Sample records for visitor access control

  1. DOE`s nation-wide system for access control can solve problems for the federal government

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

    Callahan, S.; Tomes, D.; Davis, G.

    1996-07-01

    The U.S. Department of Energy`s (DOE`s) ongoing efforts to improve its physical and personnel security systems while reducing its costs, provide a model for federal government visitor processing. Through the careful use of standardized badges, computer databases, and networks of automated access control systems, the DOE is increasing the security associated with travel throughout the DOE complex, and at the same time, eliminating paperwork, special badging, and visitor delays. The DOE is also improving badge accountability, personnel identification assurance, and access authorization timeliness and accuracy. Like the federal government, the DOE has dozens of geographically dispersed locations run by manymore » different contractors operating a wide range of security systems. The DOE has overcome these obstacles by providing data format standards, a complex-wide virtual network for security, the adoption of a standard high security system, and an open-systems-compatible link for any automated access control system. If the location`s level of security requires it, positive visitor identification is accomplished by personal identification number (PIN) and/or by biometrics. At sites with automated access control systems, this positive identification is integrated into the portals.« less

  2. 32 CFR 552.109 - Routine security controls.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... to the Fort Lewis Main Cantonment Area and Prohibiting Certain Conduct Upon Fort Lewis Military... prior to granting access. Visitor's passes for visitors to Madigan Army Medical Center and the Logistics Center/Civilian Personnel Office will be issued at the Madigan and Logistics Center gates respectively...

  3. 32 CFR 552.109 - Routine security controls.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... to the Fort Lewis Main Cantonment Area and Prohibiting Certain Conduct Upon Fort Lewis Military... prior to granting access. Visitor's passes for visitors to Madigan Army Medical Center and the Logistics Center/Civilian Personnel Office will be issued at the Madigan and Logistics Center gates respectively...

  4. 32 CFR 552.109 - Routine security controls.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... to the Fort Lewis Main Cantonment Area and Prohibiting Certain Conduct Upon Fort Lewis Military... prior to granting access. Visitor's passes for visitors to Madigan Army Medical Center and the Logistics Center/Civilian Personnel Office will be issued at the Madigan and Logistics Center gates respectively...

  5. 32 CFR 552.109 - Routine security controls.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... to the Fort Lewis Main Cantonment Area and Prohibiting Certain Conduct Upon Fort Lewis Military... prior to granting access. Visitor's passes for visitors to Madigan Army Medical Center and the Logistics Center/Civilian Personnel Office will be issued at the Madigan and Logistics Center gates respectively...

  6. 32 CFR 552.109 - Routine security controls.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... to the Fort Lewis Main Cantonment Area and Prohibiting Certain Conduct Upon Fort Lewis Military... prior to granting access. Visitor's passes for visitors to Madigan Army Medical Center and the Logistics Center/Civilian Personnel Office will be issued at the Madigan and Logistics Center gates respectively...

  7. Report: EPA Could Improve Physical Access and Service Continuity/Contingency Controls for Financial and Mixed-Financial Systems Located at its Research Triangle Park Campus

    EPA Pesticide Factsheets

    Report #2006-P-00005, December 14, 2005. Controls needed to be improved in areas such as visitor access to facilities, use of contractor access badges, and general physical access to the NCC, computer rooms outside the NCC, and media storage rooms.

  8. 33 CFR 106.260 - Security measures for access control.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... SECURITY MARITIME SECURITY MARINE SECURITY: OUTER CONTINENTAL SHELF (OCS) FACILITIES Outer Continental... unattended spaces that adjoin areas to which OCS facility personnel and visitors have access; (9) Ensure OCS...

  9. 33 CFR 106.260 - Security measures for access control.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... SECURITY MARITIME SECURITY MARINE SECURITY: OUTER CONTINENTAL SHELF (OCS) FACILITIES Outer Continental... unattended spaces that adjoin areas to which OCS facility personnel and visitors have access; (9) Ensure OCS...

  10. 33 CFR 106.260 - Security measures for access control.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... SECURITY MARITIME SECURITY MARINE SECURITY: OUTER CONTINENTAL SHELF (OCS) FACILITIES Outer Continental... unattended spaces that adjoin areas to which OCS facility personnel and visitors have access; (9) Ensure OCS...

  11. 33 CFR 106.260 - Security measures for access control.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... SECURITY MARITIME SECURITY MARINE SECURITY: OUTER CONTINENTAL SHELF (OCS) FACILITIES Outer Continental... unattended spaces that adjoin areas to which OCS facility personnel and visitors have access; (9) Ensure OCS...

  12. 33 CFR 106.260 - Security measures for access control.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... SECURITY MARITIME SECURITY MARINE SECURITY: OUTER CONTINENTAL SHELF (OCS) FACILITIES Outer Continental... unattended spaces that adjoin areas to which OCS facility personnel and visitors have access; (9) Ensure OCS...

  13. Toward the improvement of trail classification in national parks using the recreation opportunity spectrum approach.

    PubMed

    Oishi, Yoshitaka

    2013-06-01

    Trail settings in national parks are essential management tools for improving both ecological conservation efforts and the quality of visitor experiences. This study proposes a plan for the appropriate maintenance of trails in Chubusangaku National Park, Japan, based on the recreation opportunity spectrum (ROS) approach. First, we distributed 452 questionnaires to determine park visitors' preferences for setting a trail (response rate = 68 %). Respondents' preferences were then evaluated according to the following seven parameters: access, remoteness, naturalness, facilities and site management, social encounters, visitor impact, and visitor management. Using nonmetric multidimensional scaling and cluster analysis, the visitors were classified into seven groups. Last, we classified the actual trails according to the visitor questionnaire criteria to examine the discrepancy between visitors' preferences and actual trail settings. The actual trail classification indicated that while most developed trails were located in accessible places, primitive trails were located in remote areas. However, interestingly, two visitor groups seemed to prefer a well-conserved natural environment and, simultaneously, easily accessible trails. This finding does not correspond to a premise of the ROS approach, which supposes that primitive trails should be located in remote areas without ready access. Based on this study's results, we propose that creating trails, which afford visitors the opportunity to experience a well-conserved natural environment in accessible areas is a useful means to provide visitors with diverse recreation opportunities. The process of data collection and analysis in this study can be one approach to produce ROS maps for providing visitors with recreational opportunities of greater diversity and higher quality.

  14. Evaluating multiple dimensions of visitors' tradeoffs between access and crowding at Arches National Park using indifference curve analysis

    Treesearch

    Steven R. Lawson; Robert E. Manning

    2001-01-01

    Tradeoffs are an inherent part of many of the decisions faced by outdoor recreation managers. For example, decisions concerning the social carrying capacity of popular attraction sites involve tradeoffs between limiting visitor use to ensure a high quality experience and allowing high levels of visitor use to ensure that large numbers of visitors retain access to park...

  15. Fire Island National Seashore survey of walk-in visitors

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2005-04-30

    The FINS Survey of Walk-in Visitors was conducted with the aim of determining how public access to the island can be improved. This survey obtained input from visitors who access the National Seashore on foot from nearby Robert Moses State Park on th...

  16. Exploring visitor acceptability for hardening trails to sustain visitation and minimize impacts

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Cahill, K.L.; Marion, J.L.; Lawson, S.R.

    2008-01-01

    Protected natural area managers are challenged to provide high quality recreation opportunities and ensure the protection of resources from impacts associated with visitation. Development of visitor use facilities and application of site hardening practices are commonly applied tools for achieving these competing management objectives. This study applies stated choice analysis to examine visitor opinions on acceptability when they are asked to make tradeoffs among competing social, resource and management attributes in backcountry and frontcountry settings of Acadia National Park. This study demonstrates that asking visitors about recreation setting attributes uni-dimensionally, a common approach, can yield less informative responses. Analyses that considered direct tradeoffs revealed more divergent opinions on acceptability for setting attributes than a unidimensional approach. Findings revealed that visitors to an accessible and popular attraction feature supported trail development options to protect resource conditions with unrestricted visitor access. In contrast, visitors to a remote undeveloped island expressed stronger support for no or limited trail development and access restrictions to protect resource conditions.

  17. Open access publishing, article downloads, and citations: randomised controlled trial

    PubMed Central

    Lewenstein, Bruce V; Simon, Daniel H; Booth, James G; Connolly, Mathew J L

    2008-01-01

    Objective To measure the effect of free access to the scientific literature on article downloads and citations. Design Randomised controlled trial. Setting 11 journals published by the American Physiological Society. Participants 1619 research articles and reviews. Main outcome measures Article readership (measured as downloads of full text, PDFs, and abstracts) and number of unique visitors (internet protocol addresses). Citations to articles were gathered from the Institute for Scientific Information after one year. Interventions Random assignment on online publication of articles published in 11 scientific journals to open access (treatment) or subscription access (control). Results Articles assigned to open access were associated with 89% more full text downloads (95% confidence interval 76% to 103%), 42% more PDF downloads (32% to 52%), and 23% more unique visitors (16% to 30%), but 24% fewer abstract downloads (−29% to −19%) than subscription access articles in the first six months after publication. Open access articles were no more likely to be cited than subscription access articles in the first year after publication. Fifty nine per cent of open access articles (146 of 247) were cited nine to 12 months after publication compared with 63% (859 of 1372) of subscription access articles. Logistic and negative binomial regression analysis of article citation counts confirmed no citation advantage for open access articles. Conclusions Open access publishing may reach more readers than subscription access publishing. No evidence was found of a citation advantage for open access articles in the first year after publication. The citation advantage from open access reported widely in the literature may be an artefact of other causes. PMID:18669565

  18. Transit and trail connections: assessment of visitor access to National Wildlife Refuges

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2010-12-01

    The purpose of the study is to characterize the use of transit and non-motorized transportation modes for visitor access to National Wildlife Refuges (NWRs), as well as identify opportunities for and constraints to alternative transportation access. ...

  19. Healthcare access and mobility between the UK and other European Union states: an 'implementation surplus'.

    PubMed

    Sheaff, R

    1997-12-01

    European Union (EU) policy on mobility requires ensuring healthcare access for EU residents who travel between EU states. This case-study investigates how this policy has been implemented in respect of EU visitors to the UK. EU visitors to the UK have similar access to 'immediately needed' National Health Service (NHS) healthcare to UK residents. For non-urgent healthcare, the NHS has official systems to discourage 'medical tourism' and divert such patients to the private sector or to reclaim the costs of NHS hospital treatment for EU visitors. Yet these official systems contrast with the flexibility and liberality of actual NHS practice towards EU visitors. Research on health policy implementation mostly examines reasons for 'implementation failure'. However, the present study indicates a health policy being implemented more fully than policy-makers may have anticipated. In the case of healthcare access for EU visitors to the UK, an implementation surplus is evident rather than an implementation deficit.

  20. 76 FR 69722 - Access to Confidential Business Information by Protection Strategies Incorporated

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-11-09

    ... visitors are required to show photographic identification, pass through a metal detector, and sign the EPA visitor log. All visitor bags are processed through an X-ray machine and subject to search. Visitors will...

  1. NEEDS AND CHALLENGES OF HOME VISITORS CONDUCTING PERINATAL DEPRESSION SCREENING.

    PubMed

    Doering, Jennifer J; Maletta, Kristyn; Laszewski, Audrey; Wichman, Christina L; Hammel, Jennifer

    2017-07-01

    This article describes the needs and challenges faced by home visitors, supervisors, and clients when conducting perinatal depression screening. Home visitors (n = 11), supervisors (n = 5), and clients (n = 9) representing rural and urban practice settings in Wisconsin were recruited into three separate focus groups. Themes were identified from the transcribed audio-recorded interviews using content analysis. Results indicate that a trusting relationship was leveraged to facilitate depression screening and referral. Home visitors personalized care to a client's context and to protect confidentiality. Home-visiting practice demanded flexibility and negotiation in decision-making with clients and families. Coordinating access to mental health evaluation in areas of limited access was a common challenge. Participants reported a need for further training on safety management. With adequate training and support, home visitors are well-positioned to promote access to mental health services in vulnerable families to support infant mental health. © 2017 Michigan Association for Infant Mental Health.

  2. 76 FR 71018 - Access to Confidential Business Information by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-11-16

    ... visitors are required to show photographic identification, pass through a metal detector, and sign the EPA visitor log. All visitor bags are processed through an X-ray machine and subject to search. Visitors will...

  3. Visitor Access and Transportation Guide.

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2011-09-30

    This visitor access and transportation guide presents opportunities to manage or improve circulation and travel patterns in areas managed by Federal Land Management Agencies (FLMAs), such as the National Park Service (NPS), U.S. Forest Service (USFS)...

  4. How do visitor density and anthropogenic change in frontcountry wilderness settings affect recreation benefits?

    Treesearch

    Jeffrey R. Behan; Merton T. Richards; Martha E. Lee

    2000-01-01

    Effects on recreation benefits were assessed using questionnaires and image sets depicting visitor density ranges and anthropogenic setting changes at two heavily-visited wilderness sites. Visitor benefits were less affected by high visitor densities at the more accessible of the two sites. New age medicine wheels had a positive effect on visitor benefits, as did trail...

  5. 75 FR 57544 - Defense Trade Advisory Group; Notice of Open Meeting

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-09-21

    .... Truman Building, Washington, DC. Entry and registration will begin at 12:30 p.m. Please use the building... Visitor Access Control System (VACS-D) database. Please see the Privacy Impact Assessment for VACS-D at...

  6. 77 FR 12284 - Access to Confidential Business Information; Protection Strategies Incorporated

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-02-29

    ... (202) 566-0280. Docket visitors are required to show photographic identification, pass through a metal detector, and sign the EPA visitor log. All visitor bags are processed through an X-ray machine and subject...

  7. 76 FR 77224 - Access to Confidential Business Information by Primus Solutions, Inc.

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-12-12

    ... are required to show photographic identification, pass through a metal detector, and sign the EPA visitor log. All visitor bags are processed through an X-ray machine and subject to search. Visitors will...

  8. 77 FR 68769 - Access to Confidential Business Information by Eastern Research Group

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-11-16

    ... (202) 566-0280. Docket visitors are required to show photographic identification, pass through a metal detector, and sign the EPA visitor log. All visitor bags are processed through an X-ray machine and subject...

  9. 75 FR 78238 - Access to Confidential Business Information by Science Applications International Corporation and...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-12-15

    ... show photographic identification, pass through a metal detector, and sign the EPA visitor log. All visitor bags are processed through an X-ray machine and subject to search. Visitors will be provided an...

  10. 76 FR 23586 - Access to Confidential Business Information by Syracuse Research Corporation

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-04-27

    ... (202) 566-0280. Docket visitors are required to show photographic identification, pass through a metal detector, and sign the EPA visitor log. All visitor bags are processed through an X-ray machine and subject...

  11. 78 FR 66696 - Access to Confidential Business Information by Arcadis U.S., Inc.

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-11-06

    ... (202) 566-0280. Docket visitors are required to show photographic identification, pass through a metal detector, and sign the EPA visitor log. All visitor bags are processed through an X-ray machine and subject...

  12. 75 FR 8330 - Access to Confidential Business Information by Eastern Research Group

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-02-24

    ... identification, pass through a metal detector, and sign the EPA visitor log. All visitors' bags are processed through an X-ray machine and subject to search. Visitors will be provided an EPA/DC badge that must be...

  13. 77 FR 68769 - Access to Confidential Business Information by Abt Associates, Inc.

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-11-16

    ... identification, pass through a metal detector, and sign the EPA visitor log. All visitor bags are processed through an X-ray machine and subject to search. Visitors will be provided an EPA/DC badge that must be...

  14. 78 FR 67139 - Access to Confidential Business Information by Eastern Research Group and Its Identified...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-11-08

    ... (202) 566-0280. Docket visitors are required to show photographic identification, pass through a metal detector, and sign the EPA visitor log. All visitor bags are processed through an X-ray machine and subject...

  15. 75 FR 24688 - Access to Confidential Business Information by Guident Technologies Inc.’s Identified Subcontractor

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-05-05

    ... show photographic identification, pass through a metal detector, and sign the EPA visitor log. All visitor bags are processed through an X-ray machine and subject to search. Visitors will be provided an...

  16. 77 FR 21766 - Access to Confidential Business Information by CGI Federal Inc.

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-04-11

    ... identification, pass through a metal detector, and sign the EPA visitor log. All visitor bags are processed through an X-ray machine and subject to search. Visitors will be provided an EPA/DC badge that must be...

  17. 76 FR 77816 - Access to Confidential Business Information by Guident Technologies, Inc. and Subcontractor...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-12-14

    ... (202) 566-0280. Docket visitors are required to show photographic identification, pass through a metal detector, and sign the EPA visitor log. All visitor bags are processed through an X-ray machine and subject...

  18. 75 FR 56096 - Access to Confidential Business Information by Industrial Economics Incorporated

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-09-15

    ... photographic identification, pass through a metal detector, and sign the EPA visitor log. All visitor bags are processed through an X-ray machine and subject to search. Visitors will be provided an EPA/DC badge that...

  19. 78 FR 20101 - Access to Confidential Business Information by Chemical Abstract Services

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-04-03

    ... identification, pass through a metal detector, and sign the EPA visitor log. All visitor bags are processed through an X-ray machine and subject to search. Visitors will be provided an EPA/DC badge that must be...

  20. 75 FR 57768 - Access to Confidential Business Information by Eastern Research Group and Its Identified...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-09-22

    ... photographic identification, pass through a metal detector, and sign the EPA visitor log. All visitor bags are processed through an X-ray machine and subject to search. Visitors will be provided an EPA/DC badge that...

  1. 76 FR 9012 - Access to Confidential Business Information by Electronic Consulting Services, Inc.

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-02-16

    ... identification, pass through a metal detector, and sign the EPA visitor log. All visitor bags are processed through an X-ray machine and subject to search. Visitors will be provided an EPA/DC badge that must be...

  2. Visitor perceptions of and support for management actions at an urban national historic site

    Treesearch

    Julie A. Strack; Craig A. Miller

    2009-01-01

    This study examined visitor use patterns, perceptions of crowding, and preferences for mixed-use management plans for the Kennesaw Mountain Road at Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park (KMNBP) outside Atlanta, GA. Survey data showed significant differences between first-time visitors to KMNBP and repeat visitors. Most felt that the road should have open access...

  3. 77 FR 24697 - Access to Confidential Business Information by CGI Federal Inc. and Its Identified Subcontractor...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-04-25

    ... identification, pass through a metal detector, and sign the EPA visitor log. All visitor bags are processed through an X-ray machine and subject to search. Visitors will be provided an EPA/DC badge that must be...

  4. 75 FR 70672 - Access to Confidential Business Information by Computer Sciences Corporation and Its Identified...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-11-18

    ... identification, pass through a metal detector, and sign the EPA visitor log. All visitor bags are processed through an X-ray machine and subject to search. Visitors will be provided an EPA/DC badge that must be...

  5. 76 FR 37111 - Access to Confidential Business Information by Computer Sciences Corporation and Its Identified...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-06-24

    ... identification, pass through a metal detector, and sign the EPA visitor log. All visitor bags are processed through an X-ray machine and subject to search. Visitors will be provided an EPA/DC badge that must be...

  6. 76 FR 10360 - Access to Confidential Business Information by Guident Technologies Inc. and Its Identified...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-02-24

    ... identification, pass through a metal detector, and sign the EPA visitor log. All visitor bags are processed through an X-ray machine and subject to search. Visitors will be provided an EPA/DC badge that must be...

  7. 77 FR 10506 - Access to Confidential Business Information by Syracuse Research Corporation, Inc., and Its...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-02-22

    ... identification, pass through a metal detector, and sign the EPA visitor log. All visitor bags are processed through an X-ray machine and subject to search. Visitors will be provided an EPA/DC badge that must be...

  8. 76 FR 77817 - Access to Confidential Business Information by CGI Federal, Inc. and Subcontractor, Innovate, Inc.

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-12-14

    ... identification, pass through a metal detector, and sign the EPA visitor log. All visitor bags are processed through an X-ray machine and subject to search. Visitors will be provided an EPA/DC badge that must be...

  9. 77 FR 69820 - Access to Confidential Business Information by Electronic Consulting Services, Inc., and Its...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-11-21

    ... identification, pass through a metal detector, and sign the EPA visitor log. All visitor bags are processed through an X-ray machine and subject to search. Visitors will be provided an EPA/DC badge that must be...

  10. Investigation of Priority Needs in Terms of Museum Service Accessibility for Visually Impaired Visitors

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Handa, Kozue; Dairoku, Hitoshi; Toriyama, Yoshiko

    2010-01-01

    This study investigates the priority needs of museum service accessibility for visually impaired visitors. For this purpose, conjoint analysis was utilized. Four conjoint attributes of museum services were selected: A--facilities for wayfinding; B--exhibitions and collections including objects for touching, hearing, smelling, etc.; C--information…

  11. 76 FR 39048 - Special Regulations; Areas of the National Park System, Yellowstone National Park

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-07-05

    ..., natural soundscapes, visitor use and experience, and visitor accessibility. Impacts associated with each... oversnow vehicles on the park's soundscapes. NPS Approved Snowmobiles and Snowcoaches The Superintendent..., air quality, natural soundscapes, and visitor and employee safety, the NPS is proposing to continue...

  12. Crime Prevention through Environmental Design

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Draper, Rick; Cadzow, Emma

    2004-01-01

    Applying CPTED (Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design) strategies to schools can significantly contribute to a safer learning environment by influencing the behaviour of students and visitors. CPTED has three overlapping primary concepts that are intended to reduce opportunities for crime as well as fear of crime: access control,…

  13. The Amusement Arcade as a Social Space for Adolescents: An Empirical Study.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Fisher, Sue

    1995-01-01

    Gathered data on arcade use in adolescents (n=460). "Regular" arcade visitors varied sufficiently from the more "casual" visitors in their orientation to, and experience in, arcades. Regular visitors were more likely to score positively on indices screening for addiction. Raises questions about children's access to potentially…

  14. Increasing the "Curb Appeal" of Your Schools: Lessons from a Visitor.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Painter, Suzanne R.

    2001-01-01

    In today's competitive atmosphere, certain marketing opportunities are often overlooked. Educators can attract students and parents to their school by publicizing the school's location, making the building's main entrance visible and inviting, having visitor parking available and accessible, and instructing office staff to greet visitors. (MLH)

  15. 75 FR 56078 - Federal Advisory Committee; Defense Acquisition University Board of Visitors

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-09-15

    ... p.m. DAU Strategic Planning Discussion Open Forum. Public's Accessibility to the Meeting Pursuant to... University Board of Visitors AGENCY: Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense, Defense. ACTION: Meeting....150, the Department of Defense announces that the Defense Acquisition University Board of Visitors...

  16. [Analysis of a blog for gastrointestinal disease in the view point of the big data: a single institutional study].

    PubMed

    Choi, Jungran; Park, Hyojin; Lee, Choong-Hyun

    2014-06-01

    With the enormous increase in the amount of data, the concept of big data has emerged and this allows us to gain new insights and appreciate its value. However, analysis related to gastrointestinal diseases in the viewpoint of the big data has not been performed yet in Korea. This study analyzed the data of the blog's visitors as a set of big data to investigate questions they did not mention in the clinical situation. We analyzed the blog of a professor whose subspecialty is gastroenterology at Gangnam Severance Hospital. We assessed the changes in the number of visitors, access path of visitors, and the queries from January 2011 to December 2013. A total of 50,084 visitors gained accessed to the blog. An average of 1,535.3 people visited the blog per month and 49.5 people per day. The number of visitors and the cumulative number of registered posts showed a positive correlation. The most utilized access path of visitors to the website was blog.iseverance.com (42.2%), followed by Google (32.8%) and Daum (6.6%). The most searched term by the visitors in the blog was intestinal metaplasia (16.6%), followed by dizziness (8.3%) and gastric submucosal tumor (7.0%). Personal blog can function as a communication route for patients with digestive diseases. The most frequently searched word necessitating explanation and education was 'intestinal metaplasia'. Identifying and analyzing even unstructured data as a set of big data is expected to provide meaningful information.

  17. The Effect of Person Order on Egress Time: A Simulation Model of Evacuation From a Neolithic Visitor Attraction.

    PubMed

    Stewart, Arthur; Elyan, Eyad; Isaacs, John; McEwen, Leah; Wilson, Lyn

    2017-12-01

    The aim of this study was to model the egress of visitors from a Neolithic visitor attraction. Tourism attracts increasing numbers of elderly and mobility-impaired visitors to our built-environment heritage sites. Some such sites have very limited and awkward access, were not designed for mass visitation, and may not be modifiable to facilitate disabled access. As a result, emergency evacuation planning must take cognizance of robust information, and in this study we aimed to establish the effect of visitor position on egress. Direct observation of three tours at Maeshowe, Orkney, informed typical time of able-bodied individuals and a mobility-impaired person through the 10-m access tunnel. This observation informed the design of egress and evacuation models running on the Unity gaming platform. A slow-moving person at the observed speed typically increased time to safety of 20 people by 170% and reduced the advantage offered by closer tunnel separation by 26%. Using speeds for size-specific characters of 50th, 95th, and 99th percentiles increased time to safety in emergency evacuation by 51% compared with able-bodied individuals. Larger individuals may slow egress times of a group; however, a single slow-moving mobility-impaired person exerts a greater influence on group egress, profoundly influencing those behind. Unidirectional routes in historic buildings and other visitor attractions are vulnerable to slow-moving visitors during egress. The model presented in this study is scalable, is applicable to other buildings, and can be used as part of a risk assessment and emergency evacuation plan in future work.

  18. Living Liquid: Design and Evaluation of an Exploratory Visualization Tool for Museum Visitors.

    PubMed

    Ma, J; Liao, I; Ma, Kwan-Liu; Frazier, J

    2012-12-01

    Interactive visualizations can allow science museum visitors to explore new worlds by seeing and interacting with scientific data. However, designing interactive visualizations for informal learning environments, such as museums, presents several challenges. First, visualizations must engage visitors on a personal level. Second, visitors often lack the background to interpret visualizations of scientific data. Third, visitors have very limited time at individual exhibits in museums. This paper examines these design considerations through the iterative development and evaluation of an interactive exhibit as a visualization tool that gives museumgoers access to scientific data generated and used by researchers. The exhibit prototype, Living Liquid, encourages visitors to ask and answer their own questions while exploring the time-varying global distribution of simulated marine microbes using a touchscreen interface. Iterative development proceeded through three rounds of formative evaluations using think-aloud protocols and interviews, each round informing a key visualization design decision: (1) what to visualize to initiate inquiry, (2) how to link data at the microscopic scale to global patterns, and (3) how to include additional data that allows visitors to pursue their own questions. Data from visitor evaluations suggests that, when designing visualizations for public audiences, one should (1) avoid distracting visitors from data that they should explore, (2) incorporate background information into the visualization, (3) favor understandability over scientific accuracy, and (4) layer data accessibility to structure inquiry. Lessons learned from this case study add to our growing understanding of how to use visualizations to actively engage learners with scientific data.

  19. Data survey and sampling procedures to quantify recreation use of national forests in Alaska

    Treesearch

    Ginny Fay; Steve Colt; Eric M. White

    2010-01-01

    Estimating visitor numbers and collecting information on visitor attitudes in Alaska national forests is especially challenging because of the dispersed access to the forests by a relatively small number of visitors. The Tongass and Chugach National Forests are each millions of acres with miles of saltwater coastline and numerous lakes...

  20. Implementation and Operational Analysis of an Interactive Intensive Care Unit within a Smart Health Context.

    PubMed

    Lopez-Iturri, Peio; Aguirre, Erik; Trigo, Jesús Daniel; Astrain, José Javier; Azpilicueta, Leyre; Serrano, Luis; Villadangos, Jesús; Falcone, Francisco

    2018-01-29

    In the context of hospital management and operation, Intensive Care Units (ICU) are one of the most challenging in terms of time responsiveness and criticality, in which adequate resource management and signal processing play a key role in overall system performance. In this work, a context aware Intensive Care Unit is implemented and analyzed to provide scalable signal acquisition capabilities, as well as to provide tracking and access control. Wireless channel analysis is performed by means of hybrid optimized 3D Ray Launching deterministic simulation to assess potential interference impact as well as to provide required coverage/capacity thresholds for employed transceivers. Wireless system operation within the ICU scenario, considering conventional transceiver operation, is feasible in terms of quality of service for the complete scenario. Extensive measurements of overall interference levels have also been carried out, enabling subsequent adequate coverage/capacity estimations, for a set of Zigbee based nodes. Real system operation has been tested, with ad-hoc designed Zigbee wireless motes, employing lightweight communication protocols to minimize energy and bandwidth usage. An ICU information gathering application and software architecture for Visitor Access Control has been implemented, providing monitoring of the Boxes external doors and the identification of visitors via a RFID system. The results enable a solution to provide ICU access control and tracking capabilities previously not exploited, providing a step forward in the implementation of a Smart Health framework.

  1. 78 FR 76060 - Pacific Ocean off the Pacific Missile Range Facility at Barking Sands, Island of Kauai, Hawaii...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-12-16

    ... military testing and training activities, increases in force protection and other mission-essential... protection, and other mission-essential evolutions. Residents and visitors who typically use these waters off... public access is controlled during the infrequent times of increased force protection, range operations...

  2. Monitoring Web Site Usage of e-Bug: A Hygiene and Antibiotic Awareness Resource for Children

    PubMed Central

    Rajapandian, Vijayamaharaj; Eley, Charlotte V; Hoekstra, Beverley A; Lecky, Donna M; McNulty, Cliodna AM

    2015-01-01

    Background e-Bug is an educational resource which teaches children and young people about microbes, hygiene, infection, and prudent antibiotic use. The e-Bug resources are available in over 22 different languages and they are used widely across the globe. The resources can be accessed from the e-Bug website. Objective The objective of this study was to analyze the usage of the e-Bug website in order to understand how users access the website, where and when they access the site, and to review variation in use across the different areas of the site. Methods The usage statistics for the e-Bug website were monitored by Google Analytics between September 2010 and August 2013. Results The statistics show the website had over 324,000 visits during the three years, from just under 250,000 visitors, with the number of visitors increasing year after year. Visitors accessed the website from 211 different countries, with more than 267,000 documents downloaded. The majority of visitors were from the United Kingdom and visited the English website, although countries such as France and Portugal were also frequent visitors. Conclusions These website statistics confirm that e-Bug is frequently used across Europe and highlight that e-Bug use has expanded across the world. The findings from this report will be used to inform future modifications or updates to the materials, as well as the development of new educational resources. PMID:26567127

  3. How to be a good visitor during flu season

    MedlinePlus

    ... consumers How to be a good visitor during flu season 11/20/2017 Access a printer-friendly ... of infection prevention. This is especially true during flu season. According to the CDC, influenza (the flu) ...

  4. The Department of Defense and the Power of Cloud Computing: Weighing Acceptable Cost Versus Acceptable Risk

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2016-04-01

    the DOD will put DOD systems and data at a risk level comparable to that of their neighbors in the cloud. Just as a user browses a Web page on the...proxy servers for controlling user access to Web pages, and large-scale storage for data management. Each of these devices allows access to the...user to develop applications. Acunetics.com describes Web applications as “computer programs allowing Website visitors to submit and retrieve data

  5. Engaging Citizen Scientists through Partnership with Interpreters

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Heavner, M.; Ferguson Craig, L.; Hekkers, M.; Connor, C. L.; Hood, E. W.

    2010-12-01

    A partnership between USDA Forest Service Mendenhall Glacier Visitor Center interpreters and University of Alaska faculty and students has facilitated citizen science engagement. The Mendenhall Glacier Visitor Center is the most visited facility operated by the United States Forest Service with approximately 445,000 visitors per year. University and visitor center personnel have developed exhibits in the Visitor Center. A majority of visitors stay for only approximately one hour due to cruise ship schedule constraints, so direct engagement by interpreters is an effective public engagement method. Therefore, the University of Alaska Southeast and the Mendenhall Glacier Visitor Center (MGVC) have worked in partnership to study the Mendenhall Glacier, providing annual public lectures through the MGVC Fireside Lecture Series, intense training sessions for all MGVC interpreters at the beginning of every summer season, and facilitating a dialog of "on-site" observations by interpreters and visitors and University researchers. The MGVC facilitates a weather station and multiple cameras providing real time data and images of Mendenhall Glacier which may be accessed by anyone and time-lapse videos of calving or advance/retreat of the terminus of the glacier. Specifically, these images and meteorological data allow the continued engagement of visitors through access when they have returned home. The open communication between MGVC and UAS allows the rapid communication of observations of changes associated with the glacier and quick response to questions of interpreters or the public. A public recording of calving facilitates public engagement and facilitates the production of time-lapse video by university personnel. In our presentation we will describe the partnership between UAS and MGVC.

  6. Smart Columbus : Systems Engineering Management Plan (SEMP) for Smart Columbus Demonstration Program

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2018-01-16

    The Smart City Demonstration Program is intended to improve access through expanded mobility options in major job centers, enhance visitor experience by better connecting visitors to transportation options, stimulate regional economic prosperity and ...

  7. The historical foundations of prescribed burning for wildlife: a southeastern perspective

    Treesearch

    A. Sydney Johnson; Philip E. Hale

    2002-01-01

    Controlled burning has deep historical roots in the South, where the practice was quickly adopted from the Indians by early European settlers. It became used widely, primarily to improve forage conditions for free-ranging cattle and to improve visibility and access. Likewise, hunting is deeply imbedded in southern culture and was an attraction to visitors throughout...

  8. Monetary and social impact measures of visitor experience and the effects of a piping plover recovery program on visitor experience

    Treesearch

    Laura Gilbert

    1995-01-01

    This study examined visitor perceptions and attitudes towards their experience at a national wildlife refuge which limits access to its barrier beach during the nesting season of the threatened piping plover. It determined attitudes towards the closure, as well as what factors influenced these attitudes. It also examined how willingness to pay for refuge protection...

  9. Implementation and Operational Analysis of an Interactive Intensive Care Unit within a Smart Health Context

    PubMed Central

    Aguirre, Erik

    2018-01-01

    In the context of hospital management and operation, Intensive Care Units (ICU) are one of the most challenging in terms of time responsiveness and criticality, in which adequate resource management and signal processing play a key role in overall system performance. In this work, a context aware Intensive Care Unit is implemented and analyzed to provide scalable signal acquisition capabilities, as well as to provide tracking and access control. Wireless channel analysis is performed by means of hybrid optimized 3D Ray Launching deterministic simulation to assess potential interference impact as well as to provide required coverage/capacity thresholds for employed transceivers. Wireless system operation within the ICU scenario, considering conventional transceiver operation, is feasible in terms of quality of service for the complete scenario. Extensive measurements of overall interference levels have also been carried out, enabling subsequent adequate coverage/capacity estimations, for a set of Zigbee based nodes. Real system operation has been tested, with ad-hoc designed Zigbee wireless motes, employing lightweight communication protocols to minimize energy and bandwidth usage. An ICU information gathering application and software architecture for Visitor Access Control has been implemented, providing monitoring of the Boxes external doors and the identification of visitors via a RFID system. The results enable a solution to provide ICU access control and tracking capabilities previously not exploited, providing a step forward in the implementation of a Smart Health framework. PMID:29382148

  10. Student Work Safety Guidelines in Roadside Applications and Work Zones : Safety Guidelines for Transportation Researchers

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2018-01-01

    The Smart City Demonstration Program is intended to improve access through expanded mobility options in major job centers, enhance visitor experience by better connecting visitors to transportation options, stimulate regional economic prosperity and ...

  11. 75 FR 2153 - National Fire Academy Board of Visitors

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-01-14

    ...] National Fire Academy Board of Visitors AGENCY: Federal Emergency Management Agency, DHS. ACTION: Committee Management; Notice of Open Teleconference Federal Advisory Committee Meeting. SUMMARY: The National Fire.... Docket: For access to the docket to read background documents or comments received by the National Fire...

  12. 48 CFR 1352.237-73 - Foreign national visitor and guest access to departmental resources.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-10-01

    ... Regulations System DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE CLAUSES AND FORMS SOLICITATION PROVISIONS AND CONTRACT CLAUSES Text... resources. As prescribed in 48 CFR 1337.110-70 (e), insert the following clause: Foreign National Visitor...; Bureau of Industry and Security Export Administrative Regulations Part 734, and [insert operating unit...

  13. 78 FR 6263 - Exchange Visitor Program-Fees and Charges

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-01-30

    ... following methods: Persons with access to the Internet will be able to view and comment on the rule and... update the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS) status, and similar requests). The... Designation on behalf of program sponsors and other program stakeholders. ABC is a method of identifying the...

  14. Museum Accessibility: Combining Audience Research and Staff Training

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Levent, Nina; Reich, Christine

    2013-01-01

    This article discusses an audience-informed professional development model that combines audience research focus groups and staff training that includes interaction and direct feedback from visitors, in this case, visitors with low vision. There are two critical components to this model: one is that museums' programming decisions are informed by…

  15. An interpretive study of Yosemite National Park visitors' perspectives toward alternative transportation in Yosemite Valley.

    PubMed

    White, Dave D

    2007-01-01

    The National Park Service (NPS) is increasingly focusing on alternative transportation systems in national parks to address environmental and social problems arising from a historical reliance on personal automobiles as the primary means of visitor access. Despite the potential advantages, alternative transportation may require a reorientation in the way that Americans have experienced national parks since the advent of auto-tourism in the early twentieth century. Little research exists, however, on visitor perspectives towards alternative transportation or the rationale underlying their perspectives. It remains unclear how transportation systems affect visitors' experiences of the park landscape or the factors influencing their travel behavior in the parks. This report presents an interpretive study of visitor perspectives toward transportation management in the Yosemite Valley area of Yosemite National Park, California. Qualitative analysis of 160 semi-structured interviews identified individual psychological factors as well as situational influences that affect visitors' behavior and perspectives. Individual psychological factors include perceived freedom, environmental values and beliefs, prior experience with Yosemite National Park and other national parks, prior experience with alternative transportation in national parks, and sensitivity to subjective perceptions of crowding. Situational factors included convenience, access, and flexibility of travel modes, as well as type of visit, type of group, and park use level. Interpretive communication designed to encourage voluntary visitor use of alternative transportation should focus on these psychological and situational factors. Although challenges remain, the results of this study suggest approaches for shaping the way Americans visit and experience their national parks to encourage environmental sustainability.

  16. Big tobacco is watching: British American Tobacco's surveillance and information concealment at the Guildford depository.

    PubMed

    Muggli, Monique E; LeGresley, Eric M; Hurt, Richard D

    2004-05-29

    The 1998 State of Minnesota legal settlement with the tobacco industry required British American Tobacco (BAT) to provide public access to the 8 million pages housed in its document depository located near Guildford, UK, and to any company documents sent to the Minnesota depository. While the Minnesota depository is managed by an independent third party, BAT's Guildford depository is run by the company itself. Starkly different from the Minnesota depository, at the Guildford depository it is extraordinarily more difficult to access, search, and obtain requested documents. BAT's approach to running the Guildford depository, in our view, amounts to concealing what is supposed to be public information. Newly produced BAT documents from subsequent litigation, dating from 1996 to 2001 disclose the company's efforts to gather intelligence on visitors and their work. We believe that BAT has acted to make access to information more difficult by delaying document production requested by public visitors and refusing to supply requested documents in an electronic format despite, in the company's own words, the establishment of "big time imaging" capabilities at the Guildford depository. During testimony in 2000, then BAT Chairman, Martin Broughton stated to the UK House of Commons Health Select Committee that the scanning and subsequent placement of the Guildford collection online "would be an extreme effort for absolutely no purpose whatsoever", stating that "there is no indication to me that serious researchers are showing any interest in the papers em leader ". New documents show that not only did the company recognise the importance of research undertaken by visitors, but also invested substantial resources and undertook numerous scanning projects during that time. The vulnerability of this important resource is demonstrated by the decreased number of files listed on the electronic database and the inadvertent deletion of an audio tape housed at the depository. With regard to intelligence gathering, BAT's law firm reported to BAT on the daily activities of depository visitors. Despite assurances to the contrary, these depository visitor reports show that BAT apparently tracked the database searches of a visitor. The company also tracked the physical movement of visitors and, in at least one instance, observed and noted the personal mobile phone use of a visitor. These activities raise ethical issues about BAT and/or its solicitors observing the work of lawyers and researchers representing health and government bodies. Given this new evidence, we assert that BAT is incapable of operating its depository in the spirit of the Minnesota settlement and should, therefore, be divorced from its operation. Accordingly, we recommend that the company provide its entire document collection electronically to interested parties thus allowing greater access to the public-health community as has been done in the USA.

  17. Crowd Control.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Wilkinson, Todd

    1995-01-01

    Describes a park visitor management program called Visitor Experience and Resource Protection (VERP) being pioneered at the Arches National Park to relieve crowding. The program involves managing visitor impacts and depends in part on visitor surveys. (LZ)

  18. Effects of visitor pressure on understory vegetation in Warsaw forested parks (Poland).

    PubMed

    Sikorski, Piotr; Szumacher, Iwona; Sikorska, Daria; Kozak, Marcin; Wierzba, Marek

    2013-07-01

    Visitor's access to understorey vegetation in park forest stands results in the impoverishment of plant species composition and a reduction in habitat quality. The phenomenon of biotic homogenisation is typical in urban landscapes, but it can proceed differently depending on the scale, a detail that has not been observed in previous studies. This research was carried out in seven Warsaw parks (both public and restricted access). Thirty-four forested areas were randomly selected, some subjected to strong visitors' pressure and some within restricted access areas, free of such impacts. The latter category included woodlands growing in old forest and secondary habitats. Public access to the study areas contributed to the disappearance of some forest species and their replacement by cosmopolitan non-forest species, leading to loss of floristic biodiversity in areas of high ecological importance at the city scale. Some human-induced factors, including soil compaction and changes in soil pH, moisture and capillary volume, were found to cause habitat changes that favoured native non-forest plants. Despite changes in species composition, the taxonomic similarity of understorey vegetation in both categories--public access and restricted access--was comparable. In a distance gradient of measurements taken around selected individual trees, there was found to be significant variation (in light, soil pH and compaction) affecting the quality and quantity of understorey vegetation (including rare species). In conclusion, the protection of rare forest species could be achieved by limiting access to forested areas, particularly in old forest fragments, and we highly recommend its consideration in the proposal of future park restoration plans.

  19. User Statistics for an Online Health Game Targeted at Children.

    PubMed

    Alblas, Eva E; Folkvord, Frans; Anschütz, Doeschka J; Ketelaar, Paul E; Granic, Isabela; Mensink, Fréderike; Buijzen, Moniek; van 't Riet, Jonathan P

    2017-10-01

    Given that many households in western countries nowadays have home access to the Internet, developing health-promoting online interventions has the potential to reach large audiences. Studies assessing usage data of online health interventions are important and relevant but, as of yet, scarce. The present study reviewed usage data from Monkey Do, an existing online health game developed specifically for children from 4 to 8 years old. In addition, the effect of advertising on usage was examined. In an observational study, a web-based analysis program was used to examine usage data of all visits to the online health game for the first 31 months following the launch. We reported descriptives for usage data. We analyzed the relationship between advertising and usage with a Mann-Whitney U test, and used a Pearson's chi-square test to investigate the association between advertising and the number of first-time visitors. In the period of data analysis, there were 224,859 sessions. Around 34% of the visitors played the game more than once. Compared with first-time visitors, the average session time of returning visitors was doubled. The game was most frequently accessed via search engine query, on a desktop computer (compared to mobile devices). Advertising was found to be positively related to the number of sessions and the number of first-time visitors. Placing a game online can reach a large audience, but it is important to also consider how to stimulate retention. Furthermore, repeated advertisement for an online game appears to be necessary to maintain visitors over time.

  20. Black Holes Traveling Exhibition: This Time, It's Personal.

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Dussault, Mary E.; Braswell, E. L.; Sunbury, S.; Wasser, M.; Gould, R. R.

    2012-01-01

    How can you make a topic as abstract as black holes seem relevant to the life of the average museum visitor? In 2009, the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics developed a 2500 square foot interactive museum exhibition, "Black Holes: Space Warps & Time Twists,” with funding from the National Science Foundation and NASA. The exhibition has been visited by more than a quarter million museum-goers, and is about to open in its sixth venue at the Reuben H. Fleet Science Center in San Diego, California. We have found that encouraging visitors to adopt a custom black hole explorer's identity can help to make the science of black holes more accessible and meaningful. The Black Holes exhibition uses networked exhibit technology that serves to personalize the visitor experience, to support learning over time including beyond the gallery, and to provide a rich quantitative source of embedded evaluation data. Visitors entering the exhibition create their own bar-coded "Black Holes Explorer's Card” which they use throughout the exhibition to collect and record images, movies, their own predictions and conclusions, and other black hole artifacts. This digital database of personal discoveries grows as visitors navigate through the gallery, and an automated web-content authoring system creates a personalized online journal of their experience that they can access once they get home. We report here on new intriguing results gathered from data generated by 112,000 visitors across five different venues. For example, an initial review of the data reveals correlations between visitors’ black hole explorer identity choices and their engagement with the exhibition. We will also discuss correlations between learning gains and personalization.

  1. Public Outreach at Appalachian State University's Dark Sky Observatory Cline Visitor Center

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Caton, Daniel B.; Hawkins, L.; Smith, A. B.

    2012-01-01

    With the recent completion of the Cline Visitor Center we have begun a program of public nights at our Dark Sky Observatory's 32-inch telescope. Events are ticketed online using an inexpensive commercial ticketing service and are limited to two groups of 60 visitors per night that arrive for 1.5-hour sessions. We are installing two large (70-inch) flat panel displays in the Center and planning additional exhibits to entertain visitors while they await their turn at the telescope's eyepiece. The facility is fully ADA compliant, with eyepiece access via a DFM Engineering Articulated Relay Eyepiece, and a wheelchair lift if needed. We present some of our experiences in this poster and encourage readers to offer suggestions. The Visitor Center was established with the support of Mr. J. Donald Cline, for which we are very grateful. The telescope was partially funded by the National Science Foundation.

  2. 78 FR 61343 - Meeting of the National Commission on the Structure of the Air Force

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-10-03

    ... to the full Commission. Meeting Accessibility: The building is fully handicap accessible. Visitors must show a picture I.D. and complete a security screening. Public parking is available within walking...

  3. Defining indicators and standards for tourism impacts in protected areas: Cape Range National Park, Australia.

    PubMed

    Moore, Susan A; Polley, Amanda

    2007-03-01

    Visitors' perceptions of impacts and acceptable standards for environmental conditions can provide essential information for the sustainable management of tourist destinations, especially protected areas. To this end, visitor surveys were administered during the peak visitor season in Cape Range National Park, on the northwest coast of Western Australia and adjacent to the iconic Ningaloo Reef. The central focus was visitors' perceptions regarding environmental conditions and standards for potential indicators. Conditions considered of greatest importance in determining visitors' quality of experience included litter, inadequate disposal of human waste, presence of wildlife, levels of noise, and access to beach and ocean. Standards were determined, based on visitors' perceptions, for a range of site-specific and non-site-specific indicators, with standards for facilities (e.g., acceptable number of parking bays, signs) and for negative environmental impacts (e.g., levels of littering, erosion) sought. The proposed standards varied significantly between sites for the facilities indicators; however, there was no significant difference between sites for environmental impacts. For the facilities, the standards proposed by visitors were closely related to the existing situation, suggesting that they were satisfied with the status quo. These results are considered in the context of current research interest in the efficacy of visitor-derived standards as a basis for protected area management.

  4. 78 FR 51175 - Meeting of the National Commission on the Structure of the Air Force

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-08-20

    ..., and analyses to the full Commission. Meeting Accessibility: The building is fully handicap accessible. Visitors must show a picture I.D. and complete a security screening. Public parking is available within...

  5. Visitor and community survey results for Kilauea Point National Wildlife Refuge and Lighthouse: Completion report

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Sexton, Natalie; Gillette, Shana C.; Koontz, Lynne; Stewart, Susan C.; Loomis, John; Wundrock, Katherine D.

    2005-01-01

    The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) and the Central Federal Lands Highway Division of the Federal Highway Administration, U.S. Department of Transportation are currently pursuing the planning and potential design of an alternative transportation system (ATS) for Kilauea Point National Wildlife Refuge (Refuge or Kilauea Point NWR). The USFWS and CFLHD seek an alternative transportation solution that provides the highest quality visitor experience and is sensitive to biological and cultural resources and the needs of the local community. In planning the alternative transportation system, managers need to consider how an ATS would change factors such as visitor access, visitor experience, visitor willingness to pay, and visitor net economic benefits. The Policy Analysis and Science Assistance branch (PASA) at the U.S. Geological Survey Fort Collins Science Center is dedicated to studying relations between humans and the environment. The objective of PASA is to conduct studies to understand how humans are affected by environmental management decisions and how human activities impact use and conservation of natural resources.

  6. Web-based screening and brief intervention for the spectrum of alcohol problems.

    PubMed

    Saitz, Richard; Helmuth, Eric D; Aromaa, Susan E; Guard, Anara; Belanger, Marc; Rosenbloom, David L

    2004-11-01

    Many persons who drink excessively remain unidentified and do not receive interventions. Screening and intervention using the World Wide Web could make such services more accessible and therefore more widely used. To evaluate the use of a novel alcohol screening and brief intervention Web site. A Web site was developed, posted, and its use was evaluated. We analyzed a sample of visitors who completed alcohol screening over a 14-month period to describe their alcohol use, and their use of portions of the Web site that provide information and referral resources. The Internet. Web site visitors, with a focus on visitors who completed an alcohol-screening questionnaire about their own drinking. Brief intervention via the Web site, consisting mainly of feedback, advice, and a menu of change options and referral information. Self-reported drinking amounts and alcohol screening test scores, and utilization of Web site components. Visitors completed online alcohol screening questionnaires at a rate of 50,711/year of 115,925 visitors/year. In a 14-month period, 39,842 adults completed the questionnaire about their own drinking habits; 66% were men, 90% reported drinking hazardous amounts (per occasion or typical weekly amounts), 88% reported binge (per occasion) drinking, and 55% reported typically exceeding weekly risky drinking limits. Most (65%) had alcohol screening test results (AUDIT > or = 8) consistent with alcohol abuse or dependence; similar proportions of women and men were hazardous drinkers. One-fifth of visitors visited portions of the Web site that provided additional information about alcohol use and referrals. Visitors with possible alcohol abuse or dependence were more likely than those without these disorders to visit a part of the Web site designed for those seeking additional help (33% vs. 8%, P < 0.0001). A well-publicized, easily accessible, research-based screening and intervention Web site can attract many users, most of whom are drinking excessively, and many of whom avail themselves of referral information after receiving individualized feedback.

  7. 76 FR 8804 - 30-Day Notice of Proposed Information Collection: Form DS-3097, Exchange Visitor Program Annual...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-02-15

    ... DS-3097, Exchange Visitor Program Annual Report, OMB Control Number 1405-0151 ACTION: Notice of... Department of State has submitted the following information collection request to the Office of Management... Information Collection: Exchange Visitor Program Annual Report. OMB Control Number: 1405-0151. Type of Request...

  8. Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory safeguards and security quarterly progress report to the US Department of Energy quarter ending September 30, 1994

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

    Davis, G.; Mansur, D.L.; Ruhter, W.D.

    1994-10-01

    This report presents the details of the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory safeguards and securities program. This program is focused on developing new technology, such as x- and gamma-ray spectrometry, for measurement of special nuclear materials. This program supports the Office of Safeguards and Securities in the following five areas; safeguards technology, safeguards and decision support, computer security, automated physical security, and automated visitor access control systems.

  9. U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon Visitors Guide 2015

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

    2015-09-03

    The U.S. Department of Energy 2015 Visitors Guide is a free, hard-copy publication distributed free to those attending the Solar Decathlon event. The publications' objectives are to serve as the primary information resource for those in attendance, and to deliver a compelling message about the Solar Decathlon's success as a proven workforce development program and its role in educating students and the public about clean energy products and design solutions. The U.S. Department of Energy 2015 Visitors Guide SD15 Visitors Guide goals are to guide attendees through the Solar Decathlon village; List and explain the 10 contests; educate attendees aboutmore » the participating teams and their competition houses; provide access to more information on the Solar Decathlon website through the use of QR codes; and acknowledge the support of all event sponsors.« less

  10. 77 FR 31851 - Privacy Act System of Records

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-05-30

    ... identification, U.S. visa number, FCC point of contact, visitor signature, professional title, organizational... pertinent records, or to another public authority or professional organization, if necessary to obtain... secured by limited access card readers. The computer servers themselves are password-protected. Access to...

  11. Kenai Fjords National Park Over-the-Snow Transportation Feasibility Study.

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2012-01-31

    Kenai Fjords National Park seeks to expand winter access to the Exit Glacier Area. Year-round access would better enable the park to accomplish its mission related to visitor experience, education, and research. The road to the area is inaccessible t...

  12. Eisenhower National Historic Site visitor transportation and access study

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2017-11-01

    This study evaluates the current shuttle system and Eisenhower National Historic Site, which is currently the sole access to the site. Visitation at Eisenhower has been declining since the site opened, and the study looks at the impacts of this trend...

  13. Integrating social marketing into sustainable resource management at Padre Island National Seashore: an attitude-based segmentation approach.

    PubMed

    Lai, Po-Hsin; Sorice, Michael G; Nepal, Sanjay K; Cheng, Chia-Kuen

    2009-06-01

    High demand for outdoor recreation and increasing diversity in outdoor recreation participants have imposed a great challenge on the National Park Service (NPS), which is tasked with the mission to provide open access for quality outdoor recreation and maintain the ecological integrity of the park system. In addition to management practices of education and restrictions, building a sense of natural resource stewardship among visitors may also facilitate the NPS ability to react to this challenge. The purpose of our study is to suggest a segmentation approach that is built on the social marketing framework and aimed at influencing visitor behaviors to support conservation. Attitude toward natural resource management, an indicator of natural resource stewardship, is used as the basis for segmenting park visitors. This segmentation approach is examined based on a survey of 987 visitors to the Padre Island National Seashore (PAIS) in Texas in 2003. Results of the K-means cluster analysis identify three visitor segments: Conservation-Oriented, Development-Oriented, and Status Quo visitors. This segmentation solution is verified using respondents' socio-demographic backgrounds, use patterns, experience preferences, and attitudes toward a proposed regulation. Suggestions are provided to better target the three visitor segments and facilitate a sense of natural resource stewardship among them.

  14. 8 CFR 214.12 - Preliminary enrollment of schools in the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS).

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-01-01

    ... eligible schools to apply for preliminary enrollment through the Internet is as follows: (1) Eligible institutions must access the Internet site, http://www.ins.usdoj.gov/sevis. Upon accessing the site, the... access the Internet site and will electronically enter the school's information for its Form I-17. (c...

  15. 78 FR 62657 - Proposed Information Collection; The Interagency Access Pass and Senior Pass Application Processes

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-10-22

    ... issued to U.S. citizens or permanent residents who are 62 years or older. There is a $10 fee for the... Information Collection; The Interagency Access Pass and Senior Pass Application Processes AGENCY: National... Service. The passes provide U.S. citizens and visitors an affordable and convenient way to access Federal...

  16. 76 FR 77581 - 60-Day Notice of Proposed Information Collection: Form DS-3097, Exchange Visitor Program Annual...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-12-13

    ... DS-3097, Exchange Visitor Program Annual Report, and OMB Control Number 1405- 0151 ACTION: Notice of request for public comments. SUMMARY: The Department of State is seeking Office of Management and Budget...: Exchange Visitor Program Annual Report. OMB Control Number: 1405-0151. Type of Request: Extension of a...

  17. 75 FR 64775 - 60-Day Notice of Proposed Information Collection: Form DS-3097, Exchange Visitor Program Annual...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-10-20

    ... DS-3097, Exchange Visitor Program Annual Report, and OMB Control Number 1405- 0151 ACTION: Notice of request for public comments. SUMMARY: The Department of State is seeking Office of Management and Budget...: Exchange Visitor Program Annual Report. OMB Control Number: 1405-0151. Type of Request: Extension of a...

  18. Pullman transportation plan : a transportation and access plan for Pullman National Monument and the surrounding neighborhood

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2017-09-01

    The Pullman Transportation Plan provides a holistic set of recommendations to improve access to and from Pullman National Monument and its surrounding neighborhoods for both visitors and residents. In this plan, we identify short-, medium-, and long-...

  19. What blocks health visitors from taking on a leadership role?

    PubMed

    Hyett, Erika

    2003-07-01

    Current government documents in the United Kingdom call for all nurses to take on a greater leadership role. This paper critically considers some of the management factors that block one group of specialist nurses (health visitors) from fulfilling their leadership role. Health visitors have a key role to play in meeting the public health targets of local primary care trusts, known as local health improvement plans. But to take on a greater public health role, health visitors need to move away from working independently within separate general practitioner surgeries and to work in teams which share the vision and goals of the primary care trusts. The paper explores different styles of management that promote transformational leadership and relate to practice. It is suggested that use of the Servant-Leader model of management should encourage the empowerment of staff, and through empowerment health visitors should be able to instigate change and become more innovative in their practice. Persistent recruitment and retention problems have resulted in little time being available to focus on the effectiveness of services. The future management of health visitors will be to primarily run the service while supporting staff in accessing and influencing those in power.

  20. Lessons from life: Learning from exhibits, animals and interaction in a museum

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Goldowsky, Alexander Noah

    This study examines the effect of interaction on visitor behavior at a public aquarium, experimentally comparing one exhibit under interactive and noninteractive conditions. A quantitative analysis showed that the time visitor groups spent in the study area significantly increased in the interactive condition (median 73 vs. 32 seconds). Further, this effect extended only to those groups within the interactive condition in which at least one member operated the exhibit (median 102 vs. 36 seconds). Both median times and survival curves are compared, and the analysis controlled for group size, age and sex ratios, visitor density, queuing time, and animal activity. Qualitative analyses focused on visitors' spontaneous conversation at the exhibit. Interactive visitors were found to engage in more in-depth exploration, including conducting informal experiments. The amount of discussion was found to correlate with stay time (r = 0.47). Visitor discussion centered on the exhibit, with frequent observations of penguin behavior. Greater enthusiasm was observed for interactive visitors, and coding showed interactive visitors laughed more frequently, and were significantly more likely to speculate on the penguins' reactions and motivations for behaviors. The experimental setup included a control condition consisting of a typical aquarium exhibit, including live penguins, naturalistic habitat, and graphics. The interactive condition added a device designed to mediate a two-way interaction between the visitors and penguins: visitors moved a light beam across the bottom of the pool. The penguins, intern, chased the light. This exhibit was designed both to benefit visitors and to serve as behavioral enrichment for the penguins. A third condition employed an automatically moving light, which elicited similar penguin behaviors, but without allowing visitor interaction. Videotaped data was analyzed for 301 visitor groups (756 individuals). A supplemental study employed video recall interviews. The study concludes that interaction is fundamental to the way in which humans investigate their world, and should play a major role in shaping the educational design of zoo and aquarium exhibits. Interactivity can encourage investigation and experimentation with phenomena, increase exhibit feedback, enhance the psychological dimensions of choice and control, and support visitors' desire for relationships with animals.

  1. An Interpretive Study of Yosemite National Park Visitors' Perspectives Toward Alternative Transportation in Yosemite Valley

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    White, Dave D.

    2007-01-01

    The National Park Service (NPS) is increasingly focusing on alternative transportation systems in national parks to address environmental and social problems arising from a historical reliance on personal automobiles as the primary means of visitor access. Despite the potential advantages, alternative transportation may require a reorientation in the way that Americans have experienced national parks since the advent of auto-tourism in the early twentieth century. Little research exists, however, on visitor perspectives towards alternative transportation or the rationale underlying their perspectives. It remains unclear how transportation systems affect visitors’ experiences of the park landscape or the factors influencing their travel behavior in the parks. This report presents an interpretive study of visitor perspectives toward transportation management in the Yosemite Valley area of Yosemite National Park, California. Qualitative analysis of 160 semi-structured interviews identified individual psychological factors as well as situational influences that affect visitors’ behavior and perspectives. Individual psychological factors include perceived freedom, environmental values and beliefs, prior experience with Yosemite National Park and other national parks, prior experience with alternative transportation in national parks, and sensitivity to subjective perceptions of crowding. Situational factors included convenience, access, and flexibility of travel modes, as well as type of visit, type of group, and park use level. Interpretive communication designed to encourage voluntary visitor use of alternative transportation should focus on these psychological and situational factors. Although challenges remain, the results of this study suggest approaches for shaping the way Americans visit and experience their national parks to encourage environmental sustainability.

  2. Implementing groupwork in primary care to meet client need.

    PubMed

    Newcombe, Teresa; Gledstone, Pam

    Hertsmere health visitors are successfully using groupwork to target patient groups who may not traditionally access services. This includes working with clients in environments such as a homeless family hostel and an English as a second language group. The health visitors have incorporated national service framework targets and important health promotion advice into sessions, and work with a range of other professionals. The result is a modernised, family-centred public health role.

  3. Health visitor professional education and post-qualification clinical supervision: how well does it equip practitioners for dealing with ethical tensions associated with promoting the public health agenda to individual clients?

    PubMed

    Greenway, Julie C; Entwistle, Vikki A; Termeulen, Ruud

    2013-01-01

    To explore how well professional education and post-qualification clinical supervision support equips health visitors to deal with ethical tensions associated with implementing the public health agenda while also being responsive to individual clients. Current health policy in England gives health visitors a key role in implementing the government's public health agenda. Health visitors are also required by their Professional Code to respond to the health-related concerns and preferences of their individual clients. This generates a number of public health-related ethical tensions. Exploratory cross-sectional qualitative (interpretive) study using 29 semi-structured individual interviews with health visitors, practice teachers and university lecturers exploring how well health visitors' professional education and post-qualification clinical supervision support equips them for dealing with these ethical tensions and whether they thought further ethics education was needed. Interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed and analysed thematically using a Framework approach. Health visitors' professional education did not always equip them to deal with ethical tensions, which arose from delivering public health interventions to their clients. However, the majority of participants thought that ethics could not be taught in a way that would equip health visitors for every situation and that ongoing post-qualification clinical supervision support was also needed, particularly in the first year after qualifying. The amount of post-qualification support available to practising health visitors was variable with some health visitors unable to access such support due to their working circumstances and pressures on staff time. Literature on the ethical tensions associated with evidence-based practice; public health ethics and ethics of care might be useful for health visitors in gaining greater understanding of the ethical tensions they face. This could be introduced as part of health visitors' professional education or on post-qualification study days.

  4. Don't get the message: the effect of a warning text before visiting a proanorexia website.

    PubMed

    Martijn, Carolien; Smeets, Elke; Jansen, Anita; Hoeymans, Nancy; Schoemaker, Casper

    2009-03-01

    This study examined the effect of the placement of a warning text before visiting proanorexia websites on actual access of these websites. A separate webpage with a warning text aiming at first-time visitors was placed before each proanorexia website hosted by a Dutch Internet provider. During the research period of 1 year, the numbers of hits at the warning webpage were registered together with the numbers of hits at the underlying proanorexia website. Of the total number of hits registered at the warning webpage, about two-third of the visitors were registered at the underlying proanorexia website. This indicates that about one-third of the visitors did not continue their visit to a proanorexia website after being exposed to the warning text. Placement of a warning text before proanorexia websites appears a promising strategy in holding back potential visitors.

  5. Privacy and health in the information age: a content analysis of health web site privacy policy statements.

    PubMed

    Rains, Stephen A; Bosch, Leslie A

    2009-07-01

    This article reports a content analysis of the privacy policy statements (PPSs) from 97 general reference health Web sites that was conducted to examine the ways in which visitors' privacy is constructed by health organizations. PPSs are formal documents created by the Web site owner to describe how information regarding site visitors and their behavior is collected and used. The results show that over 80% of the PPSs in the sample indicated automatically collecting or requesting that visitors voluntarily provide information about themselves, and only 3% met all five of the Federal Trade Commission's Fair Information Practices guidelines. Additionally, the results suggest that the manner in which PPSs are framed and the use of justifications for collecting information are tropes used by health organizations to foster a secondary exchange of visitors' personal information for access to Web site content.

  6. 75 FR 24964 - Proposed Information Collection; OMB Control Number 1018-NEW; Refuge Daily Visitor Use Report and...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-05-06

    ... observation, wildlife photography, auto touring, birding, hiking, boating/canoeing, visitor center, special...: Visitors to national wildlife refuges. Respondent's Obligation: Required to obtain or retain a benefit...

  7. 36 CFR 71.3 - Designation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ...: Tent or trailer spaces, drinking water, access road, refuse containers, toilet facilities, personal fee..., roads, overlook sites, visitors' centers, scenic drives, toilet facilities, picnic tables, and boat...

  8. 36 CFR 71.3 - Designation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ...: Tent or trailer spaces, drinking water, access road, refuse containers, toilet facilities, personal fee..., roads, overlook sites, visitors' centers, scenic drives, toilet facilities, picnic tables, and boat...

  9. 36 CFR 71.3 - Designation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ...: Tent or trailer spaces, drinking water, access road, refuse containers, toilet facilities, personal fee..., roads, overlook sites, visitors' centers, scenic drives, toilet facilities, picnic tables, and boat...

  10. Easy Access

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Gettelman, Alan

    2009-01-01

    School and university restrooms, locker and shower rooms have specific ADA accessibility requirements that serve the needs of staff, students and campus visitors who are disabled as a result of injury, illness or age. Taking good care of them is good for the reputation of a sensitive community institution, and fosters positive public relations.…

  11. 76 FR 38170 - Toxic Substances Control Act Chemical Testing; Receipt of Test Data

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-06-29

    ... photographic identification, pass through a metal detector, and sign the EPA visitor log. All visitor bags are processed through an X-ray machine and subject to search. Visitors will be provided an EPA/DC badge that...

  12. Making Meaning of von Hagens' Body Worlds: Towards an Interdisciplinary Approach to Science Exhibitions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Dubek, Michelle Melodie

    Body Worlds is a traveling exhibition of plastinated human cadavers that offers the general public an opportunity to experience the human body in a unique way. It has been met with controversy and awe; public reactions and responses have been mixed. This case study research explored visitor responses to this controversial science exhibition, and examined the meaning visitors made of their experience. Specifically, the following research questions directed this study: Within the context of the Body Worlds exhibition: (a) What meaning did visitors make and how did they respond to the exhibits? (b) What tensions and issues arose for visitors? and (c) What did this type of exhibition convey about the changing role of science centres and the nature of their exhibitions? The primary sources of data for this study were 46 semi-structured interviews with visitors to the exhibition, observation notes, and 10 comment books including approximately 20 000 comments. Data suggested that the personal, physical, and sociocultural contexts (Falk & Dierking, 2000) contributed to visitor meaning meaning-making. The use of plastinated human cadavers within this exhibition raised ethical and moral questions and controversies about body procurement, use of human cadavers in display, representations of the bodies, and issues related to the sanctity of life. The tensions and issues identified by visitors demonstrated that messages (intended or unintended) located within Body Worlds were critically examined by visitors and called into question. Finally, data from this study suggested that an interdisciplinary approach to the presentation of science served to enhance accessibility for the viewer. This exhibition demonstrated that visitors responded positively and made personal connections when the arts, spirituality, edutainment, issues, and a combination of historical and contemporary museum practices were used to present science.

  13. The Sunnel: Engaging Visitors in Solar Research via a Tunnel Through the Sun

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    DeMuth, Nora H.; Walker, C. E.

    2006-12-01

    The publicly accessible hallway space inside the McMath-Pierce Solar Telescope building on Kitt Peak has great untapped potential to house a display that would be relevant and understandable to KPNO visitors without the need for mediation or further explanation. An effective display would unite background content on solar physics and astronomy, and information on current solar research techniques and results in an accessible way that would excite and engage visitors. Considering these requirements, we created a concept currently dubbed the Sunnel (for “Sun-tunnel”). The Sunnel consists of two 95by 13-foot murals of the layers of the Sun stretching down the visitor hallway in the McMath-Pierce Solar Telescope. Temperatures of the layers are represented by the colors of the peak in the corresponding black-body curves, and solar features such as sunspots and pressure waves are represented by abstract designs flowing along the walls. A photon path will be laid on the floor using tiles, and several posters highlighting current solar research and background science content relevant to solar research will be displayed on one wall. An audio tour featuring interviews with solar researchers guides visitors along the Sunnel, engaging them and supporting deeper appreciation of the solar research. Installation of the murals is scheduled for early 2007, just in time to celebrate the International Heliophysical Year. DeMuth's research was supported by the NOAO/KPNO Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) Program which is funded by the National Science Foundation through Scientific Program Order No. 3 (AST-0243875) of the Cooperative Agreement No. AST-0132798 between the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA) and the NSF.

  14. The Latest Information on Fort Detrick Gate Access Procedures | Poster

    Cancer.gov

    As of Jan. 5, all visitors to Fort Detrick are required to undergo a National Crime Information Center background check prior to entering base. The background checks are conducted at Old Farm Gate. The new access procedures may cause delays at all Fort Detrick gates, but especially at Old Farm Gate. Access requirements have not changed for employees and personnel with a

  15. Enhancing the interpretation of stated choice analysis through the application of a verbal protocol assessment

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Cahill, K.L.; Marion, J.L.; Lawson, S.R.

    2007-01-01

    A stated choice survey was employed to evaluate the relative importance of resource, social, and management attributes by asking visitors to select preferred configurations of these attributes. A verbal protocol assessment was added to consider how respondents interpret and respond to stated choice questions applied to hikers of a popular trail at Acadia National Park. Results suggest that visitors are sensitive to changes in public access to the trail and its ecological conditions, with level of encounters least important. Verbal protocol results identified considnations made by respondents that provide insight to their evaluations of alternative recreation setting configurations. These insights help clarify issues important to visitors that stated choice results on their own do not provide.

  16. Evaluating a community-based dental registration program for preschool children living in areas of high social deprivation.

    PubMed

    Yuan, S; Kerr, G; Salmon, K; Speedy, P; Freeman, R

    2007-03-01

    This was to evaluate the effectiveness of a community-based program to promote dental registration and access to dental services for preschool children residing in areas of high social deprivation using monthly registration data provided by the Central Services Agency (CSA). A quasi-experimental non-equivalent two group comparison. Areas of high social deprivation in the greater Belfast area. The dental registration program was conducted by community-based nurses (health visitors). The health visitors provided oral health education and distributed registration vouchers to mothers of new babies during home visits. The mothers exchanged the vouchers for motivational materials from the participating dental practices. Preschool child registration data were obtained from the CSA to evaluate the effectiveness of the program. The registration rates were significantly greater 5 months after the program for 0-2-year old children residing in the intervention wards compared with control wards. During the program the rate of change in registration for the 0-2-year-old group residing in the intervention wards was significantly greater compared with those residing in the control wards (t [DF:21]=4.26: p<0.001). There was a significant increase in registration rate 5 months after the program compared with 6 months before the study started for the 0-2 year old group residing in the intervention wards compared with those residing in the control wards (t [df: 21]=3.33: P=0.003). There were no equivalent effects for the 3-5-year old group. The adoption of a community-based approach assisted in promoting dental registration and access to dental services for preschool children residing in areas of high social deprivation.

  17. Providing Japanese health care information for international visitors: digital animation intervention.

    PubMed

    Nishikawa, Mariko; Yamanaka, Masaaki; Kiriya, Junko; Jimba, Masamine

    2018-05-21

    Over 24 million international visitors came to Japan in 2016 and the number is expected to increase. Visitors could be at a risk of illness or injury that may result in hospitalization in Japan. We assessed the effects of a four-minute digital animation titled Mari Info Japan on the level of anxiety experienced by international visitors to Japan. We conducted a non-randomized, controlled study at Narita International Airport outside Tokyo in December 2014. On the first day, we recruited international visitors for the intervention group at predetermined departure gates and, the following day, we sampled visitors for the control group at the same gates. We repeated this procedure twice over 4 days. The intervention group watched the digital animation and the control group read a standard travel guidebook in English. After receiving either intervention, they completed a questionnaire on their level of anxiety. The outcome was assessed using the Mari Meter-X, The State-Trait Anxiety Inventory Form Y (STAI-Y), and a face scale, before and immediately after the intervention. We analyzed data with Wilcoxon rank sum tests. We recruited 265 international visitors (134 in the intervention group, 131 in the control group), 241 (91%) of whom completed the questionnaire. Most of them had no previous Japanese health information before arrival in Japan. The level of anxiety about health services in Japan was significantly reduced in the intervention group (Mari Meter-X median: - 5 and 0, p < 0.001 and STAI-Y median: - 3 and 0, p < 0.001). The face scale analysis showed no significant difference. Watching a digital animation is more effective in reducing anxiety among international visitors to Japan compared with reading a standard brochure or guidebook. Such effective animations of health information should be more widely distributed to international visitors. UMIN-CTR (University Hospital Medical Information Network Center Clinical Trials Registry), UMIN000015023 , September 3, 2014.

  18. Reducing visitor noise levels at Muir Woods National Monument using experimental management.

    PubMed

    Stack, David W; Peter, Newman; Manning, Robert E; Fristrup, Kurt M

    2011-03-01

    Noise impacts resources and visitor experience in many protected natural areas, and visitors can be the dominant source of noise. This experimental study tested the efficacy and acceptability of signs asking visitors to be quiet at Muir Woods National Monument, California. Signs declaring a "quiet zone" (at the park's Cathedral Grove) or a "quiet day" (throughout the park) were posted on a randomized schedule that included control days (no signs). Visitor surveys were conducted to measure the cognitive and behavioral responses of visitors to the signs and test the acceptability of these management practices to visitors. Visitors were highly supportive of these management practices and reported that they consciously limited the amount of noise they produced. Sound level measurements showed substantial decreases on days when signs were posted. © 2011 Acoustical Society of America

  19. Disseminating Policy and Environmental Change Interventions: Insights from Obesity Prevention and Tobacco Control

    PubMed Central

    Leeman, Jennifer; Myers, Allison E.; Ribisl, Kurt M.; Ammerman, Alice S.

    2015-01-01

    Purpose Evidence-based interventions are increasingly called for as a way to improve health behaviors such as tobacco use, physical inactivity, and poor diet. Numerous organizations are disseminating interventions that target individual-level behavioral change. Fewer are disseminating interventions that target the policy and environmental changes required to support healthier behaviors. This paper aims to describe the distinct features of policy and environmental change and the lessons learned by two Centers for Disease Control and Prevention-funded dissemination projects, the Center for Training and Research Translation (Center TRT) and Counter Tobacco. Methods Both Center TRT and Counter Tobacco have conducted formative research with their target audiences to customize dissemination to address practitioner-reported needs and preferences. The Centers’ have developed the following approach to disseminating policy and environmental change interventions: (1) Identify the best available evidence rather than waiting for the best possible evidence, (2) disseminate menus of broad intervention strategies, (3) provide implementation guidance, (4) incorporate stories from the field, (5) build practitioners’ capacity, and, (6) integrate dissemination into practitioners’ existing professional and social networks. In 2012, over 26,000 unique visitors accessed the Center TRT website and downloaded over 12,400 documents. The Counter Tobacco website has had 10,907 unique visitors since its launch in August 2011, and the number of visitors is increasing rapidly. Conclusions Both Centers have had success reaching their intended audiences. Research is now needed to assess the extent of practitioners’ use of disseminated recommendations, guidance, and tools in practice and the impact of the resulting interventions. PMID:25037977

  20. Destination Information System for Bandung City Using Location-Based Services (LBS) on Android

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kurniawan, B.; Pranoto, H.

    2018-02-01

    Bandung is a city in West Java, Indonesia with many interesting locations to visit. For most favourite destinations, we can easily look for it on Google and we will find some blogs there discussing about related content. The problem is we can not guarantee that the destination is frequented by visitor. In this research, we utilizes an application to help everyone choosing destination frequented by visitor. The use of information technology in the form of picture, maps, and textual on Android application makes it possible for user to have information about destination with its visitor in a period of time. If destination has visit history, selection of proper destination will be given with fresh informations. This application can run well on Android Lollipop (API Level 21) or above with a minimum RAM of 2 GB since it will compare two coordinates for every data. The use of this app make it possible to access information about location with its visitor history and could help choosing proper destinations for the users.

  1. The Public Nights Program at Appalachian State University's Dark Sky Observatory Cline Visitor Center: Our First Year’s Results

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Caton, Daniel B.; Smith, A. B.; Hawkins, R. L.

    2013-01-01

    We have completed our first year of public nights at our Dark Sky Observatory’s 32-inch telescope and the adjacent Cline Visitor Center. Our monthly public nights are composed of two groups of 60 visitors each that arrive for 1.5-hour sessions. Shorter summer nights limit us to one session. We use two large (70-inch) flat panel displays in the Center for a brief pre-observing discussion and to entertain visitors while they await their turn at the telescope’s eyepiece. One of them runs a Beta version of Microsoft’s Worldwide Telescope for Kinect. While the facility is fully ADA compliant, with eyepiece access via a DFM Engineering Articulated Relay Eyepiece, and a wheelchair lift if needed, we have only had one occasion to use this capability. We present some of our experiences in this poster and encourage readers to offer suggestions. The Visitor Center was established with the support of Mr. J. Donald Cline, for which we are very grateful. The Kinect system was donated by Marley Gray, at Microsoft/Charlotte. The telescope was partially funded by the National Science Foundation.

  2. 76 FR 38169 - Toxic Substances Control Act Chemical Testing; Receipt of Test Data

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-06-29

    ... are required to show photographic identification, pass through a metal detector, and sign the EPA visitor log. All visitor bags are processed through an X- ray machine and subject to search. Visitors will... animal tissue, metal- cleaning compounds, hydraulic compression fluids, stripping agent (textiles...

  3. 33 CFR 104.200 - Owner or operator.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ..., or crew change-out for vessel personnel, as well as access through the facility of visitors to the... information: (i) Parties responsible for appointing vessel personnel, such as vessel management companies...

  4. 78 FR 22026 - Alternative Transportation in Parks and Public Lands Program

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-04-12

    ... appropriations and previously unallocated prior year funds. The Paul S. Sarbanes Transit in Parks program... cultural resources; reduce congestion and pollution; improve visitor mobility and accessibility; enhance...

  5. Smoot Cosmology Group

    Science.gov Websites

    Visitors How to get to Lawrence Berkeley Lab Site Access New and Current Members Page For Visiting Scholars Who Will Use Computers Or Networks Procedures for visiting scholars Opportunities Mail: Lawrence

  6. Do hospital visitors wash their hands? Assessing the use of alcohol-based hand sanitizer in a hospital lobby.

    PubMed

    Birnbach, David J; Nevo, Igal; Barnes, Susan; Fitzpatrick, Maureen; Rosen, Lisa F; Everett-Thomas, Ruth; Sanko, Jill S; Arheart, Kristopher L

    2012-05-01

    Reports regarding hand hygiene compliance (HHC) among hospital visitors are limited. Although there is an implicit assumption that the availability of alcohol-based hand sanitizer (AHS) promotes visitor HHC, the degree of AHS use by visitors remains unclear. To assess AHS use, we observed visitor HHC and how it is affected by visual cues in a private university hospital. Using an observational controlled study, we tested 3 interventions: a desk sign mandating all visitors to use AHS, a free-standing AHS dispenser directly in front of a security desk, and a combination of a freestanding AHS dispenser and a sign. HHC was 0.52% at baseline and did not improve significantly when the desk sign was provided as a cue 0.67% (P = .753). However, HHC did improve significantly with use of the freestanding AHS dispenser (9.33%) and the sign and dispenser combination (11.67%) (P < .001 for all comparisons of dispenser alone and sign and dispenser with baseline and sign alone). The degree of improvement with the sign and dispenser combination over the dispenser was not statistically significant. Hospital visitors represent an important factor in infection prevention. A coordinated effort is needed to increase visitor HHC, including an evaluation of the AHS placement, education of visitors on the importance of HHC, and evaluation of corresponding changes in hand hygiene behavior. Copyright © 2012 Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology, Inc. Published by Mosby, Inc. All rights reserved.

  7. Wilderness, wildness, and visitor access to Cumberland Island National Seashore, Georgia

    Treesearch

    Ryan L. Sharp; Craig A. Miller

    2009-01-01

    Cumberland Island National Seashore (CUIS), located off the coast of Georgia, was created in 1972 to preserve the island's ecosystem and primitive character. CUIS management staff has recently been charged with developing a Transportation Management Plan (TMP) to provide better access to the northern portion of the island, where several sites of historical...

  8. We Are Lost: Measuring the Accessibility of Signage in Public General Hospitals

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Schuster, Michal; Elroy, Irit; Elmakais, Ido

    2017-01-01

    Hospital signage is a critical element in the patients' and visitors understanding of directions, instructions and warnings in the facility. In multilingual environments organizations need to make sure that the information is accessible in the languages of the people who consume their services. As part of a large-scale study that examined the…

  9. Creating Accessible Science Museums with User-Activated Environmental Audio Beacons (Ping!)

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Landau, Steven; Wiener, William; Naghshineh, Koorosh; Giusti, Ellen

    2005-01-01

    In 2003, Touch Graphics Company carried out research on a new invention that promises to improve accessibility to science museums for visitors who are visually impaired. The system, nicknamed Ping!, allows users to navigate an exhibit area, listen to audio descriptions, and interact with exhibits using a cell phone-based interface. The system…

  10. Valuing recreational benefits of coral reefs: the case of Mombasa Marine National Park and Reserve, Kenya.

    PubMed

    Ransom, Kevin P; Mangi, Stephen C

    2010-01-01

    A contingent valuation study was conducted with adult Kenyan citizens and foreign tourists to estimate the value of recreational benefits arising from coral reefs at Mombasa Marine National Park and Reserve (MMNPR), and to assess the implications for local reef management. Citizen and foreign visitors to MMNPR were willing to pay an extra $2.2 (median = $1.6) and $8 (median = $6.7) per visit respectively, in addition to current park entrance fees, to support reef quality improvements. By aggregating visitors' willingness to pay bids over the number of visitors to MMNPR in 2006-2007 the value of benefits was estimated at $346,733, which was more than twice the total annual operational expenditure of $152,383 for MMNPR. The findings indicate that annual revenues from citizen and foreign visitors may be increased by 60% to $261,932 through the implementation of proposed higher park fees of $3.10 for citizens and $15 for foreign visitors. However, any fee increase would serve to intensify concerns among citizens that only relatively affluent Kenyans can afford to visit MMNPR. Park managers need to demonstrate that the extra revenue would be used to fund the proposed conservation activities. This valuation study demonstrates that visitors are prepared to pay higher user fees for access to the marine protected area revealing considerable untapped resource to finance reef quality improvements.

  11. Using social networking sites (namely Facebook) in health visiting practice--an account of five years experience.

    PubMed

    Dion, Xena

    2015-02-01

    With new developments in electronic and social networking communication methods the way health visitors communicate with clients is rapidly changing. With good governance these technologies can be utilised to enhance the health visiting service and can be an effective way of accessing hard-to-reach families, saving time and resources. This paper presents five years' experience in the use of Facebook between the health visiting team and clients and explains the benefits and potential it offers to health visitors and other community practitioners.

  12. 22 CFR 62.71 - Control and production of the electronic Form DS-2019.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... 22 Foreign Relations 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Control and production of the electronic Form DS-2019. 62.71 Section 62.71 Foreign Relations DEPARTMENT OF STATE PUBLIC DIPLOMACY AND EXCHANGES EXCHANGE VISITOR PROGRAM Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS) § 62.71 Control and...

  13. 78 FR 60266 - Board of Visitors, United States Military Academy (USMA)

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-10-01

    ... Academy issues. 6. Agenda: The Academy leadership will provide the Board updates on the following: New... academic department, and an athletic coach for inappropriate behavior. 7. Public's Accessibility to the...

  14. Storage of Poisonous Substances and Firearms in Homes with Young Children Visitors and Older Adults

    PubMed Central

    Coyne-Beasley, Tamera; Runyan, Carol W.; Baccaglini, Lorena; Perkis, David; Johnson, Renee M.

    2011-01-01

    Background Most unintentional childhood poisonings and firearm injuries occur in residential environments. Therefore, a preventive strategy includes limiting children’s access to poisons and firearms through safe storage. This study examines storage of poisons and firearms among households with older adults, and households where young children reside compared to those where they visit only. Methods Sample is from a 2002 national random-digit-dial survey of 1003 households. Analyses were weighted to reflect the national population. Results There were 637 households with children residents or visitors aged <6 years. Seventy-five percent of the households (n =480) had children aged <6 as visitors only, and 15% had older adult residents (aged ≥70 years). Poisons and firearms were stored less securely in homes with young children as visitors as compared to those homes with resident young children. In 55% of homes where young children lived, and 74% of homes where young children were only visitors, household chemicals were reportedly stored unlocked. Although firearm ownership was comparable between the two categories of households (33% vs 34%), homes in which children were only visitors were more likely to store firearms unlocked (56%), than homes in which children resided (33%). Homes with older adult residents had more firearms present. Conclusions Children are at risk from improperly stored poisonous substances and firearms in their own homes and homes they visit. Strategies are needed to improve the storage practices of both poisons and firearms to minimize in-home hazards to young children, particularly raising awareness of these hazards to young visitors. PMID:15626565

  15. Assessing recreation impacts to cliffs in Shenandoah National Park: Integrating visitor observation with trail and recreation site measurements

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Wood, K.T.; Lawson, S.R.; Marion, J.L.

    2006-01-01

    The rock outcrops and cliffs of Shenandoah National Park provide habitat for several rare and endangered plant and animal species, including the federally endangered Shenandoah Salamander (Plethodon shenandoah; Ludwig et al., 1993). The location of the well-known park tour road, Skyline Drive, along the ridgeline provides exceptional access to many outcrops and cliffs throughout the park for a large number of the park?s 1.2 million annual visitors. Consequently, visitor use of cliff areas has led to natural resource impacts, including marked decreases in size and vigor of known rare plant populations. Despite the clear ecological value and potential threats to the natural resources at cliff areas, managers possess little information on visitor use of cliff sites and presently have no formal planning document to guide management. Thus, a park wide study of cliff sites was initiated during the 2005 visitor use season. As part of this research effort, our study used an integrative approach to study recreational use and visitor-caused resource impacts at one of the more heavily visited cliff sites in the park: Little Stony Man Cliffs (LSMC). In particular, this study integrated data from resource impact measurements and visitor use observation to help assess the effects of recreational use on the natural resources of LSMC. Procedures derived from campsite and trail impact studies were used to measure and characterize the amount of visitor-caused resource impacts on LSMC (Marion & Leung, 2001; Marion, 1995). Visitor use observations were conducted on top of LSMC to document and characterize the type and amount of recreational use the cliffs receive and the behaviors of recreationists that may contribute to cliff-top resource impacts. Resource impact measurement data show trampling disturbance present at LSMC, characterized by vegetation loss, exposed soil, and root exposure. Documentation of informal trails, soil erosion, tree damage, and tree stumps provide further indicators of resource damage at LSMC. Results of visitor use observation offer several insights into contributory factors of cliff-top resource damage by showing differences in use and behavior between visitor types. The findings from this study suggest that a management approach characterized by visitor education, some site hardening, and concentration of visitor use on durable surfaces, along with the installation of fixed anchors at the top of popular climbing routes is likely to have the greatest success at balancing visitor enjoyment with resource protection at LSMC.

  16. Working in partnership: the application of shared decision-making to health visitor practice.

    PubMed

    Astbury, Ruth; Shepherd, Ashley; Cheyne, Helen

    2017-01-01

    To explore the processes that support shared decision-making when health visitors and parents are creating plans to improve the well-being of babies and children. Worldwide, there is a focus on promoting children's well-being to enhance the population health. Within the United Kingdom, health visitors have a key responsibility for working in partnership with parents to support this agenda. Despite evidence that the application of 'shared decision-making' frameworks can increase patient participation, improve patient satisfaction and improve health outcomes, there is limited research linking shared decision-making with health visitor practice. A qualitative, descriptive study. The study was undertaken in two phases: in Phase 1, data were collected by audio recording two health visitor-parent decision-making conversations, in the absence of the researcher, where decisions around planning for a baby or child were being made as part of usual care, and then the participants' experiences were sought through individual questionnaires. In Phase 2, semistructured interviews were conducted with nine health visitors and nine parents in relation to their recent experiences of planning care. Evidence of supportive processes included having a shared understanding around the issue needing to be addressed; being able to identify interventions that were accessible for the family; engaging in decision-making through deep, meaningful conversations using sensitive and responsive approaches; and establishing positive relationships between health visitors and parents, significant others within the family and other professionals. Despite evidence of strong, trusting relationships between parents and health visitors, there were times when shared decision-making was unable to take place due to the absence of supportive processes. Health visitors are aware that planning interventions with parents can be complex. These findings indicate the value of using a shared decision-making framework to structure planning, as application of a framework identified the processes that support a collaborative approach in practice. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  17. 76 FR 24956 - 30-Day Notice of Proposed Information Collection: Certificate of Eligibility for Exchange Visitor...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-05-03

    ...: Certificate of Eligibility for Exchange Visitor (J-1) Status; Form DS-2019, OMB No. 1405-0119. ACTION: Notice... Management and Budget (OMB) for approval in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. Title of Information Collection: Certificate of Eligibility for Exchange Visitor (J-1) Status OMB Control Number: 1405...

  18. Connecting with our waterways: an assessment of public access and stewardship in the New York - New Jersey Harbor Estuary

    Treesearch

    Kate Boicourt; Robert Pirani; Michelle Johnson; Erika Svendsen; Lindsay K. Campbell

    2016-01-01

    The New York – New Jersey Harbor Estuary is the biggest public space in the nation's largest metropolitan area. Access to its waters – whether for swimming, boating, fishing, or just enjoying the spectacular views – is an amenity that impacts quality of life and drives spending and investments by residents, visitors, and businesses. Park access and use have been...

  19. KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Key officials are poised to cut the ribbon officially dedicating the new Security gates on Kennedy Parkway (Gate 2) and NASA Parkway (Gate 3). From left are Wally Schroeder, with Jones, Edmunds & Associates; Bobby Porter, with Oneida Construction; Daniel Tweed, NASA project manager; Jim Kennedy, Center director; and William Sample, SGS deputy program manager. The new gates were activated Aug. 1, allowing the general public to have access to the new Space Commerce Way, which will provide access to the Research Park and KSC Visitor Complex, and providing an alternate route for the general public between Titusville and Merritt Island that is accessible 24 hours a day. The gates are staffed 24 hours daily.

    NASA Image and Video Library

    2003-08-27

    KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Key officials are poised to cut the ribbon officially dedicating the new Security gates on Kennedy Parkway (Gate 2) and NASA Parkway (Gate 3). From left are Wally Schroeder, with Jones, Edmunds & Associates; Bobby Porter, with Oneida Construction; Daniel Tweed, NASA project manager; Jim Kennedy, Center director; and William Sample, SGS deputy program manager. The new gates were activated Aug. 1, allowing the general public to have access to the new Space Commerce Way, which will provide access to the Research Park and KSC Visitor Complex, and providing an alternate route for the general public between Titusville and Merritt Island that is accessible 24 hours a day. The gates are staffed 24 hours daily.

  20. “An Instrument for the Frontiers of Modern Astronomy”: An Exhibit for the Harlan J. Smith 2.7-m Telescope Lobby at McDonald Observatory

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Preston, Sandra; Cianciolo, F.; Jones, T.; Wetzel, M.; Mace, K.; Barrick, R.; Kelton, P.; Cochran, A.; Johnson, R.

    2007-05-01

    Of the 100,000 visitors that come to McDonald Observatory each year, about half of them visit the Harlan J. Smith 2.7-m Telescope. Visitors experience the 2.7-m telescope as part of a guided tour, a self-guided tour, and during the once-a-month special viewing nights, that are unique to a telescope this size. Recent safety requirements limiting visitor access to the dome-floor level and a need to modernize out-of-date displays in the 2.7-m lobby area, motivated us to do this new exhibit. A planning team consisting of McDonald Observatory personnel from Outreach & Education, Physical Plant, and Administration came together via videoconferences (between Austin and Fort Davis) to develop an exhibit for the lobby area of this telescope. As the planning process unfolded, the team determined that a mix of static displays and modern technology such as flat panel displays and DVD video were key to presenting the history of the facility, introducing basic concepts about the telescope and current research, as well as giving virtual access to the dome floor for visitors on the self-guided tour. This approach also allows for content development and much of production to be done in-house, which was important from both a cost and maintenance standpoint. A representative of the Smith family was also consulted throughout the development of the exhibit to insure that the exhibit plan was seen as an acceptable memorial to the late director. The exhibit was installed in January 2007.

  1. Application of HACCP principles to control visitor health threats on dairy farms open to the general public.

    PubMed

    Barten, M; Noordhuizen, J P M; Lipman, L J A

    2008-10-01

    An increasing number of Dutch dairy farmers have diversified their activities, often opening their farm up to visitors (tourist accommodation, farm shop, contact with livestock, etc). It is essential to prevent these visitors from having accidents or becoming ill, which could result in financial claims and might harm the reputation of the agricultural sector. This article describes how the hazard analysis critical control points concept and principles (HACCP) can be applied to these activities and integrated with on-farm operational herd health and production management programmes.

  2. Evaluation of the Environmentalist Dimension of Ecotourism at the Dadia Forest Reserve (Greece)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hovardas, Tasos; Poirazidis, Kostas

    2006-11-01

    Environmental education and financial support of nature conservation are considered among the primary components of the environmentalist dimension of ecotourism. The potential of environmental education calls for enhancing visitor environmental knowledge and prompting change of visitor behavior. The present study addressed the evaluation of the environmentalist dimension of ecotourism in the Dadia Forest Reserve. The first objective of the research was to study the influence of variables determined prior to the visit, namely, visitor and visit characteristics, visitor environmental information sources, visitor pro-environmental behavior, and visitation goals, on variables determined during the visit, that is, visitor participation in and satisfaction from ecotourism activities. The second objective was to study the effect of selected variables on visitor knowledge and behavior intentions. Visitor participation in and satisfaction from ecotourism activities were primarily controlled by visit characteristics. Levels of visitor knowledge were quite satisfactory; however, coherence among knowledge items was rather loose. On the other hand, behavior intention items revealed the highest possible degree of coherence, which should be attributed to the pervasive influence of visitor satisfaction from watching birds at the Bird Observatory within the Dadia Forest Reserve. Ecotourism activities, during which the main part of environmental knowledge was offered, exerted no effect on visitor knowledge; all the same, they significantly influenced visitor behavior intentions. Overall, visitor behavior intentions revealed a considerable potential of financing environmental protection and providing voluntary work in the frame of the environmental management of the Dadia Forest Reserve.

  3. Evaluation of the environmentalist dimension of ecotourism at the Dadia Forest Reserve (Greece).

    PubMed

    Hovardas, Tasos; Poirazidis, Kostas

    2006-11-01

    Environmental education and financial support of nature conservation are considered among the primary components of the environmentalist dimension of ecotourism. The potential of environmental education calls for enhancing visitor environmental knowledge and prompting change of visitor behavior. The present study addressed the evaluation of the environmentalist dimension of ecotourism in the Dadia Forest Reserve. The first objective of the research was to study the influence of variables determined prior to the visit, namely, visitor and visit characteristics, visitor environmental information sources, visitor pro-environmental behavior, and visitation goals, on variables determined during the visit, that is, visitor participation in and satisfaction from ecotourism activities. The second objective was to study the effect of selected variables on visitor knowledge and behavior intentions. Visitor participation in and satisfaction from ecotourism activities were primarily controlled by visit characteristics. Levels of visitor knowledge were quite satisfactory; however, coherence among knowledge items was rather loose. On the other hand, behavior intention items revealed the highest possible degree of coherence, which should be attributed to the pervasive influence of visitor satisfaction from watching birds at the Bird Observatory within the Dadia Forest Reserve. Ecotourism activities, during which the main part of environmental knowledge was offered, exerted no effect on visitor knowledge; all the same, they significantly influenced visitor behavior intentions. Overall, visitor behavior intentions revealed a considerable potential of financing environmental protection and providing voluntary work in the frame of the environmental management of the Dadia Forest Reserve.

  4. Building community capacity using web-supported work-based learning.

    PubMed

    Pearson, Pauline; Young-Murphy, Lesley; Yaseen, Jonathan; Shiel, Gillian

    2013-02-01

    Health visitors are a central component of policy to create strong, stable families and communities. The programme which is described here is intended to facilitate existing health visitors to gain confidence and extend or renew their skills in building community capacity (BCC). Networking and relationships are essential to effective community development. These are key skills for the health visitor, which along with professional principles support community capacity building. Learning in this programme is self-directed, supported by web-based resources over a 24 week period. Learning mainly takes place in practice. It involves carrying out a work based project through to completion. Participants register online, and follow a series of six phases. Evaluation of the pilot took place during 2011. Three main areas for improvement were identified: reflective software; signposting access to resources; and dealing with workload pressures. Community engagement for health improvement remains an important element of the vision for health visiting. The programme described is a core resource through which health visitors can build the skills and confidence of community groups and staff in other agencies to make a difference to health and wellbeing.

  5. 76 FR 78327 - Meeting of Advisory Committee on International Communications and Information Policy

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-12-16

    ... security and law enforcement access issues related to cloud computing, as well as recent private sector.... Visitor's full name. 3. Date of birth. 4. Citizenship. 5. Acceptable forms of identification for entry...

  6. 77 FR 63839 - Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee; Notice of Meeting

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-10-17

    ... accommodations due to a disability, visitor parking, and transportation may be accessed at: http://www.fda.gov... advisory committee meeting link, or call the advisory committee information line to learn about possible...

  7. A health visitor for older people in an accident and emergency department.

    PubMed

    Bridges, J; Meyer, J; McMahon, K; Bentley, J; Winter, J

    2000-02-01

    Published studies indicate that older people have special needs on discharge from accident and emergency (A&E) departments that are not always fully met. The literature reflects that although a significant proportion of older people have a decrease in functional independence and an increased need for services following discharge from A&E, social and functional assessment by A&E staff can be inadequate, as can the arrangement of follow-up community services. As part of a wider study into the organization of care for older people in A&E, a health visitor for older people was funded to work part-time in the A&E department of a large NHS Trust. The health visitor identified potential clients through reviewing the A&E documentation of patients aged 75 years or over discharged directly from A&E. Telephone calls or home visits were used to follow up those individuals deemed to be vulnerable by the health visitor. Interventions included health education, referral to other agencies and patient or family counselling. None of the clients followed up by the health visitor (n = 212) had been referred by A&E to a specialist in gerontology, which suggests that these clients would otherwise not have received the potential benefit of specialist intervention. The pilot study described here highlights a number of practical issues in relation to the health visitor post for older people in A&E, including the importance of dedicated office space and access to a telephone. Data collected during the study, plus the positive evaluation of the role by a small group of A&E staff confirm the claims made in other studies (e.g. Runciman et al, 1996) that health visitors for older people may be of value in meeting the post-discharge needs of these people.

  8. AudioGuides at a National Research Laboratory Supporting Visitors With Special Needs: Initial Lessons Learned

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Munoz, R.; Foster, S. Q.; Johnson, R. M.; Carbone, L.; Lewis, H.; Abshire, W.; Mann, L.

    2003-12-01

    The National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) Mesa Laboratory offers the public an opportunity to visit an internationally recognized research laboratory housed in an architectural landmark located in a dramatic geological setting. The Mesa Lab's exhibits are viewed by over 80,000 people each year. Exhibits provide information about NCAR's scientific mission, current research efforts, technology, and the societal benefits of weather and climate research. Nearly 13,000 of NCAR's visitors are served with staff-led guided tours, including 3,000 students in school groups. Frequently, these tours are tailored to address the interests, ages, nationality, and special needs of the visitors. In June 2003, an audioguide was unveiled in English and Spanish versions for both adults and children. Based on preliminary summer usage figures, the audioguides may reach an additional 7,000 visitors in the coming year, many of whom may have special needs. With this in mind, the University Corporation of Atmospheric Research (UCAR) Office of Education and Outreach (EO) contracted local experts as advisors on the needs of people with low-vision, hearing loss, and Spanish language accessibility as the audioguide was developed. The script was written with the help of scientists and an internationally recognized audioguide production firm. Since the installation of the audioguide in July, visitors of all ages appear to be enthusiastic about this service and better focused on their learning experiences while viewing the exhibits. Interviews are helping EO to learn more about how the audioguide is helpful or may be revised to more effectively serve visitors in general as well as visitors with special needs. The audioguide was made possible by grants from the National Science Foundation Geoscience Education Program and the Friends of UCAR Fund.

  9. Behavioral Analysis of Visitors to a Medical Institution's Website Using Markov Chain Monte Carlo Methods.

    PubMed

    Suzuki, Teppei; Tani, Yuji; Ogasawara, Katsuhiko

    2016-07-25

    Consistent with the "attention, interest, desire, memory, action" (AIDMA) model of consumer behavior, patients collect information about available medical institutions using the Internet to select information for their particular needs. Studies of consumer behavior may be found in areas other than medical institution websites. Such research uses Web access logs for visitor search behavior. At this time, research applying the patient searching behavior model to medical institution website visitors is lacking. We have developed a hospital website search behavior model using a Bayesian approach to clarify the behavior of medical institution website visitors and determine the probability of their visits, classified by search keyword. We used the website data access log of a clinic of internal medicine and gastroenterology in the Sapporo suburbs, collecting data from January 1 through June 31, 2011. The contents of the 6 website pages included the following: home, news, content introduction for medical examinations, mammography screening, holiday person-on-duty information, and other. The search keywords we identified as best expressing website visitor needs were listed as the top 4 headings from the access log: clinic name, clinic name + regional name, clinic name + medical examination, and mammography screening. Using the search keywords as the explaining variable, we built a binomial probit model that allows inspection of the contents of each purpose variable. Using this model, we determined a beta value and generated a posterior distribution. We performed the simulation using Markov Chain Monte Carlo methods with a noninformation prior distribution for this model and determined the visit probability classified by keyword for each category. In the case of the keyword "clinic name," the visit probability to the website, repeated visit to the website, and contents page for medical examination was positive. In the case of the keyword "clinic name and regional name," the probability for a repeated visit to the website and the mammography screening page was negative. In the case of the keyword "clinic name + medical examination," the visit probability to the website was positive, and the visit probability to the information page was negative. When visitors referred to the keywords "mammography screening," the visit probability to the mammography screening page was positive (95% highest posterior density interval = 3.38-26.66). Further analysis for not only the clinic website but also various other medical institution websites is necessary to build a general inspection model for medical institution websites; we want to consider this in future research. Additionally, we hope to use the results obtained in this study as a prior distribution for future work to conduct higher-precision analysis.

  10. Behavioral Analysis of Visitors to a Medical Institution’s Website Using Markov Chain Monte Carlo Methods

    PubMed Central

    Tani, Yuji

    2016-01-01

    Background Consistent with the “attention, interest, desire, memory, action” (AIDMA) model of consumer behavior, patients collect information about available medical institutions using the Internet to select information for their particular needs. Studies of consumer behavior may be found in areas other than medical institution websites. Such research uses Web access logs for visitor search behavior. At this time, research applying the patient searching behavior model to medical institution website visitors is lacking. Objective We have developed a hospital website search behavior model using a Bayesian approach to clarify the behavior of medical institution website visitors and determine the probability of their visits, classified by search keyword. Methods We used the website data access log of a clinic of internal medicine and gastroenterology in the Sapporo suburbs, collecting data from January 1 through June 31, 2011. The contents of the 6 website pages included the following: home, news, content introduction for medical examinations, mammography screening, holiday person-on-duty information, and other. The search keywords we identified as best expressing website visitor needs were listed as the top 4 headings from the access log: clinic name, clinic name + regional name, clinic name + medical examination, and mammography screening. Using the search keywords as the explaining variable, we built a binomial probit model that allows inspection of the contents of each purpose variable. Using this model, we determined a beta value and generated a posterior distribution. We performed the simulation using Markov Chain Monte Carlo methods with a noninformation prior distribution for this model and determined the visit probability classified by keyword for each category. Results In the case of the keyword “clinic name,” the visit probability to the website, repeated visit to the website, and contents page for medical examination was positive. In the case of the keyword “clinic name and regional name,” the probability for a repeated visit to the website and the mammography screening page was negative. In the case of the keyword “clinic name + medical examination,” the visit probability to the website was positive, and the visit probability to the information page was negative. When visitors referred to the keywords “mammography screening,” the visit probability to the mammography screening page was positive (95% highest posterior density interval = 3.38-26.66). Conclusions Further analysis for not only the clinic website but also various other medical institution websites is necessary to build a general inspection model for medical institution websites; we want to consider this in future research. Additionally, we hope to use the results obtained in this study as a prior distribution for future work to conduct higher-precision analysis. PMID:27457537

  11. 76 FR 39076 - Board of Visitors, Defense Language Institute Foreign Language Center

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-07-05

    ... floor or speak to any issue under consideration by the Board. Although open to the public, gate access... areas. Public's Accessibility to the Meeting: Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552b and 41 CFR 102-3.140 through 102-3.165, and the availability of space, this meeting is open to the public. Seating is on a first-come...

  12. 77 FR 62223 - Board of Visitors Defense Language Institute Foreign Language Center

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-10-12

    ... floor or speak to any issue under consideration by the Board. Although open to the public, gate access... observations. Public's Accessibility to the Meeting: Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552b and 41 CFR 102-3.140 through 102-3.165, and the availability of space, this meeting is open to the public. Seating is on a first come...

  13. A visitor control system for patients who were victims of violent crimes.

    PubMed

    Bland, Bobby W

    2008-01-01

    The dangers of further violence to patient victims of gang-related crime as well as violence against members of their families are frankly discussed in this article by the author who describes a special visitor control system he developed to prevent such violence from spreading into the hospital.

  14. Managing visitor impacts in parks: A multi-method study of the effectiveness of alternative management practices

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Park, L.O.; Marion, J.L.; Manning, R.E.; Lawson, S.R.; Jacobi, C.

    2008-01-01

    How can recreation use be managed to control associated environmental impacts? What management practices are most effective and why? This study explored these and related questions through a series of experimental ?treatments? and associated ?controls? at the summit of Cadillac Mountain in Acadia National Park, a heavily used and environmentally fragile area. The treatments included five management practices designed to keep visitors on maintained trails, and these practices ranged from ?indirect? (information/education) to ?direct? (a fence bordering the trail). Research methods included unobtrusive observation of visitors to determine the percentage of visitors who walked off-trail and a follow-up visitor survey to explore why management practices did or didn?t work. All of the management practices reduced the percentage of visitors who walked off-trail. More aggressive applications of indirect practices were more effective than less aggressive applications, and the direct management practice of fencing was the most effective of all. None of the indirect management practices reduced walking off-trail to a degree that is likely to control damage to soil and vegetation at the study site. Study findings suggest that an integrated suite of direct and indirect management practices be implemented on Cadillac Mountain (and other, similar sites) that includes a) a regulation requiring visitors to stay on the maintained trail, b) enforcement of this regulation as needed, c) unobtrusive fencing along the margins of the trail, d) redesign of the trail to extend it, widen it in key places, and provide short spur trails to key ?photo points?, and e) an aggressive information/education program to inform visitors of the regulation to stay on the trail and the reasons for it. These recommendations are a manifestation of what may be an emerging principle of park and outdoor recreation management: intensive use requires intensive management.

  15. 78 FR 40730 - Meeting of the National Commission on the Structure of the Air Force

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-07-08

    ... building at 2521 South Clark Street, Suite 200, Crystal City, VA 22202 is fully handicap accessible. Several public parking facilities are nearby. All visitors will be asked to show current, picture...

  16. Adams National Historical Park expanded transit service evaluation

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2009-12-01

    In 2005 and 2006, Adams National Historical Park piloted expanded shuttle service, with the aim of promoting car-free access for its visitors. This report evaluates the 2006 season of operation. Adams National Historical Park (NHP) is located approxi...

  17. Development and promotion of a national website to improve dissemination of information related to the prevention of mother-to-child HIV transmission (PMTCT) in Tanzania.

    PubMed

    Stephan, Gudila; Hoyt, Mary Jo; Storm, Deborah S; Shirima, Sylvia; Matiko, Charles; Matechi, Emmanuel

    2015-10-22

    Websites that address national public health issues provide an important mechanism to improve health education and services in resource limited countries. This article describes the development, promotion and initial evaluation of a national website to increase access to information and resources about prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV (PMTCT) among healthcare workers and PMTCT stakeholders in Tanzania. A participatory approach, involving the Tanzania Ministry of Health and Social Welfare (MOHSW) and key PMTCT stakeholders, was used to develop and manage the online PMTCT National Resource Center (NRC), http://pmtct.or.tz/ . The website was created with a content management system software system that does not require advanced computer skills and facilitates content updates and site management. The PMTCT NRC hosts related regularly updated PMTCT-related news, resources and publications. Website implementation, access and performance were evaluated over two years using Google Analytics data about visits, page views, downloads, bounce rates and location of visitors, supplemented by anecdotal feedback. Following its launch in July 2013, the PMTCT NRC website received a total of 28,400 visits, with 66,463 page views, over 2 years; 30 % of visits were from returning visitors. During year 1, visits increased by 80 % from the first to second 6 month period and then declined slightly (9-11 %) but remained stable in Year 2. Monthly visits spiked by about 70 % during October 2013 and January 2014 in response to the release and promotion of revised national PMTCT guidelines and training manuals. The majority of visitors came from primarily urban areas in Tanzania (50 %) and from other African countries (16 %). By year 2, over one-third of visitors used mobile devices to access the site. The successfully implemented PMTCT NRC website provides centralized, easily accessed information designed to address the needs of clinicians, educators and program partners in Tanzania. Ongoing involvement of the MOHSW and key stakeholders are essential ensure the website's growth, effectiveness and sustainability. Additional efforts are needed to expand use of the PMTCT NRC throughout the country. Future evaluations should examine the role of the website in supporting implementation of national PMTCT guidelines and services in Tanzania.

  18. Survey of methods for secure connection to the internet

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Matsui, Shouichi

    1994-04-01

    This paper describes a study of a security method of protecting inside network computers against outside miscreants and unwelcome visitors and a control method when these computers are connected with the Internet. In the present Internet, a method to encipher all data cannot be used, so that it is necessary to utilize PEM (Privacy Enhanced Mail) capable of the encipherment and conversion of secret information. For preventing miscreant access by eavesdropping password, one-time password is effective. The most cost-effective method is a firewall system. This system lies between the outside and inside network. By limiting computers that directly communicate with the Internet, control is centralized and inside network security is protected. If the security of firewall systems is strictly controlled under correct setting, security within the network can be secured even in open networks such as the Internet.

  19. Visitor characteristics and alcohol-based hand sanitizer dispenser locations at the hospital entrance: Effect on visitor use rates.

    PubMed

    Hobbs, Mary A; Robinson, Susan; Neyens, David M; Steed, Connie

    2016-03-01

    Hospital visitors' hand hygiene (HH) is an important aspect of preventing health care-associated infections, but little is known about visitors' use of alcohol-based hand sanitizers (AHS). The study aim was to examine if use of AHS is influenced by visitor characteristics and the location of AHS within the lobby of a large hospital. An observational study was conducted with AHS placed in 3 different locations. The data included visitor characteristics and if AHS were used. The results suggest that visitors are 5.28 times (95% confidence interval [CI], 3.68-7.82) more likely to use AHS when dispensers are located in the middle of the lobby with limited landmarks or barriers, 1.35 times more likely to use the AHS in the afternoon compared with the morning, or when they are younger visitors (adjusted odds ratio, 1.47; 95% CI, 1.09-1.97). Individuals in a group are more likely (adjusted odds ratio, 1.39; 95% CI, 1.06-1.84) to use AHS. In addition to location, time of day, and age, there is a group effect that results in visitors being more likely to use AHS when in a group. The increased use related to groups may serve as a mechanism to encourage visitor HH. The results suggest future research opportunities to investigate the effect of group dynamics and social pressure on visitor AHS use and to identify strategies for improving visitor HH. Copyright © 2015 Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology, Inc. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  20. What's a Weed? Knowledge, Attitude and Behaviour of Park Visitors about Weeds.

    PubMed

    Ansong, Michael; Pickering, Catherine

    2015-01-01

    Weeds are a major threat to biodiversity globally degrading natural areas of high conservation value. But what are our attitudes about weeds and their management including weeds in national parks? Do we know what a weed is? Do we consider weeds a problem? Do we support their management? Are we unintentionally spreading weeds in parks? To answer these questions, we surveyed visitors entering a large popular national park near the city of Brisbane, Australia. Park visitors were knowledgeable about weeds; with >75% correctly defining weeds as 'plants that grow where they are not wanted'. About 10% of the visitors, however, provided their own sophisticated definitions. This capacity to define weeds did not vary with people's age, sex or level of education. We constructed a scale measuring visitors' overall concern about weeds in parks using the responses to ten Likert scale statements. Over 85% of visitors were concerned about weeds with older visitors, hikers, and those who could correctly define weeds more concerned than their counterparts. The majority think visitors unintentionally introduce seeds into parks, with many (63%) having found seeds on their own clothing. However, over a third disposed of these seeds in ways that could facilitate weed spread. Therefore, although most visitors were knowledgeable and concerned about weeds, and support their control, there is a clear need for more effective communication regarding the risk of visitors unintentionally dispersing weed seeds in parks.

  1. Valuing Recreational Benefits of Coral Reefs: The Case of Mombasa Marine National Park and Reserve, Kenya

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ransom, Kevin P.; Mangi, Stephen C.

    2010-01-01

    A contingent valuation study was conducted with adult Kenyan citizens and foreign tourists to estimate the value of recreational benefits arising from coral reefs at Mombasa Marine National Park and Reserve (MMNPR), and to assess the implications for local reef management. Citizen and foreign visitors to MMNPR were willing to pay an extra 2.2 (median = 1.6) and 8 (median = 6.7) per visit respectively, in addition to current park entrance fees, to support reef quality improvements. By aggregating visitors’ willingness to pay bids over the number of visitors to MMNPR in 2006-2007 the value of benefits was estimated at 346,733, which was more than twice the total annual operational expenditure of 152,383 for MMNPR. The findings indicate that annual revenues from citizen and foreign visitors may be increased by 60% to 261,932 through the implementation of proposed higher park fees of 3.10 for citizens and 15 for foreign visitors. However, any fee increase would serve to intensify concerns among citizens that only relatively affluent Kenyans can afford to visit MMNPR. Park managers need to demonstrate that the extra revenue would be used to fund the proposed conservation activities. This valuation study demonstrates that visitors are prepared to pay higher user fees for access to the marine protected area revealing considerable untapped resource to finance reef quality improvements.

  2. Renovations Preserve History at Vanderbilt.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kerr, Tom

    1996-01-01

    Vanderbilt University opted to revamp its historic residences, built in the 1920s and 1930s, rather than build new ones. Structural and life-safety deficiencies were corrected. Every one of the halls is accessible to disabled visitors and accommodates disabled residents. (MLF)

  3. Gateway Arch Circulator Conceptual Feasibility Study : Jefferson National Expansion Memorial

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2015-03-01

    The Jefferson National Expansion Memorial (JEFF) is undergoing major design changes as part of the City Arch River 2015 project (CAR) that will impact access for park visitors. The park and stakeholders are considering a circulator system to facilita...

  4. Perceptions of ecological risk associated with mountain pine beetle (Dendroctonus ponderosae) infestations in Banff and Kootenay National Parks of Canada.

    PubMed

    McFarlane, Bonita L; Watson, David O T; Witson, David O T

    2008-02-01

    Western Canada is experiencing an unprecedented outbreak of the mountain pine beetle (MPB). The MPB has the potential to impact some of Canada's national parks by affecting park ecosystems and the visitor experience. Controls have been initiated in some parks to lessen the impacts and to prevent the beetle from spreading beyond park boundaries. We examine the perception of ecological risk associated with MPB in two of Canada's national parks, the factors affecting perceptions of risk, and the influence of risk judgments on support for controlling MPB outbreaks in national parks. Data were collected using two studies of park visitors: a mail survey in 2003 and an onsite survey in 2005. The MPB was rated as posing a greater risk to the health and productivity of park ecosystems than anthropogenic hazards and other natural disturbance agents. Visitors who were familiar with MPB rated the ecological and visitor experience impacts as negative, unacceptable, and eliciting negative emotion. Knowledge and residency were the most consistent predictors of risk judgments. Of knowledge, risk, and demographic variables, only sex and risk to ecosystem domains influenced support for controlling the MPB in national parks. Implications for managing MPB in national parks, visitor education, and ecological integrity are discussed.

  5. The European Network of Analytical and Experimental Laboratories for Geosciences

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Freda, Carmela; Funiciello, Francesca; Meredith, Phil; Sagnotti, Leonardo; Scarlato, Piergiorgio; Troll, Valentin R.; Willingshofer, Ernst

    2013-04-01

    Integrating Earth Sciences infrastructures in Europe is the mission of the European Plate Observing System (EPOS).The integration of European analytical, experimental, and analogue laboratories plays a key role in this context and is the task of the EPOS Working Group 6 (WG6). Despite the presence in Europe of high performance infrastructures dedicated to geosciences, there is still limited collaboration in sharing facilities and best practices. The EPOS WG6 aims to overcome this limitation by pushing towards national and trans-national coordination, efficient use of current laboratory infrastructures, and future aggregation of facilities not yet included. This will be attained through the creation of common access and interoperability policies to foster and simplify personnel mobility. The EPOS ambition is to orchestrate European laboratory infrastructures with diverse, complementary tasks and competences into a single, but geographically distributed, infrastructure for rock physics, palaeomagnetism, analytical and experimental petrology and volcanology, and tectonic modeling. The WG6 is presently organizing its thematic core services within the EPOS distributed research infrastructure with the goal of joining the other EPOS communities (geologists, seismologists, volcanologists, etc...) and stakeholders (engineers, risk managers and other geosciences investigators) to: 1) develop tools and services to enhance visitor programs that will mutually benefit visitors and hosts (transnational access); 2) improve support and training activities to make facilities equally accessible to students, young researchers, and experienced users (training and dissemination); 3) collaborate in sharing technological and scientific know-how (transfer of knowledge); 4) optimize interoperability of distributed instrumentation by standardizing data collection, archive, and quality control standards (data preservation and interoperability); 5) implement a unified e-Infrastructure for data analysis, numerical modelling, and joint development and standardization of numerical tools (e-science implementation); 6) collect and store data in a flexible inventory database accessible within and beyond the Earth Sciences community(open access and outreach); 7) connect to environmental and hazard protection agencies, stakeholders, and public to raise consciousness of geo-hazards and geo-resources (innovation for society). We will inform scientists and industrial stakeholders on the most recent WG6 achievements in EPOS and we will show how our community is proceeding to design the thematic core services.

  6. The Welcome Visitor The Welcome Visitor John Humphrys with Dr Sarah Jarvis Hodder and Stoughton £16.99 288pp 9780340923771 0340923776 [Formula: see text].

    PubMed

    2009-07-09

    MOTIVATED BY the death of his father, his former wife and his brother, journalist John Humphrys sets out to argue for assisted suicide. In this respect his family experiences may not be the best examples to support this argument. However, the book calls for such changes as better management of people who are dying. It is co-authored by an experienced GP and is accessible with many illustrative case studies. Although it is aimed at the public and requires no medical knowledge, I recommend it to all healthcare workers.

  7. Wilderness Recreation Demand: A Comparison of Travel Cost and On-Site Cost Models

    Treesearch

    J.M. Bowker; A. Askew; L. Seymour; J.P. Zhu; D. English; C.M. Starbuck

    2009-01-01

    This study used travel cost and on-site day cost models, coupled with the Forest Service’s National Visitor Use Monitoring data, to examine the demand for and value of recreation access to designated Wilderness.

  8. Gateway National Recreation Area, Jamaica Bay Unit alternative transportation feasibility study

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2013-07-31

    The National Park Service Gateway National Recreation Area (GATE) was created to provide convenient access to outdoor recreation in the National Park System for residents and visitors to the New York City (NYC) area. The Volpe Center completed a numb...

  9. Users' information-seeking behavior on a medical library Website

    PubMed Central

    Rozic-Hristovski, Anamarija; Hristovski, Dimitar; Todorovski, Ljupco

    2002-01-01

    The Central Medical Library (CMK) at the Faculty of Medicine, University of Ljubljana, Slovenia, started to build a library Website that included a guide to library services and resources in 1997. The evaluation of Website usage plays an important role in its maintenance and development. Analyzing and exploring regularities in the visitors' behavior can be used to enhance the quality and facilitate delivery of information services, identify visitors' interests, and improve the server's performance. The analysis of the CMK Website users' navigational behavior was carried out by analyzing the Web server log files. These files contained information on all user accesses to the Website and provided a great opportunity to learn more about the behavior of visitors to the Website. The majority of the available tools for Web log file analysis provide a predefined set of reports showing the access count and the transferred bytes grouped along several dimensions. In addition to the reports mentioned above, the authors wanted to be able to perform interactive exploration and ad hoc analysis and discover trends in a user-friendly way. Because of that, we developed our own solution for exploring and analyzing the Web logs based on data warehousing and online analytical processing technologies. The analytical solution we developed proved successful, so it may find further application in the field of Web log file analysis. We will apply the findings of the analysis to restructuring the CMK Website. PMID:11999179

  10. Results from an evaluation of tobacco control policies at the 2010 Shanghai World Expo.

    PubMed

    Li, Xiang; Zheng, PinPin; Fu, Hua; Berg, Carla; Kegler, Michelle

    2013-09-01

    Large-scale international events such as World Expos and Olympic Games have the potential to strengthen smoke-free norms globally. The Shanghai 2010 World Expo was one of the first large-scale events to implement and evaluate the adoption of strict tobacco control policies. To evaluate implementation of tobacco control policies at the 2010 World Expo in Shanghai, China. This mixed methods evaluation was conducted from July to October 2010. Observations were conducted in all 155 pavilions and outdoor queuing areas, all 45 souvenir shops, a random sample of restaurants (51 of 119) and selected outdoor non-smoking areas in all sections of the Expo. In addition, intercept surveys were completed with 3022 visitors over a 4-month period. All pavilions and souvenir shops were smoke-free. Restaurants were smoke-free, with only 0.1% of customers observed smoking. Smoking was more common in outdoor non-smoking areas, but still relatively rare overall with only 4.5% of visitors observed smoking. Tobacco products were not sold or marketed in any public settings except for three pavilions that had special exemptions from the policy. Overall, 80.3% of visitors were aware of the smoke-free policy at the World Expo, 92.5% of visitors supported the policy and 97.1% of visitors were satisfied with the smoke-free environment. Tobacco control policies at the World Expo sites were generally well-enforced and accepted although compliance was not 100%, particularly in outdoor non-smoking areas.

  11. A pilot effectiveness study of the Enhancing Parenting Skills (EPaS) 2014 programme for parents of children with behaviour problems: study protocol for a randomised controlled trial.

    PubMed

    Williams, Margiad Elen; Hutchings, Judy

    2015-05-20

    The Enhancing Parenting Skills (EPaS) 2014 programme is a home-based, health visitor-delivered parenting support programme for parents of children with identified behaviour problems. This trial aims to evaluate the effectiveness of the EPaS 2014 programme compared to a waiting-list treatment as usual control group. This is a pragmatic, multicentre randomised controlled trial. Sixty health visitors will each be asked to identify two families that have a child scoring above the clinical cut-off for behaviour problems using the Eyberg Child Behaviour Inventory (ECBI). Families recruited to the trial will be randomised in a 1:1 ratio into an intervention or waiting-list control group. Randomisation will occur within health visitor to ensure that each health visitor has one intervention family and one control family. The primary outcome is change in child behaviour problems as measured by the parent-reported ECBI. Secondary outcomes include other measures of child behaviour, parent behaviour, and parental depression as measured by parent-reports and an independent observation of parent and child behaviour. Follow-up measures will be collected 6-months after the collection of baseline measures. This is the first rigorous evaluation of the EPaS 2014 programme. The trial will provide important information on the effectiveness of a one-to-one home-based intervention, delivered by health visitors, for pre-school children with behaviour problems. It will also examine potential mediating (improved parent behaviour and/or improved parental depression) and moderating (single parent, teenage parent, poverty, low education level) factors. Current Controlled Trials ISRCTN06867279 (18 June 2014).

  12. Free-access open-source e-learning in comprehensive neurosurgery skills training.

    PubMed

    Jotwani, Payal; Srivastav, Vinkle; Tripathi, Manjul; Deo, Rama Chandra; Baby, Britty; Damodaran, Natesan; Singh, Ramandeep; Suri, Ashish; Bettag, Martin; Roy, Tara Sankar; Busert, Christoph; Mehlitz, Marcus; Lalwani, Sanjeev; Garg, Kanwaljeet; Paul, Kolin; Prasad, Sanjiva; Banerjee, Subhashis; Kalra, Prem; Kumar, Subodh; Sharma, Bhavani Shankar; Mahapatra, Ashok Kumar

    2014-01-01

    Since the end of last century, technology has taken a front seat in dispersion of medical education. Advancements of technology in neurosurgery and traditional training methods are now being challenged by legal and ethical concerns of patient safety, resident work-hour restriction and cost of operating-room time. To supplement the existing neurosurgery education pattern, various e-learning platforms are introduced as structured, interactive learning system. This study focuses on the concept, formulation, development and impact of web based learning platforms dedicated to neurosurgery discipline to disseminate education, supplement surgical knowledge and improve skills of neurosurgeons. 'Neurosurgery Education and Training School (NETS), e-learning platform' has integration of web-based technologies like 'Content Management System' for organizing the education material and 'Learning Management System' for updating neurosurgeons. NETS discussion forum networks neurosurgeons, neuroscientists and neuro-technologists across the globe facilitating collaborative translational research. Multi-authored neurosurgical e-learning material supplements the deficiencies of regular time-bound education. Interactive open-source, global, free-access e-learning platform of NETS has around 1) 425 visitors/month from 73 countries; ratio of new visitors to returning visitors 42.3; 57.7 (2); 64,380 views from 190 subscribers for surgical videos, 3-D animation, graphics based training modules (3); average 402 views per post. The e-Learning platforms provide updated educational content that make them "quick, surf, find and extract" resources. e-Learning tools like web-based education, social interactive platform and question-answer forum will save unnecessary expenditure of time and travel of neurosurgeons seeking knowledge. The need for free access platforms is more pronounced for the neurosurgeons and patients in developing nations.

  13. [Glucocorticoid therapy: what is the information sought by patients? Traffic analysis of the website cortisone-info.fr].

    PubMed

    Poisson, J; Six, M; Morin, C; Fardet, L

    2013-05-01

    About 1% of the general population are receiving systemic glucocorticoids. The information about this treatment sought by patients is unknown. The website www.cortisone-info.fr aims to provide therapeutic information about glucocorticoids and glucocorticoid therapy. It was posted on January 16, 2012. The information available on the website is documented and based on the recent medical literature. The website is made of 43 pages divided into five main sections (generalities about glucocorticoids, adverse events, measures associated with glucocorticoid therapy, discontinuation of glucocorticoids and, situations requiring attention). The website traffic between February 1st, 2012 and January 4, 2013 was analyzed using Google Analytics. During the study period, the website was visited by 67,496 people (average number of visitors per day: 33 in February 2012, 326 in December 2012). The number of page views was 230,496 or an average of 3.5 pages per visitor. Of these 230,496 page views, 145,431 (63.1%) were related to adverse events and 37,722 (16.4%) were related to generalities about glucocorticoids (e.g., what is cortisone? For which disease? How does it work?). Information particularly sought by visitors was related to the diet to follow during glucocorticoid therapy (page accessed 11,946 times), data about what cortisone is (page accessed 11,829 times) and the effects of glucocorticoids on weight (page accessed 10,442 times). Knowledge of glucocorticoid-treated patients' expectations may help physicians to optimize information they give, thereby helping to reduce patients' concerns about glucocorticoids and to improve adherence to the treatment. Copyright © 2013 Société nationale française de médecine interne (SNFMI). Published by Elsevier SAS. All rights reserved.

  14. Community nursing needs more silver surfers: a questionnaire survey of primary care nurses' use of information technology

    PubMed Central

    Chan, Tom; Brew, Sarah; de Lusignan, Simon

    2004-01-01

    Background In the UK the health service is investing more than ever before in information technology (IT) and primary care nurses will have to work with computers. Information about patients will be almost exclusively held in electronic patient records; and much of the information about best practice is most readily accessible via computer terminals. Objective To examine the influence of age and nursing profession on the level of computer use. Methods A questionnaire was developed to examine: access, training received, confidence and use of IT. The survey was carried out in a Sussex Primary Care Trust, in the UK. Results The questionnaire was sent to 109 nurses with a 64% response rate. Most primary care nurses (89%) use their computer regularly at work: 100% of practice nurses daily, compared with 60% of district nurses and 59% of health visitors (p < 0.01). Access to IT was not significantly different between different age groups; but 91% of practice nurses had their own computer while many district nurses and health visitors had to share (p < 0.01). Nurses over 50 had received more training that their younger colleagues (p < 0.01); yet despite this, they lacked confidence and used computers less (p < 0.001). 96% of practice nurses were confident at in using computerised medical records, compared with 53% of district nurses and 44% of health visitors (p < 0.01.) One-to-one training and workshops were the preferred formats for training, with Internet based learning and printed manuals the least popular (p < 0.001). Conclusions Using computers in the surgery has become the norm for primary care nurses. However, nurses over 50, working out in the community, lack the confidence and skill of their younger and practice based colleagues. PMID:15469616

  15. Primary care research: difficulties recruiting preschool children to clinical trials.

    PubMed

    Chadwick, B L; Treasure, E T

    2005-05-01

    The aims of the present study were to report difficulties experienced recruiting preschool children to a clinical trial and to report the acceptability of a dental intervention to their parents. The study was a randomized controlled trial (RCT). The study took place in community dental clinics, health centres and patient homes. Health visitors were used to recruit 508 children aged between 18 and 30 months from high caries areas of South Wales. Children with caries-free first primary molars were entered into a placebo-controlled individual RCT of fissure sealants. All children received a standard package of dental health education. Children in the test group had their first primary molars sealed with glass ionomer. All children were reviewed once. Families were asked to rate the acceptability of procedures. Health visitors referred 1228 children for screening, but only 547 were seen (44.5%) and 508 subjects were recruited to the trial. Of these, 449 (88.4%) were seen at follow-up. Some 667 children missed 1610 visits at baseline, and 373 of those recruited missed an appointment. At follow-up, 1056 appointments were staffed to review 449 children. Three-quarters of parents reported the examination to be very easy. Preschool children are difficult to access for community trials. Dental examinations and sealant placement were acceptable to the majority of families who were seen.

  16. A synthesis report of purpose and need: assessment of event egress for Houston's Reliant Stadium.

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2015-12-01

    Attendance at large arena events is increasing, as the seats are added, and ground level activities such as tailgating attract visitors not attending the game. Access is somewhat staggered as people choose their arrival times differently. However, th...

  17. Marketing School Music: It's Elementary.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Anderson, Jill Kuespert

    1992-01-01

    Explores methods of promoting elementary school music programs. Suggests inviting visitors to the class as a means of increasing awareness of school music. Recommends sending press releases to school newsletters and local newspapers. Reminds teachers to make use of educational access channels on area cable television systems. (SG)

  18. A web site on lung cancer: who are the users and what are they looking for?

    PubMed

    Linssen, Cilia; Schook, Romane M; The, Anne-Mei; Lammers, Ernst; Festen, Jan; Postmus, Pieter E

    2007-09-01

    The Dutch Lung Cancer Information Centre launched the Web site www.longkanker.info in November 2003. The purpose of this article is to describe the launching of the Web site, its development, the type of visitors to the Web site, what they were looking for, and whether they found what they requested. Supervised by a panel (pulmonologists, patients, communication specialists), a large amount of material about lung cancer has been collected and edited into accessible language by health care providers, and the Web site has been divided into special categories following the different stages that lung cancer patients, relatives, and health care providers go through during the illness. The Web site is updated regularly. Search engines have been used to check the position of the Web site as a "hit." Pulmonologists have been informed about the founding of the Web site, and all lung cancer outpatient clinics in The Netherlands have received posters, folders, and cards to inform their patients. Visitor numbers, page views, and visitor numbers per page view have been registered continuously. Visitor satisfaction polls were placed in the second half of 2004 and the second half of 2005. The Web site appeared as first hit when using search engines immediately after launching it. Half of the visitors came to the Web site via search engines or links found at other sites. The number of visitors started at 4600 in the first month, doubled in the next months, and reached 18,000 per month 2 years after its launch. The number of visited pages increased to 87,000 per month, with an average number of five pages per visitor. Thirty percent of the visitors return within the same month. The most popular pages are interactive pages with the overview of all questions to "ask the doctor" at the top with forum messages, survival figures of all form of lung cancer, and information about the disease. The first satisfaction poll obtained 650 respondents and the second 382. The visitors to the Web site are caregivers (57%), patients (8%), and others (students, people fearing lung cancer). Of the visitors, 895 found what they were looking for, and the satisfaction is the highest among nurses and caregivers (91% and 95%, respectively) and the lowest among physicians and patients (85% and 83%). Given the number of visitors to the lung cancer Web site, it can be concluded that there is a great need for additional information among patients and caregivers. The launched Web site www.longkanker.info has reached its goal of providing a dependable source of information about lung cancer and satisfying its visitors.

  19. Spatio-temporal variation of nectar robbing in Salvia gesneriflora and its effects on nectar production and legitimate visitors.

    PubMed

    Cuevas, E; Rosas-Guerrero, V

    2016-01-01

    Nectar robbing occurs when floral visitors remove floral nectar through floral damage and usually without providing pollination in return. Even though nectar robbing may have negative, neutral or even positive effects on plant fitness, few studies have investigated temporal and spatial variation in robbing rate and their consequences, particularly in the tropics. In this study, robbing levels were estimated during 3 years in four populations of Salvia gesneriflora, a hummingbird-pollinated shrub endemic to central Mexico that is mainly robbed by birds, carpenter bees and bumblebees. The effect of robbing on nectar availability, flower longevity and on visitation rate by floral visitors was also evaluated. Our results indicate great variation in robbing levels across years and populations and a positive relationship between robbing level and flower abundance per population. Moreover, our results show that nectar availability is about eight times higher in unrobbed flowers than in robbed flowers, and that nectar robbers prefer younger flowers, although lifespan of robbed and unrobbed flowers did not differ statistically. Primary and secondary nectar robbers showed a higher visitation rate compared to legitimate visitors, and neither legitimate nor illegitimate floral visitors seem to discriminate between robbed and unrobbed flowers. These results suggest that robbers may respond to food availability and that no floral visitors apparently could differentiate between robbed and unrobbed flowers. Finally, results show that nectar robbers prefer the youngest flowers, which suggests that strong competition for access to nectar between pollinators and robbers might occur, mainly at the first stages of the flowers. © 2015 German Botanical Society and The Royal Botanical Society of the Netherlands.

  20. New models to support the professional education of health visitors: A qualitative study of the role of space and place in creating 'community of learning hubs'.

    PubMed

    Donetto, Sara; Malone, Mary; Sayer, Lynn; Robert, Glenn

    2017-07-01

    In response to a policy-driven workforce expansion in England new models of preparing health visitors for practice have been implemented. 'Community of Learning hubs' (COLHs) are one such model, involving different possible approaches to student support in clinical practice placements (for example, 'long arm mentoring' or 'action learning set' sessions). Such models present opportunities for studying the possible effects of spatiality on the learning experiences of students and newly qualified health visitors, and on team relationships more broadly. To explore a 'community of learning hub' model in health visitor education and reflect on the role of space and place in the learning experience and professional identity development of student health visitors. Qualitative research conducted during first year of implementation. Three 'community of learning hub' projects based in two NHS community Trusts in London during the period 2013-2015. Managers and leads (n=7), practice teachers and mentors (n=6) and newly qualified and student health visitors (n=16). Semi-structured, audio-recorded interviews analysed thematically. Participants had differing views as to what constituted a 'hub' in their projects. Two themes emerged around the spaces that shape the learning experience of student and newly qualified health visitors. Firstly, a generalised need for a 'quiet place' which allows pause for reflection but also for sharing experiences and relieving common anxieties. Secondly, the role of physical arrangements in open-plan spaces to promote access to support from more experienced practitioners. Attention to spatiality can shed light on important aspects of teaching and learning practices, and on the professional identities these practices shape and support. New configurations of time and space as part of educational initiatives can surface new insights into existing practices and learning models. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

  1. Elements of museum mobile augmented reality for engaging hearing impaired visitors

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Baker, Esraa Jaffar; Bakar, Juliana Aida Abu; Zulkifli, Abdul Nasir

    2017-10-01

    Nowadays, designers are more concern with the issue of engagement and informal learning at museum and gallery sites. This has made studies to focus more on the use of Mobile Augmented Reality (MAR) at museum and gallery sites. However, most of the MAR applications for museum visitors are largely tailored to normal hearing visitors while the hearing-impaired (HI) visitors are not supported. The hearing impaired (HI) community account for over 5% of the world's populace which is about 360 million people. Thus, this paper explores the design elements of mobile augmented reality for engaging hearing impaired visitors at the museum site. The findings of this paper argues that there are eleven major elements of engagement of MAR needed for the design of an efficient museum MAR app for hearing impaired visitors. These eleven elements include Aesthetics, Curiosity, Usability, Interaction, Motivation, Satisfaction, Self-Efficacy, Perceived Control, Enjoyment, Focused Attention and Interest. This study pointed out that for an efficient and engaged MAR app for the HI community especially HI visitors to museum sites, these eleven elements are critical. This finding will help MAR designers and developers on how to design an efficient and engaged MAR app for the HI community at large and museum HI visitors specifically.

  2. KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Daniel L. Tweed, with the Facilities Division, NASA Spaceport Services, addresses attendees at the ribbon cutting for the KSC Security gates. Tweed was project manager. The two new Security gates on Kennedy Parkway (Gate 2) and NASA Parkway (Gate 3) were activated Aug. 1, allowing the general public to have access to the new Space Commerce Way, which will provide access to the Research Park and KSC Visitor Complex, and providing an alternate route for the general public between Titusville and Merritt Island that is accessible 24 hours a day. The gates are staffed 24 hours daily. Others taking part in the ribbon cutting were Center Director Jim Kennedy; Chief, Protective & Safe Guards Office, Calvin L. Burch; SGS Deputy Program Manager William A. Sample; and Bobby Porter, with Oneida Construction.

    NASA Image and Video Library

    2003-08-27

    KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Daniel L. Tweed, with the Facilities Division, NASA Spaceport Services, addresses attendees at the ribbon cutting for the KSC Security gates. Tweed was project manager. The two new Security gates on Kennedy Parkway (Gate 2) and NASA Parkway (Gate 3) were activated Aug. 1, allowing the general public to have access to the new Space Commerce Way, which will provide access to the Research Park and KSC Visitor Complex, and providing an alternate route for the general public between Titusville and Merritt Island that is accessible 24 hours a day. The gates are staffed 24 hours daily. Others taking part in the ribbon cutting were Center Director Jim Kennedy; Chief, Protective & Safe Guards Office, Calvin L. Burch; SGS Deputy Program Manager William A. Sample; and Bobby Porter, with Oneida Construction.

  3. Effectiveness of off-line and web-based promotion of health information web sites.

    PubMed

    Jones, Craig E; Pinnock, Carole B

    2002-01-01

    The relative effectiveness of off-line and web-based promotional activities in increasing the use of health information web sites by target audiences were compared. Visitor sessions were classified according to their method of arrival at the site (referral) as external web site, search engine, or "no referrer" (i.e., visitor arriving at the site by inputting URL or using bookmarks). The number of Australian visitor sessions correlated with no referrer referrals but not web site or search-engine referrals. Results showed that the targeted consumer group is more likely to access the web site as a result of off-line promotional activities. The properties of target audiences likely to influence the effectiveness of off-line versus on-line promotional strategies include the size of the Internet using population of the target audience, their proficiency in the use of the Internet, and the increase in effectiveness of off-line promotional activities when applied to locally defined target audiences.

  4. Marketing a national forest: the resource manager's dilemma

    Treesearch

    Howard A. Clonts; Jeffrey R. Hibbert

    1995-01-01

    National Forests throughout the United States are facing critical management decisions regarding optimal resource use amidst strong countervailing pressures for access. Visitors to Talladega National Forest in Alabama were surveyed to develop appropriate marketing strategies. Cluster analysis showed that separate homogeneous user groups exist. This information was...

  5. 78 FR 20328 - Peripheral and Central Nervous System Drugs Advisory Committee; Notice of Meeting

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-04-04

    ... regarding special accommodations due to a disability, visitor parking, and transportation may be accessed at... advisory committee meeting link, or call the advisory committee information line to learn about possible... make every effort to accommodate persons with physical [[Page 20329

  6. 77 FR 25184 - Oncologic Drugs Advisory Committee; Notice of Meeting

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-04-27

    ... disability, visitor parking, and transportation may be accessed at: http://www.fda.gov/AdvisoryCommittees... at http://www.fda.gov/AdvisoryCommittees/default.htm to learn about possible modifications before... effort to accommodate persons with physical disabilities or special needs. If you require special...

  7. Results from an evaluation of tobacco control policies at the 2010 Shanghai World Expo

    PubMed Central

    Li, Xiang; Zheng, PinPin; Fu, Hua; Berg, Carla; Kegler, Michelle

    2013-01-01

    Background Large-scale international events such as World Expos and Olympic Games have the potential to strengthen smoke-free norms globally. The Shanghai 2010 World Expo was one of the first large-scale events to implement and evaluate the adoption of strict tobacco control policies. Objective To evaluate implementation of tobacco control policies at the 2010 World Expo in Shanghai, China. Methods This mixed methods evaluation was conducted from July to October 2010. Observations were conducted in all 155 pavilions and outdoor queuing areas, all 45 souvenir shops, a random sample of restaurants (51 of 119) and selected outdoor non-smoking areas in all sections of the Expo. In addition, intercept surveys were completed with 3022 visitors over a 4-month period. Results All pavilions and souvenir shops were smoke-free. Restaurants were smoke-free, with only 0.1% of customers observed smoking. Smoking was more common in outdoor non-smoking areas, but still relatively rare overall with only 4.5% of visitors observed smoking. Tobacco products were not sold or marketed in any public settings except for three pavilions that had special exemptions from the policy. Overall, 80.3% of visitors were aware of the smoke-free policy at the World Expo, 92.5% of visitors supported the policy and 97.1% of visitors were satisfied with the smoke-free environment. Conclusions Tobacco control policies at the World Expo sites were generally well-enforced and accepted although compliance was not 100%, particularly in outdoor non-smoking areas. PMID:23708269

  8. 22 CFR 62.60 - Termination of designation

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... management audit. (e) Change in ownership or control. An exchange visitor program designation is not... Foreign Relations DEPARTMENT OF STATE PUBLIC DIPLOMACY AND EXCHANGES EXCHANGE VISITOR PROGRAM Termination... is eligible to apply for a new program designation. (d) Failure to file an annual management audit. A...

  9. What’s a Weed? Knowledge, Attitude and Behaviour of Park Visitors about Weeds

    PubMed Central

    Ansong, Michael; Pickering, Catherine

    2015-01-01

    Weeds are a major threat to biodiversity globally degrading natural areas of high conservation value. But what are our attitudes about weeds and their management including weeds in national parks? Do we know what a weed is? Do we consider weeds a problem? Do we support their management? Are we unintentionally spreading weeds in parks? To answer these questions, we surveyed visitors entering a large popular national park near the city of Brisbane, Australia. Park visitors were knowledgeable about weeds; with >75% correctly defining weeds as ‘plants that grow where they are not wanted’. About 10% of the visitors, however, provided their own sophisticated definitions. This capacity to define weeds did not vary with people’s age, sex or level of education. We constructed a scale measuring visitors’ overall concern about weeds in parks using the responses to ten Likert scale statements. Over 85% of visitors were concerned about weeds with older visitors, hikers, and those who could correctly define weeds more concerned than their counterparts. The majority think visitors unintentionally introduce seeds into parks, with many (63%) having found seeds on their own clothing. However, over a third disposed of these seeds in ways that could facilitate weed spread. Therefore, although most visitors were knowledgeable and concerned about weeds, and support their control, there is a clear need for more effective communication regarding the risk of visitors unintentionally dispersing weed seeds in parks. PMID:26252004

  10. Public Parks in Hong Kong: Characteristics of Physical Activity Areas and Their Users

    PubMed Central

    Chow, Bik C.; McKenzie, Thomas L.; Sit, Cindy H. P.

    2016-01-01

    Public parks, salient locations for engaging populations in health promoting physical activity, are especially important in high-density cities. We used the System for Observing Physical Activity in Communities (SOPARC) to conduct the first-ever surveillance study of nine public parks in Hong Kong (288 observation sessions during 36 weekdays and 36 weekend days) and observed 28,585 visitors in 262 diverse areas/facilities. Parks were widely used throughout the day on weekdays and weekend days and across summer and autumn; visitor rates were among the highest seen in 24 SOPARC studies. In contrast to other studies where teens and children dominated park use, most visitors (71%) were adults and seniors. More males (61%) than females used the parks, and they dominated areas designed for sports. Over 60% of visitors were observed engaging in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity, a rate higher than other SOPARC studies. Facilities with user fees were less accessible than non-fee areas, but they provided relatively more supervised and organized activities. Assessing parks by age, gender, and physical activity can provide useful information relative to population health. This study not only provides information useful to local administrators for planning and programming park facilities relative to physical activity, but it also provides a baseline for comparison by other high-density cities. PMID:27367709

  11. The effect of minimum impact education on visitor spatial behavior in parks and protected areas: An experimental investigation using GPS-based tracking.

    PubMed

    Kidd, Abigail M; Monz, Christopher; D'Antonio, Ashley; Manning, Robert E; Reigner, Nathan; Goonan, Kelly A; Jacobi, Charles

    2015-10-01

    The unmanaged impacts of recreation and tourism can often result in unacceptable changes in resource conditions and quality of the visitor experience. Minimum impact visitor education programs aim to reduce the impacts of recreation by altering visitor behaviors. Specifically, education seeks to reduce impacts resulting from lack of knowledge both about the consequences of one's actions and impact-minimizing best practices. In this study, three different on-site minimum impact education strategies ("treatments") and a control condition were applied on the trails and summit area of Sargent Mountain in Acadia National Park, Maine. Treatment conditions were designed to encourage visitors to stay on marked trails and minimize off-trail travel. Treatments included a message delivered via personal contact, and both an ecological-based message and an amenity-based message posted on signs located alongside the trail. A control condition of current trail markings and directional signs was also assessed. The efficacy of the messaging was evaluated through the use of Global Positioning System (GPS) tracking of visitor spatial behavior on/off trails. Spatial analysis of GPS tracks revealed statistically significant differences among treatments, with the personal contact treatment yielding significantly less dispersion of visitors on the mountain summit. Results also indicate that the signs deployed in the study were ineffective at limiting off-trail use beyond what can be accomplished with trail markers and directional signs. These findings suggest that personal contact by a uniformed ranger or volunteer may be the most effective means of message delivery for on-site minimum impact education. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  12. A Model Collaborative Platform for Geoscience Education

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Fox, S.; Manduca, C. A.; Iverson, E. A.

    2012-12-01

    Over the last decade SERC at Carleton College has developed a collaborative platform for geoscience education that has served dozens of projects, thousands of community authors and millions of visitors. The platform combines a custom technical infrastructure: the SERC Content Management system (CMS), and a set of strategies for building web-resources that can be disseminated through a project site, reused by other projects (with attribution) or accessed via an integrated geoscience education resource drawing from all projects using the platform. The core tools of the CMS support geoscience education projects in building project-specific websites. Each project uses the CMS to engage their specific community in collecting, authoring and disseminating the materials of interest to them. At the same time the use of a shared central infrastructure allows cross-fertilization among these project websites. Projects are encouraged to use common templates and common controlled vocabularies for organizing and displaying their resources. This standardization is then leveraged through cross-project search indexing which allow projects to easily incorporate materials from other projects within their own collection in ways that are relevant and automated. A number of tools are also in place to help visitors move among project websites based on their personal interests. Related links help visitors discover content related topically to their current location that is in a 'separate' project. A 'best bets' feature in search helps guide visitors to pages that are good starting places to explore resources on a given topic across the entire range of hosted projects. In many cases these are 'site guide' pages created specifically to promote a cross-project view of the available resources. In addition to supporting the cross-project exploration of specific themes the CMS also allows visitors to view the combined suite of resources authored by any particular community member. Automatically generated author profiles highlight the contributions an individual has made through any of the projects with an option for customization by the author. An overarching portal site provides a unified view of resources within this diverse set of geoscience education projects. The SERC CMS provides a common platform upon which individual projects can build their own identities, while allowing cross-project pollination and synergies to be realized without significant extra investment by each project. This is a sustainable model for a collaborative platform that takes advantage of the energy and resources of individual projects to advance larger community goals.

  13. Aerial Views of KSC

    NASA Image and Video Library

    2003-07-23

    This aerial view, looking northwest, shows the newly opened Space Commerce Way that winds from S.R 3 on the right to its exit on S.R. 405 (near the top) in the background. The road is the new public access from Merritt Island to the KSC Visitor Complex (seen at top).

  14. 50 CFR 36.39 - Public use.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-10-01

    ..., and Swanson Lakes are only open for sport ice fishing. Andy Simons Unit Emerald Lake Green Lake Harvey..., waysides, buildings or the Sterling Highway from the east refuge boundary to the east junction of the... buildings, piers, docks, weirs, refuge offices, visitor centers, and public access and parking sites. Maps...

  15. The Black Belt Librarian: Real-World Safety & Security

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Graham, Warren

    2012-01-01

    Sharing expertise gleaned from more than two decades as a library security manager, Graham demonstrates that libraries can maintain their best traditions of openness and public access by creating an unobtrusive yet effective security plan. In straightforward language, the author: (1) Shows how to easily set clear expectations for visitors'…

  16. Motivational Signage Increases Physical Activity on a College Campus

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Ford, M. Allison; Torok, Donald

    2008-01-01

    Objective: The authors evaluated whether motivational signage influenced rates of stair use relative to elevator use on a college campus. Participants: In March and April 2004, the authors observed students, faculty, staff, and any visitors accessing a college campus building. Methods: During Phase I, the authors monitored ascending stair and…

  17. 77 FR 48992 - Endocrinologic and Metabolic Drugs Advisory Committee; Notice of Meeting

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-08-15

    ... accommodations due to a disability, visitor parking, and transportation may be accessed at: http://www.fda.gov... committee information line to learn about possible modifications before coming to the meeting. Agenda: The... with physical disabilities or special needs. If you require special accommodations due to a disability...

  18. 78 FR 48174 - Anti-Infective Drugs Advisory Committee; Notice of Meeting

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-08-07

    ... accommodations due to a disability, visitor parking, and transportation may be accessed at: http://www.fda.gov... link, or call the advisory committee information line to learn about possible modifications before... with physical disabilities or special needs. If you require special accommodations due to a disability...

  19. 77 FR 63840 - Endocrinologic and Metabolic Drugs Advisory Committee; Notice of Meeting

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-10-17

    ... special accommodations due to a disability, visitor parking, and transportation may be accessed at: http... the advisory committee information line to learn about possible modifications before coming to the... accommodate persons with physical disabilities or special needs. If you require special accommodations due to...

  20. 76 FR 62418 - Antiviral Drugs Advisory Committee; Notice of Meeting

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-10-07

    ... regarding special accommodations due to a disability, visitor parking and transportation may be accessed at.../phone line to learn about possible modifications before coming to the meeting. Agenda: On December 14... advisory committee meetings and will make every effort to accommodate persons with physical disabilities or...

  1. 78 FR 50423 - Endocrinologic and Metabolic Drugs Advisory Committee; Notice of Meeting

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-08-19

    ... accommodations due to a disability, visitor parking, and transportation may be accessed at: http://www.fda.gov... link, or call the advisory committee information line to learn about possible modifications before... with physical disabilities or special needs. If you require special accommodations due to a disability...

  2. 77 FR 43600 - Cardiovascular and Renal Drugs Advisory Committee; Notice of Meeting

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-07-25

    ... special accommodations due to a disability, visitor parking, and transportation may be accessed at: http... information line to learn about possible modifications before coming to the meeting. Agenda: During the... make every effort to accommodate persons with physical disabilities or special needs. If you require...

  3. 77 FR 62242 - Risk Communication Advisory Committee; Notice of Meeting

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-10-12

    ... disability, visitor parking, and transportation may be accessed at: http:[sol][sol]www.fda.gov/Advisory... information line to learn about possible modifications before coming to the meeting. Agenda: On November 2... accommodate persons with physical disabilities or special needs. If you require special accommodations due to...

  4. 78 FR 42087 - Risk Communications Advisory Committee; Notice of Meeting

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-07-15

    ... accommodations due to a disability, visitor parking, and transportation may be accessed at: http://www.fda.gov... link, or call the advisory committee information line to learn about possible modifications before... meetings and will make every effort to accommodate persons with physical disabilities or special needs. If...

  5. Acoustic environments matter: Synergistic benefits to humans and ecological communities.

    PubMed

    Francis, Clinton D; Newman, Peter; Taff, B Derrick; White, Crow; Monz, Christopher A; Levenhagen, Mitchell; Petrelli, Alissa R; Abbott, Lauren C; Newton, Jennifer; Burson, Shan; Cooper, Caren B; Fristrup, Kurt M; McClure, Christopher J W; Mennitt, Daniel; Giamellaro, Michael; Barber, Jesse R

    2017-12-01

    Protected areas are critical locations worldwide for biodiversity preservation and offer important opportunities for increasingly urbanized humans to experience nature. However, biodiversity preservation and visitor access are often at odds and creative solutions are needed to safeguard protected area natural resources in the face of high visitor use. Managing human impacts to natural soundscapes could serve as a powerful tool for resolving these conflicting objectives. Here, we review emerging research that demonstrates that the acoustic environment is critical to wildlife and that sounds shape the quality of nature-based experiences for humans. Human-made noise is known to affect animal behavior, distributions and reproductive success, and the organization of ecological communities. Additionally, new research suggests that interactions with nature, including natural sounds, confer benefits to human welfare termed psychological ecosystem services. In areas influenced by noise, elevated human-made noise not only limits the variety and abundance of organisms accessible to outdoor recreationists, but also impairs their capacity to perceive the wildlife that remains. Thus soundscape changes can degrade, and potentially limit the benefits derived from experiences with nature via indirect and direct mechanisms. We discuss the effects of noise on wildlife and visitors through the concept of listening area and demonstrate how the perceptual worlds of both birds and humans are reduced by noise. Finally, we discuss how management of soundscapes in protected areas may be an innovative solution to safeguarding both and recommend several key questions and research directions to stimulate new research. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  6. Q?rius: An innovative and new interactive educational space at the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of Natural History, in Washington, D.C

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Blankenbicker, R.

    2013-12-01

    The Fall of 2013 marks the opening of Q?rius ('curious'), a 10,000 square foot, interactive educational space at the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of Natural History. Representing the 7 areas of the museum's research divisions, Q?rius includes a publicly accessible collection of over 6,000 natural history objects and multiple opportunities for visitors to engage themselves in natural history and the research conducted at the museum in various settings, including a lab, theater, and studio. A digital component to the space allows visitors to save parts of their experiences to a personal account, which they can later access remotely from their home or school. The space also serves as a tool for scientists to conduct outreach programs for museum visitors and for schools across the country through distance learning capabilities. Geology content for Q?rius was developed through collaboration between the Office of Education and Outreach and the Department of Mineral Sciences, as well as scientists and educators from outside agencies. Current experiences for the public include modeling plate tectonics and how they change rocks on small and large scales, identifying minerals in rocks, and using Earth to understand Martian geology. A school program adds the concept of drill cores and natural resources to the plate tectonics activity, which allows discussion about resource extraction. Developing experiences for Q?rius in all content areas took place over 2 phases; first, through taking prototypes into the museum exhibition halls to test with visitors through several iterations, and second in the new space, where all of the activities could be tested as a group and in the appropriate environment. By the time this abstract has been submitted, the official opening will not have occurred, though Q?rius will have been open for about 1 month by the time of the 2013 AGU annual conference, allowing us to further evaluate the development of the space.

  7. 76 FR 33395 - 30-Day Notice of Proposed Information Collections: ECA Sports & Culture Evaluation Surveys

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-06-08

    ... information collection requests to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for approval in accordance with... Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) Survey. OMB Control Number: None. Type of Request: New Collection... Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) participants who were involved in selected cultural programs from 2000...

  8. Real-Time Seismic Displays in Museums Appeal to the Public

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Smith, Meagan; Taber, John; Hubenthal, Michael

    2006-02-01

    Technology provides people with constant access to the latest news, weather, and entertainment. Not surprisingly, the public increasingly demands that the most current information be available for immediate consumption. For museums striving to educate the public and to maintain and expand visitor interest, gone are the days of passively conveying scientific concepts through static displays. Instead, science museums must find creative ways to capture the public's interest-successful advocacy for research funding, solutions to environmental problems, even future generations' scientific innovation depend on this. To this end, the continuous collection and dissemination of real-time science information by the scientific community offers museums an opportunity to capitalize on visitors' data addiction and increase the public's interest in, and understanding of, the Earth system.

  9. Student Access and Completion: A Regional Strategic Enrollment Partnership

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Peterson, Angela

    2014-01-01

    "Albert" told his story to special visitor Dr. Jill Biden in order to bring notice to a very unique tuition assistance program provided to Valencia College's homeless students. Not only was Albert homeless, his background was indicative of failure and through education he turned his life around and helped others with similar backgrounds.…

  10. 77 FR 73976 - Nez Perce-Clearwater National Forests; Idaho; Crooked River Valley Rehabilitation Project

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-12-12

    ... maintenance of the road. Proposed Action The proposed action is to rehabilitate the lower two miles of the... from the road, improve forest visitor safety, and provide easier maintenance of the road. The proposed... the effects to cultural resources, public access, and future road maintenance costs. Permits or...

  11. 78 FR 17680 - Information Collection Request; Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards Personnel Surety Program

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-03-22

    ... visitors with access to restricted areas or critical assets, including, (i) Measures designed to verify and validate identity; (ii) Measures designed to check criminal history; (iii) Measures designed to verify and validate legal authorization to work; and (iv) Measures designed to identify people with terrorist ties...

  12. KSC-03PD-2210

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    2003-01-01

    KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. This aerial view, looking northwest, shows the newly opened Space Commerce Way that winds from S.R 3 on the right to its exit on S.R. 405 (near the top) in the background. The road is the new public access from Merritt Island to the KSC Visitor Complex (seen at top).

  13. Places to Go: Sakai|http://www.sakaiproject.org/

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Downes, Stephen

    2006-01-01

    Stephen Downes continues his examination of open source learning management systems (LMSs) with a visit to Sakai's Web site. While Sakai's Web site is not particularly easy to navigate, it provides access to a large community and constellation of related online learning products and initiatives. Visitors can visit discussion forums to ask…

  14. 12 CFR 404.1 - General provisions.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-01-01

    ... subpart B of this part also shall be processed under this subpart A. (d) Ex-Im Bank Internet site. Ex-Im Bank maintains an Internet site at http://www.exim.gov. The site contains information on Ex-Im Bank functions, activities, programs, and transactions. Web site visitors have access to Board of Directors and...

  15. Using Storytelling to Hone Language Skills

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Snider, Michelle

    2008-01-01

    A first glance into the classroom where Phillip Tillery teaches may leave visitors overwhelmed due by the array of high-tech equipment wired and ready for access by his students. Some students are working independently at computers while others are immersed in teams at a green screen and motion-capture setup. Various computer programs with myriad…

  16. 22 CFR 41.62 - Exchange visitors.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... Relations DEPARTMENT OF STATE VISAS VISAS: DOCUMENTATION OF NONIMMIGRANTS UNDER THE IMMIGRATION AND... to SEVIS or ISEAS prior to the issuance of a J-1 or J-2 visa. Evidence of the payment of any... Consular Database or direct access to SEVIS. Upon issuance of a J-1 or J-2 visa, notification of such...

  17. 22 CFR 41.62 - Exchange visitors.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-04-01

    ... Relations DEPARTMENT OF STATE VISAS VISAS: DOCUMENTATION OF NONIMMIGRANTS UNDER THE IMMIGRATION AND... to SEVIS or ISEAS prior to the issuance of a J-1 or J-2 visa. Evidence of the payment of any... Consular Database or direct access to SEVIS. Upon issuance of a J-1 or J-2 visa, notification of such...

  18. 22 CFR 41.62 - Exchange visitors.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-04-01

    ... Relations DEPARTMENT OF STATE VISAS VISAS: DOCUMENTATION OF NONIMMIGRANTS UNDER THE IMMIGRATION AND... to SEVIS or ISEAS prior to the issuance of a J-1 or J-2 visa. Evidence of the payment of any... Consular Database or direct access to SEVIS. Upon issuance of a J-1 or J-2 visa, notification of such...

  19. 22 CFR 41.62 - Exchange visitors.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... Relations DEPARTMENT OF STATE VISAS VISAS: DOCUMENTATION OF NONIMMIGRANTS UNDER THE IMMIGRATION AND... to SEVIS or ISEAS prior to the issuance of a J-1 or J-2 visa. Evidence of the payment of any... Consular Database or direct access to SEVIS. Upon issuance of a J-1 or J-2 visa, notification of such...

  20. 22 CFR 41.62 - Exchange visitors.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-04-01

    ... Relations DEPARTMENT OF STATE VISAS VISAS: DOCUMENTATION OF NONIMMIGRANTS UNDER THE IMMIGRATION AND... to SEVIS or ISEAS prior to the issuance of a J-1 or J-2 visa. Evidence of the payment of any... Consular Database or direct access to SEVIS. Upon issuance of a J-1 or J-2 visa, notification of such...

  1. 77 FR 30319 - Draft Environmental Impact Statement for General Management Plan, Fort Pulaski National Monument, GA

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-05-22

    ... Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for the General Management Plan (GMP) and Wilderness Study for Fort... of the monument, the DEIS/GMP/Wilderness Study describes three alternatives including the NPS... and enjoyment of the monument's resources. An up-to-date GMP is needed to address how visitors access...

  2. 75 FR 21250 - Privacy Act of 1974; Systems of Records

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-04-23

    ... information of the current tenants of NSA/CSS facilities; to create and track the status of visit requests and... facility; to track inside the NSA/CSS facility authorized NSA/CSS employee and visitor badges as they are used to pass through automated turnstile system, access office suites and other work areas; to track...

  3. Supporting Transitions: Cultural Connections for Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorders

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Greenberg, Aliza; Levinsky-Raskin, Sheri

    2017-01-01

    Museums are well-positioned to engage adults with autism and other developmental differences both as visitors and employees. This article recounts the Museum Access Consortium's process to design and implement the project Supporting Transitions: Cultural Connections for People with Autism with the goal of calling attention to a large opportunity…

  4. 78 FR 31573 - Proposed Information Collection; Comment Request: Social Values of Ecosystem Services at Cape...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-05-24

    ... visitors that can be used to prepare resource management planning documents. II. Data OMB Control Number...: We (National Park Service) will ask the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to approve the... visitor groups and local community members about the values they place on cultural and natural resources...

  5. Patient or visitor, mentally disturbed individuals may pose a safety threat.

    PubMed

    2004-09-01

    As the hospital point of entry, EDs often are the first place unstable individuals can threaten others. Have specific procedures outlined for visitors and for mentally unstable patients. Cooperate closely with your security department, but always retain clinical control. Periodically review and update your procedures, and have staff re-educated annually.

  6. KSC-2011-8257

    NASA Image and Video Library

    2011-12-11

    CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – The high-fidelity space shuttle model which was on display at the NASA Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex in Florida rolls through the parking lot leading to Kennedy's Launch Complex 39 turn basin. Behind it are the 525-foot-tall Vehicle Assembly Building and the Launch Control Center. The shuttle was part of a display at the visitor complex that also included an external tank and two solid rocket boosters that were used to show visitors the size of actual space shuttle components. The full-scale shuttle model is being transferred from Kennedy to Space Center Houston, NASA Johnson Space Center's visitor center. The model will stay at the turn basin for a few months until it is ready to be transported to Texas via barge. The move also helps clear the way for the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex to begin construction of a new facility next year to display space shuttle Atlantis in 2013. For more information about Space Center Houston, visit http://www.spacecenter.org. Photo credit: NASA/Dimitri Gerondidakis

  7. Quantifying the impact of Wellington Zoo's persuasive communication campaign on post-visit behavior.

    PubMed

    MacDonald, Edith

    2015-01-01

    Zoos potential to facilitate visitor conservation behavior is commonly articulated. Few studies, however, have quantified whether zoos' conservation messages result in visitors implementing the behavior. To test if zoo conservation messages are adopted at home, I implemented a persuasive communication campaign which advocated keeping cats indoor at night, a behavior that is a potential solution to cats depredating native wildlife. Furthermore, I tested if a public commitment (signing a pledge card) strengthened the relationship between on-site intention to engage in the behavior and actual implementation of the behavior at home. The conservation behavior was included in the twice-daily animal presentations in the amphitheater. A sample of 691 visitors completed a survey as they exited the amphitheater that measured their recall of the conservation behavior and intention to engage in the behavior at home. The last 311 visitors to complete the survey were asked to sign a pledge card which was publicly displayed in the amphitheater. Six weeks after their zoo trip, visitors were contacted and asked if they had implemented the behavior. Recall of the conservation behavior was high (91% for control, 100% for pledge group) and the entire pledge group had implemented the behavior whereas just half (51%) of the control group did. Furthermore, signing the pledge card strengthened the relationship between onsite intention and at home behavior (r = 1.0 of for the pledge group and r = 0.21 for the control group). Overall, the zoo's conservation message was recalled and behavior implemented at home. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  8. [Content informatics and professional analysis of Hungarian health-related websites].

    PubMed

    Geges, József; Juhász, Eva; Vasas, Lívia

    2006-06-04

    The number of health-related homepages is increasing and their content is exceeding. The visitor, let him/her be a private visitor or an expert, a patient or relative would like to access relevant data, trust the accuracy and up-to-date state of the web content. It is in the nature of these kind of services, that visitors would share their question and remarks with the authors specialized in a particular topic. Among others these circumstances led to the format and content-related regulation of websites. In a nationwide research the authors examined, to what extent the Hungarian sites meet the requirements of the Health on Net codification and the criteria of the European Union Committee. By studying the quality criteria-related websites, the authors examined each Hungarian website to see how the Hungarian pages live up to the regulations. The work concentrates on the content, but it does not neglect functional analysis either. The authors conclude, that in spite of shortcomings, home webpages aim to keep the directives of the European Union.

  9. Use of The Math You Need When You Need It website outside of introductory geoscience courses

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Baer, E. M.; Wenner, J. M.

    2011-12-01

    Web usage statistics and a recent survey of visitors to The Math You Need, When You Need It (TMYN) suggest that these web resources serve a significant number of students beyond those for whom they were originally intended. The web-based modules of TMYN are asynchronous online resources designed to help undergraduates learn quantitative concepts essential in a concurrent introductory geoscience course. In the past year, approximately 1,000 students accessed TMYN through associated geoscience courses; however, in that same time period,more than 40 times that number interacted significantly with the site according to Google Analytics. Of the nearly 220,000 total visitors, ~15% stayed on the site for longer than one minute and ~20% visited two or more pages within the site, suggesting that the content is engaging and useful to many of the visitors. In a pop-up survey of users, 81% of the nearly 350 respondents reported that they found what they were looking for. Although the nature of TMYN website users is difficult to discern definitively, daily, weekly and monthly use patterns indicate a predominance of academic users. Access to the site is lowest during the summer months and on Friday and Saturday, and is elevated on Sunday through Thursdays. Furthermore, in a pop-up survey of users who accessed more than one page, greater than half (56%) of the 346 respondents were students, 20% collegiate faculty and 9% K-12 teachers. Although the resources are specifically designed for geoscience students, 61% of survey respondents identified themselves as associated with other STEM disciplines. Thus, despite the decidedly geoscientific slant to these resources, survey data suggest that many STEM students and teachers are searching for the kinds of topics covered by TMYN. Furthermore, web use statistics indicate a substantial need for high quality web-based quantitative skill support materials for all STEM disciplines.

  10. The effects of the interaction between cognitive style and instructional strategy on the educational outcomes for a science exhibit

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Knappenberger, Naomi

    This dissertation examines factors which may affect the educational effectiveness of science exhibits. Exhibit effectiveness is the result of a complex interaction among exhibit features, cognitive characteristics of the museum visitor, and educational outcomes. The purpose of this study was to determine the relative proportions of field-dependent and field-independent visitors in the museum audience, and to ascertain if the cognitive style of visitors interacted with instructional strategies to affect the educational outcomes for a computer-based science exhibit. Cognitive style refers to the self-consistent modes of selecting and processing information that an individual employs throughout his or her perceptual and intellectual activities. It has a broad influence on many aspects of personality and behavior, including perception, memory, problem solving, interest, and even social behaviors and self-concept. As such, it constitutes essential dimensions of individual differences among museum visitors and has important implications for instructional design in the museum. The study was conducted in the spring of 1998 at the Adler Planetarium and Astronomy Museum in Chicago. Two experimental treatments of a computer-based exhibit were tested in the study. The first experimental treatment utilized strategies designed for field-dependent visitors that limited the text and provided more structure and cueing than the baseline treatment of the computer program. The other experimental treatment utilized strategies designed for field-independent visitors that provided hypothesis-testing and more contextual information. Approximately two-thirds of the visitors were field-independent. The results of a multiple regression analysis indicated that there was a significant interaction between cognitive style and instructional strategy that affected visitors' posttest scores on a multiple-choice test of the content. Field-independent visitors out- performed the field-dependent visitors in the control, baseline, and both experimental treatments. Both field-dependent and field-independent visitor posttest scores increased in the field-dependent experimental treatment and in the field-independent treatment. The most effective treatment for all visitors was the field-independent treatment. Criteria for designing a computer-based exhibit to meet the needs of all visitors were recommended. These included organized, concise text; a structured, rather than exploratory design; and cueing in the form of questions, bold fonts, underlining of important words and concepts, and captioned images.

  11. Technology at the zoo: the influence of a touchscreen computer on orangutans and zoo visitors.

    PubMed

    Perdue, Bonnie M; Clay, Andrea W; Gaalema, Diann E; Maple, Terry L; Stoinski, Tara S

    2012-01-01

    A computer-controlled touchscreen apparatus (hereafter referred to as "touchscreen") in the orangutan exhibit at Zoo Atlanta provides enrichment to the animals and allows cognitive research to take place on exhibit. This study investigated the impact of the touchscreen on orangutan behavior and visibility, as well as its impact on zoo visitors. Despite previous research suggesting that providing a single computer system may negatively affect orangutan behavior, there was not a significant increase in aggression, stereotypic, or distress-related behaviors following the activation of the on-exhibit touchscreen. We also investigated the possibility that zoo visitors may be negatively affected by technology because it deviates from naturalism. However, we did not find a change in stay time or overall experience rating when the computer was turned on. This research was the first to assess visitor attitudes toward technology at the zoo, and we found that visitors report highly positive attitudes about technology for both animals and visitors. If subjects visited the exhibit when the computer was turned on, they more strongly agreed that orangutans benefit from interacting with computerized enrichment. This study is the first investigation of an on-exhibit touchscreen in group-housed apes; our findings of no negative effects on the animals or zoo visitors and positive attitudes toward technology suggest a significant value of this practice. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  12. The effect of health visitors' postpartum home visit frequency on first-time mothers: cluster randomised trial.

    PubMed

    Christie, Janice; Bunting, Brendan

    2011-06-01

    Postpartum home visiting by nurses can benefit higher-risk families. Yet, little is known about the effects of universal services which provide care for all families including those at lowest risk (e.g., provision by health visitors-United Kingdom specialist community public health nurses). It was to determine the effect of frequency of health visitors' home visits on 'low-risk' first-time families' outcomes to 8 weeks postpartum and 7 months follow-up. A cluster randomised controlled trial. Within one health and social care managerial area in Northern Ireland. First-time 'low risk' mothers who had given birth during 2002-2004 and were visited by a health visitor who had agreed to take part in the study, were invited to participate. In total, n=39 health visitors were allocated to 'intervention' and n=41 to 'control'. Of n=295 'low-risk' first-time mothers who agreed to take part, n=136 with intervention health visitors were offered six home visits 2-8 weeks postpartum and n=159 within the control group were offered one planned visit. Self-completed measures of parenting, maternal wellbeing and service use were gathered pre-intervention, 8 weeks and 7 months postpartum. The main outcome was the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS). At 8 weeks and 7 months postpartum, n=129 and n=115 intervention mothers, also n=151 and n=141 control mothers completed outcome measures. An intention to treat analysis was performed using multilevel modelling analysis which statistically controlled for pre-home visit outcomes, clinic attendance and antenatal contact. The intervention had no impact on most outcomes, however, it was associated with an increased EPDS score (after adjustment: 0.16, 2.36 95% CI) at 8 weeks (before accounting for outliers) but not at 7 months (-0.62, 1.65 95% CI). Intervention mothers had higher service satisfaction (7.7, 21.28, 95% CI 8 weeks; 4.69, 22.71, 7 months) and were less likely to have used emergency medical services for their infants to 8 weeks (OR: 0.15, 0.85, 95% CI). Weekly postpartum visits to 'low-risk' mothers had variable effects, therefore, practitioners and researchers should consider further development and application of effective, evidence based home visiting content. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  13. 76 FR 11243 - Solicitation of Input From Stakeholders To Inform the National Framework for Electronics Stewardship

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-03-01

    ... a metal detector, and sign the EPA visitor log. All visitor bags are processed through an X- ray... equipment from solid waste landfills in the United States. EPA does, however, control how cathode ray tube... cell phone and computers/laptops or recover valuable resources, such as precious metals, plastics or...

  14. 78 FR 8582 - Final Environmental Impact Statement for Brooks River Visitor Access for Katmai National Park and...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-02-06

    ... River floating bridge and sites to relocate the existing Naknek Lake barge landing area at the mouth of... barge landing site would be located approximately 200 feet south of the mouth of the Brooks River. A new... new Naknek Lake barge landing site. Alternative 4 (NPS Preferred Alternative): This alternative...

  15. Connecting with Frequent Adolescent Visitors to the School Nurse through the Use of Intentional Interviewing

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Pavletic, Adria C.

    2011-01-01

    Nurses as accessible, helping adults within schools have daily opportunities to reach adolescents with unmet mental health needs. Understanding the relationship between frequent clinic visits or somatic complaints as a sign of underlying problems, which may be organic or psychoemotional in origin, requires the unique skill set of the school nurse.…

  16. 75 FR 10307 - Notice of Availability of a Draft Environmental Impact Statement for Cape Hatteras National Seashore

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-03-05

    ... for the Cape Hatteras National Seashore (Seashore) Off-Road Vehicle Management Plan (Plan/EIS). The... off-road vehicle (ORV) use/access in the Seashore to protect and preserve natural and cultural... among various users, and to promote the safety of all visitors. Executive Order 11644 of 1972, amended...

  17. 75 FR 43496 - Board of Visitors, Defense Language Institute Foreign Language Center

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-07-26

    ..., operating procedures review, and oath. DLIFLC functional areas will be discussed. Public's Accessibility to... space, this meeting is open to the public. Seating is on a first-come basis. No member of the public attending open meetings will be allowed to present questions from the floor or speak to any issue under...

  18. 77 FR 13571 - Board of Visitors, Defense Language Institute Foreign Language Center

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-03-07

    ... availability of space, this meeting is open to the public. Seating is on a first-come basis. No member of the public attending open meetings will be allowed to present questions from the floor or speak to any issue... meet members of the ACCJC as required, and will review past BoV recommendations. Public's Accessibility...

  19. Accessing Science Museum Exhibits with Interactive Signing Dictionaries

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Vesel, Judy; Robillard, Tara

    2017-01-01

    Evidence suggests that content incorporated into science museum exhibits remains out of reach for many visitors who are deaf or hard of hearing and who communicate in sign language. The implementation research described in this article was conducted by TERC, Inc. at the Museum of Science (MoS), Boston. The purpose was to examine use of a mobile…

  20. Information Sources Used by Tourists: Resources Consulted by American, German, and Japanese Visitors to Taiwan

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lu, Carol Yi-Rong

    2009-01-01

    The Taiwan travel information resources used by American, German, and Japanese tourists in 2006 are identified and analyzed in this study. Differences among demographic groups regarding types of information accessed, spending behaviors, and levels of satisfaction with available travel resources were examined. The study was based on analysis of…

  1. KSC-2012-1966

    NASA Image and Video Library

    2012-04-05

    CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Florida’s Lt. Gov. Jennifer Carroll signs a wall of the White Room during a tour of Kennedy Space Center’s Orbiter Processing Facility-1. The room affords access to the shuttle as it is undergoing processing in the facility. Everyone visiting the interior of the shuttle – astronauts, technicians and guests alike - is given the opportunity to “autograph” a wall of the room. The tour coincided with Carroll’s visit to Kennedy for a meeting with Cabana. Atlantis is being prepared for public display at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex in 2013. The groundbreaking for Atlantis’ exhibit hall took place in January Atlantis is scheduled to be moved to the visitor complex in November. For more information, visit http://www.nasa.gov/shuttle. Photo credit: NASA/Jim Grossmann

  2. The Impact of Hospital Visiting Hour Policies on Pediatric and Adult Patients and their Visitors.

    PubMed

    Smith, Lisa; Medves, Jennifer; Harrison, Margaret B; Tranmer, Joan; Waytuck, Brett

    Policies concerning restricted or open visiting hours are being challenged in health care institutions internationally, with no apparent consensus on the appropriateness of the visiting hour policies for pediatric and adult patients. The rules that govern practice are often based on the institutional precedent and assumptions of staff, and may have little or no evidence to support them. Policy and practice related to visiting hours is of pressing concern in Canada, and in Ontario specifically, following the reaction to the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) outbreak in 2003 and subsequent changes in visiting policies in most health care settings. A systematic investigation of the impact of hospital visiting hours on visitors (including patients, families, and significant others) would inform decision-makers who are responsible for hospital policies about the best available evidence. The objective of this review was to appraise and synthesize the best available evidence on the impact of hospital visiting hours on patients and their visitors. Types of participants This review considered studies that included both pediatric and adult hospital patients and their visitors. Participants were either patients, visitors, or health care providers in the following hospital settings: medical/surgical units, critical care (ICU, CCU, NICU), pediatrics, maternity, or general hospital wards.Articles were excluded if participants came from the following settings: post-operative and post-anaesthesia care units (PACU), dementia wards, long-term care settings or retirement homes, or delivery rooms. PACUs were excluded because there are aspects of the presence of visitors to these units that are very specific, and differ from the general visits to patients who are not in the immediate post-operative stage. Dementia wards, long-term care settings and retirement homes were excluded because these were considered to be their "home", so visiting would be quite different from that on acute care hospital wards. Finally, delivery rooms were excluded because this review does not evaluate the impact of the outcomes of presence during "delivery" (or other "procedures").Types of interventions Studies were considered for inclusion in this review if they evaluated the effect or impact of visiting policies. This included interventions targeted at limiting or expanding patient visiting. We anticipated a paucity of experimental studies regarding this review question, thus included observational studies where the impact of visiting policy on patients and/or visitors was a focus, but testing intervention(s) may not have been the primary aim. We did not consider observational studies that focused only on the presence of visitors during specific procedures, resuscitation, or childbirth. The reason is that this limited aspect of the presence of a significant other was not considered "visiting" per se, and would be best examined in another systematic review.Types of outcome measures For this review, outcome measures related to both patients and visitors as a result of visiting hour policies were considered, including but not limited to: patient and/or visitor satisfaction; attitudes; beliefs; perceptions; mood; or patient physiological outcomes. These also included health care provider beliefs, perceptions, and attitudes about the impact of visiting policies on patients and/or visitors. Studies were excluded if they examined the trend of current visiting hour policies (with no evaluation of their impact), or if they focused on visitor presence only during emergency procedures, resuscitation, or childbirth.Types of studies Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) or quasi-experimental studies were included. However, given the expected scarcity of these designs relevant to our review question, other quantitative research designs were considered, such as non-randomized controlled trials, before-and-after studies, and descriptive/observational studies. Using a defined search and retrieval method the following databases from 1995-2007 were accessed: Medline, CINAHL, Embase, PsycINFO, HealthSTAR, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, AMED, and ERIC. Each paper was assessed by two independent reviewers for methodological quality prior to inclusion in the review using standardized critical appraisal instruments for evidence of effectiveness, from the Joanna Briggs Institute. Disagreements were dealt with by consultations with a third reviewer. Information was extracted from each paper independently by two reviewers using the standardized data extraction tool developed by the Joanna Briggs Institute. Disagreements were dealt with by consultations with a third reviewer. Due to type of designs and quality of available studies, it was not possible to pool quantitative research study results in a statistical meta-analysis. Since statistical pooling was not possible, the findings are presented in a descriptive narrative form. Fifteen studies met the inclusion criteria for this review. The study designs were varied, and included one pilot randomized trial, two quasi-experimental studies, eight descriptive studies/cross-sectional surveys, and four pre-post intervention questionnaires. Findings were inconsistent across studies. Nurses inconsistently enforced visiting policies. In ICU settings, liberalized visiting hours did not increase septic complications. One study reinforced the need for increased patient control over visiting (individual visit contracts, devices). Flexible (open) visitation policies increased patient and visitor satisfaction, and sibling visitation was beneficial to the patient and family. In maternity settings, a 'combination policy' was useful (open visiting for partner, more restricted visiting for others). Key recommendations are provided that refer to clinical practice in critical care, maternity, and general ward settings, as well as recommendations for future research. In critical care settings, policy makers/administrators need to be aware of their staff nurses' beliefs and attitudes about visiting policies, educate them about the rationale for these policies and consider program development to assist nurses to work with families. Open visitation, and ways to increase patient control of visiting should be considered. No connection was found between liberal visiting hours and increased infection rates. When facilitating sibling visitation in the NICU, a pre-visit education process is recommended. Maternity settings may wish to consider a 'combination' policy, where the women's partners and/or significant other would have open visiting (all day), with restricted visiting for others. In other general hospital ward settings, open visiting with a 'quiet hour' is suggested.

  3. IYA Outreach Plans for Appalachian State University's Observatories

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Caton, Daniel B.; Pollock, J. T.; Saken, J. M.

    2009-01-01

    Appalachian State University will provide a variety of observing opportunities for the public during the International Year of Astronomy. These will be focused at both the campus GoTo Telescope Facility used by Introductory Astronomy students and the research facilities at our Dark Sky Observatory. The campus facility is composed of a rooftop deck with a roll-off roof housing fifteen Celestron C11 telescopes. During astronomy lab class meetings these telescopes are used either in situ or remotely by computer control from the adjacent classroom. For the IYA we will host the public for regular observing sessions at these telescopes. The research facility features a 32-inch DFM Engineering telescope with its dome attached to the Cline Visitor Center. The Visitor Center is still under construction and we anticipate its completion for a spring opening during IYA. The CVC will provide areas for educational outreach displays and a view of the telescope control room. Visitors will view celestial objects directly at the eyepiece. We are grateful for the support of the National Science Foundation, through grant number DUE-0536287, which provided instrumentation for the GoTO facility, and to J. Donald Cline for support of the Visitor Center.

  4. ARE HEALTH VISITORS' OBSERVATIONS OF EARLY PARENT-INFANT INTERACTIONS RELIABLE? A CROSS-SECTIONAL DESIGN.

    PubMed

    Kristensen, Ingeborg H; Trillingsgaard, Tea; Simonsen, Marianne; Kronborg, Hanne

    2017-03-01

    Health visitors need competences to promote healthy early parent-infant relationships. The aims of this study were to explore whether there are differences between groups of health visitors with and without additional parenting program education in terms of their knowledge of infant-parent interaction and their observation and assessment skills of such interactions. The cross-sectional study included 36 health visitors' certified Marte Meo therapists and 85 health visitors without additional parenting program education. Health visitors' observation skills were measured assessing five video-recorded mother-infant interactions. A questionnaire was used to measure their intention, self-efficacy, and knowledge. More certified Marte Meo therapists than health visitors without additional parenting program education reported a significantly higher mean level of knowledge of the early relationship, 6.42 (95% CI; 6.18-6.66) versus 5.05 (95% CI; 4.86-6.10), p = .04; and more certified Marte Meo therapists than health visitors without additional parenting program education reported a higher mean level of knowledge of infant self-regulation, 2.44 (95% CI; 2.18-2.71) versus 1.83 (95% CI; 1.62-2.03), p < .001. In the latter group, 54% (95% CI; 0.43-0.64) reported a significantly higher need for further education versus 22% (95% CI; 0.11-0.39), p = .001. Compared to health visitors without any parenting program education, health visitors certified as Marte Meo therapists reported a significantly higher frequency of correct assessment of mothers' sensitivity in two of five video-recordings, with 77.78% (95% CI; 0.61-0.87) compared to 45.88% (95% CI; 0.35-0.57) in Video 3, p = .001, and 69.44% (95% CI; 0.52-0.82) compared to 49.41% (95% CI; 0.39-0.60) in Video 4, p = .04, respectively. The results of the present study support the use of video-based education of health visitors to increase their knowledge of and skills in assessing parent-infant interactions. Randomized controlled trials are needed to determine whether the improved level of health visitors' knowledge and observation skills may be assigned to participation in the Marte Meo education program. © 2017 Michigan Association for Infant Mental Health.

  5. KSC-2011-8256

    NASA Image and Video Library

    2011-12-11

    CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Support personnel plan the last leg of the move of the high-fidelity space shuttle model which was on display at the NASA Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex in Florida to Kennedy's Launch Complex 39 turn basin. Across the street (at right) are the 525-foot-tall Vehicle Assembly Building and the Launch Control Center. The shuttle was part of a display at the visitor complex that also included an external tank and two solid rocket boosters that were used to show visitors the size of actual space shuttle components. The full-scale shuttle model is being transferred from Kennedy to Space Center Houston, NASA Johnson Space Center's visitor center. The model will stay at the turn basin for a few months until it is ready to be transported to Texas via barge. The move also helps clear the way for the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex to begin construction of a new facility next year to display space shuttle Atlantis in 2013. For more information about Space Center Houston, visit http://www.spacecenter.org. Photo credit: NASA/Dimitri Gerondidakis

  6. KSC-2011-8258

    NASA Image and Video Library

    2011-12-11

    CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Support personnel walk with the high-fidelity space shuttle model which was on display at the NASA Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex in Florida as it rolls through the parking lot leading to Kennedy's Launch Complex 39 turn basin. Behind it are the 525-foot-tall Vehicle Assembly Building and the Launch Control Center. The shuttle was part of a display at the visitor complex that also included an external tank and two solid rocket boosters that were used to show visitors the size of actual space shuttle components. The full-scale shuttle model is being transferred from Kennedy to Space Center Houston, NASA Johnson Space Center's visitor center. The model will stay at the turn basin for a few months until it is ready to be transported to Texas via barge. The move also helps clear the way for the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex to begin construction of a new facility next year to display space shuttle Atlantis in 2013. For more information about Space Center Houston, visit http://www.spacecenter.org. Photo credit: NASA/Dimitri Gerondidakis

  7. KSC-2011-8255

    NASA Image and Video Library

    2011-12-11

    CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Support personnel pose for a group portrait with the high-fidelity space shuttle model which was on display at the NASA Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex in Florida. The shuttle lingered momentarily in the parking lot entrance to its destination, Kennedy's Launch Complex 39 turn basin. Behind them are the 525-foot-tall Vehicle Assembly Building and the Launch Control Center (at right). The shuttle was part of a display at the visitor complex that also included an external tank and two solid rocket boosters that were used to show visitors the size of actual space shuttle components. The full-scale shuttle model is being transferred from Kennedy to Space Center Houston, NASA Johnson Space Center's visitor center. The model will stay at the turn basin for a few months until it is ready to be transported to Texas via barge. The move also helps clear the way for the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex to begin construction of a new facility next year to display space shuttle Atlantis in 2013. For more information about Space Center Houston, visit http://www.spacecenter.org. Photo credit: NASA/Dimitri Gerondidakis

  8. KSC-03PD-2453

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    2003-01-01

    KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. Key officials are poised to cut the ribbon officially dedicating the new Security gates on Kennedy Parkway (Gate 2) and NASA Parkway (Gate 3). From left are Wally Schroeder, with Jones, Edmunds & Associates; Bobby Porter, with Oneida Construction; Daniel Tweed, NASA project manager; Jim Kennedy, Center director; and William Sample, SGS deputy program manager. The new gates were activated Aug. 1, allowing the general public to have access to the new Space Commerce Way, which will provide access to the Research Park and KSC Visitor Complex, and providing an alternate route for the general public between Titusville and Merritt Island that is accessible 24 hours a day. The gates are staffed 24 hours daily.

  9. National, ready-to-use climate indicators calculation and dissemination

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Desiato, F.; Fioravanti, G.; Fraschetti, P.; Perconti, W.; Toreti, A.

    2010-09-01

    In Italy, meteorological data necessary and useful for climate studies are collected, processed and archived by a wide range of national and regional institutions. As a result, the density of the stations, the length and frequency of the observations, the quality control procedures and the database structure vary from one dataset to the other. In order to maximize the use of those data for climate knowledge and climate change assessments, a computerized system for the collection, quality control, calculation, regular update and rapid dissemination of climate indicators (denominated SCIA) was developed. Along with the pieces of information provided by complete metadata, climate indicators consist of statistics (mean, extremes, date of occurrence, standard deviation) over ten-days, monthly and yearly time periods of meteorological variables, including temperature, precipitation, humidity, wind, water balance, evapotranspitaton, degree-days, cloud cover, sea level pressure, solar radiation. In addition, normal values over thirty-year reference climatological periods and yearly anomalies are calculated and made available. All climate indicators, as well as their time series at a single location or spatial distribution at a selected time, are available through a dedicated web site (www.scia.sinanet.apat.it). In addition, secondary products like high resolution temperature maps obtained by kriging spatial interpolation, are made available. Over the last three years, about 40000 visitors accessed to the SCIA web site, with an average of 45 visitors per day. Most frequent visitors belong to categories like universities and research institutes; private companies and general public are present as well. Apart from research purposes, climate indicators disseminated through SCIA may be used in several socio-economic sectors like energy consumption, water management, agriculture, tourism and health. With regards to our activity, we base on these indicators for the estimation of climate trends needed for climate impact and vulnerability assessment over Italy, and as a contribution to the national communications to the UNFCCC. For this purpose, homogenization procedures are carried out on the longest and most complete time series, in order to filter out non-climatic signals; in addition, statistical models are applied for trend estimates on the most important climate indicators such as averages and extremes of temperature and precipitation.

  10. 42 CFR 418.60 - Condition of participation: Infection control.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-10-01

    ... control education to employees, contracted providers, patients, and family members and other caregivers. ... infection control program that protects patients, families, visitors, and hospice personnel by preventing...

  11. Development of the Virtual Visitor Center at SLAC

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

    McDunn, Ruth

    1999-11-17

    The Virtual Visitor Center (VVC) web site (www2.slac.stanford.edu/vvc) is a ''virtual'' version of the Visitor Center, a mini science museum that opened at SLAC in 1996. The VVC was made public in December 1998. Both centers contribute to SLAC mission regarding education of the next generation and increasing scientific awareness of the public. The site is designed to mimic the real visitor center and allow a larger audience to the information. The intent was to reach the 8th-12th grade audience. Considerable effort was made to organize the content, including color-coding graphical elements for each main topic area. Tables of contents,more » a search tool, several photo tours, as well as graphical and non-graphical menu bars allow users many methods of navigating the site. The site was developed over almost two years using an estimated .95 FTE, split between a program manager, graphic designer, content provider (theoretical physicist), and a summer intern (high school teacher). As of November 1999, the site consists of 1,147 files, 935 images, 3,080 internal hyperlinks, and 190 external hyperlinks. The site has had over 1 million hits between January and mid-October 1999 and averages about 600 page views each day. Future plans include bringing the web site into compliance with the W3Cs Web Content Accessibility guidelines, thoroughly integrating the glossary terms, continued incorporation of current research at SLAC, and adding more interactivity.« less

  12. 77 FR 37707 - Draft Environmental Impact Statement on Brooks River Visitor Access for Katmai National Park and...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-06-22

    ... floating bridge and sites to relocate the existing Naknek Lake barge landing area at the mouth of the... landing site on Naknek Lake. Alternative 3: This alternative evaluates construction of a new bridge and... barge landing site would be located approximately 200 feet south of the mouth of the Brooks River. A new...

  13. Investigation of Factors Relating to the Web-Based Presentation of Policy and Information on Campus Firearm Policy and Smoking Policy

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    McGowan, Veronica F.

    2017-01-01

    In order to explore themes of privilege in regard to policy availability, language accessibility, and underlying bias, policies related to two topics of interest to higher education campus visitors, campus firearm carry policy and smoking policy, are explored to determine how Web-based information is presented to various audiences. Implications of…

  14. 76 FR 776 - Board of Visitors, Defense Language Institute Foreign Language Center

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-01-06

    ... mission and functional areas. Public's Accessibility to the Meeting: Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552b and 41 CFR 102-3.140 through 102-3.165, and the availability of space, this meeting is open to the public. Seating is on a first-come basis. No member of the public attending open meetings will be allowed to...

  15. 15 CFR 285.15 - Obtaining documents.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-01-01

    ...; phone: 301-975-4016; fax: 301-926-2884; e-mail: [email protected]nist.gov. (b) Copies of all ISO/IEC documents are..., Gaithersburg, MD. For access to the NIST campus, please contact NVLAP by phone at 301-975-4016 or by e-mail at [email protected]nist.gov to obtain instructions for visitor registration. [66 FR 29221, May 30, 2001, as amended...

  16. What Attracts People to Visit Community Open Spaces? A Case Study of the Overseas Chinese Town Community in Shenzhen, China

    PubMed Central

    Chen, Yiyong; Liu, Tao; Xie, Xiaohuan; Marušić, Barbara Goličnik

    2016-01-01

    A well-designed open space that encourages outdoor activity and social communication is a community asset that could potentially contribute to the health of local residents and social harmony of the community. Numerous factors may influence the use of each single space and may result in a variety of visitors. Compared with previous studies that focused on accessibility, this study highlights the relationship between the utilization and characteristics of community open spaces in China. The Overseas Chinese Town community in Shenzhen is regarded as an example. The association between the number of visitors and space characteristics is examined with multivariate regression models. Results show that large areas with accessible lawns, well-maintained footpaths, seats, commercial facilities, and water landscapes are important characteristics that could increase the use of community open spaces. However, adding green vegetation, sculptures, and landscape accessories in open spaces has limited effects on increasing the outdoor activities of residents. Thus, to increase the use of community open spaces, landscape designers should focus more on creating user-oriented spaces with facilities that encourage active use than on improving ornamental vegetation and accessories. PMID:27367713

  17. The Role of User Control in Adherence to and Knowledge Gained from a Website: Randomized Comparison Between a Tunneled Version and a Freedom-of-Choice Version

    PubMed Central

    Cyr, Dianne; de Vries, Nanne K

    2012-01-01

    Background Internet-delivered interventions can effectively change health risk behaviors and their determinants, but adherence to these interventions once they are accessed is very low. Therefore, it is relevant and necessary to systematically manipulate website characteristics to test their effect on website use. This study focuses on user control as a website characteristic. Objective To test whether and how user control (the freedom of choice to skip pages) can increase website use and knowledge gained from the website. Methods Participants older than 18 years were drawn from the Dutch Internet population (in June 2011) and completed a hepatitis knowledge questionnaire. Subsequently, they were randomly assigned to three groups: (1) a tunneled version of the website with less user control; (2) a high user control version of the website where visitors had the freedom of choice to skip pages; and (3) a control group that was not exposed to the website. Participants completed (1) a questionnaire of validated measures regarding user perceptions immediately after exposure to the website (except for the control group), and (2) a hepatitis knowledge questionnaire after one week to test whether participants in the experimental groups only clicked through the website or actually processed and learned its content. Server registrations were used to assess website use. Analyses of covariance (ANCOVA) using all available data were conducted to determine whether user control increases website use. Structural equation models (SEM) using all available data were constructed to test how user control increases website use—a latent variable derived from number of pages visited and time on website. Results Of the 1044 persons invited to participate, 668 took part (668/1044, 64.0%). One half of participants (332/668 49.7%) were female and the mean age was 49 years (SD 16). A total of 571 participants completed the one-week follow-up measure regarding hepatitis knowledge (571/668, 85.5%). The findings demonstrate that having less user control (ie, a tunneled version of the website) had a negative effect on users’ perception of efficiency (F1,452 = 97.69, P < .001), but a positive effect on number of pages visited (F1,452 = 171.49, P < .001), time on the website (F1,452 = 6.32, P = .01), and knowledge gained from the website (F1,452 = 134.32, P < .001). The direct effect of having less user control appeared to surpass the effect mediated by efficiency, because website use was higher among participants exposed to the tunneled version of the website in comparison with those having the freedom of choice to skip pages. Conclusions The key finding that visitors demonstrated increased website use in the tunneled version of the website indicates that visitors should be carefully guided through the intervention for future intervention websites. PMID:22532074

  18. Guidelines for medical and health information sites on the internet: principles governing AMA web sites. American Medical Association.

    PubMed

    Winker, M A; Flanagin, A; Chi-Lum, B; White, J; Andrews, K; Kennett, R L; DeAngelis, C D; Musacchio, R A

    Access to medical information via the Internet has the potential to speed the transformation of the patient-physician relationship from that of physician authority ministering advice and treatment to that of shared decision making between patient and physician. However, barriers impeding this transformation include wide variations in quality of content on the Web, potential for commercial interests to influence online content, and uncertain preservation of personal privacy. To address these issues, the American Medical Association (AMA) has developed principles to guide development and posting of Web site content, govern acquisition and posting of online advertising and sponsorship, ensure site visitors' and patients' rights to privacy and confidentiality, and provide effective and secure means of e-commerce. While these guidelines were developed for the AMA Web sites and visitors to these sites, they also may be useful to other providers and users of medical information on the Web. These principles have been developed with the understanding that they will require frequent revision to keep pace with evolving technology and practices on the Internet. The AMA encourages review and feedback from readers, Web site visitors, policymakers, and all others interested in providing reliable quality information via the Web.

  19. Development of a Virtual Museum Including a 4d Presentation of Building History in Virtual Reality

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kersten, T. P.; Tschirschwitz, F.; Deggim, S.

    2017-02-01

    In the last two decades the definition of the term "virtual museum" changed due to rapid technological developments. Using today's available 3D technologies a virtual museum is no longer just a presentation of collections on the Internet or a virtual tour of an exhibition using panoramic photography. On one hand, a virtual museum should enhance a museum visitor's experience by providing access to additional materials for review and knowledge deepening either before or after the real visit. On the other hand, a virtual museum should also be used as teaching material in the context of museum education. The laboratory for Photogrammetry & Laser Scanning of the HafenCity University Hamburg has developed a virtual museum (VM) of the museum "Alt-Segeberger Bürgerhaus", a historic town house. The VM offers two options for visitors wishing to explore the museum without travelling to the city of Bad Segeberg, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. Option a, an interactive computer-based, tour for visitors to explore the exhibition and to collect information of interest or option b, to immerse into virtual reality in 3D with the HTC Vive Virtual Reality System.

  20. A Scheme for "The Window of Taiwan National Park"

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tang, E. Y.-F.

    2015-08-01

    There are nine distinguished national parks in Taiwan. Each one has its own wild variety of natural inhabitants and cultural resources. However, due to the geographical inaccessibility, partially closed by natural disaster, or under the restrict protection by the authority, most of the places are difficult to reach for the public, not to mention for the disabled people. Therefore, a scheme, with the cutting edge technology, comprising the essences of all nine national parks in a space located in one of the national parks which is more convenient with public transportation system is presented. The idea is to open a window in the hope to offer a platform for better and easy understanding the features of all national parks, to increase the accessibility for disabled people, and to provide advanced services for the public. Recently, the progressing of digital image technology becomes more and more promising. Using mutual interactive ways and game-liked formation to promote the participation of visitors to gain learning experiences is now becoming a mainstream for exhibition in visitor centers and museums around the world. The method of the motion-sensing interactive exhibition has personalized feature which is programmed to store visitor's behaviors and become smarter in response with visitor in order to make each person feel that they are playing in a game. It involves scenarios, concepts and visitors' participation in the exhibition design to form an interactive flow among human, exhibits, and space. It is highly attractive and low barrier for young, senior and disabled people, and for the case of no physical objects to exhibit, visual technology is a way of solution. This paper presents the features and difficulties of national parks in Taiwan. Visitors' behavior and several cases have been investigated and analysed to find a suitable way for combining all the features of national parks in an exhibition. However, it should be noticed that this is not an alternative way trying to create a place for the public to explore visual national parks instead of visiting real ones. The main purpose is not only to provide more information and attract more people to realize the beauty of national parks, but also to inspire visitors' wishes to come and experience in person in the future.

  1. Visitors' experience and lack of knowledge of minimum impact techniques in the highlands of Brazil's Itatiaia National Park

    Treesearch

    Maria Isabel Amando de Barros; Teresa Cristina Magro

    2007-01-01

    This work focuses on the issue of public use management in protected natural areas, based on shared responsibility between management and visitors and the potential for development of environmental ethics to inspire respect for those areas, help protect them, and reduce the need for restrictive control interventions. Based on the premise that responsible, well-informed...

  2. Mobile Applications as Tool for Exploiting Cultural Heritage in the Region of Turin and Milan

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Rolando, A.; Scandiffio, A.

    2013-07-01

    The current research aims at showing as applications working on personal mobile communication terminals such as smartphones, can be useful for exploration of places and, at the same time, as tools able to develop interaction between cultural heritage and users. In this sense, the use of smartphone applications can be combined with GIS in order to make a platform of knowledge useful to support research studies in the field of cultural heritage, with specific reference to accessibility issues and to the combined use of integrated technologies like GPS, QR code and GIS, with the final aim to find an useful methodology for collecting data by visitors and visualizing them through mapping techniques. The research shows how the integration of different systems and technologies can be used as method for inquiring the interactions between users and cultural heritage in terms of accessibility to places. GPS devices can be used to record visitors movements (cultural routes) in terms of space and time; QR code can be used for users interaction with cultural heritage (tourists opinion, heritage ranking, facilities, accessibility); GIS software can be used for data management, analysis and mapping (tourist flows, more visited places). The focus of research is about a combination of information related to cultural routes with the information related to single cultural places. The focus of research is about a combination of information related to cultural routes with the information related to single cultural places. The current research shows the potential use of smartphone applications, as mobile device for collecting data, as means to record rides and more visited places by tourists. The research could be divided into three steps; the first one concerns with GPS that can be used to record routes; the second one deals with interaction between tourists and cultural heritage through a system based on QR code; the third one is about GIS, used as tool for management, analysis and visualization of data flows. In the current research, the field of investigation refers both to the territorial scale of Turin - Milan axis, and to the local scale of small cities localized in the territories in between. The research has been applied to Turin - Milan infrastructural axis, with the aim to represent the relationships that can be established between mobility infrastructure and cultural heritage. Such relationships should be intended in terms of accessibility from mobility infrastructure (motorway exit, service areas, railways stations) to cultural heritage localized in the surrounding landscape. The richness of cultural heritage and landscape along the chosen infrastructural bundle represent a great opportunity for territorial development in terms of attractiveness, both for local inhabitants and for tourists. Nowadays, the use of tracking technologies can be applied to investigate tourist flows, behaviors of local inhabitants in the historic city centre, number of visitors in the city and so on. In this sense it is possible to apply these technologies, which are particularly relevant in urban studies, extending them to the territorial scale of the Turin - Milan region. The large amount of available geo-referenced data can be used in different ways and it is very potential for different kind of analysis: it is possible to show tourist flows in the territory, receive information about more visited places, obtain interaction from users and cultural heritage in terms of visitors opinion about the places, give information to tourists about cultural places, monitor the accessibility to the places, understand the use of means of transport and keep under control the impacts of tourism (social, cultural, environmental) on territory. Applications based on smartphones can be considered a powerful device for visitors but also for institutions that are involved in tourism and cultural heritage management. In fact, the use of mobile applications it can produce a real time data exchange between geographical position of users and system that receives data. The research shows the opportunity to use GPS and QR code, integrated in a single smartphone application, with GIS software. In the current step of the research only the interaction with GPS and GIS has been tested on the case study of Turin - Milan. Further development of research could be realized to test the real integration of QR code with other systems, developing an application that supports QR code and GPS, and installing a barcode or other interactive devices such as NFC (Near Field Communication) on each relevant cultural places. It is evident that different actors, such as tourists, cultural heritage institutions and employers, have to be involved in this process, in order to have a deeper understanding of the problem, also integrating bottom up and top down contributions.

  3. Trial participants' experiences of early enhanced speech and language therapy after stroke compared with employed visitor support: a qualitative study nested within a randomized controlled trial.

    PubMed

    Young, Alys; Gomersall, Timothy; Bowen, Audrey

    2013-02-01

    To explore trial participants' experiences of the process and outcomes of early, enhanced speech and language therapy after stroke with support from an employed visitor. Qualitative study nested within a randomized controlled trial. Twney-two people who, after stroke, had a diagnosis of aphasia (12), dysarthria (5) or both (5) and who participated in the ACT NoW study. Eight English NHS usual care settings. Individual interviews. Thematic content analysis assisted by a bespoke data transformation protocol for incorporating non-verbal and semantically ambiguous data. Participants highly regarded regular and sustained contact with someone outside of immediate family/friends who engaged them in deliberate activities/communication in the early months after stroke. Participants identified differences in the process of intervention between speech and language therapists and employed visitors. But no major discriminations were made between the impact or value of this contact according to whether provided by a speech and language therapist or employed visitor. Participant-defined criteria for effectiveness of contact included: impact on mood and confidence, self-recognition of progress and the meeting of individual needs. As in the randomized controlled trial, participants reported no evidence of added benefit of early communication therapy beyond that from attention control. The findings do not imply that regular contact with any non-professional can have beneficial effects for someone with aphasia or dysarthria in the early weeks following a stroke. The study points to specific conditions that would have to be met for contact to have a positive effect.

  4. Geologic map of the Valle 30' x 60' quadrangle, Coconino County, northern Arizona

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Billingsley, George H.; Felger, Tracey J.; Priest, Susan S.

    2006-01-01

    The geologic map of the Valle 30' x 60' quadrangle is the result of a cooperative effort between the U.S. Geological Survey and the National Park Service to provide geologic information for regional resource management and visitor information services for Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona. The map area encompasses approximately 1,960 sq.mi. within Coconino County, northern Arizona and is bounded by long 112 deg to 113 deg W. and lat 35 deg 30 min to 36 deg N. and lies within the southern Colorado Plateaus geologic province (herein Colorado Plateau). The map area is locally subdivided into four physiographic parts; (1) the Grand Canyon (Cataract Canyon and extreme northeast corner of the map area), (2) the Coconino Plateau, (3) the Mount Floyd Volcanic Field, and (4) the San Francisco Volcanic Field as defined by Billingsley and others, 1997. Elevations range from 7,460 ft (2,274 m) on the Coconino Plateau along State Highway 64 northeast corner of the map area, to about 4,200 ft (1,280 m) at the bottom of Cataract Canyon. Settlements within the map area include Tusayan and Valle, Arizona. State Highway 64 and U.S. Highway 180 provide access to the Tusayan and Valle areas. Indian Route 18 is a paved highway in the northwest corner of the map area that is maintained by the Hualapai and Havasupai Indian Tribes and leads from State Route 66 about 7 mi (11 km) east of Peach Springs, Arizona to Hualapai Hilltop, a parking lot just north of the map area at the rim of Cataract Canyon where visitors begin an 8 mi (13 km) hike into Havasupai, Arizona. Other remote parts of the map are accessed by two dirt roads, which are maintained by Coconino County, and by several unmaintained local ranch roads. Weather conditions restrict travel within the area and visitors must obtain permission to access a few local ranch lands in the south-central edge of the map area. Extra water and food are highly recommended when traveling in this remote region. Access into Cataract Canyon is restricted to horse or foot travel and visitors must obtain permission from the Havasupai Tribe to hike within the Havasupai Indian Reservation. In the central part of the map area, most of the land is privately owned and managed by the Babbitt Ranches Inc. in conjunction with the Nature Conservancy and the Navajo Tribe. In the southern half of the map, land alternates between privately owned land and State land forming a checkerboard pattern. The National Park Service manages land in Grand Canyon National Park (extreme northeast edge of map area), the U.S. Forest Service manages lands in the Kaibab National Forest, the Hualapai Tribe manages lands in the northwest quarter of the map area, and the Havasupai Tribe manages lands within Cataract Canyon and adjacent parts of the Coconino Plateau.

  5. Nurse managers: Determinants and behaviours in relation to patient and visitor aggression in general hospitals. A qualitative study.

    PubMed

    Heckemann, Birgit; Peter, Karin A; Halfens, Ruud Jg; Schols, Jos Mga; Kok, Gerjo; Hahn, Sabine

    2017-12-01

    To explore nurse managers' behaviours, attitudes, perceived social norms, and behavioural control in the prevention and management of patient and visitor aggression in general hospitals. Patient and visitor aggression in general hospitals is a global problem that incurs substantial human suffering and organizational cost. Managers are key persons for creating low-aggression environments, yet their role and behaviours in reducing patient and visitor aggression remains unexplored. A qualitative descriptive study underpinned by the Reasoned Action Approach. Between October 2015-January 2016, we conducted five focus groups and 13 individual interviews with nurse leaders in Switzerland. The semi-structured interviews and focus groups were recorded, transcribed, and analysed in a qualitative content analysis. We identified three main themes: (i) Background factors: "Patient and visitor aggression is perceived through different lenses"; (ii) Determinants and intention: "Good intentions competing with harsh organizational reality"; (iii) Behaviours: "Preventing and managing aggressive behaviour and relentlessly striving to create low-aggression work environments". Addressing patient and visitor aggression is difficult for nurse managers due to a lack of effective communication, organizational feedback loops, protocols, and procedures that connect the situational and organizational management of aggressive incidents. Furthermore, tackling aggression at an organizational level is a major challenge for nurse managers due to scant financial resources and lack of interest. Treating patient and visitor aggression as a business case may increase organizational awareness and interest. Furthermore, clear communication of expectations, needs and resources could optimize support provision for staff. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  6. Website Use and Effects of Online Information About Tobacco Additives Among the Dutch General Population: A Randomized Controlled Trial

    PubMed Central

    Crutzen, Rik; Kienhuis, Anne S; Talhout, Reinskje; de Vries, Hein

    2017-01-01

    Background As a legal obligation, the Dutch government publishes online information about tobacco additives to make sure that it is publicly available. Little is known about the influence this website (”tabakinfo”) has on visitors and how the website is evaluated by them. Objective This study assesses how visitors use the website and its effect on their knowledge, risk perception, attitude, and smoking behavior. The study will also assess how the website is evaluated by visitors using a sample of the Dutch general population, including smokers and nonsmokers. Methods A randomized controlled trial was conducted, recruiting participants from an online panel. At baseline, participants (N=672) were asked to fill out an online questionnaire about tobacco additives. Next, participants were randomly allocated to either one of two experimental groups and invited to visit the website providing information about tobacco additives (either with or without a database containing product-specific information) or to a control group that had no access to the website. After 3 months, follow-up measurements took place. Results At follow-up (n=492), no statistically significant differences were found for knowledge, risk perception, attitude, or smoking behavior between the intervention and control groups. Website visits were positively related to younger participants (B=–0.07, 95% CI –0.12 to –0.01; t11=–2.43, P=.02) and having a low risk perception toward tobacco additives (B=–0.32, 95% CI –0.63 to –0.02; t11=–2.07, P=.04). In comparison, having a lower education (B=–0.67, 95% CI –1.14 to –0.17; t11=–2.65, P=.01) was a significant predictor for making less use of the website. Furthermore, the website was evaluated less positively by smokers compared to nonsmokers (t324=–3.55, P<.001), and males compared to females (t324=–2.21, P=.02). Conclusions The website did not change perceptions of tobacco additives or smoking behavior. Further research is necessary to find out how online information can be used to effectively communication about the risks of tobacco additives. Trial Registration Nederlands Trial Register NTR4620; http://www.trialregister.nl/trialreg/admin/rctview.asp?TC=4620 (Archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/6oW7w4Gnj) PMID:28292739

  7. Website Use and Effects of Online Information About Tobacco Additives Among the Dutch General Population: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

    PubMed

    Reinwand, Dominique A; Crutzen, Rik; Kienhuis, Anne S; Talhout, Reinskje; de Vries, Hein

    2017-03-14

    As a legal obligation, the Dutch government publishes online information about tobacco additives to make sure that it is publicly available. Little is known about the influence this website ("tabakinfo") has on visitors and how the website is evaluated by them. This study assesses how visitors use the website and its effect on their knowledge, risk perception, attitude, and smoking behavior. The study will also assess how the website is evaluated by visitors using a sample of the Dutch general population, including smokers and nonsmokers. A randomized controlled trial was conducted, recruiting participants from an online panel. At baseline, participants (N=672) were asked to fill out an online questionnaire about tobacco additives. Next, participants were randomly allocated to either one of two experimental groups and invited to visit the website providing information about tobacco additives (either with or without a database containing product-specific information) or to a control group that had no access to the website. After 3 months, follow-up measurements took place. At follow-up (n=492), no statistically significant differences were found for knowledge, risk perception, attitude, or smoking behavior between the intervention and control groups. Website visits were positively related to younger participants (B=-0.07, 95% CI -0.12 to -0.01; t 11 =-2.43, P=.02) and having a low risk perception toward tobacco additives (B=-0.32, 95% CI -0.63 to -0.02; t 11 =-2.07, P=.04). In comparison, having a lower education (B=-0.67, 95% CI -1.14 to -0.17; t 11 =-2.65, P=.01) was a significant predictor for making less use of the website. Furthermore, the website was evaluated less positively by smokers compared to nonsmokers (t 324 =-3.55, P<.001), and males compared to females (t 324 =-2.21, P=.02). The website did not change perceptions of tobacco additives or smoking behavior. Further research is necessary to find out how online information can be used to effectively communication about the risks of tobacco additives. Nederlands Trial Register NTR4620; http://www.trialregister.nl/trialreg/admin/rctview.asp?TC=4620 (Archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/6oW7w4Gnj). ©Dominique A Reinwand, Rik Crutzen, Anne S Kienhuis, Reinskje Talhout, Hein de Vries. Originally published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research (http://www.jmir.org), 14.03.2017.

  8. Time of flight MR angiography assessment casts doubt on the association between transient global amnesia and intracranial jugular venous reflux.

    PubMed

    Kang, Yeonah; Kim, Eunhee; Kim, Jae Hyoung; Choi, Byung Se; Jung, Cheolkyu; Bae, Yun Jung; Lee, Kyung Mi; Lee, Dong Hoon

    2015-03-01

    Evidence of intracranial venous reflux flow due to jugular venous reflux (JVR) on time of flight (TOF) MR angiography (MRA) is thought to be highly associated with transient global amnesia (TGA)-evidence that supports the venous congestion theory of TGA pathophysiology. However, recent studies indicate that intracranial JVR on TOF MRA is occasionally observed in normal elderly. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to compare the prevalence of intracranial JVR on TOF MRA in patients with TGA and two control groups. Three age- and sex-matched groups of subjects that received MRI and MRA were enrolled. The groups comprised 167 patients with TGA, 167 visitors to the emergency room (ER) and 167 visitors to a health promotion centre (HPC). Intracranial JVR was defined as abnormal venous signals in the inferior petrosal, sigmoid and/or transverse sinuses on TOF MRA. The prevalence of intracranial JVR was assessed across the three groups. Intracranial JVR was seen in seven (4.2 %) TGA patients, eight (4.8 %) ER visitors and three (1.8 %) HPC visitors, respectively. No statistically significant differences were observed among the three groups. TGA patients showed a low prevalence of intracranial JVR on TOF MRA, and no statistical differences were found in comparison with control groups.

  9. The significance of visitors' pressure for soil status in an urban park in Tel-Aviv

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhevelev, Helena; Sarah, Pariente; Oz, Atar

    2010-05-01

    A park is one of the most important elements of sustainable development and optimization of the urban environment. The equilibrium within the complex of natural and anthropogenic factors defines the status of a park's ecosystem. The seasonal dynamics and spatial variations of soil properties in areas under differing levels of visitors' pressure were studied in a park in Tel-Aviv. Soil was sampled twice a year, in wet (March) and dry (July) seasons, from three types of areas, subjected to differing levels of visitors' pressure: high, low and none (control). In each type of area samples were taken from two depths (0-2 cm and 5-10 cm), at 14-39 points. In total, 268 soil samples were taken. Before the soil sampling, penetration depth was determined at each point. In addition, the numbers of barbecue fires in each of the three areas were counted. Gravimetric soil moisture, organic matter, pH, electrical conductivity, and soluble ions were measured in 1:1 water extraction. Penetration depth and electrical conductivity, and organic matter, sodium, potassium and chlorite contents differed under differing levels of visitors' pressure, whereas soil moisture, pH and calcium content exhibited only minor differences. Soil moisture, electrical conductivity, and magnesium and chlorite contents exhibited strong seasonal changes, whereas the organic matter, potassium and pH levels were unaffected by seasonal dynamics. Calcium, organic matter, magnesium and chlorite contents, and electrical conductivity were significantly affected by the depth of soil sampling, whereas pH was not so affected. The seasonal changes in soil properties in the area subjected to high visitors' pressure were higher than in the one under low visitors' pressure. In most cases, visitors' pressure led to increases in variance and coefficient of variation. Different soil properties were differently affected by visitors' pressure, seasonal dynamics and soil depth. The surface of the soil was more sensitive to both seasonal dynamics and visitors' pressure, than the deeper layer. Visitors' pressure increased seasonal changes in the studied soil properties, and also increased the spatial heterogeneity of the soil. The differences in organic matter, electrical conductivity and soluble ions among the areas under differing visitors' pressure are attributed to anthropogenic additions, which accompanied the recreational activities in the urban parks: remnants of barbecue fires and meals, and excreta of urban animals. Addition of urban dust, enriched in CaCO3, minimized the effect of visitors' pressure on soil calcium content. All the above anthropogenic additions enhance the differentiation in soil layers. The notable effect of visitors' pressure on variations in soil properties highlighted its high significance for urban parks.

  10. Making the Stranger's Path Familiar: Environmental Communication that Turns Access into Participation

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Adelman, Clifford

    2005-01-01

    Visitors to the FDR Memorial in Washington, D.C., enter the area through ceremonial openings: from the pathway around the reflecting pond of the Jefferson Memorial, or across a small shaded plaza reached from a roadway parallel to the Potomac River. The FDR Memorial itself cannot be seen at the start of either of these paths. It is out there…

  11. A Pilot Study of Early Intervention for Families with Children with or at Risk of an Intellectual Disability in Northern Malawi

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Kelly, Aine; Ghalaieny, Theresa; Devitt, Catherine

    2012-01-01

    In low-income rural communities, access to early intervention and support services is restricted and resources needed to support children and families are limited. The aim of this study was to explore the role of local nonprofessional women, recruited as community home visitors (CHVs), to assist trained professionals in supporting parents with…

  12. Protecting the Great Barrier Reef: Analysing the Impact of a Conservation Documentary and Post-Viewing Strategies on Long-Term Conservation Behaviour

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hofman, Karen; Hughes, Karen

    2018-01-01

    Nature-based tourism experiences have the potential to change the environmental knowledge, attitudes and behavior of visitors; but such experiences may be beyond the physical and/or financial reach of many people. To influence the conservation behavior of populations world-wide, a more accessible yet equally effective strategy is required. Using…

  13. What Are the Issues That Confront High-Risk Families: How Can Organizations Such as ERIC and the National Parent Information Network Help?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Robertson, Anne S.

    Using a story told by a home visitor in a family literacy program for at-risk families, this paper illustrates issues related to building trust within among parents and the community, deciding on eligibility for services, accessing community resources, and building and maintaining strong relationships with clients. Maintaining that such stories…

  14. Improving the layout of recycling centres by use of lean production principles.

    PubMed

    Sundin, Erik; Björkman, Mats; Eklund, Mats; Eklund, Jörgen; Engkvist, Inga-Lill

    2011-06-01

    There has been increased focus on recycling in Sweden during recent years. This focus can be attributed to external environmental factors such as tougher legislation, but also to the potential gains for raw materials suppliers. Recycling centres are important components in the Swedish total recycling system. Recycling centres are manned facilities for waste collection where visitors can bring, sort and discard worn products as well as large-sized, hazardous, and electrical waste. The aim of this paper was to identify and describe the main flows and layout types at Swedish recycling centres. The aim was also to adapt and apply production theory for designing and managing recycling centre operations. More specifically, this means using lean production principles to help develop guidelines for recycling centre design and efficient control. Empirical data for this research was primarily collected through interviews and questionnaires among both visitors and employees at 16 Swedish recycling centres. Furthermore, adapted observation protocols have been used in order to explore visitor activities. There was also close collaboration with a local recycling centre company, which shared their layout experiences with the researchers in this project. The recycling centres studied had a variety of problems such as queues of visitors, overloading of material and improper sorting. The study shows that in order to decrease the problems, the recycling centres should be designed and managed according to lean production principles, i.e. through choosing more suitable layout choices with visible and linear flows, providing better visitor information, and providing suitable technical equipment. Improvements can be achieved through proper planning of the layout and control of the flow of vehicles, with the result of increased efficiency and capacity, shorter visits, and cleaner waste fractions. The benefits of a lean production mindset include increased visitor capacity, waste flexibility, improved sorting quality, shorter time for visits and improved working conditions. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  15. Recreational use in dispersed public lands measured using social media data and on-site counts.

    PubMed

    Fisher, David M; Wood, Spencer A; White, Eric M; Blahna, Dale J; Lange, Sarah; Weinberg, Alex; Tomco, Michael; Lia, Emilia

    2018-09-15

    Outdoor recreation is one of many important benefits provided by public lands. Data on recreational use are critical for informing management of recreation resources, however, managers often lack actionable information on visitor use for large protected areas that lack controlled access points. The purpose of this study is to explore the potential for social media data (e.g., geotagged images shared on Flickr and trip reports shared on a hiking forum) to provide land managers with useful measures of recreational use to dispersed areas, and to provide lessons learned from comparing several more traditional counting methods. First, we measure daily and monthly visitation rates to individual trails within the Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest (MBSNF) in western Washington. At 15 trailheads, we compare counts of hikers from infrared sensors, timelapse cameras, and manual on-site counts, to counts based on the number of shared geotagged images and trip reports from those locations. Second, we measure visitation rates to each National Forest System (NFS) unit across the US and compare annual measurements derived from the number of geotagged images to estimates from the US Forest Service National Visitor Use Monitoring Program. At both the NFS unit and the individual-trail scales, we found strong correlations between traditional measures of recreational use and measures based on user-generated content shared on the internet. For national forests in every region of the country, correlations between official Forest Service statistics and geotagged images ranged between 55% and 95%. For individual trails within the MBSNF, monthly visitor counts from on-site measurements were strongly correlated with counts from geotagged images (79%) and trip reports (91%). The convenient, cost-efficient and timely nature of collecting and analyzing user-generated data could allow land managers to monitor use over different seasons of the year and at sites and scales never previously monitored, contributing to a more comprehensive understanding of recreational use patterns and values. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  16. A review of emergency medical services events in US national parks from 2007 to 2011.

    PubMed

    Declerck, Matthieu P; Atterton, Laurie M; Seibert, Thomas; Cushing, Tracy A

    2013-09-01

    Outdoor recreation is growing in the United States, with more than 279 million annual visitors to areas controlled by the National Park Service (NPS). Emergency medical needs in these parks are overseen by the National Park's rangers within the NPS Emergency Medical Services (EMS) system. This study examines medical and traumatic emergencies throughout the NPS over a 5-year period to better understand the types of events and fatalities rangers encounter, both regionally and on a national scale. This is a retrospective review of the annual EMS reports published by the 7 NPS regions from 2007 to 2011. The following were compared and examined at a regional and national level: medical versus traumatic versus first aid events, cardiac events and outcomes, use of automated external defibrillators, and medical versus traumatic fatalities. The national incidence of EMS events was 45.9 events per 1 million visitors. Medical, traumatic, and first aid events composed 29%, 28%, and 43% of reports, respectively. Of medical episodes, 1.8% were cardiac arrests, of which 64.2% received automated external defibrillator treatment; 29.1% of cardiac arrests survived to hospital discharge. Of fatalities, 61.4% were traumatic in nature and the remaining 38.5% were nontraumatic (medical). Regional differences were found for all variables. On a national level, the NPS experiences an equal number of medical and traumatic EMS events. This differs from past observed trends that reported a higher incidence of traumatic events than medical events in wilderness settings. Cardiac events and automated external defibrillator usage are relatively infrequent. Traumatic fatalities are more common than medical fatalities in the NPS. Regional variations in events likely reflect differences in terrain, common activities, proximity to urban areas, and access to definitive care between regions. These data can assist the NPS in targeting the regions with the greatest number of incidents and fatalities for prevention, ranger training, and visitor education. Copyright © 2013 Wilderness Medical Society. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  17. Large outbreak of verocytotoxin-producing Escherichia coli O157 infection in visitors to a petting farm in South East England, 2009

    PubMed Central

    IHEKWEAZU, C.; CARROLL, K.; ADAK, B.; SMITH, G.; PRITCHARD, G. C.; GILLESPIE, I. A.; VERLANDER, N. Q.; HARVEY-VINCE, L.; REACHER, M.; EDEGHERE, O.; SULTAN, B.; COOPER, R.; MORGAN, G.; KINROSS, P. T. N.; BOXALL, N. S.; IVERSEN, A.; BICKLER, G.

    2012-01-01

    SUMMARY In the summer of 2009, an outbreak of verocytotoxigenic Escherichia coli O157 (VTEC O157) was identified in visitors to a large petting farm in South East England. The peak attack rate was 6/1000 visitors, and highest in those aged <2 years (16/1000). We conducted a case-control study with associated microbiological investigations, on human, animal and environmental samples. We identified 93 cases; 65 primary, 13 secondary and 15 asymptomatic. Cases were more likely to have visited a specific barn, stayed for prolonged periods and be infrequent farm visitors. The causative organism was identified as VTEC O157 PT21/28 with the same VNTR profile as that isolated in faecal specimens from farm animals and the physical environment, mostly in the same barn. Contact with farm livestock, especially ruminants, should be urgently reviewed at the earliest suspicion of a farm-related VTEC O157 outbreak and appropriate risk management procedures implemented without delay. PMID:22093751

  18. Large outbreak of verocytotoxin-producing Escherichia coli O157 infection in visitors to a petting farm in South East England, 2009.

    PubMed

    Ihekweazu, C; Carroll, K; Adak, B; Smith, G; Pritchard, G C; Gillespie, I A; Verlander, N Q; Harvey-Vince, L; Reacher, M; Edeghere, O; Sultan, B; Cooper, R; Morgan, G; Kinross, P T N; Boxall, N S; Iversen, A; Bickler, G

    2012-08-01

    In the summer of 2009, an outbreak of verocytotoxigenic Escherichia coli O157 (VTEC O157) was identified in visitors to a large petting farm in South East England. The peak attack rate was 6/1000 visitors, and highest in those aged <2 years (16/1000). We conducted a case-control study with associated microbiological investigations, on human, animal and environmental samples. We identified 93 cases; 65 primary, 13 secondary and 15 asymptomatic. Cases were more likely to have visited a specific barn, stayed for prolonged periods and be infrequent farm visitors. The causative organism was identified as VTEC O157 PT21/28 with the same VNTR profile as that isolated in faecal specimens from farm animals and the physical environment, mostly in the same barn. Contact with farm livestock, especially ruminants, should be urgently reviewed at the earliest suspicion of a farm-related VTEC O157 outbreak and appropriate risk management procedures implemented without delay.

  19. Group size and visitor numbers predict faecal glucocorticoid concentrations in zoo meerkats

    PubMed Central

    Scott, Katy; Heistermann, Michael

    2017-01-01

    Measures of physiological stress in zoo animals can give important insights into how they are affected by aspects of their captive environment. We analysed the factors influencing variation in glucocorticoid metabolites in faeces (fGCs) from zoo meerkats as a proxy for blood cortisol concentration, high levels of which are associated with a stress response. Levels of fGCs in captive meerkats declined with increasing group size. In the wild, very small groups of meerkats are at a higher risk of predation, while in larger groups, there is increased competition for resources. Indeed, group sizes in captivity resemble those seen in unstable coalitions in the wild, which may represent a stressful condition and predispose meerkats to chronic stress, even in the absence of natural predators. Individuals in large enclosures showed lower levels of stress, but meerkat density had no effect on the stress measures. In contrast with data from wild meerkats, neither sex, age nor dominance status predicted stress levels, which may reflect less food stress owing to more equal access to resources in captivity versus wild. The median number of visitors at the enclosure was positively correlated with fGC concentrations on the following day, with variation in the visitor numbers having the opposite effect. Our results are consistent with the hypothesis that there is an optimum group size which minimizes physiological stress in meerkats, and that zoo meerkats at most risk of physiological stress are those kept in small groups and small enclosures and are exposed to consistently high numbers of visitors. PMID:28484620

  20. Group size and visitor numbers predict faecal glucocorticoid concentrations in zoo meerkats.

    PubMed

    Scott, Katy; Heistermann, Michael; Cant, Michael A; Vitikainen, Emma I K

    2017-04-01

    Measures of physiological stress in zoo animals can give important insights into how they are affected by aspects of their captive environment. We analysed the factors influencing variation in glucocorticoid metabolites in faeces (fGCs) from zoo meerkats as a proxy for blood cortisol concentration, high levels of which are associated with a stress response. Levels of fGCs in captive meerkats declined with increasing group size. In the wild, very small groups of meerkats are at a higher risk of predation, while in larger groups, there is increased competition for resources. Indeed, group sizes in captivity resemble those seen in unstable coalitions in the wild, which may represent a stressful condition and predispose meerkats to chronic stress, even in the absence of natural predators. Individuals in large enclosures showed lower levels of stress, but meerkat density had no effect on the stress measures. In contrast with data from wild meerkats, neither sex, age nor dominance status predicted stress levels, which may reflect less food stress owing to more equal access to resources in captivity versus wild. The median number of visitors at the enclosure was positively correlated with fGC concentrations on the following day, with variation in the visitor numbers having the opposite effect. Our results are consistent with the hypothesis that there is an optimum group size which minimizes physiological stress in meerkats, and that zoo meerkats at most risk of physiological stress are those kept in small groups and small enclosures and are exposed to consistently high numbers of visitors.

  1. Exploring the health visiting service from the view of South Asian clients in England: a grounded theory study.

    PubMed

    Abdu, Lena; Stenner, Karen; Vydelingum, Vasso

    2016-09-01

    The fact that health inequalities disproportionately affect the minority ethnic population is not new and projections are that the minority ethnic population will continue to increase. The importance of early intervention and the key role that health visitors can play in attempting to reduce health inequalities is well documented as is the requirement for health providers to establish culturally sensitive services. To date, much of the research has focused on the perspectives of healthcare professionals caring for minority ethnic clients in hospital-based settings and little is known about the perspectives of minority ethnic clients regarding the health visiting service (HVS). The aim of this study was to explore the perspectives of South Asians regarding their experiences with the HVS. The study was conducted in a small town in the South of England between March and June 2013. A qualitative study using a grounded theory approach was used to capture the perspectives of this group regarding their interactions with the HVS. The sample consisted of 15 participants and data were collected through audio-recorded semi-structured interviews and analysed using constant comparative approach. Three key categories were identified: 'understanding the health visitor's role', 'sensitivity of services' and 'the significance of family'. While clients valued one-to-one support from health visitors, there was some evidence of poor communication and ethnocentric tendencies within the service. It was found that South Asian clients distinguish between health and parenting advice, being more likely to accept health advice from their health visitor and more likely to accept parenting advice from their family. The findings, although limited in their generalisability, offer important insights into how South Asians perceive the service and will equip health visitors with a better understanding of how best to improve the experience of South Asian clients accessing the health visiting. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  2. A survey of whitewater recreation impacts along five West Virginia rivers

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Leung, Y.-F.; Marion, J.L.

    1998-01-01

    Results are reported from an assessment of whitewater river recreation impacts at river accesses and recreation sites along five West Virginia rivers: the New, Gauley, Cheat, Tygart, and Shenandoah. Procedures were developed and applied to assess resource conditions on 24 river access roads, 68 river accesses, and 151 recreation sites. The majority of river accesses and recreation sites are located on the New and Gauley rivers, which account for most of the state?s whitewater recreation use. Site conditions are variable. While some river accesses and sites are situated on resistant rocky substrates, many are poorly designed and/or located on erodible soil and sand substrates. Recreation site sizes and other areal measures of site disturbance are quite large, coincident with the large group sizes associated with commercially outfitted whitewater rafting trips. Recommendations are offered for managing river accesses and sites and whitewater visitation and the selection of indicators and standards as part of a Limits of Acceptable Change management process. Procedures and recommendations for continued visitor impact monitoring are also offered.

  3. The influence of visitor use levels on visitor spatial behavior in off-trail areas of dispersed recreation use.

    PubMed

    D'Antonio, Ashley; Monz, Christopher

    2016-04-01

    A variety of social and ecological factors influence the level and extent of ecological change that occurs in a park or protected area. Understanding these factors and how they are interrelated can help managers prevent undesirable ecological impacts, especially in areas without formal trails and visitor sites. This study examines the relationship between levels of visitor use and spatial patterns of visitor behavior at a variety of backcountry recreation destinations. Current assumptions in both the literature and simulation modeling efforts assume that visitor behavior either does not change with use level or that visitors are more likely to disperse at high levels of visitor use. Using visitor counts and GPS tracks of visitor behavior in locations where visitors could disperse off-trail, we found that visitors' spatial behavior does vary with visitor use level in some recreation settings, however the patterns of visitor behavior observed in this study are sometimes contrary to current generalizations. When visitor behavior does vary with use level, visitors are dispersing more at low levels of visitor use not when use level is high. Overall, these findings suggest that in certain situations the amount of visitor use at a recreation destination may be a less important driver of ecological change than visitor behavior. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  4. A Visitor Control Policy for Martin Army Hospital,

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1978-04-05

    gathered at York Hospital resulted in the limitation of two visitors per patient at one time. This was not an arbitrary decision by management but...management is required to receive input from the consumer on many management decisions . Even discounting the above, the patient was felt to be a logical...proximity of the parking areas to the primary entrances, no additional staff entrances ,4 are needed, therefore no special locking devices for any auxillary

  5. HABIT-an early phase study to explore an oral health intervention delivered by health visitors to parents with young children aged 9-12 months: study protocol.

    PubMed

    Eskyte, Ieva; Gray-Burrows, Kara; Owen, Jenny; Sykes-Muskett, Bianca; Zoltie, Tim; Gill, Susanne; Smith, Victoria; McEachan, Rosemary; Marshman, Zoe; West, Robert; Pavitt, Sue; Day, Peter

    2018-01-01

    Parental supervised brushing (PSB) when initiated in infancy can lead to long-term protective home-based oral health habits thereby reducing the risk of dental caries. However, PSB is a complex behaviour with many barriers reported by parents hindering its effective implementation. Within the UK, oral health advice is delivered universally to parents by health visitors and their wider teams when children are aged between 9 and 12 months. Nevertheless, there is no standardised intervention or training upon which health visitors can base this advice, and they often lack the specialised knowledge needed to help parents overcome barriers to performing PSB and limiting sugary foods and drinks.Working with health visitors and parents of children aged 9-24 months, we have co-designed oral health training and resources (Health Visitors delivering Advice in Britain on Infant Toothbrushing (HABIT) intervention) to be used by health visitors and their wider teams when providing parents of children aged 9-12 months with oral health advice.The aim of the study is to explore the acceptability of the HABIT intervention to parents and health visitors, to examine the mechanism of action and develop suitable objective measures of PSB. Six health visitors working in a deprived city in the UK will be provided with training on how to use the HABIT intervention. Health visitors will then each deliver the intervention to five parents of children aged 9-12 months. The research team will collect measures of PSB and dietary behaviours before and at 2 weeks and 3 months after the HABIT intervention. Acceptability of the HABIT intervention to health visitors will be explored through semi-structured diaries completed after each visit and a focus group discussion after delivery to all parents. Acceptability of the HABIT intervention and mechanism of action will be explored briefly during each home visit with parents and in greater details in 20-25 qualitative interviews after the completion of data collection. The utility of three objective measures of PSB will be compared with each other and with parental-self reports. This study will provide essential information to inform the design of a definitive cluster randomised controlled trial. There is no database for early phase studies such as ours.

  6. On the outside looking in: Fly-in recreation day use visitor experiences in the south district of Denali National Park and Preserve

    Treesearch

    Alan Watson; Katie Knotek; Neal Christensen

    2008-01-01

    Denali National Park and Preserve is an American icon for wilderness. Not everyone accesses wilderness in the same way, however, or has the same experiences. Wilderness recreation experiences at Denali vary tremendously. Interviews with flightseers at the park have created a better understanding of the recreation experiences for these day users and helped us recognize...

  7. Purpose Restrictions on Information Use

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2013-06-03

    Employees are authorized to access Customer Information for business purposes only.” [5]. The HIPAA Privacy Rule requires that healthcare providers in the...outcomes can be probabilistic since the network does not know what ad will be best for each visitor but does have statistical information about various...beliefs as such beliefs are a sufficient statistic . Thus, the agent need only consider for each possible belief β it can have, what action it would

  8. Morphological Complexity as a Floral Signal: From Perception by Insect Pollinators to Co-Evolutionary Implications.

    PubMed

    Krishna, Shivani; Keasar, Tamar

    2018-06-06

    Morphologically complex flowers are characterized by bilateral symmetry, tube-like shapes, deep corolla tubes, fused petals, and/or poricidal anthers, all of which constrain the access of insect visitors to floral nectar and pollen rewards. Only a subset of potential pollinators, mainly large bees, learn to successfully forage on such flowers. Thus, complexity may comprise a morphological filter that restricts the range of visitors and thereby increases food intake for successful foragers. Such pollinator specialization, in turn, promotes flower constancy and reduces cross-species pollen transfer, providing fitness benefits to plants with complex flowers. Since visual signals associated with floral morphological complexity are generally honest (i.e., indicate food rewards), pollinators need to perceive and process them. Physiological studies show that bees detect distant flowers through long-wavelength sensitive photoreceptors. Bees effectively perceive complex shapes and learn the positions of contours based on their spatial frequencies. Complex flowers require long handling times by naive visitors, and become highly profitable only for experienced foragers. To explore possible pathways towards the evolution of floral complexity, we discuss cognitive mechanisms that potentially allow insects to persist on complex flowers despite low initial foraging gains, suggest experiments to test these mechanisms, and speculate on their adaptive value.

  9. The WINCKELMANN300 Project: Dissemination of Culture with Virtual Reality at the Capitoline Museum in Rome

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gonizzi Barsanti, S.; Malatesta, S. G.; Lella, F.; Fanini, B.; Sala, F.; Dodero, E.; Petacco, L.

    2018-05-01

    The best way to disseminate culture is, nowadays, the creation of scenarios with virtual and augmented reality that supply the visitors of museums with a powerful, interactive tool that allows to learn sometimes difficult concepts in an easy, entertaining way. 3D models derived from reality-based techniques are nowadays used to preserve, document and restore historical artefacts. These digital contents are also powerful instrument to interactively communicate their significance to non-specialist, making easier to understand concepts sometimes complicated or not clear. Virtual and Augmented Reality are surely a valid tool to interact with 3D models and a fundamental help in making culture more accessible to the wide public. These technologies can help the museum curators to adapt the cultural proposal and the information about the artefacts based on the different type of visitor's categories. These technologies allow visitors to travel through space and time and have a great educative function permitting to explain in an easy and attractive way information and concepts that could prove to be complicated. The aim of this paper is to create a virtual scenario and an augmented reality app to recreate specific spaces in the Capitoline Museum in Rome as they were during Winckelmann's time, placing specific statues in their original position in the 18th century.

  10. Measuring recreational visitation at U.S. National Parks with crowd-sourced photographs.

    PubMed

    Sessions, Carrie; Wood, Spencer A; Rabotyagov, Sergey; Fisher, David M

    2016-12-01

    Land managers rely on visitation data to inform policy and management decisions. However, visitation data is often costly and burdensome to obtain, and provides a limited depth of information. In this paper, we assess the validity of using crowd-sourced, online photographs to infer information about the habits and preferences of recreational visitors by comparing empirical data from the National Park Service to photograph data from the online platform Flickr for 38 National Parks in the western United States. Using multiple regression analysis, we find that the number of photos posted monthly in a park can reliably indicate the number of visitors to a park in a given month. Through additional statistical testing we also find that the home locations of photo-takers, provided voluntarily on an online profile, accurately show the home origins of park visitors. Together, these findings validate a new method for measuring recreational visitation, opening an opportunity for land managers worldwide to track and understand visitation by augmenting current data collection methods with crowd-sourced, online data that is easy and inexpensive to obtain. In addition, it enables future research on how visitation rates change with changes in access, management or infrastructure, weather events, or ecosystem health, and facilitates valuation research, such as travel cost studies. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  11. Quantitative Analysis of the Usage of the COSMOS Science Education Portal

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sotiriou, Sofoklis; Bogner, Franz X.; Neofotistos, George

    2011-08-01

    A quantitative method of mapping the web usage of an innovative educational portal is applied to analyze the behaviour of users of the COSMOS Science Education Portal. The COSMOS Portal contains user-generated resources (that are uploaded by its users). It has been designed to support a science teacher's search, retrieval and access to both, scientific and educational resources. It also aims to introduce in and familiarize teachers with an innovative methodology for designing, expressing and representing educational practices in a commonly understandable way through the use of user-friendly authoring tools that are available through the portal. As a new science education portal that includes user-generated content, the COSMOS Portal encounters the well-known "new product/service challenge": to convince the users to use its tools, which facilitate quite fast lesson planning and lesson preparation activities. To respond to this challenge, the COSMOS Portal operators implemented a validation process by analyzing the usage data of the portal in a 10 month time-period. The data analyzed comprised: (a) the temporal evolution of the number of contributors and the amount of content uploaded to the COSMOS Portal; (b) the number of portal visitors (categorized as all-visitors, new-visitors, and returning-visitors) and (c) visitor loyalty parameters (such as page-views; pages/visit; average time on site; depth of visit; length of visit). The data is augmented with data associated with the usage context (e.g. the time of day when most of the activities in the portal take place). The quantitative results indicate that the exponential growth of the contributors to the COSMOS Portal is followed by an exponential growth of the uploaded content. Furthermore, the web usage statistics demonstrate significant changes in users' behaviour during the period under study, with returning visitors using the COSMOS Portal more frequently, mainly for lesson planning and preparation (in the afternoon hours). The findings demonstrate that the new COSMOS users follow the "law of surfing" behaviour, a common pattern of surfing behaviour in portals. However, users return to the COSMOS Portal: returning users comprise more than 50% of all COSMOS visits, stay longer on site and visit more pages. Returning visitors are benchmarked against the "law of surfing" and outperform it substantially. These quantitative results benchmark the web usage of a portal and provide its operators with maps of value-added patterns of the portal's offering to its users in the science education community.

  12. Viewing Chinese art on an interactive tabletop.

    PubMed

    Hsieh, Chun-ko; Hung, Yi-Ping; Ben-Ezra, Moshe; Hsieh, Hsin-Fang

    2013-01-01

    To protect fragile paintings and calligraphy, Taiwan's National Palace Museum (NPM) has policies controlling the frequency and duration of their exposure. So, visitors might not see the works they planned to see. To address this problem, the NPM installed an interactive tabletop for viewing the works. This tabletop, the first to feature multiresolution and gigapixel photography technology, displays extremely high-quality images revealing brushwork-level detail. A user study at the NPM examined the tabletop's performance and collected visitor feedback.

  13. KSC-03PD-2451

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    2003-01-01

    KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. Daniel L. Tweed, with the Facilities Division, NASA Spaceport Services, addresses attendees at the ribbon cutting for the KSC Security gates. Tweed was project manager. The two new Security gates on Kennedy Parkway (Gate 2) and NASA Parkway (Gate 3) were activated Aug. 1, allowing the general public to have access to the new Space Commerce Way, which will provide access to the Research Park and KSC Visitor Complex, and providing an alternate route for the general public between Titusville and Merritt Island that is accessible 24 hours a day. The gates are staffed 24 hours daily. Others taking part in the ribbon cutting were Center Director Jim Kennedy; Chief, Protective & Safe Guards Office, Calvin L. Burch; SGS Deputy Program Manager William A. Sample; and Bobby Porter, with Oneida Construction.

  14. Creating accessible science museums with user-activated environmental audio beacons (ping!).

    PubMed

    Landau, Steven; Wiener, William; Naghshineh, Koorosh; Giusti, Ellen

    2005-01-01

    In 2003, Touch Graphics Company carried out research on a new invention that promises to improve accessibility to science museums for visitors who are visually impaired. The system, nicknamed Ping!, allows users to navigate an exhibit area, listen to audio descriptions, and interact with exhibits using a cell phone-based interface. The system relies on computer telephony, and it incorporates a network of wireless environmental audio beacons that can be triggered by users wishing to travel to destinations they choose. User testing indicates that the system is effective, both as a way-finding tool and as a means of providing accessible information on museum content. Follow-up development projects will determine if this approach can be successfully implemented in other settings and for other user populations.

  15. PBF Control Building (PER619). Interior of control room shows control ...

    Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

    PBF Control Building (PER-619). Interior of control room shows control console from direction facing visitors room and its observation window. Camera facing northeast. Date: May 2004. INEEL negative no. HD-41-7-1 - Idaho National Engineering Laboratory, SPERT-I & Power Burst Facility Area, Scoville, Butte County, ID

  16. Wilderness science in a time of change conference-Volume 4: Wilderness visitors, experiences, and visitor management; 1999 May 23-27; Missoula, MT

    Treesearch

    David N. Cole; Stephen F. McCool; William T. Borrie; Jennifer O' Loughlin

    2000-01-01

    Thirty-seven papers are presented on wilderness visitors, experiences, and visitor management. Three overview papers synthesize knowledge and research about wilderness visitors, management of visitor experiences, and wilderness recreation planning. Other papers contain the results of specific research projects on wilderness visitors, information and education, and...

  17. Wilderness experience in Rocky Mountain National Park 2002; report to respondents

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Schuster, Elke; Johnson, S. Shea; Taylor, Jonathan G.

    2003-01-01

    A substantial amount of backcountry (about 250,000 acres) in Rocky Mountain National Park [RMNP of the Park] may be designated as wilderness areas in the coming years. Currently, over 3 million visitors drives through the park on Trail Ridge Road, camp in designated campgrounds, day hike, etc. each year. Many of those visitors also report using the backcountry-wilderness areas that are not easily accessible by roads or trails. Use of the backcountry is growing at RMNP and is accompanied by changing visitor expectations and preferences for wilderness management. For these reasons it is of great importance for the Park to periodically assess what types of environments and conditions wilderness users seek to facilitate a quality experience. To assist in this effort, the Political Analysis and Science Assistance [PSAS] program / Fort Collins Center / U.S. Geological Survey, in close collaboration with personnel and volunteers from RMNP, as well as the Natural Resource Recreation and Tourism [NRRT] Department at Colorado State University, launched a research effort in the summer of 2002 to investigate visitorsa?? wilderness experiences in the Park. Specifically, the purpose of this research was: (1) To determine what constitutes a wilderness experience; (2) To identify important places, visual features, and sounds essential to a quality wilderness experience and; (3) To determine what aspects may detract from wilderness experience. Thus, answers to these questions should provide insight for Park managers about visitorsa?? expectation for wilderness recreation and the conditions they seek for quality wilderness experiences. Ultimately, this information can be used to support wilderness management decisions within RMNP. The social science technique of Visitor Employed Photography [VEP] was used to obtain information from visitors about wilderness experiences. Visitors were selected at random from Park-designated wilderness trails, in proportion to their use, and asked to participate in the survey. Respondents were given single use, 10-exposure cameras and photo-log diaries to record experiences. A total of 293 cameras were distributed, with a response rate of 87%. Following the development of the photos, a copy of the photos, two pertinent pages from the photo-log, and a follow-up survey were mailed to respondents. Fifty-six percent of the follow-up surveys were returned. Findings from the two surveys were analyzed and compareda?|

  18. Access to Core Facilities and Other Research Resources Provided by the Clinical and Translational Science Awards

    PubMed Central

    2012-01-01

    Abstract  Principal investigators who received Clinical and Translational Science Awards created academic homes for biomedical research. They developed program‐supported websites to offer coordinated access to a range of core facilities and other research resources. Visitors to the 60 websites will find at least 170 generic services, which this review has categorized in the following seven areas: (1) core facilities, (2) biomedical informatics, (3) funding, (4) regulatory knowledge and support, (5) biostatistics, epidemiology, research design, and ethics, (6) participant and clinical interaction resources, and (7) community engagement. In addition, many websites facilitate access to resources with search engines, navigators, studios, project development teams, collaboration tools, communication systems, and teaching tools. Each of these websites may be accessed from a single site, http://www.CTSAcentral.org. The ability to access the research resources from 60 of the nation's academic health centers presents a novel opportunity for investigators engaged in clinical and translational research. Clin Trans Sci 2012; Volume #: 1–5 PMID:22376262

  19. Access to core facilities and other research resources provided by the Clinical and Translational Science Awards.

    PubMed

    Rosenblum, Daniel

    2012-02-01

    Principal investigators who received Clinical and Translational Science Awards created academic homes for biomedical research. They developed program-supported websites to offer coordinated access to a range of core facilities and other research resources. Visitors to the 60 websites will find at least 170 generic services, which this review has categorized in the following seven areas: (1) core facilities, (2) biomedical informatics, (3) funding, (4) regulatory knowledge and support, (5) biostatistics, epidemiology, research design, and ethics, (6) participant and clinical interaction resources, and (7) community engagement. In addition, many websites facilitate access to resources with search engines, navigators, studios, project development teams, collaboration tools, communication systems, and teaching tools. Each of these websites may be accessed from a single site, http://www.CTSAcentral.org. The ability to access the research resources from 60 of the nation's academic health centers presents a novel opportunity for investigators engaged in clinical and translational research. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  20. Repository on maternal child health: health portal to improve access to information on maternal child health in India.

    PubMed

    Khanna, Rajesh; Karikalan, N; Mishra, Anil Kumar; Agarwal, Anchal; Bhattacharya, Madhulekha; Das, Jayanta K

    2013-01-02

    Quality and essential health information is considered one of the most cost-effective interventions to improve health for a developing country. Healthcare portals have revolutionalized access to health information and knowledge using the Internet and related technologies, but their usage is far from satisfactory in India. This article describes a health portal developed in India aimed at providing one-stop access to efficiently search, organize and share maternal child health information relevant from public health perspective in the country. The portal 'Repository on Maternal Child Health' was developed using an open source content management system and standardized processes were followed for collection, selection, categorization and presentation of resource materials. Its usage is evaluated using key performance indicators obtained from Google Analytics, and quality assessed using a standardized checklist of knowledge management. The results are discussed in relation to improving quality and access to health information. The portal was launched in July 2010 and provides free access to full-text of 900 resource materials categorized under specific topics and themes. During the subsequent 18 months, 52,798 visits were registered from 174 countries across the world, and more than three-fourth visits were from India alone. Nearly 44,000 unique visitors visited the website and spent an average time of 4 minutes 26 seconds. The overall bounce rate was 27.6%. An increase in the number of unique visitors was found to be significantly associated with an increase in the average time on site (p-value 0.01), increase in the web traffic through search engines (p-value 0.00), and decrease in the bounce rate (p-value 0.03). There was a high degree of agreement between the two experts regarding quality assessment carried out under the three domains of knowledge access, knowledge creation and knowledge transfer (Kappa statistic 0.72). Efficient management of health information is imperative for informed decision making, and digital repositories have now-a-days become the preferred source of information management. The growing popularity of the portal indicates the potential of such initiatives in improving access to quality and essential health information in India. There is a need to develop similar mechanisms for other health domains and interlink them to facilitate access to a variety of health information from a single platform.

  1. Repository on maternal child health: Health portal to improve access to information on maternal child health in India

    PubMed Central

    2013-01-01

    Background Quality and essential health information is considered one of the most cost-effective interventions to improve health for a developing country. Healthcare portals have revolutionalized access to health information and knowledge using the Internet and related technologies, but their usage is far from satisfactory in India. This article describes a health portal developed in India aimed at providing one-stop access to efficiently search, organize and share maternal child health information relevant from public health perspective in the country. Methods The portal ‘Repository on Maternal Child Health’ was developed using an open source content management system and standardized processes were followed for collection, selection, categorization and presentation of resource materials. Its usage is evaluated using key performance indicators obtained from Google Analytics, and quality assessed using a standardized checklist of knowledge management. The results are discussed in relation to improving quality and access to health information. Results The portal was launched in July 2010 and provides free access to full-text of 900 resource materials categorized under specific topics and themes. During the subsequent 18 months, 52,798 visits were registered from 174 countries across the world, and more than three-fourth visits were from India alone. Nearly 44,000 unique visitors visited the website and spent an average time of 4 minutes 26 seconds. The overall bounce rate was 27.6%. An increase in the number of unique visitors was found to be significantly associated with an increase in the average time on site (p-value 0.01), increase in the web traffic through search engines (p-value 0.00), and decrease in the bounce rate (p-value 0.03). There was a high degree of agreement between the two experts regarding quality assessment carried out under the three domains of knowledge access, knowledge creation and knowledge transfer (Kappa statistic 0.72). Conclusions Efficient management of health information is imperative for informed decision making, and digital repositories have now-a-days become the preferred source of information management. The growing popularity of the portal indicates the potential of such initiatives in improving access to quality and essential health information in India. There is a need to develop similar mechanisms for other health domains and interlink them to facilitate access to a variety of health information from a single platform. PMID:23281735

  2. Public Understanding of Science through Evaluations

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Dusenbery, P.; Koke, J.

    Evaluation is an integral part of exhibition development. It is usually a 3-phase process: front end, formative and summative. This report will compare science misconception studies of students with a number of front-end museum studies in order to elucidate the similarities and differences between student and general public understanding of science. The Space Science Institute (SSI) has recently conducted a major front-end evaluation of its Alien Earths exhibition. Alien Earths has four interrelated exhibit areas: Our Place in Space, Star Birth, PlanetQuest, and Search for Life. Exhibit visitors will explore the awesome events surrounding the birth of stars and planets; they will join scientists in the hunt for planets outside our solar system including those that may be in ``habitable zones'' around other stars; and finally they will be able to learn about the wide range of conditions for life on Earth and how scientists are looking for signs of life beyond Earth. The front-end evaluation elicited visitors' beliefs about the origins of life, what life is dominant on Earth, and the role indirect evidence plays in science. The front-end evaluation also examined visitors' understanding of the tools used in origins research from grand telescopes to microscopes, their ability to decipher and interpret images of star forming regions, and their fluency with the specific terminology likely to be used in the Alien Earths scripts. Front-end evaluation worked to support concept design and development by developing the visitors' entrance narrative -- their pre-existing knowledge, commonly held misconceptions, and their attitudes and interests towards the topic. This served to identify potential points of access and barriers to efficient communication.

  3. Artificial reefs and marine protected areas: a study in willingness to pay to access Folkestone Marine Reserve, Barbados, West Indies

    PubMed Central

    Wheeler, Philip M.; Johnson, Magnus L.

    2016-01-01

    Artificial reefs in marine protected areas provide additional habitat for biodiversity viewing, and therefore may offer an innovative management solution for managing for coral reef recovery and resilience. Marine park user fees can generate revenue to help manage and maintain natural and artificial reefs. Using a stated preference survey, this study investigates the present consumer surplus associated with visitor use of a marine protected area in Barbados. Two hypothetical markets were presented to differentiate between respondents use values of either: (a) natural reefs within the marine reserve or (b) artificial reef habitat for recreational enhancement. Information was also collected on visitors’ perceptions of artificial reefs, reef material preferences and reef conservation awareness. From a sample of 250 visitors on snorkel trips, we estimate a mean willingness to pay of US$18.33 (median—US$15) for natural reef use and a mean value of US$17.58 (median—US$12.50) for artificial reef use. The number of marine species viewed, age of respondent, familiarity with the Folkestone Marine Reserve and level of environmental concern were statistically significant in influencing willingness to pay. Regression analyses indicate visitors are willing to pay a significant amount to view marine life, especially turtles. Our results suggest that user fees could provide a considerable source of income to aid reef conservation in Barbados. In addition, the substantial use value reported for artificial reefs indicates a reef substitution policy may be supported by visitors to the Folkestone Marine Reserve. We discuss our findings and highlight directions for future research that include the need to collect data to establish visitors’ non-use values to fund reef management. PMID:27547521

  4. Aerial view of a new site at KSC's Visitor Complex

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    1999-01-01

    Seen from above, construction of a new site at KSC's Visitor Complex, The Early Space Exploration and Conference Center, is nearly finished. It is expected to be open to the public by mid- November. The space exploration facility will feature Mercury and Gemini capsules and the recently relocated Mission Control Center. Attached to it is a state-of-the-art conference center. Built by Delaware North Park Services, the facility is located between the Rock Garden and the Center for Space Education.

  5. Visitor reaction to pacing behavior: influence on the perception of animal care and interest in supporting zoological institutions.

    PubMed

    Miller, Lance J

    2012-01-01

    Many publications within the field of zoo animal welfare have stated the importance of decreasing stereotypic behavior (e.g., pacing) to help ensure a positive visitor experience. The idea behind these statements is that visitors want to see animals engaged in natural behavior. Additionally, it is thought that watching an animal exhibit species-appropriate behavior could help increase a visitor's connection to wildlife and ultimately their interest in conservation. However, until recently, no information was available to validate such statements. The purpose of this research was to examine people's reaction to viewing an animal engaged in pacing behavior. Participants were randomly selected to fill out a survey after watching a short video of either a tiger pacing or resting (control). Results indicate that having viewed a tiger pacing significantly decreases people's perception of the level of care animals receive at that facility. In addition, people's interest in supporting zoos decreased as a result of viewing this behavior. Results are discussed from an animal welfare, business, and conservation perspective. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  6. Columbia Crew added to Astronaut Memorial Mirror

    NASA Image and Video Library

    2003-07-15

    Workers add to the Astronaut Memorial Mirror the names of the Columbia crew who died in the STS-107 accident. Dedicated May 9, 1991, the Astronaut Memorial honors U.S. astronauts who gave their lives for space exploration. The "Space Mirror," 42 1/2 feet high by 50 feet wide, illuminates the names of the fallen astronauts cut through the monument's black granite surface. The Memorial Mirror is accessible through the KSC Visitor Complex.

  7. Estimating the impact of newly arrived foreign-born persons on tuberculosis in the United States.

    PubMed

    Liu, Yecai; Painter, John A; Posey, Drew L; Cain, Kevin P; Weinberg, Michelle S; Maloney, Susan A; Ortega, Luis S; Cetron, Martin S

    2012-01-01

    Among approximately 163.5 million foreign-born persons admitted to the United States annually, only 500,000 immigrants and refugees are required to undergo overseas tuberculosis (TB) screening. It is unclear what extent of the unscreened nonimmigrant visitors contributes to the burden of foreign-born TB in the United States. We defined foreign-born persons within 1 year after arrival in the United States as "newly arrived", and utilized data from U.S. Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and World Health Organization to estimate the incidence of TB among newly arrived foreign-born persons in the United States. During 2001 through 2008, 11,500 TB incident cases, including 291 multidrug-resistant TB incident cases, were estimated to occur among 20,989,738 person-years for the 1,479,542,654 newly arrived foreign-born persons in the United States. Of the 11,500 estimated TB incident cases, 41.6% (4,783) occurred among immigrants and refugees, 36.6% (4,211) among students/exchange visitors and temporary workers, 13.8% (1,589) among tourists and business travelers, and 7.3% (834) among Canadian and Mexican nonimmigrant visitors without an I-94 form (e.g., arrival-departure record). The top 3 newly arrived foreign-born populations with the largest estimated TB incident cases per 100,000 admissions were immigrants and refugees from high-incidence countries (e.g., 2008 WHO-estimated TB incidence rate of ≥100 cases/100,000 population/year; 235.8 cases/100,000 admissions, 95% confidence interval [CI], 228.3 to 243.3), students/exchange visitors and temporary workers from high-incidence countries (60.9 cases/100,000 admissions, 95% CI, 58.5 to 63.3), and immigrants and refugees from medium-incidence countries (e.g., 2008 WHO-estimated TB incidence rate of 15-99 cases/100,000 population/year; 55.2 cases/100,000 admissions, 95% CI, 51.6 to 58.8). Newly arrived nonimmigrant visitors contribute substantially to the burden of foreign-born TB in the United States. To achieve the goals of TB elimination, direct investment in global TB control and strategies to target nonimmigrant visitors should be considered.

  8. Baby walkers--health visitors' current practice, attitudes and knowledge.

    PubMed

    Kendrick, Denise; Illingworth, Rachel; Hapgood, Rhydian; Woods, Amanda J; Collier, Jacqueline

    2003-09-01

    Baby walkers are a commonly used item of nursery equipment. Between 12% and 50% of parents whose infant uses a walker report that their child has suffered a walker-related injury. Health visitors' knowledge, attitudes and practice with regard to walkers and related health education has not been explored so far. The aim of the study was to describe health visitors' knowledge of walkers and walker-related injuries, their attitudes towards walkers and current practice with regard to walker health education, and to examine the relationship between knowledge and attitudes and knowledge and practice. A survey was carried out with 64 health visitors prior to participation in a randomized controlled trial assessing the effectiveness of an educational package in reducing baby walker use. The response rate was 95%. Half of the health visitors always discussed walkers postnatally, most frequently at the 6-9 month check. Most did not usually discuss the frequency of walker-related injuries. Most had negative attitudes towards walkers, but believed that parents hold positive attitudes to them and that it is hard to persuade parents not to use them. Health visitors had a limited knowledge of walker use and walker-related injuries. Those giving advice on walkers most often had higher knowledge scores than those giving advice less often (P = 0.03). Those with higher knowledge scores held more negative attitudes towards walkers (rs = 0.29, P = 0.023) and believed parents to have more positive attitudes towards walkers (rs = -0.49, P < 0.001). Few health visitors had resources to discuss walkers. Health visitor advice regarding walkers needs to be given earlier in the postnatal period than is currently common practice, and they need more knowledge about walker use and related injuries. Education about baby walkers needs to be incorporated into undergraduate and in-service education, which may need to include the development of skills in exploring reasons why parents use walkers and in negotiating alternatives to their use. The provision of audio-visual aids for discussing walkers might also be helpful.

  9. Intelligent building system for airport

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

    Ancevic, M.

    1997-11-01

    The Munich airport uses a state-of-the-art intelligent building management system to control systems such as HVAC, runway lights, baggage handling, etc. Planning the new Munich II international airport provided a unique opportunity to use the latest state-of-the-art technical systems, while integrating their control through a single intelligent building management system. Opened in 1992, the airport is Germany`s second-largest airport after Frankfurt. The airport is staffed by 16,000 employees and can handle 17 million passengers a year. The sprawling site encompasses more than 120 buildings. The airport`s distributed control system is specifically designed to optimize the complex`s unique range of functions,more » while providing a high degree of comfort, convenience and safety for airport visitors. With the capacity to control 200,000 points, this system controls more than 112,000 points and integrates 13 major subsystems from nine different vendors. It provides convenient, accessible control of everything including the complex`s power plant, HVAC Control, the terminal`s people-moving functions, interior lighting controls, runway lights, baggage forwarding systems, elevators, and boarding bridges. The airport was named 1993 intelligent building of the year by the Intelligent Buildings Institute Foundation. Its building management system is a striking example of the degree to which a building complex`s functions can be integrated for greater operational control and efficiency.« less

  10. Do Zoo Visitors Come to Learn? An Internationally Comparative, Mixed-Methods Study

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Roe, Katie; McConney, Andrew

    2015-01-01

    Zoo visitors go to see animals, but are they there to learn? This mixed-methods study examines visitor learning from both zoos' and visitors' perspectives using qualitative and quantitative data. Five hundred and forty zoo visitor interviews from nine case studies provide insight into visitor intentions, which indicate that the majority of…

  11. The influence of visitor interaction on the behavior of captive crowned lemurs (Eulemur coronatus) and implications for welfare.

    PubMed

    Jones, H; McGregor, P K; Farmer, H L A; Baker, K R

    2016-05-01

    Research suggests that zoo visitors can have positive, negative, and neutral impacts on captive primate welfare; however, research investigating the implications of visitor-animal feeding experiences is extremely limited. In the UK, a large proportion of BIAZA zoos that house lemur species offer visitor interaction experiences (16 out of 33). This study investigated the impact on the behavior of a family group of crowned lemurs (Eulemur coronatus) housed at Newquay Zoo, UK of visitors, accompanied by a keeper, entering the enclosure to feed the lemurs. Behavior was observed under four conditions: (i) during visitor feed; (ii) 30 min post-visitor feed; (iii) during a keeper feed; and (iv) 30 min post-keeper feed. Keeper feeds were conducted by keepers only, on the day after visitor feeds. The lemur group spent significantly less time performing aggressive behavior and was also significantly more interactive with keepers during visitor feeds compared with keeper-only feeds. There was no significant difference in behaviors performed immediately after interacting with visitors. Over the study period, there was a tendency for interactions with visitors to increase, and for interactions with keepers during visitor feeds to decrease. After a 28-day interval without visitor interaction, the lemurs' interaction with visitors had returned to the level recorded at the start of the study. In conclusion, visitor interaction did not compromise the welfare of the study subjects in either the short- or long-term, while an increase in visitor interactions over time has interesting implications for the enrichment properties of, or habituation to, unfamiliar humans. Zoo Biol. 35:222-227, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  12. A model for predicting daily peak visitation and implications for recreation management and water quality: evidence from two rivers in Puerto Rico.

    PubMed

    Santiago, Luis E; Gonzalez-Caban, Armando; Loomis, John

    2008-06-01

    Visitor use surveys and water quality data indicates that high visitor use levels of two rivers in Puerto Rico does not appear to adversely affect several water quality parameters. Optimum visitor use to maximize visitor defined satisfaction is a more constraining limit on visitor use than water quality. Our multiple regression analysis suggests that visitor use of about 150 visitors per day yields the highest level of visitor reported satisfaction, a level that does not appear to affect turbidity of the river. This high level of visitor use may be related to the gregarious nature of Puerto Ricans and their tolerance for crowding on this densely populated island. The daily peak visitation model indicates that regulating the number of parking spaces may be the most effective way to keep visitor use within the social carrying capacity.

  13. Predictability of bee community composition after floral removals differs by floral trait group.

    PubMed

    Urban-Mead, Katherine R

    2017-11-01

    Plant-bee visitor communities are complex networks. While studies show that deleting nodes alters network topology, predicting these changes in the field remains difficult. Here, a simple trait-based approach is tested for predicting bee community composition following disturbance. I selected six fields with mixed cover of flower species with shallow (open) and deep (tube) nectar access, and removed all flowers or flower heads of species of each trait in different plots paired with controls, then observed bee foraging and composition. I compared the bee community in each manipulated plot with bees on the same flower species in control plots. The bee morphospecies composition in manipulations with only tube flowers remaining was the same as that in the control plots, while the bee morphospecies on only open flowers were dissimilar from those in control plots. However, the proportion of short- and long-tongued bees on focal flowers did not differ between control and manipulated plots for either manipulation. So, bees within some functional groups are more strongly linked to their floral trait partners than others. And, it may be more fruitful to describe expected bee community compositions in terms of relative proportions of relevant ecological traits than species, particularly in species-diverse communities. © 2017 The Author(s).

  14. Application of Zoning and ``Limits of Acceptable Change'' to Manage Snorkelling Tourism

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Roman, George S. J.; Dearden, Philip; Rollins, Rick

    2007-06-01

    Zoning and applying Limits of Acceptable Change (LAC) are two promising strategies for managing tourism in Marine Protected Areas (MPAs). Typically, these management strategies require the collection and integration of ecological and socioeconomic data. This problem is illustrated by a case study of Koh Chang National Marine Park, Thailand. Biophysical surveys assessed coral communities in the MPA to derive indices of reef diversity and vulnerability. Social surveys assessed visitor perceptions and satisfaction with conditions encountered on snorkelling tours. Notably, increased coral mortality caused a significant decrease in visitor satisfaction. The two studies were integrated to prescribe zoning and “Limits of Acceptable Change” (LAC). As a biophysical indicator, the data suggest a LAC value of 0.35 for the coral mortality index. As a social indicator, the data suggest that a significant fraction of visitors would find a LAC value of under 30 snorkellers per site as acceptable. The draft zoning plan prescribed four different types of zones: (I) a Conservation Zone with no access apart from monitoring or research; (II) Tourism Zones with high tourism intensities at less vulnerable reefs; (III) Ecotourism zones with a social LAC standard of <30 snorkellers per site, and (IV) General Use Zones to meet local artisanal fishery needs. This study illustrates how ecological and socioeconomic field studies in MPAs can be integrated to craft zoning plans addressing multiple objectives.

  15. Application of zoning and "limits of acceptable change" to manage snorkelling tourism.

    PubMed

    Roman, George S J; Dearden, Philip; Rollins, Rick

    2007-06-01

    Zoning and applying Limits of Acceptable Change (LAC) are two promising strategies for managing tourism in Marine Protected Areas (MPAs). Typically, these management strategies require the collection and integration of ecological and socioeconomic data. This problem is illustrated by a case study of Koh Chang National Marine Park, Thailand. Biophysical surveys assessed coral communities in the MPA to derive indices of reef diversity and vulnerability. Social surveys assessed visitor perceptions and satisfaction with conditions encountered on snorkelling tours. Notably, increased coral mortality caused a significant decrease in visitor satisfaction. The two studies were integrated to prescribe zoning and "Limits of Acceptable Change" (LAC). As a biophysical indicator, the data suggest a LAC value of 0.35 for the coral mortality index. As a social indicator, the data suggest that a significant fraction of visitors would find a LAC value of under 30 snorkellers per site as acceptable. The draft zoning plan prescribed four different types of zones: (I) a Conservation Zone with no access apart from monitoring or research; (II) Tourism Zones with high tourism intensities at less vulnerable reefs; (III) Ecotourism zones with a social LAC standard of <30 snorkellers per site, and (IV) General Use Zones to meet local artisanal fishery needs. This study illustrates how ecological and socioeconomic field studies in MPAs can be integrated to craft zoning plans addressing multiple objectives.

  16. The Solar System Radio Explorer Kiosk - Leveraging Other E/PO Programs for Greater Impact

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Garcia, L. N.; Reinisch, B. W.; Taylor, W. W.; Thieman, J. R.; Mendez, F.; Riccobono, M.

    2004-12-01

    The Solar System Radio Explorer Kiosk (SSREK) - a newly won small E/PO follow-on to a NASA/OSS research grant - is designed to leverage existing NASA E/PO projects and other education programs to enable a large return from a small investment. The SSREK project will create an interactive museum kiosk to engage and teach visitors about Jupiter and the Sun by learning what their low frequency radio bursts may be telling us about these worlds. This project will work with the network of radio observers and the archive of data obtained through the NASA-sponsored Radio Jove project. The SSREK project is partnering with the Maryland Science Center (MSC) as a test site for the SSREK. The MSC will enable us to ensure that this project meets the requirements of their museum environment. We are also partnering with the National Federation of the Blind (NFB) to help us enable museum visitors with visual impairments to share in the excitement of science and help these visitors recognize how other senses besides sight can be used to do science. Both the MSC and NFB will assist us in formative and summative evaluation of the project. All of the software and designs for the wheelchair-accessible arcade-style cabinet will be made available on the associated web site hosted at NASA/GSFC - further extending the reach of the project.

  17. Determinants of Visitor Pro-Environmental Intentions on Two Small Greek Islands: Is Ecotourism Possible at Coastal Protected Areas?

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kafyri, Andriani; Hovardas, Tasos; Poirazidis, Konstantinos

    2012-07-01

    A relatively under-researched question is whether there is a possibility of influencing environmentally aware tourists regarding ecotourism at destinations that continue to develop under a pattern of mass `seaside' tourism. Our objective was to assess the pro-environmental intentions of visitors at two small Greek islands, which are within a Natura 2000 site, specifically Paxoi and Antipaxoi. Intentions involved willingness to receive information about the protected area, willingness to accept pro-environmental limitations on recreational experience, and willingness-to-pay a conditional environmental conservation value added tax. In addition, we aimed to identify determinants of visitor pro-environmental intentions among visitor and visit characteristics, visitor satisfaction, and self-reported environmental knowledge, as well as anticipated outcomes of tourism development and suggestions for protected area management. We randomly collected 324 usable questionnaires during the summer season; 242 (74.69 %) by Greek visitors and 82 (25.31 %) by foreign visitors. Visitor satisfaction was quite high; however, visitors reported low levels of environmental knowledge. Our findings showed that the unique characteristics of the destination were not salient among visitors and that there is a lack of effective outreach campaigns, interpretation, and on-site environmental education programs. However, our study revealed high levels of visitor pro-environmental intentions that might support the promotion of ecotourism on the two islands. We provide recommendations based on determinants of visitor pro-environmental intentions, which might assist towards advancing visitor participation in environmental education projects, environmentally responsible behavior among visitors, and financial contribution to environmental conservation by visitors.

  18. Determinants of visitor pro-environmental intentions on two small Greek islands: is ecotourism possible at coastal protected areas?

    PubMed

    Kafyri, Andriani; Hovardas, Tasos; Poirazidis, Konstantinos

    2012-07-01

    A relatively under-researched question is whether there is a possibility of influencing environmentally aware tourists regarding ecotourism at destinations that continue to develop under a pattern of mass 'seaside' tourism. Our objective was to assess the pro-environmental intentions of visitors at two small Greek islands, which are within a Natura 2000 site, specifically Paxoi and Antipaxoi. Intentions involved willingness to receive information about the protected area, willingness to accept pro-environmental limitations on recreational experience, and willingness-to-pay a conditional environmental conservation value added tax. In addition, we aimed to identify determinants of visitor pro-environmental intentions among visitor and visit characteristics, visitor satisfaction, and self-reported environmental knowledge, as well as anticipated outcomes of tourism development and suggestions for protected area management. We randomly collected 324 usable questionnaires during the summer season; 242 (74.69 %) by Greek visitors and 82 (25.31 %) by foreign visitors. Visitor satisfaction was quite high; however, visitors reported low levels of environmental knowledge. Our findings showed that the unique characteristics of the destination were not salient among visitors and that there is a lack of effective outreach campaigns, interpretation, and on-site environmental education programs. However, our study revealed high levels of visitor pro-environmental intentions that might support the promotion of ecotourism on the two islands. We provide recommendations based on determinants of visitor pro-environmental intentions, which might assist towards advancing visitor participation in environmental education projects, environmentally responsible behavior among visitors, and financial contribution to environmental conservation by visitors.

  19. Carnegie Science Academy Web Site

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kotwicki, John; Atzinger, Joe; Turso, Denise

    1997-11-01

    The Carnegie Science Academy is a professional society "For Teens...By Teens" at the Carnegie Science Center in Pittsburgh. The CSA Web Site [ http://csa.clpgh.org ] is designed for teens who have an interest in science and technology. This online or virtual science academy provides resources for teens in high school science classes. The Web site also allows students around the world to participate and communicate with other students, discuss current events in science, share opinions, find answers to questions, or make online friends. Visitors can enjoy the main components of the site or sign up for a free membership which allows access to our chat room for monthly meeting, online newsletter, members forum, and much more. Main components to the site include a spot for cool links and downloads, available for any visitor to download or view. Online exhibits are created by students to examine and publish an area of study and also allow teachers to easily post classroom activities as exhibits by submitting pictures and text. Random Access, the interactive part of the academy, allows users to share ideas and opinions. Planet CSA focuses on current events in science and the academy. In the future the CSA Web site will become a major resource for teens and science teachers providing materials that will allow students to further enhance their interest and experiences in science.

  20. The battle for hearts and minds: who is communicating most effectively with the cosmetic marketplace?

    PubMed

    Camp, Matthew C; Wong, Wendy W; Mussman, Jason L; Gupta, Subhas C

    2010-01-01

    Cosmetic surgery, historically the purview of plastic surgeons, has in recent years seen an influx of practitioners from other fields of training. Many of these new providers are savvy in marketing and public relations and are beginning to control a surprisingly large amount of cosmetic patient care. The purpose of this study is to measure the amount of traffic being attracted to the Web sites of individual practitioners and organizations vying for cosmetic patients. This study investigates the trends of the past 12 months and identifies changes of special concern to plastic surgeons. The Web sites of 1307 cosmetic providers were monitored over a year's time. The Web activity of two million individuals whose computers were loaded with a self-reporting software package was recorded and analyzed. The Web sites were analyzed according to the specialty training of the site owner and total unique visits per month were tallied for the most prominent specialties. The dominant Web sites were closely scrutinized and the Web optimization strategies of each were also examined. There is a tremendous amount of Web activity surrounding cosmetic procedures and the amount of traffic on the most popular sites is continuing to grow. Also, a large sum of money is being expended to channel Web traffic, with sums in the thousands of dollars being spent daily by top Web sites. Overall in the past year, the private Web sites of plastic surgeons have increased their reach by 10%, growing from 200,000 to approximately 220,000 unique visitors monthly. Plastic surgery remains the specialty with the largest number of Web visitors per month. However, when combined, the private Web sites of all other providers of aesthetic services have significantly outpaced plastic surgery's growth. The traffic going to non-plastic surgeons has grown by 50% (200,000 visitors per month in September 2008 to 300,000 visitors monthly in September 2009). For providers of aesthetic services, communication with the public is of utmost importance. The Web has become the single most important information resource for consumers because of easy access. Plastic surgeons are facing significant competition for the attention of potential patients, with increasingly sophisticated Web sites and listing services being set up by independent parties. It is important for plastic surgeons to become familiar with the available Internet tools for communication with potential patients and to aggressively utilize these tools for effective practice building.

  1. 8. DETAIL: GENERATOR FLOOR DIABLO POWERHOUSE SHOWING BUTTERFLY VALVE CONTROL, ...

    Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

    8. DETAIL: GENERATOR FLOOR DIABLO POWERHOUSE SHOWING BUTTERFLY VALVE CONTROL, MOSAIC TILE FLOOR, AS SEEN FROM VISITORS GALLERY, 1989. - Skagit Power Development, Diablo Powerhouse, On Skagit River, 6.1 miles upstream from Newhalem, Newhalem, Whatcom County, WA

  2. A randomised control trial of oral health education provided by a health visitor to parents of pre-school children.

    PubMed

    Whittle, J G; Whitehead, H F; Bishop, C M

    2008-03-01

    To determine the effect of oral health education carried out by a specially trained health visitor on the dental health of young children. Children, who were recruited during their 8-month distraction-hearing test, were randomly allocated to intervention and control groups. A home visit by the health visitor was arranged to parents in the intervention group who were given dental health advice. A second home visit, when the child was about 20 months old, focused on a completed diet record sheet and discussions about what and when the child was eating and drinking. Children in the intervention group received a toothbrush and toothpaste containing 440 ppm fluoride at both visits while those in the control group received the level of care usually provided by health visitors in the area. The children's teeth were examined when they were three years old and two years later as part of a census survey of 5-year-old children in the area. The numbers of decayed, missing and filled tooth surfaces. 251 children were recruited to the control group and 250 to the intervention group. At age three, they were examined; the mean dmfs scores were 2.19 (95% Confidence Interval: 1.41-2.97) in the control group (n = 171) and 2.03 (CI: 1.39-2.67) in the intervention group (n = 181). During the census survey 276 of the children in the study were examined at school. At this age the mean dmfs scores were 4.84 (CI: 3.39-6.29) in the control group (n = 129) and 3.99 (CI: 2.54-5.04) in the intervention group (n = 147). However, the mean dmfs of the remaining 2,253 children who were examined was 5.94 (CI: 5.55-6.33). No statistically significant differences in mean dmfs scores were found between the control and intervention groups of children, although, as the children grew older, the gap between them widened. However, the mean dmfs score of other 5-year-olds in the area was significantly worse than that of children in the intervention group. Asking the control parents to take part in the study and examining their children at three years may have had an effect on their dental health status and have made it more difficult to detect any differences achieved by the programme.

  3. An hourly variation in zoo visitor interest: measurement and significance for animal welfare research.

    PubMed

    Davey, Gareth

    2006-01-01

    A methodological difficulty facing welfare research on nonhuman animals in the zoo is the large number of uncontrolled variables due to variation within and between study sites. Zoo visitors act as uncontrolled variables, with number, density, size, and behavior constantly changing. This is worrisome because previous research linked visitor variables to animal behavioral changes indicative of stress. There are implications for research design: Studies not accounting for visitors' effect on animal welfare risk confounding (visitor) variables distorting their findings. Zoos need methods to measure and minimize effects of visitor behavior and to ensure that there are no hidden variables in research models. This article identifies a previously unreported variable--hourly variation (decrease) in visitor interest--that may impinge on animal welfare and validates a methodology for measuring it. That visitor interest wanes across the course of the day has important implications for animal welfare management; visitor effects on animal welfare are likely to occur, or intensify, during the morning or in earlier visits when visitor interest is greatest. This article discusses this issue and possible solutions to reduce visitor effects on animal well-being.

  4. Environmental Factors Associated with Norovirus Transmission in Long-Term Care Facilities in South Carolina.

    PubMed

    Jayasekara, Lalani; Leone, Cortney M; Sharp, Julia; Getty, Morgan

    2016-09-01

    In the U.S., 60% of norovirus outbreaks are attributed to long-term care facilities (LTCFs). A descriptive study of 26 LTCFs in South Carolina was conducted to determine the presence of environmental factors associated with transmission of human noroviruses. Sanitary conditions in one common area, one staff/visitor bathroom, and the main kitchen were assessed using two audit forms. While surfaces in all kitchens were in good sanitary condition, 23 LTCFs used quaternary ammonium-based sanitizers and three LTCFs used chlorine bleach for kitchen sanitization. All common areas were also clean and in good condition; however, 20 LTCFs had upholstered chairs, and five LTCFs had carpeted floors. Seven facilities used quaternary ammonium-based disinfectants exclusively, whereas six LTCFs used chlorine bleach exclusively, and eight LTCFs used both to disinfect common areas. Seven staff/visitor bathrooms were accessible to residents, and hand washing signage was missing from 10. These results reveal the presence of environmental factors that might facilitate norovirus transmission within LTCFs.

  5. A system for monitoring impact of Denali National Park road traffic on wildlife

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Taylor, Dale L.; Vogt, Kenneth D.; Warburton, Janet

    1997-01-01

    The Denali National Park and Preserve (DENA) is a 6.03 million acre reserve lying between Anchorage and Fairbanks, Alaska.  The park was established in 1917 as a wildlife refuge, and is managed to maintain the wilderness character.  With the highest mountain in North America, Mt. McKinley, and the easy availability of wildlife for viewing, the park is Alaska's most favored destination point.  From 1972 through 1984, visitation grew from 88, 615 to 394, 426 visitor days per year (GMP, 1986), and then increased by 50,000 per year to 596,000 visitors in 1988.  This demand for motorized access to the park, especially along the 92.5 mile-long park road, has resulted in controversy and claims of traffic disturbance to wildlife [(letter from Superintendent, DENA July 13, 1988) (Anchorage Daily News, May 14, 1995; May 26, 1995; February 5, 1996; June 18, 1996) Leo (1987); Lee Rue (1996)].

  6. Estimate of radon exposure in geothermal spas in Poland.

    PubMed

    Walczak, Katarzyna; Olszewski, Jerzy; Zmyślony, Marek

    2016-01-01

    Geothermal waters may contain soluble, radioactive radon gas. Spa facilities that use geothermal water may be a source of an increased radiation dose to people who stay there. It has been necessary to assess the exposure to radon among people: workers and visitors of spa centers that use geothermal waters. In 2013, workers of the Nofer Institute of Occupational Medicine measured concentrations of radon over the geothermal water surfaces in 9 selected Polish spa centers which use geothermal water for recreational and medicinal purposes. The measurements were performed by active dosimetry using Lucas scintillation cells. According to our research, the doses received by the personnel in Polish geothermal spas are < 0.6 mSv/year. In 1 of the investigated spas, the estimated annual dose to the staff may exceed 3 mSv/year. In Polish geothermal spas, neither the workers nor the visitors are at risk of receiving doses that exceed the safe limits. This work is available in Open Access model and licensed under a CC BY-NC 3.0 PL license.

  7. Visitor Preferences for Visual Changes in Bark Beetle-Impacted Forest Recreation Settings in the United States and Germany

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Arnberger, Arne; Ebenberger, Martin; Schneider, Ingrid E.; Cottrell, Stuart; Schlueter, Alexander C.; von Ruschkowski, Eick; Venette, Robert C.; Snyder, Stephanie A.; Gobster, Paul H.

    2018-02-01

    Extensive outbreaks of tree-killing insects are increasing across forests in Europe and North America due to climate change and other factors. Yet, little recent research examines visitor response to visual changes in conifer forest recreation settings resulting from forest insect infestations, how visitors weigh trade-offs between physical and social forest environment factors, or how visitor preferences might differ by nationality. This study explored forest visitor preferences with a discrete choice experiment that photographically simulated conifer forest stands with varying levels of bark beetle outbreaks, forest and visitor management practices, and visitor use levels and compositions. On-site surveys were conducted with visitors to State Forest State Park in Colorado ( n = 200), Lake Bemidji State Park in Minnesota ( n = 228), and Harz National Park in Germany ( n = 208). Results revealed that the condition of the immediate forest surrounding was the most important variable influencing visitors' landscape preferences. Visitors preferred healthy mature forest stands and disliked forests with substantial dead wood. The number of visitors was the most important social factor influencing visitor landscape preferences. Differences in the influence of physical and social factors on visual preferences existed between study sites. Findings suggest that both visual forest conditions and visitor use management are important concerns in addressing landscape preferences for beetle-impacted forest recreation areas.

  8. Visitor Preferences for Visual Changes in Bark Beetle-Impacted Forest Recreation Settings in the United States and Germany.

    PubMed

    Arnberger, Arne; Ebenberger, Martin; Schneider, Ingrid E; Cottrell, Stuart; Schlueter, Alexander C; von Ruschkowski, Eick; Venette, Robert C; Snyder, Stephanie A; Gobster, Paul H

    2018-02-01

    Extensive outbreaks of tree-killing insects are increasing across forests in Europe and North America due to climate change and other factors. Yet, little recent research examines visitor response to visual changes in conifer forest recreation settings resulting from forest insect infestations, how visitors weigh trade-offs between physical and social forest environment factors, or how visitor preferences might differ by nationality. This study explored forest visitor preferences with a discrete choice experiment that photographically simulated conifer forest stands with varying levels of bark beetle outbreaks, forest and visitor management practices, and visitor use levels and compositions. On-site surveys were conducted with visitors to State Forest State Park in Colorado (n = 200), Lake Bemidji State Park in Minnesota (n = 228), and Harz National Park in Germany (n = 208). Results revealed that the condition of the immediate forest surrounding was the most important variable influencing visitors' landscape preferences. Visitors preferred healthy mature forest stands and disliked forests with substantial dead wood. The number of visitors was the most important social factor influencing visitor landscape preferences. Differences in the influence of physical and social factors on visual preferences existed between study sites. Findings suggest that both visual forest conditions and visitor use management are important concerns in addressing landscape preferences for beetle-impacted forest recreation areas.

  9. Visitor injuries in Hawai'i.

    PubMed

    Ho, Hao Chih; Speck, Cora S R; Kumasaki, Jennifer

    2009-12-01

    Over seven million tourists visit the Hawaiian Islands each year. Popular visitor activities such as surfing, scuba diving, ocean kayaking, parasailing, bicycle tours and hiking each have risks of serious injury. This study reviews visitors' activities that led to serious injuries requiring treatment at the state's only trauma center while vacationing in Hawai'i. A retrospective electronic medical record review was conducted of all visitor and resident trauma patients admitted to The Queen's Medical Center (QMC) from January 2002-December 2006. Patient demographics, injury type and severity, mechanism of injury, and discharge status were collected and analyzed. A total of 8244 patients were admitted to QMC for major traumatic injuries over the five year study period. Of these, 466 (5.7%) were visitors. The most common mechanisms of visitor injuries were falls (23.6%), water-related injuries (22.8%), motor vehicle crashes (18.7%), motorcycle, moped, and recreational vehicle crashes (12.2%), assaults (7.3%), and bicycle crashes (4.0%). A disproportionate number of visitors sustained serious injuries while engaging in water-related activities: Visitors account for only 12.6% of the population on any given day, yet comprise 44.2% of the total admissions for Hawai'i's water-related injuries. Head and spine injuries make up over two-thirds (68.2%) of these water-related visitor injuries. As a general category, falls were responsible for the highest number of visitor trauma admissions. Of the recreational activities leading to high numbers of trauma admissions, water-related activities are the leading causes of serious injuries among visitors to Hawai'i. Water-related injury rates are significantly higher for Hawai'i's visitors than residents. Water safety education for visitors should be developed in multiple languages to educate and protect Hawai'i's visitors and visitor industry.

  10. Characteristics associated with use of public and private web sites as sources of health care information: results from a national survey.

    PubMed

    Miller, Edward Alan; West, Darrell M

    2007-03-01

    We sought to determine the frequency with which Americans access health information from governmental (public sector) and nongovernmental (private sector) web sites and to identify similarities and differences in the characteristics associated with use of each type. Data derive from 928 individuals who responded to a November 2005 national survey. In addition to forms of health communication, we asked about age, gender, race, income, education, insurance, lifestyle, residence, satisfaction, literacy, and health. We report the extent of web site use stratified by sponsorship type-public and private. We also use chi tests to examine bivariate associations. Logistic regression and multiple imputation of missing data were used to examine the correlates of use in a multivariate context. More than twice as many respondents visited private web sites (29.6%) than public web sites (13.2%). However, just 23.6% and 18.9% of private and public web site visitors, respectively, reported doing so once a month or more. Both public and private web site visitors were more likely to be better-educated respondents (odds ratio [OR]=0.83, OR=1.57) reporting greater concerns about health care access (OR=1.28, OR=1.20) than nonvisitors. Younger individuals (OR=0.83) living in urban areas (OR=1.59) with stronger health literacy (OR=1.24) and reporting greater concerns about health care affordability (OR=1.59) were more likely to visit privately sponsored web sites but nonpublicly sponsored ones. Relatively low utilization levels necessitate a concerted effort to improve the quality, accessibility, and relevance of Internet health information. Efforts to close the digital divide must recognize differences in user characteristics across governmental and nongovernmental web site providers.

  11. Hospital admissions for traumatic brain injury of Austrian residents vs. of visitors to Austria.

    PubMed

    Mauritz, Walter; Brazinova, Alexandra; Majdan, Marek; Leitgeb, Johannes

    2014-01-01

    The goal was to compare epidemiology of hospital admissions for traumatic brain injury (TBI) in Austrian residents vs. visitors to Austria. Data on all hospital admissions due to TBI (ICD-10 codes S06.0-S06.9; years 2009-2011) was provided by the Austrian Statistical Office. Data on Austrian population and on tourism (visitor numbers, nights spent) was retrieved from www.statistik.at . Age, sex, mechanism of injury, season and mortality was analysed for Austrian residents vs. visitors. Visitors contributed 3.9% to the total population and 9.2% of all TBI cases. Incidence of hospital admissions was 292/100,000/year in Austrian residents and was 727/100,000/year in visitors. Male:female ratio was 1.39:1 in Austrian residents and 1.55:1 in visitors. Austrian cases were older than visitors' cases (mean age 41 vs. 28 years). Austrian cases were distributed evenly over the seasons, while 75% of the visitors' cases happened during winter and spring. The most frequently observed causes of TBI in Austrian residents were private accidents, while sports caused almost half of the visitors' cases. Hospital mortality was lower in visitors than in Austrian residents (0.8 vs. 2.1%). Sports-related TBI of visitors causes a significant workload for Austrian hospitals. Better prevention is warranted.

  12. Exploring staff perceptions and experiences of volunteers and visitors on the hospital ward at mealtimes using an ethnographic approach.

    PubMed

    Ottrey, Ella; Palermo, Claire; Huggins, Catherine E; Porter, Judi

    2018-04-01

    To explore multiple perspectives and experiences of volunteer and visitor involvement and interactions at hospital mealtimes. In addition, to understand how the volunteer and visitor role at mealtimes is perceived within the hospital system. Mealtime assistance can improve patients' food intake and mealtime experience. Barriers to providing mealtime assistance include time pressures, staff availability and inadequate communication. Volunteers and visitors can encourage and assist patients at mealtimes. There is a lack of evidence on the relationship between hospital staff, volunteers and visitors. A qualitative, ethnographic approach. Sixty-seven hours of fieldwork were conducted on two subacute wards within an Australian healthcare network in 2015. Mealtime practices and interactions of hospital staff, volunteers and visitors were observed. Sixty-one staff, volunteers and visitors were interviewed in 75 ethnographic and semi-structured interviews. Data were inductively and thematically analysed. Three key themes emerged as follows: "help"-volunteers and visitors were considered helpful when they assisted patients at mealtimes, supported well-being and aided staff-patient communication; "hindrance"-staff perceived visitors as negative presences when they inhibited patient progress and impacted staff work practices; and "reality of practice"-visiting hours, visitor engagement in patient therapy and communication between staff, volunteers and visitors were important practical considerations of mealtime involvement. The findings show how and why volunteers and visitors can be helpful and unhelpful at hospital mealtimes on subacute wards. More research on the role and contribution of volunteers and visitors on hospital wards will inform future practice in healthcare settings. This healthcare organisation should continue to encourage volunteer and visitor involvement at hospital mealtimes. More effort is needed to educate visitors about patients' therapeutic goals and the importance of nutrition. The working relationship between hospital staff, volunteers and visitors should be strengthened to improve nutritional care. © 2018 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  13. Evolution of the VLT instrument control system toward industry standards

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kiekebusch, Mario J.; Chiozzi, Gianluca; Knudstrup, Jens; Popovic, Dan; Zins, Gerard

    2010-07-01

    The VLT control system is a large distributed system consisting of Linux Workstations providing the high level coordination and interfaces to the users, and VME-based Local Control Units (LCU's) running the VxWorks real-time operating system with commercial and proprietary boards acting as the interface to the instrument functions. After more than 10 years of VLT operations, some of the applied technologies used by the astronomical instruments are being discontinued making it difficult to find adequate hardware for future projects. In order to deal with this obsolescence, the VLT Instrumentation Framework is being extended to adopt well established Commercial Off The Shelf (COTS) components connected through industry standard fieldbuses. This ensures a flexible state of the art hardware configuration for the next generation VLT instruments allowing the access to instrument devices via more compact and simpler control units like PC-based Programmable Logical Controllers (PLC's). It also makes it possible to control devices directly from the Instrument Workstation through a normal Ethernet connection. This paper outlines the requirements that motivated this work, as well as the architecture and the design of the framework extension. In addition, it describes the preliminary results on a use case which is a VLTI visitor instrument used as a pilot project to validate the concepts and the suitability of some COTS products like a PC-based PLCs, EtherCAT8 and OPC UA6 as solutions for instrument control.

  14. 9 CFR 147.26 - Procedures for establishing isolation and maintaining sanitation and good management practices...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-01-01

    ... and maintaining sanitation and good management practices for the control of Salmonella and Mycoplasma... management practices for the control of Salmonella and Mycoplasma infections. (a) The following procedures...) Allow no visitors except under controlled conditions to minimize the introduction of Salmonella and...

  15. Visitor's Computer Guidelines | CTIO

    Science.gov Websites

    Visitor's Computer Guidelines Network Connection Request Instruments Instruments by Telescope IR Instruments Logs Tololo Kaxis Webcam NOAO Newsletters NOAO Data Archive Astronomical Links Visitor's Computer ‹› You are here CTIO Home » Astronomers » Visitor's Computer Guidelines Visitor's Computer

  16. Short-term changes in thermal perception associated with heatwave conditions in Melbourne, Australia

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lam, Cho Kwong Charlie; Gallant, Ailie J. E.; Tapper, Nigel J.

    2018-05-01

    Variations in human thermal perception have been described on timescales from minutes to seasons. However, the effect of weather-related thermal extremes on inter-daily changes to outdoor thermal perception has not been well characterised. This study used human thermal comfort data from an outdoor botanic garden in sub-urban Melbourne, Australia as a case study. We examined inter-daily variations in local visitors' thermal perception before (11-12 January 2014) and after (18-19 January 2014) a severe heatwave from 14 to 17 January 2014, when daily maximum temperature exceeded 41 °C for 4 consecutive days. We compared thermal comfort survey results (pre-heatwave: n = 342, post-heatwave: n = 294) with air temperature and the Universal Thermal Climate Index (UTCI) measurements. Even though the days preceding and following the heatwave had a similar range in temperature (19-25 °C) and UTCI (26-32 °C), the visitors felt cooler in the days following the heatwave (i.e. lower thermal sensation votes). In the 2 days following the heatwave, visitors also wore less clothing compared with before the heatwave. Our results show that the thermal perception of visitors changed significantly following their exposure to the heatwave, even after controlling for changes in clothing choices and the ages of survey participants. Psychological adaptation to heat (such as thermal history and expectation) might be one of the possible explanations for this inter-daily variability of local visitors' thermal perception.

  17. Flood, disaster, and turmoil: social issues in cleft and craniofacial care and crisis relief.

    PubMed

    Strauss, Ronald P; van Aalst, John A; Fox, Lynn; Stein, Margot; Moses, Michael; Cassell, Cynthia H

    2011-11-01

    To examine social issues in the conduct of cleft and craniofacial care through relief programs in disrupted crisis contexts. Social, health policy, and ethical analyses. At best, craniofacial team care is multidisciplinary, coordinated, and sustained, requiring a long-term relationship between team members, patients, and families. Disasters and societal turmoil interrupt such relationships, causing craniofacial care to become a secondary concern. Providing craniofacial team care in a crisis setting requires rebuilding disrupted coordination and communication. Crisis relief care involves a complex set of expectations and responsibilities and raises issues such as (1) quality assurance, infection control, appropriate standards of care, and follow-up care/continuity; (2) equity of access to services and clinical ethics in the context of war and/or deprivation; (3) training of visitors in the local nation or site; (4) disciplinary composition of teams, interprofessional communication/rivalry, and credentials of clinicians; (5) ownership of the site and local visitor relations; (6) fundraising and marketing strategies; and (7) ethical issues in the doctor-patient relationship. Specific ethical standards for international cleft and craniofacial care delivery also apply to domestic and global crisis relief contexts. Guidance on issues related to professional experience, informed consent, and continuity of care will help care providers address social and ethical issues raised in crisis relief programs. This paper proposes that the Position Paper of the American Cleft Palate-Craniofacial Association (ACPA) on International Treatment Programs should be used as a template to develop and disseminate a set of standards that apply to crisis relief.

  18. Junk science for sale Sham journals proliferating online.

    PubMed

    Klyce, Walter; Feller, Edward

    2017-07-05

    A new danger threatens the integrity of scholarly publishing: predatory journals. Internet-only, "open-access" publishing is a valid way for researchers to reach the public without a paywall separating them. But, of thousands of open-access scientific journals today, as many as twenty-five percent are believed to be fake, existing only to make money by charging authors high processing fees. In sham journals, peer review is cursory or absent: as many as eighty to ninety percent of submitted manuscripts are accepted, many within days, without any editorial comment. Predatory journalism can be remarkably good at mimicking reputable publishers. Sham journals use names and logos that closely resemble those of legitimate journals, intentionally confusing site visitors. Untrustworthy publications have not received the widespread, damning publicity they deserve. If junk science is not confronted and eliminated, it will continue to tarnish and undermine ethical, open-access scholarly publishing. [Full article available at http://rimed.org/rimedicaljournal-2017-07.asp].

  19. Plan for Engineering and Design. Des Moines Recreational River and Greenbelt, Des Moines River, Iowa.

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1986-03-01

    investigations and site preservation Continuous hiking/biking path from Hwy. 20 to Hwy. 92 Soil erosion structures Access roads Skating pond Beach area on...Group Camp Cabins and Dormitories x Dining Hall x Infirmaries x Amphitheaters x x Caretaker Quarters x Outdoor Cooking x x Beaches x x Docks x x Tent pads...x x Swimming Beaches x x Visitor Center x2/ x Nature Center x Historical Centers x Archeological Centers x Environmental-Education Centers x Lodges

  20. Monitoring the visitor experience at Buck Island Reef National Monument

    Treesearch

    Alan R. Graefe; Roger L. Moore

    1992-01-01

    This paper examines relationships between visitor density levels and perceptions of crowding at a Caribbean coral reef. Reef visitors were more likely to report that the quality of their experience was enhanced, rather than reduced, by their encounters with other visitors. Perceived crowding was related to visitors' previous experience and the location of...

  1. Analyzing traffic source impact on returning visitors ratio in information provider website

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Prasetio, A.; Sari, P. K.; Sharif, O. O.; Sofyan, E.

    2016-04-01

    Web site performance, especially returning visitor is an important metric for an information provider web site. Since high returning visitor is a good indication of a web site’s visitor loyalty, it is important to find a way to improve this metric. This research investigated if there is any difference on returning visitor metric among three web traffic sources namely direct, referral and search. Monthly returning visitor and total visitor from each source is retrieved from Google Analytics tools and then calculated to measure returning visitor ratio. The period of data observation is from July 2012 to June 2015 resulting in a total of 108 samples. These data then analysed using One-Way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) to address our research question. The results showed that different traffic source has significantly different returning visitor ratio especially between referral traffic source and the other two traffic sources. On the other hand, this research did not find any significant difference between returning visitor ratio from direct and search traffic sources. The owner of the web site can focus to multiply referral links from other relevant sites.

  2. Flower orientation enhances pollen transfer in bilaterally symmetrical flowers.

    PubMed

    Ushimaru, Atushi; Dohzono, Ikumi; Takami, Yasuoki; Hyodo, Fujio

    2009-07-01

    Zygomorphic flowers are usually more complex than actinomorphic flowers and are more likely to be visited by specialized pollinators. Complex zygomorphic flowers tend to be oriented horizontally. It is hypothesized that a horizontal flower orientation ensures effective pollen transfer by facilitating pollinator recognition (the recognition-facilitation hypothesis) and/or pollinator landing (the landing-control hypothesis). To examine these two hypotheses, we altered the angle of Commelina communis flowers and examined the efficiency of pollen transfer, as well as the behavior of their visitors. We exposed unmanipulated (horizontal-), upward-, and downward-facing flowers to syrphid flies (mostly Episyrphus balteatus), which are natural visitors to C. communis. The frequency of pollinator approaches and landings, as well as the amount of pollen deposited by E. balteatus, decreased for the downward-facing flowers, supporting both hypotheses. The upward-facing flowers received the same numbers of approaches and landings as the unmanipulated flowers, but experienced more illegitimate landings. In addition, the visitors failed to touch the stigmas or anthers on the upward-facing flowers, leading to reduced pollen export and receipt, and supporting the landing-control hypothesis. Collectively, our data suggested that the horizontal orientation of zygomorphic flowers enhances pollen transfer by both facilitating pollinator recognition and controlling pollinator landing position. These findings suggest that zygomorphic flowers which deviate from a horizontal orientation may have lower fitness because of decreased pollen transfer.

  3. ATLAS Virtual Visits: Bringing the World into the ATLAS Control Room

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Goldfarb, S.

    2012-12-01

    The newfound ability of Social Media to transform public communication back to a conversational nature provides HEP with a powerful tool for Outreach and Communication. By far, the most effective component of nearly any visit or public event is that fact that the students, teachers, media, and members of the public have a chance to meet and converse with real scientists. While more than 30,000 visitors passed through the ATLAS Visitor Centre in 2011, nearly 7 billion did not have a chance to make the trip. Clearly this is not for lack of interest. Rather, the costs of travel, in terms of time and money, and limited parking, put that number somewhat out of reach. On the other hand, during the LHC “First Physics” event of 2010, more than 2 million visitors joined the experiment control rooms via webcast for the celebration. This document presents a project developed for the ATLAS Experiment's Outreach and Education program that complements the webcast infrastructure with video conferencing and wireless sound systems, allowing the public to interact with hosts in the control room with minimal disturbance to the shifters. These “Virtual Visits” have included high school classes, LHC Masterclasses, conferences, expositions and other events in Europe, USA, Japan and Australia, to name a few. We discuss the technology used, potential pitfalls (and ways to avoid them), and our plans for the future.

  4. Zoo Visitor Knowledge and Attitudes toward Gorillas and Chimpanzees

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lukas, K. E.; Ross, S. R.

    2005-01-01

    The authors conducted an evaluation of visitor knowledge and conservation attitudes toward African apes at Chicago's Lincoln Park Zoo. Using S. R. Kellert's and J. Dunlap's (1989) analysis of zoo visitor knowledge and attitudes as a model, they modified and administered a survey to 1,000 visitors to the ape facility. On average, visitors correctly…

  5. An update to the Surface Ocean CO2 Atlas (SOCAT version 2)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bakker, D. C. E.; Pfeil, B.; Smith, K.; Hankin, S.; Olsen, A.; Alin, S. R.; Cosca, C.; Harasawa, S.; Kozyr, A.; Nojiri, Y.; O'Brien, K. M.; Schuster, U.; Telszewski, M.; Tilbrook, B.; Wada, C.; Akl, J.; Barbero, L.; Bates, N.; Boutin, J.; Cai, W.-J.; Castle, R. D.; Chavez, F. P.; Chen, L.; Chierici, M.; Currie, K.; de Baar, H. J. W.; Evans, W.; Feely, R. A.; Fransson, A.; Gao, Z.; Hales, B.; Hardman-Mountford, N.; Hoppema, M.; Huang, W.-J.; Hunt, C. W.; Huss, B.; Ichikawa, T.; Johannessen, T.; Jones, E. M.; Jones, S. D.; Jutterström, S.; Kitidis, V.; Körtzinger, A.; Landschtzer, P.; Lauvset, S. K.; Lefèvre, N.; Manke, A. B.; Mathis, J. T.; Merlivat, L.; Metzl, N.; Murata, A.; Newberger, T.; Ono, T.; Park, G.-H.; Paterson, K.; Pierrot, D.; Ríos, A. F.; Sabine, C. L.; Saito, S.; Salisbury, J.; Sarma, V. V. S. S.; Schlitzer, R.; Sieger, R.; Skjelvan, I.; Steinhoff, T.; Sullivan, K.; Sun, H.; Sutton, A. J.; Suzuki, T.; Sweeney, C.; Takahashi, T.; Tjiputra, J.; Tsurushima, N.; van Heuven, S. M. A. C.; Vandemark, D.; Vlahos, P.; Wallace, D. W. R.; Wanninkhof, R.; Watson, A. J.

    2013-08-01

    The Surface Ocean CO2 Atlas (SOCAT) is an effort by the international marine carbon research community. It aims to improve access to carbon dioxide measurements in the surface oceans by regular releases of quality controlled and fully documented synthesis and gridded fCO2 (fugacity of carbon dioxide) products. SOCAT version 2 presented here extends the data set for the global oceans and coastal seas by four years and has 10.1 million surface water fCO2 values from 2660 cruises between 1968 and 2011. The procedures for creating version 2 have been comparable to those for version 1. The SOCAT website (http://www.socat.info/) provides access to the individual cruise data files, as well as to the synthesis and gridded data products. Interactive online tools allow visitors to explore the richness of the data. Scientific users can also retrieve the data as downloadable files or via Ocean Data View. Version 2 enables carbon specialists to expand their studies until 2011. Applications of SOCAT include process studies, quantification of the ocean carbon sink and its spatial, seasonal, year-to-year and longer-term variation, as well as initialisation or validation of ocean carbon models and coupled-climate carbon models.

  6. Experiential benefits, place meanings, and environmental setting preferences between proximate and distant visitors to a national scenic trail.

    PubMed

    Kil, Namyun; Holland, Stephen M; Stein, Taylor V

    2015-05-01

    Effective management of conserved natural areas often requires a good understanding of recreation visitors who possess various values for those areas. This study examined differences in experiential benefits sought, place meanings, and environmental setting preferences between proximate and distant visitors to a publicly managed national scenic trail, which transects a variety of conserved public lands. Data were collected using on-site post-hike interviews with visitors at low, moderate, and high use trailheads. Proximate visitors sought mental and physical health more strongly than distant visitors, while distant visitors sought environmental exploration more strongly than proximate visitors. No significant difference in family bonding and achievement benefits existed between the two groups. Meanings related to place dependence, family identity, community identity, and place identity were more strongly ascribed by proximate visitors, and both groups rated ecological integrity meanings highly. Distant visitors showed stronger tendencies toward preferring a lesser level of trail development, lower level of encounters with other groups, and higher level of natural landscapes, which indicated an inclination toward natural settings. These findings indicate a managerially relevant role of the degree of proximity to environmental resources on individuals' recreation behaviors, meanings ascribed to the resources and setting conditions. Understanding differences and similarities between groups dichotomized by proximity to natural resources should advance more effective management of recreation and benefit opportunities for diverse visitor groups.

  7. Experiential Benefits, Place Meanings, and Environmental Setting Preferences Between Proximate and Distant Visitors to a National Scenic Trail

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kil, Namyun; Holland, Stephen M.; Stein, Taylor V.

    2015-05-01

    Effective management of conserved natural areas often requires a good understanding of recreation visitors who possess various values for those areas. This study examined differences in experiential benefits sought, place meanings, and environmental setting preferences between proximate and distant visitors to a publicly managed national scenic trail, which transects a variety of conserved public lands. Data were collected using on-site post-hike interviews with visitors at low, moderate, and high use trailheads. Proximate visitors sought mental and physical health more strongly than distant visitors, while distant visitors sought environmental exploration more strongly than proximate visitors. No significant difference in family bonding and achievement benefits existed between the two groups. Meanings related to place dependence, family identity, community identity, and place identity were more strongly ascribed by proximate visitors, and both groups rated ecological integrity meanings highly. Distant visitors showed stronger tendencies toward preferring a lesser level of trail development, lower level of encounters with other groups, and higher level of natural landscapes, which indicated an inclination toward natural settings. These findings indicate a managerially relevant role of the degree of proximity to environmental resources on individuals' recreation behaviors, meanings ascribed to the resources and setting conditions. Understanding differences and similarities between groups dichotomized by proximity to natural resources should advance more effective management of recreation and benefit opportunities for diverse visitor groups.

  8. Impacts of visitor number on Kangaroos housed in free-range exhibits.

    PubMed

    Sherwen, Sally L; Hemsworth, Paul H; Butler, Kym L; Fanson, Kerry V; Magrath, Michael J L

    2015-01-01

    Free range exhibits are becoming increasingly popular in zoos as a means to enhance interaction between visitors and animals. However very little research exists on the impacts of visitors on animal behaviour and stress in free range exhibits. We investigated the effects of visitor number on the behaviour and stress physiology of Kangaroo Island (KI) Kangaroos, Macropus fuliginosus fuliginosus, and Red Kangaroos, Macropus rufus, housed in two free range exhibits in Australian zoos. Behavioural observations were conducted on individual kangaroos at each site using instantaneous scan sampling to record activity (e.g., vigilance, foraging, resting) and distance from the visitor pathway. Individually identifiable faecal samples were collected at the end of each study day and analysed for faecal glucocorticoid metabolite (FGM) concentration. When visitor number increased, both KI Kangaroos and Red Kangaroos increased the time spent engaged in visitor-directed vigilance and KI Kangaroos also increased the time spent engaged in locomotion and decreased the time spent resting. There was no effect of visitor number on the distance kangaroos positioned themselves from the visitor pathway or FGM concentration in either species. While there are limitations in interpreting these results in terms of fear of visitors, there was no evidence of adverse effects animal welfare in these study groups based on avoidance behaviour or stress physiology under the range of visitor numbers that we studied. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  9. Where have all the people gone? Enhancing global conservation using night lights and social media.

    PubMed

    Levin, Noam; Kark, Salit; Crandall, David

    2015-12-01

    Conservation prioritization at large scales is complex, combining biological, environmental, and social factors. While conservation scientists now more often aim to incorporate human-related factors, a critical yet unquantified challenge remains: to identify which areas people use for recreation outside urban centers. To address this gap in applied ecology and conservation, we developed a novel approach for quantifying human presence beyond populated areas by combining social media "big data" and remote sensing tools. We used data from the Flickr photo-sharing website as a surrogate for identifying spatial variation in visitation globally, and complemented this estimate with spatially explicit information on stable night lights between 2004 and 2012, used as a proxy for identifying urban and industrial centers. Natural and seminatural areas attracting visitors were defined as areas both highly photographed and non-lit. The number of Flickr photographers within protected areas was found to be a reliable surrogate for estimating visitor numbers as confirmed by local authority censuses (r = 0.8). Half of all visitors' photos taken in protected areas originated from under 1% of all protected areas on Earth (250 of -27 000). The most photographed protected areas globally included Yosemite and Yellowstone National Parks (USA), and the Lake and Peak Districts (UK). Factors explaining the spatial variation in protected areas Flickr photo coverage included their type (e.g., UNESCO World Heritage sites have higher visitation) and accessibility to roads and trails. Using this approach, we identified photography hotspots, which draw many visitors and are also unlit (i.e., are located outside urban centers), but currently remain largely unprotected, such as Brazil's Pantanal and Bolivia's Salar de Uyuni. The integrated big data approach developed here demonstrates the benefits of combining remote sensing sources and novel geo-tagged and crowd-sourced information from social media in future efforts to identify spatial conservation gaps and pressures in real time, and their spatial and temporal variation globally.

  10. Human values and codes of behavior: Changes in Oregon's Eagle Cap Wilderness visitors and their attitudes

    Treesearch

    Alan E. Watson; John C. Hendee; Hans P. Zaglauer

    1996-01-01

    A study of visitors to Oregon's Eagle Cap Wilderness in 1965 offered a baseline against which to evaluate how those who recreate in wilderness have changed their views of wilderness. A study of visitors to that same wilderness area in 1993 provided comparative data. Some characteristics of the visitors changed in ways that would suggest that the values visitors...

  11. From vision to reality--managing change in the provision of library and information services to nurses, midwives, health visitors and PAMs: (professions allied to medicine) a case study of the North Thames experience with the Inner London Consortium.

    PubMed

    Godbolt, S; Williamson, J; Wilson, A

    1997-06-01

    One of the North Thames' pioneering consortia, the Inner London Consortium (ILC) is a complex body which includes NHS Trusts with teaching hospital university connections, community-based Trusts and general hospital acute Trusts. Within the consortium there are 12,000 trained nurses, midwives, health visitors and other professional staff working in the professions allied to medicine (PAMs), all of whom require access to and provision of appropriate library information services. In 1994, taking into account experiences elsewhere in the Region and nationally, it became clear that library issues were complex and would become acute with the move of nursing libraries from ILC Trust sites over a very short timescale. A report on the issues commissioned by the Consortium recommended that a library project, which built on existing NHS Trust PGMDE funded library resources and moved these to a multidisciplinary base to serve the consortium membership, be implemented. The objective of providing access to library information services for nurses and PAMs was achieved. Successes that emerged from the implementation included: The registration in Trust libraries of almost 12 000 new members within the initial 6-month monitoring period. The development of service level agreements and standards for the delivery of services to these new user groups. This paper describes the processes behind these significant and complex changes.

  12. Swine flu (H1N1 influenza): awareness profile of visitors of swine flu screening booths in Belgaum city, Karnataka.

    PubMed

    Viveki, R G; Halappanavar, A B; Patil, M S; Joshi, A V; Gunagi, Praveena; Halki, Sunanda B

    2012-06-01

    The 2009 flu pandemic was a global outbreak of a new strain of H1N1 influenza virus often referred colloquially as "swine flu". The objectives of the study were: (1) To know the sociodemographic and awareness profile of visitors attending swine flu screening booths. (2) To reveal sources of information. The present cross-sectional study was undertaken among the visitors (18 years and above) attending swine flu screening booths organised within the Belgaum city during Ganesh festival from 28-08-2009 to 03-09-2009 by interviewing them using predesigned, pretested structured questionnaire on swine flu. The data was collected and analysed using SPSS software programme for windows (version 16). Chi-square test was applied. Out of 206 visitors, 132 (64.1%) were males and 107 (51.9%) were in the age group of 30-49 years; 183 (88.8%) had heard about swine flu. More than a third of the visitors (38.3%) disclosed that there was a vaccine to prevent swine flu. Majority responded that it could be transmitted by being in close proximity to pigs (49.0%) and by eating pork (51.5%). Newspaper/magazine (64.6%), television (61.7%), and public posters/pamphlets (44.2%) were common sources of information. The present study revealed that doctors/public health workers have played little role in creating awareness in the community. The improved communication between doctors and the community would help to spread correct information about the disease and the role that the community can play in controlling the spread of the disease.

  13. A turtle cognition research demonstration enhances visitor engagement and keeper-animal relationships.

    PubMed

    Alba, Andrew C; Leighty, Katherine A; Pittman Courte, Victoria L; Grand, Alison P; Bettinger, Tamara L

    2017-07-01

    Environmental enrichment techniques present animals with cognitive challenges while providing them opportunities to make choices and exert control over their environment. In this way, cognitive research and training is enriching to animals and can be used as a form of enrichment in zoos and aquariums. Cognitive research demonstrations also provide an opportunity to enhance visitor experience, as well as foster interactions between animals and keepers. We investigated how cognitive research sessions involving eastern box turtles (Terrapene carolina carolina) at Disney's Animal Kingdom ® impacted both the rate of visitors coming to the exhibit and the amount of time they spent engaged. Further, we used a questionnaire to assess the impact of keeper participation in these sessions on their relationships with and perceptions of the turtles. While visitation rate to the exhibit was not impacted, cognitive research sessions held visitor attention for longer than keeper interpretation or at times during which no keepers or researchers were present. We also found that keepers that had worked with the turtles for longer and keepers that regularly participated in cognitive research sessions reported stronger bonds with the turtles. Our research suggests that use of cognitive research and training demonstrations for guest viewing in zoos and aquariums may enhance visitor learning opportunities by increasing the amount of time they spend at the exhibit. Our study also provides evidence that participation in such demonstrations by zoo and aquarium professionals can be related to improved keeper-animal bonds, potentially resulting in better husbandry and enhanced animal welfare. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  14. National wildlife refuge visitor survey results: 2010/2011

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Sexton, Natalie R.; Dietsch, Alia M.; Don Carolos, Andrew W.; Miller, Holly M.; Koontz, Lynne M.; Solomon, Adam N.

    2012-01-01

    The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) collaborated with the U.S. Geological Survey to conduct a national survey of visitors regarding their experiences on national wildlife refuges. The survey was conducted to better understand visitor needs and experiences and to design programs and facilities that respond to those needs. The survey results will inform Service performance planning, budget, and communications goals. Results will also inform Comprehensive Conservation Plan (CCPs), Visitor Services, and Transportation Planning processes. The survey was conducted on 53 refuges across the National Wildlife Refuge System (Refuge System) to better understand visitor needs and experiences and to design programs and facilities that respond to those needs. A total of 14,832 visitors agreed to participate in the survey between July 2010 and November 2011. In all, 10,233 visitors completed the survey for a 71% response rate. This report provides a summary of visitor and trip characteristics; visitor opinions about refuges and their offerings; and visitor opinions about alternative transportation and climate change, two Refuge System topics of interest. The Refuge System, established in 1903 and managed by the Service, is the leading network of protected lands and waters in the world dedicated to the conservation of fish, wildlife and their habitats. There are 556 National Wildlife Refuges and 38 wetland management districts nationwide, encompassing more than 150 million acres. The Refuge System attracts more than 45 million visitors annually, including 25 million people per year to observe and photograph wildlife, over 9 million to hunt and fish, and more than 10 million to participate in educational and interpretation programs. Understanding visitors and characterizing their experiences on national wildlife refuges are critical elements of managing these lands and meeting the goals of the Refuge System. These combined results are based on surveying at 53 participating refuges during 2010/2011 and contain the following information: * Synopsis: Brief summary of the survey results. * Introduction: An overview of the Refuge System and the goals of the national surveying effort. * Methods: The procedures for the national surveying effort, including selecting refuges, developing the survey instrument, contacting visitors, and guidance for interpreting the results. * Survey Results: Key findings from the survey, including: - Visitor and trip characteristics - Visitors opinions about refuges - Visitor opinions about alternative transportation - Visitor opinions about climate change * Conclusion * References Individual results for each of the 53 participating refuges are available at http://pubs.usgs.gov/ds/643/ as part of USGS Data Series 643.

  15. Visitor Transportation Study: Report on Urban Visitor Transportation Services.

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2004-02-28

    This report is part of a program of research designed to assist the National Park Service units of central Washington, DC, in : their efforts to manage visitor mobility, reduce the negative environmental impacts of visitor transportation, and plan fo...

  16. Evaluating the impact of geologic heritage on Earth science literacy: Adapting best practices from pedagogy and interpretation (Invited)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Semken, S. C.

    2013-12-01

    How might we authentically and practically evaluate the effects of a geologic heritage place or program on public Earth science literacy? This pedagogical form of evaluation is distinct from the evaluation of a place for its geological importance, heritage value, economic or cultural impact, and so on. Best evaluation practices from the realms of formal education, informal education, and interpretation start with a coherent set of evaluable learning outcomes, ideally recapitulated in one or more 'big ideas' that capture the essential attributes of the place or program. Learning outcomes may be classified as cognitive, affective, or psychomotor. Cognitive learning outcomes in a geoheritage context are the Earth-science concepts a visitor or student would be expected to uncover through on-site or virtual exploration of the stratigraphy, structure, landforms, and processes in a place. The Earth Science Literacy Principles (ESLP), and similar literacy documents relating to atmosphere, oceans, and climate; offer a template for mapping localized concepts onto more global ones. Quantitative instruments to evaluate understanding of the ESLP are in development, and the ESLP also map directly onto measures used in formal educational assessment, notably the Next Generation Science Standards in the USA. Nongeological place meanings (a component of sense of place) may suggest other cognitive outcomes. Affective learning outcomes for visitors and students in geoheritage sites are less readily defined, but may include place attachment (also a component of sense of place), attitudes, and interest. Multiple quantitative and qualitative methods of evaluating these outcomes exist. Psychomotor learning outcomes are even muddier, but accessibility (defined by statutes) offers a potential starting point. In practice, evaluation may be conducted synchronously or asynchronously with visitors' or students' interaction with the geoheritage place or program. Evaluation programs are typically constrained by access and practicality. Synchronous methods include observation, semi-structured interviews, rapid prototyping and surveys. Asynchronous methods include interviews, surveys, and tracking. Evaluation tools may require content or instrument validation for the specific context in which they are used. Illustrative examples from evaluation of public engagement with geoheritage places (National Parks) in the Southwest USA will be offered.

  17. Replicating Evidence-Based Practices with Flexibility for Perinatal Home Visiting by Paraprofessionals.

    PubMed

    Rotheram-Fuller, Erin J; Swendeman, Dallas; Becker, Kimberly D; Daleiden, Eric; Chorpita, Bruce; Harris, Danielle M; Mercer, Neil T; Rotheram-Borus, Mary Jane

    2017-12-01

    Introduction Strategies are needed to improve the efficacy of paraprofessional home visitors for pregnant women in the United States. This study evaluates the maternal and child outcomes when evidence-based practices (EBP) are replicated with flexibility, rather than fidelity to a manualized intervention. Methods Pregnant mothers (N = 203) in five clinics were recruited in the waiting rooms and randomized to standard clinic care as the control condition (n = 104) or standard care plus home visiting (n = 99). Home visitors (n = 9) were selected, trained in foundational skills common to EBP and four problem domains (weight control, breastfeeding, daily habits, and depression). Independent interviewers assessed targeted outcomes at birth (82%) and 6 months later (83%). Home visitors, called Mentor Mothers [MM], made an average of 14.9 home visits or telephone contacts (SD = 9; total contacts = 1491) addressing maternal daily habits, breastfeeding, and depression. Intervention and control mothers were similar in weight, Body Mass Index (BMI), depression and social support at baseline and 6 months later. The percentage of low birth weight babies was similar; intervention infants' growth (weight/height Z score) tended to be significantly better compared to the control condition. There are many explanations for the failure to find significant benefits: insufficient statistical power; the benefits of repeated assessments by warm, supportive peers to improve outcomes; or the failure of EBP and the need to maintain replication with fidelity. All study mothers had better outcomes than documented among comparable published samples of low-income, Latina and Korean-American mothers in Los Angeles, CA. ClinicalTrials.gov registration NCT01687634.

  18. Providing Hands on Experiences to Museum Visitors to Explore and Learn about Earthquakes and their Impacts in the Pacific Northwest

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Olds, S. E.; Schiffman, C. R.; Butler, R. F.; Farley, M.; Frankel, S.; Hunter, N.; Lillie, R. J.

    2013-12-01

    Over the past ten years, UNAVCO has developed a suite of learning materials for formal undergraduate and grades 6-12 classroom environments, integrating GPS data from the EarthScope Plate Boundary Observatory (PBO) to explore Earth science processes. To make complex Earth processes accessible to general audiences, UNAVCO has designed a multi-component visiting museum exhibit that explores the tectonic setting of the United States Pacific Northwest, hazards of living on a plate boundary, and the technologies being used to study the plate motion and in the future, help communities become more resilient to the impacts of earthquakes. This exhibit was installed in Fall 2013 at the Oregon State University (OSU) Hatfield Marine Science Center (HMSC) in Newport, Oregon. Through multiple hands-on elements, visitors to the HMSC exhibit explore and experience the build up and release of strain in the region, along with some of the technologies used to measure these changes. In one component, visitors compress a model of the Pacific Northwest to feel the build up of strain in the landscape and observe the movement of land over time. Supporting panels connect this movement to the measurements currently being observed by the network of PBO and other GPS stations in the Pacific Northwest. In another component, visitors learn about the recurrence interval for earthquakes at the Juan De Fuca - North America plate boundary by turning a handle to slowly move and compress plates until a simulated earthquake occurs. A related component explores how an earthquake early warning system (EEWS) of the future might combine seismic data collected by both seismometers and real time GPS to allow people and communities time to prepare for oncoming ground shaking and tsunami after an earthquake. Several technologies are also highlighted throughout the exhibit, including information panels that compare the accuracy of high precision GPS with smartphone technologies. Additionally, models of a full-sized PBO GPS monument and power and communication systems demonstrate the technology supporting real-time GPS data acquisition and rapid data transfer required for current research and future EEWS centers. An accompanying interactive kiosk provides additional content. The presentation will provide more details about the exhibit components and preliminary visitor feedback.

  19. 75 FR 51734 - Testing of Certain High Production Volume Chemical Substances; Third Group of Chemical Substances...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-08-23

    ... visitors are required to show photographic identification, pass through a metal detector, and sign the EPA visitor log. All visitor bags are processed through an X-ray machine and subject to search. Visitors will...

  20. 77 FR 10451 - Fishing Tackle Containing Lead; Disposition of Petition Filed Pursuant to TSCA Section 21

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-02-22

    ... visitors are required to show photographic identification, pass through a metal detector, and sign the EPA visitor log. All visitor bags are processed through an X-ray machine and subject to search. Visitors will...

  1. Visitor perceptions and the shifting social carrying capacity of South Sinai's coral reefs.

    PubMed

    Leujak, Wera; Ormond, Rupert F G

    2007-04-01

    To investigate how the perceptions and behaviour of visitors to coral reefs are influenced by their prior experience and knowledge of marine life, a questionnaire-based study was undertaken at sites in the Ras Mohammed National Park and at Sharm El Sheikh, South Sinai, Egypt. It was evident that over the 10-20 years during which these reefs have deteriorated (mainly due to reef-flat trampling), there have been interrelated shifts in the nature of visitors making use of them. First, there has been a shift from experienced divers and snorkellers to inexperienced snorkellers and non-snorkellers with a poorer knowledge of reef biology. Second, there has been a shift in the predominant nationalities of visitors, from German and British, through Italian, to Russian. More recent user groups both stated and showed that they had less experience of snorkelling; they also showed less knowledge of marine life and less interest in learning about it. Visitor perceptions of both the state of the marine life on the reefs and the acceptability of current visitor numbers also varied between groups. More recent visitor groups and visitors with less knowledge were more satisfied with reef health. In general, however, visitor perceptions of reef health did not correlate well with actual reef conditions, probably because more experienced visitors preferred less impacted sites with which they were nevertheless less satisfied than inexperienced visitors at heavily impacted sites. More recent visitor groups were also less bothered by crowding on the shore or in the water. Consequently, the apparent "social carrying capacity" of sites seems to be increasing to a level well above the likely "ecological carrying capacity".

  2. Visitor Perceptions and the Shifting Social Carrying Capacity of South Sinai's Coral Reefs

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Leujak, Wera; Ormond, Rupert F. G.

    2007-04-01

    To investigate how the perceptions and behaviour of visitors to coral reefs are influenced by their prior experience and knowledge of marine life, a questionnaire-based study was undertaken at sites in the Ras Mohammed National Park and at Sharm El Sheikh, South Sinai, Egypt. It was evident that over the 10-20 years during which these reefs have deteriorated (mainly due to reef-flat trampling), there have been interrelated shifts in the nature of visitors making use of them. First, there has been a shift from experienced divers and snorkellers to inexperienced snorkellers and non-snorkellers with a poorer knowledge of reef biology. Second, there has been a shift in the predominant nationalities of visitors, from German and British, through Italian, to Russian. More recent user groups both stated and showed that they had less experience of snorkelling; they also showed less knowledge of marine life and less interest in learning about it. Visitor perceptions of both the state of the marine life on the reefs and the acceptability of current visitor numbers also varied between groups. More recent visitor groups and visitors with less knowledge were more satisfied with reef health. In general, however, visitor perceptions of reef health did not correlate well with actual reef conditions, probably because more experienced visitors preferred less impacted sites with which they were nevertheless less satisfied than inexperienced visitors at heavily impacted sites. More recent visitor groups were also less bothered by crowding on the shore or in the water. Consequently, the apparent “social carrying capacity” of sites seems to be increasing to a level well above the likely “ecological carrying capacity”.

  3. Nutrition component in a comprehensive child development program. I. The home visitor's role in the prenatal intervention phase.

    PubMed

    Snowman, M K; Dibble, M V

    1979-02-01

    Nutritional services were integrated in a comprehensive child development program for sixty-eight disadvantaged urban families in an attempt to promote maximum cognitive and psychosocial functioning in their children. Child development trainers made weekly home visits beginning in pregnancy, which combined data gathering, direct nutritional counseling, and early sensory excercises for infants. This paper describes the prenatal home visit program, the training of the home visitors, how the 24-hr. food recall method was adapted for their use, the nature of the home visits, and the complex role of the home visitor. The group whose families participated in the prenatal home visits and were also followed for six months after the infants' birth scored higher on six-month Cattell Scales than did a control group who entered the program at six months of age. There were no stillbirths or neonatal deaths. The incidence of low-birth-weight infants was lower than the national averages. Participation in the program was high.

  4. Characterization of Park Visitors, Visitation Levels, and Associated Economic Impacts of Recreation at Bull Shoals, Norfork, and Table Rock Lakes

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2010-11-01

    ER D C/ EL T R- 10 -1 8 Recreation Management Support Program Characterization of Park Visitors, Visitation Levels, and Associated...distribution is unlimited. Recreation Management Support Program ERDC/EL TR-10-18 November 2010 Characterization of Park Visitors, Visitation ...surrounding the lakes. The report also examines visitor recreation patterns, visitor perceptions of lake and park attributes that affect the

  5. VISITOR - SULTAN - JSC

    NASA Image and Video Library

    1985-04-04

    S85-29711 (April 1985) --- Ronald C. Epps, right of the training division in the mission operations directorate, briefs the Saudi Arabian payload specialist, Sultan Salman Abdelazize Al-Saud, and his backup, Abdulmohsen Hamad Al-Bassam, in the flight control room (FCR) of the mission control center (MCC). Erlinda Stevenson is also pictured.

  6. Challenges in health visitor prescribing in a London primary care trust.

    PubMed

    Thurtle, Val

    2007-11-01

    In this primary care trust there was limited health visitor prescribing. A case study approach sought to identify reasons for this, to lead to recommendations and changes to develop health visitor prescribing. The situation was examined using qualitative methods to consider the opportunities and challenges in health visitor prescribing. Semi-structured interviews with eighteen health visitors and managers explored their views of health visitor prescribing and its position within the PCT. The findings demonstrated only three health visitors prescribed; yet the majority were positive about prescribing, both for clients and health visitor development. Practitioners recognised their difficult working context and felt that organisational systems were not supportive of prescribing. A culture of prescribing was not felt to be in evidence, but was seen as a realistic possibility. Recommendations for change focused on the organisation and practitioners, with improved communication and structures supportive of prescribing. There was a need for practitioners to be active in learning so that they could share knowledge, experience and commitment to prescribing in locally based groups.

  7. Diversity of the Insect Visitors on Calluna vulgaris (Ericaceae) in Southern France Heathlands.

    PubMed

    Descamps, Charlotte; Moquet, Laura; Migon, Marc; Jacquemart, Anne-Laure

    2015-01-01

    As part of an ongoing research project on the pollination networks in European heathlands, the objective of this study was to assess the insect visitor guild on Calluna vulgaris (L.) Hull (Ericaceae). We focused the study on a region renowned for its largely well-preserved heathlands, the Cévennes National Park, Southern France. In 2013, flower visitors were observed over 3 d per site, in four heathland sites at mont Lozère. Honeybees (Apis mellifera L.) were the main visitors (62-88% of total visitors). Besides honeybees, a high diversity of visitors was detected with 57 different species identified (42 Diptera and 15 Hymenoptera). Hoverflies (Syrphidae, Diptera) visitors were abundant and diverse, especially individuals belonging to the genera Eristalis and Episyrphus. The reported diversity of visitors was probably due to the preservation of large heathland areas at mont Lozère and to the generalist pollination system of C. vulgaris. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Entomological Society of America.

  8. Factors associated with patient and visitor violence experienced by nurses in general hospitals in Switzerland: a cross-sectional survey.

    PubMed

    Hahn, Sabine; Müller, Marianne; Needham, Ian; Dassen, Theo; Kok, Gerjo; Halfens, Ruud J G

    2010-12-01

    To explore nurses' experiences with patient and visitor violence, as well as other related factors, in Swiss general hospital settings. Patient and visitor violence is a complex occupational hazard among health care professions, with nursing in general, experiencing the highest rate of patient and visitor violence. International research has found that staff and patient attributes, interaction between staff and patients, as well as environmental characteristics are important factors associated with the occurrence of patient and visitor violence. Previous studies, however, have only partially described these factors in the general hospital setting. Mainland European general hospital settings are even less well researched. A retrospective cross-sectional survey was conducted in 2007. A total of 291 nurses working in different clinical departments in general hospitals provided data. The questionnaire used was a modified German version of the Survey of Violence Experienced by Staff. The findings revealed that 72% of nurses had experienced verbal patient and visitor violence and 42% physical patient and visitor violence in the past 12 months. Also, 23% were physically injured and 1.4% took one or more days of sick leave. Patient and visitor violence was distressing for the nursing staff. A higher risk for patient and visitor violence was observed with registered nurses nursing anxious or cognitively impaired patients, for rehabilitation units with longer-term nurse-patient/nurse-relative interactions and for workplaces with an absence of formal procedures for patient and visitor violence. The results indicate that the clinical setting has little impact on the occurrence of patient and visitor violence. Patient and visitor violence appears to be influenced more by the additional factors specific to the type of interaction and situation. Research should follow up on these specific findings to further improve policies, procedures and intervention strategies. To prevent patient and visitor violence, Swiss general hospitals should take into consideration the risk factors associated with patient and visitor violence. Existing policies, procedures and staff education should be improved on. © 2010 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

  9. Human body exhibitions: public opinion of young individuals and contemporary bioethics.

    PubMed

    Raikos, Athanasios; Paraskevas, George K; Tzika, Maria; Kordali, Panagiota; Tsafka-Tsotskou, Fani; Natsis, Konstantinos

    2012-07-01

    The exhibitions of plastinated cadavers and organs have attracted millions of visitors globally, while raising serious controversy about their content and purpose of implementation. We performed a survey based study on 500 randomly chosen individuals, aged 18- to 35-year old, in order to access their opinion regarding the conduction of such shows as well as body donation for scientific purposes. We found that 46.3% of the participants had moral concerns, and 46.1% did not. Religious and philosophical beliefs concerned 21.8% of the sample, while 28% believed that the exhibits may affect visitors' mental health. Human dignity violation was stressed by 21.6%, whereas 26.6% disagreed with body donation to science. The desire for qualitative-guided anatomy education is evident from the highly popular plastinated body and specimen exhibitions. Hence, additional focused effort could be provided to educate the public about normal and pathological anatomy in order to amend their life-style. This could be effected by certified anatomy demonstrators in graduated steps according to the cohort's age, education, occupation, and health status.

  10. Functional homogenization of flower visitor communities with urbanization.

    PubMed

    Deguines, Nicolas; Julliard, Romain; de Flores, Mathieu; Fontaine, Colin

    2016-04-01

    Land-use intensification and resulting habitat loss are put forward as the main causes of flower visitor decline. However, the impact of urbanization, the prime driver of land-use intensification in Europe, is poorly studied. In particular, our understanding of whether and how it affects the composition and functioning of flower visitor assemblages is scant, yet required to cope with increasing urbanization worldwide. Here, we use a nation-wide dataset of plant-flower visitor (Coleoptera, Diptera, Hymenoptera, Lepidoptera) interactions sampled by citizen scientists following a standardized protocol to assess macroecological changes in richness and composition of flower visitor communities with urbanization. We measured the community composition by quantifying the relative occurrence of generalist and specialist flower visitors based on their specialisation on flowering plant families. We show that urbanization is associated with reduced flower visitor richness and a shift in community composition toward generalist insects, indicating a modification of the functional composition of communities. These results suggest that urbanization affects not only the richness of flower visitor assemblages but may also cause their large-scale functional homogenization. Future research should focus on designing measures to reconcile urban development with flower visitor conservation.

  11. Wilderness visitors, experiences, and visitor management

    Treesearch

    David N. Cole; Stephen F. McCool

    2000-01-01

    This paper provides an overview of the Wilderness science in a time of change conference-Volume 4: Wilderness visitors, experiences, and visitor management. Wilderness areas are managed to protect their wilderness character, but they also provide opportunities for recreation use. Decades ago, relatively few people sought wilderness experiences, and...

  12. Visitors' conceptualizations of wilderness experiences

    Treesearch

    Erin Seekamp; Troy Hall; David Cole

    2012-01-01

    Despite 50 years of wilderness visitor experience research, it is not well understood how visitors conceptualize a wilderness experience. Diverging from etic approaches to wilderness visitor experience research, the research presented in this paper applied an emic approach to identify wilderness experience attributes. Specifically, qualitative data from 173 on-site...

  13. 22 CFR 40.202 - Certain former exchange visitors.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... 22 Foreign Relations 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Certain former exchange visitors. 40.202....202 Certain former exchange visitors. An alien who was admitted into the United States as an exchange... the alien's exchange visitor status as required by INA 212(e), or (b) The foreign residence...

  14. 22 CFR 62.29 - Government visitors.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-04-01

    ... 22 Foreign Relations 1 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false Government visitors. 62.29 Section 62.29... Program Provisions § 62.29 Government visitors. (a) Purpose. The government visitor category is for the exclusive use of the U.S. federal, state, or local government agencies. Programs under this section are for...

  15. 22 CFR 62.29 - Government visitors.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-04-01

    ... 22 Foreign Relations 1 2012-04-01 2012-04-01 false Government visitors. 62.29 Section 62.29... Program Provisions § 62.29 Government visitors. (a) Purpose. The government visitor category is for the exclusive use of the U.S. federal, state, or local government agencies. Programs under this section are for...

  16. 22 CFR 62.29 - Government visitors.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... 22 Foreign Relations 1 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false Government visitors. 62.29 Section 62.29... Program Provisions § 62.29 Government visitors. (a) Purpose. The government visitor category is for the exclusive use of the U.S. federal, state, or local government agencies. Programs under this section are for...

  17. 22 CFR 62.29 - Government visitors.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... 22 Foreign Relations 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Government visitors. 62.29 Section 62.29... Program Provisions § 62.29 Government visitors. (a) Purpose. The government visitor category is for the exclusive use of the U.S. federal, state, or local government agencies. Programs under this section are for...

  18. 22 CFR 62.29 - Government visitors.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-04-01

    ... 22 Foreign Relations 1 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false Government visitors. 62.29 Section 62.29... Program Provisions § 62.29 Government visitors. (a) Purpose. The government visitor category is for the exclusive use of the U.S. federal, state, or local government agencies. Programs under this section are for...

  19. Wildland fire and the wilderness visitor experience

    Treesearch

    Sierra L. Schroeder; Ingrid E. Schneider

    2010-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to understand wilderness visitors' perceptions of wildland fire and describe visitors' wilderness recreational experience following wildland fire in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW). Qualitative interviews revealed visitors' perceptions of burned areas as well as if and how activities and behaviors were...

  20. 22 CFR 41.31 - Temporary visitors for business or pleasure.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-04-01

    ... 22 Foreign Relations 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Temporary visitors for business or pleasure. 41.31 Section 41.31 Foreign Relations DEPARTMENT OF STATE VISAS VISAS: DOCUMENTATION OF NONIMMIGRANTS UNDER THE IMMIGRATION AND NATIONALITY ACT, AS AMENDED Temporary Visitors § 41.31 Temporary visitors for...

  1. 22 CFR 41.31 - Temporary visitors for business or pleasure.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-04-01

    ... 22 Foreign Relations 1 2012-04-01 2012-04-01 false Temporary visitors for business or pleasure. 41.31 Section 41.31 Foreign Relations DEPARTMENT OF STATE VISAS VISAS: DOCUMENTATION OF NONIMMIGRANTS UNDER THE IMMIGRATION AND NATIONALITY ACT, AS AMENDED Temporary Visitors § 41.31 Temporary visitors for...

  2. 22 CFR 41.31 - Temporary visitors for business or pleasure.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... 22 Foreign Relations 1 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false Temporary visitors for business or pleasure. 41.31 Section 41.31 Foreign Relations DEPARTMENT OF STATE VISAS VISAS: DOCUMENTATION OF NONIMMIGRANTS UNDER THE IMMIGRATION AND NATIONALITY ACT, AS AMENDED Temporary Visitors § 41.31 Temporary visitors for...

  3. 22 CFR 41.31 - Temporary visitors for business or pleasure.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-04-01

    ... 22 Foreign Relations 1 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false Temporary visitors for business or pleasure. 41.31 Section 41.31 Foreign Relations DEPARTMENT OF STATE VISAS VISAS: DOCUMENTATION OF NONIMMIGRANTS UNDER THE IMMIGRATION AND NATIONALITY ACT, AS AMENDED Temporary Visitors § 41.31 Temporary visitors for...

  4. 22 CFR 41.31 - Temporary visitors for business or pleasure.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-04-01

    ... 22 Foreign Relations 1 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false Temporary visitors for business or pleasure. 41.31 Section 41.31 Foreign Relations DEPARTMENT OF STATE VISAS VISAS: DOCUMENTATION OF NONIMMIGRANTS UNDER THE IMMIGRATION AND NATIONALITY ACT, AS AMENDED Temporary Visitors § 41.31 Temporary visitors for...

  5. 75 FR 65006 - Board of Visitors, United States Military Academy (USMA)

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-10-21

    ... DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE Department of the Army Board of Visitors, United States Military Academy... committee meeting for the United States Military Academy Board of Visitors. This is the 2010 Annual Meeting... place: 1. Name of Committee: United States Military Academy Board of Visitors. 2. Date: Friday, November...

  6. 76 FR 5143 - Board of Visitors, United States Military Academy (USMA)

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-01-28

    ... DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE Department of the Army Board of Visitors, United States Military Academy... committee meeting for the United States Military Academy Board of Visitors. This is the 2011 Organizational... Committee: United States Military Academy Board of Visitors. 2. Date: Wednesday, February 16, 2011. [[Page...

  7. 28 CFR 540.45 - Qualification as special visitor.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... visitors. Visits by special visitors ordinarily are for a specific purpose and ordinarily are not of a... the community. Pretrial inmates may be allowed special visitors for the purpose of protecting the... permit a special business visit in such cases. The Warden may waive the requirement for the existence of...

  8. Visitor attitudes towards fire and wind disturbances in wilderness

    Treesearch

    Robert G. Dvorak; Erin D. Small

    2011-01-01

    This study examines visitor attitudes across the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness regarding the effects of natural disturbances on visitor planning and wilderness conditions. Visitors were intercepted at entry points and permit distribution locations during 2007. Results suggest that respondents were aware of recent wind and fire disturbances. Few respondents...

  9. Southwest Watershed Research Center Data Access Project

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Nichols, M. H.; Anson, E.

    2008-05-01

    Hydrologic data, including rainfall and runoff data, have been collected on experimental watersheds operated by the U.S. Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service (USDA-ARS) in southern Arizona since the 1950s. These data are of national and international importance and make up one of the most comprehensive semiarid watershed data sets in the world. The USDA-ARS Southwest Watershed Research Center has recently developed an electronic data processing system that includes an online interface (http://tucson.ars.ag.gov/dap) to provide public access to the data. The goal of the system is to promote analyses and interpretations of historic and current data by improving data access. Data are collected from sensors in the field and are transmitted to computers in the office. The data are then processed, quality checked, and made available to users via the Internet. The publicly accessible part of the system consists of an interactive Web site, which provides an interface to the data, and a relational database, which is used to process, store, and manage data. The system was released to the public in October 2003, and since that time the online data access Web site has received more than 4500 visitors.

  10. Hospital and asylum visiting in historical perspective: themes and issues.

    PubMed

    Mooney, Graham; Reinarz, Jonathan

    2009-01-01

    Compared to doctors, patients and institutions, visitors are an understudied constituency in medical history. The collection of essays in this book situates the historical practice of hospital and asylum visiting in broad social, cultural and geographical perspectives. This introduction loosely categorises visitors into four groups: patient visitors, including family and friends; public visitors, such as entertainers, tourists and the clergy, who have no direct formal ties with the institution or the patients; house visitors involved with the management and government of the hospital; and official visitors, who have inspectorial responsibilities. Discussion of the wider historical significance of visiting draws attention to issues such as urban governance, philanthropy, the public sphere, civil society and citizenship.

  11. Drug Enforcement Administration

    MedlinePlus

    ... Cannabis Plant Counterfeit Prescription Pills Containing Fentanyls: A Global Threat Public Drug Disposal: Search for an Authorized Drug Disposal Location RESOURCE CENTER Controlled Substances Act DEA Museum and Visitors Center Doing Business with DEA Drug Disposal Employee Assistance Program For ...

  12. Try These Time Management Tips.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Bimrose, Jack J.

    1987-01-01

    Offers 12 time management tips for harried school administrators, including using a personal calendar, calling five-minute meetings with secretaries, mail-sorting, delegating or declining certain tasks, controlling visitors, screening phone calls, streamlining meetings, and other ideas. (MLH)

  13. Acceptability of temporary suspension of visiting during norovirus outbreaks: investigating patient, visitor and public opinion.

    PubMed

    Currie, K; Price, L; Curran, E; Bunyan, D; Knussen, C

    2016-06-01

    Noroviruses are a leading cause of outbreaks globally and the most common cause of service disruption due to ward closures. Temporary suspension of visiting (TSV) is increasingly a recommended public health measure to reduce exposure, transmission and impact during norovirus outbreaks; however, preventing patient-visitor contact may contravene the ethos of person-centred care, and public acceptability of this measure is not known. To investigate the acceptability of TSV during norovirus outbreaks from the perspectives of patients, visitors and the wider public. Cross-sectional survey of patients (N = 153), visitors (N = 175) and the public (N = 224) in three diverse areas in Scotland. Health Belief Model constructs were applied to understand ratings of acceptability of TSV during norovirus outbreaks, and to determine associations between these levels and various predictor variables. The majority (84.6%) of respondents indicated that the possible benefits of TSV are greater than the possible disadvantages. Conversely, the majority (70%) of respondents disagreed that TSV 'is wrong as it ignores people's rights to have contact with family and friends'. The majority (81.6%) of respondents agreed that TSV would be more acceptable if exceptions were made for seriously ill or dying patients. Correlational analysis demonstrated that overall acceptability was positively related to perceived severity (r = 0.65), identified benefits (r = 0.54) and implementing additional communication strategies (r = 0.60); acceptability was negatively related to potential barriers (r = -0.49). There is greater service user and public support for the use of TSV than concerns around impinging upon patients' rights to have visitors. TSV should be considered as an acceptable infection control measure that could be implemented consistently during norovirus outbreaks. Crown Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  14. Front end evaluation research results. Communications and concept planning: Hatfield Marine Science Center

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Falk, John H.; Holland, Dana

    1994-01-01

    An evaluation for the renovation of the existing visitor center at the Hatfield Marine Sciences Center (HMSC) was undertaken, in conjunction with the communications planning phase of the project. The outcome is expected to be the development of a communications plan and selection of concepts for visitors' interpretive experience. In the course of the evaluation, data were collected from 140 visitors to HMSC using both a questionnaire and face to face semi-structured interviews. Major results of the evaluation covered: 1, reasons for attending the HMSC; 2, visitor expectations; 3, visitors's knowledge of general science and of marine life and environments; 4, visitors' level of interest and attitudes toward exhibit themes; 5, issue areas of greatest interest; and 6, research areas of greatest interest.Visitors to t he HMSC had a strong orientation toward seeing and closely interacting with marine life and environments.

  15. 78 FR 6805 - Information Collection: Arctic National Wildlife Refuge Recreation Visitor Study-2013

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-01-31

    ... Recreation Visitor Study--2013 AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA. ACTION: Notice; request for comment. SUMMARY: In... Recreation Visitor Study--2013. DATES: Comments must be received in writing on or before April 1, 2013 to be... Recreation Visitor Study-- 2013. OMB Number: 0596-NEW. Expiration Date of Approval: Not applicable. Type of...

  16. 76 FR 6149 - National Fire Academy Board of Visitors; Notice of Meeting

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-02-03

    ...] National Fire Academy Board of Visitors; Notice of Meeting AGENCY: Federal Emergency Management Agency, DHS... Fire Academy Board of Visitors will meet on February 22, 2011. DATES: The teleconference will take... or comments received by the National Fire Academy Board of Visitors, go to http://www.regulations.gov...

  17. Uncovering Visitor Identity: A Citywide Utilization of the Falk Visitor-Identity Model

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Trainer, Laureen; Steele-Inama, Marley; Christopher, Amber

    2012-01-01

    In his book, "Identity and the Museum Visitor Experience," John Falk makes the case that by understanding the underlying motivations that drive a visitor, a museum can create an experience that reflects a person's identity and therefore satisfy their motivation for visiting. According to Falk, this level of personal connection increases…

  18. 7 CFR 502.10 - Photographs by visitors or for news, advertising, or commercial purposes.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 6 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Photographs by visitors or for news, advertising, or... RESEARCH CENTER PROPERTY, BELTSVILLE, MARYLAND § 502.10 Photographs by visitors or for news, advertising, or commercial purposes. Photographs may be taken by visitors or for news purposes without prior...

  19. 7 CFR 502.10 - Photographs by visitors or for news, advertising, or commercial purposes.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 6 2013-01-01 2013-01-01 false Photographs by visitors or for news, advertising, or... RESEARCH CENTER PROPERTY, BELTSVILLE, MARYLAND § 502.10 Photographs by visitors or for news, advertising, or commercial purposes. Photographs may be taken by visitors or for news purposes without prior...

  20. 7 CFR 502.10 - Photographs by visitors or for news, advertising, or commercial purposes.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 6 2012-01-01 2012-01-01 false Photographs by visitors or for news, advertising, or... RESEARCH CENTER PROPERTY, BELTSVILLE, MARYLAND § 502.10 Photographs by visitors or for news, advertising, or commercial purposes. Photographs may be taken by visitors or for news purposes without prior...

  1. 7 CFR 502.10 - Photographs by visitors or for news, advertising, or commercial purposes.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 6 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Photographs by visitors or for news, advertising, or... RESEARCH CENTER PROPERTY, BELTSVILLE, MARYLAND § 502.10 Photographs by visitors or for news, advertising, or commercial purposes. Photographs may be taken by visitors or for news purposes without prior...

  2. 7 CFR 502.10 - Photographs by visitors or for news, advertising, or commercial purposes.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 6 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Photographs by visitors or for news, advertising, or... RESEARCH CENTER PROPERTY, BELTSVILLE, MARYLAND § 502.10 Photographs by visitors or for news, advertising, or commercial purposes. Photographs may be taken by visitors or for news purposes without prior...

  3. 78 FR 65977 - Board of Visitors, United States Military Academy (USMA)

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-11-04

    ... DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE Department of the Army Board of Visitors, United States Military Academy...: United States Military Academy Board of Visitors. 2. Date: Wednesday, October 16, 2013. 3. Time: 2:00 p.m... Cancellation: Due to the lack of a continuing resolution and appropriated funds, the USMA Board of Visitors...

  4. The prevalence and significance of displacement for wilderness recreation management and research

    Treesearch

    Ingrid E. Schneider

    2007-01-01

    The concept of visitor displacement has important implications for wilderness management and research. Research on actual displacement of wilderness visitors is extremely limited, but this displacement likely follows patterns found for general recreationists: visitors employ a variety of coping responses and displacement is prevalent. Understanding if and when visitors...

  5. Investigating Visitor Profiles as a Valuable Addition to Museum Research

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lewalter, Doris; Phelan, Siëlle; Geyer, Claudia; Specht, Inga; Grüninger, Rahel; Schnotz, Wolfgang

    2015-01-01

    There is a long tradition of museum research assessing visitors' personal background. In this article, we suggest an insightful way to enhance and intensify visitor analyses and adopt a more integrative approach. To this end, we draw attention to Latent Class Analysis (LCA), a classification method that allows us to investigate visitor profiles…

  6. 75 FR 8049 - Air University Board of Visitors Meeting

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-02-23

    ... DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE Department of the Air Force Air University Board of Visitors Meeting ACTION: Notice of Meeting of the Air University Board of Visitors. SUMMARY: Under the provisions of the Federal... University Board of Visitors' meeting will take place on Monday, March 30th, 2010, from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m...

  7. Creating Safe(r) Spaces for Visitors and Staff in Museum Programs

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Katrikh, Mark

    2018-01-01

    Visitors come to museums for many reasons, including to learn something new about our world, not specifically to have an emotional response. Visitors unprepared for personal experiences can manifest their confusion in a multitude of ways. Anticipating such reactions, museums must engage in dialogue, to help visitors process emotions and ultimately…

  8. 'Think Baby': online learning for student health visitors.

    PubMed

    Appleton, Jane V; Harris, Margaret; Kelly, Cat; Huppe, Irmgard

    2014-06-01

    'Think Baby' is an innovative online learning resource which has been developed to help student health visitors (and other specialist community public health nurses) build their skills in observing and assessing mother-infant interactions. The project's development and pilot work was funded by a small grant from the Higher Education Academy. It builds on the findings of the team's previous research, which found health visitors' initial training had left them ill-prepared to assess the intricacies of mother-infant relationships. The 'Think Baby' project sought to develop online training resources for student health visitors using video footage of mothers and babies to illustrate different types of interactions. A small group of student health visitors were engaged in reviewing and evaluating the materials and considering their acceptability. Once developed, the materials were piloted with student health visitors from three universities, community practice teachers and a health visitor academic, and they were then adapted for wider roll out. 'Think Baby' enables student health visitors to develop their core skills in assessment, which is really important in identifying when early help and support are needed for mothers and infants.

  9. Visitor circulation and nonhuman animal welfare: an overlooked variable?

    PubMed

    Davey, Gareth; Henzi, Peter

    2004-01-01

    This article investigates visitor circulation and behaviors within a gallery of primate exhibits in relation to their possible implications for nonhuman animal welfare. When entering a primate house, the majority of visitors (84%) turned right, a pattern upheld throughout all times of the day. These findings demonstrate the existence of the "right-turn" principle, a concept previously identified and investigated in the museum setting. The existence of this circulation pattern in zoos has important implications for the practical management of animal welfare issues because unbalanced or large numbers of visitors at specific enclosures could present a stressful influence. The "direction bias" could not be attributed to demographic or behavioral traits, therefore suggesting that the principle, like similar findings from museum research, generalizes across visitor populations and, therefore, zoos. A visitor sample at another exhibit (located outside the exhibit gallery) did not display a direction bias, suggesting that the marked circulation pattern may be specific to exhibit galleries. The article discusses the significance and consequences of visitor circulation with respect to visitor management and animal welfare.

  10. Parental health information seeking and re-exploration of the 'digital divide'.

    PubMed

    Malone, Mary; While, Alison; Roberts, Julia

    2014-04-01

    To describe patterns of 'online' and 'offline' health information seeking in families with children under five years of age and living in five socially, economically and culturally disparate local authority (LA) wards in one inner-city area. Earlier work analysed data from the five LA wards merged as one data set. A 'digital divide' in health information seeking was identified between parents who actively sought information from both internet websites and from 14 other health information sources (online health information seekers), and those who acquired information from a more limited range of sources excluding the internet. Of the two groups, the online health information seekers had higher levels of computer ownership and, therefore, internet access within the home. Re-analysis of data (questionnaires n = 224; five focus groups; two interviews with service providers; two opportunistic conversations with service providers). Additional data were retrieved after the original data analysis and between 2005 and 2007. These data were from service user-led discussions (n = 30) held with parents in child health clinics, informal interviews (n = 11) with health visitors and semi-structured interviews (n = 2) with health visitors. Information was also retrieved from the Office for National Statistics data set. In the re-analysis, data were disaggregated at LA ward level in order to explore local influences on patterns of health information seeking. Multiple layers of influence upon parental health information seeking emerged and revealed a non-digital second divide, which was independent of computer ownership and home internet access. This divide was based on preference for use of certain health information sources, which might be either 'online' or 'offline'. A spatial patterning of both digital and preferential divides was identified with an association between each of these and features of the physical, social, cultural and psychosocial environment, one of which was perceived access to primary health care. Complex patterns of health information seeking relate to each of the 'divides'--digital and preferential. Patterns of health information seeking reflect differing perceptions of information availability and usefulness as experienced by parents within their local physical, social, cultural and psychosocial worlds. Access to primary care services is a key component of this local environment.

  11. Long-Term Prediction of Emergency Department Revenue and Visitor Volume Using Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average Model

    PubMed Central

    Chen, Chieh-Fan; Ho, Wen-Hsien; Chou, Huei-Yin; Yang, Shu-Mei; Chen, I-Te; Shi, Hon-Yi

    2011-01-01

    This study analyzed meteorological, clinical and economic factors in terms of their effects on monthly ED revenue and visitor volume. Monthly data from January 1, 2005 to September 30, 2009 were analyzed. Spearman correlation and cross-correlation analyses were performed to identify the correlation between each independent variable, ED revenue, and visitor volume. Autoregressive integrated moving average (ARIMA) model was used to quantify the relationship between each independent variable, ED revenue, and visitor volume. The accuracies were evaluated by comparing model forecasts to actual values with mean absolute percentage of error. Sensitivity of prediction errors to model training time was also evaluated. The ARIMA models indicated that mean maximum temperature, relative humidity, rainfall, non-trauma, and trauma visits may correlate positively with ED revenue, but mean minimum temperature may correlate negatively with ED revenue. Moreover, mean minimum temperature and stock market index fluctuation may correlate positively with trauma visitor volume. Mean maximum temperature, relative humidity and stock market index fluctuation may correlate positively with non-trauma visitor volume. Mean maximum temperature and relative humidity may correlate positively with pediatric visitor volume, but mean minimum temperature may correlate negatively with pediatric visitor volume. The model also performed well in forecasting revenue and visitor volume. PMID:22203886

  12. Long-term prediction of emergency department revenue and visitor volume using autoregressive integrated moving average model.

    PubMed

    Chen, Chieh-Fan; Ho, Wen-Hsien; Chou, Huei-Yin; Yang, Shu-Mei; Chen, I-Te; Shi, Hon-Yi

    2011-01-01

    This study analyzed meteorological, clinical and economic factors in terms of their effects on monthly ED revenue and visitor volume. Monthly data from January 1, 2005 to September 30, 2009 were analyzed. Spearman correlation and cross-correlation analyses were performed to identify the correlation between each independent variable, ED revenue, and visitor volume. Autoregressive integrated moving average (ARIMA) model was used to quantify the relationship between each independent variable, ED revenue, and visitor volume. The accuracies were evaluated by comparing model forecasts to actual values with mean absolute percentage of error. Sensitivity of prediction errors to model training time was also evaluated. The ARIMA models indicated that mean maximum temperature, relative humidity, rainfall, non-trauma, and trauma visits may correlate positively with ED revenue, but mean minimum temperature may correlate negatively with ED revenue. Moreover, mean minimum temperature and stock market index fluctuation may correlate positively with trauma visitor volume. Mean maximum temperature, relative humidity and stock market index fluctuation may correlate positively with non-trauma visitor volume. Mean maximum temperature and relative humidity may correlate positively with pediatric visitor volume, but mean minimum temperature may correlate negatively with pediatric visitor volume. The model also performed well in forecasting revenue and visitor volume.

  13. Informal science education at Science City

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    French, April Nicole

    The presentation of chemistry within informal learning environments, specifically science museums and science centers is very sparse. This work examines learning in Kansas City's Science City's Astronaut Training Center in order to identify specific behaviors associated with visitors' perception of learning and their attitudes toward space and science to develop an effective chemistry exhibit. Grounded in social-constructivism and the Contextual Model of Learning, this work approaches learning in informal environments as resulting from social interactions constructed over time from interaction between visitors. Visitors to the Astronaut Training Center were surveyed both during their visit and a year after the visit to establish their perceptions of behavior within the exhibit and attitudes toward space and science. Observations of visitor behavior and a survey of the Science City staff were used to corroborate visitor responses. Eighty-six percent of visitors to Science City indicated they had learned from their experiences in the Astronaut Training Center. No correlation was found between this perception of learning and visitor's interactions with exhibit stations. Visitor attitudes were generally positive toward learning in informal settings and space science as it was presented in the exhibit. Visitors also felt positively toward using video game technology as learning tools. This opens opportunities to developing chemistry exhibits using video technology to lessen the waste stream produced by a full scale chemistry exhibit.

  14. Understanding and managing experiential aspects of soundscapes at Muir woods national monument.

    PubMed

    Pilcher, Ericka J; Newman, Peter; Manning, Robert E

    2009-03-01

    Research has found that human-caused noise can detract from the quality of the visitor experience in national parks and related areas. Moreover, impacts to the visitor experience can be managed by formulating indicators and standards of quality as suggested in park and outdoor recreation management frameworks, such as Visitor Experience and Resource Protection (VERP), as developed by the U.S. National Park Service. The research reported in this article supports the formulation of indicators and standards of quality for human-caused noise at Muir Woods National Monument, California. Phase I identified potential indicators of quality for the soundscape of Muir Woods. A visitor "listening exercise" was conducted, where respondents identified natural and human-caused sounds heard in the park and rated the degree to which each sound was "pleasing" or "annoying." Certain visitor-caused sounds such as groups talking were heard by most respondents and were rated as annoying, suggesting that these sounds may be a good indicator of quality. Loud groups were heard by few people but were rated as highly annoying, whereas wind and water were heard by most visitors and were rated as highly pleasing. Phase II measured standards of quality for visitor-caused noise. Visitors were presented with a series of 30-second audio clips representing increasing amounts of visitor-caused sound in the park. Respondents were asked to rate the acceptability of each audio clip on a survey. Findings suggest a threshold at which visitor-caused sound is judged to be unacceptable, and is therefore considered as noise. A parallel program of sound monitoring in the park found that current levels of visitor-caused sound sometimes violate this threshold. Study findings provide an empirical basis to help formulate noise-related indicators and standards of quality in parks and related areas.

  15. Moving Carbon, Changing Earth: Bringing the Carbon Cycle to Life

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zabel, I.; Duggan-Haas, D.; Ross, R. M.; Stricker, B.; Mahowald, N. M.

    2014-12-01

    The carbon cycle presents challenges to researchers - in how to understand the complex interactions of fluxes, reservoirs, and systems - and to outreach professionals - in how to get across the complexity of the carbon cycle and still make it accessible to the public. At Cornell University and the Museum of the Earth in Ithaca, NY, researchers and outreach staff tackled these challenges together through a 2013 temporary museum exhibition: Moving Carbon, Changing Earth. Moving Carbon, Changing Earth introduced visitors to the world of carbon and its effect on every part of our lives. The exhibit was the result of the broader impacts portion of an NSF grant awarded to Natalie Mahowald, Professor in the Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences at Cornell University, who has been working with a team to improve simulations of regional and decadal variability in the carbon cycle. Within the exhibition, visitors used systems thinking to understand the distribution of carbon in and among Earth's systems, learning how (and how quickly or slowly) carbon moves between and within these systems, the relative scale of different reservoirs, and how carbon's movement changes climate and other environmental dynamics. Five interactive stations represented the oceans, lithosphere, atmosphere, biosphere, and a mystery reservoir. Puzzles, videos, real specimens, and an interview with Mahowald clarified and communicated the complexities of the carbon cycle. In this talk we'll present background information on Mahowald's research as well as photos of the exhibition and discussion of the components and motivations behind them, showing examples of innovative ways to bring a complex topic to life for museum visitors.

  16. Ants contribute to pollination but not to reproduction in a rare calcareous grassland forb

    PubMed Central

    Bollmann, Felix; Saville, David; Riedel, Michael

    2018-01-01

    The number of plants pollinated by ants is surprisingly low given the abundance of ants and the fact that they are common visitors of angiosperms. Generally ants are considered as nectar robbers that do not provide pollination service. We studied the pollination system of the endangered dry grassland forb Euphorbia seguieriana and found two ant species to be the most frequent visitors of its flowers. Workers of Formica cunicularia carried five times more pollen than smaller Tapinoma erraticum individuals, but significantly more viable pollen was recovered from the latter. Overall, the viability of pollen on ant cuticles was significantly lower (p < 0.001)—presumably an antibiotic effect of the metapleural gland secretion. A marking experiment suggested that ants were unlikely to facilitate outcrossing as workers repeatedly returned to the same individual plant. In open pollinated plants and when access was given exclusively to flying insects, fruit set was nearly 100%. In plants visited by ants only, roughly one third of flowers set fruit, and almost none set fruit when all insects were excluded. The germination rate of seeds from flowers pollinated by flying insects was 31 ± 7% in contrast to 1 ± 1% resulting from ant pollination. We conclude that inbreeding depression may be responsible for the very low germination rate in ant pollinated flowers and that ants, although the most frequent visitors, play a negligible or even deleterious role in the reproduction of E. seguieriana. Our study reiterates the need to investigate plant fitness effects beyond seed set in order to confirm ant-plant mutualisms. PMID:29479496

  17. Historical and contemporary cultural ecosystem service values in the rapidly urbanizing city state of Singapore.

    PubMed

    Thiagarajah, Jharyathri; Wong, Shermaine K M; Richards, Daniel R; Friess, Daniel A

    2015-11-01

    Cultural ecosystem services are a function of people and place, so may change as a location transitions from rural to urban. Singapore has undergone rapid urbanization after its independence in 1965, with a concomitant decline in natural habitat extent and accessibility. Using coastal mangrove forests as a case study habitat, changing cultural values were explored with a novel array of techniques, including qualitative archival analysis (photographs, oral histories), current sources (publically uploaded social media photographs), and surveys of (a) the general public and (b) visitors to publically accessible mangroves. Cultural value changed through time, with a significant transition from intrinsic, intrapersonal values (spiritual, cultural heritage) to instrumental, interpersonal values (recreation, education). Additionally, cultural value varied between different mangroves depending on their public accessibility, and the evolving degree of human interaction with the ecosystem as urban development occured. Cultural values change as development transitions, though mangroves still play an important cultural role in a heavily urbanized environment.

  18. Self-Regulated Learning in the Museum: Understanding the Relationship of Visitor's Goals, Learning Strategies, and Appraisals

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Zhou, Ji; Urhahne, Detlef

    2017-01-01

    Self-regulated learning (SRL) in the museum was explored by 2 investigations. The first one investigated 233 visitors on their goals and intended learning strategies by questionnaire before they visited the science museum. Results indicated visitors' learning goals can predict their intended deep-learning strategy. Moreover, visitors can be…

  19. The influence of wilderness restoration programs on visitor experience and visitor opinions of managers

    Treesearch

    Joseph P. Flood; Leo H. McAvoy

    2000-01-01

    Wilderness campsites heavily damaged by recreational use pose a significant management challenge that threatens the integrity of the wilderness resource and the quality of the visitors’ experience. This study, conducted in the Mission Mountains Wilderness of northwestern Montana, surveyed 293 visitors to determine what influence heavily damaged campsites and site...

  20. 32 CFR 553.22 - Visitors' rules for the Arlington National Cemetery.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... General, U.S. Army Military District of Washington or his representative. (d) Visitors hours. Visitors... through March—8 a.m. through 5 p.m. April through September—8 a.m. through 7 p.m. No visitor shall enter... Superintendent. An individual visiting a relative's gravesite may be issued a temporary pass by the...

  1. Information collection styles of wilderness users: a market segmentation approach

    Treesearch

    Roy Ramthun; Lynda Kersey; Jim Rogers

    2000-01-01

    Attempts to influence the behavior of wilderness visitors through the use of information are limited by the visitors’ reception of that information. This study examined the information gathering behavior of wilderness visitors and the effect of different information collection styles on visitors’ knowledge of low-impact behavior and attitudes toward wilderness...

  2. 77 FR 33202 - Meeting of the U.S. Naval Academy Board of Visitors; Correction

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-06-05

    ... DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE Department of the Navy Meeting of the U.S. Naval Academy Board of Visitors... meeting of the U.S. Naval Academy Board of Visitors. The document failed to publish before the 15-day... Academy Board of Visitors or its Designated Federal Officer, the Board was unable to process the Federal...

  3. A Recreational Visitor Travel Simulation Model as an Aid to Management Planning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lucas, Robert C.; Shechter, Mordechai

    1977-01-01

    The article describes the use of a simulation for outdoor recreation management which is applicable for any type of dispersed recreation area where visitor flows are of concern, where there are capacity constraints, where visitor encounters are significant, and where it is desired to allow visitors substantial freedom to move about flexibly. (MJB)

  4. Visitor perceptions of crowding and discrimination at two National Forests in southern California

    Treesearch

    Deborah J. Chavez

    1993-01-01

    Visitors to southern California National Forests are urban dwellers and as a group are culturally diverse. To manage the National Forests for this diverse group of visitors, information is needed on their expectations, preferences, and experiences at recreation sites. To evaluate visitor perceptions of crowding and discrimination, to determine favorite activities, and...

  5. Analysis of British American Tobacco's questionable use of privilege and protected document claims at the Guildford Depository

    PubMed Central

    LeGresley, Eric; Lee, Kelley

    2017-01-01

    Background Tobacco companies have a documented history of attempting to hide information from public scrutiny, including inappropriate privilege claims. The 1998 Minnesota Consent Judgement created two depositories to provide public access to discovered documents. Users raised concerns about the access conditions and ongoing integrity of the Guildford Depository collection operated until 2015 by British American Tobacco (BAT). Methods A metadata search of the Legacy Tobacco Documents Library identified inconsistent privilege claims, and duplicates of documents withheld by BAT from public visitors. A review of the validity of claims, for documents obtained through these searches, was conducted against recognised legal definitions of privilege. Findings BAT has asserted inappropriate privilege claims over 49% of the documents reviewed (n=63). The quantity of such claims and consistency of the stated rationale for the privilege claims suggest a concerted effort rather than human error. Conclusions There was insufficient attention given to the operation of the Guildford Depository by the original plaintiffs, including to the subsequent use of privilege claims. Appropriate access to these documents, commensurate with the terms of legal settlements creating the collection, was critical given their public interest value for enhancing understanding of industry strategies and activities, informing of policy interventions, and for holding the industry to account. Future legal settlements should prevent defendants from subsequently withholding disclosed documents, aside from those legitimately privileged, from public view. Control of publicly disclosed documents should not be placed back into the hands of defendant tobacco companies. Plaintiffs also need to invest adequate resources into policing claims of legal privilege. PMID:27354678

  6. Development of Korean Rare Disease Knowledge Base

    PubMed Central

    Seo, Heewon; Kim, Dokyoon; Chae, Jong-Hee; Kang, Hee Gyung; Lim, Byung Chan; Cheong, Hae Il

    2012-01-01

    Objectives Rare disease research requires a broad range of disease-related information for the discovery of causes of genetic disorders that are maladies caused by abnormalities in genes or chromosomes. A rarity in cases makes it difficult for researchers to elucidate definite inception. This knowledge base will be a major resource not only for clinicians, but also for the general public, who are unable to find consistent information on rare diseases in a single location. Methods We design a compact database schema for faster querying; its structure is optimized to store heterogeneous data sources. Then, clinicians at Seoul National University Hospital (SNUH) review and revise those resources. Additionally, we integrated other sources to capture genomic resources and clinical trials in detail on the Korean Rare Disease Knowledge base (KRDK). Results As a result, we have developed a Web-based knowledge base, KRDK, suitable for study of Mendelian diseases that commonly occur among Koreans. This knowledge base is comprised of disease summary and review, causal gene list, laboratory and clinic directory, patient registry, and so on. Furthermore, database for analyzing and giving access to human biological information and the clinical trial management system are integrated on KRDK. Conclusions We expect that KRDK, the first rare disease knowledge base in Korea, may contribute to collaborative research and be a reliable reference for application to clinical trials. Additionally, this knowledge base is ready for querying of drug information so that visitors can search a list of rare diseases that is relative to specific drugs. Visitors can have access to KRDK via http://www.snubi.org/software/raredisease/. PMID:23346478

  7. Army dependents: childhood illness and health provision.

    PubMed

    Giles, Sarah

    2005-06-01

    This small qualitative study explored attitudes of a group of Army wives to childhood illness and their expectations of health provision. The author's practice serves a population mainly comprising of Army dependents where GP attendance rates are double the national average. Two focus groups were organised using health visitor groups attached to the practice. Transcripts were examined to produce a framework for semi-structured interviews with nine mothers, who were selected by purposive sampling. Mothers were asked about symptoms, coping, social problems, decisions to take action, health provision and support. Data were analysed and sorted, using the principles of grounded theory, into four main themes: attitude to child's illness, coping, Army culture and accessibility to health services. Many Army wives appear to suffer from high levels of stress. It seemed that the coping ability of the mother was affected by the constant turbulence and isolation of Army life. While mothers displayed a knowledge of common illnesses, they had fears of the unknown and of life threatening illnesses. They sometimes managed childhood illness at home owing to lack of transport. The author concluded that some Army wives suffer from stress and lack confidence in their mothering skills when their children are ill, which may be due, in part, to the constant cycle of postings and isolation from family and services. They need easily accessible health facilities and information regarding these services. Communication should be encouraged between civilian services and the Army. It appears that Army dependents require more support from their GP practice than the average civilian family, offering opportunity for nurses and health visitors to provide alternative and proactive services.

  8. Visitor effects on a zoo population of California sea lions (Zalophus californianus) and harbor seals (Phoca vitulina).

    PubMed

    de Vere, Amber J

    2018-05-01

    The effects of visitor presence on zoo and aquarium animals have become increasingly well studied, using measures such as behavioral responses and exhibit usage. Many taxa remain underrepresented in this literature; this is the case for marine mammals, despite widespread public concern for their welfare in managed care settings. The current study therefore used behavioral activity budgets and exhibit usage to assess the responses of California sea lions (Zalophus californianus) and harbor seals (Phoca vitulina) to visitors at the Seal Cove exhibit at Six Flags Discovery Kingdom, Vallejo CA. Data was collected via focal follow video recordings over the summer season of 2016, and analyzed using MANCOVAs, discriminant analyses, and modified Spread of Participation Indices. The sea lions showed no significant changes in behavior when visitors were present, but did show greater preference for the water bordering visitor viewing areas during these times. Two sea lions gave birth during the study period, and showed greater preference for land areas both adjacent to and out of sight of visitors when nursing compared to while pregnant. In contrast, the harbor seals showed significant behavioral changes in the presence of visitors, including increased vigilance and feeding. This was associated with increased preferential use of water areas adjacent to the visitor viewing area. Visitors were able to purchase fish to throw to the animals, which likely contributed to the differences observed. Overall, this study found little evidence for negative visitor impacts on two pinniped species in a zoo setting. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  9. Influences on visitor behavior at a modern immersive zoo exhibit.

    PubMed

    Ross, Stephen R; Gillespie, Katie L

    2009-09-01

    Zoos serve as centers for both research and education. The challenge is to convey messages about their conservation projects while meeting visitor expectations, which often include recreation and entertainment. One way this can be achieved is through the design of immersive exhibits that draw visitors in and engage them with interactive educational elements. Regenstein African Journey (RAJ) opened at Lincoln Park Zoo in 2003 and was designed to take visitors on a simulated safari through Africa. Because visitor experience was a major design goal, we conducted a timing and tracking study to evaluate use of the building and educational components. For a 9-week period in 2003, we tracked 338 visitors to RAJ and recorded continuous data as they moved through the building. Data were collected on handheld computers that provided precise timing data. The median visit was 11.08 min, 41% of which was spent looking at animals and 9% of which was spent engaged with interpretive elements. We found significant differences in the way visitors used signage: those in groups without children spent more of their visit engaged with signage than those with children and visitors who spent more of their visit interacting socially spent less time engaged with signage. By understanding how visitors use the educational opportunities presented to them, we can better meet their expectations and more effectively achieve the goal of conservation education.

  10. Is Alaska really different? A review of CUSTOMER recreation visitor survey data

    Treesearch

    Patrick C. Reed

    1995-01-01

    Many believe that Alaska is unique and that its location, resources, and population influence the use patterns and attitudes of its National Forest recreation visitors so that they seem notably different from visitors to other National Forests outside Alaska. Data from a recreation visitor survey called CUSTOMER were analyzed for the years 1991 to 1993 to identify...

  11. Lakes and ponds recreation management: a state-wide application of the visitor impact management process

    Treesearch

    Jerry J. Vaske; Rodney R. Zwick; Maureen P. Donnelly

    1992-01-01

    The Visitor Impact Management (VIM) process is designed to identify unacceptable changes occurring as a result of visitor use and to develop management strategies to keep visitor impacts within acceptable levels. All previous attempts to apply the VIM planning framework have concentrated on specific resources. This paper expands this focus to an entire state. Based on...

  12. Visitor meanings of place: using computer content analysis to examine visitor meanings at three national capitol sites

    Treesearch

    Wei-Li Jasmine Chen; Chad L. Pierskalla; Theresa L. Goldman; David L. Larsen

    2002-01-01

    A mix method study designed to explore the meanings, interest, and connections visitors ascribe to three National Park Service sites: National Capital Parks Central, Rock Creek Park, and George Washington Memorial Parkway's Great Falls Park. The researchers employed the focus group interview technique and asked visitors prior to and then after an interpretive...

  13. Communicating minimum impact behavior with trailside bulletin boards: Visitor characteristics associated with effectiveness

    Treesearch

    Stephen F. McCool; David N. Cole

    2000-01-01

    Bulletin boards are a frequently used method of communicating minimum impact behaviors to wilderness visitors. But how effective are they? What types of visitors are most likely to pay attention to the messages posted there? This study used a field experiment to identify visitor characteristics associated with attention to minimum impact messages posted on a bulletin...

  14. An evaluation of Appalachian Trail hikers' knowledge of minimum impact skills and practices

    Treesearch

    Peter Newman; Robert Manning; Jim Bacon; Alan Graefe; Gerard Kyle

    2002-01-01

    As the number of visitors to national parks and related areas continues to rise and the types of visitors and activities continue to diversify, educating visitors in minimum skills can help to protect parks and related areas. Educating visitors in these skills can be a challenge, especially on the Appalachian Trail (AT) that travels through state, federal, municipal...

  15. Potential roles of research in enhancing the performance of management in securing high quality visitor experiences in wilderness

    Treesearch

    Stephen F. McCool

    2012-01-01

    Does research help managers provide opportunities for visitors to have high quality experiences in wilderness? Difficulties in applying visitor experience research result from several factors: the nature of wilderness itself, the character of the wilderness visitor experience challenge as a research and management topic, and the paradigm of research applications...

  16. Affects of road sign wording on visitor survey - non-response bias

    Treesearch

    Susan M. Kocis; Stanley J. Zarnoch; Donald B.K. English

    2004-01-01

    On-site visitor interviewer data collection is a key component of the USDA Forest Service National Visitor Use Monitoring (NVUM) program. In many areas, especially higher speed roads and roads with non-recreation traffic, many vehicles may not stop for an interview. Wording on the sign may condition non-recreation visitors to self-select as to whether or not they...

  17. Giving voice to wildlands visitors: Selecting indicators to protect and sustain experiences in the eastern arctic of Nunavut

    Treesearch

    Alan Watson; Brian Glaspell; Neal Christensen; Paul Lachapelle; Vicki Sahanatien; Frances Gertsch

    2007-01-01

    Many public land management agencies are committed to understanding and protecting recreation visitor experiences. Parks Canada is deeply committed to that objective for visitors to Canada's National Parks. This 2004 study, informed by a 2003 qualitative study of visitor experiences and influences on those experiences at Auyuittuq National Park in Nunavut, worked...

  18. Serving culturally diverse visitors to forests in California: a resource guide

    Treesearch

    Nina S. Roberts; Deborah J. Chavez; Benjamin M. Lara; Emilyn A. Sheffield

    2009-01-01

    The national forests of California are experiencing an increase in new visitors yet, in some areas, a continued lack of ethnic diversity persists. In addition, changing demographics has led to a need for keeping up with trends while also being aware of constraints to visitor use. Knowing how to serve culturally diverse visitors in ways that are innovative and inclusive...

  19. The Influence of an Interactive Educational Approach on Visitors' Learning in a Swiss Zoo

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lindemann-Matthies, Petra; Kamer, Tobias

    2005-01-01

    A new but costly approach to providing visitors of zoos with information on conservation is the presentation of small exhibits by zoo professionals or volunteers. At these "touch tables" visitors can find out about the biology, ecology, and conservation of animals kept in the zoo. We studied the effect of a touch table on visitors'…

  20. Visitor use patterns and satisfaction along the Rogue-Umpqua Scenic Byway, Oregon

    Treesearch

    Suresh K. Shrestha; Robert C. Burns; Alan R. Graefe; Kevin R. Gaydos

    2009-01-01

    Face-to-face interviews were conducted with 232 visitors/groups along Oregon's Rogue-Umpqua Scenic Byway (RUSB) to identify recreation use patterns and assess visitor satisfaction with various attributes of the Byway. Study participants were most likely to be over 50 years old, to be visiting overnight, and to be repeat visitors from Oregon who were there with...

  1. Making Space for Experimentation, Collaboration, and Play: Re-Imagining the Drop-in Visitor Experience

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Mostov, Merilee

    2014-01-01

    In late 2006, the Columbus Museum of Art education department adopted a new framework that established creativity as the lens for learning and visitor experiences. But what does creativity look like in a gallery experience? What are visitor attitudes toward creativity? This article explores how the drop-in visitor experience was reimagined at the…

  2. Recreation visitor attitudes towards management-ignited prescribed fires in the Bob Marshall Wilderness Complex, Montana

    Treesearch

    Katie Knotek; Alan E. Watson; William T. Borrie; Joshua G. Whitmore; David Turner

    2008-01-01

    Research at the Bob Marshall Wilderness Complex in Montana explored differences in recreation visitors' attitudes towards the use of management-ignited prescribed fires in the wilderness. A mail-back survey of visitors (n = 291) during the 2004 season revealed that over half of visitors would accept prescribed fires in wilderness. This support did not vary by...

  3. The relationship between visitor characteristics and learning-associated behaviors in a science museum discovery space

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lozowski Boisvert, Dorothy; Jochums Slez, Brenda

    As informal educational institutions, science museums must do more than entertain and amaze visitors. Museum educators must design exhibits that attract and hold the attention of visitors long enough so that the visitors become engaged with the exhibits and learn from them. In order for museum educators to develop such exhibits, more information is needed about the variables associated with learning in museums. This study contributes to the growing body of knowledge on informal education by examining the relationship between visitor characteristics and attraction, holding power, and visitor engagement.One hundred fifty-four visitors to a science museum discovery space were observed as they interacted freely with the exhibits. Trained volunteers recorded the subjects' movements including the exhibits at which they stopped (attraction), the amount of time spent at each exhibit (holding power), and behaviors indicative of subjects' engagement levels with the exhibits. Data indicated significant differences between age group and the holding power of exhibits. Though not significant statistically, a similar trend was noted between age group and attraction and visitor engagement level. No significant differences were found between gender or social grouping and attraction, holding power, or engagement levels.

  4. Managing Visitors During the Hospital Stay: The Experience of Family Caregivers of Patients With Traumatic Brain Injury.

    PubMed

    Oyesanya, Tolu O; Bowers, Barbara

    2017-05-01

    Family caregivers of patients with moderate-to-severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) regularly visit the patient during the hospital stay and are involved in their care. As impairments caused by the TBI often preclude the patient from stating preferences for visitors, family caregivers often make decisions about visitors on the patient's behalf during the hospital stay. However, limited literature investigates this process. The purpose of this study was to describe family caregivers' experience of visitors while the patient with moderate-to-severe TBI is hospitalized. Authors used grounded theory to conduct 24 interviews with 16 family caregivers. Findings showed family caregivers manage welcome and unwelcome visitors throughout the hospital stay to protect the patient's physical and emotional safety and to conserve their own energy. Staff had limited involvement in management of unwelcome visitors. These findings have practice implications for educating hospital staff about providing family nursing and assisting families to manage unwelcome visitors and about policy implications for improving hospital visiting policies.

  5. Visitor evaluations of management actions at a highly impacted Appalachian Trail camping area.

    PubMed

    Daniels, Melissa L; Marion, Jeffrey L

    2006-12-01

    Protected area management involves balancing environmental and social objectives. This is particularly difficult at high-use/high-impact recreation sites, because resource protection objectives may require substantial site management or visitor regulation. This study examined visitors' reactions to both of these types of actions at Annapolis Rocks, Maryland, a popular Appalachian Trail camping area. We surveyed visitors before and after implementation of camping policies that included shifting camping to designated newly constructed campsites and prohibiting campfires. Survey results reveal that visitors were more satisfied with all social and environmental indicators after the changes were enacted. An Importance-Performance analysis also determined that management actions improved conditions for factors of greatest concern to campers prior to the changes. Posttreatment visitors were least satisfied with factors related to reduced freedom and to some characteristics of the constructed campsites. Although there was evidence of visitor displacement, the camping changes met management goals by protecting the camping area's natural resources and improving social conditions.

  6. Visitor evaluations of management actions at a highly impacted Appalachian Trail camping area

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Daniels, M.L.; Marion, J.L.

    2006-01-01

    Protected area management involves balancing environmental and social objectives. This is particularly difficult at high-use/high-impact recreation sites, because resource protection objectives may require substantial site management or visitor regulation. This study examined visitors? reactions to both of these types of actions at Annapolis Rocks, Maryland, a popular Appalachian Trail camping area. We surveyed visitors before and after implementation of camping policies that included shifting camping to designated newly constructed campsites and prohibiting campfires. Survey results reveal that visitors were more satisfied with all social and environmental indicators after the changes were enacted. An Importance-Performance analysis also determined that management actions improved conditions for factors of greatest concern to campers prior to the changes. Posttreatment visitors were least satisfied with factors related to reduced freedom and to some characteristics of the constructed campsites. Although there was evidence of visitor displacement, the camping changes met management goals by protecting the camping area?s natural resources and improving social conditions.

  7. Using crowd-sourced photos to assess seasonal patterns of visitor use in mountain-protected areas.

    PubMed

    Walden-Schreiner, Chelsey; Rossi, Sebastian Dario; Barros, Agustina; Pickering, Catherine; Leung, Yu-Fai

    2018-02-12

    Managing protected areas effectively requires information about patterns of visitor use, but these data are often limited. We explore how geotagged photos on Flickr, a popular photo-sharing social-media site, can generate hotspot maps and distribution models of temporal and spatial patterns of use in two mountain-protected areas of high conservation value. In Aconcagua Provincial Park (Argentina), two routes to the summit of Aconcagua were used in summer, but most visitors stayed close to the main road, using formal and informal walking trails and the Visitor Centre, while in winter, there was very limited visitation. In Kosciuszko National Park (Australia), alpine walking trails were popular in summer, but in winter, most visitors stayed in the lower altitude ski resorts and ski trails. Results demonstrate the usefulness of social-media data alone as well as a complement for visitor monitoring, providing spatial and temporal information for site-specific and park-level management of visitors and potential impacts in conservation areas.

  8. Visitors or visits? An examination of zoo visitor numbers using the case study of Australia.

    PubMed

    Smith, Liam

    2013-01-01

    Usually cited in reference to the potential reach of zoo education, one of the popular figures for global zoo visitation is that 600 million people visit zoos annually. However, this number needs clarification on two fronts. First, there are many zoo visitors who are not included in the calculation because they visited a zoo that was not included in the count. Second, it does not take into consideration the people visit either the same or different zoos more than once annually. Using data collected from several sources, including zoo visitors themselves, this article focuses on one country--Australia--that contributes 15.6 million to the visitation total, and contends that the correct number of unique annual zoo visitors to Australian zoos is likely to be between 8 and 10 million. However, rather than suggesting an overemphasis on the potential of zoos for educating visitors, having regular repeat visitors represents a distinct advantage for zoos, allowing for progressive education opportunities. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  9. Learning practice: a new model of health visitor intervention to drive outcomes.

    PubMed

    Ebeid, Ann

    2012-03-01

    Although there is a body of literature related to how hospital nurses develop skill, judgement or expertise there is little empirical work that focuses on understanding and developing health visiting expertise. The aims of this paper are: to identify a typology of health visitor skills, knowledge and cognition in use and the nature of health visitor expertise; to present an expert model of practice as a practice learning tool; to locate this model in context of my 2007 empirical research. This explored the problems of families and children in need and how they were supported by health visitors. This new practice model is timely in view of the need to train more health visitors, educators and practice facilitators as set out in the Health Visitor Implementation Plan.

  10. Protecting children: intuition and awareness in the work of health visitors.

    PubMed

    Ling, M S; Luker, K A

    2000-09-01

    Protecting children: intuition and awareness in the work of health visitors This paper is based upon an ethnographic study of a group of health visitors engaged in child protection work. The purpose of this paper is to explore the meanings individual health visitors attach to events concerned with identifying children who may be at risk of harm from child abuse, and also the idiosyncratic nature of health visiting in this complex but everyday social situation. The paper focuses on understanding the importance of a particular form of knowledge which the health visitors referred to as 'intuitive awareness'.

  11. Beyond baking soda: Demonstrating the link between volcanic eruptions and viscosity to all ages

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Smithka, I. N.; Walters, R. L.; Harpp, K. S.

    2014-12-01

    Public interest in volcanic eruptions and societal relevance of volcanic hazards provide an excellent basis for successful earth science outreach. During a museum-based earth science outreach event free and open to the public, we used two new interactive experiments to illustrate the relationship between gas content, magma viscosity, and eruption style. Learning objectives for visitors are to understand: how gas drives volcanic eruptions, the differences between effusive and explosive eruption styles, viscosity's control on gas pressure within a magma reservoir, and the role of gas pressure on eruption style. Visitors apply the scientific method by asking research questions and testing hypotheses by conducting the experiments. The demonstrations are framed with real life examples of volcanic eruptions (e.g., Mt. St. Helens eruption in 1980), providing context for the scientific concepts. The first activity demonstrates the concept of fluid viscosity and how gas interacts with fluids of different viscosities. Visitors blow bubbles into water and corn syrup. The corn syrup is so viscous that bubbles are trapped, showing how a more viscous material builds up higher gas pressure. Visitors are asked which kind of magma (high or low viscosity) will produce an explosive eruption. To demonstrate an explosive eruption, visitors add an Alka-Seltzer tablet to water in a snap-top film canister. The reaction rapidly produces carbon dioxide gas, increasing pressure in the canister until the lid pops off and the canister launches a few meters into the air (tinyurl.com/nzsgfoe). Increasing gas pressure in the canister is analogous to gas pressure building within a magma reservoir beneath a volcano. The lid represents high-viscosity magma that prevents degassing, causing gas pressure to reach explosive levels. This interactive activity is combined with a display of an effusive eruption: add vinegar to baking soda in a model volcano to produce a quick-flowing eruption. These demonstrations were implemented in March 2014 at "Can You Dig It?", a popular annual collaborative outreach event hosted by the Florida Museum of Natural History and the University of Florida Department of Geological Sciences (>1,500 visitors). These experiments were also used to illustrate volcanic processes at the VGP Exploration Station, AGU 2013.

  12. Recreational trails reduce the density of ground-dwelling birds in protected areas.

    PubMed

    Thompson, Bill

    2015-05-01

    Recreational disturbance associated with trails has been identified as one of the major factors causing a decline of native biodiversity within protected areas. However, despite the negative impacts that recreation can have on biodiversity, providing public access to nature is critical for the future of the conservation of biodiversity. As such, many protected area managers are looking for tools to help maintain a balance between public access and biodiversity conservation. The objectives of this study were to examine the impacts of recreational trails on forest-dwelling bird communities in eastern North America, identify functional guilds which are particularly sensitive to recreational trails, and derive guidelines for trail design to assist in managing the impacts of recreational trails on forest-dwelling birds. Trails within 24 publicly owned natural areas were mapped, and breeding bird communities were described with the use of point count surveys. The density of forest birds, particularly of those species which nest or forage on the ground, were significantly positively influenced by the amount of trail-free refuge habitat. Although management options to control trail use in non-staffed protected areas are limited, this study suggests that protected area managers could design and maintain a trail network that would minimize impacts on resident wildlife, while providing recreational opportunities for visitors, by designing their trail network to maximize the area of trail-free habitat.

  13. Recreational Trails Reduce the Density of Ground-Dwelling Birds in Protected Areas

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Thompson, Bill

    2015-05-01

    Recreational disturbance associated with trails has been identified as one of the major factors causing a decline of native biodiversity within protected areas. However, despite the negative impacts that recreation can have on biodiversity, providing public access to nature is critical for the future of the conservation of biodiversity. As such, many protected area managers are looking for tools to help maintain a balance between public access and biodiversity conservation. The objectives of this study were to examine the impacts of recreational trails on forest-dwelling bird communities in eastern North America, identify functional guilds which are particularly sensitive to recreational trails, and derive guidelines for trail design to assist in managing the impacts of recreational trails on forest-dwelling birds. Trails within 24 publicly owned natural areas were mapped, and breeding bird communities were described with the use of point count surveys. The density of forest birds, particularly of those species which nest or forage on the ground, were significantly positively influenced by the amount of trail-free refuge habitat. Although management options to control trail use in non-staffed protected areas are limited, this study suggests that protected area managers could design and maintain a trail network that would minimize impacts on resident wildlife, while providing recreational opportunities for visitors, by designing their trail network to maximize the area of trail-free habitat.

  14. Application of an imaging system to a museum exhibition for developing interactive exhibitions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Miyata, Kimiyoshi; Inoue, Yuka; Takiguchi, Takahiro; Tsumura, Norimichi; Nakaguchi, Toshiya; Miyake, Yoichi

    2009-10-01

    In the National Museum of Japanese History, 215,759 artifacts are stored and used for research and exhibitions. In museums, due to the limitation of space in the galleries, a guidance system is required to satisfy visitors' needs and to enhance their understanding of the artifacts. We introduce one exhibition using imaging technology to improve visitors' understanding of a kimono (traditional Japanese clothing) exhibition. In the imaging technology introduced, one data projector, one display with touch panel interface, and magnifiers were used as exhibition tools together with a real kimono. The validity of this exhibition method was confirmed by results from a visitors' interview survey. Second, to further develop the interactive guidance system, an augmented reality system that consisted of cooperation between the projector and a digital video camera was also examined. A white paper board in the observer's hand was used as a projection screen and also as an interface to control the images projected on the board. The basic performance of the proposed system was confirmed; however continuous development was necessary for applying the system to actual exhibitions.

  15. Network Information System

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

    1996-05-01

    The Network Information System (NWIS) was initially implemented in May 1996 as a system in which computing devices could be recorded so that unique names could be generated for each device. Since then the system has grown to be an enterprise wide information system which is integrated with other systems to provide the seamless flow of data through the enterprise. The system Iracks data for two main entities: people and computing devices. The following are the type of functions performed by NWIS for these two entities: People Provides source information to the enterprise person data repository for select contractors andmore » visitors Generates and tracks unique usernames and Unix user IDs for every individual granted cyber access Tracks accounts for centrally managed computing resources, and monitors and controls the reauthorization of the accounts in accordance with the DOE mandated interval Computing Devices Generates unique names for all computing devices registered in the system Tracks the following information for each computing device: manufacturer, make, model, Sandia property number, vendor serial number, operating system and operating system version, owner, device location, amount of memory, amount of disk space, and level of support provided for the machine Tracks the hardware address for network cards Tracks the P address registered to computing devices along with the canonical and alias names for each address Updates the Dynamic Domain Name Service (DDNS) for canonical and alias names Creates the configuration files for DHCP to control the DHCP ranges and allow access to only properly registered computers Tracks and monitors classified security plans for stand-alone computers Tracks the configuration requirements used to setup the machine Tracks the roles people have on machines (system administrator, administrative access, user, etc...) Allows systems administrators to track changes made on the machine (both hardware and software) Generates an adjustment history of changes on selected fields« less

  16. Leave no trace practices: behaviors and preferences of wilderness visitors regarding use of cookstoves and camping away from lakes

    Treesearch

    Neal A. Christensen; David N. Cole

    2000-01-01

    This research used descriptive information collected in visitor studies conducted between 1990 and 1992 in eight different wildernesses around the United States to evaluate behaviors and preferences of wilderness visitors regarding cookstoves and camping away from lakes. The majority of visitors used stoves for cooking. However, in all but the Desolation Wilderness, at...

  17. How Do Zoos "Talk" to Their General Visitors? Do Visitors "Listen"? A Mixed Method Investigation of the Communication between Modern Zoos and Their General Visitors

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Roe, Katie; McConney, Andrew; Mansfield, Caroline F.

    2014-01-01

    Modern zoos utilise a variety of education tools for communicating with visitors. Previous research has discussed the benefits of providing multiple education communications, yet little research provides an indication of what communications are being employed within zoos today. This research is a two-phased, mixed-methods investigation into the…

  18. Associations of neighborhood characteristics with active park use: an observational study in two cities in the USA and Belgium

    PubMed Central

    2013-01-01

    Background Public parks can be an important setting for physical activity promotion, but to increase park use and the activity levels of park users, the crucial attributes related to active park use need to be defined. Not only user characteristics and structural park attributes, but also characteristics of the surrounding neighborhood are important to examine. Furthermore, internationally comparable studies are needed, to find out if similar intervention strategies might be effective worldwide. The main aim of this study was to examine whether the overall number of park visitors and their activity levels depend on study site, neighborhood walkability and neighborhood income. Methods Data were collected in 20 parks in Ghent, Belgium and San Diego, USA. Two trained observers systematically coded park characteristics using the Environmental Assessment of Public Recreation Spaces (EAPRS) tool, and park user characteristics using the System for Observing Play and recreation in Communities (SOPARC) tool. Multilevel multiple regression models were conducted in MLwiN 2.25. Results In San Diego parks, activity levels of park visitors and number of vigorously active visitors were higher than in Ghent, while the number of visitors walking and the overall number of park visitors were lower. Neighborhood walkability was positively associated with the overall number of visitors, the number of visitors walking, number of sedentary visitors and mean activity levels of visitors. Neighborhood income was positively associated with the overall number of visitors, but negatively with the number of visitors being vigorously active. Conclusions Neighborhood characteristics are important to explain park use. Neighborhood walkability-related attributes should be taken into account when promoting the use of existing parks or creating new parks. Because no strong differences were found between parks in high- and low-income neighborhoods, it seems that promoting park use might be a promising strategy to increase physical activity in low-income populations, known to be at higher risk for overweight and obesity. PMID:23648048

  19. An investigation of the impact of Melbourne Zoo's "Seal-the-Loop" donate call-to-action on visitor satisfaction and behavior.

    PubMed

    Mellish, Sarah; Sanders, Ben; Litchfield, Carla A; Pearson, Elissa L

    2017-05-01

    Modern zoos are uniquely positioned to educate the public about environmental issues and promote conservation action. This report investigates the introduction of a donation request during an interactive fur seal presentation (as part of Melbourne Zoo's "Seal-the-Loop" initiative) on visitor satisfaction, perceptions of donation as a way to help wild fur seals, and donation behaviors. Comparisons are made between three groups surveyed upon exit: (1) viewed the interactive fur seal presentation prior to the donation request implementation (pledge-presentation: N = 86; see Mellish, Pearson, Sanders, and Litchfield []; International Zoo Yearbook 129:129-154); (2) viewed the interactive fur seal presentation including the donation request (donate-presentation: N = 82); and (3) viewed the fur seal exhibit and donation point but not the presentation and were not directly asked to make a donation (donate-exhibit: N = 82). Findings demonstrate visitor satisfaction with the interactive fur seal presentation was not negatively impacted following the implementation of the donate request (with >92% of pledge-presentation and donate-presentation visitors providing a "satisfied" or "very satisfied" rating). Only the donate-presentation visitors reported donation as a conservation action to help wild fur seals (19.18%; 0% for pledge-presentation visitors). While both donate-exhibit (39.51%) and donate-presentation visitors (60.75%) self-reported making donations or intending to do so, donation behavior was significantly increased for visitors who had viewed the fur seal presentation. Findings provide preliminary support that zoos may utilize interactive educational presentations to effectively ask visitors for donations to support specific conservation projects, without negatively impacting on satisfaction and with a relatively high level of visitor engagement. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  20. Pollinator community structure and sources of spatial variation in plant--pollinator interactions in Clarkia xantiana ssp. xantiana.

    PubMed

    Moeller, David A

    2005-01-01

    The structure of diverse floral visitor assemblages and the nature of spatial variation in plant-pollinator interactions have important consequences for floral evolution and reproductive interactions among pollinator-sharing plant species. In this study, I use surveys of floral visitor communities across the geographic range of Clarkia xantiana ssp. xantiana (hereafter C. x. xantiana) (Onagraceae) to examine the structure of visitor communities, the specificity of the pollination system, and the role of variation in the abiotic vs. biotic environment in contributing to spatial variation in pollinator abundance and community composition. Although the assemblage of bee visitors to C. x. xantiana is very diverse (49 species), few were regular visitors and likely to act as pollinators. Seventy-four percent of visitor species accounted for only 11% of total visitor abundance and 69% were collected in three or fewer plant populations (of ten). Of the few reliable visitors, Clarkia pollen specialist bees were the most frequent visitors, carried more Clarkia pollen compared to generalist foragers, and were less likely to harbor foreign pollen. Overall, the core group of pollinators was obscured by high numbers of incidental visitors that are unlikely to contribute to pollination. In a geographic context, the composition of specialist pollinator assemblages varied considerably along the abiotic gradient spanning the subspecies' range. However, the overall abundance of specialist pollinators in plant populations was not influenced by the broad-scale abiotic gradient but strongly affected by local plant community associations. C. x. xantiana populations sympatric with pollinator-sharing congeners were visited twice as often by specialists compared to populations occurring alone. These positive indirect interactions among plant species may promote population persistence and species coexistence by enhancing individual reproductive success.

  1. Mother and Home Visitor Emotional Well-Being and Alignment on Goals for Home Visiting as Factors for Program Engagement.

    PubMed

    Burrell, L; Crowne, S; Ojo, K; Snead, R; O'Neill, K; Cluxton-Keller, F; Duggan, A

    2018-05-31

    Objectives Family engagement in home visiting (HV), as indicated by length of enrollment, is a major challenge as most families do not stay enrolled for the intended duration prescribed by HV models. This study examined maternal and visitor emotional well-being as factors for maternal satisfaction with the program in addressing reasons for enrolling in HV and program engagement and the role of their working alliance with the visitor as a mediator of this. Methods Longitudinal data were collected from 148 mothers and 54 visitors in 21 HV programs. Mothers completed surveys shortly after enrolling and 6 months later to assess attributes of the working alliance with their visitor. Visitors completed a survey to assess work-related well-being. HV program data were used to measure engagement. Results Mothers enrolled for multiple, diverse reasons, most often to promote child development and parenting (96%). Mothers' satisfaction with program efforts to address reasons for enrollment was highest for parenting (79%) and lowest for jobs and education (30%). Results of the mediational path model indicated that ratings of the visitor on goal alignment were positively associated with engagement. Maternal emotional availability and visitor work-related emotional exhaustion were negatively associated with engagement. Exploratory analyses suggested that ratings of the visitor on goal alignment were a stronger predictor of engagement for mothers with low emotional availability compared to other mothers. Conclusions for Practice Visitor alignment with mothers on goals and responsiveness to reasons for enrolling appear to be effective in promoting engagement. Individualizing services to reflect maternal goals and emotional capacity may be important strategies to address engagement challenges.

  2. The effects of environmental and visitor variables on the behavior of free-ranging ring-tailed lemurs (Lemur catta) in captivity.

    PubMed

    Collins, Courtney; Corkery, Ilse; Haigh, Amy; McKeown, Sean; Quirke, Thomas; O'Riordan, Ruth

    2017-07-01

    The effect of the zoo environment on captive animals is an increasingly studied area of zoo research, with visitor effects and exhibit design recognized as two of the factors that can contribute to animal welfare in captivity. It is known that in some situations, visitors may be stressful to zoo-housed primates, and this may be compounded by environmental factors such as the weather, the time of day, and zoo husbandry routines. Exhibit design and proximity of the public are also known to influence behavioral response of primates to visitors; however, there is minimal research on free-ranging zoo animals, even though they are potentially subjected to intense interactions with visitors. The current study explores the effect of the zoo environment, several visitor variables and specific animal-visitor interactions on the behavior of free-ranging ring-tailed lemurs (Lemur catta) at Fota Wildlife Park, Ireland. Data were obtained through scan samples collected over 18 months (n = 12,263) and analyzed using a range of statistical tests, including general estimating equations (GEE). Results demonstrate that the free-ranging lemurs' behavior at Fota Wildlife Park is affected by season, weather and time of day. Similarities in feeding behavior exist between the free-ranging group and lemurs in the wild when resources are plentiful. Visitor variables had a limited effect on lemur behavior and behavioral diversity level. Lemurs rarely reacted to visitors when specific interactions were considered. Generally, the results indicate that the ring-tailed lemurs in this study have adapted well to the zoo environment and habituated to visitors. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  3. Generalization versus Specialization in Pollination Systems: Visitors, Thieves, and Pollinators of Hypoestes aristata (Acanthaceae)

    PubMed Central

    Padyšáková, Eliška; Bartoš, Michael; Tropek, Robert; Janeček, Štěpán

    2013-01-01

    Many recent studies have suggested that the majority of animal-pollinated plants have a higher diversity of pollinators than that expected according to their pollination syndrome. This broad generalization, often based on pollination web data, has been challenged by the fact that some floral visitors recorded in pollination webs are ineffective pollinators. To contribute to this debate, and to obtain a contrast between visitors and pollinators, we studied insect and bird visitors to virgin flowers of Hypoestes aristata in the Bamenda Highlands, Cameroon. We observed the flowers and their visitors for 2-h periods and measured the seed production as a metric of reproductive success. We determined the effects of individual visitors using 2 statistical models, single-visit data that were gathered for more frequent visitor species, and frequency data. This approach enabled us to determine the positive as well as neutral or negative impact of visitors on H. aristata’s reproductive success. We found that (i) this plant is not generalized but rather specialized; although we recorded 15 morphotaxa of visitors, only 3 large bee species seemed to be important pollinators; (ii) the carpenter bee Xylocopa cf. inconstans was both the most frequent and the most effective pollinator; (iii) the honey bee Apis mellifera acted as a nectar thief with apparent negative effects on the plant reproduction; and (iv) the close relationship between H. aristata and carpenter bees was in agreement with the large-bee pollination syndrome of this plant. Our results highlight the need for studies detecting the roles of individual visitors. We showed that such an approach is necessary to evaluate the pollination syndrome hypothesis and create relevant evolutionary and ecological hypotheses. PMID:23593135

  4. Generalization versus specialization in pollination systems: visitors, thieves, and pollinators of Hypoestes aristata (Acanthaceae).

    PubMed

    Padyšáková, Eliška; Bartoš, Michael; Tropek, Robert; Janeček, Stěpán

    2013-01-01

    Many recent studies have suggested that the majority of animal-pollinated plants have a higher diversity of pollinators than that expected according to their pollination syndrome. This broad generalization, often based on pollination web data, has been challenged by the fact that some floral visitors recorded in pollination webs are ineffective pollinators. To contribute to this debate, and to obtain a contrast between visitors and pollinators, we studied insect and bird visitors to virgin flowers of Hypoestes aristata in the Bamenda Highlands, Cameroon. We observed the flowers and their visitors for 2-h periods and measured the seed production as a metric of reproductive success. We determined the effects of individual visitors using 2 statistical models, single-visit data that were gathered for more frequent visitor species, and frequency data. This approach enabled us to determine the positive as well as neutral or negative impact of visitors on H. aristata's reproductive success. We found that (i) this plant is not generalized but rather specialized; although we recorded 15 morphotaxa of visitors, only 3 large bee species seemed to be important pollinators; (ii) the carpenter bee Xylocopa cf. inconstans was both the most frequent and the most effective pollinator; (iii) the honey bee Apis mellifera acted as a nectar thief with apparent negative effects on the plant reproduction; and (iv) the close relationship between H. aristata and carpenter bees was in agreement with the large-bee pollination syndrome of this plant. Our results highlight the need for studies detecting the roles of individual visitors. We showed that such an approach is necessary to evaluate the pollination syndrome hypothesis and create relevant evolutionary and ecological hypotheses.

  5. Visitor center flight room, detail of twin structural piers at ...

    Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

    Visitor center flight room, detail of twin structural piers at northeast corner supporting flight room dome - Wright Brothers National Memorial Visitor Center, Highway 158, Kill Devil Hills, Dare County, NC

  6. Visitor survey results for the Souris River Loop National Wildlife Refuges: Completion report

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Sexton, Natalie R.; Koontz, Lynne; Stewart, Susan C.

    2005-01-01

    In support of the CCP planning effort for the Souris River Loop Refuges, the Policy Analysis and Science Assistance Branch/Fort Collins Science Center (PASA) of the U.S. Geological Survey conducted visitor surveys at three refuges in North Dakota: Des Lacs, J. Clark Salyer, and Upper Souris National Wildlife Refuges. This research was conducted in order to assess visitor experience, perceptions, and preferences and visitor spending related to recreation on these public lands. This baseline information and input is needed by the refuges to inform their CCP process. Specifically, this survey research assesses the characteristics of visitors and their trips, the activities in which visitors engage while on the refuge, details regarding their trip experience, as well as their preferences and attitudes about various management features, including existing and future conditions. 

  7. Visitor employed photography: its potential and use in evaluating visitors' perceptions of resource impacts in trail and park settings

    Treesearch

    Catherine E. Dorwart; Roger L. Moore; Yu-Fai Leung

    2007-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to examine visitors' perceptions and to determine how their perceptions affected overall recreation experiences along a 2.9-mile segment of the Appalachian Trail in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. A purposive sample of 28 visitors was selected for this study. The study consisted of three parts, including a trail impact...

  8. Valuation of National Park System Visitation: The Efficient Use of Count Data Models, Meta-Analysis, and Secondary Visitor Survey Data

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Neher, Christopher; Duffield, John; Patterson, David

    2013-09-01

    The National Park Service (NPS) currently manages a large and diverse system of park units nationwide which received an estimated 279 million recreational visits in 2011. This article uses park visitor data collected by the NPS Visitor Services Project to estimate a consistent set of count data travel cost models of park visitor willingness to pay (WTP). Models were estimated using 58 different park unit survey datasets. WTP estimates for these 58 park surveys were used within a meta-regression analysis model to predict average and total WTP for NPS recreational visitation system-wide. Estimated WTP per NPS visit in 2011 averaged 102 system-wide, and ranged across park units from 67 to 288. Total 2011 visitor WTP for the NPS system is estimated at 28.5 billion with a 95% confidence interval of 19.7-43.1 billion. The estimation of a meta-regression model using consistently collected data and identical specification of visitor WTP models greatly reduces problems common to meta-regression models, including sample selection bias, primary data heterogeneity, and heteroskedasticity, as well as some aspects of panel effects. The article provides the first estimate of total annual NPS visitor WTP within the literature directly based on NPS visitor survey data.

  9. The relationship between aircraft noise exposure and day-use visitor survey responses in backcountry areas of national parks.

    PubMed

    Rapoza, Amanda; Sudderth, Erika; Lewis, Kristin

    2015-10-01

    To evaluate the relationship between aircraft noise exposure and the quality of national park visitor experience, more than 4600 visitor surveys were collected at seven backcountry sites in four U.S. national parks simultaneously with calibrated sound level measurements. Multilevel logistic regression was used to estimate parameters describing the relationship among visitor responses, aircraft noise dose metrics, and mediator variables. For the regression models, survey responses were converted to three dichotomous variables, representing visitors who did or did not experience slightly or more, moderately or more, or very or more annoyance or interference with natural quiet from aircraft noise. Models with the most predictive power included noise dose metrics of sound exposure level, percent time aircraft were audible, and percentage energy due to helicopters and fixed-wing propeller aircraft. These models also included mediator variables: visitor ratings of the "importance of calmness, peace and tranquility," visitor group composition (adults or both adults and children), first visit to the site, previously taken an air tour, and participation in bird-watching or interpretive talks. The results complement and extend previous research conducted in frontcountry areas and will inform evaluations of air tour noise effects on visitors to national parks and remote wilderness sites.

  10. Spatially characterizing visitor use and its association with informal trails in Yosemite Valley meadows.

    PubMed

    Walden-Schreiner, Chelsey; Leung, Yu-Fai

    2013-07-01

    Ecological impacts associated with nature-based recreation and tourism can compromise park and protected area goals if left unrestricted. Protected area agencies are increasingly incorporating indicator-based management frameworks into their management plans to address visitor impacts. Development of indicators requires empirical evaluation of indicator measures and examining their ecological and social relevance. This study addresses the development of the informal trail indicator in Yosemite National Park by spatially characterizing visitor use in open landscapes and integrating use patterns with informal trail condition data to examine their spatial association. Informal trail and visitor use data were collected concurrently during July and August of 2011 in three, high-use meadows of Yosemite Valley. Visitor use was clustered at statistically significant levels in all three study meadows. Spatial data integration found no statistically significant differences between use patterns and trail condition class. However, statistically significant differences were found between the distance visitors were observed from informal trails and visitor activity type with active activities occurring closer to trail corridors. Gender was also found to be significant with male visitors observed further from trail corridors. Results highlight the utility of integrated spatial analysis in supporting indicator-based monitoring and informing management of open landscapes. Additional variables for future analysis and methodological improvements are discussed.

  11. Spatially Characterizing Visitor Use and Its Association with Informal Trails in Yosemite Valley Meadows

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Walden-Schreiner, Chelsey; Leung, Yu-Fai

    2013-07-01

    Ecological impacts associated with nature-based recreation and tourism can compromise park and protected area goals if left unrestricted. Protected area agencies are increasingly incorporating indicator-based management frameworks into their management plans to address visitor impacts. Development of indicators requires empirical evaluation of indicator measures and examining their ecological and social relevance. This study addresses the development of the informal trail indicator in Yosemite National Park by spatially characterizing visitor use in open landscapes and integrating use patterns with informal trail condition data to examine their spatial association. Informal trail and visitor use data were collected concurrently during July and August of 2011 in three, high-use meadows of Yosemite Valley. Visitor use was clustered at statistically significant levels in all three study meadows. Spatial data integration found no statistically significant differences between use patterns and trail condition class. However, statistically significant differences were found between the distance visitors were observed from informal trails and visitor activity type with active activities occurring closer to trail corridors. Gender was also found to be significant with male visitors observed further from trail corridors. Results highlight the utility of integrated spatial analysis in supporting indicator-based monitoring and informing management of open landscapes. Additional variables for future analysis and methodological improvements are discussed.

  12. The influence of place attachment and experience use history on perceived depreciative visitor behavior and crowding in an urban national park.

    PubMed

    Eder, Renate; Arnberger, Arne

    2012-10-01

    Research on recreational place attachment suggests that place identity, or the emotional/symbolic ties people have to places, and place dependence, which describes a functional attachment to a specific place, influence the perception of social and environmental site conditions. Recent research, however, has found that place attachment is not always a predictor of such perceptions. This study investigated the influence of place attachment and experience use history on the perception of depreciative visitor behavior, recreation impacts and crowding in an urban national park. In 2006, 605 on-site visitors to the heavily-used Viennese part of the Danube Floodplains National Park were asked about past experience, place attachment, perceptions of depreciative visitor behavior, crowding, changes in visitor numbers during the past ten years, and recreation impacts on wildlife. Confirmatory factor analysis confirmed the two dimensions of place attachment. Linear regression analyses found that place identity and place dependence were related to some perceived depreciative visitor behaviors and visitor number changes but not to crowding, while experience use history additionally related to perceived crowding. Visitors with higher place attachment and past experience were more sensitive to social and environmental site conditions. Management implications of the findings are discussed.

  13. Engaging Parents in Early Head Start Home-Based Programs: How Do Home Visitors Do This?

    PubMed

    Shanti, Caroline

    2017-01-01

    Parental engagement is considered elemental to successful outcomes for parents and their children in early childhood home visiting programs. Engagement is that piece of parental involvement that refers to the working relationship between the parent and the home visitor. Multiple papers have called for research to pinpoint the ways in which home visitors work with parents to form these working relationships, and form partnerships to achieve positive outcomes. Analysis revealed that in individualizing their efforts to each family, home visitors follow semi-sequential steps in implementing engagement. This article presents a model of the process home visitors describe that resulted from analysis. Grounded theory techniques were used to analyze 29 interviews with Early Head Start (EHS) home visitors and 11 supervisors across four EHS programs in one region of the United States. The process of engagement as described emerges in three phases: (1) learning the parent's culture and style; (2) deepening the working partnership; and (3) balancing the ongoing work. Analysis further revealed specific strategies and goals that guide the work of home visitors in each of these three phases. This not only adds rich detail to the literature, but also provides a useful guide for programs and policy makers through identifying the areas where training and support will increase home visitor ability to engage parents.

  14. The total solar eclipse of 2010 July 11

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    McGee, H.; James, N.; Mason, J.

    2010-08-01

    The solar eclipse of 2010 July 11 always promised to be a logistical nightmare to observe. The Moon's shadow first touched the Earth in the southern Pacific, encountering land at Mangaia in the Cook Islands only after 1450km of open ocean. The narrow track of totality then swung northeast, passing tantalisingly close to the islands of Tahiti and Moorea, which experienced a 98% partial eclipse. Beyond Tahiti the track crossed the Tuamotu archipelago of French Polynesia - thousands of tiny coral atolls, of which very few are inhabited, and even fewer have airstrips that make them accessible to visitors.

  15. A review of the relationships between visitors and ungulates in national parks

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Wright, R. Gerald

    1998-01-01

    The growth in ungulate populations and the enhanced viewing opportunities they provide in many national parks, a mixed blessing to park managers, has been viewed positively by most park visitors. Visitors, long the major constituency of parks, have played a major role in the way ungulates are managed. I trace the history of the relationships between visitors and ungulates in parks and provide examples of how visitors have influenced ungulate management policies. Today, although public influence on ungulate management seems to be greater than ever, the public has a poor understanding of park management actions. Park interpretive programs can be used to address this problem.

  16. NREL Visitors Center Closing Temporarily for Remodeling

    Science.gov Websites

    Visitors Center Closing Temporarily for Remodeling Media may contact: George Douglas, 303-275-4096 email: George Douglas Golden, Colo., Sept. 6, 2000 - The Visitors Center at the U.S. Department of

  17. 76 FR 59699 - Receipt of Request for Waiver from Testing

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-09-27

    ... are required to show photographic identification, pass through a metal detector, and sign the EPA visitor log. All visitor bags are processed through an X-ray machine and subject to search. Visitors will...

  18. 77 FR 10512 - Certain New Chemicals; Receipt and Status Information

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-02-22

    ... show photographic identification, pass through a metal detector, and sign the EPA visitor log. All visitor bags are processed through an X-ray machine and subject to search. Visitors will be provided an...

  19. 77 FR 21769 - Certain New Chemicals; Receipt and Status Information

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-04-11

    ... show photographic identification, pass through a metal detector, and sign the EPA visitor log. All visitor bags are processed through an X-ray machine and subject to search. Visitors will be provided an...

  20. Visitor center museum display, detail of diorama booth with raised ...

    Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

    Visitor center museum display, detail of diorama booth with raised step; door to electrical door panel at left - Wright Brothers National Memorial Visitor Center, Highway 158, Kill Devil Hills, Dare County, NC

  1. Impact of zoo visitors on the fecal cortisol levels and behavior of an endangered species: Indian blackbuck (Antelope cervicapra L.).

    PubMed

    Rajagopal, Thangavel; Archunan, Govindaraju; Sekar, Mahadevan

    2011-01-01

    This study investigated behavioral activities (resting, moving, aggressive, social, and reproductive behavior) and fecal cortisol levels in 8 individually identified adult male blackbucks during periods of varying levels of zoo visitors (zero, low, high, and extremely high zoo visitor density). This study also elucidated whether zoo visitor density could disturb nonhuman animal welfare. This study analyzed fecal cortisol from the samples of blackbuck by radioimmunoassay and found significant differences (p < .05) for time the animals devoted to moving, resting, aggressive, reproductive, and social behavior on days with high and extremely high levels of zoo visitors. The ANOVA with Duncan's Multiple Range Test test showed that the fecal cortisol concentration was higher (p < .05) during the extremely high (137.30 ± 5.88 ng/g dry feces) and high (113.51 ± 3.70 ng/g dry feces) levels of zoo visitor density. The results of the study suggest that zoo visitor density affected behavior and adrenocortical secretion in Indian Blackbuck, and this may indicate an animal welfare problem.

  2. Rural and urban park visits and park-based physical activity.

    PubMed

    Shores, Kindal A; West, Stephanie T

    2010-01-01

    A physical activity disparity exists between rural and urban residents. Community parks are resources for physical activity because they are publicly provided, available at a low cost, and accessible to most residents. We examine the use of and physical activity outcomes associated with rural and urban parks. Onsite observations were conducted using the System for Observing Play and Recreation in Communities (SOPARC) at four rural and four urban parks. Momentary sampling scans were conducted four times per day for seven days at each site. A total of 6,545 park visitors were observed. Both rural and urban park visitors were observed more often at larger parks with paved trails and attended most often on weekends. Rural park visits were more frequent than urban park visits but rural visits were less physically active. Although similarities were observed between rural and urban park visits, differences suggest that findings from park and physical activity studies in urban areas should not be considered representative of their rural counterparts. Given that the majority of existing park and physical activity research has been undertaken in urban settings, the need for complementary research in rural settings has been made evident through this presentation of baseline descriptive data.

  3. Impacts of visitors on soil and vegetation of the recreational area "Nacimiento del Río Mundo" (Castilla-La Mancha, Spain).

    PubMed

    Andrés-Abellán, Manuela; Del Alamo, Javier Benayas; Landete-Castillejos, Tomás; López-Serrano, Francisco R; García-Morote, Francisco A; Del Cerro-Barja, Antonio

    2005-02-01

    This study examines the effects of recreational use on the soil and vegetation at a site of ecological importance (Nacimiento del Río Mundo, Albacete, Spain). The most visited sites showed increased soil compaction of approximately 50%, bare ground increase to 61 +/- 10% and a decrease in richness (from 25 +/- 2 to 15 +/- 2 species), diversity (from 4.0 +/- 0.1 to 2.7 +/- 0.4) and stratification of plant species (from 80 +/- 11 to 21 +/- 4%). The most visited sites had 90% less plant species as compared to the least visited. Intense use was associated with the presence of nitrophilous plant and vegetal species with a morphology adapted to heavy trampling. The recreational areas showed a distribution pattern of impact radiating outwards from the most used and degraded point. At the most visited point, "Los Chorros" (the spring of the river), the impact radiated outwards for about 20 m. A pilot experiment examining the effects of one-year restriction to visitors for access to a formerly impacted area showed a plant cover increase by anthropic and not by native species of 57 percent units.

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

    Hurrell, James W.

    In fiscal year 2011, the Community Earth System Model (CESM) tutorial was taught at NCAR from 1-5 August 2011. This project hosted 79 full participants (1 accepted participant from China couldn't get a visa) selected from 180 applications. The tutorial was advertised through emails to CESM mailing lists. NCAR staff and long-term visitors (who were not eligible to attend) were also invited to 'audit' the climate and practical lectures and to work on the practical sessions on their own. 15 NCAR staff and long-term visitors took advantage of this opportunity. The majority of the students were graduate students, but severalmore » post-docs, faculty, and other research scientists also attended. Additionally, many people are using the on-line lessons and practical sessions. As of August 18, 2011, 407 people had registered to access and use the tutorial from 33 countries all over the world, but a majority from US universities. In fiscal year 2011, the Climate and Global Dynamics Division Information Systems Group (CGD/ISG) built and operated a temporary computer laboratory in a meeting room. This project was made possible through funding from the National Science Foundation Directorate of Geosciences, and the Department of Energy Office of Science.« less

  5. Visitor - Soviet Union Ambassador - Anatoliy Dobrynin - JSC

    NASA Image and Video Library

    1975-07-17

    S75-28534 (17 July 1975) --- Anatoliy Dobrynin (right), Soviet Union ambassador to the United States, visits with a group of USSR ASTP flight controllers in the Mission Control Center during a tour of NASA's Johnson Space Center (JSC). Dobrynin was at JSC on the day the Soviet Soyuz and the American Apollo spacecraft docked in Earth orbit. The group also includes a couple of American ASTP flight controllers.

  6. 77 FR 21096 - Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection; Comment Request

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-04-09

    ... show photographic identification, pass through a metal detector, and sign the EPA visitor log. All visitor bags are processed through an X-ray machine and subject to search. Visitors will be provided an...

  7. 77 FR 47640 - Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection; Comment Request

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-08-09

    ... (202) 566-0280. Docket visitors are required to show photographic identification, pass through a metal detector, and sign the EPA visitor log. All visitor bags are processed through an X-ray machine and subject...

  8. 78 FR 70037 - Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection; Comment Request

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-11-22

    ... show photographic identification, pass through a metal detector, and sign the EPA visitor log. All visitor bags are processed through an X-ray machine and subject to search. Visitors will be provided an...

  9. 78 FR 44560 - Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection; Comment Request

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-07-24

    ... are required to show photographic identification, pass through a metal detector, and sign the EPA visitor log. All visitor bags are processed through an X-ray machine and subject to search. Visitors will...

  10. 76 FR 70443 - Decision on Waiver Application From 3M

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-11-14

    ... (202) 566-0280. Docket visitors are required to show photographic identification, pass through a metal detector, and sign the EPA visitor log. All visitor bags are processed through an X-ray machine and subject...

  11. 78 FR 60867 - Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection; Comment Request

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-10-02

    ... show photographic identification, pass through a metal detector, and sign the EPA visitor log. All visitor bags are processed through an X-ray machine and subject to search. Visitors will be provided an...

  12. 76 FR 46794 - Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection; Comment Request

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-08-03

    ... show photographic identification, pass through a metal detector, and sign the EPA visitor log. All visitor bags are processed through an X-ray machine and subject to search. Visitors will be provided an...

  13. Evaluation and development of a university visitor parking management framework.

    DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

    2010-05-01

    Visitors constitute an important component of a university business. Given that visitors are typically unfamiliar with university : campus layouts, special assistance may be needed to assist them with their parking needs. For example, personal and : ...

  14. Visitor center flight room,detail of modern soffit and original ribbedconcrete ...

    Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

    Visitor center flight room,detail of modern soffit and original ribbed-concrete including original integrated duct work, view to northwest - Wright Brothers National Memorial Visitor Center, Highway 158, Kill Devil Hills, Dare County, NC

  15. The newly expanded KSC Visitors Complex features a new ticket plaza, information center, exhibits an

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    1999-01-01

    The newly added Robot Scouts exhibit at the KSC Visitor Complex is situated next to the Rocket Garden. Part of the $13 million expansion to the Visitor Complex, the exhibit helps describe for visitors the accomplishments of unsung space heroes - space probes - and their role in space exploration. It also includes a display of how data from robotic probes might be used to build a human habitat for Mars. Visitors can witness a simulated Martian sunset. Other additions include a new foyer, films, and an International Space Station-themed ticket plaza, featuring a structure of overhanging solar panels and astronauts performing assembly tasks. The KSC Visitor Complex was inaugurated three decades ago and is now one of the top five tourist attractions in Florida. It is located on S.R. 407, east of I-95, within the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge.

  16. Perception study about visitors related to development of Rowo Bayu attractions in Kecamatan Songgon Banyuwangi

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Mahayu, A. G.

    2017-06-01

    The development of tourism was a process of sustainability, and it was not stand-alone activity because it must involve various sectors. Tourism planning must take into consideration the existing condition and supporting capacity because it should create a long-term mutual interaction in achieving goals such as increasing community welfare and ensuring the sustainability of environmental supporting capacity in the future. Rowo Bayu Tourist Object was greatly potential to be developed into historical and also natural objects of scenery. Some historical heritages of Tawangalun Palace were exposed beautifully by the marsh and this situation could be cultivated into water-based tourism. However, Rowo Bayu Tourist Object still lacked of supporting facilities such as security post, parking lot, cleaning service, prayer house, and others that led only to the inconvenience of the visitors. In this research, the perception of visitors on importance and satisfaction rates of tourist object-related variables was measured. These variables included attraction, accomodation, accessibility, facility, information, and utility, which were then subjected to the analysis technique of IPA. Result of analysis found 14 attributes that were important for tourist object development but in bad condition. These attributes were: the availability of security guard, the availability of food and beverage providers, the availability of transportation modes to the tourist object, the availability of parking lot, the availability of toilet, the availability of garbage can, the availability of information center, the availability of prayer house, the availability of ATM, the availability of fuel-station (SPBU), the availability of tourist object promotion tools, the availability of tour guide, the availability of electricity, and the signal strength of mobile phones. After IPA was finished, it was followed by AHP analysis.

  17. Self-assessment of independence in older people: First results from an open-access website for senior citizens and caregivers in France.

    PubMed

    Koskas, Pierre; Wolfowicz, B

    2018-05-01

    E-health initiatives on the Internet can be used to provide support to people with chronic diseases and to their caregivers. In 2014/2015, we created a free website called jesuisautonome.fr where older people, or their carers on their behalf, can assess their independence in daily living by filling out a simple questionnaire. To evaluate the interest of the public in websites of this kind, by analysing home care plans obtained via the self-assessment questionnaire. We also describe patterns of use and visitor behaviour. Over a period of 6 months, we analysed data from the website in terms of the basic characteristics of the user; the number of questionnaires completed; the main types of needs in terms of home support; and data from Google Analytics about the number of visitors, user behaviour and behaviour flow. During the 6-month study period, 439 visitors to the site either viewed, part-completed or fully completed the questionnaire. A total of 190 users completed the questionnaire. Seventy-one per cent of the completed questionnaires were from family caregivers, and 29% were from senior citizens. The mean age of those receiving care was 78 ± 10.46 years. Their main needs were for domiciliary care (29.3%). Data from Google Analytics showed about 420 visits per month. Approximately 7.5% completed a questionnaire, approximately 5.3% downloaded a home care plan and there was a bounce rate of about 62%. First results from this website tend to endorse its use as a means of making practical solutions available to caregivers and older people.

  18. Art Perception in the Museum: How We Spend Time and Space in Art Exhibitions

    PubMed Central

    2017-01-01

    Aesthetics research aiming at understanding art experience is an emerging field; however, most research is conducted in labs without access to real artworks, without the social context of a museum and without the presence of other persons. The present article replicates and complements key findings of art perception in museum contexts. When observing museum visitors (N = 225; 126 female, M(age) = 43.3 years) while perceiving a series of six Gerhard Richter paintings of various sizes (0.26–3.20 sq. m) in a temporary art exhibition in January and February 2015 showing 28 paintings in total, we revealed patterns compatible to previous research. The mean time taken in viewing artworks was much longer than was mostly realized in lab contexts, here 32.9 s (Mdn = 25.4 s). We were also able to replicate visitors spending more time on viewing artworks when attending in groups of people. Additionally, we uncovered a close positive relationship (r2 = .929) between canvas size and viewing distance, ranging on average between 1.49 and 2.12 m (M = 1.72 m). We also found that more than half of the visitors returned to paintings, especially those people who had not previously paid too much attention at the initial viewing. After adding the times of returning viewers, each picture was viewed longer than had been estimated in previous research (M = 50.5 s, Mdn = 43.0 s). Results are discussed in the context of current art perception theories, focusing on the need for the ecologically valid testing of artworks in aesthetics research. PMID:28321289

  19. Art Perception in the Museum: How We Spend Time and Space in Art Exhibitions.

    PubMed

    Carbon, Claus-Christian

    2017-01-01

    Aesthetics research aiming at understanding art experience is an emerging field; however, most research is conducted in labs without access to real artworks, without the social context of a museum and without the presence of other persons. The present article replicates and complements key findings of art perception in museum contexts. When observing museum visitors ( N  = 225; 126 female, M (age) = 43.3 years) while perceiving a series of six Gerhard Richter paintings of various sizes (0.26-3.20 sq. m) in a temporary art exhibition in January and February 2015 showing 28 paintings in total, we revealed patterns compatible to previous research. The mean time taken in viewing artworks was much longer than was mostly realized in lab contexts, here 32.9 s ( Mdn  = 25.4 s). We were also able to replicate visitors spending more time on viewing artworks when attending in groups of people. Additionally, we uncovered a close positive relationship ( r 2  = .929) between canvas size and viewing distance, ranging on average between 1.49 and 2.12 m ( M  = 1.72 m). We also found that more than half of the visitors returned to paintings, especially those people who had not previously paid too much attention at the initial viewing. After adding the times of returning viewers, each picture was viewed longer than had been estimated in previous research ( M  = 50.5 s, Mdn  = 43.0 s). Results are discussed in the context of current art perception theories, focusing on the need for the ecologically valid testing of artworks in aesthetics research.

  20. Health visitor or public health nurse? A Scottish study.

    PubMed

    Wilson, Susan

    2006-09-01

    The Scottish Executive and the National Health Service (NHS) have been consistently promoting 'public health nursing' as a new way forward in the community. In addition, since 2001 traditional health visitor and school nurse education programmes have been replaced by a single public health nurse training curriculum. However, many of the roles, responsibilities and job descriptions of clinical health visiting staff have remained unchanged within health board areas. This has led to apparent confusion among staff, both newly qualified and those already in post. This lack of clarity in policy and role prompted this research study, which set out to investigate the perceptions of the public health role of the health visitor within a health board area in Scotland. Initially, a review of the relevant literature was undertaken to provide in-depth background information on the topic, to enable a critical analysis of the current public health role of the health visitor. This analysis was further informed by obtaining qualitative and quantitative data via a questionnaire sent to 89 health visitors, to determine the attitudes and opinions of health visitors currently working within a Scottish health board area. Results from the study indicate that, despite the plethora of public health-related Scottish Executive publications and the changes in educational programmes, many health visitors still carry out what is perceived as a traditional role with mainly the under-five age group. The study also identified the need for clear direction in the public health role for health visitors, with many health visitors expressing a willingness to make changes to their current role.

Some links on this page may take you to non-federal websites. Their policies may differ from this site.
Top