Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

The Spatial Patterns Of Pluvial Flood Risk, Blue-Green Infrastructure, And Social Vulnerability: A Case Study From Two Alaskan Cities, Arun K. Pallathadka, Heejun Chang, Idowu Ajibade

International Journal of Geospatial and Environmental Research

Flooding is a serious form of natural hazard in Alaska, USA. Two of Alaska’s biggest cities, Anchorage and Fairbanks, have experienced flooding of varying magnitude since the cities were first settled in the early 20th century. Although flood mitigation measures such as blue-green infrastructure (BGI) are rising in prominence, the spatial relationship of BGI, urban pluvial flood (UPF) zone, and social vulnerability remains understudied. This study delineates the UPF zone of Anchorage and Fairbanks using the Blue Spot modeling and correlates it with the distribution of BGI at Census Block Group (CBG) scale, focusing on underlying social vulnerability using a …

A New Generating Family Of Distributions: Properties And Applications To The Weibull Exponential Model, El-Sayed A. El-Sherpieny, Salwa Assar, Tamer Helal

Journal of Modern Applied Statistical Methods

A new method for generating family of distributions was proposed. Some fundamental properties of the new proposed family include the quantile, survival function, hazard rate function, reversed hazard and cumulative hazard rate functions are provided. This family contains several new models as sub models, such as the Weibull exponential model which was defined and discussed its properties. The maximum likelihood method of estimation is using to estimate the model parameters of the new proposed family. The flexibility and the importance of the Weibull-exponential model is assessed by applying it to a real data set and comparing it with other known …

Jmasm 55: Matlab Algorithms And Source Codes Of 'Cbnet' Function For Univariate Time Series Modeling With Neural Networks (Matlab), Cagatay Bal, Serdar Demir

Journal of Modern Applied Statistical Methods

Artificial Neural Networks (ANN) can be designed as a nonparametric tool for time series modeling. MATLAB serves as a powerful environment for ANN modeling. Although Neural Network Time Series Tool (ntstool) is useful for modeling time series, more detailed functions could be more useful in order to get more detailed and comprehensive analysis results. For these purposes, cbnet function with properties such as input lag generator, step-ahead forecaster, trial-error based network selection strategy, alternative network selection with various performance measure and global repetition feature to obtain more alternative network has been developed, and MATLAB algorithms and source codes has been …

Organic Waste Bans: Beyond The Compost Heap, David Lee

Journal of Food Law & Policy

Food waste and food insecurity are strange bedfellows, but in the United States they shamelessly walk hand-in-hand. The USDA’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (“SNAP”) and the Emergency Food Assistance Program (“TEFAP”) are two federal programs that provide for large numbers of people in the United States. Local food recovery and donation programs serve their communities as the “backbone of the America hunger response" efforts. While many American households continue to report their struggles with food insecurity, heaping piles of good food go to waste. The repercussions of wasted food are vast, taxing American wallets, wasting our resources with every bit …

The Pandemic, Climate Change And Farm Subsidies, Allen H. Olson, Edward J. Peterson

Journal of Food Law & Policy

Many people believe that once the COVID-19 pandemic has passed, life will return to the way it was. This belief is both unrealistic and dangerous. It is unrealistic because the virus will be around for years if not indefinitely. The timeframe for the worst of the pandemic will depend on our ability to administer effective vaccines worldwide and the public’s willingness to accept continued social distancing in the meantime. The damage done to public health, the economy and individuals is already substantial and will get worse. Recovery will be slow and incomplete. The belief that life will return to the …

Data Analysis Of The “2021 Covid, Equity And Social Justice Showcase”, Cristo Leon, James Lipuma

STEM Month

During the “2021 STEM for All Video Showcase” (NSF, 2021) funded by the National Science Foundation, 287 short videos showcasing federally funded projects aimed at improving STEM and CS education were presented.

The videos highlight strategies to engage students during COVID-19 and address educational inequities.

Measuring Spatio-Temporal Responses To Hurricane Matthew Employing Twitgis, Seungil Yum

International Journal of Geospatial and Environmental Research

This study explores spatio-temporal responses to Hurricane Matthew across the US states by analyzing Twitter data. This study finds that people in different states and periods respond differently to Hurricane Matthew. For instance, people in the Midwest and Northeast regions show a high proportion of tweets in the pre-hurricane period. Those in the Southeast region demonstrate a high proportion of those in the hurricane period, and those in the West region show a high proportion of those in the post-hurricane period. This study also finds that people increase long distance trips (over 100 km) and decrease short distance trips (within …

Novel Pilot Development Of A Closed-Loop Sustainable System Between Biogas Renewable Energy, Distilling, And Aquaculture By Vermiculture Of Stillage Wastes, Samuel C. Kessler

The Cardinal Edge

This study provides a mixed-methods approach in analyzing a potential closed-loop system between renewable biogas production from anaerobic digestion, vermiculture production, aquaculture production, and organic wastes with a particular focus on stillage wastes. Such system may hold significant promise for significantly reducing organic carbon and methane emissions from its components, and should be assessed for such. The 2021 IPCC report essentially identified methane reduction as the single fastest way to slow global warming (IPCC, 2021), making the study and implementation of methane-reducing systems and supportive policy for them critical. Knowledge gaps to implementing this system were qualitatively identified as disconnect …

Evaluating Economic And Social Benefits Of Accelerated Energy Transition, Hongyu Zhang, Xiaodan Huang, Da Zhang, Xiliang Zhang

Bulletin of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Chinese Version)

To achieve carbon neutrality, China's energy system needs a radical transition, and the development of new energy is of central importance. Based on the integrated assessment modeling framework, this study compares economic and social costs and benefits between a scenario reflecting the current energy transition momentum and a scenario of accelerated energy transition. We show that the accelerated energy transition dominated by new energy is essential to achieve carbon neutrality before 2060 and the air quality target required by Beautiful China. The large development of wind and solar power will further reduce their technology costs and the overall energy costs, …

Energy Revolution Under Vision Of Carbon Neutrality, Zhen Huang, Xiaomin Xie

Bulletin of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Chinese Version)

Climate change has emerged as one of the major challenges faced by mankind. It has become a non-traditional global security issue, which causes a serious threat to the survival of human being and sustainable development. China's commitment to peak carbon emissions by 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality by 2060 has important strategic significance for building a modern socialist country with harmonious coexistence between human and nature. Facing the challenge of China's carbon peak and carbon neutrality, this study proposes, through energy revolution, to promote electric decarbonization and zero carbonization power and zero carbonization fuel on the energy supply side, and …

Path Of Digital Technology Promoting Realization Of Carbon Neutrality Goal In China’S Energy Industry, Xiaohong Chen, Dongbin Hu, Wenzhi Cao, Wei Liang, Xuesong Xu, Xiangbo Tang, Yangjie Wang

Bulletin of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Chinese Version)

In the era of digital economy, digital technology is the best tool to achieve China's goal of carbon neutrality. The energy industry is the largest source of carbon emissions in China, and how to use digital technology to peak the carbon dioxide emissions and achieve carbon neutrality goal in energy industry has attracted widespread attention. The article first explains the important strategic role of digital technology in carbon neutrality, and then analyzes the related theoretical research and application progress of digital technology and carbon emission reduction in the literature, revealing the problems of current digital technology applied to carbon neutrality …

Research On China’S Energy Development Strategy Under Carbon Neutrality, Jian Su, Yingbo Liang, Lin Ding, Guosheng Zhang, He Liu

Bulletin of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Chinese Version)

China has pledged to reach peak carbon dioxide emission by 2030, and carbon neutrality by 2060 at the Seventy-Fifth Session of the United Nations General Assembly in 2020. As the largest energy consumer and emitter of greenhouse gases, carbon peak and carbon neutrality targets have posed a high requirement for China's sustainable development of energy and economy. In recent years, even though the growth rate of China's energy consumption has decreased, and carbon dioxide emissions gradually enter the plateau, fossil fuels still supply more than 80% of the energy consumption in China. Besides learning from the adjustment of energy consumption …

Toward Carbon Neutrality: Circular Economy Approach And Policy Implications, Wendong Wei, Zhujun Chen, Yong Geng, Wenqiu Cai, Hanbin Liu

Bulletin of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Chinese Version)

It is challenging to promote global climate change governance under the current complicated international contexts. As a country with the largest carbon emission, China has committed to achieve carbon peak by 2030 and carbon neutrality by 2060. However, carbon neutrality is a complex system engineering and relies on the implementation of circular economy. Based upon “3R” principles of reduce, reuse, and recycle, this study investigates the internal relations between circular economy and carbon neutrality and identifies the key position of circular economy in achieving carbon neutrality targets. Several policy implications are raised to help promote the development of circular economy …

Analysis On Transformation And Characteristics Of American Hydrogen Energy Strategy Under Carbon Neutralization Goal, Feng Wei, Xiaobo Ren, Lin Gao, Guoqing Gao, Chaofeng Zhou

Bulletin of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Chinese Version)

As an important means to achieve the goal of carbon neutralization, hydrogen energy has attracted global attention. As the United States has more than 30 years of practical experience in hydrogen energy R&D and application, this study conducts a detailed investigation on the hydrogen energy development plan and strategy formulated by the U.S. government, analyzes the U.S. hydrogen energy strategy and development objectives, direction and achievements since 1990, and focuses on the latest U.S. hydrogen energy development strategy in 2020 and the hydrogen energy breakthrough plan in 2021. It is concluded that the current US government has moved from initially …

Bayesian Sensitivity-Specificity And Roc Analysis For Finding Key Drivers, Stan Lipovetsky, Michael W. Conklin

Journal of Modern Applied Statistical Methods

Finding key drivers in regression modeling via Bayesian Sensitivity-Specificity and Receiver Operating Characteristic is suggested, and clearly interpretable results are obtained. Numerical comparisons with other techniques show that this methodology can be useful in practical statistical modeling and analysis helping to researchers and managers in making meaningful decisions.

“Surviving And Growing Up With Illegal Status”: The Analysis Of Socio–Economic Household, Potential Conflict, The Environmental Damage, And Vulnerability Of Local Community To Disaster, Sofyan Syahnur, Yossi Diantimala

Journal of Sustainable Mining

This study aims to analyze, from social-economics and environmental perspectives, how illegal gold mining survives and grows with its illegal status. Generally, illegal mining has a positive impact on the socio-economy of all parties involved. However, mining activities cause environmental damage and pollution so that the local community is vulnerable to disaster and potential conflict. This research was conducted at an illegal mining site in Aceh, the western province of Indonesia. To describe the primary data, it employs a descriptive qualitative method. The purposive sampling method is used to select key informants. The results show an increasing income of all …

Sounding The Alarm: Down-Ballot Setback For The Democrats In 2020, Yaakov Huba

The Yale Undergraduate Research Journal

The 2020 general election turned out more American voters than any other election, its monumental stakes commanding the attention of the world. While the focus in the race’s aftermath has primarily been the top of the ticket, the rebuke of President Trump’s time in office, the equally important down-ballot races have been largely passed over. Many major political analysts like the Cook Political Report predicted that Democrats would expand their House majority by 5-10 seats. Yet, the Democratic Party ended up losing 10 seats1. During the certification of election results, I collected data on incumbents in the US House of …

Optimal Information Design In Two-Sided Trade, Pradhi Aggarwal

The Yale Undergraduate Research Journal

In a two-sided market with a broker, the broker can influence the buyer’s and seller’s optimal trading behaviour through strategic information design. We study the impact of information about waiting times on riders and drivers in a rideshare market. We consider three information regimes: the first in which no information about time is revealed, the second in which true waiting times are communicated, and finally an intermediate regime in which agents are only told whether their waiting time falls within a high or low category. We evaluate the optimality of each information regime by maximizing welfare and revenue for each …

Performance Of The Beta-Binomial Model For Clustered Binary Responses: Comparison With Generalized Estimating Equations, Seongah Im

Journal of Modern Applied Statistical Methods

This study examined performance of the beta-binomial model in comparison with GEE using clustered binary responses resulting in non-normal outcomes. Monte Carlo simulations were performed under varying intracluster correlations and sample sizes. The results showed that the beta-binomial model performed better for small sample, while GEE performed well under large sample.

The “East Side” Of Las Vegas: A Latinx Historical Framework, Nathalie Martinez

Spectra Undergraduate Research Journal

Spanish heritage speakers in the United States are a reflection of everchanging linguistic and sociolinguistic pressures that result in myriad varieties across generations. This paper provides a preliminary historical framework to fill this gap of linguistic knowledge in the Spanish-speaking community of Las Vegas, Nevada. The goals were two-fold: (1) highlight the largest Spanish-speaking communities in Las Vegas and (2) explore the significance of the East Side in the history of the Latinx population of Las Vegas. Through the analysis of oral histories and historical works, the investigation highlights the Mexican, Salvadoran, and Cuban populations of Las Vegas and their …

Qualitative Review Of Educational Interventions For Improving Physical Activity Behaviors In Older Asian Americans In The United States, Raisa Kabir, Manoj Sharma, Sayeda Tazim Zaidi, Chia-Liang Dai

Spectra Undergraduate Research Journal

Physical activity (PA) provides numerous health benefits and minimizes chronic diseases and mental health issues, especially in older adults. The national survey data indicated that only 27.3% to 44.3% of older adults meet the recommended PA guidelines of 150 to 300 minutes/ week. There is limited data on PA behavior among older Asian American (AA) adults as very few to no local/national surveys have targeted these marginalized subgroups. This comprehensive review aims to identify existing PA intervention strategies and to update current knowledge on the effectiveness of these interventions to improve PA behavior among aging AA in the US. The …

The Future Of The Live Entertainment Tax In Southern Nevada, Katie M. Gilbertson

Spectra Undergraduate Research Journal

The Live Entertainment Tax (LET) in Nevada generated nearly one billion dollars during the 2019-2020 fiscal year. LET revenue all goes to the State General Fund, even though 97 percent of LET revenue is generated in Clark County. Nevada is experiencing an economic crisis, particularly in the tourism industry. Solutions from various fields suggest the best way to boost the local economy is to reinvest revenue in its original county. One policy solution Nevada policymakers should consider is to carve out a percentage of revenue generated by the LET to return directly back to Clark County to revitalize tourism.

Diabetes Mellitus Affects Working Memory, Dylone C. Braganza, Emmanuel Flores, Lauren A. Crew, Ryan A. Wirt, Andrew A. Ortiz, Adam M. Mcneela, Jefferson W. Kinney, James M. Hyman

Spectra Undergraduate Research Journal

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) degrades the brain’s ability to remember, think, and carry out tasks. The exact cause is not known, but several risk factors have been identified, including diabetes mellitus (DM). DM causes elevated blood sugar levels due to reduced insulin production in the pancreas. The linkage between elevated glucose levels and the behavioral impairments are not fully understood, which was the focus of this study. Rats were trained to alternate directions in a maze to receive a reward on consecutive trials. After training, five rats were injected with streptozotocin (STZ), which induces hyperglycemia by injuring pancreatic beta cells. Three …

A Timeline Of Discovery And Current Research On Primary Open-Angle Glaucoma And Emergence Of Potentially Permanent Treatment Solutions, Yonosuke Dejesus, Guadalupe Moreno Ceballos

Spectra Undergraduate Research Journal

This research examines the timeline of the discovery and research of Primary Open-Angle Glaucoma (POAG). By reviewing the literature on genetic and molecular mechanisms, we aim to emphasize a long-term treatment solution (iSTENT) to mitigate intraocular pressure (IOP) related to POAG etiology and disease progression. POAG is a multifactorial, autosomal dominant, adult-onset eye disease wherein the optic nerve cells become damaged due to a buildup of excess aqueous humor, resulting in increased IOP. Consequently, POAG leads to progressive loss of peripheral vision and is the leading cause of blindness in the US. Due to the multifactorial nature of glaucoma’s inheritance …

Racial Profiling: Understanding The Practice Of Stop-And-Frisk In New York City, Lisa Ly

Spectra Undergraduate Research Journal

Racial profiling has become a prominent issue in modern policing today. Instead of being based on individual suspicion, racial profiling embodies a belief that people of color are continuously singled out by the police for scrutiny and harassment. Policies and procedures make the Black community vulnerable to police discrimination and racial profiling. Floyd et al. v. City of New York et al. (2013) declared that the New York Police Department’s (NYPD) practice of stop-and-frisk was racially profiling Black civilians. This study sought (1) to determine if the NYPD post-Floyd is still engaging in racial profiling towards Black civilians; and (2) …

Surface Network Extraction From High Resolution Digital Terrain Models, Eric Guilbert

Journal of Spatial Information Science

A surface network is a topological data structure formed by a set of thalwegs and ridges on a digital terrain model. Its computation relies on the detection of saddles on the terrain. Hence, computation methods must guarantee enough saddles are detected but also that no improper conflicts between ridges and thalwegs are created, leading to an inconsistent network. This paper presents a new approach that maximizes the number of saddles and ensures this topological consistency for high-resolution terrain models represented by a raster grid. The grid is triangulated in order to preserve saddles and to facilitate thalweg and ridge computation. …

Examining Satellite Images Market Stability Using The Records Theory: Evidence From French Spatial Data Infrastructures, Chadi Jabbour, Anis Hoayek, Pierre Maurel, Zaher Khraibani, Latifa Ghalayini

Journal of Spatial Information Science

The spatial data infrastructures (SDIs) which constitute a direct link between spatial data users and the large Earth observation industry, have a leading role in establishing market opportunities in the space sector. The spatial information supplied through various forms of SDI platforms exhibits large increases in demand volatility. The users' demand is unpredictable and the market is vulnerable to high evolution shifts. We study the effect of extreme demands for a particular type of spatial information, the satellite images. Drawing on two French SDIs, GEOSUD and PEPS, we examine the shifts occurring on their platforms and assess the probability of …

Towards Detecting, Characterizing, And Rating Of Road Class Errors In Crowd-Sourced Road Network Databases, Johanna Guth, Sina Keller, Stefan Hinz, Stephan Winter

Journal of Spatial Information Science

OpenStreetMap (OSM), with its global coverage and Open Database License, has recently gained popularity. Its quality is adequate for many applications, but since it is crowd-sourced, errors remain an issue. Errors in associated tags of the road network, for example, are impacting routing applications. Particularly road classification errors often lead to false assumptions about capacity, maximum speed, or road quality, possibly resulting in detours for routing applications. This study aims at finding potential classification errors automatically, which can then be checked and corrected by a human expert. We develop a novel approach to detect road classification errors in OSM by …

Electronic Voting Implementation Through Bitcoin Blockchain Technology, Cassie Schultz

Scholarly Horizons: University of Minnesota, Morris Undergraduate Journal

Even with all the advances we have seen in secure digital technology, the most secure way to currently cast a vote on election day consist of a hand-marked paper ballot. When extenuating circumstances arise, offering a voting environment that is accessible and safe for everyone, but also secure can be a difficult task under the current voting system. This paper discusses one proposed electronic voting system which uses blockchain technology. Based on a review of literature on blockchain technology and specific implementations of voting systems, a summary of relevant background information as well as implementation protocol are provided. Even though …

Triangulation And Finite Element Method For A Variational Problem Inspired By Medical Imaging, Tim Komperda, Enrico Au-Yeung

DePaul Discoveries

We implement the finite element method to solve a variational problem that is inspired by medical imaging. In our application, the domain of the image does not need to be a rectangle and can contain a cavity in the middle. The standard approach to solve a variational problem involves formulating the problem as a partial differential equation. Instead, we solve the variational problem directly, using only techniques available to anyone familiar with vector calculus. As part of the computation, we also explore how triangulation is a useful tool in the process.