comparisons versus the pre-intervention period). A combination of an SMS laboratory result communication system and transportation reimbursements significantly decreased time to clinic return and time to ART initiation after abnormal CD4 test results. Clinicaltrials.gov NCT01579214 , approved 13 April 2012.

Simulation of Controller Pilot Data Link Communications over VHF Digital Link Mode 3

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bretmersky, Steven C.; Murawski, Robert; Nguyen, Thanh C.; Raghavan, Rajesh S.

2004-01-01

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has established an operational plan for the future Air Traffic Management (ATM) system, in which the Controller Pilot Data Link Communications (CPDLC) is envisioned to evolve into digital messaging that will take on an ever increasing role in controller to pilot communications, significantly changing the way the National Airspace System (NAS) is operating. According to FAA, CPDLC represents the first phase of the transition from the current analog voice system to an International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) compliant system in which digital communication becomes the alternate and perhaps primary method of routine communication. The CPDLC application is an Air Traffic Service (ATS) application in which pilots and controllers exchange messages via an addressed data link. CPDLC includes a set of clearance, information, and request message elements that correspond to existing phraseology employed by current Air Traffic Control (ATC) procedures. These message elements encompass altitude assignments, crossing constraints, lateral deviations, route changes and clearances, speed assignments, radio frequency assignments, and various requests for information. The pilot is provided with the capability to respond to messages, to request clearances and information, to report information, and to declare/rescind an emergency. A 'free text' capability is also provided to exchange information not conforming to defined formats. This paper presents simulated results of the aeronautical telecommunication application Controller Pilot Data Link Communications over VHF Digital Link Mode 3 (VDL Mode 3). The objective of this simulation study was to determine the impact of CPDLC traffic loads, in terms of timely message delivery and capacity of the VDL Mode 3 subnetwork. The traffic model is based on and is used for generating air/ground messages with different priorities. Communication is modeled for the en route domain of the Cleveland Center air traffic (ZOB ARTCC).

Online Identities and Social Networking

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Maheswaran, Muthucumaru; Ali, Bader; Ozguven, Hatice; Lord, Julien

Online identities play a critical role in the social web that is taking shape on the Internet. Despite many technical proposals for creating and managing online identities, none has received widespread acceptance. Design and implementation of online identities that are socially acceptable on the Internet remains an open problem. This chapter discusses the interplay between online identities and social networking. Online social networks (OSNs) are growing at a rapid pace and has millions of members in them. While the recent trend is to create explicit OSNs such as Facebook and MySpace, we also have implicit OSNs such as interaction graphs created by email and instant messaging services. Explicit OSNs allow users to create profiles and use them to project their identities on the web. There are many interesting identity related issues in the context of social networking including how OSNs help and hinder the definition of online identities.

Consumer e-health education in HIV/AIDS: a pilot study of a web-based video workshop

PubMed Central

O'Grady, Laura A

2006-01-01

Background Members of the HIV/AIDS community are known to use web-based tools to support learning about treatment issues. Initial research indicated components such as message forums or web-based documentation were effectively used by persons with HIV/AIDS. Video has also shown promise as a technology to aid consumer health education. However, no research has been published thus far investigating the impact of web-based environments combining these components in an educational workshop format. Methods In this qualitative study HIV/AIDS community members provided feedback on an integrated web-based consumer health education environment. Participants were recruited through organizations that serve the HIV/AIDS community located in Toronto, Canada. Demographics, data on Internet use, including messages exchanged in the study environment were collected. A group interview provided feedback on usability of the study environment, preferences for information formats, use of the message forum, and other sources for learning about treatment information. Results In this pilot study analysis of the posted messages did not demonstrate use for learning of the workshop content. Participants did not generally find the environment of value for learning about treatment information. However, participants did share how they were meeting these needs. It was indicated that a combination of resources are being used to find and discuss treatment information, including in-person sources. Conclusion More research on the ways in which treatment information needs are being met by HIV/AIDS community members and how technology fits in this process is necessary before investing large amounts of money into web-based interventions. Although this study had a limited number of participants, the findings were unexpected and, therefore, of interest to those who intend to implement online consumer health education initiatives or interventions. PMID:16504148

The effect of photoionizing feedback on star formation in isolated and colliding clouds

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shima, Kazuhiro; Tasker, Elizabeth J.; Federrath, Christoph; Habe, Asao

2018-05-01

We investigate star formation occurring in idealized giant molecular clouds, comparing structures that evolve in isolation versus those undergoing a collision. Two different collision speeds are investigated and the impact of photoionizing radiation from the stars is determined. We find that a colliding system leads to more massive star formation both with and without the addition of feedback, raising overall star formation efficiencies (SFE) by a factor of 10 and steepening the high-mass end of the stellar mass function. This rise in SFE is due to increased turbulent compression during the cloud collision. While feedback can both promote and hinder star formation in an isolated system, it increases the SFE by approximately 1.5 times in the colliding case when the thermal speed of the resulting H II regions matches the shock propagation speed in the collision.

α″ Martensite and Amorphous Phase Transformation Mechanism in TiNbTaZr Alloy Incorporated with TiO2 Particles During Friction Stir Processing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ran, Ruoshi; Liu, Yiwei; Wang, Liqiang; Lu, Eryi; Xie, Lechun; Lu, Weijie; Wang, Kuaishe; Zhang, Lai-Chang

2018-03-01

This work studied the formation of the α″ martensite and amorphous phases of TiNbTaZr alloy incorporated with TiO2 particles during friction stir processing. Formation of the amorphous phase in the top surface mainly results from the dissolution of oxygen, rearrangement of the lattice structure, and dislocations. High-stress stemming caused by dislocations and high-stress concentrations at crystal-amorphous interfaces promote the formation of α″ martensite. Meanwhile, an α″ martensitic transformation is hindered by oxygen diffusion from TiO2 to the matrix, thereby increasing resistance to shear.

Geobase Information System Impacts on Space Image Formats

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Simonett, D. S. (Editor); Smith, T. R. (Editor); Tobler, W. (Editor); Marks, D. G. (Editor); Frew, J. E. (Editor); Dozier, J. C. (Editor)

1978-01-01

As Geobase Information Systems increase in number, size and complexity, the format compatability of satellite remote sensing data becomes increasingly more important. Because of the vast and continually increasing quantity of data available from remote sensing systems the utility of these data is increasingly dependent on the degree to which their formats facilitate, or hinder, their incorporation into Geobase Information Systems. To merge satellite data into a geobase system requires that they both have a compatible geographic referencing system. Greater acceptance of satellite data by the user community will be facilitated if the data are in a form which most readily corresponds to existing geobase data structures. The conference addressed a number of specific topics and made recommendations.

α″ Martensite and Amorphous Phase Transformation Mechanism in TiNbTaZr Alloy Incorporated with TiO2 Particles During Friction Stir Processing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ran, Ruoshi; Liu, Yiwei; Wang, Liqiang; Lu, Eryi; Xie, Lechun; Lu, Weijie; Wang, Kuaishe; Zhang, Lai-Chang

2018-06-01

This work studied the formation of the α″ martensite and amorphous phases of TiNbTaZr alloy incorporated with TiO2 particles during friction stir processing. Formation of the amorphous phase in the top surface mainly results from the dissolution of oxygen, rearrangement of the lattice structure, and dislocations. High-stress stemming caused by dislocations and high-stress concentrations at crystal-amorphous interfaces promote the formation of α″ martensite. Meanwhile, an α″ martensitic transformation is hindered by oxygen diffusion from TiO2 to the matrix, thereby increasing resistance to shear.

The Network Protocol Analysis Technique in Snort

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wu, Qing-Xiu

Network protocol analysis is a network sniffer to capture data for further analysis and understanding of the technical means necessary packets. Network sniffing is intercepted by packet assembly binary format of the original message content. In order to obtain the information contained. Required based on TCP / IP protocol stack protocol specification. Again to restore the data packets at protocol format and content in each protocol layer. Actual data transferred, as well as the application tier.

A randomized trial of maternal influenza immunization decision-making: A test of persuasive messaging models.

PubMed

Frew, Paula M; Kriss, Jennifer L; Chamberlain, Allison T; Malik, Fauzia; Chung, Yunmi; Cortés, Marielysse; Omer, Saad B

2016-08-02

We sought to examine the effectiveness of persuasive communication interventions on influenza vaccination uptake among black/African American pregnant women in Atlanta, Georgia. We recruited black/African American pregnant women ages 18 to 50 y from Atlanta, GA to participate in a prospective, randomized controlled trial of influenza immunization messaging conducted from January to April 2013. Eligible participants were randomized to 3 study arms. We conducted follow-up questionnaires on influenza immunization at 30-days post-partum with all groups. Chi-square and t tests evaluated group differences, and outcome intention-to-treat assessment utilized log-binomial regression models. Of the 106 enrolled, 95 women completed the study (90% retention), of which 31 were randomly assigned to affective messaging intervention ("Pregnant Pause" video), 30 to cognitive messaging intervention ("Vaccines for a Healthy Pregnancy" video), and 34 to a comparison condition (receipt of the Influenza Vaccine Information Statement). The three groups were balanced on baseline demographic characteristics and reported health behaviors. At baseline, most women (63%, n = 60) reported no receipt of seasonal influenza immunization during the previous 5 y. They expressed a low likelihood (2.1 ± 2.8 on 0-10 scale) of obtaining influenza immunization during their current pregnancy. At 30-days postpartum follow-up, influenza immunization was low among all participants (7-13%) demonstrating no effect after a single exposure to either affective messaging (RR = 1.10; 95% CI: 0.30-4.01) or cognitive messaging interventions (RR = 0.57; 95% CI: 0.11-2.88). Women cited various reasons for not obtaining maternal influenza immunizations. These included concern about vaccine harm (47%, n = 40), low perceived influenza infection risk (31%, n = 26), and a history of immunization nonreceipt (24%, n = 20). The findings reflect the limitations associated with a single exposure to varying maternal influenza immunization message approaches on vaccine behavior. For this population, repeated influenza immunization exposures may be warranted with alterations in message format, content, and relevance for coverage improvement.

The Marsabit Experiment.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McBean, George

1978-01-01

Teaching aids were developed to meet local needs in Marsabit. Respected members of the local society were photographed demonstrating various health care messages, which were then laid out in poster format, captioned in Swahili, and laminated for distribution to health care workers. Findings indicate their consistent use. (JEG)

47 CFR 80.1111 - Distress alerting.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... Telecommunication FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION (CONTINUED) SAFETY AND SPECIAL RADIO SERVICES STATIONS IN THE... Safety Communications § 80.1111 Distress alerting. (a) The transmission of a distress alert indicates... distress message format, which is relayed through space stations. (b) The distress alert must be sent...

47 CFR 80.1111 - Distress alerting.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... Telecommunication FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION (CONTINUED) SAFETY AND SPECIAL RADIO SERVICES STATIONS IN THE... Safety Communications § 80.1111 Distress alerting. (a) The transmission of a distress alert indicates... distress message format, which is relayed through space stations. (b) The distress alert must be sent...

47 CFR 80.1111 - Distress alerting.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... Telecommunication FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION (CONTINUED) SAFETY AND SPECIAL RADIO SERVICES STATIONS IN THE... Safety Communications § 80.1111 Distress alerting. (a) The transmission of a distress alert indicates... distress message format, which is relayed through space stations. (b) The distress alert must be sent...

47 CFR 80.1111 - Distress alerting.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... Telecommunication FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION (CONTINUED) SAFETY AND SPECIAL RADIO SERVICES STATIONS IN THE... Safety Communications § 80.1111 Distress alerting. (a) The transmission of a distress alert indicates... distress message format, which is relayed through space stations. (b) The distress alert must be sent...

47 CFR 80.1111 - Distress alerting.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... Telecommunication FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION (CONTINUED) SAFETY AND SPECIAL RADIO SERVICES STATIONS IN THE... Safety Communications § 80.1111 Distress alerting. (a) The transmission of a distress alert indicates... distress message format, which is relayed through space stations. (b) The distress alert must be sent...

Communication strategies for enhancing understanding of the behavioral implications of genetic and biomarker tests for disease risk: the role of coherence.

PubMed

Cameron, Linda D; Marteau, Theresa M; Brown, Paul M; Klein, William M P; Sherman, Kerry A

2012-06-01

Individuals frequently have difficulty understanding how behavior can reduce genetically-conferred risk for diseases such as colon cancer. With increasing opportunities to purchase genetic tests, communication strategies are needed for presenting information in ways that optimize comprehension and adaptive behavior. Using the Common-Sense Model, we tested the efficacy of a strategy for providing information about the relationships (links) among the physiological processes underlying disease risk and protective action on understanding, protective action motivations, and willingness to purchase tests. We tested the generalizability of the strategy's effects across varying risk levels, for genetic tests versus tests of a non-genetic biomarker, and when using graphic and numeric risk formats. In an internet-based experiment, 749 adults from four countries responded to messages about a hypothetical test for colon cancer risk. Messages varied by Risk-Action Link Information (provision or no provision of information describing how a low-fat diet reduces risk given positive results, indicating presence of a gene fault), Risk Increment (20%, 50%, or 80% risk given positive results), Risk Format (numeric or graphic presentation of risk increments), and Test Type (genetic or enzyme). Providing risk-action link information enhanced beliefs of coherence (understanding how a low-fat diet reduces risk) and response efficacy (low-fat diets effectively reduce risk) and lowered appraisals of anticipated risk of colon cancer given positive results. These effects held across risk increments, risk formats, and test types. For genetic tests, provision of risk-action link information reduced the amount individuals were willing to pay for testing. Brief messages explaining how action can reduce genetic and biomarker-detected risks can promote beliefs motivating protective action. By enhancing understanding of behavioral control, they may reduce the perceived value of genetic risk information.

IP telephony based danger alert communication system and its implementation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rezac, Filip; Safarik, Jakub; Voznak, Miroslav; Tomala, Karel; Partila, Pavol

2013-05-01

This article discusses a danger alert system created as a part of the research project at Department of Telecommunications of Technical University of Ostrava. The aim of the system is to distribute pre-recorded voice messages in order to alert the called party in danger. This article describes individual technologies, which the application uses for its operation as well as issues relating to hardware requirements and transfer line bandwidth load. The article also describes new algorithms, which had to be developed in order to ensure the reliability of the system. Our intent is focused on disaster management, the message, which should be delivered within specified time span, is typed in the application and text-to-speech module ensures its transformation to a speech format, after that a particular scenario or warned area is selected and a target group is automatically unloaded. For this purpose, we have defined XML format for delivery of phone numbers which are located in the target area and these numbers are obtained from mobile BTS's (Base transmission stations). The benefit of such communication compared to others, is the fact, that it uses a phone call and, therefore, it is possible to get feedback who accepted the message and to improve efficiency of alert system. Finally, the list of unanswered calls is exported and these users can be informed via SMS.

Formative evaluation of a practice-based smoking cessation program for diverse populations.

PubMed

Mahoney, Martin C; Erwin, Deborah O; Widman, Christy; Masucci Twarozek, Annamaria; Saad-Harfouche, Frances G; Underwood, Willie; Fox, Chester H

2014-04-01

Smoking rates are higher among those living at or below poverty and among persons with lower levels of education. We report on a formative research project examining patient perceptions of tobacco cessation strategies among diverse, low socioeconomic, urban smokers cared for in community-based primary care medical offices. We conducted 10 focus groups among low socioeconomic status participants recruited from urban primary care medical offices in Buffalo and Niagara Falls, New York. Participants included current or former smokers, who were stratified by age-group (18-39 years and 40+ years). The focus groups discussed perceptions of tobacco cessation strategies, previous quit attempts, and use/attitudes regarding technology and social media as potential platforms for cessation support. Participants (n = 96) included predominantly African Americans (n = 62, 65%) and European Americans (n = 16, 16%); 56% were older than 40 years and 92% were low income. Most participants were supportive of cessation message delivery via phone; however, the age-groups varied in their attitudes on quitting smoking, desired frequency of phone contacts, and social media usage. Participants aged 18 to 39 years reported more Internet use, greater use of text messaging, and were more open to health information via social media. Based on significant variation between younger and older smokers' perceptions of tobacco addiction and use of communication technologies, it appears reasonable to stratify the content and platform of health messaging by the target age-group.

Death narratives and cervical cancer: Impact of character death on narrative processing and HPV vaccination.

PubMed

Krakow, Melinda; Yale, Robert N; Perez Torres, Debora; Christy, Katheryn; Jensen, Jakob D

2017-12-01

Narratives hold promise as an effective public health message strategy for health behavior change, yet research on what types of narratives are most persuasive is still in the formative stage. Narrative persuasion research has identified 2 promising features of such messages that could influence behavior: whether characters live or die, and whether characters encounter key barriers. This study investigated the effects of these 2 narrative message features on young women's HPV vaccination intentions and examined mediating psychological processes of narrative persuasion in the context of cervical cancer messages. We manipulated these 2 features in a narrative HPV vaccine intervention targeted to a national sample of U.S. women 18-26 who had not initiated the vaccine (N = 247). Participants were randomized in a 2 × 2 between-subjects experiment. Compared to death narratives, survival narratives increased narrative believability and self-efficacy while lowering perceived barriers to vaccination. As features interacted, survival narratives featuring social barriers led to greater narrative transportation (absorption into the story) than other combinations. Moderated mediation analysis tested 10 theoretically derived mediators; transportation and risk severity mediated the narrative-intention relationship. Findings provide evidence for key psychological postulates of narrative persuasion theory. Results inform practical application for the construction of effective narrative message content in cervical cancer prevention campaigns for young women. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).

Care by cell phone: text messaging for chronic disease management.

PubMed

Fischer, Henry H; Moore, Susan L; Ginosar, David; Davidson, Arthur J; Rice-Peterson, Cecilia M; Durfee, Michael J; MacKenzie, Thomas D; Estacio, Raymond O; Steele, Andrew W

2012-02-01

To assess the feasibility of engaging adults with diabetes in self management behaviors between clinic visits by using cell phone text messaging to provide blood sugar measurement prompts and appointment reminders. Quasi-experimental pilot among adult diabetic patients with cell phones who receive regular care at a federally qualified community health center in Denver, Colorado, which serves a population that is predominantly either uninsured (41%) or on Medicaid or Medicare (56%). Patients (N = 47) received text message prompts over a 3-month period. Blood sugar readings were requested 3 times per week (Monday, Wednesday, and Friday). Reminders were sent 7, 3, and 1 day(s) before each scheduled appointment. Acknowledgments were returned for all patient-sent messages. Focus groups were conducted in English and Spanish with selected patients (n = 8). Patients of all ages were active participants. Correctly formatted responses were received for 67.3% of 1585 prompts. More than three-fourths (79%) of the cohort responded to more than 50% of their prompts. The appointment analysis was underpowered to detect significant changes in attendance. Participants reported increased social support, feelings that the program "made them accountable," and increased awareness of health information. Two-thirds (66%) of patients provided glucose readings when prompted during the study, compared with 12% at 2 preceding clinic visits. For certain patients, cell phone-based text messaging may enhance chronic disease management support and patient-provider communications beyond the clinic setting.

Marketing physical activity: lessons learned from a statewide media campaign.

PubMed

Peterson, Michael; Abraham, Avron; Waterfield, Allan

2005-10-01

Steps taken to create, implement, and initially assess a statewide physical activity social marketing campaign targeted to 18-to 30-year-olds are presented. Included is a summary demonstration of the application of the associative group analysis in formative market research and message development. Initial postcampaign questionnaire (n = 363) results indicated that 39.1% of respondents had seen the television ad, of which 31.2% indicated they intended to be more active, and 62.5% of respondents had been exposed to either the television or outdoor media ads. Lessons learned through the social marketing process including media channel effectiveness, message development and assessment, and marketing firm relationships are provided.

Informing adolescents about human papillomavirus vaccination: what will parents allow?

PubMed

Vallely, Lorraine A; Roberts, Stephen A; Kitchener, Henry C; Brabin, Loretta

2008-04-24

With the introduction of human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination an evidence base on effective adolescent educational interventions is urgently required. We undertook formative research to develop and evaluate a film on HPV and cervical cancer prevention for school children who will be offered HPV vaccination in the UK. The main outcome measures were the number of children allowed by parents to view the film and children's knowledge. Our results indicated that the film's four key messages were acceptable to parents and largely understood by adolescents but these messages will need reinforcing if the full potential of a prophylactic vaccine is to be realised.

SmartMom Text Messaging for Prenatal Education: A Qualitative Focus Group Study to Explore Canadian Women's Perceptions.

PubMed

Munro, Sarah; Hui, Amber; Salmons, Vanessa; Solomon, Carolyn; Gemmell, Emily; Torabi, Nahal; Janssen, Patricia A

2017-02-07

We engaged Canadian women in the development of a prenatal education program delivered via one-way text messaging called SmartMom. SmartMom is the first peer-reviewed, evidence-based mHealth program for prenatal education in Canada and the first to be endorsed by the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada. To explore women's preferences for a prenatal education program by text messaging. We conducted a qualitative focus group study in three Canadian communities in the Northern Health Authority. Women completed a demographic questionnaire, participated in a guided discussion about their pregnancy information-seeking behavior, reviewed a printed copy of the SmartMom text messages, and then engaged in a moderated discussion about their perceptions of the usability of the SmartMom program. Open-ended questions explored women's perceptions regarding the message content, acceptability of receiving information by text message, positive health behaviors they might engage in after receiving a message, modifiable program factors, and intention to use the program. Thematic analysis of transcribed audio recordings was undertaken and modifications were made to the SmartMom program based on these findings. A total of 40 women participated in seven focus groups in three rural northern communities. The vast majority had a mobile phone (39/40, 98%), used text messages "all the time" (28/40, 70%), and surfed the Internet on their phone (37/40, 93%). Participants perceived SmartMom to be highly acceptable and relevant. The text message modality reflected how participants currently sought pregnancy-related information and provided them with local information tailored to their gestational age, which they had not received through other pregnancy resources. Women recommended adding the opportunity to receive supplemental streams of messages tailored to their individual needs, for example, depression, pregnancy after previous cesarean, >35 years of age, new immigrants, and harm reduction for smoking and alcohol. This formative qualitative evaluation provides evidence that a prenatal education program by text messaging, SmartMom, is acceptable to the end users. These findings support the usability of the SmartMom program at a population level and the development of an evaluation program exploring the effects of the text messages on adoption of health-promoting behaviors and maternal-child health outcomes. ©Sarah Munro, Amber Hui, Vanessa Salmons, Carolyn Solomon, Emily Gemmell, Nahal Torabi, Patricia A Janssen. Originally published in JMIR Public Health and Surveillance (http://publichealth.jmir.org), 07.02.2017.

Island size distribution with hindered aggregation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

González, Diego Luis; Camargo, Manuel; Sánchez, Julián A.

2018-05-01

We study the effect of hindered aggregation on the island formation processes for a one-dimensional model of epitaxial growth with arbitrary nucleus size i . In the proposed model, the attachment of monomers to islands is hindered by an aggregation barrier, ɛa, which decreases the hopping rate of monomers to the islands. As ɛa increases, the system exhibits a crossover between two different regimes; namely, from diffusion-limited aggregation to attachment-limited aggregation. The island size distribution, P (s ) , is calculated for different values of ɛa by a self-consistent approach involving the nucleation and aggregation capture kernels. The results given by the analytical model are compared with those from kinetic Monte Carlo simulations, finding a close agreement between both sets of data for all considered values of i and ɛa. As the aggregation barrier increases, the spatial effect of fluctuations on the density of monomers can be neglected and P (s ) smoothly approximates to the limit distribution P (s ) =δs ,i +1 . In the crossover regime the system features a complex and rich behavior, which can be explained in terms of the characteristic timescales of different microscopic processes.

Family Sources of Sexual Health Information, Primary Messages, and Sexual Behavior of At-Risk, Urban Adolescents

PubMed Central

Rosengard, Cynthia; Tannis, Candace; Dove, David C.; van den Berg, Jacob J.; Lopez, Rosalie; Stein, L. A. R.; Morrow, Kathleen M.

2016-01-01

Background Sources of sexual health information exert strong influence on adolescents’ sexual behavior. Purpose The current study was undertaken to understand how family serve as sexual information sources, the messages adolescents recall from family, and how family learning experiences affect sexual behavior among at-risk adolescents. Methods Individual interviews were conducted with 69 teens, ages 15–18 years, from an alternative high school and a juvenile correctional facility to capture adolescents’ early sexual health learning experiences involving family and evaluate their association with teens’ recent sexual behavior. Sexual learning narratives were compared among gender and sexual experience groups. Results Many participants identified family as sexual health information sources. Primary messages recalled: risks of sex, protection, and relationship advice. Many adolescents portrayed learning experiences as negative, cautionary, lacking detail and not always balanced with positive messages. Participants who reported four or more sexual risks were the only group to identify pornography as a sexual health information source. Participants who reported fewer than four sexual risks were most likely to identify family sexual health information sources. Discussion Participants identified family members as sources of sexual health information, with variations by gender. Negative/cautionary messages require teens to seek additional sexual information elsewhere (primarily friends/media). Males, in particular, appear to often lack familial guidance/education. Translation to Health Education Practice Sexual health messages should be tailored to adolescents’ needs for practical and sex-positive guidance regarding mechanics of sex and formation of healthy relationships, and balanced with cautions regarding negative consequences. PMID:27882190

Math anxiety and exposure to statistics in messages about genetically modified foods: effects of numeracy, math self-efficacy, and form of presentation.

PubMed

Silk, Kami J; Parrott, Roxanne L

2014-01-01

Health risks are often communicated to the lay public in statistical formats even though low math skills, or innumeracy, have been found to be prevalent among lay individuals. Although numeracy has been a topic of much research investigation, the role of math self-efficacy and math anxiety on health and risk communication processing has received scant attention from health communication researchers. To advance theoretical and applied understanding regarding health message processing, the authors consider the role of math anxiety, including the effects of math self-efficacy, numeracy, and form of presenting statistics on math anxiety, and the potential effects for comprehension, yielding, and behavioral intentions. The authors also examine math anxiety in a health risk context through an evaluation of the effects of exposure to a message about genetically modified foods on levels of math anxiety. Participants (N = 323) were randomly assigned to read a message that varied the presentation of statistical evidence about potential risks associated with genetically modified foods. Findings reveal that exposure increased levels of math anxiety, with increases in math anxiety limiting yielding. Moreover, math anxiety impaired comprehension but was mediated by perceivers' math confidence and skills. Last, math anxiety facilitated behavioral intentions. Participants who received a text-based message with percentages were more likely to yield than participants who received either a bar graph with percentages or a combined form. Implications are discussed as they relate to math competence and its role in processing health and risk messages.

Public responses to flood warning messages: the Floodline service in Scotland

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cranston, Michael; Geddes, Alistair; Black, Andrew; Ambler, Alice; Menmuir, Cordelia

2017-04-01

Over the past decade, efforts have been made to improve the national flood warning system in Scotland, with new capabilities in the underlying flood forecasting tools, as well as development of an active flood warning dissemination service. This paper focusses on the latter service, for which there are around 26,000 customers registered at present, and which saw over 300,000 individual messages being issued during recent floods in winter 2015/16. However, notwithstanding such promising signs of change, evidence of how (if at all) the flood warning messages disseminated by the service actually impacts on recipient behaviour remains more limited. For example, this includes knowledge of the extent to which the messages influence actions on flood preparedness and mitigation. In consequence, there are also ongoing questions over the cost-effectiveness of the service in its current format, and of its scalability to even larger numbers of recipients. This paper will present initial findings from the first detailed study of customer perceptions of the messages distributed via the Scottish flood warning system, officially known as Floodline. In particular, the primary focus will be on results generated from a web-based questionnaire survey of registered Floodline customers. The survey was designed to assess associations between multiple customer characteristics, including location and risk level, type of warning message received, prior experience of flooding, risk awareness, and demographics. The study was conducted for the Scottish Environment Protection Agency, which is responsible for running the Floodline service. More broadly it resonates with current emphases on exploring effective means of hazard communication and encouraging public engagement in flood risk management.

Common themes from the extremes: using two methodologies to examine adolescents' perceptions of anti-violence public service announcements.

PubMed

Borzekowski, D L; Poussaint, A F

2000-03-01

To determine in what ways adolescents perceive public service announcements (PSAs) in general and, more specifically, anti-violence health messages. Seventy-nine adolescents who were involved with the issue of violence (39 pro-social, 40 incarcerated) participated. These youth were from four sites (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Detroit, Michigan, Albuquerque, New Mexico, and Portland, Oregon) and were chosen at random from a pool recommended by community leaders. First, adolescents were questioned on their demographics and knowledge of, attitudes about, and experience with, violence. Then, adolescents rated eight PSAs on levels of interest, understanding, believability, and perceived effect. In semistructured individual interviews, the adolescents discussed each of the PSAs as well as how health messages can effectively reach young people. We used quantitative and qualitative methodologies to analyze the data. Adolescents had similar opinions about the presented messages and using PSAs. Across both the pro-social and incarcerated groups, adolescents (a) opposed celebrity spokespeople, (b) preferred authentic-looking characters and realistic situations, (c) dismissed messages directed at either younger or older audiences, (d) confused abstractions, (e) focused on visuals, and (f) suggested using graphic images. The similarities observed between the pro-social and incarcerated adolescents may arise from the fact that, although the nature of their experience varied, both groups had high levels of issue involvement. From this study, we can make three recommendations for creating messages: (a) use authentic-looking characters in realistic situations; (b) employ simple, visual, and graphic messages; and (c) do formative evaluations with target audiences.

Loop-Extended Symbolic Execution on Binary Programs

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-03-02

1434. Based on its speci- fication [35], one valid message format contains 2 fields: a header byte of value 4, followed by a string giving a database ...potentially become expensive. For instance the polyhedron technique [16] requires costly conversion operations on a multi-dimensional abstract representation

77 FR 26701 - Review of the Emergency Alert System

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-05-07

... Emergency Alert System AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission. ACTION: Final rule. SUMMARY: In this document, the Federal Communications Commission (Commission) amends its rules governing the Emergency Alert... the manner in which EAS Participants must be able to receive alert messages formatted in the Common...

User-oriented end-to-end transport protocols for the real-time distribution of telemetry data from NASA spacecraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hooke, A. J.

1979-01-01

A set of standard telemetry protocols for downlink data flow facilitating the end-to-end transport of instrument data from the spacecraft to the user in real time is proposed. The direct switching of data by autonomous message 'packets' that are assembled by the source instrument on the spacecraft is discussed. The data system consists thus of a format on a message rather than word basis, and such packet telemetry would include standardized protocol headers. Standards are being developed within the NASA End-to-End Data System (NEEDS) program for the source packet and transport frame protocols. The source packet protocol contains identification of both the sequence number of the packet as it is generated by the source and the total length of the packet, while the transport frame protocol includes a sequence count defining the serial number of the frame as it is generated by the spacecraft data system, and a field specifying any 'options' selected in the format of the frame itself.

An iconic approach to communicating musical concepts in interstellar messages

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vakoch, Douglas A.

2010-12-01

Some characteristics of terrestrial music may be meaningful to extraterrestrial civilizations by virtue of the connection between acoustics and mathematics—both of which might be known by technologically advanced extraterrestrial intelligence. For example, a fundamental characteristic of terrestrial polyphonic music is found the number of tones used various scales, insofar as the number of tones represents a compromise between competing musical demands; the number of tones in a scale, however, also reflects some of the perceptual characteristics of the species developing that music. Thus, in the process of communicating something about the structure of terrestrial music through interstellar messages, additional information about human perceptual and cognitive processes can also be conveyed. This paper also discusses methods for sending signals that bear information through the form of the very frequencies in which the signals are transmitted. If the challenges of creating intelligible messages are greater than often thought, the advantage of reduced conventionality of encoding the message by using an iconic format of this sort may be of significant value. Such an approach would allow the incremental introduction of musical concepts, somewhat akin to the step-by-step tutorials in mathematics and logic that form the basis of Freudenthal's Lincos.

Laser desorption vs. electrospray of polyyne-threaded rotaxanes: Preventing covalent cross-linking and promoting noncovalent aggregation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Neugebauer, Thomas S.; Franz, Michael; Frankenberger, Stephanie; Tykwinski, Rik R.; Drewello, Thomas

2018-02-01

Laser-induced cross-linking of polyynes is successfully hindered when the polyyne is encapsulated as part of a rotaxane and therefore protected by a surrounding macrocycle. When the rotaxane is electrosprayed, however, noncovalent aggregate ions are efficiently formed. Aggregates of considerable size (including more than 50 rotaxane molecules with masses beyond 100k Da) and charge states (up to 13 charges and beyond) have been observed. Either protons or sodium cations act as the charge carriers. These aggregates are not formed when the individual components of the rotaxane, i.e., the macrocycle or the polyyne, are separately electrosprayed. This underlines the structural importance of the rotaxane for the aggregate formation. Straightforward force field calculations indicate that the polyyne thread hinders the folding of the macrocycles, which facilitates the bonding interaction between the two components.

A Formative Evaluation of a Social Media Campaign to Reduce Adolescent Dating Violence

PubMed Central

Lambert, Danielle N; Bishop, Lauren E; Guetig, Stephanie

2014-01-01

Background The Emory Jane Fonda Center implemented the Start Strong Atlanta social marketing campaign, “Keep It Strong ATL”, in 2007 to promote the development of healthy adolescent relationships and to foster the prevention of adolescent dating abuse among 11-14 year olds. Objective A formative evaluation was conducted to understand whether messages directed at the target audience were relevant to the program’s relationship promotion and violence prevention goals, and whether the “Web 2.0” social media channels of communication (Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Flickr, Tumblr, and Pinterest) were reaching the intended audience. Methods Mixed methodologies included qualitative interviews and a key informant focus group, a cross-sectional survey, and web analytics. Qualitative data were analyzed using constant comparative methodology informed by grounded theory. Descriptive statistics were generated from survey data, and web analytics provided user information and traffic patterns. Results Results indicated that the Keep It Strong ATL social marketing campaign was a valuable community resource that had potential for broader scope and greater reach. The evaluation team learned the importance of reaching adolescents through Web 2.0 platforms, and the need for message dissemination via peers. Survey results indicated that Facebook (ranked 6.5 out of 8) was the highest rated social media outlet overall, and exhibited greatest appeal and most frequent visits, yet analytics revealed that only 3.5% of “likes” were from the target audience. These results indicate that the social media campaign is reaching predominantly women (76.5% of viewership) who are outside of the target age range of 11-14 years. Conclusions While the social media campaign was successfully launched, the findings indicate the need for a more focused selection of communication channels, timing of media updates to maximize visibility, balancing message tone and delivery, and incorporating differentiated messaging for the target audiences. Collaboration with parents and community partners is also emphasized in order to expand the campaign’s reach and create more channels to disseminate relationship promotion and dating violence prevention messaging to the intended audience. PMID:25405494

Get the Message: A Teen Distracted Driving Program.

PubMed

Adeola, Ruth; Omorogbe, Ashleigh; Johnson, Abree

Elimination of distracted driving is becoming a public health priority. Each day, an average of 8 people are killed due to a distracted driver in the United Sates. Although all drivers are at risk, research has indicated that teenage drivers are overrepresented in motor vehicle crashes due to distracted driving. Teenage drivers are hindered by limited driving experience, and the illusion of invincibility is a common phase in social and cognitive adolescent development. "Get the Message: A Teenage Distracted Driving Program" was established at the R Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center to identify, define, and measure the factors that contribute to distracted driving in teens. A convenience sample of 1,238 teenagers in this study represented all 50 states in the United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Canada, and 21 other countries. At the beginning of each program, a presurvey is administered to assess baseline behavior, attitude, and knowledge regarding distracted driving. After completing the program, teens complete a postsurvey to measure proposed changes in driving behaviors, attitude, and knowledge. The program employs the use of a slide presentation, hospital tour, video, and survivor's testimony to influence teen driving behaviors and increase knowledge. Research has indicated that an increase in the Health Belief Model constructs may enhance engagement in health-promoting behaviors, such as safe driving practices in teens. Based on the postsurvey results, the reduction in projected phone use while driving in this teen population indicates the effectiveness of this hospital-based teen distracted driving program.

The Exchange of Social Support on Online Bariatric Surgery Discussion Forums: A Mixed-Methods Content Analysis.

PubMed

Atwood, Molly E; Friedman, Aliza; Meisner, Brad A; Cassin, Stephanie E

2018-05-01

Bariatric surgery patients often experience physical and psychosocial stressors, and difficulty adjusting to significant lifestyle changes. As a result, social support groups that provide patients with support, coping skills, and nutritional information are valuable components of bariatric care. Support group attendance at bariatric centers is associated with greater post-surgery weight loss; however, several barriers hinder attendance at in-person support groups (e.g., travel distance to bariatric centers). Consequently, online support forums are an increasingly utilized resource for patients both before and after surgery. This study examined and described the type and frequency of social support provided on a large online bariatric surgery forum. A total of 1,412 messages in the pre- (n = 822) and post-surgery (n = 590) sections of the forum were coded using qualitative content analysis according to Cutrona and Suhr's (1992) Social Support Behavior Code model (i.e., including informational, tangible, esteem, network, and emotional support types). The majority of messages provided informational and emotional support regarding: a) factual information about the bariatric procedure and nutrition; b) advice for coping with the surgery preparation process, and physical symptoms; and c) encouragement regarding adherence to surgical guidelines, and weight loss progress. Network, esteem, and tangible support types were less frequent than informational and emotional support types. The results inform healthcare providers about the types of social support available to bariatric patients on online support forums and, thus, encourage appropriate referrals to this resource.

Texting to increase physical activity in teens: Development & preliminary

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Our purpose was to present formative research and preliminary results for a self-determination-theory (SDT)-based text messages to promote physical activity (PA) among teens. Thirty 14- to 17-year olds, stratified by gender and race/ethnicity (Black, Hispanic, White), were recruited to participate i...

Choosing a CD-ROM Encyclopedia: How to Critically Evaluate the Product.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dickinson, Gail

1990-01-01

Offers criteria for the critical evaluation of CD-ROM encyclopedias. Differences between CD-ROM and print encyclopedias are discussed; search strategies are explained; evaluation criteria are suggested, including help messages, screen format, indexing method, and graphics and print options; future considerations are suggested, including…

Distance Learning and Public School Finance.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Monahan, Brian; Wimber, Charles

This discussion of the application of computers and telecommunications technology to distance learning begins by describing a workstation equipped to produce "lessonware" in such formats as audiocassettes, videocassettes, diskettes, and voice messages. Such workstations would be located in classrooms equipped with two-way reverse passes to a cable…

Evaporative lithographic patterning of binary colloidal films.

PubMed

Harris, Daniel J; Conrad, Jacinta C; Lewis, Jennifer A

2009-12-28

Evaporative lithography offers a promising new route for patterning a broad array of soft materials. In this approach, a mask is placed above a drying film to create regions of free and hindered evaporation, which drive fluid convection and entrained particles to regions of highest evaporative flux. We show that binary colloidal films exhibit remarkable pattern formation when subjected to a periodic evaporative landscape during drying.

Inherent secure communications using lattice based waveform design

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Pugh, Matthew Owen

2013-12-01

The wireless communications channel is innately insecure due to the broadcast nature of the electromagnetic medium. Many techniques have been developed and implemented in order to combat insecurities and ensure the privacy of transmitted messages. Traditional methods include encrypting the data via cryptographic methods, hiding the data in the noise floor as in wideband communications, or nulling the signal in the spatial direction of the adversary using array processing techniques. This work analyzes the design of signaling constellations, i.e. modulation formats, to combat eavesdroppers from correctly decoding transmitted messages. It has been shown that in certain channel models the abilitymore » of an adversary to decode the transmitted messages can be degraded by a clever signaling constellation based on lattice theory. This work attempts to optimize certain lattice parameters in order to maximize the security of the data transmission. These techniques are of interest because they are orthogonal to, and can be used in conjunction with, traditional security techniques to create a more secure communication channel.« less

Enhancing presentation skills for the advanced practice nurse: strategies for success.

PubMed

Vollman, Kathleen M

2005-01-01

Professional speaking is a component of the professional practice role of the advanced practice nurse (APN). The skills to communicate effectively to one person or an audience of 100 provide the APN with the essential tools for implementing change, collaborating effectively, presenting information at professional meetings, or communicating the impact of clinical outcomes in the boardroom. Public speaking skills, a professional image, and improved communication can facilitate advancement along any career ladder. The greater your fear, the more self-confidence you will gain by stepping up to a challenge and conquering it. This article describes strategies for organizing and presenting your message in a clear and concise format. Techniques to manage the anxiety produced when attempting to articulate your thoughts is essential for effective communication. Skills for enhancing the delivery of your message through effective body language, professional image, voice modulation, and use of audiovisual aids are addressed. Creative techniques for fielding questions are key in promoting a dynamic closure and provide consistent reinforcement of the key message content.

[Academic application of text messages in a first aid course: a pilot study in a private university in Lima, Peru].

PubMed

Carrillo-Larco, Rodrigo M; Shu-Yip, Sebastián B; Pérez-Lu, José E

2015-01-01

The aim of the study was to develop and evaluate the impact of an educational intervention with the use of text messages (SMS) in a first aid course. A prospective study and intervention was conducted. Two steps were implemented: 1) a qualitative study to design the SMS and 2) the intervention with the sending of the SMS messages. The outcome variable was the final grade of students. Multivariate models were constructed, prevalence ratios and confidence intervals at 95% were calculated. The first phase revealed that the SMS should be educational-theoretical, motivational, and multiple choice. In the intervention there were 66 participants in the control and intervention group. The average age was 17.7 (± 1.2) years. The intervention group obtained higher scores compared with the control group (PR = 4.82; 95% CI: 1.58 to 14.72). In conclusion, SMS with informative and motivational content is useful in the formation of undergraduate medicine.

AUV-12 Sonar Integration and Evaluation

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-02-26

ActiveX control allow the real-time ES MKII data (with embedded navigation data) to be logged to the SBC disk in the ES MKII native XTF format. We...begin transmission to the AUV via the acoustic micro-modem message type 28 that contains the target vessel position, true heading, course over

Playing for Real, Video Games and Stories for Health-Related Behavior Change

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Video games provide extensive player involvement for large numbers of children and adults, and thereby provide a channel for delivering health behavior change experiences and messages in an engaging and entertaining format. Twenty-seven articles were identified on 25 video games that promoted health...

Genesis Pilot Human Factors Test, Human Factors Evaluation Of Driver Multitasking And Message Formats, Final Report

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1996-02-01

THE WORK REPORTED HERE WAS ON TWO SEPARATE TOPICS. THE FIRST OF THESE WAS THE MULTITASKING EFFECTS ON DRIVING PERFORMANCE OF USING PAGERS OR PDAS WHILE DRIVING. THE LITERATURE SHOWED THAT SUCH EFFECTS CAN OCCUR BUT THAT THEY ARE TASK SPECIFIC. FINDIN...

Historicity, The Television Critic, and the Third World Scholar.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Oseguera, A. Anthony

The communication technologies of television and common carriers have an important correlativity to message formation, due to their ability to bring the public information at lightning speed. Historicity, the science of writing history, can be used by the television critic in order to critique national and international broadcasting. Blacks,…

Using Consumer Preference Information to Increase the Reach and Impact of Media-Based Parenting Interventions in a Public Health Approach to Parenting Support

PubMed Central

Metzler, Carol W.; Sanders, Matthew R.; Rusby, Julie C.; Crowley, Ryann

2012-01-01

Within a public health approach to improving parenting, the mass media offer a potentially more efficient and affordable format for directly reaching a large number of parents with evidence-based parenting information than do traditional approaches to parenting interventions that require delivery by a practitioner. Little is known, however, about factors associated with parents’ interest in and willingness to watch video messages about parenting. Knowledge of consumer preferences could inform the effective design of media interventions to maximize parental engagement in the parenting messages. This study examined parents’ preferred formats for receiving parenting information, as well as family sociodemographic and child behavior factors that predict parents’ ratings of acceptability of a media-based parenting intervention. An ethnically diverse sample of 162 parents of children ages 3–6 years reported their preferences for various delivery formats for parenting information and provided feedback on a prototype episode of a video-format parenting program based on the Triple P Positive Parenting Program. Parents reported the strongest preference for self-administered delivery formats such as television, online programs, and written materials; the least preferred formats were home visits, therapists, and multiweek parenting groups. Parents’ ratings of engagement, watchability, and realism of the prototype parenting episode were quite strong. Parents whose children exhibited clinical levels of problem behaviors rated the episode as more watchable, engaging, and realistic. Mothers also rated the episodes as more engaging and realistic than did fathers. Lower income marginally predicted higher watchability ratings. Minority status and expectations of future problems did not predict acceptability ratings. The results suggest that the episode had broad appeal across groups. PMID:22440064

Using consumer preference information to increase the reach and impact of media-based parenting interventions in a public health approach to parenting support.

PubMed

Metzler, Carol W; Sanders, Matthew R; Rusby, Julie C; Crowley, Ryann N

2012-06-01

Within a public health approach to improving parenting, the mass media offer a potentially more efficient and affordable format for directly reaching a large number of parents with evidence-based parenting information than do traditional approaches to parenting interventions that require delivery by a practitioner. Little is known, however, about factors associated with parents' interest in and willingness to watch video messages about parenting. Knowledge of consumer preferences could inform the effective design of media interventions to maximize parental engagement in the parenting messages. This study examined parents' preferred formats for receiving parenting information, as well as family sociodemographic and child behavior factors that predict parents' ratings of acceptability of a media-based parenting intervention. An ethnically diverse sample of 162 parents of children ages 3-6 years reported their preferences for various delivery formats for parenting information and provided feedback on a prototype episode of a video-format parenting program based on the Triple P Positive Parenting Program. Parents reported the strongest preference for self-administered delivery formats such as television, online programs, and written materials; the least preferred formats were home visits, therapists, and multiweek parenting groups. Parents' ratings of engagement, watchability, and realism of the prototype parenting episode were quite strong. Parents whose children exhibited clinical levels of problem behaviors rated the episode as more watchable, engaging, and realistic. Mothers also rated the episodes as more engaging and realistic than did fathers. Lower income marginally predicted higher watchability ratings. Minority status and expectations of future problems did not predict acceptability ratings. The results suggest that the episode had broad appeal across groups. Copyright © 2011. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Generation new MP3 data set after compression

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Atoum, Mohammed Salem; Almahameed, Mohammad

2016-02-01

The success of audio steganography techniques is to ensure imperceptibility of the embedded secret message in stego file and withstand any form of intentional or un-intentional degradation of secret message (robustness). Crucial to that using digital audio file such as MP3 file, which comes in different compression rate, however research studies have shown that performing steganography in MP3 format after compression is the most suitable one. Unfortunately until now the researchers can not test and implement their algorithm because no standard data set in MP3 file after compression is generated. So this paper focuses to generate standard data set with different compression ratio and different Genre to help researchers to implement their algorithms.

ADAPTIVE TETRAHEDRAL GRID REFINEMENT AND COARSENING IN MESSAGE-PASSING ENVIRONMENTS

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Hallberg, J.; Stagg, A.

2000-10-01

A grid refinement and coarsening scheme has been developed for tetrahedral and triangular grid-based calculations in message-passing environments. The element adaption scheme is based on an edge bisection of elements marked for refinement by an appropriate error indicator. Hash-table/linked-list data structures are used to store nodal and element formation. The grid along inter-processor boundaries is refined and coarsened consistently with the update of these data structures via MPI calls. The parallel adaption scheme has been applied to the solution of a transient, three-dimensional, nonlinear, groundwater flow problem. Timings indicate efficiency of the grid refinement process relative to the flow solvermore » calculations.« less

A numerical investigation of fine sediment resuspension in the wave boundary layer - effect of hindered settling and bedforms

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hsu, T. J.; Cheng, Z.; Yu, X.

2016-02-01

The wave bottom boundary layer is a major conduit delivering fine terrestrial sediments to the continental margin. Hence, studying the fine sediment resuspension in the wave boundary layer is crucial to the understanding of various components of the earth system, such as carbon cycle. By assuming the settling velocity to be a constant in each simulation, previous turbulence-resolving numerical simulations reveal the existence of three transport modes in the wave boundary layer associated with the sediment availability. As the sediment availability and hence the sediment-induced stable stratification increase, a sequence of transport modes, namely, (I) well-mixed transport, (II) formulation of lutocline resembling a two-layer system, and (III) completely laminarized transport are observed. In general, the settling velocity is a flow variable due to the floc dynamics and hindered settling. This study further investigate the effect of hindered settling. Particularly, for flocs with lower gelling concentrations, the hindered settling effect can play a key role in sustaining large amount of suspended sediment load and results in the laminarized transport (III). For the simulation with a very significant hindered settling effect due to a low gelling concentration, results also indicate the occurrence of gelling ignition, a state in which the erosion rate is always higher than the deposition rate. A condition for the occurrence of gelling ignition is proposed for a range of wave intensities as a function of sediment/floc properties and erodibility parameters. These aforementioned studies are limited to fine sediment transport over a flat bed. However, recent field and laboratory observation show that a small amount of sand fraction can lead to the formation of small bedforms, which can armor the bed while in the meantime enhance near bed turbulence. Preliminary investigation on the effect of bedforms on the resulting transport modes will also be presented.

Marketing the `Broad Line': Invitations to STEM education in a Swedish recruitment campaign

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Andrée, Maria; Hansson, Lena

2013-01-01

In many Western societies, there is a concern about the tendency of young people not choosing Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) education and occupations. In response, different initiatives have been launched. If one believes that science should have a place in more young people's lives, an important question is to what extent recruitment campaigns communicate messages that open up for STEM education to become relevant in young people's identity formation. Here, we analyse a Swedish government-initiated, primarily Internet-based recruitment attempt ('The Broad Line Campaign') aimed at increasing the number of young people choosing the natural science programme in upper secondary school. The campaign is based on marketing principles and deliberately draws on identity issues. The data analysed consists of campaign films and written resources describing the campaign. Data are analysed by use of the constant comparative approach in order to produce categories describing different messages about why to engage in STEM education. These messages are then analysed from an identity perspective using the concept of subjective values. Our results show that the messages communicated in the Broad Line campaign emphasise utility value, attainment value and relative cost rather than interest-enjoyment. The campaign communicates that the natural science programme is to be associated with a high attainment value without establishing relations to the field of science. Finally, potential consequences of the communicated messages in the campaign are discussed in light of previous research.

Same score, different message: perceptions of offender risk depend on Static-99R risk communication format.

PubMed

Varela, Jorge G; Boccaccini, Marcus T; Cuervo, Veronica A; Murrie, Daniel C; Clark, John W

2014-10-01

The popular Static-99R allows evaluators to convey results in terms of risk category (e.g., low, moderate, high), relative risk (compared with other sexual offenders), or normative sample recidivism rate formats (e.g., 30% reoffended in 5 years). But we do not know whether judges and jurors draw similar conclusions about the same Static-99R score when findings are communicated using different formats. Community members reporting for jury duty (N = 211) read a tutorial on the Static-99R and a description of a sexual offender and his crimes. We varied his Static-99R score (1 or 6) and risk communication format (categorical, relative risk, or recidivism rate). Participants rated the high-scoring offender as higher risk than the low-scoring offender in the categorical communication condition, but not in the relative risk or recidivism rate conditions. Moreover, risk ratings of the high-scoring offender were notably higher in the categorical communication condition than the relative risk and recidivism rate conditions. Participants who read about a low Static-99R score tended to report that Static-99R results were unimportant and difficult to understand, especially when risk was communicated using categorical or relative risk formats. Overall, results suggest that laypersons are more receptive to risk results indicating high risk than low risk and more receptive to risk communication messages that provide an interpretative label (e.g., high risk) than those that provide statistical results. PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2014 APA, all rights reserved.

Creating advantages through franchising in healthcare: a qualitative, multiple embedded case study on the role of the business format.

PubMed

Nijmeijer, Karlijn J; Huijsman, Robbert; Fabbricotti, Isabelle N

2014-11-02

Business format franchising is an organizational form that originates from the business sector. It is increasingly used in healthcare, being a promising organizational form for improving the competitiveness and efficiency of organizations, the quality of care, and the professional work environment. However, evidence is lacking concerning how these healthcare franchises should be designed to actually deliver the promised benefits. This study explores how the design of the central element in franchising, the business format (i.e., brand name, support systems, specification of the products and services), helps or hinders the achievement of positive results. A qualitative comparative embedded case study was conducted. The cases focused on three Dutch healthcare franchises providing mental healthcare, hospital care and care for the intellectually disabled. The data were collected through document analyses, observations, and 96 in-depth, semi-structured interviews with franchisors and unit actors (franchisees, unit managers, professionals). The interviews were recorded and transcribed verbatim. A conceptual model based on a systematic review of studies in other industries was used as an initial method for coding the data. New inductive codes were used to enrich and extend the analysis. The data were subjected to within-case and cross-case comparative thematic analyses. Different business format designs have different effects on results, as perceived by franchisors and unit actors. The analysis revealed how this variation in perceived effects can be explained by different dynamics with regard to system-wide adaptation, local adaptation, professionals' resistance to change, ease of knowledge sharing, bureaucracy, overhead, uniform brand presentation, accelerating effects and reliable performance levels. The analysis resulted in a new typology of four types of business formats, showing how combinations of business format elements facilitate or hinder the achievement of different types of results. Practitioners using healthcare franchising as a model to improve client-related, strategic, organizational and professional results should carefully consider how to design their business format in order to facilitate the achievement of desired results. The developed typology can be used as a starting point for these practitioners and as a basis for future scholarly research. Further quantitative research is recommended to confirm the results.

Improving Prevention Curricula: Lessons Learned Through Formative Research on the Youth Message Development Curriculum.

PubMed

Greene, Kathryn; Catona, Danielle; Elek, Elvira; Magsamen-Conrad, Kate; Banerjee, Smita C; Hecht, Michael L

2016-10-01

This article describes formative research (a pilot study, interviews, and focus groups) conducted as part of a feasibility test of 2 versions (Analysis vs. Planning) of a brief media literacy intervention titled Youth Message Development (YMD). The intervention targets high school student alcohol use with activities to understand persuasion strategies, increase counter-arguing, and then apply these new skills to ad analysis or a more engaging ad poster planning activity. Based on the theory of active involvement (Greene, 2013), the Planning curriculum is proposed to be more effective than the Analysis curriculum. Overall, results of the formative research indicated that students (N = 182) and mentors/teachers (N = 53) perceived the YMD Planning curriculum as more interesting, involving, and novel, and these ratings were associated with increased critical thinking about the impact of advertising, lower alcohol use intentions, and fewer positive expectations about the effects of alcohol use. Qualitative feedback indicated a need to supplement alcohol-focused ad stimuli with ads targeting other advertising images, use incentives and competition-based activities to further enhance student motivation, and provide flexibility to enhance the appropriateness of the curriculum to various settings. These concerns led to the development of a revised curriculum and plans for further study.

Improving Prevention Curricula: Lessons Learned Through Formative Research on the Youth Message Development Curriculum

PubMed Central

GREENE, KATHRYN; CATONA, DANIELLE; ELEK, ELVIRA; MAGSAMEN-CONRAD, KATE; BANERJEE, SMITA C.; HECHT, MICHAEL L.

2016-01-01

This article describes formative research (a pilot study, interviews, and focus groups) conducted as part of a feasibility test of 2 versions (Analysis vs. Planning) of a brief media literacy intervention titled Youth Message Development (YMD). The intervention targets high school student alcohol use with activities to understand persuasion strategies, increase counter-arguing, and then apply these new skills to ad analysis or a more engaging ad poster planning activity. Based on the theory of active involvement (Greene, 2013), the Planning curriculum is proposed to be more effective than the Analysis curriculum. Overall, results of the formative research indicated that students (N = 182) and mentors/teachers (N = 53) perceived the YMD Planning curriculum as more interesting, involving, and novel, and these ratings were associated with increased critical thinking about the impact of advertising, lower alcohol use intentions, and fewer positive expectations about the effects of alcohol use. Qualitative feedback indicated a need to supplement alcohol-focused ad stimuli with ads targeting other advertising images, use incentives and competition-based activities to further enhance student motivation, and provide flexibility to enhance the appropriateness of the curriculum to various settings. These concerns led to the development of a revised curriculum and plans for further study. PMID:27684111

Development and Application of a Message Metric for NOAA NWS Tsunami Warnings and Recommended Guidelines for the NWS TsunamiReady Program

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gregg, C. E.; Johnston, D. M.; Ricthie, L.; Meinhold, S.; Johnson, V.; Scott, C.; Farnham, C.; Houghton, B. F.; Horan, J.; Gill, D.

2012-12-01

Improving the quality and effectiveness of tsunami warning messages and the TsunamiReady community preparedness program of the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Weather Service's (NWS), Tsunami Program are two key objectives of a three year project (Award NA10NWS4670015) to help integrate social science into the NWS' Tsunami Program and improve the preparedness of member states and territories of the National Tsunami Hazard Mitigation Program (NTHMP). Research was conducted in collaboration with state and local emergency managers. Based on findings from focus group meetings with a purposive sample of local, state and Federal stakeholders and emergency managers in six states (AK, WA, OR, CA, HI and NC) and two US Territories (US Virgin Islands and American Samoa), and upon review of research literature on behavioral response to warnings, we developed a warning message metric to help guide revisions to tsunami warning messages issued by the NWS' West Coast/Alaska Tsunami Warning Center, Alaska and Pacific Tsunami Warning Center, Hawaii. The metric incorporates factors that predict response to warning information, which are divided into categories of Message Content, Style, Order and Formatting and Receiver Characteristics. A message is evaluated by cross-referencing the message with the meaning of metric factors and assigning a maximum score of one point per factor. Findings are then used to guide revisions of the message until the characteristics of each factor are met. From focus groups that gathered information on the usefulness and achievability of tsunami preparedness actions, we developed recommendations for revisions to the proposed draft guidelines of the TsunamiReady Improvement Program. Proposed key revisions include the incorporation of community vulnerability to distant (far-field) versus local (near-field) tsunamis as a primary determinant of mandatory actions, rather than community population. Our team continues to work with NWS personnel, including a NWS Tsunami Warning Improvement Team, and the focus group participants to finalize and pilot test prototype warning products and the draft TsunamiReady guidelines.

A randomized trial of maternal influenza immunization decision-making: A test of persuasive messaging models

PubMed Central

Frew, Paula M.; Kriss, Jennifer L.; Chamberlain, Allison T.; Malik, Fauzia; Chung, Yunmi; Cortés, Marielysse; Omer, Saad B.

2016-01-01

ABSTRACT Objective: We sought to examine the effectiveness of persuasive communication interventions on influenza vaccination uptake among black/African American pregnant women in Atlanta, Georgia. Methods: We recruited black/African American pregnant women ages 18 to 50 y from Atlanta, GA to participate in a prospective, randomized controlled trial of influenza immunization messaging conducted from January to April 2013. Eligible participants were randomized to 3 study arms. We conducted follow-up questionnaires on influenza immunization at 30-days post-partum with all groups. Chi-square and t tests evaluated group differences, and outcome intention-to-treat assessment utilized log-binomial regression models. Results: Of the 106 enrolled, 95 women completed the study (90% retention), of which 31 were randomly assigned to affective messaging intervention (“Pregnant Pause” video), 30 to cognitive messaging intervention (“Vaccines for a Healthy Pregnancy” video), and 34 to a comparison condition (receipt of the Influenza Vaccine Information Statement). The three groups were balanced on baseline demographic characteristics and reported health behaviors. At baseline, most women (63%, n = 60) reported no receipt of seasonal influenza immunization during the previous 5 y. They expressed a low likelihood (2.1 ± 2.8 on 0-10 scale) of obtaining influenza immunization during their current pregnancy. At 30-days postpartum follow-up, influenza immunization was low among all participants (7-13%) demonstrating no effect after a single exposure to either affective messaging (RR = 1.10; 95% CI: 0.30-4.01) or cognitive messaging interventions (RR = 0.57; 95% CI: 0.11-2.88). Women cited various reasons for not obtaining maternal influenza immunizations. These included concern about vaccine harm (47%, n = 40), low perceived influenza infection risk (31%, n = 26), and a history of immunization nonreceipt (24%, n = 20). Conclusion: The findings reflect the limitations associated with a single exposure to varying maternal influenza immunization message approaches on vaccine behavior. For this population, repeated influenza immunization exposures may be warranted with alterations in message format, content, and relevance for coverage improvement. PMID:27322154

Variable Lysozyme Transport Dynamics on Oxidatively Functionalized Polystyrene Films.

PubMed

Moringo, Nicholas A; Shen, Hao; Tauzin, Lawrence J; Wang, Wenxiao; Bishop, Logan D C; Landes, Christy F

2017-10-17

Tuning protein adsorption dynamics at polymeric interfaces is of great interest to many biomedical and material applications. Functionalization of polymer surfaces is a common method to introduce application-specific surface chemistries to a polymer interface. In this work, single-molecule fluorescence microscopy is utilized to determine the adsorption dynamics of lysozyme, a well-studied antibacterial protein, at the interface of polystyrene oxidized via UV exposure and oxygen plasma and functionalized by ligand grafting to produce varying degrees of surface hydrophilicity, surface roughness, and induced oxygen content. Single-molecule tracking indicates lysozyme loading capacities, and surface mobility at the polymer interface is hindered as a result of all functionalization techniques. Adsorption dynamics of lysozyme depend on the extent and the specificity of the oxygen functionalities introduced to the polystyrene surface. Hindered adsorption and mobility are dominated by hydrophobic effects attributed to water hydration layer formation at the functionalized polystyrene surfaces.

Utilization of Health Research Recommendation in Policy and Planning in Nepal.

PubMed

Dhimal, M; Pandey, A R; Aryal, K K; Budhathoki, C B; Vaidya, D L; Karki, K K; Onta, S

2016-09-01

Over the past decade in Nepal, a large number of studies have been carried in a variety of health areas; however whether evidence derived from these studies has been used to inform health policy has not been explored. This study aims to assess the utilization of recommendations from health research in health policy and plans, and to identify the factors that influence utilization of research findings by policy makers' in Nepal. Qualitative study incorporating literature review and semi-structured interviews was used. Research reports and health related policies were collected from governmental and non-governmental bodies. Documents were reviewed to identify the utilization of research-based recommendations in health policy and plan formulation. In-depth interviews were conducted with key policy makers and researchers to identify factors that hinder the utilization of research recommendations. A total of 83 health related research reports were identified, of which 48 had recommendations. Four policies and three plans, from total 21 identified plans and policies, were found to have incorporated recommendations from research. Of the 48 studies that had recommendations, 35 were found to be used in the policy making process. Lack of appropriate communication mechanisms, and concerns related to the quality of research conducted, were the main factors hindering the translation of evidence into policy. Communication gaps exist between researchers and policy makers, which seem to have impeded the utilization of research-based information and recommendations in decision-making process. Establishing a unit responsible for synthesizing evidences and producing actionable messages for policy makers can improve utilization of research findings.

Theoretical Mechanistic and Kinetic Studies on Homogeneous Gas-Phase Formation of Polychlorinated Naphthalene from 2-Chlorophenol as Forerunner

PubMed Central

Xu, Fei; Zhang, Ruiming; Li, Yunfeng; Zhang, Qingzhu; Wang, Wenxing

2015-01-01

Polychlorinated naphthalenes (PCNs) are dioxins-like compounds and are formed along with polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDDs) and polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDFs) in thermal and combustion procedures. Chlorophenols (CPs) are the most important forerunners of PCNs. A comprehensive comprehension of PCN formation procedure from CPs is a precondition for reducing the discharge of PCNs. Experiments on the formation of PCNs from CPs have been hindered by PCN toxicity and short of precise detection methods for active intermediate radicals. In this work, PCN formation mechanism in gas-phase condition from 2-chlorophenol (2-CP) as forerunner was studied by quantum chemistry calculations. Numbers of energetically advantaged formation routes were proposed. The rate constants of key elementary steps were calculated over 600–1200 K using canonical variational transition-state theory (CVT) with small curvature tunneling contribution (SCT) method. This study illustrates formation of PCNs with one chlorine atom loss from 2-CP is preferred over that without chlorine atom loss. In comparison with formation of PCDFs from 2-CP, PCN products are less chlorinated and have lower formation potential. PMID:26516839

Theoretical Mechanistic and Kinetic Studies on Homogeneous Gas-Phase Formation of Polychlorinated Naphthalene from 2-Chlorophenol as Forerunner.

PubMed

Xu, Fei; Zhang, Ruiming; Li, Yunfeng; Zhang, Qingzhu; Wang, Wenxing

2015-10-26

Polychlorinated naphthalenes (PCNs) are dioxins-like compounds and are formed along with polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDDs) and polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDFs) in thermal and combustion procedures. Chlorophenols (CPs) are the most important forerunners of PCNs. A comprehensive comprehension of PCN formation procedure from CPs is a precondition for reducing the discharge of PCNs. Experiments on the formation of PCNs from CPs have been hindered by PCN toxicity and short of precise detection methods for active intermediate radicals. In this work, PCN formation mechanism in gas-phase condition from 2-chlorophenol (2-CP) as forerunner was studied by quantum chemistry calculations. Numbers of energetically advantaged formation routes were proposed. The rate constants of key elementary steps were calculated over 600-1200 K using canonical variational transition-state theory (CVT) with small curvature tunneling contribution (SCT) method. This study illustrates formation of PCNs with one chlorine atom loss from 2-CP is preferred over that without chlorine atom loss. In comparison with formation of PCDFs from 2-CP, PCN products are less chlorinated and have lower formation potential.

Use of cognitive interview techniques in the development of nutrition surveys and interactive nutrition messages for low-income populations.

PubMed

Carbone, Elena T; Campbell, Marci K; Honess-Morreale, Lauren

2002-05-01

The effectiveness of dietary surveys and educational messages is dependent in part on how well the target audience's information processing needs and abilities are addressed. Use of pilot testing is helpful; however, problems with wording and language are often not revealed. Cognitive interview techniques offer 1 approach to assist dietitians in understanding how audiences process information. With this method, respondents are led through a survey or message and asked to paraphrase items; discuss thoughts, feelings, and ideas that come to mind; and suggest alternative wording. As part of a US Department of Agriculture-funded nutrition education project, 23 cognitive interviews were conducted among technical community college students in North Carolina. Interview findings informed the development of tailored computer messages and survey questions. Better understanding of respondents' cognitive processes significantly improved the language and approach used in this intervention. Interview data indicated 4 problem areas: vague or ineffective instructions, confusing questions and response options, variable interpretation of terms, and misinterpretation of dietary recommendations. Interviews also provided insight into the meaning of diet-related stages of change. These findings concur with previous research suggesting that cognitive interview techniques are a valuable tool in the formative evaluation and development of nutrition surveys and materials.

Assessing clarity of message communication for mandated USEPA drinking water quality reports.

PubMed

Phetxumphou, Katherine; Roy, Siddhartha; Davy, Brenda M; Estabrooks, Paul A; You, Wen; Dietrich, Andrea M

2016-04-01

The United States Environmental Protection Agency mandates that community water systems (CWSs), or drinking water utilities, provide annual consumer confidence reports (CCRs) reporting on water quality, compliance with regulations, source water, and consumer education. While certain report formats are prescribed, there are no criteria ensuring that consumers understand messages in these reports. To assess clarity of message, trained raters evaluated a national sample of 30 CCRs using the Centers for Disease Control Clear Communication Index (Index) indices: (1) Main Message/Call to Action; (2) Language; (3) Information Design; (4) State of the Science; (5) Behavioral Recommendations; (6) Numbers; and (7) Risk. Communication materials are considered qualifying if they achieve a 90% Index score. Overall mean score across CCRs was 50 ± 14% and none scored 90% or higher. CCRs did not differ significantly by water system size. State of the Science (3 ± 15%) and Behavioral Recommendations (77 ± 36%) indices were the lowest and highest, respectively. Only 63% of CCRs explicitly stated if the water was safe to drink according to federal and state standards and regulations. None of the CCRs had passing Index scores, signaling that CWSs are not effectively communicating with their consumers; thus, the Index can serve as an evaluation tool for CCR effectiveness and a guide to improve water quality communications.

Media interventions to promote responsible sexual behavior.

PubMed

Keller, Sarah N; Brown, Jane D

2002-02-01

While the media have been used effectively to promote sexual responsibility in other countries for decades, few such opportunities have been seized in the United States. Mass media may be especially useful for teaching young people about reproductive health because elements of popular culture can be used to articulate messages in young people s terms, in language that won t embarrass them and may even make safe sex more attractive. Media can potentially change the way people think about sex, amidst cultural pressures to have sex at a young age, to have sex forcefully, or to have unsafe sex. Information can be communicated through a variety of channels--small media (e.g., pamphlets, brochures, and the Internet) and mass media--and in a variety of formats--campaigns, news coverage, and educational messages inserted into regular entertainment programming. Several international studies show that exposure to family planning messages through television, radio, and print media are strongly associated with contraceptive use. Domestically, safe sex media campaigns have been associated with increased teen condom use with casual partners, and reductions in the numbers of teenagers reporting sexual activity. Due to private ownership and First Amendment concerns, U.S. sexual health advocates have been working with the commercial media to incorporate subtle health messages into existing entertainment programming.

Potential Roles of Mhealth for Community Health Workers: Formative Research With End Users in Uganda and Mozambique.

PubMed

Thondoo, Meelan; Strachan, Daniel Ll; Nakirunda, Maureen; Ndima, Sozinho; Muiambo, Abel; Källander, Karin; Hill, Zelee

2015-07-23

Community health workers are reemerging as an essential component of health systems in low-income countries. However, there are concerns that unless they are adequately supported, their motivation and performance will be suboptimal. mHealth presents an opportunity to improve support for community health workers; however, most interventions to date have been designed through a top-down approach, rarely involve the end user, and have not focused on motivation. To use formative research to explore the views of community health workers in Uganda and Mozambique on the potential role of mHealth in their work delivering integrated community case management of children. We conducted 24 in-depth interviews and 5 focus group discussions with community health workers in Uganda and Mozambique. Data were collected on: current phone use, preferred phone and charger characteristics, and perceptions of a range of potential mHealth interventions. Interviews were conducted in the local language, were audio recorded and converted into expanded notes. Interviews were coded for key thematic areas using both deductive and inductive codes. Deductive codes included mHealth's potential impact on motivation and performance. The most salient roles of mHealth in improving performance and motivation were reducing the need for travel, improving efficiency and planning, receiving feedback and information, and improving communication with supervisors and other community health workers. This was mostly through improved voice and short message service (SMS) text communication. Specific components of mHealth interventions that participants felt could improve motivation included increasing their visibility and credibility through branding of phones; providing an SMS response to data submission; and sending SMS messages about the importance of their work and achievements, rather than just reminders or technical messages. Participants identified feasibility issues related to the language of SMS messages, network coverage, and the need for a balance between phone function and battery life. Phones with a dual SIM cards would ameliorate network problems but would reduce battery life. The provision of a solar charger was viewed as beneficial. Conducting formative research with end users is likely to improve mHealth interventions by: (1) identifying interventions that are likely to have the greatest impact and be the most acceptable, (2) developing salient SMS messages, and (3) identifying feasibility issues. mHealth interventions also could have an important impact on health worker motivation, which should be considered by intervention developers and in evaluations, especially as small modifications could have a significant impact. Our study suggests that using phones to improve direct communication should be considered, even when planners aim to focus on the provision of a specific application.

Potential Roles of Mhealth for Community Health Workers: Formative Research With End Users in Uganda and Mozambique

PubMed Central

Thondoo, Meelan; Strachan, Daniel Ll; Nakirunda, Maureen; Ndima, Sozinho; Muiambo, Abel; Källander, Karin

2015-01-01

Background Community health workers are reemerging as an essential component of health systems in low-income countries. However, there are concerns that unless they are adequately supported, their motivation and performance will be suboptimal. mHealth presents an opportunity to improve support for community health workers; however, most interventions to date have been designed through a top-down approach, rarely involve the end user, and have not focused on motivation. Objective To use formative research to explore the views of community health workers in Uganda and Mozambique on the potential role of mHealth in their work delivering integrated community case management of children. Methods We conducted 24 in-depth interviews and 5 focus group discussions with community health workers in Uganda and Mozambique. Data were collected on: current phone use, preferred phone and charger characteristics, and perceptions of a range of potential mHealth interventions. Interviews were conducted in the local language, were audio recorded and converted into expanded notes. Interviews were coded for key thematic areas using both deductive and inductive codes. Deductive codes included mHealth’s potential impact on motivation and performance. Results The most salient roles of mHealth in improving performance and motivation were reducing the need for travel, improving efficiency and planning, receiving feedback and information, and improving communication with supervisors and other community health workers. This was mostly through improved voice and short message service (SMS) text communication. Specific components of mHealth interventions that participants felt could improve motivation included increasing their visibility and credibility through branding of phones; providing an SMS response to data submission; and sending SMS messages about the importance of their work and achievements, rather than just reminders or technical messages. Participants identified feasibility issues related to the language of SMS messages, network coverage, and the need for a balance between phone function and battery life. Phones with a dual SIM cards would ameliorate network problems but would reduce battery life. The provision of a solar charger was viewed as beneficial. Conclusions Conducting formative research with end users is likely to improve mHealth interventions by: (1) identifying interventions that are likely to have the greatest impact and be the most acceptable, (2) developing salient SMS messages, and (3) identifying feasibility issues. mHealth interventions also could have an important impact on health worker motivation, which should be considered by intervention developers and in evaluations, especially as small modifications could have a significant impact. Our study suggests that using phones to improve direct communication should be considered, even when planners aim to focus on the provision of a specific application. PMID:26206419

The data acquisition system for the Anglo-Australian Observatory 2-degree field project

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Shortridge, K.; Farrell, T. J.; Bailey, J.

1992-01-01

The Anglo-Australian Observatory (AAO) is building a system that will provide a two-degree field of view at prime focus. A robot positioner will be used to locate up to 400 optical fibers at pre-determined positions in this field. While observations are being made using one set of 400 fibers, the robot will be positioning a second set of fibers in a background field that can be moved in to replace the first when the telescope is moved to a new position. The fibers feed two spectrographs each with a 1024 square CCD detector. The software system being produced to control this involves Vaxes for overall control and data recording, UNIX workstations for fiber configuration calculations and on-line data reduction, and VME systems running VxWorks for real-time control of critical parts such as the positioner robot. The system has to be able to interact with the observatory's present data acquisition systems, which use the ADAM system. As yet, the real-time parts of ADAM have not been ported to Unix, and so we are having to produce a smaller-scale system that is similar but inherently distributed (which ADAM is not). We are using this system as a testbed for ideas that we hope may eventually influence an ADAM II system. The system we are producing is based on a message system that is designed to be able to handle inter-process and inter-processor messages of any length, efficiently, and without ever requiring a task to block (i.e., be unresponsive to 'cancel' messages, enquiry messages), other than when deliberately waiting for external input - all of which will be through such messages. The essential requirement is that a message 'send' operation should never be able to block. The messages will be hierarchical, self-defining, machine-independent data structures. This allows us to provide very simple monitoring of messages for diagnostic purposes, and allows general purpose interface programs to be written without needing to share precise byte by byte message format definitions. Programs in this system have interfaces defined simply in terms of named actions and their parameters. Real-time control programs are required to be able to handle a number of such actions concurrently; data reduction programs will normally only need to handle one action at a time ('process an image', 'display a spectrum', etc).

A hazard-independent approach for the standardised multi-channel dissemination of warning messages

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Esbri Palomares, M. A.; Hammitzsch, M.; Lendholt, M.

2012-04-01

The tsunami disaster affecting the Indian Ocean region on Christmas 2004 demonstrated very clearly the shortcomings in tsunami detection, public warning processes as well as intergovernmental warning message exchange in the Indian Ocean region. In that regard, early warning systems require that the dissemination of early warning messages has to be executed in way that ensures that the message delivery is timely; the message content is understandable, usable and accurate. To that end, diverse and multiple dissemination channels must be used to increase the chance of the messages reaching all affected persons in a hazard scenario. In addition to this, usage of internationally accepted standards for the warning dissemination such as the Common Alerting Protocol (CAP) and Emergency Data Exchange Language (EDXL) Distribution Element specified by the Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information Standards (OASIS) increase the interoperability among different warning systems enabling thus the concept of system-of-systems proposed by GEOSS. The project Distant Early Warning System (DEWS), co-funded by the European Commission under the 6th Framework Programme, aims at strengthening the early warning capacities by building an innovative generation of interoperable tsunami early warning systems based on the above mentioned concepts following a Service-oriented Architecture (SOA) approach. The project focuses on the downstream part of the hazard information processing where customized, user-tailored warning messages and alerts flow from the warning centre to the responsible authorities and/or the public with their different needs and responsibilities. The information logistics services within DEWS generate tailored EDXL-DE/CAP warning messages for each user that must receive the message according to their preferences, e.g., settings for language, interested areas, dissemination channels, etc.. However, the significant difference in the implementation and capabilities of different dissemination channels such as SMS, email and television, have bearing on the information processing required for delivery and consumption of a DEWS EDXL-DE/CAP message over each dissemination channel. These messages may include additional information in the form of maps, graphs, documents, sensor observations, etc. Therefore, the generated messages are pre-processed by channel adaptors in the information dissemination services converting it into a format that is suitable for end-to-end delivery over the dissemination channels without any semantic distortion. The approach followed by DEWS for disseminating warnings not only relies on traditional communication ways used by the already established early warnings such as the delivery of faxes and phone calls but takes into consideration the use of other broadly used communication channels such as SMS, email, narrowcast and broadcast television, instant messaging, Voice over IP, and radio. It also takes advantage of social media channels like RSS feeds, Facebook, Twitter, etc., enabling a multiplier effect, like in the case of radio and television, and thus allowing to create mash-ups by aggregating other sources of information to the original message. Finally, status information is also important in order to assess and understand whether the process of disseminating the warning to the message consumers has been successfully completed or the process failed at some point of the dissemination chain. To that end, CAP-based messages generated within the information dissemination services provide the semantics for those fields that are of interest within the context of reporting the warning dissemination status in DEWS.

An Overview of ARL’s Multimodal Signatures Database and Web Interface

DTIC Science & Technology

2007-12-01

ActiveX components, which hindered distribution due to license agreements and run-time license software to use such components. g. Proprietary...Overview The database consists of multimodal signature data files in the HDF5 format. Generally, each signature file contains all the ancillary...only contains information in the database, Web interface, and signature files that is releasable to the public. The Web interface consists of static

The Role of Palliative Surgery in Gynecologic Cancer Cases

PubMed Central

Hope, Joanie Mayer

2013-01-01

The decision to undergo major palliative surgery in end-stage gynecologic cancer is made when severe disease symptoms significantly hinder quality of life. Malignant bowel obstruction, unremitting pelvic pain, fistula formation, tumor necrosis, pelvic sepsis, and chronic hemorrhage are among the reasons patients undergo palliative surgeries. This review discusses and summarizes the literature on surgical management of malignant bowel obstruction and palliative pelvic exenteration in gynecologic oncology. PMID:23299775

Effect of geometrical stress concentrators on the current-induced suppression of the serrated deformation in an aluminum-magnesium AlMg5 alloy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shibkov, A. A.; Zolotov, A. E.; Zheltov, M. A.; Denisov, A. A.; Gasanov, M. F.; Kochegarov, S. S.

2016-05-01

The effect of an electric current on the band formation and the serrated deformation of planar specimens made of an aluminum-magnesium AlMg5 alloy and weakened by holes is experimentally studied. It is found that the concentration of elastic stress fields and the self-localized unstable plastic deformation field near a hole decreases the critical strain of appearance of the first stress drop and hinders the currentinduced suppression of band formation and the serrated Portevin-Le Chatelier deformation. These results are shown not to be related to the concentration of Joule heat near a hole.

Standardizing intensive care device data to enable secondary usages.

PubMed

Ingenerf, Josef; Kock, Ann-Kristin; Poelker, Marcel; Seidl, Konrad; Zeplin, Georg; Mersmann, Stefan; Handels, Heinz

2012-01-01

To represent medical device observations in a format that is consumable by clinical software, standards like HL7v3 and ISO/IEEE 11073 should be used jointly. This is demonstrated in a project with Dräger Medical GmbH focusing on their Patient Data Management System (PDMS) in intensive care, called Integrated Care Manager (ICM). Patient and device data of interest should be mapped to suitable formats to enable data exchange and decision support. Instead of mapping device data to target formats bilaterally we use a generic HL7v3 Refined Message Information Model (RMIM) with device specific parts adapted to ISO/IEEE 11073 DIM. The generality of the underlying model (based on Yuksel et al. [1]) allows the flexible inclusion of IEEE 11073 conformant device models of interest on the one hand and the generation of needed artifacts for secondary usages on the other hand, e.g. HL7 V2 messages, HL7 CDA documents like the Personal Health Monitoring Report (PHMR) or web services. Hence, once the medical device data are obtained in the RMIM format, it can quite easily be transformed into HL7-based standard interfaces through XSL transformations because these interfaces all have their building blocks from the same RIM. From there data can be accessed uniformly, e.g. as needed by Dräger´s decision support system SmartCare [2] for automated control and optimization of weaning from mechanical ventilation.

Messages Do Diffuse Faster than Messengers: Reconciling Disparate Estimates of the Morphogen Bicoid Diffusion Coefficient

PubMed Central

Sigaut, Lorena; Pearson, John E.; Colman-Lerner, Alejandro; Ponce Dawson, Silvina

2014-01-01

The gradient of Bicoid (Bcd) is key for the establishment of the anterior-posterior axis in Drosophila embryos. The gradient properties are compatible with the SDD model in which Bcd is synthesized at the anterior pole and then diffuses into the embryo and is degraded with a characteristic time. Within this model, the Bcd diffusion coefficient is critical to set the timescale of gradient formation. This coefficient has been measured using two optical techniques, Fluorescence Recovery After Photobleaching (FRAP) and Fluorescence Correlation Spectroscopy (FCS), obtaining estimates in which the FCS value is an order of magnitude larger than the FRAP one. This discrepancy raises the following questions: which estimate is "correct''; what is the reason for the disparity; and can the SDD model explain Bcd gradient formation within the experimentally observed times? In this paper, we use a simple biophysical model in which Bcd diffuses and interacts with binding sites to show that both the FRAP and the FCS estimates may be correct and compatible with the observed timescale of gradient formation. The discrepancy arises from the fact that FCS and FRAP report on different effective (concentration dependent) diffusion coefficients, one of which describes the spreading rate of the individual Bcd molecules (the messengers) and the other one that of their concentration (the message). The latter is the one that is more relevant for the gradient establishment and is compatible with its formation within the experimentally observed times. PMID:24901638

Messages do diffuse faster than messengers: reconciling disparate estimates of the morphogen bicoid diffusion coefficient.

PubMed

Sigaut, Lorena; Pearson, John E; Colman-Lerner, Alejandro; Ponce Dawson, Silvina

2014-06-01

The gradient of Bicoid (Bcd) is key for the establishment of the anterior-posterior axis in Drosophila embryos. The gradient properties are compatible with the SDD model in which Bcd is synthesized at the anterior pole and then diffuses into the embryo and is degraded with a characteristic time. Within this model, the Bcd diffusion coefficient is critical to set the timescale of gradient formation. This coefficient has been measured using two optical techniques, Fluorescence Recovery After Photobleaching (FRAP) and Fluorescence Correlation Spectroscopy (FCS), obtaining estimates in which the FCS value is an order of magnitude larger than the FRAP one. This discrepancy raises the following questions: which estimate is "correct''; what is the reason for the disparity; and can the SDD model explain Bcd gradient formation within the experimentally observed times? In this paper, we use a simple biophysical model in which Bcd diffuses and interacts with binding sites to show that both the FRAP and the FCS estimates may be correct and compatible with the observed timescale of gradient formation. The discrepancy arises from the fact that FCS and FRAP report on different effective (concentration dependent) diffusion coefficients, one of which describes the spreading rate of the individual Bcd molecules (the messengers) and the other one that of their concentration (the message). The latter is the one that is more relevant for the gradient establishment and is compatible with its formation within the experimentally observed times.

Reactions and Receptivity to Framing HIV Prevention Message Concepts About Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis for Black and Latino Men Who Have Sex with Men in Three Urban US Cities.

PubMed

Mimiaga, Matthew J; Closson, Elizabeth F; Battle, Shanice; Herbst, Jeffrey H; Denson, Damian; Pitts, Nicole; Holman, Jeremy; Landers, Stewart; Mansergh, Gordon

2016-10-01

Men who have sex with men (MSM) of color are disproportionately affected by HIV in the United States. Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) using antiretroviral medications is a newer biomedical prevention modality with established efficacy for reducing the risk of acquiring HIV. We conducted formative qualitative research to explore audience reactions and receptivity to message concepts on PrEP as part of the development of prevention messages to promote PrEP awareness among black and Latino MSM in the United States. In 2013, 48 black and 42 Latino (total study sample = 90) mixed HIV serostatus MSM from Chicago, Ft. Lauderdale, and Kansas City participated in either an individual interview or focus group discussion. Men were recruited online and at community-based organizations in each city. We elicited feedback on the comprehensibility, credibility, and relevance of two draft messages on PrEP. The messages included efficacy estimates from iPrEx, a phase III clinical trial to ascertain whether the antiretroviral medication tenofovir/emtricitabine disoproxil fumarate (commercially known as Truvada ® ) could safely and effectively prevent HIV acquisition through sex among MSM and transgender women. With participants' consent, the interviews and focus groups were recorded and transcribed. The data were then summarized and analyzed using a qualitative descriptive approach. The majority of men were unfamiliar with PrEP. It was suggested that additional information about the medication and clinical trials establishing efficacy was needed to enhance the legitimacy and relevancy of the messages. Participants sought to form an opinion of PrEP that was grounded in their own interpretation of the efficacy data. However, confusion about nonadherence among clinical trial subjects and individual versus average risk limited comprehension of these messages. Thematic overlaps suggest that message believability was connected to participants' ability to derive meaning from the PrEP efficacy data. Despite being concerned that other MSM would interpret the messages to mean that condom use was unnecessary while taking PrEP, participants themselves primarily understood PrEP as a supplement rather than a replacement for condoms. Based on their experience with taking antiretroviral medication, HIV-positive men considered condom use a more feasible form of HIV prevention than PrEP. Participants' responses suggest that more information about PrEP and the clinical trial would support the legitimacy of PrEP and the messages as a whole. These details may enhance believability in the concept of PrEP and reinforce confidence in the validity of the efficacy result.

Formation of nanocrystalline diamond in polymer like carbon films deposited by plasma CVD.

PubMed

Bhaduri, A; Chaudhuri, P

2009-09-01

Conventional plasma enhanced chemical vapour deposition (PECVD) method is generally not suitable for the growth of nanocrystalline diamond (NCD) films. However, our study shows that conditions favourable for powder formation help to grow large amount of nanocrystallites in conventional PECVD. With CH4 as the carbon source gas, dilution with Ar and moderate (50 W) rf power enhances formations of powders (nanoparticles) and C2 dimers within the plasma. On the other hand, with pure CH4 or with hydrogen diluted CH4, powder formation as also NCD growth is hindered. It is proposed that the nanoparticles formed in the plasma act as the "islands" while the C2 dimers are the "seeds" for the NCD growth. The structure of the films deposited on the grounded anode under different conditions of dilution has been studied. It is observed that with high Ar dilution the films contain NCD embedded in polymer like carbon (PLC) matrix.

Hydrate-Bearing Clayey Sediments: Morphology, Physical Properties, Production and Engineering/Geological Implications

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Dai, Sheng; Santamarina, J. Carlos

Fine-grained sediments host more than 90 percent of global gas hydrate accumulation. However, hydrate formation in clay-dominated sediments is less understood and characterized than other types of hydrate occurrence. There is an inadequate understanding of hydrate formation mechanisms, segregation structures, hydrate lens topology, system connectivity, and physical macro-scale properties of clay-dominated hydrate-bearing sediments. This situation hinders further analyses of the global carbon budget as well as engineering challenges/solutions related to hydrate instability and production. This project studies hydrate-bearing clay-dominated sediments with emphasis on the enhanced fundamental understanding of hydrate formation and resulting morphology, the development laboratory techniques to emulate naturalmore » hydrate formations, the assessment of analytical tools to predict physical properties, the evaluation of engineering and geological implications, and the advanced understanding of gas production potential from finegrained sediments.« less

CARGO: effective format-free compressed storage of genomic information

PubMed Central

Roguski, Łukasz; Ribeca, Paolo

2016-01-01

The recent super-exponential growth in the amount of sequencing data generated worldwide has put techniques for compressed storage into the focus. Most available solutions, however, are strictly tied to specific bioinformatics formats, sometimes inheriting from them suboptimal design choices; this hinders flexible and effective data sharing. Here, we present CARGO (Compressed ARchiving for GenOmics), a high-level framework to automatically generate software systems optimized for the compressed storage of arbitrary types of large genomic data collections. Straightforward applications of our approach to FASTQ and SAM archives require a few lines of code, produce solutions that match and sometimes outperform specialized format-tailored compressors and scale well to multi-TB datasets. All CARGO software components can be freely downloaded for academic and non-commercial use from http://bio-cargo.sourceforge.net. PMID:27131376

75 FR 69086 - Submission for OMB review; comment request; NCCAM Office of Communications and Public Liaison...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-11-10

...) formative and (2) evaluative research of a variety of print and online materials, outreach activities, and... evaluative research on existing materials and messages, as part of OCPL's ongoing effort to develop a comprehensive program of testing and evaluation of all of its communications strategies. This evaluative...

75 FR 61763 - Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request; NCCAM Office of Communications and Public Liaison...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-10-06

...) formative and (2) evaluative research of a variety of print and online materials, outreach activities, and... evaluative research on existing materials and messages, as part of OCPL's ongoing effort to develop a comprehensive program of testing and evaluation of all of its communications strategies. This evaluative...

Robust, High-Speed Network Design for Large-Scale Multiprocessing

DTIC Science & Technology

1993-09-01

3.17 Left: Non-expansive Wiring of Processors to First Stage Routing Elements . ... 38 3.18 Right: Expansive Wiring of Processors to First Stage...162 8.2 RNI Micro -architecture ........ .............................. 163 8.3 Packaged RN I IC...169 11.1 MLUNK Message Formats ........ .............................. 173 12.1 Routing Board Arrangement for 64- processor Machine

Communication: Listening and Responding. Affective 4.0.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Borgers, Sherry B., Comp.; Ward, G. Robert, Comp.

This module is designed to provide practice in listening effectively and in responding to messages sent by another. The module is divided into two sets of activities, the first is the formation of a triad enabling the student to investigate the following: do you listen, listening and the unrelated response, incomplete listening, listening for…

On Free-Form Gaming,

DTIC Science & Technology

1985-08-01

which the competitive interactions can occur simultaneously in several "arenas" (political, military, etc.). This gaming format has been used to...10 E . Post- Game Analysis .. ..................................... 13 F. Limitations ... ............................................ 15 III...preparation of game papers and an electronic message handling system for moving papers from room to room. This satisfies the requirement for legible, multiple

Error Reporting Logic

DTIC Science & Technology

2008-06-01

14] Mark Weiser. Program slicing. Trans. Software Engineering , July 1984. 17 ...entitled “Perpetually Available and Secure In- formation Systems”, the Software Industry Center at CMU and its sponsors, especially the Alfred P. Sloan...ERL In Acme, a software architect can choose to associate a handwritten error message to each specification. If the specification fails, for any

Collaboration in Animation: Working Together to Empower Indigenous Youth

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Davenport, Melanie G.; Gunn, Karin

2009-01-01

How do underrepresented populations, with little exposure to global media discourse, begin not only to develop a critical stance toward dominant messages in the media, but also to assert their own voices and perspectives in unfamiliar formats? How can a school with a mission to develop leadership skills for members of indigenous populations…

Communicating with Two Million Tourists: A Formative Evaluation of an Interpretive Brochure.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Moscardo, Gianna

1999-01-01

A brochure was designed to communicate information to tourists about the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area and its need for protection. A survey of 673 visitors evaluated the effectiveness of distribution methods, effectiveness of the brochure in communicating its intended messages, map effectiveness, visitor opinions of various brochure…

Social Cues in Multimedia Learning: Role of Speaker's Voice.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mayer, Richard E.; Sobko, Kristina; Mautone, Patricia D.

2003-01-01

In 2 experiments, learners who were seated at a computer workstation received a narrated animation about lightning formation. Then, they took a retention test, a transfer test, and rated the speaker. The results are consistent with social agency theory, which posits that social cues in multimedia messages can encourage learners to interpret…

Exploring bi-directional and SMS messaging for communications between Public Health Agencies and their stakeholders: a qualitative study.

PubMed

Revere, Debra; Calhoun, Rebecca; Baseman, Janet; Oberle, Mark

2015-07-08

Communication technologies that enable bi-directional/two-way communications and cell phone texting (SMS) between public health agencies and their stakeholders may improve public health surveillance, ensure targeted distribution of alerts to hard-to-reach populations, reduce mortality and morbidity in an emergency, and enable a crucial feedback loop between public health agencies and the communities they serve. Building on prior work regarding health care provider preferences for receiving one-way public health communications by email, fax or SMS, we conducted a formative, exploratory study to understand how a bi-directional system and the incorporation of SMS in that system might be used as a strategy to send and receive messages between public health agencies and community-based organizations which serve vulnerable populations, health care providers, and public health workers. Our research question: Under what conditions and/or situations might public health agencies utilize bi-directional and/or SMS messaging for disseminating time-sensitive public health information (alerts, advisories, updates, etc.) to their stakeholders? A mixed methods (qualitative and quantitative) study was conducted between April and July 2014. Data collection included a survey distributed to health care providers and semi-structured interviews with providers, community- and government-based organization leaders and directors, and public health agency internal workforce staff. Survey respondents and interviewees were asked about their exposure to public health messages, how these messages are received and how the information in these messages are handled, and in what situations (for example, a local vs. a national event, a pandemic or emergency vs. a health update) a bi-directional and/or SMS messaging system might improve communications between public health agencies and their stakeholder group. Interview and survey data were qualitatively analyzed. Thematic codes were quantitized into dichotomous variables of 0 or 1 on a per respondent basis to enumerate the presence or absence of each thematic code, enable quantitative analysis, and inform interpretation of findings. Five major themes emerged from synthesizing survey and interview results: 1) Regardless of situational context (emergency vs. non-urgent) and message recipient (stakeholder group), e-mail is a favored modality for receiving public health messages; 2) The decision to use bi-directional, SMS or multiple communication strategies is complex and public health agencies' need to manage messaging concerns/barriers and benefits for all parties; 3) Both public health agencies and their stakeholders share similar values/uses and concerns regarding two-way public health messaging and SMS; 4) Public health is highly trusted, thus thoughtful, effective messaging will ensure continuation of this goodwill; and 5) Information reciprocity between public health agencies and stakeholders who share their information is essential. Multiple communication strategies might be utilized but the choice of a specific strategy needs to balance message content (emergency vs. routine communications), delivery (one- vs. two-way), channel (SMS, email, etc.), and public health agency burden with stakeholder preferences and technical capabilities, all while mitigating the risk of message overload and disregard of important communications by recipients.

Decoding the learning environment of medical education: a hidden curriculum perspective for faculty development.

PubMed

Hafler, Janet P; Ownby, Allison R; Thompson, Britta M; Fasser, Carl E; Grigsby, Kevin; Haidet, Paul; Kahn, Marc J; Hafferty, Frederic W

2011-04-01

Medical student literature has broadly established the importance of differentiating between formal-explicit and hidden-tacit dimensions of the physician education process. The hidden curriculum refers to cultural mores that are transmitted, but not openly acknowledged, through formal and informal educational endeavors. The authors extend the concept of the hidden curriculum from students to faculty, and in so doing, they frame the acquisition by faculty of knowledge, skills, and values as a more global process of identity formation. This process includes a subset of formal, formative activities labeled "faculty development programs" that target specific faculty skills such as teaching effectiveness or leadership; however, it also includes informal, tacit messages that faculty absorb. As faculty members are socialized into faculty life, they often encounter conflicting messages about their role. In this article, the authors examine how faculty development programs have functioned as a source of conflict, and they ask how these programs might be retooled to assist faculty in understanding the tacit institutional culture shaping effective socialization and in managing the inconsistencies that so often dominate faculty life. © by the Association of American Medical Colleges.

HYDRA : High-speed simulation architecture for precision spacecraft formation simulation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Martin, Bryan J.; Sohl, Garett.

2003-01-01

e Hierarchical Distributed Reconfigurable Architecture- is a scalable simulation architecture that provides flexibility and ease-of-use which take advantage of modern computation and communication hardware. It also provides the ability to implement distributed - or workstation - based simulations and high-fidelity real-time simulation from a common core. Originally designed to serve as a research platform for examining fundamental challenges in formation flying simulation for future space missions, it is also finding use in other missions and applications, all of which can take advantage of the underlying Object-Oriented structure to easily produce distributed simulations. Hydra automates the process of connecting disparate simulation components (Hydra Clients) through a client server architecture that uses high-level descriptions of data associated with each client to find and forge desirable connections (Hydra Services) at run time. Services communicate through the use of Connectors, which abstract messaging to provide single-interface access to any desired communication protocol, such as from shared-memory message passing to TCP/IP to ACE and COBRA. Hydra shares many features with the HLA, although providing more flexibility in connectivity services and behavior overriding.

The NetLogger Toolkit V2.0

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Gunter, Dan; Lee, Jason; Stoufer, Martin

2003-03-28

The NetLogger Toolkit is designed to monitor, under actual operating conditions, the behavior of all the elements of the application-to-application communication path in order to determine exactly where time is spent within a complex system Using NetLogger, distnbuted application components are modified to produce timestamped logs of "interesting" events at all the critical points of the distributed system Events from each component are correlated, which allov^ one to characterize the performance of all aspects of the system and network in detail. The NetLogger Toolkit itself consists of four components an API and library of functions to simplify the generation ofmore » application-level event logs, a set of tools for collecting and sorting log files, an event archive system, and a tool for visualization and analysis of the log files In order to instrument an application to produce event logs, the application developer inserts calls to the NetLogger API at all the critical points in the code, then links the application with the NetLogger library All the tools in the NetLogger Toolkit share a common log format, and assume the existence of accurate and synchronized system clocks NetLogger messages can be logged using an easy-to-read text based format based on the lETF-proposed ULM format, or a binary format that can still be used through the same API but that is several times faster and smaller, with performance comparable or better than binary message formats such as MPI, XDR, SDDF-Binary, and PBIO. The NetLogger binary format is both highly efficient and self-describing, thus optimized for the dynamic message construction and parsing of application instrumentation. NetLogger includes an "activation" API that allows NetLogger logging to be turned on, off, or modified by changing an external file This IS useful for activating logging in daemons/services (e g GndFTP server). The NetLogger reliability API provides the ability to specify backup logging locations and penodically try to reconnect broken TCP pipe. A typical use for this is to store data on local disk while net is down. An event archiver can log one or more incoming NetLogger streams to a local disk file (netlogd) or to a mySQL database (netarchd). We have found exploratory, visual analysis of the log event data to be the most useful means of determining the causes of performance anomalies The NetLogger Visualization tool, niv, has been developed to provide a flexible and interactive graphical representation of system-level and application-level events.« less

Public perception of sex offender social policies and the impact on sex offenders.

PubMed

Schiavone, Stacey Katz; Jeglic, Elizabeth L

2009-12-01

This study examines the public perception of sex offender policies and the perceived impact of sex offender policies on the sex offenders themselves. Specifically, this study explores how the community feels about the effectiveness of policies such as registration and community notification (Megan's Law), and housing restrictions in reducing sexual recidivism. Data are collected from 115 participants from a nationwide online community message board. Results suggest that although most individuals support Megan's Law, they do not feel the policy reduces recidivism. Furthermore, the majority of the participants also do not believe that housing restriction statutes are effective in reducing sexual recidivism. When questioned about the policy impact on sex offenders, the majority of respondents agree that as a consequence of Megan's Law, sex offenders are afraid for their safety; however, they do not believe that residence restrictions hinder sex offenders' employment opportunities. Findings from this study are discussed as they pertain to public policy and sex offender reintegration.

Velopharyngeal insufficiency: diagnosis and management

PubMed Central

Shprintzen, Robert J.; Marrinan, Eileen

2009-01-01

Purpose of Review Journal articles relevant to the diagnosis and treatment of velopharyngeal insufficiency (VPI) were reviewed. All articles ascertained by PubMed search were included. Recent Findings Articles reported on the application of magnetic resonance scanning, reliability tests of the International Working Group diagnostic protocol, the use of nasometry, and techniques designed to assess the function of the velopharyngeal mechanism. Treatment papers focused on outcomes in small samples of cases and complication rates from pharyngeal flap. One paper discussed ineffective speech therapy procedures. Summary There were relatively few papers this past year. Those that were published were hindered by small and heterogeneous sample sizes, and occasionally by inappropriate methods for assessing outcomes. None of the findings will have a major impact on the current state-of-the-art for diagnosis of VPI. The speech therapy paper has a very important message that should be taken to heart by all clinicians involved in the management of children with clefts and craniofacial disorders. PMID:19448542

Disaster Planning and Risk Communication With Vulnerable Communities: Lessons From Hurricane Katrina

PubMed Central

Eisenman, David P.; Cordasco, Kristina M.; Asch, Steve; Golden, Joya F.; Glik, Deborah

2007-01-01

Objectives. We studied the experience of Hurricane Katrina evacuees to better understand factors influencing evacuation decisions in impoverished, mainly minority communities that were most severely affected by the disaster. Methods. We performed qualitative interviews with 58 randomly selected evacuees living in Houston’s major evacuation centers from September 9 to 12, 2005. Transcripts were content analyzed using grounded theory methodology. Results. Participants were mainly African American, had low incomes, and were from New Orleans. Participants’ strong ties to extended family, friends, and community groups influenced other factors affecting evacuation, including transportation, access to shelter, and perception of evacuation messages. These social connections cut both ways, which facilitated and hindered evacuation decisions. Conclusions. Effective disaster plans must account for the specific obstacles encountered by vulnerable and minority communities. Removing the more apparent obstacles of shelter and transportation will likely be insufficient for improving disaster plans for impoverished, minority communities. The important influence of extended families and social networks demand better community-based communication and preparation strategies. PMID:17413069

'Breaking Good News': Neurologists' experiences of discussing SUDEP with patients in Scotland.

PubMed

Nisbet, Tom; Turbull, Sue; Mulhern, Sharon; Razvi, Saif

2017-05-01

Since the findings of a Fatal Accident Inquiry (FAI) in 2010, clinicians working in Scotland have been advised to discuss the risk of Sudden Unexpected Death in Epilepsy (SUDEP) with patients immediately or soon after a diagnosis of epilepsy is made. A thematic analysis was used to describe the experiences discussing SUDEP of 10 clinicians (six Consultant Neurologists and four Neurology Registrars) working in Scotland. Contrary to previous research, clinicians appear to be routinely discussing SUDEP in a standardized fashion with newly diagnosed patients and the FAI appears to have instigated this change in practice. Clinicians are ambivalent about the practice and whether this is a Breaking Bad News (BBN) experience. Clinicians appear to anticipate that patients will be anxious or distressed discussing SUDEP, despite their experiences that patients do not react this way. There are further concerns that the pressure to discuss SUDEP, as a result of the FAI, hinders effective communication of the SUDEP message. Implications for guideline development are discussed. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Facilitation of creative performance by using blue and red accent lighting in work and learning areas.

PubMed

Kombeiz, Olga; Steidle, Anna

2018-03-01

Research has shown that colours influence motivation and cognitive performance. In achievement contexts, red evokes avoidance motivation that hinders creativity, while blue elicits an approach motivation that facilitates creativity. However, due to their position and mode of presentation, colours may convey a different message. Red accent lighting creates a cosy, friendly room atmosphere that may, even in an achievement context, elicit an approach rather than an avoidance motivation. Results (N = 146) showed that both blue and red accent light increased strategic approach motivation compared to white accent light. Moreover, through the heightened approach motivation, colourful accent light indirectly improved creative performance. Implications for future research on colour and practical implications for colour usage are discussed. Practitioner Summary: Designing work environments for creativity is a new topic in ergonomics research and practice. The present study demonstrates indirect effects of coloured accent light on creativity providing interesting possibilities for the design of workplaces for knowledge workers, classrooms and all other rooms in which people work on new ideas.

Reduced prefrontal and temporal processing and recall of high "sensation value" ads.

PubMed

Langleben, Daniel D; Loughead, James W; Ruparel, Kosha; Hakun, Jonathan G; Busch-Winokur, Samantha; Holloway, Matthew B; Strasser, Andrew A; Cappella, Joseph N; Lerman, Caryn

2009-05-15

Public service announcements (PSAs) are non-commercial broadcast ads that are an important part of televised public health campaigns. "Message sensation value" (MSV), a measure of sensory intensity of audio, visual, and content features of an ad, is an important factor in PSA impact. Some communication theories propose that higher message sensation value brings increased attention and cognitive processing, leading to higher ad impact. Others argue that the attention-intensive format could compete with ad's message for cognitive resources and result in reduced processing of PSA content and reduced overall effectiveness. Brain imaging during PSA viewing provides a quantitative surrogate measure of PSA impact and addresses questions of PSA evaluation and design not accessible with traditional subjective and epidemiological methods. We used Blood Oxygenation Level Dependent (BOLD) functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) and recognition memory measures to compare high and low MSV anti-tobacco PSAs and neutral videos. In a short-delay, forced-choice memory test, frames extracted from PSAs were recognized more accurately than frames extracted from the NV. Frames from the low MSV PSAs were better recognized than frames from the high MSV PSAs. The accuracy of recognition of PSA frames was positively correlated with the prefrontal and temporal, and negatively correlated with the occipital cortex activation. The low MSV PSAs were associated with greater prefrontal and temporal activation, than the high MSV PSAs. The high MSV PSAs produced greater activation primarily in the occipital cortex. These findings support the "dual processing" and "limited capacity" theories of communication that postulate a competition between ad's content and format for the viewers' cognitive resources and suggest that the "attention-grabbing" high MSV format could impede the learning and retention of an ad. These findings demonstrate the potential of using neuroimaging in the design and evaluation of mass media public health communications.

An ESEM investigation of latex film formation in cement pore solution

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Gretz, M.; Plank, J., E-mail: sekretariat@bauchemie.ch.tum.d

2011-02-15

Environmental scanning electron microscopy (ESEM) and complementary methods were employed to study the time dependent film formation of a latex dispersion in water and cement pore solution. First, a model carboxylated styrene/n-butyl acrylate latex dispersion possessing a minimum film forming temperature (MFFT) of 18 {sup o}C was synthesized in aqueous media via emulsion polymerization. Its film forming property was at a temperature of 40 {sup o}C, studied under an ESEM. The analysis revealed that upon removal of water, film formation occurs as a result of particle packing, particle deformation and finally particle coalescence. Film formation is significantly retarded when themore » latex dispersion is present in cement pore solution. This effect can be ascribed to adsorption of Ca{sup 2+} ions onto the surface of the anionic latex particles and to interfacial secondary phases. This layer of adsorbed Ca{sup 2+} ions hinders interdiffusion of the macromolecules and subsequent film formation of the latex polymer.« less

Stem cells catalyze cartilage formation by neonatal articular chondrocytes in 3D biomimetic hydrogels.

PubMed

Lai, Janice H; Kajiyama, Glen; Smith, Robert Lane; Maloney, William; Yang, Fan

2013-12-19

Cartilage loss is a leading cause of disability among adults and effective therapy remains elusive. Neonatal chondrocytes (NChons) are an attractive allogeneic cell source for cartilage repair, but their clinical translation has been hindered by scarce donor availability. Here we examine the potential for catalyzing cartilage tissue formation using a minimal number of NChons by co-culturing them with adipose-derived stem cells (ADSCs) in 3D hydrogels. Using three different co-culture models, we demonstrated that the effects of co-culture on cartilage tissue formation are dependent on the intercellular distance and cell distribution in 3D. Unexpectedly, increasing ADSC ratio in mixed co-culture led to increased synergy between NChons and ADSCs, and resulted in the formation of large neocartilage nodules. This work raises the potential of utilizing stem cells to catalyze tissue formation by neonatal chondrocytes via paracrine signaling, and highlights the importance of controlling cell distribution in 3D matrices to achieve optimal synergy.

The influence of narrative risk communication on feelings of cancer risk.

PubMed

Janssen, Eva; van Osch, Liesbeth; de Vries, Hein; Lechner, Lilian

2013-05-01

Evidence is accumulating for the importance of feelings of risk in explaining cancer preventive behaviours, but best practices for influencing these feelings are limited. The aim of this experimental study was to compare the effects of narrative and non-narrative risk communication about sunbed use on ease of imagination and feelings of cancer risk. A total of 233 female sunbed users in the general Dutch population were randomly assigned to one of three conditions: a narrative message (i.e., personal testimonial), a non-narrative cognitive message (i.e., factual risk information using cognitive-laden words), or a non-narrative affective message (i.e., factual risk information using affective-laden words). Ease of imagination and feelings of risk were assessed directly after the risk information was given (T1). Three weeks after the baseline session, feelings of risk were measured again (T2). The results revealed that sunbed users who were exposed to narrative risk information could better imagine themselves developing skin cancer and reported higher feelings of skin cancer risk at T1. Moreover, ease of imagination mediated the effects of message type on feelings of risk at T1 and T2. The findings provide support for the effects of narrative risk communication in influencing feelings of cancer risk through ease of imagination. Cancer prevention programmes may therefore benefit from including narrative risk information. Future research is important to investigate other mechanisms of narrative information and their most effective content and format. What is already known on this subject? Evidence is growing for the importance of feelings of risk in explaining cancer preventive behaviours. Narratives have increasingly been considered as an effective format for persuasive risk messages and studies have shown narrative risk communication to be effective in influencing cognitive risk beliefs. What does this study add? Increasing understanding of how feelings of cancer risk can be influenced since best practices for influencing these feelings are limited. Extending knowledge about the underlying mechanisms of narrative effects on feelings of cancer risk (i.e., the mediating role of ease of imagination) using a non-student sample. The findings provide support for the effects of narrative risk communication in influencing feelings of cancer risk through ease of imagination. © 2012 The British Psychological Society.

Awareness of Dietary and Alcohol Guidelines Among Colorectal Cancer Survivors.

PubMed

Hawkins, Nikki A; Berkowitz, Zahava; Rodriguez, Juan L

2015-12-01

Although dietary habits can affect colorectal cancer (CRC) survivors' health, it is unclear how familiar survivors are with dietary guidelines, what they believe about healthy eating and alcohol consumption, and what hinders healthy dietary habits after cancer. This study assessed CRC survivors' familiarity with dietary guidelines, their eating and drinking habits, and perceived facilitators and barriers to healthy eating after cancer, including social support and self-efficacy for maintaining a healthy diet and limiting alcohol. A total of 593 individuals (50% female; mean age, 74 years) diagnosed with CRC approximately 6 years prior to study entry in early 2010 were identified through California Cancer Registry records and participated in a cross-sectional mailed survey assessing health behavior after cancer (46% adjusted response rate). Analyses were conducted in 2014-2015. Survivors were most familiar with-and most likely to follow-recommendations to choose low-fat foods; 15% had never heard of recommendations to limit alcohol. Survivors were more aware of recommendations involving messages to limit/avoid versus approach/choose certain foods. The most common barrier to a healthy diet involved the effort required (26%). Survivors received more family/friend support and provider recommendations for healthy eating than limiting alcohol. Results provide an overview of awareness of and adherence to dietary recommendations among CRC survivors, highlighting the need for increasing awareness of recommendations that are especially relevant for survivors. Suggestions are made for modifying diet-related messages to facilitate comprehension and recall among CRC survivors, and increasing awareness among groups with the lowest awareness levels. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Variations in serving sizes of Australian snack foods and confectionery.

PubMed

Watson, Wendy L; Kury, Alexandra; Wellard, Lyndal; Hughes, Clare; Dunford, Elizabeth; Chapman, Kathy

2016-01-01

This study examined the serving size and energy content per serving of Australian packaged snack foods and confectionery products. Nutrition Information Panel data for 23 sub-categories of packaged snack foods (n = 3481) were extracted from The George Institute for Global Health's 2013 branded food composition database. Variations in serving size and energy content per serving were examined. Energy contents per serving were compared to recommendations in the Australian Dietary Guidelines. Serving sizes varied within and between snack food categories. Mean energy content per serving varied from 320 kJ to 899 kJ. More energy per serving than the recommended 600 kJ was displayed by 22% (n = 539) of snack foods classified in the Australian Dietary Guidelines as discretionary foods. The recommendation for energy content per serving was exceeded in 60% (n = 635) of snack foods from the Five Food Groups. Only 37% (n = 377) of confectionery products displayed the industry-agreed serving size of 25 g. Energy content per serving of many packaged snack foods do not align with the Australian Dietary Guidelines and the industry agreed serving size has not been taken up widely within the confectionery category. Given the inconsistencies in serving sizes, featuring serving size in front-of-pack information may hinder the objective of a clear and simple nutrition message. Messaging to help consumers make healthier choices should consider the variation in serving sizes on packaged snack foods. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Hindered settling and the formation of layered intrusions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bons, Paul D.; Baur, Albrecht; Elburg, Marlina A.; Lindhuber, Matthias J.; Marks, Michael A. W.; Soesoo, Alvar; van Milligen, Boudewijn P.; Walte, Nicolas P.

2015-04-01

Layered intrusions are characterized by (often repetitive) layering on a range of scales. Many explanations for the formation of such layering have been proposed over the past decades. We investigated the formation of "mats" by hindered crystal settling, a model that was first suggested by Lauder (1964). The interaction of sinking and rising crystals leads to the amplification of perturbations in crystal density within a magma chamber, a process similar to the formation of traffic jams in dense traffic (Bons et al., 2015). Once these "crystal traffic jams" form they constitute a barrier for further settling of crystals. Between these barriers, the magma evolves in a semi-closed system in which stratification may develop by gravitational sorting. Barriers, and therefore layers, form sequentially during inward cooling of the magma chamber. Barring later equilibration, mineralogical and geochemical trends within the layers are repetitive, but with variations due to the random process of initial perturbation formation. Layers can form in the transition between two end-member regimes: (1) in a fast cooling and/or viscous magma crystals cannot sink or float a significant distance and minerals are distributed homogeneously throughout the chamber; (2) in a slow cooling and/or low-viscosity magma crystals can quickly settle at the top and bottom of the chamber and crystals concentrations are never high enough to form "traffic jams". As a result, heavy and light minerals get fully separated in the chamber. Between these two end members, crystals can sink and float a significant distance, but not the whole height of the magma chamber before entrapment in "traffic jams". We illustrate the development of layers with numerical models and compare the results with the layered nepheline syenites (kakortokites) of the Ilímaussaq intrusion in SW Greenland. References: Bons, P.D., Baur, A., Elburg, M.A., Lindhuber, M.J., Marks, M.A.W., Soesoo, A., van Milligen, B.P., Walte, N.P. 2015. Layered intrusions and traffic jams. Geology 43, 71-74 Lauder, W. 1964. Mat formation and crystal settling in magma. Nature 202, 1100-1101.

Dust Dynamics in Protoplanetary Disks: Parallel Computing with PVM

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

de La Fuente Marcos, Carlos; Barge, Pierre; de La Fuente Marcos, Raúl

2002-03-01

We describe a parallel version of our high-order-accuracy particle-mesh code for the simulation of collisionless protoplanetary disks. We use this code to carry out a massively parallel, two-dimensional, time-dependent, numerical simulation, which includes dust particles, to study the potential role of large-scale, gaseous vortices in protoplanetary disks. This noncollisional problem is easy to parallelize on message-passing multicomputer architectures. We performed the simulations on a cache-coherent nonuniform memory access Origin 2000 machine, using both the parallel virtual machine (PVM) and message-passing interface (MPI) message-passing libraries. Our performance analysis suggests that, for our problem, PVM is about 25% faster than MPI. Using PVM and MPI made it possible to reduce CPU time and increase code performance. This allows for simulations with a large number of particles (N ~ 105-106) in reasonable CPU times. The performances of our implementation of the pa! rallel code on an Origin 2000 supercomputer are presented and discussed. They exhibit very good speedup behavior and low load unbalancing. Our results confirm that giant gaseous vortices can play a dominant role in giant planet formation.

Soft real-time alarm messages for ATLAS TDAQ

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Darlea, G.; Al Shabibi, A.; Martin, B.; Lehmann Miotto, G.

2010-05-01

The ATLAS TDAQ network consists of three separate Ethernet-based networks (Data, Control and Management) with over 2000 end-nodes. The TDAQ system has to be aware of the meaningful network failures and events in order for it to take effective recovery actions. The first stage of the process is implemented with Spectrum, a commercial network management tool. Spectrum detects and registers all network events, then it publishes the information via a CORBA programming interface. A gateway program (called NSG—Network Service Gateway) connects to Spectrum through CORBA and exposes to its clients a Java RMI interface. This interface implements a callback mechanism that allows the clients to subscribe for monitoring "interesting" parts of the network. The last stage of the TDAQ network monitoring tool is implemented in a module named DNC (DAQ to Network Connection), which filters the events that are to be reported to the TDAQ system: it subscribes to the gateway only for the machines that are currently active in the system and it forwards only the alarms that are considered important for the current TDAQ data taking session. The network information is then synthesized and presented in a human-readable format. These messages can be further processed either by the shifter who is in charge, the network expert or the Online Expert System. This article aims to describe the different mechanisms of the chain that transports the network events to the front-end user, as well as the constraints and rules that govern the filtering and the final format of the alarm messages.

Strategies for Community Education Prior to Clinical Trial Recruitment for a Cervical Cancer Screening Intervention in Uganda.

PubMed

Mitchell, Sheona M; Pedersen, Heather N; Sekikubo, Musa; Biryabarema, Christine; Byamugisha, Josaphat J K; Mwesigwa, David; Steinberg, Malcolm; Money, Deborah M; Ogilvie, Gina S

2016-01-01

Community engagement and education can improve acceptability and participation in clinical trials conducted in Kisenyi, Uganda. In preparation for a randomized controlled trial exploring different methods for cervical cancer screening, we explored optimal engagement strategies from the perspective of community members and health professionals. We conducted key informant interviews followed by serial community forums with purposeful sampling and compared the perspectives of women in Kisenyi (N = 26) to health-care workers (HCW) at the local and tertiary care center levels (N = 61) in a participatory, iterative process. Key themes identified included format, content, language, message delivery, and target population. Women in Kisenyi see demonstration as a key part of an educational intervention and not solely a didactic session, whereas health professionals emphasized the biomedical content and natural history of cervical cancer. Using local language and lay leaders with locally accessible terminology was more of a priority for women in Kisenyi than clinicians. Simple language with a clear message was essential for both groups. Localization of language and reciprocal communication using demonstration between community members and HCW was a key theme. Although perceptions of the format are similar between women and HCW, the content, language, and messaging that should be incorporated in a health education strategy differ markedly. The call for lay leaders to participate in health promotion is a clear step toward transforming this cervical cancer screening project to be a fully participatory process. This is important in scaling up cervical cancer screening programs in Kisenyi and will be central in developing health education interventions for this purpose.

Texting preferences in a Paediatric residency.

PubMed

Draper, Lauren; Kuklinski, Cadence; Ladley, Amy; Adamson, Greg; Broom, Matthew

2017-12-01

Text messaging is ubiquitous among residents, but remains an underused educational tool. Though feasibility has been demonstrated, evidence of its ability to improve standardised test scores and provide insight on resident texting preferences is lacking. The authors set out to evaluate: (1) satisfaction with a hybrid question-and-answer (Q&A) texting format; and (2) pre-/post-paediatric in-training exam (ITE) performance. A prospective study with paediatrics and internal medicine-paediatrics residents. Residents were divided into subgroups: adolescent medicine (AM) and developmental medicine (DM). Messages were derived from ITE questions and sent Monday-Friday with a 20 per cent variance in messages specific to the sub-group. Residents completed surveys gauging perceptions of the programme, and pre- and post-programme ITE scores were analysed. Forty-one residents enrolled and 32 (78%) completed a post-programme survey. Of those, 21 (66%) preferred a Q&A format with an immediate text response versus information-only texts. The percentage change in ITE scores between 2013 and 2014 was significant. Comparing subgroups, there was no significant difference between the percentage change in ITE scores. Neither group performed significantly better on either the adolescent or developmental sections of the ITE. Text messaging… remains an underused educational tool CONCLUSIONS: Overall, participants improved their ITE scores, but no improvement was seen in the targeted subgroups on the exam. Although Q&A texts are preferred by residents, further assessment is required to assess the effect on educational outcomes. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd and The Association for the Study of Medical Education.

Security architecture for HL/7 message interchange.

PubMed

Chen, T S; Liao, B S; Lin, M G; Gough, T G

2001-01-01

The promotion of quality medical treatment is very important to the healthcare providers as well as to patients. It requires that the medical resources of different hospitals be combined to ensure that medical information is shared and that resources are not wasted. A computer-based patient record is one of the best methods to accomplish the interchange of the patient's clinical data. In our system, the Health Level/Seven (HL/7) format is used for the interchange of the clinical data, as it has been supported by many healthcare providers and become a â standard'. The security of the interchange of clinical data is a serious issue for people using the Internet for data communication. Several international well-developed security algorithms, models and secure policies are adopted in the design of a security handler for an HL/7 architecture. The goal of our system is to combine our security system with the end-to-end communication systems constructed from the HL/7 format to establish a safe delivery channel. A suitable security interchange environment is implemented to address some shortcomings in clinical data interchange. located at the application layer of the ISO/OSI reference model. The medical message components, sub-components, and related types of message event are the primary goals of the HL/7 protocols. The patient management system, the doctor's system for recording his advice, examination and diagnosis as well as any financial management system are all covered by the HL/7 protocols. Healthcare providers and hospitals in Taiwan are very interested in developing the HL/7 protocols as a common standard for clinical data interchange.

Benefits and Challenges of Architecture Frameworks

DTIC Science & Technology

2011-06-01

systems and identify emerging and obsolete standards. • The NATO Capability View ( NCV ) serves the analysis and optimization of military ca- pabilities... NCVs show the dependencies between different capabilities and allow detecting gaps and overlaps of capabilities. NCVs deliver indirectly requirements...Email (possibly with vendor-specific extensions/modifications) • Proprietary, and possibly not well-documented, message formats • Web services

Solid rocket booster performance evaluation model. Volume 2: Users manual

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1974-01-01

This users manual for the solid rocket booster performance evaluation model (SRB-II) contains descriptions of the model, the program options, the required program inputs, the program output format and the program error messages. SRB-II is written in FORTRAN and is operational on both the IBM 370/155 and the MSFC UNIVAC 1108 computers.

77 FR 25522 - Self-Regulatory Organizations; Fixed Income Clearing Corporation; Order Approving Proposed Rule...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-04-30

... trades with final money calculations on the night of Auction Date, after the Treasury auction results... end of day netting process. However, when Interactive Messaging was implemented in 2000, this... efficiency, competition, and capital formation. See 15 U.S.C. 78c(f). \\9\\ 17 CFR 200.30-3(a)(12). For the...

Health Education Films of the Silent Era: A Historical Analysis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sofalvi, Alan

2011-01-01

Films have been used to present health messages throughout the history of the medium. The purpose of this article is to describe pictures from the silent film era that were designed to educate people about health issues. Films still available in at least one format were reviewed. Published reviews were also used to obtain information about these…

TOAD Editor

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bingle, Bradford D.; Shea, Anne L.; Hofler, Alicia S.

1993-01-01

Transferable Output ASCII Data (TOAD) computer program (LAR-13755), implements format designed to facilitate transfer of data across communication networks and dissimilar host computer systems. Any data file conforming to TOAD format standard called TOAD file. TOAD Editor is interactive software tool for manipulating contents of TOAD files. Commonly used to extract filtered subsets of data for visualization of results of computation. Also offers such user-oriented features as on-line help, clear English error messages, startup file, macroinstructions defined by user, command history, user variables, UNDO features, and full complement of mathematical statistical, and conversion functions. Companion program, TOAD Gateway (LAR-14484), converts data files from variety of other file formats to that of TOAD. TOAD Editor written in FORTRAN 77.

Effects of post-encoding stress on performance in the DRM false memory paradigm

PubMed Central

Pardilla-Delgado, Enmanuelle; Alger, Sara E.; Cunningham, Tony J.; Kinealy, Brian

2016-01-01

Numerous studies have investigated how stress impacts veridical memory, but how stress influences false memory formation remains poorly understood. In order to target memory consolidation specifically, a psychosocial stress (TSST) or control manipulation was administered following encoding of 15 neutral, semantically related word lists (DRM false memory task) and memory was tested 24 h later. Stress decreased recognition of studied words, while increasing false recognition of semantically related lure words. Moreover, while control subjects remembered true and false words equivalently, stressed subjects remembered more false than true words. These results suggest that stress supports gist memory formation in the DRM task, perhaps by hindering detail-specific processing in the hippocampus. PMID:26670187

Inflammatory Cells and Proteases in Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm and its Complications.

PubMed

Haiying, Jiang; Sasaki, Takeshi; Jin, Enze; Kuzuya, Masafumi; Cheng, Xianwu

2018-05-30

Abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA), a common disease among elderly individuals, involves the progressive dilatation of the abdominal aorta as a consequence of degeneration. The mechanisms of AAA formation, development and rupture are largely unknown. Surgical repair is the only available method of treatment since the lack of knowledge regarding the pathogenesis of AAA has hindered the development of suitable medical treatments, particularly the development of drugs. In this review, we describe the inflammatory cells and proteases that may be involved in the formation and development of AAA. This knowledge can contribute to the development of new drugs for AAA. Copyright© Bentham Science Publishers; For any queries, please email at epub@benthamscience.org.

The Strategic Combination of Open-Access Peer-Review, Mainstream Media and Social Media to Improve Public Climate Literacy (Invited)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cook, J.; Nuccitelli, D. A.; Jacobs, P.

2013-12-01

The Skeptical Science website began in 2007, with the goal of refuting climate misinformation with peer-reviewed science. It achieved this by embracing a diversity of message formats and delivery methods. Myth rebuttals are available at beginner, intermediate and advanced levels, spanning from long, technical treatments to tweetable one-liners. Content has been translated into 20 different languages and made available via the web, an iPhone app and books while adopted by third parties in textbooks, university and MOOC curricula, books, Senate testimonies and TV documentaries. While social media has been a fruitful medium, we experimented with a new model in 2013, employing the strategic combination of open-access peer-review, mainstream media outreach and social media marketing. This strategy was adopted with the release of a paper quantifying the level of scientific consensus in published climate papers, resulting in broad mainstream media attention as well as acknowledgement from key public figures such as Al Gore, the UK Minister for Energy Edward Davey and President Obama. Our approach was informed by psychological research into both the importance of scientific consensus and how to reduce the influence of misconceptions. While multiple methods of delivery are important, equally important is the construction of the messages themselves. I will examine the science of crafting compelling messages and how combination with diverse message delivery can lead to impactful outcomes.

Mass spectrometer output file format mzML.

PubMed

Deutsch, Eric W

2010-01-01

Mass spectrometry is an important technique for analyzing proteins and other biomolecular compounds in biological samples. Each of the vendors of these mass spectrometers uses a different proprietary binary output file format, which has hindered data sharing and the development of open source software for downstream analysis. The solution has been to develop, with the full participation of academic researchers as well as software and hardware vendors, an open XML-based format for encoding mass spectrometer output files, and then to write software to use this format for archiving, sharing, and processing. This chapter presents the various components and information available for this format, mzML. In addition to the XML schema that defines the file structure, a controlled vocabulary provides clear terms and definitions for the spectral metadata, and a semantic validation rules mapping file allows the mzML semantic validator to insure that an mzML document complies with one of several levels of requirements. Complete documentation and example files insure that the format may be uniformly implemented. At the time of release, there already existed several implementations of the format and vendors have committed to supporting the format in their products.

A review on digital ECG formats and the relationships between them.

PubMed

Trigo, Jesús Daniel; Alesanco, Alvaro; Martínez, Ignacio; García, José

2012-05-01

A plethora of digital ECG formats have been proposed and implemented. This heterogeneity hinders the design and development of interoperable systems and entails critical integration issues for the healthcare information systems. This paper aims at performing a comprehensive overview on the current state of affairs of the interoperable exchange of digital ECG signals. This includes 1) a review on existing digital ECG formats, 2) a collection of applications and cardiology settings using such formats, 3) a compilation of the relationships between such formats, and 4) a reflection on the current situation and foreseeable future of the interoperable exchange of digital ECG signals. The objectives have been approached by completing and updating previous reviews on the topic through appropriate database mining. 39 digital ECG formats, 56 applications, tools or implantation experiences, 47 mappings/converters, and 6 relationships between such formats have been found in the literature. The creation and generalization of a single standardized ECG format is a desirable goal. However, this unification requires political commitment and international cooperation among different standardization bodies. Ongoing ontology-based approaches covering ECG domain have recently emerged as a promising alternative for reaching fully fledged ECG interoperability in the near future.

Perceptions of a HIV testing message targeted for at-risk adults with low functional health literacy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hunter, Susan L.

This study analyses warehoused data collected by Georgia State University and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (GSU/CDC) researchers after developing an HIV testing message for urban adults with low functional health literacy. It expands previous work by examining data collected when 202 primarily African-American homeless clients of an urban community based organization (CBO) reviewed both the low literacy brochure (Wallace et al., 2006) and a standard HIV brochure (Georgia Department of Human Resources, 1997). Participants' health literacy was assessed using 2 measures; the Rapid Estimate of Adult Literacy in Medicine or REALM (Davis, Crouch, Long & Green) and the Test of Functional Health Literacy Assessment or TOFHLA (Nurss, Parker & Baker, 2001). HIV risk was determined using an interview questionnaire developed by the research group (Belcher, Deming, Hunter & Wallace, 2005) which allowed participants to self-report recent alcohol and drug use, sexual behavior, sexually transmitted disease (STD) history and exposure to abuse and sexual coercion. Open-ended response questions regarding readability, understanding, main message, and importance for each brochure provided the qualitative data. This analysis confirms previous work showing accessibility, readability, cultural sensitivity and user-friendly formatting are important when attempting to engage at-risk adults with varying levels of functional health literacy in an HIV testing message. The visual aspects of the brochure can be essential in capturing the reader's attention and should be relevant to the target audience (Wallace, Deming, Hunter, Belcher & Choi, 2006). Mono-colored graphics may be perceived as dated and irrelevant or worse yet, threatening to some readers. Whenever possible culturally appropriate color photos of people depicting relevant content should replace excess text and difficult medical terms should be eliminated. Wording on the cover and within the brochure should be used to focus the reader on a single main message. This data also shows that many participants considered the quantity of information just as important. For reasons not elucidated here, many respondents equated quantity of information with message quality. Based on these results it is important to further clarify how much information is enough to maintain legitimacy and the reader's attention while simultaneously avoiding confusing mixed messages.

[Attitudes, communication and family planning: a conceptual framework applicable to Rwanda].

PubMed

Nsengimana, D; Ndinkabandi, E

1991-08-01

An important objective of Rwanda's National Office of Population (ONAPO) is to study psychosocial and cultural variables that encourage or impede family planning use and to define effective communication strategies based on them that can be carried out by ONAPO promoters. The definition and measurement of such variables are discussed in terms of theories of attitude changes and communication. Attitude is a hypothetical construction inferred from opinions and expressive behavior. The concept of attitude has 3 dimensions, the cognitive-evaluative, the affective-emotional, and the behavioral. The affective-emotional dimension is considered the most important by many theoreticians of attitude change. A basic characteristic of attitudes is stability. Communication theory furnishes a model for processes of attitude change, which postulates a source or emitter sending elements of information or messages to a recipient. Feedback from the recipient to the sender allows the efficacy of the message to be assessed and permits the sender to adjust actions until the objective is attained. Feedback is always possible in interpersonal communications between individuals in permanent contact, but becomes more difficult in mass communication. Among the many variables intervening in the formation or change of attitudes toward family planning are sex, age, residence, education, occupation, religion, marital status, and fertility. The psychosocial variables influencing family planning acceptance are at the level of the source, the message, and the recipient. 3 important factors at the level of the source are the credibility, attractiveness, and power or prestige of the source. The message should contain a suggestion that the desired behavior should be adopted and should follow a certain order in presenting information. Factors at the level of the receptor include susceptibility to persuasion, the way in which the message affects the recipient's needs, the selectivity necessary in perceiving the information contained in the message, and the degree of resistance in regard to the message. A 2-stage theory of communication suggests that horizontal communication within small groups is a stronger determinant of attitudes than is verbal communication from authority figures. Communication is the most important factor in all attempts to change attitudes.

Commercial cinema: a medium for development communication.

PubMed

Riber, J; Smith, S

1985-01-01

Worldview International Foundation, an international voluntary organization whose activities focus on practical participation in the information process, established a media center in Dhaka, Bangladesh in 1982 in an effort to use the film media to disseminate development messages. Initially, WIF worked with the Ministry of Education (MOE) to promote literacy. Using the social marketing approach to promote a development theme, the producers were able to plug into a commercially successful network that assured them of reaching a large, attentive audience for a very low cost. An estimated 8 million Bangladeshis have seen this literacy film in cinema halls, mobile film projection vans, and on television. Project evaluation showed that 95% of the surveyed audience enjoyed the film and understood the intended message. The film was so popular that it was submitted as the Bangladesh entry at an international film festival in Moscow. WIF's next project was the production of another film, this time for the Social Marketing Project -- an Agency for International Development (AID) funded family planning cimmunication project. This time a family planning theme was the social development message. The script was developed from research conducted by Manoff International, Inc., an American social marketing agency who worked closely with MRCB, a Bangladeshi market research agency. They identified the target audiences and the constraints against using contraceptive methods in Bangladesh. Then messages were designed to address these issues. A love story entitled "Together" was developed. The social message revolves around a newlywed couple; both are hesitant to immediately start a family, but neither feels comfortable discussing his/her feelings on the subject with the other because of strong cultural taboos against such a delay. As the story develops, the barriers are surmounted, and this "model couple" begins to discuss the issue -- using singing and dancing to express their concerns about family planning. Understanding audience expectations in a commercial cinema context is the key to successfully adapting this medium for social development messages. Although some foreign technical assistance was provided, the success of the 2 films described depended on how their themes were adapted to the traditional feature film format. To date, commercial cinema has been an underutilized medium for development messages. WIF's experiences demonstrate how effective, well-conceived social messages can be presented in a commercial cinema context. It is hoped this will encourage other to use this widely available channel of mass communication.

Fragmentation approach to the point-island model with hindered aggregation: Accessing the barrier energy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

González, Diego Luis; Pimpinelli, Alberto; Einstein, T. L.

2017-07-01

We study the effect of hindered aggregation on the island formation process in a one- (1D) and two-dimensional (2D) point-island model for epitaxial growth with arbitrary critical nucleus size i . In our model, the attachment of monomers to preexisting islands is hindered by an additional attachment barrier, characterized by length la. For la=0 the islands behave as perfect sinks while for la→∞ they behave as reflecting boundaries. For intermediate values of la, the system exhibits a crossover between two different kinds of processes, diffusion-limited aggregation and attachment-limited aggregation. We calculate the growth exponents of the density of islands and monomers for the low coverage and aggregation regimes. The capture-zone (CZ) distributions are also calculated for different values of i and la. In order to obtain a good spatial description of the nucleation process, we propose a fragmentation model, which is based on an approximate description of nucleation inside of the gaps for 1D and the CZs for 2D. In both cases, the nucleation is described by using two different physically rooted probabilities, which are related with the microscopic parameters of the model (i and la). We test our analytical model with extensive numerical simulations and previously established results. The proposed model describes excellently the statistical behavior of the system for arbitrary values of la and i =1 , 2, and 3.

Immunochemical Methods for Quantitation of Vitamin B6

DTIC Science & Technology

1981-09-30

pANk K:E:: Z P a . LIST OF FIGURES Page Figure 1. Synthesis of N-Carboxymethylpyridoxine 15 Figure 2. Pyridoxine and N- Substituted Derivatives 16...Pyridoxine Substituted in the 3 Position 23 Figure 6. Synthesis of as -Pyridoxylformic Acid and as - 25 Pyridoxylacetic Acid Figure 7. Fluorogenic Galactosides...CH20 (Vill) (X Figure 2. Pyridoxine and N- Substituted Derivatives 16 hinder the formation of quaternary salts (Kirpal, 1910).’" We found this to be true

Creating learner-centered classrooms: use of an audience response system in pediatric dentistry education.

PubMed

Johnson, Jeffrey T

2005-03-01

Research suggests that the exclusive use of lecture in the classroom hinders student learning. The advent of compact electronic wireless audience response systems has allowed for increased student participation in the classroom. Such technology is utilized in medical education. This article describes the use of an audience response system in a "quiz bowl" format to facilitate and improve the comprehension of student dentists in core concepts in pulp therapy for the pediatric patient.

Diastereoselective sp2-sp3 coupling of sugar enol ethers with unactivated cycloalkenes: new entries to C-branched sugars.

PubMed

Hussain, Nazar; Tatina, Madhu Babu; Rasool, Faheem; Mukherjee, Debaraj

2016-10-25

Sugar enol ethers undergo efficient coupling at C-2 with unactivated cycloalkenes under a low Pd loading affording allylic substitution products. High diastereoselectivity was observed at the allylic centre with sterically hindered substrates. Generation of a π-allyl complex by the Pd(ii) catalyst via cleavage of the allylic C-H bond of the cycloalkene may be responsible for the formation of sp 2 -sp 3 coupling products.

The Effects of Source Credibility in the Presence or Absence of Prior Attitudes: Implications for the Design of Persuasive Communication Campaigns.

PubMed

Kumkale, G Tarcan; Albarracín, Dolores; Seignourel, Paul J

2010-06-01

Most theories of persuasion predict that limited ability and motivation to think about communications should increase the impact of source credibility on persuasion. Furthermore, this effect is assumed to occur, regardless of whether or not the recipients have prior attitudes. In this study, the effects of source credibility, ability, and motivation (knowledge, message repetition, relevance) on persuasion were examined meta-analytically across both attitude formation and change conditions. Findings revealed that the Source Credibility × Ability/Motivation interaction emerged only when participants lacked prior attitudes and were unable to form a new attitude based on the message content. In such settings, the effects of source credibility decayed rapidly. The implications of these findings for applied communication campaigns are discussed.

The behavioralist as nutritionist: leveraging behavioral economics to improve child food choice and consumption.

PubMed

List, John A; Samek, Anya Savikhin

2015-01-01

We leverage behavioral economics to explore new approaches to tackling child food choice and consumption. Using a field experiment with >1500 children, we report several key insights. We find that incentives have large influences: in the control, 17% of children prefer the healthy snack, whereas introduction of small incentives increases take-up of the healthy snack to ∼75%. There is some evidence that the effects continue post-treatment, consistent with a model of habit formation. We find little evidence that the framing of incentives (loss vs. gain) matters. Educational messaging alone has little effect, but we observe a combined effect of messaging and incentives: together they provide an important influence on food choice. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The Effects of Source Credibility in the Presence or Absence of Prior Attitudes: Implications for the Design of Persuasive Communication Campaigns1

PubMed Central

Kumkale, G. Tarcan; AlbarracÍn, Dolores; Seignourel, Paul J.

2011-01-01

Most theories of persuasion predict that limited ability and motivation to think about communications should increase the impact of source credibility on persuasion. Furthermore, this effect is assumed to occur, regardless of whether or not the recipients have prior attitudes. In this study, the effects of source credibility, ability, and motivation (knowledge, message repetition, relevance) on persuasion were examined meta-analytically across both attitude formation and change conditions. Findings revealed that the Source Credibility × Ability/Motivation interaction emerged only when participants lacked prior attitudes and were unable to form a new attitude based on the message content. In such settings, the effects of source credibility decayed rapidly. The implications of these findings for applied communication campaigns are discussed. PMID:21625405

MEETING REPORT: OMG Technical Committee Meeting in Orlando, FL, sees significant enhancement to CORBA

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

1998-06-01

The Object Management Group (OMG) Platform Technology Committee (PTC) ratified its support for a new asynchronous messaging service for CORBA at OMG's recent Technical Committee Meeting in Orlando, FL. The meeting, held from 8 - 12 June, saw the PTC send the Messaging Service out for a final vote among the OMG membership. The Messaging Service, which will integrate Message Oriented Middleware (MOM) with CORBA, will give CORBA a true asynchronous messaging capability - something of great interest to users and developers. Formal adoption of the specification will most likely occur by the end of the year. The Messaging Service The Messaging Service, when adopted, will be the world's first standard for Message Oriented Middleware and will give CORBA a true asynchronous messaging capability. Asynchronous messaging allows developers to build simpler, richer client environments. With asynchronous messaging there is less need for multi-threaded clients because the Asynchronous Method Invocation is non-blocking, meaning the client thread can continue work while the application waits for a reply. David Curtis, Director of Platform Technology for OMG, said: `This messaging service is one of the more valuable additions to CORBA. It enhances CORBA's existing asynchronous messaging capabilities which is a feature of many popular message oriented middleware products. This service will allow better integration between ORBs and MOM products. This enhanced messaging capability will only make CORBA more valuable for builders of distributed object systems.' The Messaging Service is one of sixteen technologies currently being worked on by the PTC. Additionally, seventeen Revision Task Forces (RTFs) are working on keeping OMG specifications up to date. The purpose of these Revision Task Forces is to take input from the implementors of OMG specifications and clarify or make necessary changes based on the implementor's input. The RTFs also ensure that the specifications remain up to date with changes in the OMA and with industry advances in general. Domain work Thirty-eight technology processes are ongoing in the Domain Technology Committee (DTC). These range over a wide variety of industries, including healthcare, telecommunications, life sciences, manufacturing, business objects, electronic commerce, finance, transportation, utilities, and distributed simulation. These processes aim to enhance CORBA's value and provide interoperability for specific vertical industries. At the Orlando meeting, the Domain Technology Committee issued the following requests to industry: Telecom Wireless Access Request For Information (RFI); Statistics RFI; Clinical Image Access Service Request For Proposal (RFP); Distributed Simulation Request For Comment (RFC). The newly-formed Statistics group at OMG plans to standarize interfaces for Statistical Services in CORBA, and their RFI, to which any person or company can respond, asks for input and guidance as they start this work which will impact the broad spectrum of industries and processes which use statistics. The Clinical Image Access Service will standarize access to important medical images including digital x-rays, MRI scans, and other formats. The Distributed Simulation RFC, when complete, will establish the Distributed Simulation High-Level Architecture of the US Defense Military Simulation Office as an OMG standard. For the next 90 days any person or company, not only OMG members, may submit their comments on the submission. The OMG looks forward to its next meeting to be held in Helsinki, Finland, on 27 - 31 July and hosted by Nokia. OMG encourages anyone considering OMG membership to attend the meeting as a guest. For more information on attending call +1-508-820-4300 or e-mail info@omg.org. Note: descriptions for all RFPs, RFIs and RFCs in progress are available for viewing on the OMG Website at http://www.omg.org/schedule.htm, or contact OMG for a copy of the `Work in Progress' document. For more information on the OMG Technology Process please call Jeurgen Boldt, OMG Process Manager, at +1-508-820-4300 or email jeurgen@omg.org.

The perfect message at the perfect moment.

PubMed

Kalyanam, Kirthi; Zweben, Monte

2005-11-01

Marketers planning promotional campaigns ask questions to boost the odds that the messages will be accepted: Who should receive each message? What should be its content? How should we deliver it? The one question they rarely ask is, when should we deliver it? That's too bad, because in marketing, timing is arguably the most important variable of all. Indeed, there are moments in a customer's relationship with a business when she wants to communicate with that business because something has changed. If the company contacts her with the right message in the right format at the right time, there's a good chance of a warm reception. The question of "when" can be answered by a new computer-based model called "dialogue marketing," which is, to date, the highest rung on an evolutionary ladder that ascends from database marketing to relationship marketing to one-to-one marketing. Its principle advantages over older approaches are that it is completely interactive, exploits many communication channels, and is "relationship aware": that is, it continuously tracks every nuance of the customer's interaction with the business. Thus, dialogue marketing responds to each transition in that relationship at the moment the customer requires attention. Turning a traditional marketing strategy into a dialogue-marketing program is a straightforward matter. Begin by identifying the batch communications you make with customers, then ask yourself what events could trigger those communications to make them more timely. Add a question or call to action to each message and prepare a different treatment or response for each possible answer. Finally, create a series of increasingly urgent calls to action that kick in if the question or call to action goes unanswered by the customer. As dialogue marketing proliferates, it may provide the solid new footing that Madison Avenue seeks.

Report on Users' Satisfaction with Services Provided by Institutional Research. Research Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bashford, Joanne

The Office of Institutional Research (IR) at Miami-Dade Community College (M-DCC) (Florida) offers the results of a survey regarding the use of the office's services. Instead of using hard copy format as in the past, the current survey was conducted online. An e-mail message requesting participation was sent to the 3,498 employees with e-mail…

From Nominal to Quantitative Codification of Content-Neutral Variables in Graphics Research: The Beginnings of a Manifest Content Model.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Crow, Wendell C.

This paper suggests ways in which manifest, physical attributes of graphic elements can be described and measured. It also proposes a preliminary conceptual model that accounts for the readily apparent, measurable variables in a visual message. The graphic elements that are described include format, typeface, and photographs/artwork. The…

Do They Believe It When They See It?: Video News Release Effects on Viewer Recall and Attitudes.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Owen, Anne; Karrh, James A.

A study tested responses of viewers (as opposed to news organizations and sponsoring firms) to video news releases (VNRs). Subjects, 81 undergraduate students enrolled in an introductory advertising course, viewed a 30-second message about McDonald's and the Big Mac in a VNR format or an advertisement about the Big Mac special "Meal…

Effects of Dramatized Depictions of Accidents on Grade School Children's Reception of Safety Guidelines.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Omdahl, Becky L.; Cantor, Joanne

A study examined a format for fear appeal messages that introduced a threat through one medium (i.e., a segment of dramatic television programming) and the recommended action through another medium (i.e., the verbal presentation of safety guidelines by an adult to a child). Subjects, 138 elementary school children from a middle-class elementary…

Assessing and Evaluating Department of Defense Efforts to Inform, Influence, and Persuade: Handbook for Practitioners

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-01-01

Near term (weeks) Local researchers or in-house Focus groups Develop messages and test products Validate and interpret quantitative results Medium... Testing the Survey Design : Best Practices in Survey Implementation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76 Pretesting ...be presented and tested in other focus groups , with feedback contributing to revisions. Formative research could include limited pilot testing of

Recall of Television Advertising Messages as Influenced by Commercial Pod Position and Commercial/Program Affect Congruity or Dissonance.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gutenko, Gregory

A study examined viewer recall of television commercial content as influenced by both commercial spot positioning within breaks and the congruence or dissonance of the affective (emotionally evocative) formats of the program contexts and commercials. Objectives were to determine whether commercials will have greater rates of viewer recall if: (1)…

75 FR 27926 - Notice of Availability of Interpretive Rule on the Applicability of Current Water Conservation...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-05-19

... the message. Comments and suggestions should be provided in WordPerfect, Microsoft Word, PDF, or text file format. The full text of the interpretive rule is available at http://www1.eere.energy.gov.... The full text of the interpretive rule is available at http://www1.eere.energy.gov/buildings/appliance...

Tell Me a Story About Healthy Snacking and I Will Follow: Comparing the Effectiveness of Self-Generated Versus Message-Aided Implementation Intentions on Promoting Healthy Snacking Habits Among College Students.

PubMed

Oh, Hyun Jung; Larose, Robert

2015-01-01

In the context of healthy snacking, this study examines whether the quality of mental imagery determines the effectiveness of combining the implementation intention (II) intervention with mental imagery. This study further explores whether providing narrative healthy snacking scenarios prior to forming an II enhances people's mental imagery experience when they are not motivated to snack healthfully. A 2 × 2 factorial design was employed to test the main effect of providing healthy snacking scenarios prior to II formation, and whether such effect depends on people's motivation level. The results from the experiment (N =148) showed significant main as well as interaction effects of the manipulation (with vs. without reading healthy snacking scenarios prior to II formation) and motivation level on ease and vividness of mental imagery. The regression model with the experiment and follow-up survey data (n = 128) showed a significant relationship between ease of mental imagery and actual snacking behavior after controlling for habit strength. The findings suggest that adding a narrative message to the II intervention can be useful, especially when the intervention involves mental imagery and invites less motivated people.

Give me 'strength to change': insights into a social marketing campaign in the North of England.

PubMed

Thomson, Gill; Stanley, Nicky; Miller, Pam

2013-10-01

In this paper, we report on how formative research was utilised to design a social marketing campaign commissioned by a Primary Care Trust within an area of high social deprivation in the North of England. Men represent the majority of perpetrators of domestic violence and there is increasing interest in developing services for this group with the aim of changing abusive behaviour. However, men are known to be less likely to engage in help-seeking behaviours, and this reticence has been attributed to the social construction of masculinity. A further barrier for men seeking help in relation to domestic violence is the cultural construction of domestic violence. Formative research was undertaken to explore the perceptions and attitudes of a community population of males (n584). Focus groups explored barriers and drivers to help-seeking and identified effective communication messages. These findings were translated into the 'Strength to Change' campaign that minimised stigmatisation and blame while emphasising help-seeking as a 'strength' rather than a perceived weakness. Social marketing techniques facilitated an in-depth appreciation of local barriers to help-seeking and generated context-specific messages to encourage take-up of a new service for male perpetrators.

Role of Salt, Pressure, and Water Activity on Homogeneous Ice Nucleation.

PubMed

Espinosa, Jorge R; Soria, Guiomar D; Ramirez, Jorge; Valeriani, Chantal; Vega, Carlos; Sanz, Eduardo

2017-09-21

Pure water can be substantially supercooled below the melting temperature without transforming into ice. The achievable supercooling can be enhanced by adding solutes or by applying hydrostatic pressure. Avoiding ice formation is of great importance in the cryopreservation of food or biological samples. In this Letter, we investigate the similarity between the effects of pressure and salt on ice formation using a combination of state-of-the-art simulation techniques. We find that both hinder ice formation by increasing the energetic cost of creating the ice-fluid interface. Moreover, we examine the widely accepted proposal that the ice nucleation rate for different pressures and solute concentrations can be mapped through the activity of water [ Koop , L. ; Tsias , P. Nature , 2000 , 406 , 611 ]. We show that such a proposal is not consistent with the nucleation rates predicted in our simulations because it does not include all parameters affecting ice nucleation. Therefore, even though salt and pressure have a qualitatively similar effect on ice formation, they cannot be quantitatively mapped onto one another.

How to be more attractive… when communicating science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ocko, I.

2015-12-01

Let's face it; we live in a culture that is captivated by attractive things. Beautiful celebrities, sleek smartphones, fancy cars, high fashion, stunning architecture, and more. Research even shows that we pay more attention to people and objects we find attractive. This talk is about taking advantage of this reality by applying it to science communication; luring in an audience and keeping their attention is essential to effective knowledge transfer. When the material is presented in an attractive and engaging format, the audience, lay or even expert, is more interested and thus educated and informed.Visuals, in particular, are powerful communication tools, as they: transmit messages faster; improve comprehension; trigger emotions; increase a learner's attention; stick in long-term memory; motivate learners; and promote widespread sharing of content. Experts suggest that more than half of the U.S. public prefers to learn visually; 90% of information transmitted to the brain is visual; people are much more inclined to spend the time learning something if it is presented in a visual format; and visuals increase retention scores from 10% to 90% after three days of learning the material. One study even suggested that individuals respond markedly better to infographic messages than text-based messages regardless of their learning style or visual literacy. In 2012, Google Search scored the keyword "infographic" with the highest possible trend score of 100.Attractive visuals are an excellent and beneficial complement to presentations, blog posts, news articles, scientific articles, reports, and memos. While various challenges often inhibit scientists from incorporating visuals (time commitment, skillset, software, etc.)—thus leading to missed opportunities—there are many simple strategies that can be used to circumvent common obstacles.

Foe or friend? Janus-faces of the neurovascular unit in the formation of brain metastases.

PubMed

Wilhelm, Imola; Fazakas, Csilla; Molnár, Kinga; Végh, Attila G; Haskó, János; Krizbai, István A

2018-04-01

Despite the potential obstacle represented by the blood-brain barrier for extravasating malignant cells, metastases are more frequent than primary tumors in the central nervous system. Not only tightly interconnected endothelial cells can hinder metastasis formation, other cells of the brain microenvironment (like astrocytes and microglia) can also be very hostile, destroying the large majority of metastatic cells. However, malignant cells that are able to overcome these harmful mechanisms may benefit from the shielding and even support provided by cerebral endothelial cells, astrocytes and microglia, rendering the brain a sanctuary site against anti-tumor strategies. Thus, cells of the neurovascular unit have a Janus-faced attitude towards brain metastatic cells, being both destructive and protective. In this review, we present the main mechanisms of brain metastasis formation, including those involved in extravasation through the brain vasculature and survival in the cerebral environment.

Tyrosine 370 phosphorylation of ATM positively regulates DNA damage response

PubMed Central

Lee, Hong-Jen; Lan, Li; Peng, Guang; Chang, Wei-Chao; Hsu, Ming-Chuan; Wang, Ying-Nai; Cheng, Chien-Chia; Wei, Leizhen; Nakajima, Satoshi; Chang, Shih-Shin; Liao, Hsin-Wei; Chen, Chung-Hsuan; Lavin, Martin; Ang, K Kian; Lin, Shiaw-Yih; Hung, Mien-Chie

2015-01-01

Ataxia telangiectasia mutated (ATM) mediates DNA damage response by controling irradiation-induced foci formation, cell cycle checkpoint, and apoptosis. However, how upstream signaling regulates ATM is not completely understood. Here, we show that upon irradiation stimulation, ATM associates with and is phosphorylated by epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) at Tyr370 (Y370) at the site of DNA double-strand breaks. Depletion of endogenous EGFR impairs ATM-mediated foci formation, homologous recombination, and DNA repair. Moreover, pretreatment with an EGFR kinase inhibitor, gefitinib, blocks EGFR and ATM association, hinders CHK2 activation and subsequent foci formation, and increases radiosensitivity. Thus, we reveal a critical mechanism by which EGFR directly regulates ATM activation in DNA damage response, and our results suggest that the status of ATM Y370 phosphorylation has the potential to serve as a biomarker to stratify patients for either radiotherapy alone or in combination with EGFR inhibition. PMID:25601159

Electron spin resonance of (CO 2 H)CH 2 CH 2 CH(CO 2 H) in irradiated glutaric acid

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Horsfield, A.; Morton, J. R.; Whiffen, D. H.

It is concluded from electron spin resonance spectra that the radical (CO 2 H)CH 2 CH 2 CH(CO 2 H) remains trapped in a glutaric acid crystal after gamma -irradiation. This radical is found in two different conformations. Approximate hyperfine coupling constants are given for each, although exact interpretation is hindered by the overlapping of spectra. Reasons for the formation of the two forms of the radical are discussed.

Building Trust: The Challenge of Building Partnership Capacity in U.S.-Mexico Military Relations

DTIC Science & Technology

2014-03-01

culture devoted to an extreme lineal hierarchy, especially during this developmental process, tends to hinder the ability of the member to retain and use...www.sedena.gob.mx/index.php/ educacion -militar. 25 educational objectives. These extreme vertical culture becomes a huge road block for those who want others to...in Veracruz and the acts of valor by the Mexican people— especially by the naval cadets—were fully embedded throughout the formation of all Mexican

Development of infrared goggles and prototype

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tsuchimoto, Kouzou; Komatsubara, Shigeyuki; Fujikawa, Masaru; Otsuka, Toshiaki; Kan, Moriyasu; Matsumura, Norihide

2006-05-01

We aimed at developing a hands free type practical wearable thermography which will not hinder walking or working of the person wearing the equipment. We installed a small format camera core module, which was recently developed, into the fire fighter's helmet and incorporated image transmission function over radio to the equipment. We combined this thermography with a see-through type head mount display, and called it "Infrared Goggles". A prototype was developed for verification test of lifesaving support system in fire fighting activities.

Microbial advanced biofuels production: overcoming emulsification challenges for large-scale operation.

PubMed

Heeres, Arjan S; Picone, Carolina S F; van der Wielen, Luuk A M; Cunha, Rosiane L; Cuellar, Maria C

2014-04-01

Isoprenoids and alkanes produced and secreted by microorganisms are emerging as an alternative biofuel for diesel and jet fuel replacements. In a similar way as for other bioprocesses comprising an organic liquid phase, the presence of microorganisms, medium composition, and process conditions may result in emulsion formation during fermentation, hindering product recovery. At the same time, a low-cost production process overcoming this challenge is required to make these advanced biofuels a feasible alternative. We review the main mechanisms and causes of emulsion formation during fermentation, because a better understanding on the microscale can give insights into how to improve large-scale processes and the process technology options that can address these challenges. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

What makes people talk about antibiotics on social media? A retrospective analysis of Twitter use.

PubMed

Dyar, Oliver J; Castro-Sánchez, Enrique; Holmes, Alison H

2014-09-01

Social media has reshaped individual and institutional communication. The unrestricted access to spontaneous views and opinions of society can enrich the evaluation of healthcare interventions. Antimicrobial resistance has been identified as a global threat to health requiring collaboration between clinicians and healthcare users. We sought to explore events and individuals influencing the discourse about antibiotics on Twitter. A web-based tool (www.topsy.com) was used to detect daily occurrences of the word 'antibiotic' from 24 September 2012 to 23 September 2013 in worldwide Tweets. Activity peaks (message frequency over three times that of baseline) were analysed to identify events leading to the increase. Of 135 billion messages posted during the study period, 243000 (0.000002%) referred to 'antibiotic'. The greatest activity increases appeared after: (i) the UK Chief Medical Officer's (CMO's) declaration of antimicrobial resistance as a national risk (January 2013 and March 2013); (ii) the release of the US CDC's report on antimicrobial resistance (September 2013); and (iii) the US FDA announcement on azithromycin safety concerns (March 2013). The CMO report in March reached an estimated worldwide audience of 20 million users in a single day. However, the frequency of antibiotic Tweets returned to basal levels within 48 h of all four peaks in activity. Institutional events can rapidly amplify antibiotic discussions on social media, but their short lifespan may hinder their public impact. Multipronged strategies may be required to prolong responses. Developing methods to refine social media monitoring to evaluate the impact and sustainability of societal engagement in the antimicrobial resistance agenda remains essential. © The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the British Society for Antimicrobial Chemotherapy.

Development and promotion of Malaysian Dietary Guidelines.

PubMed

Tee, E-Siong

2011-01-01

Development and promotion of dietary guidelines is one of the key activities outlined in the National Plan of Action for Nutrition of Malaysia for the prevention of nutrition-related disorders. The first official Malaysian Dietary Guidelines (MDG) was published in 1999 and was thoroughly reviewed and launched on 25 March 2010. The new MDG 2010 is a compilation of science-based nutrition and physical activity recommendations. These guidelines form the basis of consistent and scientifically sound nutrition messages for the public. There are 14 key messages and 55 recommendations, covering the whole range of food and nutrition issues, from importance of consuming a variety of foods to guidance on specific food groups, messages to encourage physical activities, consuming safe food and beverages and making effective use of nutrition information on food labels. The MDG also has an updated food pyramid. Various efforts have been made to ensure that the revised MDG is disseminated to all stakeholders. The Ministry of Health has organised a series of workshops for nutritionists and other health care professionals, and the food industry. In collaboration with other professional bodies and the private sector, the Nutrition Society of Malaysia has been promoting the dissemination and usage of the MDG to the public through a variety of formats and channels. These include the publication of a series of leaflets, educational press articles, educational booklets, as well as through educational activities for children. It is imperative to monitor the usage and evaluation of these dietary messages.

Testing the effect of text messaging cues to promote physical activity habits: a worksite-based exploratory intervention.

PubMed

Fournier, M; d'Arripe-Longueville, F; Radel, R

2017-10-01

This study aims to test the efficacy of text messaging cues (SMS) to promote physical activity (PA) habit formation in the workplace. Employees (N = 49; 28 females and 21 males, Mage = 47.5 ± 8.29 years) were randomized into two parallel groups: a PA group enrolled in a 28-week supervised PA program and a PA+SMS group enrolled in the same PA program with text messaging cues received before their PA sessions. The exercise habit was assessed every week from self-reports on an online application. PA maintenance and several physical fitness measures were also assessed prior to and after the intervention to evaluate its general impact. Mixed model analysis of the 603 observations indicated a small but significant effect of the SMS cues on the speed at which participants engaged in PA behaviors, as the significant interaction effect revealed that the slope of the exercise habit over time was slightly steeper in the PA+SMS group (B = 0.0462, P = 0.0001) than in the PA group (B = 0.0216, P = 0.01). SMS delivery had a marginal effect on the maintenance of PA behaviors 1 year after the intervention. The results suggest that text messaging can help to form PA habits at the workplace and might facilitate long-term maintenance of PA behaviors. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Developing Family Healthware, a family history screening tool to prevent common chronic diseases.

PubMed

Yoon, Paula W; Scheuner, Maren T; Jorgensen, Cynthia; Khoury, Muin J

2009-01-01

Family health history reflects the effects of genetic, environmental, and behavioral factors and is an important risk factor for a variety of disorders including coronary heart disease, cancer, and diabetes. In 2004, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention developed Family Healthware, a new interactive, Web-based tool that assesses familial risk for 6 diseases (coronary heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and colorectal, breast, and ovarian cancer) and provides a "prevention plan" with personalized recommendations for lifestyle changes and screening. The tool collects data on health behaviors, screening tests, and disease history of a person's first- and second-degree relatives. Algorithms in the software analyze the family history data and assess familial risk based on the number of relatives affected, their age at disease onset, their sex, how closely related the relatives are to each other and to the user, and the combinations of diseases in the family. A second set of algorithms uses the data on familial risk level, health behaviors, and screening to generate personalized prevention messages. Qualitative and quantitative formative research on lay understanding of family history and genetics helped shape the tool's content, labels, and messages. Lab-based usability testing helped refine messages and tool navigation. The tool is being evaluated by 3 academic centers by using a network of primary care practices to determine whether personalized prevention messages tailored to familial risk will motivate people at risk to change their lifestyles or screening behaviors.

The use of culturally themed HIV messages and their implications for future behaviour change communication campaigns: the case of Botswana.

PubMed

Ntshebe, O; Pitso, J M N; Segobye, A K

2006-08-01

The 'ABC' approach promoted at the beginning of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Botswana has failed to yield significant behaviour change. Formative research was conducted in urban, semi-urban and rural areas to explore how the use of sociocultural messages depicted in posters elicited people's response to HIV/AIDS-related behaviours. The research interrogated values and practices underpinning Tswana philosophy in relation to parent-child communication, voluntary counselling and testing, condom use and faithfulness. A total of 206 individuals aged 15 - 49 years were purposively interviewed. The results showed that this campaign was perceived as an activation of positive Batswana culture to modify harmful norms, values and social practices, drawing upon those cultural aspects favouring more positive behaviour. We conclude that behaviour change communication should promote links to cultural values and principles. This can be achieved by: communication in other languages in order to reach all groups in Botswana; providing opportunities for venturing into other ways of communicating HIV/AIDS messages to Batswana in light of literacy skills; and using communication media that is developed on the basis of cultural approaches and focuses on segmented population groups.

Pro-socially shareable entertainment television programmes: a programming alternative in developing countries?

PubMed

Singhal, A; Svenkerud, P J

1994-12-01

Over the period 1975-82, the Mexican television network created and aired seven entertainment soap operas promoting educational-development themes like adult literacy, smaller family size norms, and an higher social status for women. These emissions earned high ratings in Mexico and in other Latin American countries where they were subsequently broadcast. Evidence suggests that many of the social objectives of the soaps were met. In light of such success, the authors investigated the potential of pro-socially shareable entertainment television programs in developing countries. These programs use entertaining media formats to carry pro-social messages to a wide, yet culturally-proximate audience group. Entertainment television genres such as melodramatic soap operas offer certain advantages for carrying pro-socially shareable messages to audiences. The possibility of using other television genres and media channels, however, also needs to be seriously considered. Pro-socially shareable entertainment programs do have their limitations and problems, with a certain degree of message dilution invariably accompanying the quest for shareability. Targeting specific problems in specific audience groups is difficult and the identity of a relatively small homogeneous group can be threatened in a larger culturally proximate group. The value-laden nature of pro-social content can also be problematic.

Growing trees in internet news groups and forums

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kujawski, B.; Hołyst, J.; Rodgers, G. J.

2007-09-01

We present an empirical study of the networks created by users within internet news groups and forums and show that they organize themselves into scale-free trees. The structure of these trees depends on the topic under discussion; specialist topics have trees with a short shallow structure whereas more universal topics are discussed widely and have a deeper tree structure. For news groups we find that the distribution of the time intervals between when a message is posted and when it receives a response exhibits a composite power-law behavior. From our statistics we can see if the news group or forum is free or is overseen by a moderator. The correlation function of activity, the number of messages posted in a given time, shows long-range correlations connected with the users’ daily routines. The distribution of distances between each message and its root is exponential for most news groups and power law for the forums. For both formats we find that the relation between the supremacy (the total number of nodes that are under the node i , including node i ) and the degree is linear s(k)˜k , in contrast to the analytical relation for the Barabási-Albert network.

Low-Income Women's Feeding Practices and Perceptions of Dietary Guidance: A Qualitative Study.

PubMed

Savage, Jennifer S; Neshteruk, Cody D; Balantekin, Katherine N; Birch, Leann L

2016-12-01

Objectives Describe themes characterizing feeding behaviors of low-income women participating in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC), and identify the attitudes, beliefs, and sources of information that inform these practices. Methods Formative research was conducted including focus groups and semi-structured individual phone interviews with a total of 68 low-income women participating in WIC. Qualitative data were recorded, transcribed, imported into NVivo 8.0, and analyzed for common themes. Results Mothers reported feeding behaviors inconsistent with guidance from WIC and the American Academy of Pediatrics. Three main themes were identified. First, mothers reported receiving conflicting messaging/advice from medical professionals, WIC nutritionists, and family members, which was confusing. Mothers also reported dissatisfaction with the "one size fits most" approach. Lastly, mothers reported relying on their "instincts" and that "all babies are different" when deciding and rationalizing what feeding guidance to follow. Conclusions Future interventions targeting this high-risk population should consider developing personalized (individualized) messaging, tailored to the needs of each mother-child dyad. Focused efforts are needed to build partnerships between WIC providers and other health care providers to provide more consistent messages about responsive feeding to prevent early obesity.

Standardizing Navigation Data: A Status Update

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

VanEepoel, John M.; Berry, David S.; Pallaschke, Siegmar; Foliard, Jacques; Kiehling, Reinhard; Ogawa, Mina; Showell, Avanaugh; Fertig, Juergen; Castronuovo, Marco

2007-01-01

This paper presents the work of the Navigation Working Group of the Consultative Committee for Space Data Systems (CCSDS) on development of standards addressing the transfer of orbit, attitude and tracking data for space objects. Much progress has been made since the initial presentation of the standards in 2004, including the progression of the orbit data standard to an accepted standard, and the near completion of the attitude and tracking data standards. The orbit, attitude and tracking standards attempt to address predominant parameterizations for their respective data, and create a message format that enables communication of the data across space agencies and other entities. The messages detailed in each standard are built upon a keyword = value paradigm, where a fixed list of keywords is provided in the standard where users specify information about their data, and also use keywords to encapsulate their data. The paper presents a primer on the CCSDS standardization process to put in context the state of the message standards, and the parameterizations supported in each standard, then shows examples of these standards for orbit, attitude and tracking data. Finalization of the standards is expected by the end of calendar year 2007.

A novel fuzzy logic-based image steganography method to ensure medical data security.

PubMed

Karakış, R; Güler, I; Çapraz, I; Bilir, E

2015-12-01

This study aims to secure medical data by combining them into one file format using steganographic methods. The electroencephalogram (EEG) is selected as hidden data, and magnetic resonance (MR) images are also used as the cover image. In addition to the EEG, the message is composed of the doctor׳s comments and patient information in the file header of images. Two new image steganography methods that are based on fuzzy-logic and similarity are proposed to select the non-sequential least significant bits (LSB) of image pixels. The similarity values of the gray levels in the pixels are used to hide the message. The message is secured to prevent attacks by using lossless compression and symmetric encryption algorithms. The performance of stego image quality is measured by mean square of error (MSE), peak signal-to-noise ratio (PSNR), structural similarity measure (SSIM), universal quality index (UQI), and correlation coefficient (R). According to the obtained result, the proposed method ensures the confidentiality of the patient information, and increases data repository and transmission capacity of both MR images and EEG signals. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Adolescent judgment of sexual content on television: implications for future content analysis research.

PubMed

Manganello, Jennifer A; Henderson, Vani R; Jordan, Amy; Trentacoste, Nicole; Martin, Suzanne; Hennessy, Michael; Fishbein, Martin

2010-07-01

Many studies of sexual messages in media utilize content analysis methods. At times, this research assumes that researchers and trained coders using content analysis methods and the intended audience view and interpret media content similarly. This article compares adolescents' perceptions of the presence or absence of sexual content on television to those of researchers using three different coding schemes. Results from this formative research study suggest that participants and researchers are most likely to agree with content categories assessing manifest content, and that differences exist among adolescents who view sexual messages on television. Researchers using content analysis methods to examine sexual content in media and media effects on sexual behavior should consider identifying how audience characteristics may affect interpretation of content and account for audience perspectives in content analysis study protocols when appropriate for study goals.

The development of MML (Medical Markup Language) version 3.0 as a medical document exchange format for HL7 messages.

PubMed

Guo, Jinqiu; Takada, Akira; Tanaka, Koji; Sato, Junzo; Suzuki, Muneou; Suzuki, Toshiaki; Nakashima, Yusei; Araki, Kenji; Yoshihara, Hiroyuki

2004-12-01

Medical Markup Language (MML), as a set of standards, has been developed over the last 8 years to allow the exchange of medical data between different medical information providers. MML Version 2.21 used XML as a metalanguage and was announced in 1999. In 2001, MML was updated to Version 2.3, which contained 12 modules. The latest version--Version 3.0--is based on the HL7 Clinical Document Architecture (CDA). During the development of this new version, the structure of MML Version 2.3 was analyzed, subdivided into several categories, and redefined so the information defined in MML could be described in HL7 CDA Level One. As a result of this development, it has become possible to exchange MML Version 3.0 medical documents via HL7 messages.

Developing a Research Method for Testing New Curriculum Ideas: Report No. 1 on Using Marketing Research in a Lifelong Learning Organization.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Haskins, Jack B.

A survey method was developed and used to determine interest in new course topics at the Learning Institute for Elders (LIFE) at the University of Central Florida. In the absence of a known validated method for course concept testing, this approach was modeled after the "message pretesting," or formative, research used and validated in…

The Effects of Argument Quality and Involvement Type on Attitude Formation and Attitude Change: A Test of Dual-Process and Social Judgment Predictions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Park, Hee Sun; Levine, Timothy R.; Kingsley Westerman, Catherine Y.; Orfgen, Tierney; Foregger, Sarah

2007-01-01

Involvement has long been theoretically specified as a crucial factor determining the persuasive impact of messages. In social judgment theory, ego-involvement makes people more resistant to persuasion, whereas in dual-process models, high-involvement people are susceptible to persuasion when argument quality is high. It is argued that these…

Draft Title 40 CFR 191 compliance certification application for the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant. Volume 8: Appendices HYDRO, IRD, LTM, NUTS, PAR, PMR, QAPD, RBP

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

NONE

Geohydrologic data have been collected in the Los Medanos area at the US Department of Energy`s proposed Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) site in southeastern New Mexico since 1975 as part of a study evaluating the feasibility of storing defense-associated nuclear wastes within the bedded salt of the Salado Formation of Permian age. Drilling and hydrologic testing have identified three principal water-bearing zones above the Salado Formation and one below that could potentially transport wastes to the biosphere if the proposed facility were breached. The zones above the Salado are the contact between the Rustler and Salado Formations and themore » Culebra and Magenta Dolomite Members of the Rustler Formation of Permian age. The zone below the Salado Formation consists of channel sandstones in the Bell Canyon Formation of the Permian Delaware Mountain Group. Determinations of hydraulic gradients, directions of flow, and hydraulic properties were hindered because of the negligible permeability of the water-bearing zones. Special techniques in drilling, well completion, and hydraulic testing have been developed to determine the hydrologic characteristics of these water-producing zones.« less

Ensuring it works: a community-based approach to HIV prevention intervention development for men who have sex with men in Chennai, India.

PubMed

Thomas, Beena; Mimiaga, Matthew J; Mayer, Kenneth H; Closson, Elizabeth F; Johnson, Carey V; Menon, Sunil; Mani, Jamuna; Vijaylakshmi, R; Dilip, Meenalochini; Betancourt, Theresa; Safren, Steven A

2012-12-01

Men who have sex with men (MSM) in India have an HIV seroprevalence 22 times greater than the country's general population and face unique challenges that may hinder the effectiveness of current HIV prevention efforts. To obtain an understanding of the logistical and sociocultural barriers MSM experience while accessing HIV prevention services, focus groups and key informant interviews were conducted with 55 MSM in Chennai, India. Qualitative data were analyzed using descriptive qualitative content analysis. Sixty-five percent of participants identified as kothi (receptive partners), 9% as panthi (insertive partners), 22% as double decker (receptive and insertive), and 4% did not disclose. Themes included: (a) fatigue with current HIV risk reduction messages; (b) increased need for non-judgmental and confidential services; and (c) inclusion of content that acknowledges individual and structural-level determinants of risk such as low self-esteem, depression, and social discrimination. MSM interventions may benefit from approaches that address multilevel psychosocial factors, including skills building and strategies to foster self-acceptance and increased social support.

The Media as an Invaluable Tool for Informal Earth System Science Education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

James, E.; Gautier, C.

2001-12-01

One of the most widely utilized avenues for educating the general public about the Earth's environment is the media, be it print, radio or broadcast. Accurate and effective communication of issues in Earth System Science (ESS), however, is significantly hindered by the public's relative scientific illiteracy. Discussion of ESS concepts requires the laying down of a foundation of complex scientific information, which must first be conveyed to an incognizant audience before any strata of sophisticated social context can be appropriately considered. Despite such a substantial obstacle to be negotiated, the environmental journalist is afforded the unique opportunity of providing a broad-reaching informal scientific education to a largely scientifically uninformed population base. This paper will review the tools used by various environmental journalists to address ESS issues and consider how successful each of these approaches has been at conveying complex scientific messages to a general audience lacking sufficient scientific sophistication. Different kinds of media materials used to this effect will be analyzed for their ideas and concepts conveyed, as well as their effectiveness in reaching the public at large.

ENSURING IT WORKS: A COMMUNITY-BASED APPROACH TO HIV PREVENTION INTERVENTION DEVELOPMENT FOR MEN WHO HAVE SEX WITH MEN IN CHENNAI, INDIA

PubMed Central

Thomas, Beena; Mimiaga, Matthew J.; Mayer, Kenneth H.; Closson, Elizabeth F.; Johnson, Carey V.; Menon, Sunil; Mani, Jamuna; Vijaylakshmi, R.; Dilip, Meenalochini; Betancourt, Theresa; Safren, Steven A.

2013-01-01

Men who have sex with men (MSM) in India have an HIV seroprevalence 22 times greater than the country’s general population and face unique challenges that may hinder the effectiveness of current HIV prevention efforts. To obtain an understanding of the logistical and sociocultural barriers MSM experience while accessing HIV prevention services, focus groups and key informant interviews were conducted with 55 MSM in Chennai, India. Qualitative data were analyzed using descriptive qualitative content analysis. Sixty-five percent of participants identified as kothi (receptive partners), 9% as panthi (insertive partners), 22% as double decker (receptive and insertive), and 4% did not disclose. Themes included: (a) fatigue with current HIV risk reduction messages; (b) increased need for non-judgmental and confidential services; and (c) inclusion of content that acknowledges individual and structural-level determinants of risk such as low self-esteem, depression, and social discrimination. MSM interventions may benefit from approaches that address multilevel psychosocial factors, including skills building and strategies to foster self-acceptance and increased social support. PMID:23206199

Mobile Phone Short Messages to Improve Exclusive Breastfeeding and Reduce Adverse Infant Feeding Practices: Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial in Yangon, Myanmar.

PubMed

Hmone, Myat Pan; Li, Mu; Alam, Ashraful; Dibley, Michael J

2017-06-28

Myanmar has a high burden of mortality for children aged younger than 5 years in which undernutrition plays a major role. Despite current efforts, the exclusive breastfeeding rate for children under 6 months is only 24%. To date there have been no interventions using mobile phones to improve breastfeeding and other feeding practices in Myanmar. This study aims to implement a breastfeeding promotion intervention using mobile phone text messages in Yangon, Myanmar, and evaluate its impact on breastfeeding practices. M528 is a 2-group parallel-arm randomized controlled trial with 9 months follow-up from recruitment until 6 months post-delivery. A total of 353 pregnant women between 28 and 34 weeks' gestation who had access to a mobile phone and were able to read and write have been recruited from the Central Women's Hospital, Yangon, and allocated randomly to an intervention or control group in a 1:1 ratio. The intervention group received breastfeeding promotional SMS messages 3 times a week while the control group received maternal and child health care messages (excluding breastfeeding-related messages) once a week. The SMS messages were tailored for the women's stage of gestation or the child's age. A formative qualitative study was conducted prior to the trial to inform the study design and text message content. We hypothesize that the exclusive breastfeeding rate in the intervention group will be double that in the control group. The primary outcome is exclusive breastfeeding from birth to 6 months and secondary outcomes are median durations of exclusive breastfeeding and other infant feeding practices. Both primary and secondary outcomes were assessed by monthly phone calls at 1 to 6 months postdelivery in both groups. Participants' delivery status was tracked through text messages, phone calls, and hospital records, and delivery characteristics were assessed 1 month after delivery. Child morbidity and breastfeeding self-efficacy scores were assessed at 1, 3, and 5 months postdelivery. Social desirability was measured at 5 months, and text messages expressing delivery success and user experience were assessed at the end of the study. The targeted 353 pregnant women were recruited between January and March 2015. Baseline data have been collected; SMS messages have been developed and pretested and sent to the women from both groups. Follow-up data collection via phone calls has been completed. Data analysis is being done and results are expected soon. This is the first RCT study examining the effects of mobile text messaging for promoting exclusive breastfeeding. This trial is timely in Myanmar following the telecommunications market opening in 2014. Our results will help determine whether text messaging is an effective and feasible method for promoting appropriate feeding practices and will inform further research to assess how this model could be replicated in the broader community. Australian New Zealand Clinical Trial Registry ACTRN12615000063516; https://anzctr.org.au/Trial/Registration/TrialReview.aspx?id=367704 (Archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/ 6rGif3l81). ©Myat Pan Hmone, Mu Li, Ashraful Alam, Michael J Dibley. Originally published in JMIR Research Protocols (http://www.researchprotocols.org), 28.06.2017.

Fragmentation approach to the point-island model with hindered aggregation: Accessing the barrier energy.

PubMed

González, Diego Luis; Pimpinelli, Alberto; Einstein, T L

2017-07-01

We study the effect of hindered aggregation on the island formation process in a one- (1D) and two-dimensional (2D) point-island model for epitaxial growth with arbitrary critical nucleus size i. In our model, the attachment of monomers to preexisting islands is hindered by an additional attachment barrier, characterized by length l_{a}. For l_{a}=0 the islands behave as perfect sinks while for l_{a}→∞ they behave as reflecting boundaries. For intermediate values of l_{a}, the system exhibits a crossover between two different kinds of processes, diffusion-limited aggregation and attachment-limited aggregation. We calculate the growth exponents of the density of islands and monomers for the low coverage and aggregation regimes. The capture-zone (CZ) distributions are also calculated for different values of i and l_{a}. In order to obtain a good spatial description of the nucleation process, we propose a fragmentation model, which is based on an approximate description of nucleation inside of the gaps for 1D and the CZs for 2D. In both cases, the nucleation is described by using two different physically rooted probabilities, which are related with the microscopic parameters of the model (i and l_{a}). We test our analytical model with extensive numerical simulations and previously established results. The proposed model describes excellently the statistical behavior of the system for arbitrary values of l_{a} and i=1, 2, and 3.

The Ontario printed educational message (OPEM) trial to narrow the evidence-practice gap with respect to prescribing practices of general and family physicians: a cluster randomized controlled trial, targeting the care of individuals with diabetes and hypertension in Ontario, Canada

PubMed Central

Zwarenstein, Merrick; Hux, Janet E; Kelsall, Diane; Paterson, Michael; Grimshaw, Jeremy; Davis, Dave; Laupacis, Andreas; Evans, Michael; Austin, Peter C; Slaughter, Pamela M; Shiller, Susan K; Croxford, Ruth; Tu, Karen

2007-01-01

Background There are gaps between what family practitioners do in clinical practice and the evidence-based ideal. The most commonly used strategy to narrow these gaps is the printed educational message (PEM); however, the attributes of successful printed educational messages and their overall effectiveness in changing physician practice are not clear. The current endeavor aims to determine whether such messages change prescribing quality in primary care practice, and whether these effects differ with the format of the message. Methods/design The design is a large, simple, factorial, unblinded cluster-randomized controlled trial. PEMs will be distributed with informed, a quarterly evidence-based synopsis of current clinical information produced by the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences, Toronto, Canada, and will be sent to all eligible general and family practitioners in Ontario. There will be three replicates of the trial, with three different educational messages, each aimed at narrowing a specific evidence-practice gap as follows: 1) angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors, hypertension treatment, and cholesterol lowering agents for diabetes; 2) retinal screening for diabetes; and 3) diuretics for hypertension. For each of the three replicates there will be three intervention groups. The first group will receive informed with an attached postcard-sized, short, directive "outsert." The second intervention group will receive informed with a two-page explanatory "insert" on the same topic. The third intervention group will receive informed, with both the above-mentioned outsert and insert. The control group will receive informed only, without either an outsert or insert. Routinely collected physician billing, prescription, and hospital data found in Ontario's administrative databases will be used to monitor pre-defined prescribing changes relevant and specific to each replicate, following delivery of the educational messages. Multi-level modeling will be used to study patterns in physician-prescribing quality over four quarters, before and after each of the three interventions. Subgroup analyses will be performed to assess the association between the characteristics of the physician's place of practice and target behaviours. A further analysis of the immediate and delayed impacts of the PEMs will be performed using time-series analysis and interventional, auto-regressive, integrated moving average modeling. Trial registration number Current controlled trial ISRCTN72772651. PMID:18039361

Flammability of self-extinguishing kenaf/ABS nanoclays composite for aircraft secondary structure

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Karunakaran, S.; Majid, D. L.; Mohd Tawil, M. L.

2016-10-01

This study investigates the flammability properties of kenaf fiber reinforced acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) with nanoclays composites. Natural fiber is one of the potential materials to be used with thermoplastic as a composite due to its attractive properties such as lightweight and strong. In this paper, flammability properties of this material are evaluated through Underwriters Laboratory 94 Horizontal Burning (UL94 HB), which has been conducted for both controlled and uncontrolled conditions, smoke density and limiting oxygen index tests (LOI). These flammability tests are in compliance with the Federal Aviation Regulation (FAR) requirement. The results from UL94 HB and smoke density tests show that the presence of nanoclays with effective composition of kenaf fiber reinforced ABS has enhanced the burning characteristics of the material by hindering propagation of flame spread over the surface of the material through char formation. Consequently, this decreases the burning rate and produces low amount of smoke during burning. On contrary, through LOI test, this material requires less oxygen to burn when exposed to fire, which hinders the enhancement of burning characteristics. This is due to burning mechanism exhibited by nanoclays that catalyzes barrier formation and flame propagation rate over the surface of the biocomposite material. Overall, these experimental results suggest that this biocomposite material is capable of self-extinguishing and possesses effective fire extinction. The observed novel synergism from the result obtained is promising to be implemented in secondary structures of aircraft with significant benefits such as cost-effective, lightweight and biodegradable self-extinguishing biocomposite.

Quadruplexes of human telomere dG{sub 3}(TTAG{sub 3}){sub 3} sequences containing guanine abasic sites

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Skolakova, Petra; Bednarova, Klara; Vorlickova, Michaela

Research highlights: {yields} Loss of a guanine base does not hinder the formation of G-quadruplex of human telomere sequence. {yields} Each depurination strongly destabilizes the quadruplex of dG{sub 3}(TTAG{sub 3}){sub 3} in NaCl and KCl. {yields} Conformational change of the abasic analogs of dG{sub 3}(TTAG{sub 3}){sub 3} is inhibited in KCl. {yields} The effects abasic sites may affect telomere-end structures in vivo. -- Abstract: This study was performed to evaluate how the loss of a guanine base affects the structure and stability of the three-tetrad G-quadruplex of 5'-dG{sub 3}(TTAG{sub 3}){sub 3}, the basic quadruplex-forming unit of the human telomere DNA.more » None of the 12 possible abasic sites hindered the formation of quadruplexes, but all reduced the thermodynamic stability of the parent quadruplex in both NaCl and KCl. The base loss did not change the Na{sup +}-stabilized intramolecular antiparallel architecture, based on CD spectra, but held up the conformational change induced in dG{sub 3}(TTAG{sub 3}){sub 3} in physiological concentration of KCl. The reduced stability and the inhibited conformational transitions observed here in vitro for the first time may predict that unrepaired abasic sites in G-quadruplexes could lead to changes in the chromosome's terminal protection in vivo.« less

A qualitative examination of perceptions of physical activity guidelines and preferences for format.

PubMed

Berry, Tanya R; Witcher, Chad; Holt, Nicholas L; Plotnikoff, Ronald C

2010-11-01

A descriptive exploratory study was conducted to gain an understanding of public perceptions of physical activity guidelines and to discover what formats appeal to participants. Canada's Physical Activity Guide (CPAG) was used as an example of such guidelines. Data were collected from 22 participants in five focus groups (composed of female undergraduate students, female office workers, male office workers, participants in a Type II diabetes rehabilitation program, and participants in a cardiovascular rehabilitation program). Cross-case qualitative analyses were conducted. Six themes emerged under the general categories of familiarity and preferences for PA promotional materials. In terms of familiarity, participants lacked awareness of CPAG and criticized its format. In terms of preferences, participants encouraged the use of stylistically similar messaging to those used by commercial advertisers, wanted personal stories, Internet-based media, and the use of celebrities' success stories. There was little awareness of CPAG and the current format was unappealing.

Saddlebags, Paperbacks and Mobile Media

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zwick, Carola

Information is shaped by its format. The printing press with its repeatable layout laid ground for footnotes and references from other sources, and thus can be seen as the technology that initially generated the concept of hyperlinks. In the fifteenth century, printed matter quickly developed other formats like the paperback book or the flyer. These formats changed the content in almost every aspect significantly: books that fit in a saddlebag are mobile media and thus not as precious as the gigantic and prestigious folio placed on a lectern stand in a monastery. So books became a widespread, "ordinary" mobile medium and developed a multitude of purposes, aimed at different audiences, and generated a wide range of ideas for adequate content. The flyer in its limited size and public nature generated other forms of organizing and designing content: in order to fit the format and draw attention it uses a condensed form of messaging and an exaggerated typography.

Dynamical and topological aspects of consensus formation in complex networks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chacoma, A.; Mato, G.; Kuperman, M. N.

2018-04-01

The present work analyzes a particular scenario of consensus formation, where the individuals navigate across an underlying network defining the topology of the walks. The consensus, associated to a given opinion coded as a simple message, is generated by interactions during the agent's walk and manifest itself in the collapse of the various opinions into a single one. We analyze how the topology of the underlying networks and the rules of interaction between the agents promote or inhibit the emergence of this consensus. We find that non-linear interaction rules are required to form consensus and that consensus is more easily achieved in networks whose degree distribution is narrower.

Theoretical and experimental study of the formation conditions of stepped leaders in negative flashes

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Xie, Shijun, E-mail: sj-xie@163.com; State Key Laboratory of Control and Simulation of Power System and Generation Equipment, Department of Electrical Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084; Zeng, Rong

2015-08-15

Natural lightning flashes are stochastic and uncontrollable, and thus, it is difficult to observe the formation process of a downward negative stepped leader (NSL) directly and in detail. This situation has led to some dispute over the actual NSL formation mechanism, and thus has hindered improvements in the lightning shielding analysis model. In this paper, on the basis of controllable long air gap discharge experiments, the formation conditions required for NSLs in negative flashes have been studied. First, a series of simulation experiments on varying scales were designed and carried out. The NSL formation processes were observed, and several ofmore » the characteristic process parameters, including the scale, the propagation velocity, and the dark period, were obtained. By comparing the acquired formation processes and the characteristic parameters with those in natural lightning flashes, the similarity between the NSLs in the simulation experiments and those in natural flashes was proved. Then, based on the local thermodynamic equation and the space charge estimation method, the required NSL formation conditions were deduced, and the space background electric field (E{sub b}) was proposed as the primary parameter for NSL formation. Finally, the critical value of E{sub b} required for the formation of NSLs in natural flashes was determined to be approximately 75 kV/m by extrapolation of the results of the simulation experiments.« less

Matrix Management in DoD: An Annotated Bibliography

DTIC Science & Technology

1984-04-01

ADDRESS 10 PROGRAM ELEMENT. PROJECT, TASK AREA & WORK UNIT NUMBERS ACSC/EDCC, MAXWELL AFB AL 36112 1 1. CONTROLLING OFFICE NAME AND ADDRESS 12 ...completes their message that matrix orga- nization is the likely format of the multiprogram Program Office. 12 The text’s discussion of matrix is...manager, and functional specialist are of vital importance to the effective operation of the matrix .... Matrix management will not achieve its

The Highway Safety Mass Media Youth Project: A Media Campaign Aimed at Drunk Driving and Seat Belt Use.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Blosser, Betsy J.; And Others

To address the issues of drunk driving and failure to use car restraints among teens and young adults, a 21-month-long media campaign has been developed especially for the 15- to 24-year-old audience to compare the effectiveness of paid advertisements and public service announcements. A formative research approach to message design will be used to…

The Influence of Group Formation on Learner Participation, Language Complexity, and Corrective Behaviour in Synchronous Written Chat as Part of Academic German Studies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fredriksson, Christine

2015-01-01

Synchronous written chat and instant messaging are tools which have been used and explored in online language learning settings for at least two decades. Research literature has shown that such tools give second language (L2) learners opportunities for language learning, e.g. , the interaction in real time with peers and native speakers, the…

The Creative Evolution of the 15-Second Television Commercial: Creative Structure and Impact upon the Shorter Message Format.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Asahina, Roberta R.

A two-fold statistical analysis examined the creative development of the 15-second television commercial, providing a follow-up to a similar study conducted in 1986. Study 1 of the present analysis examined 335 actual 15-second spots extracted from 30 hours of network daytime and primetime programming in the fourth and first quarters of 1988-1989.…

Toward Real-Time Infoveillance of Twitter Health Messages.

PubMed

Colditz, Jason B; Chu, Kar-Hai; Emery, Sherry L; Larkin, Chandler R; James, A Everette; Welling, Joel; Primack, Brian A

2018-06-21

There is growing interest in conducting public health research using data from social media. In particular, Twitter "infoveillance" has demonstrated utility across health contexts. However, rigorous and reproducible methodologies for using Twitter data in public health are not yet well articulated, particularly those related to content analysis, which is a highly popular approach. In 2014, we gathered an interdisciplinary team of health science researchers, computer scientists, and methodologists to begin implementing an open-source framework for real-time infoveillance of Twitter health messages (RITHM). Through this process, we documented common challenges and novel solutions to inform future work in real-time Twitter data collection and subsequent human coding. The RITHM framework allows researchers and practitioners to use well-planned and reproducible processes in retrieving, storing, filtering, subsampling, and formatting data for health topics of interest. Further considerations for human coding of Twitter data include coder selection and training, data representation, codebook development and refinement, and monitoring coding accuracy and productivity. We illustrate methodological considerations through practical examples from formative work related to hookah tobacco smoking, and we reference essential methods literature related to understanding and using Twitter data. (Am J Public Health. Published online ahead of print June 21, 2018: e1-e6. doi:10.2105/AJPH.2018.304497).

Text and graphics: manipulating nutrition brochures to maximize recall.

PubMed

Clark, K L; AbuSabha, R; von Eye, A; Achterberg, C

1999-08-01

This study examined how altering text and graphics of a nutrition brochure could affect the ability to remember the content of the message. Two theoretical models were used to guide alterations: dual-coding theory and the communications model. Three brochure formats were tested: the original brochure containing abstract text and abstract graphics, a modified brochure with relatively concrete text and abstract graphics, and a relatively concrete text brochure with concrete graphics. Participants (N = 239 women) were divided into four age groups: 20-30, 40-50, 60-70 and over 70 years. Women were randomly assigned into each of the three experimental brochure formats or a control group. Participants completed recalled materials from the assigned brochures (the no treatment control group did not include a brochure) at two different sessions, 30 days apart. Data were content analyzed and results were compared using analysis of covariance to test differences by age and brochure types. Younger women (20-30 and 40-50 years) recalled more information than women over 60 years. More concrete nutrition education print materials enhanced recall of information presented immediately after reading the material; however, this effect was transient and lasted less than 30 days after a one-time reading. The implications of these data for communicating nutrition messages with print materials are discussed.

Effects of post-encoding stress on performance in the DRM false memory paradigm.

PubMed

Pardilla-Delgado, Enmanuelle; Alger, Sara E; Cunningham, Tony J; Kinealy, Brian; Payne, Jessica D

2016-01-01

Numerous studies have investigated how stress impacts veridical memory, but how stress influences false memory formation remains poorly understood. In order to target memory consolidation specifically, a psychosocial stress (TSST) or control manipulation was administered following encoding of 15 neutral, semantically related word lists (DRM false memory task) and memory was tested 24 h later. Stress decreased recognition of studied words, while increasing false recognition of semantically related lure words. Moreover, while control subjects remembered true and false words equivalently, stressed subjects remembered more false than true words. These results suggest that stress supports gist memory formation in the DRM task, perhaps by hindering detail-specific processing in the hippocampus. © 2015 Pardilla-Delgado et al.; Published by Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press.

Local Structure Fixation in the Composite Manufacturing Chain

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Girdauskaite, Lina; Krzywinski, Sybille; Rödel, Hartmut; Wildasin-Werner, Andrea; Böhme, Ralf; Jansen, Irene

2010-12-01

Compared to metal materials, textile reinforced composites show interesting features, but also higher production costs because of low automation rate in the manufacturing chain at this time. Their applicability is also limited due to quality problems, which restrict the production of complex shaped dry textile preforms. New technologies, design concepts, and cost-effective manufacturing methods are needed in order to establish further fields of application. This paper deals with possible ways to improve the textile deformation process by locally applying a fixative to the structure parallel to the cut. This hinders unwanted deformation in the textile stock during the subsequent stacking and formation steps. It is found that suitable thermoplastic binders, applied in the appropriate manner do not restrict formation of the textile and have no negative influence on the mechanical properties of the composite.

Model of carbon nanofiber internal structure formation and instability of catalytic growth interface

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Merkulov, I. A.; Merkulov, V. I.; Melechko, A. V.; Klein, K. L.; Lowndes, D. H.; Simpson, M. L.

2007-07-01

It is well known that the internal structure determines the properties of carbon nanotubes and carbon nanofibers. However, a fundamental understanding of the processes that drive structure formation is missing, hindering the development of controlled synthesis strategies. Here we use theoretical calculations to explore the time evolution of the shape of the interface between the catalyst nanoparticle and its associated graphitic nanofiber at the initial stages of growth. This phenomenological description of the behavior of the catalyst nanoparticle-graphite interface constructed with model parameters provides new understanding of the mechanisms that control the internal structure of carbon nanofibers. We show that if the magnitude of the interface curvature exceeds a critical value κcrit , the interface loses stability and a cavity forms in the center of the nanofiber.

Webmail: an Automated Web Publishing System

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bell, David

A system for publishing frequently updated information to the World Wide Web will be described. Many documents now hosted by the NOAO Web server require timely posting and frequent updates, but need only minor changes in markup or are in a standard format requiring only conversion to HTML. These include information from outside the organization, such as electronic bulletins, and a number of internal reports, both human and machine generated. Webmail uses procmail and Perl scripts to process incoming email messages in a variety of ways. This processing may include wrapping or conversion to HTML, posting to the Web or internal newsgroups, updating search indices or links on related pages, and sending email notification of the new pages to interested parties. The Webmail system has been in use at NOAO since early 1997 and has steadily grown to include fourteen recipes that together handle about fifty messages per week.

“Where Have All the Good Men Gone?” Gendered Interactions in Online Dating

PubMed Central

Kreager, Derek A.; Cavanagh, Shannon E.; Yen, John; Yu, Mo

2013-01-01

This article explores gendered patterns of online dating and their implications for heterosexual union formation. The authors hypothesized that traditional gender norms combine with preferences for more socially desirable partners to benefit men and disadvantage women in the earliest stages of dating. They tested this with 6 months of online dating data from a mid-sized southwestern city (N = 8,259 men and 6,274 women). They found that both men and women tend to send messages to the most socially desirable alters in the dating market, regardless of their own social desirability. They also found that women who initiate contacts connect with more desirable partners than those who wait to be contacted, but women are 4 times less likely to send messages than men. They concluded that socioeconomic similarities in longer term unions result, in part, from relationship termination (i.e., nonreciprocity) rather than initial preferences for similar partners. PMID:24910472

[Recruitment of smokers in the Rio de Janeiro subway, Brazil, as a strategy to increase access to quitline services: the impact of novelty].

PubMed

Szklo, André Salem; Coutinho, Evandro da Silva Freire; Barros, Helena Maria Tannhauser; Perez, Cristina; Moreira, Taís de Campos; Figueiró, Luciana Rizzieri; Pinho, Mariana; Carvalho, Valeska Figueiredo

2009-11-01

Creative and innovative strategies to recruit smokers are essential for improving tobacco control activities. Currently in Brazil, through health warning messages on cigarette packs, there is a permanent and intense spread of messages that provoke feelings of loss associated with smoking, which is important to encourage access to smoking quitlines. The study analyzed the call rate for telephone counseling after introducing a new strategy for reactive recruitment focused on the theme 'smoking causes shortness of breath', adapted to the subway setting in Rio de Janeiro, as compared to the rates for two existing reactive strategies. Regardless of age bracket, there was a higher response to the new proposed strategy. Despite the major awareness-raising in Brazil concerning the ills of tobacco, new communications formats approaching personally relevant themes can increase the number and range of smokers recruited for telephone counseling to support cessation.

Playing for real: video games and stories for health-related behavior change.

PubMed

Baranowski, Tom; Buday, Richard; Thompson, Debbe I; Baranowski, Janice

2008-01-01

Video games provide extensive player involvement for large numbers of children and adults, and thereby provide a channel for delivering health behavior change experiences and messages in an engaging and entertaining format. Twenty-seven articles were identified on 25 video games that promoted health-related behavior change through December 2006. Most of the articles demonstrated positive health-related changes from playing the video games. Variability in what was reported about the games and measures employed precluded systematically relating characteristics of the games to outcomes. Many of these games merged the immersive, attention-maintaining properties of stories and fantasy, the engaging properties of interactivity, and behavior-change technology (e.g., tailored messages, goal setting). Stories in video games allow for modeling, vicarious identifying experiences, and learning a story's "moral," among other change possibilities. Research is needed on the optimal use of game-based stories, fantasy, interactivity, and behavior change technology in promoting health-related behavior change.

Selection and Transmission Processes for Information in the Emerging Media Environment: Psychological Motives and Message Characteristics

PubMed Central

Cappella, Joseph N.; Kim, Hyun Suk; Albarracín, Dolores

2014-01-01

The emerging media environment introduced fundamental changes in the quality and format of information available to the public, which can now flexibly seek, alter, and disseminate the information they receive. Therefore, the two processes of information selection and information retransmission are crucial for understanding the reach of any information available in the online information environment. From this starting point, we examine the common psychological motives driving information selection and transmission of attitude-relevant information: Defense and accuracy motives adding a focus on interpersonal motives. We also review message factors that can activate psychological motives leading to selection of retransmission of information, such as the desire for novelty and emotional stimulation. We speculate about the directions for the next generation of research necessary to understand exposure as a core outcome in media effects research and theory. PMID:26190944

Comprehension of Navigation Directions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Healy, Alice F.; Schneider, Vivian I.

2002-01-01

Subjects were shown navigation instructions varying in length directing them to move in a space represented by grids on a computer screen. They followed the instructions by clicking on the grids in the locations specified. Some subjects repeated back the instructions before following them, some did not, and others repeated back the instructions in reduced form, including only the critical words. The commands in each message were presented simultaneously for half of the subjects and sequentially for the others. For the longest messages, performance was better on the initial commands and worse on the final commands with simultaneous than with sequential presentation. Instruction repetition depressed performance, but reduced repetition removed this disadvantage. Effects of presentation format were attributed to visual scanning strategies. The advantage for reduced repetition was attributable either to enhanced visual scanning or to reduced output interference. A follow-up study with auditory presentation supported the visual scanning explanation.

You Can't Flush Science Outreach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Drobnes, Emilie; Mitchell, S. E.

2008-05-01

Did you know... that the writing on the bathroom wall isn't just graffiti anymore? Studies have shown that messages in unusual locations can have extraordinary impact. A growing number of companies and non-profit organizations are placing signage in unexpected venues, such as bathroom stalls, sporting arena seatbacks, gas stations, and diaper-changing areas. A 2003 study found that public response to promotional materials posted in restrooms was overwhelmingly positive, and respondents view these materials for up to two minutes instead of the 3 to 5 seconds they spend with traditional print marketing. Recall rates of content and messages are high, and researchers found bathroom signage to be 40% more effective than a typical print sign. It is often difficult to design effective education and outreach programs that reach a broader audience than a fairly self-selective one. Most of our events and projects ask audiences to come to us. This format inherently attracts a science-interested audience. So how do you reach the other half, those non-traditional learners, in an effective manner? Take the science to them! Help your message be more effective by "shocking” them with the science. Placing science, technology, engineering, and mathematical (STEM) content in unexpected venues makes it accessible, memorable, and likely to reach a captive audience that might not otherwise seek it out. The "Did You Know?” campaign brings STEM messages to underserved audiences through innovative placement. Bathroom stalls, movie theaters, and shopping malls are visited by thousands each day and provide a surprising and overlooked venue for outreach.

What not to say: risk communication for botulism.

PubMed

Glik, Deborah C; Drury, Allison; Cavanaugh, Clint; Shoaf, Kimberley

2008-03-01

This formative research study used qualitative methods to test the suitability of messages about botulism for the general public. Nine focus group interviews and 27 cognitive interviews were conducted with diverse audiences to pretest radio, television, and fact sheet messages predicated on a hypothetical terrorist attack using botulinum toxin. Narrative data were collected, transcribed, coded, and analyzed using content domains based on risk and health communication theories. While participants accepted the need for materials, the messages produced contained images and references describing botulism as a toxin-caused illness spread both by food and water contamination as well as by airborne means. The audience's lack of understanding of the term toxin and an imperfect understanding of airborne transmission of a toxic substance meant that some people interpreted botulism as being an infectious disease rather than a type of poisoning. The communication materials did not clearly show how the set of botulism symptoms are unique and described the anti-toxin as "not a cure," thus compounding the audience's misunderstanding. Using models from cognitive and developmental psychology, our findings were interpreted to show that certain terms evoke or elicit long-held conceptual frameworks that lay audiences use to explain medical phenomena. Relevant to botulism, poisoning events are distinct from infectious diseases, but prepared messages did not reinforce these distinctions. Ignoring how people organize preexisting health information when trying to communicate new information is a prescription for failure, especially in a crisis risk communication scenario. Findings from this study have been used by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to reformulate pre-event crisis risk communication materials for botulism.

Low message sensation health promotion videos are better remembered and activate areas of the brain associated with memory encoding.

PubMed

Seelig, David; Wang, An-Li; Jagannathan, Kanchana; Jaganathan, Kanchana; Loughead, James W; Blady, Shira J; Childress, Anna Rose; Romer, Daniel; Langleben, Daniel D

2014-01-01

Greater sensory stimulation in advertising has been postulated to facilitate attention and persuasion. For this reason, video ads promoting health behaviors are often designed to be high in "message sensation value" (MSV), a standardized measure of sensory intensity of the audiovisual and content features of an ad. However, our previous functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) study showed that low MSV ads were better remembered and produced more prefrontal and temporal and less occipital cortex activation, suggesting that high MSV may divert cognitive resources from processing ad content. The present study aimed to determine whether these findings from anti-smoking ads generalize to other public health topics, such as safe sex. Thirty-nine healthy adults viewed high- and low MSV ads promoting safer sex through condom use, during an fMRI session. Recognition memory of the ads was tested immediately and 3 weeks after the session. We found that low MSV condom ads were better remembered than the high MSV ads at both time points and replicated the fMRI patterns previously reported for the anti-smoking ads. Occipital and superior temporal activation was negatively related to the attitudes favoring condom use (see Condom Attitudes Scale, Methods and Materials section). Psychophysiological interaction (PPI) analysis of the relation between occipital and fronto-temporal (middle temporal and inferior frontal gyri) cortices revealed weaker negative interactions between occipital and fronto-temporal cortices during viewing of the low MSV that high MSV ads. These findings confirm that the low MSV video health messages are better remembered than the high MSV messages and that this effect generalizes across public health domains. The greater engagement of the prefrontal and fronto-temporal cortices by low MSV ads and the greater occipital activation by high MSV ads suggest that that the "attention-grabbing" high MSV format could impede the learning and retention of public health messages.

Low Message Sensation Health Promotion Videos Are Better Remembered and Activate Areas of the Brain Associated with Memory Encoding

PubMed Central

Jaganathan, Kanchana; Loughead, James W.; Blady, Shira J.; Childress, Anna Rose; Romer, Daniel; Langleben, Daniel D.

2014-01-01

Greater sensory stimulation in advertising has been postulated to facilitate attention and persuasion. For this reason, video ads promoting health behaviors are often designed to be high in “message sensation value” (MSV), a standardized measure of sensory intensity of the audiovisual and content features of an ad. However, our previous functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) study showed that low MSV ads were better remembered and produced more prefrontal and temporal and less occipital cortex activation, suggesting that high MSV may divert cognitive resources from processing ad content. The present study aimed to determine whether these findings from anti-smoking ads generalize to other public health topics, such as safe sex. Thirty-nine healthy adults viewed high- and low MSV ads promoting safer sex through condom use, during an fMRI session. Recognition memory of the ads was tested immediately and 3 weeks after the session. We found that low MSV condom ads were better remembered than the high MSV ads at both time points and replicated the fMRI patterns previously reported for the anti-smoking ads. Occipital and superior temporal activation was negatively related to the attitudes favoring condom use (see Condom Attitudes Scale, Methods and Materials section). Psychophysiological interaction (PPI) analysis of the relation between occipital and fronto-temporal (middle temporal and inferior frontal gyri) cortices revealed weaker negative interactions between occipital and fronto-temporal cortices during viewing of the low MSV that high MSV ads. These findings confirm that the low MSV video health messages are better remembered than the high MSV messages and that this effect generalizes across public health domains. The greater engagement of the prefrontal and fronto-temporal cortices by low MSV ads and the greater occipital activation by high MSV ads suggest that that the “attention-grabbing” high MSV format could impede the learning and retention of public health messages. PMID:25409187

Endohedral complexes of fullerene-like silica molecules with H2O, CH4, and CH3NH2 molecules

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Filonenko, O. V.; Lobanov, V. V.

2013-07-01

The possibility of formation of (SiO2)60@H2O, (SiO2)60@CH4, and (SiO2)60@CH3NH2 endohedral complexes was studied by the density functional (DFT) method (B3LYP exchange correlation functional, 6-31G** basis). The penetration of these molecules into the cavity of fullerene-like silica molecules is hindered by high activation barriers, which ensures the stability of the complexes formed during the synthesis of these molecules.

Equilibrium Phase Behavior of a Continuous-Space Microphase Former.

PubMed

Zhuang, Yuan; Zhang, Kai; Charbonneau, Patrick

2016-03-04

Periodic microphases universally emerge in systems for which short-range interparticle attraction is frustrated by long-range repulsion. The morphological richness of these phases makes them desirable material targets, but our relatively coarse understanding of even simple models hinders controlling their assembly. We report here the solution of the equilibrium phase behavior of a microscopic microphase former through specialized Monte Carlo simulations. The results for cluster crystal, cylindrical, double gyroid, and lamellar ordering qualitatively agree with a Landau-type free energy description and reveal the nontrivial interplay between cluster, gel, and microphase formation.

Controlled formation of cyclopentane hydrate suspensions via capillary-driven jet break-up

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Geri, Michela; McKinley, Gareth

2017-11-01

Clathrate hydrates are crystalline compounds that form when a lattice of hydrogen-bonded water molecules is filled by guest molecules sequestered from an adjacent gas or liquid phase. Being able to rapidly produce and transport synthetic hydrates is of great interest given their significant potential as a clean energy source and safe option for hydrogen storage. We propose a new method to rapidly produce cyclopentane hydrate suspensions at ambient pressure with tunable particle size distribution by taking advantage of the Rayleigh-Plateau instability to form a mono-disperse stream of droplets during the controlled break-up of a water jet. The droplets are immediately frozen into ice particles through immersion in a subcooled reservoir and converted into hydrates with a dramatic reduction in the nucleation induction time. By measuring the evolution of the rheological properties with time, we monitor the process of hydrates formation via surface crystallization and agglomeration with different droplet size distributions. This new method enables us to gain new insights into hydrate formation and transport which was previously hindered by uncontrolled droplet formation and hydrate nucleation processes. MITei Chevron Fellowship.

Hydroxide Self-Feeding High-Temperature Alkaline Direct Formate Fuel Cells.

PubMed

Li, Yinshi; Sun, Xianda; Feng, Ying

2017-05-22

Conventionally, both the thermal degradation of the anion-exchange membrane and the requirement of additional hydroxide for fuel oxidation reaction hinder the development of the high-temperature alkaline direct liquid fuel cells. The present work addresses these two issues by reporting a polybenzimidazole-membrane-based direct formate fuel cell (DFFC). Theoretically, the cell voltage of the high-temperature alkaline DFFC can be as high as 1.45 V at 90 °C. It has been demonstrated that a proof-of-concept alkaline DFFC without adding additional hydroxide yields a peak power density of 20.9 mW cm -2 , an order of magnitude higher than both alkaline direct ethanol fuel cells and alkaline direct methanol fuel cells, mainly because the hydrolysis of formate provides enough OH - ions for formate oxidation reaction. It was also found that this hydroxide self-feeding high-temperature alkaline DFFC shows a stable 100 min constant-current discharge at 90 °C, proving the conceptual feasibility. © 2017 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Effect of Electric Field on Gas Hydrate Nucleation Kinetics: Evidence for the Enhanced Kinetics of Hydrate Nucleation by Negatively Charged Clay Surfaces.

PubMed

Park, Taehyung; Kwon, Tae-Hyuk

2018-03-06

Natural gas hydrates are found widely in oceanic clay-rich sediments, where clay-water interactions have a profound effect on the formation behavior of gas hydrates. However, it remains unclear why and how natural gas hydrates are formed in clay-rich sediments in spite of factors that limit gas hydrate formation, such as small pore size and high salinity. Herein, we show that polarized water molecules on clay surfaces clearly promote gas hydrate nucleation kinetics. When water molecules were polarized with an electric field of 10 4 V/m, gas hydrate nucleation occurred significantly faster with an induction time reduced by 5.8 times. Further, the presence of strongly polarized water layers at the water-gas interface hindered gas uptake and thus hydrate formation, when the electric field was applied prior to gas dissolution. Our findings expand our understanding of the formation habits of naturally occurring gas hydrates in clay-rich sedimentary deposits and provide insights into gas production from natural hydrate deposits.

Formation, transformation and superhydrophobicity of compound surfactant-assisted aligned ZnO nanoplatelets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xue, Mingshan; Xu, Tao; Xie, Xiaolin; Ou, Junfei; Wang, Fajun; Li, Wen

2015-11-01

Synthesis and understanding of hierarchically nanostructured materials are significant for exploring peculiar functional properties and underlying applications. In this study, the self-assembly formation and detailed transformation process of ZnO nanoplatelets grown by hydrothermal methods with the addition of compound surfactants (CTAB and Tween-20) have been investigated. The initial growth of ZnO nanoplatelets as well as the subsequent formation of bilayer nanorod arrays and divergent nanocone arrays on the surface and side face of these nanoplatelets were found. Compared with the formation of bulk/block crystals without the case of surfactants, the addition of compound surfactants into zinc nitrate solution is responsible for the self-assembly processes of ZnO because of the effective role of CTAB in decreasing the degree of crystallinity and the positive effect of Tween-20 on decreasing the particle size owing to the space hindered effect. As-formed hierarchically micro-nanostructured ZnO exhibits superhydrophobicity without any chemical modification, which can make water droplets suspend on the air film trapped between the nanoplatelet and nanoplatelet as well as between nanocone and nanocone.

CONNJUR spectrum translator: an open source application for reformatting NMR spectral data.

PubMed

Nowling, Ronald J; Vyas, Jay; Weatherby, Gerard; Fenwick, Matthew W; Ellis, Heidi J C; Gryk, Michael R

2011-05-01

NMR spectroscopists are hindered by the lack of standardization for spectral data among the file formats for various NMR data processing tools. This lack of standardization is cumbersome as researchers must perform their own file conversion in order to switch between processing tools and also restricts the combination of tools employed if no conversion option is available. The CONNJUR Spectrum Translator introduces a new, extensible architecture for spectrum translation and introduces two key algorithmic improvements. This first is translation of NMR spectral data (time and frequency domain) to a single in-memory data model to allow addition of new file formats with two converter modules, a reader and a writer, instead of writing a separate converter to each existing format. Secondly, the use of layout descriptors allows a single fid data translation engine to be used for all formats. For the end user, sophisticated metadata readers allow conversion of the majority of files with minimum user configuration. The open source code is freely available at http://connjur.sourceforge.net for inspection and extension.

Incorporating Brokers within Collaboration Environments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rajasekar, A.; Moore, R.; de Torcy, A.

2013-12-01

A collaboration environment, such as the integrated Rule Oriented Data System (iRODS - http://irods.diceresearch.org), provides interoperability mechanisms for accessing storage systems, authentication systems, messaging systems, information catalogs, networks, and policy engines from a wide variety of clients. The interoperability mechanisms function as brokers, translating actions requested by clients to the protocol required by a specific technology. The iRODS data grid is used to enable collaborative research within hydrology, seismology, earth science, climate, oceanography, plant biology, astronomy, physics, and genomics disciplines. Although each domain has unique resources, data formats, semantics, and protocols, the iRODS system provides a generic framework that is capable of managing collaborative research initiatives that span multiple disciplines. Each interoperability mechanism (broker) is linked to a name space that enables unified access across the heterogeneous systems. The collaboration environment provides not only support for brokers, but also support for virtualization of name spaces for users, files, collections, storage systems, metadata, and policies. The broker enables access to data or information in a remote system using the appropriate protocol, while the collaboration environment provides a uniform naming convention for accessing and manipulating each object. Within the NSF DataNet Federation Consortium project (http://www.datafed.org), three basic types of interoperability mechanisms have been identified and applied: 1) drivers for managing manipulation at the remote resource (such as data subsetting), 2) micro-services that execute the protocol required by the remote resource, and 3) policies for controlling the execution. For example, drivers have been written for manipulating NetCDF and HDF formatted files within THREDDS servers. Micro-services have been written that manage interactions with the CUAHSI data repository, the DataONE information catalog, and the GeoBrain broker. Policies have been written that manage transfer of messages between an iRODS message queue and the Advanced Message Queuing Protocol. Examples of these brokering mechanisms will be presented. The DFC collaboration environment serves as the intermediary between community resources and compute grids, enabling reproducible data-driven research. It is possible to create an analysis workflow that retrieves data subsets from a remote server, assemble the required input files, automate the execution of the workflow, automatically track the provenance of the workflow, and share the input files, workflow, and output files. A collaborator can re-execute a shared workflow, compare results, change input files, and re-execute an analysis.

[Social marketing and public policies for health: campaign to promote smoke-free spaces in Mexico].

PubMed

Villalobos, Víctor; Ramírez, Olivia Ortiz; Thrasher, James F; Santillán, Edna Arillo; Hernández, Rosaura Pérez; Cedillo, Claudia; González, Wendy

2010-01-01

"Porque todos respiramos lo mismo" is a mass media campaign to promote smoke-free places (SFP). The development stages were: strategic planning; formative research; message development; media plan; and impact evaluation. Development involved formation of a coalition of key actors in various sectors. The target population was smokers and nonsmokers, with the aim of changing social norms around SFP. Nonsmokers were targeted because they comprised the majority and were most likely to appreciate the benefits of SFPs. Campaign materials were aired on television, radio, print and on billboards. One key limitation was the lack of evidence for previous campaigns, which increased the importance of formative research and of including a rigorous evaluation for this one. The campaign evaluation indicates a significant impact, which suggests that future campaigns use similar strategies in their development.

Mouse strains to study cold-inducible beige progenitors and beige adipocyte formation and function

PubMed Central

Berry, Daniel C.; Jiang, Yuwei; Graff, Jonathan M.

2016-01-01

Cold temperatures induce formation of beige adipocytes, which convert glucose and fatty acids to heat, and may increase energy expenditure, reduce adiposity and lower blood glucose. This therapeutic potential is unrealized, hindered by a dearth of genetic tools to fate map, track and manipulate beige progenitors and ‘beiging'. Here we examined 12 Cre/inducible Cre mouse strains that mark adipocyte, muscle and mural lineages, three proposed beige origins. Among these mouse strains, only those that marked perivascular mural cells tracked the cold-induced beige lineage. Two SMA-based strains, SMA-CreERT2 and SMA-rtTA, fate mapped into the majority of cold-induced beige adipocytes and SMA-marked progenitors appeared essential for beiging. Disruption of the potential of the SMA-tracked progenitors to form beige adipocytes was accompanied by an inability to maintain body temperature and by hyperglycaemia. Thus, SMA-engineered mice may be useful to track and manipulate beige progenitors, beige adipocyte formation and function. PMID:26729601

Fractal analysis of Xylella fastidiosa biofilm formation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Moreau, A. L. D.; Lorite, G. S.; Rodrigues, C. M.; Souza, A. A.; Cotta, M. A.

2009-07-01

We have investigated the growth process of Xylella fastidiosa biofilms inoculated on a glass. The size and the distance between biofilms were analyzed by optical images; a fractal analysis was carried out using scaling concepts and atomic force microscopy images. We observed that different biofilms show similar fractal characteristics, although morphological variations can be identified for different biofilm stages. Two types of structural patterns are suggested from the observed fractal dimensions Df. In the initial and final stages of biofilm formation, Df is 2.73±0.06 and 2.68±0.06, respectively, while in the maturation stage, Df=2.57±0.08. These values suggest that the biofilm growth can be understood as an Eden model in the former case, while diffusion-limited aggregation (DLA) seems to dominate the maturation stage. Changes in the correlation length parallel to the surface were also observed; these results were correlated with the biofilm matrix formation, which can hinder nutrient diffusion and thus create conditions to drive DLA growth.

Structure, dynamics and stability of water/scCO2/mineral interfaces from ab initio molecular dynamics simulations.

PubMed

Lee, Mal-Soon; Peter McGrail, B; Rousseau, Roger; Glezakou, Vassiliki-Alexandra

2015-10-12

The boundary layer at solid-liquid interfaces is a unique reaction environment that poses significant scientific challenges to characterize and understand by experimentation alone. Using ab initio molecular dynamics (AIMD) methods, we report on the structure and dynamics of boundary layer formation, cation mobilization and carbonation under geologic carbon sequestration scenarios (T = 323 K and P = 90 bar) on a prototypical anorthite (001) surface. At low coverage, water film formation is enthalpically favored, but entropically hindered. Simulated adsorption isotherms show that a water monolayer will form even at the low water concentrations of water-saturated scCO2. Carbonation reactions readily occur at electron-rich terminal Oxygen sites adjacent to cation vacancies that readily form in the presence of a water monolayer. These results point to a carbonation mechanism that does not require prior carbonic acid formation in the bulk liquid. This work also highlights the modern capabilities of theoretical methods to address structure and reactivity at interfaces of high chemical complexity.

A Real-Time System for Abusive Network Traffic Detection

DTIC Science & Technology

2011-03-01

examine the spamming behavior at the network layer (IP layer) by correlating data collected from three sources: a sinkhole , a large e-mail provider, and...which spam originates • autonomous systems that sent spam messages to their sinkhole • BGP route announcements With respect to IP address space, their...applications or machines to communicate with each other. They exchange XML- formatted data [58] using the HTTP [59] protocol. Specifically, the client uses the

Challenges for Deployment Man-Portable Robots into Hostile Environments

DTIC Science & Technology

2000-11-01

video, JAUGS , MDARS 1. BACKGROUND In modern-day warfare the most likely battlefield is an urban environment, which poses many threats to today’s...Unmanned Ground Systems ( JAUGS ). The hybrid architecture is termed SMART for Small Robotic Technology. It uses the underlying MDARS MRHA message format...and a similar approach to function-oriented operation4. From JAUGS it borrows the concept of functional agents or components that are responsible for

Automated Orbit Determination System (AODS) requirements definition and analysis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Waligora, S. R.; Goorevich, C. E.; Teles, J.; Pajerski, R. S.

1980-01-01

The requirements definition for the prototype version of the automated orbit determination system (AODS) is presented including the AODS requirements at all levels, the functional model as determined through the structured analysis performed during requirements definition, and the results of the requirements analysis. Also specified are the implementation strategy for AODS and the AODS-required external support software system (ADEPT), input and output message formats, and procedures for modifying the requirements.

An Approach for Implementing a Microcomputer Based Report Origination System in the Ada Programming Language

DTIC Science & Technology

1983-03-01

Decision Tree -------------------- 62 4-E. PACKAGE unitrep Action/Area Selection flow Chart 82 4-7. PACKAGE unitrep Control Flow Chart...the originetor wculd manually draft simple, readable, formatted iressages using "-i predef.ined forms and decision logic trees . This alternative was...Study Analysis DATA CCNTENT ERRORS PERCENT OF ERRORS Character Type 2.1 Calcvlations/Associations 14.3 Message Identification 4.? Value Pisiratch 22.E

Scheduling Algorithm for Mission Planning and Logistics Evaluation (SAMPLE). Volume 1: User's guide

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dupnick, E.; Wiggins, D.

1980-01-01

An interactive computer program for automatically generating traffic models for the Space Transportation System (STS) is presented. Information concerning run stream construction, input data, and output data is provided. The flow of the interactive data stream is described. Error messages are specified, along with suggestions for remedial action. In addition, formats and parameter definitions for the payload data set (payload model), feasible combination file, and traffic model are documented.

[The abuse of radiological diagnostic tests as a metaphor of the post-modern, new-media and consumerism society].

PubMed

Dimonte, Mariano

2008-03-01

Aim of this paper is to offer some cue of reflection about some sociological aspects on the emergent phenomenon of the abuse of Imaging tests, interpreting this issue in the light of general dynamics crossing the actual post-modern society, so well characterized from the consumerism and the dominion of information and communication technologies, as vectors of messages mainly transmitted in a graphic format.

Distributed Object Oriented Programming

DTIC Science & Technology

1990-02-01

of the object oriented model of computation. Therefore, object oriented programming can provide the programmer with good conceptual tools to divide his...LABOR SALES-COMMISSION). The symbol + refers to the addition function and takes any number of numeric arguments. The third subtype of list forms is the...2) ’(:SEND-DONE) (SEWF (AREF OBJECT-i1-MESSAGES-SENT 2) ’(PROGN (FORMAT T "-s methd completely executed instr-ptr -s-V NAME %INSTR-PTR%) (INCF

DEVS Unified Process for Web-Centric Development and Testing of System of Systems

DTIC Science & Technology

2008-05-20

gathering from the user. Further, methodologies have been developed to generate DEVS models from BPMN /BPEL-based and message-based requirement specifications...27] 3. BPMN /BPEL based system specifications: Business Process Modeling Notation ( BPMN ) [bpm] or Business Process Execution Language (BPEL) provide a...information is stored in .wsdl and .bpel files for BPEL but in proprietary format for BPMN . 4. DoDAF-based requirement specifications: Department of

Group Centric Networking: Addressing Information Sharing Requirements at the Tactical Edge

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-04-10

gateways are typically used to translate information from one network to another. The challenge with gateways is to understand what information...should be relayed from one network to another (with different message formats and technologies) and what platform should perform the gateway function such...information centric paradigm in that GCN does not specify what constitutes a group ID. Group IDs can be mapped to named data objects, content identifiers

Multiple-Choice Exams: An Obstacle for Higher-Level Thinking in Introductory Science Classes

PubMed Central

Stanger-Hall, Kathrin F.

2012-01-01

Learning science requires higher-level (critical) thinking skills that need to be practiced in science classes. This study tested the effect of exam format on critical-thinking skills. Multiple-choice (MC) testing is common in introductory science courses, and students in these classes tend to associate memorization with MC questions and may not see the need to modify their study strategies for critical thinking, because the MC exam format has not changed. To test the effect of exam format, I used two sections of an introductory biology class. One section was assessed with exams in the traditional MC format, the other section was assessed with both MC and constructed-response (CR) questions. The mixed exam format was correlated with significantly more cognitively active study behaviors and a significantly better performance on the cumulative final exam (after accounting for grade point average and gender). There was also less gender-bias in the CR answers. This suggests that the MC-only exam format indeed hinders critical thinking in introductory science classes. Introducing CR questions encouraged students to learn more and to be better critical thinkers and reduced gender bias. However, student resistance increased as students adjusted their perceptions of their own critical-thinking abilities. PMID:22949426

Carbonate-mediated Mars-van Krevelen mechanism for CO oxidation on cobalt-doped ceria catalysts: facet-dependence and coordination-dependence.

PubMed

Liu, Bing; Li, Wenping; Song, Weiyu; Liu, Jian

2018-06-13

Carbonate intermediates have been reported to play an active role in CO oxidation over ceria-based catalysts in recent experimental studies. However, the detailed CO oxidation mechanism involving carbonate intermediates over ceria-based catalysts remains obscure. In this work, we carried out systematic density functional theory calculations corrected by on-site Coulomb interactions (DFT+U) to investigate the complete CO oxidation mechanism involving carbonate intermediates over cobalt-doped CeO2 catalysts, aiming to unravel how the carbonate participates in CO oxidation and shed light on the underlying factors that control the carbonate-mediated reaction mechanism. A novel carbonate-mediated Mars-van Krevelen (M-vK) mechanism was proposed, in which the carbonate acts as an active intermediate rather than a spectator and can react with CO to form CO2. This carbonate-mediated M-vK mechanism is facet-dependent because it is predominant on the (110) surface whereas the conventional M-vK mechanism is more favorable on (111) and (100) surfaces. The origin of facet-dependence was discussed by analyzing the geometric and electronic structures. It is found that the negatively charged bent CO2- intermediate formed on the (110) surface plays a critical role in the carbonate-mediated M-vK mechanism, whereas the formation of a neutral linear CO2 intermediate on (111) and (100) surfaces hinders the carbonate-mediated M-vK mechanism. The surface oxygen vacancy hinders the formation of carbonate intermediates, indicating that the carbonate-mediated M-vK mechanism is also vacancy-dependent. The formation of carbonate intermediates on different metal (Ti, V, W, Mo and Re) doped CeO2(110) surfaces was studied and the results indicate that the coordination environment of the dopant species is a key factor that determines the carbonate-mediated M-vK mechanism. This study provides atomic-scale insights into the reaction mechanism involving carbonate intermediates and the structure-mechanism relationship for CO oxidation over cobalt-ceria catalysts.

A systematic review of three approaches for constructing physical activity messages: What messages work and what improvements are needed?

PubMed Central

2010-01-01

Background To motivate individuals to adhere to a regular physical activity regime, guidelines must be supplemented with persuasive messages that are disseminated widely. While substantial research has examined effective strategies for disseminating physical activity messages, there has been no systematic effort to examine optimal message content. This paper reviews studies that evaluate the effectiveness of three approaches for constructing physical activity messages including tailoring messages to suit individual characteristics of message recipients (message tailoring), framing messages in terms of gains versus losses (message framing), and targeting messages to affect change in self-efficacy (i.e., a theoretical determinant of behavior change). Methods We searched the MEDLINE, PsycINFO, EMBASE and CINAHL databases up to July 2008. Relevant reference lists also were searched. We included intervention trials, field experiments, and laboratory-based studies that aimed to test the efficacy or effectiveness of tailored messages, framed messages and self-efficacy change messages among healthy adults. We used a descriptive approach to analyze emerging patterns in research findings. Based on this evidence we made recommendations for practice and future research. Results Twenty-two studies were identified. Twelve studies evaluated message tailoring. In 10 of these studies, tailored messages resulted in greater physical activity than a control message. Six studies evaluated framed messages. Five of these studies demonstrated that gain-framed messages lead to stronger intentions to be active compared to a control message. Moreover, a gain-frame advantage was evident in three of the four studies that assessed physical activity. Four studies evaluated self-efficacy change messages. The two studies that used an experimental design provide a clear indication that individuals' beliefs can be affected by messages that incorporate types of information known to be determinants of self-efficacy. Overall, strong evidence to support definitive recommendations for optimal message content and structure was lacking. Conclusions Additional research testing the optimal content of messages used to supplement physical activity guidelines is needed. Tailored messages, gain-framed messages, and self-efficacy change messages hold promise as strategies for constructing physical activity messages and should be a focus of future research. PMID:20459779

Case study of how successful coordination was achieved between a mental health and social care service in Sweden.

PubMed

Hansson, Johan; Øvretveit, John; Brommels, Mats

2012-01-01

This paper summarises the findings from an empirical longitudinal study of a health and social care consortium for people with mental health problems in one area in Stockholm. The aim was to describe the formation and structure of coordination within the consortium, and to assess the intermediate impact on care processes and client outcomes. A multiple-method case study design, theoretically informed by the Pettigrew and Whipp model of strategic change (1993) was applied. Data was gathered from interviews with informants from different organisations at different times in the development of the consortium, and from administrative documents, plans and service statistics showing some of the intermediate changes and client outcomes. The findings revealed activities and factors both helping and hindering the formation of coordination arrangements. One of the most significant hindering factors was the central county purchasing organisation focusing more on volume and costs, with payments for specific units and services, and with less emphasis on quality of the services. Few studies have described implementation of changes to improve coordination with reference to context over a long period of time, as well as assessing different results. This study contributes to knowledge about improved methods for this type of research, as well as knowledge about developing coordination between public health and welfare services. One lesson for the current policy is that, where full structural integration is not possible, then client-level coordination roles in each sector are useful to connect sector services for shared clients. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

The effectiveness of health animations in audiences with different health literacy levels: an experimental study.

PubMed

Meppelink, Corine S; van Weert, Julia C M; Haven, Carola J; Smit, Edith G

2015-01-13

Processing Web-based health information can be difficult, especially for people with low health literacy. Presenting health information in an audiovisual format, such as animation, is expected to improve understanding among low health literate audiences. The aim of this paper is to investigate what features of spoken health animations improve information recall and attitudes and whether there are differences between health literacy groups. We conducted an online experiment among 231 participants aged 55 years or older with either low or high health literacy. A 2 (spoken vs written text) x 2 (illustration vs animation) design was used. Participants were randomly exposed to one of the four experimental messages, all providing the same information on colorectal cancer screening. The results showed that, among people with low health literacy, spoken messages about colorectal cancer screening improved recall (P=.03) and attitudes (P=.02) compared to written messages. Animations alone did not improve recall, but when combined with spoken text, they significantly improved recall in this group (P=.02). When exposed to spoken animations, people with low health literacy recalled the same amount of information as their high health literate counterparts (P=.12), whereas in all other conditions people with high health literacy recalled more information compared to low health literate individuals. For people with low health literacy, positive attitudes mediated the relationship between spoken text and the intention to have a colorectal cancer screening (b=.12; 95% CI 0.02-0.25). We conclude that spoken animation is the best way to communicate complex health information to people with low health literacy. This format can even bridge the information processing gap between audiences with low and high health literacy as the recall differences between the two groups are eliminated. As animations do not negatively influence high health literate audiences, it is concluded that information adapted to audiences with low health literacy suits people with high health literacy as well.

The Effectiveness of Health Animations in Audiences With Different Health Literacy Levels: An Experimental Study

PubMed Central

van Weert, Julia CM; Haven, Carola J; Smit, Edith G

2015-01-01

Background Processing Web-based health information can be difficult, especially for people with low health literacy. Presenting health information in an audiovisual format, such as animation, is expected to improve understanding among low health literate audiences. Objective The aim of this paper is to investigate what features of spoken health animations improve information recall and attitudes and whether there are differences between health literacy groups. Methods We conducted an online experiment among 231 participants aged 55 years or older with either low or high health literacy. A 2 (spoken vs written text) x 2 (illustration vs animation) design was used. Participants were randomly exposed to one of the four experimental messages, all providing the same information on colorectal cancer screening. Results The results showed that, among people with low health literacy, spoken messages about colorectal cancer screening improved recall (P=.03) and attitudes (P=.02) compared to written messages. Animations alone did not improve recall, but when combined with spoken text, they significantly improved recall in this group (P=.02). When exposed to spoken animations, people with low health literacy recalled the same amount of information as their high health literate counterparts (P=.12), whereas in all other conditions people with high health literacy recalled more information compared to low health literate individuals. For people with low health literacy, positive attitudes mediated the relationship between spoken text and the intention to have a colorectal cancer screening (b=.12; 95% CI 0.02-0.25). Conclusions We conclude that spoken animation is the best way to communicate complex health information to people with low health literacy. This format can even bridge the information processing gap between audiences with low and high health literacy as the recall differences between the two groups are eliminated. As animations do not negatively influence high health literate audiences, it is concluded that information adapted to audiences with low health literacy suits people with high health literacy as well. PMID:25586711

The use of multimodal strategies for distance education in the GRECCs.

PubMed

Kresevic, Denise; Burant, Christopher; Denton, Jennifer; Heath, Barbara; Kypriotakis, George

2011-01-01

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has found distance education to be particularly valuable as a means to disseminate information to large numbers of busy learners in geographically diverse settings. Specifically, Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Centers (GRECCs) of the VA have used various forms of distance learning to provide geriatrics-focused education to diverse health care providers. Such formats allow programs to be available to audiences regardless of distance or time. Although the distance-learning format has clear benefits, there are also some barriers that have hindered its wider adoption, including technical difficulties and ease of use. Organizers of distance education programs are challenged to overcome these barriers to provide a quality learning experience for the audience. The GRECCs will likely continue to be leaders in exploring innovative distance-learning strategies to accomplish their mission of quality geriatric education.

The rate of planet formation and the solar system's small bodies

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Safronov, Viktor S.

1991-01-01

The evolution of random velocities and the mass distribution of preplanetary body at the early stage of accumulation are currently under review. Arguments were presented for and against the view of an extremely rapid, runaway growth of the largest bodies at this stage with parameter values of Theta approximately greater than 10(exp 3). Difficulties are encountered assuming such a large Theta: (1) bodies of the Jovian zone penetrate the asteroid zone too late and do not have time to hinder the formation of a normal-sized planet in the asteroidal zone and thereby remove a significant portion of the mass of solid matter and (2) Uranus and Neptune cannot eject bodies from the solar system into the cometary cloud. Therefore, the values Theta less than 10(exp 2) appear to be preferable.

[Cockett's syndrome, May-Thurner syndrome, or iliac vein compression syndrome].

PubMed

Gil Martín, A R; Carreras Aja, M; Arrieta Ardieta, I; Labayen Azparren, I

2014-01-01

Iliac vein compression syndrome (also known as May-Thurner syndrome or Cockett's syndrome) is a rare clinical entity in which the left common iliac vein is compressed when it passes between the right common iliac artery and the spine. The sustained compression and trauma caused by the pulsatile force of the artery on the vein damage the intima and lead to the formation of membranes or bands in the vascular lumen that hinder or obstruct the flow of blood in the vein, favoring thrombus formation. The current treatment strategy of choice is endovascular vein patch angioplasty and stenting with the aim of improving the caliber of the lumen and enabling normal venous drainage. We present two cases of May-Thurner syndrome and review the clinical and CT findings. Copyright © 2011 SERAM. Published by Elsevier Espana. All rights reserved.

An Examination of Adolescent Recall of Anti-Smoking Messages: Attitudes, Message Type, and Message Perceptions.

PubMed

Bigsby, Elisabeth; Monahan, Jennifer L; Ewoldsen, David R

2017-04-01

Delayed message recall may be influenced by currently held accessible attitudes, the nature of the message, and message perceptions (perception of bias and message elaboration). This study examined the potential of message perceptions to mediate the influence of valenced attitude accessibility and message type on unaided recall of anti-smoking Public Service Announcements (PSAs). In a field experiment, ninth grade students (N = 244) watched three PSAs and responded to items on laptop computers. Twelve weeks later, follow-up telephone surveys were conducted to assess unaided recall. Both valenced attitude accessibility and message type were associated with message perceptions. However, only perception of message bias partially mediated the relationship between message type and unaided recall.

Media communication strategies for climate-friendly lifestyles - Addressing middle and lower class consumers for social-cultural change via Entertainment-Education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lubjuhn, S.; Pratt, N.

2009-11-01

This paper argues that Entertainment-Education (E-E) is a striking communication strategy for reaching middle and lower socio-economic classes with climate-friendly lifestyle messages. On the international level (e.g. in the US and the Netherlands) E-E approaches are being theoretically grounded, whereas in Germany they are not yet. Therefore further theoretical discussion and mapping of E-E approaches is central for future research. As a first step towards providing further theoretical foundations for E-E in the field of sustainability, the authors suggest a threefold mapping of E-E approaches. The threefold mapping of E-E approaches for communicating climate-friendly lifestyles to middle and lower class consumers is based on recent results from academic research and practical developments on the media market. The commonalities among the three is that they all promote pro-sustainability messages in an affective-orientated rather than cognitive-orientated, factual manner. Differences can be found in: the sender of the sustainability message, the targeted consumer groups and the media approach in use. Based on this, the paper draws the conclusion that two new paths for further research activities in the field of Entertainment-Education can be proposed: (1) Improving the existing approaches in practice by using theoretical foundation from the E-E field. This comprises at its core (A) to do formative, process and summative effect research on the messages and (B) to use E-E theory from the field of social psychology, sociology and communication science for further improvement and (2) Generating new E-E theories by analyzing the existing practical approaches in the media to communicate climate change.

Television advertisement format and the provision of risk information about prescription drug products.

PubMed

Glinert, Lewis H; Schommer, Jon C

2005-06-01

Considerable attention has been afforded to analyzing the content of and assessing consumers' reaction to print direct-to-consumer drug ads, but not so for televised ads. To determine whether advertisements with different risk severity and risk presentation would significantly affect viewers' (1) recall of information contained in the advertisement, (2) evaluation of the advertisement, and (3) perceptions of the advertised product's risks. Data were collected from a sample of 135 first-year pharmacy students at a Midwestern college of pharmacy. After viewing 1 of the 6 advertisements designed for this study, participants were asked to complete a self-administered survey. Chi-square and analysis of variance were used to analyze the data. A 2x3 between subjects design was used to test the effects of 2 levels of risk severity (high- vs low-risk severity) and 3 levels of risk presentation (original ad containing integrated risk message, deintegrated risk message/dual modality using male voice-over, deintegrated risk message/dual modality using female voice-over). Results of analysis of variance procedures revealed that deintegrating risk information by placing it at the end of the advertisement and the use of captions in addition to oral messages (dual modality) (1) improved the recall of general and specific side effect information, (2) led to a perception that the advertisement had greater informational content, (3) resulted in lower Advertisement Distraction, and (4) lessened cognitive and affective aspects of information overload for the advertisement containing the high-risk severity medication. However, this pattern of findings was not found for the low-risk severity medication. Alternative methods for presenting risk information in direct-to-consumer ads affected some aspects of information recall and advertisement evaluation, but were not shown to affect risk perceptions regarding the advertised products.

Data Convergence - An Australian Perspective

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Allen, S. S.; Howell, B.

2012-12-01

Coupled numerical physical, biogeochemical and sediment models are increasingly being used as integrators to help understand the cumulative or far field effects of change in the coastal environment. This reliance on modeling has forced observations to be delivered as data streams ingestible by modeling frameworks. This has made it easier to create near real-time or forecasting models than to try to recreate the past, and has lead in turn to the conversion of historical data into data streams to allow them to be ingested by the same frameworks. The model and observation frameworks under development within Australia's Commonwealth and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) are now feeding into the Australian Ocean Data Network's (AODN's) MARine Virtual Laboratory (MARVL) . The sensor, or data stream, brokering solution is centred around the "message" and all data flowing through the gateway is wrapped as a message. Messages consist of a topic and a data object and their routing through the gateway to pre-processors and listeners is determined by the topic. The Sensor Message Gateway (SMG) method is allowing data from different sensors measuring the same thing but with different temporal resolutions, units or spatial coverage to be ingested or visualized seamlessly. At the same time the model output as a virtual sensor is being explored, this again being enabled by the SMG. It is only for two way communications with sensor that rigorous adherence to standards is needed, by accepting existing data in less than ideal formats, but exposing them though the SMG we can move a step closer to the Internet Of Things by creating an Internet of Industries where each vested interest can continue with business as usual, contribute to data convergence and adopt more open standards when investment seems appropriate to that sector or business.Architecture Overview

A natural experiment of social network formation and dynamics.

PubMed

Phan, Tuan Q; Airoldi, Edoardo M

2015-05-26

Social networks affect many aspects of life, including the spread of diseases, the diffusion of information, the workers' productivity, and consumers' behavior. Little is known, however, about how these networks form and change. Estimating causal effects and mechanisms that drive social network formation and dynamics is challenging because of the complexity of engineering social relations in a controlled environment, endogeneity between network structure and individual characteristics, and the lack of time-resolved data about individuals' behavior. We leverage data from a sample of 1.5 million college students on Facebook, who wrote more than 630 million messages and 590 million posts over 4 years, to design a long-term natural experiment of friendship formation and social dynamics in the aftermath of a natural disaster. The analysis shows that affected individuals are more likely to strengthen interactions, while maintaining the same number of friends as unaffected individuals. Our findings suggest that the formation of social relationships may serve as a coping mechanism to deal with high-stress situations and build resilience in communities.

A natural experiment of social network formation and dynamics

PubMed Central

Phan, Tuan Q.; Airoldi, Edoardo M.

2015-01-01

Social networks affect many aspects of life, including the spread of diseases, the diffusion of information, the workers' productivity, and consumers' behavior. Little is known, however, about how these networks form and change. Estimating causal effects and mechanisms that drive social network formation and dynamics is challenging because of the complexity of engineering social relations in a controlled environment, endogeneity between network structure and individual characteristics, and the lack of time-resolved data about individuals' behavior. We leverage data from a sample of 1.5 million college students on Facebook, who wrote more than 630 million messages and 590 million posts over 4 years, to design a long-term natural experiment of friendship formation and social dynamics in the aftermath of a natural disaster. The analysis shows that affected individuals are more likely to strengthen interactions, while maintaining the same number of friends as unaffected individuals. Our findings suggest that the formation of social relationships may serve as a coping mechanism to deal with high-stress situations and build resilience in communities. PMID:25964337

Benefits and Limitations of Text Messages to Stimulate Higher Learning Among Community Providers: Participants' Views of an mHealth Intervention to Support Continuing Medical Education in Vietnam

PubMed Central

Sabin, Lora L; Larson Williams, Anna; Le, Bao Ngoc; Herman, Augusta R; Viet Nguyen, Ha; Albanese, Rebecca R; Xiong, Wenjun; Shobiye, Hezekiah OA; Halim, Nafisa; Tran, Lien Thi Ngoc; McNabb, Marion; Hoang, Hai; Falconer, Ariel; Nguyen, Tam Thi Thanh; Gill, Christopher J

2017-01-01

Background: A randomized controlled trial was conducted in 2015 to evaluate a mobile continuing medical education (mCME) intervention that provided daily text messages to community-based physicians' assistants (CBPAs) in Thai Nguyen Province, Vietnam. Although the intervention failed to improve medical knowledge over a 6-month period, a companion qualitative study provided insights on the views and experiences of intervention participants. Methods: We conducted focus group discussions (FGDs) and in-depth interviews (IDIs) among participants randomized to receive text messages containing either simple medical facts or quiz questions. Trained interviewers collected data immediately following the conclusion of the trial in December 2015. Using semi-structured question guides, respondents were queried on their views of the intervention, positive and negative, and perceived impacts of the intervention. During analysis, after learning that the intervention had failed to increase knowledge among participants, we also examined reasons for lack of improvement in medical knowledge. All analyses were performed in NVivo using a thematic approach. Results: A total of 70 CBPAs engaged in one of 8 FGDs or an IDI. One-half were men; average age among all respondents was 40 years. Most (81%) practiced in rural settings and most (51%) focused on general medicine. The mean length of work experience was 3 years. All respondents made positive comments about the intervention; convenience, relevance, and quick feedback (quiz format) were praised. Downsides encompassed lack of depth of information, weak interaction, technology challenges, and challenging/irrelevant messages. Respondents described perceived impacts encompassing increased motivation, knowledge, collegial discussions, Internet use to search for more information, and clinical skills. Overall, they expressed a desire for the intervention to continue and recommended expansion to other medical professionals. Overreliance on the text messages, lack of effective self-study, and technical/language-based barriers may be potential explanations for intervention failure. Conclusion: As a form of mCME, daily text messages were well-received by community-level health care providers in Vietnam. This mCME approach appears very promising in low-resource environments or where traditional forms of CME are impractical. Future models might consider enhancements to foster linkages to relevant medical materials, improve interaction with medical experts, and tailor medical content to the daily activities of medical staff. PMID:28655802

Benefits and Limitations of Text Messages to Stimulate Higher Learning Among Community Providers: Participants' Views of an mHealth Intervention to Support Continuing Medical Education in Vietnam.

PubMed

Sabin, Lora L; Larson Williams, Anna; Le, Bao Ngoc; Herman, Augusta R; Viet Nguyen, Ha; Albanese, Rebecca R; Xiong, Wenjun; Shobiye, Hezekiah Oa; Halim, Nafisa; Tran, Lien Thi Ngoc; McNabb, Marion; Hoang, Hai; Falconer, Ariel; Nguyen, Tam Thi Thanh; Gill, Christopher J

2017-06-27

A randomized controlled trial was conducted in 2015 to evaluate a mobile continuing medical education (mCME) intervention that provided daily text messages to community-based physicians' assistants (CBPAs) in Thai Nguyen Province, Vietnam. Although the intervention failed to improve medical knowledge over a 6-month period, a companion qualitative study provided insights on the views and experiences of intervention participants. We conducted focus group discussions (FGDs) and in-depth interviews (IDIs) among participants randomized to receive text messages containing either simple medical facts or quiz questions. Trained interviewers collected data immediately following the conclusion of the trial in December 2015. Using semi-structured question guides, respondents were queried on their views of the intervention, positive and negative, and perceived impacts of the intervention. During analysis, after learning that the intervention had failed to increase knowledge among participants, we also examined reasons for lack of improvement in medical knowledge. All analyses were performed in NVivo using a thematic approach. A total of 70 CBPAs engaged in one of 8 FGDs or an IDI. One-half were men; average age among all respondents was 40 years. Most (81%) practiced in rural settings and most (51%) focused on general medicine. The mean length of work experience was 3 years. All respondents made positive comments about the intervention; convenience, relevance, and quick feedback (quiz format) were praised. Downsides encompassed lack of depth of information, weak interaction, technology challenges, and challenging/irrelevant messages. Respondents described perceived impacts encompassing increased motivation, knowledge, collegial discussions, Internet use to search for more information, and clinical skills. Overall, they expressed a desire for the intervention to continue and recommended expansion to other medical professionals. Overreliance on the text messages, lack of effective self-study, and technical/language-based barriers may be potential explanations for intervention failure. As a form of mCME, daily text messages were well-received by community-level health care providers in Vietnam. This mCME approach appears very promising in low-resource environments or where traditional forms of CME are impractical. Future models might consider enhancements to foster linkages to relevant medical materials, improve interaction with medical experts, and tailor medical content to the daily activities of medical staff. © Sabin et al.

Internode data communications in a parallel computer

DOEpatents

Archer, Charles J.; Blocksome, Michael A.; Miller, Douglas R.; Parker, Jeffrey J.; Ratterman, Joseph D.; Smith, Brian E.

2013-09-03

Internode data communications in a parallel computer that includes compute nodes that each include main memory and a messaging unit, the messaging unit including computer memory and coupling compute nodes for data communications, in which, for each compute node at compute node boot time: a messaging unit allocates, in the messaging unit's computer memory, a predefined number of message buffers, each message buffer associated with a process to be initialized on the compute node; receives, prior to initialization of a particular process on the compute node, a data communications message intended for the particular process; and stores the data communications message in the message buffer associated with the particular process. Upon initialization of the particular process, the process establishes a messaging buffer in main memory of the compute node and copies the data communications message from the message buffer of the messaging unit into the message buffer of main memory.

Internode data communications in a parallel computer

DOEpatents

Archer, Charles J; Blocksome, Michael A; Miller, Douglas R; Parker, Jeffrey J; Ratterman, Joseph D; Smith, Brian E

2014-02-11

Internode data communications in a parallel computer that includes compute nodes that each include main memory and a messaging unit, the messaging unit including computer memory and coupling compute nodes for data communications, in which, for each compute node at compute node boot time: a messaging unit allocates, in the messaging unit's computer memory, a predefined number of message buffers, each message buffer associated with a process to be initialized on the compute node; receives, prior to initialization of a particular process on the compute node, a data communications message intended for the particular process; and stores the data communications message in the message buffer associated with the particular process. Upon initialization of the particular process, the process establishes a messaging buffer in main memory of the compute node and copies the data communications message from the message buffer of the messaging unit into the message buffer of main memory.

Should women be "All About That Bass?": Diverse body-ideal messages and women's body image.

PubMed

Betz, Diana E; Ramsey, Laura R

2017-09-01

While most body image research emphasizes the thin ideal, a wider variety of body-ideal messages pervade U.S. popular culture today, including those promoting athleticism or curves. Two studies assessed women's reactions to messages conveying thin, athletic, and curvy ideals, compared to a control message that emphasized accepting all body types. Study 1 (N=192) surveyed women's responses to these messages and found they perceived body-acceptance and athletic messages most favorably, curvy messages more negatively, and thin messages most negatively. Further, greatest liking within each message category came from women who identified with that body type. Study 2 (N=189) experimentally manipulated exposure to these messages, then measured self-objectification and body satisfaction. Messages promoting a body-ideal caused more self-objectification than body-acceptance messages. Also, athletic messages caused more body dissatisfaction than thin messages. Together, these findings reveal the complexity of women's responses to diverse messages they receive about ideal bodies. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Telemetry Standards, RCC Standard 106-17. Chapter 24. Message Formats

DTIC Science & Technology

2017-07-01

strength indicator TCP Transmission Control Protocol TE Traffic Engineering TAI International Atomic Time TLV Type-Length-Value TmNS Telemetry...to a specific radio link. TE Queue Status Report 10 This TLV is used by a radio to report Traffic Engineering (TE) queue levels for each of the 8...24.3.2.6 Traffic Engineering Queue Status Report TLV The TE Queue Status Report TLV shall be used to report the queue levels of the eight

Independent Assessment Team Report on C2 Data

DTIC Science & Technology

2008-11-01

years. The slow progress in specific areas may be attributable in part to: • Lack of focused sponsorship: This may be due to the immaturity of C2...core data set; e.g., require services/systems to map to an ontology ? Use a specific set of message formats? Employ a specific data base schema? Use...Analyses is a non-profit corporation that operates three federally funded research and development centers to provide objective analyses of national

Design and implementation of CUAHSI WaterML and WaterOneFlow Web Services

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Valentine, D. W.; Zaslavsky, I.; Whitenack, T.; Maidment, D.

2007-12-01

WaterOneFlow is a term for a group of web services created by and for the Consortium of Universities for the Advancement of Hydrologic Science, Inc. (CUAHSI) community. CUAHSI web services facilitate the retrieval of hydrologic observations information from online data sources using the SOAP protocol. CUAHSI Water Markup Language (below referred to as WaterML) is an XML schema defining the format of messages returned by the WaterOneFlow web services. \

The Mind behind the Message: Advancing Theory-of-Mind Scales for Typically Developing Children, and Those with Deafness, Autism, or Asperger Syndrome

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Peterson, Candida C.; Wellman, Henry M.; Slaughter, Virginia

2012-01-01

Children aged 3-2 years (n = 184) with typical development, deafness, autism, or Asperger syndrome took a series of theory-of-mind (ToM) tasks to confirm and extend previous developmental scaling evidence. A new sarcasm task, in the format of H. M. Wellman and D. Liu's (2004) 5-step ToM Scale, added a statistically reliable 6th step to the scale…

The Saturation+ Approach to Behavior Change: Case Study of a Child Survival Radio Campaign in Burkina Faso.

PubMed

Murray, Joanna; Remes, Pieter; Ilboudo, Rita; Belem, Mireille; Salouka, Souleymane; Snell, Will; Wood, Cathryn; Lavoie, Matthew; Deboise, Laurent; Head, Roy

2015-11-03

A 35-month cluster randomized controlled trial was conducted in Burkina Faso to test whether a radio campaign focused on child health, broadcast between March 2012 and January 2015, could reduce under-5 mortality. This paper describes the design and implementation of the mass media intervention in detail, including the Saturation+ principles that underpinned the approach, the creative process, the lessons learned, and recommendations for implementing this intervention at scale. The Saturation+ approach focuses on the 3 core principles of saturation (ensuring high exposure to campaign messages), science (basing campaign design on data and modeling), and stories (focusing the dramatic climax on the target behavior) to maximize the impact of behavior change campaigns. In Burkina Faso, creative partnerships with local radio stations helped us obtain free airtime in exchange for training and investing in alternative energy supplies to solve frequent energy problems faced by the stations. The campaign used both short spots and longer drama formats, but we consider the short spots as a higher priority to retain during scale-up, as they are more cost-effective than longer formats and have the potential to ensure higher exposure of the population to the messages. The implementation research synthesized in this paper is designed to enable the effective adoption and integration of evidence-based behavior change communication interventions into health care policy and practice. © Murray et al.

The Saturation+ Approach to Behavior Change: Case Study of a Child Survival Radio Campaign in Burkina Faso

PubMed Central

Murray, Joanna; Remes, Pieter; Ilboudo, Rita; Belem, Mireille; Salouka, Souleymane; Snell, Will; Wood, Cathryn; Lavoie, Matthew; Deboise, Laurent; Head, Roy

2015-01-01

A 35-month cluster randomized controlled trial was conducted in Burkina Faso to test whether a radio campaign focused on child health, broadcast between March 2012 and January 2015, could reduce under-5 mortality. This paper describes the design and implementation of the mass media intervention in detail, including the Saturation+ principles that underpinned the approach, the creative process, the lessons learned, and recommendations for implementing this intervention at scale. The Saturation+ approach focuses on the 3 core principles of saturation (ensuring high exposure to campaign messages), science (basing campaign design on data and modeling), and stories (focusing the dramatic climax on the target behavior) to maximize the impact of behavior change campaigns. In Burkina Faso, creative partnerships with local radio stations helped us obtain free airtime in exchange for training and investing in alternative energy supplies to solve frequent energy problems faced by the stations. The campaign used both short spots and longer drama formats, but we consider the short spots as a higher priority to retain during scale-up, as they are more cost-effective than longer formats and have the potential to ensure higher exposure of the population to the messages. The implementation research synthesized in this paper is designed to enable the effective adoption and integration of evidence-based behavior change communication interventions into health care policy and practice. PMID:26681703

Message Variability and Heterogeneity: A Core Challenge for Communication Research

PubMed Central

Slater, Michael D.; Peter, Jochen; Valkenberg, Patti

2015-01-01

Messages are central to human social experience, and pose key conceptual and methodological challenges in the study of communication. In response to these challenges, we outline a systematic approach to conceptualizing, operationalizing, and analyzing messages. At the conceptual level, we distinguish between two core aspects of messages: message variability (the defined and operationalized features of messages) and message heterogeneity (the undefined and unmeasured features of messages), and suggest preferred approaches to defining message variables. At the operational level, we identify message sampling, selection, and research design strategies responsive to issues of message variability and heterogeneity in experimental and survey research. At the analytical level, we highlight effective techniques to deal with message variability and heterogeneity. We conclude with seven recommendations to increase rigor in the study of communication through appropriately addressing the challenges presented by messages. PMID:26681816

Virtual memory support for distributed computing environments using a shared data object model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Huang, F.; Bacon, J.; Mapp, G.

1995-12-01

Conventional storage management systems provide one interface for accessing memory segments and another for accessing secondary storage objects. This hinders application programming and affects overall system performance due to mandatory data copying and user/kernel boundary crossings, which in the microkernel case may involve context switches. Memory-mapping techniques may be used to provide programmers with a unified view of the storage system. This paper extends such techniques to support a shared data object model for distributed computing environments in which good support for coherence and synchronization is essential. The approach is based on a microkernel, typed memory objects, and integrated coherence control. A microkernel architecture is used to support multiple coherence protocols and the addition of new protocols. Memory objects are typed and applications can choose the most suitable protocols for different types of object to avoid protocol mismatch. Low-level coherence control is integrated with high-level concurrency control so that the number of messages required to maintain memory coherence is reduced and system-wide synchronization is realized without severely impacting the system performance. These features together contribute a novel approach to the support for flexible coherence under application control.

Victor and Erika Webnovela: An Innovative Generation @ Audience Engagement Strategy for Prevention.

PubMed

Andrade, Elizabeth L; Evans, W Douglas; Edberg, Marc C; Cleary, Sean D; Villalba, Ricardo; Batista, Idalina Cubilla

2015-01-01

Entertainment-education (E-E) approaches for young audiences continue to evolve in order to keep stride with younger generations' affinity for technology. E-E and novelas have been used with a wide variety of audiences in the United States, in particular hard-to-reach Latino populations, and have demonstrated effectiveness in disseminating culturally relevant prevention information for a wide variety of health-related risk factors and behaviors. This study discusses the formative research and active engagement of Latino youth living in Langley Park, Maryland, for the development and filming of an innovative 6-episode webnovela titled Victor and Erika (V&E). V&E is part of a larger branding strategy of the Adelante Positive Youth Development intervention that seeks to prevent substance abuse, sexual risk, and interpersonal violence among Latino youth; V&E is also an intervention component. The V&E webnovela is a dramatic portrayal of the lives of 2 immigrant Latino teenagers that also disseminates risk prevention messages. The storyline represents the turning the corner (to a better life) theme that underlies the Adelante intervention brand. Formative research was conducted for character development (n = 20) and creative development of the episodes (n = 14). Results of the formative research showed that youth recommended inclusion of the following topics in V&E episodes: sex, unintended pregnancy, fidelity, trust, family dynamics, immigration status, violence, school dropout, respect, home life, and poverty. Detailed character and episode descriptions are provided, and the implications of using the V&E series as a tool for in-person and online engagement of youth and the dissemination of prevention messages are also discussed.

On constitutive functions for hindered settling velocity in 1-D settler models: Selection of appropriate model structure.

PubMed

Torfs, Elena; Balemans, Sophie; Locatelli, Florent; Diehl, Stefan; Bürger, Raimund; Laurent, Julien; François, Pierre; Nopens, Ingmar

2017-03-01

Advanced 1-D models for Secondary Settling Tanks (SSTs) explicitly account for several phenomena that influence the settling process (such as hindered settling and compression settling). For each of these phenomena a valid mathematical expression needs to be selected and its parameters calibrated to obtain a model that can be used for operation and control. This is, however, a challenging task as these phenomena may occur simultaneously. Therefore, the presented work evaluates several available expressions for hindered settling based on long-term batch settling data. Specific attention is paid to the behaviour of these hindered settling functions in the compression region in order to evaluate how the modelling of sludge compression is influenced by the choice of a certain hindered settling function. The analysis shows that the exponential hindered settling forms, which are most commonly used in traditional SST models, not only account for hindered settling but partly lump other phenomena (compression) as well. This makes them unsuitable for advanced 1-D models that explicitly include each phenomenon in a modular way. A power-law function is shown to be more appropriate to describe the hindered settling velocity in advanced 1-D SST models. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The NASTRAN User's Manual Level 16.0 and Supplement

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1976-01-01

The user's manual is restricted to those items related to the use of NASTRAN that are independent of the computing system being used. The features of NASTRAN described include: (1) procedures for defining and loading a structural model and a functional reference for every card that is used for structural modeling; (2) the NASTRAN data deck, including the details for each of the data cards; (3) the NASTRAN control cards that are associated with the use of the program; (4) rigid format procedures, along with specific instructions for the use of each rigid format: (5) procedures for using instructions for the use of each rigid format; (5) procedures for using the NASTRAN plotting capability; (6) procedures governing the creation of DMAP programs; and (7) the NASTRAN diagnostic messages. The NASTRAN dictionary of mnemonics, acronyms, phrases, and other commonly used NASTRAN terms is included along with a limited number of sample problems.

User-programmer dialogue: Guidelines for designing menus and help files for interactive computer systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Carlson, P. A.

1983-01-01

This document is a set of guidelines to aid a programmer in making the various decisions necessary for a clear user-programmer dialogue. Its goal is to promote an effective and efficient transfer of information between programmer and user. These guidelines are divided into four sections: (1) Format, (2) Sequence, (3) Audience, and (4) Aim. Format, in terms of this study, means the spatial and structural presentation of information. Sequence deals with the procedural aspects of multiple panel displays. This section looks at the issues of timelines of presentation, modularization of information, and patterns of user behavior. Audience looks at the relationship among programmer, user, and message. It covers the issues of analyzing the audience's knowledge, attitudes, and needs, anticipating the audience's inferences, and identifying textual ambiguities. The programmer's aim or intention shows up in everything from tone to format. Aim considers the programmer's purpose.

3D video coding: an overview of present and upcoming standards

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Merkle, Philipp; Müller, Karsten; Wiegand, Thomas

2010-07-01

An overview of existing and upcoming 3D video coding standards is given. Various different 3D video formats are available, each with individual pros and cons. The 3D video formats can be separated into two classes: video-only formats (such as stereo and multiview video) and depth-enhanced formats (such as video plus depth and multiview video plus depth). Since all these formats exist of at least two video sequences and possibly additional depth data, efficient compression is essential for the success of 3D video applications and technologies. For the video-only formats the H.264 family of coding standards already provides efficient and widely established compression algorithms: H.264/AVC simulcast, H.264/AVC stereo SEI message, and H.264/MVC. For the depth-enhanced formats standardized coding algorithms are currently being developed. New and specially adapted coding approaches are necessary, as the depth or disparity information included in these formats has significantly different characteristics than video and is not displayed directly, but used for rendering. Motivated by evolving market needs, MPEG has started an activity to develop a generic 3D video standard within the 3DVC ad-hoc group. Key features of the standard are efficient and flexible compression of depth-enhanced 3D video representations and decoupling of content creation and display requirements.

The effects of narrative and message framing on engagement and eating intention among a sample of adult Hispanics.

PubMed

Wirtz, John G; Kulpavaropas, Supathida

2014-01-01

To test the effect of narrative messages and gain- and loss-framed messages on persuasive outcomes with a sample of Hispanic adults. A 2 (message type: narrative, non-narrative) × 2 (message frame: gain-framed, loss-framed) between subjects posttest only. Data were collected at 2 outdoor festivals in West Texas. Participants were a convenience sample of 72 Hispanic adults (mean age, 40.6 years). Main outcome measures were message engagement, message relevance, attitude toward message, healthy eating intention, and physical activity intention. Data analysis included analysis of variance and multivariate analysis of variance. There was no significant difference between narrative and non-narrative messages. Gain-framed messages were rated more positively, whereas loss-framed messages were considered more engaging and also produced higher intentions to eat healthy and to become physically active. The interaction between message type and message framing was not significant. Loss-framed messages produced the unanticipated effect of higher message engagement and higher intention. This finding suggests that messages emphasizing losses associated with unhealthy eating and lack of physical activity may be more effective when targeting Hispanic adults than messages emphasizing potential gains. The lack of difference between narrative and non-narrative messages suggests there is no disadvantage to using narratives, but also no advantage. Copyright © 2014 Society for Nutrition Education and Behavior. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Maintaining High Assurance in Asynchronous Messaging

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-10-24

Assurance in Asynchronous Messaging Kevin E. Foltz and William R. Simpson Abstract—Asynchronous messaging is the delivery of a message without... integrity , and confidentiality guarantees. End-to-end security for asynchronous messaging must be provided by the asynchronous messaging layer itself... continuing its processing. At the completion of message transmission, the sender does not know when or whether the receiver received it. The message

Utilizing Audiovisual and Gain-Framed Messages to Attenuate Psychological Reactance Toward Weight Management Health Messages.

PubMed

Lee, Hyunmin; Cameron, Glen T

2017-01-01

Guided by the psychological reactance theory, this study predicted that gain-framed messages and audiovisual content could counteract state reactance and increase the persuasiveness of weight management health messages. Data from a 2 (message frame: gain/loss) × 2 (modality: audiovisual/text) × 2 (message repetition) within-subjects experiment (N = 82) indicated that in the context of weight management messages for college students, gain-framed messages indeed mitigate psychological reactance. Furthermore, the modality and the frame of the health message interacted in such a way that gain-framed messages in an audiovisual modality generated the highest motivations to comply with the recommendations in the persuasive health messages.

Photo-sharing social media for eHealth: analysing perceived message effectiveness of sexual health information on Instagram.

PubMed

O'Donnell, Nicole Hummel; Willoughby, Jessica Fitts

2017-10-01

Health professionals increasingly use social media to communicate health information, but it is unknown how visual message presentation on these platforms affects message reception. This study used an experiment to analyse how young adults (n = 839) perceive sexual health messages on Instagram. Participants were exposed to one of four conditions based on visual message presentation. Messages with embedded health content had the highest perceived message effectiveness ratings. Additionally, message sensation value, attitudes and systematic information processing were significant predictors of perceived message effectiveness. Implications for visual message design for electronic health are discussed.

Propagation of dikes at Vesuvio (Italy) and the effect of Mt. Somma

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Acocella, V.; Porreca, M.; Neri, M.; Massimi, E.; Mattei, M.

2006-04-01

Dikes provide crucial information on how magma propagates within volcanoes. Somma-Vesuvio (Italy) consists of the active Vesuvio cone, partly bordered by the older Mt. Somma edifice. Historical chronicles on the fissure eruptions in 1694-1944 are matched with an analytical solution to define the propagation path of the related dikes and to study any control of the Mt. Somma relief. The fissures always consisted of the downslope migration of vents from an open summit conduit, indicating lateral propagation as the predominant mechanism for shallow dike emplacement. No fissure emplaced beyond Mt. Somma, suggesting that its buttressing hinders the propagation of the radial dikes. An analytical solution is defined to describe the mechanism of formation of the laterally propagating dikes and to evaluate the effect of topography. The application to Somma-Vesuvio suggests that, under ordinary excess magmatic pressures, the dikes should not propagate laterally at depths >240-480 m below the surface, as the increased lithostatic pressure requires magmatic pressures higher than average. This implies that, when the conduit is open, the lateral emplacement of dikes is expectable on the S, W and E slopes. The lack of fissures N of Mt. Somma is explained by its buttressing, which hinders dike propagation.

A user-friendly tool to evaluate the effectiveness of no-take marine reserves.

PubMed

Villaseñor-Derbez, Juan Carlos; Faro, Caio; Wright, Melaina; Martínez, Jael; Fitzgerald, Sean; Fulton, Stuart; Mancha-Cisneros, Maria Del Mar; McDonald, Gavin; Micheli, Fiorenza; Suárez, Alvin; Torre, Jorge; Costello, Christopher

2018-01-01

Marine reserves are implemented to achieve a variety of objectives, but are seldom rigorously evaluated to determine whether those objectives are met. In the rare cases when evaluations do take place, they typically focus on ecological indicators and ignore other relevant objectives such as socioeconomics and governance. And regardless of the objectives, the diversity of locations, monitoring protocols, and analysis approaches hinder the ability to compare results across case studies. Moreover, analysis and evaluation of reserves is generally conducted by outside researchers, not the reserve managers or users, plausibly thereby hindering effective local management and rapid response to change. We present a framework and tool, called "MAREA", to overcome these challenges. Its purpose is to evaluate the extent to which any given reserve has achieved its stated objectives. MAREA provides specific guidance on data collection and formatting, and then conducts rigorous causal inference analysis based on data input by the user, providing real-time outputs about the effectiveness of the reserve. MAREA's ease of use, standardization of state-of-the-art inference methods, and ability to analyze marine reserve effectiveness across ecological, socioeconomic, and governance objectives could dramatically further our understanding and support of effective marine reserve management.

Pore-level mechanics of foam generation and coalescence in the presence of oil.

PubMed

Almajid, Muhammad M; Kovscek, Anthony R

2016-07-01

The stability of foam in porous media is extremely important for realizing the advantages of foamed gas on gas mobility reduction. Foam texture (i.e., bubbles per volume of gas) achieved is dictated by foam generation and coalescence processes occurring at the pore-level. For foam injection to be widely applied during gas injection projects, we need to understand these pore-scale events that lead to foam stability/instability so that they are modeled accurately. Foam flow has been studied for decades, but most efforts focused on studying foam generation and coalescence in the absence of oil. Here, the extensive existing literature is reviewed and analyzed to identify open questions. Then, we use etched-silicon micromodels to observe foam generation and coalescence processes at the pore-level. Special emphasis is placed on foam coalescence in the presence of oil. For the first time, lamella pinch-off as described by Myers and Radke [40] is observed in porous media and documented. Additionally, a new mechanism coined "hindered generation" is found. Hindered generation refers to the role oil plays in preventing the successful formation of a lamella following snap-off near a pore throat. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

A user-friendly tool to evaluate the effectiveness of no-take marine reserves

PubMed Central

Fitzgerald, Sean; Fulton, Stuart; Mancha-Cisneros, Maria del Mar; McDonald, Gavin; Micheli, Fiorenza; Suárez, Alvin; Torre, Jorge

2018-01-01

Marine reserves are implemented to achieve a variety of objectives, but are seldom rigorously evaluated to determine whether those objectives are met. In the rare cases when evaluations do take place, they typically focus on ecological indicators and ignore other relevant objectives such as socioeconomics and governance. And regardless of the objectives, the diversity of locations, monitoring protocols, and analysis approaches hinder the ability to compare results across case studies. Moreover, analysis and evaluation of reserves is generally conducted by outside researchers, not the reserve managers or users, plausibly thereby hindering effective local management and rapid response to change. We present a framework and tool, called “MAREA”, to overcome these challenges. Its purpose is to evaluate the extent to which any given reserve has achieved its stated objectives. MAREA provides specific guidance on data collection and formatting, and then conducts rigorous causal inference analysis based on data input by the user, providing real-time outputs about the effectiveness of the reserve. MAREA’s ease of use, standardization of state-of-the-art inference methods, and ability to analyze marine reserve effectiveness across ecological, socioeconomic, and governance objectives could dramatically further our understanding and support of effective marine reserve management. PMID:29381762

Randomized controlled trial of a messaging intervention to increase fruit and vegetable intake in adolescents: Affective versus instrumental messages.

PubMed

Carfora, Valentina; Caso, Daniela; Conner, Mark

2016-11-01

The present research aimed to test the efficacy of affective and instrumental text messages compared with a no-message control as a strategy to increase fruit and vegetable intake (FVI) in adolescents. A randomized controlled trial was used test impact of different text messages compared with no message on FVI over a 2-week period. A total of 1,065 adolescents (14-19 years) from a high school of the South of Italy completed the baseline questionnaire and were randomly allocated to one of three conditions: instrumental messages (N = 238), affective messages (N = 300), and no messages (N = 521). Students in the message conditions received one message each day over a 2-week period. The messages targeted affective (affective benefits) or instrumental (instrumental benefits) information about FVI. Self-reported FVI at 2 weeks was the key dependent variable. Analyses were based on the N = 634 who completed all aspects of the study. Findings showed that messages significantly increased FVI, particularly in the affective condition and this effect was partially mediated by changes in affective attitude and intentions towards FVI. Text messages can be used to increase FVI in adolescents. Text messages based on affective benefits are more effective than text messages based on instrumental benefits. Statement of contribution What is already known on this subject? Text messages have been shown to promote positive change in health behaviours. However, the most appropriate target for such text messages is less clear although targeting attitudes may be effective. What does this study add? This randomized controlled study shows that text messages targeting instrumental or affective attitudes produce changes in fruit and vegetable intake (FVI) in adolescents. Text messages targeting affective attitudes are shown to be more effective than text messages targeting instrumental attitudes. The effect of affective text messages on FVI was partially mediated by changes in affective attitudes. © 2016 The British Psychological Society.

Comic books carry health messages to rural children in Honduras.

PubMed

Vigano, O

1983-12-01

This article reports on the use of children as message carriers in a rural water and sanitation project in western Honduras. The Honduran Water and Sanitation Project represents the 1st such effort to have a specific health education component. It was decided to direct the education component toward children because of their important role in providing and handling drinking water and caring for younger members of the family. Rural primary schools surfaced as a potential channel of communication. The comic book format was selected because it is simple enough to be used in the schools without much training, economical to produce (US$0.30/copy), effective and attractive to children, and consistent with the Project's philosophy that dialogue and participation are essential components of health education. Each comic book contains a single-concept message, e.g., 1 cause of water contamination or a method of water purification. The 1st module was pretested in 3 rural schools. Following classroom study of the comic book, correct answers on 5 questions related to the comic book story increased from 59% to 80%. 95% of the children indicated that they liked the characters, and teachers expressed satisfaction with the materials. 1200 copies of the 1st module have been distributed to 30 rural schools, and production plans include 11 additional modules on topics such as prevention of water-related sickness and personal hygiene.

Instant messages vs. speech: hormones and why we still need to hear each other.

PubMed

Seltzer, Leslie J; Prososki, Ashley R; Ziegler, Toni E; Pollak, Seth D

2012-01-01

Human speech evidently conveys an adaptive advantage, given its apparently rapid dissemination through the ancient world and global use today. As such, speech must be capable of altering human biology in a positive way, possibly through those neuroendocrine mechanisms responsible for strengthening the social bonds between individuals. Indeed, speech between trusted individuals is capable of reducing levels of salivary cortisol, often considered a biomarker of stress, and increasing levels of urinary oxytocin, a hormone involved in the formation and maintenance of positive relationships. It is not clear, however, whether it is the uniquely human grammar, syntax, content and/or choice of words that causes these physiological changes, or whether the prosodic elements of speech, which are present in the vocal cues of many other species, are responsible. In order to tease apart these elements of human communication, we examined the hormonal responses of female children who instant messaged their mothers after undergoing a stressor. We discovered that unlike children interacting with their mothers in person or over the phone, girls who instant messaged did not release oxytocin; instead, these participants showed levels of salivary cortisol as high as control subjects who did not interact with their parents at all. We conclude that the comforting sound of a familiar voice is responsible for the hormonal differences observed and, hence, that similar differences may be seen in other species using vocal cues to communicate.

Design of SIP transformation server for efficient media negotiation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pack, Sangheon; Paik, Eun Kyoung; Choi, Yanghee

2001-07-01

Voice over IP (VoIP) is one of the advanced services supported by the next generation mobile communication. VoIP should support various media formats and terminals existing together. This heterogeneous environment may prevent diverse users from establishing VoIP sessions among them. To solve the problem an efficient media negotiation mechanism is required. In this paper, we propose the efficient media negotiation architecture using the transformation server and the Intelligent Location Server (ILS). The transformation server is an extended Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) proxy server. It can modify an unacceptable session INVITE message into an acceptable one using the ILS. The ILS is a directory server based on the Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) that keeps userí*s location information and available media information. The proposed architecture can eliminate an unnecessary response and re-INVITE messages of the standard SIP architecture. It takes only 1.5 round trip times to negotiate two different media types while the standard media negotiation mechanism takes 2.5 round trip times. The extra processing time in message handling is negligible in comparison to the reduced round trip time. The experimental results show that the session setup time in the proposed architecture is less than the setup time in the standard SIP. These results verify that the proposed media negotiation mechanism is more efficient in solving diversity problems.

Multidimensional human dynamics in mobile phone communications.

PubMed

Quadri, Christian; Zignani, Matteo; Capra, Lorenzo; Gaito, Sabrina; Rossi, Gian Paolo

2014-01-01

In today's technology-assisted society, social interactions may be expressed through a variety of techno-communication channels, including online social networks, email and mobile phones (calls, text messages). Consequently, a clear grasp of human behavior through the diverse communication media is considered a key factor in understanding the formation of the today's information society. So far, all previous research on user communication behavior has focused on a sole communication activity. In this paper we move forward another step on this research path by performing a multidimensional study of human sociality as an expression of the use of mobile phones. The paper focuses on user temporal communication behavior in the interplay between the two complementary communication media, text messages and phone calls, that represent the bi-dimensional scenario of analysis. Our study provides a theoretical framework for analyzing multidimensional bursts as the most general burst category, that includes one-dimensional bursts as the simplest case, and offers empirical evidence of their nature by following the combined phone call/text message communication patterns of approximately one million people over three-month period. This quantitative approach enables the design of a generative model rooted in the three most significant features of the multidimensional burst - the number of dimensions, prevalence and interleaving degree - able to reproduce the main media usage attitude. The other findings of the paper include a novel multidimensional burst detection algorithm and an insight analysis of the human media selection process.

Uv-Light Stabilization Additive Package For Solar Cell Module And Laminated Glass Applications

DOEpatents

Hanoka, Jack I.; Klemchuk, Peter P.

2002-03-05

An ultraviolet light stabilization additive package is used in an encapsulant material that may be used in solar cell modules, laminated glass and a variety of other applications. The ultraviolet light stabilization additive package comprises a first hindered amine light stabilizer and a second hindered amine light stabilizer. The first hindered amine light stabilizer provides thermal oxidative stabilization, and the second hindered amine light stabilizer providing photo-oxidative stabilization.

Adolescents' receptivity to E-cigarette harms messages delivered using text messaging.

PubMed

Noar, Seth M; Rohde, Jacob A; Horvitz, Casey; Lazard, Allison J; Cornacchione Ross, Jennifer; Sutfin, Erin L

2018-06-02

E-cigarette use among adolescents has dramatically risen since 2011, yet little research has tested e-cigarette harms messages among adolescents. We conducted a pretest-posttest pilot study to examine adolescents' receptivity to e-cigarette health harms messages delivered using text messaging. N = 69 adolescents were enrolled in an 8-day pretest-posttest text messaging study. Participants completed a pretest survey on day one, were texted one of three e-cigarette health harms messages per day on days two through seven, and completed a posttest survey on day eight (88% retention). We assessed message ratings at posttest and knowledge, thoughts, and beliefs about e-cigarette harms at pretest and posttest. Adolescents rated the three messages favorably, with both the chemical and brain messages scoring higher than the nicotine message on fear arousal and perceived message effectiveness. More than one-third of adolescents showed the messages to others and talked to others about the messages. At posttest, knowledge about the harms of e-cigarettes, thinking about the risks of e-cigarettes, and perceived risks of e-cigarettes were all significantly higher compared to pretest (p < .05). Participants largely adhered to the text messaging protocol and found the study highly acceptable. This pilot study suggests that adolescents are receptive to e-cigarette health harms messages and that delivering such messages using text messaging is feasible and acceptable. Future research should systematically develop and test a broad set of e-cigarette health harms messages and examine their impact in a randomized controlled trial. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.