University of Indianapolis

About: University of Indianapolis is a education organization based out in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Medicine. The organization has 1664 authors who have published 2008 publications receiving 40945 citations. The organization is also known as: UIndy.

Quantifying urban forest structure, function, and value: the Chicago Urban Forest Climate Project

Abstract: This paper is a review of research in Chicago that linked analyses of vegetation structure with forest functions and values. During 1991, the regions trees removed an estimated 5575 metric tons of air pollutants, providing air cleansing worth 9.2 million. Each year they sequester an estimated 315 800 metric tons of carbon. Increasing tree cover 10% or planting about three trees per building lot saves annual heating and cooling costs by an estimated 50 to 90 per dwelling unit because of increased shade, lower summertime air temperatures, and reduced neighborhood wind speeds once the trees mature. The net present value of the services trees provide is estimated as 402 per planted tree. The present value of long-term benefits is more than twice the present value of costs.

Learner-centered design: the challenge for HCI in the 21st century

Abstract: In the 1980's a major transformation took place in the computing world: attention was finally being paid to making computers easier-to-use. You know the history: in the 1970's folks at Xerox were exploring so-called personal computers and developing graphical, point-and-click interfaces. The goal was to make using computers less cognitively taxing, there- by permitting the user to focus more mental cycles on getting the job done. For some time people had recognized that there would be benefits if users could interact with computers using visual cues and motor movements instead of testu- al/linguistic strings. However, computer cycles were costly; they could hardly be wasted on supporting a non-textual interface. There was barely enough zorch (i.e., computer power, measured in your favorite unit) to simply calculate the payroll.

Effective and viable mind-body stress reduction in the workplace: a randomized controlled trial.

Abstract: Highly stressed employees are subject to greater health risks, increased cost, and productivity losses than those with normal stress levels. To address this issue in an evidence-based manner, worksite stress management programs must be able to engage individuals as well as capture data on stress, health indices, work productivity, and health care costs. In this randomized controlled pilot, our primary objective was to evaluate the viability and proof of concept for two mind-body workplace stress reduction programs (one therapeutic yoga-based and the other mindfulness-based), in order to set the stage for larger cost-effectiveness trials. A second objective was to evaluate 2 delivery venues of the mindfulness-based intervention (online vs. in-person). Intention-to-treat principles and 2 (pre and post) × 3 (group) repeated-measures analysis of covariance procedures examined group differences over time on perceived stress and secondary measures to clarify which variables to include in future studies: sleep quality, mood, pain levels, work productivity, mindfulness, blood pressure, breathing rate, and heart rate variability (a measure of autonomic balance). Two hundred and thirty-nine employee volunteers were randomized into a therapeutic yoga worksite stress reduction program, 1 of 2 mindfulness-based programs, or a control group that participated only in assessment. Compared with the control group, the mind-body interventions showed significantly greater improvements on perceived stress, sleep quality, and the heart rhythm coherence ratio of heart rate variability. The two delivery venues for the mindfulness program produced basically equivalent results. Both the mindfulness-based and therapeutic yoga programs may provide viable and effective interventions to target high stress levels, sleep quality, and autonomic balance in employees.