Managed Care: Implications for School Psychology. Comment.

Comments on the article by Sanchez and Turner (see record 2003-03405-005) examining the implications for practice and training in psychology in the era of managed care. The current author states that Sanchez and Turner should be commended. Their article amplifies and clarifies critical issues psychologists must consider while practicing within an era increasingly shaped by health insurance policies and practices. Nevertheless, the author feels that several intriguing facets of managed care were not highlighted. Discussion focuses on the impact that reimbursement and managed care is having on school (and clinical) psychologists. The author points out that it is unknown to what extent managed care may (and has) altered psychological services delivered by school psychologists. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A novel polarizer‐free dye‐doped polymer‐dispersed liquid crystal for reflective TFT displays

Abstract— A novel preparation method for dichroic dye‐doped polymer‐dispersed liquid crystals has been developed. This was achieved by creating a porous polymer matrix first by washing out the liquid crystal from a polymer‐dispersed liquid crystal (PDLC), which is then refilled with dye‐doped liquid crystal. Optimizing the liquid crystal used in the refilling results in decreased turn‐on voltage and faster response time. Poster‐standard reflectivity and newspaper‐standard contrast was demonstrated with a 3.8‐in. QVGA reflective TFT display with a drive voltage of 10 V.     

Scale Selection Properties of Generalized Scale-Space Interest Point Detectors

Scale-invariant interest points have found several highly successful applications in computer vision, in particular for image-based matching and recognition. This paper presents a theoretical analysis of the scale selection properties of a generalized framework for detecting interest points from scale-space features presented in Lindeberg (Int. J. Comput. Vis. 2010, under revision) and comprising:

an enriched set of differential interest operators at a fixed scale including the Laplacian operator, the determinant of the Hessian, the new Hessian feature strength measures I and II and the rescaled level curve curvature operator, as well as

an enriched set of scale selection mechanisms including scale selection based on local extrema over scale, complementary post-smoothing after the computation of non-linear differential invariants and scale selection based on weighted averaging of scale values along feature trajectories over scale.

It is shown how the selected scales of different linear and non-linear interest point detectors can be analyzed for Gaussian blob models. Specifically it is shown that for a rotationally symmetric Gaussian blob model, the scale estimates obtained by weighted scale selection will be similar to the scale estimates obtained from local extrema over scale of scale normalized derivatives for each one of the pure second-order operators. In this respect, no scale compensation is needed between the two types of scale selection approaches. When using post-smoothing, the scale estimates may, however, be different between different types of interest point operators, and it is shown how relative calibration factors can be derived to enable comparable scale estimates for each purely second-order operator and for different amounts of self-similar post-smoothing. A theoretical analysis of the sensitivity to affine image deformations is presented, and it is shown that the scale estimates obtained from the determinant of the Hessian operator are affine covariant for an anisotropic Gaussian blob model. Among the other purely second-order operators, the Hessian feature strength measure I has the lowest sensitivity to non-uniform scaling transformations, followed by the Laplacian operator and the Hessian feature strength measure II. The predictions from this theoretical analysis agree with experimental results of the repeatability properties of the different interest point detectors under affine and perspective transformations of real image data. A number of less complete results are derived for the level curve curvature operator.     

Less cyber,more café: Enhancing existing small businesses across the digital divide with ICTs

About 10% of the world has access to information and communication technologies (ICTs). Telecenters and cyber cafés are one prevalent way to increase access. This paper suggests increasing access through currently existing, local businesses where people already gather and where proprietors already posses existing business relationships with suppliers and customers. This paper questions the prevailing emphasis on the “cyber'' characteristics of access, e.g., computing and internet access as is currently known, and attempts to refocus the conversation by considering computing and access in the context of the “café,” e.g., as public life in the sense of Habermas, which permits an in situ evolution of relevant access. This analysis is based on extant literature and direct ethnographic research in several public places in six countries. We offer example design perspectives based on a reflection of “third places” as inspiration for appropriate innovation in the provision of computing and communications. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Assessing the performance of long-term care information systems and the continued use intention of users

The needs of long-term care (LTC) have increased substantially worldwide. In particular, Taiwanese society has experienced an increasing aging population because of the sharp decline in the birth rate and advanced medical technology. Some LTC facilities have introduced information technologies to satisfy the substantial demand. Compared with the high level of informatization observed at Taiwanese hospitals, LTC facilities still exhibit low informatization levels despite belonging to the same industry. Therefore, this study evaluated the system use performance and continued use intentions of the long-term care information system (LTCIS) by applying the well-known theories of the task-technology fit, system satisfaction, and postacceptance continuance models used in information systems area. The results showed that users’ assessment of whether the LTCIS fulfilled their work and task needs primarily depended on the system quality, locatability of data, timeliness, ease of use, and system-user relationship. These factors also exerted a crucial influence on system use performance and user satisfaction. Moreover, the system use performance and user satisfaction further affected intentions of continued use.     

The unintended consequences of government policies and programmes for public open spaces in inner-urban Sydney

Sport is important internationally; but in Australia, it is part of the national identity. The enjoyment of public open space for sport is, therefore, an assumed community right. We interviewed key staff from inner Sydney councils about management issues associated with public open space. The greatest concern was sporting fields – formal and informal – which were considered to have exceeded carrying capacity mainly because of the unintended outcomes of government programmes/policies spanning; (1) ‘healthy lifestyles’ which increased public open space use; (2) ‘urban consolidation’ increased inner-city population density with associated increased usage and loss of open space; (3) ‘temporal water restriction’ during drought (not ‘water budgets’) which intensify management issues; and (4) ‘building the education revolution’, meaning that public open space lost from schools results in increased pressure on public open space. Consequences have increased human pressure on public open space without commensurate consideration for the management and/or expansion of these areas.