University of Maine

About: University of Maine is a education organization based out in Orono, Maine, United States. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Ice sheet. The organization has 8637 authors who have published 16932 publications receiving 590124 citations. The organization is also known as: University of Maine at Orono.

Spectral variability of the particulate backscattering ratio

Abstract: The spectral dependency of the particulate backscattering ratio is relevant in the fields of ocean color inversion, light field modeling, and inferring particle properties from optical measurements. Aside from theoretical predictions for spherical, homogeneous particles, we have very limited knowledge of the actual in situ spectral variability of the particulate backscattering ratio. This work presents results from five research cruises that were conducted over a three-year period. Water column profiles of physical and optical properties were conducted across diverse aquatic environments that offered a wide range of particle populations. The main objective of this research was to examine the behavior of the spectral particulate backscattering ratio in situ, both in terms of its absolute magnitude and its variability across visible wavelengths, using over nine thousand 1-meter binned data points for each of five wavelengths of the spectral particulate backscattering ratio. Our analysis reveals no spectral dependence of the particulate backscattering ratio within our measurement certainty, and a geometric mean value of 0.013 for this dataset. This is lower than the commonly used value of 0.0183 from Petzold’s integrated volume scattering data. Within the first optical depth of the water column, the mean particulate backscattering ratio was 0.010.

The effect of television day part on gender portrayals in television commercials: A content analysis

Abstract: Gender portrayals in 2,209 network television commercials were content analyzed. To compare differences between three day parts, the sample was chosen from three time periods: daytime, when the audience is mostly women; evening prime time, when the sex of the audience is more evenly distributed; and weekend afternoon sportscasts, when men are a large percentage of the audience. The results indicate large and consistent differences in the way men and women are portrayed in these three day parts, with almost all comparisons reaching significance at the .05 level. Although ads in all day parts tended to portray men in stereotypical roles of authority and dominance, those on weekends tended to emphasize escape from home and family. The findings of earlier studies which did not consider day part differences may now have to be reevaluated.

Context-mediated behavior for intelligent agents

Abstract: Humans and other animals are exquisitely attuned to their context. Context affects almost all aspects of behavior, and it does so for the most part automatically, without a conscious reasoning effort. This would be a very useful property for an artificial agent to have: upon recognizing its context, the agent's behavior would automatically adjust to fit it. This paper describescontext-mediated behavior(CMB), an approach to context-sensitive behavior we have developed over the past few years for intelligent autonomous agents. In CMB, contexts are represented explicitly ascontextual schemas(c-schemas). An agent recognizes its context by finding the c-schemas that match it, then it merges these to form a coherent representation of the current context. This includes not only a description of the context, but also information about how to behave in it. From that point until the next context change, knowledge for context-sensitive behavior is available with no additional effort. This is used to influence perception, make predictions about the world, handle unanticipated events, determine the context-dependent meaning of concepts, focus attention and select actions. CMB is being implemented in the Orca program, an intelligent controller for autonomous underwater vehicles.

The Relationship of Built Environment to Perceived Social Support and Psychological Distress in Hispanic Elders: The Role of “Eyes on the Street”

Abstract: Background. Research on contextual and neighborhood effects increasingly includes the built (physical) environment’s infl uences on health and social well-being. A population-based study examined whether architectural features of the built environment theorized to promote observations and social interactions (e.g., porches, windows) predict Hispanic elders ’ psychological distress. Methods. Coding of built environment features of all 3,857 lots across 403 blocks in East Little Havana, Florida, and enumeration of elders in 16,000 households was followed by assessments of perceived social support and psychological distress in a representative sample of 273 low socioeconomic status (SES) Hispanic elders. Structural-equation modeling was used to assess relationships between block-level built environment features, elders ’ perceived social support, and psychological distress. Results. Architectural features of the front entrance such as porches that promote visibility from a building’s exterior were positively associated with perceived social support. In contrast, architectural features such as window areas that promote visibility from a building’s interior were negatively associated with perceived social support. Perceived social support in turn was associated with reduced psychological distress after controlling for demographics. Additionally, perceived social support mediated the relationship of built environment variables to psychological distress. Conclusions. Architectural features that facilitate direct, in-person interactions may be benefi cial for Hispanic elders ’

Neonatal abstinence syndrome: treatment and pediatric outcomes.

Abstract: Recent rise in rates of opiate replacement therapy among pregnant women have resulted in increasing number of infants requiring treatment for neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS). Short-term and long-term developmental outcomes associated with prenatal opiate exposure are discussed, including symptoms and severity of NAS, and early cognitive and motor delays. Maternal and infant risk factors are discussed, and include patterns of maternal substance use during pregnancy, genetic risk, polysubstance exposure pharmacological treatment for NAS and breastfeeding. The importance of characterizing corollary environmental risk factors is also considered.