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Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences

"What Is The Value Of Youth Work?" Symposium Booklet, Laurie Ross Oct 2011

"What Is The Value Of Youth Work?" Symposium Booklet, Laurie Ross

Local Knowledge: Worcester Area Community-Based Research

As a group of experienced and novice youth workers, we believe that youth work is fundamentally about building trust-filled, mutually respectful relationships with young people. We create safe environments for young people to connect with other supportive adults and peers and to avoid violence in their neighborhoods and their homes. We guide those harmed by oppressive community conditions such as racism, sexism, agism, homophobia, and classism through a process of healing. As we get to know more about young people’s interests, we help them develop knowledge and skills in a variety of areas including: academic, athletic, leadership/civic, the arts, health …


Vulnerability, Risk Perception, And Health Profile Of Marginalized People Exposed To Multiple Built-Environment Stressors In Worcester, Massachusetts: A Pilot Project, Timothy Downs, Laurie Ross, Robert Goble, Rajendra Subedi, Sara Greenberg, Octavia Taylor Apr 2011

Vulnerability, Risk Perception, And Health Profile Of Marginalized People Exposed To Multiple Built-Environment Stressors In Worcester, Massachusetts: A Pilot Project, Timothy Downs, Laurie Ross, Robert Goble, Rajendra Subedi, Sara Greenberg, Octavia Taylor

Sustainability and Social Justice

Millions of low-income people of diverse ethnicities inhabit stressful old urban industrial neighborhoods. Yet we know little about the health impacts of built-environment stressors and risk perceptions in such settings; we lack even basic health profiles. Difficult access is one reason (it took us 30 months to survey 80 households); the lack of multifaceted survey tools is another. We designed and implemented a pilot vulnerability assessment tool in Worcester, Massachusetts. We answer: (1) How can we assess vulnerability to multiple stressors? (2) What is the nature of complex vulnerability-including risk perceptions and health profiles? (3) How can findings be used …


Men At Risk The Physical, Mental And Social Health Of Men In Massachusetts, James R. Mahalik, Michael E. Addis, Emily E. Douglas, Denise A. Hines, Christopher S. Reigeluth Mar 2011

Men At Risk The Physical, Mental And Social Health Of Men In Massachusetts, James R. Mahalik, Michael E. Addis, Emily E. Douglas, Denise A. Hines, Christopher S. Reigeluth

Mosakowski Institute for Public Enterprise

In 2009, Clark University was accepted as the university to represent Massachusetts in the National Policy Institute for Family Impact Seminars at the University of Wisconsin – Madison (http://familyimpactseminars.org). Family Impact Seminars are a series of annual seminars, briefing reports, and discussion sessions that provide up-to-date, solution-oriented research on current issues for state legislators, their aides, and legislative support bureau personnel. The seminars provide objective, nonpartisan research on current issues and do not lobby for particular policies. Seminar participants discuss policy options and identify common ground where it exists.


Enso And Iod Teleconnections For African Ecosystems: Evidence Of Destructive Interference Between Climate Oscillations, Christopher A. Williams, N. P. Hanan Jan 2011

Enso And Iod Teleconnections For African Ecosystems: Evidence Of Destructive Interference Between Climate Oscillations, Christopher A. Williams, N. P. Hanan

Geography

Rainfall and vegetation across Africa are known to resonate with the coupled ocean-atmosphere phenomena of El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and the Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD). However, the regional-scale implications of sea surface temperature variability for Africa's photosyntheis have received little focused attention, particularly in the case of IOD. Furthermore, studies exploring the interactive effects of ENSO and IOD when coincident are lacking. This analysis uses remotely sensed vegetation change plus a land surface model driven with observed meteorology to investigate how rainfall, vegetation, and photosynthesis across Africa respond to these climate oscillations. In addition to the relatively well-known ENSO …


The German Discovery Of Sex (Spring 2011), Robert D. Tobin Jan 2011

The German Discovery Of Sex (Spring 2011), Robert D. Tobin

Syllabi

In this course, we will use the tools of literary and cultural analysis, studying fictional, political, psychoanalytic and scientific works to investigate the emergence of modern sexual discourses in the German-speaking world. The Greek term “homo” (same) and the Latinate “sex” (sex) were first combined to describe someone with a sexual interest in members of their own sex in 1869 in the German-speaking world. Similar observations can be made about terms such as “heterosexual,” “masochist,” and “transvestite.” There was apparently an intense interest in late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century German-speaking central Europe in reconfiguring and reconsidering sexuality. Out of this …


"Is The Concept Of A Green Economy A Useful Way Of Framing Policy Discussions And Policymaking To Promote Sustainable Development?", Sheng Fulai, Gary Flomenhoft, Timothy Downs, Maángeles Grande-Ortiz, Dana Graef, Bert Scholtens, Arthur P.J. Mol, David Sonnenfeld, Gert Spaargaren, Rajeev Goel, Edward W.T. Hsieh, Serban Scrieciu, Reinhard Steurer, Christine Polzin, Genia Kostka, Tiho Ancev, Elke Pirgmaier, Frank Boons, Karl Henrik Robèrt, Christopher Bryant, Ke Zhou, Surya Raj Acharya, David Huberman, Denis Sonwa, Michelle Mycoo, Dabo Guan, Klaus Hubacek, U. Rashid Sumaila, Hector Lopez-Ruiz, G. Jason Jolley, Michael Dougherty, André Francisco Pilon, Ravi Prakash Jan 2011

"Is The Concept Of A Green Economy A Useful Way Of Framing Policy Discussions And Policymaking To Promote Sustainable Development?", Sheng Fulai, Gary Flomenhoft, Timothy Downs, Maángeles Grande-Ortiz, Dana Graef, Bert Scholtens, Arthur P.J. Mol, David Sonnenfeld, Gert Spaargaren, Rajeev Goel, Edward W.T. Hsieh, Serban Scrieciu, Reinhard Steurer, Christine Polzin, Genia Kostka, Tiho Ancev, Elke Pirgmaier, Frank Boons, Karl Henrik Robèrt, Christopher Bryant, Ke Zhou, Surya Raj Acharya, David Huberman, Denis Sonwa, Michelle Mycoo, Dabo Guan, Klaus Hubacek, U. Rashid Sumaila, Hector Lopez-Ruiz, G. Jason Jolley, Michael Dougherty, André Francisco Pilon, Ravi Prakash

Sustainability and Social Justice

In this article, the authors discuss the use of green economy to promote sustainable development. Research and Partnerships Unit Head Sheng Fulai states that sustainable development is composed of economic, social and environmental development. Furthermore, it features Research and Partnerships associate Gary Flomenhoft who believes that green economy is useful when it deals with factors such as distribution of wealth and throughput of materials and energy.


Market Intermediaries And Rural People In Bolivia's Forest Products Sector: Are Trusting Partnerships Possible?, James T. Murphy, Mary Lawhon Jan 2011

Market Intermediaries And Rural People In Bolivia's Forest Products Sector: Are Trusting Partnerships Possible?, James T. Murphy, Mary Lawhon

Geography

Decentralization in access to and control of Bolivia's forest resources, coupled with a rising global demand for tropical hardwoods, raises important questions about whether increased trade and community forest management (CFM) initiatives can enable forms of market integration that have more favourable outcomes for rural communities. This paper assesses the prospects for such a transition through an examination of the relationships linking wood product market intermediaries (brokers and buyers) to rural suppliers and forest communities in Bolivia. The analysis centres on whether trust - conceptualized as a power-laden sociospatial process driven by multiscalar factors - can evolve between buyers and …


Evaluation Of Species Distribution Model Algorithms For Fine-Scale Container-Breeding Mosquito Risk Prediction, C. Khatchikian, Florencia Sangermano, D. Kendell, T. Livdahl Jan 2011

Evaluation Of Species Distribution Model Algorithms For Fine-Scale Container-Breeding Mosquito Risk Prediction, C. Khatchikian, Florencia Sangermano, D. Kendell, T. Livdahl

Geography

The present work evaluates the use of species distribution model (SDM) algorithms to classify high densities of small container-breeding Aedes mosquitoes (Diptera: Culicidae) on a fine scale in the Bermuda Islands. Weekly ovitrap data collected by the Department of Health, Bermuda for the years 2006 and 2007 were used for the models. The models evaluated included the algorithms Bioclim, Domain, GARP (genetic algorithm for rule-set prediction), logistic regression and MaxEnt (maximum entropy). Models were evaluated according to performance and robustness. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve was used to evaluate each model's performance, and robustness was assessed according …


Detection Of The Timing And Duration Of Snowmelt In The Hindu Kush-Himalaya Using Quikscat, 2000-2008, Prajjwal K. Panday, Karen E. Frey, Bardan Ghimire Jan 2011

Detection Of The Timing And Duration Of Snowmelt In The Hindu Kush-Himalaya Using Quikscat, 2000-2008, Prajjwal K. Panday, Karen E. Frey, Bardan Ghimire

Geography

The Hindu Kush-Himalayan (HKH) region holds the largest mass of ice in Central Asia and is highly vulnerable to global climate change, experiencing significant warming (0.21 ± 0.08 °C/decade) over the past few decades. Accurate monitoring of the timing and duration of snowmelt across the HKH region is important, as this region is expected to experience further warming in response to increased greenhouse gas forcing. Despite the many advantages and applications of satellite-derived radar scatterometer data shown for capturing ice and snow melt dynamics at high latitudes, similar comprehensive freeze/thaw detection studies at lower latitudes (including the HKH region) are …


Spatial And Interannual Variability Of Dissolved Organic Matter In The Kolyma River, East Siberia, Observed Using Satellite Imagery, Claire G. Griffin, Karen E. Frey, John Rogan, Robert M. Holmes Jan 2011

Spatial And Interannual Variability Of Dissolved Organic Matter In The Kolyma River, East Siberia, Observed Using Satellite Imagery, Claire G. Griffin, Karen E. Frey, John Rogan, Robert M. Holmes

Geography

The Kolyma River basin in northeastern Siberia, the sixth largest river basin draining to the Arctic Ocean, contains vast reserves of carbon in Pleistocene-aged permafrost soils. Permafrost degradation, as a result of climate change, may cause shifts in riverine biogeochemistry as this old source of organic matter is exposed. Satellite remote sensing offers an opportunity to complement and extrapolate field sampling of dissolved organic matter in this expansive and remote region. We develop empirically based algorithms that estimate chromophoric dissolved organic matter (CDOM) and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) in the Kolyma River and its major tributaries in the vicinity of …


Theorizing Practice In Economic Geography: Foundations, Challenges, And Possibilities, Andrew Jones, James T. Murphy Jan 2011

Theorizing Practice In Economic Geography: Foundations, Challenges, And Possibilities, Andrew Jones, James T. Murphy

Geography

Over the last decade or so there has been an identifiable shift in the interests of many economic geographers towards a concern with practices: stabilized, routinized, or improvised social actions that constitute and reproduce economic space, and through and within which socioeconomic actors and communities embed knowledge, organize production activities, and interpret and derive meaning from the world. Although this shift has gained significant momentum its general theoretical significance remains somewhat unclear and the concept is vulnerable to criticisms that it is incoherent, too 'micro-scale' in emphasis, unable to provide valid links between everyday practices and higher-order phenomena (eg, institutions, …


Does Terrestrial Drought Explain Global Co 2 Flux Anomalies Induced By El Niño?, C. R. Schwalm, Christopher A. Williams, K. Schaefer, I. Baker, G. J. Collatz, C. Rödenbeck Jan 2011

Does Terrestrial Drought Explain Global Co 2 Flux Anomalies Induced By El Niño?, C. R. Schwalm, Christopher A. Williams, K. Schaefer, I. Baker, G. J. Collatz, C. Rödenbeck

Geography

The El Niño Southern Oscillation is the dominant year-to-year mode of global climate variability. El Niño effects on terrestrial carbon cycling are mediated by associated climate anomalies, primarily drought, influencing fire emissions and biotic net ecosystem exchange (NEE). Here we evaluate whether El Niño produces a consistent response from the global carbon cycle. We apply a novel bottom-up approach to estimating global NEE anomalies based on FLUXNET data using land cover maps and weather reanalysis. We analyze 13 years (1997-2009) of globally gridded observational NEE anomalies derived from eddy covariance flux data, remotely-sensed fire emissions at the monthly time step, …


Death To Kappa: Birth Of Quantity Disagreement And Allocation Disagreement For Accuracy Assessment, Robert Gilmore Pontius, Marco Millones Jan 2011

Death To Kappa: Birth Of Quantity Disagreement And Allocation Disagreement For Accuracy Assessment, Robert Gilmore Pontius, Marco Millones

Geography

The family of Kappa indices of agreement claim to compare a map's observed classification accuracy relative to the expected accuracy of baseline maps that can have two types of randomness: (1) random distribution of the quantity of each category and (2) random spatial allocation of the categories. Use of the Kappa indices has become part of the culture in remote sensing and other fields. This article exam- ines five different Kappa indices, some of which were derived by the first author in 2000. We expose the indices' properties mathematically and illustrate their limitations graphically, with emphasis on Kappa's use of …


Utilizing Temporally Invariant Calibration Sites To Classify Multiple Dates And Types Of Satellite Imagery, Joe Fortier, John Rogan, Curtis E. Woodcock, Daniel Miller Runfola Jan 2011

Utilizing Temporally Invariant Calibration Sites To Classify Multiple Dates And Types Of Satellite Imagery, Joe Fortier, John Rogan, Curtis E. Woodcock, Daniel Miller Runfola

Geography

Mapping past time periods (retrospective mapping) using remotely sensed data is hindered by a lack of coincident calibration and validation information. The identification of features of same ground cover invariant across time and their use as calibration and validation data addresses this challenge by: (a) streamlining the process of image calibration for multiple dates, and (b) allowing each image to generate its own spectral signature. This study investigates the use of temporally invariant calibration and validation data to map land-cover in Massachusetts, employing five satellite images collected from five separate dates and different sensors. The results indicate that this technique …