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PubMed2003

Zoning out crime and improving community health in Sarasota, Florida: "Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design".

Sarasota, Fla, used Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED) principles to guide revitalization efforts in its crime-ridden North Trail area. A team of city planners, police officers, and architects examined land use and crime data and sought input from local businesses, residents, and community leaders. Beginning in 1990, interventions included increased police patrols to reduce prostitution and the creation of a new zoning district to encourage area redevelopment based on CPTED principles. Compared with the rest of Sarasota, from 1990 to 1998 the North Trail Corridor experienced decreases in calls for police service (P <.005), crimes against persons and property (P = not significant), and prostitution (P <.05). These results suggest that community design may be a useful tool for decreasing crime and improving community health.

City Planning↗

PubMed2005

Formal analysis of the urban 'Dutch model' with aims of re-formulating spatial quality concerns for pedestrian precincts in current New Town developments.

In the Japanese post WWII urban planning and design field, concerns for formal features regarding the sequential street-front visual image in new high-density urban spaces have been a rather subordinated subject. Famous New Town schemes such as Tsukuba Science City (1963), or Minato Mirai 21 (1965) for instance, are typical inland and reclaimed land examples that summarize the validity and limitations of functional zoning systems applied to these artificial urban developments for the last half century. In those examples, the interaction between space mobility and land use has not been explored sufficiently in order to create attractive street-front images, yet such interaction is essential to the way the cityscape and its character are perceived by the eye. However, current insight regarding the sustainable New Town paradigm has brought a renewed perspective regarding design policy of the pedestrian precinct. This study investigates the formal features of the sequential street-front image of Dutch late-medieval town examples which could help re-formulate the existing design policies regarding the quality of pedestrian space especially in the artificial reclaimed land design field. The purpose is to find out how the principles of those old high-density artificial environmental design models generate such effective interaction between mobility and land usage, creating an enriched aesthetic visual image of street-front space as a result.

City Planning↗

PubMed1991

Biomagnetometers for unshielded and well shielded environments.

The paper describes magnetometers for operation in well shielded and unshielded environments. For unshielded environments, the noise cancellation is accomplished by spatial filtering using higher-order gradiometers which are formed in software. The theory of the software formation of high-order gradiometers has been successfully tested experimentally to the second-order gradient level, using a seven-channel prototype system. An unshielded, open environment system, designed to operate with third-order noise cancellation is presently under construction. It is a whole head system, consisting of a minimum of 64 sensing channels, and is expected to be operational by late 1991. In the opposite extreme, a magnetometer is being developed for operation in a well shielded environment of a whole body superconducting shield. The high temperature superconducting shield will operate in liquid nitrogen, while the magnetometer detection system will operate in liquid helium. The high level of shielding will allow detection of biomagnetic signals using magnetometers. The whole body high temperature superconducting shielded system is presently under development and a half scale working shield already exists. The complete whole body shielded system is expected to be operational in 1994/95.

Equipment Design↗

PubMed2006

An approach for recreation suitability analysis to recreation planning in Gölcük Nature Park.

Gölcük Nature Park (GNP) is an area protected by law in Turkey. It is an important nature park with rich flora, fauna, geomorphologic forms, landscape features, and recreational potential in the region. However, GNP does not have a recreation management plan. The purpose of this study was to determine the actual natural, cultural, and visual resources of GNP, determine the most suitable recreational sites with multiple factors, evaluate the demands and tendencies of visitors, and suggest recreational activities and facilities for the most suitable sites of GNP. However, it was also conceived as leading to a recreational plan and design of GNP in the future and identifying the entire appropriate and current data of GNP with the creation of various maps. This study used multifactor analysis to determine the most suitable recreation sites of GNP. Used recreation factors were established including degree of slope, proximity to water resources, accessibility, elevation, vegetation, soil, climate, aspect, current cultural facilities, visual values, and some limiting factors in accordance with the characteristics of GNP. Weighting and suitability values of factors were determined by 30 local expert surveys. All obtained data were evaluated and integrated in the Geographical Information Systems base. Obtained maps were overlapped. Thus, recreational suitability zones map were created manually. However, the demands and behaviours from visitor surveys in GNP were focused on the most suitable recreation sites of the park. Finally, 10% of GNP was identified as the most suitable sites for recreational use. Various recreational facilities and activities (including picnicking, sports facilities and playgrounds, camping sites, walking paths, food and local outlets, etc.) were recommended for nine of the most suitable areas on the proposed recreational map.

Conservation of Natural Resources↗

PubMed2005

Underutilization of environmental adaptations for bathing in community-living older persons.

OBJECTIVES: To determine the prevalence and utilization of environmental adaptations (home modifications and assistive devices) for bathing in community-living older persons with and without bathing disability. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. SETTING: General community of greater New Haven, Connecticut. PARTICIPANTS: Five hundred sixty-six community-living persons aged 73 and older. MEASUREMENTS: Trained research nurses performed a comprehensive assessment of bathing function, including an in-home evaluation of the bathing environment and self-reported utilization of environmental adaptations for bathing. RESULTS: The prevalence of most environmental adaptations for bathing was less than 50% and was only modestly greater in participants with bathing disability (range 6-54%) than in those without bathing disability (2-44%), although important differences in prevalence and utilization were observed according to the type of bathing disability. Participants who had difficulty (without dependence) with bathing were significantly less likely to have most of the environmental adaptations than participants who needed personal assistance (dependence) with bathing. These differences persisted in analyses that specifically evaluated the utilization of environmental adaptations for bathing transfers according to the type of disability with bathing transfers (59% of those with difficulty vs 88% of those with dependence, P<.001). CONCLUSION: Potentially valuable environmental adaptations are absent from the homes of many older persons with bathing disability and may be particularly underused by older persons reporting difficulty with bathing. To ameliorate or delay the progression of disability in community-living older persons, assessment and remediation strategies should be better targeted to bathing function across the continuum of disability.

Activities of Daily Living↗

PubMed2004

Drainage effects on stream nitrate-N and hydrology in south-central Minnesota (USA).

Excessive nitrate-N in south-central Minnesota ditches and streams is related to land-use change, and may be contributing to the development of the zone of hypoxia in the Gulf of Mexico. Intensive land-use (agricultural management) has progressively increased as subsurface drainage has improved crop productivity over the past 25 years. We have examined water at varying scales for delta18O and, nitrate-N concentrations. Additionally, analysis of annual peak flows, and channel geomorphic features provided a measure of hydrologic change. Laboratory and field results indicate that agricultural drainage has influenced riverine source waters, concentrations of nitrate-N, channel dimensions and hydrology in the Blue Earth River (BER) Basin. At the mouth of the BER shallow ground water comprises the largest source water component. The highest nitrate-N concentrations in the BER and tributaries typically occurred in May and June and ranged from 7-34 mg L(-1). Peak flows for the 1.01-2-yr recurrence intervals increased by 20-to-206% over the past 25 years. Geomorphic data suggest that small channels (ditches) were entrenched by design, whereas, natural that are disconnected from an accessible riparian corridor. Frequent access to a functioning riparian zone is important for denitrification.

Engineering↗

PubMed2001

Streamlining patient care processes through flexible room and equipment design.

Hospitals are planning and designing new environments to accommodate a greater concentration of critically ill patients and to permit the installation of sophisticated technology required for the care of this high-acuity population. A serious nursing shortage, customer demands for privacy and personal amenities, and cost constraints pose numerous problems in planning and design processes. The flexible, acuity-adaptable room concept has been introduced as a platform for changing care processes to achieve a cost-effective care model that fosters nursing efficiency and increased customer satisfaction.

Equipment Design↗

PubMed2006

Evaluating health effects of transport interventions methodologic case study.

BACKGROUND: There is little evidence about the effects of environmental interventions on population levels of physical activity. Major transport projects may promote or discourage physical activity in the form of walking and cycling, but researching the health effects of such "natural experiments" in transport policy or infrastructure is challenging. METHODS: Case study of attempts in 2004-2005 to evaluate the effects of two major transport projects in Scotland: an urban congestion charging scheme in Edinburgh, and a new urban motorway (freeway) in Glasgow. RESULTS: These interventions are typical of many major transport projects. They are unique to their context. They cannot easily be separated from the other components of the wider policies within which they occur. When, where, and how they are implemented are political decisions over which researchers have no control. Baseline data collection required for longitudinal studies may need to be planned before the intervention is certain to take place. There is no simple way of defining a population or area exposed to the intervention or of defining control groups. Changes in quantitative measures of health-related behavior may be difficult to detect. CONCLUSIONS: Major transport projects have clear potential to influence population health, but it is difficult to define the interventions, categorize exposure, or measure outcomes in ways that are likely to be seen as credible in the field of public health intervention research. A final study design is proposed in which multiple methods and spatial levels of analysis are combined in a longitudinal quasi-experimental study.

City Planning↗

PubMed1991

Psychologic well-being: conceptual issues, behavioral measures, and implications for dogs.

The best means of providing for the physical and psychologic well-being of animals maintained in captive environments for research, teaching, testing, and exhibition is a problem being debated by scientists, veterinarians, animal rights and welfare groups, zoos, and others. Even a cursory examination of this question reveals its complexity and the inherited difficulties not only in assessing an animal's well-being but also in designing housing environments and implementing enforceable regulations. Assessment of well-being should not be based on a single category of measures but rather on a variety of physiologic and behavioral parameters. Most behavioral (and physiologic) methods used to assess well-being have problems of quantitation and interpretation. Preference tests and the application of economic demand theory to welfare assessment are examples of improved behavioral methodology, but much more research is needed on dogs and other species so that animal care and use guidelines can be based on objective data rather than on controversial opinions.

Animal Welfare↗

PubMed1997

Modeling accident frequencies as zero-altered probability processes: an empirical inquiry.

This paper presents an empirical inquiry into the applicability of zero-altered counting processes to roadway section accident frequencies. The intent of such a counting process is to distinguish sections of roadway that are truly safe (near zero-accident likelihood) from those that are unsafe but happen to have zero accidents observed during the period of observation (e.g. one year). Traditional applications of Poisson and negative binomial accident frequency models do not account for this distinction and thus can produce biased coefficient estimates because of the preponderance of zero-accident observations. Zero-altered probability processes such as the zero-inflated Poisson (ZIP) and zero-inflated negative binomial (ZINB) distributions are examined and proposed for accident frequencies by roadway functional class and geographic location. The findings show that the ZIP structure models are promising and have great flexibility in uncovering processes affecting accident frequencies on roadway sections observed with zero accidents and those with observed accident occurrences. This flexibility allows highway engineers to better isolate design factors that contribute to accident occurrence and also provides additional insight into variables that determine the relative accident likelihoods of safe versus unsafe roadways. The generic nature of the models and the relatively good power of the Vuong specification test used in the non-nested hypotheses of model specifications offers roadway designers the potential to develop a global family of models for accident frequency prediction that can be embedded in a larger safety management system.

Accidents, Traffic↗

PubMed2004

Communication in ecosystem management: a case study of cross-disciplinary integration in the assessment phase of the interior Columbia Basin Ecosystem Management Project.

Effective communication is essential to the success of collaborative ecosystem management projects. In this paper, we investigated the dynamics of the Interior Columbia Basin Ecosystem Management Project's (ICBEMP) cross-disciplinary integration process in the assessment phase. Using a case study research design, we captured the rich trail of experience through conducting in-depth interviews and collecting information from internal and public documents, videos, and meetings related to the ICBEMP. Coding and analysis was facilitated by a qualitative analysis software, NVivo. Results include the range of internal perspectives on barriers and facilitators of cross-disciplinary integration in the Science Integration Team (SIT). These are arrayed in terms of discipline-based differences, organizational structures and activities, individual traits of scientists, and previous working relationships. The ICBEMP organization included a team of communication staffs (CT), and the data described the CT as a mixed group in terms of qualifications and educational backgrounds that played a major role in communication with actors external to the ICBEMP organization but a minor one in terms of internal communication. The data indicated that the CT-SIT communication was influenced by characteristics of actors and structures related to organizations and their cultures. We conclude that the ICBEMP members may not have had a sufficient level of shared understanding of central domains, such as the task at hand and ways and timing of information sharing. The paper concludes by suggesting that future ecosystem management assessment teams use qualified communications specialists to design and monitor the development of shared cognition among organization members in order to improve the effectiveness of communication and cross-disciplinary integration.

Communication↗

PubMed2006

Effect of reeds and feeding operations on hydraulic behaviour of vertical flow constructed wetlands under hydraulic overloads.

Vertical flow constructed wetlands (VFCWs) have been very successful in France over the last 5 years. The sizing of VFCWs is still roughly based on organic load acceptance with slight clear water intrusion into the sewerage system which is often wrong in the context of small communities. To specify the hydraulic limits would be of great help to Water Authorities in deciding at what point is it preferable to build separate sewers rather than adapt the wastewater treatment plant. The study of the hydraulic limits of reed beds, based on the knowledge of hydrodynamics in unsaturated porous media, shows the ability of the system to accept flow overloads. Measuring different parameters (flow, pollutant removal, infiltration rate (IR), pressure head profiles) in pilot and full-scale studies, we explain the hydraulic behaviour of the filter, and the role of reeds and batch frequency on the IRs. Consequently, new hydraulic limits with accompanying sizing rules and operational recommendations according to the level of deposit on the filter surface are suggested. The study shows the robustness of reed beds systems as designed in France to accept hydraulic overloads. Overloads up to ten times the dry weather flow are possible whilst still complying with the European standards.

Biodegradation, Environmental↗

PubMed1975

Housing characteristics and the well-being of elderly tenants in federally assisted housing.

The relationship between sponsorship, community size, building size (number of dwelling units) and height of building, on the one hand, and six indices of well-being of elderly tenants, on the other, was examined in a study of 2457 subjects from 154 federally-assisted housing projects. Control was exercised on a variety of personal variables prior to the examination of the environmental relationships to well-being. Private nonprofit sponsorship was associated with higher friendship scores and greater activity participation. Tenants in smaller communities had higher friendship scores, greater housing satisfaction, and greater activity participation. Housing satisfaction was greater in projects that were smaller in terms of total number of units but was not related to size when size was defined in terms of elderly-designated units. Thus, only marginal support for Barker's undermanning hypothesis was found. Greater height of building was associated with lower housing satisfaction and less neighborhood motility.

Aged↗

PubMed2006

The perceived impact of duty hour restrictions on the residency environment: a survey of residency program directors.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to characterize residency program director baseline perceptions regarding the effect of resident duty hour limitations on key components of the graduate medical education environment. STUDY DESIGN: This was a survey of directors of accredited obstetrics and gynecology residency programs in the United States (excluding New York State) between June 21st and July 16th, 2004. Participants were queried on views regarding the need for duty hour limitations, and the perceived effect of these changes on various issues related to the residency environment. RESULTS: Fifty-eight percent (123/211) of the study population completed the questionnaire. Seventy-one percent of respondents supported duty hour restrictions, 19% opposed restrictions, and 10% were undecided. Forty-one percent of respondents preferred a maximum duty hour limitation of 80 hrs/wk or less, 55% preferred one at least 90 hrs/wk, and 4% preferred no upper limit. A significantly greater proportion of female program directors supported limits > 80 hrs/wk than males (73% vs 53%, P = .04). A majority of participants believed resident education, surgical skills, and work ethic have been negatively impacted by the limitations, while patient safety and the overall quality of patient care have remained unchanged or declined, and resident well-being has improved. Opposition to duty hour regulations and a preference for higher limits was associated with a higher prevalence of negative impressions regarding the impact of duty hour regulations on the residency environment. CONCLUSION: Variations in current opinions regarding the impact of residency duty hour restrictions reflect ongoing bias in those most influential to resident education.

Adult↗

PubMed1995

Computer simulation of human body dynamics.

Understanding human body dynamics is important in many situations, such as automobile and aircraft crashes, aircraft ejections, falls, and other acceleration environments. The design of automobile interiors, cockpits, and safety equipment requires knowledge of the forces and accelerations encountered during an emergency. Because of the limited information available from actual events and the various constraints in testing, computer simulations are often the only means of obtaining detailed information. The Armstrong Laboratory (AL) developed the Articulated Total Body (ATB) model to predict the human body dynamics in many of these environments. This model is a three-dimensional rigid body dynamics program in which the human body is modeled as a series of segments. Forces on the body segments are calculated based on their interaction with the surroundings including seat and cockpit surfaces. The model also calculates the internal joint resistive and constraint forces. Because of this capability to predict both internal and external forces acting on the body, the ATB model can be used in investigating injuries. It is also a valuable design tool for evaluating safety of proposed systems before prototypes are built or costly tests conducted. When testing is conducted, the model provides data that cannot be measured, such as forces within the body, and supplementing test data with parameter variation simulations. To validate the model, tests such as those conducted on the AL impact sled are simulated. Test films and instrumentation data are compared with simulation graphics and quantitative output to gain confidence in the simulation results.

Acceleration↗

PubMed2004

Sustainable stormwater management at Fornebu--from an airport to an industrial and residential area of the city of Oslo, Norway.

The Oslo Airport at Fornebu was closed in 1998 after 60 years of operation. An area of 3.1 km(2) was made available for one of Norway's biggest property development projects. Plans include 6000 residences and 20,000 workplaces. Fornebu is situated on a peninsula in the Oslo Fjord just outside the city of Oslo and is regarded as a very attractive area for both urbanisation and recreation. The residential area located centrally at Fornebu surrounds a centrally located park area. In the planning process, there was an expressed interest in using water as a life-giving element within the vegetation structure of the park. In Norway, stormwater in urban areas has traditionally been collected and transported in pipe systems to adjacent watercourses. However, there is an increasing interest in alternative "green" solutions for the management of stormwater. The paper presents a concept for sustainable stormwater management at Fornebu. A main objective is to improve the recreational and ecological value of stormwater while achieving a cost-effective solution. This objective is reached by replacing conventional urban drainage pipes with swales, filter strips, wetlands and ponds as collection, storage and treatment systems designed for natural processes. The paper thereby addresses integrated systems for stormwater management by approaching nature's way and sustainable development principles.

Aircraft↗

PubMed2003

Accident prediction models for urban roads.

This paper describes some of the main findings from two separate studies on accident prediction models for urban junctions and urban road links described in [Uheldsmodel for bygader-Del1: Modeller for 3-og 4-benede kryds. Notat 22, The Danish Road Directorate, 1995; Uheldsmodel for bygader- Del2: Modeller for straekninger. Notat 59, The Danish Road Directorate, 1998] (Greibe and Hemdorff, 1995, 1988). The main objective for the studies was to establish simple, practicable accident models that can predict the expected number of accidents at urban junctions and road links as accurately as possible. The models can be used to identify factors affecting road safety and in relation to 'black spot' identification and network safety analysis undertaken by local road authorities. The accident prediction models are based on data from 1036 junctions and 142 km road links in urban areas. Generalised linear modelling techniques were used to relate accident frequencies to explanatory variables. The estimated accident prediction models for road links were capable of describing more than 60% of the systematic variation ('percentage-explained' value) while the models for junctions had lower values. This indicates that modelling accidents for road links is less complicated than for junctions, probably due to a more uniform accident pattern and a simpler traffic flow exposure or due to lack of adequate explanatory variables for junctions. Explanatory variables describing road design and road geometry proved to be significant for road link models but less important in junction models. The most powerful variable for all models was motor vehicle traffic flow.

Accidents, Traffic↗

PubMed2001

Effective contaminant detection networks in uncertain groundwater flow fields.

A mass transport simulation model tested seven contaminant detection-monitoring networks under a 40 degrees range of groundwater flow directions. Each monitoring network contained five wells located 40 m from a rectangular landfill. The 40-m distance (lag) was measured in different directions, depending upon the strategy used to design a particular monitoring network. Lagging the wells parallel to the central flow path was more effective than alternative design strategies. Other strategies allowed higher percentages of leaks to migrate between monitoring wells. Results of this study suggest that centrally lagged groundwater monitoring networks perform most effectively in uncertain groundwater-flow fields.

Environment Design↗