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Probabilistic seismic hazard analysis (PSHA) has been recognized as a reasonable method for quantifying seismic threats. Traditionally, this method ignores the effect of the focal depth, in which the ground motion prediction equations (GMPEs) are applied to estimate the probability distribution associated with the possible motion levels induced by the site earthquakes, but it is limited by the unclear geological conditions, which makes it difficult to provide a uniform equation, and these equations cannot express the non-linear relationship under geological conditions. Hence, this paper proposed a method to consider the seismic focal depth for the PSHA with the example of California and used a back propagation neural network (BPNN) to predict the peak ground acceleration (PGA) instead of the GMPEs. Firstly, the measured PGA and unknown PGA seismic data applicable to this method were collected separately. Secondly, the unknown PGA data were supplemented by applying the BPNN based on the measured PGA data. Lastly, based on the full-probability equation, PSHA considering the focal depth was completed and compared with the current California seismic zoning results. The results showed that using the BPNN in the PSHA can ensure computational accuracy and universality, making it more suitable for regions with unclear geological structures and providing the possibility of adding other parameters to be considered for the influence of the PSHA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

California's fall 1863 elections marked the first time the state attempted any sort of untraditional voting. Republicans asserted that Civil War circumstances necessitated extending suffrage to soldiers stationed away from home, but Democrats posited that absentee voting violated the state constitution and opened the door for fraud. This paper examines how California's Republican and Democratic newspapers debated the issue from the state's first official proposal for a solider suffrage law in January 1863 until December 1864, just after the presidential election. This research aims to answer the following questions: What arguments did the California partisan press use for and against soldier voting? And what do those arguments reveal about party newspapers in the state during the Civil War? The study not only provides insights into the nature of California's Civil War press but also provides historical context for more recent elections in which absentee balloting was controversial. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While desalination-installed capacity is growing continuously, the number of membrane elements being discarded from such facilities is growing at the equivalent rate due to the limited lifespan of reverse osmosis (RO) membranes. It will be an attractive option to use the materials from the waste membrane element in the geotechnical engineering industry owing to their higher tensile strength and puncture resistance rather than landfill and incineration. The current study provides a simple yet effective approach for the use of discarded RO module components (i.e. discarded membrane sheet, permeate spacer and feed spacer) as reinforcement material for soil strength enhancement. A series of laboratory-scale experiments were conducted to quantify the beneficial effect of the soil reinforcement system (i.e. single, double and triple layers). The California bearing ratio (CBR) tests and triaxial compression tests were conducted on the soil reinforced. In addition to this, the effect of the number of reinforcement layers on the load-settlement behaviour of the soil was also studied. When compared to unreinforced soil, the compressibility of the soil was significantly decreased and there was a corresponding increase in the load-bearing capacity of the soil. The CBR value of soil was increased 3.14 times when reinforced with three layers of permeate spacer. In this way, this paper presents the end-of-life solution of reverse osmosis membranes for a novel application to create a circular economy in the membrane market. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work to articulate a geography of hope in the face of institutionalized epistemic injustice extends the emerging Indigenous political ecology approach through engagement with cultural resources law and policy. While Indigenous political ecology offers a framework to understand the context in which geographies of hope are created, geographies of hope are specific spatial processes that exemplify resilience, vision, and ingenuity in adverse circumstances. This paper focuses on such hopeful, place-based work to bring US and, specifically, California, cultural resources and repatriation law and policy into alignment with contemporary international Indigenous human rights standards. The Native and non-Native allies advocating for legal and political change are both focused on protecting particular places and their entwined epistemologies, and on altering processes of decision-making that privilege non-Indigenous epistemologies. Hope is specifically fostered in efforts to educate non-Native citizens on the continuities between past and present, in highlighting the efforts of Indigenous people working to care for and protect their heritage on/in/with the land, and in fostering legal frameworks that center justice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Context. Three-dimensional (3D) kinetic maps of the Milky Way interstellar medium are an essential tool in studies of its structure and of star formation. Aims. We aim to assign radial velocities to Galactic interstellar clouds now spatially localized based on starlight extinction and star distances from Gaia and stellar surveys. Methods. We developed an automated search for coherent projections on the sky of clouds isolated in 3D extinction density maps on the one hand, and regions responsible for CO radio emissions at specific Doppler shifts on the other hand. The discrete dust structures were obtained by application of the Fellwalker algorithm to a recent 3D extinction density map. For each extinction cloud, a technique using a narrow sliding spectral window moved along the contour-bounded CO spectrum and geometrical criteria was used to select the most likely velocity interval. Results. We applied the new contour-based technique to the 3D extinction density distribution within the volume encompassing the Taurus, Auriga, Perseus, and California molecular complexes. From the 45 clouds issued from the decomposition, 42 were assigned a velocity. The remaining structures correspond to very weak CO emission or extinction. We used the non-automated assignments of radial velocities to clouds of the same region presented in Paper I and based on KI absorption spectra as a validation test. The new fully automated determinations were found to be in good agreement with these previous measurements. Conclusions. Our results show that an automated search based on cloud-contour morphology can be efficient and that this novel technique may be extended to wider regions of the Milky Way and at larger distance. We discuss its limitations and potential improvements after combination with other techniques. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, scholars have taken increased interest in the existential dimensions of human im/mobility largely to trace how growing numbers of persons across the globe are pressed to navigate increasingly restrictive mobility regimes. The focus on restrictive contexts has, however, deterred researchers from considering experiences of well-being in precarious conditions. This paper shows how a place-based approach to the study of im/mobility can address this gap by directing scholarly attention to supportive places that promote the well-being of various groups facing limited social conditions. Drawing upon phenomenological healthcare studies, I theorize existential well-being as a dialectic of dwelling-mobility, and study how an increasingly visible supportive place on college campuses in California—namely, the Undocumented Student Resource Center (USRC)—impacts the existential experiences of undocumented students involved in its operations. I theorize 'place' from a sociocultural psychological perspective, viewing USRCs as dynamic, psycho-social-material realities produced by USRC staff and students involved in distinct meaning-making practices. I then discuss research conducted with an USRC in Northern California to show how its distinct socio-material design and psychosocial practices contributed to the development of existential well-being in undocumented students. I conclude that a place-based approach to the study of existential im/mobility can shed light on well-being experiences that are not dependent on the eradication of restrictive mobility regimes and (as such) can contribute to social change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reconstructions of Green's functions by ambient noise interferometry enable the imaging of the Earth's subsurface. Coda waves from reconstructed Green's functions can be utilized to perform time‐dependent imaging of processes that vary substantially at daily to monthly time scales in the crust. Time‐lapse Coda‐Wave Imaging (CWI) can detect tiny changes in seismic velocity with high temporal resolution. While previous studies on CWI have mainly focused on the descriptions of coda waves' propagation, little attention has been paid to choosing effective inversion algorithms that are suitable for CWI. Here we address this issue by developing a pragmatic inversion approach based on Voronoi tessellation with mesh cells adapted to coda‐wave sensitivity kernels. Using seismic stations in Central California, we present both synthetic and real data imaging to demonstrate that this approach stabilizes the inversion, is computationally efficient, and provides spatially adaptive resolution. We further propose a heuristic approach for a quantitative assessment of spatial resolution based on multi‐scale checkerboard tests. Plain Language Summary: Seismologists can extract information about the properties and structures beneath the Earth's surface by calculating the interferometry of background seismic vibrations. In recent years, this idea has been widely employed to monitor the time‐varying underground processes associated with tectonic, volcanic, hydrologic, and anthropogenic activities. Coda waves, the waves that are multiply scattered, are often used in monitoring applications because of their high sensitivity and time resolution, but their spatial paths are complicated. In this paper we introduce a new method for improving the inversion in Coda‐Wave Imaging based on Voronoi tessellation. By using mesh cells adapted to the geometry of seismic stations in Central California, we show that this method helps to stabilize the inversion and provide spatially adaptive resolution. Additionally, we propose a straightforward way to assess quantitatively the resolution of the images obtained through this method. Key Points: We present a pragmatic approach to improving coda‐wave imaging of seismic velocity changes based on Voronoi tessellationThis approach stabilizes the spatial inversion and provides adaptive resolution using seismic stations with irregular geometry in Central CaliforniaWe further propose a heuristic approach for a quantitative assessment of the spatial resolution based on multi‐scale checkerboard tests [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we explore customer churn in a telecommunication company, measuring the probability of users discontinuing their service. Our investigation employs various machine learning models, including Decision Tree, Random Forest, XGBoost, LightGBM, SVM, Logistic Regression, and Deep Neural Network. To accomplish this, we leverage data collected from a California-based telecommunication company, initially containing 38 feature data. In order to reduce complexity, we apply Lasso regression to select the five most crucial features for determining customer churn: household situation, service satisfaction, loyalty, payment capability, and contract type. Through performance evaluation, we demonstrate that accurate predictions of customer churn can be achieved even with five features, emphasizing the significance of feature selection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: We compared approaches to recruitment of diverse women with breast cancer in a study designed to collect complex social network data. Methods: We recruited 440 women from the Kaiser Permanente Northern California population newly diagnosed with breast cancer, either in person at a clinic, by email, or by mailed letter. In clinic and mail recruitment, women completed a brief 3-page paper survey (epidemiologic data only), and women had the option to complete a separate, longer (30–40 min) personal social network survey online. In email recruitment, we administered epidemiologic and personal social network measures together in a single online survey. In email and mail recruitment, we limited the sample of non-Hispanic white (NHW) women to 30% of their total. We used descriptive analysis and multinomial logistic regression to examine odds of recruitment vs. mailed letter. Results: Women responded to the social network surveys on average 3.7 months post-diagnosis. Mean age was 59.3 (median = 61.0). In-person clinic recruitment was superior with a 52.1% success rate of recruitment compared with 35.6% by mail or 17.3% by email (χ2 = 65.9, p < 0.001). Email recruitment produced the highest completion rate (82.1%) of personal network data compared with clinic (36.5%) or mail (28.7%), (χ2 = 114.6, p < 0.001). Despite intentional undersampling of NHW patients, response rates for Asian, Hispanic, and Black women by email were lower. However, we found no significant differences in recruitment rates by race and ethnicity for face-to-face clinic recruitment vs. by letter. Letter recruitment produced the highest overall response. Conclusion: Mailed letter was the best approach to representative recruitment of diverse women with breast cancer and collection of social network data, and further yielded the highest absolute response. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes a Bayesian model selection framework to determine optimal, parsimonious models for given building structures under ground motion excitation using stochastic filtering. Structural system identification at a regional scale after an earthquake is nominally a monumental task due to its inherently high computational cost. This challenge is currently addressed in the literature by using simplified structural models that bear analytical solutions, such as Timoshenko or shear beams, and shear building models. However, a low computational effort usually leads to an increased prediction error and consequently, a higher model uncertainty. This poses the dilemma of prediction accuracy versus model complexity when selecting a model class to represent a building structure. The proposed framework selects the model class that strikes the best balance between the two. To this end, the notion of cumulative evidence is introduced here as the integral of local evidence over the ground motion duration, which is then formulated as the difference between the cumulative likelihood of the observed measurements and the cumulative penalty. The likelihood measure promotes models whose predictions better match the observations. This is counteracted by the penalty, which is devised as an "Ockham factor," and penalizes models with higher information gains due to their higher complexities, for example, a larger number of parameters. The proposed approach also yields the best tuning parameters of the stochastic filter for each model class and the best initial values of the identification parameters. The proposed framework is verified using a synthetic example, and validated using recorded data from the Millikan Library building in California and the ANX building in Japan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For evacuations, people must make the critical decision to evacuate or stay followed by a multi-dimensional choice composed of concurrent decisions of their departure time, transportation mode, route, destination, and shelter type. These choices have important impacts on transportation response and evacuation outcomes. While extensive research has been conducted on hurricane evacuation behavior, little is known about wildfire evacuation behavior. To address this critical research gap, particularly related to joint choice-making in wildfires, we surveyed individuals impacted by the 2017 December Southern California Wildfires (n = 226) and the 2018 Carr Wildfire (n = 284). Using these data, we contribute to the literature in two key ways. First, we develop two latent class choice models (LCCMs) to evaluate the factors that influence the decision to evacuate or stay/defend. We find an evacuation keen class and an evacuation reluctant class that are influenced differently by mandatory evacuation orders. This nuance is further supported by different membership of people to the classes based on demographics and risk perceptions. Second, we develop two portfolio choice models (PCMs), which jointly model choice dimensions to assess multi-dimensional evacuation choice. We find several similarities between wildfires including a joint preference for within-county and nighttime evacuations and a joint dislike for within-county and highway evacuations. Altogether, this paper provides evidence of heterogeneity in response to mandatory evacuation orders for wildfires, distinct membership of populations to different classes of people for evacuating or staying/defending, and clear correlation among key wildfire evacuation choices that necessitates joint modeling to holistically understanding wildfire evacuation behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The frequency of wildfires increases yearly and poses a constant threat to the environment and human beings. Different factors, for example surrounding infrastructure to an area (e.g., campfire sites or power lines) contribute to the occurrence of wildfires. In this paper, we propose using a Spatio-Temporal Knowledge Graph (STKG) based on OpenStreetMap (OSM) data for modeling such infrastructure. Based on that knowledge graph, we use the RDF2vec approach to create embeddings for predicting wildfires, and we align different vector spaces generated at each temporal step by partial rotation. In an experimental study, we determine the effect of the surrounding infrastructure by comparing different data composition strategies, which involve a prediction based on tabular data, a combination of tabular data and embeddings, and solely embeddings. We show that the incorporation of the STKG increases the prediction quality of wildfires. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Environmental impact assessment (EIA) is a decision support tool that analyzes the environmental and social impacts of infrastructure projects. This paper focuses on the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), a law requiring EIA use in California, to examine where new infrastructure is proposed and whether EIA can shape infrastructure distribution and environmental justice through the review process. We analyze the temporal and spatial distribution of more than 7000 infrastructure projects and their environmental impacts as proposed under CEQA from 2011 to 2020. Using fixed-effects negative binomial regression to model the association between the number of initiated projects and existing socioeconomic and environmental conditions by census tract, and multinomial logistic regression to investigate determinants of a project's level of environmental review, we find an unequal distribution of infrastructure. We find that socio-economically vulnerable communities and those with greater burden of environmental pollution are less likely to be the site of newly proposed infrastructure, but that proposed projects tend to be beneficial, less-polluting infrastructure like parks or schools that could help redress past injustices. Moreover, projects proposed in vulnerable communities are less likely to receive the most stringent reviews or have their impacts mitigated. These findings suggest that CEQA interacts with distributive justice in contradictory ways. They also highlight the need to separately consider environmental amenities versus harms such that EIA processes do not stand as a barrier to constructing beneficial infrastructure in environmental justice communities. • New and upgraded infrastructure helps overcome historic distributional injustices burdening poor, minority communities. • In California, new infrastructure is proposed less often in socioeconomically vulnerable and more polluted neighborhoods. • California's environmental impact assessment (EIA) law is inconsistently addressing distributional justice. • Projects proposed in less vulnerable communities likely receive more stringent EIA reviews and have their impacts mitigated. • EIA is not designed to consider environmental amenities and may limit beneficial infrastructure from redressing past harms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The earthquake cycle of stress accumulation and release is associated with the elastic rebound hypothesis proposed by H.F. Reid following the M7.9 San Francisco earthquake of 1906. However, observing details of the actual values of time- and space-dependent tectonic stress is not possible at the present time. In two previous papers, we have proposed methods to image the earthquake cycle in California by means of proxy variables. These variables are based on correlations in patterns of small earthquakes that occur nearly continuously in time. The purpose of the present paper is to compare these two methods by evaluating their information content using decision thresholds and Receiver Operating Characteristic methods together with Shannon information entropy. Using seismic data from 1940 to present in California, we find that both methods provide nearly equivalent information on the rise and fall of earthquake correlations associated with major earthquakes in the region. We conclude that the resulting timeseries can be viewed as proxies for the cycle of stress accumulation and release associated with major tectonic activity. Article Highlights: The current state of the earthquake cycle of tectonic stress accumulation and release is unobservable We review two methods for visualizing the current state of the earthquake cycle from correlation in small earthquake patterns Machine learning techniques indicate that signals in a correlation time series corresponding to future large earthquakes can be detected [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the production of settler ecologies through nineteenth century swamp reclamation projects in California. It focuses on the transformation of inland swamps into agricultural land and San Francisco salt marshes and tidelands into urban real estate. I argue that swamp reclamation was both an economic and a racial project. Swamp reclamation sought to transform perceived wastelands into productive property. Swamp reclamation was also a racial project, in at least three ways. First, it aimed to transform colonial environments for the health of the white settler body. Second, draining swamps and making solid land depended on a racialized labor force. Third, swamp reclamation was accelerated through government subsidies that largely benefitted white settlers at the same time the state of California disenfranchised Black, Chinese, and Indigenous residents and supported racial immigration policies. These formations of race, nature, and property were established by law and political economy, and undergirded by settler epistemologies of space and nature. By studying the discourses and practices of swamp reclamation in nineteenth century California, this paper contributes to scholarship on the production of settler ecologies under conditions of racial capitalism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The question of SWANA (Southwest Asian and North African) diasporic identity formation has been widely debated in area studies, ethnic studies, and the burgeoning field of Arab American Studies with scholars such as Sarah Gualtieri (2009), Nadine Naber (2012), and Neda Maghbouleh (2017) arguing that people of SWANA descent are racial minorities even though the U.S. government classifies them as white. However, these works have not adequately addressed SWANA racialization in the context of higher education following 9/11. This co-authored paper closely examines institutionalized SWANA erasure from the shared intersectional perspective of one faculty member, one graduate student, and two undergraduate students at a California State University campus in Southern California. Specifically, in this co-authored paper, we draw on our individual and collective co-organizing experiences to illustrate (a) the persistence of specific structural inequities that SWANA heritage people face in the academy, (b) the multilayered impact of these educational barriers, and (c) our wide range of ongoing activist responses to them. We say "khalas!" (enough!) to systemic oppression and argue that the ultimate antidote to institutionalized SWANA erasure is solidarity within and between marginalized subjects at every level of academia in the service of anti-racist and anti-colonial education. This co-authored paper uplifts SWANA resilience and resistance in California's most diverse public university system to shed new light on the understudied issue of how higher education perpetuates SWANA racialization.

The evaluation of communities' vulnerability to prolonged power outages offers valuable insights for prioritizing improvements in infrastructure resilience, thereby alleviating societal consequences. This study proposes a data-driven approach aiming at developing a Social Vulnerability Index (SoVI) to prolonged power outages leveraging three county-level datasets in California including (1) demographic features, (2) power outage factors, and (3) backup power factors. Furthermore, the study conducts a sensitivity analysis on three distinct datasets under two scenarios (Scenario 1: the current SoVI in 2022, Scenario 2: the prediction of SoVI in the year 2030). The results of Scenario 1 indicate that the counties with more affected customers, the number of power outages, and less education attainment tend to be more vulnerable to power outages in 2022. Scenario 1 reveals that the number of affected customers and power outages are the primary features influencing around 29% and 18% of counties, while educational attainment, public Electric Vehicles (EVs) chargers, and homes with rooftop photovoltaic (PV) substantially impact approximately 32%, 11%, and 8% of counties, respectively. However, in Scenario 2, crucial factors affecting the anticipated SoVI in 2030 include public EV chargers, houses with rooftop PV, power outages, and adults living alone. In contrast to Scenario 1, the prevalence of adults living alone has emerged as a notable factor impacting SoVI in 2030, while both scenarios underscore the pivotal role of EV chargers in influencing SoVI concerning power outages. The proposed SoVI facilitates informed policy decisions and infrastructure improvements in energy resilience, resource allocation, and disaster preparedness, contributing valuable insights for targeted interventions in these domains. • A data-driven approach was proposed to quantify the social vulnerability index (SoVI) to power outages. • This paper applies Principal Component Analysis (PCA) to identify the most correlated features from county-level datasets. • The paper conducts a sensitivity analysis to predict SoVI in2030 and evaluate how counties' dynamics change over time. • This paper provides insights into how policymakers can reduce the social vulnerability to power outages in California. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is a critical reflection on a service-learning experience involving digital storytelling as a form of public engagement and community service. It is organized into themes that help illuminate the process: background and preparation, working "in the field," and outcomes and assessments of the venture overall. The paper's expected contribution lies in the examples from the field that speak to the healing power of community storytelling and listening, especially in unsettled times. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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We propose a new machine learning‐based method for nowcasting earthquakes to image the time‐dependent earthquake cycle. The result is a timeseries that may correspond to the process of stress accumulation and release. The timeseries are constructed by using principal component analysis of regional seismicity. The patterns are found as eigenvectors of the cross‐correlation matrix of a collection of seismicity timeseries in a coarse grained regional spatial grid (pattern recognition via unsupervised machine learning). The eigenvalues of this matrix represent the relative importance of the various eigenpatterns. Using the eigenvectors and eigenvalues, we compute the weighted correlation timeseries of the regional seismicity. This timeseries has the property that the weighted correlation generally decreases prior to major earthquakes in the region, and increases suddenly just after a major earthquake occurs. As in a previous paper (Rundle & Donnellan, 2020, https://doi.org/10.1029/2020ea001097), we find that this method produces a nowcasting timeseries that resembles the hypothesized regional stress accumulation and release process characterizing the earthquake cycle. We then address the problem of whether the timeseries contain information regarding future large earthquakes. For this, we compute a receiver operating characteristic and determine the decision thresholds for several future time periods of interest (optimization via supervised machine learning). We find that signals can be detected that can be used to characterize the information content of the timeseries. These signals may be useful in assessing present and near‐future seismic hazards. Plain Language Summary: Major earthquakes on fault systems in a tectonically active region are thought to occur in approximately repetitive cycles as a result of the buildup and release of tectonic forces (stress). Nowcasting is a technique adopted from weather, finance, and other fields that use readily observable proxy data to represent the unobservable stress accumulation process of interest. This paper presents a method that computes a timeseries representing the weighted correlation of small earthquake activity in the California region from 1950 to 2020. Prior to major magnitude M > 7 earthquakes, the timeseries trends toward lower values. Just after the earthquake occurs, the timeseries increases suddenly in association with the earthquake, before resuming its gradual trend toward lower values. Plotting the timeseries on an inverted scale, one sees a cyclic behavior that strongly resembles the hypothesized earthquake cycle. In principle, we can therefore use this timeseries for nowcasting, as a proxy for stress accumulation and release. Using methods of signal detection first developed for radar by the British in the 1940's, we find that the timeseries contain information about future large earthquakes that can be used for hazard assessment. Key Points: The current state of the earthquake cycle of tectonic stress accumulation and release is unobservable with existing methodsWe show that readily observable small earthquake correlations can be used to nowcast the current state of the earthquake cycleMachine learning techniques indicate that signals corresponding to future large earthquakes can be detected in a correlation time series [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes a modeling approach for characterizing the probability of wildfire ignition caused by faults on power distribution systems. The proposed model serves as a starting point in research literature to illustrate, from an analytical perspective, the many factors that influence wildfire ignitions in power distribution systems. This paper presents the series of events that leads to power-system-related wildfire ignitions, and characterizes the wildfire ignition probability as a combination of the probability that a fault occurs along a power distribution line segment, and the probability that the fault results in the sustained ignition of a vegetation fuel bed surrounding the line. The proposed model integrates a variety of data including environmental conditions, power system protection settings, and power system line flows. A case study is performed on a test 33-bus distribution system using observed historical weather data from a high-threat fire district in California. The California case study is utilized to investigate the effects of three primary factors (wind speed, line congestion, and protection settings) on wildfire ignition probability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Learning standards have become a prominent feature for schools and school systems worldwide. Our paper describes the development of recent English teaching standards in California, China, and Mexico, as well as analyzing them for their theoretical orientations. We begin with an overview and critique of the standards movement. Our analysis of the standards in California, China, and Mexico reveals a substantial shift from a grammatical accuracy focused approach towards a communicative approach to language instruction. While this turn may be welcomed by professional educators, there are practical policy questions to be answered. We end our paper by noting additional challenges to implementing the new standards. Our general assessment is that the authors of the standards firmly believe that the new guidelines will improve instruction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this paper is to show how Californian libraries deliver value, by taking a preliminary value framework previously developed from a study of academic literature, and applying it to the public library landscape in California. A "bricolage" approach was used to develop an evidence-based framework of value and subsequently to gather data about Californians' use of and attitudes about public libraries. The framework was developed through an extended literature review and applied across data gathered through a survey of residents, interviews with library stakeholders, a review of statistics on library usage, and a review of the outcomes of grant-funded programs in California public libraries. The most significant outcome of our project is a unique value proposition for California's public libraries. These libraries deliver value for individuals, families, groups, communities, and society as a whole. They provide opportunities and support for learning and knowledge development, health and wellbeing, community development, and economic development. Value is delivered through a unique combination of resources, people, and space. California's public libraries are largely offering services that are valued by the public; however, public awareness of the range and nature of services offered remains lower than desired. Practitioners can use the evidence-based framework and the unique value proposition to better understand the aspects of their library services that offer most value to their communities, and to make more persuasive cases for library support. This paper is the first to use an evidence-based framework of value in assessing the impact of California's public libraries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Electricity end-users have been increasingly generating their own electricity via rooftop solar panels. We study the impact of such distributed renewable energy (DRE) on utility profits and social welfare under net metering, which is a widespread policy in the United States. Utilities have been lobbying against net-metered distributed solar based on the common belief that it harms utility profits. We find that when wholesale market dynamics are considered, net-metered DRE may be a positive for utilities. That is, net-metered DRE strictly improves the expected utility profit when the utility's self-supply is below a threshold and the wholesale electricity price is sufficiently responsive to wholesale demand fluctuations. Our paper distinctively considers both downstream and upstream impacts of net-metered DRE on utilities and analyzes the tradeoff between these impacts. Net-metered DRE can increase utilities' expenses because of their required buyback from generating customers, and reduces their retail sales revenues. In addition, it can either reduce utilities' wholesale procurement costs or affect their wholesale market revenues. Our results suggest that utilities might benefit from emerging business strategies that motivate their customers to install solar panels. Our numerical study uses data on the distributed solar in California and the wholesale electricity market operated by the California Independent System Operator, and demonstrates that our findings hold under realistic parameters. This paper was accepted by David Simchi-Levi, operations management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID-19 pandemic required significant public health interventions from local governments. Although nonpharmaceutical interventions often were implemented as decision rules, few studies evaluated the robustness of those reopening plans under a wide range of uncertainties. This paper uses the Robust Decision Making approach to stress-test 78 alternative reopening strategies, using California as an example. This study uniquely considers a wide range of uncertainties and demonstrates that seemingly sensible reopening plans can lead to both unnecessary COVID-19 deaths and days of interventions. We find that plans using fixed COVID-19 case thresholds might be less effective than strategies with time-varying reopening thresholds. While we use California as an example, our results are particularly relevant for jurisdictions where vaccination roll-out has been slower. The approach used in this paper could also prove useful for other public health policy problems in which policymakers need to make robust decisions in the face of deep uncertainty. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Scholars from different political approaches argue that governance may harmonize antagonistic interests. However, governance's concept is still imprecise, and it has been used in a contradictory way. This paper's aim is to discuss governance limitations to overcome obstacles regarding land monopolization and water 'commoditization'. Through California experience, this paper shows how historic legacies have reinforced changes in commodity market, narrowing the margin of maneuver of vulnerable households. Inclusive governance may be the best shot to reduce inequalities regarding water access, but it is not a magical solution. There is a long way to follow and political fights still must happen. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Accessory dwelling units (ADUs) have been championed as a low-cost solution—both monetarily and politically—for America's housing affordability crisis. However, do these micro-units provide a city's lower-income community members with much needed affordable housing? And which income groups benefit from the theoretical supplemental income created by ADUs? Using socioeconomic data, building permit information, and geospatial analysis, this paper explores these questions by conducting a case study of the archetype of America's housing affordability crisis: San Francisco, California. Finding that, within the city and sample frame, few ADU permits have been filed in the most price-vulnerable communities, this paper challenges the theoretical benefits of ADUs espoused by politicians and academics. If the city continues to lean on ADU legislation, local legislators must strengthen current enforcement mechanisms and more narrowly tailor ADU-related rental restrictions. By offering model legislation and code language, this paper illustrates how San Francisco and other communities across the country can better ensure ADUs live up to their promise of affordability and access. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the paper on the Summit II sequel of the Voice Pedagogy Interest Group in 2018. Topics covered include the tenets and principles on reading the summit's paper, the historical writings on voice teaching and pedagogy, the music industry's style and genre, the comprehensive voice pedagogy framework (CVFP) and model, and the Knowledge Base portion of the CVFP. Also noted are selected teacher actions and student interactions.

This paper proposes the concept of zombie infrastructure to understand the entangled histories of railroad colonialism, Indigenous dispossession, and corporate power in the California desert. I examine debates over the Cadiz project, a contemporary water project that proposes to take water from a California desert aquifer and transport it to the California coast. I argue that the life of the Cadiz project depends on Cadiz Inc.'s ability to revive the legal rights and body of a little-used railroad shortline, thus bringing back a legal infrastructure and corporate power from the late nineteenth century in the service of a new corporation. In so doing, the Cadiz project enlivens the racialized dispossession of land and labor that the railroad initially required. Routing the politics of a contemporary infrastructure project through the railroad and its octopus past, I argue, places the politics of infrastructure at the intersection of laws, monstrosity, and dispossession. Drawing on economic and legal geography, this paper proposes the concept of zombie infrastructure, a concept that builds on what activists call zombie projects in order to show the life and death of infrastructure, and reveals how contemporary capitalists enliven old infrastructures for new purposes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

How to deal with the transformation of place in the face of global capitalism is marked by many active debates. This paper dives into the transformation of the city of Solvang in California, from an agricultural village to a tourist destination. One way to analyse the process is to treat it as commodification, where values produced in places are being turned into exchangeable commodities. What results from such critical studies of capitalism too often result in apathy rather than positive action, it tends to deal less with 'the real world' than thought experiments about possible worlds. Another approach connects to the relational turn and the application of assemblage theory in studies of the dialectic process between economy and society. Critics question the ability of also assemblage theory to point us towards what should be done. We end up seeing assemblages everywhere, but then what? This paper makes the case for an alternative positive critical geography, inspired by Deleuze and Guattari (1972, 1987) and their conceptualization of desire as an active and positive force. Policies should depart from already existing subjectivities that have an interest in their social mileu and have a desire to make it even better. This is the appropriate ground for political engagement, the place to start if we want to contribute to a different future. An analytical scheme for a positive critical geography is presented and "tested out" in a case study of Solvang, where a "real" place continuously emerge. • Commodification of place as a process guided by motive forces caring for the place. • Policies departing from knowledge about the already existing interest in the social mileu and the desire to improve it. • The property of places emerges in a mix of local and non-local parts, but this process does not only happen, it is motivated. • Place as assemblage or commodity does not inform us sufficiently about what should be done. • Desire as departure point for studies about commodification. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Media, science, and legislation poorly represent the concerns of disadvantaged communities. • Developing effective policies requires addressing nuances and issue co-occurrence. • Community-specific knowledge is necessary to advance sustainable, effective solutions. A common approach in scientific research and policy is a commitment to develop projects or legislation trying to improve problems experienced by low-income and rural communities; however, lack of interaction with community members during the process tends to produce unsatisfactory results. We visited disadvantaged communities in the San Joaquin Valley of California and interviewed local stakeholders (community members and leaders, policy advocates, attorneys, and educators). Then we analyzed a corpus related to disadvantaged communities from a pool of California-related publications containing 154,000 scientific papers, 2.6 million newspaper articles, and 11,000 state legislation bills from 2017 to 2020 to estimate the frequency and quality of disadvantaged community representation. Here we present our findings describing the biases and gaps of knowledge by scientific papers, California newspaper articles, and legislation bills with respect to disadvantaged communities in California, and we suggest opportunities for scientists, media communicators, and policymakers to amplify the voices of these stakeholders. In all corpus categories, disadvantaged communities are underrepresented: about one in four Californians live in disadvantaged communities, but only one in 2000 news articles and scientific papers cover them. The concerns and priorities of disadvantaged communities do not match the public perspective of them depicted by the corpus. Developing effective policies requires addressing place-specific nuances and co-occurrence of structural inequities in partnership with local stakeholders. Holistic coverage in newspapers and community-based approaches are necessary platforms to increase awareness and sensibility about disadvantaged communities, helping tailor policy solutions, and building the political leverage needed to implement them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper evaluates the performance of a multirotor uncrewed aircraft and AirCore system (UAAS) for measuring vertical profiles of wind velocity (speed and direction) and the mole fractions of methane (CH4) and carbon dioxide (CO2), and presents a use case that combines UAAS measurements and dispersion modeling to quantify CH4 emissions from a dairy farm. To evaluate the atmospheric sensing performance of the UAAS, four field deployments were performed at three locations 15 in the San Joaquin Valley of California where CH4 hotspots were observed downwind of dairy farms. A comparison of the observations collected on board the UAAS and an 11-m meteorological tower show that the UAAS can measure wind velocity trends with a root mean squared error varying between 0.4 and 1.1 m s-1 when the wind magnitude is less than 3.5 m s-1. Findings from UAAS flight deployments and a calibration experiment also show that the UAAS can reliably resolve temporal variations in the mole fractions of CH4 and CO2 occurring over 10 second periods or longer. Results from the UAAS and 20 dispersion modeling use case further demonstrate that UAAS have great potential as a low-cost tool for detecting and quantifying CH4 emissions in near real-time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines populous perspectives of the government's responsibility to intervene in situations of possible parental neglect of children in England, Finland, Norway, and California (USA), and ask if institutional context, defined as child protection system and children´s wellbeing situation, are formative for people's perspectives on government responsibility for children in vulnerable situations and how they view children´s future. With representative samples of populations responses to a survey vignette using ordered logistic regression, findings indicate that the institutional context shed some light on differences on state responsibility. However, similarly to welfare state research, there are differences and contradictions in important dimensions that require further investigation, especially on citizens perceptions of neglect and on intrusive interventions. Citizens with a comparatively higher education are evidently much more supportive of state responsibility for children and child protection interventions than other citizens. This finding is similar to those of other studies of state responsibility. Overall, there is a high level of support in populations for the provision of public services to children and families in vulnerable situations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and aims: There are concerns that availability of recreational cannabis dispensaries (RCDs) and point‐of‐sale marketing may lead to increased cannabis use in jurisdictions where cannabis retail sale is legal. This paper examined whether the availability RCDs and the presence of storefront signage indicative of cannabis and signs promoting health benefits in RCDs were associated with cannabis use and risk perceptions. Design: Cross‐sectional, secondary data analysis. Setting: California, USA. Participants: A representative sample of 3385 adults in California who participated in the 2020 probability‐based Marijuana Use and Environment Survey. Measurements Binary outcomes included past‐month overall cannabis use, perceiving cannabis smoking as harmful and past‐month cannabis use by purpose (medical only, recreational only and dual). The objectively assessed predictors included proximity and density of RCDs and presence of storefront signage indicative of cannabis and signs promoting health benefits in RCDs. Findings In terms of proximity, thepresence of storefront signage in the nearest RCD was associated with smaller odds of perceiving cannabis smoking as harmful [odds ratio (OR) = 0.63, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.39, 0.99] if the RCD was located within 2 miles of home. Presence of health benefit signs in the nearest RCD was associated with greater odds of overall cannabis use (OR = 2.45, 95% CI = 1.17, 5.16) and recreational use (OR = 3.50, 95% CI = 1.027, 11.91) if the RCD was located within 2–4 miles of home. In terms of density, count of RCDs, count of RCDs with storefront signage and count of RCDs with health benefit signs within 2 miles of home were each separately associated with greater odds of overall cannabis use and cannabis use for dual purposes. Conclusions: The availability of recreational cannabis dispensaries within 2 miles of one's home and the presence of storefront signage indicating the availability of cannabis and signs promoting health benefits of cannabis appear to be associated with increased cannabis use and reduced risk perceptions among adults in California, USA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents the analytical formulation and computational implementation of a conceptual probabilistic performance-based seismic design (PBSD) framework for ordinary standard bridge (OSB) structures. An updated probabilistic performance-based earthquake engineering (PBEE) assessment methodology is used for the parametric performance assessment of four distinct OSBs in California to investigate the effects of varying key structural design parameters over a primary design parameter space on risk-based structural performance measures. The dire need for a systematic PBSD framework for OSBs is illustrated given the significant variability in risk-based performance levels exhibited by these traditionally designed testbed OSBs. A PBSD methodology involving the design of the bridge piers is proposed wherein a risk-based feasible design domain in the primary design parameter space is identified which facilitates the risk-informed design/decision making process in the face of uncertainty. Sensitivities of risk-based feasible design domains compared with other (secondary) design variables and with the method employed for damage hazard assessment are investigated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The notion of mutual aid, which Peter Kropotkin introduced in the 19th century, goes against the logic of competition as a natural condition, and instead shows how mutual aid is a more important factor to consider for the survival and flourishing of a group. The best cooperation strategies allow organisms to adapt to different types of changes in their environment—and we have witnessed a lot of these changes since the start of the COVID‐19 pandemic. This propensity towards cooperation is not a foreign concept, despite how it seems to be overshadowed by individualism in Western societies. These reflections then lead us to believe it is possible to apply the anarchist philosophical principle of mutual aid to our social organizations, rather than giving priority, again and again, to competition and professional hierarchies, especially in healthcare systems, and particularly in hospitals were the majority of nurses work. For us, anarchist philosophical precepts, including but not limited to mutual aid, can be the key to a more adequate functioning of healthcare institutions. Anarchism can help to imagine the first steps needed to take to gradually move away from ideologies that encourage competition, professional hierarchies, and illegitimate authority. In this paper, we will first explore some anarchist philosophical precepts before turning to mutual aid as it is currently conceptualised, then highlight several concrete ways it is visible in nursing, as well as ways it can be applied in hospitals, and healthcare systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drawing from a keynote panel held at the hybrid 25th International Philosophy of Nursing Conference, this discussion paper examines the question of epistemic silence in nursing from five different perspectives. Contributors include US‐based scholar Claire Valderama‐Wallace, who meditated on ecosystems of settler colonial logics of nursing; American scholar Lucinda Canty discussed the epistemic silencing of nurses of colour; Canadian scholar Amelie Perron interrogated the use of disobedience and parrhesia in and for nursing; Canada‐based scholar Ismalia De Sousa considered what nursing protects in its silences; and Australian scholar Janice Gullick spoke to trans invisibility in nursing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Debris flows pose a serious threat to communities in mountainous areas, particularly in the years following wildfire. These events have been widely studied in regions where post-wildfire debris flows have been historically frequent, such as southern California. However, the threat of post-wildfire debris flows is increasing in many regions where detailed data on debris-flow physical properties, volume, and runout potential are sparse, such as the Southwest United States (Arizona and New Mexico). As the Southwest becomes more vulnerable to these hazards, there is an increasing need to better characterize the properties of post-wildfire debris flows in this region and to identify similarities and differences with nearby areas, particularly southern California, where there is a greater abundance of data. In this paper, we study the characteristics and downstream impacts of two post-wildfire debris flows that initiated following the 2021 Flag Fire in northern Arizona, United States. We gathered data regarding soil hydraulic properties, rainfall characteristics, watershed response, and debris-flow initiation, runout, volume, grain size, and downstream impacts during the first two monsoon seasons following the containment of the Flag Fire. We also applied established debris-flow runout and volume models that were developed in southern California to our study watershed and compared the output with observations. In the first monsoon season following the fire, there were two post-wildfire debris flows, one of which resulted in damage to downstream infrastructure, and one major flood event. We found that, while more intense rainfall is required to generate debris flows at our study site compared to southern California, burned watersheds in northern Arizona are still susceptible to debris flows during storms with low recurrence intervals in the first year following fire. During the second monsoon season, there were no major runoff events, despite more intense storms. This indicates that the temporal window for heightened debris-flow susceptibility at our study area was less than one year, due to the recovery of soil hydraulic properties and vegetation regrowth. We also found that the debris-flow properties at our study site, such as volume, mobility, and grain size distribution, may differ from those in other regions in the western United States, including southern California, potentially due to regional differences in rainfall characteristics and sediment supply. Differences in rainfall characteristics and sediment supply may have also influenced the performance of the debris-flow runout and volume models, which overpredicted the observed runout distance by 400 m and predicted a volume more than 17 times greater than what was observed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

KULIGOWSKI, Piotr. Steampunk Association: The Project for a Polish Utopian Settlement in California in the Mid-19th Century. This article provides a case study of a project for a Polish utopian settlement (Osada), which was to be established in California, USA. Author Kazimierz Tomkiewicz’s, a Polish political exile from the early 1830s, developed a blueprint in Paris in 1850 and sent it to Prince Adam Jerzy Czartoryski, seeking his support for its realisation. Osada was to be an agro-industrial settlement, enabling Poles participation in the growing global technological and economic progress of the time. In the proposed model, the settlement was envisioned as an association, maintaining a democratic decision-making process and an equal distribution of goods among settlers. This paper argues that Tomkiewicz—perhaps inspired by Saint-Simonianist thinking— in fact coined a scheme for a steampunk association, believing that labour and creativity might not only improve the situation of Polish emigres, but also transform the Polish soul. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This case paper discusses how Sentry Insurance, a provider of commercial and personal insurance, can effectively implement the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) using ITIL service management and COBIT governance framework. The CCPA regulates the handling of consumer data, and compliance is crucial for businesses operating in California. The article highlights key aspects of ITIL, such as service strategy, service operation, and continuous improvement, that can help Sentry Insurance protect customer data and comply with CCPA requirements. It emphasizes the importance of event management, access management, and problem management in ITIL service operation to ensure data security and address any issues promptly. The article also explores how COBIT can assist in meeting stakeholder needs, creating a dynamic governance system, ensuring a holistic approach to decision-making, distinguishing governance from management, and tailoring the framework to enterprise requirements. By utilizing these frameworks, Sentry Insurance can successfully implement CCPA regulations and safeguard customer data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The misuse and abuse of opioids has become a serious public health threat in the United States. The state of California has been hit particularly hard by the opioid epidemic, with a noticeable increase in opioid-related fatalities and hospitalizations. This brief report paper aims to contribute to the growing literature by conducting a geospatial analysis of opioid dispensing patterns in California in 2021. The primary objective was to identify areas characterized by high-risk opioid dispending patterns and explore possible contributing factors. This retrospective study analyzed data from over 7 million records of opioid and benzodiazepine prescriptions dispensed by outpatient pharmacies in California in 2021. A series of generalized linear regression models was employed to assess the impact of neighborhood characteristics on opioid recipients and high-risk opioid dispensing. The study defined high-risk opioid dispensing behavior as: (1) multiple provider episodes, (2) overlapping opioid prescriptions for seven or more days, (3) overlapping opioid and benzodiazepine prescriptions for seven or more days, and (4) a high standardized dosage of opioid prescriptions per month. The study identified variables associated with high-risk opioid dispensing behaviors, including age, population density, income, and housing-related variables, as well as marital status and family-related variables. The study uncovered that there are noticeable disparities in opioid dispensing among different racial and ethnic groups within California. The findings indicated a correlation of high-risk dispensing indicators with certain demographic and socioeconomic factors. There was a substantial regional variation in opioid dispensing practices, with certain rural areas having higher rates of opioid prescriptions than urban areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: In the United States, adverse birth outcomes are most prevalent among Black women and birthing people, who are known to experience increased mistreatment and disrespect in care. The purpose of this paper is to describe findings from a study that used two validated scales to examine factors associated with experiences of person‐centered care during pregnancy and birth among Black birthing people in California. Methods: We used data from 234 Black women and birthing people who were recruited between January and September 2020 as part of a validation study for the Person‐Centered Prenatal Care (PCPC) and the Person‐Centered Maternity Care (PCMC‐US) scales. Bivariate and multivariate analyses were conducted to examine the associations between PCPC and PCMC‐US scores and sociodemographic, health‐related, and care‐related factors. Results: The factors associated with lower PCPC scores were having foreign‐born parents, having public or no insurance, part‐time employment, unstable housing, late start of prenatal care (in the second or third trimester), poorer self‐rated health (less than very good), and lack of continuity of care with prenatal providers. Factors associated with lower PCMC‐US scores were having public insurance, late start of prenatal care, longer length of stay in facility following birth, poorer self‐rated health, lack of continuity of care between prenatal care and birth providers, and racial discordance with birth provider. Conclusions: Our analysis highlights the contributions of intersecting identities as well as health‐related and care‐related factors to Black birthing people's experiences of care in California. Continuity of care and provider racial concordance, in particular, were shown to improve pregnancy and birth experiences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores Latino male community college students' perceptions of their course-related interactions with faculty at a Hispanic Serving Institution in California. Using a Critical Race Theory in Education framework, we qualitatively examine the ways in which race and racism shape students' descriptions of these interactions and the extent to which students attribute negative interactions to racial discrimination and/or oppression. Longitudinal, semi-structured interview data (N = 24) presented underscore the need for structurally diverse faculty in community colleges. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Industrial waste generated is a major contributor of total waste worldwide. The proper mechanism for management of these waste needs to be established, especially in developing countries. Therefore, this paper attempts to evaluate the influence of compactive effort on the strength characteristics of lime treated laterite soil mixed with untreated textile effluent. The study was carried out on the index properties, unconfined compressive strength (UCS) and California bearing ratio (CBR) in accordance with the procedures specified by BS 1377 (2) 1990, 1924 (2) and Nigeria General Specifications. Three compactive efforts namely; British Standard light (BSL), West African Standard (WAS) and British Standard Heavy (BSH) were used for the strength characteristics. The findings of the study showed that an increase in the values of lime-TE results in general increase in the strength tests. An improvement in the UCS for 7, 14 and 28days curing period was recorded at peak values of 1531.91, 2199.29 and 2560.48kN/m2 for BSL, WAS and BSH at soil-lime-TE of 4% lime/75% TE, 8% lime/75% TE and 8% lime/50% TE respectively. For the CBR (soaked), the peak values were recorded at 49.70, 71.13 and 97.25% for BSL, WAS and BSH at soil-lime-TE of 6% lime/50% TE, 6% lime/50% TE and 8% lime/50% TE respectively. Considering the resistance to loss in strength, the values were also peaked at 71.77, 81.74 and 60.63kN/m2 at mix ratios of 8% lime/100% TE, 6% lime/75% TE and 8% lime/25% TE respectively. On the bases of these test results, it can be concluded that the utilization of untreated Textile Effluent positively increased the strength characteristics of the lime treated soil, reduced environmental pollution and save construction cost. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Extreme precipitation from climate change may strain many existing stormwater systems. While studies have evaluated such effects on stormwater infrastructure, other sources of uncertainty not yet explored should also be considered. This paper presents an analysis of adaptation costs for new stormwater infrastructure to mitigate increases in design storm precipitation depth with climate change, including how economic and managerial uncertainty related to life cycle unit costs and knowledge of existing infrastructure affect costs. For case study areas in California, we quantify adaptation costs for new green infrastructure capacity by evaluating future design storms. Results indicate that design storm depths increase by an average of 28%, but lack of knowledge of the condition of existing infrastructure and life cycle unit costs result in wide cost ranges. The findings illustrate how climate change planning for stormwater should also consider economic and managerial uncertainty when estimating long-term adaptation costs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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We investigate the impact that disparities in regional vaccine coverage have on the risk of infection for an unvaccinated individual. To address this issue, we develop an agent-based computational model of epidemics with two features: 1) a population divided among multiple regions with heterogeneous vaccine coverage; 2) contact networks for individuals that allow for both intra-regional interactions and inter-regional interactions. The benchmark version of the model is specified using county-level flu vaccination claims rates from California. We isolate the effects of heterogeneity by holding overall vaccination levels constant, while changing the variance in the distribution of regional vaccine coverage. We find that an increase in spatial heterogeneity leads to larger epidemics on average. This effect is magnified when more connections that are inter-regional exist in the contact structure of the networks. The central result in the paper is that there is a non-monotonic relationship between the infection risk and the geographic resolution of vaccination rate measurement. Infection risk of an unvaccinated individual decreases in both the global rate of vaccinations and the rate of vaccination of the individual’s specific contacts. Surprisingly, we find that the vaccination rate in an individual’s home region does not have a significant impact on an individual’s infection risk in our model. This has significant implications for an individual’s vaccine choices. Global and local (network specific) vaccination rates are highly correlated with infection risk and thus should be prioritized as information sources for rational decision-making. Using the region-specific information, however, is likely to lead to non-optimal decisions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ambitious zero-emission vehicle (ZEV) adoption goals have been proposed to decarbonize the transportation sector, while the current market share pales in comparison. Although the distinct socio-economic characteristics of ZEV early adopters relative to mainstream car buyers are well understood, the two groups' preferences for ZEV attributes are not clear. This knowledge gap hinders the development of effective policies to achieve mass ZEV penetration goals. This paper examines consumers' preferences and willingness to pay for ZEV attributes based on 755 early adopters and 3493 mainstream consumers from the 2019 California vehicle survey data. Results show that early adopters are more sensitive to battery range, acceleration performance, home charging availability, and high occupancy vehicle lane access, while mainstream consumers attach greater importance to cost attributes (e.g., fuel and maintenance costs) and charging time. Moreover, the effects of monetary incentives are found to be significant for both groups, whereas neither early adopters nor mainstream consumers value the availability of public charging stations. The findings of this study inform targeted ZEV policymaking and marketing strategies in different adoption stages. • ZEV preferences are compared between early adopters and mainstream consumers. • Early adopters are more sensitive to battery range and acceleration performance. • Mainstream consumers attach greater importance to cost attributes and charging time. • Home charging availability significantly affects BEV utility for early adopters. • Public charging infrastructure availability plays a limited role for both groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since Pierre de Coubertin's revival of the modern Olympic games, the state of California has hosted the Olympics three times and is currently preparing for the games in Los Angeles in 2028. This paper attempts to add to the history of California's Olympic legacy by examining the period prior to 1896 and demonstrating that the Olympic idea had been firmly rooted in California long before the revival of the modern Olympic games and the 1932 Los Angeles Olympics. Themes alluding to the Olympic idea had been exploited in California as early as the mid-nineteenth century, i.e. the time of the US annexation. In 1893 the Olympic Club in San Francisco organized the Ancient Greco-Roman Games with a statewide impact. The association of those spectacles with ancient Greek art or games attests to Californians' awareness of ancient athletics and to the significant role of the San Francisco events in a historical perspective. As the years passed the knowledge about sports with Olympic associations increased among Californians, and the 1893 Ancient Greco-Roman Games in San Francisco can be successfully considered the largest pseudo-Olympic sports event before the 1896 Summer Olympics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We study direct load control contracts that utilities use to curtail customers' electricity consumption during peak-load periods. These contracts place limits on the number of calls and total number of hours of power reduction per customer per year as well as the duration of each call. The stochastic dynamic program that determines how many customers to call and the timing and duration of each call for each day is an extremely difficult (NP-hard) optimization problem. We design a scenario-based approximation method to generate probabilistic allocation polices in a reasonable amount of time. Our approach consists of three approximations: deterministic approximation of demand, discretization of the expected demand, and aggregation/disaggregation of the resources. We show the relative information error resulting from the deterministic approximation is O (1 / n) , the discretization error is O (1 / n) , and the aggregation/disaggregation error is O (1 / n) , where n represents the length of the horizon. Finally, we show the total relative error is O (1 / n). Our error analysis establishes that our approximation method is near optimal. In addition, our extensive numerical experiments verify the high quality of our approximation approach. The error, conservatively measured, is quite small and has an average and standard deviation of 8.6% and 1.4%, respectively. We apply our solution approach to the data provided by three major utility companies in California. Overall, our study shows our procedure improves the savings in energy-generation cost by 37.7% relative to current practices. This paper was accepted by Chung Piaw Teo, optimization. Funding: The authors thank the UCLA Ziman Center's Howard and Irene Levine Program in Housing and Social Responsibility and the Morrison Family Center for Marketing Studies and Data Analytics for generous funding. Supplemental Material: The online appendices are available at https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2022.4493. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]