scholarly journals Identifying the Most Popular Entry Routes into a Public Library Using GIS Can Be a Tool to Increase Ease of Navigation and Identify Placement of Marketing Materials

2010 ◽  
Vol 5 (4) ◽  
pp. 94
Author(s):  
Genevieve C. Gore
Keyword(s):  
Public Library ◽  
The United States ◽  
Floor Plan ◽  
Unit Of Analysis ◽  
Final Destination ◽  
Or Groups ◽  
Marketing Materials ◽  
Gis Software ◽  
Book Display ◽  
Area Data

Objective – To evaluate and measure how patrons physically navigate entry routes within a public library and determine whether GIS is a useful instrument for this purpose. Design – Unobtrusive, covert observational study. Setting – Medium-sized public library in the United States. Subjects – 1,415 patrons were observed as they entered the library. Methods – Routes used by patron cases were selected as the unit of analysis. Patron cases were either individuals entering the building alone or groups entering the building together. Patrons were observed from a stationary and unobtrusive location. ArcMap (GIS software) was used to develop the floor plan instrument on which entry routes were recorded and then later analyzed. The paths analyzed were limited to what was considered the “entry area.” Data were collected during three separate one-hour periods for six consecutive days in the fall of 2008. The researcher chose three purposive one-hour time samples with the intention of distributing them across the library’s opening hours. Main results – The 1,415 patron cases used 195 unique routes that were recorded from the two entrances of the facility, with the east (right) entrance accounting for 83.3% of the cases (n=1178). Two entry routes were consistently the most popular overall and across each of the sample days. The next-most-popular entry routes did not remain constant across the total observed cases and each day’s observed cases or across the sample days. Over 75% of all observed patrons used 22 of the 195 entry routes: 7 routes were used by 30 or more cases each (n=836, 59.1% of all cases), 4 by 20 to 29 cases each (n=95, 6.7% of all cases), and 11 by 10 to 19 cases each (n=159, 11.2% of all cases). The route to the circulation desk was the most popular entry route for patrons. The other most popular route passed toward the rear of the library, but the observer could not record the final destination(s) of that route due to the restricted viewable area. Conclusion – The study helped the researcher to establish what areas would be ideal locations for the placement of marketing materials and a book display. Knowledge of popular entry routes can also be useful in identifying routes that could be enlarged to ease patron navigation. GIS was shown to be a useful mapping instrument for recording and analyzing routes taken.

scholarly journals Global estimation of burned area using MODIS active fire observations

2006 ◽  
Vol 6 (4) ◽  
pp. 957-974 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. Giglio ◽  
G. R. van der Werf ◽  
J. T. Randerson ◽  
G. J. Collatz ◽  
P. Kasibhatla
Keyword(s):  
Vegetation Cover ◽  
Regression Trees ◽  
The United States ◽  
Tree Cover ◽  
Burned Area ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Active Fire ◽  
Terra Modis ◽  
Good Agreement ◽  
Area Data

Abstract. We present a method for estimating monthly burned area globally at 1° spatial resolution using Terra MODIS data and ancillary vegetation cover information. Using regression trees constructed for 14 different global regions, MODIS active fire observations were calibrated to burned area estimates derived from 500-m MODIS imagery based on the assumption that burned area is proportional to counts of fire pixels. Unlike earlier methods, we allow the constant of proportionality to vary as a function of tree and herbaceous vegetation cover, and the mean size of monthly cumulative fire-pixel clusters. In areas undergoing active deforestation, we implemented a subsequent correction based on tree cover information and a simple measure of fire persistence. Regions showing good agreement between predicted and observed burned area included Boreal Asia, Central Asia, Europe, and Temperate North America, where the estimates produced by the regression trees were relatively accurate and precise. Poorest agreement was found for southern-hemisphere South America, where predicted values of burned area are both inaccurate and imprecise; this is most likely a consequence of multiple factors that include extremely persistent cloud cover, and lower quality of the 500-m burned area maps used for calibration. Application of our approach to the nine remaining regions yielded comparatively accurate, but less precise, estimates of monthly burned area. We applied the regional regression trees to the entire archive of Terra MODIS fire data to produce a monthly global burned area data set spanning late 2000 through mid-2005. Annual totals derived from this approach showed good agreement with independent annual estimates available for nine Canadian provinces, the United States, and Russia. With our data set we estimate the global annual burned area for the years 2001-2004 to vary between 2.97 million and 3.74 million km2, with the maximum occurring in 2001. These coarse-resolution burned area estimates may serve as a useful interim product until long-term burned area data sets from multiple sensors and retrieval approaches become available.

scholarly journals Utilization of Positive Deviance into Research Activity for Community Health

2019 ◽  
pp. 1
Author(s):  
Harumi Bando ◽  
Mayumi Mizutani
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
The United States ◽  
Positive Deviance ◽  
Community Leaders ◽  
Local Problem ◽  
Health Providers ◽  
Community Members ◽  
Research Activity ◽  
Or Groups ◽  
Activity Report

The Positive Deviance (PD) approach believes that in every community there exist individuals or groups, who without any extra resources, practice uncommon behaviors that offer better solutions to addressing problems in a community. PD is a community-driven change approach that encourages community members to discover their own assets, strengths, and wisdom to solve a local problem. The purpose of this activity report is to describe the lessons we learned about PD during a visit with pioneering global researchers and practitioners of positive deviance in the United States in September, 2018. Our key learning included: discovering “uncommon” behaviors which are already practiced by community members, and are thus actionable and more acceptable to community members; investigating positive deviants at many levels i.e., among health providers, community leaders, and the ordinary population; and the importance of designing, from the very beginning, a project that invites and engages all community members who through ownership can sustain impact.

Law, Religion, and the Present Danger

Worldview ◽  
1979 ◽  
Vol 22 (9) ◽  
pp. 46-53
Author(s):  
Harold J. Berman
Keyword(s):  
First Amendment ◽  
The United States ◽  
United States Constitution ◽  
Establishment Clause ◽  
Free Exercise ◽  
Group Activities ◽  
Or Groups ◽  
Governmental Support ◽  
The One ◽  
Governmental Control

When the word "law" is juxtaposed with the word "religion," an American lawyer today is apt to think immediately of the First Amendment to the United States Constitution with its double protection against any governmental interference in "the free exercise" of religion on the one hand and against any governmental "establishment" of religion on the other. From the standpoint of contemporary American constitutional law, religion has become the personal and private affair of individual citizens or groups of citizens. Indeed, in recent decades our courts, in interpreting the "free exercise" clause, have gone far toward immunizing individual and group activities from governmental control, whether federal or state, whenever they are considered by the persons engaging in them to be of a religious character; and at the same time, under the "establishment" clause the courts have struck down most forms even of indirect governmental support of religion, whether federal or state.

scholarly journals Econometric Analysis Suggests Possible Crowding Out of Public Libraries by Book Superstores among Middle Income Families in the 1990s

2007 ◽  
Vol 2 (3) ◽  
pp. 94
Author(s):  
Stephanie Hall
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Public Library ◽  
The United States ◽  
Econometric Analysis ◽  
Consumer Information ◽  
County Level ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Library Use ◽  
The Impact

Objective – To determine the effect of large bookstores (defined as those having 20 or more employees) on household library use. Design – Econometric analysis using cross-sectional data sets. Setting – The United States of America. Subjects – People in over 55,000 households across the U.S.A. Methods – Data from 3 1996 studies were examined using logit and multinomial logit estimation procedures: the National Center for Education Statistics’ National Household Education Survey (NHES) and Public Library Survey (PLS), and the U.S. Census Bureau’s County Business Patterns (CBP). The county level results of the NHES telephone survey were merged with the county level data from the PLS and the CBP. Additionally, data on Internet use at the state level from the Statistical Abstract of the United States were incorporated into the data set. A logit regression model was used to estimate probability of library use based on several independent variables, evaluated at the mean. Main results – In general, Hemmeter found that "with regard to the impact of large bookstores on household library use, large bookstores do not appear to have an effect on overall library use among the general population” (613). While no significant changes in general library use were found among high and low income households where more large bookstores were present, nor in the population taken as a whole, middle income households (between $25,000 and $50,000 in annual income) showed notable declines in library use in these situations. These effects were strongest in the areas of borrowing (200% less likely) and recreational purposes (161%), but were also present in work-related use and job searching. Hemmeter also writes that “poorer households use the library more often for job search purposes. The probability of library use for recreation, work, and consumer information increases as income increases. This effect diminishes as households get richer” (611). Finally, home ownership was also correlated with higher library use. Households with children were more than 20% more likely to use the library (610). Their use of the library for school-related purposes, general borrowing, program activities, and so on was not affected by the presence of book superstores. White families with children were somewhat less likely to use the library, while families with higher earning and education levels were more likely to use the library. Library use also increased with the number of children in the family. Shorter distances to the nearest branch and a higher proportion of AV materials were also predictive of higher library use. Educational level was another important factor, with those having less than high school completion being significantly less likely to use the library than those with higher levels of educational attainment. Conclusions – The notable decline in public library use among middle income households where more large bookstores are present is seen as an important threat to libraries, as it may result in a decline in general support and support for funding among an important voting block. More current data are needed in this area. In addition to the type of information examined in this study, the author recommends the inclusion of information on funding, support for library referenda, and library quality as they relate to the presence of large bookstores.

scholarly journals AGENCY COSTS, RISK SHOCKS, AND INTERNATIONAL CYCLES

2017 ◽  
Vol 22 (5) ◽  
pp. 1134-1172 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marc-André Letendre ◽  
Joel Wagner
Keyword(s):  
International Business ◽  
Agency Costs ◽  
The United States ◽  
Relative Price ◽  
Credit Spread ◽  
Technology Shocks ◽  
Cycle Model ◽  
International Business Cycle ◽  
Business Cycle Model ◽  
Area Data

We add agency costs into a two-country, two-good international business-cycle model. In our model, changes in the relative price of investment arise endogenously. Despite the fact that technology shocks are uncorrelated across countries, the relative price of investment is positively correlated across countries in our model, much as it is in detrended U.S./Euro-area data. We also find that financial frictions tend to increase the volatility of the terms of trade and the international correlations of consumption, hours worked, output, and investment. We then compare this model to an alternative model that also includes risk shocks. We use credit spread data (for the United States) to calibrate the AR(1) process for risk shocks. We find that risk shocks are too small to significantly impact the model's dynamics.

County and Township Government in 1943

1944 ◽  
Vol 38 (6) ◽  
pp. 1089-1113
Author(s):  
Clyde P. Snider
Keyword(s):  
Local Government ◽  
Ad Hoc ◽  
Intergovernmental Relations ◽  
Public Library ◽  
The United States ◽  
The State ◽  
Wild Game ◽  
Legislative Authority ◽  
Predatory Animal ◽  
Township Government

The future of local government in the United States is likely to depend in no inconsiderable degree upon the extent to which the local units make a vital contribution toward winning the present war and solving the problems arising therefrom. It is therefore of special significance that many of the developments occurring in county and township government during 1943 were related directly or indirectly to the war and postwar problems. At the same time, progress continued along various lines which had become well established prior to the war. Public interest in rural local government was evidenced both by the large amount of state legislation enacted with reference thereto and by local action taken under legislative authority. Developments during the year will be summarized under the following headings: (1) areas; (2) organization and personnel; (3) functions; (4) finance; (5) optional forms of government; (6) intergovernmental relations; and (7) research and experimentation.New Areas. State legislatures continued to enact statutes establishing or authorizing the establishment of local ad hoc authorities for various purposes. Wyoming established each organized county of the state as a predatory animal district, under the control of a district board, for the purpose of paying bounties for the killing of animals that prey upon domestic livestock, poultry, and wild game. General laws authorized the organization of weed-control districts in South Dakota, public library districts in Illinois, cemetery districts in Montana, and county water authorities in California. Georgia's constitution was amended to empower the governing authorities of Bibb county to establish and administer, within the county and outside the city of Macon, special districts for sanitation purposes, garbage removal and disposal, fire prevention, police protection, drainage, road building and improvement, and any other public services and facilities customarily afforded by municipalities of the state.

Measuring the Southern Contribution to the Democratic Coalition

1987 ◽  
Vol 81 (2) ◽  
pp. 567-570 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul R. Abramson
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Survey Research ◽  
Democratic Party ◽  
The United States ◽  
National Election ◽  
The Political ◽  
Unit Of Analysis ◽  
Research Results ◽  
Demographic Groups ◽  
Election Studies

Measuring the southern contribution to the Democratic coalition is an important task. To measure this contribution one must choose appropriate data and the appropriate unit of analysis for studying party coalitions in the United States. Two recent studies of party coalitions use the National Election Studies to estimate the southern contribution to the Democratic party, and these studies illustrate the problems one may encounter. This note demonstrates two points. First, survey research results may lead to erroneous estimates and it is preferable, where possible, to rely upon official election statistics. Second, the contribution of demographic groups to party coalitions should be assessed within the context of the political rules that make such coalitions meaningful.

Mahopac, New York

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ethelene Whitmire
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
New York City ◽  
Public Library ◽  
The United States ◽  
National Council ◽  
Urban League ◽  
Colored People ◽  
New York Public Library ◽  
Washington Heights ◽  
Social Engagements

This chapter describes Regina's active retirement years and examines her legacy. Regina lived for nearly a decade as a widow until February 5, 1993, when she died at the age of ninety-one in the Bethel Nursing Home. Regina's death was reported in the New York Amsterdam News—the newspaper that had covered her social engagements, creative pursuits, wedding, and professional accomplishments. Regina's last will was a testimony to her strong commitment to various organizations. Regina left several thousand dollars to various organizations located in New York City, including two thousand dollars to the National Urban League and an equal amount to the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People; one thousand dollars to National Council of Women of the United States, two thousand dollars to the American Council for Nationalities Services, and one thousand to the Washington Heights Branch of the New York Public Library.

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