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Audible pedestrian signals are strategically placed in some intersections to enhance safety, independence and accessibility for blind or visually impaired persons. This study appraised the sense and level of safety of blind or visually impaired persons with respect to three types of pedestrian phasing with audible pedestrian signals configurations that exist in Quebec City, Canada. These include: 1) exclusive phasing with non-directional audible pedestrian signals; 2) exclusive phasing with directional audible pedestrian signals; and 3) concurrent phasing with directional audible pedestrian signals.

Purpose:Strategies for facilitating safe and functional bottle feeding in children with dysphagia include selecting nipples that reduce flow rate, pacing, altered positioning, and thickening liquid consistencies. We aimed to determine the impact of slightly thick liquids on swallowing through retrospective review of a convenience sample of clinical videofluoroscopic swallowing studies (VFSS) from 60 bottle-fed children (21 boys and 39 girls, mean age of 9.9 months) referred due to suspected aspiration.Method:Eligible VFSS exams were those in which the child swallowed both thin and slightly thick barium (40% w/v Varibar barium) using the same nipple. VFSS sequences (i.e., uninterrupted portions of the VFSS recording) were randomly assigned in duplicate for rating by trained raters; discrepancies were resolved by consensus. Parameters measured included number of swallows/sequence, sucks/swallow, swallow and sequence duration, number and timing of penetration or aspiration events, laryngeal vestibule closure integrity, and pharyngeal residue. Chi-square tests, linear mixed-model analyses of variance, and Wilcoxon signed-ranks tests identified consistency effects.Results:There were no aspiration events in these recordings. Slightly thick liquids resulted in significantly fewer penetration events (p< .05), increased sucks/swallow, fewer swallows/sequence, and longer swallow and sequence durations. The number of children with ≥ 1 sequence showing pyriform sinus residue was significantly higher with slightly thick liquids.Conclusions:Slightly thick liquids can be effective in reducing penetration in bottle-fed children with dysphagia. However, slightly thick liquids may also lead to a safety–efficiency trade-off, with increased risk of pyriform sinus residue. Thickening for children with dysphagia should be considered only when other approaches are not effective. Overthickening should be avoided to limit negative impact on swallowing efficiency.

A claim often impacts not one but multiple insurance coverages provided in the contract. To account for this multivariate feature, we propose a new individual claim reserving model built around the activation of the different coverages to predict the reserve amounts. Using the framework of multinomial logistic regression, we model the activation of the different insurance coverages for each claim and their development in the following years, i.e., the activation of other coverages in the later years and all the possible payments that might result from them. As such, the model allows us to complete the individual development of the open claims in the portfolio. Using a recent automobile dataset from a major Canadian insurance company, we demonstrate that this approach generates accurate predictions of the total reserves and the reserves per insurance coverage. This analysis allows the insurer to get new insights into the dynamics of his claims reserves.

This paper focuses on the identification of commensurate fractional order systems from binary measurements on the output. The proposed algorithm allows the estimation of both the parameters of the model and the commensurate order. The algorithm is based on a specific design of the output signal as a sum of sinusoids. It allows the parametrization of the output signal on a basis of sinusoids and the estimation of the high resolution output. Numerical simulation results are provided to show the efficiency of the method.

It has been shown several times in the literature that telematics data collected in motor insurance help to better understand an insured’s driving risk. Insurers who use these data reap several benefits, such as a better estimate of the pure premium, more segmented pricing, and less adverse selection. The flip side of the coin is that collected telematics information is often sensitive and can therefore compromise policyholders’ privacy. Moreover, due to their large volume, this type of data is costly to store and hard to manipulate. These factors, combined with the fact that insurance regulators tend to issue more and more recommendations regarding the collection and use of telematics data, make it important for an insurer to determine the right amount of telematics information to collect. In addition to traditional contract information such as the age and gender of the insured, we have access to a telematics dataset where information is summarized by trip. We first derive several features of interest from these trip summaries before building a claim classification model using both traditional and telematics features. By comparing a few classification algorithms, we find that logistic regression with lasso penalty is the most suitable for our problem. Using this model, we develop a method to determine how much information about policyholders’ driving should be kept by an insurer. Using real data from a North American insurance company, we find that telematics data become redundant after about 3 months or 4000 km of observation, at least from a claim classification perspective.

AbstractUnited States veteran suicide rates have increased over the past two decades. Designations of service-connected disabilities (designations tied to injury during military service) are also increasing, especially those associated with mental health disorders. However, recent research around disability and suicide in veterans is mixed, and no research has been completed on the association between disability and mental health service utilization. The current study hoped to fill these gaps in the literature with a secondary data analysis of a sample of 36,048 Veterans Healthcare Administration (VHA) veterans. Mental health disorders and demographics were controlled for in a logistic regression model predicting suicide attempt status by the intersection of service-connected disability and mental health care utilization. Mental health service visits moderated the positive relationship between service-connected disability designations and suicide attempts; those who utilized services were less likely to attempt suicide, especially those at higher service-connected disability designations with mental health disorders. The results suggest individuals who have disability designations that also seek help are less likely to make a suicide attempt. The study was limited by scope of the sample (only VHA veterans with service connected disabilities). Results have implications for preventative interventions in the VHA/Veterans Benefits Administration.