Crime rates and contextual characteristics: a case study in Connecticut, USA

There is a long-standing interest in the spatial relationship between contextual characteristics and crime rates in the U.S. since such a relationship allows police and stakeholders to design crime prevention programs to better target areas at risk for crime. The objective of this research is to examine the relationships between violent/property crime rates and contextual characteristics at the county-subdivision level in the State of Connecticut. The analysis shows that predictors such as population density, type of housing, education, poverty, and racial/ethnic diversity are significantly associated with violent and property crime rates. The results are discussed in the context of different crime hypotheses, which can explain spatial variations in crime rates. Most importantly, the association between crime rates and the explanatory variables in this study significantly varied over space, highlighting that different crime prevention policies/programs should be implemented in different county subdivisions in Connecticut.

Extended Range Forecast of Monsoon at Smaller Spatial Domains over India for Application in Agriculture

The performance of operational extended range forecast (ERF) issued by IMD is evaluated for the southwest monsoon 2020. The early onset of monsoon over the Bay of Bengal and the normal onset of monsoon over Kerala with slightly rapid progress northward are very well captured in the ERF with two to three weeks lead time. The ERF also captured very well the transitions from normal to weaker phase of monsoon in July, the active phase of monsoon in entire August was well anticipated in ERF with a lead time of 3 weeks. The active monsoon condition in the second half of September associated with delayed withdrawal from northwest India was also reasonably well captured in the ERF. Quantitatively, the ERF shows significant skill up to three weeks on all India levels. The spatial distribution of met-subdivision level mean forecast skill of predicting above normal, normal and below normal categories in terms of correct (forecast and observed category matching) and partially correct (forecast and observed category out by one category) for the 36 subdivisions during the entire monsoon season of 2020 is found to be 89%, 83%, 80% and 78% for week 1 to week 4 forecasts respectively. The wrong forecasts (forecast and observed category out by two categories) are found to be between 11% in week 1 to 22% in week 4 forecast. Thus, the met-subdivision level forecast shows useful skill and is being used operationally for agrometeorological advisory services of IMD.

Neural entrainment facilitates duplets: Frequency-tagging differentiates musicians and non-musicians when they tap to the beat

ABSTRACTMotor coordination to an isochronous beat improves when it is subdivided into equal intervals. Here, we study if this subdivision benefit (i) varies with the kind of subdivision, (ii) is enhanced in individuals with formal musical training, and (iii), is an inherent property of neural oscillations. We recorded electroencephalograms of musicians and non-musicians during: (a) listening to an isochronous beat, (b) listening to one of 4 different subdivisions, (c) listening to the beat again, and (d) listening and tapping the beat with the same subdivisions as in (b). We found that tapping consistency and neural entrainment in condition (d) was enhanced in non-musicians for duplets (1:2) compared to the other types of subdivisions. Musicians showed overall better tapping performance and were equally good at tapping together with duplets, triplets (1:3) and quadruplets (1:4), but not with quintuplets (1:5). This group difference was reflected in enhanced neural responses in the triplet and quadruplet conditions. Importantly, for all participants, the neural entrainment to the beat and its first harmonic (i.e. the duplet frequency) increased after listening to each of the subdivisions (c compared to a). Since these subdivisions are harmonics of the beat frequency, the observed preference of the brain to enhance the simplest subdivision level (duplets) may be an inherent property of neural oscillations. In sum, a tapping advantage for simple binary subdivisions is reflected in neural oscillations to harmonics of the beat, and formal training in music can enhance it.Highlights-The neural entrainment to periodic sounds only differs between musicians and non-musicians when they perform a predictive sensorimotor synchronization task.-After listening to a subdivided beat, the frequencies related to the beat and its first harmonic are enhanced in the EEG, likely stabilizing the perception of the beat.-There is a natural advantage for binary structures in sensorimotor synchronization, observed in the tapping of duplets by non-musicians, which can be extended to other subdivisions after extensive musical training.

Analysis of interactive effects of DEM resolution and basin subdivision level on runoff simulation in Kaidu River Basin, China

Uncertainties in spatial data associated with basin topography, drainage networks, and land cover characteristics may affect the performance of runoff simulation. Such uncertainties are mainly derived from selection of digital elevation model (DEM) resolution and basin subdivision level. This study focuses on assessing the effects of DEM resolution and basin subdivision level on runoff simulation with a semi-distributed land use-based runoff process model. Twenty-four scenarios based on various DEM resolutions and subdivision levels are analyzed for the Kaidu River Basin. Results can be used for quantifying the uncertainty of input data about spatial information on model simulation, disclosing the interaction between DEM resolution and subdivision level, as well as identifying the optimal system inputs. Results show that the model performance could be enhanced with the increased subdivision level. Results also reveal that the interaction of DEM resolution and subdivision level has slight effects on modeling outputs. Multi-objective fuzzy evaluation is used to further examine the uncertainty in DEM resolution and basin subdivision level on model performance. The results indicate an optimal combination of input parameters is suitable for Kaidu River Basin which could lead to more reliable results of the hydrological simulation.

Staffing Levels at National Collegiate Athletic Association Football Bowl Subdivision-Level Institutions

Context The “Appropriate Medical Coverage for Intercollegiate Athletics” (AMCIA) document was created to support assessment and calculation of athletic training personnel requirements. However, little is known regarding disparities between current and recommended staffing practices. Objective To identify the staffing and employment characteristics of athletic health care services at Football Bowl Subdivision-level institutions. Design Cross-sectional study. Setting Web-based survey. Patients or Other Participants Head athletic trainers and athletic training staff members who were knowledgeable about budget and staff. Main Outcome Measure(s) The survey, Assessment of Staffing Levels at National Collegiate Athletic Association Football Bowl Subdivision-Level Institutions, was used to evaluate personal, university, and staff demographics; staffing and employment topics; and AMCIA variables and use. Results The survey was accessed and partially completed by 104 individuals (response rate = 84.6%). A total of 79 athletic trainers (response rate = 76%) completed the entire survey. One-third of the respondents (34.2%, n = 26) met the recommended number of full-time equivalents (FTEs) for football, two-thirds of the respondents (65.7%, n = 50) failed to meet the recommendation, and 26.2% (n = 27) were missing data needed for FTE calculation. Among those who did not meet the recommended FTEs (n = 50), 38.0% (n = 19) were within 1 FTE of being compliant, 26.0% (n = 13) were within 2 FTEs, and 24.0% (n = 12) were within 3 FTEs. About one-third of respondents (35.9%, n = 37) reported not using the AMCIA, citing lack of funding (29.7%, n = 11), lack of administrative support (21.6%, n = 8), and other reasons (37.8%, n = 14). Conclusions The majority of institutions that used the AMCIA were able to provide justification for staffing. For most of the institutions that failed to meet their recommendation, adding 1–3 FTE athletic trainers for football would change their compliance status. A uniform definition of the term FTE within collegiate athletics is needed to allow for structured assessment and allocation of staffing and workloads.