Parking System Revenue Bond Funds, Iowa State University of Science and Technology, Independent Auditor's Reports, Basic Financial Statements and Supplemental Information, June 30, 2006

State University Audit Report

Ice Arena Facility Revenue Note Funds, Iowa State University of Science and Technology, Independent Auditor's Report, Basic Financial Information and Supplementary Information, June 30, 2006

State University Audit Report

Indoor Multipurpose Use and Training Facility Revenue Bond Funds, Iowa State University of Science and Technology, Independent Auditor's Report, Basic Financial Statements and Supplementary Information, June 30, 2006

State University Audit Report

Regulated Materials Facility Revenue Bond Funds, Iowa State University of Science and Technology, Independent Auditor's Report, Basic Financial Statement and Supplementary Information, June 30, 2006

State University Audit Report

Memorial Union Revenue Bond Funds, Iowa State University of Science and Technology, Independent Auditor's Report, Basic Financial Statements and Supplementary Information, June 30, 2006

State University Audit Report

Report of Recommendations to Iowa State University of Science and Technology on the Review of Selected General and Application Controls over the University's Student Financial Aid System, April 24 through May 12, 2006

State University Audit Report

Development of assistive technology for the visually impaired: use of the male condom

The objectives were to develop and evaluate an assistive technology for the use of the male condom by visually impaired men. It was a technology development study with the participation of seven subjects. Three workshops were performed between April and May of 2010; they were all filmed and the statements of the participants were transcribed and analyzed by content. Three categories were established: Sexuality of the visually impaired; Utilization of the text, For avoiding STDs, condoms we will use, divided in two subcategories, Concept discussion and Text evaluation; and Construction of a simple penile prosthesis. The knowledge transmitted related to STD, the utilization of the condom on the penile prosthesis made by the subjects themselves, and the interaction during the workshops were effective factors for the study. In the context of sexual health, the necessity of developing works involving the visually impaired was noted, addressing sexually transmitted diseases and focusing on the use of the condom by this population.

Consumer Satisfaction with Websites of Banks - The Moderating Effect of Consumer Technology Attractiveness

The websites are becoming the firms’ first contact interface with their clients. Hence, understanding customers’ online attitudes and behaviors have been capturing increased research attention. The extant research has pointed customers’ satisfaction with the websites as the main reason for customers’ online behaviors. This research has used mostly variables related to the characteristics of the websites as the predictors of customers’ website satisfaction. However, recent research shows that groups of individuals displaying distinctive characteristics react differently to the same context. Therefore, behavior may be considerably different among groups of customers. In this study, we develop a conceptual model of the influence of individual characteristics on the traditional website quality – website satisfaction relationship. We propose a model based on the construct of consumer technology attractiveness (CTA) to represent the genuine positive propensity of individuals toward technology. We further test the moderating effect of this construct on the commonly used predictors of customer’s website satisfaction using Hierarchical Multiple Regression. The empirical study was based on websites of banks operating in Portuguese market. The commercial banking industry is one of the Portuguese industries that better uses the Internet to establish relationships with clients. Data were collected through an online website satisfaction survey, participated by the lecturers and postgraduate students from four Portuguese Universities and Polytechnic Institutes. Our final sample comprised 276 valid questionnaires. Our study permits to conclude that the most commonly used antecedents of website overall satisfaction are still relevant for analyzing consumer’s satisfaction with the banks websites. We also conclude that CTA has a significant moderating effect on almost all customers’ website satisfaction variables used in the study. This study contributes to highlight the theoretical importance and significant influence of consumers’ personal characteristics on their online behavior. Moreover, for the practitioners, a better understanding of these individual characteristics will assist them in developing customized websites that will meet customers’ expectations. O estudo dos comportamentos dos consumidores em ambientes online tem vindo a ter um crescente interesse, uma vez que os websites estão a transformar-se num importante ponto de contacto entre as empresas e os seus clientes. A satisfação dos clientes com os websites tem sido apontada pela Literatura como o principal condicionante dos comportamentos online dos consumidores. No entanto, a investigação científica tem conseguido provar que grupos de indivíduos com características distintas reagem de forma diferente quando submetidos a contextos idênticos, o que poderá levar a diferenças significativas no comportamento online de consumidores pertencentes a diferentes grupos. Neste estudo desenvolvemos um modelo conceptual que reflecte a influência de características individuais na relação entre a qualidade e a satisfação com os websites. Propomos um modelo assente na atractividade tecnológica do consumidor (CTA), que representa a propensão genuína que os indivíduos possuem em relação à tecnologia. Testamos o efeito moderador deste conceito sobre as variáveis mais utilizadas nos estudos sobre a satisfação dos consumidores com os websites, utilizando a Regressão Múltipla Hierárquica. O estudo empírico baseou-se nos websites dos bancos que operam no mercado português, uma vez que este sector é um dos que melhor utiliza a Internet na sua relação com os clientes. Os dados foram recolhidos através de um questionário sobre satisfação com os websites, colocado online e dirigido a docentes e estudantes de programas de pós-graduações, mestrados e doutoramentos de quatro universidades e instituto politécnico portugueses, tendo resultado numa amostra final de 276 questionários validados estatisticamente. Este estudo permitiu concluir que as variáveis que são mais utilizadas como antecedentes da satisfação dos consumidores com os websites, continuam a ser igualmente válidas para a análise dos websites dos bancos. Também concluímos que a CTA tem efeitos moderadores significativos na grande maioria das variáveis utilizadas neste estudo. Assim, conseguimos realçar a importância teórica das características pessoais dos consumidores no seu comportamento online. Para os gestores, uma melhor compreensão destas características individuais permitir-lhes-á desenvolver websites customizados que irão satisfazer as expectativas dos seus clientes.

Technology Governance Board Information Technology Strategic Plan, 2006

The Technology Governance Board (TGB), established pursuant to Iowa Code Section 8A.204, developed and published this strategic information technology plan in December 2006. This plan contains the TGB's vision, mission, goals, and strategies that will lead the executive branch to an information technology infrastructure and policies that will enhance and unify the technology infrastructure to support business operations for electronic government, consistent with the vision of providing sustained support for “extraordinary customer service”.

Multimodal Highlighting of Structural Abnormalities in Diabetic Rat and Human Corneas.

PURPOSE: This study aimed to highlight structural corneal changes in a model of type 2 diabetes, using in vivo corneal confocal microscopy (CCM). The abnormalities were also characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and second harmonic generation (SHG) microscopy in rat and human corneas. METHODS: Goto-Kakizaki (GK) rats were observed at age 12 weeks (n = 3) and 1 year (n = 6), and compared to age-matched controls. After in vivo CCM examination, TEM and SHG microscopy were used to characterize the ultrastructure and the three-dimensional organization of the abnormalities. Human corneas from diabetic (n = 3) and nondiabetic (n = 3) patients were also included in the study. RESULTS: In the basal epithelium of GK rats, CCM revealed focal hyper-reflective areas, and histology showed proliferative cells with irregular basement membrane. In the anterior stroma, extracellular matrix modifications were detected by CCM and confirmed in histology. In the Descemet's membrane periphery of all the diabetic corneas, hyper-reflective deposits were highlighted using CCM and characterized as long-spacing collagen fibrils by TEM. SHG microscopy revealed these deposits with high contrast, allowing specific detection in diabetic human and rat corneas without preparation and characterization of their three-dimensional organization. CONCLUSION: Pathologic findings were observed early in the development of diabetes in GK rats. Similar abnormalities have been found in corneas from diabetic patients. TRANSLATIONAL RELEVANCE: This multidisciplinary study highlights diabetes-induced corneal abnormalities in an animal model, but also in diabetic donors. This could constitute a potential early marker for diagnosis of hyperglycemia-induced tissue changes.

Multi-layer amniotic membrane (MLAM) transplantation for non traumatic corneal perforations or descemetoceles

Purpose:To describe the indications, the surgical procedure and the clinical outcome of MLAM in the treatment of non traumatic corneal perforations and descemetoceles . Methods:A prospective, non comparative, interventional case series of eight consecutive patients (mean age 59 years old, 6 men and 2 women) with non traumatic corneal perforations or descemetoceles.The surgery consisted in a MLAM transplantation of a cryopreservated human amniotic membrane. The series included: three active herpetic keratitis, one rosacea, one perforation of an hydrops, one cicatricial pemphigoid, one perforation after an abcess in a corneal graft and one perforation after protonbeamtherapy. The clinical outcome included: the follow-up, the integrity of the eye, corneal epithelialization, inflammation and neovascularization, and the integration of the MLAM. Stromal thickness was followed precisely with the slit lamp. A corneal graft was performed at one patient after the MLAM, allowing microscopic investigation of the removed MLAM integrated in the cornea. Results:The mean follow-up was 8.78 months (range 3.57 to 30.17). Amniotic membrane transplantation was successful and reduced inflammation in 7 patients out of 8 ,after one procedure.One patient who presented a large herpetic keratitis epithelial defect with corneal anaesthesia had his MLAM dissolved after two weeks with an aqueous leakage. Epithelium healed within 3 weeks above 7 MLAM and remained stable at 3 months in 7 out of 8 patients. MLAM opacification gradually disappeared over a few months, however, stromal layers filling in the corneal perforations or above the descemetoceles remained stable. Conclusions:MLAM transplantation is a safe, effective and useful technique to cure non traumatic corneal perforations and descemetoceles. It can be performed in emergency despite the presence of an active inflammation or infection. By facilitating epithelialization, reducing inflammation and neovascularization, it allows corneal surface reconstruction in patients with persistent epithelial defects and corneal melting that usually ends in a perforation. For full visual rehabilitation, a delayed penetrating keratoplasty is required.

Iowa Technology Governance Board Annual Report, January 8, 2007

This Technology Governance Board Annual Report provides information o the total annual executive branch information technology expenditures (hardware, software, and personnel) and estimates for the amount of technology spending to be requested for the succeeding fiscal year. The report contains a projection of technology cost savings, an accounting of the level of technology cost savings for the current fiscal year, and a comparison of the level of technology cost savings for the current fiscal year with that of the previous fiscal year. This report was produced in compliance with Iowa Code §8A.204(3a) and was submitted to the Governor, the Department of Management, and the General Assembly on January 8, 2007.

Assistive technology for visually impaired women for use of the female condom: a validation study

OBJECTIVE To validate assistive technology for visually impaired women to learn how to use the female condom. METHOD a methodological development study conducted on a web page, with data collection between May and October 2012. Participants were 14 judges; seven judges in sexual and reproductive health (1st stage) and seven in special education (2nd stage). RESULTS All items have reached the adopted parameter of 70% agreement. In Stage 1 new materials were added to represent the cervix, and instructions that must be heard twice were included in the 2nd stage. CONCLUSION The technology has been validated and is appropriate for its objectives, structure / presentation and relevance. It is an innovative, low cost and valid instrument for promoting health and one which may help women with visual disabilities to use the female condom.

Impact of Federal Library Services and Technology Act Funds in Iowa, May 2007.

A report that Mary Wegner gave Iowa's congressmen and senators during this year's ALA Legislative Day in Washington, DC. The report reflects the important ways the State Library uses LSTA funds to help Iowa libraries provide the best service possible to their customers. LSTA funds also pay the salaries of Library Development staff.