El-Anwar, Omar; Chen, Lei. (2016). Automated Community-Based Housing Response: Offering Temporary Housing Solutions Tailored to Displaced Populations Needs. Journal Of Computing In Civil Engineering, 30(6).
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Abstract
Following disasters, emergency management agencies are under immense pressure to make quick decisions regarding the provision of temporary housing, including their locations and types. Such decisions can significantly impact the socioeconomic recovery of displaced families and available budgets for other postdisaster activities. To address these challenges, a new holistic temporary housing planning framework is proposed to offer customized housing plans tailored to the specific social, economic, and psychological needs of displaced families while controlling expenditures. This paper presents the theoretical formulation and implementation details of the community-based housing response pool, which is a comprehensive framework that aims at (1)quantifying the specific needs and preferences of each displaced family, (2)evaluating the ability of housing alternatives to meet those needs, (3)computing temporary housing life cycle costs, and (4)optimizing housing decisions accordingly. The paper also presents an application example to demonstrate and evaluate the optimization model capabilities.
Keywords
Decision Making; Disasters; Emergency Management; Life Cycle Costing; Optimisation; Socio-economic Effects; Town And Country Planning; Automated Community-based Housing Response; Temporary Housing Solutions; Displaced Population Needs; Emergency Management Agencies; Temporary Housing Provision; Housing Locations; Housing Types; Socioeconomic Recovery; Displaced Families; Postdisaster Activity Budgets; Holistic Temporary Housing Planning Framework; Customized Housing Plans Tailored; Expenditure Control; Community-based Housing Response Pool; Housing Alternatives Ability Evaluation; Temporary Housing Life Cycle Cost Computing; Housing Decisions Optimization; Optimization Model Capabilities; Multiobjective Optimization; Maeviz-hazturk; Earthquake
Lindell, Michael K.; Huang, Shih-kai; Wei, Hung-lung; Samuelson, Charles D. (2016). Perceptions And Expected Immediate Reactions To Tornado Warning Polygons. Natural Hazards, 80(1), 683 – 707.
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Abstract
To provide people with more specific information about tornado threats, the National Weather Service has replaced its county-wide warnings with smaller warning polygons that more specifically indicate the risk area. However, tornado warning polygons do not have a standardized definition regarding tornado strike probabilities (p (s)) so it is unclear how warning recipients interpret them. To better understand this issue, 155 participants responded to 15 hypothetical warning polygons. After viewing each polygon, they rated the likelihood of a tornado striking their location and the likelihood that they would take nine different response actions ranging from continuing normal activities to getting in a car and driving somewhere safer. The results showed participants inferred that the p (s) was highest at the polygon's centroid, lower just inside the edges of the polygon, still lower (but not zero) just outside the edges of the polygon, and lowest in locations beyond that. Moreover, higher p (s) values were associated with lower expectations of continuing normal activities and higher expectations of seeking information from social sources (but not environmental cues) and higher expectations of seeking shelter (but not evacuating in their cars). These results indicate that most people make some errors in their p (s) judgments but are likely to respond appropriately to the p (s) they infer from the warning polygons. Overall, the findings from this study and other research can help meteorologists to better understand how people interpret the uncertainty associated with warning polygons and, thus, improve tornado warning systems.
Keywords
Interrater Agreement; Protective Action; Decision-making; Evacuation; Risk; Uncertainty; Residents; Disaster; Probabilities; Preparedness; Tornado Warning Polygons; Risk Perceptions; Protective Actions
Stewart, Orion T.; Moudon, Anne Vernez; Fesinmeyer, Megan D.; Zhou, Chuan; Saelens, Brian E. (2016). The Association between Park Visitation and Physical Activity Measured with Accelerometer, GPS, and Travel Diary. Health & Place, 38, 82 – 88.
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Abstract
Public parks are promoted as places that support physical activity (PA), but evidence of how park visitation contributes to overall PA is limited. This study observed adults living in the Seattle metropolitan area (n=671) for one week using accelerometer, GPS, and travel diary. Park visits, measured both objectively (GPS) and subjectively (travel diary), were temporally linked to accelerometer-measured PA. Park visits occurred at 1.4 per person-week. Participants who visited parks at least once (n=308) had an adjusted average of 14.3 (95% Cl: 8.9, 19.6) min more daily PA than participants who did not visit a park. Even when park-related activity was excluded, park visitors still obtained more minutes of daily PA than non-visitors. Park visitation contributes to a more active lifestyle, but is not solely responsible for it. Parks may best serve to complement broader public health efforts to encourage PA. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Keywords
Physical Activity; Accelerometers; Geographic Information Systems; Park Use; Public Health; Built Environment; Gis; Leisure; Recreation; Substitution; Sedentary Behavior; Public-health; Accessibility; Prevention
Cowling, Krycia; Lindberg, Ruth; Dannenberg, Andrew L.; Neff, Roni A.; Pollack, Keshia M. (2017). Review of Health Impact Assessments Informing Agriculture, Food, and Nutrition Policies, Programs, and Projects in the United States. Journal Of Agriculture Food Systems And Community Development, 7(3), 139 – 157.
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Abstract
Policies, programs, and projects related to agriculture, food, and nutrition can significantly affect public health. Health impact assessment (HIA) is one tool that can be used to improve awareness of the health effects of decisions outside the health sector, and increasing the use of HIA for agriculture, food, and nutrition decisions presents an opportunity to improve public health. This study identifies and reviews all HIAs completed in the United States on agriculture, food, and nutrition topics. Studies were identified from HIA databases, an Internet search, and expert consultation. Key characteristics were extracted from each study: type of decision assessed, location, level of jurisdiction, lead organization, methods of analysis, and recommendations. Twenty-five eligible HIAs that were conducted between 2007 and 2016 address topics such as regulations on land use for agriculture; food and beverage taxes; and developing grocery stores in food deserts. These HIAs have predominantly supported policy, as opposed to program or project, decisions. Four case studies are presented to illustrate in detail the HIA process and the mechanisms through which HIA findings affected policy decisions. Among other influences, these four HIAs affected the language of legislation and provided guidance for federal regulations. These examples demonstrate several findings: appropriate timing is critical for findings to have an influence; diverse stakeholder involvement generates support for recommendations; and the clear communication of feasible recommendations is highly important. There is substantial scope to increase the use of HIA in the agriculture, food, and nutrition sectors. Challenges include the paucity of monitoring and evaluation of HIAs' effects on health outcomes, and the limited funding available to conduct HIAs. Opportunities include integrating HIAs and community food assessments, and more widely sharing HIA findings to inform related decisions in different jurisdictions and to increase support for additional HIAs that address the food system.
Keywords
Environments; Obesity; Health Impact Assessment; Policy; Food; Nutrition; Agriculture
Park, Hyoungbae; Kim, Kyeongseok; Kim, Yong-woo; Kim, Hyoungkwan. (2017). Stakeholder Management in Long-Term Complex Megaconstruction Projects: The Saemangeum Project. Journal Of Management In Engineering, 33(4).
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Abstract
This paper identifies 31 critical success factors (CSFs) and suggests a framework for effective stakeholder management in long-term complex megaconstruction (LCM) projects that require more than 10 years for multipurpose development. The results of a survey on the prioritization of these 31 CSFs reveal that LCM projects involve more stakeholders than do general construction projects and require a correspondingly wider range of changes during each project. To identify more systematic and strategic approaches to stakeholder management in LCM projects, a framework was developed through factor analysis and focus-group interviews with project management experts. The framework is composed of the following five agendas: clear understanding of stakeholders, clear definition of the project, effective communication, responding to environmental changes, and social cooperation. The analysis results show that LCM projects require a stronger emphasis on responding to environmental changes and social cooperation. These results, along with the CSF priorities, reveal the necessity of taking customized approaches to LCM projects. The results of this analysis are expected to help LCM project managers effectively manage stakeholders. (C) 2017 American Society of Civil Engineers.
Keywords
Construction; Environmental Management; Project Management; Strategic Planning; Social Cooperation; Environmental Changes; Strategic Approaches; Construction Projects; Saemangeum Project; Long-term Complex Megaconstruction Projects; Stakeholder Management; Critical Success Factors (csfs); Long-term Complex Megaconstruction (lcm) Projects
Drewnowski, A.; Buszkiewicz, J.; Aggarwal, A.; Cook, A.; Moudon, A. V. (2018). A New Method to Visualize Obesity Prevalence in Seattle-King County at the Census Block Level. Obesity Science & Practice, 4(1), 14 – 19.
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Abstract
Objective The aim of this study is to map obesity prevalence in Seattle King County at the census block level. Methods Data for 1,632 adult men and women came from the Seattle Obesity Study I. Demographic, socioeconomic and anthropometric data were collected via telephone survey. Home addresses were geocoded, and tax parcel residential property values were obtained from the King County tax assessor. Multiple logistic regression tested associations between house prices and obesity rates. House prices aggregated to census blocks and split into deciles were used to generate obesity heat maps. Results Deciles of property values for Seattle Obesity Study participants corresponded to county-wide deciles. Low residential property values were associated with high obesity rates (odds ratio, OR: 0.36; 95% confidence interval, CI [0.25, 0.51] in tertile 3 vs. tertile 1), adjusting for age, gender, race, home ownership, education, and incomes. Heat maps of obesity by census block captured differences by geographic area. Conclusion Residential property values, an objective measure of individual and area socioeconomic status, are a useful tool for visualizing socioeconomic disparities in diet quality and health.
Keywords
Residential Property-values; Socioeconomic-status; Health; Environment; Adults; Census Block; Geographic Information Systems; Mapping Obesity; Ses Measures
Nnaji, Chukwuma; Gambatese, John; Lee, Hyun Woo. (2018). Work Zone Intrusion: Technology to Reduce Injuries & Fatalities. Professional Safety, 63(4), 36 – 41.
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Abstract
WZIAT was first introduced to work zones in 1995 following a Strategic Highway Research Program (SHRP)-sponsored study (Agent & Hibbs, 1996). Since the SHRP program, several WZIATs have been developed, evaluated by departments of transportation (DOTs) and implemented in work zones on many highway projects. [...]the researchers investigated the potential usefulness of WZIATs on reported fatal work zone intrusion cases. [...]the researchers identified and evaluated work zone fatality cases captured in the NIOSH Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation (FACE) program to determine whether WZIATs could have prevented the reported fatalities. [...]construction and maintenance workers are provided additional reaction time if an intrusion occurs before the activity zone.
Keywords
Research; Fatalities; Highway Construction; Injury Prevention; Traffic Accidents & Safety; Automobile Safety; Roads & Highways; Transportation Planning; Electronic Mail Systems; Researchers; Intrusion; General Contractors; Occupational Health; Vehicles; Studies; Workers; Employees; Construction Industry; Traffic Control; United States--us; Canada; Kansas; Oregon
Acolin, Arthur; Lin, Desen; Wachter, Susan M. (2019). Endowments and Minority Homeownership. Cityscape, 21(1), 5 – 62.
Abstract
Fifty years after the adoption of the 1968 Fair Housing Act that prohibits discrimination in the housing market, homeownership rates have not increased for Black or Hispanic households. The current homeownership rate for Black households is 42 percent, identical to the 1970 census reported level, and 48 percent for Hispanic households, lower than that in 1970. Using data from the 1989, 2005, and 2013 American Housing Surveys, we identify the extent to which group differences in household endowments account for persistently low minority homeownership levels.
Keywords
Borrowing Constraints; Household Formation; Race; Wealth; Trends; Rates
Jung, B.; Inanici, M. (2019). Measuring Circadian Lighting through High Dynamic Range Photography. Lighting Research & Technology, 51(5), 742 – 763.
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Abstract
The human ocular system functions in a dual manner. While the most well-known function is to facilitate vision, a growing body of research demonstrates its role in resetting the internal body clock to synchronize with the 24-hour daily cycle. Most research on circadian rhythms is performed in controlled laboratory environments. Little is known about the variability of circadian light within the built and natural environments. Currently, very few specialized devices measure the circadian light, and they are not accessible to many researchers and practitioners. In this paper, tristimulus colour calibration procedures for high dynamic range photography are developed to measure circadian lighting. Camera colour accuracy is evaluated through CIE trichromatic (XYZ) measurements; and the results demonstrate a strong linear relationship between the camera recordings and a scientific-grade colorimeter. Therefore, it is possible to correct for the colour aberrations and use high dynamic range photographs to measure both photopic and circadian lighting values. Spectrophotometric measurements are collected to validate the methodology. Results demonstrate that measurements from high dynamic range photographs can correspond to the physical quantity of circadian luminance with reasonable precision and repeatability. Circadian data collected in built environments can be utilized to study the impact of design decisions on human circadian entrainment and to create guidelines and metrics for designing circadian friendly environments.
Keywords
Physical Constants; Medical Photography; Photography; Built Environment; Morningness-eveningness Questionnaire; Statistical Reliability; Circadian Rhythms; Action Spectrum; Ganglion-cells; Bright Light; Exposure; Sensitivity; Framework; Daylight; Daytime; Model; Rod
Reina, Vincent; Acolin, Arthur; Bostic, Raphael W. (2019). Section 8 Vouchers and Rent Limits: Do Small Area Fair Market Rent Limits Increase Access to Opportunity Neighborhoods? An Early Evaluation. Housing Policy Debate, 29(1), 44 – 61.
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Abstract
One critique of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)'s Housing Choice Voucher program is that its maximum rent limit is set at the metropolitan level, making more expensive neighborhoods effectively off limits to households who receive rental assistance. As a result, the design of the program limits a voucher household's access to opportunity neighborhood. In response, HUD created the Small Area Fair Market Rent (SAFMR) demonstration program, which calculates the maximum voucher rent at the zip code level so that HUD's rent limits more closely align with local neighborhood rents. In theory, this program should improve a voucher household's choice set and location outcomes. Looking at changes in the location of beneficiaries in the six sites that participated in the SAFMR demonstration program, we find a significant amount of regional variation in the results. Specifically, introduction of the SAFMR rent calculations results in voucher households living in higher opportunity neighborhoods in Dallas, Texas, in lower opportunity neighborhoods in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and mixed effects in other areas. These mixed results highlight some of the potential incremental benefits of the program and reinforce the importance of viewing this policy over a longer period of time, and in the context of other constraints voucher households face in accessing neighborhood opportunity.
Keywords
Choice; Mobility; Families; Live; Section 8; Low-income Housing; Subsidized Housing; Vouchers; Neighborhood; Access; Markets; Mathematical Analysis; Federal Agencies; Urban Development; Housing; Households; Neighborhoods; Rents; Limitations; Beneficiaries; Housing Subsidies; United States--us; Dallas Texas; Chattanooga Tennessee