Warrants for Rumble Strips on Rural Highways, HR-235, 1982

Research was undertaken, sponsored by the Iowa Department of Transportation, to identify specific locations where rumble strips could be expected to improve highway safety. The objective of the research was to recommend warrants for their use on rural highways. An inventory of rumble strip installations on the rural highway systems in the state was conducted in 1981. A total of 685 installations was reported on secondary roads and 147 on primary highways. Over 97 percent of these were in advance of stop signs at. intersections. Most of the other installations were in advance of railroad grade crossings. The accident experience with and without rumble strips was compared in two ways. A before-and-after comparison was made for the same location if accident records were available for at least one full year both preceding and following the installation of rumble strips. Accident records for this purpose were available from a statewide computerized record system covering the period from 1977 through 1980. The accident experience at locations having rumble strips installed before 1978 was compared with a sample of comparable locations not having rumble strips.

Good practice for dialogue and communication as strategic principle for policing political manifestations in Europe (GODIAC):field study handbook

This handbook describes the peer review methodology that was applied at the GODIAC project fi eld studies1. The peer review evaluation method as initiated by Otto Adang in the Netherlands and further developed in a European football context (Adang & Brown, 2008) involves experienced police offi cers cooperating with researchers to perform observational fi eld studies to identify good practices and learning points for public order management. The handbook builds on the GODIAC seminars and workshops, for the fi eld study members, which took place in September 2010, January 2012 and January 2013. The handbook has been discussed in the project group and in the steering committee. It is primarily written for the GODIAC fi eld study members as background material for understanding the fi eld study process and for clarifying the different responsibilities that enable active participation in the fi eld study. The handbook has been developed during the project period and incorporates learning points and developments of the peer review method. The handbook aims at promoting the use of fi eld studies for evaluation of policing major events.

Good practice for dialogue and communication as strategic principle for policing political manifestations in Europe (GODIAC):the anthology

The volume is divided into two parts; the fi rst deals with issues related to the police, and the second addresses issues related to demonstrators and protesters. We hope that this volume will provide further insight into issues associated with policing at major events and shed light on the complexity of the organisations, motives, and strategies in play whenever protester groups are involved.

Good practice for dialogue and communication as strategic principle for policing political manifestations in Europe (GODIAC):recommendations for policing political manifestations in Europe

This report summarises the fi eld study results of the project ’Good practice for dialogue and communication as strategic principles for policing political manifestations in Europe’ (GODIAC).1 The overall idea was to integrate operative police work, research and training within the fi eld and to build international and institutional networks, ensuring and recognising the responsibilities of the organisers. The purpose of the GODIAC project was to contribute to the development of a European approach to policing political manifestations.

Sistema integrado de avaliação de impacto ambiental aplicado a atividades do Novo Rural

O objetivo deste trabalho foi apresentar o sistema de Avaliação Ponderada de Impacto Ambiental de Atividades do Novo Rural (APOIA-NovoRural), que consiste de um conjunto de planilhas eletrônicas (plataforma MS-Excel) que integram 62 indicadores da performance ambiental de uma atividade econômica em um estabelecimento rural. Cinco dimensões de avaliação foram consideradas: ecologia da paisagem, qualidade ambiental (atmosfera, água e solo), valores socioculturais, valores econômicos e gestão e administração. Os indicadores foram construídos em matrizes de ponderação, nas quais dados quantitativos, obtidos em campo e laboratório, foram automaticamente transformados em índices de impacto, expressos graficamente. O índice de impacto de cada indicador foi traduzido a um valor de utilidade, empregando-se funções e coeficientes especificamente derivados para cada indicador. Os valores de utilidade foram agregados para compor o Índice de Impacto Ambiental da atividade avaliada. Os resultados da avaliação permitem ao produtor/administrador averiguar quais atributos da atividade podem estar desconformes com seus objetivos de sustentabilidade e ao tomador de decisões a indicação de medidas de fomento ou controle das atividades, segundo planos de desenvolvimento local; proporcionam, ainda, uma unidade de medida objetiva de impacto para auxiliar na qualificação e certificação de atividades agropecuárias.

Effects of Road Construction Intensity and Operations on Rural Freeway Work Zone Capacity, TPF-5(081), 2014

Capacity is affected by construction type and its intensity on adjacent open traffic lanes. The effect on capacity is a function of vehicles moving in and out of the closed lanes of the work zone, and the presence of heavy construction vehicles. Construction activity and its intensity, however, are not commonly considered in estimating capacity of a highway lane. The main purpose of this project was to attempt to quantify the effects of construction type and intensity (e.g. maintenance, rehabilitation, reconstruction, and milling) on work zone capacity. The objective of this project is to quantify the effects of construction type and its intensity on work zone capacity and to develop guidelines for MoDOT to estimate the specific operation type and intensity that will improve the traffic flow by reducing the traffic flow and queue length commonly associated with work zones. Despite the effort put into field data collection, the data collected did not show a full speed-flow chart therefore extracting a reliable capacity value was difficult. A statistical comparison between the capacity values found in this study using either methodologies indicates that there is an effect of construction activity on the values work zone capacity. It was found that the heavy construction activity reduces the capacity. It is very beneficial to conduct similar studies on the capacity of work zone with different lane closure barriers, which is also directly related to the type of work zone being short-term or long-term work zones. Also, the effect of different geometric and environmental characteristics of the roadway should be considered in future studies.

On the impact of microcredit: Evidence from a randomized intervention in rural Ethiopia

We use data from a randomized controlled trial conducted in 2003-2006 in rural Amhara andOromiya (Ethiopia) to study the impacts of the introduction of microfinance in treated communities. We document that borrowing increased substantially in locations where the programs started their operations, but we find mixed evidence of improvements in a number ofsocio-economic outcomes, including income from agriculture, animal husbandry, non-farm self-employment, schooling and indicators of women's empowerment.

Estudi sociològic del lleure al món rural de Catalunya i Guatemala. L'oci a la població de 50 a 70 anys de Malla i San Juan la Laguna, semblances i diferències

L’estudi que es presenta a continuació té l’objectiu de comprendre quina és la realitat ociosa de les persones de 50 a 70 anys als municipis de Malla (Catalunya, Espanya) i de San Juan la Laguna (Sololá, Guatemala) des de la perspectiva humanista en termes de concepció i pràctica, i veure quina és la influència i la força que prenen les característiques de la societat en la qual es desenvolupa. Per tal de dur-ho a terme, primerament s’ha realitzat un procés d’aproximació respecte el concepte de l’oci, i una recerca concreta vers l’oci humanista. A partir d’aquí, s’ha fet l’estudi amb una mostra formada per deu persones del municipi de Malla i deu membres de San Juan la Laguna que es troben entre els 50 i 70 anys, i amb unes condicions econòmiques i uns estils de vida diferents. Per tal de realitzar la recerca i l’anàlisi de l’oci humanista en els contexts de Malla i San Juan la Laguna s’ha emprat una metodologia qualitativa, i s’ha utilitzat l’instrument corresponent a l’entrevista. Aquesta ha estat elaborada prenent com a marc de referència la metodologia de la Grounded Theory (Glaser y Strauss, 1967). El projecte també compte amb una vessant d’etnografia. Els resultats que s’han obtingut demostren que hi ha una presència significativa de l’oci humanista en els contexts analitzats, però que en el cas de San Juan la Laguna aquest esdevé un element en construcció.

L' Aprenentatge cooperatiu a l'educació infantil com a eina inclusiva a l'escola rural

El treball cooperatiu és una bona eina per a la inclusió a l’aula. La investigació parteix de l’educació inclusiva per afirmar que l’estructura de l’activitat de forma cooperativa afavoreix les relacions entre iguals i millora la participació de tot l’alumnat, tot fomentant la oportunitat d’igualtats. L’estudi té com a objectiu valorar la incorporació del treball cooperatiu en una aula amb infants de cinc anys, en un context rural per així, observar i analitzar els efectes que es produeixen amb aquest. Les dades de la investigació s’han recollir a partir d’una graella d’observació i un diari de camp que han permès afirmar que les tècniques cooperatives milloren la participació equitativa i la interacció simultània i esdevé una eina inclusiva a l’aula.

Audit report on the Water and Waste Disposal Systems for Rural Communities program for the City of Lone Rock, Iowa for the year ended June 30, 2014

Audit report on the Water and Waste Disposal Systems for Rural Communities program for the City of Lone Rock, Iowa for the year ended June 30, 2014

Autonomia i inclusió dels alumnes d'educació infantil a l'escola rural: les conferències a l'escola La Popa de Castellcir

El tema central d’aquest Treball Final de Grau és l’autonomia dels alumnes d’educació infantil a l’escola rural. Aquest projecte està organitzat a partir de dos grans blocs. En el primer bloc hi trobem el marc teòric, on es desglossen totes els aspectes importants i característics de l’escola rural i les seves estratègies didàctiques, a banda de definir i recercar en el concepte d’autonomia. En el segon bloc hi trobem la part pràctica i el treball de camp. Aquest apartat es desenvolupa al voltant de l’estratègia didàctica de les conferències a l’escola La Popa de Castellcir que s’analitzen i s’avaluen per tal de conèixer com aquesta estratègia potencia l’autonomia i la inclusió dels infants a l’etapa d’educació infantil.

L’atenció a la diversitat i la inclusió a l’escola rural a la comarca de la Garrotxa: el cas de l’aprenentatge cooperatiu

L’estudi que es presenta a continuació pretén indagar en una part concreta i en auge constant del món educatiu: l’atenció a la diversitat mitjançant l’estructura cooperativa d’aprenentatge. L’estudi ha estat realitzat a partir d’un estudi de cas, l’objectiu del qual és analitzar, comprendre i plantejar pràctiques educatives dirigides a promoure la inclusió satisfactòria de tot l’alumnat; siguin quines siguin les seves característiques individuals vers l’aprenentatge. Els resultats observats mostren l'existència d'un fort vincle entre la millora de la cohesió del grup i la capacitat de rebre i donar ajudes per part de l'alumnat.

A guide to understanding the variation in premiums in rural health insurance marketplaces (RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis rural policy brief)

This brief discusses several important factors that should be considered when comparing health insurance plans in the health insurance marketplaces across geographic areas.