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Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences

The Agent Institute: Develop An Infrastructure For Agent-Based Research And Development For The State Of Maine, George Markowsky, James L. Fastook, Elise Turner, Roy M. Turner, Laurence Latour Dec 2003

The Agent Institute: Develop An Infrastructure For Agent-Based Research And Development For The State Of Maine, George Markowsky, James L. Fastook, Elise Turner, Roy M. Turner, Laurence Latour

University of Maine Office of Research Administration: Grant Reports

This award provides support to establish The Agent Institute (AI), an organization anticipated to become self-sustaining and generally enhance research and development for the State of Maine. The AI will promote interactions between industry and foster computer-technology research, specifically in software development and software-hardware relationships in the area of robotics. Industrial applications in extreme or hazardous environments will be emphasized because agent-based systems are designed to read/sense environmental information, make decisions, and take actions based on the information sensed and processed.

The award provides an initial two years of salary support to hire an executive director and an administrative assistant. …


Mr432: The Business Climate For Biotechnology In Maine, Thomas G. Allen, Todd M. Gabe Dec 2003

Mr432: The Business Climate For Biotechnology In Maine, Thomas G. Allen, Todd M. Gabe

Miscellaneous Reports

This report presents the findings from a survey of biotechnology firms located in Maine. The purpose of the survey, conducted during the spring of 2003, was to collect information on a variety of issues related to the companies. operations and the state.s business climate for biotechnology. Some of the issues addressed in the survey include the research and development activities of Maine biotechnology companies, partnerships formed within the biotechnology industry, and the companies’ participation in government-sponsored business assistance programs. The survey results present a “snapshot” of the industry in 2002, which can be used to establish a baseline against which …


Mlgpa News (Fall 2003), Maggie Allen Oct 2003

Mlgpa News (Fall 2003), Maggie Allen

MLGPA news (1996-2004)

No abstract provided.


Mlgpa News (Spring 2003), Maggie Allen Apr 2003

Mlgpa News (Spring 2003), Maggie Allen

MLGPA news (1996-2004)

No abstract provided.


Mlgpa News (Winter 2003), Maggie Allen Jan 2003

Mlgpa News (Winter 2003), Maggie Allen

MLGPA news (1996-2004)

No abstract provided.


Rising Prescription Drug Costs: What Is Involved And What Can Be Done?, James Carroll Jan 2003

Rising Prescription Drug Costs: What Is Involved And What Can Be Done?, James Carroll

Maine Policy Review

The rapid rise of prescription drug costs in the United States has triggered heated debate at the federal and state levels about how to control costs and expand access for those in need. In part, the United States finds itself in this situation because, unlike most countries throughout the world, the federal government thus far has refused to exact federal price restrictions on pharmaceutical products. James Carroll argues that this has left each state in the difficult position of trying to leverage lower costs and expanded access for its citizens. In this article, Carroll provides an overview of these attempts, …


The Human Face Of Housing Policy For Rural Elders In Maine, Sandra S. Butler Jan 2003

The Human Face Of Housing Policy For Rural Elders In Maine, Sandra S. Butler

Maine Policy Review

Sandra Butler reflects on the ways in which the older households she has been encountering in her recent in-depth research in Washington County match those described by Stephen Golant in his article in this issue on the needs of elderly homeowners and the solutions to those needs. Butler’s research is based on extensive interviews with volunteers and clients of the Senior Companion Program, which has as one of its primary purposes helping elders remain in their homes as long as possible. Butler notes that she was surprised to learn how many subsidized housing complexes exist in Washington County. A number …


Dirigo Health: A Small Business Perspective, Deborah Cook Jan 2003

Dirigo Health: A Small Business Perspective, Deborah Cook

Maine Policy Review

In her commentary Deborah Cook, executive director of the Maine Small Business Alliance, discusses Dirigo Health from the viewpoint of small businesses, whose employees and families, along with the self-employed, represent the largest proportion of uninsured in Maine’s population. She notes that rising costs of health care and insurance are a major threat to the viability of small businesses.


From Lime Kilns To Art Galleries: A Historical Anthropogeography Of The Maine Coast City Of Rockland, William Francis Fagan Jan 2003

From Lime Kilns To Art Galleries: A Historical Anthropogeography Of The Maine Coast City Of Rockland, William Francis Fagan

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation is a historical anthropogeography that focuses on the city of Rockland, Maine from its prehistoric beginnings to the present. Throughout the historic period, a series of single industries have dominated Rockland's economy while its population has remained remarkably stable. Lime production, for mortar and plaster, was first, beginning with the earliest Europeans in the area in the eighteenth century and coming to its end in the 1930s. Shipping and shipbuilding were important outgrowths of the lime industry but shipbuilding ended by the early 1920s with the change from wood to steel as the favored material for shipbuilding. Commercial …


The Challenge Of Preserving And Expanding Affordable Health Care In Maine, Wendy Wolf Jan 2003

The Challenge Of Preserving And Expanding Affordable Health Care In Maine, Wendy Wolf

Maine Policy Review

Maine’s health care system is in crisis. The state’s health care expenditures represent the third highest percentage of Gross Domestic Product in the nation; state health care spending is projected to top $11 billion per year, or $8,291 per person per year, over the next seven years; businesses in Maine pay 12-23% more for coverage than the national and New England state averages; and, the state’s uninsured and vulnerable populations continue to grow. In this article, Wendy Wolf charts the rising cost of health care in Maine and the implications of these costs for all Mainers. In turn, she looks …


The Changing Nature Of Long-Term Care In Maine, Paul Saucier, Julie Fralich Jan 2003

The Changing Nature Of Long-Term Care In Maine, Paul Saucier, Julie Fralich

Maine Policy Review

The increase in the proportion of older adults, many with one or more chronic medical conditions, will increase the demand for long-term care. Paul Saucier and Julie Fralich discuss the socio-demographic factors affecting long-term care policy, and describe various state and federal options for providing and financing long-term care. They note that Maine’s long-term care system has so far been able to absorb considerable growth in people by serving increasing numbers in lower-cost settings. Cost sharing has been introduced, and tax policy has been changed to provide incentives for long-term care insurance. Policymakers must now consider whether the current balance …


Getting Creative About Elderly Housing, Frank O’Hara Jan 2003

Getting Creative About Elderly Housing, Frank O’Hara

Maine Policy Review

In his commentary on Stephen Golant’s article in this issue, Frank O’Hara notes that Golant has very successfully identified the problems of some older homeowners. However, he suggests that the solution Golant proposes—government-assisted rental housing—may apply to only a few members of the group. Moreover, very little government-subsidized rental housing is being built or planned in Maine. Using Golant’s data, O’Hara extrapolates that affordability is the primary problem for older Maine homeowners. He notes that very few are interested in the public policy alternative that would best meet their needs, namely reverse mortgages. However, he observes that older Maine homeowners …


A New Look At Senior Education, Harry Sky Jan 2003

A New Look At Senior Education, Harry Sky

Maine Policy Review

Rabbi Harry Sky, founder of the senior college movement in Maine, provides his insights on the increasing desire by older adults for lifelong learning. He writes that older adults are seeking experiences to counteract the profound sense of loneliness and “disconnectedness” that often accompany retirement. Institutions such as Maine’s senior colleges provide one such kind of experience, though they are not the only answer. Rabbi Sky reflects that in this country, we have not afforded the honor to seniors seen in other parts of the world, and that we should take a page from other civilizations.


Dirigo Health, Sharon Anglin Treat, Michael Brennan, Ann Woloson Jan 2003

Dirigo Health, Sharon Anglin Treat, Michael Brennan, Ann Woloson

Maine Policy Review

Maine’s pioneering Dirigo Health program aims at reducing health care costs, improving quality, and increasing access by providing health insurance coverage to all of Maine’s currently uninsured population. State senators Sharon Treat and Michael Brennan and co-author Ann Woloson provide an overview of the components, structure and financing of the program. They discuss some of the challenges and opportunities posed in Dirigo Health’s implementation, and give an insider’s perspective on the process by which the program was enacted.


Dirigo Health: Its Opportunities And Obstacles, Godfrey Wood Jan 2003

Dirigo Health: Its Opportunities And Obstacles, Godfrey Wood

Maine Policy Review

No abstract provided.


Revitalizing Maine’S Service Centers, John Melrose Jan 2003

Revitalizing Maine’S Service Centers, John Melrose

Maine Policy Review

Maine’s 77 “service center” municipalities account for a large proportion of all the state’s consumer retail sales, jobs, services, and tax revenues from income, sales and property taxes, and are home to most of the state’s higher education and health care institutions. However, John Melrose points out that Maine’s public policy turns “worse than a blind eye” to these communities. He presents the policy recommendations put forth in a strategic plan by the Maine Service Centers Coalition for supporting and strengthening service centers. These include leveling the financial playing field between service centers and other communities; improving local government administration …


School Size Choices: Comparing Small And Large School Strengths, Janet C. Fairman Jan 2003

School Size Choices: Comparing Small And Large School Strengths, Janet C. Fairman

Maine Policy Review

Janet Fairman discusses the thorny issue of school quality, suggesting that small schools have certain strengths compared to larger schools. Data from her study of small high schools in Maine, as well as research literature, suggest that compared to large schools, small schools allow for greater personal attention to students, have greater flexibility in scheduling, programming and instructional decisions, and often have stronger school-community connections that support student achievement and serve important community needs. Using quantitative measures of quality, Fairman notes that school size alone explains very little of the variation in 11th grade Maine Educational Assessment (MEA) scores, while …