Direct Personal Contact Research Articles

The Early Development of TDR for Soil Measurements

The early development of time-domain reflectometry (TDR) for measuring water content in soils began somewhat by chance and continued almost in spite of the lack of support for the work from the sponsoring organizations. Following their first meeting, mutually supportive relationships quickly developed among the authors to sustain the research and development (R&D) program through the early difficult stages. The consistency across varied soils in the early findings buoyed up the authors' enthusiasm, but there was considerable reluctance by others to accept that one relative permittivity vs. water content relationship would apply as widely as claimed. The development of the first TDR instrument specifically for soil measurement highlighted a number of difficulties that may occur during the translation of scientific concepts and results to the instrumentation stage. An important method of dissemination of TDR results was the personal demonstration of the technique at conferences and workshops. These direct personal contacts often assisted others to pursue diverse applications, such as multiplexing for better spatial coverage, estimating liquid water in frozen soil, electrical conductivity, and solute movement. By 1987, TDR in soil had come of age with the presentation of five TDR papers from four nations at the Utah State Centennial Symposium. These experiences are offered as inspiration for others working on development research or perhaps as a warning of possible difficulties. In spite of which, this proved to be one of the most exciting and rewarding projects for the authors.

The Early Development of TDR for Soil Measurements

The early development of time‐domain reflectometry (TDR) for measuring water content in soils began somewhat by chance and continued almost in spite of the lack of support for the work from the sponsoring organizations. Following their first meeting, mutually supportive relationships quickly developed among the authors to sustain the research and development (R&D) program through the early difficult stages. The consistency across varied soils in the early findings buoyed up the authors' enthusiasm, but there was considerable reluctance by others to accept that one relative permittivity vs. water content relationship would apply as widely as claimed. The development of the first TDR instrument specifically for soil measurement highlighted a number of difficulties that may occur during the translation of scientific concepts and results to the instrumentation stage. An important method of dissemination of TDR results was the personal demonstration of the technique at conferences and workshops. These direct personal contacts often assisted others to pursue diverse applications, such as multiplexing for better spatial coverage, estimating liquid water in frozen soil, electrical conductivity, and solute movement. By 1987, TDR in soil had come of age with the presentation of five TDR papers from four nations at the Utah State Centennial Symposium. These experiences are offered as inspiration for others working on development research or perhaps as a warning of possible difficulties. In spite of which, this proved to be one of the most exciting and rewarding projects for the authors.

Mentoring Online about Mentoring: Possibilities and practice

Mentoring is most often associated with direct personal contact between individuals. Computer-based learning, on the other hand, is more associated with the impersonal interaction between human and machine. Recent developments in online technology, however, have paved the way for more personal interactions between people via machines. This article reports on the experience of a university professor and her graduate students as they embarked on learning about the very personal domain of mentoring via face-to-face and online learning. The results in terms of student learning, professional practice and mentoring suggest the benefit of utilizing technology as a support and enhancement to direct personal interaction, not replace it.

Screening fetal echocardiography by telemedicine: Efficacy and community acceptance

Objective: Our aim was to assess whether tertiary level screening fetal echocardiography can be extended to primary care facilities with telemedicine assistance. Methods: Assessment of image quality and the adequacy of fetal echocardiograms recorded after random transmission at 128, 384, or 768 kbits/s was performed. Live fetal echocardiograms were transmitted at 384 kbits/s (3 integrated services digital network lines) from the remote primary care center. Patient satisfaction was assessed by surveys obtained after office-based and telemedicine consultations. Results: A total of 58 recorded normal studies had similar image quality and adequacy on transmission at 384 and 768 kbits/s (P =.08 and.49, respectively) and were significantly better than 128 kbits/s (P <.01). During live screening transmitted at 384 kbits/s from the primary care center, 3 of 34 fetuses were diagnosed with heart disease. Surveys from patients with direct physician contact and by telemedicine showed a high satisfaction with telemedicine-assisted screening and counseling. Conclusion: Adequate screening for fetal heart disease is technically feasible at or above data transmission rates of 384 kbits/s. Community acceptance for telemedicine-assisted screening and counseling is not adversely affected by a lack of direct personal contact with the specialist. (J Am Soc Echocardiogr 2003;16:202-8.)

Audition electives during surgical residency and selection for post-residency fellowship positions

Purpose This study sought to determine the impact of surgical resident elective rotations, termed “audition” electives, upon the selection processes of surgical subspecialty residency positions, and to establish the incidence and character of resident personal contact before selection with the program where they ultimately located in order to appropriately council residents in achieving their educational and professional goals. Methods A national survey of all surgical subspecialty programs for academic year 1999/2000 was conducted to determine whether the current first-year subspecialty residents had been on a clinical rotation of the subspecialty at their institution during their general surgery residency, had participated in research efforts of the specific subspecialty at their institution, and whether the resident’s prerequisite general surgery training was obtained at their parent sponsoring institution. Results Seventy-two percent of 348 programs responded, representing 396 beginning surgical subspecialty residents for the surveyed academic year. Overall, 73% of first-year surgical subspecialty residents did not have direct prior personal contact with their subspecialty program either through a clinical rotation at the institution or through research as a general surgery resident. Eighty-four percent of first-year surgical subspecialty residents did not complete their general surgery residency at the parent sponsoring institution of the subspecialty program. Conclusions An audition elective does not appear to significantly influence the process of surgical subspecialty resident selection. The findings further validate the fairness of the selection processes.

Informing river management policies and programs with science

Conventional wisdom has it that we already have enough science to address the problems causing degradation of our environment, including rivers. This is not true. However it is the case that we could be using existing knowledge better, and that we could be doing more to learn the lessons from the huge sums being spent on river restoration and management. Informing good policy and practical on-ground management with R&D outputs has proven to be is difficult, but essential. This paper reviews some of the history of water and river management in Australia and how perceptions of rivers have evolved. It discusses the challenge of enhancing the linkages between science, policy and practice in river management. It outlines the knowledge exchange, R&D and capacity building strategies of the National Rivers Consortium--a new initiative whose founding partners are LWRRDC, the MDBC, CSIRO Land and Water and the Western Australian Waters and Rivers Commission. This strategic collaboration between policy makers, river managers and scientists brings together organisations with responsibility and expertise to improve the health and management of Australian rivers. The National Rivers Consortium is making a major investment in knowledge exchange and capacity building, based on direct personal contact and learning by doing. The Consortium is establishing a program of training activities targeting river managers and policy makers, based on the best available science and high quality information products. It will support river managers as they plan and implement river restoration and protection projects. The paper concludes with a discussion of the key knowledge gaps that remain impediments to the better management of Australia's unique and diverse river landscapes.

Beyond social capital: How social skills can enhance entrepreneurs' success

Executive Overview Why are some entrepreneurs so much more successful than others in starting new ventures? Previous efforts to answer this question have generally focused either on the personality traits or susceptibility to various cognitive errors of individual entrepreneurs or on such external factors as the number of competing businesses. We suggest that entrepreneurs' social skills—specific competencies that help them interact effectively with others—may also play a role in their success. A high level of social capital, built on a favorable reputation, relevant previous experience, and direct personal contacts, often assists entrepreneurs in gaining access to venture capitalists, potential customers, and others. Once such access is gained, the nature of the entrepreneurs' face-to-face interactions can strongly influence their success. Specific social skills, such as the ability to read others accurately, make favorable first impressions, adapt to a wide range of social situations, and be persuasive,...

Native American Stereotypes, TV Portrayals, and Personal Contact

This study tests hypotheses derived from extremity-complexity and stage theories of stereotyping which predict that frequency of contact with a minority group leads to knowledge which then leads to positive group evaluations. We also test hypotheses from learning theories of behavior which predict that evaluations of contact with minority groups determine group evaluations. The hypotheses are tested for direct personal contact and vicarious contact via television. We administered questionnaires to white college students to measure the contact variables and stereotypes of Native Americans. Results show strong support for the learning hypotheses, but not for extremity-complexity theories of stereotyping. Evaluations of first contact as pleasant or unpleasant, frequency of contact, and evaluations of TV portrayals as negative or positive predict stereotyping. Implications for stereotyping theories are discussed.

Emergency medical service response to major incidents. A study of 21 cases

Major incidents are high-profile events where many lives are at stake. The response of the health-care-related agencies has to be well-planned and co-ordinated, thus retaining the public's confidence in the emergency services whilst efficiently responding to those in need. The communication between supervising officers such as medical incident officer (MIO) and ambulance incident officer (AIO) with the ambulance personnel is vital for the proper employment of doctors and ambulance teams at the incident scene. In Germany the experience gained at such events has not yet been collected into a single coherent and comprehensive analysis. This study investigates the delivery of ambulance vehicles and personnel at major incidents. Was appropriate emergency treatment and transport for each seriously injured patient possible? Were the communication structures between the supervising officers and the ambulance teams sufficient to provide effective co-ordination and utilisation of the teams at the scene? A major incident was defined as any incident with more than ten casualties. All central ambulance controls (CAC) in the five federal states Rhineland-Palatinate, Bavaria, Saarland, Hessen, and Baden-Württemberg were asked by telephone and mail if a major incident had occurred in their area from September 1992 to September 1994. In cases of major incidents in other federal states of West Germany during that period, the appropriate CAC was contacted to collect data. A standardised questionnaire was send to the CACs. The data were split into chronological periods of responses to major incidents. Twenty-one major incidents were included in the study, 11 of them road accidents. The mean time to arrival of physician-staffed ambulances at the scene was calculated as 20 min after alerting of the CAC. In 90% of all cases enough physicians were available to treat each seriously injured patient (NACA score 3-6). In 9 cases a MIO and an AIO were sent out. Their mean time to arrival at the scene was 25 min after alerting of the CAC. In 19 cases (90%) enough ambulance vehicles were provided to rapidly distribute all casualties. With one exception, this was also true for the use of helicopters. Onsite communication of the ambulance staff was always by direct personal contact. In 38% of all incidents the arriving ambulance staff had difficulties in contacting senior officers, and thus, nobody defined their roles and responsibilities. Quality assurance in emergency medicine can only be achieved by research and documentation. Analysis of the data for this study revealed a severe documentation gap. Only in Bavaria did a one-page documentation form for major incidents exist. For a comprehensive analysis of the health-care-related response to major incidents, a standardised and detailed documentation form should be introduced. According to the data from this study, ambulance staff and vehicles can be quickly and sufficiently provided for the vast majority of major incidents in Germany. For the optimal use of these resources, however, communication skills and knowledge and understanding of on-side supervision structures such as the MIO and AIO need to be promoted.

Political Action Committees in State Elections

While the number o f state PACs and their campaign contributions have increased substantially over the past decade, much remains unknown regarding their organization and activities. From a survey o f PACs in three states we develop a portrait o f political action committees, which extends beyond contributions. State PACs form around both economic and ideological issues; have very modest organizational structures; solicit funds primarily by direct mail and personal contacts; typically delegate responsibility for making campaign contributions to committees, which adopt accommodationist strategies; and have extended their activities to include voter education and mobilization. A number o f differences among the various types o f PACs are also evident.

Cost‐effectiveness of recruitment methods in a population‐based epidemiological study: the Melbourne Visual Impairment Project

The cost-effectiveness of five recruitment methods was evaluated to determine the best method of encouraging eligible persons to participate in the Melbourne Visual Impairment Project (a population-based epidemiological study). The evaluation was divided into two phases. Phase 1 included one of two types of initial contact, by direct personal contact or by telephone. Phase 2 involved recruiting residents after an attempt had been made by either the telephone or the doorstep approach, and included a second attempt by a field interviewer, subsequent attempts by senior field staff, and finally, financial incentives. The cost-effectiveness of each method was determined by dividing the approach's cost by the effectiveness ratio. We identified 269 eligible households with 356 eligible residents. An 89 per cent response rate was achieved at the examination centre, comprising 61 per cent from Phase 1 and 28 per cent from Phase 2. Although both recruitment methods in Phase 1 were equally cost-effective, there was a significant difference in the effectiveness of each method in actually recruiting residents. The doorstep method was more costly per attender but was far more effective at 76 per cent recruitment than the telephone method at 47 per cent (P < 0.001). We have demonstrated a practical two-stage approach (the doorstep method in Phase 1 and follow-up strategies in Phase 2) to population-based recruitment involving the middle to elderly age group that should be relevant to many epidemiological studies.

Marketing in my practice

INTRODUCTION The notion of marketing being necessary in a veterinary practice has only grown during the last decade. Establishing a good contact between the veterinarian and the client is the first indispensable marketing step with direct contact between the two as the most important one. Most of the direct contacts take place when clients visit me when their animal is ill. Regular vaccination however, provides a good basis for additional direct personal contacts. In addition to some general aspects of marketing in my practice, emphasis will be put on the added value of direct personal contact with a client during a vaccination consult.

Categories, disciplines, and social coordination

Lucy Suchman's paper, “Do categories have politics,” challenges the validity of speech act theory as a basis for computer systems for workflow support. Suchman fears that the explicitiness of the theory leads to undue discipline when it is applied in practice. Her fear is grounded in a misunderstanding of what it means to use such a theory, and this paper clarifies the difference between formal comprehensivemodels of behavior and formalstructures used in communication and recording, Explicit speech act theory, like explicit accounting procedures, enforces a kind of uniformity that is necessary in any communication situation where ambiguity and vagueness cannot be routinely resolved through direct personal contact and knowledge. The practicalities of large geographically distributed organizations makes the appropriate use of shared structuring a precondition for effective cooperation.

Consumer Investment in Product-Specific Capital: The Monopoly Case

For many pairs of complementary products, one good might usefully be called a consumption good, and the other a capital good. A concrete example of such complements is gasoline and automobiles. Because of complementarity, investment in automobiles depends on the price of gas. Since cars bought today will be around for several years, there is a dynamic link between the current price of gas and future demand for gas. OPEC has a strategic incentive to set a low oil price today since a low price promotes investment in big cars and other oil-fueled equipment which, in turn, increases the future profit of the oil industry. Consumer investment in product-specific capital is a feature of the markets for many products, especially if one takes a broad perspective of what this capital decision can be. For instance, continuing the example of the gas market, the decision to reside far from work is analogous to the decision to buy a big car since (1) the decision may be influenced by the current price of gas and (2) the decision affects an individual's future demand for gas. As another example consider the demand for phone service. In response to a low price of phone service, businesses makes capital decisions such as the purchase of computer telemarketing machines and other phone equipment. The businesses may also configure their marketing strategy to use (human) phone contact rather than direct personal contact, and such a strategy involves investment in human capital. These investment decisions all tend to make the future demand for phone service relatively inelastic. This paper presents a model in which there are capital goods, cars, which can be used for two periods, and a consumption good, gas, which fuels the cars. Big cars are gas guzzlers; i.e., car size and gas are complements. Consumers select the size of their car on the basis of the current price of gas and their expectations of the future

Notes on the Poetics of the Acevedo Movement against Torture

How can one speak about torture? How can one describe a language that exposes this diabolical act committed in the secrecy of cells, of old kitchens, and with the secret complicity of those who are obeying orders or acting simply for the sadistic pleasure of inflicting hurt on a tortured body? In order to unmask the strategies of torture one must visualize two images: the suffering open body, exposed to the pain caused by the torturer, and the intimacy of the act of torture. The use of language constitutes one of the dynamics of torture because every act of torture presupposes a torturer who uses the language of authority to interrogate the victim. The language of torture represents the stratification of power: the victim is forced to speak by means of his wounded and hurting body, while for the torturer, every electric shock represents one more triumph of his power over the suffering victim. The unrecognizable tortured body becomes the silent voice and in that very silence, it finds the mirror of death. The torturer presupposes that the voiceless body is a dead body. The initial question of language arises once again: How to give visibility to this act that is constantly silenced by those who practice it? In the Chile of today, submerged under the violent years of a dictatorship, a unique movement in the history of nonviolent actions has emerged. I am referring to the Sebastian Acevedo Movement Against Torture-the subject of this meditation on the poetics of torture. Very little has been written on this movement inside Chile and most of the information of this essay comes from direct personal contact with its members-seeing them and talking to them on the streets of Santiago.

Wisconsin's Self-Help Lake Monitoring Program: A Review of the First Year — 1986

ABSTRACT The year 1986 marked the first year of the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources' (WDNR) “Self-Help Lake Monitoring Program.” More than 150 volunteers collected Secchi disk and lake level data on 129 lakes and lake basins throughout the state. The program served both as an educational and data collection function and continues to be a cornerstone of the state's new Lake Management Program. The Self-Help Monitoring Program's success is attributed to four aspects of the program; (1) direct personal contact between volunteers and a WDNR water quality specialist in a training situation; (2) frequent communication between WDNR and volunteers via bimonthly newsletters, individual reports, and the weekly data reporting cards WDNR received from the volunteers; (3) sense of ownership the volunteers felt toward the program; and (4) newspaper articles published in local papers notifying the public that a volunteer was collecting data on a local lake and that a report was available from WDNR. More than 1...

Newspaper and Business Endorsements in Municipal Elections: A Test of the Conventional Wisdom

: The more decentralized is authority in a city, the greater is the opportunity for unofficial institutions, especially civic associations, labor and business organizations, and newspapers to exert influence ….[N]ewspapers play a particularly important part in the electoral processes of nonpartisan cities, especially those so large that candidates cannot become known to the electorate through direct personal contacts (Banfield & Wilson, 1963, p.324).

7 Immunology of giardiasis

Giardiasis is the most common protozoa1 infection of the intestine and is found worldwide throughout temperate and tropical locations (Petersen, 1972). Since the discovery of Giurdiu lamhlia by the Dutch lens-maker Anton van Leeuwenhoek in 168 1, the pathogenic potential of this parasite has often been questioned. There is now indisputable evidence that Giardia can cause acute and chronic diarrhoea with intestinal malabsorption, and may be responsible for retarded growth and development in children (Farthing et al, 1986). Although the parasite is susceptible to a variety of antimicrobial agents such as the nitroimidazole derivatives, it is unlikely that these drugs will lead to its eradication. Waterborne epidemics of giardiasis and extensive personto-person spread occur in developed communities, indicating that improvement in water quality and sanitation is also unlikely to eradicate giardiasis entirely. The life cycle of Giardia lamblia is summarized in Figure 1. The cyst is the infective form of the parasite which can survive outside the host for extended periods in cool, moist conditions. The trophozoite, however, is relatively fragile and is the form of the parasite that colonizes the intestine and produces intestinal disease. During the past ten years, major advances have occurred in our understanding of the epidemiology of giardiasis. There are two modes of transmission: (1) by water or food, and (2) by direct personal contact. There have been extensive waterborne epidemics of giardiasis in many parts of the world, notably North America (Juranek, 1979). Almost invariably these outbreaks are due to contamination of surface water supplies with Giardia cysts which are then released into municipal supplies, generally due to a technological breakdown in water purification (Juranek, 1979). The water supply of some Eastern European cities (notably Leningrad) appear to be chronically contaminated (Brodsky et al, 1974; Jokipii and Jokipii, 1974). Wild and domestic mammals are reservoirs of Giardiu and may be important for maintaining contamination of surface water. Outbreaks of giardiasis due to person-to-person transmission have been described in children in schools and day-care centres (Keystone et al, 1978; Sealy and Schuman, 1983) and between male homosexuals (Phillips et al, 1981).

Informal Sources of Information and Communication

During discussions with students participating on MBA programmes it became apparent that although they all acknowledged informal communication as valuable to them in the course of their jobs as managers, this was often not regarded as a valid information source. Informal communication whether by direct personal contact, telephone, correspondence or meetings should be considered as a valid way of collecting information complementary to formal published information sources. For example, when writing a review of the literature as part of a dissertation one can cite correspondence or discussions with a subject expert as a source of information pertinent to the topic or research design. The citation would then appear in the bibliography amongst citations to periodical articles and books.

Ethics, Evolution and Biblical Criticism in the Thought of Benjamin Jowett and John William Colenso

With one minor exception, it was not much more than a series of coincidences which linked Jowett and Colenso. The one exception was when Colenso was in England after being excommunicated by Robert Gray, bishop of Capetown, as metropolitan. Samuel Wilberforce refused to allow Colenso to function in the diocese of Oxford but Jowett invited him to preach in Balliol chapel, which was not under the bishop's jurisdiction. Apart from this there seems to be no evidence of direct personal contact between the two men.