Road dust serves as a significant repository of heavy metal pollutants, posing hazards to the metropolitan area and its residents. heavy metals accumulate in roadway particles via atmospheric deposition, making road pollution a source of hazardous metals in urban areas. The results for the four ecological risk assessment subgroups were as follows: Minimal Ecological Risk: ES: 20.37; 95
Consumers often take on debt at different points in time. As a result, debts may be months, if not years, apart in age. In this research, the authors ask whether and how debt age affects installment debt prepayment decisions. While the ideal strategy for prepaying older versus newer debt depends on specific account parameters (e.g., interest rate, monthly payment), in many circumstances it is financially advantageous to prioritize paying down newer debt. This is because debt amortization (i.e., repayment) schedules often result in reduced interest payments when newer installment debts are paid first. However, across eight studies, including a secondary dataset of consumer loans, the authors find that consumers prefer to prepay older debt first-even when it is financially disadvantageous to do so. The authors refer to this as a FIFO (first-in, first-out) preference and demonstrate that consumers prioritize older versus newer debt prepayment because they feel they have invested greater effort (i.e., mental or physical work and energy) to repay it. Accordingly, reducing the effort required to repay an older debt (e.g., through automated payments) or shifting consumers' focus from invested effort to remaining effort attenuates the FIFO preference. These findings offer implications for theory, managerial practice, and consumer welfare.
The goal of this study is to better understand climate change resilience and adaptation needs and capabilities of marginalised communities in the Tampa Bay region to contribute to the attainment of Sustainable Development Goal-11 (SDG-11) - sustainable cities and communities. Surveys were conducted in communities around the Tampa Bay region, focusing on three areas: food insecurity, transportation, and communication outreach, to better understand factors that affect how communities are impacted by extreme weather events and the ability to adapt. A scoping review of relevant scientific literature was conducted to identify characteristics of vulnerable communities and key influencing factors. The study found that members of marginalised communities who have fewer socioeconomic resources are less able to prepare for or recover from extreme weather events and are disproportionately impacted over time. Critical issues of climate justice and inequality are highlighted. Each aspect of these critical issues is examined within the context of the SDG-11, to promote meaningful discussions about adaptation strategies that can benefit these communities.
Advances in generative AI have enabled visual content creation through text-to-image (T2I) generation. Despite their creative potential, T2I models often replicate and amplify societal stereotypes related to gender, race, and culture. This paper introduces a theory-driven bias detection rubric and a Social Stereotype Index ( ) to systematically evaluate bias in T2I outputs. We audited three major T2I model outputs–DALL-E-3, Midjourney−6.1, and Stability AI Core with 100 queries across geocultural, occupational, and adjectival categories. Results show recurring stereotypes, including gendered professions, cultural markers, and Western beauty norms. Using our rubric, we applied prompt refinement, which reduced scores by 58
Public Performance Measurement and Management (PPMM) has traditionally emphasized efficiency, effectiveness, and economy, with equity issues often receiving less sustained engagement. This imbalance can cause performance systems to reproduce harm, particularly for multiply marginalized communities. This article advances theory and praxis for social equity and justice in public performance measurement and management (PPMM) by applying the Liberatory Public Service (LPS) framework. LPS is described as a vision, process, and practice for ending cycles of oppression and co-creating liberatory alternatives rooted in accountability toward communities impacted by structural injustices, collective healing, solidarity, and transformation. Through two illustrative cases, we first show how traditional PPMM approaches without intentional measures to foster equity, transparency, and community accountability can reproduce cycles of harm and injustices, especially toward multiply marginalized communities. We then analyze these cases from the Liberatory Public Service (LPS) lens to contemplate how PPMM approaches can be reimagined and transformed to center social equity and justice-related issues alongside efficiency, effectiveness, and economy.
