Mental Symptoms and the Use of New Technical Equipment

The aim of this paper was to present how mental symptoms are connected to the use of desktop, portable or minicomputers (communicators and hand-held computers), mobile phones, and background information such as age and gender in the Finnish working-age population. The study was carried out as a cross-sectional study by posting a questionnaire to 15 000 working-age (18-65) Finns. The mental symptoms of 6121 respondents were analysed using the model factors age, gender, the use of computers and the use of mobile phones. In all data, the use of desktop computers was related to mental symptoms. However, the results of our data are not highly reliable, because the nonresponse rate was over 50%. Nevertheless, it may be essential to take into account in the future that working with computers can increase workers’ mental symptoms, and it is important to observe their mental health.     

地理信息系统技术在土壤污染状况调查工作中的应用

地理信息系统（GIS）是处理资源、环境等多种信息的计算机数据管理系统。本文介绍了6IS技术在全国土壤污染状况调查工作中调查点位的布设、现场定位采样、调查数据存储等方面的应用,并探讨该技术在今后土壤污染防治工作中的应用。     

先期示范院校职业教育教学能力测评实施策略

通过梳理国家示范高职院校等先期建设院校的经验,认为测评实施的策略选择是组建专门领导机构;先培训后测评;分批进行,稳步推进;以项目课程开发为依托;与教师下厂实践相结合;注重测评成果的应用等。     

Exploring the perceived impacts of a public high school closure for urban liveability in a Canadian midsized city

ABSTRACT

Public schools are more than educational institutions; they are essential to creating liveable neighbourhoods. Despite their importance, public schools are being permanently closed across North America, and particularly in the Canadian province of Ontario. In 2015, one of Ontario's public school boards made the decision to permanently close the province's oldest public high school, located in the urban core of the historic midsized city of Kingston. While the school is not scheduled to close until late 2019, the established fate of this prominent public asset has important consequences for the liveability of Kingston's urban core. Accordingly, the objective of this study was to document residents’ perceived impacts of the decision to close to Kingston Collegiate Vocational Institute (KCVI) on liveability in the school's catchment area. We observed widespread dissatisfaction with the decision to close KCVI (85%), with large proportions of respondents (above 40%) anticipating KCVI's closure to negatively impact neighbourhood liveability in various ways in the future. Approximately one-quarter of respondents indicated that they have considered moving as a result of the decision, and among these, concerns about negative impacts to household-level well-being were particularly acute. Given the socio-demographic profile of respondents who have considered moving, these findings suggest that the closure of KCVI could have a destabilising effect on the neighbourhoods within the KCVI catchment area by driving families out of the city's urban core. Our findings suggest that policies to address concerns of under-enrolment are short-sighted and undermine efforts of other sectors to promote liveable communities.     

Public Attitudes Towards Policy Instruments for Congestion Mitigation in Shanghai

Abstract

Congestion causes many externalities for the society, including time delays, excessive fuel consumption, air pollution, noise and safety concerns. In Shanghai, various policy options have been explored, piloted or applied; however, not all of them may be understood and accepted by the public. A survey was conducted to investigate people’s attitudes towards several policy options. The main findings reveal that Shanghai residents are resistant to certain policies, such as congestion charges, higher parking charges in congested areas and car restrictions. Instead, they favor public transport provisions. The paper suggests that there is a case for promoting public transport and more efficient trips when the car ownership is still low, and for investing in a policy of educating the public on the ‘true’ costs and causes of congestion before embarking on an intensive policy of congestion charges or restrictions.     

The on-road experiences and awareness of sleepiness in a sample of Australian highway drivers: A roadside driver sleepiness study

Objective: Driver sleepiness contributes substantially to road crash incidents. Simulator and on-road studies clearly reveal an impairing effect from sleepiness on driving ability. However, the degree to which drivers appreciate the dangerousness of driving while sleepy is somewhat unclear. This study sought to determine drivers' on-road experiences of sleepiness, their prior sleep habits, and personal awareness of the signs of sleepiness.

Methods: Participants were a random selection of 92 drivers traveling on a major highway in the state of Queensland, Australia, who were stopped by police as part of routine drink driving operations. Participants completed a brief questionnaire that included demographic information, sleepy driving experiences (signs of sleepiness and on-road experiences of sleepiness), and prior sleep habits. A modified version of the Karolinska Sleepiness Scale (KSS) was used to assess subjective sleepiness in the 15 min prior to being stopped by police.

Results: Participants' ratings of subjective sleepiness were quite low, with 90% reporting being alert to extremely alert on the KSS. Participants were reasonably aware of the signs of sleepiness, with many signs of sleepiness associated with on-road experiences of sleepiness. Additionally, the number of hours spent driving was positively correlated with the drivers' level of sleep debt.

Conclusions: The results suggest that participants had moderate experiences of driving while sleepy and many were aware of the signs of sleepiness. The relationship between driving long distances and increased sleep debt is a concern for road safety. Increased education regarding the dangers of sleepy driving seems warranted.     

Validation of a questionnaire about the perception of occupational biohazard in Spanish companies

Objectives. The aim of this work was to develop, validate and test a new questionnaire to assess the biological risk in workers with intentional or unintentional exposure to biological agents. Methods. A questionnaire including 34 questions was developed to study the perception of workers against occupational biohazard. Content Validity Index (CVI) and Content Validity Ratio (CVR) were calculated for the analysis of content validity. A pilot study was carried out with 60 workers from 17 companies performing analysis of Cronbach's α to assess the internal consistency or reliability. Results. A total of 518 workers from 51 Spanish companies in which there is exposure to biological agents participated in the study yielding a response rate of 90%. The final questionnaire obtained a Cronbach's α > 0.759 with a stable test–retest result. The questionnaire validation demonstrates that it could be used to evaluate the biological risks and help the prevention of occupational accidents and diseases. Discussion. This study has validated the need to evaluate worker's perception against occupational risks, as well as the application of prevention methods and protective equipment. It is a first step towards developing an occupational biohazards assessment method including all the requirements set by the European Health and Safety Strategy 2013–2020.     

昆山市巴城镇室外光环境现状调查

随着中国城镇建设的快速发展,众多的光污染事件也随之产生。由于目前对光污染缺乏足够的重视和研究,使得光污染问题日益严重,因此研究光污染已成为当务之急。为了更具体的了解目前中国城镇的光污染状况,选择了苏南地区较典型的城镇进行了实地的调查和研究工作。文章对昆山市巴城镇的室外光环境状况和人们的光环境意识进行了实地的测量和问卷调查。通过调查,发现巴城镇的光污染状况并不十分严重,然而人们的光环境意识急待提高。     

基于MNL的高速公路施工区合流选择意愿研究*

为分析驾驶人高速公路施工区合流选择意愿的影响因素,基于非集计理论构建多属性施工区驾驶人合流选择意愿模型。利用SP调查法自主设计调查问卷,获得328份有效施工区驾驶人合流选择数据;利用Pearson相关系数分析施工区合流选择意愿与驾驶人因素和道路交通环境因素的相关性;以上游过渡区、警告区Ⅰ和警告区Ⅱ 3个合流区域作为选择肢,从驾驶人和道路交通环境特征属性2个方面归纳出6个因素对施工区合流选择意愿的影响,应用分类变量处理方法将其定义为6种指标,并进行赋值。结合非集计理论,以328份有效问卷为建模数据,建立施工区合流选择意愿的MNL模型,并利用似然比、优度比和模型命中率3个指标判断模型的拟合程度。结果表明:模型拟合程度较好;驾龄、施工区类型、道路条件、交通控制标志、速度条件和限速策略对驾驶人施工区合流选择意愿有显著影响。