Selecting Pesticides and Nonchemical Alternatives: Green Thumbs' Rules of Thumb Decision Tools

This study of a sample of home gardeners indicates that rules of thumb, or heuristics, are used to select between chemical pesticides and nonchemical alternatives. Such rules of thumb serve to simplify otherwise complicated choice decisions. Heuristics commonly used to choose pesticides include how safe, effective, efficacious, and economical they are, whereas for alternative products consumers more often take into account convenience, efficiency, competency, and handiness. Generally, in an overall ranking of 24 individual choice attributes, pesticies rank low on these attributes where alternatives rank high and vice versa. Gender, age, and years using pesticides are significantly correlated with pesticide selection.     

An approach to evaluate the acute impacts from simulated accidental releases of chlorine and ammonia

The manner in which specific chemicals are used is studied in order to identify plausible release scenarios and the probability of their occurrence.     

Middle-School Children's Sources and Uses of Money

Despite their growing economic power, children's acquisition and use of money rarely has been investigated in academic research, although it has been a frequent topic in the media. This study (1) describes sources and uses of money children (age 10–15) receive; and (2) investigates the association of children's uses of money with their age, gender, family structure, and sources of money. The sources of money are associated with children's uses of it, but age, gender, and family situation do not relate to the way they use money. Consumer education should focus on the sources of children's money in relation to the way they use it.     

Experience with a simulator for training ammonia plant operators

A computer-based simulator was used for training operators prior to the start-up of a new fertilizer complex which includes a 1,350-MTPD ammonia plant, two 1,100-MTPD urea plants, and a steam and power generation plant with two 18-MW gas turbines. The simulator offered many benefits, which can be used for continued education of operators and engineering studies.