The changing world of modern cell biology.

Science.gov (United States)

Misteli, Tom

2009-01-12

Change is always ambiguous. There is the enticing prospect of novelty and better times ahead, but at the same time the concern of losing the good of the past. It is with these sentiments that I take over as the Editor-in-Chief from Ira Mellman who for a decade has cleverly and effectively lead the JCB. During this time he directed and oversaw an extensive modernization of the journal and guided it through dramatic changes in the publishing world. Ira lead the journal with unyielding dedication and enthusiasm and we in the cell biology community must thank him profoundly for his service. It is his work, together with the invaluable contribution of the best editorial board and the most dedicated professional editorial staff in the scientific publishing business, that allows me to now take over the stewardship of the JCB with a tremendous sense of excitement and determination to continue and expand the JCB's role as the leading journal in the cell biology community and as a trendsetter in the rapidly changing world of modern cell biology.

The world is changing – our mindsets must change with it

OpenAIRE

Chan, D.

2011-01-01

The rise in the amount of data we are generating and storing has been meteoric of late. But while the world of data is developing rapidly, the ways that we manage it are not keeping pace. Our paradigms need to change.

Ageing populations and changing worlds of work.

Science.gov (United States)

Beach, Brian

2014-08-01

Population ageing has reshaped the notion of retirement. The changes carry important implications for aspirations to extend working life. Cultural expectations regarding work and retirement must adapt to the reality posed by longer lives. The modern world is characterised by perpetual - and sometime rapid - change. Transformation throughout the second half of the 20th century brought about substantial shifts in the health and longevity of people in societies across the world. Since the beginning of the 21st century, the impacts of population ageing have gathered greater awareness in public consciousness and within the policy arena. Notions of old age, retirement, and later life have been fundamentally transformed, presenting stark challenges alongside novel opportunities for individuals, communities, and governments. Many of the topics of interest with respect to ageing populations are themselves the result of shifts that were unforeseen. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Critical Education for Systemic Change: A World-Systems Analysis Perspective

Science.gov (United States)

Griffiths, Tom G.

2015-01-01

This paper both draws on, and seeks to apply, world-systems analysis to a broad, critical education project that builds mass schooling's potential contribution to the process of world-systemic change. In short, this is done by first setting out the world-systems analysis account of the current state, and period of transition, of the capitalist…

Dawn of the electronic age electrical technologies in the shaping of the modern world 1914 to 1945

CERN Document Server

Nebeker, Frederik

2009-01-01

Much of the infrastructure of today's industrialized world arose in the period from the outbreak of World War I to the conclusion of World War II. It was during these years that the capabilities of traditional electrical engineering became ubiquitous. Even more importantly, it was during this time that a new type of electrical engineering--electronics--emerged. Because of its applications in communications, entertainment, industry, science and medicine, and the military, the electronics industry became a major part of the economy. Dawn of the Electronic Age explores how this engineering knowledge and its main applications developed in various scientific, economic, and social contexts, and explains how each was profoundly affected by electrical technologies. It takes an international perspective and a narrative approach, unfolding the story chronologically. --from publisher description.

Energy policy in a changing world

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Priddle, R.

1997-01-01

The outlook of world energy markets was described with a focus on the prospects for oil and gas supply and reserves. Implications of this outlook for energy policy-making were discussed. The three major projections of world primary energy demand were described. According to these projections world primary energy demand will grow steadily. Demand is expected to rise 46 per cent between now and 2010. Fossil-based fuels will account for almost 90 per cent of total primary energy demand in 2010 which is about the same share as today. A structural shift in the shares of different regions in world commercial energy demand is likely to occur, i.e. the OECD share of world energy demand will fall in favour of that of the developing regions. It was also projected that oil will remain the dominant fuel with a share of about 40 per cent in 2010. World gas demand was also projected to grow at an average annual rate of 3 per cent over the outlook period. The rising fossil fuel consumption implies rising greenhouse gas emissions. It was noted that by 2010, without active policy intervention to change the course of energy demand, the world energy-related carbon emissions could be almost 50 per cent greater than 1990 levels. It was suggested that the main role for governments should be to establish a framework to enable competitive energy markets to function efficiently while ensuring that energy security and environmental concerns are addressed. Emergency response measures should be maintained in relation to oil, and the implications of growing dependence on imports of oil and gas from remote and potentially insecure countries should be monitored. The role of government should also include regulation of the environmental consequences of energy supply and use at the local, regional and global level. Government should also regulate the natural monopoly elements of the grid-based industries. There is also a role for government in continuing to encourage research and development

The next waves: migration theory for a changing world.

Science.gov (United States)

Zolberg, A R

1989-01-01

In the last quarter of a century, migration theory has undergone fundamental change, moving from the classic "individual relocation" genre initiated by Ravenstein a century ago, to a variety of new approaches which nevertheless share important elements: they tend to be historical, structural, globalist, and critical. Historicization implies a constant modification of theoretical concerns and emphases in the light of changing social realities, and a commitment to a critical approach entails a view of research as 1 element in a broader project concerned with the elucidation of social and political conditions. The article uses elements from 2 major theoretical traditions - a modified world-systems approach and state theory - to project current trends. Global inequality is considered as a structural given. The article then reviews major topics, including the persistence of restrictive immigration policies as barriers to movement, changing patterns of exploitation of foreign labor, liberalization of exit from the socialist world, and the refugee crisis in the developing world. It concludes with a brief consideration of the normative implications of these trends.

Electronic Publishing in Science: Changes and Risks.

Science.gov (United States)

Kinne, Otto

1999-01-01

Discussion of the Internet and the guidance of the World Wide Web Consortium focuses on scientific communication and electronic publishing. Considers the speed of communicating and disseminating information; quality issues; cost; library subscriptions; publishers; and risks and concerns, including the role of editors and reviewers or referees.…

Networks of European cities in worlds of global economic and environmental change

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ben Derudder

2010-11-01

Full Text Available Geographers use a variety of economic, social, and demographic data to measure the importance of global cities and the linkages between cities. We analyze the importance and connectedness of European cities using hyperlinks, or the electronic information provided by the Google Search engine. Hyperlinks are Web sites representing information that is produced; they are especially useful in measuring the impact of contemporary crises. We use the phrases economic slowdown and global financial crisis to derive a Global Financial Score (GFS for 16 core, semiperiphery and peripheral European cities and global warming and climate change to derive a Global Environmental Score (GES. London and Paris are in the European core; Rome, Dublin, Madrid and Prague are in the semiperiphery; while Tallinn, Riga, and Belgrade are in the periphery. A strong positive relationship exists between the GES and GFS. We examine the linkages of the 16 cities to the 100 largest world cities and illustrate, with “clockgrams,” the linkages London, Brussels and Athens have with other world cities. We calculated the number of linkages each of the 16 cities had with other world cities to identify Europe’s urban cores, semiperipheries, peripheries, and deep peripheries. New York is in the core of both the economic and environmental maps. Some world cities are in the semiperiphery of one category and periphery of another. Milan, Istanbul, and Delhi are in the deep periphery for the GFS while Toronto and Athens are for the GES. Hyperlinks represent valuable databases to measure the impact of crises and regional and global urban linkages.

New trends in accident prevention due to the changing world of work

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Beeck, R. op de; Heuverswyn, K. van; Lemkowitz, S.; Saari, J.; Sundström-Frisk, C.; Zwetsloot, G.

2002-01-01

Changes in the world of work can give rise to new risk areas or they can change the way that occupational safety and health needs to be managed. This has implications for workplaces themselves and also for the occupational safety and health system. For this reason the 'changing world of work' has

Want to Change the World? Here's How

Science.gov (United States)

Mangan, Katherine

2009-01-01

About 1,000 students from 50 states and 60 countries attended the second annual Clinton Global Initiative University. The project, an outgrowth of the Clinton Global Initiative for world leaders, challenges participants to take "good intentions and turn them into measurable changes in other people's lives" by submitting detailed…

Terrestrial ecosystems in a changing world

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Canadell, J.G. [CSIRO Marine and Atmospheric Research, Canberra, ACT (Australia). Global Carbon Project; Pataki, D.E. [California Univ., Irvine, CA (United States). Dept. of Earth System Science]|[California Univ., Irvine, CA (United States). Dept. of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology; Pitelka, L.F. (eds.) [Maryland Univ., Frostburg, MD (United States). Appalachian Lab.

2007-07-01

Over 100 authors present 25 contributions on the impacts of global change on terrestrial ecosystems including: * key processes of the earth system such as the CO2 fertilization effect, shifts in disturbances and biome distribution, the saturation of the terrestrial carbon sink, and changes in functional biodiversity, * ecosystem services such the production of wheat, pest control, and carbon storage in croplands, and * sensitive regions in the world threaten by rapid changes in climate and land use such as high latitudes ecosystems, tropical forest in Southeast Asia, and ecosystems dominated by Monsoon climate. The book also explores new research developments on spatial thresholds and nonlinearities, the key role of urban development in global biogeochemical processes, and the integration of natural and social sciences to address complex problems of the human-environment system. (orig.)

Perceptions of a Changing World Induce Hope and Promote Peace in Intractable Conflicts

Science.gov (United States)

Cohen-Chen, Smadar; Crisp, Richard J.; Halperin, Eran

2015-01-01

The importance of hope in promoting conciliatory attitudes has been asserted in the field of conflict resolution. However, little is known about conditions inducing hope, especially in intractable conflicts, where reference to the outgroup may backfire. In the current research, five studies yielded convergent support for the hypothesis that hope for peace stems from a general perception of the world as changing. In Study 1, coders observed associations between belief in a changing world, hope regarding peace, and support for concessions. Study 2 revealed the hypothesized relations using self-reported measures. Studies 3 and 4 established causality by instilling a perception of the world as changing (vs. unchanging) using narrative and drawing manipulations. Study 5 compared the changing world message with a control condition during conflict escalation. Across studies, although the specific context was not referred to, the belief in a changing world increased support for concessions through hope for peace. PMID:25713171

Perceptions of a changing world induce hope and promote peace in intractable conflicts.

Science.gov (United States)

Cohen-Chen, Smadar; Crisp, Richard J; Halperin, Eran

2015-04-01

The importance of hope in promoting conciliatory attitudes has been asserted in the field of conflict resolution. However, little is known about conditions inducing hope, especially in intractable conflicts, where reference to the outgroup may backfire. In the current research, five studies yielded convergent support for the hypothesis that hope for peace stems from a general perception of the world as changing. In Study 1, coders observed associations between belief in a changing world, hope regarding peace, and support for concessions. Study 2 revealed the hypothesized relations using self-reported measures. Studies 3 and 4 established causality by instilling a perception of the world as changing (vs. unchanging) using narrative and drawing manipulations. Study 5 compared the changing world message with a control condition during conflict escalation. Across studies, although the specific context was not referred to, the belief in a changing world increased support for concessions through hope for peace. © 2015 by the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, Inc.

Software project management in a changing world

CERN Document Server

Ruhe, Günther

2014-01-01

By bringing together various current direc­tions, Software Project Management in a Changing World focuses on how people and organizations can make their processes more change-adaptive. The selected chapters closely correspond to the project management knowledge areas introduced by the Project Management Body of Knowledge, including its extension for managing software projects. The contributions are grouped into four parts, preceded by a general introduction. Part I "Fundamentals" provides in-depth insights into fundamental topics including resource allocation, cost estimation and risk manage

Detecting aroma changes of local flavored green tea (Camellia sinensis) using electronic nose

Science.gov (United States)

Ralisnawati, D.; Sukartiko, A. C.; Suryandono, A.; Triyana, K.

2018-03-01

Indonesia is currently the sixth largest tea producer in the world. However, consumption of the product in the country was considered low. Besides tea, the country also has various local flavor ingredients that are potential to be developed. The addition of local flavored ingredients such as ginger, lemon grass, and lime leaves on green tea products is gaining acceptance from consumers and producers. The aroma of local flavored green tea was suspected to changes during storage, while its sensory testing has some limitations. Therefore, the study aimed to detect aroma changes of local flavors added in green tea using electronic nose (e-nose), an instrument developed to mimic the function of the human nose. The test was performed on a four-gram sample. The data was collected with 120 seconds of sensing time and 60 seconds of blowing time. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) was used to find out the aroma changes of local flavored green tea during storage. We observed that electronic nose could detect aroma changes of ginger flavored green tea from day 0 to day 6 with variance percentage 99.6%. Variance proportion of aroma changes of lemon grass flavored green tea from day 0 to day 6 was 99.3%. Variance proportion of aroma changes of lime leaves flavored green tea from day 0 to day 6 was 99.4%.

ELT in a changing world innovative approaches to new challenges

CERN Document Server

Ahmed, Azra; Saleem, Faiza; Cane, Graeme

2013-01-01

A novel ELT resource for language specialists and teachers across the world, this selection of papers is a collection of the most compelling and innovative ideas presented at a seminar hosted by the Centre of English Language, Aga Khan University, Pakistan, in January 2011, entitled 'ELT in a Changing World: Innovative Approaches to New Challenges'.The book is divided into three sections, the first of which is 'Global change and language learning'. This section offers a guided tour of language teaching evolution, highlighting the merits of enhanced language awareness, self-immersive and input/

The First World Congress on the Management of Electronic Commerce: Review and Commentary.

Science.gov (United States)

Bontis, Nick; De Castro, Akemi

2000-01-01

Summarizes some key findings of academic papers presented at the First World Congress on the Management of Electronic Commerce (January, 2000, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada). Outlines two meta-management issues that surfaced: taking a strategic approach to Internet ventures and considering infrastructure design during implementation. Highlights…

Structural changes induced by electron irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Koike, J.; Pedraza, D.F.

1993-01-01

Highly oriented pyrolytic graphite was irradiated at room temperature with 300 kV electrons. Transmission electron microscopy and electron energy loss spectroscopy were employed to study the structural changes produced by irradiation. The occurrence of a continuous ring intensity in the selected area diffraction (SAD) pattern obtained on a specimen irradiated with the electron beam parallel to the c-crystallographic axis indicated that microstructural changes had occurred. However, from the SAD pattern obtained for the specimens tilted relative to the irradiation direction, it was found that up to a fluence of 1.1x10 27 e/m 2 graphite remained crystalline. An SAD pattern of a specimen irradiated with the electron beam perpendicular to the c-axis confirmed the persistence of crystalline order. High resolution electron microscopy showed that ordering along the c-axis direction remained. A density reduction of 8.9% due to irradiation was determined from the plasmon frequency shift. A qualitative model is proposed to explain these observations. A new determination of the threshold displacement energy, Ed, of carbon atoms in graphite was done by examining the appearance of a continuous ring in the SAD pattern at various electron energies. A value of 30 eV was obtained whether the incident electron beam was parallel or perpendicular to the c-axis, demonstrating that Ed is independent of the displacement direction

20 Engineering Technologies Which Changed The World

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, In Sik; Shin, Dong Won; Mun, Jung Yang and others

2004-07-01

This book deals with 20 engineering technologies which changed the world, these are about a, compass, papermaking, a lens, gunpowder, machine watch, printing technique, vaccine, a suspension bridge, a railroad, a loom, photograph, petroleum, automobile, electricity, wireless communications, synthetic medicine, a jet engine and a rocket, nuclear bombs, ENIAC, and polymerase chain reaction method. Each skill is introduced with history and the detailed reports by other persons.

Using EB-QFD to achieve competitive advantages for world class manufacturing

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rahman Mostofi

2012-10-01

Full Text Available This paper introduces a tool named EB-QFD used for electronic business planning in strategic issues. Nowadays, the challenges of manufacturing sectors for achieving global competition will depend on their speed to change from domestic to world class manufacturing organizations, also the rapid global deployment of electronic business, information technology and their benefits have required managers to make decision, which look for a balance world class manufacturing factors with strategic business goals. To ensure that selected e-business strategies meet world class manufacturing requirements, organizations should simultaneously explore and communicate the relationship between world class manufacturing and electronic business. Electronic business planners can achieve competitive advantages through the implementation of an integration of quality function deployment (QFD with electronic business (EB called EB-QFD. This study is based on data collected from an Iranian auto parts manufacturing company and the implementation of EB-QFD. In this research, EB-QFD contains two parts named EB-WHATs as needs of Electronic Business and EB-HOWs as resources for EB-WHATs. Statistical analysis points that there are positive relationships between using EB-WHATs and EB-HOW and world class manufacturing factors as competitive advantages. We used electronic business systems for EB-WHATs and resource based view (RBV for EB-HOWs.

Electronic banking

OpenAIRE

Gradišnik, Monika

2017-01-01

The development of information and communication technology is one of the most important reasons for the incredibly fast changes in business. Electronic commerce is spreading unstoppably in the operations of companies. The creation of new models, such as online banking, online shopping and the like, has sped up the development of the World Wide Web. Owing to the rapid progress of the World Wide Web and technologies for secure business operations, we can barely imagine life today without e...

Management of the camera electronics programme for the World Space Observatory ultraviolet WUVS instrument

Science.gov (United States)

Patel, Gayatri; Clapp, Matthew; Salter, Mike; Waltham, Nick; Beardsley, Sarah

2016-08-01

World Space Observatory Ultraviolet (WSO-UV) is a major international collaboration led by Russia and will study the universe at ultraviolet wavelengths between 115 nm and 320 nm. The WSO Ultraviolet Spectrograph (WUVS) subsystem is led by a consortium of Russian institutes and consists of three spectrographs. RAL Space is contracted by e2v technologies Ltd to provide the CCD readout electronics for each of the three WUVS channels. The programme involves the design, manufacturing, assembly and testing of each Camera Electronics Box (CEB), its associated Interconnection Module (ICM), Electrical Ground Support Equipment (EGSE) and harness. An overview of the programme will be presented, from the initial design phase culminating in the development of an Engineering Model (EM) through qualification whereby an Engineering Qualification Model (EQM) will undergo environmental testing to characterize the performance of the CEB against the space environment, to the delivery of the Flight Models (FMs). The paper will discuss the challenges faced managing a large, dynamic project. This includes managing significant changes in fundamental requirements mid-programme as a result of external political issues which forced a complete re-design of an existing CEB with extensive space heritage but containing many ITAR controlled electronic components to a new, more efficient solution, free of ITAR controlled parts. The methodology and processes used to ensure the demanding schedule is maintained through each stage of the project will be presented including an insight into planning, decision-making, communication, risk management, and resource management; all essential to the continued success of the programme.

Real change in the real world: an achievable goal.

Science.gov (United States)

Friedman, Robert M

2010-03-01

This commentary builds on the papers presented at the Vanderbilt Conference by emphasizing the importance of better understanding the process of change-making if real change in the real world is to be achieved. The commentary reviews several frameworks and research findings related to achieving large-scale sustainable change that benefits children and families. It calls for the application of systems thinking as a complement to the more micro-level research that was presented at the Vanderbilt conference. Such an approach would have implications for framing of the issue, for the strategies that are taken to try to achieve change, and for research/evaluation methods for studying complex, dynamic, nonlinear systems.

Forest health in a changing world.

Science.gov (United States)

Pautasso, Marco; Schlegel, Markus; Holdenrieder, Ottmar

2015-05-01

Forest pathology, the science of forest health and tree diseases, is operating in a rapidly developing environment. Most importantly, global trade and climate change are increasing the threat to forest ecosystems posed by new diseases. Various studies relevant to forest pathology in a changing world are accumulating, thus making it necessary to provide an update of recent literature. In this contribution, we summarize research at the interface between forest pathology and landscape ecology, biogeography, global change science and research on tree endophytes. Regional outbreaks of tree diseases are requiring interdisciplinary collaboration, e.g. between forest pathologists and landscape ecologists. When tree pathogens are widely distributed, the factors determining their broad-scale distribution can be studied using a biogeographic approach. Global change, the combination of climate and land use change, increased pollution, trade and urbanization, as well as invasive species, will influence the effects of forest disturbances such as wildfires, droughts, storms, diseases and insect outbreaks, thus affecting the health and resilience of forest ecosystems worldwide. Tree endophytes can contribute to biological control of infectious diseases, enhance tolerance to environmental stress or behave as opportunistic weak pathogens potentially competing with more harmful ones. New molecular techniques are available for studying the complete tree endobiome under the influence of global change stressors from the landscape to the intercontinental level. Given that exotic tree diseases have both ecologic and economic consequences, we call for increased interdisciplinary collaboration in the coming decades between forest pathologists and researchers studying endophytes with tree geneticists, evolutionary and landscape ecologists, biogeographers, conservation biologists and global change scientists and outline interdisciplinary research gaps.

A Small State Maneuvering in the Changing World Order

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sørensen, Camilla T. N.

2016-01-01

, especially the Danish approach to the BRICs, has developed in recent years, I show how Denmark – a small state – is trying to maneuver in the changing world order through a “creative agency” approach characterized by pragmatic low-profile activism. I develop a neoclassical realist framework and use...

Electron-beam-irradiation-induced crystallization of amorphous solid phase change materials

Science.gov (United States)

Zhou, Dong; Wu, Liangcai; Wen, Lin; Ma, Liya; Zhang, Xingyao; Li, Yudong; Guo, Qi; Song, Zhitang

2018-04-01

The electron-beam-irradiation-induced crystallization of phase change materials in a nano sized area was studied by in situ transmission electron microscopy and selected area electron diffraction. Amorphous phase change materials changed to a polycrystalline state after being irradiated with a 200 kV electron beam for a long time. The results indicate that the crystallization temperature strongly depends on the difference in the heteronuclear bond enthalpy of the phase change materials. The selected area electron diffraction patterns reveal that Ge2Sb2Te5 is a nucleation-dominated material, when Si2Sb2Te3 and Ti0.5Sb2Te3 are growth-dominated materials.

Detecting changes in real-world objects: The relationship between visual long-term memory and change blindness.

Science.gov (United States)

Brady, Timothy F; Konkle, Talia; Oliva, Aude; Alvarez, George A

2009-01-01

A large body of literature has shown that observers often fail to notice significant changes in visual scenes, even when these changes happen right in front of their eyes. For instance, people often fail to notice if their conversation partner is switched to another person, or if large background objects suddenly disappear.1,2 These 'change blindness' studies have led to the inference that the amount of information we remember about each item in a visual scene may be quite low.1 However, in recent work we have demonstrated that long-term memory is capable of storing a massive number of visual objects with significant detail about each item.3 In the present paper we attempt to reconcile these findings by demonstrating that observers do not experience 'change blindness' with the real world objects used in our previous experiment if they are given sufficient time to encode each item. The results reported here suggest that one of the major causes of change blindness for real-world objects is a lack of encoding time or attention to each object (see also refs. 4 and 5).

The changing world of climate change: Oregon leads the states

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Carver, P.H.; Sadler, S.; Kosloff, L.H.; Trexler, M.C.

1997-01-01

Following on the heels of recent national and international developments in climate change policy, Oregon's open-quote best-of-batch close-quote proceeding has validated the use of CO 2 offsets as a cost-effective means of advancing climate change mitigation goals. The proceeding was a first in several respects and represents a record commitment of funds to CO 2 mitigation by a private entity. In December 1995, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), issued its Second Assessment Report. The IPCC's conclusion that open-quotes[t]he balance of evidence suggests a discernible human influence on global climateclose quotes fundamentally changed the tenor of the policy debate regarding potential threats associated with global climate change. At the Climate Change Convention's Conference of the Parties (COP) in Geneva in July 1996, most countries, including the United States, advocated adopting the IPCC report as the basis for swift policy movement toward binding international emissions targets. The next COP, in December 1997, is scheduled to be the venue for the signing of a treaty protocol incorporating such targets. Binding targets would have major consequences for power plant operators in the US and around the world. Recent developments in the state of Oregon show the kinds of measures that may become commonplace at the state level in addressing climate change mitigation. First, Oregon recently completed the first administrative proceeding in the US aimed at offsetting the greenhouse gas emissions of a new power plant. Second, a legislatively mandated energy facility siting task force recently recommended that Oregon adopt a carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) standard for new power plant construction and drop use of the open-quotes need for powerclose quotes standard. This article reviews these two policy milestones and their implications for climate change mitigation in the United States

Noah’s Ark or World Wild Web? Cultural Perspectives in Global Scenario Studies and Their Function for Biodiversity Conservation in a Changing World

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Carijn Beumer

2010-10-01

Full Text Available In this paper, we review the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment Scenarios and their assumptions on biodiversity conservation, using a framework based on the cultural theory (CT perspectives. We explored an adaptation of the CT typology and the significance of some underrepresented worldviews for discussions on conservation in a changing world. The evaluation of the assumptions on biodiversity conservation in the scenario studies and storylines adds to our understanding of the socio-cultural dimensions of biodiversity loss in a changing world. It contributes to an understanding of the worldviews underlying the complex debates on biodiversity conservation and sustainable development. Making such assumptions and world views explicit will help policymakers and conservationists discuss the diversity of conservation strategies in the face of uncertainty.

Technology and Changing Lifestyles. Teacher's Guide. Preparing for Tomorrow's World.

Science.gov (United States)

Iozzi, Louis A.

"Technology and Changing Lifestyles" is one of the "Preparing for Tomorrow's World" (PTW) program modules. PTW is an interdisciplinary, future-oriented program incorporating information from the sciences and social sciences and addressing societal concerns which interface science/technology/society. The program promotes…

Travelling through a warming world: climate change and migratory species

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Robinson, A.; Crick, H.Q.P.; Learmonth, J.A.; Maclean, I.M.D.; Thomas, C.D.; Bairlein, F.; Forchhammer, M.C.; Francis, C.M.; Gill, J.A.; Godley, B.J.; Harwood, J.; Hays, G.C.; Huntley, B.; Hutson, A.M.; Pierce, G.J.; Rehfisch, M.M.; Sims, D.W.; Vieira dos Santos, M.C.; Sparks, T.H.; Stroud, D.; Visser, M.E.

2009-01-01

Long-distance migrations are among the wonders of the natural world, but this multi-taxon review shows that the characteristics of species that undertake such movements appear to make them particularly vulnerable to detrimental impacts of climate change. Migrants are key components of biological

Changing in tool steels wear resistance under electron irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Braginskaya, A.E.; Manin, V.N.; Makedonskij, A.V.; Mel'nikova, N.A.; Pakchanin, L.M.; Petrenko, P.V.

1983-01-01

The tool steels and alloys wear resistance under dry friction after electron irradiation has been studied. Electron irradiation of a wide variety of steels is shown to increase wear resistance. In this case phase composition and lattice parameters changes are observed both in matrix and carbides. The conclusion is drawn that an appreciable increase of steel wear resistance under electron irradiation can be explained both by carbide phase volume gain and changes in it's composition and the formation of carbide phase submicroscopic heterogeneities and, possibly, complexes of defects

Using electronic medical records analysis to investigate the effectiveness of lifestyle programs in real-world primary care is challenging: a case study in diabetes mellitus.

Science.gov (United States)

Linmans, Joris J; Viechtbauer, Wolfgang; Koppenaal, Tjarco; Spigt, Mark; Knottnerus, J André

2012-07-01

The increasing prevalence of diabetes suggests a gap between real world and controlled trial effectiveness of lifestyle interventions, but real-world investigations are rare. Electronic medical registration facilitates research on real-world effectiveness, although such investigations may require specific methodology and statistics. We investigated the effects of real-world primary care for patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). We used medical records of patients (n=2,549) with T2DM from 10 primary health care centers. A mixed-effects regression model for repeated measurements was used to evaluate the changes in weight and Hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) over time. There was no statistically significant change in weight (+0.07 kg, P=0.832) and HbA1c (+0.03%, P=0.657) during the observation period of 972 days. Most patients maintained their physical activity level (70%), and 54 % had an insufficient activity level. The variability in the course of weight and HbA1c was because of differences between patients and not between health care providers. Despite effective lifestyle interventions in controlled trial settings, we found that real-world primary care is only able to stabilize weight and HbA1c in patients with T2DM over time. Medical registration can be used to monitor the actual effectiveness of interventions in primary care. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Nuclear safeguards and security in a changing world

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Badolato, E.V.

1986-01-01

Two major crises of 1986 - the Chernobyl nuclear accident and international terrorism have had the effect of making what everyone does even more critically important for U.S. national security and for the security of the world. Chernobyl can be a starting point for efforts to make nuclear power systems safer and more benign. It also poses very basic questions for nuclear arms control activities. A fundamental objective of the Administration's arms control policy is to achieve substantial and equitable reductions in U.S. and Soviet nuclear forces with effective verification. However, Chernobyl served to remind the U.S. once again of the obsessive secretiveness of the Soviet Union and the difficulties of obtaining information on Soviet nuclear weapon activities. All of this points to the importance of developing improved monitoring technologies and obtaining Soviet agreement on on-site inspection. Nuclear safeguards and security developments in response to a changing world are the topic of discussion in this paper

Agile science: creating useful products for behavior change in the real world.

Science.gov (United States)

Hekler, Eric B; Klasnja, Predrag; Riley, William T; Buman, Matthew P; Huberty, Jennifer; Rivera, Daniel E; Martin, Cesar A

2016-06-01

Evidence-based practice is important for behavioral interventions but there is debate on how best to support real-world behavior change. The purpose of this paper is to define products and a preliminary process for efficiently and adaptively creating and curating a knowledge base for behavior change for real-world implementation. We look to evidence-based practice suggestions and draw parallels to software development. We argue to target three products: (1) the smallest, meaningful, self-contained, and repurposable behavior change modules of an intervention; (2) "computational models" that define the interaction between modules, individuals, and context; and (3) "personalization" algorithms, which are decision rules for intervention adaptation. The "agile science" process includes a generation phase whereby contender operational definitions and constructs of the three products are created and assessed for feasibility and an evaluation phase, whereby effect size estimates/casual inferences are created. The process emphasizes early-and-often sharing. If correct, agile science could enable a more robust knowledge base for behavior change.

Globalisation as the Carrier of the Current Changes in the Modern World

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jelena Lončar

2005-01-01

Full Text Available This paper deals with the development of the globalization process, meaning of the term globalization and influences that globalization has on world economy, politics and human community in general. It makes the point that globalization has negative and positive aspects, but it certainly brings big changes. The developed part of the world uses very well global conditions, in the same time playing the role of the main carrier of the globalization processes. With the development of informatics and communication technology world is becoming much smaller so that connection between two subjects in different parts of the world is made in a few minutes. Creation of economic and politic integrations is also one of the causes and consequences of globalization.

Work-Practice Changes Associated with an Electronic Emergency-Department Whiteboard

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hertzum, Morten; Simonsen, Jesper

2013-01-01

, existing work practices, and the clinicians’ experience. Another change in the work practices is distributed access to whiteboard information from the computers in patient rooms. A decrease in the mental workload of the coordinating nurse was envisaged but has not emerged. Achieving more changes appears......Electronic whiteboards are introduced at emergency departments (EDs) to improve work practices. This study investigates whether the time physicians and nurses at an ED spend in patient rooms versus at the control desk increases after the introduction of an electronic whiteboard. After using...... this whiteboard for four months nurses, but not physicians, spend more of their time with the patients. With the electronic whiteboard, nurses spend 28% of their time in patient rooms and physicians 20%. Importantly, the changes facilitated by the electronic whiteboard are also dependent on implementation issues...

Sir David Brewster's changing ideas on the plurality of worlds

Science.gov (United States)

de Asúa, Miguel

2006-06-01

In the course of his long life the Scottish physicist David Brewster wrote copiously about the plurality of worlds. More Worlds than One (1854), perhaps his strongest statement on the question, was written as an answer to William Whewell's On the Plurality of Worlds (1853), which argued that life was a privilege of the Earth. Brewster's ideas changed drastically along the years in many crucial issues such as the habitability of the Sun and the Moon, the possibility that extraterrestrials could be different from humans, and the occupation of the Earth by intelligent races in the distant past. This paper succinctly surveys Brewster's main lines of thought about the plurality of worlds underlining the significance of his first two articles devoted exclusively to this topic. They were published in 1838 in The Monthly Chronicle, and affirm the habitability of the planets while denying that of the Moon. As is the case with many Victorian scientists, belief in pluralism was for Brewster part and parcel of a complex of ideas and attitudes in which it is hard to distinguish science from religion. I shall argue that a fair number of the shifting opinions and inconsistencies detectable in Brewster's ideas on the plurality of worlds can be attributed to the fact that these were used as pliable apologetic instruments in his scientific writings, many of which are permeated by strong religious concerns.

World Health Organization guidelines should not change the CD4 ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

2013-03-02

Mar 2, 2013 ... The World Health Organization (WHO) currently recommends that HIV-positive adults start antiretroviral therapy (ART) at. CD4 counts <350 cells/µl. Several countries have changed their guidelines to recommend ART irrespective of CD4 count or at a threshold of 500 CD4 cells/µl. Consequently, WHO is ...

The Changing Information Needs of Users in Electronic Information Environments.

Science.gov (United States)

Kebede, Gashaw

2002-01-01

Focuses on the information needs of users that are changing as a results of changes in the availability of information content in electronic form. Highlights the trend and nature of the physical form in which information content is currently being made available for users' access and use in electronic information environments. (Author/LRW)

Sustainability, energy policy, climatic change, world food supply. Political and legal challenges of the 21th century

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Haertel, Ines

2014-01-01

The book on sustainability, energy policy, climatic change, world food supply as political challenges in the 21th century includes contributions on the following topics: sustainability and environment, energy and climatic change, agriculture and world food supply.

World Health Organization guidelines should not change the CD4 ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The World Health Organization (WHO) currently recommends that HIV-positive adults start antiretroviral therapy (ART) at CD4 counts <350 cells/μl. Several countries have changed their guidelines to recommend ART irrespective of CD4 count or at a threshold of 500 CD4 cells/μl. Consequently, WHO is currently revising its ...

Book Review Lifeblood: How to Change the World, One Dead ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Book Review Lifeblood: How to Change the World, One Dead Mosquito at a Time By Alex Perry (2011). Melissa Raemaekers. Abstract. Pp xiv + 219. R210. Picador Africa, Pan Macmillan, South Africa. 2011. ISBN 978-1-77010-146-3. February 2012, Vol. 102, No. 2 SAMJ. Full Text: EMAIL FREE FULL TEXT EMAIL FREE ...

Assessing and managing multiple risks in a changing world ...

Science.gov (United States)

Roskilde University (Denmark) hosted a November 2015 workshop, Environmental Risk—Assessing and Managing Multiple Risks in a Changing World. This Focus article presents the consensus recommendations of 30 attendees from 9 countries regarding implementation of a common currency (ecosystem services) for holistic environmental risk assessment and management; improvements to risk assessment and management in a complex, human-modified, and changing world; appropriate development of protection goals in a 2-stage process; dealing with societal issues; risk-management information needs; conducting risk assessment of risk management; and development of adaptive and flexible regulatory systems. The authors encourage both cross-disciplinary and interdisciplinary approaches to address their 10 recommendations: 1) adopt ecosystem services as a common currency for risk assessment and management; 2) consider cumulative stressors (chemical and nonchemical) and determine which dominate to best manage and restore ecosystem services; 3) fully integrate risk managers and communities of interest into the risk-assessment process; 4) fully integrate risk assessors and communities of interest into the risk-management process; 5) consider socioeconomics and increased transparency in both risk assessment and risk management; 6) recognize the ethical rights of humans and ecosystems to an adequate level of protection; 7) determine relevant reference conditions and the proper ecological c

Social psychiatry in a rapidly changing world

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Thomas K. J. Craig

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Many societies around the world are experiencing a period of unprecedented change in traditional social roles and customs. Globalisation has contributed to materialism and a me-first individualism that heightens awareness of income inequality that itself is one of the most robust markers of unhappiness in society. Ever increasing urbanisation has driven an erosion of large ‘joint’ family arrangements to be replaced by smaller and relatively isolated nuclear families and single parent living. Mass migration has unmasked deep seated fear and prejudice towards the outsider in society. These global changes are fertile ground for the social conditions that have long been known to be risks for mental illness – poverty, poor quality child care, social isolation and the active discrimination and exclusion of the alien, the physically disabled and mentally ill. While there is little we can do to reverse global change, there is much a social psychiatrist can do to mitigate the effect, ensuring his/her voice is added to other calls for reducing discriminatory practice, promoting evidence-based social interventions such as parenting advice and peer support and ensuring that the success of a treatment is measured not just in terms of symptomatic improvement but in whether it results in an outcome that is valued by the patient.

ELECTRONIC BANKING AND ELECTRONIC COMMERCE IN SERBIA

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ivana B. Petrevska

2014-10-01

Full Text Available Nowadays, we may witness to dramatic and visible changes in our life environment. Business ambient for companies is different every day, and it is very hard to predict a direction of future changes. There is an environment characterized by sharp competition and increasing number of competitors, fast technological improvements and highly sophisticated and informed costumers. Technological process influences the humanity strongly, changing the way that people live, work and spend. Electronic commerce and electronic banking has become incontinent, and makes a great part of today's total transactions. There are an increasing number of companies that perform their business that way and make profit. Social networks are proven to be the least expensive way of information exchange, and they are present in almost every part of the world. The globalization has reached the most distant parts of the Earth. Every resistance to new technologies is dangerous and may lead to bankruptcy. Due to the EU expansion, Internet users are to be expected, and prosperity of the e-commerce business models at the same time. In Serbia, electronic commerce is present, but not as developed as in EU countries. E-commerce, however it might be successful throughout the world, it is somewhat slow in its growth in Serbia. The reasons are numerous, and main obstacles are the lack of trust, still limited usage of banking cards, avoiding of e-payments by older population etc. Also, the recent scandals over the misuse of personal data, and e-crime are discouraging factors for the growth of e-trade and ebanking. The younger generations are ever more ready to use e-commerce, since they are open to new technologies and do not have the defensive attitude towards it. E-commerce and e-banking has growing potential even among older population, if the society prevents them from fear and mistrust.

The impact of electronic commerce

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Huang, Kaiyin

1997-01-01

The development of electronic commerce offers a promising way for business to meet challenges of the ever changing market. The fast advancing information infrastructure makes the connectiviry possible to reach almost everywhere in the world, but it does not ensure a successful business process. The

Electrons in a two-dimensions world

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kivelson, S.; Lee, D.H.; Zhang, S.C.

1996-01-01

This digest paper is a presentation of the recent discoveries about the quantum Hall effect and its links with superconductivity. This effect can occur when electrons are confined inside a thin film between two semiconductor crystals and when they are cooled to a temperature close to 0 deg. K and submitted to an intense magnetic field. Electrons can propagate along the thin film plane when the magnetic field is perpendicular to this plane. When the magnetic field strength increases, a difference of potential occurs (the Hall voltage) and increases by steps inside the thin film and perpendicularly to the current. Each step is characterized by a perfect conductivity of the electrons and by a particular value of the Hall conductance. These steps correspond to fractional multiples of the quantum conductance. The paper describes first the historical aspects that led to the discovery of the quantum Hall effect. Then, this effect is explained using a model in which electrons are assimilated to composed bosons carrying a odd number of magnetic field quanta. This model is used to describe the similarities between the quantum Hall effect and the superconductivity and to draw a phase diagram of the different behaviours of electrons in a plan according to the strength of the magnetic field and to the degree of disorder inside the semiconductor crystals. This diagram show some unexpected properties of electrons which can act like a dielectric material or like a metal. (J.S.). 4 refs., 6 figs., 1 tab

Le world wide web: l'hypermedià sur internet | Houmel | Revue d ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The telecommunication's networks technology linked to the electronic document has changed abroad the information specialists' methods of work. The Internet network did a lot in thèse big changes and especially after the World Wide Web intégration wich is a high hypermedia distributed information System. In Algeria lots ...

Consideration on non-proliferation regime meeting in a changing world

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kurihara, Hiroyoshi; Kikuchi, Masahiro

1995-01-01

This paper presents some proposals for improvement of non-proliferation regime including safeguards structures with historical changes of international regime. Current non-proliferation regime was established under the circumstances of Cold War, and it's structure and measures were influenced by the situation of these time. Although, a couple of years have passed from end of Cold War, new world order has not established yet. Therefore, it is expected that the current regime could be improved in accordance with new world order. Generally speaking, it could be welcomed that the current regime has got some successes from two points of views, namely no new nuclear weapon states have emerged and after the establishment of NPT and all nuclear weapon state is joined NPT finally. However, it is the authors' concern that some gray countries, such as India, Pakistan and Israel, have not joined the NPT yet and cases of Iraqi and DPRK have occurred. After reviewing of such new situation, some proposals will be presented in order to strengthen the nonproliferation regime to meet current world conditions

A Qualitative Approach to Understanding Real-World Electronic Cigarette Use: Implications for Measurement and Regulation

OpenAIRE

Maria Cooper, PhD; Melissa B. Harrell, PhD; Cheryl L. Perry, PhD

2016-01-01

Introduction An understanding of the real-world use of electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) is needed to inform surveillance efforts and future state and federal regulation. This study investigates the behavioral aspects of e-cigarette use. Methods We used qualitative methods to examine salient characteristics of e-cigarette use. The lead investigator (M.C.) conducted in-depth, semistructured individual interviews to explore patterns and behaviors associated with e-cigarette use a...

The Twin Worlds of Electronic Conferencing.

Science.gov (United States)

Sirc, Geoffrey

1995-01-01

Notes that the process of electronic conferencing can result in activity not readily apparent as leading to productive writing behaviors, which reintroduces the tension between process and product into composition studies. Argues for a broader notion of writing and urges attention to the transformative power of electronic conferencing to enable…

Differences of “Traditional Marketing” in Opposition to “Electronic Marketing”

OpenAIRE

Mehrdad Salehi

2012-01-01

This paper initially seeks to document and review Differences of traditional marketing in opposition to Electronic marketing.Nowadays; the methods of business conduction have been changed by the revolution of information communication technology (ICT) that most of the transactions are related to internet. Execution of Electronic marketing all over the world can transform the forms of transactions due to the rapid proliferation of the Internet. The World Wide Web, online communication skills h...

Inferring relevance in a changing world

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Robert C Wilson

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Reinforcement learning models of human and animal learning usually concentrate on how we learn the relationship between different stimuli or actions and rewards. However, in real world situations stimuli are ill-defined. On the one hand, our immediate environment is extremely multi-dimensional. On the other hand, in every decision-making scenario only a few aspects of the environment are relevant for obtaining reward, while most are irrelevant. Thus a key question is how do we learn these relevant dimensions, that is, how do we learn what to learn about? We investigated this process of representation learning experimentally, using a task in which one stimulus dimension was relevant for determining reward at each point in time. As in real life situations, in our task the relevant dimension can change without warning, adding ever-present uncertainty engendered by a constantly changing environment. We show that human performance on this task is better described by a suboptimal strategy based on selective attention and serial hypothesis testing rather than a normative strategy based on probabilistic inference. From this, we conjecture that the problem of inferring relevance in general scenarios is too computationally demanding for the brain to solve optimally. As a result the brain utilizes approximations, employing these even in simplified scenarios in which optimal representation learning is tractable, such as the one in our experiment.

Nuclear power in a changing world

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Taylor, J.

1996-01-01

Nuclear power has a future that will only be fully realised if it is shown to be a solution to some of the world's most pressing energy, and associated environmental, problems. This can only be done if nuclear power itself ceases to be perceived as a problem by the public, interest groups, governments and financial institutions. In public relations terms, this means removing the persistent distortions and misconceptions about the nuclear industry. Environmentally, it involves showing that nuclear power is the only alternative energy source which does not contribute to climate change, preserves rare minerals and recycles its raw materials. Governments must be persuaded to see that nuclear power is the only economic answer to the growing energy demand arising from increased industrialisation and population growth. Financiers need convincing that nuclear power is the investment of the future and generators that it is the lowest cost economic and environmental option. The future of nuclear power depends on meeting these challenges. (UK)

Changes in Scottish suicide rates during the Second World War.

Science.gov (United States)

Henderson, Rob; Stark, Cameron; Humphry, Roger W; Selvaraj, Sivasubramaniam

2006-06-23

It is believed that total reported suicide rates tend to decrease during wartime. However, analysis of suicide rates during recent conflicts suggests a more complex picture, with increases in some age groups and changes in method choice. As few age and gender specific analyses of more distant conflicts have been conducted, it is not clear if these findings reflect a change in the epidemiology of suicide in wartime. Therefore, we examined suicide rates in Scotland before, during and after the Second World War to see if similar features were present. Data on deaths in Scotland recorded as suicide during the period 1931-1952, and population estimates for each of these years, were obtained from the General Register Office for Scotland. Using computer spreadsheets, suicide rates by gender, age and method were calculated. Forward stepwise logistic regression was used to assess the effect of gender, war and year on suicide rates using SAS V8.2. The all-age suicide rate among both men and women declined during the period studied. However, when this long-term decline is taken into account, the likelihood of suicide during the Second World War was higher than during both the pre-War and post-War periods. Suicide rates among men aged 15-24 years rose during the Second World War, peaking at 148 per million (41 deaths) during 1942 before declining to 39 per million (10 deaths) by 1945, while the rate among men aged 25-34 years reached 199 per million (43 deaths) during 1943 before falling to 66 per million (23 deaths) by 1946. This was accompanied by an increase in male suicides attributable to firearms and explosives during the War years which decreased following its conclusion. All age male and female suicide rates decreased in Scotland during World War II. However, once the general background decrease in suicide rates over the whole period is accounted for, the likelihood of suicide among the entire Scottish population during the Second World War was elevated. The overall

Electronic Follow-Up of Developing World Cleft Patients: A Digital Dream?

Science.gov (United States)

Walker, Tom W M; Chadha, Ambika; Rodgers, William; Mills, Caroline; Ayliffe, Peter

2017-10-01

To identify potential access to telemedicine follow-up of children with clefts operated on a humanitarian mission. A cross-sectional study of parents of children presenting to a humanitarian cleft lip and palate mission in a Provincial Hospital in the Philippines. A purpose designed questionnaire was used to assess access to electronic and digital resources that could be used to aid follow-up. Forty-five (N = 45) parents of children having primary cleft lip and or palate surgery participated. There were no interventions. Access to the Internet was through Parent Perceived Affordability of Internet Access and Parent Owned Devices. Thirty-one (N = 31) respondents were female. There was 93% mobile phone ownership. The mean distance traveled to the clinic was 187 km. Majority (56%) were fluent in English. Thirty-one percent accessed the Internet daily. Sixteen percent reported use of e-mail. Fifty-one percent accessed the Internet on a mobile device, and short message service use was the most affordable means of communication. Due to perceived unaffordability and low levels of access to devices with cameras and the Internet, as well as issues with privacy, we cannot recommend relying on electronic follow-up of patients in the developing world.

Teacher Education around the World: Changing Policies and Practices. Teacher Quality and School Development

Science.gov (United States)

Darling-Hammond, Linda, Ed.; Lieberman, Ann, Ed.

2012-01-01

Teachers are the most important single element of the education system but what does it take to create high quality teachers in today's world? Around the world, countries are struggling to understand how to change their schools to meet global demands. International comparisons have shown that schools in Finland lead the league tables, but why is…

Human activities and climate variability drive fast-paced change across the world's estuarine-coastal ecosystems

Science.gov (United States)

Cloern, James E.; Abreu, Paulo C.; Carstensen, Jacob; Chauvaud, Laurent; Elmgren, Ragnar; Grall, Jacques; Greening, Holly; Johansson, John O.R.; Kahru, Mati; Sherwood, Edward T.; Xu, Jie; Yin, Kedong

2016-01-01

Time series of environmental measurements are essential for detecting, measuring and understanding changes in the Earth system and its biological communities. Observational series have accumulated over the past 2–5 decades from measurements across the world's estuaries, bays, lagoons, inland seas and shelf waters influenced by runoff. We synthesize information contained in these time series to develop a global view of changes occurring in marine systems influenced by connectivity to land. Our review is organized around four themes: (i) human activities as drivers of change; (ii) variability of the climate system as a driver of change; (iii) successes, disappointments and challenges of managing change at the sea-land interface; and (iv) discoveries made from observations over time. Multidecadal time series reveal that many of the world's estuarine–coastal ecosystems are in a continuing state of change, and the pace of change is faster than we could have imagined a decade ago. Some have been transformed into novel ecosystems with habitats, biogeochemistry and biological communities outside the natural range of variability. Change takes many forms including linear and nonlinear trends, abrupt state changes and oscillations. The challenge of managing change is daunting in the coastal zone where diverse human pressures are concentrated and intersect with different responses to climate variability over land and over ocean basins. The pace of change in estuarine–coastal ecosystems will likely accelerate as the human population and economies continue to grow and as global climate change accelerates. Wise stewardship of the resources upon which we depend is critically dependent upon a continuing flow of information from observations to measure, understand and anticipate future changes along the world's coastlines.

The physician executive in a changing world.

Science.gov (United States)

Kaiser, L R

1999-01-01

Physicians are losing their historic franchise as sole and primary providers of medical care. In addition to eroding moral and scientific authority, physicians are also losing income and status. It is no wonder that physicians are retrenching--confused and angry about the increasing marginalization of their profession and about society's changing expectations. Physicians are caught in a transition zone between the world that was and the one that will soon be. This is destabilizing and causes great anxiety. Rather than being buffeted by changing social and cultural definitions of health care, physicians must become proactively involved in the future of their profession. Physicians can only do this by offering a better mental model of health, medicine, and the community. This cannot be a defensive retreat from engagement. Rather, it must be an imaginative vision, vigorously set forth--a vision that will enlist the support of all constituencies involved in the effort to improve the health and well-being of all members of our society. The physician executive needs to work with physicians to orchestrate this effort to create a new vision of health in the 21st century.

Introduction: The provision of animal health services in a changing world.

Science.gov (United States)

de Haan, C

2004-04-01

In the future, animal health services in developing countries will need to operate in a continuously changing policy, institutional and commercial environment. Firstly, the changing policies and priorities of national policy-makers regarding public and private sector roles, reinforced in Africa by the donors, have reduced funding and support for the large number of tasks that animal health services have traditionally performed, and there is continuing pressure from policy-makers to focus on what the public sector can do best. Secondly, poverty reduction has become one of the main criteria guiding the allocation of official development assistance, which has major implications for the main target clientele of veterinary services. Thirdly, population growth, increasing income and urbanisation are causing a marked increase in demand for livestock products in the developing world. As a result, the entire livestock commodity chain is undergoing major structural changes, which has significant implications for the definition and control of food safety standards. Fourthly, globalisation, and increasing trade and travel have greatly increased the risk of disease transmission between different countries and continents. Veterinary institutions in the developing world need to adapt to these challenges. They will have to be able to focus on the essential public sector roles. At the same time they must deliver those essential services to the poor, and provide the policy framework to ensure that the inevitable structural changes in the commodity chain take place in an equitable and sustainable fashion, with an acceptable level of health risk for the consumer. According to the weight given to these different objectives, changes in the institutional set-up need to be considered. This issue of the Scientific and Technical Review addresses these challenges. It begins by reviewing the basic economic characteristics underlying the provision of animal health services, and then examines

Strategies for addressing climate change: policy perspectives from around the world

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Levine, M.D.; Sathaye, J.A.; Craig, P.P.

1992-01-01

The greenhouse effect is intrinsically global. Accordingly, effective responses require global coordination. While limited policies have been adopted, notably for phasing out chlorofluorocarbons, there is no clear consensus as to what to do about other greenhouse gases. In this paper, we survey attitudes and policy responses among the nations of the world. Public opinion surveys are consistent in showing that considerable sensitivity to environmental issues exists virtually everywhere. On the other hand, there is acute awareness that other issues, especially economic development, can conflict with global climate-change mitigation goals. In such a state of uncertainty there is a strong argument to be made for implementing policies which are good ideas independent of greenhouse-gas considerations. There is also good reason to expand research. What is feasible depends strongly on present and changing attitudes of the citizens of the world, and of their governments. It is thus critical to follow closely the evolution of attitudes. The kind of work summarized in this paper needs to be updated on a continuing basis, and the results made available routinely to the global policy community. We conclude our review with several recommendations for research designed specifically to reduce uncertainty about costs and institutional issues relating to responses to global climate change. (author)

It's A Gassy World: Middle School Students Investigate Climate Change

Science.gov (United States)

Romano, C.

2016-12-01

When middle school students are asked about our changing earth system, their responses likely include terms like global warming, climate change, and greenhouse gases. However, many students struggle to understand how it all fits together, and sometimes they hear conflicting information or myths about climate change. This activity allows students to explore the impacts of warming oceans and oceans' absorption of carbon dioxide (CO2) through a student planned and carried out investigation that begins with a pre-laboratory engagement and exploration piece, includes a laboratory component, and concludes with an explanation where students analyze their data and interpret their results through the claim-evidence-reasoning framework. It's a Gassy World was developed with three-dimensional instruction in mind to introduce middle school students to the relationship between warming oceans and changes in carbon dioxide (CO2) absorption in the oceans. Students explore disciplinary core ideas in the Earth and Space Sciences discipline of the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) using crosscutting concepts and science and engineering practices. Specifically, students study CO2 as a greenhouse gas and the effect of increased atmospheric CO2 levels on global climate change by planning and carrying out their own investigations. We structured this activity in a 5E format that can take place in four to five days during a climate change unit. After piloting this activity in over 20 formal classrooms and with 5 informal education groups, we have seen how It's a Gassy World helps support inquiry in the classroom and allows students to experience crosscutting concepts and science and engineering practices in NGSS. We found that students were engaged and actively learning throughout the activity. Student work and pilot teacher feedback indicated that, through this activity, many students increased their understanding of CO2 as a greenhouse gas and recognized that warmer oceans will

Theological and ethical dimensions of addressing climate change : reflections from the World Council of Churches (WCC)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hallman, D.G. [World Council of Churches, Toronto, ON (Canada)

2000-06-01

The World Council of Churches (WCC) has supported regional workshops around the world which focus on examining climate change issues from a theological and ethical perspective. The human responsibility is one dimension of the ethics of climate change and is supplemented by the fact that the problem is caused largely by rich industrialized countries, the consequences of which will be suffered in most part by the poor and politically weak developing nations and by future generations. When the WCC delivered a statement at the Kyoto Climate Conference in December 1997, they integrated these two ethical dimensions and spoke of climate change as an issue of justice. Their point of view was that as individuals and as societies, particularly in the over-developed parts of the world, we must be held responsible for the destructive impact of our actions which are leading to climate change and threatening vulnerable human communities, other species and broader ecosystems. Justice implies that we must be accountable for promises that we make to limit the emissions of greenhouse gases. The WCC has been actively involved in the climate change issue since 1988 through the education of its member churches around the world and through monitoring the inter-governmental negotiations through the UN, as well as through advocacy at national levels. In May 2000, the WCC held an international consultation to examine the issue of emissions trading from a perspective of equity. This paper included 2 appendices: Appendix A entitled Statement by the World Council of Churches to the high level segment of the third session of the Conference of the Parties (COP3) to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, and Appendix B entitled The atmosphere as a global commons : responsible caring and equitable sharing.

Human Development report 2007/2008 - Fighting climate change: human solidarity in a divided world

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2007-01-01

Climate change is the defining human development challenge of the 21. Century. Failure to respond to that challenge will stall and then reverse international efforts to reduce poverty. The poorest countries and most vulnerable citizens will suffer the earliest and most damaging setbacks, even though they have contributed least to the problem. Looking to the future, no country - however wealthy or powerful - will be immune to the impact of global warming. The Human Development Report 2007/2008 shows that climate change is not just a future scenario. Increased exposure to droughts, floods and storms is already destroying opportunity and reinforcing inequality. Meanwhile, there is now overwhelming scientific evidence that the world is moving towards the point at which irreversible ecological catastrophe becomes unavoidable. Business-as-usual climate change points in a clear direction: unprecedented reversal in human development in our lifetime, and acute risks for our children and their grandchildren. There is a window of opportunity for avoiding the most damaging climate change impacts, but that window is closing: the world has less than a decade to change course. Actions taken - or not taken - in the years ahead will have a profound bearing on the future course of human development. The world lacks neither the financial resources nor the technological capabilities to act. What is missing is a sense of urgency, human solidarity and collective interest. As the Human Development Report 2007/2008 argues, climate change poses challenges at many levels. In a divided but ecologically interdependent world, it challenges all people to reflect upon how we manage the environment of the one thing that we share in common: planet Earth. It challenges us to reflect on social justice and human rights across countries and generations. It challenges political leaders and people in rich nations to acknowledge their historic responsibility for the problem, and to initiate deep and

Climate change, economics and Buddhism. Part 2. New views and practices for sustainable world economies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Daniels, Peter L.

2010-01-01

The evidence of impending and serious climate and other consequences of an expanding world economy based on fossil carbon energy continues to accumulate. This two-part paper examines the potential contribution of the world view and insights of Buddhism to this search. It presents both a conceptual and practical case that Buddhism can help shape and move towards an alternative and effective paradigmatic basis for sustainable economies - one capable of bringing about and maintaining genuine, high welfare levels across the world's societies. The first paper outlined a comprehensive analytical framework to identify the fundamental nature of anthropogenic climate change. Based on the integration of two of the most influential environmental analysis tools of recent decades (the DPSIR model and IPAT equation), the framework was then broadened to facilitate ideas from the Buddhist world view by injecting two key missing aspects - the interrelated role of (1) beliefs and values (on goals and behavior) and (2) the nature of well-being or human happiness. Finally, the principal linkages between this climate change analysis framework and Buddhism were explored. In this concluding paper, the systems framework is used to demonstrate how Buddhist and related world views can feed into appropriate and effective responses to the impending challenges of climate change. This is undertaken by systematically presenting a specific, if indicative, list of relevant strategies informed by the understanding of interconnectedness and other basic principles about the nature of reality and human well-being as proposed in Buddhism. (author)

Climate change, economics and Buddhism. Part 2. New views and practices for sustainable world economies

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Daniels, Peter L. [Griffith School of Environment, Griffith University, Brisbane, 4111 (Australia)

2010-03-15

The evidence of impending and serious climate and other consequences of an expanding world economy based on fossil carbon energy continues to accumulate. This two-part paper examines the potential contribution of the world view and insights of Buddhism to this search. It presents both a conceptual and practical case that Buddhism can help shape and move towards an alternative and effective paradigmatic basis for sustainable economies - one capable of bringing about and maintaining genuine, high welfare levels across the world's societies. The first paper outlined a comprehensive analytical framework to identify the fundamental nature of anthropogenic climate change. Based on the integration of two of the most influential environmental analysis tools of recent decades (the DPSIR model and IPAT equation), the framework was then broadened to facilitate ideas from the Buddhist world view by injecting two key missing aspects - the interrelated role of (1) beliefs and values (on goals and behavior) and (2) the nature of well-being or human happiness. Finally, the principal linkages between this climate change analysis framework and Buddhism were explored. In this concluding paper, the systems framework is used to demonstrate how Buddhist and related world views can feed into appropriate and effective responses to the impending challenges of climate change. This is undertaken by systematically presenting a specific, if indicative, list of relevant strategies informed by the understanding of interconnectedness and other basic principles about the nature of reality and human well-being as proposed in Buddhism. (author)

Transportation into narrative worlds and the motivation to change health-related behavior

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Gebbers, Timon; de Wit, J.B.F.; Appel, Markus

2017-01-01

Stories are considered to be a potent means to change health-related attitudes, beliefs, and behavior because of recipients’ transportation into the narrative world. Little emphasis, however, has been given to the link between transportation and process variables that are pertinent to health

The master craftsmen of the electronics world

CERN Multimedia

2008-01-01

At the forefront of the development of electronic modules, the DEM group provides continuous support for the engineers and technicians of the LHC experiments. The DEM group produced 400 electronic circuit boards needed for checking the LHC accelerating cavities at Point 4. The TS-DEM group is a closely knit community. From left to right: Betty Magnin (section leader of the design office and cabling workshop), Erik van der Bij (group leader), Rui de Oliveira, section leader of PMT (production of printed circuits). Like all the accelerator components, the accelerating cavities that will give the protons the necessary "kick" as they hurtle their way around the ring are brimming with electronics, but their control electronics are highly specific. The challenge of producing the associated electronic boards, which were designed by the AB-RF group, was taken up by the TS Department’s Development of...

The Fate of the World is in your hands: computer gaming for multi-faceted climate change education

Science.gov (United States)

Bedford, D. P.

2015-12-01

Climate change is a multi-faceted (or 'wicked') problem. True climate literacy therefore requires understanding not only the workings of the climate system, but also the current and potential future impacts of climate change and sea level rise on individuals, communities and countries around the world, as noted in the US Global Change Research Program's (2009) Climate Literacy: The Essential Principles of Climate Sciences. The asymmetric nature of climate change impacts, whereby the world's poorest countries have done the least to cause the problem but will suffer disproportionate consequences, has also been widely noted. Education in climate literacy therefore requires an element of ethics in addition to physical and social sciences. As if addressing these multiple aspects of climate change were not challenging enough, polling data has repeatedly shown that many members of the public tend to see climate change as a far away problem affecting people remote from them at a point in the future, but not themselves. This perspective is likely shared by many students. Computer gaming provides a possible solution to the combined problems of, on the one hand, addressing the multi-faceted nature of climate change, and, on the other hand, making the issue real to students. Fate of the World, a game produced by the company Red Redemption, has been used on several occasions in a small (20-30 students) introductory level general education course on global warming at Weber State University. Players are required to balance difficult decisions about energy investment while managing regional political disputes and attempting to maintain minimum levels of development in the world's poorer countries. By providing a realistic "total immersion" experience, the game has the potential to make climate change issues more immediate to players, and presents them with the ethical dilemmas inherent in climate change. This presentation reports on the use of Fate of the World in an educational

The Justice Game: Augustine, Disordered Loves, and the Temptation to Change the World

OpenAIRE

Johnson, Kristen

2015-01-01

Augustine’s thought on justice offers enduring wisdom to today’s undergraduates as they grapple with the difficult questions that arise when they ponder what it means to change the world in the light of the reality of injustice in this world. By juxtaposing Augustine’s theological writings on the nature of justice and power within the earthly and heavenly cities with Augustine’s letters that demonstrate his public engagement with injustice, we learn how Augustine thought about justice and how...

Modern trends in international researches in the sphere of electronic governance (in the case of publications of the international journal Electronic Government)

OpenAIRE

V. M. Dreshpak

2017-01-01

Current trends of studying the problems of electronic government by world scientific community have been revealed in the article using the analysis of publications in the international journal Electronic Government. It has been noted that the peculiarity of modern research in the sphere of electronic government is that this sphere is changing constantly and dynamically under the influence of many factors and is being modernized together with the development of information and communication te...

76 FR 36472 - Mandatory Reporting of Greenhouse Gases; Changes to Provisions for Electronics Manufacturing...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-06-22

... Mandatory Reporting of Greenhouse Gases; Changes to Provisions for Electronics Manufacturing (Subpart I) To... proposing changes to the calculation and monitoring provisions in the Electronics Manufacturing portion... Category Examples of affected Category NAICS facilities Electronics Manufacturing......... 334111...

Superpower Crises in a Less Confrontational World: Results of an Experimental Simulation

Science.gov (United States)

1990-04-01

interteam communications via RAND’s electronic mail system for gaming purposes. 2 The "pilot runs" were designated Games Three and Four, and are referred... game , the impact of a changing real-world international context-a more benign image of the adversary and a less competitive superpower relationship...information overload they faced. Several believed that these problems were game artifacts (which they attributed to our use of the electronic mail system

Breeding to Optimize Agriculture in a Changing World

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jiankang Wang

2015-06-01

Full Text Available Breeding to Optimize Chinese Agriculture (OPTICHINA was a three-year EU–China project launched in June of 2011. As designed, the project acted as a new strategic model to reinforce systematic cooperation on agricultural research between Europe and China. The OPTICHINA International Conference “Breeding to Optimize Agriculture in a Changing World” was held in Beijing, May 26–29, 2014. The conference included six thematic areas: (1 defining and protecting the yield potential of traits and genes; (2 high-throughput precision phenotyping in the field; (3 molecular technologies in modern breeding; (4 plant ideotype; (5 data analysis, data management, and bioinformatics; and (6 national challenges and opportunities for China. The 10 articles collected in this special issue represent key contributions and topics of this conference. This editorial provides a brief introduction to the OPTICHINA project, followed by the main scientific points of articles published in this special issue. Finally, outcomes from a brainstorming discussion at the end of the conference are summarized, representing the authors' opinions on trends in breeding for a changing world.

Adapting to a Changing World--Challenges and Opportunities in Undergraduate Physics Education

Science.gov (United States)

National Academies Press, 2013

2013-01-01

"Adapting to a Changing World" was commissioned by the National Science Foundation to examine the present status of undergraduate physics education, including the state of physics education research, and, most importantly, to develop a series of recommendations for improving physics education that draws from the knowledge we have about…

Implosion lessons from national security, high reliability spacecraft, electronics, and the forces which changed them

CERN Document Server

Temple, L Parker

2012-01-01

Implosion is a focused study of the history and uses of high-reliability, solid-state electronics, military standards, and space systems that support our national security and defense. This book is unique in combining the interdependent evolution of and interrelationships among military standards, solid-state electronics, and very high-reliability space systems. Starting with a brief description of the physics that enabled the development of the first transistor, Implosion covers the need for standardizing military electronics, which began during World War II and continu

Changes in the world market in oil and oil refinements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ristik, Julija

1996-01-01

Since 1980's the world market for crude oil and oil products has faced significant changes that are going to have a grate influence on the supply and consumption of crude oil derivatives in Macedonia. The knowledge of these changes would have a grate contribution in planning the future development of this part of the energetic system of Macedonia. The purpose of this paper (which is a short version of the introductory report for the ZEMAK session with a theme 'Energetic policy and development of energetics in Macedonia') is to present the actual situation on the market for crude oil products, as well as to give the main factors that would have influence on this market in the future. (author). 4 refs., 3 ills

Transformational electronics: a powerful way to revolutionize our information world

Science.gov (United States)

Rojas, Jhonathan P.; Torres Sevilla, Galo A.; Ghoneim, Mohamed T.; Hussain, Aftab M.; Ahmed, Sally M.; Nassar, Joanna M.; Bahabry, Rabab R.; Nour, Maha; Kutbee, Arwa T.; Byas, Ernesto; Al-Saif, Bidoor; Alamri, Amal M.; Hussain, Muhammad M.

2014-06-01

With the emergence of cloud computation, we are facing the rising waves of big data. It is our time to leverage such opportunity by increasing data usage both by man and machine. We need ultra-mobile computation with high data processing speed, ultra-large memory, energy efficiency and multi-functionality. Additionally, we have to deploy energy-efficient multi-functional 3D ICs for robust cyber-physical system establishment. To achieve such lofty goals we have to mimic human brain, which is inarguably the world's most powerful and energy efficient computer. Brain's cortex has folded architecture to increase surface area in an ultra-compact space to contain its neuron and synapses. Therefore, it is imperative to overcome two integration challenges: (i) finding out a low-cost 3D IC fabrication process and (ii) foldable substrates creation with ultra-large-scale-integration of high performance energy efficient electronics. Hence, we show a low-cost generic batch process based on trench-protect-peel-recycle to fabricate rigid and flexible 3D ICs as well as high performance flexible electronics. As of today we have made every single component to make a fully flexible computer including non-planar state-of-the-art FinFETs. Additionally we have demonstrated various solid-state memory, movable MEMS devices, energy harvesting and storage components. To show the versatility of our process, we have extended our process towards other inorganic semiconductor substrates such as silicon germanium and III-V materials. Finally, we report first ever fully flexible programmable silicon based microprocessor towards foldable brain computation and wirelessly programmable stretchable and flexible thermal patch for pain management for smart bionics.

[World population and development: an important change in perspective].

Science.gov (United States)

Vallin, J

1984-10-24

The International Population Conference in Mexico City was much less controversial than the World Population Conference in Bucharest 10 years previously, in part because the message of Bucharest was widely accepted and in part because of changes that occurred in the demographic and economic situations in the succeeding decade. The UN medium population projection for 1985 has been proved quite accurate; it is not as alarming as the high projection but still represents a doubling of world population in less than 40 years. The control of fertility upon which the medium projection was predicated is well underway. The movement from high to low rates of fertility and mortality began in the 18th century in the industrial countries and lasted about 1 1/2 centuries during which the population surplus was dispersed throughout the world, especially in North and South America. The 2nd phase of movement from high to low rates currently underway in the developing countries has produced a far greater population increase. The proportion of the population in the developed areas of Europe, North America, the USSR, Japan, Australia, and New Zealand will decline from about 1/3 of the 2.5 billion world population of 1950 to 1/4 of the 3.7 billion of 1985, to 1/5 of the 4.8 billion of 2000, and probably 1/7 of the 10 billion when world population stabilizes at the end of the next century. The growth rates of developing countries are not homogeneous; the populations of China and India have roughly doubled in the past 35 years while that of Latin America has multiplied by 2 1/2. The population of Africa more than doubled in 35 years and will almost triple by 2025. The number of countries with over 50 million inhabitants, 9 in 1950, will increase from 19 in 1985 to 32 in 2025. The process of urbanization is almost complete in the industrialized countries, with about 75% of the population urban in 1985, but urban populations will continue to grow rapidly in the developing countries as rural

Forest health in a changing world: Effects of globalization and climate change on forest insect and pathogen impacts

Science.gov (United States)

T. D. Ramsfield; Barbara Bentz; M. Faccoli; H. Jactel; E. G. Brockerhoff

2016-01-01

Forests and trees throughout the world are increasingly affected by factors related to global change. Expanding international trade has facilitated invasions of numerous insects and pathogens into new regions. Many of these invasions have caused substantial forest damage, economic impacts and losses of ecosystem goods and services provided by trees. Climate...

Electronic Commerce and Electronic Business

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

R. Narasimhan (Krishtel eMaging) 1461 1996 Oct 15 13:05:22

This special issue is motivated by the recent upsurge of research activity in the areas of electronic commerce and electronic business both in India and all over the world. The current ... Monte Carlo methods for pricing financial options are then.

Global Deliberative Democracy and Climate Change: Insights from World Wide Views on Global Warming in Australia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chris Riedy

2011-12-01

Full Text Available On 26 September 2009, approximately 4,000 citizens in 38 countries participated in World Wide Views on Global Warming (WWViews. WWViews was an ambitious first attempt to convene a deliberative mini-public at a global scale, giving people from around the world an opportunity to deliberate on international climate policy and to make recommendations to the decision-makers meeting at the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen (COP-15 in December 2009. In this paper, we examine the role that deliberative mini-publics can play in facilitating the emergence of a global deliberative system for climate change response. We pursue this intent through a reflective evaluation of the Australian component of the World Wide Views on Global Warming project (WWViews. Our evaluation of WWViews is mixed. The Australian event was delivered with integrity and feedback from Australian participants was almost universally positive. Globally, WWViews demonstrated that it is feasible to convene a global mini-public to deliberate on issues of global relevance, such as climate change. On the other hand, the contribution of WWViews towards the emergence of a global deliberative system for climate change response was limited and it achieved little influence on global climate change policy. We identify lessons for future global mini-publics, including the need to prioritise the quality of deliberation and provide flexibility to respond to cultural and political contexts in different parts of the world. Future global mini-publics may be more influential if they seek to represent discourse diversity in addition to demographic profiles, use designs that maximise the potential for transmission from public to empowered space, run over longer time periods to build momentum for change and experiment with ways of bringing global citizens together in a single process instead of discrete national events.

Changing Words: Time and Space in Electronic Literature

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Paola Di Gennaro

2015-05-01

Full Text Available Printed literature and electronic literature, especially hypertexts, bring into play diverse issues of time and space. When approaching them, we should use different critical frameworks, at least in one respect: the analysis of a hypertext cannot forget considerations about time and space in the act of reading – or performing – the text. Hypertexts generate many different possible readings thanks to the changing and shifting links which move in hyperspace. Therefore, if in considering these issues in electronic literature we can obviously apply all the critical categories we use with printed works, here we cannot avoid considering the time and the space that are not “inside” the text but “outside” the text. This essay tries to explain the relationship between these external and internal time-space issues in electronic literature, how they interlink and mutually change, and how the act of reading both modifies and is modified by them. In particular, we will consider the web-based poetry When the Sea Stands Still (1997, by John Cayley and Yang Lian, and Rice (1998, by the artist known as Geniwate, basing the analysis on the studies by Espen Aarseth, Wolfgang Iser, Frank Kermode, Ted Nelson, and Edward Said.

Impacts of climate change on living aquatic resources of the world

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Flittner, G.A.

1993-01-01

Anthropogenic forced warming of the Earth due to the greenhouse effect could have profound impacts on the world's living aquatic resources. An extensive review is provided of literature concerning such impacts, including physical changes in the ocean and coastal zone, biological changes in coastal wetlands and estuaries, effects of temperature rises and changes in ice cover on marine species, physical and biological impacts on inland waters, and impacts on fisheries. The principal effects would be caused by the increases in temperature and sea-level rise, but changes in precipitation would also be important. Suitable habitats would generally shift poleward and inland. Species would likely shift in abundances and distribution, thus affecting fisheries. It is likely that global warming will produce collapses of some fisheries and expansions of others. The likelihood of collapse may be aggravated by inadequate management due to insufficient authority, unwillingness to act, or lack of knowledge. Options available for reducing the impact of these changes are discussed, along with research needed to help prepare for climate change. 111 refs

Resolving taxonmic discrepancies: Role of Electronic Catalogues of Known Organisms

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vishwas Chavan

2005-01-01

Full Text Available There is a disparity in availability of nomenclature change literature to the taxonomists of the developing world and availability of taxonomic papers published by developing world scientists to their counterparts in developed part of the globe. This has resulted in several discrepancies in the naming of organisms. Development of electronic catalogues of names of known organisms would help in pointing out these issues. We have attempted to highlight a few of such discrepancies found while developing IndFauna, an electronic catalogue of known Indian fauna and comparing it with existing global and regional databases.Full Text: PDF

Electronic strategies for information and research: cyberNephrology/cyberMedicine in the emerging world.

Science.gov (United States)

Solez, Kim; Hales, Michele; Katz, Sheila Moriber

2005-09-01

Communication and medicine have evolved together. Internet resources now provide an unprecedented opportunity to provide health assistance to the developing world. The International Society of Nephrology Informatics Commission and National Kidney Foundation cyberNephrology initiative (http://www.cybernephrology.org) have created e-mail discussion groups (e.g., NEPHROL, NEPHKIDS, and so forth) and online texts and web resources (e.g., the Schrier Atlas: http://www.kidneyatlas.org) that are, in many respects, ahead of other areas of medicine. On the other hand, nephrology is quite behind in its embrace of some specific communications initiatives that could benefit emerging nations: the Health InterNetwork Access to Research Initiative program, which provides free full-text access to medical journals and books in poorer countries; the Global Health Network Supercourse, which provides specially designed online lectures for the developing world; and Internet2/Abilene and similar research networks around the world, which provide reliable, guaranteed bandwidth for high-quality Internet videoconferencing as an alternative to face-to-face lectures and meetings. The intent of many educational ventures in nephrology, particularly in the clinical practice guideline realm (National Kidney Foundation Kidney Disease Outcomes Quality Initiative, Kidney Disease Improving Global Outcomes, and so forth), is not just to disseminate information but to change human behavior: physician practice and referral patterns, patient compliance, and so forth. Concepts from the worlds of marketing and entertainment, where the science of changing human behavior is highly evolved, can be used to create high-impact, educational offerings to promote health. They can also be highly beneficial to share Internet educational innovations and future vision across boundaries of medical specialties, which is part of the intent of the cyberMedicine joint venture (http://www.cyber-medicine.org).

The treat of global climate change has important implications throughout the world

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hejazi, R.

2008-01-01

Energy in general is essential for economic and social development, prosperity, health and security of citizens. of the other hand, world population over the last 10 years has increased by more than 12%, and now it is exactly about 6.4 billion people and it means more demand for energy. Meanwhile, global primary energy consumption has seen an increase of 20%. Energy supply has some sources and unfortunately most of them have impact on life cycle in biosphere. However, the developed countries, that are only 16% in the population in 2000, consume the energy of 80%. This article deals with the threat of global climate change and its implications throughout the world

Integration of World Knowledge and Temporary Information about Changes in an Object's Environmental Location during Different Stages of Sentence Comprehension.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Xuqian; Yang, Wei; Ma, Lijun; Li, Jiaxin

2018-01-01

Recent findings have shown that information about changes in an object's environmental location in the context of discourse is stored in working memory during sentence comprehension. However, in these studies, changes in the object's location were always consistent with world knowledge (e.g., in "The writer picked up the pen from the floor and moved it to the desk," the floor and the desk are both common locations for a pen). How do people accomplish comprehension when the object-location information in working memory is inconsistent with world knowledge (e.g., a pen being moved from the floor to the bathtub)? In two visual world experiments, with a "look-and-listen" task, we used eye-tracking data to investigate comprehension of sentences that described location changes under different conditions of appropriateness (i.e., the object and its location were typically vs. unusually coexistent, based on world knowledge) and antecedent context (i.e., contextual information that did vs. did not temporarily normalize unusual coexistence between object and location). Results showed that listeners' retrieval of the critical location was affected by both world knowledge and working memory, and the effect of world knowledge was reduced when the antecedent context normalized unusual coexistence of object and location. More importantly, activation of world knowledge and working memory seemed to change during the comprehension process. These results are important because they demonstrate that interference between world knowledge and information in working memory, appears to be activated dynamically during sentence comprehension.

What is Novel About Novel Ecosystems: Managing Change in an Ever-Changing World

Science.gov (United States)

Truitt, Amy M.; Granek, Elise F.; Duveneck, Matthew J.; Goldsmith, Kaitlin A.; Jordan, Meredith P.; Yazzie, Kimberly C.

2015-06-01

Influenced by natural climatic, geological, and evolutionary changes, landscapes and the ecosystems within are continuously changing. In addition to these natural pressures, anthropogenic drivers have increasingly influenced ecosystems. Whether affected by natural or anthropogenic processes, ecosystems, ecological communities, and ecosystem functioning are dynamic and can lead to "novel" or "emerging" ecosystems. Current literature identifies several definitions of these ecosystems but lacks an unambiguous definition and framework for categorizing what constitutes a novel ecosystem and for informing decisions around best management practices. Here we explore the various definitions used for novel ecosystems, present an unambiguous definition, and propose a framework for identifying the most appropriate management option. We identify and discuss three approaches for managing novel ecosystems: managing against, tolerating, and managing for these systems, and we provide real-world examples of each approach. We suggest that this framework will allow managers to make thoughtful decisions about which strategy is most appropriate for each unique situation, to determine whether the strategy is working, and to facilitate decision-making when it is time to modify the management approach.

Integration of World Knowledge and Temporary Information about Changes in an Object's Environmental Location during Different Stages of Sentence Comprehension

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Xuqian Chen

2018-02-01

Full Text Available Recent findings have shown that information about changes in an object's environmental location in the context of discourse is stored in working memory during sentence comprehension. However, in these studies, changes in the object's location were always consistent with world knowledge (e.g., in “The writer picked up the pen from the floor and moved it to the desk,” the floor and the desk are both common locations for a pen. How do people accomplish comprehension when the object-location information in working memory is inconsistent with world knowledge (e.g., a pen being moved from the floor to the bathtub? In two visual world experiments, with a “look-and-listen” task, we used eye-tracking data to investigate comprehension of sentences that described location changes under different conditions of appropriateness (i.e., the object and its location were typically vs. unusually coexistent, based on world knowledge and antecedent context (i.e., contextual information that did vs. did not temporarily normalize unusual coexistence between object and location. Results showed that listeners' retrieval of the critical location was affected by both world knowledge and working memory, and the effect of world knowledge was reduced when the antecedent context normalized unusual coexistence of object and location. More importantly, activation of world knowledge and working memory seemed to change during the comprehension process. These results are important because they demonstrate that interference between world knowledge and information in working memory, appears to be activated dynamically during sentence comprehension.

Can singular examples change implicit racial attitudes in the real-world?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Leslie E. Roos

2013-09-01

Full Text Available Implicit attitudes about social groups persist independently of explicit beliefs and can influence not only social behavior, but also medical and legal practices. Although examples presented in the laboratory can alter such implicit attitudes, it is unclear whether the same influence is exerted by real-world exemplars. Following the 2008 US election, Plant et al. reported that the Implicit Association Test or IAT revealed a decrease in negative implicit attitudes towards African-Americans. However, a large-scale study also employing the IAT found little evidence for a change in implicit attitudes pre- and post-election. Here we present evidence that the 2008 US election may have facilitated at least a temporary change in implicit racial attitudes in the US. Our results rely on the Affective Lexical Priming Score or ALPS and pre- and post-election measurements for both US and non-US participants. US students who, pre-election, exhibited negative associations with black faces, post-election showed positive associations with black faces. Canadian students pre- and post-election did not show a similar shift. To account for these findings, we posit that the socio-cognitive processes underlying ALPS are different from those underlying the IAT. Acknowledging that we cannot form a causal link between an intervening real-world event and laboratory-measured implicit attitudes, we speculate that our findings may be driven by the fact that the 2008 election campaign included extremely positive media coverage of President Obama and prominently featured his face in association with positive words – similar to the structure of ALPS. Even so, our real-world finding adds to the literature demonstrating the malleability of implicit attitudes and has implications for how we understand the socio-cognitive mechanisms underlying stereotypes.

One Health for a changing world: new perspectives from Africa.

Science.gov (United States)

Cunningham, Andrew A; Scoones, Ian; Wood, James L N

2017-07-19

The concept of One Health, which aims to drive improvements in human, animal and ecological health through an holistic approach, has been gaining increasing support and attention in recent years. While this concept has much appeal, there are few examples where it has been successfully put into practice. This Special Issue explores the challenges in African contexts, with papers looking at the complex interactions between ecosystems, diseases and poverty dynamics; at underlying social and political dimensions; at the potentials for integrative modelling; and at the changes in policy and practice required to realise a One Health approach. This introductory paper offers an overview of the 11 papers, coming from diverse disciplinary perspectives, that each explore how a One Health approach can work in a world of social, economic and environmental change. © 2017 The Author(s).

Picture change error in quasirelativistic electron/spin density, Laplacian and bond critical points

KAUST Repository

Bučinský , Luká š; Kucková , Lenka; Malček, Michal; Koží šek, Jozef; Biskupič, Stanislav; Jayatilaka, Dylan; Bü chel, Gabriel E.; Arion, Vladimir B.

2014-01-01

The change of picture of the quasirelativistic Hartree-Fock wave functions is considered for electron/spin densities, the negative Laplacian of electron density and the appropriate bond critical point characteristics from the Quantum Theory of Atoms In Molecules (QTAIM). [OsCl5(Hpz)]- and [RuCl5(NO)]2- transition metal complexes are considered. Both, scalar relativistic and spin-orbit effects have been accounted for using the Infinite Order Two Component (IOTC) Hamiltonian. Picture change error (PCE) correction in the electron and spin densities and the Laplacian of electron density are treated analytically. Generally, PCE is found significant only in the core region of the atoms for the electron/spin density as well as Laplacian.©2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Picture change error in quasirelativistic electron/spin density, Laplacian and bond critical points

KAUST Repository

Bučinský, Lukáš

2014-06-01

The change of picture of the quasirelativistic Hartree-Fock wave functions is considered for electron/spin densities, the negative Laplacian of electron density and the appropriate bond critical point characteristics from the Quantum Theory of Atoms In Molecules (QTAIM). [OsCl5(Hpz)]- and [RuCl5(NO)]2- transition metal complexes are considered. Both, scalar relativistic and spin-orbit effects have been accounted for using the Infinite Order Two Component (IOTC) Hamiltonian. Picture change error (PCE) correction in the electron and spin densities and the Laplacian of electron density are treated analytically. Generally, PCE is found significant only in the core region of the atoms for the electron/spin density as well as Laplacian.©2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The Changing Face of War in Textbooks: Depictions of World War II and Vietnam, 1970-2009

Science.gov (United States)

Lachmann, Richard; Mitchell, Lacy

2014-01-01

How have U.S. high school textbook depictions of World War II and Vietnam changed since the 1970s? We examined 102 textbooks published from 1970 to 2009 to see how they treated U.S. involvement in World War II and Vietnam. Our content analysis of high school history textbooks finds that U.S. textbooks increasingly focus on the personal experiences…

Serious Simulation Role-Playing Games for Transformative Climate Change Education: "World Climate" and "Future Climate"

Science.gov (United States)

Rooney-Varga, J. N.; Sterman, J.; Sawin, E.; Jones, A.; Merhi, H.; Hunt, C.

2012-12-01

Climate change, its mitigation, and adaption to its impacts are among the greatest challenges of our times. Despite the importance of societal decisions in determining climate change outcomes, flawed mental models about climate change remain widespread, are often deeply entrenched, and present significant barriers to understanding and decision-making around climate change. Here, we describe two simulation role-playing games that combine active, affective, and analytical learning to enable shifts of deeply held conceptions about climate change. The games, World Climate and Future Climate, use a state-of-the-art decision support simulation, C-ROADS (Climate Rapid Overview and Decision Support) to provide users with immediate feedback on the outcomes of their mitigation strategies at the national level, including global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and concentrations, mean temperature changes, sea level rise, and ocean acidification. C-ROADS outcomes are consistent with the atmosphere-ocean general circulation models (AOGCMS), such as those used by the IPCC, but runs in less than one second on ordinary laptops, providing immediate feedback to participants on the consequences of their proposed policies. Both World Climate and Future Climate role-playing games provide immersive, situated learning experiences that motivate active engagement with climate science and policy. In World Climate, participants play the role of United Nations climate treaty negotiators. Participant emissions reductions proposals are continually assessed through interactive exploration of the best available science through C-ROADS. Future Climate focuses on time delays in the climate and energy systems. Participants play the roles of three generations: today's policymakers, today's youth, and 'just born.' The game unfolds in three rounds 25 simulated years apart. In the first round, only today's policymakers make decisions; In the next round, the young become the policymakers and inherit the

Electronic Journals: Publishing via Internet's World Wide Web.

Science.gov (United States)

van Brakel, Pieter A.

1995-01-01

Provides hints for setting up and maintaining a multimedia scholarly journal. Details include limitations of paper and electronic journals, and requirements for publishing successful electronic journals. (JKP)

Climatic change and world governance

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mousel, M.

1999-01-01

This paper deals with the problems of international agreements about the greenhouse effect gases control. Even if the prejudice covers the whole world, the implementing of pollution regulations generate conflicts of interest. Solidarity, equity and not historical responsibilities have to govern the discussions. This involves to take into account the place of the developing countries. (A.L.B.)

Two speeches that changed the world: from Fulton to Zurich

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alan John Watson

2016-12-01

Full Text Available In this extract from his new book Churchill’s Legacy: Two Speeches to Save the World (Watson, 2016, Lord Watson of Richmond draws on his own experience of post war British politics, as a television presenter and media commentator and then as a Liberal Peer and Chairman of the English-Speaking Union, to analyse the significance of Churchill’s Zurich speech of 19 September 1946. He argues that, building on Churchill’s earlier speech at Fulton, Missouri, it helped change the perceptions of the West and alter their response to the emerging Cold War and the future of Europe.

Build a Catastrophe: Using Digital World and Policy Models to Engage Political Science Students with Climate Change

Science.gov (United States)

Horodyskyj, L.; Lennon, T.; Mead, C.; Anbar, A. D.

2017-12-01

Climate change is a problem that involves science, economics, and politics. Particularly in the United States, political resistance to addressing climate change has been exacerbated by a concerted misinformation campaign against the basic science, a negative response to how the proposed solutions to climate change intersect with values. Scientists often propose more climate science education as a solution to the problem, but preliminary studies indicate that more science education does not necessarily reduce polarization on the topic (Kahan et al. 2012). Is there a way that we can better engage non-science students in topics related to climate change that improve their comprehension of the problem and its implications, overcoming polarization? In an existing political science course, "Do You Want to Build a Nation?", we are testing a new digital world-building model based on resource development and consequent environmental and societal impacts. Students spend half the class building their nations based on their assigned ideology (i.e., socialist, absolute monarchy, libertarian) and the second half of the class negotiating with other nations to resolve global issues while remaining true to their ideologies. The course instructor, co-author Lennon, and ASU's Center for Education Through eXploration have collaborated to design a digital world model based on resources linked to an adaptive decision-making environment that translates student policies into modifications to the digital world. The model tracks students' exploration and justification of their nation's policy choices. In the Fall 2017 offering of the course, we will investigate how this digital world model and scenarios built around it affect student learning outcomes. Specifically, we anticipate improved understanding of the policy trade-offs related to energy development, better understanding of the ways that different ideologies approach solutions to climate change, and that both will result in more

Societal Changes Affecting Primary School Education after the Second World War in Finland

Science.gov (United States)

Paksuniemi, Merja; Niemisalo, Sari

2016-01-01

To demonstrate how changes in both foreign and domestic environments after the Second World War affected primary education and teacher training in Finland, the article presents a historical picture of the post-war reality of the school system, based on a review of sources that include laws, decrees, curricula, textbooks and previous research. The…

Climate change adaptation under uncertainty in the developing world: A case study of sea level rise in Kiribati

Science.gov (United States)

Donner, S. D.; Webber, S.

2011-12-01

Climate change is expected to have the greatest impact in parts of the developing world. At the 2010 meeting of U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change in Cancun, industrialized countries agreed in principle to provide US$100 billion per year by 2020 to assist the developing world respond to climate change. This "Green Climate Fund" is a critical step towards addressing the challenge of climate change. However, the policy and discourse on supporting adaptation in the developing world remains highly idealized. For example, the efficacy of "no regrets" adaptation efforts or "mainstreaming" adaptation into decision-making are rarely evaluated in the real world. In this presentation, I will discuss the gap between adaptation theory and practice using a multi-year case study of the cultural, social and scientific obstacles to adapting to sea level rise in the Pacific atoll nation of Kiribati. Our field research reveals how scientific and institutional uncertainty can limit international efforts to fund adaptation and lead to spiraling costs. Scientific uncertainty about hyper-local impacts of sea level rise, though irreducible, can at times limit decision-making about adaptation measures, contrary to the notion that "good" decision-making practices can incorporate scientific uncertainty. Efforts to improve institutional capacity must be done carefully, or they risk inadvertently slowing the implementation of adaptation measures and increasing the likelihood of "mal"-adaptation.

Reciprocity, World Prices and Welfare

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Raimondos-Møller, Pascalis; Woodland, Alan D.

We examine in detail the circumstances under which reciprocity, as defined in Bagwell and Staiger (1999), leads to fixed world prices. We show that a change of tariffs satisfying reciprocity does not necessarily imply constant world prices in a world of many goods and countries. While it is possi...... of all countries, independently of whether world prices change and independently of the relative numbers of goods and countries.......We examine in detail the circumstances under which reciprocity, as defined in Bagwell and Staiger (1999), leads to fixed world prices. We show that a change of tariffs satisfying reciprocity does not necessarily imply constant world prices in a world of many goods and countries. While...... it is possible to find tariff reforms that are consistent with both reciprocity and constant world prices, these reforms do not follow from the reciprocity condition, but rather from the requirement of unchanged world prices. We propose an alternative reciprocity rule that is guaranteed to raise the welfare...

Day-to-day changes in ionospheric electron content

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tyagi, T.R.

1978-01-01

Large day-to-day variations have been observed in the ionospheric electron content or the so-called Faraday content derived from ATS-6 measurements at Gauhati (26.15 deg N, 91.75 deg E) for the period November 1975 to July 1976. The changes occur in the form of single-day abnormality, alternate day-to-day fluctuations and long-term periodic fluctuations with a periodicity of about 45 days. In all the cases the fluctuations are as large as plus or minus 40% from the average level. These changes are not correlated with solar or magnetic activity

Full Speed Ahead: Our Leadership Summit Examines the Wildly Changing World of Reading

Science.gov (United States)

School Library Journal, 2011

2011-01-01

The face of reading is changing, and it is happening at a much faster rate than most people had imagined. Where is it all going? What factors are driving the most significant developments? And what role do librarians play in this rapidly evolving world? These are some of the key questions that stakeholders--including educators, publishers,…

Utilization of open source electronic health record around the world: A systematic review.

Science.gov (United States)

Aminpour, Farzaneh; Sadoughi, Farahnaz; Ahamdi, Maryam

2014-01-01

Many projects on developing Electronic Health Record (EHR) systems have been carried out in many countries. The current study was conducted to review the published data on the utilization of open source EHR systems in different countries all over the world. Using free text and keyword search techniques, six bibliographic databases were searched for related articles. The identified papers were screened and reviewed during a string of stages for the irrelevancy and validity. The findings showed that open source EHRs have been wildly used by source limited regions in all continents, especially in Sub-Saharan Africa and South America. It would create opportunities to improve national healthcare level especially in developing countries with minimal financial resources. Open source technology is a solution to overcome the problems of high-costs and inflexibility associated with the proprietary health information systems.

Utilization of open source electronic health record around the world: A systematic review

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Farzaneh Aminpour

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Many projects on developing Electronic Health Record (EHR systems have been carried out in many countries. The current study was conducted to review the published data on the utilization of open source EHR systems in different countries all over the world. Using free text and keyword search techniques, six bibliographic databases were searched for related articles. The identified papers were screened and reviewed during a string of stages for the irrelevancy and validity. The findings showed that open source EHRs have been wildly used by source limited regions in all continents, especially in Sub-Saharan Africa and South America. It would create opportunities to improve national healthcare level especially in developing countries with minimal financial resources. Open source technology is a solution to overcome the problems of high-costs and inflexibility associated with the proprietary health information systems.

Reality is broken why games make us better and how they can change the world

CERN Document Server

McGonigal, Jane

2011-01-01

We are living in a world full of games. More than 31 million people in the UK are gamers. The average young person will spend 10,000 hours gaming by the age of twenty-one. The future belongs to those who play games. In this ground-breaking book, visionary game designer Jane McGonigaI challenges conventional thinking and shows that games - far from being simply escapist entertainment - have the potential not only to radically improve our own lives but to change the world.

Co-benefits of addressing climate change can motivate action around the world

Science.gov (United States)

Bain, Paul G.; Milfont, Taciano L.; Kashima, Yoshihisa; Bilewicz, Michał; Doron, Guy; Garðarsdóttir, Ragna B.; Gouveia, Valdiney V.; Guan, Yanjun; Johansson, Lars-Olof; Pasquali, Carlota; Corral-Verdugo, Victor; Aragones, Juan Ignacio; Utsugi, Akira; Demarque, Christophe; Otto, Siegmar; Park, Joonha; Soland, Martin; Steg, Linda; González, Roberto; Lebedeva, Nadezhda; Madsen, Ole Jacob; Wagner, Claire; Akotia, Charity S.; Kurz, Tim; Saiz, José L.; Schultz, P. Wesley; Einarsdóttir, Gró; Saviolidis, Nina M.

2016-02-01

Personal and political action on climate change is traditionally thought to be motivated by people accepting its reality and importance. However, convincing the public that climate change is real faces powerful ideological obstacles, and climate change is slipping in public importance in many countries. Here we investigate a different approach, identifying whether potential co-benefits of addressing climate change could motivate pro-environmental behaviour around the world for both those convinced and unconvinced that climate change is real. We describe an integrated framework for assessing beliefs about co-benefits, distinguishing social conditions (for example, economic development, reduced pollution or disease) and community character (for example, benevolence, competence). Data from all inhabited continents (24 countries; 6,196 participants) showed that two co-benefit types, Development (economic and scientific advancement) and Benevolence (a more moral and caring community), motivated public, private and financial actions to address climate change to a similar degree as believing climate change is important. Critically, relationships were similar for both convinced and unconvinced participants, showing that co-benefits can motivate action across ideological divides. These relationships were also independent of perceived climate change importance, and could not be explained by political ideology, age, or gender. Communicating co-benefits could motivate action on climate change where traditional approaches have stalled.

Changes in mechanical and chemical wood properties by electron beam irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schnabel, Thomas; Huber, Hermann; Grünewald, Tilman A.; Petutschnigg, Alexander

2015-01-01

Highlights: • Changes in wood due to electron beam irradiations (EBI) were evaluated. • Wood components undergo different altering mechanisms due to the irradiation. • Chemical reactions in wood lead to better surface hardness of low irradiated wood. - Abstract: This study deals with the influence of various electron beam irradiation (EBI) dosages on the Brinell hardness of Norway spruce. The results of the hardness measurements and the FT-IR spectroscopic analysis show different effects of the EBI at dosages of 25, 50, 100 and 200 kGy. It was assumed that the lignin and carbohydrates undergo different altering mechanisms due to the EBI treatment. New cleavage products and condensation reactions of lignin and carbohydrates lead to better surface hardness of low irradiated wood samples. These results provide a useful basis for further investigations on the changes in wood chemistry and material properties due to electron beam irradiations

Changes in mechanical and chemical wood properties by electron beam irradiation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Schnabel, Thomas, E-mail: thomas.schnabel@fh-salzburg.ac.at [Salzburg University of Applied Sciences, Department of Forest Products Technology and Wood Constructions, Marktstraße 136a, 5431 Kuchl (Austria); Huber, Hermann [Salzburg University of Applied Sciences, Department of Forest Products Technology and Wood Constructions, Marktstraße 136a, 5431 Kuchl (Austria); Grünewald, Tilman A. [BOKU University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Institute of Physics and Materials Science, Peter Jordan Straße 82, 1190 Vienna (Austria); Petutschnigg, Alexander [Salzburg University of Applied Sciences, Department of Forest Products Technology and Wood Constructions, Marktstraße 136a, 5431 Kuchl (Austria); BOKU University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Konrad Lorenzstraße 24, 3430 Tulln (Austria)

2015-03-30

Highlights: • Changes in wood due to electron beam irradiations (EBI) were evaluated. • Wood components undergo different altering mechanisms due to the irradiation. • Chemical reactions in wood lead to better surface hardness of low irradiated wood. - Abstract: This study deals with the influence of various electron beam irradiation (EBI) dosages on the Brinell hardness of Norway spruce. The results of the hardness measurements and the FT-IR spectroscopic analysis show different effects of the EBI at dosages of 25, 50, 100 and 200 kGy. It was assumed that the lignin and carbohydrates undergo different altering mechanisms due to the EBI treatment. New cleavage products and condensation reactions of lignin and carbohydrates lead to better surface hardness of low irradiated wood samples. These results provide a useful basis for further investigations on the changes in wood chemistry and material properties due to electron beam irradiations.

Fish in the desert: behaviour, genes, and persistence in a changing world

OpenAIRE

Mossop, Krystina

2017-01-01

Organisms inhabit a variable world. Indeed, the spectacular variation exhibited by natural environments has long captured the attention of biologists, and raises a multitude of questions about how individuals and populations persist when their habitats vary or change. In this thesis, I have used an overarching conceptual framework of different scales of variation – both spatial and temporal – to guide three research foci (connectivity, refugia, and conservation) aimed at better understanding ...

What Does Global Migration Network Say about Recent Changes in the World System Structure?

Science.gov (United States)

Zinkina, Julia; Korotayev, Andrey

2014-01-01

Purpose: The aim of this paper is to investigate whether the structure of the international migration system has remained stable through the recent turbulent changes in the world system. Design/methodology/approach: The methodology draws on the social network analysis framework--but with some noteworthy limitations stipulated by the specifics of…

The World Religions Paradigm Time for a Change

Science.gov (United States)

Owen, Suzanne

2011-01-01

The teaching of religions has long relied on the World Religions paradigm to guide curricula throughout education, which has led to a widening gap, on the one hand, between what is taught in schools and in universities and, on the other, between research and teaching. While the World Religions paradigm has allowed the inclusion of non-Christian…

Selection and Evaluation of Electronic Resources

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Doğan Atılgan

2013-11-01

Full Text Available Publication boom and issues related to controlling and accession of printed sources have created some problems after World War II. Consequently, publishing industry has encountered the problem of finding possible solution for emerged situation. Industry of electronic publishing has started to improve with the rapid increase of the price of printed sources as well as the problem of publication boom. The first effects of electronic publishing were appeared on the academic and scholarly publications then electronic publishing became a crucial part of all types of publications. As a result of these developments, collection developments and service policies of information centers were also significantly changed. In this article, after a general introduction about selection and evaluation processes of electronic publications, the subscribed databases by a state and a privately owned university in Turkey and their usage were examined.

Electron-beam induced structural and function change of microbial peroxiredoxin

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hong, S. H.; An, B. C.; Lee, S. S.; Lee, E. M.; Chung, B. Y. [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2012-03-15

Pseudomonas aerogenes peroxiredoxin (PaPrx) has dual functions acting as thioredoxin (Trx)-dependent peroxidase and molecular chaperone. The function of PaPrx is controlled by its structural status. In this study, we examined the effect of electron beam on structural modification related to chaperone activity. When irradiated electron beam at 1 kGy, the structural and functional changes of PaPrx were initiated. The enhanced chaperone activity was increased about 3- 40 4-fold at 2 kGy compared with non-irradiated, while the peroxidase activity was decreased. We also investigated the influence of the electron beam on protein physical property factors such as hydrophobicity and secondary structure. The exposure of hydrophobic domains reached a peak at 2 kGy of electron beam and then dose-dependently decreased with increasing electron beam irradiation. In addition, the electron beam irradiated PaPrx significantly increased exposure of {beta}-sheet and random coil elements on the protein surface whereas exposure of {alpha}-helix and turn elements was decreased. Our results suggest that highly enhanced chaperone activity could be applied to use in bio-engineering system and various industrial applications.

Electron-beam induced structural and function change of microbial peroxiredoxin

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hong, S. H.; An, B. C.; Lee, S. S.; Lee, E. M.; Chung, B. Y.

2012-01-01

Pseudomonas aerogenes peroxiredoxin (PaPrx) has dual functions acting as thioredoxin (Trx)-dependent peroxidase and molecular chaperone. The function of PaPrx is controlled by its structural status. In this study, we examined the effect of electron beam on structural modification related to chaperone activity. When irradiated electron beam at 1 kGy, the structural and functional changes of PaPrx were initiated. The enhanced chaperone activity was increased about 3- 40 4-fold at 2 kGy compared with non-irradiated, while the peroxidase activity was decreased. We also investigated the influence of the electron beam on protein physical property factors such as hydrophobicity and secondary structure. The exposure of hydrophobic domains reached a peak at 2 kGy of electron beam and then dose-dependently decreased with increasing electron beam irradiation. In addition, the electron beam irradiated PaPrx significantly increased exposure of β-sheet and random coil elements on the protein surface whereas exposure of α-helix and turn elements was decreased. Our results suggest that highly enhanced chaperone activity could be applied to use in bio-engineering system and various industrial applications

The Australasian Antarctic Expedition 2013-2014: Practicing 'Citizen-Science' in a Changing World

Science.gov (United States)

Fogwill, C. J.; Turney, C. S.

2014-12-01

Government funding is the cornerstone of modern science. But with declining investment in science across most of the Western World, a major challenge for society is where best to place what little resource we have. Which research questions should have the greatest priority? Nowhere are these issues more pressing than in the Antarctic, where bases have and continue to play host to 'big-science', multi-year programmes of research, locking up logistical support and costs. But in a warming world, the areas with the greatest effects of climate change aren't always near government research stations. With this in mind, in 2012 a plan was formed to visit Commonwealth Bay, a remote area off the East Antarctic Ice Sheet, where in 2010, an iceberg the size of Rhode Island, known as B09B, dramatically knocked a 60-mile long tongue of ice off the Mertz Glacier into the Southern Ocean, setting off a cascade of change. Inspired by the expeditions of the past, we advertised berths for sale to take citizen scientists south with us, harnessing their interest, experience and investment. People responded far and wide. We were oversubscribed, and the Australasian Antarctic Expedition 2013-2014 was born. With the Russian-owned MV Akademik Shokalskiy as the expedition vessel, we set out south from the New Zealand port of Bluff in late November 2013. During our journey south and on the ice we undertook a number of scientific firsts for the region actively engaging the volunteer scientists on board in projects ranging from oceanography, biology, ecology, geology and glaciaology. The expedition demostrated how private funding could support targeted programmes of research and communicate it to the wider world. Small-science research can capture the public's imagination and also reap real scientific outputs. Although it is a funding model developed in the Antarctic a hundred years ago, the beauty is it can applied anywhere in the world.

Changing winds. BTM's world market update

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cameron, A.

2006-01-01

An update of what has happened in the past year in the worldwide wind energy market, and what is expected to happen in the near future, are given. In 2005, the USA was the world's single biggest wind market, installing 2431 MW. Data are also given for some European and Asian states, and Australasia. The increase in the USA was due to the reintroduction of the Production Tax Credit. Vestas maintained its position as world leader in turbine manufacture but its market share decreased from 34% to 27.9%. Data for all top ten manufacturers are given. In 2005, there were increases of up to 30% in the price of turbines due to an increase in cost of raw materials and increased profit margins in a seller's market. The increase in prices has had a marked impact on offshore systems where the economics were already marginal. Summaries of the future prospects of 15 individual countries are given, together with forecasts for 2011-2015

A network of experimental forests and ranges: Providing soil solutions for a changing world

Science.gov (United States)

Mary Beth. Adams

2010-01-01

The network of experimental forests and ranges of the USDA Forest Service represents significant opportunities to provide soil solutions to critical issues of a changing world. This network of 81 experimental forests and ranges encompasses broad geographic, biological, climatic and physical scales, and includes long-term data sets, and long-term experimental...

Climate change and the World Bank: opportunity for global governance?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Boehmer-Christiansen, S.A.

1999-01-01

The direct and indirect efforts of the World Bank and its off-spring, the Global Environment Facility (GEF), to become leading international agents of global environmental 'governance' and 'sustainable development' are described and analysed politically with reference to the development of an implementation regime of the Framework Convention on Climate Change (FCCC). The Bank/GEF are seen as engaging in a potentially dangerous experiment of 'global ecological modernisation', or industrial transformation, in 'emerging economies', an experiment legitimised by reference to the catastrophic threat of man-made 'global warming'. This threat is already being translated into political, commercial and bureaucratic benefits accruing to a small global elite. How was this achieved and what are the likely political implications? (author)

Bridging the gap between the randomised clinical trial world and the real world by combination of population-based registry and electronic health record data: A case study in haemato-oncology.

Science.gov (United States)

Kibbelaar, R E; Oortgiesen, B E; van der Wal-Oost, A M; Boslooper, K; Coebergh, J W; Veeger, N J G M; Joosten, P; Storm, H; van Roon, E N; Hoogendoorn, M

2017-11-01

Randomised clinical trials (RCTs) are considered the basis of evidence-based medicine. It is recognised more and more that application of RCT results in daily practice of clinical decision-making is limited because the RCT world does not correspond with the clinical real world. Recent strategies aiming at substitution of RCT databases by improved population-based registries (PBRs) or by improved electronic health record (EHR) systems to provide significant data for clinical science are discussed. A novel approach exemplified by the HemoBase haemato-oncology project is presented. In this approach, a PBR is combined with an advanced EHR, providing high-quality data for observational studies and support of best practice development. This PBR + EHR approach opens a perspective on randomised registry trials. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Climate change, coral bleaching and the future of the world's coral reefs

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hoegh-Guldberg, O. [University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW (Australia). School of Biological Sciences

1999-07-01

Sea temperatures in many tropical regions have increased by almost 1{degree}C over the past 100 years, and are currently increasing at about 1-2{degree}C per century. Mass coral bleaching has occurred in association with episodes of elevated sea temperatures over the past 20 years and involves the loss of the zooxanthellae following chronic photoinhibition. Mass bleaching has resulted in significant losses of live coral in many parts of the world. This paper considers the biochemical, physiological and ecological perspectives of coral bleaching. It also uses the outputs of four runs from three models of global climate change which simulate changes in sea temperature and hence how the frequency and intensity of bleaching events will change over the next 100 years. The results suggest that the thermal tolerances of reef-building corals are likely to be exceeded every year within the next few decades. Events as severe as the 1998 event, the worst on record, are likely to become commonplace within 20 years. Most information suggests that the capacity for acclimation by corals has already been exceeded, and that adaptation will be too slow to avert a decline in the quality of the world's reefs.

Men in family planning: changing the world one life at a time.

Science.gov (United States)

Feldman, J

1992-01-01

While women created the family planning (FP) movement, men have also been involved since its inception (albeit in a minor way). Today men must redefine masculinity in order to become more effective as FP providers and clients. While women have carved out newly self-sufficient identities, men have had to search for new identities which appropriately respond to changing gender relations. The Planned Parenthood of Central and Northern Arizona has 12 males on a staff of 130. The male FP providers have an opportunity to redefine gender relations, masculinity, and reproductive responsibility through their interactions with clients, whether the clients are themselves male or female. The male FP providers have a rare opportunity to exhibit a balance between the "fierceness of the warrior patient and the warmth of the parent" in their dealings with clients. Female clients of male FP providers can realize a therapeutic, emotionally-corrective experience. Male clients of male providers can receive insights into women's lives; into healthful living; and into ways to achieve greater access to feelings, emotions, and experiences. The changes at hand in the world demand that traditionally female values such as nurturing and compassion be brought into the traditionally male world of ambition, profit, and power. Male FP providers can contribute to this improvement as they affect one client at a time.

World energy scene

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bondi, H

1980-01-01

Coal will have an increasing role in world energy in the next three decades. The coming dependence on coal as the major fuel will radically affect international cooperation, as the US, USSR, and China account for approx. 85% of the known geological resources, and coal's likely economic marginality poses questions as to which producer will be capable of a profitable export trade. Energy transportability is becoming more important, as people can no longer move near to the sources. Also discussed are the uncompetitiveness of wasteful energy expenditure; the crucial relation of energy consumption to a country's gross national product; the energy intensities of selected industries; the necessity of elasticity in responding to changing energy supplies; the need for increased energy consumption in building up the developing countries; and good control, made achievable via advances in solid-state electronics, as the deciding factor in proper energy management.

The electronic security partnership of safety/security and information systems departments.

Science.gov (United States)

Yow, J Art

2012-01-01

The ever-changing world of security electronics is reviewed in this article. The author focuses on its usage in a hospital setting and the need for safety/security and information systems departments to work together to protect and get full value from IP systems.

A change of course: The importance to DoD of international standards for electronic commerce

Science.gov (United States)

Payne, Judith E.

1991-12-01

The U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) is committed to using electronic commerce in the future with the over 300,000 vendors interested in doing business with DoD. Electronic commerce will move DoD from a paper-based world to one based on electronic transactions enabled by the exchange of formatted, electronic messages referred to as electronic data interchange (EDI). With electronic commerce, DoD plans to reduce costs, increase effectiveness, and make it easier for vendors to deal with DoD. Benefits from electronic commerce are enhanced when many businesses use the same standards for EDI messages themselves and their transmission. The fewer standards used, the less time and resources must be spent translating messages and agreeing on how to use different standards. To enhance benefits and smooth the transition to electronic commerce for itself and its vendors, DoD has chosen to use the widely accepted American National Standards Institute (ANSI) X12 standards for EDI messages, coupled with international standards for delivering messages and organizing addresses. In the past 18 months, EDI standards sponsored by a United Nations body and serving the same purpose as ANSI X12 message standards have begun to gain wider acceptance internationally.

Major Aspects of Transformations of International Companies in a Changing World

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Natalia Yurievna Konina

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Economic globalization and demographic changes as well rapidly changing technologies are the most important factors of the firm's environment. The rapid development of information technology radically changes the very essence of the creation of new value. The pace of technological change and innovations increases. In the most advanced sectors of global economy the knowledge is a key resource. The world economy has not finally recovered after the crisis of 2008-2009. The global economy his becoming more multicentre and the vector of economic power is shifting to China and India. The main actors and the anchor of today global economy are leading international companies (transnational corporations- TNCs. Several thousands of TNCs together with their value chain dominate the global economy. The economic power allows the largest TNCs significantly push the boundaries of the company. Globalization has changed external networks of TNCs, their corporate governance, corporate ownership as well transfer pricing schemes as well relations between the headquarter and its subsidiaries and affiliates. A remarkable feature of TNCs recent FDI flows is not Greenfield investment but mergers and acquisitions. Key features of TNC activities are defined by industry. A growing number of TNCs are changing their strategic activities, basing on the latest technology trends. The most important aspects of TNCs activities are linked to innovation, financial operations, advanced management technique, increase in intangible assets. Innovation activity of TNCs is shifting to Asia.

New Nuclear Fuel Disposition Opportunities in a Changed World

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Barrett, L.H.

2006-01-01

The world's economic, security, environmental, and technological situation has changed significantly in the last several years and these changes bring new opportunities for substantial policy improvements and redirections in the used nuclear fuel management arena. The passage of new energy legislation; the need for more US nuclear energy; growing state, national and international momentum for carbon emission and other air pollutant reductions; post September 11. Homeland Security threat reduction improvements; desires to improve global nuclear security; rapidly emerging needs for clean electricity supplies in developing countries; and the technological advancements in advanced fuel cycle technologies provide a substantial foundation for future enhancements and improvements in current used nuclear fuel management programs. Past progress, lessons learned, and new used fuel/waste management technological innovations coupled with current and future economic, security, and environmental issues can create new approaches that can help the Federal government meet its obligations while simultaneously addressing many of the difficult regional/state issues that have historically hindered progress. This paper will examine and integrate the synergy of these issues to explore options and discuss possible new opportunities in the vitally important area of spent fuel management and the entire back end of the nuclear fuel cycle. (authors)

Adapting to a changing world: Implications for water management.

Science.gov (United States)

Loucks, Daniel

2010-05-01

Everyone is aware that the world is changing, and that many of these changes will impact our water resource supplies and how they are used and managed. It's always a challenge to try to predict the future, especially the very uncertain distant future. But one thing is certain, the future environment our descendants will experience will differ from the economic, social, technological and natural conditions we experience today. Some aspects of the changes that are happening may not be under human control, but many are. And to the extent they are, we can influence that future. In this paper I attempt to speculate about a future some 40 to 50 years from now, and how water will need to be managed then. My goal is to motivate some thinking and discussion about how we as water managers can influence and prepare ourselves (or our successors) for that future. It will require collaboration among multiple disciplines to determine how best we as a profession can help society adapt to these changes, and this in turn will require all of us to learn how to work together more effectively than we do now. This theme fits in with the current interest in sustainability, for no matter how it is defined, sustainability makes us think about the long-term future. How do we develop and manage our natural and cultural resources in ways that benefit both us and future generations of people living on this earth? What will their needs and goals be? We don't know and that is the major challenge in deciding what decisions we might make today on their behalf. Here I attempt to identify the challenges and issues water managers could be addressing some 40 to 50 years from now, and what we in each of our disciplines, and together, can begin to do now to address them.

Clinical genomics in the world of the electronic health record.

Science.gov (United States)

Marsolo, Keith; Spooner, S Andrew

2013-10-01

The widespread adoption of electronic health records presents a number of benefits to the field of clinical genomics. They include the ability to return results to the practitioner, to use genetic findings in clinical decision support, and to have data collected in the electronic health record that serve as a source of phenotypic information for analysis purposes. Not all electronic health records are created equal, however. They differ in their features, capabilities, and ease of use. Therefore, to understand the potential of the electronic health record, it is first necessary to understand its capabilities and the impact that implementation strategy has on usability. Specifically, we focus on the following areas: (i) how the electronic health record is used to capture data in clinical practice settings; (ii) how the implementation and configuration of the electronic health record affect the quality and availability of data; (iii) the management of clinical genetic test results and the feasibility of electronic health record integration; and (iv) the challenges of implementing an electronic health record in a research-intensive environment. This is followed by a discussion of the minimum functional requirements that an electronic health record must meet to enable the satisfactory integration of genomic results as well as the open issues that remain.

Correlation between resistance-change effect in transition-metal oxides and secondary-electron contrast of scanning electron microscope images

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kinoshita, K.; Kishida, S.; Yoda, T.

2011-01-01

Conductive atomic-force microscopy (C-AFM) writing is attracting attention as a technique for clarifying the switching mechanism of resistive random-access memory by providing a wide area filled with filaments, which can be regarded as one filament with large radius. The writing area on a nickel-oxide (NiO) film formed by conductive atomic-force microscopy was observed by scanning electron microscope, and a correlation between the contrast in a secondary-electron image (SEI) and the resistance written by C-AFM was revealed. In addition, the dependence of the SEI contrast on the beam accelerating voltage (V accel ) suggests that the resistance-change effect occurs near the surface of the NiO film. As for the effects of electron irradiation and vacuum annealing on the C-AFM writing area, it was shown that the resistance-change effect is caused by exchange of oxygen with the atmosphere at the surface of the NiO film. This result suggests that the low-resistance and high-resistance areas are, respectively, p-type Ni 1+δ O (δ 1+δ O (δ≥ 0).

76 FR 59542 - Mandatory Reporting of Greenhouse Gases: Changes to Provisions for Electronics Manufacturing To...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-09-27

... Mandatory Reporting of Greenhouse Gases: Changes to Provisions for Electronics Manufacturing To Provide... regulation to amend the calculation and monitoring provisions in the Electronics Manufacturing portion of the... Electronics Manufacturing 334111 Microcomputer manufacturing facilities. 334413 Semiconductor, photovoltaic...

Electron-irradiation induced changes in structural and magnetic properties of Fe and Co based metallic glasses

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kane, S.N., E-mail: kane_sn@yahoo.com [School of Physics, D.A. University, Khandwa Road Campus, Indore 452001 (India); Satalkar, M., E-mail: satalkar.manvi@gmail.com [School of Physics, D.A. University, Khandwa Road Campus, Indore 452001 (India); Ghosh, A.; Shah, M. [School of Physics, D.A. University, Khandwa Road Campus, Indore 452001 (India); Ghodke, N. [UGC-DAE CSR, University Campus, Khandwa Road, Indore 452001 (India); Pramod, R.; Sinha, A.K.; Singh, M.N.; Dwivedi, J. [Raja Ramanna Centre for Advanced Technology, P.O. CAT, Indore 452013 (India); Coisson, M.; Celegato, F.; Vinai, F.; Tiberto, P. [INRIM, Electromagnetism Division, Strada Delle Cacce 91, I-10135 TO (Italy); Varga, L.K. [RISSPO, Hungarian Academy of Sciences, P.O. Box 49, 1525 Budapest (Hungary)

2014-12-05

Highlights: • Enhancement of Ms by low electron irradiation dose in Fe-based alloy. • Variation of magnetic properties by electron irradiation induced ordered phase. • Electron irradiation alters TM-TM distance and, magnetic properties. - Abstract: Electron-irradiation induced changes in structural and, magnetic properties of Co{sub 57.6}Fe{sub 14.4}Si{sub 4.8}B{sub 19.2}Nb{sub 4}, Fe{sub 72}Si{sub 4.8}B{sub 19.2}Nb{sub 4} and, Co{sub 72}Si{sub 4.8}B{sub 19.2}Nb{sub 4} metallic glasses were studied using magnetic hysteresis and, synchrotron X-ray diffraction measurements. Results reveal composition dependent changes of magnetic properties in electron irradiated metallic glasses. A low electron irradiation dose (15 kGy) enhances saturation magnetization (up to 62%) in Fe-based alloy (Fe{sub 72}Si{sub 4.8}B{sub 19.2}Nb{sub 4}). Synchrotron XRD measurements reveal that electron irradiation transforms the amorphous matrix to a more ordered phase, accountable for changes in magnetic properties.

World-wide anthropogenic climate changes: facts, uncertainties and open questions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schoenwiese, C.D.

1994-01-01

Various human activities are, without a doubt, leading to a steady increase world-wide in the emissions of trace gases which affect the climate into the atmosphere. As a result, the global climate is also forced to change. The evidence from climate models regarding this is uncertain, however, both with respect to the quantitative aspect and the regional aspect, especially concerning climatic elements apart from temperature. It is therefore important to examine the data of climate history for anthropogenic climate signals. It is difficult, though, to distinguish between natural and anthropogenic climate effects. Despite these uncertainties, however, which result in many questions remaining open, estimations of risk and the principle of responsibility lead to immediate, international climate protection measures being demanded. (orig.) [de

Compositional changes in industrial hemp biomass (Cannabis sativa L.) induced by electron beam irradiation Pretreatment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sung, Yong Joo; Shin, Soo-Jeong

2011-01-01

The effects of electron beam irradiation on chemical decomposition of industrial hemp biomass were evaluated at doses of 150, 300, and 450 kGy. The quantity of decomposed components was indirectly estimated by measuring changes in alkaline extraction. The more severe degradation of structural components induced by higher irradiation doses resulted in larger amounts of alkaline extract. Carbohydrate compositional analysis using 1 H-NMR spectroscopy was applied to quantitatively investigate changes in the polysaccharides of the industrial hemp. The xylose peak intensity in the NMR spectra decreased with increasing electron irradiation dose, indicating that xylan was more sensitive to electron beam irradiation than cellulose. -- Highlights: → The more severe degradation of structural components induced by higher irradiation. → Carbohydrate analysis was applied to quantitatively investigate changes in the industrial hemp. → Xylan was more sensitive to electron beam irradiation than cellulose.

Compositional changes in industrial hemp biomass (Cannabis sativa L.) induced by electron beam irradiation Pretreatment

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sung, Yong Joo [Department of Biobased Materials, College of Agriculture and Life Science, Chungnam National University, Daejeon 305-764 (Korea, Republic of); Shin, Soo-Jeong [Department of Wood and Paper Science, College of Agriculture and Life Science, Chungbuk National University, Cheongju 361-763 (Korea, Republic of)

2011-07-15

The effects of electron beam irradiation on chemical decomposition of industrial hemp biomass were evaluated at doses of 150, 300, and 450 kGy. The quantity of decomposed components was indirectly estimated by measuring changes in alkaline extraction. The more severe degradation of structural components induced by higher irradiation doses resulted in larger amounts of alkaline extract. Carbohydrate compositional analysis using {sup 1}H-NMR spectroscopy was applied to quantitatively investigate changes in the polysaccharides of the industrial hemp. The xylose peak intensity in the NMR spectra decreased with increasing electron irradiation dose, indicating that xylan was more sensitive to electron beam irradiation than cellulose. -- Highlights: {yields} The more severe degradation of structural components induced by higher irradiation. {yields} Carbohydrate analysis was applied to quantitatively investigate changes in the industrial hemp. {yields} Xylan was more sensitive to electron beam irradiation than cellulose.

Historical Development of the Changes in Approaches to Nature Conservation in Turkey and in the World

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Murat Yeşil

2016-10-01

Full Text Available In today’s world, nature conservation and the notion of protected area are of vital importance for the living. Therefore, humankind started to take important steps for conservation of natural areas and preventing deterioration. Nature conservation studies dating back to old times in the world, was put in the agenda in our country after long years. Various protected area status were designated to the areas havin high resources value in our country, and these areas were put under protection by various laws. Some of this conservation status was formed based on the national legislation, and some based on the international conventions. Nowadays, promising actions are taken for sustainable use of biologic diversity and other significant natural resources. In this study; changes and developments in approaches to nature conservation in the world and in our country throughout the history were investigated, and the current situation in Turkey and in the world was revealed.

Understand electronics

CERN Document Server

Bishop, Owen

2013-01-01

Understand Electronics provides a readable introduction to the exciting world of electronics for the student or enthusiast with little previous knowledge. The subject is treated with the minimum of mathematics and the book is extensively illustrated.This is an essential guide for the newcomer to electronics, and replaces the author's best-selling Beginner's Guide to Electronics.The step-by-step approach makes this book ideal for introductory courses such as the Intermediate GNVQ.

Physical mechanism causing rapid changes in ultrarelativistic electron pitch angle distributions right after a shock arrival: Evaluation of an electron dropout event

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, X.-J.; Li, W.; Thorne, R. M.; Angelopoulos, V.; Ma, Q.; Li, J.; Bortnik, J.; Nishimura, Y.; Chen, L.; Baker, D. N.; Reeves, G. D.; Spence, H. E.; Kletzing, C. A.; Kurth, W. S.; Hospodarsky, G. B.; Blake, J. B.; Fennell, J. F.

2016-09-01

Three mechanisms have been proposed to explain relativistic electron flux depletions (dropouts) in the Earth's outer radiation belt during storm times: adiabatic expansion of electron drift shells due to a decrease in magnetic field strength, magnetopause shadowing and subsequent outward radial diffusion, and precipitation into the atmosphere (driven by EMIC wave scattering). Which mechanism predominates in causing electron dropouts commonly observed in the outer radiation belt is still debatable. In the present study, we evaluate the physical mechanism that may be primarily responsible for causing the sudden change in relativistic electron pitch angle distributions during a dropout event observed by Van Allen Probes during the main phase of the 27 February 2014 storm. During this event, the phase space density of ultrarelativistic (>1 MeV) electrons was depleted by more than 1 order of magnitude over the entire radial extent of the outer radiation belt (3 pitch angle distribution under a compressed magnetic field topology based on actual solar wind conditions. Although these ultrarelativistic electrons exhibit highly anisotropic (peaked in 90°), energy-dependent pitch angle distributions, which appear to be associated with the typical EMIC wave scattering, comparison of the modeled electron distribution to electron measurements indicates that drift shell splitting is responsible for this rapid change in electron pitch angle distributions. This further indicates that magnetopause loss is the predominant cause of the electron dropout right after the shock arrival.

Measuring and tracking the flow of climate change adaptation aid to the developing world

Science.gov (United States)

Donner, Simon D.; Kandlikar, Milind; Webber, Sophie

2016-05-01

The developed world has pledged to mobilize at least US 100 billion per year of ‘new’ and ‘additional’ funds by 2020 to help the developing world respond to climate change. Tracking this finance is particularly problematic for climate change adaptation, as there is no clear definition of what separates adaptation aid from standard development aid. Here we use a historical database of overseas development assistance projects to test the effect of different accounting assumptions on the delivery of adaptation finance to the developing countries of Oceania, using machine algorithms developed from a manual pilot study. The results show that explicit adaptation finance grew to 3%-4% of all development aid to Oceania by the 2008-2012 period, but that total adaptation finance could be as high as 37% of all aid, depending on potentially politically motivated assumptions about what counts as adaptation. There was also an uneven distribution of adaptation aid between countries facing similar challenges like Kiribati, the Marshall Islands, and the Federated States of Micronesia. The analysis indicates that data allowing individual projects to be weighted by their climate change relevance is needed. A robust and mandatory metadata system for all aid projects would allow multilateral aid agencies and independent third parties to perform their own analyses using different assumptions and definitions, and serve as a key check on international climate aid promises.

The world solution for world problems : the problem, its cause, its solution

NARCIS (Netherlands)

León, L.

2002-01-01

The book discusses the main world problem of today, which is the gradual, but lethal change of the soil and atmosphere, the main cause, which is the world-wide overpopulation, and the main solution, which is world government by lottocracy. It is a recipe for the solution of the one and only problem

Stability in a changing world -

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Olivares, Ingrid; Svenning, J.-C.; van Bodegom, Peter M

2016-01-01

Are the hyperdiverse local forests of the western Amazon undergoing changes linked to global and local drivers such as climate change, or successional dynamics? We analyzed local climatic records to assess potential climatic changes in Yasuní National Park, Ecuador, and compared two censuses (1995...... dynamics in Yasuní contrast with recent findings from eastern Amazon, where environmental change is driving significant changes in ecosystem dynamics. Our findings suggest that until now, local forests in the northwest Amazon may have escaped pressure from climate change. The stability of this rich palm...

Dr. Bertlmann's socks. How quantum physics changes our picture of ther world

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Malin, S.

2006-01-01

Quantum mechanics, which has together with relativity theory revolutionized physics, is for many people always yet a book with seven seals. Too difficult, too strange, too far? Far from the mark. Shimon Malin launches his reader by a pedagogical trick on a knowledge-rich discovery journey. Two fictive astronauts, The intelligent Julie and the lightly stupid Peter discuss with the real author the progress of the book. Thereby they arrive farly beyond pure natural science at the philosophical question, which means the paradigam change in physics for our picture of the world

The World Airpower Compendium

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Blackburn, Mark

1996-01-01

In today's rapidly changing world a current, accurate, and easily accessible data base of all the world's airpower assets is valuable to military students, educators, and war gaming professionals alike...

Balancing Environmental Performance with Sales Functionalities in Packaging for Consumer Electronic Products

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Wever, R.; Boks, C.; Stevels, A.

2006-01-01

Two major changes are currently taking place in the world of Consumer Electronics. They are, first, the relocation of production to low-wage countries, in particularly China. This results in longer distribution distances, which lead to a higher relative importance of this phase in the entire life

In Situ Transmission Electron Microscopy Observation of Nanostructural Changes in Phase-Change Memory

KAUST Repository

Meister, Stefan

2011-04-26

Phase-change memory (PCM) has been researched extensively as a promising alternative to flash memory. Important studies have focused on its scalability, switching speed, endurance, and new materials. Still, reliability issues and inconsistent switching in PCM devices motivate the need to further study its fundamental properties. However, many investigations treat PCM cells as black boxes; nanostructural changes inside the devices remain hidden. Here, using in situ transmission electron microscopy, we observe real-time nanostructural changes in lateral Ge2Sb2Te5 (GST) PCM bridges during switching. We find that PCM devices with similar resistances can exhibit distinct threshold switching behaviors due to the different initial distribution of nanocrystalline and amorphous domains, explaining variability of switching behaviors of PCM cells in the literature. Our findings show a direct correlation between nanostructure and switching behavior, providing important guidelines in the design and operation of future PCM devices with improved endurance and lower variability. © 2011 American Chemical Society.

Structural changes and tribological performance of thermosetting polyimide induced by proton and electron irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lv, Mei; Wang, Yanming; Wang, Qihua; Wang, Tingmei; Liang, Yongmin

2015-01-01

The structural changes and tribological performance of thermosetting polyimide were investigated by electron, proton or both combined irradiations at 25 keV in a ground-based simulation facility. Three forms of irradiations could lead to the formation of the carbonized layer on the polymer surface that could increase the hardness and adhesive force of the material. Proton irradiation induced more extensive changes in structure and friction behavior than electron irradiation by reason of the higher linear energy transfer value, and combined irradiation resulted in the largest impact, but which was less than the sum of the radiation effects of electron and proton. Moreover, the experimental results indicated that the changes in friction behavior are closely related with the carbonized layer, which was easily worn out in friction process and could introduce a shift from adhesion wear to three-body abrasive wear that reduced the wear rate and the friction coefficient. The friction process of irradiated samples could be divided into the initial stage and the steady stage. Three forms of irradiations all induced the high friction coefficient in the initial stage and the low friction coefficient in the steady stage, and the wear rate of the irradiated samples decreased in the order: electron irradiation>proton irradiation>combined irradiation. - Highlights: • Proton irradiation induced more extensive changes in structure and friction behavior than electron irradiation. • The effect of combined irradiation was less than that of the sum of electron and proton irradiation. • Three forms of irradiations all induced the high initial friction coefficient and the low steady-stage friction coefficient. • The initial friction stage means a fast-wearing adhesive process while the steady-state of the system is a three-body abrasion

World Wind Tools Reveal Environmental Change

Science.gov (United States)

2012-01-01

Originally developed under NASA's Learning Technologies program as a tool to engage and inspire students, World Wind software was released under the NASA Open Source Agreement license. Honolulu, Hawaii based Intelesense Technologies is one of the companies currently making use of the technology for environmental, public health, and other monitoring applications for nonprofit organizations and Government agencies. The company saved about $1 million in development costs by using the NASA software.

Climate Change Draws World Attention: The 2007 Nobel Peace Award Goes to Gore and IPCC

Science.gov (United States)

Bisland, Beverly Milner; Ahmad, Iftikhar

2008-01-01

In the fall of 2007, the Nobel Committee awarded their Peace Prize to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (a scientific intergovernmental body set up by the World Meteorological Organization and by the United Nations Environment Program) and to former Vice-President Al Gore, Jr. The committee praised the United Nations panel for creating…

Knowledge creation for practical solutions appropriate to a changing world of work

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Wayne F. Cascio

2001-12-01

Full Text Available Only one, long-term sustainable source of competitive advantage exist: the intellectual capital that resides in the minds of people. The ongoing development of people as strategic assets is essential because of three defining forces of our time: globalisation, the information revolution, and the speed of change. Each of these forces is examined in the article against the backdrop of some important changes in the psychological contract. The challenge is to create knowledge for practical solutions, appropriate to a changing world of work. Opsomming Slegs een, lang termyn, standhoudende bron van mededingendheid bestaan: die intellektuele kapitaal wat in mense weggelê is. Die deurlopende ontwikkeling van mense as strategiese bate is noodsaaklik as gevolg van drie deurslaggewende, teenswoordige kragte: globalisering, die inligtingsrevolusie, en die spoed van verandering. Elk van hierdie kragte word bespreek in die artikel teen die agtergrond van beduidende verskuiwings in die sielkundige kontrak. Die uitdaging is om kennis vir praktiese oplossings te skep wat op ’n veranderende wêreld van werk van toepassing sal wees.

The Future of the World Economy is an Integrated World Economic Structure

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sergey Yurievich Glazyev

2018-03-01

Full Text Available Global changes in the modern world cannot be adequately described on the basis of neoliberal thinking and require a new approach. It can be formed on the basis of the cyclical-wave characterization of the development of mankind. The hypothesis about the wave-like development of the world economy with a certain cyclicity lies at the heart of thisresearch. The authors determined the economic basis of the formation, development and change of these waves (technological ways and technical revolutions. These changes reflect in the cyclical fluctuations of the world economy.The mechanism of these fluctuations is described by the theory of “large cycles of the economic conjuncture” by N. Kondratiev. The authors propose a methodology and methodological tools for analyzing and forecasting cyclic-wave processes in the economic development. The study has concluded that it is the regularities of K-cycles that allow one to correctly assess the ongoing processes in the world economy, to forecast possible variants of their development. The authors came to the conclusion that the development of the world economic structure is necessarily accompanied by a cyclical shift in the instruments of capital accumulation (material and financial expansion. These processes are reflected in the periodic replacement of scientific paradigms of economic development and management. The state always takes an active part in the phase of the dominance of productive capital, and the ideological paradigm is of a directing nature. While in the phase of domination of financial capital the liberal paradigm becomes dominant. We have substantiated the thesis about the transition from the American to the Asian systemic cycle of capital accumulation, which would inevitably lead in the middle of the 21st century to the shift of the center of the world economy from the West to the East. The paper concludes that the world is facing a change from the Monopolistic world economic structure to

Changes to Workflow and Process Measures in the PICU During Transition From Semi to Full Electronic Health Record.

Science.gov (United States)

Salib, Mina; Hoffmann, Raymond G; Dasgupta, Mahua; Zimmerman, Haydee; Hanson, Sheila

2015-10-01

Studies showing the changes in workflow during transition from semi to full electronic medical records are lacking. This objective study is to identify the changes in workflow in the PICU during transition from semi to full electronic health record. Prospective observational study. Children's Hospital of Wisconsin Institutional Review Board waived the need for approval so this study was institutional review board exempt. This study measured clinical workflow variables at a 72-bed PICU during different phases of transition to a full electronic health record, which occurred on November 4, 2012. Phases of electronic health record transition were defined as follows: pre-electronic health record (baseline data prior to transition to full electronic health record), transition phase (3 wk after electronic health record), and stabilization (6 mo after electronic health record). Data were analyzed for the three phases using Mann-Whitney U test with a two-sided p value of less than 0.05 considered significant. Seventy-two bed PICU. All patients in the PICU were included during the study periods. Five hundred and sixty-four patients with 2,355 patient days were evaluated in the three phases. Duration of rounds decreased from a median of 9 minutes per patient pre--electronic health record to 7 minutes per patient post electronic health record. Time to final note decreased from 2.06 days pre--electronic health record to 0.5 days post electronic health record. Time to first medication administration after admission also decreased from 33 minutes pre--electronic health record and 7 minutes post electronic health record. Time to Time to medication reconciliation was significantly higher pre-electronic health record than post electronic health record and percent of medication reconciliation completion was significantly lower pre--electronic health record than post electronic health record and percent of medication reconciliation completion was significantly higher pre--electronic

Place-based collaboration: Leadership for a changing world

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hambleton Robin

2015-12-01

Full Text Available Placeless power, meaning the exercise of power by decision-makers who are unconcerned about the impact of their decisions on communities living in particular places, has grown significantly in the last thirty years. A consequence is that societies are becoming more unequal. Even in the wealthy global cities modern capitalism is increasing inequality at a formidable rate. In a new book the author provides an international, comparative analysis of the efforts being made by place-based leaders to create inclusive, sustainable cities. This article draws on the evidence presented in the book to suggest that place-based leaders can play a significant role in advancing social justice, promoting care for the environment and bolstering community empowerment. An opening section introduces the idea of place-based power, providing a context for the subsequent discussion. A second section sets out a new way of conceptualising the roles of place-based leaders in any given context, a framework described as the New Civic Leadership. This distinguishes five different realms of civic leadership. The third section provides an example of place-based leadership in action. It outlines the way local leadership has brought about a remarkable transformation of the central area of Melbourne, Australia. A final section presents a comparative discussion of three themes relating to place-based leadership and local collaboration: (i the changing possibilities for place-based leadership in our rapidly globalising world, (ii the need for outward-facing local government leadership given the changing nature of public policy challenges and (iii the role of place-based leadership in bringing about radical public innovation.

Changing electronic density in sites of crystalline lattice under superconducting of phase transition

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Turaev, N.Yu.; Turaev, E.Yu.; Khuzhakulov, E.S.; Seregin, P.P.

2006-01-01

Results of electron density change calculations for sites of the one-dimensional Kronig-Penny lattice at the superconducting phase transition have been presented. The transition from normal state to super conducting one is accompanied by the rise of the electron density at the unit cell centre. It is agreement with Moessbauer spectroscopy data. (author)

Climate change and its effect on world food

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Roberts, W.O.

1974-01-01

In February of 1972 earth-orbiting artificial satellites revealed the existence of a greatly increased area of the snow and ice cover of the north polar cap as compared to all previous years of space age observations. Some scientists believe that this may have presaged the onset of the dramatic climate anomalies of 1972 that brought far-reaching adversities to the world's peoples. Moreover, there is mounting evidence that the bad climate of 1972 may be the forerunner of a long series of less favorable agricultural crop years that lie ahead for most world societies. Thus widespread food shortages threaten just at the same time that world populations are growing to new highs. Indeed, less favorable climate may be the new global norm. The Earth may have entered a new 'little ice age'. Perhaps this future period will not be so extreme as that around 1700 AD, but it seems likely, at least, to be a cooler period resembling the hemispheric climatic regimes of the period from 1880-1920. (author)

A Crisis Framework Applied to Macrosociological Family Changes: Marriage, Divorce, and Occupational Trends Associated with World War II

Science.gov (United States)

Lipman-Blumen, Jean

1975-01-01

A typology of crises is developed to be used with critical aspects of the social system to predict both crisis and postcrisis period role changes. The crisis framework is then applied to macro-changes in family structure in response to an archetypal crisis, World War II. Census data generally support the hypotheses. (Author)

Behavior change techniques implemented in electronic lifestyle activity monitors: a systematic content analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Lyons, Elizabeth J; Lewis, Zakkoyya H; Mayrsohn, Brian G; Rowland, Jennifer L

2014-08-15

Electronic activity monitors (such as those manufactured by Fitbit, Jawbone, and Nike) improve on standard pedometers by providing automated feedback and interactive behavior change tools via mobile device or personal computer. These monitors are commercially popular and show promise for use in public health interventions. However, little is known about the content of their feedback applications and how individual monitors may differ from one another. The purpose of this study was to describe the behavior change techniques implemented in commercially available electronic activity monitors. Electronic activity monitors (N=13) were systematically identified and tested by 3 trained coders for at least 1 week each. All monitors measured lifestyle physical activity and provided feedback via an app (computer or mobile). Coding was based on a hierarchical list of 93 behavior change techniques. Further coding of potentially effective techniques and adherence to theory-based recommendations were based on findings from meta-analyses and meta-regressions in the research literature. All monitors provided tools for self-monitoring, feedback, and environmental change by definition. The next most prevalent techniques (13 out of 13 monitors) were goal-setting and emphasizing discrepancy between current and goal behavior. Review of behavioral goals, social support, social comparison, prompts/cues, rewards, and a focus on past success were found in more than half of the systems. The monitors included a range of 5-10 of 14 total techniques identified from the research literature as potentially effective. Most of the monitors included goal-setting, self-monitoring, and feedback content that closely matched recommendations from social cognitive theory. Electronic activity monitors contain a wide range of behavior change techniques typically used in clinical behavioral interventions. Thus, the monitors may represent a medium by which these interventions could be translated for

Geology for a changing world 2010-2020-Implementing the U.S. Geological Survey science strategy

Science.gov (United States)

Gundersen, Linda C.S.; Belnap, Jayne; Goldhaber, Martin; Goldstein, Arthur; Haeussler, Peter J.; Ingebritsen, S.E.; Jones, John W.; Plumlee, Geoffrey S.; Thieler, E. Robert; Thompson, Robert S.; Back, Judith M.

2011-01-01

This report describes a science strategy for the geologic activities of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) for the years 2010-2020. It presents six goals with accompanying strategic actions and products that implement the science directions of USGS Circular 1309, 'Facing Tomorrow's Challenges-U.S. Geological Survey Science in the Decade 2007-2017.' These six goals focus on providing the geologic underpinning needed to wisely use our natural resources, understand and mitigate hazards and environmental change, and understand the relationship between humans and the environment. The goals emphasize the critical role of the USGS in providing long-term research, monitoring, and assessments for the Nation and the world. Further, they describe measures that must be undertaken to ensure geologic expertise and knowledge for the future. The natural science issues facing today's world are complex and cut across many scientific disciplines. The Earth is a system in which atmosphere, oceans, land, and life are all connected. Rocks and soils contain the answers to important questions about the origin of energy and mineral resources, the evolution of life, climate change, natural hazards, ecosystem structures and functions, and the movements of nutrients and toxicants. The science of geology has the power to help us understand the processes that link the physical and biological world so that we can model and forecast changes in the system. Ensuring the success of this strategy will require integration of geological knowledge with the other natural sciences and extensive collaboration across USGS science centers and with partners in Federal, State, and local agencies, academia, industry, nongovernmental organizations and, most importantly, the American public. The first four goals of this report describe the scientific issues facing society in the next 10 years and the actions and products needed to respond to these issues. The final two goals focus on the expertise and

New NIH-funded Ultrasound Technology is Changing Lives around the World | NIH MedlinePlus the Magazine

Science.gov (United States)

... version of this page please turn Javascript on. New NIH-funded Ultrasound Technology is Changing Lives around the World Past Issues / ... stage for further expansion of medical ultrasound into new areas." To ... ultrasound technology: www.youtube.com/watch?v=6n8xZECzEck& feature= ...

75 FR 50847 - Cotton Program Changes for Upland Cotton, Adjusted World Price, and Active Shipping Orders

Science.gov (United States)

2010-08-18

... Cotton Program Changes for Upland Cotton, Adjusted World Price, and Active Shipping Orders AGENCY... Assistance Program (EAAP) and clarifying the definition of ``active shipping order.'' DATES: Effective Date... address that matter this rule amends in the payment calculation for semi-processed and reginned motes in 7...

Thermal Peak Management Using Organic Phase Change Materials for Latent Heat Storage in Electronic Applications

Science.gov (United States)

Maxa, Jacob; Novikov, Andrej; Nowottnick, Mathias

2017-01-01

Modern high power electronics devices consists of a large amount of integrated circuits for switching and supply applications. Beside the benefits, the technology exhibits the problem of an ever increasing power density. Nowadays, heat sinks that are directly mounted on a device, are used to reduce the on-chip temperature and dissipate the thermal energy to the environment. This paper presents a concept of a composite coating for electronic components on printed circuit boards or electronic assemblies that is able to buffer a certain amount of thermal energy, dissipated from a device. The idea is to suppress temperature peaks in electronic components during load peaks or electronic shorts, which otherwise could damage or destroy the device, by using a phase change material to buffer the thermal energy. The phase change material coating could be directly applied on the chip package or the PCB using different mechanical retaining jigs.

Thermal Peak Management Using Organic Phase Change Materials for Latent Heat Storage in Electronic Applications

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jacob Maxa

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Modern high power electronics devices consists of a large amount of integrated circuits for switching and supply applications. Beside the benefits, the technology exhibits the problem of an ever increasing power density. Nowadays, heat sinks that are directly mounted on a device, are used to reduce the on-chip temperature and dissipate the thermal energy to the environment. This paper presents a concept of a composite coating for electronic components on printed circuit boards or electronic assemblies that is able to buffer a certain amount of thermal energy, dissipated from a device. The idea is to suppress temperature peaks in electronic components during load peaks or electronic shorts, which otherwise could damage or destroy the device, by using a phase change material to buffer the thermal energy. The phase change material coating could be directly applied on the chip package or the PCB using different mechanical retaining jigs.

WORLD TRADE ORGANIZATION – REFORM IT OR CHANGE IT?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sterian Maria Gabriela

2013-07-01

Full Text Available The failure of Doha Round is a serious step backward for the WTO and the multilateral trading system. Some analysts already discussed in their research about the round as being already closed and they propose the developing of a new program within the organization. WTO still remains a very important institution due to its proven role in encouraging states not to take protectionist measures during the recent economic crisis, but the global trade governance reform must reflect all the changes and realities. The transition is being made toward a more regionalized and preferential global trade and the emergence of strong developing countries shape the whole multilateral trade negotiations. The important growth rates in emerging countries are translated also in strong demand for representation in global trade governance. Objectives: This paper aims to underline the role of multilateralism as form of international cooperation, the link with global economic governance and what concerns academic community in terms of having a reform of it. Prior Work: It has been tried to emphasizing the concepts already developed by known researchers in the field. Approach: The approach is a more theoretic one done in a comparative manner with emphasis on results and future research. The critical method approach is done with qualitative results. Results: The key results are related to pros and cons of reforming the World Trade Organization, as well as presenting the criticisms and proposals for having a second World Trade Organization. Implications: The implications are varied in terms of studying the concepts and addresses researchers in the field, but also lecturers and students. Value: The main added value is the compared approach of the traditional WTO as it derived from General Agreement on Tariff and Trade and the proposal for a new one and its formal relationship with the global economic governance.

Anisotropic Shape Changes of Silica Nanoparticles Induced in Liquid with Scanning Transmission Electron Microscopy

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Zecevic, J.; Hermannsdorfer, Justus; Schuh, Tobias; de Jong, Krijn P.; de Jonge, Niels

2017-01-01

Liquid-phase transmission electron microscopy (TEM) is used for in-situ imaging of nanoscale processes taking place in liquid, such as the evolution of nanoparticles during synthesis or structural changes of nanomaterials in liquid environment. Here, it is shown that the focused electron beam of

Pressure-induced changes in the electronic structure of americium metal

Science.gov (United States)

Söderlind, Per; Moore, K. T.; Landa, A.; Sadigh, B.; Bradley, J. A.

2011-08-01

We have conducted electronic-structure calculations for Am metal under pressure to investigate the behavior of the 5f-electron states. Density-functional theory (DFT) does not reproduce the experimental photoemission spectra for the ground-state phase where the 5f electrons are localized, but the theory is expected to be correct when 5f delocalization occurs under pressure. The DFT prediction is that peak structures of the 5f valence band will merge closer to the Fermi level during compression indicating the presence of itinerant 5f electrons. Existence of such 5f bands is argued to be a prerequisite for the phase transitions, particularly to the primitive orthorhombic AmIV phase, but does not agree with modern dynamical-mean-field theory (DMFT) results. Our DFT model further suggests insignificant changes of the 5f valence under pressure in agreement with recent resonant x-ray emission spectroscopy, but in contradiction to the DMFT predictions. The influence of pressure on the 5f valency in the actinides is discussed and is shown to depend in a nontrivial fashion on 5f-band position and occupation relative to the spd valence bands.

State and prospects of Russian and world gallium market

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

F. D. Larichkin

2017-12-01

Full Text Available The authors consider the state of Russian and world mineral and raw materials base of gallium, the main spheres of application in various branches and industries of the national economy. The article presents the generalization and analysis of trends in world and Russian production, consumption of rare metal and its compounds, the world trade and global market of gallium and products based on it, consuming it in new science-intensive innovative industries, including the production of military equipment. The unique chemical properties of gallium remained unclaimed for a long time. Only after the discovery of the semiconductor properties of gallium compounds has the situation radically changed: the rate of growth in production and consumption of metallic gallium at the end of the twentieth and beginning of the 21st century amounted to an average of more than 8% per year. The largest area of consumption of gallium is the production of semiconductor materials – gallium arsenide (GaAs and gallium nitride (GaN. The areas of application of gallium not related to the semiconductor industry are very small. Industry structure of consumption of GaAs and GaN: in integrated circuits is 66%; optoelectronic devices (light-emitting diodes, laser diodes, photodetectors and solar batteries – 20%; the remaining 14% – scientific research, special alloys, etc. Optoelectronic devices are used in aerospace industry, consumer goods, industrial and medical equipment and telecommunications. Integral circuits are used in the military industry, high-power computers and electronic communications. The most significant growing sectors of the market are LEDs, electronics based on gallium nitride and solar cells. Solar energy has become the fastest growing branch of the world economy. The volumes of gallium production in Russia do not correspond to its raw material, scientific and technological potential as the country and require the development activation based on state

Chemical changes induced on a TiO2 surface by electron bombardment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vergara, L.I.; Passeggi, M.C.G.; Ferron, J.

2007-01-01

We study the TiO 2 (Ti 4+ ) chemical reduction induced by electron bombardment using Auger electron spectroscopy and factor analysis. We show that the electron irradiation of a TiO 2 sample is characterized by the appearance of a lower Ti oxidation state, Ti 2 O 3 (Ti 3+ ), followed by a further deposition of carbon, which is present inevitably in the environment even under ultra-high vacuum conditions. The appearance of C over the surface is found to be a complex mechanism which affects the reduction process through passivation of the electron-induced oxygen desorption and formation of titanium carbide. For very high irradiation doses, we also found that the chemical changes on the surface are stopped due to the deposition of carbon in a graphitic form

Complex Problem-Solving in a Changing World

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Neubert, Jonas; Lans, T.; Mustafic, Maida; Greiff, Samuel; Ederer, Peer

2017-01-01

The general aim of today’s vocational and professional education is the preparation of individuals for the world of work. In this chapter, the following issues are explored: (1) current trends in cognitive skill assessment, (2) benefits of relating them to well-established approaches to learning and

Strain-induced changes to the electronic structure of germanium

KAUST Repository

Tahini, H. A.

2012-04-17

Density functional theory calculations (DFT) are used to investigate the strain-induced changes to the electronic structure of biaxially strained (parallel to the (001), (110) and (111) planes) and uniaxially strained (along the [001], [110] and [111] directions) germanium (Ge). It is calculated that a moderate uniaxial strain parallel to the [111] direction can efficiently transform Ge to a direct bandgap material with a bandgap energy useful for technological applications. © 2012 IOP Publishing Ltd.

Strain-induced changes to the electronic structure of germanium

KAUST Repository

Tahini, H. A.; Chroneos, Alexander I.; Grimes, Robin W.; Schwingenschlö gl, Udo; Dimoulas, Athanasios Dimoulas

2012-01-01

Density functional theory calculations (DFT) are used to investigate the strain-induced changes to the electronic structure of biaxially strained (parallel to the (001), (110) and (111) planes) and uniaxially strained (along the [001], [110] and [111] directions) germanium (Ge). It is calculated that a moderate uniaxial strain parallel to the [111] direction can efficiently transform Ge to a direct bandgap material with a bandgap energy useful for technological applications. © 2012 IOP Publishing Ltd.

Implementing change in primary care practices using electronic medical records: a conceptual framework.

Science.gov (United States)

Nemeth, Lynne S; Feifer, Chris; Stuart, Gail W; Ornstein, Steven M

2008-01-16

Implementing change in primary care is difficult, and little practical guidance is available to assist small primary care practices. Methods to structure care and develop new roles are often needed to implement an evidence-based practice that improves care. This study explored the process of change used to implement clinical guidelines for primary and secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease in primary care practices that used a common electronic medical record (EMR). Multiple conceptual frameworks informed the design of this study designed to explain the complex phenomena of implementing change in primary care practice. Qualitative methods were used to examine the processes of change that practice members used to implement the guidelines. Purposive sampling in eight primary care practices within the Practice Partner Research Network-Translating Researching into Practice (PPRNet-TRIP II) clinical trial yielded 28 staff members and clinicians who were interviewed regarding how change in practice occurred while implementing clinical guidelines for primary and secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease and strokes. A conceptual framework for implementing clinical guidelines into primary care practice was developed through this research. Seven concepts and their relationships were modelled within this framework: leaders setting a vision with clear goals for staff to embrace; involving the team to enable the goals and vision for the practice to be achieved; enhancing communication systems to reinforce goals for patient care; developing the team to enable the staff to contribute toward practice improvement; taking small steps, encouraging practices' tests of small changes in practice; assimilating the electronic medical record to maximize clinical effectiveness, enhancing practices' use of the electronic tool they have invested in for patient care improvement; and providing feedback within a culture of improvement, leading to an iterative cycle of goal setting

Electronics for dummies

CERN Document Server

Shamieh

2015-01-01

Explore the basic concepts of electronics, build your electronics workbench, and begin creating fun electronics projects right away! Electronics For Dummies, 3rd Edition is your guide to the world of electronics. Spanning circuitry, wiring, robotics, transmitters, amplifiers, and more, this book demystifies electricity basics and beyond. The third edition offers new content revised to reflect the latest advancements in the electronics field, and it offers full color project examples to spark your creativity and inspire you to put your new skills to use! Packed with projects that can be comple

Workers in an Integrating World. World Development Report, 1995. Executive Summary.

Science.gov (United States)

World Bank, Washington, DC.

This executive summary examines the rapid changes occurring in economic markets and employment around the world. The report concludes that problems of low incomes, poor working conditions, and insecurity affecting many of the world's workers can be tackled effectively in ways that reduce poverty and regional inequality. Sound domestic policy and a…

What do computer worlds tell us about changes to rain and falling ice-water in the state where this meeting is usually held?

Science.gov (United States)

Langenbrunner, B.

2017-12-01

To learn how the world will change because of human-caused warming, we use computer-made worlds that couple land, water, and air to study their responses to the causes of warming over many years. For changes to rain and falling ice-water, these computer worlds are great at answering questions about very large places, like big areas of land or water, but they are not as good when thinking about more focused areas, like cities or states. This is especially true in the state where this meeting happens most years; will it be wetter or drier by the year 2100, and by how much? I will talk about the work being done to learn why these computer worlds do not always agree, as well as the work that finds changes on which they do agree. One big reason they don't agree is because these computer worlds arrive at different guesses on how winds will shift high up in the air in cooler months. These winds will push rain and falling ice-water to different places up and down the state over time, making it hard to know what we can expect, though our best guess is that it will be ever-so-slightly wetter. Computer worlds do agree, however, on two important things across most of the state: that the very largest bursts of rain will happen more often as the world warms, and that more often, very wet years will follow very dry years immediately before them. Taken together, these changes are important to the those in the state who plan for up-coming water needs. Knowing how normal rain and ice-water will change is part of the story, but perhaps more important is understanding how the very biggest showers are shifting, which will help the state plan for and handle these more sudden (and serious) bursts of water.

Europe's Southeastern Gateway: Responding to Rapidly Changing Patterns of World Shipping. The University's Role

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Roger E. HAMLIN

2012-12-01

Full Text Available World trade and transportation are changing dramatically. Energy prices and transport sustainability concerns are reinvigorating ocean freighter shipping. An ever-increasing portion of trade is in containers, and container ships are getting larger quickly. Many ports, nations and continents are not keeping up with ship size increases putting them at a trade disadvantage. Major canals and seaways must also upgrade or be rendered obsolete, causing a change in the pattern of world trade. Ports have to do more than expand vessel size limits. Port regions must also invest in infrastructure that improves multi-modal access to the port and augments hand-off of containers to smaller seaway ships, trains and trucks. With heightened security and evolving emphasis on flexible and efficient logistics, ports must become high-tech logistics hubs with improved real-time data about port throughput. Constanţa, Romania provides an example of an attempt to respond to this rapid change. Near the Danube Delta, on the Black Sea, Constanţa offers a potential southeastern gateway to Europe for the Black Sea, the Eastern Mediterranean and beyond. Ships from Asia, entering via the Suez Canal can easily access Constanţa, and thus save more than ten days of shipping time for destinations in southeastern Europe compared to shipping through Rotterdam or Hamburg. But Constanţa needs to make all the improvements mentioned above. Universities have several roles in this endeavor, including identifying and forecasting trends, providing the technical knowledge to develop high-tech logistics hubs, pursing publicprivate partnerships for infrastructure development and offering training.

A decade of democracy: environmental management in a changing world

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

P. J. Aucamp

2005-09-01

Full Text Available The world’s focus on the environment started in 1972 with the Conference of the United Nations on the Human Environment in Stockholm. This led to the formation of the United Nations’ Environmental Programme (UNEP. The new interest in the role of the humans in the environment only picked up momentum after the publication of the report, Our Common Future by the World Commission on Development and the Environment, led by Harlem Gro Brundtland and the follow-up Conference in Rio de Janeiro in 1992 (The Earth Summit. The main products from this conference were the Earth Charter and the Agenda 21 principles and action plans. Not long after this event South Africa had a change in government in 1994. The new Constitution that was accepted in 1996 is one of the few constitutions that contain pertinent clauses pertaining to the protection of the environment. Environmental legislation such as the new National Environmental Management Act, a National Water Act, a Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act, an Air Quality Management Bill has been adapted since 1994. A huge number of non-governmental organisations (NGOs attended the Rio Conference. Some, like Greenpeace (and locally Earthlife Africa, developed pressure groups that pressurised governments to give more attention to the protection of the environment and to improve environmental management. During this period results of scientific research that had a large impact on humankind’s perception of the environment, were published. The discovery of the hole in the ozone layer and of the increase in global warming led to great public interest. This led to conventions and protocols that have been ratified by most countries in the world, for example 189 out of a possible 191 countries ratified the Montreal Protocol for the Protection of the Ozone Layer by June 2004. The private sector responded and today it is the norm to report about the “Triple Bottom-line” (economic, social and

Assessing and managing multiple risks in a changing world-The Roskilde recommendations.

Science.gov (United States)

Selck, Henriette; Adamsen, Peter B; Backhaus, Thomas; Banta, Gary T; Bruce, Peter K H; Burton, G Allen; Butts, Michael B; Boegh, Eva; Clague, John J; Dinh, Khuong V; Doorn, Neelke; Gunnarsson, Jonas S; Hauggaard-Nielsen, Henrik; Hazlerigg, Charles; Hunka, Agnieszka D; Jensen, John; Lin, Yan; Loureiro, Susana; Miraglia, Simona; Munns, Wayne R; Nadim, Farrokh; Palmqvist, Annemette; Rämö, Robert A; Seaby, Lauren P; Syberg, Kristian; Tangaa, Stine R; Thit, Amalie; Windfeld, Ronja; Zalewski, Maciej; Chapman, Peter M

2017-01-01

Roskilde University (Denmark) hosted a November 2015 workshop, Environmental Risk-Assessing and Managing Multiple Risks in a Changing World. This Focus article presents the consensus recommendations of 30 attendees from 9 countries regarding implementation of a common currency (ecosystem services) for holistic environmental risk assessment and management; improvements to risk assessment and management in a complex, human-modified, and changing world; appropriate development of protection goals in a 2-stage process; dealing with societal issues; risk-management information needs; conducting risk assessment of risk management; and development of adaptive and flexible regulatory systems. The authors encourage both cross-disciplinary and interdisciplinary approaches to address their 10 recommendations: 1) adopt ecosystem services as a common currency for risk assessment and management; 2) consider cumulative stressors (chemical and nonchemical) and determine which dominate to best manage and restore ecosystem services; 3) fully integrate risk managers and communities of interest into the risk-assessment process; 4) fully integrate risk assessors and communities of interest into the risk-management process; 5) consider socioeconomics and increased transparency in both risk assessment and risk management; 6) recognize the ethical rights of humans and ecosystems to an adequate level of protection; 7) determine relevant reference conditions and the proper ecological context for assessments in human-modified systems; 8) assess risks and benefits to humans and the ecosystem and consider unintended consequences of management actions; 9) avoid excessive conservatism or possible underprotection resulting from sole reliance on binary, numerical benchmarks; and 10) develop adaptive risk-management and regulatory goals based on ranges of uncertainty. Environ Toxicol Chem 2017;36:7-16. © 2016 SETAC. © 2016 SETAC.

Health risks of climate change in the World Health Organization South-East Asia Region.

Science.gov (United States)

Bowen, Kathryn J; Ebi, Kristie L

2017-09-01

Countries in the World Health Organization (WHO) South-East Asia Region are particularly vulnerable to a changing climate. Changes in extreme weather events, undernutrition and the spread of infectious diseases are projected to increase the number of deaths due to climate change by 2030, indicating the need to strengthen activities for adaptation and mitigation. With support from the WHO Regional Office for South-East Asia and others, countries have started to include climate change as a key consideration in their national public health policies. Further efforts are needed to develop evidence-based responses; garner the necessary support from partner ministries; and access funding for activities related to health and climate change. National action plans for climate change generally identify health as one of their priorities; however, limited information is available on implementation processes, including which ministries and departments would be involved; the time frame; stakeholder responsibilities; and how the projects would be financed. While progress is being made, efforts are needed to increase the capacity of health systems to manage the health risks of climate change in South-East Asia, if population health is to be protected and strengthened while addressing changing weather and climate patterns. Enhancing the resilience of health systems is key to ensuring a sustainable path to improved planetary and population health.

Wiki management a revolutionary new model for a rapidly changing and collaborative world

CERN Document Server

Collins, Rod

2013-01-01

We now live in a "wiki" world where mass collaboration is not only possible-it's often the best solution. Conventional management thought assumes that command-and-control is the most effective way to organize the efforts of large numbers of people, but rapid change and increasing complexity have rendered that model obsolete. As a result, most managers today lack the skills and knowledge needed to succeed in an age when networks are proving smarter and faster than hierarchies. Designing organizations for mass collaboration demands a new and very different model-wiki management.

Changes in core electron temperature fluctuations across the ohmic energy confinement transition in Alcator C-Mod plasmas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sung, C.; White, A.E.; Howard, N.T.; Oi, C.Y.; Rice, J.E.; Gao, C.; Ennever, P.; Porkolab, M.; Parra, F.; Ernst, D.; Walk, J.; Hughes, J.W.; Irby, J.; Kasten, C.; Hubbard, A.E.; Greenwald, M.J.; Mikkelsen, D.

2013-01-01

The first measurements of long wavelength (k y ρ s < 0.3) electron temperature fluctuations in Alcator C-Mod made with a new correlation electron cyclotron emission diagnostic support a long-standing hypothesis regarding the confinement transition from linear ohmic confinement (LOC) to saturated ohmic confinement (SOC). Electron temperature fluctuations decrease significantly (∼40%) crossing from LOC to SOC, consistent with a change from trapped electron mode (TEM) turbulence domination to ion temperature gradient (ITG) turbulence as the density is increased. Linear stability analysis performed with the GYRO code (Candy and Waltz 2003 J. Comput. Phys. 186 545) shows that TEMs are dominant for long wavelength turbulence in the LOC regime and ITG modes are dominant in the SOC regime at the radial location (ρ ∼ 0.8) where the changes in electron temperature fluctuations are measured. In contrast, deeper in the core (ρ < 0.8), linear stability analysis indicates that ITG modes remain dominant across the LOC/SOC transition. This radial variation suggests that the robust global changes in confinement of energy and momentum occurring across the LOC/SOC transition are correlated to local changes in the dominant turbulent mode near the edge. (paper)

Reembedding Lean: The Japanese Cultural and Religious Context of a World Changing Management Concept

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Wittrock, Christian

2015-01-01

James Womack, Daniel Jones, and Daniel Roos rhetorically positioned the management concept “lean” for the business world in the early 1990s, claiming that lean would change the world for the better. In this article, I consider the management concept “lean,” its relation to Japanese history, culture......, Jones, and Ross that lean can be studied and implemented without regard to the context, I show how practices and attitudes considered central to lean have a long-standing history in Japan. They can be traced back to the Tokugawa period (1600–1868) and were salient in the trading houses of early modern...... Japan, in turn heavily inspired by Japanese religious thinking. Research in management fashion suggests that early success case discourse leads to disappointment and abandonment of management concepts later in their life course. Hence, I suggest that the claims of context independence ultimately have...

Leaders in Computing Changing the digital world

CERN Document Server

IT, BCS -The Chartered Institute for; Booch, Grady; Torvalds, Linus; Wozniak, Steve; Cerf, Vint; Spärck Jones, Karen; Berners-Lee, Tim; Wales, Jimmy; Shirley, Stephanie

2011-01-01

This collection of interviews provides a fascinating insight into the thoughts and ideas of influential figures from the world of IT and computing, such as Sir Tim Berners-Lee, Donald Knuth, Linus Torvalds, Jimmy Wales and Steve Wozniak. It gives an excellent overview of important developments in this diverse field over recent years.

Impact of Tourism Growth on the Changing Landscape of a World Heritage Site: Case of Luang Prabang, Lao PDR

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ceelia Leong

2017-11-01

Full Text Available Rapid tourism development adversely impacts and negatively transforms World Heritage Sites. This study aimed at examining how tourism growth has impacted the built environment of Luang Prabang, Lao PDR through an empirical approach. Luang Prabang has received a critical warning from World Heritage Committee for the escalating development pressure on its vulnerable landscape. Hence, this study examined two aspects: (1 the spatial pattern of the increase of touristic usage; and (2 the relation between the increase of touristic usage and the significant changes in the built environment. For this, geographical information systems (GIS are combined with statistical methods such as logistic regression and chi-square test of independence. The results affirmed that the change from other types of usage to touristic usage in existing buildings has a higher chance to occur along riverbank areas than in the middle of the peninsula in the core heritage area. Change to touristic usage is also related with three significant changes in the built environment, namely: (1 change from other types of architecture to Lao traditional architecture; (2 change from modern to traditional roof materials; and (3 change from traditional to modern building materials. This indicates that the increase in touristic usage has contributed to strengthening the heritage elements of the landscape.

When the world collapses: changed worldview and social reconstruction in a traumatized community

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dinka Corkalo Biruski

2014-09-01

Full Text Available Background: Traumatic experience can affect the individual's basic beliefs about the world as a predictable and safe place. One of the cornerstones in recovery from trauma is reestablishment of safety, connectedness, and the shattered schema of a worldview. Objective: This study explored the role of negatively changed worldview in the relationship between war-related traumatization and readiness for social reconstruction of intergroup relations in a post-conflict community measured by three processes: intergroup rapprochement, rebuilding trust, and need for apology. It was hypothesized that more traumatized people are less supportive of social reconstruction and that this relationship is mediated by the changed worldview. Method: The study included a community random sample of 333 adults in the city of Vukovar, Croatia, that was most devastated during the 1991–1995 war. Six instruments were administered: Stressful Events Scale, Impact of Event Scale-Revised, Changed Worldview Scale, and three scales measuring the post-conflict social reconstruction processes: Intergroup Rapprochement, Intergroup Trust and Need for Apology. Results: Mediation analyses showed that the worldview change fully mediated between traumatization and all three aspects of social reconstruction. Conclusions: In a population exposed to war traumatization the worldview change mediates post-conflict social recovery of community relations.

Extreme environment electronics

CERN Document Server

Cressler, John D

2012-01-01

Unfriendly to conventional electronic devices, circuits, and systems, extreme environments represent a serious challenge to designers and mission architects. The first truly comprehensive guide to this specialized field, Extreme Environment Electronics explains the essential aspects of designing and using devices, circuits, and electronic systems intended to operate in extreme environments, including across wide temperature ranges and in radiation-intense scenarios such as space. The Definitive Guide to Extreme Environment Electronics Featuring contributions by some of the world's foremost exp

Organizational Change and How It Affects Healthcare Employees: A Study on Employee Resistance to Change in Electronic Medical Record Implementation

Science.gov (United States)

Adeyemi, Oluwakemi A.

2017-01-01

The purpose of the exploratory qualitative study was to explore the strategies for reducing employee resistance to Electronic Medical Record (EMR) technology changes in a healthcare organization during implementation. The study focused on EPIC as the EMR application. Ten healthcare participants who had experienced a change to EMR were selected in…

Electronic Nose Breathprints Are Independent of Acute Changes in Airway Caliber in Asthma

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jan van der Maten

2010-10-01

Full Text Available Molecular profiling of exhaled volatile organic compounds (VOC by electronic nose technology provides breathprints that discriminate between patients with different inflammatory airway diseases, such as asthma and COPD. However, it is unknown whether this is determined by differences in airway caliber. We hypothesized that breathprints obtained by electronic nose are independent of acute changes in airway caliber in asthma. Ten patients with stable asthma underwent methacholine provocation (Visit 1 and sham challenge with isotonic saline (Visit 2. At Visit 1, exhaled air was repetitively collected pre-challenge, after reaching the provocative concentration (PC20 causing 20% fall in forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1 and after subsequent salbutamol inhalation. At Visit 2, breath was collected pre-challenge, post-saline and post-salbutamol. At each occasion, an expiratory vital capacity was collected after 5 min of tidal breathing through an inspiratory VOC-filter in a Tedlar bag and sampled by electronic nose (Cyranose 320. Breathprints were analyzed with principal component analysis and individual factors were compared with mixed model analysis followed by pairwise comparisons. Inhalation of methacholine led to a 30.8 ± 3.3% fall in FEV1 and was followed by a significant change in breathprint (p = 0.04. Saline inhalation did not induce a significant change in FEV1, but altered the breathprint (p = 0.01. However, the breathprint obtained after the methacholine provocation was not significantly different from that after saline challenge (p = 0.27. The molecular profile of exhaled air in patients with asthma is altered by nebulized aerosols, but is not affected by acute changes in airway caliber. Our data demonstrate that breathprints by electronic nose are not confounded by the level of airway obstruction.

The Changing Face of World Cities. Young Adult Children of Immigrants in Europe and the United States.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Crul, M.R.J.; Mollenkopf, J.

2012-01-01

A seismic population shift is taking place as many formerly racially homogeneous cities in the West attract a diverse influx of newcomers seeking economic and social advancement. In The Changing Face of World Cities, a distinguished group of immigration experts presents the first systematic,

Runaway electron generation as possible trigger for enhancement of magnetohydrodynamic plasma activity and fast changes in runaway beam behavior

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pankratov, I. M.; Zhou, R. J.; Hu, L. Q.

2015-01-01

Peculiar phenomena were observed during experiments with runaway electrons: rapid changes in the synchrotron spot and its intensity that coincided with stepwise increases in the electron cyclotron emission (ECE) signal (cyclotron radiation of suprathermal electrons). These phenomena were initially observed in TEXTOR (Tokamak Experiment for Technology Oriented Research), where these events only occurred in the current decay phase or in discharges with thin stable runaway beams at a q = 1 drift surface. These rapid changes in the synchrotron spot were interpreted by the TEXTOR team as a fast pitch angle scattering event. Recently, similar rapid changes in the synchrotron spot and its intensity that coincided with stepwise increases in the non-thermal ECE signal were observed in the EAST (Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak) runaway discharge. Runaway electrons were located around the q = 2 rational magnetic surface (ring-like runaway electron beam). During the EAST runaway discharge, stepwise ECE signal increases coincided with enhanced magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) activity. This behavior was peculiar to this shot. In this paper, we show that these non-thermal ECE step-like jumps were related to the abrupt growth of suprathermal electrons induced by bursting electric fields at reconnection events during this MHD plasma activity. Enhancement of the secondary runaway electron generation also occurred simultaneously. Local changes in the current-density gradient appeared because of local enhancement of the runaway electron generation process. These current-density gradient changes are considered to be a possible trigger for enhancement of the MHD plasma activity and the rapid changes in runaway beam behavior

Runaway electron generation as possible trigger for enhancement of magnetohydrodynamic plasma activity and fast changes in runaway beam behavior

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pankratov, I. M., E-mail: pankratov@kipt.kharkov.ua, E-mail: rjzhou@ipp.ac.cn [Institute of Plasma Physics, NSC Kharkov Institute of Physics and Technology, Academicheskaya Str. 1, 61108 Kharkov (Ukraine); Zhou, R. J., E-mail: pankratov@kipt.kharkov.ua, E-mail: rjzhou@ipp.ac.cn; Hu, L. Q. [Institute of Plasma Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei 230031 (China)

2015-07-15

Peculiar phenomena were observed during experiments with runaway electrons: rapid changes in the synchrotron spot and its intensity that coincided with stepwise increases in the electron cyclotron emission (ECE) signal (cyclotron radiation of suprathermal electrons). These phenomena were initially observed in TEXTOR (Tokamak Experiment for Technology Oriented Research), where these events only occurred in the current decay phase or in discharges with thin stable runaway beams at a q = 1 drift surface. These rapid changes in the synchrotron spot were interpreted by the TEXTOR team as a fast pitch angle scattering event. Recently, similar rapid changes in the synchrotron spot and its intensity that coincided with stepwise increases in the non-thermal ECE signal were observed in the EAST (Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak) runaway discharge. Runaway electrons were located around the q = 2 rational magnetic surface (ring-like runaway electron beam). During the EAST runaway discharge, stepwise ECE signal increases coincided with enhanced magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) activity. This behavior was peculiar to this shot. In this paper, we show that these non-thermal ECE step-like jumps were related to the abrupt growth of suprathermal electrons induced by bursting electric fields at reconnection events during this MHD plasma activity. Enhancement of the secondary runaway electron generation also occurred simultaneously. Local changes in the current-density gradient appeared because of local enhancement of the runaway electron generation process. These current-density gradient changes are considered to be a possible trigger for enhancement of the MHD plasma activity and the rapid changes in runaway beam behavior.

Runaway electron generation as possible trigger for enhancement of magnetohydrodynamic plasma activity and fast changes in runaway beam behavior

Science.gov (United States)

Pankratov, I. M.; Zhou, R. J.; Hu, L. Q.

2015-07-01

Peculiar phenomena were observed during experiments with runaway electrons: rapid changes in the synchrotron spot and its intensity that coincided with stepwise increases in the electron cyclotron emission (ECE) signal (cyclotron radiation of suprathermal electrons). These phenomena were initially observed in TEXTOR (Tokamak Experiment for Technology Oriented Research), where these events only occurred in the current decay phase or in discharges with thin stable runaway beams at a q = 1 drift surface. These rapid changes in the synchrotron spot were interpreted by the TEXTOR team as a fast pitch angle scattering event. Recently, similar rapid changes in the synchrotron spot and its intensity that coincided with stepwise increases in the non-thermal ECE signal were observed in the EAST (Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak) runaway discharge. Runaway electrons were located around the q = 2 rational magnetic surface (ring-like runaway electron beam). During the EAST runaway discharge, stepwise ECE signal increases coincided with enhanced magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) activity. This behavior was peculiar to this shot. In this paper, we show that these non-thermal ECE step-like jumps were related to the abrupt growth of suprathermal electrons induced by bursting electric fields at reconnection events during this MHD plasma activity. Enhancement of the secondary runaway electron generation also occurred simultaneously. Local changes in the current-density gradient appeared because of local enhancement of the runaway electron generation process. These current-density gradient changes are considered to be a possible trigger for enhancement of the MHD plasma activity and the rapid changes in runaway beam behavior.

Older Adults’ Current and Potential Uses of Information Technologies in a Changing World: A Theoretical Perspective

Science.gov (United States)

Backonja, Uba; Hall, Amanda K.; Thielke, Stephen

2015-01-01

Technologies have become a major force in people’s lives. They change how people interact with the environment, even as the environment changes. We propose that technology use in the setting of changing environments is motivated by essential needs and tensions experienced by the individual. We apply three developmental and behavioral theories (Erikson’s stages of psychosocial development, Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, and Bronfenbrenner’s ecological model) to explain technology-related behaviors among older adults. We consider how technology use has addressed and can address major ecological changes, in three areas: health promotion, natural disasters, and disparities. We propose that considering these theories can help researchers and developers ensure that technologies will help promote a healthier world for older adults. PMID:26215298

6 MeV pulsed electron beam induced surface and structural changes in polyimide

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mathakari, Narendra L.; Bhoraskar, Vasant N. [Microtron Accelerator Laboratory, Department of Physics, University of Pune, Ganeshkhind, Pune 411007, Maharashtra (India); Dhole, Sanjay D., E-mail: sanjay@physics.unipune.ernet.i [Microtron Accelerator Laboratory, Department of Physics, University of Pune, Ganeshkhind, Pune 411007, Maharashtra (India)

2010-04-15

Thin films of polyimide (PMDA-ODA, Kapton) having 50 mum thickness were irradiated with 6 MeV pulsed electron beam. The bulk and surface properties of pristine and irradiated samples were characterized by several techniques such as stress-strain measurements, Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR), UV-vis spectroscopy, contact angle, atomic force microscopy (AFM) and profilometry. The tensile strength, percentage elongation and strain energy show an enhancement from pristine value of 73-89 MPa, 10-22% and 4.75-14.2 MJ/m{sup 3} respectively at the maximum fluence of 4 x 10{sup 15} electrons/cm{sup 2}. This signifies that polyimide being an excessively aromatic polymer is crosslinked due to high-energy electron irradiation. In surface properties, the contact angle shows a significant decrease from 59 deg. to 32 deg. indicating enhancement in hydrophilicity. This mainly attributes to surface roughening, which is due to the electron beam induced sputtering. The surface roughening is confirmed in AFM and profilometry measurements. The AFM images clearly show that surface roughness increases after electron irradiation. Moreover, the roughness average (R{sub a}) as measured from surface profilograms is found to increase from 0.06 to 0.1. The FTIR and UV-vis spectra do not show noticeable changes as regards to scissioning of bonds and the oxidation. This work leads to a definite conclusion that 6 MeV pulsed electron beam can be used to bring about desired changes in surface as well as bulk properties of polyimide, which is considered to be a high performance space quality polymer.

Changing world: Basic structure of global inter-relations between man and environment. Expert opinion for the year 1993

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1993-01-01

A year after the environmental summit in Rio de Janeiro a turnabout in the alarming global environmental change is not within sight. Thoughtless economic activity and population growth threaten, damage or destroy many natural biospheres and biological communities world-wide. In the long term mankind is endangering its own survival. Global environmental changes have other causes and much more complex effects than most national environmental problems. In its first annual expertise of 1993, the scientific advisory council on ''Global Environmental Change'' describes the close global interknitting of man and nature, society and environment, in order to lay the foundation for future expertises. Global environmental targets and future economic development must be better matched to each other. In view of the following major trends: increase in world population, changing composition of the atmosphere in the long term, loss of biological variety and deterioration and loss of soils, the advisory committee gives some main recommendations: increase in German development aid to 1% of the GNP, rapid implementation of the climate convention, i.e., cuts in CO 2 emissions, and sensitization of citizens to global environmental problems as well as schemes for the promotion of environmentally-friendly practices. (orig./MG) [de

A changing world: Using nuclear techniques to investigate the impact of climate change on polar and mountainous regions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Henriques, Sasha

2015-01-01

Nuclear techniques are being used in polar and mountainous regions to study climate change and its impact on the quality of land, water and ecosystems in order to better conserve and manage these resources. Researchers from around the world will be using data from 13 benchmark sites to draw conclusions about the effects of the rapidly changing climate on the Arctic, mountains and the western part of Antarctica, which have alarmed communities, environmentalists, scientists and policy makers. Between July 2015 and July 2016 they will be using isotopic and nuclear techniques, as well as geochemical and biological analytical methods from other scientific disciplines. This will enable them to track soil and water, to monitor the movement of soil and sediment and to assess the effects of melting permafrost on the atmosphere, as well as on the land, water and fragile ecosystems of mountainous and polar regions. The measurements follow numerous on-site tests carried out since November 2014 to perfect the sampling technique.

Electronic game: A key effective technology to promote behavioral change in cancer patients

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Reza Safdari

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Cancer diagnosis is a very unpleasant and unbelievable experience. Appropriate management and treatment of these diseases require a high degree of patient engagement. Interactive health electronic games are engaging, fun, challenging, and experiential and have the potential to change the attitude and behavior, which can improve the player's health. The use of these digital tools, as one of the most attractive and entertaining modern technologies, canem power patients, provide suitable palliative care, promote health behavior change strategies, increase patient engagement, enhance healthy lifestyle habits, improve self.management, and finally improve the quality of life of the patients. Finally, the aim of this article was to describe electronic games and their effects on the promotion of behavior change in cancer patients. In addition, this article describes categories, characteristic features, and benefits of this digital media in the lifestyle modification of cancer patients.

Are electronic cigarettes saviors or new culprits?

OpenAIRE

YALCIN, Bektas Murat; UNAL, Mustafa; SELCUK, Mustafa Yasin

2017-01-01

 Electronic cigarette (EC) usage in the world is increasing. It might outsell the other tobacco products in the future with this rate of selling increase. Promoters of EC argue that using them will bring additional benefits in the fight against tobacco. By switching from cigarettes to ECs, smokers will not be exposed to a number of dangerous substances thus; morbidity and mortality of smoking would decrease. This may cause major epidemiologic changes. Opponents argue that none of these claims...

An electronic apparatus for early detection of changes in red cell ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

1989-08-19

Aug 19, 1989 ... An electronic apparatus was developed for anaesthetists to use to detect changes in red cell concentration during sur- gery. The mechanism is based on the relationship between the red cell content and the electrical conductivity of blood. In a pilot study of 170 blood samples, a correlation coefficient.

`Not to escape the world but to join it': responding to climate change with imagination not fantasy

Science.gov (United States)

Davison, Andrew

2017-05-01

The work of climate scientists, demonstrating human-driven climate change, has not provoked the widespread and far-reaching changes to human behaviour necessary to avert potentially catastrophic environmental trajectories. This work has not yet sufficiently been able to engage the individual and collective imagination. Drawing on Samuel Taylor Coleridge (1772-1834) and Iris Murdoch (1919-1999), we can distinguish two modes under which the human imagination can operate: in Murdoch's terms, these are `imagination' and `fantasy'. To relate imaginatively is to be willing to allow one's internal image of the world to be changed by what one encounters, while an outlook characterized by fantasy relates to the world as one would wish it were, rather than how it actually is. Fantasy, therefore, operates not only among those who deny climate change, but also among those who entertain the promise of a technological solution too optimistically. An imaginative outlook, by contrast, evaluates actions and patterns of behaviour in terms of their relation to a wider whole. This is necessary for providing the degree of agency required to step out of a cycle of ever accelerating production, which is explored in terms of an analogy to a discussion of revenge and forgiveness from Hannah Arendt (1906-1975). Ultimately, the need to engage the imagination is an opportunity as well as a challenge. To live imaginatively is fulfilling, and that is precisely what the challenges of climate change require. This article is part of the themed issue 'Material demand reduction'.

Changes in precipitation-streamflow transformation around the world: interdecadal variability and trends.

Science.gov (United States)

Saft, M.; Peel, M. C.; Andreassian, V.; Parajka, J.; Coxon, G.; Freer, J. E.; Woods, R. A.

2017-12-01

Accurate prediction of hydrologic response to potentially changing climatic forcing is a key current challenge in hydrology. Recent studies exploring decadal to multidecadal climate drying in the African Sahel and south-eastern and south-western Australia demonstrated that long dry periods also had an indirect cumulative impact on streamflow via altered catchment biophysical properties. As a result, hydrologic response to persisting change in climatic conditions, i.e. precipitation, cannot be confidently inferred from the hydrologic response to short-term interannual climate fluctuations of similar magnitude. This study aims to characterise interdecadal changes in precipitation-runoff conversion processes globally. The analysis is based on long continuous records from near-natural baseline catchments in North America, Europe, and Australia. We used several complimentary metrics characterising precipitation-runoff relationship to assess how partitioning changed over recent decades. First, we explore the hypothesis that during particularly dry or wet decades the precipitation elasticity of streamflow increases over what can be expected from inter-annual variability. We found this hypothesis holds for both wet and dry periods in some regions, but not everywhere. Interestingly, trend-like behaviour in the precipitation-runoff partitioning, unrelated to precipitation changes, offset the impact of persisting precipitation change in some regions. Therefore, in the second part of this study we explored longer-term trends in precipitation-runoff partitioning, and related them to climate and streamflow changes. We found significant changes in precipitation-runoff relationship around the world, which implies that runoff response to a given precipitation can vary over decades even in near-natural catchments. When significant changes occur, typically less runoff is generated for a given precipitation over time - even when precipitation is increasing. We discuss the consistency

A Model for Teaching Electronic Commerce Students

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Howard C. Woodard

2002-10-01

Full Text Available The teaching of information technology in an ever-changing world at universities presents a challenge. Are courses taught as concepts, while ignoring hands-on courses, leaving the hands-on classes to the technical colleges or trade schools? Does this produce the best employees for industry or give students the knowledge and skills necessary to function in a high-tech world? At GeorgiaCollege & StateUniversity (GC&SU a model was developed that combines both concepts and practical hands-on skill to meet this challenge. Using this model, a program was developed that consists of classroom lecture of concepts as well as practical hands-on exercises for mastering the knowledge and developing the skills necessary to succeed in the high-tech world of electronic commerce. The students become productive day one of a new job assignment. This solves the problem of students having the "book knowledge" but not knowing how to apply what has been learned.

Electron Microscopic Changes of Rabbit Retina after Chromovitrectomy Using Combined Dyes (Experimental Study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

B. M. Aznabaev

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Purpose: to evaluate on experimental model electron-microscopic changes of rabbit retina after staining of the posterior eye segmentwith combined dyes based on Trypan blue and Brilliant blue G for the assessment of their safety. Methods. The study was performed onChinchilla breed rabbits. Combined dyes based on Trypan blue and Brilliant blue were used: MembraneBlue-Dual (DORC, Netherlandsand “Staining solution for ophthalmic surgery” (JCS “Optimedservis”, Russia. Standard three-port vitrectomy technique was used. After vitreous removal dyes were injected in vitreous cavity and exposed for 10 seconds and then removed. The vitreous cavity was filled by a balanced salt solution. An electron-microscopic evaluation was performed on 5, 14 and 30 days after surgery. Eyes were enucleated in 20 minutes after animal was killed by air embolization. Intact eyes were used as a control, all samples were prepared in same сonditions. The damage of the retina architectonics and the presence of intracellular inclusions were evaluated. Results. The staged character of pathomorphological changes was revealed. On the 5th day moderate edema and hydropic dystrophy of neurons were registered. On the 14th day, there was no negative dynamics. On day 30, the signs of edema and dystrophy of neurons practically disappeared, which may indicate a fundamental reversibility of the registered changes. Conclusion. Investigated dyes for staining intraocular structures based on Trypan blue and Brilliant blue did not cause significant histomorphological changes and toxic effects on retinal cell structures. Detected electron microscopic changes were insignificant, had reversible character and could be mostly caused by a surgical injury.

An electronic apparatus for early detection of changes in red cell ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

An electronic apparatus was developed for anaesthetists to use to detect changes in red cell concentration during surgery. The mechanism is based on the relationship between the red cell content and the electrical conductivity of blood. In a pilot study of 170 blood samples, a correlation coefficient of 0,9806 was obtained ...

Ionizing radiation changes the electronic properties of melanin and enhances the growth of melanized fungi.

Science.gov (United States)

Dadachova, Ekaterina; Bryan, Ruth A; Huang, Xianchun; Moadel, Tiffany; Schweitzer, Andrew D; Aisen, Philip; Nosanchuk, Joshua D; Casadevall, Arturo

2007-05-23

Melanin pigments are ubiquitous in nature. Melanized microorganisms are often the dominating species in certain extreme environments, such as soils contaminated with radionuclides, suggesting that the presence of melanin is beneficial in their life cycle. We hypothesized that ionizing radiation could change the electronic properties of melanin and might enhance the growth of melanized microorganisms. Ionizing irradiation changed the electron spin resonance (ESR) signal of melanin, consistent with changes in electronic structure. Irradiated melanin manifested a 4-fold increase in its capacity to reduce NADH relative to non-irradiated melanin. HPLC analysis of melanin from fungi grown on different substrates revealed chemical complexity, dependence of melanin composition on the growth substrate and possible influence of melanin composition on its interaction with ionizing radiation. XTT/MTT assays showed increased metabolic activity of melanized C. neoformans cells relative to non-melanized cells, and exposure to ionizing radiation enhanced the electron-transfer properties of melanin in melanized cells. Melanized Wangiella dermatitidis and Cryptococcus neoformans cells exposed to ionizing radiation approximately 500 times higher than background grew significantly faster as indicated by higher CFUs, more dry weight biomass and 3-fold greater incorporation of (14)C-acetate than non-irradiated melanized cells or irradiated albino mutants. In addition, radiation enhanced the growth of melanized Cladosporium sphaerospermum cells under limited nutrients conditions. Exposure of melanin to ionizing radiation, and possibly other forms of electromagnetic radiation, changes its electronic properties. Melanized fungal cells manifested increased growth relative to non-melanized cells after exposure to ionizing radiation, raising intriguing questions about a potential role for melanin in energy capture and utilization.

Global assessment of technological innovation for climate change adaptation and mitigation in developing world.

Science.gov (United States)

Adenle, Ademola A; Azadi, Hossein; Arbiol, Joseph

2015-09-15

Concerns about mitigating and adapting to climate change resulted in renewing the incentive for agricultural research investments and developing further innovation priorities around the world particularly in developing countries. In the near future, development of new agricultural measures and proper diffusion of technologies will greatly influence the ability of farmers in adaptation and mitigation to climate change. Using bibliometric approaches through output of academic journal publications and patent-based data, we assess the impact of research and development (R&D) for new and existing technologies within the context of climate change mitigation and adaptation. We show that many developing countries invest limited resources for R&D in relevant technologies that have great potential for mitigation and adaption in agricultural production. We also discuss constraints including weak infrastructure, limited research capacity, lack of credit facilities and technology transfer that may hinder the application of innovation in tackling the challenges of climate change. A range of policy measures is also suggested to overcome identified constraints and to ensure that potentials of innovation for climate change mitigation and adaptation are realized. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Changes in the economical updated world by means of the diffuse logia.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Leidy Maylén Pérez López

2012-09-01

Full Text Available In the organization world many changes have occurred In last years of last centuries and the first ones, due to the advance of Technologies and Communications (TIC and to the need of getting truthful information in less possible time, the markets globalization and the doubts in taking decisions have favored the development of new techniques of artificial Intelligence applied to a numerous of activities accomplished by human beings and to the field of Economics. In present work a compilation of techniques and applications of artificial intelligence to economy's field is made. It is proposed also a procedure to treat the lack of certainty and the subjectivity as main characteristic of related techniques.

Electronic transport in amorphous phase-change materials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Luckas, Jennifer Maria

2012-01-01

Phase change materials combine a pronounced contrast in resistivity and reflectivity between their disordered amorphous and ordered crystalline state with very fast crystallization kinetics. Due to this exceptional combination of properties phase-change materials find broad application in non-volatile optical memories such as CD, DVD or Bluray Disc. Furthermore, this class of materials demonstrates remarkable electrical transport phenomena in their disordered state, which have shown to be crucial for their application in electronic storage devices. The threshold switching phenomenon denotes the sudden decrease in resistivity beyond a critical electrical threshold field. The threshold switching phenomenon facilitates the phase transitions at practical small voltages. Below this threshold the amorphous state resistivity is thermally activated and is observed to increase with time. This effect known as resistance drift seriously hampers the development of multi-level storage devices. Hence, understanding the physical origins of threshold switching and resistance drift phenomena is crucial to improve non-volatile phase-change memories. Even though both phenomena are often attributed to localized defect states in the band gap, the defect state density in amorphous phase-change materials has remained poorly studied. Starting from a brief introduction of the physics of phase-change materials this thesis summarizes the most important models behind electrical switching and resistance drift with the aim to discuss the role of localized defect states. The centerpiece of this thesis is the investigation of defects state densities in different amorphous phase-change materials and electrical switching chalcogenides. On the basis of Modulated Photo Current (MPC) Experiments and Photothermal Deflection Spectroscopy, a sophisticated band model for the disordered phase of the binary phase-change alloy GeTe has been developed. By this direct experimental approach the band-model for a

Electronic transport in amorphous phase-change materials

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Luckas, Jennifer Maria

2012-09-14

Phase change materials combine a pronounced contrast in resistivity and reflectivity between their disordered amorphous and ordered crystalline state with very fast crystallization kinetics. Due to this exceptional combination of properties phase-change materials find broad application in non-volatile optical memories such as CD, DVD or Bluray Disc. Furthermore, this class of materials demonstrates remarkable electrical transport phenomena in their disordered state, which have shown to be crucial for their application in electronic storage devices. The threshold switching phenomenon denotes the sudden decrease in resistivity beyond a critical electrical threshold field. The threshold switching phenomenon facilitates the phase transitions at practical small voltages. Below this threshold the amorphous state resistivity is thermally activated and is observed to increase with time. This effect known as resistance drift seriously hampers the development of multi-level storage devices. Hence, understanding the physical origins of threshold switching and resistance drift phenomena is crucial to improve non-volatile phase-change memories. Even though both phenomena are often attributed to localized defect states in the band gap, the defect state density in amorphous phase-change materials has remained poorly studied. Starting from a brief introduction of the physics of phase-change materials this thesis summarizes the most important models behind electrical switching and resistance drift with the aim to discuss the role of localized defect states. The centerpiece of this thesis is the investigation of defects state densities in different amorphous phase-change materials and electrical switching chalcogenides. On the basis of Modulated Photo Current (MPC) Experiments and Photothermal Deflection Spectroscopy, a sophisticated band model for the disordered phase of the binary phase-change alloy GeTe has been developed. By this direct experimental approach the band-model for a

Investigation of Strategic Changes Using Patent Co-Inventor Network Analysis: The Case of Samsung Electronics

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sungchul Choi

2016-12-01

Full Text Available The aim of this paper is to propose a method to investigate a firm’s strategic changes. Technologies or technological capabilities are a major resource for achieving competitive advantages, so a firm’s R&D effort to improve capabilities on specific technologies is aligned with strategic direction. Therefore, this research analyzes changes in R&D efforts by identifying key R&D personnel using patent co-inventor network and social network analysis. Based on characteristics of application and granted patents, the method analyzes current and future R&D efforts and so identifies strategic changes of a firm. We conducted an empirical analysis using the patents of Samsung Electronics. Our method analyzed the current and future strategies of Samsung Electronics and the result shows clear strategic changes in their focal technologies and business.

Sub-nanometre resolution of atomic motion during electronic excitation in phase-change materials.

Science.gov (United States)

Mitrofanov, Kirill V; Fons, Paul; Makino, Kotaro; Terashima, Ryo; Shimada, Toru; Kolobov, Alexander V; Tominaga, Junji; Bragaglia, Valeria; Giussani, Alessandro; Calarco, Raffaella; Riechert, Henning; Sato, Takahiro; Katayama, Tetsuo; Ogawa, Kanade; Togashi, Tadashi; Yabashi, Makina; Wall, Simon; Brewe, Dale; Hase, Muneaki

2016-02-12

Phase-change materials based on Ge-Sb-Te alloys are widely used in industrial applications such as nonvolatile memories, but reaction pathways for crystalline-to-amorphous phase-change on picosecond timescales remain unknown. Femtosecond laser excitation and an ultrashort x-ray probe is used to show the temporal separation of electronic and thermal effects in a long-lived (>100 ps) transient metastable state of Ge2Sb2Te5 with muted interatomic interaction induced by a weakening of resonant bonding. Due to a specific electronic state, the lattice undergoes a reversible nondestructive modification over a nanoscale region, remaining cold for 4 ps. An independent time-resolved x-ray absorption fine structure experiment confirms the existence of an intermediate state with disordered bonds. This newly unveiled effect allows the utilization of non-thermal ultra-fast pathways enabling artificial manipulation of the switching process, ultimately leading to a redefined speed limit, and improved energy efficiency and reliability of phase-change memory technologies.

"Emmerce" Immersion: The Emerging World of Electronic Commerce.

Science.gov (United States)

Chuck, Lysbeth

1997-01-01

Discusses the effects of Web-based electronic commerce, or "emmerce," on online user. Defines "cookies" and Persistent Client State HTTP Cookies or "magic cookies" on Macintosh computers. Examines underlying technologies that make up "cashless" transactions; growing demand for micropayments; CyberCash,…

World-System and Evolution: An Appraisal

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Thomas D. Hall

2015-08-01

Full Text Available This paper makes six arguments. First, socio-cultural evolution must be studied from a "world-system" or intersocietal interaction perspective. A focus on change in individual "societies" or "groups" fails to attend adequately to the effects of intersocietal interaction on social and cultural change. Second, in order to be useful, theories of the modern world-system must be modified extensively to deal with non-capitalist settings. In particular, changes in system boundaries marked by exchange networks (for information, luxury or prestige goods, political/military interactions, and bulk goods seldom coincide,and follow different patterns of change. Third, all such systems tend to pulsate, that is, expand and contract, or at least expand rapidly and less rapidly. Fourth, once hierarchical forms of social organization develop such systems typically have cycles of rise and fall in the relative positions of constituent politics. Fifth, expansion of world-systems forms and transforms social relations in newly incorporated areas. While complex in the modern world-system, these changes are even more complex in precapitalist settings. Sixth, thesetwo cycles combine with demographic and epidemiological processes to shape long -term socio-cultural evolution.

Effects of the Competitive Season on the Isokinetic Muscle Parameters Changes in World-Class Handball Players.

Science.gov (United States)

Maurelli, Olivier; Bernard, Pierre L; Dubois, Romain; Ahmaidi, Said; Prioux, Jacques

2018-05-25

Maurelli, O, Bernard, PL, Dubois, R, Ahmaidi, S, and Prioux, J. Effects of the competitive season on the isokinetic muscle parameters changes in world-class handball players. J Strength Cond Res XX(X): 000-000, 2018-The aim of this study is to investigate the effects of the competitive season on isokinetic muscular parameters of the lower limbs in world-class handball players. Nineteen, male, world-class, handball players (age, 26.6 ± 5.4 years) participated in the study. Two bilateral isokinetic tests of knee joint flexors (H; hamstring) and extensors (Q; quadriceps) were performed in the beginning and end of the competitive season to determine the peak torque (PT), the mean power, and agonist-antagonist ratio, dominant-nondominant ratio (DNDR), and combined ratio. The results showed a significant decrease in PT values at low angular velocity (60°·s) in concentric mode for Q on dominant leg (p handball players. Accordingly, this study should help trainers to modify their planning to maximize strength and power qualities of the lower limbs of their players in addition to avoiding injuries.

IMMANUEL WALLERSTEIN'S WORLD SYSTEM THEORY

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cosma Sorinel

2010-12-01

Full Text Available World-systems analysis is not a theory, but an approach to social analysis and social change developed, among others by the Immanuel Wallerstein. Professor Wallerstein writes in three domains of world-systems analysis: the historical development of the modern world-system; the contemporary crisis of the capitalist world-economy; the structures of knowledge. The American anlyst rejects the notion of a "Third World", claiming there is only one world connected by a complex network of economic exchange relationship. Our world system is characterized by mechanisms which bring about a redistribution of resources from the periphery to the core. His analytical approach has made a significant impact and established an institutional base devoted to the general approach.

Tourism-Induced Livelihood Changes at Mount Sanqingshan World Heritage Site, China

Science.gov (United States)

Su, Ming Ming; Wall, Geoffrey; Xu, Kejian

2016-05-01

Although tourism has the potential to improve the wellbeing of residents, it may also disrupt livelihood systems, social processes, and cultural traditions. The livelihood changes at three rural villages at Mount Sanqingshan World Heritage Site, China, are assessed to determine the extent to which tourism strategies are contributing to local livelihoods. A sustainable livelihood framework is adopted to guide the analysis. The three villages exhibit different development patterns due to institutional, organizational, and location factors. New strategies involving tourism were constructed and incorporated into the traditional livelihood systems and they resulted in different outcomes for residents of different villages. Village location, including the relationship to the site tourism plan, affected the implications for rural livelihoods. High dependence on tourism as the single livelihood option can reduce sustainability. Practical implications are suggested to enhance livelihood sustainability at such rural heritage tourism sites.

Tourism-Induced Livelihood Changes at Mount Sanqingshan World Heritage Site, China.

Science.gov (United States)

Su, Ming Ming; Wall, Geoffrey; Xu, Kejian

2016-05-01

Although tourism has the potential to improve the wellbeing of residents, it may also disrupt livelihood systems, social processes, and cultural traditions. The livelihood changes at three rural villages at Mount Sanqingshan World Heritage Site, China, are assessed to determine the extent to which tourism strategies are contributing to local livelihoods. A sustainable livelihood framework is adopted to guide the analysis. The three villages exhibit different development patterns due to institutional, organizational, and location factors. New strategies involving tourism were constructed and incorporated into the traditional livelihood systems and they resulted in different outcomes for residents of different villages. Village location, including the relationship to the site tourism plan, affected the implications for rural livelihoods. High dependence on tourism as the single livelihood option can reduce sustainability. Practical implications are suggested to enhance livelihood sustainability at such rural heritage tourism sites.

Can Christians really make a difference? A response to the call for change to make the world a better place

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Erna Oliver

2017-04-01

Full Text Available Christianity changed the world for the better through the development of education, charity organisations, art, music, law and medical care among others. However, not all changes initiated by Christianity were positive. The Christian religion was also responsible for division, death, destruction and war. Focusing on the positive changes, nearly 500 years after the reformation though, it seems as if Christianity has lost its renewing and transformative powers. It seems as if society, politics and the economy are pressurising Christianity to conform to the world and not the other way round. Therefore, the research focuses on the question whether Christians can bring about positive change and transformation to the current problems in society. What can Christians do to provide a religious response to current persistent societal problems? Change agents – people who drive positive change – are capable and competent, make use of networks, are visible and contactable and are often also outsiders in the communities they serve. Examples of the work done by change agents – Christians within their local communities – through small-scale community projects are showcased here to suggest possible ways forward for dealing with persistent problems from a Christian point of view.

Imperial Medicine in a Changing World: The Fourth International Congresses on Tropical Medicine and Malaria, 1948.

Science.gov (United States)

Wells, Julia

2016-01-01

The close connections between colonialism and tropical medicine have been widely discussed by historians over the last fifty years. However, few authors consider the relationship between tropical medicine and European and North American imperialism in the immediate post-World War II period. This article examines the Fourth International Congresses on Tropical Medicine and Malaria, held jointly in Washington in 1948. Using the research presented during the conference, it questions to what degree the specialisation had changed in the postwar period. It argues that although some changes are discernable, imperial traditions and relationships remained firmly embedded within the tropical medicine of the congress.

Climate Change: A Future of Less Water and More people - Strategies for a Water Constrained World

Science.gov (United States)

Nahai, D.

2010-12-01

Today, the fact that the Earth is warming is indisputable. The evidence of climate change is already all around us, with the occurence of ever more intense weather events, droughts, heat waves, floods and sea level rise. Predictions of greater calamities in the future without swift action must be taken seriously. However, while international summits have focused on means to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, these are largely strategies of containment, not of cure. Even if emissions were to cease today, the current effects of climate change would remain with us for millenia. This is clear from the 2007 report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. The world must not only tackle the causes of global warming; it must adapt to the damage already done. This need is most acute where water supply is concerned. The world already faces daunting chalenges. According to United Nations' reports, even today 1.8 million children under 5 die from water related diseases every year; 900 million people lack access to safe drinking water; and 2.6 billion go without basic sanitation. In the developing world, 90% of sewage is discharged to water bodies without adequate treatment contributing to "dead zones". Population increases will make matters worse (an addition of around 3 billion people by 2050 is expected) and climate change will compound the crisis. It is forecast that, as the Earth warms, deserts will expand and droughts will intensify causing demographic shifts even as the world's population burgeons. We are already seeing different regions react to water shortages. Many countries are pursuing seawater desalination. However, seawater desalination has numerous drawbacks; it remains the most expensive of water treatment options and the most energy intensive. Some societies may have no choice but to turn to the sea; others should look to other alternatives first. Such frontrunners could include: (1) enhanced conservation, utilizing public education programs, price

'Not to escape the world but to join it': responding to climate change with imagination not fantasy.

Science.gov (United States)

Davison, Andrew

2017-06-13

The work of climate scientists, demonstrating human-driven climate change, has not provoked the widespread and far-reaching changes to human behaviour necessary to avert potentially catastrophic environmental trajectories. This work has not yet sufficiently been able to engage the individual and collective imagination. Drawing on Samuel Taylor Coleridge (1772-1834) and Iris Murdoch (1919-1999), we can distinguish two modes under which the human imagination can operate: in Murdoch's terms, these are 'imagination' and 'fantasy'. To relate imaginatively is to be willing to allow one's internal image of the world to be changed by what one encounters, while an outlook characterized by fantasy relates to the world as one would wish it were, rather than how it actually is. Fantasy, therefore, operates not only among those who deny climate change, but also among those who entertain the promise of a technological solution too optimistically. An imaginative outlook, by contrast, evaluates actions and patterns of behaviour in terms of their relation to a wider whole. This is necessary for providing the degree of agency required to step out of a cycle of ever accelerating production, which is explored in terms of an analogy to a discussion of revenge and forgiveness from Hannah Arendt (1906-1975). Ultimately, the need to engage the imagination is an opportunity as well as a challenge. To live imaginatively is fulfilling, and that is precisely what the challenges of climate change require.This article is part of the themed issue 'Material demand reduction'. © 2017 The Author(s).

Sustainability, energy policy, climatic change, world food supply. Political and legal challenges of the 21th century; Nachhaltigkeit, Energiewende, Klimawandel, Welternaehrung. Politische und rechtliche Herausforderungen des 21. Jahrhunderts

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Haertel, Ines (ed.)

2014-07-01

The book on sustainability, energy policy, climatic change, world food supply as political challenges in the 21th century includes contributions on the following topics: sustainability and environment, energy and climatic change, agriculture and world food supply.

Linking world scan and image

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Timmer, H.; Alcamo, J.; Bollen, J.; Gielen, A.; Gerlach, R.; Den Ouden, A.; Zuidema, G.

1995-01-01

In march 1994 the Central Planning Bureau (CPB) in the Hague, the National Institute of Public Health and Environmental Protection (RIVM) in Bilthoven and the Institute of Environmental Studies (IES) in Amsterdam started the first phase of a joint research program aimed at creating integrated scenarios of the global economy, GHG emissions, and climate impacts. The goal of the first phase of this project was to design and test a linked version of the economic model WORLD SCAN of the former, and the climate model IMAGE 2 of the latter institute. This first phase has resulted in the planned test runs with an operational version of the linked models by May 1995. The experiences in the first year were encouraging, both in the scientific and the organizational sense. In a sense, a link was made between scientific disciplines: a coupling of disciplines concerning with global economic development and the global physical climate system is difficult and novel. The goal of the project was to integrate long-term economic developments and effects of climate change. Both the WORLD SCAN model and IMAGE 2 provide a consistent analysis of the global system, but from different perspectives. IMAGE 2 simulates climate change and its effects in a global context but treats the economic system as exogenous. WORLD SCAN covers the world economic system in a consistent manner but does not take into account the global environment. The links are constructed in the area of agriculture and energy. The basic idea is that WORLD SCAN determines demand and supply on economic principles, while IMAGE 2 provides information on changes of land area and average quality of productive land, and other damage costs based on its three sub-systems. The demand for energy is fed into IMAGE 2's Energy Industry subsystem (EIS), which in turn determines emissions of greenhouse gases. Furthermore, some additional output from WORLD SCAN on activity levels, prices and capital structure can be used to determine

Dependence of actinide solid state chemistry and physics on the changing role of the 5f-electrons

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Haire, R.G.

1992-01-01

It is well established that the chemistry, physics, and material science of the actinides do not reflect perfectly a series of elements with a regular increase in the number of localized f-electrons (f-orbital occupation). This situation results from the changing role of the 5f-electrons across the series. Therefore, a full understanding of the properties of the individual elements necessitates an understanding of the series as a whole. The changing influence of the f-electrons is reflected in many of the actinide's properties. Systematic comparisons of selected high-temperature and high-pressure behaviors of actinide materials are discussed to demonstrate the variable nature and roles of the f-electrons, as well as their susceptibility to experimental parameters. (author)

Dissertation Genre Change as a Result of Electronic Theses and Dissertation Programs

Science.gov (United States)

Pantelides, Kate

2015-01-01

The increasing prevalence of mandatory Electronic Theses and Dissertations (ETDs) policies has ushered in rather dramatic dissertation genre change. The affordances of the medium offer expanded access and audience, availability of new compositional tools, and alternate formats, the implications of which are just beginning to appear in…

Modern electronic materials

CERN Document Server

Watkins, John B

2013-01-01

Modern Electronic Materials focuses on the development of electronic components. The book first discusses the history of electronic components, including early developments up to 1900, developments up to World War II, post-war developments, and a comparison of present microelectric techniques. The text takes a look at resistive materials. Topics include resistor requirements, basic properties, evaporated film resistors, thick film resistors, and special resistors. The text examines dielectric materials. Considerations include basic properties, evaporated dielectric materials, ceramic dielectri

Handbook on electronic commerce

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Shaw, M. [Illinois Univ., Urbana, IL (United States). Beckman Inst. for Advanced Science and Technology; Blanning, R. [Vanderbilt Univ., Nashville, TN (United States). Owen Graduate School of Management; Strader, T. [Iowa State Univ., Ames, IA (United States). Management Information Systems; Whinston, A. [eds.] [Texas Univ., Austin, TX (United States). Dept. of Management Science and Information Systems

2000-07-01

The world is undergoing a revolution to a digital economy, with pronounced implications for corporate strategy, marketing, operations, information systems, customer services, global supply-chain management, and product distribution. This handbook examines the aspects of electronic commerce, including electronic storefront, on-line business, consumer interface, business-to-business networking, digital payment, legal issues, information product development, and electronic business models. Indispensable for academics, students and professionals who are interested in Electronic Commerce and Internet Business. (orig.)

Annual seminar on electronic sources of information

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ravichandra Rao, I.K.

2000-03-01

With the rapid development in IT and the emergence of Internet, a multitude of information sources are now available on electronic media. They include e-journals and other electronic publications - online databases, reference documents, newspapers, magazines, etc. In addition to these online sources, there are thousands of CD-ROM databases. The CD-ROM databases and the online sources are collectively referred to as electronic sources of information. Libraries in no part of the world can afford to ignore these sources. Emergence of these new sources has resulted into a change in the traditional library functions including collection development, acquisitions, cataloguing, user instructions, etc. It is inevitable that in the next five to ten years, special libraries may have to allocate considerable amount towards subscription of e-journals and other e-publications. The papers in this seminar volume discuss several aspects related the theme of the seminar and cover e-journals, different sources available in the Net, classification of electronic sources, online public access catalogues, and different aspects of Internet. Papers relevant to INIS are indexed separately

Rapid world modelling from a mobile platform

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Barry, R.E.; Jones, J.P.; Little, C.Q.; Wilson, C.W.

1997-01-01

The ability to successfully use and interact with a computerized world model is dependent on the ability to create an accurate world model. The goal of this project was to develop a prototype system to remotely deploy sensors into a workspace, collect surface information, and rapidly build an accurate world model of that workspace. A key consideration was that the workspace areas are typically hazardous environments, where it is difficult or impossible for humans to enter. Therefore, the system needed to be fully remote, with no external connections. To accomplish this goal, an electric, mobile platform with battery power sufficient for both the platform and sensor electronics was procured and 3D range sensors were deployed on the platform to capture surface data within the workspace. A radio Ethernet connection was used to provide communications to the vehicle and all on-board electronics. Video from on-board cameras was also transmitted to the base station and used to teleoperate the vehicle. Range data generated by the on-board 3D sensors was transformed into surface maps, or models. Registering the sensor location to a consistent reference frame as the platform moved through the workspace allowed construction of a detailed 3D world model of the extended workspace

In situ transmission electron microscope studies of ion irradiation-induced and irradiation-enhanced phase changes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Allen, C.W.

1992-01-01

Motivated at least initially by materials needs for nuclear reactor development, extensive irradiation effects studies employing transmission electron microscopes (TEM) have been performed for several decades, involving irradiation-induced and irradiation-enhanced microstructural changes, including phase transformations such as precipitation, dissolution, crystallization, amorphization, and order-disorder phenomena. From the introduction of commercial high voltage electron microscopes (HVEM) in the mid-1960s, studies of electron irradiation effects have constituted a major aspect of HVEM application in materials science. For irradiation effects studies two additional developments have had particularly significant impact; the development of TEM specimen holder sin which specimen temperature can be controlled in the range 10-2200 K and the interfacing of ion accelerators which allows in situ TEM studies of irradiation effects and the ion beam modification of materials within this broad temperature range. This paper treats several aspects of in situ studies of electron and ion beam-induced and enhanced phase changes and presents two case studies involving in situ experiments performed in an HVEM to illustrate the strategies of such an approach of the materials research of irradiation effects

E-Employment? College Grad Career Building in a Changing and Electronic Age

Science.gov (United States)

Eisner, Susan

2010-01-01

The unusual nature of the current economic environment combined with changing labor market demographics heightens the importance to those engaged in employment activity of utilizing methods that fulfill their needs. But electronic technology is transforming available employment methods. How can career building and recruiting best be sustained in…

World energy projections to 2030

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Criqui, P.; Kouvaritakis, N.

2000-01-01

This paper provides a description of the international energy projections elaborated with the POLES energy model for the purpose of analysing, in other papers of this issue, the impacts of technological change at world level and to 2030. Section 2 describes the key exogenous hypotheses on population and economic growth used for this projection, as well as the main resulting changes for the world energy system and in terms of CO 2 emissions. In Section 3 the dynamics of the energy systems are further analysed for four main world regions, while Section 4 is dedicated to the identification of the key uncertainties and of their possible impacts on future energy development. Finally, the last section presents the key messages of this outlook, which shows a rapidly growing world economy and energy consumption with increasing oil and gas prices, although this last feature remains subject to uncertainties on resource endowment estimates. (orig.)

Electron scattering for exotic nuclei

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

2014-11-04

Nov 4, 2014 ... A brand-new electron scattering facility, the SCRIT Electron Scattering Facility, will soon start its operation at RIKEN RI Beam Factory, Japan. This is the world's first electron scattering facility dedicated to the structure studies of short-lived nuclei. The goal of this facility is to determine the charge density ...

Considerations on nonproliferation regime meeting in a changing world

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kurihara, Hiroyoshi; Kikuchi, Masahiro

1994-01-01

This paper summarizes the past history of worldwide nonproliferation regime, then proposes the future improvements on the regime. Present worldwide nonproliferation regime have been formulated during the cold war era. Therefore, the structure and measures of the regime were heavily influenced by the features of cold war era. Though the cold war was over, still new international order does not seem to be on the horizon, we need to review the present regime and to improve the regime compatible to new world situation. Generally speaking, the nonproliferation regime have gained moderate success so far. We could point out the following features as a kind of success: 1) No increase of overt Nuclear Weapon State (NWS), 2) All five NWSs have finally participated to the NPT, 3) South Africa has destroyed its nuclear weapons and became Non-Nuclear Weapon State (NNWS), 4) Successful conclusions of some regional arrangements, such as Tlatelolco, Ralotonga, and 5) Strengthening of export control on sensitive items. On the other hand, we recognize the following points as the failures of the regime. 6) India, Pakistan and Israel reject to join the NPT, 7) Existence of some violation against NPT regime, i.e. Iraqi case and DPRK case, 8) Insufficient effective measures against brain drain problem, 9) Risk exists for the long term extension of NPT, and 10) Insufficient flexibility to meet changing boundary conditions. We would propose the various measures for strengthening to meet changing boundary conditions, as follows: 11) Measures to be taken along with future civil use of Plutonium, 12) Strengthening and rationalizing international safeguards, 13) Countermeasures for emerging new types of nuclear proliferation, 14) Strengthening nuclear material control in NWS, 15) Measures to be taken for nuclear material from dismantled nuclear weapons, and 16) Nuclear disarmament. (author)

Changes in puffing behavior among smokers who switched from tobacco to electronic cigarettes.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Yong Hee; Gawron, Michal; Goniewicz, Maciej Lukasz

2015-09-01

Nicotine intake from electronic cigarette (e-cigarettes) increases with user's experience. This suggests that smokers who switched from tobacco to electronic cigarettes compensate for nicotine over time to get as much nicotine as they need. One of the mechanisms by which smokers may compensate for nicotine is by modifying their puffing behavior. The aim of the study was to assess the changes in puffing behavior after switching from conventional to electronic cigarettes among regular smokers. Twenty smokers (11 female, aged 31±10, CPD 16±8, FTND 4±3, and exhaled CO 16±17 (mean±SD)) who were naïve to e-cigarettes participated in this study. They were asked to substitute their regular tobacco cigarettes with first generation e-cigarettes (labeled 18mg nicotine) for two weeks. Puffing topography (number of puffs, puff volume, intervals between puffs, and average puff flow rate) was measured at the initial use (baseline), as well as after one and two weeks of product use. We tested changes in puffing topography outcomes using repeated measures ANOVA. We found that after one week of using e-cigarettes, participants significantly increased the average time they puffed on e-cigarettes from 2.2±0.1 (mean±SEM) to 3.1±0.3s (pe-cigarette use (preason for changing puffing behavior is to compensate for less efficient nicotine delivery from e-cigarettes. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Electronic trading system and returns volatility in the oil futures market

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liao, Huei-Chu; Lee, Yi-Huey; Suen, Yu-Bo

2008-01-01

This paper uses daily Brent crude prices to investigate the employment of electronic trading on the returns conditional volatility in the oil futures market. After a suitable GARCH model is established, the conditional volatility series are found. The Bai and Perron model is then used to find two significant structural breaks for these conditional volatility series around two implementation dates of electronic trading. This result indicates that the change in the trading system has significant impacts on the returns volatility since our estimated second break date is very close to the all-electronic trade implementation date. Moreover, the conditional volatility in the all-electronic trading period is found to be more dominated by the temporal persistence rather than the volatility clustering effect. All these evidence can shed some light for explaining the high relationship between more volatile world oil price and the more popular electronic trade. (author)

The Wright Science Colloquia - Entering the Nano-World

CERN Multimedia

2002-01-01

In 1965, Intel co-founder Gordon Moore made an astonishing prediction - that every year processing power would double. Although it was corrected to a period of 18 to 24 months in 1975, this prediction has always proved accurate. Accordingly, the first Intel processor produced in 1975 was equipped with 2,300 transistors whereas the latest edition has 55 million. That means 55 million etched components crammed into an area of about a square centimetre! Today we have this extraordinary process of miniaturisation to thank for cell phones, computers and other, ever more compact electronic marvels. But where will the miniaturisation race end? What will happen when electronic etchings reach the nano-scale (a millionth of a millimetre), approaching the size of an atom? How can we even start to comprehend this nano-world, whose laws are so different from our own, human-sized world? These fascinating questions are on the programme of the 10th Wright Science Colloquia from 18 to 22 November. Five world-renowned specia...

STRATEGI MENUJU WORLD CLASS UNIVERSITY (WCU PADA UNIVERSITAS SEMARANG

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

S Susanto

2014-01-01

Full Text Available University Semarang (USM is now 26 years old (founded in 1987. It stands to USM achievement, both national and international. Although at the regional level in Central Java USM has become the leading private universities, but at the national level has not been fully encouraging, let alone the world level. Academically, USM is not yet in a world university ranking methods, such as: Academic Ranking of World Universities (ARWU, The Times Higher Education Supplement (THES and Webometrics. Only in Webometric lah, world university ranking USM entered electronically although not entirely encouraging. Apparently, we need to work harder in order to reach World Class University category.

Surfing the quantum world

CERN Document Server

Levin, Frank S

2017-01-01

The ideas and phenomena of the quantum world are strikingly unlike those encountered in our visual world. Surfing the Quantum World shows why and how this is so. It does this via a historical review and a gentle introduction to the fundamental principles of quantum theory, whose core concepts and symbolic representations are used to explain not only "ordinary" microscopic phenomena like the properties of the hydrogen atom and the structure of the Periodic Table of the Elements, but also a variety of mind-bending phenomena. Readers will learn that particles such as electrons and photons can behave like waves, allowing them to be in two places simultaneously, why white dwarf and neutron stars are gigantic quantum objects, how the maximum height of mountains has a quantum basis, and why quantum objects can tunnel through seemingly impenetrable barriers. Included among the various interpretational issues addressed is whether Schrodinger's cat is ever both dead and alive.

Electronic Scholarly Journals: A Review of Technical Issues in Digital Environment

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Golnessa Galyani Moghaddam

2006-12-01

Full Text Available Scholarly journals are known as the most important medium for scholarly communication since long time back. As technology transforms the flow of information and idea everywhere, it changes the nature of scholarly communications and publishing of scholarly journals as well. The electronic scholarly publishing rapidly produced an expectation, among researchers of the availability of articles at their desktop, rather than the previous scenario of visiting the library to read a print journal issue. There are lots of technological improvements in electronic journals publishing. The present paper looks at some of technical issues in electronic publishing such as DOI, DOI-X, CrossRef, Citation/Reference Linking, OpenURL, SFX and MetaLib which are being used in the World Wide Web.

Structural and Optical Changes of Poly-Vinylidene Fluoride by Electron Irradiation at High Dose Rate

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jaleh, B.; Fakhri, P.; Borhani, M.; Habibi, S.; Noroozi, M.

2012-01-01

Poly-vinylidene fluoride films were prepared and irradiated by 10MeV electrons at different doses ranging from 50 to 300kGy with a dose rate of 10kGy/s. The FTIR results indicated that no major phase content change was observed. The optical absorption spectra indicated that the electron irradiation results in shifting of the absorption peak, appearance of a new peak and increasing the band gap (Eg). These changes may be due to the breaking of polymer chains and creation of new defects. The X-ray diffraction analysis of samples indicated that the crystallinity did not show any major changes. Concerning the gel fraction measurements, it was observed that gel fraction increases with increasing the dose, where it is an indication of the formation of cross-linked films.

The changing world demography of type 2 diabetes

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Green, Anders; Hirsch, Niels Christian; Pramming, Stig Krøger

2003-01-01

In recent years it has been estimated that the current global prevalence of type 2 diabetes amounts to about 150 million patients. Projections suggest that by the year 2025 the number of prevalent patients in the world will reach approximately 300 million. It is assumed that the increase in the n...

Time for change: a roadmap to guide the implementation of the World Anti-Doping Code 2015.

Science.gov (United States)

Dvorak, Jiri; Baume, Norbert; Botré, Francesco; Broséus, Julian; Budgett, Richard; Frey, Walter O; Geyer, Hans; Harcourt, Peter Rex; Ho, Dave; Howman, David; Isola, Victor; Lundby, Carsten; Marclay, François; Peytavin, Annie; Pipe, Andrew; Pitsiladis, Yannis P; Reichel, Christian; Robinson, Neil; Rodchenkov, Grigory; Saugy, Martial; Sayegh, Souheil; Segura, Jordi; Thevis, Mario; Vernec, Alan; Viret, Marjolaine; Vouillamoz, Marc; Zorzoli, Mario

2014-05-01

A medical and scientific multidisciplinary consensus meeting was held from 29 to 30 November 2013 on Anti-Doping in Sport at the Home of FIFA in Zurich, Switzerland, to create a roadmap for the implementation of the 2015 World Anti-Doping Code. The consensus statement and accompanying papers set out the priorities for the antidoping community in research, science and medicine. The participants achieved consensus on a strategy for the implementation of the 2015 World Anti-Doping Code. Key components of this strategy include: (1) sport-specific risk assessment, (2) prevalence measurement, (3) sport-specific test distribution plans, (4) storage and reanalysis, (5) analytical challenges, (6) forensic intelligence, (7) psychological approach to optimise the most deterrent effect, (8) the Athlete Biological Passport (ABP) and confounding factors, (9) data management system (Anti-Doping Administration & Management System (ADAMS), (10) education, (11) research needs and necessary advances, (12) inadvertent doping and (13) management and ethics: biological data. True implementation of the 2015 World Anti-Doping Code will depend largely on the ability to align thinking around these core concepts and strategies. FIFA, jointly with all other engaged International Federations of sports (Ifs), the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), are ideally placed to lead transformational change with the unwavering support of the wider antidoping community. The outcome of the consensus meeting was the creation of the ad hoc Working Group charged with the responsibility of moving this agenda forward.

Visualizing Morphological Changes of Abscission Zone Cells in Arabidopsis by Scanning Electron Microscope.

Science.gov (United States)

Shi, Chun-Lin; Butenko, Melinka A

2018-01-01

Scanning electron microscope (SEM) is a type of electron microscope which produces detailed images of surface structures. It has been widely used in plants and animals to study cellular structures. Here, we describe a detailed protocol to prepare samples of floral abscission zones (AZs) for SEM, as well as further image analysis. We show that it is a powerful tool to detect morphologic changes at the cellular level during the course of abscission in wild-type plants and to establish the details of phenotypic alteration in abscission mutants.

Ph.D. Researchers in a Changing World: A Self-Critical Reflection of the CES Conference 2017

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alexander James Darracott

2017-10-01

Full Text Available The theme of this year’s Centre for Education Studies Interdisciplinary Postgraduate Conference, now in its fifth year, is 'Education in a Changing World'. I attended the conference as a paper presenter and a conference attendee. My personal goals were to develop confidence as an oral presenter, seek professional development opportunities, and engage critically and reflectively with my work and the work of others.  My relativist epistemological beliefs define knowledge as uncertain, context-bound, fallible, defeasible and therefore changeable, and are compatible with my personal goals. Both the goals and beliefs led to the adoption of knowledge co-constructor, communicator, and analyst roles.  Beliefs, goals and adopted roles led to the identification of points of fallibility in my own knowledge and understanding of the phenomenon of interest. Therefore, I formed a perspective of conferences as enabling and facilitating knowledge construction between presenter and audience. Being reflective, critical, adaptable, creative, intuitive, flexible, and open minded are key attitudinal attributes of postgraduates, leading to positive conference experiences and increased self-awareness of own emerging identity as a social scientist. Increasing self-awareness of own identity is important for graduates, as on a broader scale this assists in keeping pace with an ever-changing world.

Effects of climate change on agriculture particularly in semi-arid tropics of the world with some examples of Ethiopian condition

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Demessie, Almaz

2004-01-01

Today climate change is a burning issue all over the world because of its global nature. Fears have arisen that, climate may be changing for the worse and its impact may be felt on agricultural production, which will reduce the supply of food to growing population, especially in developing countries. Climate change would affect various human activities. Agriculture is one of the activities, which can be seriously affected by climate change. Due to high inter-annual variability and uneven distribution of rainfall during the rainy season, recurrent droughts have been observed in semi-arid tropics of the world over the last three decades. As White (1996) pointed out rain fed agriculture in the semi-arid tropics is limited mostly by high climatic variability with principal limiting factor being rainfall. The main crops of traditional rain fed agriculture are sorghum, millet, maize, cowpea, pulses and sesame. There is a suggestion that increased CO 2 will benefit temperate and humid tropical agriculture more than that in the semi-arid tropics. During the process of photosynthesis plant species with the C 3 photosynthetic pathway tend to respond positively to increased CO 2 while the C 4 have a poor response. Since C 4 plants are mostly tropical crops, the situation will be worst over the areas (Parry, 1990). Climate change will alter the nature of occurrence of agricultural pests in terms of area. Warmer temperatures shorten the generation time; increase the development rate of epidemic. For example, assessment of the effect of global warming on the distribution of livestock disease suggests that pests at present limited to tropical countries may spread into other parts of the world, which have different climatic condition (ibid).(Author)

Electron-beam induced amorphization of stishovite: Silicon-coordination change observed using Si K-edge extended electron energy-loss fine structure

Science.gov (United States)

van Aken, P. A.; Sharp, T. G.; Seifert, F.

The analysis of the extended energy-loss fine structure (EXELFS) of the Si K-edge for sixfold-coordinated Si in synthetic stishovite and fourfold-coordinated Si in natural α-quartz is reported by using electron energy-loss spectroscopy (EELS) in combination with transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The stishovite Si K-edge EXELFS spectra were measured as a time-dependent series to document irradiation-induced amorphization. The amorphization was also investigated through the change in Si K- and O K-edge energy-loss near edge structure (ELNES). For α-quartz, in contrast to stishovite, electron irradiation-induced vitrification, verified by selected area electron diffraction (SAED), produced no detectable changes of the EXELFS. The Si K-edge EXELFS were analysed with the classical extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) treatment and compared to ab initio curve-waved multiple-scattering (MS) calculations of EXAFS spectra for stishovite and α-quartz. Highly accurate information on the local atomic environment of the silicon atoms during the irradiation-induced amorphization of stishovite is obtained from the EXELFS structure parameters (Si-O bond distances, coordination numbers and Debye-Waller factors). The mean Si-O bond distance R and mean Si coordination number N changes from R=0.1775 nm and N=6 for stishovite through a disordered intermediate state (R 0.172 nm and N 5) to R 0.167 nm and N 4.5 for a nearly amorphous state similar to α-quartz (R=0.1609 nm and N=4). During the amorphization process, the Debye-Waller factor (DWF) passes through a maximum value of as it changes from for sixfold to for fourfold coordination of Si. This increase in Debye-Waller factor indicates an increase in mean-square relative displacement (MSRD) between the central silicon atom and its oxygen neighbours that is consistent with the presence of an intermediate structural state with fivefold coordination of Si. The distribution of coordination states can be estimated by

Electrochemically grafted polypyrrole changes photoluminescence of electronic states inside nanocrystalline diamond

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Galář, P., E-mail: pavel.galar@mff.cuni.cz; Malý, P. [Faculty of Mathematics and Physics, Charles University in Prague, Ke Karlovu 3, Prague 121 16 (Czech Republic); Čermák, J.; Kromka, A.; Rezek, B. [Institute of Physics ASCR v.v.i., Cukrovarnická 10, Prague 160 00 (Czech Republic)

2014-12-14

Hybrid diamond-organic interfaces are considered attractive for diverse applications ranging from electronics and energy conversion to medicine. Here we use time-resolved and time-integrated photoluminescence spectroscopy in visible spectral range (380–700 nm) to study electronic processes in H-terminated nanocrystalline diamond films (NCD) with 150 nm thin, electrochemically deposited polypyrrole (PPy) layer. We observe changes in dynamics of NCD photoluminescence as well as in its time-integrated spectra after polymer deposition. The effect is reversible. We propose a model where the PPy layer on the NCD surface promotes spatial separation of photo-generated charge carriers both in non-diamond carbon phase and in bulk diamond. By comparing different NCD thicknesses we show that the effect goes as much as 200 nm deep inside the NCD film.

Internet and Electronic Information Management

Science.gov (United States)

2004-12-01

centers to form consortia and share electronic information sources. Although traditional resource sharing arrangements encouraged competition rather...outside world, through public relations and through marketing information products or services, to its own competitive advantage (Davenport 1997: 193-217... electronic information sources are a challenge for electronic information managers. Libraries and information centers are no longer “the only game in town

Electron microscopy investigations of changes in morphology and conductivity of LiFePO4/C electrodes

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Scipioni, Roberto; Jørgensen, Peter S.; Ngo, Duc-The

2016-01-01

In this work we study the structural degradation of a laboratory Li-ion battery LiFePO4/Carbon Black (LFP/CB) cathode by various electron microscopy techniques including low kV Focused Ion Beam (FIB)/Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) 3D tomography. Several changes are observed in FIB/SEM images...

Possible Effects of Electronic Social Media on Gifted and Talented Children's Intelligence and Emotional Development

Science.gov (United States)

Freeman, Joan

2016-01-01

In just a few decades, electronic networks have expanded beyond all expectations. Instant messaging via smart phones and computers of all sorts whizz round the world. Researchers and policy makers are strongly divided in their findings and conclusions as to the effects of possible persuasive changes on the minds and lives of children, particularly…

Climate Change Impact on the Southeastern Europe Security Environment and the Increasing Role of the Bulgarian Army as the World Warms

Science.gov (United States)

2016-06-10

CLIMATE CHANGE IMPACT ON THE SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE SECURITY ENVIRONMENT AND THE INCREASING ROLE OF THE BULGARIAN ARMY AS THE WORLD WARMS...DD-MM-YYYY) 10-06-2016 2. REPORT TYPE Master’s Thesis 3. DATES COVERED (From - To) AUG 2015 – JUN 2016 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE Climate Change ...14. ABSTRACT Climate change impacts on the security environment are real and have the potential to create unprecedented levels of risk through

Thermal Management of Software Changes in Product Lifecycle of Consumer Electronics

OpenAIRE

Muraoka , Yoshio; Seki , Kenichi; Nishimura , Hidekazu

2014-01-01

Part 6: Industry and Consumer Products; International audience; Because the power consumption of consumer electronic products varies according to processor execution, which depends on software, thermal risk may be increased by software changes, including software updates or the installation of new applications, even after hardware development has been completed. In this paper, we first introduce a typical system-level thermal simulation model, coupling the activities within modules related to...

Perspective: Electronic systems of knowledge in the world of virtual microscopy.

Science.gov (United States)

Maybury, Terrence; Farah, Camile S

2009-09-01

Across a broad range of medical disciplines, learning how to use an optical or light microscope has been a mandatory inclusion in the undergraduate curriculum. The development of virtual microscopy (VM) technology during the past 10 years has called into question the use of the optical microscope in educational contexts. VM allows slide specimens to be digitized, which, in turn, allows the computer to mimic the workings of the light microscope. This move from analog technology (the light microscope) to digital technology (the computer as microscope) is part of the many significant changes going on in education, a singular manifestation of the broader move from print-literate traditions of knowledge (requiring literacy) to an electronics-literate, or "electrate," mode (requiring "electracy"). VM is here used as an exemplar of this broad transition from literacy to electracy, some components of which include data deluge, a multimodal structure, and modularity. Understandably, this transition is important to clarify educationally, especially in a global context mediated via digital means. A related aspect of these educational changes is the move from teacher-directed learning to student-centered learning, or "user-led education," which points to a redefinition of "pedagogy" as "andragogy." The dissemination of the specific value of VM, then, is critical to both learners and teachers and to a more coherent understanding of electracy. A practical consequence of this clarity might be a better application of this knowledge in the evolving fields of computer simulation and telemedicine, areas in which today's medical students will need future expertise.

The EU's Normative Power in Changing World Politics

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Manners, Ian

2009-01-01

global order: 1) what is the concept of normative power in world politics?; 2) what is an effective EU toolbox for tackling new challenges?; 3) how does the EU go beyond self-perception and rhetoric?; 4) what is the raison d'etre of the EU?; and 5) how might normative power in EU external policies lead...

Ethnography in a Virtual World

Science.gov (United States)

Shumar, Wesley; Madison, Nora

2013-01-01

This article situates the discussion of virtual ethnography within the larger political/economic changes of twenty-first century consumer capitalism and suggests that increasingly our entire social world is a virtual world and that there were very particular utopian and dystopian framings of virtual community growing out of that history. The…

Major changes in the world's nuclear power at the beginning of the new century

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dumitrache, Ion

2002-01-01

In the last decade of the 20th century the world nuclear power recorded some characteristic trends among which one can mention the following: - Almost total absence of investments in new NPPs in the industrialized countries except Japan and South Korea; - Policy of some governments to decrease the nuclear power sector in their countries up to a complete stop of electricity production in a foreseeable future (as in case of Sweden, Germany, Nederland and Belgium); - Projections indicating a steady decline of nuclear share in the national power production as for instance in USA, Germany, Great Britain, and other industrialized countries; - pressures upon countries late owners of soviet type NPPs in order to shut down completely the RBMK and WWER reactors; - a drastic reduction of the funds afforded for research dedicated to fission reactors of new concept, except Japan and South Korea; - almost negligible effects of the Kyoto protocol upon nuclear power, hopes being directed towards renewable energy sources. After second half of the year 1998 modest signals of future changes in the energy policy occurred. The US government admitted on basis of performance assessments and projections that the important role of nuclear power in US will be extended still for long after the years 2020-2030. Consequently, research concerning the future demand for fission based power began be financed. Gradually the countries of EU and Canada modified also their official position towards the role of nuclear fission in ensuring the electric energy needs of the future. The beginning of the new century was marked by a significant acceleration of changes of opinions in favor of nuclear power. Japan and South Korea stated that at least in the first half of the 21th century the fission NPP's will play a major role. Russia promoted new WWER reactor types of safety standards equivalent or higher than the western ones. Also China and India launched ambitious plans for building new NPPs. These new

The study of composition changes in thin film coatings of Ge-As-Se type under relativistic electron irradiation by means of electron Auger spectroscopy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kesler, L.G.; Dovgoshej, N.I.; Savchenko, N.D.

1991-01-01

Data on the influence of relativistic electrons on depth profile of Ge 33 As 12 Se 55 films were obtained for the first time. It was established that the most sufficient change of element composition of films in result of electron irradiation took place in the surface layer and on film-sublayer interface. It can be explained by increase of diffusion of impurities and free atoms

Volumetric change of simulated radioactive waste glass irradiated by electron accelerator. [Silica glass

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sato, Seichi; Furuya, Hirotaka; Inagaki, Yaohiro; Kozaka, Tetsuo; Sugisaki, Masayasu

1987-11-01

Density changes of simulated radioactive waste glasses, silica glass and Pyrex glass irradiated by an electron accelerator were measured by a ''sink-float'' technique. The density changes of the waste and silica glasses were less than 0.05 %, irradiated at 2.0 MeV up to the fluence of 1.7 x 10/sup 17/ ecm/sup 2/, while were remarkably smaller than that of Pyrex glass of 0.18 % shrinkage. Precision of the measurements in the density changes of the waste glass was lower than that of Pyrex glass possibly because of the inhomogeneity of the waste glass

Pressure-induced change of the electronic state in the tetragonal phase of CaFe2As2

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sakaguchi, Yui; Ikeda, Shugo; Kuse, Tetsuji; Kobayashi, Hisao

2014-01-01

We have investigated the electronic states of single-crystal CaFe 2 As 2 under hydrostatic pressure using 57 Fe Mössbauer spectroscopy and magnetization measurements. The center shift and the quadrupole splitting were refined from observed 57 Fe Mössbauer spectra using the single-crystalline sample under pressure at room temperature. A discontinuous decrease in the pressure dependence of the refined center shift was observed at 0.33 GPa without any anomaly in the pressure dependence of the refined quadrupole splitting, indicating a purely electronic state change in CaFe 2 As 2 with a tetragonal structure. Such a change is shown to be reflected in the peak-like anomalies observed in the pressure dependences of the magnetic susceptibility at 0.26 GPa above 150 K. Our results reveal that this pressure-induced electronic state change suppresses the tetragonal-to-orthorhombic structural phase transition accompanied by an antiferromagnetic ordering. We further observed superconductivity in CaFe 2 As 2 below ∼8 K around 0.33 GPa although our sample was not in a single phase at this pressure. These findings suggest that the electronic state change observed in CaFe 2 As 2 with the tetragonal structure is relevant to the appearance of the pressure-induced superconductivity in AFe 2 As 2 . (paper)

Developing Changes in Our Reading of the World: A Pedagogical Proposal from Participative Action Research

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Simona Trovato-Apollaro

2017-04-01

Full Text Available This paper presents the results of a research conducted with the group Women of Theater from Alajuelita. The research intended to answer the question of how to develop changes in our reading of the world. The goal of our study was the co-researchers’ raising awareness process leading them, from themselves, and by means of the abovementioned group, to read, interpret and reconstruct the environment in order to yield transformations in their lives and community. Through reflection, the process was investigated on the basis of the pedagogical practices of Augusto Boal´s Theater of Oppressed (Boal, 1980, as they were applied at the theater workshop together with the group of Women of Theather, at the library of the Educative Center Los Pinos in Alajuelita. The main elements of the implemented methodology respond to the Participative Action Research (PAR, where the dialectical participative relationship and the collective discussion make it possible the creation of learning. We used audio recordings as data collection tools, which were later systematized for their analysis. The paradigmatic position assumed was inspired by an approach related to the concept of complexity. This concept proposes a holistic view of reality, life, and, so, of pedagogy. According to such a view, we all are one, and the multiplicity is interconnected with each one of its parts, in continuous entropy. Under this approach, where the world is a system of systems interconnected among themselves, the main finding was to perceive pedagogy as an instrument for humanization, a magical object capable of valuing diversity and transforming our thoughts, life styles and values, and, in consequence, our reading of the world. We considered that such an important finding might help to develop changes in human beings and might inspire us to assume an ecological perspective towards relationships. Such a perspective might give rise to deep transformations in our social, political and

World energy outlook 2004

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2004-01-01

The World Energy Outlook is the most complete and authoritative energy publication and has received several prestigious awards from government and industry in recognition of its analytical excellence. The new edition offers: - Analysis: Over 550 pages of detailed analysis with 150 graphs and tables. - Projections: Supply and demand projections to 2030 for oil, gas, coal, renewables, nuclear and electricity, plus projections of energy related CO 2 emissions. -World Alternative Policy Scenario:A detailed assessment of the impact of possible climate change policies and energy efficient technologies. -Russia: An in-depth study of the 'most important energy country'. - Energy and Development: An analysis of energy's role in overcoming world poverty. - Reserves: A detailed analysis of world oil and gas reserves and of the problems involved in measuring them

Public health in a rapidly changing world

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tatiana I. Andreeva

2014-06-01

Full Text Available Several months in 2013 and 2014 have been a hardly predictable time in Ukraine, and the situation is still far from being stable. This made the editorial team of TCPHEE based in Ukraine postpone publishing consecutive issues. However, while the situation still requires practical steps, many aspects including those related to public health require analysis and debate. Thus we invite opinion pieces and studies addressing all different spheres of how public health should function under changing social circumstances. There might be a wide range of such related topics. The most obvious ones are those linked to changing living conditions. Many studies have been undertaken and published with regard to health threats to refugees, people involved in natural or technical disasters (Noji, 2005. Along with environmental health threats, there might be mental health disturbances (World Health Organization, 1992 resulting from long-term strain, losses et cetera. Another important focus is related to changes in health services provision. Crimea, which is a former Ukrainian territory now occupied by the Russian Federation, was among those in Ukraine highly affected with HIV (Dehne, Khodakevich, Hamers, & Schwartlander, 1999. This was responded by several NGOs actively providing harm reduction services to high-risk groups along with methadone substitution therapy to opiate users and antiretroviral medicines to those HIV-infected (Curtis, 2010. However, there are news reports that Russia is going to stop provision of methadone (kommersant.ru, 2014. As opiate substitution programs have been shown an effective approach towards preventing HIV transmission among people who inject drugs (MacArthur et al., 2012, such change in public health policies might affect not only most at risk populations but their partners and population as a whole as well resulting in a rapid spread of HIV. Yet another related topic is that of how health services can be organized at times of

Slow Onsets, Abrupt Changes, and Fast Reflexes: Learning from Climate Hazards in a Changing World

Science.gov (United States)

Pulwarty, R. S.

2016-12-01

Adaptation is higher than ever before on the global agenda. Awareness of risks across the weather-climate continuum has increased pressure for information to support planning under changing rates and emergence of multiple hazards (e.g. drought, heat waves, floods). In recognition of this demand, the global community is developing a Global Framework for Climate Services, implementing the Sendai Framework on disaster risk reduction, and formulating climate-sensitive development and research initiatives aimed at nations and communities. The gap between conceptual feasibility and practical implementation remains immense. One of Gilbert White's many important contributions was in developing a framework for structuring adjustment decisions in the context of longer-term risks. The physical environment at a given stage of technology sets the theoretical range of choice while the practical range of choice is set by culture, capacity and institutions. These factors facilitate or impede efficient and equitable responses, with the latter being key in the underestimation of the complexities of adaptation. This presentation will focus on the scientific research, monitoring and information needed to address challenges in (1) Understanding thresholds in the relationship between physical and social changes, including those in connected systems such as water, food and energy, (2) Designing and diffusion of decision support tools and smart practices, and (3) Understanding the links between capacity-building and implementation, including the need to focus researchers and institutions on improving decision quality (not just meeting "user needs"). The author will engage the audience in a discussion of the drivers of social transitions and transformations, drawing on cases from around the world. Key questions, include "What leads to proactive collaboration and action?"; "How often should we revise our assumptions about the direction and magnitude of changes as events unfold?"; and "What

The change of pollen traits in gladiolus irradiated by electron beam

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang Zhiwei; Wang Dan; Zhang Dongxue; Yuan Xianghui

2007-01-01

In order to investigate the feasibility of electron beam induced mutation on Gladiolus and the effects of electron beam with different doses on pollen traits, M1 generation pollen traits were studied by use of 3MeV electron beams with seven doses of 0Gy, 40Gy, 80Gy, 120Gy, 160Gy, 200Gy, 240Gy. It has been shown that the sterile pollen rate of M1 generation is higher than that of control. At low dose there had no obvious effects on the viability and germination rate of M1 generation pollen. With the increase of irradiation dose, the viability and germination rate of pollen was decreased and the difference had statistical significance (P<0.05). Comparing (SEM) photograph of the pollen shapes of M1 generation with control, within a certain doses level, mutagenic effects on pollen increased with the dose increasing in the angle of polynology. Variations of mutagenic effect extent were found at the different irradiation dosage. The EST isozymes expression of M1 generation pollen was obviously changed by electron beam irradiation confirmed by use of PAGE electrophoresis. EST patterns of pollen of Gladiolus irradiated at the dose no more than 120Gy were similar to CK, but there were some differences in the vigor of isozymes. The EST bands added or absent had been observed at the dose more than 160Gy compared to CK. There were a special EST band more and 2 EST bands less in plants treated by both 160Gy and 200Gy electron beam irradiation, and a special EST band more and 1 EST bands less in plants treated by 240Gy electron beam irradiation. The vigor of isozymes of plants treated at the dose more than 160Gy showed some respective differences compared to the other treated and CK's. These results revealed that electron beam irradiation is an effective way for Gladiolus breeding. (authors)

Electric business in the world (the first)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Takai, Mikio

2009-01-01

It consists of three chapters such as the energy and electricity in the world, the nuclear power generation in the world and each country. The first chapter includes the energy demand of each country in 2007 and for the future and estimation of electric power demand in the world, introduction of photovoltaic (PV) power generation, Emission Trading, and The Third Energy Package proposed by The European Commission in 2007. The second chapter states the conditions of nuclear power plants and construction plans in the world. The third chapter explains the nuclear power generation situation in US, England, France, German, Sweden, Korea, China, Russia and Eastern Europe. The consumption of energy in the world and each area, consumption of energy and increasing rate of each energy source, the change of electric power resources in the world, change of PV in each country, price of PV in EU under FIT system, the main regulations for emission trading in EU, and the nuclear power generation plants in the world on 31 December 2007 are illustrated. (S.Y.)

Electronic Journal Publishing: Observations from Inside.

Science.gov (United States)

Hunter, Karen

1998-01-01

Focuses on electronic scholarly-journal publishing. Discusses characteristics of current academic electronic publishing; effects of the World Wide Web; user needs and positions of academic libraries; costs; and decisions of research librarians that drive the industry. (AEF)

Wildlife in a warming world. The effects of climate change on biodiversity in WWF's Priority Places

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Price, Jeff; Warren, Rachel; McDougall, Amy; VanDerWal, Jeremy; Cornelius, Stephen; Sohl, Heather; Rust, Niki; Elliott, Katherine; Jeffries, Barney; Jeffries, Evan; Wood, Matt

2018-01-01

Up to half of plant and animal species in the world's most naturally rich areas, such as the Amazon and the Galapagos, could face local extinction by the turn of the century due to climate change if carbon emissions continue to rise unchecked. Even if the Paris Climate Agreement 2 deg. C target is met, these places could lose 25% of their species according to this landmark study by the University of East Anglia, the James Cook University, and WWF. This report examines the impact of climate change on nearly 80,000 species in 35 of the world's most diverse and naturally wildlife-rich areas. It models a number of different climate scenarios - from a no-emissions-cuts business-as-usual rise in global mean temperatures of 4.5 deg. C to a 2 deg. C global rise to keep to the upper limit of the Paris Agreement. Each area was chosen for its uniqueness and the variety of species, including plants, insects and animals, found there

World Nuclear Association Design Change Management

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Waddington, John Geoffrey

2013-01-01

This presentation treats of design change management in the regulation of nuclear fleets. It covers activities of the WNA/CORDEL/Design Change Management Task Force, including views on the roles of vendors, owner's groups, utility and design authority, WANO and the regulators. The presentation highlights differences of capabilities between large utilities with strong technical staff and smaller utilities that require support and expertise from others. It also notes the current expectation that licensees are solely responsible for the safety of the design and operation of their plants and for maintaining a full understanding and knowledge of the design within licensee's own organization in an internal entity called design authority. It encourages regulators to re-examine this expectation for design changes, arguing that while large utilities maybe be able to deal with design changes, the smaller utilities may be challenged due to their small size and lack of appropriate expertise. It further notes that the original designer must be involved in the management of design changes. In addition, the presentation emphasizes benefits of standardization in design and regulatory expectations internationally, including the benefits of increasing safety and economy. The author provides that the CORDEL Working Group uses international standardization to mean that each vendor's design can be built by a vendor, and ordered by a utility, in every country and be able to meet national regulations without significant changes other than adaptations to meet site requirements. In this discussion, he highlights the aircraft industry as an example and notes the need for internationally agreed mechanisms for design change as well as the need for formal, agreed (internationally) role for the designer to play throughout the fleet lifetime

Climate change negotiation simulations for students: responses across gender and age.A case study: San Francisco State University World Climate Exercises

Science.gov (United States)

Rasheva, E. A.

2015-12-01

For decades, role-play and simulation exercises have been utilized for learning and policy decision making. While the power of Model UN simulations in building first-person experience and understanding of complex international issues is well known, the effectiveness of simulations for inspiring citizen engagement in scientific public-policy issues is little studied. My work hypothesizes that climate-change negotiation simulations can enhance students' scientific literacy and policy advocacy. It aims to determine how age and gender influence the responsiveness of students to such simulations. During the 2015 fall semester, I am conducting World Climate exercises for fellow graduate and undergraduate students at San Francisco State University. At the end of the exercise, I will have collected the responses to an anonymous questionnaire in which the participants indicate age and gender. The questionnaire asks participants to describe their hopes and fears for the future and to propose public and personal actions for achieving a strong climate change agreement. I am tracking differences to determine whether participants' age and gender correlate with particular patterns of feeling and thinking. My future research will aim to determine whether and how strongly the World Climate Exercise has affected participants' actual policy engagement. This work will also reflect on my experiences as a World Climate facilitator. I will describe the facilitation process and then discuss some of my observations from the sessions. I will specify the challenges I have encountered and suggest strategies that can strengthen the learning process. World Climate is a computer-simulation-based climate change negotiations role-playing exercise developed by Climate Interactive in partnership with the System Dynamics Group at the MIT Sloan School of Management.

Online worlds as media and communication format

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

2009-01-01

Digital media and network communication technology have not changed this setup, but rather have opened the possibility for encountering and experiencing additional types of worlds and performing additional types of spatial practices. Being situated online and being globally networked with the pos......Digital media and network communication technology have not changed this setup, but rather have opened the possibility for encountering and experiencing additional types of worlds and performing additional types of spatial practices. Being situated online and being globally networked...... with the possibility of both synchronous and asynchronous communication, digitally mediated worlds provide possible interactions between users which are radically more independent of time and place than the ones facilitated by older media. From this perspective, the concept of online worlds both challenges...... and broadens our understanding of how media shape the world and how the media technology creates new social structures...

Shaping the Electronic Library--The UW-Madison Approach.

Science.gov (United States)

Dean, Charles W., Ed.; Frazier, Ken; Pope, Nolan F.; Gorman, Peter C.; Dentinger, Sue; Boston, Jeanne; Phillips, Hugh; Daggett, Steven C.; Lundquist, Mitch; McClung, Mark; Riley, Curran; Allan, Craig; Waugh, David

1998-01-01

This special theme section describes the University of Wisconsin-Madison's experience building its Electronic Library. Highlights include integrating resources and services; the administrative framework; the public electronic library, including electronic publishing capability and access to World Wide Web-based and other electronic resources;…

Clinician user involvement in the real world: Designing an electronic tool to improve interprofessional communication and collaboration in a hospital setting.

Science.gov (United States)

Tang, Terence; Lim, Morgan E; Mansfield, Elizabeth; McLachlan, Alexander; Quan, Sherman D

2018-02-01

User involvement is vital to the success of health information technology implementation. However, involving clinician users effectively and meaningfully in complex healthcare organizations remains challenging. The objective of this paper is to share our real-world experience of applying a variety of user involvement methods in the design and implementation of a clinical communication and collaboration platform aimed at facilitating care of complex hospitalized patients by an interprofessional team of clinicians. We designed and implemented an electronic clinical communication and collaboration platform in a large community teaching hospital. The design team consisted of both technical and healthcare professionals. Agile software development methodology was used to facilitate rapid iterative design and user input. We involved clinician users at all stages of the development lifecycle using a variety of user-centered, user co-design, and participatory design methods. Thirty-six software releases were delivered over 24 months. User involvement has resulted in improvement in user interface design, identification of software defects, creation of new modules that facilitated workflow, and identification of necessary changes to the scope of the project early on. A variety of user involvement methods were complementary and benefited the design and implementation of a complex health IT solution. Combining these methods with agile software development methodology can turn designs into functioning clinical system to support iterative improvement. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Analysis of Population Dynamics in World Economy

OpenAIRE

Martin, Gress

2011-01-01

Population dynamics is an important topic in current world economy. The size and growth of population have an impact on economic growth and development of individual countries and vice versa, economic development influences demographic variables in a country. The aim of the article is to analyze historical development of world population, population stock change and relations between population stock change and economic development.

Physical mechanism causing rapid changes in ultrarelativistic electron pitch angle distributions right after a shock arrival: Evaluation of an electron dropout event: Drift Shell Splitting on the Dayside

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang, X.-J.; University of California, Los Angeles, CA; Li, W.; Boston University, MA; Thorne, R. M.

2016-01-01

Three mechanisms have been proposed to explain relativistic electron flux depletions (dropouts) in the Earth's outer radiation belt during storm times: adiabatic expansion of electron drift shells due to a decrease in magnetic field strength, magnetopause shadowing and subsequent outward radial diffusion, and precipitation into the atmosphere (driven by EMIC wave scattering). Which mechanism predominates in causing electron dropouts commonly observed in the outer radiation belt is still debatable. In the present study, we evaluate the physical mechanism that may be primarily responsible for causing the sudden change in relativistic electron pitch angle distributions during a dropout event observed by Van Allen Probes during the main phase of the 27 February 2014 storm. During this event, the phase space density of ultrarelativistic (>1MeV) electrons was depleted by more than 1 order of magnitude over the entire radial extent of the outer radiation belt (3 < L* < 5) in less than 6 h after the passage of an interplanetary shock. We model the electron pitch angle distribution under a compressed magnetic field topology based on actual solar wind conditions. Although these ultrarelativistic electrons exhibit highly anisotropic (peaked in 90°), energy-dependent pitch angle distributions, which appear to be associated with the typical EMIC wave scattering, comparison of the modeled electron distribution to electron measurements indicates that drift shell splitting is responsible for this rapid change in electron pitch angle distributions. This further indicates that magnetopause loss is the predominant cause of the electron dropout right after the shock arrival.

Power electronics and motor drives

CERN Document Server

Wilamowski, Bogdan M

2011-01-01

Universities throughout the world typically provide an excellent education in the various aspects of electronics, however their focus is normally on traditional low power electronics. In contrast, in the industrial environment, there is a need for high power electronics that is used to control electromechanical systems in addition to the low power electronics typically employed for analog and digital systems. To address this need, Section 1 of this volume in The Industrial Electronics Handbook, Second Edition, is focused on special high power semiconductor devices. Section 2 not only describes

Challenges in predicting climate and environmental effects on vector-borne disease episystems in a changing world.

Science.gov (United States)

Tabachnick, W J

2010-03-15

Vector-borne pathogens cause enormous suffering to humans and animals. Many are expanding their range into new areas. Dengue, West Nile and Chikungunya have recently caused substantial human epidemics. Arthropod-borne animal diseases like Bluetongue, Rift Valley fever and African horse sickness pose substantial threats to livestock economies around the world. Climate change can impact the vector-borne disease epidemiology. Changes in climate will influence arthropod vectors, their life cycles and life histories, resulting in changes in both vector and pathogen distribution and changes in the ability of arthropods to transmit pathogens. Climate can affect the way pathogens interact with both the arthropod vector and the human or animal host. Predicting and mitigating the effects of future changes in the environment like climate change on the complex arthropod-pathogen-host epidemiological cycle requires understanding of a variety of complex mechanisms from the molecular to the population level. Although there has been substantial progress on many fronts the challenges to effectively understand and mitigate the impact of potential changes in the environment on vector-borne pathogens are formidable and at an early stage of development. The challenges will be explored using several arthropod-borne pathogen systems as illustration, and potential avenues to meet the challenges will be presented.

INTEGRATION AND SYSTEM FAILURES OF ELECTRONIC GOVERNMENTAL PROCUREMENT SYSTEMS IN TURKEY AND PROPOSALS FOR MORE EFFICIENT SYSTEMS IN THE LIGHT OF B2B PORTAL MOVEMENTS

OpenAIRE

Yildirim, Fazli; Telli Yamamoto, Gonca

2011-01-01

Today’s business dynamics are rapidly changing, especially for the private sector in the world and new paradigm which is called as the electronic environment is starting to dominate the business life. Most of the companies trying to adapt these changes with their company structure and most of them were re-engineered their business models with this new wave. In Turkey, government is trying to transform their services in to digital world for gaining more speed, decreasing the costs and satisfyi...

Electronic cigarette

OpenAIRE

Wang, Tao

2016-01-01

As we know E-cigarette is becoming increasingly popular all over the world. It is a new product that the most of smoking people would like to buy and use. However, we are not realizing advantages and disadvantages of e-cigarette clearly. My objective was to research the development of electronic cigarette whether it is under control or a good way of marketing. The thesis has two main parts. They include answers to questions what is electronic cigarette and how to manage the whole industry...

Modern trends in international researches in the sphere of electronic governance (in the case of publications of the international journal Electronic Government

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

V. M. Dreshpak

2017-08-01

Full Text Available Current trends of studying the problems of electronic government by world scientific community have been revealed in the article using the analysis of publications in the international journal Electronic Government. It has been noted that the peculiarity of modern research in the sphere of electronic government is that this sphere is changing constantly and dynamically under the influence of many factors and is being modernized together with the development of information and communication technologies and social relations. This requires a bigger degree of integration of Ukrainian researches in the sphere of public administration with the global scientific context, more active introduction of the foreign researches’ materials on electronic government issues to the scientific Ukrainian use, study of foreign approaches on publications in scientific periodicals of the industry. The survey was conducted on the basis of Electronic Government, an International Journal, which has been published since 2004 in the UK and is submitted to the international Scientometrics Scopus database and publishes materials in the sphere of «Public administration». It has been found that the key topics of the journal relate to the current practice and studies of various aspects of electronic government in different countries. In particular, the analyzed publications of 2015 - 2017 years provide a broad picture of the situation with e-government in the world and reveal specific problems of different states according to the level of development of their e-government powers. The authors of these articles are scientists from 24 countries. They have studied the problems of electronic government in 14 states and the global problems of electronic government. For example, the magazine focuses on issues related to technological, social and humanitarian components of functioning and development of electronic governance, issues of methodology and methods of implementation of

Sensibility to Changes of Vibrational Modes of Excited Electron: Sum Frequency Signals Versus Difference Frequency Signals

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gu Anna; Liang Xianting

2011-01-01

In this paper, we investigate a two electronic level system with vibrational modes coupled to a Brownian oscillator bath. The difference frequency generation (DFG) signals and sum frequency generation (SFG) signals are calculated. It is shown that, for the same model, the SFG signals are more sensitive than the DFG signals to the changes of the vibrational modes of the electronic two-level system. Because the SFG conversion efficiency can be improved by using the time-delay method, the findings in this paper predict that the SFG spectrum may probe the changes of the microstructure more effectively. (electromagnetism, optics, acoustics, heat transfer, classical mechanics, and fluid dynamics)

A World 2010: A Decline of Superpower Influence.

Science.gov (United States)

1986-07-10

mathematics o Environmental: terrestrial, oceanographics, atmospheric, space o Engineering: electronics, civil, mechanical, metallurgical o Life: biological ...while Yoneji Masuda (The Information Society As Postindustrial Society, Washington: World Future Society, 1981) and John Naisbitt ( Megatrends : Ten New

How Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) Spontaneously Attend to Real-World Scenes: Use of a Change Blindness Paradigm

Science.gov (United States)

Hochhauser, Michal; Aran, Adi; Grynszpan, Ouriel

2018-01-01

Visual attention of adolescents with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) was assessed using a change blindness paradigm. Twenty-five adolescents with ASD aged 12-18 years and 25 matched typically developing (TD) adolescents viewed 36 pairs of digitized real-world images. Each pair of images was displayed in a "flicker paradigm" whereby a…

Electron-beam induced amorphization of stishovite: Silicon-coordination change observed using Si K-edge extended electron energy-loss fine structure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aken, P.A. van; Sharp, T.G.; Seifert, F.

1998-01-01

The analysis of the extended energy-loss fine structure (EXELFS) of the Si K-edge for sixfold-coordinated Si in synthetic stishovite and fourfold-coordinated Si in natural α-quartz is reported by using electron energy-loss spectroscopy (EELS) in combination with transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The stishovite Si K-edge EXELFS spectra were measured as a time-dependent series to document irradiation-induced amorphization. The amorphization was also investigated through the change in Si K- and O K-edge energy-loss near edge structure (ELNES). For α-quartz, in contrast to stishovite, electron irradiation-induced vitrification, produced no detectable changes of the EXELFS. The Si K-edge EXELFS were analysed with the classical extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) treatment and compared to ab initio curve-waved multiple-scattering (MS) calculations of EXAFS spectra for stishovite and α-quartz. Highly accurate information on the local atomic environment of the silicon atoms during the irradiation-induced amorphization of stishovite is obtained from the EXELFS structure parameters The mean Si-O bond distance R and mean Si coordination number N changes from R=0.1775 nm and N=6 for stishovite through a disordered intermediate state (R∼0.172 nm and N∼5) to R∼0.167 nm and N∼4.5 for a nearly amorphous state similar to α-quartz (R=0.1609 nm and N=4). During the amorphization process, the Debye-Waller factor (DWF) passes through a maximum value of σ N 2 ∼83.8pm 2 as it changes from σ st 2 =51.8pm 2 for sixfold to σ qu 2 =18.4pm 2 for fourfold coordination of Si. This increase in Debye-Waller factor indicates an increase in mean-square relative displacement (MSRD) between the central silicon atom and its oxygen neighbours. Using the EXELFS data for amorphization, a new method is developed to derive the relative amounts of Si coordinations in high-pressure minerals with mixed coordination. For the radiation-induced amorphization process of

A change navigation-based, scenario planning process within a developing world context from an Afro-centric leadership perspective

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chris A. Geldenhuys

2011-02-01

Research purpose: This study aimed to investigate how scenario-based planning (a strictly cognitive management tool can be combined with organisational change navigation (a practice addressing the emotionality of change and how this integrated process should be aligned with the prerequisites imposed by a developing country context and an Afro-centric leadership perspective in order to make the process more context relevant and aligned. Motivation for the study: The integration of organisational change navigation with conventional scenario based planning, as well as the incorporation of the perquisites of a developing countries and an Afro-centric leadership perspective, will give organisations a more robust, holistic strategic management tool that will add significantly more value within a rapidly, radically and unpredictably changing world. Research design, approach and method: The adopted research approach comprised a combination of the sourcing of the latest thinking in the literature (the ‘theory’ as well as the views of seasoned practitioners of scenario planning (the ‘practice’ through an iterative research process, moving between theory and practice, back to practice and finally returning to theory in order to arrive at a validated expanded and enhanced scenario-based planning process which is both theory and practice ‘proof’. Main findings: A management tool incorporating the change navigation and the unique features of developing countries and Afro-centric leadership was formulated and empirically validated. This management tool is referred to as a change navigation based, scenario planning process (CNBSPP. Practical/managerial implications: CNBSPP is available for use by organisations wishing to apply a strategic planning tool that fits within a developing country context and an Afro-centric leadership approach. Contribution/value add: The research makes a unique contribution to the current level of knowledge by integrating two disciplines

Invite your representative to work. Change the world. Here's how.

Science.gov (United States)

Montell, Denise J

2018-02-15

Today's political climate can seem hostile to science. Alternative facts, climate change denial, and relabeling of actual news as fake news are discouraging phenomena for sure. But these trends make it more important than ever to engage our politicians. Take heart! There is something you can do. You can show your representatives firsthand the amazing things you do, evidence of the economic engine that your activities generate, and the real people behind the discoveries. I did, and it was fun. We invited our congressman to the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB), and he accepted! For 2 hours, we explained and demonstrated efforts to cure blindness using stem cells, the medical implications of the discovery that cells can recover from the brink of death, a mosquito lab striving to eliminate insect-borne disease, and an Alzheimer's disease laboratory. Salud Carbajal peered through a microscope and met real scientists. Before his visit, he did not know what a postdoctoral fellow was, much less what stem cells look like. When he left he knew our names, how much money we bring into his district, and how important National Institutes of Health funding and international mobility are to our enterprise. Although I live in the United States, this approach should also apply to other democratic countries. If each of us converts one representative into a science champion, we can change the world. © 2018 Montell. This article is distributed by The American Society for Cell Biology under license from the author(s). Two months after publication it is available to the public under an Attribution–Noncommercial–Share Alike 3.0 Unported Creative Commons License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0).

Safety in the design and use of gamma and electron irradiation facilities. 2. ed.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1998-01-01

Radioisotopes which emit gamma radiation and high-energy electron beam generators have been used in industry, medicine and research for many years in the UK and throughout the world. Their main application has been in medical product sterilisation, various food treatments, plastics curing and polymerisation, semiconductor manufacture and gemstone irradiation to bring about colour changes. The radiation safety of these applications is the subject of this guidance

Major Findings from The Changing Body: Health, Nutrition, and Human Development in the Western World since 1700.

Science.gov (United States)

Fogel, Robert W; Grotte, Nathaniel

2011-12-01

This paper discusses findings from The Changing Body: Health, Nutrition, and Human Development in the Western World since 1700 (Cambridge University Press) The book is built on the authors' work with 300 years of height and nutrition data and discusses their findings in the context of technophysio evolution, a uniquely modern form of rapid physiological development, the result of humanity's ability to control its environment and create technological innovations to adapt to it.

Modern dictionary of electronics

CERN Document Server

Graf, Rudolf F

1999-01-01

Included in this fully revised classic are well over 28,000 terms, phrases, acronyms, and abbreviations from the ever-expanding worlds of consumer electronics, optics, microelectronics, computers, communications, and medical electronics. From the basic elements of theory to the most cutting-edge circuit technology, this book explains it all in both words and pictures.For easy reference, the author has provided definitions for standard abbreviations and equations as well as tables of SI (International System of Units) units, measurements, and schematic symbolsModern Dictionary of Electronics is

Business use of the World Wide Web: a report on further investigations

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hooi-Im Ng

1998-01-01

Full Text Available As a continuation of a previous study this paper reports on a series of studies into business use of the World Wide Web and, more generally the Internet. The use of the World Wide Web as a business tool has increased rapidly for the past three years, and the benefits of the World Wide Web to business and customers are discussed, together with the barriers that hold back future development of electronic commerce. As with the previous study we report on a desk survey of 300 randomly selected business Web sites and on the results of an electronic mail questionnaire sent to the sample companies. An extended version of this paper has been submitted to the International Journal of Information Management

Controlling harmful cyanobacterial blooms in a world experiencing anthropogenic and climatic-induced change

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Paerl, Hans W.; Hall, Nathan S.; Calandrino, Elizabeth S.

2011-01-01

Harmful (toxic, food web altering, hypoxia generating) cyanobacterial algal blooms (CyanoHABs) are proliferating world-wide due to anthropogenic nutrient enrichment, and they represent a serious threat to the use and sustainability of our freshwater resources. Traditionally, phosphorus (P) input reductions have been prescribed to control CyanoHABs, because P limitation is widespread and some CyanoHABs can fix atmospheric nitrogen (N 2 ) to satisfy their nitrogen (N) requirements. However, eutrophying systems are increasingly plagued with non N 2 fixing CyanoHABs that are N and P co-limited or even N limited. In many of these systems N loads are increasing faster than P loads. Therefore N and P input constraints are likely needed for long-term CyanoHAB control in such systems. Climatic changes, specifically warming, increased vertical stratification, salinization, and intensification of storms and droughts play additional, interactive roles in modulating CyanoHAB frequency, intensity, geographic distribution and duration. In addition to having to consider reductions in N and P inputs, water quality managers are in dire need of effective tools to break the synergy between nutrient loading and hydrologic regimes made more favorable for CyanoHABs by climate change. The more promising of these tools make affected waters less hospitable for CyanoHABs by 1) altering the hydrology to enhance vertical mixing and/or flushing and 2) decreasing nutrient fluxes from organic rich sediments by physically removing the sediments or capping sediments with clay. Effective future CyanoHAB management approaches must incorporate both N and P loading dynamics within the context of altered thermal and hydrologic regimes associated with climate change. - Research Highlights: → Toxic cyanobacterial blooms (CyanoHABs) increasingly threaten global water supplies. → Human (nutrient) and climate (hydrology, temperature) changes synergistically promote CyanoHABs. → CyanoHAB control

World electricity generation, nuclear power, and oil markets

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1990-01-01

Striking changes have characterized the world's production and use of energy over the past 15 years. Most prominent have been the wide price fluctuations, politicization of world oil prices and supply, along with profound changes in patterns of production and consumption. This report, based on a study by energy analysts at Science Concepts, Inc., in the United States, traces changes in world energy supply since 1973-74 - the time of the first oil ''price shocks''. In so doing, it identifies important lessons for the future. The study focused in particular on the role of the electric power sector because the growth in fuel use in it has been accomplished without oil. Instead, the growth has directly displaced oil. In the pre-1973 era, the world relied increasingly on oil for many energy applications, including the production of electricity. By 1973, more than on-fourth of the world's electricity was produced by burning oil. By 1987, however, despite a large increase in electric demand, the use of oil was reigned back to generating less than 10% of the world's electricity. Nuclear power played a major role in this turnaround. From 1973-87, analysts at Science Concepts found, nuclear power displaced the burning of 11.7 billion barrels of oil world-wide and avoided US $323 billion in oil purchases

The World as Viewed by and with Unpaired Electrons

Science.gov (United States)

Eaton, Sandra S.; Eaton, Gareth R.

2012-01-01

Recent advances in electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) include capabilities for applications to areas as diverse as archeology, beer shelf life, biological structure, dosimetry, in vivo imaging, molecular magnets, and quantum computing. Enabling technologies include multifrequency continuous wave, pulsed, and rapid scan EPR. Interpretation is enhanced by increasingly powerful computational models. PMID:22975244

Thermal Spray Applications in Electronics and Sensors: Past, Present, and Future

Science.gov (United States)

Sampath, Sanjay

2010-09-01

Thermal spray has enjoyed unprecedented growth and has emerged as an innovative and multifaceted deposition technology. Thermal spray coatings are crucial to the enhanced utilization of various engineering systems. Industries, in recognition of thermal spray's versatility and economics, have introduced it into manufacturing environments. The majority of modern thermal spray applications are "passive" protective coatings, and they rarely perform an electronic function. The ability to consolidate dissimilar material multilayers without substrate thermal loading has long been considered a virtue for thick-film electronics. However, the complexity of understanding/controlling materials functions especially those resulting from rapid solidification and layered assemblage has stymied expansion into electronics. That situation is changing: enhancements in process/material science are allowing reconsideration for novel electronic/sensor devices. This review critically examines past efforts in terms of materials functionality from a device perspective, along with ongoing/future concepts addressing the aforementioned deficiencies. The analysis points to intriguing future possibilities for thermal spray technology in the world of thick-film sensors.

News Resources on the World Wide Web.

Science.gov (United States)

Notess, Greg R.

1996-01-01

Describes up-to-date news sources that are presently available on the Internet and World Wide Web. Highlights include electronic newspapers; AP (Associated Press) sources and Reuters; sports news; stock market information; New York Times; multimedia capabilities, including CNN Interactive; and local and regional news. (LRW)

The world's biggest experiment

CERN Multimedia

Gregson, Liz

2008-01-01

According to CERN, our understanding of the Universe is about the change. Meet the Imperial alumni and staff who are involved in CERN's Large Hadron Collider, the world's biggest experiment. (3 pages)

Miss World going deshi

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Wildermuth, Norbert

  In November 1996 the South Indian metropolis Bangalore hosted the annual Miss World show. The live event and its televisualisation became a prominent symbol for the India's economic liberalisation and for the immanent globalizing dimensions of this development. As such, the highly prestigious......, the pageant's contestation, which gave rise to a series of vehement protests and a broad public debate about the country's cultural alienation, marked a crucial point in time and trend towards the (re)localisation of the Indian television landscape. In consequence, the 1996 Miss World show and its...... their vision and politics of gender, nation and modernity on the larger Indian public, over the last two decades. Engaging the Indian population increasingly by way of the new electronic, c&s distributed media, competing discourses of gender and sexuality were projected, basically as a necessary, effective...

Managing forests in a changing world: the need for a systemic approach. A review

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nocentini, S.; Buttoud, G.; Ciancio, O.; Corona, P.

2017-01-01

Aim of study: The paper is a scientific commented discussion with the aim of defining a framework which allows both a comprehensive vision of forest dynamics, as well as an adaptive management approach and policy procedures more suited to a changing and inherently unpredictable world. Main results: We identify the main challenges facing forestry in relation to recent developments in forestry thinking, i.e. the paradox of aiming at sustainability in a changing environment, a shifting perception of the relationship between ecological and social systems, the recognition of forest ecosystems as complex adaptive systems, the need for integrating the social and ecological dimensions of forestry into a single framework, and the growing awareness of the importance of the ethical approach to the forest. We propose the concept of “systemic forestry” as a paradigm for better understanding forest dynamics and for guiding management and public actions at various levels. We compare the systemic approach with different silvicultural and forest management approaches which have been proposed in the last decades. Research highlights: Our analysis shows that a systemic approach to forestry has five main consequences: 1. forestry is viewed as a part of landscape dynamics through a multi-sectoral coordination, 2. the logic of action changes from norm to process, 3. conservation is a dynamic search for resilience, 4. multi-functionality is achieved through a multi-entries approach integrating ecological, social and economic components of sustainability, 5. forestry institutions are reframed to address the issue of changing interactions among actors, 6. a change in the ethical approach to the forest is needed.

Managing forests in a changing world: the need for a systemic approach. A review

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nocentini, S.; Buttoud, G.; Ciancio, O.; Corona, P.

2017-11-01

Aim of study: The paper is a scientific commented discussion with the aim of defining a framework which allows both a comprehensive vision of forest dynamics, as well as an adaptive management approach and policy procedures more suited to a changing and inherently unpredictable world. Main results: We identify the main challenges facing forestry in relation to recent developments in forestry thinking, i.e. the paradox of aiming at sustainability in a changing environment, a shifting perception of the relationship between ecological and social systems, the recognition of forest ecosystems as complex adaptive systems, the need for integrating the social and ecological dimensions of forestry into a single framework, and the growing awareness of the importance of the ethical approach to the forest. We propose the concept of “systemic forestry” as a paradigm for better understanding forest dynamics and for guiding management and public actions at various levels. We compare the systemic approach with different silvicultural and forest management approaches which have been proposed in the last decades. Research highlights: Our analysis shows that a systemic approach to forestry has five main consequences: 1. forestry is viewed as a part of landscape dynamics through a multi-sectoral coordination, 2. the logic of action changes from norm to process, 3. conservation is a dynamic search for resilience, 4. multi-functionality is achieved through a multi-entries approach integrating ecological, social and economic components of sustainability, 5. forestry institutions are reframed to address the issue of changing interactions among actors, 6. a change in the ethical approach to the forest is needed.

Electron-beam flue-gas treatment system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aoki, Sinji; Suzuki, Ryoji

1994-01-01

The damage of forests in the world due to acid rain has become serious problems, and the development of high efficiency and economical desulfurization and denitration technologies for combustion exhaust gas has been desired. Japan leads the world in exhaust gas treatment technology. The conventional technologies have been the desulfurization by lime gypsum process and the denitration by ammonia catalytic reduction process. The solution by entirely new concept is the electron beam treatment technology for exhaust gas. This technology is a dry process without drain, and does not require catalyst. The byproduct from this technology was approved as a fertilizer. The electron beam treatment technology is called EBA (electron beam with ammonia). The exhaust gas treatment technology by electron beam process is constituted by the cooling of exhaust gas, ammonia addition, electron beam irradiation and the separation of byproduct. The features of the technology are the simultaneous removal of sulfur and nitrogen oxides, dry process, the facilities are simple and the operation is easy, easy following to load variation and the utilization of byproduct. The reaction mechanism of desulfurization and denitration, the course of development, the electron beam generator, and the verifying test are reported. (K.I.)

Beyond corporate-style downsizing: a better way for medical schools to succeed in a changing world.

Science.gov (United States)

Bland, C J

1997-06-01

There is a critical need for medical schools and universities to consider strategies beyond corporate-style downsizing to address revenue needs and reposition their organizations. The author presents considerable evidence and three reasons to reject downsizing as a way to facilitate long-term organizational success. Instead, she recommends that institutions use a comprehensive approach to individual and organizational development to assure a flexible, enduring organization. Specifically, medical schools and universities should take an institution-wide perspective and approach to continually training, retraining, or reassigning faculty and should continually adapt their organizational structures and procedures as necessary to achieve changing institutional goals. The result will be the retention of able and dedicated faculty, who will be crucial in helping their schools continue to be successful while adapting to a changing world.

The Future of Comparative and International Education in a Globalised World

Science.gov (United States)

Wilson, David N.

2003-03-01

This article examines the history and future prospects of comparative and international education with particular reference to the impact of globalisation and Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs). Connections and interactions between comparative educationists and the technologies of printing and electronic communications are examined in a historical context. The global nature of communications in comparative and international education is demonstrated both spatially and historically, using information from all regions of the world. The changing nature of technologies is noted to have broadened the audience for comparative insights. The development of textbooks, journals, conferences, international agencies, the Internet, web-based communications, and professional comparative education societies is related to the themes of communications and globalisation.

75 FR 62684 - Health Insurance Reform; Announcement of Maintenance Changes to Electronic Data Transaction...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-13

... 0938-AM50 Health Insurance Reform; Announcement of Maintenance Changes to Electronic Data Transaction Standards Adopted Under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 AGENCY: Office of... of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 standards made by the Designated...

Attractive electron correlation in wide band gap semiconductors by electron-photon interaction

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Takeda, Hiroyuki; Yoshino, Katsumi

2004-01-01

We theoretically demonstrate attractive electron correlation in wide band gap semiconductors by electron-photon interaction. At low temperature, wavevectors of electromagnetic waves absorbed in wide band gap semiconductors cannot be neglected for wavevectors of electron waves; that is, electromagnetic waves affect the movements of electrons. In particular, attractive interaction occurs between two electrons when one electron changes from a valence band to a conduction band and the other electron changes from a conduction band to a valence band

Changing World, Changing Education: Kindergarten--Where to Now?

Science.gov (United States)

Clyde, Margaret

This paper discusses the history of early childhood education in Australia, areas of change in contemporary early childhood education, and the philosophical bases of education. The paper also offers suggestions for the future. From 1880 until 1950, Australian children's services consisted of philanthropic enterprises. The period from 1950 to 1970…

Contemporary Trans-regional Cooperation between Europe and Asia in a Changing World

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Beginda Pakpahan

2010-11-01

Full Text Available This article is concerned with contemporary trans-regional cooperation between Europe and Asia in a changing world. It examines the emerging economic relationship between the EU and Asia and possible challenges and implications facing both regions. It argues that Europe - Asia economic and commercial ties are likely in the future to result in unbalanced economic development between both these regions; in short, future agreements are likely to disproportionately favour Europe. Therefore, the economic and commercial ties between these two regions should aim to develop the least advanced countries in Asia. The article argues that ASEM can be empowered as a common flexible framework for bilateral and inter-regional trade initiatives between both regions; it can be empowered to manage and monitor these trade initiatives and their social implications for vulnerable ASEM countries. The main objective of this article is to contribute a clearer understanding of the current EU - Asia relationship in the context of ASEM.

The effect of the pathway to a two degrees warmer world on the regional temperature change of Europe

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cathrine Fox Maule

2017-08-01

Full Text Available The purpose of this study is to investigate if the pathway to reach a 2 degree warmer world influences the regional climate in Europe at the time of 2 degrees of global warming above the pre-industrial level. We have investigated this using climate change data from ensembles of both Global Climate Models and Regional Climate Models. We compare the change of regional temperature in Europe to the global temperature change for different emission scenarios, following the IPCC Representative Concentration Pathways (RCP, to see if the pathway has any influence. We find that there is a small but significant difference in the regional temperature change, but the effect is small compared to internal variability on the timescales involved in reaching +2 degrees for the investigated emission scenarios. From an adaptation point of view, reaching +2 degrees as slowly as possible will obviously allow for a longer time period to implement adaptation measures to mitigate the effect of climate change.

Neurology in a globalizing world: World Congress of Neurology, Vienna, 2013.

Science.gov (United States)

Hachinski, Vladimir

2013-06-11

The World Congress of Neurology (figure 1) theme "Neurology in a Globalizing World" acknowledges that science and increasingly medicine and neurology are becoming globalized. The best way to manage change is to shape it. It is becoming increasingly clear that brain diseases, particularly stroke and dementia, are projected to rise at a rate that could overwhelm our clinics and hospitals. Hence a new emphasis on prevention and the need to work across disciplines beyond our traditional roles. Neurologists are the guardians of the brain and need to take the lead role in advancing new approaches in stemming the tide of neurologic diseases.

The world as viewed by and with unpaired electrons.

Science.gov (United States)

Eaton, Sandra S; Eaton, Gareth R

2012-10-01

Recent advances in electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) include capabilities for applications to areas as diverse as archeology, beer shelf life, biological structure, dosimetry, in vivo imaging, molecular magnets, and quantum computing. Enabling technologies include multifrequency continuous wave, pulsed, and rapid scan EPR. Interpretation is enhanced by increasingly powerful computational models. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

World competitiveness and agriculture

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

J. van Zyl

1997-07-01

Full Text Available Against the background of a changing environment in which market factors and greater world trade and competitiveness are increasingly becoming the only criteria for success, a framework for the analysis of world competitiveness is initially developed. This is followed by a discussion on the growth of productivity in agriculture, as well as an exposition of the role of agricultural research. Thirdly, price factors and the terms of trade are discussed, followed by a summary of policy implications.

Structural changes induced by lattice-electron interactions: SiO2 stishovite and FeTiO3 ilmenite.

Science.gov (United States)

Yamanaka, Takamitsu

2005-09-01

The bright source and highly collimated beam of synchrotron radiation offers many advantages for single-crystal structure analysis under non-ambient conditions. The structure changes induced by the lattice-electron interaction under high pressure have been investigated using a diamond anvil pressure cell. The pressure dependence of electron density distributions around atoms is elucidated by a single-crystal diffraction study using deformation electron density analysis and the maximum entropy method. In order to understand the bonding electrons under pressure, diffraction intensity measurements of FeTiO3 ilmenite and gamma-SiO2 stishovite single crystals at high pressures were made using synchrotron radiation. Both diffraction studies describe the electron density distribution including bonding electrons and provide the effective charge of the cations. In both cases the valence electrons are more localized around the cations with increasing pressure. This is consistent with molecular orbital calculations, proving that the bonding electron density becomes smaller with pressure. The thermal displacement parameters of both samples are reduced with increasing pressure.

Multi-dimensional effects of color on the world wide web

Science.gov (United States)

Morton, Jill

2002-06-01

Color is the most powerful building material of visual imagery on the World Wide Web. It must function successfully as it has done historically in traditional two-dimensional media, as well as address new challenges presented by this electronic medium. The psychological, physiological, technical and aesthetic effects of color have been redefined by the unique requirements of the electronic transmission of text and images on the Web. Color simultaneously addresses each of these dimensions in this electronic medium.

Climate Change and Future World

Science.gov (United States)

2013-03-01

of water-borne diseases such as cholera and malaria which, if uncontrolled, could generate epidemics.27 More frequent and more intense extreme 7... Mexico , and the United States. All these trends produced by climate change are likely to increase migration movements to the U.S., and the occurrence

Looking for Guidelines for the Production of Electronic Textbooks.

Science.gov (United States)

Landoni, M.; Wilson, R.; Gibb, F.

2001-01-01

Reports the results of two studies of electronic book production, including production on the World Wide Web, and explains EBONI (Electronic Books On-screen Interface) that focuses on the evaluation of electronic resources and compiling guidelines for publishing electronic materials on the Internet for the United Kingdom higher education…

"Price-quakes" shaking the world's stock exchanges.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jørgen Vitting Andersen

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Systemic risk has received much more awareness after the excessive risk taking by major financial instituations pushed the world's financial system into what many considered a state of near systemic failure in 2008. The IMF for example in its yearly 2009 Global Financial Stability Report acknowledged the lack of proper tools and research on the topic. Understanding how disruptions can propagate across financial markets is therefore of utmost importance. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Here, we use empirical data to show that the world's markets have a non-linear threshold response to events, consistent with the hypothesis that traders exhibit change blindness. Change blindness is the tendency of humans to ignore small changes and to react disproportionately to large events. As we show, this may be responsible for generating cascading events--pricequakes--in the world's markets. We propose a network model of the world's stock exchanges that predicts how an individual stock exchange should be priced in terms of the performance of the global market of exchanges, but with change blindness included in the pricing. The model has a direct correspondence to models of earth tectonic plate movements developed in physics to describe the slip-stick movement of blocks linked via spring forces. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: We have shown how the price dynamics of the world's stock exchanges follows a dynamics of build-up and release of stress, similar to earthquakes. The nonlinear response allows us to classify price movements of a given stock index as either being generated internally, due to specific economic news for the country in question, or externally, by the ensemble of the world's stock exchanges reacting together like a complex system. The model may provide new insight into the origins and thereby also prevent systemic risks in the global financial network.

"Price-quakes" shaking the world's stock exchanges.

Science.gov (United States)

Andersen, Jørgen Vitting; Nowak, Andrzej; Rotundo, Giulia; Parrott, Lael; Martinez, Sebastian

2011-01-01

Systemic risk has received much more awareness after the excessive risk taking by major financial instituations pushed the world's financial system into what many considered a state of near systemic failure in 2008. The IMF for example in its yearly 2009 Global Financial Stability Report acknowledged the lack of proper tools and research on the topic. Understanding how disruptions can propagate across financial markets is therefore of utmost importance. Here, we use empirical data to show that the world's markets have a non-linear threshold response to events, consistent with the hypothesis that traders exhibit change blindness. Change blindness is the tendency of humans to ignore small changes and to react disproportionately to large events. As we show, this may be responsible for generating cascading events--pricequakes--in the world's markets. We propose a network model of the world's stock exchanges that predicts how an individual stock exchange should be priced in terms of the performance of the global market of exchanges, but with change blindness included in the pricing. The model has a direct correspondence to models of earth tectonic plate movements developed in physics to describe the slip-stick movement of blocks linked via spring forces. We have shown how the price dynamics of the world's stock exchanges follows a dynamics of build-up and release of stress, similar to earthquakes. The nonlinear response allows us to classify price movements of a given stock index as either being generated internally, due to specific economic news for the country in question, or externally, by the ensemble of the world's stock exchanges reacting together like a complex system. The model may provide new insight into the origins and thereby also prevent systemic risks in the global financial network.

Cellphones and Real-World Communication

Science.gov (United States)

Bugeja, Michael

2004-01-01

In this article, the author shares his views on cellphones and real-world communication. He claims that the cellphone has changed society more than the home computer, which it has assimilated. Cellphones sound during worship, wakes, births, graduations, hearings, trials, and accreditation meetings--interrupting life-changing spiritual or secular…

Working for change in the Arab world. Advocacy for reproductive health: Arab world.

Science.gov (United States)

Hamand, J

1996-01-01

The International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) revealed that within the Arab world there are special difficulties with regard to family planning (FP) and the status of women. There is general social opposition to women's empowerment and employment outside the home, which FP associations have to tackle. At the Cairo ICPD in 1994 the Vatican and Islamic fundamentalists formed a holy alliance against undesirable Western ideas. Eventually most Arab governments became convinced about the need for the program of action. A regional conference was also held in January 1996 on this agenda organized by the IPPF Arab World Region in Cairo to implement the program of action with the participation of 140 representatives. The question of population at the Cairo meeting was linked to economic and social development leading up to the women's conference in Beijing in 1995. At the 1996 implementation meeting the unmet need for reproductive health services was voiced along with the need for solid research in this area. FP has a vital role in social development and in combating poverty. The implementation of IPPF's Vision 2000 strategic plan also contributes to the implementation of the ICPD program of action, which deals with sex education, unsafe abortion, marginalized groups, and women's empowerment. Even Islam has come to support responsible FP for the sake of the well-being of the family. The Grand Mufti of Egypt pronounced his support for FP for health and socioeconomic reasons, for the education of girls, and for equality with men. In Arab countries the outstanding problems are early marriage, female genital mutilation, sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) and HIV, unwanted pregnancy, unsafe abortion, and ignorance about reproduction. Listening to young people, funding restrictions hampering progress, and an advocacy group of prominent leaders, and the formation of an Arab parliamentarians group on FP were other high points.

Data feature World natural Uranium production 1992

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon.

1993-01-01

NUKEM estimates that world uranium production fell more than 13% last year, from 40,729 tonnes U [106 million lbs U308] in 1991 to 35,363 tonnes U [92 million lbs U308] in 1992. Production fell in both the Western World and non-Western World. How much of demand was met by production? World uranium production in 1992 amounted to about 65% of reactor consumption. That's assuming that reactor demand of the non-Western World has not changed much from the Uranium Institute's estimate for 1991. Civilian stockpiles are being drawn down on a massive scale while the world waits to see what will become of the military stockpiles that could soon enter the global supply picture

Land Use Change and Global Adaptations to Climate Change

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Roxana Juliá

2013-12-01

Full Text Available This paper uses the World Trade Model with Climate Sensitive Land (WTMCL to evaluate possible future land-use changes associated with adaptations to climate change in a globalized world. In this approach, changes in regional agricultural production, which are based on comparative advantage, define patterns of land use change in agriculture in all regions of the world. We evaluate four scenarios that combine assumptions about future increases in food demand and future changes in land endowments of different productivities associated with climatic conditions: each scenario generates distinct patterns of regional specialization in the production of agricultural commodities and associated land-use change. The analysis also projects future food availability under the simulated conditions and the direction of likely changes in prices of the major agricultural commodity groups.

Changes of surface electron states of InP under soft X-rays irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yang Zhian; Yang Zushen; Jin Tao; Qui Rexi; Cui Mingqi; Liu Fengqin

1999-01-01

Changes of surface electronic states of InP under 1 keV X-ray irradiation is studied by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and ultraviolet ray energy spectroscopy (UPS). The results show that the soft X-ray irradiation has little effect on In atoms but much on P atoms. The authors analysed the mechanism of irradiation and explained the major effect

The importance of benthic-pelagic coupling for marine ecosystem functioning in a changing world.

Science.gov (United States)

Griffiths, Jennifer R; Kadin, Martina; Nascimento, Francisco J A; Tamelander, Tobias; Törnroos, Anna; Bonaglia, Stefano; Bonsdorff, Erik; Brüchert, Volker; Gårdmark, Anna; Järnström, Marie; Kotta, Jonne; Lindegren, Martin; Nordström, Marie C; Norkko, Alf; Olsson, Jens; Weigel, Benjamin; Žydelis, Ramunas; Blenckner, Thorsten; Niiranen, Susa; Winder, Monika

2017-06-01

Benthic-pelagic coupling is manifested as the exchange of energy, mass, or nutrients between benthic and pelagic habitats. It plays a prominent role in aquatic ecosystems, and it is crucial to functions from nutrient cycling to energy transfer in food webs. Coastal and estuarine ecosystem structure and function are strongly affected by anthropogenic pressures; however, there are large gaps in our understanding of the responses of inorganic nutrient and organic matter fluxes between benthic habitats and the water column. We illustrate the varied nature of physical and biological benthic-pelagic coupling processes and their potential sensitivity to three anthropogenic pressures - climate change, nutrient loading, and fishing - using the Baltic Sea as a case study and summarize current knowledge on the exchange of inorganic nutrients and organic material between habitats. Traditionally measured benthic-pelagic coupling processes (e.g., nutrient exchange and sedimentation of organic material) are to some extent quantifiable, but the magnitude and variability of biological processes are rarely assessed, preventing quantitative comparisons. Changing oxygen conditions will continue to have widespread effects on the processes that govern inorganic and organic matter exchange among habitats while climate change and nutrient load reductions may have large effects on organic matter sedimentation. Many biological processes (predation, bioturbation) are expected to be sensitive to anthropogenic drivers, but the outcomes for ecosystem function are largely unknown. We emphasize how improved empirical and experimental understanding of benthic-pelagic coupling processes and their variability are necessary to inform models that can quantify the feedbacks among processes and ecosystem responses to a changing world. © 2017 The Authors. Global Change Biology Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Managing forests in a changing world: the need for a systemic approach. A review

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Susanna Nocentini

2017-05-01

Full Text Available Aim of study: The paper is a scientific commented discussion with the aim of defining a framework which allows both a comprehensive vision of forest dynamics, as well as an adaptive management approach and policy procedures more suited to a changing and inherently unpredictable world. Main results: We identify the main challenges facing forestry in relation to recent developments in forestry thinking, i.e. the paradox of aiming at sustainability in a changing environment, a shifting perception of the relationship between ecological and social systems, the recognition of forest ecosystems as complex adaptive systems, the need for integrating the social and ecological dimensions of forestry into a single framework, and the growing awareness of the importance of the ethical approach to the forest. We propose the concept of “systemic forestry” as a paradigm for better understanding forest dynamics and for guiding management and public actions at various levels. We compare the systemic approach with different silvicultural and forest management approaches which have been proposed in the last decades. Research highlights: Our analysis shows that a systemic approach to forestry has five main consequences: 1. forestry is viewed as a part of landscape dynamics through a multi-sectoral coordination, 2. the logic of action changes from norm to process, 3. conservation is a dynamic search for resilience, 4. multi-functionality is achieved through a multi-entries approach integrating ecological, social and economic components of sustainability, 5. forestry institutions are reframed to address the issue of changing interactions among actors, 6. a change in the ethical approach to the forest is needed.

Climate Change and Development Framings: A Comparative Analysis of the Human Development Report 2007/8 an the World Development Report 2010

NARCIS (Netherlands)

D.R. Gasper (Des); A.V. Portocarrero (Ana Victoria); A. Lera St. Clair

2011-01-01

textabstractThe Human Development Report 2007/8 (HDR) and the World Development Report 2010 (WDR) are both devoted to the connections between climate change and development. The reports provide very different perspectives on where the key challenges reside. Their policy proposals are also different,

Thermal insulation of high confinement mode with dominant electron heating in comparison to dominant ion heating and corresponding changes of torque input

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sommer, Fabian H.D.

2013-01-01

The ratio of heating power going to electrons and ions will undergo a transition from mixed electron and ion heating as it is in current fusion experiments to dominant electron heating in future experiments and reactors. In order to make valid projections towards future devices the connected changes in plasma response and performance are important to be study and understand: Do electron heated plasmas behave systematically different or is the change of heated species fully compensated by heat exchange from electrons to ions? How does particle transport influence the density profile? Is the energy confinement and the H-mode pedestal reduced with reduced torque input? Does the turbulent transport regime change fundamentally? The unique capabilities of the ECRH system at ASDEX Upgrade enable this change of heated species by replacing NBI with ECRH power and thereby offer the possibility to discuss these and other questions. For low heating powers corresponding to high collisionalities the transition from mixed electron and ion heating to pure electron heating showed next to no degradation of the global plasma parameters and no change of the edge values of kinetic profiles. The electron density shows an increased central peaking with increased ECRH power. The central electron temperature stays constant while the ion temperature decreases slightly. The toroidal rotation decreases with reduced NBI fraction, but does not influence the profile stability. The power balance analysis shows a large energy transfer from electrons to ions, so that the electron heat flux approaches zero at the edge whereas the ion heat flux is independent of heating mix. The ion heat diffusivity exceeds the electron one. For high power, low collisionality discharges global plasma parameters show a slight degradation with increasing electron heating. The density profile shows a strong peaking which remains unchanged when modifying the heating mix. The electron temperature profile is unchanged

The understanding of world climate change

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Petit, M.

2008-01-01

After having recalled that the problem of global warming in relationship with human activities has been studied since the end of the nineteenth century and since then by different scientific programs, the author describes how the IPCC's or Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's report is produced. He briefly comments how Earth's temperature is determined and the various natural parameters which influence the climate on Earth. He recalls how the IPCC showed the actual influence of human activities, and which changes have actually been observed

Lithuanian on-line periodicals on the World Wide Web

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lina Sarlauskiene

2001-01-01

Full Text Available Deals with Lithuanian full-text electronic periodicals distributed through the World Wide Web. An electronic periodical is usually defined as a regular publication on some particular topic distributed in digital form, chiefly through the Web, but also by electronic mail or digital disk. The author has surveyed 106 publications. Thirty-four are distributed only on the Web, and 72 have printed versions. The number of analysed publications is not very big, but four years of electronic publishing and the variety of periodicals enables us to establish the causes of this phenomenon, the main features of development, and some perspectives. Electronic periodicals were analysed according to their type, purpose, contents, publisher, regularity, language, starting date and place of publication, and other features.

Oblique electron cyclotron emission for electron distribution studies (invited)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Preische, S.; Efthimion, P.C.; Kaye, S.M.

1997-01-01

Electron cyclotron emission (ECE) at an oblique angle to the magnetic field provides a means of probing the electron distribution function both in energy and physical space through changes in and constraints on the relativistic electron cyclotron resonance condition. Diagnostics based on this Doppler shifted resonance are able to study a variety of electron distributions through changes in the location of the resonance in physical or energy space accomplished by changes in the viewing angle and frequency, and the magnetic field. For the case of observation across a changing magnetic field, such as across the tokamak midplane, the constraint on the resonance condition for real solutions to the dispersion relation can constrain the physical location of optically thin emission. A new Oblique ECE diagnostic was installed and operated on the PBX-M tokamak for the study of energetic electrons during lower hybrid current drive. It has a view 33 degree with respect to perpendicular in the tokamak midplane, receives second harmonic X-mode emission, and is constrained to receive single pass emission by SiC viewing dumps on the tokamak walls. Spatial localization of optically thin emission from superthermal electrons (50 endash 100 keV) was obtained by observation of emission upshifted from a thermal cyclotron harmonic. The localized measurements of the electron energy distribution and the superthermal density profile made by this diagnostic demonstrate its potential to study the spatial transport of energetic electrons on fast magnetohydrodynamic time scales or anomalous diffusion time scales. Oblique ECE can also be used to study electron distributions that may have a slight deviation from a Maxwellian by localizing the emission in energy space. (Abstract Truncated)

Electronic Gaming and the Obesity Crisis

Science.gov (United States)

Calvert, Sandra L.; Staiano, Amanda E.; Bond, Bradley J.

2013-01-01

Children and adolescents in the United States and in many countries are projected to have shorter life spans than their parents, partly because of the obesity crisis engulfing the developed world. Exposure to electronic media is often implicated in this crisis because media use, including electronic game play, may promote sedentary behavior and…

Genderlect and Language Use in a Dynamic World | Okeke ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The dynamism of the world and language can be likened to the movement of individual stars, whose constellations are continuously changing their shape. One can hardly think of any language conventionally used in any society in the world that can ever be permanently the same. None, but it will always change from one ...

Controlling harmful cyanobacterial blooms in a world experiencing anthropogenic and climatic-induced change

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Paerl, Hans W., E-mail: hpaerl@email.unc.edu; Hall, Nathan S.; Calandrino, Elizabeth S.

2011-04-15

Harmful (toxic, food web altering, hypoxia generating) cyanobacterial algal blooms (CyanoHABs) are proliferating world-wide due to anthropogenic nutrient enrichment, and they represent a serious threat to the use and sustainability of our freshwater resources. Traditionally, phosphorus (P) input reductions have been prescribed to control CyanoHABs, because P limitation is widespread and some CyanoHABs can fix atmospheric nitrogen (N{sub 2}) to satisfy their nitrogen (N) requirements. However, eutrophying systems are increasingly plagued with non N{sub 2} fixing CyanoHABs that are N and P co-limited or even N limited. In many of these systems N loads are increasing faster than P loads. Therefore N and P input constraints are likely needed for long-term CyanoHAB control in such systems. Climatic changes, specifically warming, increased vertical stratification, salinization, and intensification of storms and droughts play additional, interactive roles in modulating CyanoHAB frequency, intensity, geographic distribution and duration. In addition to having to consider reductions in N and P inputs, water quality managers are in dire need of effective tools to break the synergy between nutrient loading and hydrologic regimes made more favorable for CyanoHABs by climate change. The more promising of these tools make affected waters less hospitable for CyanoHABs by 1) altering the hydrology to enhance vertical mixing and/or flushing and 2) decreasing nutrient fluxes from organic rich sediments by physically removing the sediments or capping sediments with clay. Effective future CyanoHAB management approaches must incorporate both N and P loading dynamics within the context of altered thermal and hydrologic regimes associated with climate change. - Research Highlights: {yields} Toxic cyanobacterial blooms (CyanoHABs) increasingly threaten global water supplies. {yields} Human (nutrient) and climate (hydrology, temperature) changes synergistically promote CyanoHABs. {yields

Spin polarized electron source technology transferred from HE accelerators to electron microscopes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nakanishi, Tsutomu

2009-01-01

For many years, we have developed a technology of spin-polarized-electron-source (PES) for a future linear collider project (ILC). Various new techniques for achieving high polarization, high quantum efficiency, high current density, sub-nanosecond multi-bunch generation etc. were developed. Two fundamental technologies; reduction of dark current and preparation of extremely high vacuum environment to protect the Negative Electron Affinity (NEA) surface have been also developed. Using these PES technologies and a new transmission type photocathode, we recently succeeded in producing the high brightness and high polarization electron beam for the low energy electron microscope (LEEM). Our Spin-LEEM system enables the world-first dynamic observation of surface magnetic domain formed by evaporation on the metal substrate with ∼ 20 nm space resolutions. (author)

Atomic structure and electronic properties of the SixSb100-x phase-change memory material

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Verma, Ashok K.; Modak, Paritosh; Svane, Axel

2011-01-01

The electronic and structural properties of SixSb100-x (x∼16) materials are investigated using first-principles molecular dynamics simulations. Crystalline-liquid-amorphous phase transitions are examined and remarkable changes in the local structure around the Si atoms are found. The average Si...... coordination number 6 (3 long + 3 short Si-Sb bonds) of the crystalline phase changes to 4 (3 long Si-Sb + 1 short Si-Si bonds) by preserving three Si-Sb bonds in both the liquid and the amorphous phases. In the amorphous phase ∼90% of the Si atoms are fourfold coordinated compared to 40% in the liquid....... The electronic density of states is metal-like in both the crystalline and the liquid phases, but it exhibits a pseudogap at the Fermi level in the amorphous phase, reflecting the strong abundance of fourfold coordinated Si in the amorphous phase....

Thermal management of electronics using phase change material based pin fin heat sinks

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Baby, R; Balaji, C

2012-01-01

This paper reports the results of an experimental study carried out to explore the thermal characteristics of phase change material based heat sinks for electronic equipment cooling. The phase change material (PCM) used in this study is n – eicosane. All heat sinks used in the present study are made of aluminium with dimensions of 80 × 62 mm 2 base with a height of 25 mm. Pin fins acts as the thermal conductivity enhancer (TCE) to improve the distribution of heat more uniformly as the thermal conductivity of the PCM is very low. A total of three different pin fin heat sink geometries with 33, 72 and 120 pin fins filled with phase change materials giving rise to 4%, 9% and 15% volume fractions of the TCE respectively were experimentally investigated. Baseline comparisons are done with a heat sink filled with PCM, without any fin. Studies are conducted for heat sinks on which a uniform heat load is applied at the bottom for the finned and unfinned cases. The effect of pin fins of different volume fractions with power levels ranging from 4 to 8 W corresponding to a heat flux range of 1. 59 to 3.17 kW/m 2 , was explored in this paper. The volume fraction of the PCM (PCM volume / (Total volume – fin volume)) is also varied as 0. 3, 0.6 and 1 to determine the effect of PCM volume on the overall performance of the electronic equipment.

Wintel and Beyond: Leadership in the Net World Order

OpenAIRE

Appleyard, Melissa M.; Brown, Clair; Linden, Greg

2004-01-01

The separate vertical product segments of the electronics industry are converging into a Net World Order of multifunctional product categories. We lay out a stylized value chain for analyzing firm performance in the various horizontal segments of the Net World Order. We measure firm performance with ROI data for the 1990s, and find that high-performing companies can emerge in any segment. We then turn our attention to the future and sketch the key elements of value creation and capture in the...

The Wright Science Colloquia Entering the Nano-World

CERN Multimedia

2002-01-01

In 1965, Intel co-founder Gordon Moore made an astonishing prediction - that every two years processing power would double. This prediction has always proved accurate. Accordingly, the first Intel processor produced in 1975 was equipped with 2,300 transistors whereas the latest edition has 55 million. Today we have this extraordinary process of miniaturisation to thank for cell phones, computers and other, ever more compact electronic marvels. But where will the miniaturisation race end? What will happen when electronic etchings reach the size of an atom? These questions are on the programme of the 10th Wright Science Colloquia from 18 to 22 November. Five world-renowned specialists will explain to the general public the saga of miniaturisation. The Wright Colloquia take place every two years in Geneva and aim to inform the general public about the latest advances in science.   Monday 18 November: 'Shaping the World at the Atomic Scale', by Donald Eigler, IBM, Almaden, USA.   Tuesday 19...

Power Electronics

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Iov, Florin; Ciobotaru, Mihai; Blaabjerg, Frede

2008-01-01

is to change the electrical power production sources from the conventional, fossil (and short term) based energy sources to renewable energy resources. The other is to use high efficient power electronics in power generation, power transmission/distribution and end-user application. This paper discuss the most...... emerging renewable energy sources, wind energy, which by means of power electronics are changing from being a minor energy source to be acting as an important power source in the energy system. Power electronics is the enabling technology and the presentation will cover the development in wind turbine...... technology from kW to MW, discuss which power electronic solutions are most feasible and used today....

Geothermal Program Review XV: proceedings. Role of Research in the Changing World of Energy Supply

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1997-01-01

The U.S. Department of Energy`s Office of Geothermal Technologies conducted its annual Program Review XV in Berkeley, March 24-26, 1997. The geothermal community came together for an in-depth review of the federally-sponsored geothermal research and development program. This year`s theme focussed on {open_quotes}The Role of Research in the Changing World of Energy Supply.{close_quotes} This annual conference is designed to promote technology transfer by bringing together DOE-sponsored researchers; utility representatives; geothermal developers; equipment and service suppliers; representatives from local, state, and federal agencies; and others with an interest in geothermal energy. Separate abstracts have been indexed to the database for contributions to this conference.

Species coexistence in a changing world.

Science.gov (United States)

Valladares, Fernando; Bastias, Cristina C; Godoy, Oscar; Granda, Elena; Escudero, Adrián

2015-01-01

The consequences of global change for the maintenance of species diversity will depend on the sum of each species responses to the environment and on the interactions among them. A wide ecological literature supports that these species-specific responses can arise from factors related to life strategies, evolutionary history and intraspecific variation, and also from environmental variation in space and time. In the light of recent advances from coexistence theory combined with mechanistic explanations of diversity maintenance, we discuss how global change drivers can influence species coexistence. We revise the importance of both competition and facilitation for understanding coexistence in different ecosystems, address the influence of phylogenetic relatedness, functional traits, phenotypic plasticity and intraspecific variability, and discuss lessons learnt from invasion ecology. While most previous studies have focused their efforts on disentangling the mechanisms that maintain the biological diversity in species-rich ecosystems such as tropical forests, grasslands and coral reefs, we argue that much can be learnt from pauci-specific communities where functional variability within each species, together with demographic and stochastic processes becomes key to understand species interactions and eventually community responses to global change.

Impact of Real-world Factors Influencing Investment Decisions on the Costs and Distribution of Climate Change Mitigation

Science.gov (United States)

Edmonds, J.; Iyer, G.; McJeon, H. C.; Leon, C.; Hultman, N.

2015-12-01

Strategies to mitigate dangerous anthropogenic climate change require a dramatic transformation of the energy system to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, that in turn requires large-scale investments. Investment decisions depend not only on investment capital availability but also on investment risks. A number of factors such as national policy environments, quality of public and private institutions, sector, firm and technology specific characteristics can affect investors' assessments of risks, leading to a wide variation in the business climate for investment. Such heterogeneity in investment risks can have important implications, as investors usually respond to risks by requiring higher returns for riskier projects; delaying or forgoing the investments; or preferring to invest in existing, familiar projects. We study the impact of variation in investment risks on regional patterns of emissions mitigation, the cost of emissions mitigation and patterns of technology deployment. We modify an integrated assessment model, widely used in global climate policy analyses (the Global Change Assessment Model) and incorporate decisions on investments based on risks along two dimensions. Along the first dimension, we vary perceived risks associated with particular technologies. To do so, we assign a higher cost of capital for investment in low-carbon technologies as these involve intrinsically higher levels of regulatory and market risk. The second dimension uses a proxy to vary investment risks across regions, based on an institutional quality metric published by the World Economic Forum. Explicit representation of investment risks has two major effects. First, it raises the cost of emissions mitigation relative to a world with uniform investment risks. Second, it shifts the pattern of emissions mitigation, with industrialized countries mitigating more, and developing countries mitigating less. Our results suggest that institutional reforms aimed at lowering investment

New Zealand Freshwater Management: Changing Policy for a Changing World

Science.gov (United States)

Rouse, H. L.; Norton, N.

2014-12-01

Fresh water is essential to New Zealand's economic, environmental, cultural and social well-being. In line with global trends, New Zealand's freshwater resources are under pressure from increased abstraction and changes in land-use which contribute contaminants to our freshwater systems. Recent central government policy reform introduces greater national direction and guidance, to bring about a step-change in freshwater management. An existing national policy for freshwater management introduced in 2011 requires regional authorities to produce freshwater management plans containing clear freshwater objectives (measurable statements about the desired environmental state for water bodies) and associated limits to resource use (such as environmental flows and quantity allocation limits, and loads of contaminants to be discharged). These plans must integrate water quantity and quality management, consider climate change, and incorporate tangata whenua (New Zealand māori) roles and interests. In recent (2014) national policy amendments, the regional authorities are also required to implement national 'bottom-line' standards for certain attributes of the system to be managed; undertake accounting for all water takes and all sources of contaminants; and to develop and implement their plans in a collaborative way with communities. This rapid change in national policy has necessitated a new way of working for authorities tasked with implementation; many obstacles lie in their path. The scientific methods required to help set water quantity limits are well established, but water quality methods are less so. Collaborative processes have well documented benefits but also raise many challenges, particularly for the communication of complex and often uncertain scientific information. This paper provides background on the national policy changes and offers some early lessons learned by the regional authorities implementing collaborative freshwater management in New Zealand.

The changing world of biocontainment and biosecurity.

Science.gov (United States)

Jeggo, M

2007-01-01

Since the 1980s, a number of key events have significantly altered our ideas on biosecurity and the role of biocontainment laboratories, such as the bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) and severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) outbreaks and the anthrax episode of 2001 in the USA. This has resulted in the development of plans to build "high containment" facilities around the world and an array of new regulations at both national and international levels regarding the management of pathogens, the operation of high containment facilities, the use of genetically modified material, and the transportation of such agents and personnel security issues. Considering the cost, however, it is debatable whether every country needs to build its own high containment facility. The Australian Animal Health Laboratory (AAHL) provides an example of what might be considered best practice in biocontainment while considering regulations, cost and need.

Development, implementation, and evaluation of a hybrid electronic medical record system specifically designed for a developing world surgical service.

Science.gov (United States)

Laing, G L; Bruce, J L; Skinner, D L; Allorto, N L; Clarke, D L; Aldous, C

2014-06-01

The Pietermaritzburg Metropolitan Trauma Service previously successfully constructed and implemented an electronic surgical registry (ESR). This study reports on our attempts to expand and develop this concept into a multi-functional hybrid electronic medical record (HEMR) system for use in a tertiary level surgical service. This HEMR system was designed to incorporate the function and benefits of an ESR, an electronic medical record (EMR) system, and a clinical decision support system (CDSS). Formal ethical approval to maintain the HEMR system was obtained. Appropriate software was sourced to develop the project. The data model was designed as a relational database. Following the design and construction process, the HEMR file was launched on a secure server. This provided the benefits of access security and automated backups. A systematic training program was implemented for client training. The exercise of data capture was integrated into the process of clinical workflow, taking place at multiple points in time. Data were captured at the times of admission, operative intervention, endoscopic intervention, adverse events (morbidity), and the end of patient care (discharge, transfer, or death). A quarterly audit was performed 3 months after implementation of the HEMR system. The data were extracted and audited to assess their quality. A total of 1,114 patient entries were captured in the system. Compliance rates were in the order of 87-100 %, and client satisfaction rates were high. It is possible to construct and implement a unique, simple, cost-effective HEMR system in a developing world surgical service. This information system is unique in that it combines the discrete functions of an EMR system with an ESR and a CDSS. We identified a number of potential limitations and developed interventions to ameliorate them. This HEMR system provides the necessary platform for ongoing quality improvement programs and clinical research.

For Nature: Deep Greening World-Systems Analysis for the 21st Century

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sing S. Chew

2015-08-01

Full Text Available From its conception the world-systems perspective has been preoccupied with the study of long term global transformations (see for ex., Frank 1968, 1979; Wallerstein 1974; Amin 1974; Wolf, 1982; Chase-Dunn 1989; Chase-Dunn and Hall 1992; Kaplan 1978.2. To this extent, the various structural relationships, trends, and cycles of the world system have been identified to explain the processes of global transformation. The varied attempts to pinpoint and analyze these relations, trends, and cycles have been within the context of connections between humans, classes, status groups, industries, regions, and states in the world economy. From an ecological point of view (ontologically and epistemologically, such a manner of understanding change is quite anthropocentric, as global transformation necessitates a changing relationship with Nature. In an era of increasing global concern and awareness of the finite nature of natural resources and the growing realization of the contemporary losses in plant and animal species and the continued susceptibility of the human species to climatological changes and diseases despite various scientific and technological advances, we need to consider that besides social relations and structures, the basis of human reproduction includes our relationships with the non-human world (ecology. World-systems /world system analyses need to move beyond deciphering the processes of global change only through the social (anthropocentric dimension of the relations underlining these processes. Keeping to just the social relations/structures of the reproduction of the system limits the range of explanations we can provide for global transformation, and also restricts the dimensions whereby the basis for these changes can be explored. This paper is an attempt to introduce the other basic dimension (our relations with Nature into the overall equation of world-systems/world system analyses for our understanding of global change. Ultimately

Setting the scene : About planning and a world in change

NARCIS (Netherlands)

de Roo, Gert; Boelens, Luuk; de Roo, Gert; Boelens, Luuk

2016-01-01

Today’s world is predominantly urban. Most urban regions are located in delta regions. And delta regions face severe pressures because of their fragile environments, their delicate relationship with existing ecological habitats and coastal zones, which need protection, and the increasing constraints

Preparing E-Excellent Teachers for the World of E-Education: Potential Strategies

Science.gov (United States)

Misra, Pradeep Kumar

2010-01-01

The world we live in is constantly changing. Learning is changing as well, especially the technologies mediated learning. The technologies have contributed significantly for evolution of the world of E-education where learners can access higher education in new ways, anywhere and at anytime. The world of E-education demands that teachers must…

Dependence of actinide solid state chemistry and physics on the changing role of the 5f-electrons

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Haire, R.G.

1992-01-01

It is well established that the chemistry, physics, and material science of the actinides do not reflect perfectly a series of elements with a regular increase in the number of localized f-electrons (f-orbital occupation). This situation results from the hanging role of the 5f-electrons across the series. Therefore, a full understanding of the properties of the individual elements necessitates an understanding of the series as a whole. The changing influence of the f-electrons is reflected in many of the actinide's properties. Systematic comparisons of selected high-temperature and high-pressure behaviors of actinide materials are discussed to demonstrate the variable nature and roles of the f-electrons, as well as their susceptibility to experimental parameters

Microcomputer-controlled world time display for public area viewing

Science.gov (United States)

Yep, S.; Rashidian, M.

1982-05-01

The design, development, and implementation of a microcomputer-controlled world clock is discussed. The system, designated international Time Display System (ITDS), integrates a Geochron Calendar Map and a microcomputer-based digital display to automatically compensate for daylight savings time, leap year, and time zone differences. An in-depth technical description of the design and development of the electronic hardware, firmware, and software systems is provided. Reference material on the time zones, fabrication techniques, and electronic subsystems are also provided.

Electron scattering for exotic nuclei

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Suda, T.

2013-01-01

An electron scattering facility is under construction in RIKEN RI Beam Factory, Japan, which is dedicated to the structure studies of short-lived nuclei. This is the world's first and currently only facility of its type. The construction is nearly completed, and the first electron scattering experiment off short-lived nuclei will be carried out in the beginning of next year. The charge density distributions of short-lived nuclei will be precisely determined by elastic electron scattering for the first time. Physics pursued at this facility including future perspectives are explained

Recent advances using electron beam analysis to detect cuticular changes induced by air pollution

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Krause, C.R.

1994-01-01

Invisible or ''hidden injury'', terms from the earliest air quality literature, expressed the diagnostician's frustration in identifying abiotic disease symptoms. Direct visualization was not technically possible until the advent of electron beam analysis (EBA) hardware and software. Electron beam analysis, a combination of scanning electron microscopy (SEM) energy dispersive X-ray analysis (EDXA), and computer-controlled image processing (CCIP) is useful for detecting changes in the cuticle and adjacent cells due to common phytotoxicants. Artifacts, caused by improper specimen preparation, inherent in the high vacuum of SEM and use of hydrated plant samples, fill the literature. Unique methodologies are necessary to interpret the minute changes to plant surfaces caused by a variety of environmental stresses such as sulfur dioxide, ozone, acidic deposition, pesticide residues, NACl, etc. EBA was used to show: the progression of surface alterations that occur to stomata of hybrid poplar (Populus spp.) following exposure to SO 2 and O 3 ; between SO 2 -sensitive and SO 2 -tolerant clones of eastern white pine (Pinus strobus L.). CCIP was especially useful in determining that acidified rain or mist and O 3 do not physically erode existing epicuticular wax of red spruce (Picea rubens Sarg.) as previous literature stated. EBA was used to correlate field and laboratory data showing similar injury to epistomatal wax of red spruce. Improved field emission microscopy and EDXA that offer increased resolution with little sample preparation can provide opportunities to observe cuticular modifications not previously available. (orig.)

Climate of an Earth-Like World with Changing Eccentricity

Science.gov (United States)

Kohler, Susanna

2017-02-01

Having a giant planet like Jupiter next door can really wreak havoc on your orbit! A new study examines what such a bad neighbor might mean for the long-term climate of an Earth-like planet.Influence of a Bad NeighborThe presence of a Jupiter-like giant planet in a nearby orbit can significantly affect how terrestrial planets evolve dynamically, causing elements like the planets orbital eccentricities and axial tilts to change over time. Earth is saved this inconvenience Jupiter isnt close enough to significantly influence us, and our large moon stabilizes our orbit against Jupiters tugs.Top panels: Authors simulationoutcomes for Case1, in which the planets eccentricity varies from 0 to 0.283 over 6500 years. Bottom panels: Outcomes for Case 2, in which the planets eccentricity varies from 0 to 0.066 over 4500 years. The highereccentricities reached in Case 1 causes the climate parameters to vary more widely. Click for a better look! [Way Georgakarakos 2017]Mars, on the other hand, isnt as lucky: its possible that Jupiters gravitational pull causes Marss axial tilt, for instance, to evolve through a range as large as 0 to 60 degrees on timescales of millions of years! Marss orbital eccentricity is similarly thought to vary due to Jupiters influence, and both of these factors play a major role in determining Marss climate.As exoplanet missions discover more planets many of which are Earth-like we must carefully consider which among these are most likely to be capable of sustaining life. If having a nearby neighbor like a Jupiter can tug an Earth-like world into an orbit with varying eccentricity, how does this affect the planets climate? Will the planet remain temperate? Or will it develop a runaway heating or cooling effect as it orbits, rendering it uninhabitable?Oceans and OrbitsTo examine these questions, two scientists have built the first ever 3D global climate model simulations of an Earth-like world using a fully coupled ocean (necessary for understanding

Preparing for Change: Challenges and Opportunities in a Global World

Science.gov (United States)

O'Hara, Sabine

2009-03-01

Our world is becoming increasingly global. This may sound like a clich'e, yet it is true nonetheless, and poses unprecedented challenges for graduate education. For the new generation of researchers, teachers and professionals to be successful they must be prepared in more than the content area of their chosen field. They must also acquire proficiency in global awareness, cultural literacy, multicultural teamwork and language facility. These global skill sets form the basis for effective multicultural collaboration and will become increasingly important even for those who do not intend to study or work abroad. Knowledge has become more portable in the internet age; large data bases and reports can be accessed in real time from various locations around the globe; information is exchanged in multifaceted knowledge networks; collaborative research takes place within and outside of the traditional venue of the research university in the private sector, research institutes, and associations; research networks span multiple disciplines as progress invariably occurs at the intersection of previously discrete fields of inquiry. Global collaboration thus is no longer dependent on the physical proximity of collaborators but can take place anywhere any time. This then requires yet another set of skills, namely the ability to adapt to change, exhibit flexibility and transfer skills to a range of contexts and applications. Effective graduate education must address these realities and expose students to learning opportunities that will enable them to acquire these much needed global skills sets.

The Emerging World Order

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

PETER COLLECOTT

2014-05-01

Full Text Available It is common ground amongst almost all commentators that the world has changed radically over the past 25 years – the 25 years since the fall of the Berlin Wall heralded the ending of the Cold War, the reunification of a tragically divided Europe, and the acceleration of the process of globalisation which has its only comparable period in the decades leading up to the First World War in 1914. When analyzing the Emerging World Order it is important to cover more than Brazil economy or any other individual BRICs or other Emerging Powers. Instead, our analysis will provide a global view about the economic and political global power structures which are evolving and forming before our eyes, and then to talk about the challenges these emerging realities pose for us in Europe, and in the West in general.

Influence of changes in the valence electronic configuration on the structure of L-X-ray spectra of molybdenum

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Polasik, M; Koziol, K; Slabkowska, K; Czarnota, M; Pajek, M

2009-01-01

Extensive multiconfiguration Dirac-Fock (MCDF) calculations with the inclusion of the transverse (Breit) interaction and QED corrections have been carried out on molybdenum to explain the dependence of the structure of Lα 1,2 and Lβ 1 lines on the changes in configurations of the valence electrons belonging to two different configuration types: three open-shell 4d 6-r 5s r (r = 2,1,0) configurations and one closed-shell 4d 4 3/2 5s 2 configuration. It has been found that the MCDF predictions for open-shell valence configurations (4d 4 5s 2 , 4d 5 5s 1 , 4d 6 5s 0 ) much better reproduce observed structure of Lα 1,2 lines in X-ray spectra of molybdenum than closed-shell 4d 4 3/2 5s 2 valence configuration. The influence of changes in the valence electronic configuration on the structure of L-X-ray spectra of molybdenum is noticeable. Moreover, the observation of the shapes of L-X-ray spectra seems to be very good method to investigate the changes of the valence electronic configuration caused by the chemical environment.

Non-equilbrium dynamics of ecosystem processes in a changing world

Science.gov (United States)

Reid, Joseph Pignatello

The relatively mild and stable climate of the last 10,000 years betrays a history of environmental variability and rapid changes. Humans have recently accelerated global environmental change, ushering in the Anthropocene. Meeting accelerating demands for food, energy, and goods and services has accelerated species extinctions, shows of reactive nitrogen and phosphorus, and warming of the atmosphere. I address the over- arching question of how ecosystems will respond to changing and variable environments through several focused studies. Each study examines an ecosystem response to ex- pected environmental changes in the future. To address how the changing environment affects the sizes and turnover rates of slowly and quickly cycling soil carbon pools, I analyzed the responses of grassland soils to simulated species diversity loss, increased deposition of nitrogen and increased atmospheric CO2. I used a soil respiration experiment to fit models of soil carbon pool turnover to respired carbon dioxide. Species diversity, nitrogen deposition and atmospheric CO2 had no effect on the total soil carbon after 8 years of treatments. Although total soil carbon did not change, the rates of cycling in the fast and slow pools changed in response to elevated CO2 and diversity loss treatments. Nitrogen treatments increased the size of the slowly cycling carbon pool. Precipitation variability has increased around most of the world since the industrial revolution. I used plant mesocosms in a greenhouse experiment to manipulate rainfall variability and mycorrhizal associations. I hypothesized that 1) rewetting events re- sult in higher nitrogen uxes from dry soils than moist soils, 2) a repeated pattern of events caused by low-frequency simulated rainfall results in higher nitrogen uxes and 3) the better ability of ectomycorrhizal fungi relative to arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi to decompose and assimilate organic nitrogen reduces leaching losses of nitrogen caused by both rewetting

A novel Direct Small World network model

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

LIN Tao

2016-10-01

Full Text Available There is a certain degree of redundancy and low efficiency of existing computer networks.This paper presents a novel Direct Small World network model in order to optimize networks.In this model,several nodes construct a regular network.Then,randomly choose and replot some nodes to generate Direct Small World network iteratively.There is no change in average distance and clustering coefficient.However,the network performance,such as hops,is improved.The experiments prove that compared to traditional small world network,the degree,average of degree centrality and average of closeness centrality are lower in Direct Small World network.This illustrates that the nodes in Direct Small World networks are closer than Watts-Strogatz small world network model.The Direct Small World can be used not only in the communication of the community information,but also in the research of epidemics.

The Future of wildland fire management in a world of rapid change and great uncertainty: Overview of a futures research project

Science.gov (United States)

David N. Bengston; Robert L. Olson; Leif A. DeVaney

2012-01-01

Past efforts to examine the future of wildland fire management have relied heavily on expertise from within the wildfire community. But changes in seemingly unrelated external factors - outside of the world of wildfire and fire management - can have unexpected and profound effects. This paper describes an ongoing sh1dy of the...

Nuclear Electronics. Proceedings of a Conference on Nuclear Electronics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1966-01-01

The science of electronics, which is playing a decisive role in the modern world, is particularly important in the development of the nuclear sciences, both in fundamental research on the structure of matter and in the production of power from fission. It is impractical, however, to deal with this vast and varied subject at one time. The Agency's first conference on the subject, at Belgrade in May 1961, was restricted to just a few aspects of nuclear electronics. The second conference, organized by the Agency in co-operation with the Indian Atomic Energy Commission and held at Bombay from 22 to 26 November 1965, was limited, for all practical purposes, to the use of nuclear electronics in reactor control and safety. The importance of this subject is self-evident, for the number of power reactors throughout the world is increasing every year and the economics of their operation depends just as much on optimum functioning as on improved safety. The Bombay conference, at which 48 papers were presented, was attended by a large number of participants, representing 12 countries and two international organizations. The main topics were power and neutron-flux measurements, reactor control, safety devices, and data processing to ensure optimum operation. The Proceedings, which contain both the texts and discussions of the papers presented, are of immediate interest to specialists in these fields and should form a valuable source of information

Importance of marketing management in the world pfarmaceutical industry

OpenAIRE

Dragan Kesič; Andrej Bertoncelj

2008-01-01

The world pharmaceutical industry has changed tremendously in the last decade. Globalization processes reinforce a consolidation of the world pharmaceutical industry. Mergers and acquisitions prevail more and more as a strategic orientation of numerous world pharmaceutical companies. In our research we found out that marketing management has been playing an increasingly important or even a crucial role in day-today activities and strategic business operations of the world pharmaceutical compa...

Widespread plant species: natives versus aliens in our changing world

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Stohlgren, T. J.; Pyšek, Petr; Kartesz, J.; Nishino, M.; Pauchard, A.; Winter, M.; Pino, J.; Richardson, D. M.; Wilson, J. R. U.; Murray, B. R.; Phillips, M. L.; Ming-yang, L.; Celesti-Grapow, L.; Font, X.

2011-01-01

Roč. 13, č. 9 (2011), s. 1931-1944 ISSN 1387-3547 R&D Projects: GA MŠk LC06073 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z60050516 Keywords : plant invasions * species distribution * Old and New World Subject RIV: EF - Botanics Impact factor: 2.896, year: 2011

A space-based, high-resolution view of notable changes in urban NOx pollution around the world (2005-2014)

Science.gov (United States)

Duncan, Bryan N.; Lamsal, Lok N.; Thompson, Anne M.; Yoshida, Yasuko; Lu, Zifeng; Streets, David G.; Hurwitz, Margaret M.; Pickering, Kenneth E.

2016-01-01

Nitrogen oxides (NOx = NO + NO2) are produced during combustion processes and, thus may serve as a proxy for fossil fuel-based energy usage and coemitted greenhouse gases and other pollutants. We use high-resolution nitrogen dioxide (NO2) data from the Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) to analyze changes in urban NO2 levels around the world from 2005 to 2014, finding complex heterogeneity in the changes. We discuss several potential factors that seem to determine these NOx changes. First, environmental regulations resulted in large decreases. The only large increases in the United States may be associated with three areas of intensive energy activity. Second, elevated NO2 levels were observed over many Asian, tropical, and subtropical cities that experienced rapid economic growth. Two of the largest increases occurred over recently expanded petrochemical complexes in Jamnagar (India) and Daesan (Korea). Third, pollution transport from China possibly influenced the Republic of Korea and Japan, diminishing the impact of local pollution controls. However, in China, there were large decreases over Beijing, Shanghai, and the Pearl River Delta, which were likely associated with local emission control efforts. Fourth, civil unrest and its effect on energy usage may have resulted in lower NO2 levels in Libya, Iraq, and Syria. Fifth, spatial heterogeneity within several megacities may reflect mixed efforts to cope with air quality degradation. We also show the potential of high-resolution data for identifying NOx emission sources in regions with a complex mix of sources. Intensive monitoring of the world's tropical/subtropical megacities will remain a priority, as their populations and emissions of pollutants and greenhouse gases are expected to increase significantly.

A Space-based, High-resolution View of Notable Changes in Urban Nox Pollution Around the World (2005 - 2014)

Science.gov (United States)

Duncan, Bryan N.; Lamsal, Lok N.; Thompson, Anne M.; Yoshida, Yasuko; Lu, Zifeng; Streets, David G.; Hurwitz, Margaret M.; Pickering, Kenneth E.

2016-01-01

Nitrogen oxides (NOxNO+NO2) are produced during combustion processes and, thus may serve as a proxy for fossil fuel-based energy usage and committed greenhouse gases and other pollutants. We use high-resolution nitrogen dioxide (NO2) data from the Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) to analyze changes in urban NO2 levels around the world from 2005 to 2014, finding complex heterogeneity in the changes. We discuss several potential factors that seem to determine these NOx changes. First, environmental regulations resulted in large decreases. The only large increases in the United States may be associated with three areas of intensive energy activity. Second, elevated NO2 levels were observed over many Asian, tropical, and subtropical cities that experienced rapid economic growth. Two of the largest increases occurred over recently expanded petrochemical complexes in Jamnagar (India) and Daesan (Korea). Third, pollution transport from China possibly influenced the Republic of Korea and Japan, diminishing the impact of local pollution controls. However, in China, there were large decreases over Beijing, Shanghai, and the Pearl River Delta, which were likely associated with local emission control efforts. Fourth, civil unrest and its effect on energy usage may have resulted in lower NO2 levels in Libya, Iraq, and Syria. Fifth, spatial heterogeneity within several megacities may reflect mixed efforts to cope with air quality degradation. We also show the potential of high-resolution data for identifying NOx emission sources in regions with a complex mix of sources. Intensive monitoring of the world's tropical subtropical megacities will remain a priority, as their populations and emissions of pollutants and greenhouse gases are expected to increase significantly.

World Development Report 2008: Agriculture for development

OpenAIRE

The World Bank

2007-01-01

The world's demand for food is expected to double within the next 50 years, while the natural resources that sustain agriculture will become increasingly scarce, degraded, and vulnerable to the effects of climate change. In many poor countries, agriculture accounts for at least 40 percent of GDP and 80 percent of employment. At the same time, about 70 percent of the world's poor live in rural areas and most depend on agriculture for their livelihoods. World Development Report 2008 seeks t...

Change in operating parameters of the Continuous Electron Beam Accelerator Facility and Free Electron Laser, Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility, Newport News, Virginia

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1997-10-01

In this environmental assessment (EA), the US Department of Energy (DOE) reports the results of an analysis of the potential environmental impacts from a proposed change in operating parameters of the Continuous Electron Beam Accelerator Facility (CEBAF), and operation of the Free Electron Laser (FEL) facility beyond the initial demonstration period. With this proposal, DOE intends to increase CEBAF operating range from its current operating maximum beam energy of 4.0 GeV [giga-(billion) electron volts] to 8.0 GeV at a beam power of no greater than 1,000 kW [1 megawatt (MW)], its maximum attainable level, based on current technology and knowledge, without significant, costly equipment modifications. DOE has prepared an EA for this action to determine the potential for adverse impacts from operation of CEBAF and the FEL at the proposed levels. Changing the operating parameters of CEBAF would require no new major construction and minor modifications to the accelerator, its support systems, the FEL, and onsite utility systems. Modifications and performance improvements would be made to (1) the accelerator housed in the underground tunnels, (2) its support systems located in the above ground service buildings, and (3) the water and equipment cooling systems both in the tunnel and at the ground surface. All work would be performed on previously disturbed land and in, on, or adjacent to existing buildings, structures, and equipment. With the proposed action, the recently constructed FEL facility at the Jefferson Lab would operate in concert with CEBAF beyond its demonstration period and up to its maximum effective electron beam power level of 210 kW. In this EA, DOE evaluates the impacts of the no-action alternative and the proposed action alternative. Alternatives considered, but dismissed from further evaluation, were the use of another accelerator facility and the use of another technology.

Change in operating parameters of the Continuous Electron Beam Accelerator Facility and Free Electron Laser, Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility, Newport News, Virginia

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1997-10-01

In this environmental assessment (EA), the US Department of Energy (DOE) reports the results of an analysis of the potential environmental impacts from a proposed change in operating parameters of the Continuous Electron Beam Accelerator Facility (CEBAF), and operation of the Free Electron Laser (FEL) facility beyond the initial demonstration period. With this proposal, DOE intends to increase CEBAF operating range from its current operating maximum beam energy of 4.0 GeV [giga-(billion) electron volts] to 8.0 GeV at a beam power of no greater than 1,000 kW [1 megawatt (MW)], its maximum attainable level, based on current technology and knowledge, without significant, costly equipment modifications. DOE has prepared an EA for this action to determine the potential for adverse impacts from operation of CEBAF and the FEL at the proposed levels. Changing the operating parameters of CEBAF would require no new major construction and minor modifications to the accelerator, its support systems, the FEL, and onsite utility systems. Modifications and performance improvements would be made to (1) the accelerator housed in the underground tunnels, (2) its support systems located in the above ground service buildings, and (3) the water and equipment cooling systems both in the tunnel and at the ground surface. All work would be performed on previously disturbed land and in, on, or adjacent to existing buildings, structures, and equipment. With the proposed action, the recently constructed FEL facility at the Jefferson Lab would operate in concert with CEBAF beyond its demonstration period and up to its maximum effective electron beam power level of 210 kW. In this EA, DOE evaluates the impacts of the no-action alternative and the proposed action alternative. Alternatives considered, but dismissed from further evaluation, were the use of another accelerator facility and the use of another technology

Neuromorphic adaptive plastic scalable electronics: analog learning systems.

Science.gov (United States)

Srinivasa, Narayan; Cruz-Albrecht, Jose

2012-01-01

Decades of research to build programmable intelligent machines have demonstrated limited utility in complex, real-world environments. Comparing their performance with biological systems, these machines are less efficient by a factor of 1 million1 billion in complex, real-world environments. The Systems of Neuromorphic Adaptive Plastic Scalable Electronics (SyNAPSE) program is a multifaceted Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) project that seeks to break the programmable machine paradigm and define a new path for creating useful, intelligent machines. Since real-world systems exhibit infinite combinatorial complexity, electronic neuromorphic machine technology would be preferable in a host of applications, but useful and practical implementations still do not exist. HRL Laboratories LLC has embarked on addressing these challenges, and, in this article, we provide an overview of our project and progress made thus far.

«To change the world»: justice or utopia?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jorge Eduardo Douglas Price

2017-06-01

Full Text Available The essay plays, in an  ironic way, similarly to Jorge Luis Borges’ style, with the idea that the expression to change the world: justice or utopia, which is not found in Quixote, could undoubtedly have been excluded of it, or invented by an anonymous author, a habitual resource in the Middle Ages. It points out that we are in the presence of works that somehow mark the beginning of the concept of “author” and, paradoxically, question it, as Cervantes does deliberately, or as portrayed in the difficulties to establish the verisimilitude of the authorship of the works by the English bard. And this is done  in order to work not only with the coincidence of the dates of their deaths (which grants space for another Borges-like game, but also with their contribution to the formation of the Western cultural universe, which made Bloom exaggerate in the attribution to Shakespeare of “inventing the human”, but to formulate the opposition of two ethics between two emblematic characters, such as Quixote and Lady Macbeth: ethics, which we shall call “of duty”, from which the concept of utopia is built, present in Erasmus Of Rotterdam’s work (of great influence in the Spain of Cervantes and of Thomas Morus; And the ethics that we will call pragmatic, the ethics of Lady Macbeth, who prescribes to her husband the advice of Nicholas Machiavelli. In short, this paper concludes that Cervantes and Shakespeare inaugurated modernity, and the ideas found in their works, which were present in the production of sense of their time, in turn altered it (given the performative effect of literature; And that their remarkable personalities, united by the invisible thread of “madness”, allowed us to see the two faces of the human, as the Sileni of Alcibiades.

Changing fertility patterns and policies in the third world.

Science.gov (United States)

Mcnicoll, G

1992-01-01

Different patterns of fertilty transition are apparent in developing countries. Theories of fertility decline are appropriate because demographic analysis has become situation specific rather than general. Pretransition fertility patterns and the onset of decline are provided. Fertility transition patterns are also supplied, including a regional overview for Latin America, east and Southeast Asia, South Asia, West Asia and North Africa, and sub-Saharan Africa. The specialized cases of China, India, Bangladesh, Thailand and Indonesia, and Brazil are also presented. The fertility determinant models of Bongaarts, Davis and Blake, Hobcraft and Little, Ryder, and Henry are used as examples of proximate determinant models. Data collection was possible on a grand scale with contraceptive knowledge, attitudes, and practice (KAP) surveys and the World Fertility Surveys and Demographic and Health Surveys. Criticism has focused on the scope of these surveys which provide at best proximate determinants and differentiate fertility by standard socioeconomic factors. Data are also obtained on small populations from piecing together records and from quasi-anthropological fieldwork. Historical demography relies on family reconstitution. Longitudinal studies are few in number. The largest and most effective fieldwork station is at Matlab in Bangladesh. Caldwell has provided anthropological methods applicable to fertility study and makes use of teamwork. In Latin America, fertility has fallen by 40% since the 1960s. Bolivia, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, El Salvador, and Haiti have changed very little. Taiwan and South Korea provide examples of economic growth with equity in East and Southeast Asia. In heterogenous South Asia, decline has been slow and uneven. West Asia and North Africa have high fertility with the exception of Egypt which is in the early stages of transition. The smallest declines are found in sub-Saharan Africa, and are complicated by the AIDS epidemic.

Simple inflationary models in Gauss–Bonnet brane-world cosmology

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Okada, Nobuchika; Okada, Satomi

2016-01-01

In light of the recent Planck 2015 results for the measurement of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) anisotropy, we study simple inflationary models in the context of the Gauss–Bonnet (GB) brane-world cosmology. The brane-world cosmological effect modifies the power spectra of scalar and tensor perturbations generated by inflation and causes a dramatic change for the inflationary predictions of the spectral index ( n s ) and the tensor-to-scalar ratio ( r ) from those obtained in the standard cosmology. In particular, the predicted r values in the inflationary models favored by the Planck 2015 results are suppressed due to the GB brane-world cosmological effect, which is in sharp contrast with inflationary scenario in the Randall–Sundrum brane-world cosmology, where the r values are enhanced. Hence, these two brane-world cosmological scenarios are distinguishable. With the dramatic change of the inflationary predictions, the inflationary scenario in the GB brane-world cosmology can be tested by more precise measurements of n s and future observations of the CMB B -mode polarization. (paper)

Country-specific determinants of world university rankings.

Science.gov (United States)

Pietrucha, Jacek

2018-01-01

This paper examines country-specific factors that affect the three most influential world university rankings (the Academic Ranking of World Universities, the QS World University Ranking, and the Times Higher Education World University Ranking). We run a cross sectional regression that covers 42-71 countries (depending on the ranking and data availability). We show that the position of universities from a country in the ranking is determined by the following country-specific variables: economic potential of the country, research and development expenditure, long-term political stability (freedom from war, occupation, coups and major changes in the political system), and institutional variables, including government effectiveness.

Tactical Behaviors in Men's 800-m Olympic and World-Championship Medalists: A Changing of the Guard.

Science.gov (United States)

Sandford, Gareth N; Pearson, Simon; Allen, Sian V; Malcata, Rita M; Kilding, Andrew E; Ross, Angus; Laursen, Paul B

2018-02-01

To assess the longitudinal evolution of tactical behaviors used to medal in men's 800-m Olympic Games (OG) or world-championship (WC) events in the recent competition era (2000-2016). Thirteen OG and WC events were characterized for 1st- and 2nd-lap splits using available footage from YouTube. Positive pacing strategies were defined as a faster 1st lap. Season's best 800-m time and world ranking, reflective of an athlete's "peak condition," were obtained to determine relationships between adopted tactics and physical condition prior to the championships. Seven championship events provided coverage of all medalists to enable determination of average 100-m speed and sector pacing of medalists. From 2011 onward, 800-m OG and WC medalists showed a faster 1st lap by 2.2 ± 1.1 s (mean, ±90% confidence limits; large difference, very likely), contrasting a possibly faster 2nd lap from 2000 to 2009 (0.5, ±0.4 s; moderate difference). A positive pacing strategy was related to a higher world ranking prior to the championships (r = .94, .84-.98; extremely large, most likely). After 2011, the fastest 100-m sector from 800-m OG and WC medalists was faster than before 2009 by 0.5, ±0.2 m/s (large difference, most likely). A secular change in tactical racing behavior appears evident in 800-m championships; since 2011, medalists have largely run faster 1st laps and have faster 100-m sector-speed requirements. This finding may be pertinent for training, tactical preparation, and talent identification of athletes preparing for 800-m running at OGs and WCs.

Structural changes in the world energy supply - adaptations up to current and future challenges

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Schuermann, H.J.

1985-03-11

In this analysis of world energy markets in which he pays particular attention to mineral oil, and with a background of world economic problems which have not yet been solved, the author presents a piece of modern economic history in which he also highlights the political aspects of the supply of crude oil. The world-wide contraction in oil consumption which followed two price escalations, has been caused, it is held by structural factors and is therefore of a long-term nature. Of course, in the foreseeable future, oil will easily remain the most important energy-carrier. However, it will be of less importance for Western Europe and Japan than for North America, trading states and developing countries. Nevertheless, diversification should be encouraged as quickly as possible. This does include natural gas still but for the long-term also coal and atomic energy. The author pleads for world-wide trade relations based on coal and gas in order to complement the fully integrated world oil markets. Similarly atomic energy should be developed as quickly as possible.

The World Bank: Changing Leadership and Issues for the United States and Congress

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Weiss, Martin A

2005-01-01

.... The focus of the next World Bank President likely will be on many development issues including global humanitarian and reconstruction assistance and debt relief for the poorest countries, among others. Congress has a significant role in shaping U.S. policy at the World Bank through funding arrangements and oversight responsibility. This report will be updated as events warrant.

Electronic publishing in radiology: beginnings, current status, and expanding horizons.

Science.gov (United States)

Chew, Felix S; Llewellyn, Kevin; Olsen, Kathryn M

2004-10-01

Electronic publishing in radiology began in the 1980s and gathered momentum as use of the personal computer and subsequently the World Wide Web became commonplace. The ease of access and wide distribution that the Internet affords have presented both experts and lay users with the challenge of distinguishing reliable from unreliable material. In the field of radiology, peer-reviewed journals, the sine qua non of reliability in the scientific realm, began to appear in online versions in 1988, and now, nearly all such journals currently have online versions. Electronic versions of textbooks and textbook-like material have become more common, although the vast majority of publishers' catalogs are traditional print books. Electronic material is more common in the fields of internal, emergency, and family medicine than in the field of diagnostic radiology. The latest publishing medium is the personal digital assistant. Challenges that face electronic publishing include the issues of permanent archiving, citation, and indexing. Peer review seems to be the best method for distinguishing reliable from unreliable information. The use of Web technology has improved the logistics of peer review, and some journals have begun posting peer reviews themselves on the Web alongside peer-reviewed articles. Electronic publishing has changed the manner in which radiologists obtain information, providing wider, more immediate access.

Electronic Information – Threat or Challenge to Librarians and ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Electronic Information – Threat or Challenge to Librarians and Library Buildings. ... electronic resources because as new things and methods emerge, they exist ... that world trends in the paper industry and Internet use do not justify the fears ...

Transient cooling of electronics using phase change material (PCM)-based heat sinks

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kandasamy, Ravi; Wang Xiangqi; Mujumdar, Arun S.

2008-01-01

Use of a phase change material (PCM)-based heat sink in transient thermal management of plastic quad flat package (QFP) electronic devices was investigated experimentally and numerically. Results show that increased power inputs enhance the melting rate as well as the thermal performance of the PCM-based heat sinks until the PCM is fully melted. A three-dimensional computational fluid dynamics model was proposed to simulate the problem and demonstrated good agreement with experimental data. Results indicate the potential for PCM-based heat sinks for use in intermittent-use devices

Tangiplay: prototyping tangible electronic games

OpenAIRE

Boileau, Jason

2010-01-01

Tangible electronic games currently exist in research laboratories around the world but have yet to transition to the commercial sector. The development process of a tangible electronic game is one of the factors preventing progression, as it requires much time and money. Prototyping tools for tangible hardware and software development are becoming more available but are targeted to programmers and technically trained developers. Paper prototyping board and video games is a proven and rapid m...

Electron linacs

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Loew, G A; Schriber, S O [ed.

1976-11-01

A study was made of the present status of the thousand or so electron linacs in the world, and future trends in the field. These machines were classified according to their use: medical, industrial, and nuclear physics. In the medical category, two types of electron linacs are discussed: the conventional ones which are used for x-ray and electron therapy, and those which may in the future be used for negative pion therapy. Industrial machines discussed include linacs for radiographic and other specialized applications. In the nuclear physics category, the status of conventional low- and medium-energy as well as high duty cycle linacs is reviewed. The question of how one might obtain a c-w, 1 GeV, 100..mu..A electron linac is raised, and various options using recirculation and stretchers are examined. In this connection, the status of rf superconductivity is summarized. A review is given of linacs for injectors into synchrotrons and e/sup +-/ storage rings, and recent work done to upgrade the only multi-GeV linac, namely SLAC, is described.

Electron linacs

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Loew, G.A.

1976-01-01

To study the present status of the thousand or so electron linacs in the world, and future trends in the field, we have classified these machines according to their use: medical, industrial, and nuclear physics. In the medical category, two types of electron linacs are discussed: the conventional ones which are used for X-ray and electron therapy, and those which may in the future be used for negative pion therapy. The section on industrial machines includes linacs for radiographic and other specialized applications. In the nuclear physics category, the status of conventional low- and medium-energy as well as high duty cycle linacs is reviewed. The question of how one might obtain a C.W., 1 GeV, 100 μA electron linac is raised and various options using recirculation and stretchers are examined. In this connection, the status of RF superconductivity is summarized. Following, there is a review of linacs for injectors into synchrotrons and e +- storage rings. The paper ends with a description of recent work done to upgrade the only multi-GeV linac, namely SLAC. (author)

Change of structure, microstructure and mechanical properties of steels after electron-beam quenching using new technology

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tsenker, R.; Yun, V.; Rat'en, D.; Fritshe, G.

1988-01-01

Main principles and technological possibilities of a new method for electron-beam treatment are presented. The method lies in local-time high-frequency scanning of electron beam (surface-isothermal energy transfer). The method can be used for quenching of the band with up to 30(50) mm width and up to 1.5(2.0) mm depth of quenched layer. Changes of structure, microstructure and properties were investigated with the use of the following methods: surface sounding, light microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, X-ray phase analysis, X-ray radiographic analysis of internal stresses, macrohardness, microhardness and recording hardness measuring. A study was made on the effect of parameters of electron-beam quenching of steel (S45, 55St1, S100.1, 90MnV8, 100ST6) basic state on quenched layer depth, surface relief, martensite morphology, residual austenite amount, austenite grain system, internal stresses, hardness profiles and determined hardness

Changing the world with hydrogen and nuclear: From past successes to shaping the future

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Carre, F.

2010-01-01

This presentation reviews the past history of hydrogen and nuclear energy, while considering how they had been important forever, how they have been used to change the world when they were discovered and understood, and how they will likely shape our future to face specific challenges of the 21. century. Content: 1 - hydrogen and nuclear reactions at the origin of the universe: the universe and supernovae, the sun, the blue planet, the evolution of man; 2 - understanding and first uses of hydrogen: the discovery of hydrogen, hydrogen balloons, airships or dirigibles, the discovery of the electrolysis and the fuel cell, Jules Vernes; 3 - development of nuclear over the 20. century: pioneers of nuclear energy, Fermi reactor, EBR-1; 4 - development of hydrogen over the 20. century, expanding uses of hydrogen over the second half of the 20. century; 5 - four major endeavours gathering hydrogen and nuclear: light water reactors, naval reactors, nuclear rockets, controlled fusion, the PNP-500 project; 6 - stakes in hydrogen and nuclear production in the 21. century: energy challenge for the 21. century, peaking of fossil fuel production, renaissance of nuclear energy, changes in transportation model, hydrogen market, technologies for nuclear hydrogen production, carbon taxes, the path forward: international demonstrations towards industrialisation, a new generation of scientists for our dreams come true

Spin electronics

CERN Document Server

Buhrman, Robert; Daughton, James; Molnár, Stephan; Roukes, Michael

2004-01-01

This report is a comparative review of spin electronics ("spintronics") research and development activities in the United States, Japan, and Western Europe conducted by a panel of leading U.S. experts in the field. It covers materials, fabrication and characterization of magnetic nanostructures, magnetism and spin control in magnetic nanostructures, magneto-optical properties of semiconductors, and magnetoelectronics and devices. The panel's conclusions are based on a literature review and a series of site visits to leading spin electronics research centers in Japan and Western Europe. The panel found that Japan is clearly the world leader in new material synthesis and characterization; it is also a leader in magneto-optical properties of semiconductor devices. Europe is strong in theory pertaining to spin electronics, including injection device structures such as tunneling devices, and band structure predictions of materials properties, and in development of magnetic semiconductors and semiconductor heterost...

FISITA 2012 World Automotive Congress

CERN Document Server

2013-01-01

Proceedings of the FISITA 2012 World Automotive Congress are selected from nearly 2,000 papers submitted to the 34th FISITA World Automotive Congress, which is held by Society of Automotive Engineers of China (SAE-China ) and the International Federation of Automotive Engineering Societies (FISITA). This proceedings focus on solutions for sustainable mobility in all areas of passenger car, truck and bus transportation. Volume 8: Vehicle Design and Testing (II) focuses on: •Automotive Reliability Technology •Lightweight Design Technology •Design for Recycling •Dynamic Modeling •Simulation and Experimental Validation •Virtual Design, Testing and Validation •Testing of Components, Systems and Full Vehicle Above all researchers, professional engineers and graduates in fields of automotive engineering, mechanical engineering and electronic engineering will benefit from this book.   SAE-China is a national academic organization composed of enterprises and professionals who focus on research, design a...

Golden Jubilee Photos: World Wide Web

CERN Multimedia

2004-01-01

At the end of the 1980s, the Internet was already a valuable tool to scientists, allowing them to exchange e-mails and to access powerful computers remotely. A more simple means of sharing information was needed, however, and CERN, with its long tradition of informatics and networking, was the ideal place to find it. Moreover, hundreds of scientists from all over the world were starting to work together on preparations for the experiments at the Large Electron-Positron (LEP) collider. In 1989, Tim Berners-Lee (see photo), a young scientist working at CERN, drafted a proposal for an information-management system combining the internet, personal computers and computer-aided document consultation, known as hypertext. In 1990 he was joined by Robert Cailliau and the weaving of the World Wide Web began in earnest, even though only two CERN computers were allocated to the task at the time. The Web subsequently underwent a steady expansion to include the world's main particle physics institutes. The Web was not the...

Changes of photoluminescence of electron beam irradiated self-assembled InAs/GaAs quantum dots

Science.gov (United States)

Maliya; Aierken, Abuduwayiti; Li, Yudong; Zhou, Dong; Zhao, Xiaofan; Guo, Qi; Liu, Chaoming

2018-03-01

We investigate the effects of 1.0MeV electron beam irradiation on the photoluminescence of self-assembled InAs/GaAs quantum dots. After irradiation doses up to 1×1016e-/cm2 , photoluminescence of all samples was degraded dramatically and some additional radiation-induced changes in photo-carrier recombination from QDs, which include a slight increase in PL emission with low electron doses under different photo-injection condition in two samples, are also noticed. Different energy shift was observed in two samples with different Quantum Dot sizes. We attribute this remarkable phenomenon to combination of stress relaxation induced red-shift and In-Ga intermixing caused blue-shift.

World energy: Building a sustainable future

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Schipper, L.; Meyers, S.

1992-04-01

As the 20th century draws to a close, both individual countries and the world community face challenging problems related to the supply and use energy. These include local and regional environmental impacts, the prospect of global climate and sea level change associated with the greenhouse effect, and threats to international relations in connection with oil supply or nuclear proliferation. For developing countries, the financial cost of providing energy to provide basic needs and fuel economic development pose an additional burden. To assess the magnitude of future problems and the potential effectiveness of response strategies, it is important to understand how and why energy use has changed in the post and where it is heading. This requires study of the activities for which energy is used, and of how people and technology interact to provide the energy services that are desired. The authors and their colleagues have analyzed trends in energy use by sector for most of the world`s major energy-consuming countries. The approach we use considers three key elements in each sector: the level of activity, structural change, and energy intensity, which expresses the amount of energy used for various activities. At a disaggregated level, energy intensity is indicative of energy efficiency. But other factors besides technical efficiency also shape intensity.

Electronic Banking And Bank Performance In Nigeria | Abaenewe ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This study investigated the profitability performance of Nigerian banks following the full adoption of electronic banking system. The study became necessary as a result of increased penetration of electronic banking which has redefined the banking operations in Nigeria and around the world. Judgmental sampling method ...

Social Evolution, Global Governance and a World Parliament

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andreas Bummel

2012-04-01

Full Text Available This article describes the relevance of a world parliament in the context of long-term social evolution and the crisis of global governance.[*] It is argued that due to the development of weapons of mass destruction and complex interdependency, war has ceased to be a driver of socio-evolutionary consolidation of power at the world-system level. At the same time, there is an increasingly urgent need for global governance in spheres such as climate change mitigation or economics and finances. The author looks at how the established and now dysfunctional pattern of evolutionary change can be overcome and identifies the institution of a world parliament as an important political and psychological aspect of the evolving collective.

Time for a New Agenda: Organizational Development in a Changing world with much Disruption

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sørensen, Henrik B.

2017-01-01

organizations neglect to support a disruptive strategy. By demonstrating the existence of another development path, this paper attempts, from a theoretical point of view, to give a new and a more nuanced perspective on organizational development in a disruptive world. This new path is supportive in a disruptive......Abstract – Traditional organizational theory tends to point out that organizational development follows a certain pattern where the structure of the company is said to become ever more bureaucratic. However, in a world where all companies and industries are faced with disruption, bureaucratic...... world. The aim of the paper is to answer the following research question: How can companies manage processes of organizational development and structures to avoid the bureaucracy and potential crises of the traditional approach in a disruptive world? This research question is important because...

Contemporary Legal Issues in Electronic Commerce in Nigeria

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

TI Akomolede

2008-10-01

Full Text Available The Internet has no doubt added a great deal to the quality of human life today. It has knitted the world together as a global village. Many difficulties which hampered international and even national commercial transactions in the past have now been consigned to the dust-bin of history. The emergence of electronic commerce is as a result of the creation of the internet, through which commercial transactions are conducted between parties from different parts of the world and who may never see themselves in their lifetimes. However, the emergence of electronic commerce has also brought with it a number of legal and socio-economic problems, especially in the developing nations such as Nigeria – problems which pose significance challenges to the legal regime of electronic commerce in those countries. This paper examines these legal issues within the context of the current legal and regulatory framework for electronic commerce in Nigeria.

Assessing the hydrological impacts of agricultural changes upstream of the Tunisian World Heritage sea-connected Ichkeul Lake

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

J. Aouissi

2015-03-01

Full Text Available The impact of changes in agricultural land use and practices as a controlling driver of hydrologic response and as a source of diffuse pollution, are studied in the Joumine River basin, discharging into the Ichkeul Lake, northern Tunisia, a UNESCO World Heritage site since 1979. The lake is characterized by a very specific hydrological functioning based on a seasonal alternation of water levels and salinity through its link to the Mediterranean Sea. Three Landsat images, in situ surveys and SWAT modelling were used to simulate and assess streamflows and nitrate loads under retrospective land uses.

World energy outlook 2007 -- China and India insights

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2007-11-07

World leaders have pledged to act to change the energy future. Some new policies are in place. But the trends in energy demand, imports, coal use and greenhouse gas emissions to 2030 in this year's World Energy Outlook are even worse than projected in WEO 2006. China and India are the emerging giants of the world economy. Their unprecedented pace of economic development will require ever more energy, but it will transform living standards for billions. There can be no question of asking them selectively to curb growth so as to solve problems which are global. So how is the transition to be achieved to a more secure, lower-carbon energy system? WEO 2007 provides the answers. With extensive statistics, projections in three scenarios, analysis and advice, it shows China, India and the rest of the world why we need to co-operate to change the energy future and how to do it.

World energy outlook 2007 -- China and India insights

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2007-11-07

World leaders have pledged to act to change the energy future. Some new policies are in place. But the trends in energy demand, imports, coal use and greenhouse gas emissions to 2030 in this year's World Energy Outlook are even worse than projected in WEO 2006. China and India are the emerging giants of the world economy. Their unprecedented pace of economic development will require ever more energy, but it will transform living standards for billions. There can be no question of asking them selectively to curb growth so as to solve problems which are global. So how is the transition to be achieved to a more secure, lower-carbon energy system? WEO 2007 provides the answers. With extensive statistics, projections in three scenarios, analysis and advice, it shows China, India and the rest of the world why we need to co-operate to change the energy future and how to do it.

Real world evidence (RWE - Are we (RWE ready?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Viraj Ramesh Suvarna

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Real world evidence is important as it complements data from randomised controlled trials (RCTs. Both have limitations in design, interpretation, and extrapolatability. It is imperative one designs real world studies in the right way, else it can be misleading. An RCT is always considered higher in the evidence ladder and when there is discordance between a real world study and an RCT, it is the latter which is always considered pristine because of the way it is conducted, e.g., randomization, prospective, double-blind, etc. A real world study can also be done prospectively, and propensity score matching can be used to construct comparable cohorts but may not be able to account for certain biases or confounding factors the way an RCT can do. Nevertheless, comparative effectiveness research in the real world is being resorted to, especially for efficiency studies or pharmacoeconomic analyses, and with the advent of machine learning, the electronic healthcare database mining can result in algorithms that help doctors identify clinical characteristics that correlate with optimal response of a patient to a drug/regimen, thus helping him/her select the right patient for the right drug.

Amphibious Worlds:Environments, Infrastructures, Ontologies

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

CASPER BRUUN JENSEN

2017-05-01

Full Text Available Presently, we are witness to a global intensification of water-related disasters related to flooding, sinking erosion, and drought, reflecting changes in global water circulation, rising sea levels and changing weather patterns. Indeed, water is often the medium through which the message of climate change is delivered. Conventionally, water-related engineering projects have managed amphibious spaces through terrestrial approaches premised on removing or controlling water, for example by land reclamation and drainage. They can be contrasted with amphibious approaches that take water flows as a given and organize life around it––as exemplified by living in floating villages or houses on stilts, using water as a primary mode of transportation, or growing crops in water. Yet, the amphibious is gaining new life, as water seems to be increasingly flowing back into land, everywhere giving rise to emergencies that call for creative response. Thus, urban planners, engineers, and architects devise new infrastructures and models adaptive to environments that are becoming amphibious once again, or for the first time, and people living in watery environments everywhere find ways of adapting to increasingly amphibious circumstances. Doing so, they are contributing to the ongoing ontological transformation of amphibious worlds. This introduction to the thematic collection on “Amphibious Worlds: Environments, Infrastructures, Ontologies,” outlines some of the key issues facing STS and anthropological studies of such worlds, and introduces the papers that follow.

Book Review: Diana Preston, A Higher Form of Killing: Six Weeks in World War I That Forever Changed the Nature of Warfare, New York: Bloomsbury Press, 2015

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zachary Wise

2017-05-01

Full Text Available A Higher Form of Killing: Six Weeks in World War I That Forever Changed the Nature of Warfare is an awe-inspiring account of the role technology played in one of the largest conflicts of the twentieth century thus reflecting on both political and social history of World War I. Diana Preston demonstrates the ethical impact of warfare while providing a concise analysis of the three most influential technological advances that revolutionized World War I: the development of chlorine gas, the Unterseeboots or U-boats, and the Zeppelin.

Changes in mitochondrial electron transport chain activity during insect metamorphosis.

Science.gov (United States)

Chamberlin, M E

2007-02-01

The midgut of the tobacco hornworm (Manduca sexta) is a highly aerobic tissue that is destroyed by programmed cell death during larval-pupal metamorphosis. The death of the epithelium begins after commitment to pupation, and the oxygen consumption of isolated midgut mitochondria decreases soon after commitment. To assess the role of the electron transport chain in this decline in mitochondrial function, the maximal activities of complexes I-IV of the respiratory chain were measured in isolated midgut mitochondria. Whereas there were no developmental changes in the activity of complex I or III, activities of complexes II and IV [cytochrome c oxidase (COX)] were higher in mitochondria from precommitment than postcommitment larvae. This finding is consistent with a higher rate of succinate oxidation in mitochondria isolated from precommitment larvae and reveals that the metamorphic decline in mitochondrial respiration is due to the targeted destruction or inactivation of specific sites within the mitochondria, rather than the indiscriminate destruction of the organelles. The COX turnover number (e- x s(-1) x cytochrome aa3(-1)) was greater for the enzyme from precommitment than postcommitment larvae, indicating a change in the enzyme structure and/or its lipid environment during the early stages of metamorphosis. The turnover number of COX in the intact mitochondria (in organello COX) was also lower in postcommitment larvae. In addition to changes in the protein or membrane phospholipids, the metamorphic decline in this rate constant may be a result of the observed loss of endogenous cytochrome c.

Climate change and the long-term viability of the World's busiest heavy haul ice road

Science.gov (United States)

Mullan, Donal; Swindles, Graeme; Patterson, Tim; Galloway, Jennifer; Macumber, Andrew; Falck, Hendrik; Crossley, Laura; Chen, Jie; Pisaric, Michael

2017-08-01

Climate models project that the northern high latitudes will warm at a rate in excess of the global mean. This will pose severe problems for Arctic and sub-Arctic infrastructure dependent on maintaining low temperatures for structural integrity. This is the case for the economically important Tibbitt to Contwoyto Winter Road (TCWR)—the world's busiest heavy haul ice road, spanning 400 km across mostly frozen lakes within the Northwest Territories of Canada. In this study, future climate scenarios are developed for the region using statistical downscaling methods. In addition, changes in lake ice thickness are projected based on historical relationships between measured ice thickness and air temperatures. These projections are used to infer the theoretical operational dates of the TCWR based on weight limits for trucks on the ice. Results across three climate models driven by four RCPs reveal a considerable warming trend over the coming decades. Projected changes in ice thickness reveal a trend towards thinner lake ice and a reduced time window when lake ice is at sufficient thickness to support trucks on the ice road, driven by increasing future temperatures. Given the uncertainties inherent in climate modelling and the resultant projections, caution should be exercised in interpreting the magnitude of these scenarios. More certain is the direction of change, with a clear trend towards winter warming that will reduce the operation time window of the TCWR. This illustrates the need for planners and policymakers to consider future changes in climate when planning annual haulage along the TCWR.

Surface characterization by energy distribution measurements of secondary electrons and of ion-induced electrons

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bauer, H.E.; Seiler, H.

1988-01-01

Instruments for surface microanalysis (e.g. scanning electron or ion microprobes, emission electron or ion microscopes) use the current of emitted secondary electrons or of emitted ion-induced electrons for imaging of the analysed surface. These currents, integrating over all energies of the emitted low energy electrons, are however, not well suited to surface analytical purposes. On the contrary, the energy distribution of these electrons is extremely surface-sensitive with respect to shape, size, width, most probable energy, and cut-off energy. The energy distribution measurements were performed with a cylindrical mirror analyser and converted into N(E), if necessary. Presented are energy spectra of electrons released by electrons and argon ions of some contaminated and sputter cleaned metals, the change of the secondary electron energy distribution from oxidized aluminium to clean aluminium, and the change of the cut-off energy due to work function change of oxidized aluminium, and of a silver layer on a platinum sample. The energy distribution of the secondary electrons often shows detailed structures, probably due to low-energy Auger electrons, and is broader than the energy distribution of ion-induced electrons of the same object point. (author)

Importance of pollinators in changing landscapes for world crops

OpenAIRE

Klein, Alexandra-Maria; Vaissière, Bernard E; Cane, James H; Steffan-Dewenter, Ingolf; Cunningham, Saul A; Kremen, Claire; Tscharntke, Teja

2006-01-01

The extent of our reliance on animal pollination for world crop production for human food has not previously been evaluated and the previous estimates for countries or continents have seldom used primary data. In this review, we expand the previous estimates using novel primary data from 200 countries and found that fruit, vegetable or seed production from 87 of the leading global food crops is dependent upon animal pollination, while 28 crops do not rely upon animal pollination. However, glo...

Fresh perspectives for a better world

CERN Multimedia

Danielle Amy Venton

While it’s no surprise that technology has the ability to change the world, it sometimes changes it in surprising ways. The Citizen Cyberscience Centre project is promoting change for humanitarian causes through distributed volunteer initiatives, such as volunteer computing and ‘volunteer thinking’. The inaugural lecture of a planned series was held at CERN in late October. The United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR), the University of Geneva (UNIGE), and CERN have recently set up a new partnership and launched a lecture series, which will invite experts in the humanities and technologies to share fresh perspectives on ways to work for a better world. The inaugural lecture at CERN was given by two speakers, Mo Ibrahim and Alpheus Bingham, each of them behind initiatives using technology to address difficult problems. Mo Ibrahim founded Celtel International, one of Africa’s most successful mobile network operators. Ibrahim’s company has ...

What Change Can The New Developments In Energy Sector Bring Into the World`s Energypolitical and Geopolitical Order?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Onur TUTULMAZ

2014-12-01

Full Text Available The recent developments bring US to a leading natural gas and oil producer position. The attempts in last 20 years to bring new horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing technologies together have developed a success in shale gas and oil production in US; the production volumes has reached to a position to redefine the market. Last estimations are bringing more information about the shale capacities of the major basins of the world. However, the estimates are based on a wide range of assumptions and consequently their results vary in a large scale. In any case, these developments have crucial economic, political and geopolitical consequences on the energy market, petroleum producer and consumer countries and regions. Despite the wide range of ambiguity of the estimated size of the resources, the estimations show US and North America has one of the biggest potential, already turning technology into the giant production numbers. Some of the estimations allege so big numbers can even mean to a new world order. The asymmetric nature of the potential, can also be said, increases some of the expected impacts too. In this study, basically, we want to supply an initial solid and economical evaluation to this ambiguity. We are trying to shape a frame for the new energy potential and to put it in a place in the current practice of the world. Secondly, in this context, we are underlying here some of the possible economic and geopolitical consequences each of which can constitute a subject of deeper study.

Electron attachment cross sections obtained from electron attachment spectroscopy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Popp, P.; Baumbach, J.I.; Leonhardt, J.W.; Mothes, S.

1988-01-01

Electron capture detectors have a high sensitivity for substances with high thermal electron attachment cross sections. The electron attachment spectroscopy makes it possible to change the mean electron energy in such a way that the maximum for dissociative electron attachment is reached. Thus, best operation modes of the detection system as well as significant dependencies of electron attachment coefficients are available. Cross sections for electron attachment as a function of the electron energy are obtained with the knowledge of electron energy distribution functions from Boltzmann equation analysis by a special computer code. A disadvantage of this electron attachment spectroscopy is the superposition of space charge effects due to the decrease of the electron drift velocity with increasing mean electron energy. These influences are discussed. (author)

Agriculture and natural resources in a changing world - the role of irrigation

Science.gov (United States)

Sauer, T.; Havlík, P.; Schneider, U. A.; Kindermann, G.; Obersteiner, M.

2009-04-01

Fertile land and fresh water constitute two of the most fundamental resources for food production. These resources are affected by environmental, political, economic, and technical developments. Regional impacts may transmit to the world through increased trade. With a global forest and agricultural sector model, we quantify the impacts of increased demand for food due to population growth and economic development on potential land and water use. In particular, we investigate producer adaptation regarding crop and irrigation choice, agricultural market adjustments, and changes in the values of land and water. Against the background of resource sustainability and food security topics, this study integrates the spatial and operational heterogeneity of irrigation management into a global land use model. It represents a first large scale assessment of agricultural water use under explicit consideration of alternative irrigation options in their particular biophysical, economic, and technical context, accounting for international trade, motivation-based farming, and quantified aggregated impacts on land scarcity, water scarcity, and food supply. The inclusion of technical and economic aspects of irrigation choice into an integrated land use modeling framework provides new insights into the interdisciplinary trade-offs between determinants of global land use change. Agricultural responses to population and economic growth include considerable increases in irrigated area and agricultural water use, but reductions in the average water intensity. Different irrigation systems are preferred under different exogenous biophysical and socioeconomic conditions. Negligence of these adaptations would bias the burden of development on land and water scarcity. Without technical progress in agriculture, predicted population and income levels for 2030 would require substantial price adjustments for land, water, and food to equilibrate supply and demand.

Backward and forward electron emission induced by helium projectiles incident on thin carbon foils: Influence of charge changing processes

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pauly, N. [Universite Libre de Bruxelles, Service de Metrologie Nucleaire (CP 165/84), 50 av. FD Roosevelt, B-1050 Brussels (Belgium)]. E-mail: nipauly@ulb.ac.be; Dubus, A. [Universite Libre de Bruxelles, Service de Metrologie Nucleaire (CP 165/84), 50 av. FD Roosevelt, B-1050 Brussels (Belgium); Roesler, M. [Karl-Pokern-Str. 12, D-12587 Berlin (Germany)

2007-03-15

The backward and forward electron emission yields {gamma} {sub B} and {gamma} {sub F} have been calculated by Monte Carlo simulations for helium (He{sup ++}, He{sup +} or He{sup 0}) ions incident on thin amorphous carbon foils with energies around the electronic stopping power maximum (0.2-2 MeV). Besides the direct excitation of target electrons by the incident projectile, we have taken into account the different charge changing processes (He{sup ++} {r_reversible} He{sup +} {r_reversible} He{sup 0}) undergone by the helium ion in the target. We discuss in particular the connection between the electron emission yield {gamma} and the electronic stopping power (dE/dx){sub e}. We compare our results with previously published experimental results.

EDITORIAL: World Year of Physics 2005 Focus on Photoemission and Electronic Structure

Science.gov (United States)

2005-04-01

Around the year 1500, Leonardo da Vinci designed the first mechanical calculator connecting a number of toothed wheels for simple adding operations. Since then, mechanical systems have become a major part of the later industrial revolutions with an abundance of machines in our everyday lives. Only with the advent of semiconductor electronics, however, did microstructuring techniques become available to realize mechanical systems with dimensions below 100 microns. With most recent structure sizes now reaching the limit of a few nanometres, suspended nanostructures that couple mechanical with electronic motion have been constructed. Moreover, novel lithographic techniques have enabled the investigation of transport across hybrid structures such as. suspended carbon nanotubes or flexible molecular bridges connected to mesoscopic leads. In this invited focus issue of New Journal of Physics some of the leading experts in the field of nano-electromechanical systems (NEMS) describe the latest status and trends, from both an experimental and a theoretical perspective. A multitude of applications for NEMS are now within reach, ranging from high-frequency filters and switches in signal processing circuits, to ultra-sensitive sensors. In particular the development of mass sensors and scanning probe microscopy will be spurred by nano-mechanical systems. Considering that mechanical resonance frequencies of 1 GHz and more have already been achieved, these devices will be extremely sensitive and will offer high data acquisition rates. On a fundamental level NEMS enable the investigation of electron-phonon coupling in the absolute limit via, for example, single electrons interacting with single (quantized) phonons, the study of single electrons being shuttled via mechanical motion, and the manipulation of single molecules with nano-mechanical tweezers. The future for NEMS research looks certain to be exciting - we can expect it to help us build detectors of virtually any kind

Ramses 2010 - World crisis and global governance

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Moreau Defarges, Ph.; Montbrial, Th. de

2009-01-01

2009: the world has changed and is learning to live with the crisis. Not only it is expected to last long but also it impacts the overall social life and in particular the political systems (through governments, elections..). The Ramses 2010 book presents the world through two main axes, crisis and governance, and analyses its geopolitical situation in 8 parts dealing with: world economy, energy and climate, USA, Europe, Middle-East/Maghreb, Asia, Africa, and Latin America. It comprises 53 entries by country and/or topic with maps and key data (150 countries). (J.S.)

Transition to electronic publishing

Science.gov (United States)

Bowning, Sam

Previous communications have described some of the many changes that will occur in the next few months as AGU makes the transition to fully electronic publishing. With the advent of the new AGU electronic publishing system, manuscripts will be submitted, edited, reviewed, and published in electronic formats. This piece discusses how the electronic journals will differ from the print journals. Electronic publishing will require some adjustments to the ways we currently think about journals from our perspective of standard print versions. Visiting the Web site of AGU's Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems (G-Cubed) is a great way to get familiar with the look and feel of electronic publishing. However, protocols, especially for citations of articles, are still evolving. Some of the biggest changes for users of AGU publications may be the lack of page numbers, the use of a unique identifier (DOI),and changes in citation style.

An investigation of using a phase-change material to improve the heat transfer in a small electronic module for an airborne radar application

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Snyder, K.W.

1990-10-01

Finding new and improved means of cooling small electronic packages are of great importance to today's electronic packaging engineer. Thermal absorption through the use of a material which changes phase is an attractive alternative. Taking advantage of the heat capacity of a material's latent heat of fusion is shown to absorb heat away from the electronics, thus decreasing the overall temperature rise of the system. The energy equation is formulated in terms of enthalpy and discretized using a finite-difference method. A FORTRAN program to solve the discretized equations is presented which can be used to analyze heat conduction in a rectangular region undergoing an isothermal phase change. An analysis of heat transfer through a miniature radar electronic module cooled by a phase-change reservoir is presented, illustrating the method's advantages over conventional heat sinks. 41 refs., 11 figs., 2 tabs.

A quantum molecular similarity analysis of changes in molecular electron density caused by basis set flotation and electric field application

Science.gov (United States)

Simon, Sílvia; Duran, Miquel

1997-08-01

Quantum molecular similarity (QMS) techniques are used to assess the response of the electron density of various small molecules to application of a static, uniform electric field. Likewise, QMS is used to analyze the changes in electron density generated by the process of floating a basis set. The results obtained show an interrelation between the floating process, the optimum geometry, and the presence of an external field. Cases involving the Le Chatelier principle are discussed, and an insight on the changes of bond critical point properties, self-similarity values and density differences is performed.

Industrialization in Globalizing World and The Changing Role Of The State

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Berna Balcı İzgi

2008-12-01

Full Text Available World economies are an integral part of a whole system that are inseperable . It is not wise to think the future of these economies seperately. If we assume that developed countries are going in the same trajectories, the outcomes for developing countries should be considered in economic policies. The scope of this study is to argue the industrialization concept with the globalization and to define the limits of government in developed and developing countries. In globalizing world the limits of the governments are also discussed. However states continue their position in governance and economy. In order to achieve a sustained and powerfull industrialization countries need a weel arranged industrial policiy and state intervention. However the important thing is to define the limits and responsibilities of the government.

Soft Approaches for a Changing World

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rasmussen, Lauge Baungaard; Sørensen, Lene; Vidal, Rene Victor Valqui

2001-01-01

The education of engineers needs to focus on abilities to facilitate change processes, involving participants actively and be able to view the problem in relation to a dynamic context of different environments. The essence of the future demands of engineers' social and technical qualification is ...

[Trends of electronic publishing in medicine and life sciences].

Science.gov (United States)

Strelski-Waisman, Neta; Waisman, Dan

2005-09-01

Scientific publication in the electronic media is gaining popularity in academic libraries, research institutions and commercial organizations. The electronic journal may shorten the processes of writing and publication, decrease publication and distribution costs, and enable access from any location in the world. Electronic publications have unique advantages: it is possible to search them, to create hyperlinks to references and footnotes, as well as to information on the web and to include graphics and photographs at a very low cost. Audio, video and tri-dimensional images may also be included. Electronic publishing may also speed up review and publication processes and enable the writer to receive immediate feedback through the web. However, in spite of the advantages, there are certain points that must be considered: accessibility to previously published material is not guaranteed as databases are not always stable and coverage may change without notice. In addition, the price that commercial publishers charge for their services may be very high or be subject to the purchase of a packaged deal that may include unwanted databases. Many issues of copyright and the use of published material are not yet finalized. In this review we discuss the advantages and disadvantages of the electronic scientific publication, the feasibility of keeping appropriate quality and peer-review process, the stability and accessibility of databases managed by the publishers and the acceptance of the electronic format by scientists and clinicians.

Many signs of expansion right across the world

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hodgson, S.

1992-01-01

A world review of the natural gas industry in 1991 is presented, starting with the UK and the battles between British Gas and Ofgas, the introduction of new tariffs mainly for power generation, and the electronic smart prepayment card. Improvement in gas distribution systems in Western Europe, and the situation in Eastern Europe and Africa are discussed. (UK)

Globalization and world trade

Science.gov (United States)

Peter J. Ince; Joseph Buongiorno

2007-01-01

This chapter discusses economic globalization and world trade in relation to forest sector modeling for the US/North American region. It discusses drivers of economic globalization and related structural changes in US forest product markets, including currency exchange rates and differences in manufacturing costs that have contributed to the displacement of global...

Synchronization of world economic activity

Science.gov (United States)

Groth, Andreas; Ghil, Michael

2017-12-01

Common dynamical properties of business cycle fluctuations are studied in a sample of more than 100 countries that represent economic regions from all around the world. We apply the methodology of multivariate singular spectrum analysis (M-SSA) to identify oscillatory modes and to detect whether these modes are shared by clusters of phase- and frequency-locked oscillators. An extension of the M-SSA approach is introduced to help analyze structural changes in the cluster configuration of synchronization. With this novel technique, we are able to identify a common mode of business cycle activity across our sample, and thus point to the existence of a world business cycle. Superimposed on this mode, we further identify several major events that have markedly influenced the landscape of world economic activity in the postwar era.

Constructal design of phase change material enclosures used for cooling electronic devices

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kalbasi, Rasool; Salimpour, Mohammad Reza

2015-01-01

Recent developments in cooling methods for portable electronic devices have heightened the need for using the large latent heat capacity of phase change materials (PCM). The aim of the present study is to evaluate the thermal characteristics of a PCM-based heat sink with high conductive materials. The solution is acquired as a procession of optimization stages which starts with the elemental area and proceeds toward the first assembly. Every optimization stage is the result of maximizing the safe operation time without allowing the electronics to reach the critical temperature. Primarily, the degrees of freedom and constrains were defined and then by changing the geometrical parameters, the target function which is the maximization of operation time, was optimized. Results show that the melting process in rectangular enclosures with vertical fins attached to the heated bottom surface can be affected by the contact surface between the fin and PCM and the convection of the melted PCM. For a rectangular enclosure with a constant area, it is better to use wider enclosure than the square and thin one. Also results indicate that the ratio of the vertical fin thickness to the horizontal one does not have a considerable effect on performance. By increasing the number of enclosures, the contact surface is raised, but the performance is not necessarily improved. - Highlights: • Thermal characteristics of a finned PCM-based heat sink are studied. • Constructal theory was used to optimize the PCM enclosures. • By increasing the number of enclosures, the performance is not necessarily improved

The Peace Paradigm [And] Housing and World Order [And] Hunger and World Order [And] Hunger and World Order: Shaping a Moral Vision. The Whole Earth Papers, Vol. 1, No. 1-4, Fall, 1977.

Science.gov (United States)

Baines, James; And Others

This document is comprised of four papers which explore issues related to world order. The volume is intended to increase understanding of the linkages between local and global issues, and to examine them as interrelated issues in an interdependent world. The first paper, "The Peace Paradigm," explores recent changes in social and political…

The height of electron content changes in the ionosphere from ATS6 beacon data

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Davies, K.; Heron, M.L.

1984-01-01

A technique is described which uses relative changes in Faraday rotation and modulation phase of satellite radio signals to determine the median height of the enhancement (or depletion) in the electron density of the ionosphere. During the post sunrise formation of the F layer the incremental layers have a median height of around 210 km (+- 40) and in the afternoon the decremental median is above the peak at 340 km (+- 40) on a winter day. A winter night-time enhancement just after midnight appears as a thick layer extending upwards from the peak, with a median height at about 730 km. The method applies to large scale irregularities but not to small, dense, scintillation-causing irregularities for which Faraday and modulation phases do not represent the total electron content. (author)

The sporulation of the green alga Ulva prolifera is controlled by changes in photosynthetic electron transport chain.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Hui; Lin, Apeng; Gu, Wenhui; Huan, Li; Gao, Shan; Wang, Guangce

2016-04-22

Sporulation and spore release are essential phases of the life cycle in algae and land plants. Ulva prolifera, which is an ideal organism for studying sporulation and spore release, was used as the experimental material in the present study. The determination of photosynthetic parameters, combined with microscopic observation, treatment with photosynthetic inhibitors, limitation of carbon acquisition, and protein mass spectrometry, was employed in this experiment. Cycle electron transport (CEF) was found enhanced at the onset of sporangia formation. The inhibition effect of dibromothymoquinone (DBMIB) towards sporulation was always strong during the sporulation process whereas the inhibition effect of 3-(3',4'-dichlorophenyl)-1,1-dimethylurea (DCMU) was continuously declined accompanied with the progress of sporulation. The changes of photosynthesis resulted from the limitation of CO2 acquisition could stimulate sporulation onset. Quantitative protein analysis showed that enzymes involved in carbon fixation, including RUBISCO and pyruvate orthophosphate dikinase, declined during sporogenesis, while proteins involved in sporulation, including tubulin and centrin, increased. These results suggest that enhanced cyclic electron flow (CEF) and oxidation of the plastoquinone pool are essential for sporangia formation onset, and changes in photosynthetic electron transport chain have significant impacts on sporulation of the green algae.

World environmental policy. Conceptual approaches of German political science in response to the challenges of Global Change; Weltumweltpolitik - Global Change als Herausforderung fuer die deutsche Politikwissenschaft

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Biermann, F. [Potsdam-Institut fuer Klimafolgenforschung (PIK), Potsdam (Germany); Dingwerth, K. [Freie Univ. Berlin (Germany). Fachbereich Politik- und Sozialwissenschaften

2001-12-01

This paper describes, first, the international community of social scientists working on global change, and elaborates on possible contributions to this community by German political scientists. Second, the paper examines three new conceptual approaches to analysing global change, namely the Syndromes of Global Change approach, Earth System Analysis, and Sustainability Science. The paper then elaborates on a number of ways in which German political science could respond to the academic and political challenges posed by global change. It concludes by emphasizing the need for a new approach, focusing on 'world environmental policy analysis' that would bridge traditional (environmental) policy analysis, international relations research, and comparative politics. (orig.) [German] Der Aufsatz beschreibt die Wissenschaftslandschaft der internationalen sozialwissenschaftlichen Global-Change-Forschung mit besonderem Augenmerk auf moegliche Beitraege der deutschen Politologie. Mit den 'Syndromen des Globalen Wandels', der 'Erdsystemanalyse' und der 'Nachhaltigkeitswissenschaft' werden drei neuere konzeptionelle Innovationen vorgestellt, mit denen der Herausforderung des Globalen Wandels begegnet werden soll. Anschliessend werden Wege skizziert, wie die Politikwissenschaft auf die neuen gesellschaftlichen und wissenschaftlichen Probleme des Globalen Wandels reagieren koennte. Eine Schlussfolgerung ist ein Plaedoyer fuer die Entwicklung einer eigenstaendigen Weltumweltpolitik-Analyse an der Schnittstelle von traditioneller Policy-Analyse, Internationalen Beziehungen/Aussenpolitik sowie Komparatistik. (orig./CB)

World in transition 3 towards sustainable energy systems

CERN Document Server

2014-01-01

'The publication of World in Transition: Towards Sustainable Energy Systems is timely indeed. The World Summit on Sustainable Development gave great prominence to this challenge, but failed to agree on a quantitative, time-bound target for the introduction of renewable energy sources. The German Advisory Council on Global Change (WBGU) has now produced a report with a global focus, which is essential in view of the global impacts of climate change. The report provides a convincing long-term analysis, which is also essential. Global energy policies have to take a long-term perspective, over the

Structural Change and Income Inequality – Agricultural Development and Inter-sectoral Dualism in the Developing World, 1960-2010

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Martin P. Andersson

2016-06-01

Full Text Available Structural change consists of the long-term changes in the sectoral composition of output and employment. We introduce a structural change perspective to the study of income inequality in 27 countries of the developing world for the period 1960-2010. The service sector has become the main employer, but the agricultural sector is central to the income distribution because poverty is mostly rural, and the labor surplus is high. We decompose the sectoral composition of aggregate labor productivity at the country level, divide the countries into agrarian, dual (beginner, intermediate and advanced, and mature economies and use the inter-sectoral productivity gap to test the effect of structural change on income inequality. We confirm increases in agricultural productivity everywhere and find that the inter-sectoral gap is positively associated with income inequality. The effect is negligible in agrarian and advanced economies but powerful in dual beginner economies: an increase of 1% in the inter-sectoral gap increases income inequality by 0.5%. The effect peters out in dual intermediate economies and disappears completely in dual advanced economies. Finally, redistribution has been the key to compensating the losers in the income changes, particularly for those entering the non-agricultural economy.

Importance of pollinators in changing landscapes for world crops.

Science.gov (United States)

Klein, Alexandra-Maria; Vaissière, Bernard E; Cane, James H; Steffan-Dewenter, Ingolf; Cunningham, Saul A; Kremen, Claire; Tscharntke, Teja

2007-02-07

The extent of our reliance on animal pollination for world crop production for human food has not previously been evaluated and the previous estimates for countries or continents have seldom used primary data. In this review, we expand the previous estimates using novel primary data from 200 countries and found that fruit, vegetable or seed production from 87 of the leading global food crops is dependent upon animal pollination, while 28 crops do not rely upon animal pollination. However, global production volumes give a contrasting perspective, since 60% of global production comes from crops that do not depend on animal pollination, 35% from crops that depend on pollinators, and 5% are unevaluated. Using all crops traded on the world market and setting aside crops that are solely passively self-pollinated, wind-pollinated or parthenocarpic, we then evaluated the level of dependence on animal-mediated pollination for crops that are directly consumed by humans. We found that pollinators are essential for 13 crops, production is highly pollinator dependent for 30, moderately for 27, slightly for 21, unimportant for 7, and is of unknown significance for the remaining 9. We further evaluated whether local and landscape-wide management for natural pollination services could help to sustain crop diversity and production. Case studies for nine crops on four continents revealed that agricultural intensification jeopardizes wild bee communities and their stabilizing effect on pollination services at the landscape scale.

Relativity and the dimensionality of the world

CERN Document Server

2007-01-01

All physicists would agree that one of the most fundamental problems of the 21st century physics is the dimensionality of the world. In the four-dimensional world of Minkowski (or Minkowski spacetime) the most challenging problem is the nature of the temporal dimension. In Minkowski spacetime it is merely one of the four dimensions, which means that it is entirely given like the other three spacial dimensions. If the temporal dimension were not given in its entirety and only one constantly changing moment of it existed, Minkowski spacetime would be reduced to the ordinary three-dimensional space. But if the physical world, represented by Minkowski spacetime, is indeed four-dimensional with time being the fourth dimension, then such a world is drastically different from its image based on our perceptions. Minkowski four-dimensional world is a block Universe, a frozen world in which nothing happens since all moments of time are given ‘at once', which means that physical bodies are four-dimensional worldtubes ...