Pace University

The increasing online availability of biodiversity data and advances in ecological modeling have led to a proliferation of open‐source modeling tools. In particular, R packages for species distribution modeling continue to multiply without guidance on how they can be employed together, resulting in high fidelity of researchers to one or several packages. Here, we assess the wide variety of software for species distribution models (SDMs) and highlight how packages can work together to diversify and expand analyses in each step of a modeling workflow. We also introduce the new R package ‘sdmverse' to catalog metadata for packages, cluster them based on their methodological functions, and visualize their relationships. To demonstrate how pluralism of software use helps improve SDM workflows, we provide three extensive and fully documented analyses that utilize tools for modeling and visualization from multiple packages, then score these tutorials according to recent methodological standards. We end by identifying gaps in the capabilities of current tools and highlighting outstanding challenges in the development of software for SDMs.

Citizen science is increasingly credited for promoting scientific literacy and having the potential to empower and engage local people in conservation. However, rigorous evaluation of citizen science outcomes is limited, particularly those related to social capital and environmental stewardship. Social science can help to address this gap as it can identify barriers that hinder the success of citizen science programs and drivers that promote positive outcomes, such as social norms, community engagement, and effective communication strategies. However, little has been written about how academic partners in social science fields can engage with citizen science practitioners. In this paper we describe seven design components essential to the success of a long-term research collaboration between academic social scientists and staff of Billion Oyster Project (BOP), a nonprofit environmental organization whose mission is to restore oyster reefs to New York Harbor through citizen science, restoration, and public education initiatives. We describe how over an eight-year period, social science methodologies and findings were used to inform BOP’s environmental citizen science and volunteer programing and management. We argue that collaborative research is essential for the advancement of our field, and that action-driven research partnerships should become a key component of effective citizen science programs.

The aim of this study was to determine the effect of real-time videos with smart glasses on the performance of cardiopulmonary resuscitation performed by nursing students. In this randomized controlled pilot study, the students were randomly assigned to the smart glass group (n = 12) or control group (n = 8). Each student's cardiopulmonary resuscitation performance was evaluated by determining sequential steps in the American Heart Association algorithm they applied and the accuracy and time of each step. A higher number of participants correctly checked response breathing, requested a defibrillator, activated the emergency response team, and provided appropriate chest compressions and breaths in the smart glass group than the control group. There were significant differences between groups. Furthermore, more participants significantly corrected chest compression rate and depth and hand location, used a defibrillator, and sustained cardiopulmonary resuscitation until the emergency response team arrived in the smart glass group than in the control group. Additionally, a significantly shorter time was observed in the smart glass group than in the control group in all variables except time to activate the emergency response team (P < .05). Remote expert assistance with smart glass technology during cardiopulmonary resuscitation is promising. Smart glass led to a significantly better ABC (airway, breathing, circulation) approach, chest compression depth and rate, and hand position. Furthermore, remote expert assistance with smart glass has the potential to improve overall resuscitation performance because it enabled students to initiate resuscitation, use a defibrillator, and defibrillate patients earlier. Nurses may benefit from smart glass technology in real life to provide effective cardiopulmonary resuscitation.

Bats and birds are defined by their convergent evolution of flight, hypothesized to require the modular decoupling of wing and leg evolution. Although a wealth of evidence supports this interpretation in birds, there has been no systematic attempt to identify modular organization in the bat limb skeleton. Here we present a phylogenetically representative and ecologically diverse collection of limb skeletal measurements from 111 extant bat species. We compare this dataset with a compendium of 149 bird species, known to exhibit modular evolution and anatomically regionalized skeletal adaptation. We demonstrate that, in contrast to birds, morphological diversification across crown bats is associated with strong trait integration both within and between the forelimb and hindlimb. Different regions of the bat limb skeleton adapt to accommodate variation in distinct ecological activities, with flight-style variety accommodated by adaptation of the distal wing, while the thumb and hindlimb play an important role facilitating adaptive responses to variation in roosting habits. We suggest that the wing membrane enforces evolutionary integration across the bat skeleton, highlighting that the evolution of the bat thumb is less correlated with the evolution of other limb bone proportions. We propose that strong limb integration inhibits bat adaptive responses, explaining their lower rates of phenotypic evolution and relatively homogeneous evolutionary dynamics in contrast to birds. Powered flight, enabled by the membranous wing, is therefore not only a key bat innovation but their defining inhibition.

Texting has become a primary mode of communication across relationship types, particularly amongst women, despite its vulnerability to miscommunication and associated social consequences. Whereas there is a robust literature on the mechanics and the importance of constructive communication, little is known about how these findings generalize to text-based forms of communication. Using a sample of 71 Black women between the ages of 18–29, the present study examined how the content of text messages changed in response to a short mindfulness-based intervention delivered via a smartphone application. Findings revealed that these women used the intervention to modify maladaptive communication to be more constructive, as well as to enhance neutral communication. They were also less likely to send maladaptive messages after composing them and going through the intervention. In addition to emphasizing the relevance of existing communication theories to text-based communication, this study highlights the potential for the phone to be used as a vehicle for mindful communication amongst a variety of relationship types despite its potential for misuse.

The misuse of precursor chemicals by unauthorized persons is a challenge in containing domestic terrorism in Nigeria. This study examines the association between the number of government policies to contain terrorism and the number of bombing campaigns by the major terrorist groups in Nigeria. The data used for the study is categorized into three groups: (1) the presidential order’s record to counter the Boko Haram bombing campaigns: (2) the government policies to regulate the purchase and delivery of precursor chemicals: and (3) records of reported bombing campaigns by Boko Haram. A PRISMA flow chart was used to select materials for the experiment. The study concludes that there is no relationship between the number of chemical security measures and the number of bombing campaigns by terrorist groups in Nigeria (p < 0.319). The study also found that the number of government policies increases at 0.219 per year and shows a significant positive trend (r² = 0.764. p = 0.0004). However, there is no significant trend in the number of bombing campaigns (p = 0.646). Regulating access to precursor chemicals may over time reduce domestic terrorism but this is not currently reflected in the proliferation of new government policies.

Newly discovered plant behaviors, linked to historical observations, contemporary technologies, and emerging knowledge of signaling mechanisms, argue that plants utilize complex information processing systems. Plants are goal-oriented in an evolutionary and physiological sense; they demonstrate agency and learning. While most studies on plant plasticity, learning, and memory deal with the responsiveness of individual plants to resource availability and biotic stresses, adaptive information is often perceived from and coordinated with neighboring plants, while competition occurs for limited resources. Based on existing knowledge, technologies, and sustainability principles, climate-smart agricultural practices are now being adopted to enhance crop resilience and productivity. A deeper understanding of the dynamics of plant behavior offers a rich palette of potential amelioration strategies for improving the productivity and health of natural and agricultural ecosystems.

Following the 1993 terrorist attack on the World Trade Center in New York City, the New York City Police Department (NYPD) did not generally view global terrorism as a major threat to the city. The principal priority of the agency focused on crime control and the transition to proactive enforcement based on comprehensive crime analysis permitted the NYPD to commence more than two decades of impressive declines in serious and violent crime. However, on 11 September 2001, the City of New York, the United States, and the world were shocked by an overwhelming and tragic terrorist attack. Because of effective planning and preparation, the NYPD was able to quickly mobilize resources to conduct a successful evacuation of the World Trade Center towers and complex and escort millions from the island of Manhattan within hours. Within 12 hours, the NYPD had deployed uniformed police personnel to tens of thousands of pre-identified critical locations and had established a comprehensive counter-terrorism presence. At the same time, thousands of police officers and firefighters took part in rescue and recovery operations at “Ground Zero,” the heart of the terrorist attack (which lasted for more than 8 months). In order to prevent future incidents and noting that federal agencies including the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) would not share relevant information related to credible threats, the NYPD developed its own Counter-terrorism Bureau, with a self-sufficient intelligence apparatus fully capable of real-time data collection, analysis, and dissemination. These impressive strategies, among others, will be outlined in thorough detail to better understand how the NYPD has been able to deter terrorism and respond efficaciously to terrorist and other critical incidents.

The potential threats to critical infrastructure, transportation networks, and border security due to terror and transnational crime remain constant and considerable. Since the dawn of the new millennium and following the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks in the United States, the relevance of the development of a strategic approach to prevent terrorism and deter cross-border criminality has become even more obvious and crucial. These factors are complex and include a wide variety of important sectors: critical and metropolitan infrastructure; bridges and tunnels; commuter roadways; commuter transit; passenger air travel; commercial railways; commercial shipping; the trucking industry; passenger cruise lines; national railways and buses; border and airport security; transnational human and contraband smuggling; and corruption within border and customs enforcement organizations. These significant issues will be comprehensively examined from the perspective of the United States, followed by an outline of proposals to improve public safety and security across these arenas.

The police profession is impacted by many important issues and “special topics.” One of the more overwhelming challenges in law enforcement involves crisis management. Whether natural or man-made, police officials, with their first responder partners, have been tasked to ensure that they are properly prepared for large-scale events and incidents. It has been revealed within this book that responsible and thorough interagency planning will improve performance and will enhance public safety. This book has examined many of the factors associated with crisis management by incorporating comprehensive global and multi-faceted analyses into the formulation of practical policy recommendations. These proposals address not only strategic planning and tactics for improved practice in the field, but also other relevant issues that might arise during these, often tragic and overly challenging, events. Specifically, officer wellness and stress must be properly addressed and receive the attention that these important factors deserve. It is hopeful that this text has provided the insight needed for positive change, not only in theory, but in practice.

The terrorist attacks across the United States on 11 September 2001 shocked the world, and the damage and tragedy caused appeared overwhelming to the world. While almost 3000 innocent lives were lost that day and the images from that event continue to reverberate for almost three decades, it is unfortunate that most have not acknowledged that the emergency mobilization by first responders in New York City on that tragic day was considerable and highly noteworthy. While the deaths continue to be memorialized, approximately 30,000 people were effectively evacuated from the World Trade Center through the heroic actions of police officers, firefighters, emergency medical personnel, and security personnel, in a timeframe of less than 1 hour. In addition, millions of individuals were expeditiously directed off the island of Manhattan in less than 3 hours. These impressive results were the result of effective crisis planning coordinated by New York City Police Department and Fire Department of New York personnel. While there were many lessons learned, the successful tactics have been standardized to become part of the National Incident Management System (NIMS) now institutionalized across the United States.

Background In prehospital emergency care, providers face significant challenges in making informed decisions due to factors such as limited cognitive support, high-stress environments, and lack of experience with certain patient conditions. Effective Clinical Decision Support Systems (CDSS) have great potential to alleviate these challenges. However, such systems have not yet been widely adopted in real-world practice and have found to cause workflow disruptions and usability issues. Therefore, it is critical to investigate how to design CDSS that meet the needs of prehospital providers while accounting for the unique characteristics of prehospital workflows. Methods We conducted semi-structured interviews with 20 prehospital providers recruited from four emergency medical services (EMS) agencies in an urban area in the northeastern U.S. The interviews focused on the decision-making challenges faced by prehospital providers, their technological needs for decision support, and key considerations for the design and implementation of a CDSS that can seamlessly integrate into prehospital care workflows. The data were analyzed using content analysis to identify common themes. Results Our qualitative study identified several challenges in prehospital decision-making, including limited access to diagnostic tools, insufficient experience with certain critical patient conditions, and a lack of cognitive support. Participants highlighted several desired features to make CDSS more effective in the dynamic, hands-busy, and cognitively demanding prehospital context, such as automatic prompts for possible patient conditions and treatment options, alerts for critical patient safety events, AI-powered medication identification, and easy retrieval of protocols and guidelines using voice commands. Key considerations for successful CDSS adoption included prioritizing alerts to reduce alert fatigue and workflow disruptions, facilitating real-time data collection and documentation to enable decision generation, and ensuring trust and accountability while preventing over-reliance when using CDSS. Conclusion This study provides empirical insights into the challenges prehospital providers face and offers design recommendations for developing CDSS solutions that align with prehospital workflows.

This study analyzed mission statements of mainstream news media in the United States and surveyed news consumers to investigate gatekeeping practices in a contemporary news ecosystem. Data show that news organizations expressed commitment to independence, truth-telling, and crafting news based on readers’ interests. However, the mission statements never mentioned any form of citizens’ active engagement in news creation. Looking into the citizens’ perspective, a survey of 280 participants shows that they primarily expect news organizations to provide opportunities for them to post comments on news and share stories, which is the most common form of “secondary gatekeeping.” Other forms of “secondary gatekeeping,” the practice that allows users to share information others might not be able to see otherwise were less likely to occur, partly because of limitations posed by news organizations as they strive to preserve their authority over information.