Tanya Domina

Convenience and Frequency of Recycling Implications for Including Textiles in Curbside Recycling Programs

This research investigated the effect of convenience on recycling frequency and variables that could be used as indicators in the prediction of recycling behavior as a basis for including textiles in curbside recycling programs. Results clearly indicated that access to curbside recycling significantly affected the amount and variety of materials recycled. Logistic regression results pointed to the variables of access, shopping behaviors, age, family size, and income as significant predictors of recycling activity, regardless of how recycling activity was defined. Despite reduced access to textile recycling opportunities, textile recycling overall was still high. The authors concluded that households with high recycling activity could be identified and targeted for extending curbside recycling programs to include textiles. To continue to reduce the amount of solid waste that is diverted to landfills, curbside recycling programs must be extended to include a greater diversity of postconsumer waste products such as textiles and apparel.

Consumer Textile Recycling as a Means of Solid Waste Reduction

Consumer recycling of traditional commodities such as glass, paper, plastic, and tin is well established in many communities. However, to continue to reduce the amount of solid waste that is annually diverted to landfills, recycling must be extended to include a greater diversity of postconsumer waste products. This exploratory study examines consumer practices regarding the disposal of postconsumer textile waste. Responses to a mailed questionnaire indicated use of a variety of textile disposal methods. The most commonly used methods of textile disposition were Salvation Army, passing on to family and friends, and using as rags. Furthermore, convenience and familiarity with the disposal method influenced which methods were chosen for textile recycling. Findings lend support to the idea that textiles can become a viable commodity for recycling as ease and opportunity for textile recycling increase.

The Textile Waste Lifecycle

With growing attention to environmental responsibility towards solid waste management, the textile and apparel industry has expanded its efforts to reduce disposal of post-producer textile waste in landfills. At the same time, finding alternative methods for the disposal of post-consumer textile waste is assuming greater importance. This exploratory research presents a model of the textile waste lifecycle. The model is intended to better explain events associated with the production and disposal of post-producer and post-consumer textile waste. Furthermore, the textile waste lifecycle model reflects the growing interdependence between the consumer and the textile and apparel industry in the disposal of textile waste in an environmentally responsible manner. The model may also encourage dialogue among textile and clothing professionals to stimulate the kinds of proaction necessary to further reduce textile disposal in landfills and to generate new or expanded recycling options. Suggestions for further research are provided.

Initial validation of point cloud data from a 3D body scanner

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to validate the accuracy of point cloud data generated from a 3D body scanner.Design/methodology/approach – A female dress form was scanned with an X‐ray computed tomography (CT) system and a 3D body scanning system. The point cloud data from four axial slices of the body scan (BS) data were compared with the corresponding axial slices from the CT data. Length and cross‐sectional area measurements of each slice were computed for each scanning technique.Findings – The point cloud data from the body scanner were accurate to at least 2.0 percent when compared with the CT data. In many cases, the length and area measurements from the two types of scans varied by less than 1.0 percent.Research limitations/implications – Only two length measurements and a cross‐sectional area measurement were compared for each axial slice, resulting in a good first attempt of validation of the BS data. Additional methods of comparison should be employed for complete validation of the data....

Examination of body image issues and willingness to be body scanned.

ABSTRACT This project examined body image issues using 3D body scanning technology. Twenty years of research on body image indicates that though thinness is culturally desirable, possessing an ideal body does not guarantee that women will be satisfied with their bodies. Furthermore, the disconnect continues to widen between the reality of a heavier American woman and the thinner western feminine ideal necessitating the continued need for body image research. This study included 240 female college students enrolled in a mid-sized university. Phase I included a questionnaire of several different measures of body image satisfaction/dissatisfaction, a description of the body scanner including a 3D image, as well as standard demographic questions and estimates of height and weight. Of the initial 240 participants, 85 women agreed to participate in the body scanning portion (Phase II) of the research project. A majority of the women chose an ideal figure thinner than their current figure. Self-esteem scores were significantly correlated with Eating Attitudes Test (EAT) scores. Neither level of body dissatisfaction nor self-esteem scores were significantly associated with willingness to be body scanned, despite the fact that body scanning involves significant body exposure and that the resulting 3D image is highly realistic. Due to the novelty of body scanning technology and its application to body image research, these findings represent an innovative contribution to the field.

Knit-in 3D mapping's effect on thermoregulation: preliminary results

This study explored knit-in 3D mappings influence on thermal comfort under different environmental conditions when in next-to-skin (NTS) garments. It was hypothesised that the knit-in raised geometric shapes would modify the microclimate in the torso region, allowing for better thermal management and keeping the wearer more comfortable than an identical NTS shirt without mapping. Thermal images were taken of the front and back torso regions of the NTS garments worn in wearer trials while exercising under hot and cold conditions. The data suggested that an NTS shirt with no mapping tended to regulate skin temperatures better under hot conditions, while an NTS shirt with knit-in mapping regulated skin temperatures better in cold environments. Skin and exterior garment temperature changes indicated that an NTS shirt with knit-in mapping retained more heat inside the garment, providing better insulative performance under cold conditions.

Thermal Manikin Evaluation of Gender Sweat Differences While Wearing a Ballistic Vest

The purpose of this research was to determine if gender-related thermoregulatory differences impacted relative humidity levels in the microclimate while wearing a unisex ballistic vest. Data was collected using a sweating thermal manikin customized to simulate high-intensity sweat rates. Sensors were used to collect microclimate data between the uniform layers. The male and female thermal manikin exhibited no significant differences in microclimate data in the layers of the back of the uniform while wearing the ballistic vest. There was a significant statistical difference between the male and female manikin for the frontal region with women exhibiting lower RH values. Without the ballistic vest, the female manikin exhibited significantly lower RH values in the microclimate region, both front and back. There were no significant differences in RH values for the male thermal manikin with versus without the ballistic vest.

Use of 3-dimensional body scans for body-image research.

This preliminary study explored the use of highly realistic 3-dimensional body-scan images as a potential tool, taking advantage of a much more specific and expanded representation of the entire body. Traditionally, body-image research makes use of various contour drawing scales whose 2-dimensional figures increase proportionately and do not match the shape of many women. The study tested whether body-scanned images (N = 85) could be consistently “matched” to individual figures on a contour drawing scale. Internal consistency and interrater reliability were calculated and high coefficients were observed (α =.97, κ =.80). The potential of utilizing 3-dimensional images either as more realistic somatotypes in contour-rating scales or as a measurement of body-image satisfaction using computer manipulation of a digital image is discussed.

Older Women's Comfort with 3-D Body Scanning Technology as Compared with Younger Women

This study examined older womens comfort with 3-D body scanning and explored its use for enhancing quality of life. Women (66 old; 66 young) were scanned and surveyed pre- and post-imaging. Comfort with the process and viewing the images were ascertained. Few differences between the groups emerged. Higher Body Mass Indices were related to greater body dissatisfaction, but age was not a factor. Implications for body scanning having the potential to improve quality of life for older women are presented.

Probability of Being Employed Part-Time in Retail Sales

Since 1980 the percentage of the workforce engaged in part-time employment has increased, attributed to increase in service and retail industries and changing attitudes and lifestyles of workers. The purpose of the present study was to determine characteristics associated with choosing part-time employment in retail sales occupations. The data set was the 1985 Current Population Survey, refined to limit the sample to 849 persons currently employed in retail sales occupations (U.S. Department of Commerce, 1985), 82% who worked in soft goods and 18% in hard goods. Logit regressions tested models of characteristics such as gender, race, presence of children, and potential wage rates as to significance in increasing the probability of choosing part-time employment. Gender was an important predictor of work choice, with women more likely to work part-time than men. Women were more likely to work part-time if they were white, married, had children and lived further from the central city.