Retirement Planning the Easy Way.

Science.gov (United States)

Fields, Cheryl D.

1996-01-01

Options available to college faculty for planning their retirement benefits are described, including defined benefit plans, defined contribution plans, and methods for customizing a pension plan. Data for 1993 on American households owning interest-earning assets (passbook savings, money market deposit accounts, certificates of deposit, checking…

26 CFR 1.381(c)(11)-1 - Contributions to pension plan, employees' annuity plans, and stock bonus and profit-sharing plans.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... 26 Internal Revenue 4 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Contributions to pension plan, employees... TAXES Insolvency Reorganizations § 1.381(c)(11)-1 Contributions to pension plan, employees' annuity... or transferor corporation in respect of any pension, annuity, stock bonus, or profit-sharing plan. (b...

75 FR 70625 - Annual Funding Notice for Defined Benefit Plans

Science.gov (United States)

2010-11-18

... model funding notices. Much of the guidance in FAB 2009-01 has been incorporated into the proposed... Annual Funding Notice for Defined Benefit Plans AGENCY: Employee Benefits Security Administration, Labor... implement the annual funding notice requirement in the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974...

29 CFR 2520.101-4 - Annual funding notice for multiemployer defined benefit pension plans.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... pension plans. 2520.101-4 Section 2520.101-4 Labor Regulations Relating to Labor (Continued) EMPLOYEE... pension plans. (a) In general. (1) Except as provided in paragraph (a)(2) of this section, pursuant to section 101(f) of the Act, the administrator of a defined benefit, multiemployer pension plan shall...

The Promise of Defined-Ambition Plans : Lessons for the United States

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bovenberg, A.L.; Mehlkopf, R.J.; Nijman, T.E.

This paper explores proposals for defined-ambition plans in Dutch occupational pensions. Firms no longer act as external risk sponsors but continue to provide a distributional platform for pensions, thereby addressing behavioral and agency issues as well as imperfections of insurance and financial

The promise of defined-ambition plans : Lessons for the United States

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bovenberg, A.L.; Mehlkopf, R.J.; Nijman, T.E.; Mitchell, O.S.; Shea, R.

2016-01-01

This paper explores proposals for defined-ambition plans in Dutch occupational pensions. Firms no longer act as external risk sponsors but continue to provide a distributional platform for pensions, thereby addressing behavioral and agency issues as well as imperfections of insurance and financial

A Discussion of a Risk-Sharing Pension Plan

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Catherine Donnelly

2017-02-01

Full Text Available I show that risk-sharing pension plans can reduce some of the shortcomings of defined benefit and defined contributions plans. The risk-sharing pension plan presented aims to improve the stability of benefits paid to generations of members, while allowing them to enjoy the expected advantages of a risky investment strategy. The plan does this by adjusting the investment strategy and benefits in response to a changing funding level, motivated by the with-profits contract proposed by Goecke (2013. He suggests a mean-reverting log reserve (or funding ratio, where mean reversion occurs through adjustments to the investment strategy and declared bonuses. To measure the robustness of the plan to human factors, I introduce a measurement of disappointment, where disappointment is high when there are many consecutive years over which benefit payments are declining. Another measure introduced is devastation, where devastation occurs when benefit payments are zero. The motivation is that members of a pension plan who are easily disappointed or likely to get no benefit, are more likely to exit the plan. I find that the risk-sharing plan offers more disappointment than a defined contribution plan, but it eliminates the devastation possible in a plan that tries to accumulate contributions at a steadily increasing rate. The proposed risk-sharing plan can give a narrower range of benefits than in a defined contribution plan. Thus it can offer a stable benefit to members without the risk of running out of money.

75 FR 2068 - Definition of “Plan Assets”-Participant Contributions

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-14

... permitted to pre-fund contributions. The commenter indicated that an employer may wish to deposit the... would allow most employers with small plans to take advantage of the safe harbor and, thereby, benefit... should be balanced against any additional income and security the plan and plan participants would...

Teaching the Interrelationships among Costs, Expense, and Liability of a Defined Benefit Pension Plan

Science.gov (United States)

Wilson, Arlette C.; Godwin, Norman H.

2008-01-01

The Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) recently issued Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 158 "Employers' Accounting for Defined Benefit Pension and Other Postretirement Plans" (SFAS #158). Their intent is to comprehensively reconsider the accounting for postretirement benefit plans in phases. The first phase was to provide…

34 CFR 636.5 - What are the matching contribution and planning consortium requirements?

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 34 Education 3 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false What are the matching contribution and planning... PROGRAM General § 636.5 What are the matching contribution and planning consortium requirements? (a) The... agreed to by the members of a planning consortium. (Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1136b, 1136e) ...

What contributes to action plan enactment? Examining characteristics of physical activity plans.

Science.gov (United States)

Fleig, Lena; Gardner, Benjamin; Keller, Jan; Lippke, Sonia; Pomp, Sarah; Wiedemann, Amelie U

2017-11-01

Individuals with chronic conditions can benefit from formulating action plans to engage in regular physical activity. However, the content and the successful translation of plans into action, so-called plan enactment, are rarely adequately evaluated. The aim of this study was to describe the content of user-specified plans and to examine whether participants were more likely to enact their plans if these plans were highly specific, viable, and instrumental. The study presents secondary analyses from a larger behavioural intervention in cardiac and orthopaedic rehabilitation. The content of 619 action plans from 229 participants was evaluated by two independent raters (i.e., qualitative analyses and ratings of specificity) and by participants themselves (i.e., instrumentality and viability). Plan enactment was also measured via self-reports. Multilevel analyses examined the relationship between these plan characteristics and subsequent plan enactment, and between plan enactment and aggregated physical activity. Participants preferred to plan leisure-time physical activities anchored around time-based cues. Specificity of occasion cues (i.e., when to act) and highly instrumental plans were positively associated with plan enactment. Interestingly, individuals who planned less specific behavioural responses (i.e., what to do) were more likely to enact their plans. Plan enactment was positively associated with aggregated behaviour. Interventions should not only emphasize the importance of planning, but also the benefits of formulating specific contextual cues. Planning of the behavioural response seems to require less precision. Allowing for some flexibility in executing the anticipated target behaviour seems to aid successful plan enactment. Statement of Contribution What is already known on this subject? Action planning interventions are efficacious in promoting health behaviour. Characteristics of plan content (i.e., specificity) matter for unconditional behaviour

Behavioral economics perspectives on public sector pension plans.

Science.gov (United States)

Beshears, John; Choi, James J; Laibson, David; Madrian, Brigitte C

2011-04-01

We describe the pension plan features of the states and the largest cities and counties in the U.S. Unlike in the private sector, defined benefit (DB) pensions are still the norm in the public sector. However, a few jurisdictions have shifted toward defined contribution (DC) plans as their primary savings plan, and fiscal pressures are likely to generate more movement in this direction. Holding fixed a public employee's work and salary history, we show that DB retirement income replacement ratios vary greatly across jurisdictions. This creates large variation in workers' need to save for retirement in other accounts. There is also substantial heterogeneity across jurisdictions in the savings generated in primary DC plans because of differences in the level of mandatory employer and employee contributions. One notable difference between public and private sector DC plans is that public sector primary DC plans are characterized by required employee or employer contributions (or both), whereas private sector plans largely feature voluntary employee contributions that are supplemented by an employer match. We conclude by applying lessons from savings behavior in private sector savings plans to the design of public sector plans.

The use of mixed-integer programming for inverse treatment planning with pre-defined field segments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bednarz, Greg; Michalski, Darek; Houser, Chris; Huq, M. Saiful; Xiao Ying; Rani, Pramila Anne; Galvin, James M.

2002-01-01

Complex intensity patterns generated by traditional beamlet-based inverse treatment plans are often very difficult to deliver. In the approach presented in this work the intensity maps are controlled by pre-defining field segments to be used for dose optimization. A set of simple rules was used to define a pool of allowable delivery segments and the mixed-integer programming (MIP) method was used to optimize segment weights. The optimization problem was formulated by combining real variables describing segment weights with a set of binary variables, used to enumerate voxels in targets and critical structures. The MIP method was compared to the previously used Cimmino projection algorithm. The field segmentation approach was compared to an inverse planning system with a traditional beamlet-based beam intensity optimization. In four complex cases of oropharyngeal cancer the segmental inverse planning produced treatment plans, which competed with traditional beamlet-based IMRT plans. The mixed-integer programming provided mechanism for imposition of dose-volume constraints and allowed for identification of the optimal solution for feasible problems. Additional advantages of the segmental technique presented here are: simplified dosimetry, quality assurance and treatment delivery. (author)

Mean-variance portfolio selection for defined-contribution pension funds with stochastic salary.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Chubing

2014-01-01

This paper focuses on a continuous-time dynamic mean-variance portfolio selection problem of defined-contribution pension funds with stochastic salary, whose risk comes from both financial market and nonfinancial market. By constructing a special Riccati equation as a continuous (actually a viscosity) solution to the HJB equation, we obtain an explicit closed form solution for the optimal investment portfolio as well as the efficient frontier.

Mean-Variance Portfolio Selection for Defined-Contribution Pension Funds with Stochastic Salary

OpenAIRE

Chubing Zhang

2014-01-01

This paper focuses on a continuous-time dynamic mean-variance portfolio selection problem of defined-contribution pension funds with stochastic salary, whose risk comes from both financial market and nonfinancial market. By constructing a special Riccati equation as a continuous (actually a viscosity) solution to the HJB equation, we obtain an explicit closed form solution for the optimal investment portfolio as well as the efficient frontier.

How Innovation Theory Can Contribute to the Military Operations Planning Process

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Heltberg, Anna Therese; Dahl, Kåre

The research study considers how the application of innovation theory might contribute to military staff work planning processes and bring new perspectives to operational models of analysis such as NATO’s Comprehensive Operations Planning Directive (COPD) and the Danish Field Manual III....

Mean-Variance Portfolio Selection for Defined-Contribution Pension Funds with Stochastic Salary

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chubing Zhang

2014-01-01

Full Text Available This paper focuses on a continuous-time dynamic mean-variance portfolio selection problem of defined-contribution pension funds with stochastic salary, whose risk comes from both financial market and nonfinancial market. By constructing a special Riccati equation as a continuous (actually a viscosity solution to the HJB equation, we obtain an explicit closed form solution for the optimal investment portfolio as well as the efficient frontier.

Mean-Variance Portfolio Selection for Defined-Contribution Pension Funds with Stochastic Salary

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Chubing

2014-01-01

This paper focuses on a continuous-time dynamic mean-variance portfolio selection problem of defined-contribution pension funds with stochastic salary, whose risk comes from both financial market and nonfinancial market. By constructing a special Riccati equation as a continuous (actually a viscosity) solution to the HJB equation, we obtain an explicit closed form solution for the optimal investment portfolio as well as the efficient frontier. PMID:24782667

Incorporating Employee Heterogeneity into Default Rules for Retirement Plan Selection

Science.gov (United States)

Goda, Gopi Shah; Manchester, Colleen Flaherty

2013-01-01

We study the effect of incorporating heterogeneity into default rules by examining the choice between retirement plans at a firm that transitioned from a defined benefit (DB) to a defined contribution (DC) plan. The default plan for existing employees varied discontinuously depending on their age. Employing regression discontinuity techniques,…

Contribution of past and future self-defining event networks to personal identity.

Science.gov (United States)

Demblon, Julie; D'Argembeau, Arnaud

2017-05-01

Personal identity is nourished by memories of significant past experiences and by the imagination of meaningful events that one anticipates to happen in the future. The organisation of such self-defining memories and prospective thoughts in the cognitive system has received little empirical attention, however. In the present study, our aims were to investigate to what extent self-defining memories and future projections are organised in networks of related events, and to determine the nature of the connections linking these events. Our results reveal the existence of self-defining event networks, composed of both memories and future events of similar centrality for identity and characterised by similar identity motives. These self-defining networks expressed a strong internal coherence and frequently organised events in meaningful themes and sequences (i.e., event clusters). Finally, we found that the satisfaction of identity motives in represented events and the presence of clustering across events both contributed to increase in the perceived centrality of events for the sense of identity. Overall, these findings suggest that personal identity is not only nourished by representations of significant past and future events, but also depends on the formation of coherent networks of related events that provide an overarching meaning to specific life experiences.

A model to compare a defined benefit pension fund with a defined contribution provident fund

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

J.M. Nevin

2003-12-01

Full Text Available During 1994 universities and certain other institutions were given the option of setting up private retirement funds as an alternative to the AIPF. Because of the underfundedness of the AIPF only a substantially reduced Actuarial Reserve Value could be transferred to the new fund on behalf of each member. Employees at these institutions had to make the difficult decision of whether to remain a member of the AIPF or to join a new fund. Several institutions created defined contribution funds as an alternative to the AIPF. In such funds the member carries the investment risk and most institutions felt the need to provide some form of top-up of the Transfer Value. A simple mathematical model is formulated to aid in the comparison of expected retirement benefits under the AIPF and a private fund and to investigate the management problem of distributing additional top-up funds in a fair manner amongst the various age groups within the fund.

Mean-variance portfolio selection and efficient frontier for defined contribution pension schemes

OpenAIRE

Hoejgaard, B.; Vigna, E.

2007-01-01

We solve a mean-variance portfolio selection problem in the accumulation phase of a defined contribution pension scheme. The efficient frontier, which is found for the 2 asset case as well as the n + 1 asset case, gives the member the possibility to decide his own risk/reward profile. The mean-variance approach is then compared to other investment strategies adopted in DC pension schemes, namely the target-based approach and the lifestyle strategy. The comparison is done both in a theoretical...

Goal clarity and financial planning activities as determinants of retirement savings contributions.

Science.gov (United States)

Stawski, Robert S; Hershey, Douglas A; Jacobs-Lawson, Joy M

2007-01-01

Retirement counselors, financial service professionals, and retirement intervention specialists routinely emphasize the importance of developing clear goals for the future; however, few empirical studies have focused on the benefits of retirement goal setting. In the present study, the extent to which goal clarity and financial planning activities predict retirement savings practices was examined among 100 working adults. Path analysis techniques were used to test two competing models, both of which were designed to predict savings contributions. Findings provide support for the model in which retirement goal clarity is a significant predictor of planning practices, and planning, in turn, predicts savings tendencies. Two demographic variables-income and age-were also revealed to be important elements of the model, with income accounting for roughly half of the explained variance in savings contributions. The results of this study have implications for the development of age-based models of planning, as well as implications for retirement counselors and financial planners who advise workers on long-term saving strategies.

Mega Thinking and Planning: An Introduction to Defining and Delivering Individual and Organizational Success

Science.gov (United States)

Kaufman, Roger

2009-01-01

All organizations are means to societal ends, and thus Mega thinking and planning starts with a primary focus on adding value for all stakeholders, including our shared society. It is pragmatic, realistic, practical, and ethical. Defining and achieving continual organizational success is possible. It relies on three basic elements: (1) a societal…

How Will Rhode Island's New Hybrid Pension Plan Affect Teachers? A Report of the Public Pension Project

Science.gov (United States)

Johnson, Richard W.; Butrica, Barbara A.; Haaga, Owen; Southgate, Benjamin G.

2014-01-01

In 2011 Rhode Island replaced the stand-alone defined benefit pension plan it provided to state employees with a hybrid plan that reduced the defined benefit component and added a 401(k)-type, defined contribution component. Although controversial, the new hybrid plan will boost retirement incomes for most of the states public school teachers. Our…

A new way of looking at the risk in defined benefit pension plans.

Science.gov (United States)

Fore, D

2000-01-01

The portability feature of a defined contribution (DC) pension greatly reduces the risk to the accumulation of pension wealth. Conversely, defined benefit (DB) pensions have a variety of default risks that decrease the expected value of DB pension wealth. This paper examines those risks. Accrual of DB pension wealth is characterized in terms of purchases of risky bonds. Changing jobs triggers default on these bonds. Simulations are presented to show the potential loss in pension wealth from default. In addition, a methodology used to price corporate bonds is applied to generate estimates of the implied risk premiums of DB pension bonds over comparable riskless bonds.

Inventory and surveillance of natural resources as a contribution to land utilization planning in the Sahel

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Panzer, K F

1980-09-01

The destructive land-use practices observed in large parts of the Sahel of West-Africa as a consequence of increasing population pressure must be replaced by sustained-yield management, e.g., by agro-sylvo-pastoral land-use systems. Information and planning aids required can only be obtained through the inventory and subsequent monitoring of the natural, renewable resources, i.e. water, range- and wood lands. Because of the extent and inaccessibility of the Sahel, an inventory design combining clustered fieldplots and large-scale aerial photography is being considered as most efficient in statistical and economical terms. Evidently, an inventory cannot solve the serious problems in the Sahel, but its results can contribute essentially towards defining better land-use policies and towards more effective management of the natural resource base.

Management of key pension plan risks from the user aspects

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rakonjac-Antić Tatjana

2013-01-01

Full Text Available The pension system is an important form of protection of individuals, i.e. of their ensuring for a period of living after retirement, when they are no longer able for working engagement. On the other hand, as a form of long-term insurance, this system presents a strong investment incentive for each economy. Pension plans are an important element of the pension system. There are defined benefit plans, defined contribution plans and hybrid plans, which represent a combination of the two previously mentioned plans. The aim of the work is to define the key risks for each of these types of pension plans in order to determine their advantages and disadvantages, from the aspect of their potential users, on the basis of their comparative analysis.

Participatory Challenges in Urban-Environmental Planning: The Anthropological Contribution

OpenAIRE

Gravano, Ariel; Universidad de Buenos Aires

2007-01-01

This essay offers reflections on the anthropological contribution to institutional processes of “community participation” in urban-environmental planning in a metropolitan setting. The case presented is of a participation imposed by law, its difficulties and opportunities, from the different and asymmetrical rationalities in the game. Faced with a concrete demand from the State, we analyze methodological possibilities for adopting a process of effective transformation, through the facilitatio...

Participatory Challenges in Urban-Environmental Planning: The Anthropological Contribution

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ariel Gravano

2007-07-01

Full Text Available This essay offers reflections on the anthropological contribution to institutional processes of “community participation” in urban-environmental planning in a metropolitan setting. The case presented is of a participation imposed by law, its difficulties and opportunities, from the different and asymmetrical rationalities in the game. Faced with a concrete demand from the State, we analyze methodological possibilities for adopting a process of effective transformation, through the facilitation of organizational culture issues.

The Trade-Off between Planning Objectives and Planning Success

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Laval Valerian

2016-12-01

Full Text Available The aim of this paper it to analyse, why companies face difficulties in implementing modern planning concepts. For this the paper will discuss and define the terminology and goals of modern planning. Based on this, the article analyses how strategy orientation influences the willingness of companies to move from traditional budgeting to modern budgeting concepts. It will be outlined, why especially companies pursuing a cost leadership strategy are still reluctant to open themselves for modern budgeting concepts. The contribution of this paper is to analyse the influence of the strategy orientation on the readiness of organizations. Also it will be illustrated, how the overall value added of the corporate planning can be improved by prioritizing the most appropriate planning objectives.

Endoscopic clipping for gastrointestinal tumors. A method to define the target volume more precisely

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Riepl, M.; Klautke, G.; Fehr, R.; Fietkau, R.; Pietsch, A.

2000-01-01

Background: In many cases it is not possible to exactly define the extension of carcinoma of the gastrointestinal tract with the help of computertomography scans made for 3-D-radiation treatment planning. Consequently, the planning of external beam radiotherapy is made more difficult for the gross tumor volume as well as, in some cases, also for the clinical target volume. Patients and Methods: Eleven patients with macrosocpic tumors (rectal cancer n = 5, cardiac cancer n = 6) were included. Just before 3-D planning, the oral and aboral border of the tumor was marked endoscopically with hemoclips. Subsequently, CT scans for radiotherapy planning were made and the clinical target volume was defined. Five to 6 weeks thereafter, new CT scans were done to define the gross tumor volume for boost planning. Two investigators independently assessed the influence of the hemoclips on the different planning volumes, and whether the number of clips was sufficient to define the gross tumor volume. Results: In all patients, the implantation of the clips was done without complications. Start of radiotherapy was not delayed. With the help of the clips it was possible to exactly define the position and the extension of the primary tumor. The clinical target volume was modified according to the position of the clips in 5/11 patients; the gross tumor volume was modified in 7/11 patients. The use of the clips made the documentation and verification of the treatment portals by the simulator easier. Moreover, the clips helped the surgeon to define the primary tumor region following marked regression after neoadjuvant therapy in 3 patients. Conclusions: Endoscopic clipping of gastrointestinal tumors helps to define the tumor volumes more precisely in radiation therapy. The clips are easily recognized on the portal films and, thus, contribute to quality control. (orig.) [de

HIV prevention policy and programme planning: What can mathematical modelling contribute?

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hankins, C.A.

2014-01-01

This thesis explores the potential contribution of mathematical modelling to informed decision-making on policy and programme planning for novel HIV prevention tools. Its hypothesis is that, under certain conditions, modelling results can be a useful addition to the evidence and other factors that

Did pension plan accounting contribute to a stock market bubble?

OpenAIRE

Julia Lynn Coronado; Steven A. Sharpe

2003-01-01

During the 1990s, the asset portfolios of defined-benefit (DB) pension plans ballooned with the booming stock market. Due to current accounting guidelines, the robust growth in pension assets resulted in a stealthy but substantial boost to the profits of sponsoring corporations. This study assesses the extent to which equity investors were fooled by pension accounting. First, we test whether stock prices reflected the fair market value of sponsoring firms' net pension assets reported in footn...

Mean-variance portfolio selection and efficient frontier for defined contribution pension schemes

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Højgaard, Bjarne; Vigna, Elena

We solve a mean-variance portfolio selection problem in the accumulation phase of a defined contribution pension scheme. The efficient frontier, which is found for the 2 asset case as well as the n + 1 asset case, gives the member the possibility to decide his own risk/reward profile. The mean...... as a mean-variance optimization problem. It is shown that the corresponding mean and variance of the final fund belong to the efficient frontier and also the opposite, that each point on the efficient frontier corresponds to a target-based optimization problem. Furthermore, numerical results indicate...... that the largely adopted lifestyle strategy seems to be very far from being efficient in the mean-variance setting....

Children's high-level writing skills: development of planning and revising and their contribution to writing quality.

Science.gov (United States)

Limpo, Teresa; Alves, Rui A; Fidalgo, Raquel

2014-06-01

It is well established that the activity of producing a text is a complex one involving three main cognitive processes: Planning, translating, and revising. Although these processes are crucial in skilled writing, beginning and developing writers seem to struggle with them, mainly with planning and revising. To trace the development of the high-level writing processes of planning and revising, from Grades 4 to 9, and to examine whether these skills predict writing quality in younger and older students (Grades 4-6 vs. 7-9), after controlling for gender, school achievement, age, handwriting fluency, spelling, and text structure. Participants were 381 students from Grades 4 to 9 (age 9-15). Students were asked to plan and write a story and to revise another story by detecting and correcting mechanical and substantive errors. From Grades 4 to 9, we found a growing trend in students' ability to plan and revise despite the observed decreases and stationary periods from Grades 4 to 5 and 6 to 7. Moreover, whereas younger students' planning and revising skills made no contribution to the quality of their writing, in older students, these high-level skills contributed to writing quality above and beyond control predictors. The findings of this study seem to indicate that besides the increase in planning and revising, these skills are not fully operational in school-age children. Indeed, given the contribution of these high-level skills to older students' writing, supplementary instruction and practice should be provided from early on. © 2013 The British Psychological Society.

Optimal investment decisions with a liability: the case of defined benefit pension plans

OpenAIRE

Josa-Fombellida, Ricardo; Rincón-Zapatero, Juan Pablo

2006-01-01

In this paper the optimal management of an aggregated dynamic pension fund is studied. To cover the promised liabilities to workers at the age of retirement, the plan sponsor continuously manages time-varying funds. He or she can choose the rate of contribution to the fund, the investment in a given number of risky assets, and a security with constant rate of return. The problem of maximizing the probability that the fund assets achieve some prescribed goal before some undesirable lower value...

How Will Teachers Fare in Rhode Island's New Hybrid Pension Plan? Public Pension Project Brief 4

Science.gov (United States)

Johnson, Richard W.; Butrica, Barbara A.; Haaga, Owen; Southgate, Benjamin G.

2014-01-01

Hybrid retirement plans that combine defined benefit pensions with 401(k) type, defined contribution accounts can play important roles in the reform of public-sector pensions. Summarizing results from our longer report ["How Will Rhode Island's New Hybrid Pension Plan Affect Teachers? A Report of the Public Pension Project" (2014)], this…

26 CFR 1.404(a)-7 - Pension and annuity plans; contributions in excess of limitations under section 404(a)(1...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... 26 Internal Revenue 5 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Pension and annuity plans; contributions in... (CONTINUED) INCOME TAXES Pension, Profit-Sharing, Stock Bonus Plans, Etc. § 1.404(a)-7 Pension and annuity...)(D). When contributions paid by an employer in a taxable year to or under a pension or annuity plan...

Colombia defines innovative plans for refining and petrochemicals

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Carta Petrolera

1998-01-01

Ecopetrol plans to increase capacity at its Cartagena refinery to 140,000 barrels per day until 2002. The new production will be for basic streams to supply and stimulate new industries in the petrochemical sector. Investment has concentrated on exploration and production and far less on the rest of the oil sector, but now Ecopetrol will be new financing plans to develop refining in keeping with government guidelines. The Ecopetrol Board approved the development plan for the Cartagena Refinery, this consist of increasing capacity

[Consumer satisfaction study in philanthropic hospital health plans].

Science.gov (United States)

Gerschman, Silvia; Veiga, Luciana; Guimarães, César; Ugá, Maria Alicia Dominguez; Portela, Margareth Crisóstomo; Vasconcellos, Miguel Murat; Barbosa, Pedro Ribeiro; Lima, Sheyla Maria Lemos

2007-01-01

This paper presents the findings of research aimed at identifying and analyzing the argumentation and rationale that justify the satisfaction of consumers with their health plans. The qualitative method applied used the focus group technique, for which the following aspects were defined: the criteria for choosing the health plans which were considered, the composition of the group and its distribution, recruitment strategy, and infrastructure and dynamics of the meetings. The health plan beneficiaries were classified into groups according to their social class, the place where they lived, mainly, the relationship that they established with the health plan operators which enabled us to develop a typology for the plan beneficiaries. Initially, we indicated how the health plan beneficiaries assess and use the Brazilian Unified Health System (SUS), and, then, considering the types of plans defined, we evaluated their degree of satisfaction with the different aspects of health care, and identified which aspects mostly contributed explain their satisfaction.

The text plan concept: contributions to the writing planning process

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ana Lúcia Tinoco Cabral

2013-12-01

Full Text Available Students - at different levels, ranging from early grades up to PhD - face problems both on comprehension and text production. This paper focuses on the text plan concept according to the DTA (Discourse Text Analysis approach, i.e., a principle of organization that allows students to put into practice the production intention as well as to arrange text information while producing; being responsible for the text compositional structure (Adam, 2008. The study analyzes the relation between text plan and the writing planning process, in which the first one provides the second with theoretical support. In order to develop such research, the study covers some issues related to the reading skill, analyzes an argumentative text as per its textual plan, and presents some reflections on the writing process, focusing on the relation between textual plan and the writing planning process.

29 CFR 2509.94-3 - Interpretive bulletin relating to in-kind contributions to employee benefit plans.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... employee benefit plans. 2509.94-3 Section 2509.94-3 Labor Regulations Relating to Labor (Continued) EMPLOYEE BENEFITS SECURITY ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF LABOR GENERAL INTERPRETIVE BULLETINS RELATING TO...-kind contributions to employee benefit plans. (a) General. This bulletin sets forth the views of the...

Assessment of China's renewable energy contribution during the 12th Five Year Plan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hong, Lixuan; Zhou, Nan; Fridley, David; Raczkowski, Chris

2013-01-01

In recent years, China has been ambitious in investing and developing renewable energy technologies, aiming to enhance its energy security, mitigate its energy-related CO 2 emissions and develop renewable energy industry. The 12th Five Year Plan (2011–2015) has set clear targets on installed capacities of different renewable energy technologies. This study aimed to assess the possible contribution of 12th Five Year Plan for China's future energy system and identify factors that might influence its impacts. First, current status of renewable energy development in China has been reviewed. Then several energy scenarios have been developed in an hourly simulation using an energy system analysis tool EnergyPLAN. It was identified that existing grid bottleneck would greatly reduce the potential contribution of renewable installations in terms of share of renewable electricity generation, share of non-fossil fuels in primary energy and system CO 2 emissions. In contrast, improving technical performance of renewable energy technologies and sectoral energy efficiency plays an important role in increasing the share of renewables and promoting China’s energy system transition. Finally, some policy suggestions were drawn to facilitate a better implementation of the renewable energy plan. - Highlights: • China's renewable energy contribution during the 12th Five Year Plan was assessed. • Non-fossil fuel targets in primary energy for 2015 and 2020 could be easily achieved. • Grid bottlenecks severely decrease the share of RES-E in electricity generation through the 12th Five Year Period. • Improved technical performance of renewable technologies and sectoral energy efficiency are extremely important for achieving higher RES-E share. • Several policy suggestions were drawn

Policy Reflection: Letter of Credit Usage by Defined Benefit Pension Plans in Canada

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Norma L. Nielson

2017-05-01

Full Text Available There is an argument to be made for letting corporations hold off on contributing to their employees’ defined benefit pension plans, as long as there is a guarantee the cash will come eventually. That is the reason that provincial governments began allowing creditworthy companies to instead provide a letter of credit, backed by a Canadian bank, guaranteeing the cash deposit, and secured by the company’s line of credit or some similar facility. Sometimes circumstances are such that a company needs all the cash it can get to grow, or perhaps to manage through tough economic times. Given the sluggish recovery from last decade’s financial crisis and the difficulty for pension funds to grow amid persistent low interest rates, it perhaps is understandable that more companies are using standby letters of credit as IOUs for their employee pensions. The letters provide the companies more flexibility with their capital, and diminish the risk that, should returns to pension funds rise again to more normal rates, there could be “trapped surplus.” It is, however, harder to make a case for why public sector companies and Crown corporations have begun using letters of credit in place of cash deposits to pensions. They certainly do not face the same pressure for capital flexibility, given their revenue is frequently assured, and they face no competition that would pressure them to redirect capital for strategic purposes. And yet, research shows that this is happening, at least to some degree. That should give policymakers pause. Unfortunately, there is a troubling lack of data available as to which organizations have been using letters of credit in place of cash contributions to pension funds. Clearly they are proving useful for some companies, and that the exact reasons vary widely. We observe some companies using the letter of credit option that would appear to have plenty of capital flexibility, so the rationale for their use might not be what the

Effects of Gainsharing Provisions on the Selection of a Discount Rate for a Defined Benefit Pension Plan

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Robert J. Rietz

2017-06-01

Full Text Available This paper examines the effect of gainsharing provisions on the selection of a discount rate for a defined benefit pension plan. The paper uses a traditional actuarial approach of discounting liabilities using the expected return of the associated pension fund. A stochastic Excel model was developed to simulate the effect of varying investment returns on a pension fund with four asset classes. Lognormal distributions were fitted to historical returns of two of the asset classes; large company stocks and long-term government bonds. A third lognormal distribution was designed to represent the investment returns of alternative investments, such as real estate and private equity. The fourth asset class represented short term cash investments and that return was held constant. The following variables were analyzed to determine their relative impact of gainsharing on the selection of a discount rate: hurdle rate, percentage of gainsharing, actuarial asset method smoothing period, and variations in asset allocation. A 50% gainsharing feature can reduce the discount rate for a defined benefit pension plan from 0.5% to more than 2.5%, depending on the gainsharing design and asset allocation.

26 CFR 1.436-1 - Limits on benefits and benefit accruals under single employer defined benefit plans.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... contributions under paragraph (f)(2) of this section or pursuant to the enrolled actuary's certification of the... section or pursuant to the enrolled actuary's certification of the adjusted funding target attainment..., 2011, the enrolled actuary for the Plan certifies that the AFTAP for 2011 is 80%. Accordingly...

Individual account retirement plans: an analysis of the 2007 survey of consumer finances, with market adjustments to June 2009.

Science.gov (United States)

Copeland, Craig

2009-08-01

LATEST SCF DATA: This Issue Brief assesses the current status of Americans' savings for retirement by examining the incidence of individual account plans among families, as well as the average amount of assets accumulated in these accounts. The 2007 Survey of Consumer Finances (SCF), the Federal Reserve Board's triennial survey of wealth, is the basis for this study, as it is a leading source of data on Americans' wealth, provides detailed information on retirement plan incidence and account balances among families, and is the latest available. ACCOUNTING FOR THE ECONOMIC DOWNTURN: While 2007 SCF is the most comprehensive and current survey of Americans' finances, its timing was unfortunate due to the significant downturn in the economy in 2008 just after the survey was released. To account for that change, this analysis provides estimates of the changes in asset values from the end of 2007 to mid-June 2009 for individual account plan balances. The account balances of the defined contribution plans and IRAs are adjusted based on the asset allocation reported within the plans by using equity market returns and bond market returns from January 1, 2008, to June 19, 2009. MEDIAN ASSET LEVELS FOR DEFINED CONTRIBUTION PLANS: Among all families with a defined contribution plan in 2007, the median (mid-point) plan balance was $31,800, up 16 percent from 2004. According to EBRI estimates, this dropped 16.4 percent (to $26,578) from year-end 2007 to mid-June 2009. Losses were higher for families with more than $100,000 a year in income (down 22 percent) or having a net worth in the top 10 percent (down 28 percent). MEDIAN ASSET LEVELS FOR IRA/KEOGH PLANS: Among all families with an IRA/Keogh plan, the median value of their plan was $34,000 in 2007, up 3 percent from 2004. EBRI estimates this median value dropped 15 percent (to $28,955) from year-end 2007 to mid-June 2009. LESS THAN HALF OF ALL FAMILIES HAVE A RETIREMENT PLAN THROUGH A CURRENT JOB: In 2007, 40.6 percent of

White plan and crisis management. Help guide for the elaboration of extended white plans and of white plans for health establishments. Issue 2006, appendix to circular nr DHOS/CGR/2006/401 of 2006 September 14

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2006-01-01

White plans are specific emergency plans to be implemented in public and private health establishments. While introducing necessary modifications and taking public health policy effects into account, this document first defines crises and their management (levels of intervention from the local to the national level, typology of emergency plans, emergency medical chain, extended white plans). The second part proposes a set of sheets which aim to be a support in the elaboration of the extended white plan and of the white plan. The third part, based on professional contributions and lessons learned, addresses two important issues: firstly, the crisis management exercise, and secondly the hospital under tension and white plan triggering thresholds

"Prince Charming Syndrome?" Gender gap in preferences for defined contribution pensions in Japan.

Science.gov (United States)

Watanabe, Satoshi P

2017-01-01

Using survey data collected by the Japan Institute of Life Insurance in 2002, this study finds that a significant gender gap existed in defined contribution (DC) pension knowledge among workers employed at small- to medium-sized private firms in Japan. Even with similar DC knowledge, however, men and women reveal different preferences for DC pensions, indicating that their perceptional responses may widely differ from actual behaviors. Apart from the knowledge gap, the result shows evidence of the Prince Charming Syndrome among female employees as a significant source of the gender gap in DC participation rates. Among corporate pension-covered employees, the gender difference in the efficacy of DC portability is a more significant gap-generating factor. DC tax advantage is particularly favored by pension-covered female employees over male counterparts, reducing the DC preference gap. No similar evidence is found for employees with no corporate pension coverage.

26 CFR 1.405-2 - Deduction of contributions to qualified bond purchase plans.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

...), (9), and (10) and 404(e) shall also apply. (c) Accrual method taxpayers. In the case of a taxpayer using the accrual method of accounting, a contribution to a qualified bond purchase plan will be deemed paid on the last day of the year of accrual if— (1) During the taxable year of accrual the taxpayer...

Defining Motivational Intensity of Need for Family Planning in Africa

African Journals Online (AJOL)

AJRH Managing Editor

Keywords: Unmet need, contraceptive use, intention to use family planning. Résumé ... not using family planning because of health concerns or ..... insurance plans cover contraception as an employee right and/or as a means of reducing.

Institutional Plan FY 2001-2005

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chartock, Michael; Hansen, Todd, editors

2000-07-01

The FY 2001-2005 Institutional Plan provides an overview of the Ernest Orlando Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab, the Laboratory) mission, strategic plan, initiatives, and the resources required to fulfill its role in support of national needs in fundamental science and technology, energy resources, and environmental quality. To advance the Department of Energy's ongoing efforts to define the Integrated Laboratory System, the Berkeley Lab Institutional Plan reflects the strategic elements of our planning efforts. The Institutional Plan is a management report that supports the Department of Energy's mission and programs and is an element of the Department of Energy's strategic management planning activities, developed through an annual planning process. The Plan supports the Government Performance and Results Act of 1993 and complements the performance-based contract between the Department of Energy and the Regents of the University of California. It identifies technical and administrative directions in the context of the national energy policy and research needs and the Department of Energy's program planning initiatives. Preparation of the Plan is coordinated by the Office of Planning and Communications from information contributed by Berkeley Lab's scientific and support divisions.

Deficient motion-defined and texture-defined figure-ground segregation in amblyopic children.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Jane; Ho, Cindy S; Giaschi, Deborah E

2007-01-01

Motion-defined form deficits in the fellow eye and the amblyopic eye of children with amblyopia implicate possible direction-selective motion processing or static figure-ground segregation deficits. Deficient motion-defined form perception in the fellow eye of amblyopic children may not be fully accounted for by a general motion processing deficit. This study investigates the contribution of figure-ground segregation deficits to the motion-defined form perception deficits in amblyopia. Performances of 6 amblyopic children (5 anisometropic, 1 anisostrabismic) and 32 control children with normal vision were assessed on motion-defined form, texture-defined form, and global motion tasks. Performance on motion-defined and texture-defined form tasks was significantly worse in amblyopic children than in control children. Performance on global motion tasks was not significantly different between the 2 groups. Faulty figure-ground segregation mechanisms are likely responsible for the observed motion-defined form perception deficits in amblyopia.

Analysis of Stakeholder-Defined Needs in Northeast U.S. Coastal Communities to Determine Gaps in Research Informing Coastal Resilience Planning

Science.gov (United States)

Molino, G. D.; Kenney, M. A.; Sutton-Grier, A.; Penn, K.

2017-12-01

The impacts of climate change on our coastlines are increasing pressure on communities, ecosystems, infrastructure, and state-to-local economies in the northeastern United States (U.S.). As a result of current or imminent risk of acute and chronic hazards, local, state and regional entities have taken steps to identify and address vulnerabilities to climate change. Decisions to increase coastal infrastructure resilience and grey, green, and cultural infrastructure solutions requires physical, natural, and social science that is useful for decision-making and effective science translation mechanisms. Despite the desire to conduct or fund science that meets the needs of communities, there has been no comprehensive analysis to determine stakeholder-defined research needs. To address this gap, this study conducts a stakeholder needs analysis in northeast U.S. coastal communities to determine gaps in information and translation processes supporting coastal resilience planning. Documents were sourced from local, state, and regional organizations in both the public and private sectors, using the northeast region defined by the third National Climate Assessment. Modeled after Dilling et al. (2015), a deductive coding schema was developed that categorized documents using specific search terms such as "Location and condition of infrastructure" and "Proactive planning". A qualitative document analysis was then executed using NVivo to formally identify patterns and themes present in stakeholder surveys, workshop proceedings, and reports. Initial stakeholder priorities centered around incorporation of climate science into planning and decision making regarding vulnerabilities of infrastructure, enhanced emergency planning and response, and communication of key information.

Coupling the biophysical and social dimensions of wildfire risk to improve wildfire mitigation planning

Science.gov (United States)

Alan A. Ager; Jeffrey D. Kline; A. Paige Fisher

2015-01-01

We describe recent advances in biophysical and social aspects of risk and their potential combined contribution to improve mitigation planning on fire-prone landscapes. The methods and tools provide an improved method for defining the spatial extent of wildfire risk to communities compared to current planning processes. They also propose an expanded role for social...

City Labs as Vehicles for Innovation in Urban Planning Processes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Christian Scholl

2016-12-01

Full Text Available This paper assesses the role of urban experiments for local planning processes through a case-based analysis of the city lab of Maastricht. In conjunction with this, the article offers three contributions, as additional elements. Firstly, the paper develops a set of defining characteristics of city labs as an analytical concept which is relevant for discussions about (collaborative planning. Secondly, it refines the literature on collaborative planning by drawing attention to experimentation and innovation. Thirdly, the paper assesses the potential of city labs to contribute to the innovation of urban governance. The work draws from the literature on experimentation and learning as well as the literature on collaborative urban planning. In the conclusions, we discuss the potential of city labs as vehicles for learning about new urban planning approaches and their limitations as spaces for small-scale experimentation. The paper is based on research for the URB@Exp research project funded by JPI Urban Europe.

Skybeams and 'light art' defined as 'advertising' for planning purposes

Science.gov (United States)

Morgan-Taylor, M.

2008-02-01

Skybeams and light projections have been a long standing problem, not just because of possible light pollution, ecological and public safety issues, but also because there was confusion as to when planning permission was required. Under some circumstances a light beam could be used for 28 days without needing permission, whilst other users such as circuses would always need planning permission. The celebrated Guildford case saw a skybeam classified as an advert, and so needing planning permission (after lobbying by the Campaign for Dark Skies with local support), but this was not binding on later cases. So there was a lack of firm national guidance, or a court judgment clarifying the issue. However, the situation is now much clearer due to the new Town and Country Planning (Control of Advertisements) (England) Regulations 2007.

The Defined Benefit Pension Plan System: Financial Problems and Policy Responses

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Lang, Joel

2004-01-01

.... This thesis examines the challenges facing the DB pension plan system, beginning with an overview of the DB plan system, a review of the different plan types, the benefits received, and funding rules...

Standard review plan for the review of environmental restoration remedial action quality assurance program plans

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1991-09-01

This plan establishes both the scope of the review and the acceptance criteria to be utilized for the review of Quality Assurance Program Plans (QAPPs) developed in accordance with the requirements of DOE/RL-90-28. DOE/RL-90-28, the Environmental Restoration Remedial Action Quality Assurance Requirements Document (QARD) defines all quality assurance (QA) requirements governing activities that affect the quality of the Environmental Restoration Remedial Action (ERRA) program at the Hanford Site. These requirements are defined in three parts, Part 1 of Quality Management and Administration tasks, Part 2 for Environmental Data Operations, and Part 3 of the Design and Construction of items, systems, and facilities. The purpose of this document is to identify the scope of the review by the DOE Field Office, Richland staff, and establish the acceptance criteria (Parts 1, 2, and 3) that the DOE Field Office, Richland staff will utilize to evaluate the participant QAPPs. Use of the standard review plan will (1) help ensure that participant QAPPs contain the information required by DOE/RL-90-28, (2) aid program participant and DOE Field Office, Richland staff is ensuring that the information describing the participant's QAPP is complete, (3) help persons regarding DOE/RL- 90-28 to locate information, and (4) contribute to decreasing the time needed for the review process. In addition, the Standard Review Plan (SRP) ensures the quality and uniformity of the staff reviews and presents a well-defined base from which to evaluate compliance of participant quality programs against DOE/RL-90-28

Contribution of volatiles to the antifungal effect of Lactobacillus paracasei in defined medium and yogurt

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Aunsbjerg, Stina Dissing; Honoré, Anders Hans; Marcussen, J.

2015-01-01

produced by L. paracasei DGCC 2132 in CDIM. When the strain was added to a yogurt medium diacetyl as well as other volatiles also increased but the metabolome was more complex. Removal of L. paracasei DGCC 2132 cells from CDIM fermentate resulted in loss of both volatiles, including diacetyl......Lactic acid bacteria with antifungal properties can be used to control spoilage of food and feed. Previously, most of the identified metabolites have been isolated from cell-free fermentate of lactic acid bacteria with methods suboptimal for detecting possible contribution from volatiles...... to the antifungal activity. The role of volatile compounds in the antifungal activity of Lactobacillus paracasei DGCC 2132 in a chemically defined interaction medium (CDIM) and yogurt was therefore investigated with a sampling technique minimizing volatile loss. Diacetyl was identified as the major volatile...

Contribution of volatiles to the antifungal effect of Lactobacillus paracasei in defined medium and yogurt.

Science.gov (United States)

Aunsbjerg, S D; Honoré, A H; Marcussen, J; Ebrahimi, P; Vogensen, F K; Benfeldt, C; Skov, T; Knøchel, S

2015-02-02

Lactic acid bacteria with antifungal properties can be used to control spoilage of food and feed. Previously, most of the identified metabolites have been isolated from cell-free fermentate of lactic acid bacteria with methods suboptimal for detecting possible contribution from volatiles to the antifungal activity. The role of volatile compounds in the antifungal activity of Lactobacillus paracasei DGCC 2132 in a chemically defined interaction medium (CDIM) and yogurt was therefore investigated with a sampling technique minimizing volatile loss. Diacetyl was identified as the major volatile produced by L. paracasei DGCC 2132 in CDIM. When the strain was added to a yogurt medium diacetyl as well as other volatiles also increased but the metabolome was more complex. Removal of L. paracasei DGCC 2132 cells from CDIM fermentate resulted in loss of both volatiles, including diacetyl, and the antifungal activity towards two strains of Penicillium spp. When adding diacetyl to CDIM or yogurt without L. paracasei DGCC 2132, marked inhibition was observed. Besides diacetyl, the antifungal properties of acetoin were examined, but no antifungal activity was observed. Overall, the results demonstrate the contribution of diacetyl in the antifungal effect of L. paracasei DGCC 2132 and indicate that the importance of volatiles may have been previously underestimated. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Relative Contributions of Planned Behaviour and Social Capital on Educational Continuation Decisions of Disadvantaged Students

Science.gov (United States)

Edannur, Sreekala

2018-01-01

The present study is conducted to understand the relative contributions of planned behavior and social capital on educational continuation decisions of VIII standard students belonging to backward class in India. Scheduled Castes (SC), Scheduled Tribes (ST), and Other Backward Classes (OBC) are the three social groups dealt as backward classes in…

The Transuranic Waste Program's integration and planning activities and the contributions of the TRU partnership

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Harms, T.C.; O'Neal, W.; Petersen, C.A.; McDonald, C.E.

1994-02-01

The Technical Support Division, EM-351 manages the integration and planning activities of the Transuranic Waste Program. The Transuranic Waste Program manager provides transuranic waste policy, guidance, and issue resolution to Headquarters and the Operations Offices. In addition, the program manager is responsible for developing and implementing an integrated, long-range waste management plan for the transuranic waste system. A steering committee, a core group of support contractors, and numerous interface working groups support the efforts of the program manager. This paper provides an overview of the US Department of Energy's transuranic waste integration activities and a long-range planning process that includes internal and external stakeholder participation. It discusses the contributions and benefits provided by the Transuranic Partnership, most significantly, the integration activities and the body of data collected and assembled by the Partnership

Health contribution to local government planning

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

France, Cheryl

2004-01-01

When local government considers future land-use plans, the local health authorities are not always included as a key partner. In Cambridgeshire, England, the former Cambridgeshire Health Authority formed a partnership with local government to address this issue. The relationship that developed and the subsequent health impact review provided an opportunity to influence strategic policy and ensure that health objectives are taken into account. Through partnership working, lessons were learned about how to incorporate health issues into a strategic land-use planning document to the overall benefit of the community

Sensemaking in Enterprise Resource Planning Project Deescalation: An Empirical Study

Science.gov (United States)

Battleson, Douglas Aloys

2013-01-01

Enterprise resource planning (ERP) projects, a type of complex information technology project, are very challenging and expensive to implement. Past research recognizes that escalation, defined as the commitment to a failing course of action, is common in such projects. While the factors that contribute to escalation (e.g., project conditions,…

Annuity choices and income drawdown: evidence from the decumulation phase of defined contribution pensions in England.

Science.gov (United States)

Banks, James; Crawford, Rowena; Tetlow, Gemma

2015-10-01

We provide new empirical evidence on the importance of defined contribution pension wealth in England, and the nature of annuitization decisions taken by older adults who retire with such sources of wealth. Other things equal, financial literacy, and numeracy in particular, are important factors governing individuals' choices over whether to shop around for an annuity as opposed to taking the 'path of least resistance' option and purchasing from their original pension fund provider. This has important policy and welfare implications given that buying an annuity on the open market has significant financial benefits for most people. In the context of the increasing reliance on private provision for retirement, the importance of individuals having the financial literacy to successfully navigate complex financial decisions late in life should not be underestimated.

Portability, Salary and Asset Price Risk: A Continuous-Time Expected Utility Comparison of DB and DC Pension Plans

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

An Chen

2015-03-01

Full Text Available This paper compares two different types of private retirement plans from the perspective of a representative beneficiary: a defined benefit (DB and a defined contribution (DC plan. While salary risk is the main common risk factor in DB and DC pension plans, one of the key differences is that DB plans carry portability risks, whereas DC plans bear asset price risk. We model these tradeoffs explicitly in this paper and compare these two plans in a utility-based framework. Our numerical analysis focuses on answering the question of when the beneficiary is indifferent between the DB and DC plan. Most of our results confirm the findings in the existing literature, among which, e.g., portability losses considerably reduce the relative attractiveness of the DB plan. However, we also find that the attractiveness of the DB plan can decrease in the level of risk aversion, which is inconsistent with the existing literature.

What's at Stake in the Lives of People with Intellectual Disability? Part I: The Power of Naming, Defining, Diagnosing, Classifying, and Planning Supports

Science.gov (United States)

Schalock, Robert L.; Luckasson, Ruth

2013-01-01

This article focuses on the power of naming, defining, diagnosing, classifying, and planning supports for people with intellectual disability. The article summarizes current thinking regarding these five functions, states the essential question addressed by the respective function, and provides an overview of the high stakes involved for people…

Is the U.S. Retirement System Contributing to Rising Wealth Inequality?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sebastian Devlin-Foltz

2016-10-01

Full Text Available Data from the Survey of Consumer Finances for 1989 through 2013 reveal five broad findings. First, overall retirement plan participation was stable or rising through 2007, though overall participation fell noticeably in the wake of the Great Recession and has remained lower. Second, cohort-based analysis of life-cycle trajectories shows that participation in retirement plans is strongly correlated with income, and that the recent decline in participation is concentrated among younger and low- to middle-income families. Third, the shift in the type of pension coverage from defined benefit (DB to defined contribution (DC occurred within—not just across—income groups. Fourth, retirement wealth is less concentrated than nonretirement wealth, so the growth of retirement wealth relative to nonretirement wealth helped offset the increasing concentration in nonretirement wealth. Fifth, the shift from DB to DC had only a modest effect in the other direction because DC wealth is more concentrated than DB wealth.

Community participation in fire management planning: The Trinity county fire safe council's fire plan

Science.gov (United States)

Yvonne Everett

2008-01-01

In 1999, Trinity County CA, initiated a participatory fire management planning effort. Since that time, the Trinity County Fire Safe Council has completed critical portions of a fire safe plan and has begun to implement projects defined in the plan. Completion of a GIS based, landscape scale fuels reduction element in the plan defined by volunteer fire fighters, agency...

INFORMATION SYSTEM STRATEGIC PLANNING WITH ENTERPRISE ARCHITECTURE PLANNING

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lola Yorita Astri

2013-05-01

Full Text Available An integrated information system is needed in an enterprise to support businessprocesses run by an enterprise. Therefore, to develop information system can use enterprisearchitecture approach which can define strategic planning of enterprise information system. SMPNegeri 1 Jambi can be viewed as an enterprise because there are entities that should be managedthrough an integrated information system. Since there has been no unification of different elementsin a unity yet, enterprise architecture model using Enterprise Architecture Planning (EAP isneeded which will obtain strategic planning of enterprise information system in SMP Negeri 1Jambi. The goal of strategic planning of information system with Enterprise Architecture Planning(EAP is to define primary activities run by SMP Negeri 1 Jambi and support activities supportingprimary activities. They can be used as a basis for making data architecture which is the entities ofapplication architecture. At last, technology architecture is designed to describe technology neededto provide environment for data application. The plan of implementation is the activity plan madeto implemented architectures by enterprise.

Multi-criteria planning of nuclear contribution to the goals of clean electricity in Mexico

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Martin-del-Campo, C., E-mail: cecilia.martin.del.campo@gmail.com [Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico, Departamento de Sistemas Energeticos, Facultad de Ingenieria (Mexico)

2014-07-01

Three scenarios of electricity expansion planning were developed to analyze nuclear technology's contributions to the socioeconomic development, mitigation of global climate change and energy security. The scenarios were developed based on minimal cost optimization satisfying the energy demand and the non-fossil electricity targets established by the Mexican National Energy Strategy (MexNES) of no more than 65% of annual electricity production using fossil fuels by 2024 and drop down to 60% by 2035. Special attention was paid to wind and nuclear as clean energy options to produce electricity. An analysis decision based on the Position Vector of Minimum Regret was applied to rank the different plans in terms of the criteria. Results showed that nuclear power must definitely participate in the Mexican electricity expansion in order to meet the goals of clean energy set by the MexNES. (author)

Excellence through outage planning and scheduling

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ferriole, G.

1987-01-01

The Nuclear and Fossil Generation Division of Electricite de France (EdF) has been the largest nuclear plant operating utility in France since 1984. The size of the units, their standardization, and extensive operating experience were favorable parameters leading to the development of a very complete maintenance organization. Electricite de France believes in the importance of well-defined maintenance concepts. These maintenance concepts contribute to outage performance by requiring a careful consideration of work to be done and by defining the techniques and means of accomplishing this work. In addition to maintenance concepts and careful planning and scheduling, good outage management is achieved through the motivation and dedication of the people involved. It is the key to good operational results

Pension Plan Types and Financial Literacy in Later Life.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Yang; Burr, Jeffrey A; Miller, Edward Alan

2017-09-09

The ongoing shift from defined benefit (DB) to defined contribution (DC) pension plans means that middle-aged and older adults are increasingly being called upon to manage their own fiscal security in retirement. Yet, half of older Americans are financially illiterate, lacking the knowledge and skills to manage financial resources. This study investigates whether pension plan types are associated with varying levels of financial literacy among older Americans. Cross-sectional analyses of the 2010 Health and Retirement Study (HRS) (n = 1,281) using logistic and linear regression models were employed to investigate the association between different pension plans and multiple indicators of financial literacy. The potential moderating effect of gender was also examined. Respondents with DC plans, with or without additional DB plans, were more likely to correctly answer various financial literacy questions, in comparison with respondents with DB plans only. Men with both DC and DB plans scored significantly higher on the financial literacy index than women with both types of plans, relative to respondents with DB plans only. Middle-aged and older adults, who are incentivized by participation in DC plans to manage financial resources and decide where to invest pension funds, tend to self-educate to improve financial knowledge and skills, thereby resulting in greater financial literacy. This finding suggests that traditional financial education programs may not be the only means of achieving financial literacy. Further consideration should be given to providing older adults with continued, long-term exposure to financial decision-making opportunities. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Gerontological Society of America. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Protecting drinkable water: an analysis of action plans and stakeholders' networks

Science.gov (United States)

Gascuel-Odoux, Chantal; Menard, Marjorie

2015-04-01

Since WFD the policy for protecting drinkable water has been enhanced in France. This policy establish the main components and the different steps for protecting drinkable water, and ask for defining and implementing an action plan for each contributing catchment. Despite ambitious objectives, the local implementation is difficult. Firstly there is a high diversity of stakeholders involved with local authorities, which are mainly: water agencies, agricultural chambers and consultants, authorities at regional and departmental levels. Most of the local authorities do not feel qualified enough for carrying out such a policy, as they are not really used to deal with technical and political issues related to agricultural diffuse pollutions. As a consequence assessed action plans are based on regulation and/or agri-environmental measures. More ambitious and complementary measures can be included, but without any support measure nor accurate objectives for their implementation. In the end, action plans reflect more a formal implementation of protection approaches than a search for efficiency by defining ambitious measures and the setting-up a consistent support scheme. The way stakeholders' networks mobilize knowledge have been analyzed based on ten case studies located in three different regions. Three local authorities profiles are defined: (1) the "passive" ones, not really convinced of the necessity to undertake actions against diffuse pollutions and/or having low level of knowledge to support local reflexion, that delegate project management; (2) the local authorities that support local protection approach but that, for different reasons, do not search for an effective action plan, and that only consider an improvement approach; (3) the local authorities that more rarely, aim at efficient actions, motivated by the urgent need of action for preserving threatened resources. According to these profiles, local authorities and their project coordinators will be looking

26 CFR 1.401(l)-3 - Permitted disparity for defined benefit plans.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... plan provides no benefits with respect to average annual compensation up to the integration level. The...)(17)(ii) (the definition of final average compensation), the plan could specify that an employee's... of service and an excess benefit percentage of 1.85 percent of average annual compensation in excess...

Company Stock in Pension Plans: How Costly Is It?

OpenAIRE

Meulbroek, Lisa

2005-01-01

Employees often hold substantial levels of company stock in their defined contribution pension plans, a practice widely recognized as risky. But holding company stock is not only risky, it is costly: employees who own company stock are not fully diversified, so expected returns on their portfolios are lower than equally risky, but fully diversified, portfolios. This paper investigates the costs of holding company stock and finds that the loss in diversification reduces the value of employees'...

Processing DOD Thrift Savings Plan Contributions

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Lane, F

1996-01-01

.... This part of our audit focused on the processing of individual contributions to the TSP at two DFAS payroll offices at the DFAS Columbus Center, Columbus, Ohio, and Bolling Air Force Base (AFB), Washington, D.C...

Practical planning extending the classical AI planning paradigm

CERN Document Server

Wilkins, David E

2014-01-01

Planning, or reasoning about actions, is a fundamental element of intelligent behavior--and one that artificial intelligence has found very difficult to implement. The most well-understood approach to building planning systems has been under refinement since the late 1960s and has now reached a level of maturity where there are good prospects for building working planners. Practical Planning is an in-depth examination of this classical planning paradigm through an intensive case study of SIPE, a significantly implemented planning system. The author, the developer of SIPE, defines the plann

Nurse care manager contribution to quality of care in a dual-eligible special needs plan.

Science.gov (United States)

Roth, Carol P; Ganz, David A; Nickles, Lorraine; Martin, David; Beckman, Robin; Wenger, Neil S

2012-07-01

We evaluated the quality of care provided to older patients with complex needs in a dual-eligible, community-based Medicare Special Needs Plan that used a nurse care manager model. Care provided by physicians was substantially supplemented by nurse care managers, as measured by Assessing Care of Vulnerable Elders quality indicators. We describe selected nurse care manager activities for six geriatric conditions (falls, dementia, depression, nutrition, urinary incontinence, and end-of-life care) during provision of patient care coordination and management for patients in the highest decile of clinical complexity. We identify areas of high nurse performance (i.e., falls screening, functional assessment, behavioral interventions for dementia problems, advance care planning) and areas of potential missed opportunities (i.e., follow up for new memory problems, targeted dementia counseling, nutrition, and behavioral approaches to urinary incontinence). Increasing the collaborative interaction between nurses providing care in this model and physicians has the potential to enhance nurses' contributions to primary care for vulnerable older adults.

Modal Logics and Definability

OpenAIRE

Kuusisto, Antti

2013-01-01

In recent years, research into the mathematical foundations of modal logic has become increasingly popular. One of the main reasons for this is the fact that modal logic seems to adapt well to the requirements of a wide range of different fields of application. This paper is a summary of some of the author’s contributions to the understanding of modal definability theory.

Planning documents: a business planning strategy.

Science.gov (United States)

Kaehrle, P A

2000-06-01

Strategic planning and business plan development are essential nursing management skills in today's competitive, fast paced, continually changing health care environment. Even in times of great uncertainty, nurse managers need to plan and forecast for the future. A well-written business plan allows nurse managers to communicate their expertise and proactively contribute to the programmatic decisions and changes occurring within their patient population or service area. This article presents the use of planning documents as a practical, strategic business planning strategy. Although the model addresses orthopedic services specifically, nurse managers can gain an understanding and working knowledge of planning concepts that can be applied to all patient populations.

A Study on Strategic Planning and Procurement of Medicals in Uganda's Regional Referral Hospitals.

Science.gov (United States)

Masembe, Ishak Kamaradi

2016-12-31

This study was an analysis of the effect of strategic planning on procurement of medicals in Uganda's regional referral hospitals (RRH's). Medicals were defined as essential medicines, medical devices and medical equipment. The Ministry of Health (MOH) has been carrying out strategic planning for the last 15 years via the Health Sector Strategic Plans. Their assumption was that strategic planning would translate to strategic procurement and consequently, availability of medicals in the RRH's. However, despite the existence of these plans, there have been many complaints about expired drugs and shortages in RRH's. For this purpose, a third variable was important because it served the role of mediation. A questionnaire was used to obtain information on perceptions of 206 respondents who were selected using simple random sampling. 8 key informant interviews were held, 2 in each RRH. 4 Focus Group Discussions were held, 1 for each RRH, and between 5 and 8 staff took part as discussants for approximately three hours. The findings suggested that strategic planning was affected by funding to approximately 34% while the relationship between funding and procurement was 35%. The direct relationship between strategic planning and procurement was 18%. However when the total causal effect was computed it turned out that strategic planning and the related variable of funding contributed 77% to procurement of medicals under the current hierarchical model where MOH is charged with development of strategic plans for the entire health sector. Since even with this contribution there were complaints, the study proposed a new model called CALF which according to a simulation, if adopted by MOH, strategic planning would contribute 87% to effectiveness in procurement of medicals.

Defining Medical Capabilities for Exploration Missions

Science.gov (United States)

Hailey, M.; Antonsen, E.; Blue, R.; Reyes, D.; Mulcahy, R.; Kerstman, E.; Bayuse, T.

2018-01-01

Exploration-class missions to the moon, Mars and beyond will require a significant change in medical capability from today's low earth orbit centric paradigm. Significant increases in autonomy will be required due to differences in duration, distance and orbital mechanics. Aerospace medicine and systems engineering teams are working together within ExMC to meet these challenges. Identifying exploration medical system needs requires accounting for planned and unplanned medical care as defined in the concept of operations. In 2017, the ExMC Clinicians group identified medical capabilities to feed into the Systems Engineering process, including: determining what and how to address planned and preventive medical care; defining an Accepted Medical Condition List (AMCL) of conditions that may occur and a subset of those that can be treated effectively within the exploration environment; and listing the medical capabilities needed to treat those conditions in the AMCL. This presentation will discuss the team's approach to addressing these issues, as well as how the outputs of the clinical process impact the systems engineering effort.

Ernest Orlando Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory Institutional Plan FY 2000-2004

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chartock, Mike (ed.); Hansen, Todd (ed.)

1999-08-01

The FY 2000-2004 Institutional Plan provides an overview of the Ernest Orlando Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab, the Laboratory) mission, strategic plan, initiatives, and the resources required to fulfill its role in support of national needs in fundamental science and technology, energy resources, and environmental quality. To advance the Department of Energy's ongoing efforts to define the Integrated Laboratory System, the Berkeley Lab Institutional Plan reflects the strategic elements of our planning efforts. The Institutional Plan is a management report that supports the Department of Energy's mission and programs and is an element of the Department of Energy's strategic management planning activities, developed through an annual planning process. The Plan supports the Government Performance and Results Act of 1993 and complements the performance-based contract between the Department of Energy and the Regents of the University of California. It identifies technical and administrative directions in the context of the national energy policy and research needs and the Department of Energy's program planning initiatives. Preparation of the plan is coordinated by the Office of Planning and Communications from information contributed by Berkeley Lab's scientific and support divisions.

Application of Grid Planning Method in Drilling-Blasting Operations

OpenAIRE

Dambov, Risto; Spasovski, Orce

2012-01-01

The problem occurs almost every day in operation and causes troubles to mining engineers. The right performance of drilling-blasting work is important for the successful operation of the entire excavation. The aim of the paper is to point out the importance of planning and how it can contribute to the right organization and make drilling-blasting and other mining activities in mine operations easier. Defining the activities and practical example that has been given are carried out by the u...

Coupling the Biophysical and Social Dimensions of Wildfire Risk to Improve Wildfire Mitigation Planning.

Science.gov (United States)

Ager, Alan A; Kline, Jeffrey D; Fischer, A Paige

2015-08-01

We describe recent advances in biophysical and social aspects of risk and their potential combined contribution to improve mitigation planning on fire-prone landscapes. The methods and tools provide an improved method for defining the spatial extent of wildfire risk to communities compared to current planning processes. They also propose an expanded role for social science to improve understanding of community-wide risk perceptions and to predict property owners' capacities and willingness to mitigate risk by treating hazardous fuels and reducing the susceptibility of dwellings. In particular, we identify spatial scale mismatches in wildfire mitigation planning and their potential adverse impact on risk mitigation goals. Studies in other fire-prone regions suggest that these scale mismatches are widespread and contribute to continued wildfire dwelling losses. We discuss how risk perceptions and behavior contribute to scale mismatches and how they can be minimized through integrated analyses of landscape wildfire transmission and social factors that describe the potential for collaboration among landowners and land management agencies. These concepts are then used to outline an integrated socioecological planning framework to identify optimal strategies for local community risk mitigation and improve landscape-scale prioritization of fuel management investments by government entities. © 2015 Society for Risk Analysis.

Sci—Thur PM: Planning and Delivery — 06: Real-Time Interactive Treatment Planning

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Matthews, Q; Mestrovic, A; Otto, K

2014-01-01

Purpose: To describe and evaluate a novel system for generalized Real-Time Interactive Planning (RTIP) applied to head and neck (H and N) VMAT. Methods: The clinician interactively manipulates dose distributions using DVHs, isodoses, or rate of dose fall-off, which may be subjected to user-defined constraints. Dose is calculated using a fast Achievable Dose Estimate (ADE) algorithm, which simulates the limits of what can be achieved during treatment. After each manipulation contributing fluence elements are modified and the dose distribution updates in effectively real-time. For H and N VMAT planning, structure sets for 11 patients were imported into RTIP. Each dose distribution was interactively modified to minimize OAR dose while constraining target DVHs. The resulting RTIP DVHs were transferred to the Eclipse™ VMAT optimizer, and conventional VMAT optimization was performed. Results: Dose calculation and update times for the ADE algorithm ranged from 2.4 to 22.6 milliseconds, thus facilitating effectively real-time manipulation of dose distributions. For each of the 11 H and N VMAT cases, the RTIP process took ∼2–10 minutes. All RTIP plans exhibited acceptable PTV coverage, mean dose, and max dose. 10 of 11 RTIP plans achieved substantially improved sparing of one or more OARs without compromising dose to targets or other OARs. Importantly, 10 of the 11 RTIP plans required only one or two post-RTIP optimizations. Conclusions: RTIP is a novel system for manipulating and updating achievable dose distributions in real-time. H and N VMAT plans generated using RTIP demonstrate improved OAR sparing and planning efficiency. Disclosures: One author has a commercial interest in the presented materials

Implementing the global plan to stop TB, 2011-2015 - optimizing allocations and the global fund's contribution: A scenario projections study

NARCIS (Netherlands)

E.L. Korenromp (Eline); P. Glaziou (Philippe); C. Fitzpatrick (Christopher); K. Floyd (Katherine); M. Hosseini (Mehran); M.C. Raviglione (Mario); R. Atun (Rifat); B. Williams (Brian)

2012-01-01

textabstractBackground: The Global Plan to Stop TB estimates funding required in low- and middle-income countries to achieve TB control targets set by the Stop TB Partnership within the context of the Millennium Development Goals. We estimate the contribution and impact of Global Fund investments

29 CFR 2510.3-102 - Definition of “plan assets”-participant contributions.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... in cash. (c) Maximum time period for welfare benefit plans. With respect to an employee welfare...) of this section shall apply to such plan as if such plan were an employee welfare benefit plan. (i...) of this section shall apply to such plan as if such plan were an employee welfare benefit plan. [61...

MO-G-201-01: A Multi-Institutional Study Investigating the Performance of a Knowledge-Based Planning System Against Pinnacle Auto-Planning Engine in SIB-IMRT for the Head-And-Neck Cancer

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wu, B; Pang, D [Georgetown University Hospital, Washington, DC (United States); Kusters, M; Kunze-busch, M; Dijkema, T [Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen (Netherlands); McNutt, T [Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD (United States); Sanguineti, G [Istituto Nazionale Tumori Regina Elena, Roma (Italy)

2016-06-15

Purpose: Knowledge-based Planning (KBP) founded on prior planning experience and Auto-Planning Engine (APE; commercialized in Pinnacle v9.10 TPS) based on progressive optimization algorithm both aim to eliminate the trial-and-error process in radiotherapy inverse planning. This study investigates the performance of the approaches in a multi-institutional setting to evaluate their functionalities in oropharyngeal cancer and offers suggestions how they can be implemented in the clinic. Methods: Radboud University Medical Center (RUMC) provided 35 oropharyngeal cancer patients (SIB-IMRT with two-dose-level prescription: 68 Gy to PTV68 and 50.3 Gy to PTV50.3) with corresponding comparative APE plans. Johns Hopkins University (JHU) contributed to a three-dose-level (70 Gy 63 Gy and 58.1 Gy) plan library for RUMC’s patient KBP generation. MedStar Georgetown University Hospital (MGUH) contributed to a KBP approach employing overlap-volume histogram (OVH-KBP) for generating RUMC’s patient KBP plans using JHU’s plan library. Since both approaches need their own user-defined parameters as initial inputs the first 10 patients were set aside as training set to finalize them. Meanwhile cross-institutional comparisons and adjustments were implemented for investigating institutions’ protocol discrepancies and the approaches’ user-defined parameters were updated accordingly. The finalized parameters were then applied to the remaining 25 patients for OVH-KBP and APE generation. A Wilcoxon rank-sum test was used for statistical comparison with significance level of p<0.05. Results: On average PTV68’s V95 was 96.5% in APE plans vs. 97% in OVH-KBP plans (p=0.36); PTV50.3’s V95 in APE plans was 97.8% vs.97.6% in OVH-KBP plans (p=0.6); cord’s D0.1 cc was 38.6 Gy in OVH-KBP plans vs. 43.7 Gy in APE plans (p=0.0001); mean doses to larynxes oral cavities parotids and submandibular glands were similar with p>0.2. Conclusions: The study demonstrates that KBP and APE can

A Study on Strategic Planning and Procurement of Medicals in Uganda’s Regional Referral Hospitals

Science.gov (United States)

2016-01-01

This study was an analysis of the effect of strategic planning on procurement of medicals in Uganda’s regional referral hospitals (RRH’s). Medicals were defined as essential medicines, medical devices and medical equipment. The Ministry of Health (MOH) has been carrying out strategic planning for the last 15 years via the Health Sector Strategic Plans. Their assumption was that strategic planning would translate to strategic procurement and consequently, availability of medicals in the RRH’s. However, despite the existence of these plans, there have been many complaints about expired drugs and shortages in RRH’s. For this purpose, a third variable was important because it served the role of mediation. A questionnaire was used to obtain information on perceptions of 206 respondents who were selected using simple random sampling. 8 key informant interviews were held, 2 in each RRH. 4 Focus Group Discussions were held, 1 for each RRH, and between 5 and 8 staff took part as discussants for approximately three hours. The findings suggested that strategic planning was affected by funding to approximately 34% while the relationship between funding and procurement was 35%. The direct relationship between strategic planning and procurement was 18%. However when the total causal effect was computed it turned out that strategic planning and the related variable of funding contributed 77% to procurement of medicals under the current hierarchical model where MOH is charged with development of strategic plans for the entire health sector. Since even with this contribution there were complaints, the study proposed a new model called CALF which according to a simulation, if adopted by MOH, strategic planning would contribute 87% to effectiveness in procurement of medicals. PMID:28299158

MUSICAL LANGUAGE AND LEARNER`S PLANNING: WHEN THE TONES DON´T COINCIDE

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maria da Conceição Costa

2016-07-01

Full Text Available It´s about the music and its utilization in the initial years in the place it occupies deployment in class. By means of classroom observations with teachers of 2nd and 3th grade classes from a state public school in Pau dos Ferros city, RN and its respective plans, notes that in the lesson plans, the occupied place by music is focused on acquisition of contents approached in the subject taught on initial years. Both the lesson plans and the teaching practice have gaps in the clearly defined objectives, on coherence between what is placed in the plan into its items and the didactic transposition. Such finding contributes to an emptying of a work with the musical art while individual and collective professional that enable creative learner´s conduct relegating the educational role at school.

Daya Bay Nuclear Power Station five-year business plan and operating results

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang Shanming

2000-01-01

Guangdong Nuclear Power Joint Venture Company, Ltd. first 5-Year Business Plan (hereinafter referred to as 5-Year Business Plan) serves as guidance of both the operations and management of the company. Continuous performance improvement of the nuclear power station has been achieved through the fulfillment of goals and improvement plan defined by the 5-Year Business Plan, and through standard and systematic management. Daya Bay Nuclear Power Station (GNPS) has made great contributions to sustainable economic developments of both Guangdong and Hong Kong since its commercial operation in 1994. As of the end of 1999, the cumulative off-take electricity generated by GNPS had reached 69.9 billion kWh. Of the WANO indicators universally applied by nuclear power industry throughout the world, 6 indicators of Daya Bay performance entered the world top quartile while 9 the medium level

Hanford defined waste model limitations and improvements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

HARMSEN, R.W.

1999-01-01

Recommendation 93-5 Implementation Plan, Milestone 5,6.3.1.i requires issuance of this report which addresses ''updates to the tank contents model''. This report summarizes the review of the Hanford Defined Waste, Revision 4, model limitations and provides conclusions and recommendations for potential updates to the model

Software Defined Radio Architecture Contributions to Next Generation Space Communications

Science.gov (United States)

Kacpura, Thomas J.; Eddy, Wesley M.; Smith, Carl R.; Liebetreu, John

2015-01-01

systems, as well as those communications and navigation systems operated by international space agencies and civilian and government agencies. In this paper, we review the philosophies, technologies, architectural attributes, mission services, and communications capabilities that form the structure of candidate next-generation integrated communication architectures for space communications and navigation. A key area that this paper explores is from the development and operation of the software defined radio for the NASA Space Communications and Navigation (SCaN) Testbed currently on the International Space Station (ISS). Evaluating the lessons learned from development and operation feed back into the communications architecture. Leveraging the reconfigurability provides a change in the way that operations are done and must be considered. Quantifying the impact on the NASA Space Telecommunications Radio System (STRS) software defined radio architecture provides feedback to keep the standard useful and up to date. NASA is not the only customer of these radios. Software defined radios are developed for other applications, and taking advantage of these developments promotes an architecture that is cost effective and sustainable. Developments in the following areas such as an updated operating environment, higher data rates, networking and security can be leveraged. The ability to sustain an architecture that uses radios for multiple markets can lower costs and keep new technology infused.

Introducing and modeling inefficiency contributions

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Asmild, Mette; Kronborg, Dorte; Matthews, Kent

2016-01-01

-called inefficiency contributions, which are defined as the relative contributions from specific variables to the overall levels of inefficiencies. A statistical model for distinguishing the inefficiency contributions between subgroups is proposed and the method is illustrated on a data set on Chinese banks....

Employer contribution and premium growth in health insurance.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Yiyan; Jin, Ginger Zhe

2015-01-01

We study whether employer premium contribution schemes could impact the pricing behavior of health plans and contribute to rising premiums. Using 1991-2011 data before and after a 1999 premium subsidy policy change in the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program (FEHBP), we find that the employer premium contribution scheme has a differential impact on health plan pricing based on two market incentives: 1) consumers are less price sensitive when they only need to pay part of the premium increase, and 2) each health plan has an incentive to increase the employer's premium contribution to that plan. Both incentives are found to contribute to premium growth. Counterfactual simulation shows that average premium would have been 10% less than observed and the federal government would have saved 15% per year on its premium contribution had the subsidy policy change not occurred in the FEHBP. We discuss the potential of similar incentives in other government-subsidized insurance systems such as the Medicare Part D and the Health Insurance Marketplace under the Affordable Care Act. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Improve strategic supplier performance using DMAIC to develop a Quality Improvement Plan

Science.gov (United States)

Jardim, Kevin P.

Supplier performance that meets the requirements of the customer has long plagued quality professionals. Despite the vast efforts by organizations to improve supplier performance, little has been done to standardize the plan to improve performance. This project presents a guideline and problem-solving strategy using a Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, and Control (DMAIC) structured tool that will assist in the management and improvement of supplier performance. An analysis of benchmarked Quality Improvement Plans indicated that this topic needs more focus on how to accomplish improved supplier performance. This project is part of a growing body of supplier continuous improvement efforts. With the input of Zodiac Aerospace quality professionals this project's results provide a solution to Quality Improvement Plans and show objective evidence of its benefits. This project contributes to the future research on similar topics.

20 CFR 1002.262 - When is the employer required to make the plan contribution that is attributable to the employee...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... 20 Employees' Benefits 3 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false When is the employer required to make the plan contribution that is attributable to the employee's period of uniformed service? 1002.262 Section 1002.262 Employees' Benefits OFFICE OF THE ASSISTANT SECRETARY FOR VETERANS' EMPLOYMENT AND TRAINING SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF LABOR REGULATIONS UNDER...

Workspace experiments: a journey on planning participatory design

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Souza da Conceição, Carolina; Broberg, Ole

2017-01-01

Summative Statement: This paper presents a resource material in planning and performing participatory workspace design processes. This material brings up design dialogues into focus and gives insights on how to stage them, bridging the gap of merging user involvement with the well-defined design...... work-practice. Problem statement: There is a widespread interest in implementing user involvement in major building and construction projects. Nevertheless, it is also often difficult to translate the contributions from users to workspace design that seriously take on board the employees’ specific work...... practices as a platform for a desired change. There is a need of tool that manages to travel into a well-defined design work-practice and merge with it. Research Objective: We developed a resource material to merge user involvement within current designers’ practices when designing new workspaces. The aim...

Planning for agroforestry

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Budd, W.W.; Duchhart, I.; Hardesty, L.N.; Steiner, F.

1990-01-01

In this book a selection of contributions to the international symposium "Planning for agroforestry", held at Washington State University on April 24-27, 1989, is published. First the planning for agroforestry and agroforestry diagnosis and design is viewed over. Then the planning for and

76 FR 3648 - NIMS Training Plan

Science.gov (United States)

2011-01-20

...] NIMS Training Plan AGENCY: Federal Emergency Management Agency, DHS. ACTION: Notice of availability... comments on the NIMS Training Plan. This plan defines National Incident Management System (NIMS) national... sustaining NIMS training. In addition to delineating responsibilities and actions, the NIMS Training Plan...

'Resilience thinking' in transport planning

OpenAIRE

Wang, JYT

2015-01-01

Resilience has been discussed in ecology for over forty years. While some aspects of resilience have received attention in transport planning, there is no unified definition of resilience in transportation. To define resilience in transportation, I trace back to the origin of resilience in ecology with a view of revealing the essence of resilience thinking and its relevance to transport planning. Based on the fundamental concepts of engineering resilience and ecological resilience, I define "...

Defining Usability of PN Services

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Nicolajsen, Hanne Westh; Ahola, Titta; Fleury, Alexandre

In this deliverable usability and user experience are defined in relation to MAGNET Beyond technologies, and it is described how the main MAGNET Beyond concepts can be evaluated through the involvement of users. The concepts include the new "Activity based communication approach" for interacting...... with the MAGNET Beyond system, as well as the core concepts: Personal Network, Personal Network-Federation, Service Discovery, User Profile Management, Personal Network Management, Privacy and Security and Context Awareness. The overall plans for the final usability evaluation are documented based on the present...

Fly-by-light flight control system technology development plan

Science.gov (United States)

Chakravarty, A.; Berwick, J. W.; Griffith, D. M.; Marston, S. E.; Norton, R. L.

1990-01-01

The results of a four-month, phased effort to develop a Fly-by-Light Technology Development Plan are documented. The technical shortfalls for each phase were identified and a development plan to bridge the technical gap was developed. The production configuration was defined for a 757-type airplane, but it is suggested that the demonstration flight be conducted on the NASA Transport Systems Research Vehicle. The modifications required and verification and validation issues are delineated in this report. A detailed schedule for the phased introduction of fly-by-light system components has been generated. It is concluded that a fiber-optics program would contribute significantly toward developing the required state of readiness that will make a fly-by-light control system not only cost effective but reliable without mitigating the weight and high-energy radio frequency related benefits.

Views on planning and expectations of SEA: the case of transport planning

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hilden, Mikael; Furman, Eeva; Kaljonen, Minna

2004-01-01

This paper examines the effectiveness of strategic environmental assessment (SEA) in transport planning in the light of different views of planning: synoptic optimising planning, communicative planning and planning as a social struggle. The analysis uses empirical materials from 17 case studies collected by survey from Member Countries of the United Nation's Economic Commission for Europe (UN/ECE) and further processed in a practitioners' workshop, and also a detailed case study carried out in Finland. The case studies and the workshop identified a set of necessary conditions and facilitating factors that contribute to the effectiveness of strategic environmental assessments in transport planning. Our findings suggest that transport planning can often best be characterised as a social struggle over problem definitions and future choices. Thus, the effectiveness of SEA will depend on how well the assessment fits into the planning context and on its actual contribution to debates on problem definitions. Specific procedural steps may improve the effectiveness but explicit requirements to recognise SEA in decision making are likely to be a key condition

US ITER Management Plan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1991-12-01

This US ITER Management Plan is the plan for conducting the Engineering Design Activities within the US. The plan applies to all design, analyses, and associated physics and technology research and development (R ampersand D) required to support the program. The plan defines the management considerations associated with these activities. The plan also defines the management controls that the project participants will follow to establish, implement, monitor, and report these activities. The activities are to be conducted by the project in accordance with this plan. The plan will be updated to reflect the then-current management approach required to meet the project objectives. The plan will be reviewed at least annually for possible revision. Section 2 presents the ITER objectives, a brief description of the ITER concept as developed during the Conceptual Design Activities, and comments on the Engineering Design Activities. Section 3 discusses the planned international organization for the Engineering Design Activities, from which the tasks will flow to the US Home Team. Section 4 describes the US ITER management organization and responsibilities during the Engineering Design Activities. Section 5 describes the project management and control to be used to perform the assigned tasks during the Engineering Design Activities. Section 6 presents the references. Several appendices are provided that contain detailed information related to the front material

Did the Great Recession influence retirement plans?

Science.gov (United States)

Szinovacz, Maximiliane E; Davey, Adam; Martin, Lauren

2015-04-01

The recent recession constitutes one of the macro forces that may have influenced workers' retirement plans. We evaluate a multilevel model that addresses the influence of macro-, meso-, and micro-level factors on retirement plans, changes in these plans, and expected retirement age. Using data from Waves 8 and 9 of the Health and Retirement Study (N=2,618), we find that individuals with defined benefit plans are more prone to change toward plans to stop work before the stock market declined, whereas the opposite trend holds for those without pensions. Debts, ability to reduce work hours, and firm unionization also influenced retirement plans. Findings suggest retirement planning education may be particularly important for workers without defined pensions, especially in times of economic volatility. © The Author(s) 2014.

Employer Contribution and Premium Growth in Health Insurance

OpenAIRE

Yiyan Liu; Ginger Zhe Jin

2013-01-01

We study whether employer premium contribution schemes could impact the pricing behavior of health plans and contribute to rising premiums. Using 1991-2011 data before and after a 1999 premium subsidy policy change in the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program (FEHBP), we find that the employer premium contribution scheme has a differential impact on health plan pricing based on two market incentives: 1) consumers are less price sensitive when they only need to pay part of the premium incr...

Evaluation of participatory planning: Lessons from Hungarian Natura 2000 management planning processes.

Science.gov (United States)

Kovács, Eszter; Kelemen, Eszter; Kiss, Gabriella; Kalóczkai, Ágnes; Fabók, Veronika; Mihók, Barbara; Megyesi, Boldizsár; Pataki, György; Bodorkós, Barbara; Balázs, Bálint; Bela, Györgyi; Margóczi, Katalin; Roboz, Ágnes; Molnár, Dániel

2017-12-15

Stakeholder participation in nature conservation policies and especially in the management of protected areas has gained importance in the last decades. These changes are underlined by democratic principles and the perceived contribution of stakeholder involvement to the effectiveness of conservation management. Evaluating participatory processes is essential to learn about the past and thus increase the quality of future processes. The evaluation can be useful for the organisations responsible for planning and management, stakeholders and policy makers as well. The present paper shows the results of a systematic evaluation of 25 participatory processes related to the development of management plans for Natura 2000 sites in Hungary between 2007 and 2015. A conceptual framework was developed to evaluate the process and outcome of participatory management planning processes. Criteria were based on the scientific literature on public participation and tailored to conservation-related management planning and stakeholder involvement. Evaluated processes were grouped in three cases based on their time range and financial sources. Overall, the analysed processes scored at a medium level, showing better performance in the process criteria than in the outcome criteria. The best case scored significantly higher in four criteria compared to the other cases: representativeness, resource availability for facilitation, new, creative ideas and impact on the plan. The main factors behind the success were (1) embeddedness of the planning process in a larger project, where the plan was a tool for conservation, (2) carrying out only one process at a time, (3) previous experience of facilitators and planners with participatory planning and (4) the opportunity and capacity to propose a payment scheme as an incentive. But even this case received low scores in some criteria: conflict resolution, early involvement and well defined goals. Based on the results we suggest that more data is

Creating a Marketing Plan.

Science.gov (United States)

Sevier, Robert A.

1989-01-01

A guide to developing a college marketing plan defines key marketing terms, outlines the development of a plan (including institutional analysis, market research, strategy formation and execution, and program evaluation), and provides a list of important principles with which to operate a program. (MSE)

26 CFR 1.401(a)(9)-5 - Required minimum distributions from defined contribution plans.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... OF THE TREASURY (CONTINUED) INCOME TAX (CONTINUED) INCOME TAXES Pension, Profit-Sharing, Stock Bonus... by the purchase of an annuity contract from an insurance company in accordance with A-4 of § 1.401(a... invested only in productive assets. A named a testamentary trust (Trust P) established under A's will as...

Environmental Restoration Information Resource Management Program Plan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1994-09-01

The Environmental Restoration Information Resources Management (ER IRM) Program Plan defines program requirements, organizational structures and responsibilities, and work breakdown structure and to establish an approved baseline against which overall progress of the program as well as the effectiveness of its management will be measured. This plan will guide ER IRM Program execution and define the program's essential elements. This plan will be routinely updated to incorporate key decisions and programmatic changes and will serve as the project baseline document. Environmental Restoration Waste Management Program intersite procedures and work instructions will be developed to facilitate the implementation of this plan

Environmental Restoration Information Resource Management Program Plan

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

1994-09-01

The Environmental Restoration Information Resources Management (ER IRM) Program Plan defines program requirements, organizational structures and responsibilities, and work breakdown structure and to establish an approved baseline against which overall progress of the program as well as the effectiveness of its management will be measured. This plan will guide ER IRM Program execution and define the program`s essential elements. This plan will be routinely updated to incorporate key decisions and programmatic changes and will serve as the project baseline document. Environmental Restoration Waste Management Program intersite procedures and work instructions will be developed to facilitate the implementation of this plan.

Cooperative epistemic multi-agent planning for implicit coordination

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Engesser, Thorsten; Bolander, Thomas; Mattmüller, Robert

2017-01-01

framework to include perspective shifts, allowing us to define new notions of sequential and conditional planning with implicit coordination. With these, it is possible to solve planning tasks with joint goals in a decentralized manner without the agents having to negotiate about and commit to a joint...... policy at plan time. First we define the central planning notions and sketch the implementation of a planning system built on those notions. Afterwards we provide some case studies in order to evaluate the planner empirically and to show that the concept is useful for multi-agent systems in practice....

26 CFR 1.414(l)-1 - Mergers and consolidations of plans or transfers of plan assets.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... 26 Internal Revenue 5 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Mergers and consolidations of plans or transfers... Plans, Etc. § 1.414(l)-1 Mergers and consolidations of plans or transfers of plan assets. (a) In general... qualified under section 403 (a) and 405 (a), unless, in the case of a merger or consolidation (as defined in...

Methodological proposal for defining mining vocation in Venezuelan land-use planning; Propuesta metodologica para definir la vocacion minera en el contexto del ordenamiento territorial venezolano

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Valladares Salinas, R. Y.; Dall Pozzo, F.; Castillo Padron, A. J.

2015-07-01

Mining is an economic activity which is necessary to provide raw materials for the different socio-productive networks of the country. Its application depends on the mineralogical occurrence offered by the geological conditions of an area and requires planning due to the fact that it needs to be located in a geographical space and the environment fragility of this space and the socio-economic and political-institutional legislation at a given moment all have to be taken into account. Therefore, the objective of this research consists of a proposal for a methodological model to define areas with mining adapted to the Venezuelan context of land-use planning, in order to assign mining uses to the most appropriate areas for that goal, considering the selection, assessment and integration of a series of variables and indicators adjusted to the thematic information available. (Author)

Systems Engineering Management Plan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1994-01-01

The purpose of this Monitored Retrievable Storage (MRS) Project Systems Engineering Management Plan (SEMP) is to define and establish the MRS Project Systems Engineering process that implements the approved policy and requirements of the Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management (OCRWM) for the US Department of Energy (DOE). This plan is Volume 5 of the MRS Project Management Plan (PMP). This plan provides the framework for implementation of systems engineering on the MRS Project consistent with DOE Order 4700.1, the OCRWM Program Management System Manual (PMSM), and the OCRWM Systems Engineering Management Plan (SEMP)

UK experience of planning the nuclear contribution to the UK power programme

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Catchpole, S.; Jenkin, F.P.

1977-01-01

The paper outlines U.K. experience in planning nuclear programmes. It examines the factors which have determined the size of such programmes together with those factors which have influenced their implementation. The paper also discusses the role which the utility has played in the deployment of nuclear power in the U.K. At present, nuclear energy can only be utilised on a large scale via the electricity route and the forecasting of electricity demand is therefore a key element in determining the size of the nuclear programme. Other important issues which affect the nuclear contribution are: national fuel policies, discontinuities in price and availability of imported fossil fuels, plant capital costs, fuel price relativities, plant siting, rate of introduction of new nuclear systems, manufacturer's capability, public attitudes towards nuclear power and financing. These issues are dealt with in some detail including their relative importance in the U.K. The paper also discusses the contribution of the various nuclear bodies in the U.K. in securing the implementation of the nuclear programmes. From the inception of nuclear power in the U.K., it has been recognised that a major utility has a central role to play not only in commercial operation but also in the procurement of plant and materials. As explained in the paper this ''informed buyer'' approach, which is being increasingly adopted by other major utilities, calls for an organisation and technical infrastructure far more complex than is the case for fossil plants. The requirements of safety, which is unambiguously the responsibility of the utility, and of high availability of plant operation demand a rigorous approach to design, quality assurance, project management, construction and operation. To this must be added sound research and development and staff training facilities. The paper explains how experience in these vital areas has been built up

Tunnel boring waste test plan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Patricio, J.G.

1984-03-01

The test plan has been prepared in anticipation of the need to excavate certain repository openings by relying upon mechanical excavation techniques. The test plan proposes that specific technical issues can be resolved and key design parameters defined by excavating openings in basalt near the surface, utilizing a full face tunnel boring machine (TBM). The purpose and objective of this type of testing will define the overall feasibility and attributes of mechanical excavation in basalt. The test plan recognizes that although this technology is generally available for underground construction for some geologic settings, the current state of technology for excavation in basalt is limited and the potential for improvement is considerable. The test plan recommends that it is economically advantageous to conduct additional testing in the laboratory to allow refinement of this plan based on the laboratory results. Thus, this test plan is considered preliminary in nature, with respect to detailed testing recommendations. However, the gross design attributes and resource requirements of a near-surface TBM demonstration are considered to be valid. 15 refs., 7 figs., 3 tabs

Comparison of CT-based 3D treatment planning with simulator planning of pelvic irradiation of primary cervical carcinoma

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Knocke, T.H.; Pokrajac, B.; Fellner, C.; Poetter, R.

1999-01-01

In a prospective study on 20 subsequent patients with primary cervical carcinoma in Stages I to III simulator planning of a 4-field box-technique was performed. After defining the planning target volume (PTV) in the 3D planning system the field configuration of the simulator planning was transmitted. The resulting plan was compared to a second one based on the defined PTV and evaluated regarding a possible geographical miss and encompassment of the PTV by the treated volume (ICRU). Volumes of open and shaped portals were calculated for both techniques. Planning by simulation resulted in 1 geographical miss and in 10 more cases the encompassment of the PTV by the treated volume was inadequate. For a PTV of mean 1 729 cm 3 the mean volume defined by simulation was 3 120 cm 3 for the open portals and 2 702 cm 3 for the shaped portals. The volume reduction by blocks was 13,4% (mean). With CT-based 3D treatment planning the volume of the open portals was 3,3% (mean) enlarged to 3 224 cm 3 . The resulting mean volume of the shaped portals was 2 458 ccm. The reduction compared to the open portals was 23,8% (mean). The treated volumes were 244 cm 3 or 9% (mean) smaller compared to simulator planning. The 'treated volume/planning target volume ratio' was decreased from 1.59 to 1.42. (orig.) [de

Integrating human resources and program-planning strategies.

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, J E

1989-06-01

The integration of human resources management (HRM) strategies with long-term program-planning strategies in hospital pharmacy departments is described. HRM is a behaviorally based, comprehensive strategy for the effective management and use of people that seeks to achieve coordination and integration with overall planning strategies and other managerial functions. It encompasses forecasting of staffing requirements; determining work-related factors that are strong "motivators" and thus contribute to employee productivity and job satisfaction; conducting a departmental personnel and skills inventory; employee career planning and development, including training and education programs; strategies for promotion and succession, including routes of advancement that provide alternatives to the managerial route; and recruitment and selection of new personnel to meet changing departmental needs. Increased competitiveness among hospitals and a shortage of pharmacists make it imperative that hospital pharmacy managers create strategies to attract, develop, and retain the right individuals to enable the department--and the hospital as a whole--to grow and change in response to the changing health-care environment in the United States. Pharmacy managers would be greatly aided in this mission by the establishment of a well-defined, national strategic plan for pharmacy programs and services that includes an analysis of what education and training are necessary for their successful accomplishment. Creation of links between overall program objectives and people-planning strategies will aid hospital pharmacy departments in maximizing the long-term effectiveness of their practice.

Employer-sponsored pension plans

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rakonjac-Antić Tatjana N.

2004-01-01

Full Text Available Apart from pension plans within social insurance, in developed pension systems there are also available to individuals schemes which may to a large extent ensure a significant part of their total pension. Among them are the following: employer-sponsored pension plans or individual pension plans. The most widely used employer-sponsored pension plan in the USA is 401(k, in which both the employer and the employee contribute to the financing of the pension. These contributions as well as the return to their investment have a preferential tax treatment, i.e. do not enter a tax base. The funds are taxed only when drawn from the account in the form of a pension. This paper aims to present the functioning of 401(k pension plan as the most widely used employer sponsored pension plan in the USA, which is likely, in a modified form, to have an important place within our future reformed pension insurance system.

Productivity and Performance through Marketing Planning

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cristian Morozan

2008-11-01

Full Text Available In the marketing area, planning might be defined as an anticipation process of those changes that affect the market and as an elaboration process of the corresponding action means. It will result in a marketing plan, which might be tactical (short-term period, spread on a period of time that might vary from six months to one year, or a strategic (long-term, spread on a period of time of three to ten years. Planning means building action programs in which the objectives, the set financing method or the steps of achieving it should be clearly defined. Marketing planning also proves to be important for its liaison between what the company can offer and the consumers’ needs and expectations.

Continual improvement plan

Science.gov (United States)

1994-01-01

NASA's approach to continual improvement (CI) is a systems-oriented, agency-wide approach that builds on the past accomplishments of NASA Headquarters and its field installations and helps achieve NASA's vision, mission, and values. The NASA of the future will fully use the principles of continual improvement in every aspect of its operations. This NASA CI plan defines a systematic approach and a model for continual improvement throughout NASA, stressing systems integration and optimization. It demonstrates NASA's constancy of purpose for improvement - a consistent vision of NASA as a worldwide leader in top-quality science, technology, and management practices. The CI plan provides the rationale, structures, methods, and steps, and it defines NASA's short term (1-year) objectives for improvement. The CI plan presents the deployment strategies necessary for cascading the goals and objectives throughout the agency. It also provides guidance on implementing continual improvement with participation from top leadership and all levels of employees.

South Dakota ITS/CVO business plan : final business plan

Science.gov (United States)

1998-01-18

This report defines an Intelligent Transportation Systems/Commercial Vehicle Operations (ITS/CVO) program for the State of South Dakota. Structured as a business plan, the document includes the following components: 1) description of the current CVO ...

Applying the model of Goal-Directed Behavior, including descriptive norms, to physical activity intentions: A contribution to improving the Theory of Planned Behavior

Science.gov (United States)

The theory of planned behavior (TPB) has received its fair share of criticism lately, including calls for it to retire. We contributed to improving the theory by testing extensions such as the model of goal-directed behavior (MGDB, which adds desire and anticipated positive and negative emotions) ap...

Primate amygdala neurons evaluate the progress of self-defined economic choice sequences.

Science.gov (United States)

Grabenhorst, Fabian; Hernadi, Istvan; Schultz, Wolfram

2016-10-12

The amygdala is a prime valuation structure yet its functions in advanced behaviors are poorly understood. We tested whether individual amygdala neurons encode a critical requirement for goal-directed behavior: the evaluation of progress during sequential choices. As monkeys progressed through choice sequences toward rewards, amygdala neurons showed phasic, gradually increasing responses over successive choice steps. These responses occurred in the absence of external progress cues or motor preplanning. They were often specific to self-defined sequences, typically disappearing during instructed control sequences with similar reward expectation. Their build-up rate reflected prospectively the forthcoming choice sequence, suggesting adaptation to an internal plan. Population decoding demonstrated a high-accuracy progress code. These findings indicate that amygdala neurons evaluate the progress of planned, self-defined behavioral sequences. Such progress signals seem essential for aligning stepwise choices with internal plans. Their presence in amygdala neurons may inform understanding of human conditions with amygdala dysfunction and deregulated reward pursuit.

Planning principles as integral tool of financial planning implementation at enterprise

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A.V. Overchuk

2016-09-01

Full Text Available The main problems of using financial planning tools, namely its principles, in order to achieve an effective system of financial planning at the enterprise are considered. Planning is an integral part of management and provides achievement of sustainable enterprise development, that is why, effective financial planning is the necessary means of realization of the main objective of the company – profit maximization. It is determined that the principles of financial planning are the objective category of planning science, which serves as a starting fundamental concept that expresses the cumulative effect of a number of laws. In addition, on the base of the aggregation and analysis of planning principles the system of financial planning principles is specified, providing efficient financial planning and control functions use, achievement of the mission and objectives of the economic entity activity management and ensuring of its profitability. The scientific novelty of the research lies in the specification of financial planning principles defining at the enterprise and their semantic characteristics

Performance Confirmation Plan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lindner, E.N.

2000-01-01

As described, the purpose of the Performance Confirmation Plan is to specify monitoring, testing, and analysis activities for evaluating the accuracy and adequacy of the information used to determine that performance objectives for postclosure will be met. This plan defines a number of specific performance confirmation activities and associated test concepts in support of the MGR that will be implemented to fulfill this purpose. In doing so, the plan defines an approach to identify key factors and processes, predict performance, establish tolerances and test criteria, collect data (through monitoring, testing, and experiments), analyze these data, and recommend appropriate action. The process of defining which factors to address under performance confirmation incorporates input from several areas. In all cases, key performance confirmation factors are those factors which are: (1) important to safety, (2) measurable and predictable, and (3) relevant to the program (i.e., a factor that is affected by construction, emplacement, or is a time-dependent variable). For the present version of the plan, performance confirmation factors important to safety are identified using the principal factors from the RSS (CRWMS M and O 2000a) (which is derived from TSPA analyses) together with other available performance assessment analyses. With this basis, key performance confirmation factors have been identified, and test concepts and test descriptions have been developed in the plan. Other activities are also incorporated into the performance confirmation program outside of these key factors. Additional activities and tests have been incorporated when they are prescribed by requirements and regulations or are necessary to address data needs and model validation requirements relevant to postclosure safety. These other activities have been included with identified factors to construct the overall performance confirmation program

Performance Confirmation Plan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lindner, E.N.

2000-01-01

As described, the purpose of the Performance Confirmation Plan is to specify monitoring, testing, and analysis activities for evaluating the accuracy and adequacy of the information used to determine that performance objectives for postclosure will be met. This plan defines a number of specific performance confirmation activities and associated test concepts in support of the MGR that will be implemented to fulfill this purpose. In doing so, the plan defines an approach to identify key factors and processes, predict performance, establish tolerances and test criteria, collect data (through monitoring, testing, and experiments), analyze these data, and recommend appropriate action. The process of defining which factors to address under performance confirmation incorporates input from several areas. In all cases, key performance confirmation factors are those factors which are: (1) important to safety, (2) measurable and predictable, and (3) relevant to the program (i.e., a factor that i s affected by construction, emplacement, or is a time-dependent variable). For the present version of the plan, performance confirmation factors important to safety are identified using the principal factors from the RSS (CRWMS M and O 2000a) (which is derived from TSPA analyses) together with other available performance assessment analyses. With this basis, key performance confirmation factors have been identified, and test concepts and test descriptions have been developed in the plan. Other activities are also incorporated into the performance confirmation program outside of these key factors. Additional activities and tests have been incorporated when they are prescribed by requirements and regulations or are necessary to address data needs and model validation requirements relevant to postclosure safety. These other activities have been included with identified factors to construct the overall performance confirmation program

Waste feed delivery test and evaluation plan

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

O' TOOLE, S.M.

1999-09-30

This plan documents the Waste Feed Delivery Program test and evaluation planning and implementation approach. The purpose of this document is to define and communicate the Waste Feed Delivery Program Test and Evaluation scope, objectives, planning and implementation approach.

Waste feed delivery test and evaluation plan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

O'TOOLE, S.M.

1999-01-01

This plan documents the Waste Feed Delivery Program test and evaluation planning and implementation approach. The purpose of this document is to define and communicate the Waste Feed Delivery Program Test and Evaluation scope, objectives, planning and implementation approach

75 FR 64197 - Additional Rules Regarding Hybrid Retirement Plans

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-19

... regulations which include in the definition of an applicable defined benefit plan any defined benefit plan (or... benefits as the current value of an accumulated percentage of the participant's final average compensation... accumulated percentage of the participant's final average compensation and (2) the benefit attributable to...

EMI Registry Development Plan

CERN Document Server

Memon, S.; Szigeti, G.; Field, L.

2012-01-01

This documents describes the overall development plan of the EMI Registry product, the plan focuses on the realisation of the EMI Registry specification as defined in the document. It is understood that during the course of the development phase the specification will likely evolve and the changes will be fed into the specification document.

An action plan for radioactive substances regulation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1998-01-01

This document sets out an action plan for the Agency's Radioactive Substances Regulation function. Our vision is to secure continuous improvement in the protection of the public and the environment from the harmful effects of radioactive substances. Radioactive Substances Regulation will work with others to realise this vision and contribute to the Agency's role in achieving sustainable development. We will also work to ensure that the Agency achieves its objectives in an efficient, consistent and integrated way. The main elements of our Action Plan are as follows: establishing indicators of sustainability and the means and methods of monitoring them; establishing performance indicators and a programme of targets and objectives to be achieved; establishing a database of all premises subject to RSA93 and to use it for work planning, resource targeting, and improvement to radioactive waste management; provision of systems of procedures and technical guidance to ensure nationally consistent and cost- effective regulation; establishing systems to audit the implementation of the procedures and guidance; ensuring quality of regulation by defining technical competencies of inspectors and the training programmes to secure them; an R and D programme targeted on improving radioactive waste management and radioactive substances regulation; and full and effective participation in development of national policy

Program plan for the DOE Office of Fusion Energy First Wall/Blanket/Shield Engineering Technology Program. Volume I. Summary, objectives and management. Revision 2

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1982-08-01

This document defines a plan for conducting selected aspects of the engineering testing required for magnetic fusion reactor FWBS components and systems. The ultimate product of this program is an established data base that contributes to a functional, reliable, maintainable, economically attractive, and environmentally acceptable commercial fusion reactor first wall, blanket, and shield system. This program plan updates the initial plan issued in November of 1980 by the DOE/Office of Fusion Energy (unnumbered report). The plan consists of two parts. Part I is a summary of activities, responsibilities and program management including reporting and interfaces with other programs. Part II is a compilation of the Detailed Technical Plans for Phase I (1982 to 1984) developed by the participants during Phase 0 of the program

Management Cycle: from Planning to Evaluation

OpenAIRE

Kova?i?, Luka; Jakši?, Želimir

2008-01-01

The planning process in health care known as management cycle or cycle of organization and management is described. The cycle is divided in four main elements: planning, organization, implementation and evaluation. Each element is defined and described.

Project implementation plan: ASTD remote deployment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

CRASS, D.W.

1999-01-01

This document is the project implementation plan for the ASTD Remote Deployment Project. The Plan identifies the roles and responsibilities for the project and defines the integration between the ASTD Project and the B-Cell Cleanout Project

Test plan for FY-91 dust control studies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Winberg, M.R.

1991-03-01

This test plan defines basic test procedures for testing commercially available vendor products as soil fixatives and dust suppression agents to determine their capability to control fugitive dust generation during transuranic waste retrieval and handling operations. A description of the test apparatus and methods are provided in this test plan. This test plan defines the sampling procedures, controls, and analytical methods for the samples collected. Data management is discussed, as well as quality assurance and safety requirements for the study. 6 refs., 5 figs

Defining, Developing, and Measuring "Proclivities for Teaching Mathematics"

Science.gov (United States)

Lewis, Jennifer M.; Fischman, Davida; Riggs, Matt

2015-01-01

This article presents a form of teacher reasoning that we call "proclivities for teaching mathematics." We define proclivities for teaching mathematics as the beliefs, knowledge, and dispositions that are actionable in the flow of instruction, and we argue that growth in this area contributes to positive change in mathematics…

Definably compact groups definable in real closed fields. I

OpenAIRE

Barriga, Eliana

2017-01-01

We study definably compact definably connected groups definable in a sufficiently saturated real closed field $R$. We introduce the notion of group-generic point for $\\bigvee$-definable groups and show the existence of group-generic points for definably compact groups definable in a sufficiently saturated o-minimal expansion of a real closed field. We use this notion along with some properties of generic sets to prove that for every definably compact definably connected group $G$ definable in...

5 CFR 891.401 - Government contributions.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... (CONTINUED) RETIRED FEDERAL EMPLOYEES HEALTH BENEFITS Contributions and Withholdings § 891.401 Government... receive a Government contribution toward his or her cost of coverage for: (A) A private health insurance... and who has elected to enroll for self and family in the uniform plan. (b) For retired employees and...

A case study of IMRT planning (Plan B) subsequent to a previously treated IMRT plan (Plan A)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2Department of Radiation Oncology, Fraser Valley Centre, BC Cancer Agency, Surrey, British Columbia (Canada))" data-affiliation=" (Department of Medical Physics and 2Department of Radiation Oncology, Fraser Valley Centre, BC Cancer Agency, Surrey, British Columbia (Canada))" >Cao, F; 2Department of Radiation Oncology, Fraser Valley Centre, BC Cancer Agency, Surrey, British Columbia (Canada))" data-affiliation=" (Department of Medical Physics and 2Department of Radiation Oncology, Fraser Valley Centre, BC Cancer Agency, Surrey, British Columbia (Canada))" >Leong, C; 2Department of Radiation Oncology, Fraser Valley Centre, BC Cancer Agency, Surrey, British Columbia (Canada))" data-affiliation=" (Department of Medical Physics and 2Department of Radiation Oncology, Fraser Valley Centre, BC Cancer Agency, Surrey, British Columbia (Canada))" >Schroeder, J; 2Department of Radiation Oncology, Fraser Valley Centre, BC Cancer Agency, Surrey, British Columbia (Canada))" data-affiliation=" (Department of Medical Physics and 2Department of Radiation Oncology, Fraser Valley Centre, BC Cancer Agency, Surrey, British Columbia (Canada))" >Lee, B

2014-01-01

Background and purpose: Treatment of the contralateral neck after previous ipsilateral intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) for head and neck cancer is a challenging problem. We have developed a technique that limits the cumulative dose to the spinal cord and brainstem while maximizing coverage of a planning target volume (PTV) in the contralateral neck. Our case involves a patient with right tonsil carcinoma who was given ipsilateral IMRT with 70Gy in 35 fractions (Plan A). A left neck recurrence was detected 14 months later. The patient underwent a neck dissection followed by postoperative left neck radiation to a dose of 66 Gy in 33 fractions (Plan B). Materials and Methods: The spinal cord-brainstem margin (SCBM) was defined as the spinal cord and brainstem with a 1.0 cm margin. Plan A was recalculated on the postoperative CT scan but the fluence outside of SCBM was deleted. A further modification of Plan A resulted in a base plan that was summed with Plan B to evaluate the cumulative dose received by the spinal cord and brainstem. Plan B alone was used to evaluate for coverage of the contralateral neck PTV. Results: The maximum cumulative doses to the spinal cord with 0.5cm margin and brainstem with 0.5cm margin were 51.96 Gy and 45.60 Gy respectively. For Plan B, 100% of the prescribed dose covered 95% of PTVb1. Conclusion: The use of a modified ipsilateral IMRT plan as a base plan is an effective way to limit the cumulative dose to the spinal cord and brainstem while enabling coverage of a PTV in the contralateral neck.

The role and importance of the strategic planning in bank marketing

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gheorghe PISTOL

2010-06-01

Full Text Available The paper aims to highlight the strategic planning role and place in bank marketing, define the concepts of strategic planning and marketing planning and the tactical planning, marketing plan and marketing program. In this context, the author emphasize the strategic marketing planning process and its implementation stages (defining the specific mission, environmental analysis, formulation of objectives, strategies, action plans and programs, implementation, testing, overhaul and performance evaluation. Also, are reviewed organizational and decision levels specific for the strategic planning, higher organizational level, strategic unit level and operational level and the criteria considered in formulating objectives: acceptability, flexibility, motivating character, clarity, feasibility and compatibility.

7 CFR 25.202 - Strategic plan.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... contributed to the planning process; (3) Identify the amount of State, local, and private resources that will... 7 Agriculture 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Strategic plan. 25.202 Section 25.202 Agriculture... Procedure § 25.202 Strategic plan. (a) Principles of strategic plan. The strategic plan included in the...

International benchmark and best practices on national infrastructure plans. Application to Spanish strategic planning

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pino Hernandez, E.M.; Delgado Quiralte, C.

2016-07-01

The need for planning regarding investment in infrastructures is recognised and supported by most governments around the world. Planning helps to take effective and correct decisions, provides a basis for monitoring its impacts and also facilitates further developments. However it requires a high level of organization, coordination among stakeholders and anticipation of transport needs. There are some different methodological approaches for strategic planning. This paper examines the importance of infrastructure planning and how it is undertaken in different countries from Europe and other continents. It is based on a benchmarking about planning procedures of 7 reference countries (UK, France, the Netherlands, Poland, Germany, Japan and USA), in addition to others whose strategic plans are being developed at the present moment such as Croatia or Romania. This benchmarking aims to extract and compare best practices carried out in this field and to define the optimal formulation of strategic planning. In this regard, the benchmarking is focused on some key aspects: firstly, on the plan structure and its main contents. There are a lot of differences about how each country defines the future needs for transport and how it establishes the objectives and the strategies to be followed. Secondly, on the characterisation of the authorities which are responsible of the plan development (level of dependence from the government, know-how…) along with the time frame and final validity of the plans. And finally, the level of detail of the proposed actions and budgetary commitments provided by the strategic plans. Throughout the comparative analysis, the knowledge generated by this benchmarking has allowed setting a series of specific recommendations in strategic planning which can be applied as innovative solutions and best practices in future planning processes in Spain. (Author)

Environmental development plan: magnetic fusion

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1979-09-01

This Environmental Development Plan (EDP) identifies the planning and management requirements and schedules needed to evaluate and assess the environmental, health and safety (EH and S) aspects of the Magnetic Fusion Energy Program (MFE). Environment is defined to include the environmental, health (occupational and public), and safety aspects

Equilibrium Investment Strategy for DC Pension Plan with Inflation and Stochastic Income under Heston’s SV Model

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jingyun Sun

2016-01-01

Full Text Available We consider a portfolio selection problem for a defined contribution (DC pension plan under the mean-variance criteria. We take into account the inflation risk and assume that the salary income process of the pension plan member is stochastic. Furthermore, the financial market consists of a risk-free asset, an inflation-linked bond, and a risky asset with Heston’s stochastic volatility (SV. Under the framework of game theory, we derive two extended Hamilton-Jacobi-Bellman (HJB equations systems and give the corresponding verification theorems in both the periods of accumulation and distribution of the DC pension plan. The explicit expressions of the equilibrium investment strategies, corresponding equilibrium value functions, and the efficient frontiers are also obtained. Finally, some numerical simulations and sensitivity analysis are presented to verify our theoretical results.

Reasoning about plans

CERN Document Server

Allen, James; Pelavin, Richard; Tenenberg, Josh

1991-01-01

This book presents four contributions to planning research within an integrated framework. James Allen offers a survey of his research in the field of temporal reasoning, and then describes a planning system formalized and implemented directly as an inference process in the temporal logic. Starting from the same logic, Henry Kautz develops the first formal specification of the plan recognition process and develops a powerful family of algorithms for plan recognition in complex situations. Richard Pelavin then extends the temporal logic with model operators that allow the representation to

Health Workforce Planning

Science.gov (United States)

Al-Sawai, Abdulaziz; Al-Shishtawy, Moeness M.

2015-01-01

In most countries, the lack of explicit health workforce planning has resulted in imbalances that threaten the capacity of healthcare systems to attain their objectives. This has directed attention towards the prospect of developing healthcare systems that are more responsive to the needs and expectations of the population by providing health planners with a systematic method to effectively manage human resources in this sector. This review analyses various approaches to health workforce planning and presents the Six-Step Methodology to Integrated Workforce Planning which highlights essential elements in workforce planning to ensure the quality of services. The purpose, scope and ownership of the approach is defined. Furthermore, developing an action plan for managing a health workforce is emphasised and a reviewing and monitoring process to guide corrective actions is suggested. PMID:25685381

What Does "Apple" Mean? Learning To Define Words.

Science.gov (United States)

Marinellie, Sally A.

2001-01-01

This article discusses the importance of learning to define a word. It provides a brief background on the contribution of the definitional skills to communication and school success, information on children's development of definitions, and teacher and family strategies for enhancing young children's definitions in relation to other skills.…

Lesson Planning the Kodaly Way.

Science.gov (United States)

Boshkoff, Ruth

1991-01-01

Discusses the contribution of Zoltan Kodaly to music lesson planning. Emphasizes preparation, presentation, and practice as the three important strategies in teaching concepts and skills to be included in a lesson plan. Includes a sample lesson plan covering a semester and advice on choosing song material. (DK)

Public affairs plan

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

1994-09-01

The purpose of the Uranium Mill Tailings Remedial Action (UMTRA) Project Public Affairs Plan is to establish goals for the Fiscal Year 1995 UMTRA public affairs program and identify specific activities to be conducted during the year. It also describes the roles of various agencies involved in the conduct of the public affairs program and defines the functions of the Technical Assistance Contractor (TAC) Public Affairs Department. It integrates and replaces the Public Participation Plan (DOE/AL/62350-47D) and Public Information Plan (DOE/AL/623590-71). The plan describes the US Department of Energy`s (DOE) plans to keep stakeholders and other members of the public informed about project policies, plans, and activities, and provide opportunities for stakeholders and interested segments of the public to participate in project decision-making processes. The plan applies to the UMTRA Project Office; the DOE Albuquerque Operations Office, Office of Intergovernmental and External Affairs (OIEA); the UMTRA TAC; the UMTRA Remedial Action Contractor (RAC); and other cooperating agencies.

Public affairs plan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1994-09-01

The purpose of the Uranium Mill Tailings Remedial Action (UMTRA) Project Public Affairs Plan is to establish goals for the Fiscal Year 1995 UMTRA public affairs program and identify specific activities to be conducted during the year. It also describes the roles of various agencies involved in the conduct of the public affairs program and defines the functions of the Technical Assistance Contractor (TAC) Public Affairs Department. It integrates and replaces the Public Participation Plan (DOE/AL/62350-47D) and Public Information Plan (DOE/AL/623590-71). The plan describes the US Department of Energy's (DOE) plans to keep stakeholders and other members of the public informed about project policies, plans, and activities, and provide opportunities for stakeholders and interested segments of the public to participate in project decision-making processes. The plan applies to the UMTRA Project Office; the DOE Albuquerque Operations Office, Office of Intergovernmental and External Affairs (OIEA); the UMTRA TAC; the UMTRA Remedial Action Contractor (RAC); and other cooperating agencies

Language Planning and Planned Languages: How Can Planned Languages Inform Language Planning?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Humphrey Tonkin

2015-04-01

Full Text Available The field of language planning (LP has largely ignored planned languages. Of classic descriptions of LP processes, only Tauli (preceded by Wüster suggests that planned languages (what Wüster calls Plansprache might bear on LP theory and practice. If LP aims "to modify the linguistic behaviour of some community for some reason," as Kaplan and Baldauf put it, creating a language de novo is little different. Language policy and planning are increasingly seen as more local and less official, and occasionally more international and cosmopolitan. Zamenhof's work on Esperanto provides extensive material, little studied, documenting the formation of the language and linking it particularly to issues of supranational LP. Defining LP decision-making, Kaplan & Baldauf begin with context and target population. Zamenhof's Esperanto came shortly before Ben-Yehuda's revived Hebrew. His target community was (mostly the world's educated elite; Ben-Yehuda's was worldwide Jewry. Both planners were driven not by linguistic interest but by sociopolitical ideology rooted in reaction to anti-Semitism and imbued with the idea of progress. Their territories had no boundaries, but were not imaginary. Function mattered as much as form (Haugen's terms, status as much as corpus. For Zamenhof, status planning involved emphasis on Esperanto's ownership by its community - a collective planning process embracing all speakers (cf. Hebrew. Corpus planning included a standardized European semantics, lexical selectivity based not simply on standardization but on representation, and the development of written, and literary, style. Esperanto was successful as linguistic system and community language, less as generally accepted lingua franca. Its terminology development and language cultivation offers a model for language revival, but Zamenhof's somewhat limited analysis of language economy left him unprepared to deal with language as power.

Scenario Planning as Organizational Intervention

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Balarezo, Jose; Nielsen, Bo Bernhard

2017-01-01

existing contributions on scenario planning within a new consolidating framework that includes antecedents, processes, and outcomes. The proposed framework allows for integration of the extant literature on scenario planning from a wide variety of fields, including strategic management, finance, human...... resource management, operations management, and psychology. Findings: This study contributes to research by offering a coherent and consistent framework for understanding scenario planning as a dynamic process. As such, it offers future researchers with a systematic way to ascertain where a particular......Purpose: This paper identifies four areas in need of future research to enhance our theoretical understanding of scenario planning, and sets the basis for future empirical examination of its effects on individual and organizational level outcomes. Design/methodology/approach: This paper organizes...

26 CFR 1.415(f)-1 - Aggregating plans.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

...). After the 2010 stock sale, XYZ Corporation continues to maintain Plan XYZ. LMN Corporation maintains a qualified defined benefit plan (Plan LMN). After the 2010 stock sale, M begins to accrue benefits under Plan... maintained by ABC Corporation after the 2010 stock sale. Under § 1.415(a)-1(f)(1), any plan maintained by any...

Tank waste remediation system programmatic risk management plan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Seaver, D.A.

1995-01-01

This risk management plan defines the approach to be taken to managing risks in the Tank Waste Remediation System (TWRS) program. It defines the actions to be taken at the overall program level, and the risk management requirements for lower-level projects and other activities. The primary focus of this plan is on ''programmatic'' risks, i.e., risks with respect to the cost, schedule, and technical performance of the program. The plan defines an approach providing managers with the flexibility to manage risks according to their specific needs, yet creates. The consistency needed for effectiveness across the program. The basic risk management approach uses a risk management list for the program, each project, and additional lower-level activities. The risk management list will be regularly reviewed and updated by appropriate level of management. Each list defines key risks, their likelihood and consequences, risk management actions to be taken, responsible individuals, and other management information

Plan demographics, participants' saving behavior, and target-date fund investments.

Science.gov (United States)

Park, Youngkyun

2009-05-01

This analysis explores (1) whether plan demographic characteristics would affect individual participant contribution rates and target-date fund investments and (2) equity glide paths for participants in relation to plan demographics by considering target replacement income and its success rate. PLAN DEMOGRAPHIC CHARACTERISTICS IN PARTICIPANT CONTRIBUTION RATES: This study finds empirical evidence that 401(k) plan participants' contribution rates differ by plan demographics based on participants' income and/or tenure. In particular, participants in 401(k) plans dominated by those with low income and short tenure tend to contribute less than those in plans dominated by participants with high income and long tenure. Future research will explore how participant contribution behavior may also be influenced by incentives provided by employers through matching formulae. PLAN DEMOGRAPHIC CHARACTERISTICS IN TARGET-DATE FUND INVESTMENTS: The study also finds empirical evidence that participants' investments in target-date funds with different equity allocations differ by plan demographics based on participants' income and/or tenure. In particular, target-date fund users with 90 percent or more of their account balances in target-date funds who are in 401(k) plans dominated by low-income and short-tenure participants tend to hold target-date funds with lower equity allocations, compared with their counterparts in plans dominated by high-income and long-tenure participants. Future research will focus on the extent to which these characteristics might influence the selection of target-date funds by plan sponsors. EQUITY GLIDE PATHS: Several stylized equity glide paths as well as alternative asset allocations are compared for participants at various starting ages to demonstrate the interaction between plan demographics and equity glide paths/asset allocations in terms of success rates in meeting various replacement income targets. The equity glide path/asset allocation providing

Single-shell tank interim stabilization project plan

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ross, W.E.

1998-05-11

This project plan establishes the management framework for conduct of the TWRS Single-Shell Tank Interim Stabilization completion program. Specifically, this plan defines the mission needs and requirements; technical objectives and approach; organizational structure, roles, responsibilities, and interfaces; and operational methods. This plan serves as the project executional baseline.

Land-use planning of Volyn region (Ukraine) using Geographic Information Systems (GIS) technologies

Science.gov (United States)

Strielko, Irina; Pereira, Paulo

2014-05-01

Land-use development planning is carried out in order to create a favourable environment for human life, sustainable socioeconomic and spatial development. Landscape planning is an important part of land-use development that aims to meet the fundamental principles of sustainable development. Geographic Information Systems (GIS) is a fundamental tool to make a better landscape planning at different territorial levels, providing data and maps to support decision making. The objective of this work is to create spatio-temporal, territorial and ecological model of development of Volyn region (Ukraine). It is based on existing spatial raster and vector data and includes the analysis of territory dynamics as the aspects responsible for it. A spatial analyst tool was used to zone the areas according to their environmental components and economic activity. This analysis is fundamental to define the basic parameters of sustainability of Volyn region. To carry out this analysis, we determined the demographic capacity of districts and the analysis of spatial parameters of land use. On the basis of the existing natural resources, we observed that there is a need of landscape protection and integration of more are natural areas in the Pan-European Ecological Network. Using GIS technologies to landscape planning in Volyn region, allowed us to identify, natural areas of interest, contribute to a better resource management and conflict resolution. Geographic Information Systems will help to formulate and implement landscape policies, reform the existing administrative system of Volyn region and contribute to a better sustainable development.

10 CFR 72.184 - Safeguards contingency plan.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... 10 Energy 2 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Safeguards contingency plan. 72.184 Section 72.184 Energy... Protection § 72.184 Safeguards contingency plan. (a) The requirements of the licensee's safeguards contingency plan for responding to threats and radiological sabotage must be as defined in appendix C to part...

Tank waste remediation system program plan

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Powell, R.W.

1998-01-09

This TWRS Program plan presents the planning requirements and schedules and management strategies and policies for accomplishing the TWRS Project mission. It defines the systems and practices used to establish consistency for business practices, engineering, physical configuration and facility documentation, and to maintain this consistency throughout the program life cycle, particularly as changes are made. Specifically, this plan defines the following: Mission needs and requirements (what must be done and when must it be done); Technical objectives/approach (how well must it be done); Organizational structure and philosophy (roles, responsibilities, and interfaces); and Operational methods (objectives and how work is to be conducted in both management and technical areas). The plan focuses on the TWRS Retrieval and Disposal Mission and supports the DOE mid-1998 Readiness to Proceed with Privatized Waste Treatment evaluation for establishing contracts with private contractors for the treatment (immobilization) of Hanford tank high-level radioactive waste.

Tank waste remediation system program plan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Powell, R.W.

1998-01-01

This TWRS Program plan presents the planning requirements and schedules and management strategies and policies for accomplishing the TWRS Project mission. It defines the systems and practices used to establish consistency for business practices, engineering, physical configuration and facility documentation, and to maintain this consistency throughout the program life cycle, particularly as changes are made. Specifically, this plan defines the following: Mission needs and requirements (what must be done and when must it be done); Technical objectives/approach (how well must it be done); Organizational structure and philosophy (roles, responsibilities, and interfaces); and Operational methods (objectives and how work is to be conducted in both management and technical areas). The plan focuses on the TWRS Retrieval and Disposal Mission and supports the DOE mid-1998 Readiness to Proceed with Privatized Waste Treatment evaluation for establishing contracts with private contractors for the treatment (immobilization) of Hanford tank high-level radioactive waste

BUDGET PLANNING IN FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT

OpenAIRE

Nataliya Melnichuk

2015-01-01

The purpose of the paper is to determine the nature, targets, functions, principles and methods of budget planning and development of classifications due to its types. The essence of budget planning presented by various authors, is own interpretation (the process of developing a plan of formation, distribution and redistribution of financial funds according to budget system units during the reporting period based on budgetary purposes and targets defined by socio-economic development strategy...

On strategic spatial planning

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tošić Branka

2014-01-01

Full Text Available The goal of this paper is to explain the origin and development of strategic spatial planning, to show complex features and highlight the differences and/or advantages over traditional, physical spatial planning. Strategic spatial planning is seen as one of approaches in legally defined planning documents, and throughout the display of properties of sectoral national strategies, as well as issues of strategic planning at the local level in Serbia. The strategic approach is clearly recognized at the national and sub-national level of spatial planning in European countries and in our country. It has been confirmed by the goals outlined in documents of the European Union and Serbia that promote the grounds of territorial cohesion and strategic integrated planning, emphasizing cooperation and the principles of sustainable spatial development. [Projekat Ministarstva nauke Republike Srbije, br. 176017

Experts' conference on the Climate and Energy Contribution

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2009-06-01

This document first proposes the White Paper prepared for the experts' conference. After a presentation of the Emission Trading System (ETS), this paper highlights the benefit of the introduction of economical instruments rather than regulatory instruments to promote the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. It underlines the distinction between the proposed 'climate-energy contribution' (or carbon tax) and the Cambridge tax. Then, it describes how to implement such a contribution, i.e. how to define its base, and how to relate it with existing taxes. Some graphs compare the tax rates on fuels, gas and domestic oil in European countries. The paper then defines what the field of application of the contribution could be, how to make this contribution more efficient, and what could be its economical consequences. Then, the document proposes the text of Michel Rocard's intervention on the stakes of conference on this climate-energy contribution

Contribution to Quebec's economic development: Development plan 1993

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1992-01-01

The activities of Hydro-Quebec are analyzed from the standpoint of their contribution to economic development and their support of regional development. The structuring effects of Hydro-Quebec's electricity supply activities are described, specifically the utility's role as an employer and an important agent of economic development by virtue of its purchasing power. The role played by research and development activities in the technological development of Quebec is discussed along with the contribution of those activities to new industrial developments. Finally, the impacts of electricity use on industrial development are considered. An analysis is presented of Hydro-Quebec's marketing activities and the options they afford. These marketing activities are aimed mainly at supporting economic development. The availability of reasonably priced electricity enhances the competitiveness of all industrial sectors, especially those for which electricity is a factor in siting. Furthermore, Hydro-Quebec can use its marketing activities to reinforce this comparative advantage. Hydro-Quebec can also support regional development by decentralizing operations, standardizing rates, and extending its marketing activities to the regions. 2 tabs

Hanford Site Development Plan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hathaway, H.B.; Daly, K.S.; Rinne, C.A.; Seiler, S.W.

1993-05-01

The Hanford Site Development Plan (HSDP) provides an overview of land use, infrastructure, and facility requirements to support US Department of Energy (DOE) programs at the Hanford Site. The HSDP's primary purpose is to inform senior managers and interested parties of development activities and issues that require a commitment of resources to support the Hanford Site. The HSDP provides an existing and future land use plan for the Hanford Site. The HSDP is updated annually in accordance with DOE Order 4320.1B, Site Development Planning, to reflect the mission and overall site development process. Further details about Hanford Site development are defined in individual area development plans

National technology needs assessment for the preparation and implementation of climate change action plans

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Berkel, C.W.M. van; Blonk, T.J.; Westra, C.A.

1996-12-31

In the United National Framework Convention on Climate Change (FCCC) it is recognised that developed countries have a responsibility in assisting developing countries and countries in economic transition in building a national capacity for the development, acquisition and transfer of Climate-related Technologies (CTs). Such assistance is most likely to be successful once it is tailored to the results of a sound assessment of the country`s development needs and once the results of this assessment have been endorsed by the most important stakeholders in the country. Recent insight in the opportunities and constraints for National (technology) Needs Assessments (NNAs) as planning tool for both capacity building and technology transfer regarding Environmentally Sound Technologies (ESTs) is applied here to propose a participatory Climate Change Action Planning (CCAP) process. This participatory planning process is thought to serve the dual objective of defining a national Climate Change Action Plan (CCAP) while at the same time contributing to the creation of a broad supportive basis for its acceptance and implementation among stakeholders in the developing country.

Not planning a sustainable transport system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Finnveden, Göran; Åkerman, Jonas

2014-01-01

The overall objective of the Swedish transport policy is to ensure the economically efficient and sustainable provision of transport services for people and business throughout the country. More specifically, the transport sector shall, among other things, contribute to the achievement of environmental quality objectives in which the development of the transport system plays an important role in the achievement of the objectives. The aim of this study is to analyse if current transport planning supports this policy. This is done by analysing two recent cases: the National Infrastructure Plan 2010–2021, and the planning of Bypass Stockholm, a major road investment. Our results show that the plans are in conflict with several of the environmental quality objectives. Another interesting aspect of the planning processes is that the long-term climate goals are not included in the planning processes, neither as a clear goal nor as factor that will influence future transport systems. In this way, the long-term sustainability aspects are not present in the planning. We conclude that the two cases do not contribute to a sustainable transport system. Thus, several changes must be made in the processes, including putting up clear targets for emissions. Also, the methodology for the environmental assessments needs to be further developed and discussed. - Highlights: • Two cases are studied to analyse if current planning supports a sustainable transport system. • Results show that the plans are in conflict with several of the environmental quality objectives. • Long-term climate goals are not included in the planning processes. • Current practices do not contribute to a sustainable planning processes. • Methodology and process for environmental assessments must be further developed and discussed

Not planning a sustainable transport system

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Finnveden, Göran, E-mail: goran.finnveden@abe.kth.se; Åkerman, Jonas

2014-04-01

The overall objective of the Swedish transport policy is to ensure the economically efficient and sustainable provision of transport services for people and business throughout the country. More specifically, the transport sector shall, among other things, contribute to the achievement of environmental quality objectives in which the development of the transport system plays an important role in the achievement of the objectives. The aim of this study is to analyse if current transport planning supports this policy. This is done by analysing two recent cases: the National Infrastructure Plan 2010–2021, and the planning of Bypass Stockholm, a major road investment. Our results show that the plans are in conflict with several of the environmental quality objectives. Another interesting aspect of the planning processes is that the long-term climate goals are not included in the planning processes, neither as a clear goal nor as factor that will influence future transport systems. In this way, the long-term sustainability aspects are not present in the planning. We conclude that the two cases do not contribute to a sustainable transport system. Thus, several changes must be made in the processes, including putting up clear targets for emissions. Also, the methodology for the environmental assessments needs to be further developed and discussed. - Highlights: • Two cases are studied to analyse if current planning supports a sustainable transport system. • Results show that the plans are in conflict with several of the environmental quality objectives. • Long-term climate goals are not included in the planning processes. • Current practices do not contribute to a sustainable planning processes. • Methodology and process for environmental assessments must be further developed and discussed.

Strategic planning for pain practice growth.

Science.gov (United States)

Van Horn, L M

2000-01-01

Strategy formation involves understanding the environment and strengths and weaknesses of a practice to develop a game plan to achieve goals. It starts with the creation of a mission statement that defines a long-term vision of what the practice seeks to be and the markets it seeks to serve. Once the mission of the practice is understood, the target markets and competition must be analyzed prior to defining the goals. Once a strategic plan is developed, communication with all employees is crucial. Everything that the practice does should be in support of the strategic plan and in pursuit of obtaining the goals contained within. Once created, the strategic plan is the foundation of the practice and should only be changed for compelling reasons such as a competitive threat, environmental changes, or trends in purchasing behavior. Reviewing the strategic plan once a year, making periodic reappraisals and fine-tuning adjustments as the environment changes is crucial. This helps ensure that the practice avoids complacency and affirms that it is in the right business and achieving the desired results.

Environmental Restoration Program Management Control Plan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1991-09-01

This Management Control Plan has been prepared to define the Energy Systems approach to managing its participation in the US DOE's Environmental Restoration (ER) Program in a manner consistent with DOE/ORO 931: Management Plan for the DOE Field Office, Oak Ridge, Decontamination and Decommissioning Program; and the Energy Systems Environmental Restoration Contract Management Plan (CMP). This plan discusses the systems, procedures, methodology, and controls to be used by the program management team to attain these objectives

Candidate functions for advanced technology implementation in the Columbus mission planning environment

Science.gov (United States)

Loomis, Audrey; Kellner, Albrecht

1988-01-01

The Columbus Project is the European Space Agency's contribution to the International Space Station program. Columbus is planned to consist of three elements (a laboratory module attached to the Space Station base, a man-tended freeflyer orbiting with the Space Station base, and a platform in polar orbit). System definition and requirements analysis for Columbus are underway, scheduled for completion in mid-1990. An overview of the Columbus mission planning environment and operations concept as currently defined is given, and some of the challenges presented to software maintainers and ground segment personnel during mission operators are identified. The use of advanced technologies in system implementation is being explored. Both advantages of such solutions and potential problems they present are discussed, and the next steps to be taken by Columbus before targeting any functions for advanced technology implementation are summarized. Several functions in the mission planning process were identified as candidates for advanced technology implementation. These range from expert interaction with Columbus' data bases through activity scheduling and near-real-time response to departures from the planned timeline. Each function is described, and its potential for advanced technology implementation briefly assessed.

Manifestations of metacognitive activity during the collaborative planning of chemistry practical investigations

Science.gov (United States)

Mathabathe, Kgadi Clarrie; Potgieter, Marietjie

2017-07-01

This paper elaborates a process followed to characterise manifestations of cognitive regulation during the collaborative planning of chemistry practical investigations. Metacognitive activity was defined as the demonstration of planning, monitoring, control and evaluation of cognitive activities by students while carrying out the chemistry task. Inherent in collaborative learning is the social aspect of metacognition, which in this study was evidenced in social cognitive regulation (notably of intra- and interpersonal metacognitive regulations) as groups of students went about planning their practical investigations. Discussions of two of the learning groups (n = 4; n = 3) as they planned the extended practical investigation were recorded, transcribed and analysed for indicators of any inherent metacognitive activity. The process of characterising the manifestations of metacognition resulted in the development of a coding system which specifies not only the regulatory strategies at play but the type of regulation (self or other), the area of regulation (cognition, task performance or behaviour) as well as the depth of regulatory contributions (high or low). The fine-grained coding system allowed for a finer theoretical elucidation of the social nature of metacognition. The implications of this study for metacognition and chemistry education research are highlighted.

Pitfalls and potential of particle swarm optimization for contemporary spatial forest planning

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Shan, Y.; Bettinger, P.; Cieszewski, C.; Wang, W.

2012-07-01

We describe here an example of applying particle swarm optimization (PSO) a population-based heuristic technique to maximize the net present value of a contemporary southern United States forest plan that includes spatial constraints (green-up and adjacency) and wood flow constraints. When initiated with randomly defined feasible initial conditions, and tuned with some appropriate modifications, the PSO algorithm gradually converged upon its final solution and provided reasonable objective function values. However, only 86% of the global optimal value could be achieved using the modified PSO heuristic. The results of this study suggest that under random-start initial population conditions the PSO heuristic may have rather limited application to forest planning problems with economic objectives, wood-flow constraints, and spatial considerations. Pitfalls include the need to modify the structure of PSO to both address spatial constraints and to repair particles, and the need to modify some of the basic assumptions of PSO to better address contemporary forest planning problems. Our results, and hence our contributions, are contrary to earlier work that illustrated the impressive potential of PSO when applied to stand-level forest planning problems or when applied to a high quality initial population. (Author) 46 refs.

Public affairs plan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1995-09-01

The purpose of the Uranium Mill Tailings Remedial Action (UMTRA) Project Public Affairs Plan is to establish goals for the fiscal year (FY) 1996 UMTRA Project public affairs program and to identify specific activities to be conducted during the year. It describes the roles of various agencies involved in the public affairs program and defines the functions of the UMTRA Project Technical Assistance Contractor (TAC) Public Affairs Department. It replaces the FY 1995 Public Affairs Plan (DOE/AL/62350-154). The plan also describes the US Department of Energy's (DOE) plans to keep stakeholders and other members of the public informed about UMTRA Project policies, plans, and activities, and provide opportunities for stakeholders and interested segments of the public to participate in UMTRA Project decision-making processes. The plan applies to the UMTRA Project Team; the DOE Grand Junction Projects Office (GJPO); the DOE Albuquerque Operations Office, Office of Public Affairs (OPA); the TAC; the UMTRA Project Remedial Action Contractor (RAC); and other cooperating agencies

Institutional Image: How to Define, Improve, Market It.

Science.gov (United States)

Topor, Robert S.

Advice for colleges on how to identify, develop, and communicate a positive image for the institution is offered in this handbook. The use of market research techniques to measure image is discussed along with advice on how to improve an image so that it contributes to a unified marketing plan. The first objective is to create and communicate some…

The contribution of family planning towards the prevention of vertical HIV transmission in Uganda.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Wolfgang Hladik

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Uganda has one of the highest total fertility rates (TFR worldwide. We compared the effects of antiretroviral (ARV prophylaxis for the prevention of mother-to-child HIV transmission (PMTCT to that of existing family planning (FP use and estimated the burden of pediatric HIV disease due to unwanted fertility. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Using the demographic software Spectrum, a baseline mathematical projection to estimate the current pediatric HIV burden in Uganda was compared to three hypothetical projections: 1 without ARV-PMTCT (to estimate the effect of ARV-PMTCT, 2 without contraception (effect of existing FP use, 3 without unwanted fertility (effect of unmet FP needs. Key input parameters included HIV prevalence, ARV-PMTCT uptake, MTCT probabilities, and TFR. We estimate that in 2007, an estimated 25,000 vertical infections and 17,000 pediatric AIDS deaths occurred (baseline projection. Existing ARV-PMTCT likely averted 8.1% of infections and 8.5% of deaths. FP use likely averted 19.7% of infections and 13.1% of deaths. Unwanted fertility accounted for 21.3% of infections and 13.4% of deaths. During 2008-2012, an estimated 131,000 vertical infections and 71,000 pediatric AIDS deaths will occur. The projected scale up of ARV-PMTCT (from 39%-57% may avert 18.1% of infections and 24.5% of deaths. Projected FP use may avert 21.6% of infections and 18.5% of deaths. Unwanted fertility will account for 24.5% of infections and 19.8% of deaths. CONCLUSIONS: Existing FP use contributes as much or more than ARV-PMTCT in mitigating pediatric HIV in Uganda. Expanding FP services can substantially contribute towards PMTCT.

Defining Smart City. A Conceptual Framework Based on Keyword Analysis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Farnaz Mosannenzadeh

2014-05-01

Full Text Available “Smart city” is a concept that has been the subject of increasing attention in urban planning and governance during recent years. The first step to create Smart Cities is to understand its concept. However, a brief review of literature shows that the concept of Smart City is the subject of controversy. Thus, the main purpose of this paper is to provide a conceptual framework to define Smart City. To this aim, an extensive literature review was done. Then, a keyword analysis on literature was held against main research questions (why, what, who, when, where, how and based on three main domains involved in the policy decision making process and Smart City plan development: Academic, Industrial and Governmental. This resulted in a conceptual framework for Smart City. The result clarifies the definition of Smart City, while providing a framework to define Smart City’s each sub-system. Moreover, urban authorities can apply this framework in Smart City initiatives in order to recognize their main goals, main components, and key stakeholders.

Contributions of imaging to radiation therapy planning for uterine cervix carcinoma

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Thomas, L.

2000-01-01

External irradiation and brachytherapy are curative in the treatment of carcinoma of the cervix. The aim of radiotherapy is to optimize the irradiation of the target volume and to optimize the irradiation of the target volume and to reduce the dose to critical organs. The use of imaging (computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging (computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging added to clinical findings and standard guidelines) are studied in the treatment planning of external irradiation and brachytherapy in carcinoma of the cervix. Imaging allows an individualized and conformal treatment planning. (author)

National Ignition Facility Configuration Management Plan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cabral, S G; Moore, T L

2002-01-01

This Configuration Management Plan (CMP) describes the technical and administrative management process for controlling the National Ignition Facility (NIF) Project configuration. The complexity of the NIF Project (i.e., participation by multiple national laboratories and subcontractors involved in the development, fabrication, installation, and testing of NIF hardware and software, as well as construction and testing of Project facilities) requires implementation of the comprehensive configuration management program defined in this plan. A logical schematic illustrating how the plan functions is provided in Figure 1. A summary of the process is provided in Section 4.0, Configuration Change Control. Detailed procedures that make up the overall process are referenced. This CMP is consistent with guidance for managing a project's configuration provided in Department of Energy (DOE) Order 430.1, Guide PMG 10, ''Project Execution and Engineering Management Planning''. Configuration management is a formal discipline comprised of the following four elements: (1) Identification--defines the functional and physical characteristics of a Project and uniquely identifies the defining requirements. This includes selection of components of the end product(s) subject to control and selection of the documents that define the project and components. (2) Change management--provides a systematic method for managing changes to the project and its physical and functional configuration to ensure that all changes are properly identified, assessed, reviewed, approved, implemented, tested, and documented. (3) Data management--ensures that necessary information on the project and its end product(s) is systematically recorded and disseminated for decision-making and other uses. Identifies, stores and controls, tracks status, retrieves, and distributes documents. (4) Assessments and validation--ensures that the planned configuration requirements match actual physical configurations and

Approach of ICT Application to Governance in Urban Planning

Science.gov (United States)

Virtudes, Ana; Sá, João

2017-10-01

This article discusses the use of information and communication technologies (ICT) at the local level of governance in the field of urban planning. It is based on a literature review, in order to define a set of considerations about their use in the urban context and the challenges ahead on this domain. As a starting point, there is the need of rethinking the local governance through the use of ICT related to cities, focused on the modernization of the processes associated with urban planning. Nowadays, in several societies the paradigm about cities if shifting, from an expansionist way of acting towards a regeneration and rehabilitation approach. In the case of Portugal, the local authorities; the municipalities; are the main responsible for the coordination, and integration of policies with territorial impacts. However, these policies are generally onerous and inefficient, triggering communication and information failures in between local administration and citizens. In this sense, governance should support the decision-making process related to cities’ policies, engaging citizens and socio-economic agents. As the main result in this scenario, the use of ICT demonstrates the ability to play an important role in urban planning, by contributing as a simplifying tool, regarding the information and knowledge sharing, gathering local authorities, citizens and socio-economic agents. On the one hand, they promote the reduction of inefficiencies associated to the urban planning process. On the other hand, they boost the development of networks, and consequently the social and territorial cohesion. In summary, the use of ICT infrastructures works as a glue allowing the integration of several intelligence elements of the city, and operating as their base platform. Finally, the literature has revealed that the use of ICT in urban planning should be seen as a means to a wider social goal, and not as an end by itself. With the use of ICT, urban planning authorities are more

Imaging defined risk factors in neuroblastoma -guidelines for optimising imaging interpretations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Valchev, G.; Balev, B.

2017-01-01

Neuroblastoma is the most frequent extracranial tumor in children, arising from the primitive sympathetic cells and the adrenal medulla. Two separate mutually complementing staging systems exist - INSS and INRGSS - one is based on post-operative findings, the other - on pre-treatment imaging. INRGSS consists of a list of 20 separate imaging defined risk factors (IDRF), the presence of which could alter the treatment plan. Radiologists need to be aware of certain intricacies in interpreting the individual IDRFs in order to optimise clinical decision-making. Key words: neuroblastoma. imaging defined risk factors (IDRF). interpretation guidelines [bg

COP 21: the national contributions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jouette, Isabelle

2015-01-01

This article comments the content of the national contributions (the so-called Intended Nationally Determined Contributions or INDC) which every country should have transmitted to the UN before the COP 21. In fact, 148 contributions, i.e. 75 per cent of the expected ones, have been transmitted. The author recalls that the content of these contributions had to obey some principles which had been defined in Lima in 2014, and that each country must identify its objectives in terms of mitigation (reduction of greenhouse gas emissions) and adaptation (reduction of the vulnerability of natural and human systems). The author comments some specific commitments regarding climate, emission reduction, adaptation to climate change, and more particularly evokes the Ethiopian contribution which is considered as exemplary

Marketing Academic Libraries: A Necessary Plan.

Science.gov (United States)

Dodsworth, Ellen

1998-01-01

To coordinate an academic-library marketing effort effectively, a comprehensive plan is essential. A traditional marketing plan consists of four activities: determining what to promote, defining target audiences, choosing type of outreach, and evaluating program. Suggestions for promotional activities, forms of publicity, and examples from the…

Natural Gas Multi-Year Program Plan

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1997-12-01

This document comprises the Department of Energy (DOE) Natural Gas Multi-Year Program Plan, and is a follow-up to the `Natural Gas Strategic Plan and Program Crosscut Plans,` dated July 1995. DOE`s natural gas programs are aimed at simultaneously meeting our national energy needs, reducing oil imports, protecting our environment, and improving our economy. The Natural Gas Multi-Year Program Plan represents a Department-wide effort on expanded development and use of natural gas and defines Federal government and US industry roles in partnering to accomplish defined strategic goals. The four overarching goals of the Natural Gas Program are to: (1) foster development of advanced natural gas technologies, (2) encourage adoption of advanced natural gas technologies in new and existing markets, (3) support removal of policy impediments to natural gas use in new and existing markets, and (4) foster technologies and policies to maximize environmental benefits of natural gas use.

Guidelines for state ITS/CVO business plans

Science.gov (United States)

1997-02-01

This technical memorandum was developed as part of the study, Systems Planning for Automated Commercial Vehicle Licensing and Permitting Systems. The objective of this study was to define the requirements and develop a plan for a national progr...

Integrated operations plan for the MFTF-B Mirror Fusion Test Facility. Volume II. Integrated operations plan

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

1981-12-01

This document defines an integrated plan for the operation of the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) Mirror Fusion Test Facility (MFTF-B). The plan fulfills and further delineates LLNL policies and provides for accomplishing the functions required by the program. This plan specifies the management, operations, maintenance, and engineering support responsibilities. It covers phasing into sustained operations as well as the sustained operations themselves. Administrative and Plant Engineering support, which are now being performed satisfactorily, are not part of this plan unless there are unique needs.

Integrated operations plan for the MFTF-B Mirror Fusion Test Facility. Volume II. Integrated operations plan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1981-12-01

This document defines an integrated plan for the operation of the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) Mirror Fusion Test Facility (MFTF-B). The plan fulfills and further delineates LLNL policies and provides for accomplishing the functions required by the program. This plan specifies the management, operations, maintenance, and engineering support responsibilities. It covers phasing into sustained operations as well as the sustained operations themselves. Administrative and Plant Engineering support, which are now being performed satisfactorily, are not part of this plan unless there are unique needs

Licensing plan for UMTRA project disposal sites

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1993-09-01

The Uranium Mill Tailings Remedial Action (UMTRA) Project Office developed a plan to define UMTRA Project licensing program objectives and establish a process enabling the DOE to document completion of remedial actions in compliance with 40 CFR 1 92 and the requirements of the NRC general license. This document supersedes the January 1987 Project Licensing Plan (DOE, 1987). The plan summarizes the legislative and regulatory basis for licensing, identifies participating agencies and their roles and responsibilities, defines key activities and milestones in the licensing process, and details the coordination of these activities. This plan provides an overview of the UMTRA Project from the end of remedial actions through the NRC's acceptance of a disposal site under the general license. The licensing process integrates large phases of the UMTRA Project. Other programmatic UMTRA Project documents listed in Section 6.0 provide supporting information

Definably compact groups definable in real closed fields.II

OpenAIRE

Barriga, Eliana

2017-01-01

We continue the analysis of definably compact groups definable in a real closed field $\\mathcal{R}$. In [3], we proved that for every definably compact definably connected semialgebraic group $G$ over $\\mathcal{R}$ there are a connected $R$-algebraic group $H$, a definable injective map $\\phi$ from a generic definable neighborhood of the identity of $G$ into the group $H\\left(R\\right)$ of $R$-points of $H$ such that $\\phi$ acts as a group homomorphism inside its domain. The above result and o...

Optimal Switch Configuration in Software-Defined Networks

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Béla GENGE

2016-06-01

Full Text Available The emerging Software-Defined Networks (SDN paradigm facilitates innovative applications and enables the seamless provisioning of resilient communications. Nevertheless, the installation of communication flows in SDN requires careful planning in order to avoid configuration errors and to fulfill communication requirements. In this paper we propose an approach that installs automatically and optimally static flows in SDN switches. The approach aims to select high capacity links and shortest path routing, and enforces communication link and switch capacity limitations. Experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness and scalability of the developed methodology.

North Dakota Metropolitan Planning Organization's peer exchange on introducing performance management into the MPO planning process : A TPCB Exchange

Science.gov (United States)

1997-02-01

This technical memorandum was developed as part of the study, Systems Planning for Automated Commercial Vehicle Licensing and Permitting Systems. The objective of this study was to define the requirements and develop a plan for a national progr...

Intelligent transportation systems business plan for Kentucky : final report.

Science.gov (United States)

2001-09-01

This report presents a Business Plan for Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) in Kentucky. The purpose of the Business Plan is to define ITS projects that are planned for implementation from 2002 through 2007. The list of projects contained withi...

Defining the Strategy of Nuclear Activity

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Racana, R.

2006-01-01

This article presents nuclear activity as defined within the field of the nuclear industry, which is studied from its capacity to generate electric power to its application in industry and medicine as well as a source for weapons of mass destruction. These fields of analysis introduce some problems that the nuclear activity itself must know how to confront employing action strategies aimed at becoming an activity to be kept in mind when making use of the benefits that its peaceful use contributes to human life. (Author)

Urban Green Network Design: Defining green network from an urban planning perspective

OpenAIRE

Andrea Tulisi

2017-01-01

From the theoretical context of Smart City various studies have emerged that adopt an analytical approach and description of urban phenomena based on the principles of “network design”; this line of research uses the network systems theory to define the principles that regulate the relationships among the various elements of urban sub-systems in order to optimize their functionality. From the same theoretical basis, urban greenspaces have also been studied as networks, by means of the creatio...

Optimal combination of illusory and luminance-defined 3-D surfaces: A role for ambiguity.

Science.gov (United States)

Hartle, Brittney; Wilcox, Laurie M; Murray, Richard F

2018-04-01

The shape of the illusory surface in stereoscopic Kanizsa figures is determined by the interpolation of depth from the luminance edges of adjacent inducing elements. Despite ambiguity in the position of illusory boundaries, observers reliably perceive a coherent three-dimensional (3-D) surface. However, this ambiguity may contribute additional uncertainty to the depth percept beyond what is expected from measurement noise alone. We evaluated the intrinsic ambiguity of illusory boundaries by using a cue-combination paradigm to measure the reliability of depth percepts elicited by stereoscopic illusory surfaces. We assessed the accuracy and precision of depth percepts using 3-D Kanizsa figures relative to luminance-defined surfaces. The location of the surface peak was defined by illusory boundaries, luminance-defined edges, or both. Accuracy and precision were assessed using a depth-discrimination paradigm. A maximum likelihood linear cue combination model was used to evaluate the relative contribution of illusory and luminance-defined signals to the perceived depth of the combined surface. Our analysis showed that the standard deviation of depth estimates was consistent with an optimal cue combination model, but the points of subjective equality indicated that observers consistently underweighted the contribution of illusory boundaries. This systematic underweighting may reflect a combination rule that attributes additional intrinsic ambiguity to the location of the illusory boundary. Although previous studies show that illusory and luminance-defined contours share many perceptual similarities, our model suggests that ambiguity plays a larger role in the perceptual representation of illusory contours than of luminance-defined contours.

Vocational teacher career planning : needs and problems

OpenAIRE

Sajienė, Laima

2009-01-01

The article analyses a contradiction between vocational teacher ability to plan his/her career and requirements for the teacher professional development set by the system of education. It aims at providing theoretical and empirical justification for vocational teacher need to develop career planning skills and identify problems. The concept and objectives of vocational teacher career planning as well as career planning skills that vocational teachers should develop are defined in the article.

Single-Shell Tank (SST) Interim Stabilization Project Plan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

VLADIMIROFF, D.T.; BOYLES, V.C.

2000-01-01

This project plan establishes the management framework for the conduct of the CHG Single-Shell Tank Interim Stabilization completion program. Specifically, this plan defines the mission needs and requirements; technical objectives and approach; organization structure, roles, responsibilities, and interfaces; and operational methods. This plan serves as the project executional baseline

Planning Practice and Research

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

2013-01-01

Urban planning has dramatically shifted when compared with its former logics and styles. Increasingly, the dynamics of large urban agglomerations spanning multiple boundaries put significant pressure on planning institutions to scale up. In this shifting context, how can both planning theory...... and practice co- evolve in adapting to the ever-increasing transformation of cities and urban regions? In this context, Planning Practice and Research (PPR) is seeking perspectives from the young academic community in planning. We propose to publish at least one special edition of PPR with a number of short...... papers from Young Academics. The contributions should address the question of how planning theory and practice can respond to the increasing complexity of cities and regions....

Defining cyber warfare

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dragan D. Mladenović

2012-04-01

Full Text Available Cyber conflicts represent a new kind of warfare that is technologically developing very rapidly. Such development results in more frequent and more intensive cyber attacks undertaken by states against adversary targets, with a wide range of diverse operations, from information operations to physical destruction of targets. Nevertheless, cyber warfare is waged through the application of the same means, techniques and methods as those used in cyber criminal, terrorism and intelligence activities. Moreover, it has a very specific nature that enables states to covertly initiate attacks against their adversaries. The starting point in defining doctrines, procedures and standards in the area of cyber warfare is determining its true nature. In this paper, a contribution to this effort was made through the analysis of the existing state doctrines and international practice in the area of cyber warfare towards the determination of its nationally acceptable definition.

Experiment planning using high-level component models at W7-X

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lewerentz, Marc; Spring, Anett; Bluhm, Torsten; Heimann, Peter; Hennig, Christine; Kühner, Georg; Kroiss, Hugo; Krom, Johannes G.; Laqua, Heike; Maier, Josef; Riemann, Heike; Schacht, Jörg; Werner, Andreas; Zilker, Manfred

2012-01-01

Highlights: ► Introduction of models for an abstract description of fusion experiments. ► Component models support creating feasible experiment programs at planning time. ► Component models contain knowledge about physical and technical constraints. ► Generated views on models allow to present crucial information. - Abstract: The superconducting stellarator Wendelstein 7-X (W7-X) is a fusion device, which is capable of steady state operation. Furthermore W7-X is a very complex technical system. To cope with these requirements a modular and strongly hierarchical component-based control and data acquisition system has been designed. The behavior of W7-X is characterized by thousands of technical parameters of the participating components. The intended sequential change of those parameters during an experiment is defined in an experiment program. Planning such an experiment program is a crucial and complex task. To reduce the complexity an abstract, more physics-oriented high-level layer has been introduced earlier. The so-called high-level (physics) parameters are used to encapsulate technical details. This contribution will focus on the extension of this layer to a high-level component model. It completely describes the behavior of a component for a certain period of time. It allows not only defining simple value ranges but also complex dependencies between physics parameters. This can be: dependencies within components, dependencies between components or temporal dependencies. Component models can now be analyzed to generate various views of an experiment. A first implementation of such an analyze process is already finished. A graphical preview of a planned discharge can be generated from a chronological sequence of component models. This allows physicists to survey complex planned experiment programs at a glance.

Specific application for Oak Ridge National Laboratory dismantlement of Building 3004. Appendix A - Quality assurance plan; Appendix B - Records management plan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1997-03-01

This quality assurance (QA) plan defines the QA requirements for the dismantlement and removal of Building 3004 at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). The building is a four-story wooden trained structure with wooden siding, which resides approximately 150 ft west of the Bulk Shielding Reactor, and only several feet away from the visitors entrance to the Graphite Reactor museum. Complete descriptions and sketches are in the Performance Specification document for this project. This project is being conducted as a non-CERCLA maintenance action. This plan is an appendix to the QA plan for the ORNL Environmental Restoration (ER) Program. ORNL/ER-225, which is the source of the project QA requirements, tailors those QA requirements to the specific needs of this project as defined in ORNL/ER-225. Project-specific description and organization are also provided in this plan. Appendix B, Records Management Plan, is included

Financial Network Systemic Risk Contributions

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hautsch, N.; Schaumburg, J.; Schienle, M.

2015-01-01

We propose the realized systemic risk beta as a measure of financial companies' contribution to systemic risk, given network interdependence between firms' tail risk exposures. Conditional on statistically pre-identified network spillover effects and market and balance sheet information, we define

Climate Action Planning Tool | NREL

Science.gov (United States)

NREL's Climate Action Planning Tool provides a quick, basic estimate of how various technology options can contribute to an overall climate action plan for your research campus. Use the tool to Tool Calculation Formulas and Assumptions Climate Neutral Research Campuses Website Climate Neutral

Nonradioactive Dangerous Waste Landfill sampling and analysis plan and data quality objectives process summary report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Smith, R.C.

1997-08-01

This sampling and analysis plan defines the sampling and analytical activities and associated procedures that will be used to support the Nonradioactive Dangerous Waste Landfill soil-gas investigation. This SAP consists of three sections: this introduction, the field sampling plan, and the quality assurance project plan. The field sampling plan defines the sampling and analytical methodologies to be performed

Professional analysis in spatial planning

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andrej Černe

2005-12-01

Full Text Available Spatial analysis contributes to accomplishment of the three basic aims of spatial planning: it is basic element for setting spatial policies, concepts and strategies, gives basic information to inhabitants, land owners, investors, planners and helps in performing spatial policies, strategies, plans, programmes and projects. Analysis in planning are generally devoted to: understand current circumstances and emerging conditions within planning decisions; determine priorities of open questions and their solutions; formulate general principles for further development.

SU-F-T-345: Quasi-Dead Beams: Clinical Relevance and Implications for Automatic Planning

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Price, R; Veltchev, I; Lin, T; Gleason, R; Ma, C [Fox Chase Cancer Center, Philadelphia, PA (United States)

2016-06-15

Purpose: Beam direction selection for fixed-beam IMRT planning is typically a manual process. Severe dose-volume limits on critical structures in the thorax often result in atypical selection of beam directions as compared to other body sites. This work demonstrates the potential consequences as well as clinical relevance. Methods: 21 thoracic cases treated with 5–7 beam directions, 6 cases including non-coplanar arrangements, with fractional doses of 150–411cGy were analyzed. Endpoints included per-beam modulation scaling factor (MSF), variation from equal weighting, and delivery QA passing rate. Results: During analysis of patient-specific delivery QA a sub-standard passing rate was found for a single 5-field plan (90.48% of pixels evaluated passing 3% dose, 3mm DTA). During investigation it was found that a single beam demonstrated a MSF of 34.7 and contributed only 2.7% to the mean dose of the target. In addition, the variation from equal weighting for this beam was 17.3% absolute resulting in another beam with a MSF of 4.6 contributing 41.9% to the mean dose to the target; a variation of 21.9% from equal weighting. The average MSF for the remaining 20 cases was 4.0 (SD 1.8) with an average absolute deviation of 2.8% from equal weighting (SD 3.1%). Conclusion: Optimization in commercial treatment planning systems typically results in relatively equally weighted beams. Extreme variation from this can result in excessively high MSFs (very small segments) and potential decreases in agreement between planned and delivered dose distributions. In addition, the resultant beam may contribute minimal dose to the target (quasi-dead beam); a byproduct being increased treatment time and associated localization uncertainties. Potential ramifications exist for automatic planning algorithms should they allow for user-defined beam directions. Additionally, these quasi-dead beams may be embedded in the libraries for model-based systems potentially resulting in inefficient

Planning competitiveness on the energy sector

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hennicke, P.

1991-01-01

The book reviews the concept of least cost planning which can be applied in all stages of energy management. It is a system-analytical concept of planning, cost optimisation, and application of investment alternatives in energy supply and energy conversion. In particular, the authors discuss inhowfar the positive results achieved in the USA with cost saving programmes based on least-cost planning can be applied to the situation of the Federal Republic of Germany. It is shown that least-cost planning could make a key contribution to operations scheduling of public utilities, in the establishment and implementation of local and regional energy concepts, and especially in the theory and practice of state supervision of the energy sector. The 14 contributions can be found as separate records in this database. (orig./HP) With 31 figs [de

Hanford Site Development Plan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hathaway, H.B.; Daly, K.S.; Rinne, C.A.; Seiler, S.W.

1992-05-01

The Hanford Site Development Plan (HSDP) provides an overview of land use, infrastructure, and facility requirements to support US Department of Energy (DOE) programs at the Hanford Site. The HSDP's primary purpose is to inform senior managers and interested parties of development activities and issues that require a commitment of resources to support the Hanford Site. The HSDP provides a land use plan for the Hanford Site and presents a picture of what is currently known and anticipated in accordance with DOE Order 4320.1B. Site Development Planning. The HSDP wig be updated annually as future decisions further shape the mission and overall site development process. Further details about Hanford Site development are defined in individual area development plans

ASME nuclear codes and standards risk management strategic planning

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hill, Ralph S. III; Balkey, Kenneth R.; Erler, Bryan A.; Wesley Rowley, C.

2007-01-01

This paper is prepared in honor and in memory of the late Professor Emeritus Yasuhide Asada to recognize his contributions to ASME Nuclear Codes and Standards initiatives, particularly those related to risk-informed technology and System Based Code developments. For nearly two decades, numerous risk-informed initiatives have been completed or are under development within the ASME Nuclear Codes and Standards organization. In order to properly manage the numerous initiatives currently underway or planned for the future, the ASME Board on Nuclear Codes and Standards (BNCS) has an established Risk Management Strategic Plan (Plan) that is maintained and updated by the ASME BNCS Risk Management Task Group. This paper presents the latest approved version of the plan beginning with a background of applications completed to date, including the recent probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) standards developments for nuclear power plant applications. The paper discusses planned applications within ASME Nuclear Codes and Standards that will require expansion of the ASME PRA Standard to support new advanced light water reactor and next generation reactor developments, such as for high temperature gas-cooled reactors. Emerging regulatory developments related to risk-informed, performance- based approaches are summarized. A long-term vision for the potential development and evolution to a nuclear systems code that adopts a risk-informed approach across a facility life-cycle (design, construction, operation, maintenance, and closure) is also summarized. Finally, near term and long term actions are defined across the ASME Nuclear Codes and Standards organizations related to risk management, including related U.S. regulatory activities. (author)

Hydrogeologic investigations sampling plan: Revision 0

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1988-11-01

The goal of this sampling plan is to identify and develop specific plans for those investigative actions necessary to: (1) characterize the hydrologic regime; (2) define the extent and impact of contamination; and (3) predict future contaminant migration for the Weldon Spring Site (WSS) and vicinity. The plan is part of the Weldon Spring Site Remedial Action Project (WSSRAP) sponsored by the US Department of Energy (DOE) and has been developed in accordance with US EPA Remedial Investigation (RI) and Data Quality Objective (DQO) guidelines. The plan consists of a sequence of activities including the evaluation of data, development of a conceptual model, identification of data uses and needs, and the design and implementation of a data collection program. Data will be obtained to: (1) confirm the presence or absence of contaminants; (2) define contaminant sources and modes of transport; (3) delineate extent of contaminant migration and predict future migration; and (4) provide information to support the evaluation and selection of remedial actions. 81 refs., 62 figs., 26 tabs

AVLIS Production Plant Project Management Plan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1984-01-01

The AVLIS Production Plant is designated as a Major System Acquisition (in accordance with DOE Order 4240.IC) to deploy Atomic Vapor Laser Isotope Separation (AVLIS) technology at the Oak Ridge, Tennessee site, in support of the US Uranium Enrichment Program. The AVLIS Production Plant Project will deploy AVLIS technology by performing the design, construction, and startup of a production plant that will meet capacity production requirements of the Uranium Enrichment Program. The AVLIS Production Plant Project Management Plan has been developed to outline plans, baselines, and control systems to be employed in managing the AVLIS Production Plant Project and to define the roles and responsibilities of project participants. Participants will develop and maintain detailed procedures for implementing the management and control systems in agreement with this plan. This baseline document defines the system that measures work performed and costs incurred. This plan was developed by the AVLIS Production Plant Project staff of Martin Marietta Energy Systems, Inc. and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in accordance with applicable DOE directives, orders and notices. 38 figures, 19 tables

FFTF reactor plant procedures plan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1972-01-01

The document presented defines the plan to be used to coordinate the preparation, review, approval, and issuance of the operating procedure documents required to ensure safe and efficient operation of FFTF

Emergency medicine residents' beliefs about contributing to an online collaborative slideshow.

Science.gov (United States)

Archambault, Patrick M; Thanh, Jasmine; Blouin, Danielle; Gagnon, Susie; Poitras, Julien; Fountain, Renée-Marie; Fleet, Richard; Bilodeau, Andrea; van de Belt, Tom H; Légaré, France

2015-07-01

Collaborative writing applications (CWAs), such as the Google DocsTM platform, can improve skill acquisition, knowledge retention, and collaboration in medical education. Using CWAs to support the training of residents offers many advantages, but stimulating them to contribute remains challenging. The purpose of this study was to identify emergency medicine (EM) residents' beliefs about their intention to contribute summaries of landmark articles to a Google DocsTM slideshow while studying for their Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada (RCPSC) certification exam. Using the Theory of Planned Behavior, the authors interviewed graduating RCPSC EM residents about contributing to a slideshow. Residents were asked about behavioral beliefs (advantages/disadvantages), normative beliefs (positive/negative referents), and control beliefs (barriers/facilitators). Two reviewers independently performed qualitative content analysis of interview transcripts to identify salient beliefs in relation to the defined behaviors. Of 150 eligible EM residents, 25 participated. The main reported advantage of contributing to the online slideshow was learning consolidation (n=15); the main reported disadvantage was information overload (n=3). The most frequently reported favorable referents were graduating EM residents writing the certification exam (n=16). Few participants (n=3) perceived any negative referents. The most frequently reported facilitator was peer-reviewed high-quality scientific information (n=9); and the most frequently reported barrier was time constraints (n=22). Salient beliefs exist regarding EM residents' intention to contribute content to an online collaborative writing project using a Google DocsTM slideshow. Overall, participants perceived more advantages than disadvantages to contributing and believed that this initiative would receive wide support. However, participants reported several barriers that need to be addressed to increase contributions. Our

The impact of family planning on women's lives: expanding the research agenda.

Science.gov (United States)

Ulin, P R; Hardee, K; Bailey, P; Williamson, N

1994-01-01

Women's reproductive health, quality of life, human rights, and status in society have become the focus for international development and public health programs in the 1990s. This reflects a growing awareness that population programs and policies have often failed to take women's needs into account and excluded women from programmatic decision making. Needed is a new research agenda aimed at documenting the impact of family planning programs on women beyond their physical health. Salient research questions include the influence of gender relations on women's ability to select and use family planning methods, men's views of women's contraceptive use, the circumstances under which contraceptive use contributes to a sense of self-worth and autonomy, and the extent to which family planning adoption enables women to achieve long-term goals. This research agenda will require an interdisciplinary approach that draws from sociology, social psychology, economics, and the health sciences. The incorporation of qualitative methods into research designs is recommended to clarify the nuances of women's experiences. Culture-specific measures to constructs such as self-esteem, autonomy, and satisfaction must be developed. Most important is creation of a dialogue between researchers and actual and potential users of family planning aimed at defining and examining central issues.

Egypt boosts family planning.

Science.gov (United States)

1977-10-27

A $4 million Agency for International Development (AID) agreement was signed in Cairo September 30 which will help the Egyptian government increase family planning services. The project is in response to a request for up to $17 million of AID funds for family planning programs during the next 3 years. The funds will pay for: contract advisors to provide short-term in-country training of physicians, architectural and engineering services to renovate a hospital for family planning and obstetrics/gynecology training, and a field training site for family planning service providers. Some Egyptians will receive training in specialized areas in the U.S. and other countries. More than $1.5 million of the $4 million will finance local costs of goods and services required. In addition, it is anticipated that U.S.-owned local currencies will be obligated for direct support of U.S. technical personnel. Over the 3-year life of the project the $17 million from AID plus $664,000 of U.S.-owned local currency will cover 44% of the total costs of selected Egyptian family planning activities. The Egyptian government will contribute at least $18.4 million and the U.N. Fund for Population Activities and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development will contribute $4.3 million.

Gallium-cladding compatibility testing plan. Phases 1 and 2: Test plan for gallium corrosion tests. Revision 2

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wilson, D.F.; Morris, R.N.

1998-05-01

This test plan is a Level-2 document as defined in the Fissile Materials Disposition Program Light-Water-Reactor Mixed-Oxide Fuel Irradiation Test Project Plan. The plan summarizes and updates the projected Phases 1 and 2 Gallium-Cladding compatibility corrosion testing and the following post-test examination. This work will characterize the reactions and changes, if any, in mechanical properties that occur between Zircaloy clad and gallium or gallium oxide in the temperature range 30--700 C

Technical basis for PWR emergency plans forming

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

L'Homme, A.; Manesse, D.; Gauvain, J.; Crabol, B.

1989-10-01

Our speech first summarizes the french approach concerning the management of severe accidents which could occur on PWR stations. Then it defines the source-term which is being used as a general support for elaborating the emergency plans devoted to the protection of the population. It describes next the consequences of this source-term on the site and in the environment, which constitute the technical bases for defining actions of utilities and concerned authorities. It gives lastly information on the present status of the different emergency plans and the complementary work undertaken to improve them [fr

General Criteria to Evaluate Students' Performance in Dealing with Ill-Defined Problems

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Peterson, Donna

1998-01-01

.... The purpose of constructing ill defined assessment tasks for our students is to assess their ability to recognize and contribute to the resolution of real world dilemmas they are likely to face...

Defining Quality in Undergraduate Education

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alison W. Bowers

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Objectives: This research brief explores the literature addressing quality in undergraduate education to identify what previous research has said about quality and to offer future directions for research on quality in undergraduate education. Method: We conducted a scoping review to provide a broad overview of existing research. Using targeted search terms in academic databases, we identified and reviewed relevant academic literature to develop emergent themes and implications for future research. Results: The exploratory review of the literature revealed a range of thoughtful discussions and empirical studies attempting to define quality in undergraduate education. Many publications highlighted the importance of including different stakeholder perspectives and presented some of the varying perceptions of quality among different stakeholders. Conclusions: While a number of researchers have explored and written about how to define quality in undergraduate education, there is not a general consensus regarding a definition of quality in undergraduate education. Past research offers a range of insights, models, and data to inform future research. Implication for Theory and/or Practice: We provide four recommendations for future research to contribute to a high quality undergraduate educational experience. We suggest more comprehensive systematic reviews of the literature as a next step.

Nuclear power plant thermal-hydraulic performance research program plan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1988-07-01

The purpose of this program plan is to present a more detailed description of the thermal-hydraulic research program than that provided in the NRC Five-Year Plan so that the research plan and objectives can be better understood and evaluated by the offices concerned. The plan is prepared by the Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research (RES) with input from the Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation (NRR) and updated periodically. The plan covers the research sponsored by the Reactor and Plant Systems Branch and defines the major issues (related to thermal-hydraulic behavior in nuclear power plants) the NRC is seeking to resolve and provides plans for their resolution; relates the proposed research to these issues; defines the products needed to resolve these issues; provides a context that shows both the historical perspective and the relationship of individual projects to the overall objectives; and defines major interfaces with other disciplines (e.g., structural, risk, human factors, accident management, severe accident) needed for total resolution of some issues. This plan addresses the types of thermal-hydraulic transients that are normally considered in the regulatory process of licensing the current generation of light water reactors. This process is influenced by the regulatory requirements imposed by NRC and the consequent need for technical information that is supplied by RES through its contractors. Thus, most contractor programmatic work is administered by RES. Regulatory requirements involve the normal review of industry analyses of design basis accidents, as well as the understanding of abnormal occurrences in operating reactors. Since such transients often involve complex thermal-hydraulic interactions, a well-planned thermal-hydraulic research plan is needed

Defining the Physiological Factors that Contribute to Postflight Changes in Functional Performance

Science.gov (United States)

Bloomberg, J. J.; Arzeno, N.; Buxton, R.; Feiveson, A. H.; Kofman, I.; Lawrence, E.; Lee, S. M. C.; Mulavara, A. P.; Peters, B. T.; Platts, S. H.;

From beans to breams: how participatory workshops can contribute ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

From beans to breams: how participatory workshops can contribute to marine conservation planning. ... conservation plan. We report on how this data void was filled using information provided by marine resource users, managers and scientists during participatory workshops. Participants described the distribution of reefs, ...

76 FR 13197 - National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences Strategic Planning

Science.gov (United States)

2011-03-10

... parties. The goal of this strategic planning process is to define an overarching Vision Statement... this planning process, visit the NIEHS Strategic Planning Web site at Request for Visionary Ideas The... Environmental Health Sciences Strategic Planning AGENCY: National Institutes of Health (NIH), National Institute...

Defining and reconstructing clinical processes based on IHE and BPMN 2.0.

Science.gov (United States)

Strasser, Melanie; Pfeifer, Franz; Helm, Emmanuel; Schuler, Andreas; Altmann, Josef

2011-01-01

This paper describes the current status and the results of our process management system for defining and reconstructing clinical care processes, which contributes to compare, analyze and evaluate clinical processes and further to identify high cost tasks or stays. The system is founded on IHE, which guarantees standardized interfaces and interoperability between clinical information systems. At the heart of the system there is BPMN, a modeling notation and specification language, which allows the definition and execution of clinical processes. The system provides functionality to define healthcare information system independent clinical core processes and to execute the processes in a workflow engine. Furthermore, the reconstruction of clinical processes is done by evaluating an IHE audit log database, which records patient movements within a health care facility. The main goal of the system is to assist hospital operators and clinical process managers to detect discrepancies between defined and actual clinical processes and as well to identify main causes of high medical costs. Beyond that, the system can potentially contribute to reconstruct and improve clinical processes and enhance cost control and patient care quality.

Hanford year 2000 Business Continuity Plan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

VORNEY, S.V.

1999-01-01

The goal of Department of Energy Richland Operations (DOE-RL) Year 2000 (Y2K) effort is to ensure that the Hanford site successfully continues its mission as we approach and enter the 21th century. The Y2K Business Continuity Planning process provides a structured approach to identify Y2K risks to the site and to mitigate these risks through Y2K Contingency Planning, ''Zero-Day'' Transition Planning and Emergency Preparedness. This document defines the responsibilities, processes and plans for Hanford's Y2K Business Continuity. It identifies proposed business continuity drills, tentative schedule and milestones

Healthcare Engineering Defined: A White Paper.

Science.gov (United States)

Chyu, Ming-Chien; Austin, Tony; Calisir, Fethi; Chanjaplammootil, Samuel; Davis, Mark J; Favela, Jesus; Gan, Heng; Gefen, Amit; Haddas, Ram; Hahn-Goldberg, Shoshana; Hornero, Roberto; Huang, Yu-Li; Jensen, Øystein; Jiang, Zhongwei; Katsanis, J S; Lee, Jeong-A; Lewis, Gladius; Lovell, Nigel H; Luebbers, Heinz-Theo; Morales, George G; Matis, Timothy; Matthews, Judith T; Mazur, Lukasz; Ng, Eddie Yin-Kwee; Oommen, K J; Ormand, Kevin; Rohde, Tarald; Sánchez-Morillo, Daniel; Sanz-Calcedo, Justo García; Sawan, Mohamad; Shen, Chwan-Li; Shieh, Jiann-Shing; Su, Chao-Ton; Sun, Lilly; Sun, Mingui; Sun, Yi; Tewolde, Senay N; Williams, Eric A; Yan, Chongjun; Zhang, Jiajie; Zhang, Yuan-Ting

2015-01-01

Engineering has been playing an important role in serving and advancing healthcare. The term "Healthcare Engineering" has been used by professional societies, universities, scientific authors, and the healthcare industry for decades. However, the definition of "Healthcare Engineering" remains ambiguous. The purpose of this position paper is to present a definition of Healthcare Engineering as an academic discipline, an area of research, a field of specialty, and a profession. Healthcare Engineering is defined in terms of what it is, who performs it, where it is performed, and how it is performed, including its purpose, scope, topics, synergy, education/training, contributions, and prospects.

Complex systems, evolutionary planning?

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bertolini, L.; de Roo, G.; Silva, E.A.

2010-01-01

Coping with uncertainty is a defining challenge for spatial planners. Accordingly, most spatial planning theories and methods are aimed at reducing uncertainty. However, the question is what should be done when this seems impossible? This chapter proposes an evolutionary interpretation of spatial

Tank waste remediation system configuration management implementation plan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vann, J.M.

1998-01-01

The Tank Waste Remediation System (TWRS) Configuration Management Implementation Plan describes the actions that will be taken by Project Hanford Management Contract Team to implement the TWRS Configuration Management program defined in HNF 1900, TWRS Configuration Management Plan. Over the next 25 years, the TWRS Project will transition from a safe storage mission to an aggressive retrieval, storage, and disposal mission in which substantial Engineering, Construction, and Operations activities must be performed. This mission, as defined, will require a consolidated configuration management approach to engineering, design, construction, as-building, and operating in accordance with the technical baselines that emerge from the life cycles. This Configuration Management Implementation Plan addresses the actions that will be taken to strengthen the TWRS Configuration Management program

GTRgaz: investment plan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon.

2007-01-01

GTRgaz company published on June 2007 its indicative development plan for the 10 years to come. This document serves as a communication vector between GTRgaz and the actors of the market and presents the projects of development of the gas transportation network as defined on the basis of the evolution of French and European markets, and on the knowledge of capacity needs directly or indirectly expressed by the suppliers community. This article summarizes the different points of this plan: reduction of the number of balancing points, development of interconnection capacities, development of output capacities, network free interplay improvement beyond 2013. (J.S.)

Automated IMRT planning with regional optimization using planning scripts.

Science.gov (United States)

Xhaferllari, Ilma; Wong, Eugene; Bzdusek, Karl; Lock, Michael; Chen, Jeff

2013-01-07

Intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) has become a standard technique in radiation therapy for treating different types of cancers. Various class solutions have been developed for simple cases (e.g., localized prostate, whole breast) to generate IMRT plans efficiently. However, for more complex cases (e.g., head and neck, pelvic nodes), it can be time-consuming for a planner to generate optimized IMRT plans. To generate optimal plans in these more complex cases which generally have multiple target volumes and organs at risk, it is often required to have additional IMRT optimization structures such as dose limiting ring structures, adjust beam geometry, select inverse planning objectives and associated weights, and additional IMRT objectives to reduce cold and hot spots in the dose distribution. These parameters are generally manually adjusted with a repeated trial and error approach during the optimization process. To improve IMRT planning efficiency in these more complex cases, an iterative method that incorporates some of these adjustment processes automatically in a planning script is designed, implemented, and validated. In particular, regional optimization has been implemented in an iterative way to reduce various hot or cold spots during the optimization process that begins with defining and automatic segmentation of hot and cold spots, introducing new objectives and their relative weights into inverse planning, and turn this into an iterative process with termination criteria. The method has been applied to three clinical sites: prostate with pelvic nodes, head and neck, and anal canal cancers, and has shown to reduce IMRT planning time significantly for clinical applications with improved plan quality. The IMRT planning scripts have been used for more than 500 clinical cases.

Using Combined Marine Spatial Planning Tools and Observing System Experiments to define Gaps in the Emerging European Ocean Observing System.

Science.gov (United States)

Nolan, G.; Pinardi, N.; Vukicevic, T.; Le Traon, P. Y.; Fernandez, V.

2016-02-01

Ocean observations are critical to providing accurate ocean forecasts that support operational decision making in European open and coastal seas. Observations are available in many forms from Fixed platforms e.g. Moored Buoys and tide gauges, underway measurements from Ferrybox systems, High Frequency radars and more recently from underwater Gliders and profiling floats. Observing System Simulation Experiments have been conducted to examine the relative contribution of each type of platform to an improvement in our ability to accurately forecast the future state of the ocean with HF radar and Gliders showing particular promise in improving model skill. There is considerable demand for ecosystem products and services from today's ocean observing system and biogeochemical observations are still relatively sparse particularly in coastal and shelf seas. There is a need to widen the techniques used to assess the fitness for purpose and gaps in the ocean observing system. As well as Observing System Simulation Experiments that quantify the effect of observations on the overall model skill we present a gap analysis based on (1) Examining where high model skill is required based on a marine spatial planning analysis of European seas i.e where does activity take place that requires more accurate forecasts? and (2) assessing gaps based on the capacity of the observing system to answer key societal challenges e.g. site suitability for aquaculture and ocean energy, oil spill response and contextual oceanographic products for fisheries and ecosystems. The broad based analysis will inform the development of the proposed European Ocean Observing System as a contribution to the Global Ocean Observing System (GOOS).

A Branding and Marketing Plan for a Trade Union

OpenAIRE

Pihonen-Randla, Marjut

2015-01-01

The purpose of this thesis project was to define a branding and a marketing plan based on study and research into successful brands and marketing strategies. The goal was to increase visibility by creating a cohesive brand image and to define a marketing plan to suit this purpose. This project looked into trade unions in Finland and how they conduct marketing. This project also looked into research that was available of target audiences for client website and Facebook site. The client...

Laredo District Coahuila/Nuevo Leon/Tamaulipas border master plan : executive summary.

Science.gov (United States)

2012-06-01

Border Master Plans, as defined and supported by the U.S./Mexico Joint Working : Committee on Transportation Planning and Programming, the Federal Highway Administration, : and the U.S. Department of State, are comprehensive long range plans to inven...

Retirement plan participation and features and standard of living of Americans 55 or older.

Science.gov (United States)

Copeland, Craig

2002-08-01

This Issue Brief is the third in a series of Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI) publications based on data collected in 1998 and released in 2002 as the Retirement and Pension Plan Coverage Topical Module of the 1996 Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP). This report completes the series by examining the survey's more detailed questions concerning workers' employment-based retirement plans. Specifically, it examines the percentage of workers who are participating in a plan, and also workers' reasons for not participating in a plan when working in a job where a plan is sponsored; the features of, or decisions made concerning salary reduction plans; historical participation in employment-based retirement plans; and a comparison of the standard of living of individuals age 55 or older with their living standard in their early 50s. As of June 1998, 64.3 percent of wage and salary workers age 16 or older worked for an employer or union that sponsored any type of retirement plan (defined contribution or defined benefit) for any of its employees or members (the "sponsorship rate"). Almost 47 percent of these wage and salary workers participated in a plan (the "participation rate"), with 43.2 percent being entitled to a benefit or eligible to receive a lump-sum distribution from a plan if their job terminated at the time of survey (the "vested rate"). The predominant reason for choosing not to participate in a retirement plan was that doing so was unaffordable. The eligible participation rate for salary reduction plans was 81.4 percent. Fifty-six percent of all workers have participated in some type of retirement plan sometime during their work life through 1998. For those ages 51-60, almost 72 percent have ever participated in a plan. The median account balance in salary reduction plans in 1998 was $14,000. In 1998, 12.9 percent of salary reduction plan participants eligible to take a loan had done so, and the average outstanding loan balance was $5

Basic Concepts Required in the Development of a Planning Information System.

Science.gov (United States)

Kennedy, F. D.

This report, the result of developmental research on a planning information system for North Carolina, describes the planning process at higher levels of State government, defines a general information system and derives a planning information system from various types of planning, provides guidelines for system design and evaluation, and…

7 CFR 1485.15 - Activity plan.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... any changes in strategy from the strategic plan; (iii) A budget for each proposed activity... with respect to contributions and program evaluations. A participant may undertake promotional... accountable to CCC for all such promotional activities and related expenditures. (g) Activity plan changes. (1...

26 CFR 1.401(k)-6 - Definitions.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... employee who is not an HCE. Plan. Plan is defined in § 1.401(k)-1(b)(4). Pre-ERISA money purchase pension plan. (1) Pre-ERISA money purchase pension plan is a pension plan— (i) That is a defined contribution...

Defining internal target volume (ITV) for hepatocellular carcinoma using four-dimensional CT

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

X, Mian; Liu Mengzhong; Deng Xiaowu; Zhang Li; Huang Xiaoyan; Liu Hui; Li Qiaoqiao; Hu Yonghong; Cai Ling; Cui Nianji

2007-01-01

Background and purpose: To define individualized internal target volume (ITV) for hepatocellular carcinoma using four-dimensional computed tomography (4DCT). Materials and methods: Gross tumor volumes (GTVs) and clinical target volumes (CTVs) were contoured on all 10 respiratory phases of 4DCT scans in 10 patients with hepatocellular carcinoma. The 3D and 4D treatment plans were performed for each patient using two different planning target volumes (PTVs): (1) PTV 3D was derived from a single CTV plus conventional margins; (2) PTV 4D was derived from ITV 4D , which encompassed all 10 CTVs plus setup margins (SMs). The volumes of PTVs and dose distribution were compared between the two plans. Results: The average PTV volume of the 4D plans (328.4 ± 152.2 cm 3 ) was less than 3D plans (407.0 ± 165.6 cm 3 ). The 4D plans spared more surrounding normal tissues than 3D plans, especially normal liver. Compared with 3D plans, the mean dose to normal liver (MDTNL) decreased from 22.7 to 20.3 Gy. Without increasing the normal tissue complication probability (NTCP), the 4D plans allowed for increasing the calculated dose from 50.4 ± 1.3 to 54.2 ± 2.6 Gy, an average increase of 7.5% (range 4.0-16.0%). Conclusions: The conventional 3D plans can result in geometric miss and include excess normal tissues. The 4DCT-based plans can reduce the target volumes to spare more normal tissues and allow dose escalation compared with 3D plans

Climate protection in the spatial planning. Strategic options of the regional planning and land-use planning. Short documentation of the case studies; Klimaschutz in der raeumlichen Planung. Gestaltungsmoeglichkeiten der Raumordnung und Bauleitplanung. Kurzdokumentation der Fallstudien

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ahlhelm, Inge; Bula, Andreas; Frerichs, Stefan; Hinzen, Ajo [BKR Aachen Castro und Hinzen, Aachen (Germany); Madry, Thomas; Schuele, Ralf [Wuppertal Institut fuer Klima, Umwelt, Energie GmbH, Wuppertal (Germany); Groth, Klaus-Martin; Kerstan, Susann [Kanzlei Gassner, Groth, Siederer und Collegen, Berlin (Germany)

2013-02-15

As the basis for the practical help 'Climate protection in the spatial planning', the Federal Environment Agency (Dessau-Rosslau, Federal Republic of Germany) investigated a lot of plans, concepts and programs at regional level and provincial level. The essential principles and extracts from case studies are summarized in brief dossiers which are presented in the contribution under consideration. This contribution shall present an overview on the state of the art of the application of instruments at the geospatial climate protection at different planning levels.

Manager's assistant systems for space system planning

Science.gov (United States)

Bewley, William L.; Burnard, Robert; Edwards, Gary E.; Shoop, James

1992-01-01

This paper describes a class of knowledge-based 'assistant' systems for space system planning. Derived from technology produced for the DARPA/USAF Pilot's Associate program, these assistant systems help the human planner by doing the bookkeeping to maintain plan data and executing the procedures and heuristics currently used by the human planner to define, assess, diagnose, and revise plans. Intelligent systems for Space Station Freedom assembly sequence planning and Advanced Launch System modeling will be presented as examples. Ongoing NASA-funded work on a framework supporting the development of such tools will also be described.

IMPERA: Integrated Mission Planning for Multi-Robot Systems

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Daniel Saur

2015-10-01

Full Text Available This paper presents the results of the project IMPERA (Integrated Mission Planning for Distributed Robot Systems. The goal of IMPERA was to realize an extraterrestrial exploration scenario using a heterogeneous multi-robot system. The main challenge was the development of a multi-robot planning and plan execution architecture. The robot team consists of three heterogeneous robots, which have to explore an unknown environment and collect lunar drill samples. The team activities are described using the language ALICA (A Language for Interactive Agents. Furthermore, we use the mission planning system pRoPhEt MAS (Reactive Planning Engine for Multi-Agent Systems to provide an intuitive interface to generate team activities. Therefore, we define the basic skills of our team with ALICA and define the desired goal states by using a logic description. Based on the skills, pRoPhEt MAS creates a valid ALICA plan, which will be executed by the team. The paper describes the basic components for communication, coordinated exploration, perception and object transportation. Finally, we evaluate the planning engine pRoPhEt MAS in the IMPERA scenario. In addition, we present further evaluation of pRoPhEt MAS in more dynamic environments.

National waste terminal storage program: configuration management plan. Volume I. Management summary

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1977-05-01

Objective of the Configuration Management Plan is to describe the Office of Waste Isolation's approach for the systematic identification, change control, status accounting, and auditing of: documents defining the NWTS Program and the plans for attaining the defined objectives; physical and functional characteristics of each storage site, facility, systems and equipment; and associated costs and schedules

Planning oral narrative tasks: optimizing strategic planning condition through strategy instruction

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

André Luís Specht

2017-06-01

Full Text Available This article presents the results of a master thesis, which aimed at investigating the impact of strategic planning instruction on the speech performance of 6 L2 Brazilian learners. The participants, Letras-Inglês students, performed three now-and-there picture-cued narrative tasks under three different conditions: (1 no planning, (2 planning before instruction, and (3 planning after instruction. In addition, the participants filled in post-task questionnaires after the performance of each task, aiming at understanding their opinion on the conditions and tasks. Quantitative and qualitative analyses were conducted in order to examine participants’ oral production and perception, respectively. In general, there was no statistical evidence supporting the impact of instruction on participants’ oral planned performance; however, some statistical results approached significance, which may suggest some positive effects. Qualitative analyses provided positive evidence of the impact of strategic planning instruction on participant perception and their use of strategies during planning time. Moreover, the results of this study can contribute to the fields of Second Language Acquisition and Language Pegadogy.

Technical Note: A treatment plan comparison between dynamic collimation and a fixed aperture during spot scanning proton therapy for brain treatment

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Smith, Blake, E-mail: bsmith34@wisc.edu; Gelover, Edgar; Moignier, Alexandra; Wang, Dongxu; Flynn, Ryan T.; Hyer, Daniel E. [Department of Radiation Oncology, University of Iowa, 200 Hawkins Drive, Iowa City, Iowa 52242 (United States); Lin, Liyong; Kirk, Maura; Solberg, Tim [Department of Radiation Oncology, University of Pennsylvania, TRC 2 West, 3400 Civic Center Boulevard, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104 (United States)

2016-08-15

Purpose: To quantitatively assess the advantages of energy-layer specific dynamic collimation system (DCS) versus a per-field fixed aperture for spot scanning proton therapy (SSPT). Methods: Five brain cancer patients previously planned and treated with SSPT were replanned using an in-house treatment planning system capable of modeling collimated and uncollimated proton beamlets. The uncollimated plans, which served as a baseline for comparison, reproduced the target coverage and organ-at-risk sparing of the clinically delivered plans. The collimator opening for the fixed aperture-based plans was determined from the combined cross sections of the target in the beam’s eye view over all energy layers which included an additional margin equivalent to the maximum beamlet displacement for the respective energy of that energy layer. The DCS-based plans were created by selecting appropriate collimator positions for each row of beam spots during a Raster-style scanning pattern which were optimized to maximize the dose contributions to the target and limited the dose delivered to adjacent normal tissue. Results: The reduction of mean dose to normal tissue adjacent to the target, as defined by a 10 mm ring surrounding the target, averaged 13.65% (range: 11.8%–16.9%) and 5.18% (2.9%–7.1%) for the DCS and fixed aperture plans, respectively. The conformity index, as defined by the ratio of the volume of the 50% isodose line to the target volume, yielded an average improvement of 21.35% (19.4%–22.6%) and 8.38% (4.7%–12.0%) for the DCS and fixed aperture plans, respectively. Conclusions: The ability of the DCS to provide collimation to each energy layer yielded better conformity in comparison to fixed aperture plans.

Technical Note: A treatment plan comparison between dynamic collimation and a fixed aperture during spot scanning proton therapy for brain treatment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Smith, Blake; Gelover, Edgar; Moignier, Alexandra; Wang, Dongxu; Flynn, Ryan T.; Hyer, Daniel E.; Lin, Liyong; Kirk, Maura; Solberg, Tim

2016-01-01

Purpose: To quantitatively assess the advantages of energy-layer specific dynamic collimation system (DCS) versus a per-field fixed aperture for spot scanning proton therapy (SSPT). Methods: Five brain cancer patients previously planned and treated with SSPT were replanned using an in-house treatment planning system capable of modeling collimated and uncollimated proton beamlets. The uncollimated plans, which served as a baseline for comparison, reproduced the target coverage and organ-at-risk sparing of the clinically delivered plans. The collimator opening for the fixed aperture-based plans was determined from the combined cross sections of the target in the beam’s eye view over all energy layers which included an additional margin equivalent to the maximum beamlet displacement for the respective energy of that energy layer. The DCS-based plans were created by selecting appropriate collimator positions for each row of beam spots during a Raster-style scanning pattern which were optimized to maximize the dose contributions to the target and limited the dose delivered to adjacent normal tissue. Results: The reduction of mean dose to normal tissue adjacent to the target, as defined by a 10 mm ring surrounding the target, averaged 13.65% (range: 11.8%–16.9%) and 5.18% (2.9%–7.1%) for the DCS and fixed aperture plans, respectively. The conformity index, as defined by the ratio of the volume of the 50% isodose line to the target volume, yielded an average improvement of 21.35% (19.4%–22.6%) and 8.38% (4.7%–12.0%) for the DCS and fixed aperture plans, respectively. Conclusions: The ability of the DCS to provide collimation to each energy layer yielded better conformity in comparison to fixed aperture plans.

Technical Note: A treatment plan comparison between dynamic collimation and a fixed aperture during spot scanning proton therapy for brain treatment

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, Blake; Gelover, Edgar; Moignier, Alexandra; Wang, Dongxu; Flynn, Ryan T.; Lin, Liyong; Kirk, Maura; Solberg, Tim; Hyer, Daniel E.

2016-01-01

Purpose: To quantitatively assess the advantages of energy-layer specific dynamic collimation system (DCS) versus a per-field fixed aperture for spot scanning proton therapy (SSPT). Methods: Five brain cancer patients previously planned and treated with SSPT were replanned using an in-house treatment planning system capable of modeling collimated and uncollimated proton beamlets. The uncollimated plans, which served as a baseline for comparison, reproduced the target coverage and organ-at-risk sparing of the clinically delivered plans. The collimator opening for the fixed aperture-based plans was determined from the combined cross sections of the target in the beam’s eye view over all energy layers which included an additional margin equivalent to the maximum beamlet displacement for the respective energy of that energy layer. The DCS-based plans were created by selecting appropriate collimator positions for each row of beam spots during a Raster-style scanning pattern which were optimized to maximize the dose contributions to the target and limited the dose delivered to adjacent normal tissue. Results: The reduction of mean dose to normal tissue adjacent to the target, as defined by a 10 mm ring surrounding the target, averaged 13.65% (range: 11.8%–16.9%) and 5.18% (2.9%–7.1%) for the DCS and fixed aperture plans, respectively. The conformity index, as defined by the ratio of the volume of the 50% isodose line to the target volume, yielded an average improvement of 21.35% (19.4%–22.6%) and 8.38% (4.7%–12.0%) for the DCS and fixed aperture plans, respectively. Conclusions: The ability of the DCS to provide collimation to each energy layer yielded better conformity in comparison to fixed aperture plans. PMID:27487886

Nuclear emergency planning in Spain. The PLABEN review project

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lentijo Lentijo, J. C.; Vila Pena, M.

2002-01-01

The international rules and recommendations for nuclear emergency planning and the Spanish experience gained in the management of event with radiological risk have noticed that is necessary to review the planning radiological bases for emergencies in nuclear power plants and to define the planning radiological bases for radiological emergencies that could happen in radioactive facilities or in activities out of the regulatory framework. The paper focuses on CSN actions concerning the Plaben review project related to define the new radiological principles taking into account the current international recommendations for interventions, make a proposal about the organisation and operation of the provincial radiological action group and the national support level for radiological emergency response. (Author) 7 refs

Self-defining memories during exposure to music in Alzheimer's disease.

Science.gov (United States)

El Haj, Mohamad; Antoine, Pascal; Nandrino, Jean Louis; Gély-Nargeot, Marie-Christine; Raffard, Stéphane

2015-10-01

Research suggests that exposure to music may enhance autobiographical recall in Alzheimer's Disease (AD) patients. This study investigated whether exposure to music could enhance the production of self-defining memories, that is, memories that contribute to self-discovery, self-understanding, and identity in AD patients. Twenty-two mild-stage AD patients and 24 healthy controls were asked to produce autobiographical memories in silence, while listening to researcher-chosen music, and to their own-chosen music. AD patients showed better autobiographical recall when listening to their own-chosen music than to researcher-chosen music or than in silence. More precisely, they produced more self-defining memories during exposure to their own-chosen music than to researcher-chosen music or during silence. Additionally, AD patients produced more self-defining memories than autobiographical episodes or personal-semantics during exposure to their own-chosen music. This pattern contrasted with the poor production of self-defining memories during silence or during exposure to researcher-chosen music. Healthy controls did not seem to enjoy the same autobiographical benefits nor the same self-defining memory enhancement in the self-chosen music condition. Poor production of self-defining memories, as observed in AD, may somehow be alleviated by exposure to self-chosen music.

Health Plan Performance Measurement within Medicare Subvention.

Science.gov (United States)

1998-06-01

the causes of poor performance (Siren & Laffel, 1996). Although outcomes measures such as nosocomial infection rates, admission rates for select...defined. Traditional outcomes measures include infection rates, morbidity, and mortality. The problem with these traditional measures is... Maternal /Child Care Indicators Nursing Staffing Indicators Outcome Indicators Technical Outcomes Plan Performance Stability of Health Plan

Computer-aided resource planning and scheduling for radiological services

Science.gov (United States)

Garcia, Hong-Mei C.; Yun, David Y.; Ge, Yiqun; Khan, Javed I.

1996-05-01

There exists tremendous opportunity in hospital-wide resource optimization based on system integration. This paper defines the resource planning and scheduling requirements integral to PACS, RIS and HIS integration. An multi-site case study is conducted to define the requirements. A well-tested planning and scheduling methodology, called Constrained Resource Planning model, has been applied to the chosen problem of radiological service optimization. This investigation focuses on resource optimization issues for minimizing the turnaround time to increase clinical efficiency and customer satisfaction, particularly in cases where the scheduling of multiple exams are required for a patient. How best to combine the information system efficiency and human intelligence in improving radiological services is described. Finally, an architecture for interfacing a computer-aided resource planning and scheduling tool with the existing PACS, HIS and RIS implementation is presented.

29 CFR 2530.201-2 - Plans covered by part 2530.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... employee welfare benefit plan as defined in section 3(1) of the Act and § 2510.3-1; (b) A plan which is... Labor Regulations Relating to Labor (Continued) EMPLOYEE BENEFITS SECURITY ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF LABOR MINIMUM STANDARDS FOR EMPLOYEE PENSION BENEFIT PLANS UNDER THE EMPLOYEE RETIREMENT INCOME SECURITY...

Defining Essential Biodiversity Variables (EBVs) as a contribution to Essential Ocean Variables (EOVs): A Core Task of the Marine Biodiversity Observation Network (MBON) to Accelerate Integration of Biological Observations in the Global Ocean Observing System (GOOS)

Science.gov (United States)

Pearlman, J.; Muller-Karger, F. E.; Sousa Pinto, I.; Costello, M. J.; Duffy, J. E.; Appeltans, W.; Fischer, A. S.; Canonico, G.; Klein, E.; Obura, D.; Montes, E.; Miloslavich, P.; Howard, M.

2017-12-01

The Marine Biodiversity Observation Network (MBON) is a networking effort under the umbrella of the Group on Earth Observations Biodiversity Observation Network (GEO BON). The objective of the MBON is to link existing groups engaged in ocean observation and help define practical indices to deploy in an operational manner to track changes in the number of marine species, the abundance and biomass of marine organisms, the diverse interactions between organisms and the environment, and the variability and change of specific habitats of interest. MBON serves as the biodiversity arm of Blue Planet, the initiative of the Group on Earth Observations (GEO) for the benefit of society. The Global Ocean Observing System (GOOS) was established under the auspices of the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) in 1991 to organize international ocean observing efforts. The mission of the GOOS is to support monitoring to improve the management of marine and coastal ecosystems and resources, and to enable scientific research. GOOS is engaged in a continuing, rigorous process of identifying Essential Ocean Variables (EOVs). MBON is working with GOOS and the Ocean Biogeographic Information System (OBIS, also under the IOC) to define Essential Biodiversity Variables (EBVs) as those Essential Ocean Variables (EOVs) that have explicit taxonomic records associated with them. For practical purposes, EBVs are a subset of the EOVs. The focus is to promote the integration of biological EOVs including EBVs into the existing and planned national and international ocean observing systems. The definition avoids a proliferation of 'essential' variables across multiple organizations. MBON will continue to advance practical and wide use of EBVs and related EOV. This is an effective way to contribute to several UN assessments (e.g., from IPBES, IPCC, and the World Ocean Assessment under the UN Regular Process), UN Sustainable Development Goals, and to address targets and goals defined under

Hanford year 2000 Business Continuity Plan

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

ROGGENKAMP, S.L.

1999-11-01

The goal of Department of Energy Richland Operations (DOE-RL) Year 2000 (Y2K) effort is to ensure that the Hanford site successfully continues its mission as we approach and enter the 21th century. The Y2K Business Continuity Planning process provides a structured approach to identify Y2K risks to the site and to mitigate these risks through Y2K Contingency Planning, ''Zero-Day'' Transition Planning and Emergency Preparedness. This document defines the responsibilities, processes and plans for Hanford's Y2K Business Continuity. It identifies proposed business continuity drills, tentative schedule and milestones.

Geostatistics applied in mine production planning

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zerdin, F.; Markic, S.; Subelj, A. [NTF, Ljubljana (Slovenia)

1998-07-01

Long-term plan for lignite mine Velenje has been made by using a technical 'parametrisation' method where the basis for periodic, middle-term and short-term plans as well as for scheduling has already been fixed. Plans are presented by grade (heating value in GJ), quantity of ROM coal in tons and quantity of excavated material in cubic metre for each sequence of the seam or whole seam as well as for all working seams in the mines as a whole which correspond to a defined time period. Grade planning aims at achieving uniform product quality to meet contractual obligations. 17 refs., 10 figs.

Family planning: the unfinished agenda.

Science.gov (United States)

Cleland, John; Bernstein, Stan; Ezeh, Alex; Faundes, Anibal; Glasier, Anna; Innis, Jolene

2006-11-18

Promotion of family planning in countries with high birth rates has the potential to reduce poverty and hunger and avert 32% of all maternal deaths and nearly 10% of childhood deaths. It would also contribute substantially to women's empowerment, achievement of universal primary schooling, and long-term environmental sustainability. In the past 40 years, family-planning programmes have played a major part in raising the prevalence of contraceptive practice from less than 10% to 60% and reducing fertility in developing countries from six to about three births per woman. However, in half the 75 larger low-income and lower-middle income countries (mainly in Africa), contraceptive practice remains low and fertility, population growth, and unmet need for family planning are high. The cross-cutting contribution to the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals makes greater investment in family planning in these countries compelling. Despite the size of this unfinished agenda, international funding and promotion of family planning has waned in the past decade. A revitalisation of the agenda is urgently needed. Historically, the USA has taken the lead but other governments or agencies are now needed as champions. Based on the sizeable experience of past decades, the key features of effective programmes are clearly established. Most governments of poor countries already have appropriate population and family-planning policies but are receiving too little international encouragement and funding to implement them with vigour. What is currently missing is political willingness to incorporate family planning into the development arena.

Health service planning contributes to policy dialogue around strengthening district health systems: an example from DR Congo 2008-2013.

Science.gov (United States)

Rajan, Dheepa; Kalambay, Hyppolite; Mossoko, Mathias; Kwete, Dieudonné; Bulakali, Joseph; Lokonga, Jean-Pierre; Porignon, Denis; Schmets, Gerard

2014-10-31

This case study from DR Congo demonstrates how rational operational planning based on a health systems strengthening strategy (HSSS) can contribute to policy dialogue over several years. It explores the operationalization of a national strategy at district level by elucidating a normative model district resource plan which details the resources and costs of providing an essential health services package at district level. This paper then points to concrete examples of how the results of this exercise were used for Ministry of Health (MoH) decision-making over a time period of 5 years. DR Congo's HSSS and its accompanying essential health services package were taken as a base to construct a normative model health district comprising of 10 Health Centres (HC) and 1 District Hospital (DH). The normative model health district represents a standard set by the Ministry of Health for providing essential primary health care services. The minimum operating budget necessary to run a normative model health district is $17.91 per inhabitant per year, of which $11.86 is for the district hospital and $6.05 for the health centre. The Ministry of Health has employed the results of this exercise in 4 principal ways: 1.Advocacy and negotiation instrument; 2. Instrument to align donors; 3. Field planning; 4. Costing database to extract data from when necessary. The above results have been key in the policy dialogue on affordability of the essential health services package in DR Congo. It has allowed the MoH to provide transparent information on financing needs around the HSSS; it continues to help the MoH negotiate with the Ministry of Finance and bring partner support behind the HSSS.

Bridging the accountability divide: male circumcision planning in Rwanda as a case study in how to merge divergent operational planning approaches.

Science.gov (United States)

McPherson, Dacia B; Balisanga, Helene N; Mbabazi, Jennifer K

2014-10-01

When voluntary medical male circumcision (MC) was confirmed as an effective tool for HIV prevention in sub-Saharan Africa in 2007, many public health policy makers and practitioners were eager to implement the intervention. How to roll out the tool as part of comprehensive strategy however was less clear. At the time, very little was known about the capacity of health systems to scale delivery of the new intervention. Today, nearly all countries prioritized for the intervention are far behind their targets. To contribute to the discourse on why this is, we develop a historical analysis of medical MC planning in sub-Saharan Africa using our own experience of this process in Rwanda. We compare our previously unpublished feasibility analysis from 2008 with international research published in 2009, which suggested how Rwanda could reduce HIV incidence through a rapid MC intervention, and Rwanda's eventual 2010 official operational plan. We trace how, in the face of uncertainty, operational plans avoided discussing the details of feasibility and focused instead on defining optimal circumcision capacity needed to achieve country level target reductions in HIV incidence. We show a distinct gap between the targets set in the official operational plan and what we determined was feasible in 2008. With actual data from the ground now available, we show our old feasibility models more closely approximate circumcision delivery rates to date. With an eye toward the future of long-term policy planning, we discuss the mechanics of how accountability gaps like this occur in global health policy making and how practitioners can better create achievable operational targets. Published by Oxford University Press in association with The London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine © The Author 2013.

Planned home compared with planned hospital births: mode of delivery and Perinatal mortality rates, an observational study.

Science.gov (United States)

van der Kooy, Jacoba; Birnie, Erwin; Denktas, Semiha; Steegers, Eric A P; Bonsel, Gouke J

2017-06-08

To compare the mode of delivery between planned home versus planned hospital births and to determine if differences in intervention rates could be interpreted as over- or undertreatment. Intervention and perinatal mortality rates were obtained for 679,952 low-risk women from the Dutch Perinatal Registry (2000-2007). Intervention was defined as operative vaginal delivery and/or caesarean section. Perinatal mortality was defined as the intrapartum and early neonatal mortality rate up to 7 days postpartum. Besides adjustment for maternal and care factors, we included for additional casemix adjustment: presence of congenital abnormality, small for gestational age, preterm birth, or low Apgar score. The techniques used were nested multiple stepwise logistic regression, and stratified analysis for separate risk groups. An intention-to-treat like analysis was performed. The intervention rate was lower in planned home compared to planned hospital births (10.9% 95% CI 10.8-11.0 vs. 13.8% 95% CI 13.6-13.9). Intended place of birth had significant impact on the likelihood to intervene after adjustment (planned homebirth (OR 0.77 95% CI. 0.75-0.78)). The mortality rate was lower in planned home births (0.15% vs. 0.18%). After adjustment, the interaction term home- intervention was significant (OR1.51 95% CI 1.25-1.84). In risk groups, a higher perinatal mortality rate was observed in planned home births. The potential presence of over- or under treatment as expressed by adjusted perinatal mortality differs per risk group. In planned home births especially multiparous women showed universally lower intervention rates. However, the benefit of substantially fewer interventions in the planned home group seems to be counterbalanced by substantially increased mortality if intervention occurs.

FINANCIAL ACCOUNTING QUALITY AND ITS DEFINING CHARACTERISTICS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andra M. ACHIM

2014-11-01

Full Text Available The importance ofhigh-quality financial statements is highlighted by the main standard-setting institutions activating in the field of accounting and reporting. These have issued Conceptual Frameworks which state and describe the qualitative characteristics of accounting information. In this qualitative study, the research methodology consists of reviewing the literature related to the definition of accounting quality and striving for understanding how it can be explained. The main objective of the study is to identify the characteristics information should possess in order to be of high quality. These characteristics also contribute to the way of defining financial accounting quality. The main conclusions that arise from this research are represented by the facts that indeed financial accounting quality cannot be uniquely defined and that financial information is of good quality when it enhances the characteristics incorporated in the conceptual frameworks issued by both International Accounting Standards Board and Financial Accounting Standards Board.

Living the Plan: Strategic Planning Aligned with Practice and Assessment

Science.gov (United States)

Sullivan, Timothy M.; Richardson, Emily C.

2011-01-01

The purpose of this article is to provide leaders of continuing education enterprises with an integrated model for sustaining strategic planning initiatives. Global economic conditions, shifting competitive forces, continuing calls for accountability, and dramatic changes in institutional funding streams contribute to an environment characterized…

Variability in source sediment contributions by applying different statistic test for a Pyrenean catchment.

Science.gov (United States)

Palazón, L; Navas, A

2017-06-01

Information on sediment contribution and transport dynamics from the contributing catchments is needed to develop management plans to tackle environmental problems related with effects of fine sediment as reservoir siltation. In this respect, the fingerprinting technique is an indirect technique known to be valuable and effective for sediment source identification in river catchments. Large variability in sediment delivery was found in previous studies in the Barasona catchment (1509 km 2 , Central Spanish Pyrenees). Simulation results with SWAT and fingerprinting approaches identified badlands and agricultural uses as the main contributors to sediment supply in the reservoir. In this study the Kruskal-Wallis H-test and (3) principal components analysis. Source contribution results were different between assessed options with the greatest differences observed for option using #3, including the two step process: principal components analysis and discriminant function analysis. The characteristics of the solutions by the applied mixing model and the conceptual understanding of the catchment showed that the most reliable solution was achieved using #2, the two step process of Kruskal-Wallis H-test and discriminant function analysis. The assessment showed the importance of the statistical procedure used to define the optimum composite fingerprint for sediment fingerprinting applications. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Can Complexity be Planned?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ilona Koutny

2015-04-01

Full Text Available The long accepted complexity invariance of human languages has become controversial within the last decade. In investigations of the problem, both creole and planned languages have often been neglected. After a presentation of the scope of the invariance problem and the proposition of the natural to planned language continuum, this article will discuss the contribution of planned languages. It will analyze the complexity of Esperanto at the phonological, morphological, syntactic and semantic levels, using linguistic data bases. The role of the L2 speech community and development of the language will also be taken into account when discussing the endurance of the same level of simplicity of this planned international language. The author argues that complexity can be variable and to some extent planned and maintained.

Surface moisture measurement system acceptance testing work plan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ritter, G.A.

1996-01-01

This work plan addresses testing of the Surface Moisture Measurement System (SMMS) at the Fuels and Materials Examination Facility (FMEF). The purpose of this plan is to define the scope of work, identify organizational responsibilities, describe test control requirements, and provide estimated costs and schedule associated with acceptance testing

Demographic development, climatic change, peak oil. Answers to spatial planning, urban planning and traffic planning; Demografische Entwicklung, Klimawandel, Peak Oil. Antworten der Raum-, Stadt- und Verkehrsplanung

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Huber, Felix

2011-07-01

The demographic trends, climate change and peak oil are highly sensitive issues politically. With fears about the future and the curiosity on the future attention can be aroused. Therefore, the author of the contribution under consideration reports on the following aspects: (1) Why should we deal with future challenges?; (2) Presentation of the tools of spatial planning, urban planning and transportation planning in the context of the particular requirements of their time; (3) Clarification of the requirements to future tools; (4) Presentation of the future tasks of spatial planning and the changes in lifestyle.

Linear Programming for Vocational Education Planning. Interim Report.

Science.gov (United States)

Young, Robert C.; And Others

The purpose of the paper is to define for potential users of vocational education management information systems a quantitative analysis technique and its utilization to facilitate more effective planning of vocational education programs. Defining linear programming (LP) as a management technique used to solve complex resource allocation problems…

Healthcare Engineering Defined: A White Paper

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ming-Chien Chyu

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Engineering has been playing an important role in serving and advancing healthcare. The term “Healthcare Engineering” has been used by professional societies, universities, scientific authors, and the healthcare industry for decades. However, the definition of “Healthcare Engineering” remains ambiguous. The purpose of this position paper is to present a definition of Healthcare Engineering as an academic discipline, an area of research, a field of specialty, and a profession. Healthcare Engineering is defined in terms of what it is, who performs it, where it is performed, and how it is performed, including its purpose, scope, topics, synergy, education/training, contributions, and prospects.

Integrated Planning: Why is it so hard?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hesser, A.

1994-01-01

In this paper, the Manager of Planning integration at DOE-Richland and the Program Manager for Hanford Mission Planning at Pacific Northwest Laboratory and Westinghouse Hanford Company describe some of the reasons why integrated planning is so hard and what can be done to correct the situation. The authors use experiences from the last three years at Hanford to illustrate some of the difficulties in site integrated planning. The authors argue that integrated planning was not a major part of the previous diverse Site missions, but the change of mission has not resulted in a corresponding change of attitude about the need for such planning. Moreover, the DOE-RL staff is not structured or manned for planning, and a site perspective is the exception, rather than the norm. Contributing to this situation is the compartmentalization of funding and decision making and the diffusion of responsibility. The decision-making process at DOE sites is often not clear because of the evolving role of stakeholders, and agencies outside the DOE, especially regulators, are co-decision makers. The regulatory process and the requirements of environmental impact statements contribute to the diffusion of authority

Reproductive health/family planning and the health of infants, girls and women.

Science.gov (United States)

Sadik, N

1997-01-01

The 1994 International Conference on Population and Development developed international consensus amongst health providers, policy makers, and group representing the whole of civil society regarding the concept of reproductive health and its definition. In line with this definition, reproductive health care is defined as the constellation of methods, techniques and services that contribute to reproductive health and well-being by preventing and solving reproductive health problems. Reproductive health care saves lives and prevents significant levels of morbidity through family planning programmes, antenatal, delivery and post-natal services, prevention and management programmes for reproductive tract infections (including sexually transmitted diseases and HIV/AIDS), prevention of abortion and management of its complications, cancers of the reproductive system, and harmful practices that impact on reproductive function. Reproductive health care needs are evident at all stages of the life cycle and account for a greater proportion of disability adjusted life years (DALYS) in girls and women than in boys and men. Reproductive health protects infant health by enabling birth spacing and birth limitation to be practiced through family planning. The prevention and early detection of reproductive tract infections, including sexually transmitted diseases and HIV, through the integration of preventive measures in family planning service delivery not only improves the quality of care provided but is also directly responsible for improvement in survival and health of infants. Addressing harmful practices such as son preference, sex selection, sexual violence and female genital mutilation complements the positive impact of planned and spaced children through family planning services on infant mortality and the reproductive health of young girls and women. They are also in addition to prenatal, delivery and postnatal services, positive determinants of low maternal mortality and

Demand planning ve společnosti Farm Frites

OpenAIRE

Rosíková, Eva

2009-01-01

Theoretic part of thesis included short introduction into logistics, define question of demand planning and his role in SCM. In practical part is outlined function of SCM in Farm Frites company. Description of logistics chain, which is necessary part for understanding of whole proces of demand planning in company. Main object of thesis is to determine problems connected with demand planning and proposal of resolution of that problems in Farm Frites.

12 CFR 563.47 - Pension plans.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... by an enrolled actuary (as defined by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974) affirming... expectations, and represent the actuary's best estimate of the plan's projected experiences. [59 FR 66159, Dec...

Intelligent vehicle initiative : business plan

Science.gov (United States)

1997-11-01

The U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) is embarking on a new program called the Intelligent Vehicle Initiative (IVI). The USDOT intends to jointly define the program plan and conduct the IVI in cooperation with the motor vehicle, trucking, and...

The transportation institutional plan: Cooperative planning for NWPA transportation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Denny, S.H.; Livingston-Behan, E.A.

1987-01-01

The Transportation Institutional Plan, published in 1986 by the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management (OCRWM), defines a process for effective interaction among those who may be affected by transportation activities conducted under provisions of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982 (NWPA). The Plan describes formal mechanisms for identifying, addressing, and resolving specific transportation issues. An appendix to the Plan includes detailed discussion of the following transportation issues: (1) the transportation of defense waste; (2) prenotification; (3) physical and rail shipments; (4) highway routing; (5) rail routing; (6) inspection and enforcement for highway and rail shipments; (7) emergency response; (8) liability coverage for transportation to NWPA facilities; (9) cask design and testing; (10) overweight truck shipments; (11) rail service analysis; (12) mixture of transportation modes; (13) transportation infrastructure improvements; (14) OCRWM training standards; (15) transportation operational procedures; and (16) State, Tribal, and local regulation of transportation. The OCRWM's intent is to provide an open accounting of planning, to identify opportunities for public involvement in program activities, and to foster communication and negotiation in the cooperative development of a safe, efficient, and cost-effective NWPA transportation program

Inverse planning IMRT

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rosenwald, J.-C.

2008-01-01

The lecture addressed the following topics: Optimizing radiotherapy dose distribution; IMRT contributes to optimization of energy deposition; Inverse vs direct planning; Main steps of IMRT; Background of inverse planning; General principle of inverse planning; The 3 main components of IMRT inverse planning; The simplest cost function (deviation from prescribed dose); The driving variable : the beamlet intensity; Minimizing a 'cost function' (or 'objective function') - the walker (or skier) analogy; Application to IMRT optimization (the gradient method); The gradient method - discussion; The simulated annealing method; The optimization criteria - discussion; Hard and soft constraints; Dose volume constraints; Typical user interface for definition of optimization criteria; Biological constraints (Equivalent Uniform Dose); The result of the optimization process; Semi-automatic solutions for IMRT; Generalisation of the optimization problem; Driving and driven variables used in RT optimization; Towards multi-criteria optimization; and Conclusions for the optimization phase. (P.A.)

Strategic Planning in Education: A Guide for Policymakers.

Science.gov (United States)

Cooper, Harry A.

As defined in chapter I of this guide for policymakers, strategic planning is the method by which an organization identifies relevant trends in its environment, analyzes their potential implications, and projects an integrated strategy to address these future events and their contingencies. This process differs from formalized planning, based on…

Environmental health action plan for Europe

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1994-06-01

This Environmental Health Action Plan for Europe was endorsed by the second European Conference on Environment and Health, held in Helsinki, 20 to 22 June 1994. It sets out directions for the attainment of long term environment and health policy objectives define in the European Charter on Environment and Health. The Action Plan is primarily addressed at the public health and environmental protection sectors. 10 refs, 4 figs, 2 tabs

Waste feed delivery program systems engineering implementation plan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

O'Toole, S.M.; Hendel, B.J.

1998-01-01

This document defines the systems engineering processes and products planned by the Waste Feed Delivery Program to develop the necessary and sufficient systems to provide waste feed to the Privatization Contractor for Phase 1. It defines roles and responsibilities for the performance of the systems engineering processes and generation of products

Radiotherapy treatment planning linear-quadratic radiobiology

CERN Document Server

Chapman, J Donald

2015-01-01

Understand Quantitative Radiobiology from a Radiation Biophysics PerspectiveIn the field of radiobiology, the linear-quadratic (LQ) equation has become the standard for defining radiation-induced cell killing. Radiotherapy Treatment Planning: Linear-Quadratic Radiobiology describes tumor cell inactivation from a radiation physics perspective and offers appropriate LQ parameters for modeling tumor and normal tissue responses.Explore the Latest Cell Killing Numbers for Defining Iso-Effective Cancer TreatmentsThe book compil

Management plan of useful life; Plan de gestion de vida util

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sanchez Zapata, J. D.

2009-07-01

The Cofrentes NPP Life Management Plan is a plant management program that covers all those activities aimed at monitoring, controlling and mitigating the effects of ageing in the safety-related structures, systems and components, as well as in the equipment that is of particular importance for long-term availability of the plant. the methodology used is based on the system and methods of the so-called UNESA Methodology, whose safety-related aspects have been updated with the application of criteria defined in Licensing Renewal regulation 10 CFR 54. the text develops the details of this plan and describes its status at the present time. (Author)

Contribution of PET–CT in radiotherapy planning of oesophageal carcinoma: A review

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cheung, Gabriel Sai Man

2013-01-01

Purpose: The aim of this study was to systematically review published data on the efficacy of positron emission tomography–computed tomography (PET–CT) in the radiotherapy planning process of patients with oesophageal carcinoma. Methods: A systematic search of the PubMed, CINAHL, Cochrane Library and ScienceDirect databases was performed. The quality of the included studies was appraised using validated assessment tool. Data of the studies were synthesized, compared and evaluated by constructing evidentiary tables. Results: The 37 included studies, comprising a total sample size of 1921 patients, had moderate methodological quality. Overall primary tumour detection rate was 92.7%, and pooling estimate of specificity was 88% (95%CI: 83–91%) for local lymph node metastasis. The pooled studies presented heterogeneity for sensitivity (p < 0.01). The introduction of PET–CT to the radiotherapy planning process has facilitated target volume delineation. A standardized uptake value (SUV) of 2.5 could be used in supplementation to visual assessment by a qualified practitioner. Conclusions: PET–CT has a high specificity but due to its variable sensitivity, information from other clinical investigations should still be sought. Discretion and sound clinical judgment must also be exercised before using the biologic information for radiotherapy planning

Expansion planning for electrical generating systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1984-01-01

The guidebook outlines the general principles of electric power system planning in the context of energy and economic planning in general. It describes the complexities of electric system expansion planning that are due to the time dependence of the problem and the interrelation between the main components of the electric system (generation, transmission and distribution). Load forecasting methods are discussed and the principal models currently used for electric system expansion planning presented. Technical and economic information on power plants is given. Constraints imposed on power system planning by plant characteristics (particularly nuclear power plants) are discussed, as well as factors such as transmission system development, environmental considerations, availability of manpower and financial resources that may affect the proposed plan. A bibliography supplements the references that appear in each chapter, and a comprehensive glossary defines terms used in the guidebook

Strategic planning and security analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

DePasquale, S.

1991-01-01

Nuclear security master planning is a deliberative process, founded on the premise that the broad scope of security must be analyzed before any meaningful determinations may be reached on an individual security aspect. This paper examines the analytical process required in developing a Security Master Plan. It defines a four stage process concluding with the selection of security measures encompassing physical security, policy and procedure considerations and guard force deployment. The final product orchestrates each security measure in a complementary and supportive configuration

Comparing replacement rates under private and federal retirement systems.

Science.gov (United States)

Martin, Patricia P

One measure of the adequacy of retirement income is replacement rate - the percentage of pre-retirement salary that is available to a worker in retirement. This article compares salary replacement rates for private-sector employees of medium and large private establishments with those for federal employees under the Civil Service Retirement System and the Federal Employees Retirement System. Because there is no standard benefit formula to represent the variety of formulas available in the private sector, a composite defined benefit formula was developed using the characteristics of plans summarized in the Bureau of Labor Statistics Medium and Large Employer Plan Survey. The resulting "typical" private-sector defined benefit plan, with an accompanying defined contribution plan, was then compared with the two federal systems. The Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) is a stand-alone defined benefit plan whose participants are not covered by Social Security. Until passage of the 1983 Amendments to Social Security Act, it was the only retirement plan for most federal civilian employees. Provisions of the 1983 Amendments were designed to restore long-term financial stability to the Social Security trust funds. One provision created the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS), which covers federal employees hired after 1983. It was one of the provisions designed to restore long-term financial stability to the Social Security trust funds. FERS employees contribute to and are covered by Social Security. FERS, which is a defined benefit plan, also includes a basic benefit and a 401(k)-type plan known as the Thrift Savings Plan (TSP). To compare how retirees would fare under the three different retirement systems, benefits of employees retiring at age 65 with 35 years of service were calculated using hypothetical workers with steady earnings. Workers were classified according to a percentage of the average wage in the economy: low earners (45 percent), average earners

Computational optimization techniques applied to microgrids planning

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Gamarra, Carlos; Guerrero, Josep M.

2015-01-01

Microgrids are expected to become part of the next electric power system evolution, not only in rural and remote areas but also in urban communities. Since microgrids are expected to coexist with traditional power grids (such as district heating does with traditional heating systems......), their planning process must be addressed to economic feasibility, as a long-term stability guarantee. Planning a microgrid is a complex process due to existing alternatives, goals, constraints and uncertainties. Usually planning goals conflict each other and, as a consequence, different optimization problems...... appear along the planning process. In this context, technical literature about optimization techniques applied to microgrid planning have been reviewed and the guidelines for innovative planning methodologies focused on economic feasibility can be defined. Finally, some trending techniques and new...

What moves you Arizona : long-range transportation plan : 2010-2035.

Science.gov (United States)

2011-11-01

"What Moves You Arizona is the Arizona Department of Transportations (ADOT) Long-Range Transportation Plan (LRTP). The LRTP, or Plan, defines visionary, yet pragmatic, investment choices Arizona will make over the next 25 years to maintain a...

Systems Engineering Implementation Plan for Single-Shell Tanks (SST) Retrieval Projects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

LEONARD, M.W.; HOFFERBER, G.A.

2000-01-01

This document communicates the planned implementation of the Systems Engineering processes and products for the SST retrieval projects as defined in the Systems Engineering Management Plan for the Tank Farm Contractor

Systems Engineering Implementation Plan for Single Shell Tanks (SST) Retrieval Projects

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

LEONARD, M.W.; HOFFERBER, G.A.

2000-11-30

This document communicates the planned implementation of the Systems Engineering processes and products for the SST retrieval projects as defined in the Systems Engineering Management Plan for the Tank Farm Contractor.

40 CFR 763.93 - Management plans.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... implementation in a timely fashion. (d) Each local education agency shall maintain and update its management plan... surveillance and training. (12) With respect to each consultant who contributed to the management plan, the name of the consultant and one of the following statements: (i) If the State has adopted a contractor...

Louisiana ITS business plan : technical summary.

Science.gov (United States)

2000-03-01

The objectives are defined under: 1. Development of the plan, which identifies the preferred program of projects and policy initiatives and outlines the purpose, requirements, responsibilities, estimated cost, and implementation schedule for each pla...

Integrated Instrumentation and Control Upgrade Plan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wilkinson, D.; Sun, B.; Wray, L.; Smith, J.

1992-02-01

This document presents the first industry-wide integrated research and development plan to support upgrading instrumentation and control (I ampersand C) systems in nuclear power plants in the United States. The plan encompasses both solving obsolescence problems and introducing modern I ampersand C technology into the industry. Accomplishing this plan will provide the technological base to modernize existing plants, as well as bridge the gap to meet Advanced Light Water Reactor (ALWR) requirements for modern I ampersand C systems. This plan defines Research and Development tasks to meet the identified needs for the following technical elements: Instrumentation, Control and Protection, Man-Machine Support Systems, Maintenance, Communications, Verification and Validation, and Specifications and Standards

105-N Basin sediment disposition phase-one sampling and analysis plan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1997-01-01

The sampling and analysis plan (SAP) for Phase 1 of the 105-N Basin sediment disposition project defines the sampling and analytical activities that will be performed for the engineering assessment phase (phase 1) of the project. A separate SAP defines the sampling and analytical activities that will be performed for the characterization phase (Phase 2) of the 105-N sediment disposition project. The Phase-1 SAP is presented in the introduction (Section 1.0), in the field sampling plan (FSP) (Section 2.0), and in the quality assurance project plan (QAPjP) (Section 3.0). The FSP defines the sampling and analytical methodologies to be performed. The QAPjP provides information on the quality assurance/quality control (QA/QC) parameters related to the sampling and analytical methodologies. This SAP defines the strategy and the methods that will be used to sample and analyze the sediment on the floor of the 105-N Basin. The resulting data will be used to develop and evaluate engineering designs for collecting and removing sediment from the basin

British Columbia : Climate change business plan, 2000/01 -2002/03

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2000-10-01

This first Climate Change Business Plan for British Columbia was conceived as part of Canada's national implementation strategy on climate change. It outlines the objectives and the actions to reduce provincial emissions of GHGs and to prepare for future decisions. GHG emissions are a particular challenge in British Columbia where emissions appear to be growing faster than in other parts of the country. The plan focuses on five priority areas for action -- transportation, energy and industry, communities and buildings, forests and agriculture and supporting actions. The plan present more than 40 actions to reduce GHG emissions immediately in ways that are low-cost, high benefit actions that will not cause undue burden on the population. Major initiatives are included in transportation and technology development. They are supported by more than $13 million in new funding for energy efficiency and renewable energy, community-based programs, education and research, policy development and other initiatives. Implementation of the plan will be monitored, and progress will be measured by pre-defined performance indicators. In detailing the 40 plus actions the Government plans to take, it is clear that since individual citizens of British Columbia contribute more than one quarter of provincial emissions, the BC climate change response will rely heavily on private citizens, organizations, businesses and communities to do their part in GHG reduction. Infrastructure and technology will be of critical importance in achieving substantial reductions of GHG, but they will take time to implement. Therefore, in the initial phase, the focus of attention will be on behavioral changes which will be mobilized in every possible way to begin the daunting task of gaining the upper hand on GHG emissions. A chronology of events, past and contemplated, additional BC actions, mapping BC Plan actions to the the national theme, and a glossary are provided in the appendices. 15 refs., 2 tabs

Do Employer Pension Contributions Reflect Employee Preferences? Evidence from a Retirement Savings Reform in Denmark

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Fadlon, Itzik; Laird, Jessica; Nielsen, Torben Heien

2016-01-01

This paper studies how firms set contributions to employer provided 401(k)-type pension plans. Using a reform that decreased the subsidy to contributions to capital pension accounts for Danish workers in the top income tax bracket, we provide strong evidence that employers' contributions are based...... on their employees' savings preferences. We find an immediate decrease in employer contributions to capital accounts, whose magnitude increased in the share of employees directly affected by the reform. This response was large relative to average employee responses within private IRA-type plans and was accompanied...... by a similar magnitude shift of employer contributions to annuity accounts....

Canada's green plan: Summary. Le plan vert du Canada: Resume

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

1990-01-01

A summary is presented of Canada's Green Plan, a comprehensive action plan to ensure a healthy environment for the future. The plan defines targets and schedules which will drive federal environmental initiatives, and incorporates concepts of sustainable development. Elements of the plan include initiatives to combat and prevent water pollution; control ocean dumping; control smog-causing emissions; provide tighter air pollution standards; provide for sound waste management according to the principles of reduce, reuse, recycle, and recover; assess and control chemical wastes; sustain Canadian forests and maintain their diversity while shifting forest management from sustained yield to sustainable development; maintain and enhance environmental sustainability in the agro-food sector and the fishery sector; preserve and protect national parks and wildlife; and preserve and enhance the integrity, health, biodiversity and productivity of Arctic ecosystems. With respect to global-scale problems, measures will be taken to stabilize greenhouse gas emissions, limit acid rain-related emissions, and phase out the use of ozone-depleting substances. The plan also intends to improve Canada's capability to respond to environmental emergencies, improve environmental decision-making by strengthening and building of partnerships, promote environmental science research and development, and make effective and balanced use of enviromental laws, with market-based approaches for environmental protection.

Business success in Serbian hotels viewed through influence of business activities which contribute to the creation of value

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ognjanović Jasmina

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Analysis of business activities and defining future business plans are based on an analysis of appropriate business performance - financial and non-financial. Value of business performance reflects success of the company. The way of organizing business activities of the company, cooperation among employees, level of capacity utilization, innovation affect on the business performance. This paper analyzes the business activities which contribute to the creation of value (human resource management, marketing activities aimed at the efficient utilization of hotel capacities and activities of innovation and business performance - financial (return on assets, return on equity, employee productivity and non-financial (quality of hotel service, motivation of employees. The main objective of the research is to examine the interrelationship between business activities that contribute to creating value and business performance of the hotel. Results of the regression analyzes leads to the conclusion that the analyzed business activities affect on employee productivity and affect on non-financial performance - the quality of hotel services and motivation of employees.

Benefit or Burden? On the Intergenerational Inequity of Teacher Pension Plans

Science.gov (United States)

Backes, Ben; Goldhaber, Dan; Grout, Cyrus; Koedel, Cory; Ni, Shawn; Podgursky, Michael; Xiang, P. Brett; Xu, Zeyu

2016-01-01

Most public school teachers in the United States are enrolled in defined benefit (DB) pension plans. Using administrative microdata from four states, combined with national pension funding data, we show these plans have accumulated substantial unfunded liabilities--effectively debt--owing to previous plan operations. On average across 49 state…

Flood action plans

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Slopek, R.J.

1995-01-01

Safe operating procedures developed by TransAlta Utilities for dealing with flooding, resulting from upstream dam failures or extreme rainfalls, were presented. Several operating curves developed by Monenco AGRA were described, among them the No Overtopping Curve (NOC), the Safe Filling Curve (SFC), the No Spill Curve (NSC) and the Guaranteed Fill Curve (GFC). The concept of an operational comfort zone was developed and defined. A flood action plan for all operating staff was created as a guide in case of a flooding incident. Staging of a flood action plan workshop was described. Dam break scenarios pertinent to the Bow River were developed for subsequent incorporation into a Flood Action Plan Manual. Evaluation of the technical presentations made during workshops were found them to have been effective in providing operating staff with a better understanding of the procedures that they would perform in an emergency. 8 figs

20 CFR 1002.260 - What pension benefit plans are covered under USERRA?

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... 20 Employees' Benefits 3 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false What pension benefit plans are covered under... REEMPLOYMENT RIGHTS ACT OF 1994 Reemployment Rights and Benefits Pension Plan Benefits § 1002.260 What pension...) defines an employee pension benefit plan as a plan that provides retirement income to employees, or defers...

Strategic planning for marketers.

Science.gov (United States)

Wilson, I

1978-12-01

The merits of strategic planning as a marketing tool are discussed in this article which takes the view that although marketers claim to be future-oriented, they focus too little attention on long-term planning and forecasting. Strategic planning, as defined by these authors, usually encompasses periods of between five and twenty-five years and places less emphasis on the past as an absolute predictor of the future. It takes a more probabilistic view of the future than conventional marketing strategy and looks at the corporation as but one component interacting with the total environment. Inputs are examined in terms of environmental, social, political, technological and economic importance. Because of its futuristic orientation, an important tenant of strategic planning is the preparation of several alternative scenarios ranging from most to least likely. By planning for a wide-range of future market conditions, a corporation is more able to be flexible by anticipating the course of future events, and is less likely to become a captive reactor--as the authors believe is now the case. An example of strategic planning at General Elecric is cited.

Investigation on factors that contribute to the abandonment of building in construction industry in Malaysia

Science.gov (United States)

Farhayu Ariffin, Nur; Jaafar, Mohd Faizal Md; Idris Ali, Mohamad; Irwan Ramli, Noram; Muthusamy, Khairunisa; Shukor Lim, Nor Hasanah Abdul

2018-03-01

In Malaysia, the construction sector is one of the important sectors that contribute to economic growth and employments. However, a major concern facing the construction industry is the growing rate of delays in project delivery. In the worse cases, the projects were abandoned due to some reasons when the contract period ended. Abandoned building defines as construction work that has been continuously stalled for 6 months or more, during the project completion period or beyond the scheduled date of completion. When the projects become abandoned, it gives an adverse effect on many parties such as the developer, contractor, consultant and also client. According to previous researchers, the abandonment of building causes a serious problem and need some mitigation plan to avoid this problem from occurring. This study will investigate the fundamental factors that contribute to the abandonment of building and projects in Malaysia based on the current data of the abandoned building in most states in Malaysia. The data was collected from the respondents who is in the construction industry and had experience working with abandoned housing project. Form the respondents perspective, it shows that the main factor contribute to the building abandonment is due to the financial problem facing by the developer company.

Homo faber or homo credente? What defines humans, and what could Homo naledi contribute to this debate?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Detlev L. Tönsing

2017-10-01

Full Text Available The transition from pre-human to human has, for a long time, been associated with tool use and construction. The implicit self-definition of humans in this is that of planned control over life world. This is reflected on in the work of Hanna Arendt on the homo faber and the novel by Max Frisch of that name. However, this definition has become problematic in a number of ways: Planned tool use has been seen to occur outside the human species, and the focus on control of the environment has become suspect because of the environmental crisis. The burial practices of Homo naledi indicate high-level self-awareness and social communication, with little tool use being evident. This article asks whether this might be an occasion to redefine our conception of what it means to be human away from the focus on mastery and control and towards including trust, also religious trust, as the true mark of humanity.

CT planning of boost irradiation in radiotherapy of breast cancer after conservative surgery

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Messer, Peter M.; Kirikuta, Ion C.; Bratengeier, Klaus; Flentje, Michael

1997-01-01

Background and purpose: A study was performed to compare the accuracy of clinical treatment set-up and CT planning of boost irradiation in radiotherapy of breast cancer. Material and methods: Between September 1993 and October 1994, 45 women who underwent breast conserving surgery and irradiation containing a boost to the tumour bed were investigated. Prospective evaluation of CT planning of the boost was carried out. The target volume/boost field, electron energy and treatment set-up had been defined on the basis of clinical examination, initial and postsurgical mammograms by one radiotherapist. Next, a planning CT was performed in treatment position and a CT-based treatment plan was calculated according to a target volume defined by another radiotherapist. The clinical treatment set-up was imported into our computer planning system and the resulting isodose plots were compared with those from CT planning and reviewed critically. Results: The clinically defined treatment set-up had to be modified in 80% of the patients. Most discrepancies observed were related to the size of the boost field itself and the chosen electron energy. Minor changes had to be made with respect to angle of table and gantry. Conclusions: Critical review of the isodose plots from both methods showed clear advantages for CT planning. Guidelines for target definition in CT planning of boost irradiation and subgroups of patients benefiting from this technique are described

AVLIS Production Plant Preliminary Quality Assurance Plan and Assessment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1984-01-01

This preliminary Quality Assurance Plan and Assessment establishes the Quality Assurance requirements for the AVLIS Production Plant Project. The Quality Assurance Plan defines the management approach, organization, interfaces, and controls that will be used in order to provide adequate confidence that the AVLIS Production Plant design, procurement, construction, fabrication, installation, start-up, and operation are accomplished within established goals and objectives. The Quality Assurance Program defined in this document includes a system for assessing those elements of the project whose failure would have a significant impact on safety, environment, schedule, cost, or overall plant objectives. As elements of the project are assessed, classifications are provided to establish and assure that special actions are defined which will eliminate or reduce the probability of occurrence or control the consequences of failure. 8 figures, 18 tables

Operational Plan Ontology Model for Interconnection and Interoperability

Science.gov (United States)

Long, F.; Sun, Y. K.; Shi, H. Q.

2017-03-01

Aiming at the assistant decision-making system’s bottleneck of processing the operational plan data and information, this paper starts from the analysis of the problem of traditional expression and the technical advantage of ontology, and then it defines the elements of the operational plan ontology model and determines the basis of construction. Later, it builds up a semi-knowledge-level operational plan ontology model. Finally, it probes into the operational plan expression based on the operational plan ontology model and the usage of the application software. Thus, this paper has the theoretical significance and application value in the improvement of interconnection and interoperability of the operational plan among assistant decision-making systems.

Healthcare succession planning: an integrative review.

Science.gov (United States)

Carriere, Brian K; Muise, Melanie; Cummings, Greta; Newburn-Cook, Chris

2009-12-01

Succession planning is a business strategy that has recently gained attention in the healthcare literature, primarily because of nursing shortage concerns and the demand for retaining knowledgeable personnel to meet organizational needs. Little research has been conducted in healthcare settings that clearly defines best practices for succession planning frameworks. To effectively carry out such organizational strategies during these challenging times, an integrative review of succession planning in healthcare was performed to identify consistencies in theoretical approaches and strategies for chief nursing officers and healthcare managers to initiate. Selected articles were compared with business succession planning to determine whether healthcare strategies were similar to best practices already established in business contexts. The results of this integrative review will aid leaders and managers to use succession planning as a tool in their recruitment, retention, mentoring, and administration activities and also provide insights for future development of healthcare succession planning frameworks.

Tank waste remediation system privatization Phase 1 infrastructure, project W-519, project execution plan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Parazin, R.J.

1998-01-01

This Project Execution Plan (PEP) defines the overall strategy, objectives, and contractor management requirements for the execution phase of Project W-519 (98-D403), Privatization Phase 1 Infrastructure Support, whose mission is to effect the required Hanford site infrastructure physical changes to accommodate the Privatization Contractor facilities. This plan provides the project scope, project objectives and method of performing the work scope and achieving objectives. The plan establishes the work definitions, the cost goals, schedule constraints and roles and responsibilities for project execution. The plan also defines how the project will be controlled and documented

Groundwater/Vadose Zone Integration Project Management Plan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hughes, M. C.

1999-01-01

This Project Management Plan (PMP) defines the authorities, roles, and responsibilities of the US Department of Energy (DOE), Richland Operations Office (RL) and those contractor organizations participating in the Hanford Site' s Groundwater/Vadose Zone (GW/VZ) Integration Project. The PMP also describes the planning and control systems, business processes, and other management tools needed to properly and consistently conduct the Integration Project scope of work

Internal operating plan (P.O.I.)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2002-01-01

This article presents the POI (internal operating plan) which defines the management measures, the intervention methods and the required means that the operator must implement to protect the personnel, the population and the environment. (A.L.B.)

The roles of planning in waterfront redevelopment

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Galland, Daniel; Hansen, C.J.

2012-01-01

This paper delves into the different styles and roles that planning adopts in contemporary waterfront redevelopment. Traditionally, waterfront redevelopment practices have consisted of an array of plan-led and market-driven planning styles upon which the derelict areas of post-industrial cities...... have been transformed. Typical examples from North America and Europe generally tend to focus on the successes that these processes have generated in connection with large-scale and emblematic projects. However, less attention has been devoted to the efforts of a more recent generation of cities...... undergoing waterfront redevelopment, which often features different planning rationalities, forms of governance and competing interests. While the precise character of this newer generation does not yet seem defined, the rise of planning practices that combine previous planning styles has been key...

Danish emergency plan for Barsebaeck Power Plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1981-01-01

A revised edition of the Danish emergency plan for the Swedish Power Plant Barsebaeck (about 20 km from the Danish Territory) is prepared at the request of Environmental Council in cooperation with police management and civil defense organisations. The plan is valid from October 1981. The emergency plan defines the emergency organization and the provisions to be taken quickly to protect the population if it is exposed to ionizing radiation from release of radioactive effluents as a result of an accident in the Barsebaeck power plant. The emergency plan is based upon Regulation no. 278, June 27, 1963 and Regulation no. 502, October 1, 1974. (EG)

Economic Modeling as a Component of Academic Strategic Planning.

Science.gov (United States)

MacKinnon, Joyce; Sothmann, Mark; Johnson, James

2001-01-01

Computer-based economic modeling was used to enable a school of allied health to define outcomes, identify associated costs, develop cost and revenue models, and create a financial planning system. As a strategic planning tool, it assisted realistic budgeting and improved efficiency and effectiveness. (Contains 18 references.) (SK)

COMPULSORY SOCIAL CONTRIBUTIONS IN DIFFERENT COUNTRIES NOT MEMBERS OF THE EUROPEAN UNION

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

MARINEL NEDELUŢ

2010-01-01

Full Text Available A proper understanding of the "details" of the pension system in our country can only be known if the essential, defining characteristics of pension systems in European Union countries and most developed countries in the world. Among the defining elements of any pension scheme among the most important are (a the share of social contributions and (2 tax base. In the present social security contributions will be applied in the following countries are not EU Member States: Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, Iceland, Macedonia, Moldova, Norway, Russia, Serbia, Montenegro, Turkey, Ukraine, Japan, United States of America. For a better comparison and social security contributions are presented in Romania. In the vast majority of these countries (a base contributions is the gross income, (2 are used to calculate the progressive contribution rates for retirement, particularly in most developed countries, (3 pension contribution is supported both by the employee (employee and employer, almost equally.

Next generation terminology infrastructure to support interprofessional care planning.

Science.gov (United States)

Collins, Sarah; Klinkenberg-Ramirez, Stephanie; Tsivkin, Kira; Mar, Perry L; Iskhakova, Dina; Nandigam, Hari; Samal, Lipika; Rocha, Roberto A

2017-11-01

Develop a prototype of an interprofessional terminology and information model infrastructure that can enable care planning applications to facilitate patient-centered care, learn care plan linkages and associations, provide decision support, and enable automated, prospective analytics. The study steps included a 3 step approach: (1) Process model and clinical scenario development, and (2) Requirements analysis, and (3) Development and validation of information and terminology models. Components of the terminology model include: Health Concerns, Goals, Decisions, Interventions, Assessments, and Evaluations. A terminology infrastructure should: (A) Include discrete care plan concepts; (B) Include sets of profession-specific concerns, decisions, and interventions; (C) Communicate rationales, anticipatory guidance, and guidelines that inform decisions among the care team; (D) Define semantic linkages across clinical events and professions; (E) Define sets of shared patient goals and sub-goals, including patient stated goals; (F) Capture evaluation toward achievement of goals. These requirements were mapped to AHRQ Care Coordination Measures Framework. This study used a constrained set of clinician-validated clinical scenarios. Terminology models for goals and decisions are unavailable in SNOMED CT, limiting the ability to evaluate these aspects of the proposed infrastructure. Defining and linking subsets of care planning concepts appears to be feasible, but also essential to model interprofessional care planning for common co-occurring conditions and chronic diseases. We recommend the creation of goal dynamics and decision concepts in SNOMED CT to further enable the necessary models. Systems with flexible terminology management infrastructure may enable intelligent decision support to identify conflicting and aligned concerns, goals, decisions, and interventions in shared care plans, ultimately decreasing documentation effort and cognitive burden for clinicians and

Planning for design quality

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Marguglio, B.W.

1977-01-01

In the nuclear industry and in other high technology industries in which the Government serves as either a customer or a regulator, it is almost always required that the contractor prepare a Quality Program Plan sometimes also referred to as a Quality Program Index. Often, the Quality Program Plan is included as part of the contractor's proposal in response to the Government's or a prime contractor's Request for Proposal. At this stage, the Quality Program Plan serves to demonstrate to the prospective customer the availability of the various quality systems. It provides the customer with a commitment as to the use of these quality systems, thus giving greater assurance that the customer's overall quality and design requirements can be met. The Quality Program Plan is contributing to the salability of the proposal. 1 ref

Unique aspects of impulsive traits in substance use and overeating: specific contributions of common assessments of impulsivity.

Science.gov (United States)

Beaton, Derek; Abdi, Hervé; Filbey, Francesca M

2014-11-01

Abstract Background: Impulsivity is a complex trait often studied in substance abuse and overeating disorders, but the exact nature of impulsivity traits and their contribution to these disorders are still debated. Thus, understanding how to measure impulsivity is essential for comprehending addictive behaviors. Identify unique impulsivity traits specific to substance use and overeating. Impulsive Sensation Seeking (ImpSS) and Barratt's Impulsivity scales (BIS) Scales were analyzed with a non-parametric factor analytic technique (discriminant correspondence analysis) to identify group-specific traits on 297 individuals from five groups: Marijuana (n = 88), Nicotine (n = 82), Overeaters (n = 27), Marijuauna + Nicotine (n = 63), and CONTROLs (n = 37). A significant overall factor structure revealed three components of impulsivity that explained respectively 50.19% (pperm Overeating: lacks focus, but plans (short and long term). Our results reveal impulsivity traits specific to each group. This may provide better criteria to define spectrums and trajectories - instead of categories - of symptoms for substance use and eating disorders. Defining symptomatic spectrums could be an important step forward in diagnostic strategies.

Plutonium stabilization and disposition focus area, FY 1999 and FY 2000 multi-year program plan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1998-03-01

Consistent with the Environmental Management's (EM's) plan titled, ''Accelerating Cleanup: Paths to Closure'', and ongoing efforts within the Executive Branch and Congress, this Multi-Year Program Plan (MYPP) for the Plutonium Focus Area was written to ensure that technical gap projects are effectively managed and measured. The Plutonium Focus Area (PFA) defines and manages technology development programs that contribute to the effective stabilization of nuclear materials and their subsequent safe storage and final disposition. The scope of PFA activities includes the complete spectrum of plutonium materials, special isotopes, and other fissile materials. The PFA enables solutions to site-specific and complex-wide technology issues associated with plutonium remediation, stabilization, and preparation for disposition. The report describes the current technical activities, namely: Plutonium stabilization (9 studies); Highly enriched uranium stabilization (2 studies); Russian collaboration program (2 studies); Packaging and storage technologies (6 studies); and PFA management work package/product line (3 studies). Budget information for FY 1999 and FY 2000 is provided

Plutonium stabilization and disposition focus area, FY 1999 and FY 2000 multi-year program plan

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1998-03-01

Consistent with the Environmental Management`s (EM`s) plan titled, ``Accelerating Cleanup: Paths to Closure``, and ongoing efforts within the Executive Branch and Congress, this Multi-Year Program Plan (MYPP) for the Plutonium Focus Area was written to ensure that technical gap projects are effectively managed and measured. The Plutonium Focus Area (PFA) defines and manages technology development programs that contribute to the effective stabilization of nuclear materials and their subsequent safe storage and final disposition. The scope of PFA activities includes the complete spectrum of plutonium materials, special isotopes, and other fissile materials. The PFA enables solutions to site-specific and complex-wide technology issues associated with plutonium remediation, stabilization, and preparation for disposition. The report describes the current technical activities, namely: Plutonium stabilization (9 studies); Highly enriched uranium stabilization (2 studies); Russian collaboration program (2 studies); Packaging and storage technologies (6 studies); and PFA management work package/product line (3 studies). Budget information for FY 1999 and FY 2000 is provided.

Village family planning volunteers in Indonesia: their role in the family planning programme.

Science.gov (United States)

Utomo, Iwu Dwisetyani; Arsyad, Syahmida S; Hasmi, Eddy Nurul

2006-05-01

Family planning was once a sensitive issue in Indonesia, but today it is considered essential. This paper reports on a study in 1997-98 of the role of village family planning volunteers and the cadres who worked under them in West Java, Central Java and DI Yogyakarta, in implementing the national family planning programme in Indonesia. A total of 108 village family planning volunteers, 108 family planning cadres, 108 local leaders and 324 couples eligible for family planning from 36 villages in the three provinces were interviewed. The volunteers and cadres have made a significant contribution to the implementation of the family planning programme. They promote family planning, organise meetings, provide information, organise income-generation activities, give savings and credit assistance, collect and report data and deliver other family welfare services. Teachers, wives of government officials and others recognised by the community as better off in terms of education and living conditions were most often identified to become family planning volunteers. Because they are women and because they are the most distant arm of the programme, their work is taken for granted. As their activities are directed towards women, especially in women's traditional roles, the programme tends to entrench the existing gender gap in responsibility for family planning and family welfare.

A numerical solution to define channel heads and hillslope parameters from digital topography of glacially conditioned catchments

Science.gov (United States)

Salcher, Bernhard; Baumann, Sebastian; Kober, Florian; Robl, Jörg; Heiniger, Lukas

2016-04-01

The analysis of the slope-area relationship in bedrock streams is a common way for discriminating the channel from the hillslope domain and associated landscape processes. Spatial variations of these domains are important indicators of landscape change. In fluvial catchments, this relationship is a function of contributing drainage area, channel slope and the threshold drainage area for fluvial erosion. The resulting pattern is related to climate, tectonic and underlying bedrock. These factors may become secondary in catchments affected by glacial erosion, as it is the case in many mid- to high-latitude mountain belts. The perturbation (i.e. the destruction) of an initial steady state fluvial bedrock morphology (where uplift is balanced by surface lowering rates) will tend to become successively larger if the repeated action of glacial processes exceeds the potential of fluvial readjustment during deglaciated periods. Topographic change is associated with a decrease and fragmentation of the channel network and an extension of the hillslope domain. In case of glacially conditioned catchments discrimination of the two domains remains problematic and a discrimination inconsistent. A definition is therefore highly needed considering that (i) a spatial shift in the domains affect the process and rate of erosion and (ii) topographic classifications of alpine catchments often base on channel and hillslope parameters (i.e.channel or hillslope relief). Here we propose a novel numerical approach to topographically define channel heads from digital topography in glacially conditioned mountain range catchments in order to discriminate the channel from the hillslope domain. We analyzed the topography of the southern European Central Alps, a region which (i) has been glaciated multiple times during the Quaternary, shows (ii) little lithological variations, is (iii) home of very low erodible rocks and is (iv) known as a region were tectonic processes have largely ceased. The

Stochastic Actuarial Modelling of a Defined-Benefit Social Security Pension Scheme: An Analytical Approach

OpenAIRE

Iyer, Subramaniam

2017-01-01

Among the systems in place in different countries for the protection of the population against the long-term contingencies of old-age (or retirement), disability and death (or survivorship), defined-benefit social security pension schemes, i.e. social insurance pension schemes, by far predominate, despite the recent trend towards defined-contribution arrangements in social security reforms. Actuarial valuations of these schemes, unlike other branches of insurance, continue to be carried out a...

The Scenario Planning Paradox

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Spaniol, Matthew Jon; Rowland, Nicholas James

2017-01-01

planning paradox. Contributing fresh theory supposedly attends to the “dismal” state of theory, while contributing new typologies purportedly helps bring order to methodological chaos. Repeated over time, the contribution strategy breaks down. Effort to resolve the theoretical and methodological issue......, foundational theoretical perspective in futures studies. Perceived chaos gives way to typologies, which, as they mount, contribute to the chaos they were meant to resolve. The end result, intended by no one, is that theory remains dismal and methods remain chaotic. This direction for the field is indefensible......For more than a decade, futures studies scholars have prefaced scholarly contributions by repeating the claim that there is insufficient theory to support chaotic scenario methodology. The strategy is formulaic, and the net effect is a curious one, which the authors refer to as the scenario...

Planning linear construction projects: automated method for the generation of earthwork activities

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Askew, W.H.; Al-Jibouri, Saad H.S.; Mawdesley, M.J.; Patterson, D.E.

2002-01-01

Earthworks planning for road construction projects is a complex operation and the planning rules used are usually intuitive and not well defined. An approach to automate the earthworks planning process is described and the basic techniques that are used are outlined. A computer-based system has been

Planning, Conducting, and Documenting Data Analysis for Program Improvement

Science.gov (United States)

Winer, Abby; Taylor, Cornelia; Derrington, Taletha; Lucas, Anne

2015-01-01

This 2015 document was developed to help technical assistance (TA) providers and state staff define and limit the scope of data analysis for program improvement efforts, including the State Systemic Improvement Plan (SSIP); develop a plan for data analysis; document alternative hypotheses and additional analyses as they are generated; and…

Slovenian spatial planning system: Key changes of past decade

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lavrenčić Valentina

2002-01-01

Full Text Available Spatial planning has a long tradition in Slovenia. It was always a part of the integrated planning process, first institutionalized in 1968. The planning system was quite unique, combining economic, social, and spatial aspects in one, a so called long-term and medium-term social plan. At the national level its spatial part consisted of the national spatial plan, the defining concept for settlement management and growth, public service delivery, use of space and landscape transformation, protection of the environment, and guidelines for conflict management. Today, this form of planning is substituted by the national strategies and programs of each sector.

LAND USE PLANNING AND URBAN PLANS: TERRITORIAL BALANCE AS ETHICS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Eunice Helena Sguizzardi Abascal

2012-07-01

Full Text Available The article suggests a necessary link between urban planning and territorial organization, in order to, through the synergistic relationship between planning tools and their application to planning, implementing a policy of urban and regional management. By linking the development plan for territorial development plans and categories of land use, this methodology helps to streamline operations at multiple scales. The establishment of this network of instruments and shapes the actions of government action against the rapid and intense increase of only economic forces that shape the territory today, suggesting that it is possible to regulate the action of the housing market through planned interventions, valuing the regional balance, social and environmental - ethical by definition. It is suggested that the possible effects predatory natural and built environment can be reversed or prevented by an action articulating these planning instruments are linked to the development and implementation of plans (and projects at multiple scales, approaching from the regional to the local and metropolitan, from regional policies to sectors, that are incidents in the municipal territory. However, the speed and magnitude of the occupation and transformation of soil occur mainly in periods of heating housing, often jeopardize the balance and environmental quality, natural heritage, urban and landscape. It assumes the argument that the overcoming of undesirable environmental effects, triggered by occupation of the ground guided by the real estate sector fast action can be successful with the articulation of levels of planning and intervention. It is proposed that the complexity of contemporary urban and metropolitan requires the articulation of different scales through the use of innovative urban instruments. By articulating these different scales, at the municipal and other levels supra, contributes to, through a network plan to overcome the undesirable dichotomy

Formalized Search Strategies for Human Risk Contributions

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rasmussen, Jens; Pedersen, O. M.

For risk management, the results of a probabilistic risk analysis (PRA) as well as the underlying assumptions can be used as references in a closed-loop risk control; and the analyses of operational experiences as a means of feedback. In this context, the need for explicit definition...... risk contributions are described on the basis of general plant design features relevant for risk and accident analysis. With this background, search strategies for human risk contributions are treated: Under the designation "work analysis", procedures for the analysis of familiar, well trained, planned...... tasks are proposed. Strategies for identifying human risk contributions outside this category are outlined....

Improved Collaborative Transport Planning at Dutch Logistics Service Provider Fritom

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Buijs, Paul; Lopez Alvarez, Jose Alejandro; Veenstra, Marjolein; Roodbergen, Kees Jan

2016-01-01

We study the collaborative transport planning for two autonomous business units of Fritom, a Dutch logistics service provider. This difficult planning problem does not fit any existing type of vehicle routing problem proposed in the academic literature; therefore, we define a new problem class, the

Records needed for orthodontic diagnosis and treatment planning: a systematic review.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Robine J Rischen

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Traditionally, dental models, facial and intra-oral photographs and a set of two-dimensional radiographs are used for orthodontic diagnosis and treatment planning. As evidence is lacking, the discussion is ongoing which specific records are needed for the process of making an orthodontic treatment plan. OBJECTIVE: To estimate the contribution and importance of different diagnostic records for making an orthodontic diagnosis and treatment plan. DATA SOURCES: An electronic search in PubMed (1948-July 2012, EMBASE Excerpta Medica (1980-July 2012, CINAHL (1982-July 2012, Web of Science (1945-July 2012, Scopus (1996-July 2012, and Cochrane Library (1993-July 2012 was performed. Additionally, a hand search of the reference lists of included studies was performed to identify potentially eligible studies. There was no language restriction. STUDY SELECTION: The patient, intervention, comparator, outcome (pico question formulated for this study was as follows: for patients who need orthodontic treatment (P, will the use of record set X (I compared with record set Y (C change the treatment plan (O? Only primary publications were included. DATA EXTRACTION: Independent extraction of data and quality assessment was performed by two observers. RESULTS: Of the 1041 publications retrieved, 17 met the inclusion criteria. Of these, 4 studies were of high quality. Because of the limited number of high quality studies and the differences in study designs, patient characteristics, and reference standard or index test, a meta-analysis was not possible. CONCLUSION: Cephalograms are not routinely needed for orthodontic treatment planning in Class II malocclusions, digital models can be used to replace plaster casts, and cone-beam computed tomography radiographs can be indicated for impacted canines. Based on the findings of this review, the minimum record set required for orthodontic diagnosis and treatment planning could not be defined. SYSTEMATIC REVIEW

The International Market Retirement Funds - Future Trends

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tudor Colomeischi

2013-07-01

Full Text Available The current state of the global market pension was marked by the fact that pension systems in all countries have been strongly affected by the financial and economic crisis that broke out in the world, especially in 2008-2010. Its effects were felt primarily to pension schemes with definedcontributions (DC, the participants in these plans being increasingly skeptical about the ability to afford decent pensions. Type defined contribution plans requires, on the one hand, periods and higher contribution rates, and on the other investment plans and strategies for managing longevity risk appropriate to the market in which they operate and the characteristics of the participants in this market.Currently in the world there are many types of retirement plans, the most important criteria to classify them are pension plan administrator, the connection with the employer participants, method of calculation of the benefit, the perspective of the pension plan, the way the pension plan isfund or through the multi-pillar approach.Keywords: defined benefit (DB type, defined contribution (DC type, pension system, annuity rate

South Dakota ITS/CVO business plan

Science.gov (United States)

1998-01-01

This report defines an ITS/CVO program for the State of South Dakota. It is a Business Plan to guide the deployment of Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) technology for improving commercial vehicle operations (CVO) in South Dakota. This ITS/CVO...

Linear programming models with planned lead times for supply chain operations planning

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Spitter, J.M.; Hurkens, C.A.J.; Kok, de A.G.; Lenstra, J.K.; Negenman, E.G.

2005-01-01

This paper contributes to the development of models for capacity constrained Supply Chain Operations Planning (SCOP). We focus on production environments with arbitrary supply chain structures. The demand for the end items is assumed to be exogenously determined. We solve the SCOP problem with

Airline company management: 'Defining of necessary number of employees in airline by using artificial intelligence tools'

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Petrović Dragan M.

2015-01-01

Full Text Available In this paper the model for preliminary estimation of number of employees in airline by using of artificial intelligence tools. It is assumed that the tools of artificial intelligence can be applied even for complex tasks such as defining the number of employees in the airline. The results obtained can be used for planning the number of employees, ie. planning the necessary financial investments in human resources, and may also be useful for a preliminary analysis of the airlines that choose to do restructuring or plan to increase/decrease the number of operations. Results were compared with those obtained by regression analysis.

Airport Surface Traffic Control Visual Ground Aids Engineering and Development Plan

Science.gov (United States)

1977-01-01

The plan described in this document supports the overall program at the Transportation Systems Center to define, design, develop, and evaluate systems that meet the requirements of airport surface traffic control. This plan is part of documentation s...

Single-employer Plans Trusteed by the PBGC

Data.gov (United States)

Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation — This spreadsheet contains a list of all single-employer defined benefit pension plans trusteed by the PBGC since its creation in 1974. This data set will be updated...

"Dermatitis" defined.

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, Suzanne M; Nedorost, Susan T

2010-01-01

The term "dermatitis" can be defined narrowly or broadly, clinically or histologically. A common and costly condition, dermatitis is underresourced compared to other chronic skin conditions. The lack of a collectively understood definition of dermatitis and its subcategories could be the primary barrier. To investigate how dermatologists define the term "dermatitis" and determine if a consensus on the definition of this term and other related terms exists. A seven-question survey of dermatologists nationwide was conducted. Of respondents (n  =  122), half consider dermatitis to be any inflammation of the skin. Nearly half (47.5%) use the term interchangeably with "eczema." Virtually all (> 96%) endorse the subcategory "atopic" under the terms "dermatitis" and "eczema," but the subcategories "contact," "drug hypersensitivity," and "occupational" are more highly endorsed under the term "dermatitis" than under the term "eczema." Over half (55.7%) personally consider "dermatitis" to have a broad meaning, and even more (62.3%) believe that dermatologists as a whole define the term broadly. There is a lack of consensus among experts in defining dermatitis, eczema, and their related subcategories.

IMRT treatment planning-A comparative inter-system and inter-centre planning exercise of the ESTRO QUASIMODO group

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bohsung, Joerg; Gillis, Sofie; Arrans, Rafael; Bakai, Annemarie; De Wagter, Carlos; Knoeoes, Tommy; Mijnheer, Ben J.; Paiusco, Marta; Perrin, Bruce A.; Welleweerd, Hans; Williams, Peter

2005-01-01

Background and purpose: The purpose of this work was a comparison of realistic IMRT plans based on the same CT-image data set and a common predefined set of dose objectives for the planning target volume and the organs at risk. This work was part of the larger European QUASIMODO IMRT verification project. Materials and methods: Eleven IMRT plans were produced by nine different European groups, each applying a representative set of clinically used IMRT treatment planning systems. The plans produced were to be deliverable in a clinically acceptable treatment time with the local technical equipment. All plans were characterized using a set of different quality measures such as dose-volume histograms, number of monitor units and treatment time. Results: Only one plan was able to fulfil all dose objectives strictly; six plans failed some of the objectives but were still considered to be clinically acceptable; four plans were not able to reach the objectives. Additional quality scores such as the number of monitor units and treatment time showed large variations, which mainly depend on the delivery technique. Conclusion: The presented planning study showed that with nearly all presently available IMRT planning and delivery systems comparable dose distributions could be achieved if the planning goals are clearly defined in advance

Optimization of observation plan based on the stochastic characteristics of the geodetic network

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Pachelski Wojciech

2016-06-01

Full Text Available Optimal design of geodetic network is a basic subject of many engineering projects. An observation plan is a concluding part of the process. Any particular observation within the network has through adjustment a different contribution and impact on values and accuracy characteristics of unknowns. The problem of optimal design can be solved by means of computer simulation. This paper presents a new method of simulation based on sequential estimation of individual observations in a step-by-step manner, by means of the so-called filtering equations. The algorithm aims at satisfying different criteria of accuracy according to various interpretations of the covariance matrix. Apart of them, the optimization criterion is also amount of effort, defined as the minimum number of observations required.

A 3D motion planning framework for snake robots

OpenAIRE

Liljebäck, Pål; Pettersen, Kristin Ytterstad; Stavdahl, Øyvind; Gravdahl, Jan Tommy

2014-01-01

- Author's postprint This paper presents a motion planning framework for three-dimensional body shape control of snake robots. Whereas conventional motion planning approaches define the body shape of snake robots in terms of their individual joint angles, the proposed framework allows the body shape to be specified in terms of Cartesian coordinates in the environment of the robot. This approach simplifies motion planning since Cartesian coordinates are more intuitively mapped to the overal...

Pension Fund Investment Policy

OpenAIRE

Zvi Bodie

1988-01-01

The purpose of this paper is to survey what is known about the investment policy of pension funds. Pension fund investment policy depends critically on the type of plan: defined contribution versus defined benefit. For defined contribution plans investment policy is not much different than it is for an individual deciding how to invest the money in an Individual Retirement Account (IRA). The guiding principle is efficient diversification, that is, achieving the maximum expected return for any...

Institutional Plan FY 2003 - 2007

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chartock, Michael; Hansen, Todd

2003-01-27

The Fiscal Year (FY) 2003-2007 Institutional Plan describes the strategic directions and key issues that Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory management must address with the Department of Energy (DOE) in charting its future as a multiprogram national laboratory. The Plan provides an overview of the Laboratory's mission, strategic plan, initiatives, and the resources required to fulfill its role in support of national needs in fundamental science and technology, energy resources, and environmental quality. The Plan facilitates the Department of Energy's ongoing efforts to strengthen the Integrated Laboratory System. Preparation and review of the Institutional Plan is one element of the Department of Energy's strategic management planning activities, implemented through an annual planning process. The Plan supports the President's Management Agenda and the Government Performance and Results Act of 1993. The Plan complements the current performance-based contract between the Department of Energy and the Regents of the University of California, and summarizes Best Management Practices for a potential future results-based contract as a basis for achieving DOE goals and the Laboratory's scientific and operations objectives. It identifies technical and administrative directions in the context of national energy policy and research needs and the Department of Energy's program planning initiatives. Preparation of the Plan is coordinated by the Planning and Strategic Development Office from information contributed by Berkeley Lab's scientific and support divisions and DOE comments on prior years' plans. The Laboratory Mission section identifies the specific strengths of Berkeley Lab that contribute to the mission in general and the Integrated Laboratory System in particular. The Laboratory Strategic Plan section identifies the existing activities in support of DOE Office of Science and other sponsors; support for DOE goals; and the

The contribution of dynamic visual cues to audiovisual speech perception.

Science.gov (United States)

Jaekl, Philip; Pesquita, Ana; Alsius, Agnes; Munhall, Kevin; Soto-Faraco, Salvador

2015-08-01

Seeing a speaker's facial gestures can significantly improve speech comprehension, especially in noisy environments. However, the nature of the visual information from the speaker's facial movements that is relevant for this enhancement is still unclear. Like auditory speech signals, visual speech signals unfold over time and contain both dynamic configural information and luminance-defined local motion cues; two information sources that are thought to engage anatomically and functionally separate visual systems. Whereas, some past studies have highlighted the importance of local, luminance-defined motion cues in audiovisual speech perception, the contribution of dynamic configural information signalling changes in form over time has not yet been assessed. We therefore attempted to single out the contribution of dynamic configural information to audiovisual speech processing. To this aim, we measured word identification performance in noise using unimodal auditory stimuli, and with audiovisual stimuli. In the audiovisual condition, speaking faces were presented as point light displays achieved via motion capture of the original talker. Point light displays could be isoluminant, to minimise the contribution of effective luminance-defined local motion information, or with added luminance contrast, allowing the combined effect of dynamic configural cues and local motion cues. Audiovisual enhancement was found in both the isoluminant and contrast-based luminance conditions compared to an auditory-only condition, demonstrating, for the first time the specific contribution of dynamic configural cues to audiovisual speech improvement. These findings imply that globally processed changes in a speaker's facial shape contribute significantly towards the perception of articulatory gestures and the analysis of audiovisual speech. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Quality planning in Construction Project

Science.gov (United States)

Othman, I.; Shafiq, Nasir; Nuruddin, M. F.

2017-12-01

The purpose of this paper is to investigate deeper on the factors that contribute to the effectiveness of quality planning, identifying the common problems encountered in quality planning, practices and ways for improvements in quality planning for construction projects. This paper involves data collected from construction company representatives across Malaysia that are obtained through semi-structured interviews as well as questionnaire distributions. Results shows that design of experiments (average index: 4.61), inspection (average index: 4.45) and quality audit as well as other methods (average index: 4.26) rank first, second and third most important factors respectively.

Defining the Perception and Experiences of Educational Service Stakeholders

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Soleiman Ahmady

2017-04-01

Full Text Available Background and Purpose: The office of educational services at universities is a very important division and it is necessary for employees to strive towards providing suitable services to students. The quality of educational services has always been a major concern for higher education managers. Interviewing stakeholders and experts increases our understanding of different aspects of the subject in order to create a native model with high performance capability based on existing conditions and the cultural and political infrastructure of our country. Therefore, we aimed to define the perception and experiences of educational service stakeholders.Methods: In this qualitative thematic content analysis that adapted a deductive approach using Graneheim and Lundman’s method. Initially, purposeful sampling was done to identify and select the students (as first level stakeholders studying paramedical majors at one of the medical science universities of the country during the educational year 2015-2016. Altogether, 20 people were interviewed consisting of 6 students, 4 faculty members, 2 student affairs employees, 1 counselor, 2 education officers, and 2 education office managers.Data were analyzed and coded using MAXQDA software.Results: Of the 400 initial codes extracted through data analysis, 336 abstract codes, 48 sub-categories, 20 categories, and 7 themes were obtained. The level of abstraction was different in the categories. The extracted themes were as follows: information gap before and after entering university, the difference between expected and perceived services and factors contributing to expectations, the university’s approach in enhancing service quality, the student and management of educational problems, the system-student interaction in educational planning, and the professors’ responsibilities and performance in enhancing quality, and the role on the university management system in enhancing the quality of services

Contribution of maintainability and maintenance to problems of safety evaluation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Adnot, Serge; Meriaux, Pierre.

1977-10-01

A method has been developed for defining the contribution of Maintainability and the Maintenance Studies to Safety evaluation problems. The efficiency of this method is shown and results obtained are given for two theoretical examples approximating reality. For repairable systems, the risk defined according to such given safety criterion, becomes a characteristic of the systems in operation [fr

Problems in implementation of the spatial plan of the Republic of Srpska until 2015: Quantitative analysis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bijelić Branislav

2017-01-01

Full Text Available The implementation of spatial plans in the Republic of Srpska is certainly the weakest phase of the process of spatial planning in this entity. It is particularly evident in the case of the Spatial Plan of the Republic of Srpska until 2015 which is the highest strategic spatial planning document in the Republic of Srpska. More precisely, the implementation of spatial plans has been defined as the carrying out of spatial planning documents, i.e. planning propositions as defined in the spatial plans. For the purpose of this paper, a quantitative analysis of the implementation of the planning propositions envisioned by this document has been carried out. The difference between what was planned and what was implemented at the end of the planning period (ex-post evaluation of planning decisions is presented in this paper. The weighting factor is defined for each thematic field and planning proposition, where the main criterion for determining the weighting factor is the share of the planning proposition and thematic field in the estimated total costs of the plan (financial criterion. The paper has also tackled the issue of the implementation of the Spatial Plan of Bosnia and Herzegovina for the period 1981 - 2000, as well as of the Spatial Plan of the Republic of Srpska 1996 - 2001 - Phased Plan for the period 1996 - 2001, as the previous strategic spatial planning documents of the highest rank covering the area of the Republic of Srpska. The research results have proven primary hypothesis of the paper that the level of the implementation of Spatial Plan of the Republic of Srpska until 2015 is less than 10%.

Analysis of the Determination of Contributions in the Peruvian Private Pension System: An Application of Annuities and Perpetuities

OpenAIRE

Quintana Meza, Aldo

2012-01-01

This paper discusses on how to set fixed contributions for a given objective of a private pension plan, by using two traditional financial models such as annuities and perpetuities. The private pension plan has two components: (i) the contributions’ plan on a monthly basis (annuity), and (ii) the pension plan on a monthly basis (perpetuity). The document focuses on the relationship between the size to the contribution and the pension fund returns. The document covers the Peruvian case. Est...

Airline company management: 'Defining of necessary number of employees in airline by using artificial intelligence tools'

OpenAIRE

Petrović, Dragan M.; Puharic, Mirjana A.; Jovanović, Tomislav Ž.

2015-01-01

In this paper the model for preliminary estimation of number of employees in airline by using of artificial intelligence tools. It is assumed that the tools of artificial intelligence can be applied even for complex tasks such as defining the number of employees in the airline. The results obtained can be used for planning the number of employees, ie. planning the necessary financial investments in human resources, and may also be useful for a preliminary analysis of the airlines that choose ...

A model for the distribution channels planning process

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Neves, M.F.; Zuurbier, P.; Campomar, M.C.

2001-01-01

Research of existing literature reveals some models (sequence of steps) for companies that want to plan distribution channels. None of these models uses strong contributions from transaction cost economics, bringing a possibility to elaborate on a "distribution channels planning model", with these

Labor Market Effects of Pensions and Implications for Teachers. Conference Paper 2009-06

Science.gov (United States)

Friedberg, Leora; Turner, Sarah

2009-01-01

While the pension plan landscape has changed remarkably over the last two decades, with most private-sector workers seeing a shift from defined benefit (DB) to defined contribution (DC) plans, DB pension plans remain the overwhelming norm for K-12 teachers employed by state and local governments. With DB plans, teachers typically receive minimal…

Planning Hybrid Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy for Whole-breast Irradiation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Farace, Paolo [Medical Physics Department, Regional Oncological Hospital, Cagliari (Italy); Zucca, Sergio; Solla, Ignazio; Fadda, Giuseppina; Durzu, Silvia; Porru, Sergio; Meleddu, Gianfranco [Medical Physics Department, Regional Oncological Hospital, Cagliari (Italy); Deidda, Maria Assunta; Possanzini, Marco; Orru, Sivia; Lay, Giancarlo [Radiotherapy Department, Regional Oncological Hospital, Cagliari (Italy)

2012-09-01

Purpose: To test tangential and not-tangential hybrid intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) for whole-breast irradiation. Methods and Materials: Seventy-eight (36 right-, 42 left-) breast patients were randomly selected. Hybrid IMRT was performed by direct aperture optimization. A semiautomated method for planning hybrid IMRT was implemented using Pinnacle scripts. A plan optimization volume (POV), defined as the portion of the planning target volume covered by the open beams, was used as the target objective during inverse planning. Treatment goals were to prescribe a minimum dose of 47.5 Gy to greater than 90% of the POV and to minimize the POV and/or normal tissue receiving a dose greater than 107%. When treatment goals were not achieved by using a 4-field technique (2 conventional open plus 2 IMRT tangents), a 6-field technique was applied, adding 2 non tangential (anterior-oblique) IMRT beams. Results: Using scripts, manual procedures were minimized (choice of optimal beam angle, setting monitor units for open tangentials, and POV definition). Treatment goals were achieved by using the 4-field technique in 61 of 78 (78%) patients. The 6-field technique was applied in the remaining 17 of 78 (22%) patients, allowing for significantly better achievement of goals, at the expense of an increase of low-dose ({approx}5 Gy) distribution in the contralateral tissue, heart, and lungs but with no significant increase of higher doses ({approx}20 Gy) in heart and lungs. The mean monitor unit contribution to IMRT beams was significantly greater (18.7% vs 9.9%) in the group of patients who required 6-field procedure. Conclusions: Because hybrid IMRT can be performed semiautomatically, it can be planned for a large number of patients with little impact on human or departmental resources, promoting it as the standard practice for whole-breast irradiation.

Planning hybrid intensity modulated radiation therapy for whole-breast irradiation.

Science.gov (United States)

Farace, Paolo; Zucca, Sergio; Solla, Ignazio; Fadda, Giuseppina; Durzu, Silvia; Porru, Sergio; Meleddu, Gianfranco; Deidda, Maria Assunta; Possanzini, Marco; Orrù, Sivia; Lay, Giancarlo

2012-09-01

To test tangential and not-tangential hybrid intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) for whole-breast irradiation. Seventy-eight (36 right-, 42 left-) breast patients were randomly selected. Hybrid IMRT was performed by direct aperture optimization. A semiautomated method for planning hybrid IMRT was implemented using Pinnacle scripts. A plan optimization volume (POV), defined as the portion of the planning target volume covered by the open beams, was used as the target objective during inverse planning. Treatment goals were to prescribe a minimum dose of 47.5 Gy to greater than 90% of the POV and to minimize the POV and/or normal tissue receiving a dose greater than 107%. When treatment goals were not achieved by using a 4-field technique (2 conventional open plus 2 IMRT tangents), a 6-field technique was applied, adding 2 non tangential (anterior-oblique) IMRT beams. Using scripts, manual procedures were minimized (choice of optimal beam angle, setting monitor units for open tangentials, and POV definition). Treatment goals were achieved by using the 4-field technique in 61 of 78 (78%) patients. The 6-field technique was applied in the remaining 17 of 78 (22%) patients, allowing for significantly better achievement of goals, at the expense of an increase of low-dose (∼5 Gy) distribution in the contralateral tissue, heart, and lungs but with no significant increase of higher doses (∼20 Gy) in heart and lungs. The mean monitor unit contribution to IMRT beams was significantly greater (18.7% vs 9.9%) in the group of patients who required 6-field procedure. Because hybrid IMRT can be performed semiautomatically, it can be planned for a large number of patients with little impact on human or departmental resources, promoting it as the standard practice for whole-breast irradiation. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Planning Hybrid Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy for Whole-breast Irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Farace, Paolo; Zucca, Sergio; Solla, Ignazio; Fadda, Giuseppina; Durzu, Silvia; Porru, Sergio; Meleddu, Gianfranco; Deidda, Maria Assunta; Possanzini, Marco; Orrù, Sivia; Lay, Giancarlo

2012-01-01

Purpose: To test tangential and not-tangential hybrid intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) for whole-breast irradiation. Methods and Materials: Seventy-eight (36 right-, 42 left-) breast patients were randomly selected. Hybrid IMRT was performed by direct aperture optimization. A semiautomated method for planning hybrid IMRT was implemented using Pinnacle scripts. A plan optimization volume (POV), defined as the portion of the planning target volume covered by the open beams, was used as the target objective during inverse planning. Treatment goals were to prescribe a minimum dose of 47.5 Gy to greater than 90% of the POV and to minimize the POV and/or normal tissue receiving a dose greater than 107%. When treatment goals were not achieved by using a 4-field technique (2 conventional open plus 2 IMRT tangents), a 6-field technique was applied, adding 2 non tangential (anterior-oblique) IMRT beams. Results: Using scripts, manual procedures were minimized (choice of optimal beam angle, setting monitor units for open tangentials, and POV definition). Treatment goals were achieved by using the 4-field technique in 61 of 78 (78%) patients. The 6-field technique was applied in the remaining 17 of 78 (22%) patients, allowing for significantly better achievement of goals, at the expense of an increase of low-dose (∼5 Gy) distribution in the contralateral tissue, heart, and lungs but with no significant increase of higher doses (∼20 Gy) in heart and lungs. The mean monitor unit contribution to IMRT beams was significantly greater (18.7% vs 9.9%) in the group of patients who required 6-field procedure. Conclusions: Because hybrid IMRT can be performed semiautomatically, it can be planned for a large number of patients with little impact on human or departmental resources, promoting it as the standard practice for whole-breast irradiation.

An Examination of the Structure of Sustainable Facilities Planning Scale for User Satisfaction in Nigerian Universities

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Abayomi Ibiyemi

2014-09-01

Full Text Available Universities are under increasing pressure to demonstrate that continuous performance improvement is being delivered for user satisfaction, but the importance of facilities planning as a student-staff focused tool needs to be emphasised. This research sought answers to questions relating to the underlying structure of sustainable facilities planning and user satisfaction, and the number of factors that make up the facilities planning scale. Three universities from the south-western part of Nigeria were selected randomly using ownership structure to define the cases: University of Lagos, Akoka, Lagos, Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, Ogbomoso and Joseph Ayo Babalola University, Ikeji Arakeji, each representing the Federal, State, and Private ownership. A questionnaire survey was used on a random sample of 651 staff and students from the three universities. Six hundred questionnaires were retrieved (response rate of 92.2%. An exploratory factor analysis was used to understand the responses and the interrelationships. The results showed a two-factor solution of ‘locational advantages and user needs’ and ‘adequacy of facilities/functional connection and four core determinants for acceptance. It is concluded that universities should factor student-staff focus points into their facilities planning schemes to optimise their service deliveries. The study contributes to the discussion on factor structure of sustainable facilities planning scale with a focus on students and staff of universities.   Keywords: Facilities planning, universities, data structure, factors, Nigeria.

An Examination of the Structure of Sustainable Facilities Planning Scale for User Satisfaction in Nigerian Universities

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Abayomi Ibiyemi

2014-09-01

Full Text Available Universities are under increasing pressure to demonstrate that continuous performance improvement is being delivered for user satisfaction, but the importance of facilities planning as a student-staff focused tool needs to be emphasised. This research sought answers to questions relating to the underlying structure of sustainable facilities planning and user satisfaction, and the number of factors that make up the facilities planning scale. Three universities from the south-western part of Nigeria were selected randomly using ownership structure to define the cases: University of Lagos, Akoka, Lagos, Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, Ogbomoso and Joseph Ayo Babalola University, Ikeji Arakeji, each representing the Federal, State, and Private ownership. A questionnaire survey was used on a random sample of 651 staff and students from the three universities. Six hundred questionnaires were retrieved (response rate of 92.2%. An exploratory factor analysis was used to understand the responses and the interrelationships. The results showed a two-factor solution of ‘locational advantages and user needs’ and ‘adequacy of facilities/functional connection and four core determinants for acceptance. It is concluded that universities should factor student-staff focus points into their facilities planning schemes to optimise their service deliveries. The study contributes to the discussion on factor structure of sustainable facilities planning scale with a focus on students and staff of universities. Keywords: Facilities planning, universities, data structure, factors, Nigeria.

Brayton Isotope Power System (BIPS). Phase I: Integrated Program Plan (IPP). Report 75-311574A

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1976-01-01

The government, AIRPHX, AIRLA, and contractor BIPS program coordination efforts are discussed. These coordination efforts are essential for defining program objectives, and achieving these objectives in an efficient manner. The IPP outlines a long range effort intended to: (a) develop end product confidence; (b) identify government and contractor activities pertinent and contributory to BIPS development; (c) recommend government and contractor activities required to ensure BIPS program success; (d) establish activity priorities based on program cost and schedule impacts, and achievement of technical objectives; (e) coordinate the efforts of contributing agencies; (f) provide general information and, to a limited extent, BIPS program-related development activity status to interested individuals and agencies; and (g) provide contractor team program planning guidance

National contributions to observed global warming

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Matthews, H Damon; Graham, Tanya L; Keverian, Serge; Lamontagne, Cassandra; Seto, Donny; Smith, Trevor J

2014-01-01

There is considerable interest in identifying national contributions to global warming as a way of allocating historical responsibility for observed climate change. This task is made difficult by uncertainty associated with national estimates of historical emissions, as well as by difficulty in estimating the climate response to emissions of gases with widely varying atmospheric lifetimes. Here, we present a new estimate of national contributions to observed climate warming, including CO 2 emissions from fossil fuels and land-use change, as well as methane, nitrous oxide and sulfate aerosol emissions While some countries’ warming contributions are reasonably well defined by fossil fuel CO 2 emissions, many countries have dominant contributions from land-use CO 2 and non-CO 2 greenhouse gas emissions, emphasizing the importance of both deforestation and agriculture as components of a country’s contribution to climate warming. Furthermore, because of their short atmospheric lifetime, recent sulfate aerosol emissions have a large impact on a country’s current climate contribution We show also that there are vast disparities in both total and per-capita climate contributions among countries, and that across most developed countries, per-capita contributions are not currently consistent with attempts to restrict global temperature change to less than 2 °C above pre-industrial temperatures. (paper)

The link between the use of advanced planning and scheduling (APS) modules and factory context

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kristensen, Jesper; Asmussen, Jesper Normann; Wæhrens, Brian Vejrum

2017-01-01

at factories characterized by low planning maturity, but lower for factories with medium planning maturity. For low planning maturity, the APS module is used for improving the configuration of the manufacturing system, whereas high planning maturity is required to capture performance benefits from optimization......Through a study of four embedded action research cases within a global OEM, it is investigated how the frequency of use and contribution of an Advanced Planning and Scheduling (APS) module are affected by factory context. The performance contribution of the APS module is found to be high...... and scenario planning. Further, it is found that planning complexity at the factory increases both the frequency of use and the contribution of using APS modules. On the basis of the findings, three propositions are formulated on the link between factory context and the use of APS module....

Seeking an optimal algorithm for a new satellite-based Sea Ice Drift Climate Data Record : Motivations, plans and initial results from the ESA CCI Sea Ice project

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lavergne, T.; Dybkjær, Gorm; Girard-Ardhuin, Fanny

The Sea Ice Essential Climate Variable (ECV) as defined by GCOS pertains of both sea ice concentration, thickness, and drift. Now in its second phase, the ESA CCI Sea Ice project is conducting the necessary research efforts to address sea ice drift.Accurate estimates of sea ice drift direction an...... in the final product. This contribution reviews the motivation for the work, the plans for sea ice drift algorithms intercomparison and selection, and early results from our activity....

Strategic Planning for Cardiac Services

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Gauthier, Gail D

2008-01-01

.... In August 2007, a Tiger Team formed between members of DDEAMC and the Augusta VAMC to determine causative factors contributing to the results, and to provide an action plan that would satisfy CSCB requirements...

A Practice of Secure Development and Operational Environment Plan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Park, Jaekwan; Seo, Sangmun; Suh, Yongsukl; Park, Cheol

2017-01-01

This paper suggests a practice of plan for SDOE establishment in a nuclear I and C. First, it is necessary to perform a requirements analysis to define key regulatory issues and determine the target systems. The analysis includes a survey to find out the applicable measures credited internationally. Based on the analysis results, this paper proposes an implementation plan including a process harmonizing security activities with legacy software activities and applicable technical, operational, and management measures for target systems. Recently, nuclear I and C has been faced with two security issues, cyber security (CS) and secure development and operational environment (SDOE). Unlike cyber security, few studies on planning SDOE have been presented. This paper suggests a plan for establishing an SDOE in a nuclear I and C. This paper defines three key considerations to comply with the regulatory position of RG. 1.152(R3) and proposes a process harmonizing the security activities with legacy software activities. In addition, this paper proposes technical, operational, and management measures applicable for SDOE.

Security-Constrained Resource Planning in Electricity Market

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Roh, Jae Hyung; Shahidehpour, Mohammad; Yong Fu

2007-06-01

We propose a market-based competitive generation resource planning model in electricity markets. The objective of the model is to introduce the impact of transmission security in a multi-GENCO generation resource planning. The proposed approach is based on effective decomposition and coordination strategies. Lagrangian relaxation and Benders decomposition like structure are applied to the model. Locational price signal and capacity signal are defined for the simulation of competition among GENCOs and the coordination of security between GENCOs and the regulatory body (ISO). The numerical examples exhibit the effectiveness of the proposed generation planning model in electricity markets.

26 CFR 1.401(a)(4)-3 - Nondiscrimination in amount of employer-provided benefits under a defined benefit plan.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... of Division S receive their benefit in the form of a straight life annuity and that employees of... accrual rate less than or equal to the employee's most valuable accrual rate. (2) Satisfaction of section... plan, and for determining whether the employee-provided benefits under such a plan are...

Planning and Problem Solving

Science.gov (United States)

1982-10-01

Artificial Intelig ~ence (Vol. III, edited by Paul R. Cohen and’ Edward A.. Feigenbaum)’, The chapter was written B’ Paul Cohen, with contributions... Artificial Intelligence (Vol. III, edited by Paul R. Cohen and EdWard A. Feigenbaum). The chapter was written by Paul R. Cohen, with contributions by Stephen...Wheevoats"EntermdI’ Planning and Problem ’Solving by Paul R. Cohen Chaptb-rXV-of Volumec III’of the Handbook of Artificial Intelligence edited by Paul R

Goal Clarity and Financial Planning Activities as Determinants of Retirement Savings Contributions

Science.gov (United States)

Stawski, Robert S.; Hershey, Douglas A.; Jacobs-Lawson, Joy M.

2007-01-01

Retirement counselors, financial service professionals, and retirement intervention specialists routinely emphasize the importance of developing clear goals for the future; however, few empirical studies have focused on the benefits of retirement goal setting. In the present study, the extent to which goal clarity and financial planning activities…

Scenario planning.

Science.gov (United States)

Enzmann, Dieter R; Beauchamp, Norman J; Norbash, Alexander

2011-03-01

In facing future developments in health care, scenario planning offers a complementary approach to traditional strategic planning. Whereas traditional strategic planning typically consists of predicting the future at a single point on a chosen time horizon and mapping the preferred plans to address such a future, scenario planning creates stories about multiple likely potential futures on a given time horizon and maps the preferred plans to address the multiple described potential futures. Each scenario is purposefully different and specifically not a consensus worst-case, average, or best-case forecast; nor is scenario planning a process in probabilistic prediction. Scenario planning focuses on high-impact, uncertain driving forces that in the authors' example affect the field of radiology. Uncertainty is the key concept as these forces are mapped onto axes of uncertainty, the poles of which have opposed effects on radiology. One chosen axis was "market focus," with poles of centralized health care (government control) vs a decentralized private market. Another axis was "radiology's business model," with one pole being a unified, single specialty vs a splintered, disaggregated subspecialty. The third axis was "technology and science," with one pole representing technology enabling to radiology vs technology threatening to radiology. Selected poles of these axes were then combined to create 3 scenarios. One scenario, termed "entrepreneurialism," consisted of a decentralized private market, a disaggregated business model, and threatening technology and science. A second scenario, termed "socialized medicine," had a centralized market focus, a unified specialty business model, and enabling technology and science. A third scenario, termed "freefall," had a centralized market focus, a disaggregated business model, and threatening technology and science. These scenarios provide a range of futures that ultimately allow the identification of defined "signposts" that can

77 FR 6504 - Roth Feature to the Thrift Savings Plan and Miscellaneous Uniformed Services Account Amendments

Science.gov (United States)

2012-02-08

... are, by definition, tax-deferred contributions unless they are Roth contributions. See 26 CFR 1.402(g... traditional IRA, a check indicating that the contribution is a direct rollover, or a tax notice from the plan... the contribution is a direct rollover, or a tax notice from the plan to the participant indicating...

20 CFR 416.1226 - What is a plan to achieve self-support (PASS)?

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... include a business plan that defines the business, provides a marketing strategy, details financial data, outlines the operational procedures, and describes the management plan. (d) Your progress will be reviewed...

Analysis of the Determination of Contributions in the Peruvian Private Pension System: An Application of Annuities and Perpetuities

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Aldo Quintana Meza

2012-12-01

Full Text Available This paper discusses on how to set fixed contributions for a given objective of a private pension plan, by using two traditional financial models such as annuities and perpetuities. The private pension plan has two components: (i the contributions’ plan on a monthly basis (annuity, and (ii the pension plan on a monthly basis (perpetuity. The document focuses on the relationship between the size to the contribution and the pension fund returns. The document covers the Peruvian case.

Landscape planning and management of spas in Serbia with special reference to the selected case studies

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Crnčević Tijana

2010-01-01

Full Text Available In the paper is presented the overview of the legal requirements in Serbia covering planning and as well landscape planning. It is stress that Serbia is in the process of the ratification of the European Landscape Convention (ELC and adoption of the Spatial Plan of the Republic of Serbia (SPRS where is included the obligation of the production of the study 'Characterization of the landscape in Serbia' and as well pilot projects 'Characterization of the landscape' where are separated priority areas and where are specially stressed as tourist destinations spas. Taking into consideration that important step towards development of the methodological framework for landscape planning and management in Serbia was made with the inclusion of this subject within the process of formulating of the SPRS, besides the overview of the main obligations set by this document covering landscape planning and management, as an example of the current practice, two case studies of Vrnjacka spa and Pribojska spa are presented where special attention within planning documents was given to the protection and enhancement of the landscape. Beside that, as a contribution, it is given the proposal of the preliminary typology of the landscape of Vrnjacke spa within the borders of the Master plan and Pribojska spa within the borders of the Plan of detailed regulation. Taking into consideration the scope of these plans, the landscape is defined as cultural and by more detailed analyses as urban and rural. Within these two types of landscape are separated urban area, the 'core' of the spa, peri-urban area, and within rural forest and agricultural area. One of the main conclusions of this paper is that the inclusion of the landscape within legal framework which is promoting spatial and urban planning, nature and environmental protection is very important prerequisite for adequate planning and management of the landscape in Serbia.

Feasibility of identification of gamma knife planning strategies by identification of pareto optimal gamma knife plans.

Science.gov (United States)

Giller, C A

2011-12-01

The use of conformity indices to optimize Gamma Knife planning is common, but does not address important tradeoffs between dose to tumor and normal tissue. Pareto analysis has been used for this purpose in other applications, but not for Gamma Knife (GK) planning. The goal of this work is to use computer models to show that Pareto analysis may be feasible for GK planning to identify dosimetric tradeoffs. We define a GK plan A to be Pareto dominant to B if the prescription isodose volume of A covers more tumor but not more normal tissue than B, or if A covers less normal tissue but not less tumor than B. A plan is Pareto optimal if it is not dominated by any other plan. Two different Pareto optimal plans represent different tradeoffs between dose to tumor and normal tissue, because neither plan dominates the other. 'GK simulator' software calculated dose distributions for GK plans, and was called repetitively by a genetic algorithm to calculate Pareto dominant plans. Three irregular tumor shapes were tested in 17 trials using various combinations of shots. The mean number of Pareto dominant plans/trial was 59 ± 17 (sd). Different planning strategies were identified by large differences in shot positions, and 70 of the 153 coordinate plots (46%) showed differences of 5mm or more. The Pareto dominant plans dominated other nearby plans. Pareto dominant plans represent different dosimetric tradeoffs and can be systematically calculated using genetic algorithms. Automatic identification of non-intuitive planning strategies may be feasible with these methods.

29 CFR 2510.3-2 - Employee pension benefit plan.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 29 Labor 9 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Employee pension benefit plan. 2510.3-2 Section 2510.3-2... TERMS USED IN SUBCHAPTERS C, D, E, F, AND G OF THIS CHAPTER § 2510.3-2 Employee pension benefit plan. (a) General. This section clarifies the limits of the defined terms “employee pension benefit plan” and...

Path to a Research Plan

Science.gov (United States)

Chiaramonte, Fran

2003-01-01

This viewgraph presentation discusses the status and goals for the NASA OBPR Physical Science Research Program. The following text was used to summarize the presentation. The OBPR Physical Sciences Research program has been comprehensively reviewed and endorsed by National Research Council. The value and need for the research have been re-affirmed. The research program has been prioritized and resource re-allocations have been carried out through an OBPR-wide process. An increasing emphasis on strategic, mission-oriented research is planned. The program will strive to maintain a balance between strategic and fundamental research. A feasible ISS flight research program fitting within the budgetary and ISS resource envelopes has been formulated for the near term (2003-2007). The current ISS research program will be significantly strengthened starting 2005 by using discipline dedicated research facility racks. A research re-planning effort has been initiated and will include active participation from the research community in the next few months. The research re-planning effort will poise PSR to increase ISS research utilization for a potential enhancement beyond ISS IP Core Complete. The Physical Sciences research program readily integrates the cross-disciplinary requirements of the NASA and OBPR strategic objectives. Each fundamental research thrust will develop a roadmap through technical workshops and Discipline Working Groups (DWGs). Most fundamental research thrusts will involve cross-disciplinary efforts. A Technology Roadmap will guide the Strategic Research for Exploration thrust. The Research Plan will integrate and coordinate fundamental Research Thrusts Roadmaps with the Technology Roadmap. The Technology Roadmap will be developed in coordination with other OBPR programs as well as other Enterprise (R,S,M,N). International Partners will contribute to the roadmaps and through research coordination. The research plan will be vetted with the discipline

Drupal The Guide to Planning and Building Websites

CERN Document Server

McCourt, Cynthia

2011-01-01

A complete lifecycle guide to planning and building a site with Drupal Drupal allows you to quickly and easily build a wide variety of web sites, from very simple blog sites to extremely complex sites that integrate with other systems. In order to maximize what Drupal can do for you, you need to plan. Whether you are building with Drupal 6 or 7, this book details the steps necessary to plan your site so you can make informed decisions before you start to build.Explains how to define the scope of your projectShows you how to create a design plan taking into consideration how Drupal worksHelps y

Marketing Plan for the National Security Technology Incubator

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

None

2008-03-31

This marketing plan was developed as part of the National Security Preparedness Project by the Arrowhead Center of New Mexico State University. The vision of the National Security Technology Incubator program is to be a successful incubator of technologies and private enterprise that assist the NNSA in meeting new challenges in national safety and security. The plan defines important aspects of developing the incubator, such as defining the target market, marketing goals, and creating strategies to reach the target market while meeting those goals. The three main marketing goals of the incubator are: 1) developing marketing materials for the incubator program; 2) attracting businesses to become incubator participants; and 3) increasing name recognition of the incubator program on a national level.

Hornby's principles of fire control planning

Science.gov (United States)

H. T. Gisborne

1939-01-01

On August 27, 1937, Lloyd G. Hornby died of heart failure on the Toboggan Creek forest fire in the Clearwater National Forest. Few if any men in or out of the U.S. Forest Service have made a greater contribution to fire control planning than did he. In the following article, H. T. Gisborne outlines the principles of fire control planning developed by Mr. Hornby,...

Writing a successful business plan: an overview.

Science.gov (United States)

Haag, Annette B

2013-01-01

In creating and building a business, the entrepreneur assumes all the responsibilities for development and management, as well as the risks and rewards. Many businesses do not survive because business owners fail to develop an effective plan. The business plan focuses on major areas of concern and their contribution to the success of a new business. The finished plan communicates the product or service to others and provides the basis for the financial proposal. Copyright 2013, SLACK Incorporated.

Automated transportation management system (ATMS) software project management plan (SPMP)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Weidert, R.S., Westinghouse Hanford

1996-05-20

The Automated Transportation Management System (ATMS) Software Project Management plan (SPMP) is the lead planning document governing the life cycle of the ATMS and its integration into the Transportation Information Network (TIN). This SPMP defines the project tasks, deliverables, and high level schedules involved in developing the client/server ATMS software.

The Place of Education in Manpower Planning in Developing Countries

Science.gov (United States)

Fapohunda, Olanrewaju J.

1974-01-01

Defines manpower planning and outlines its objectives, describes the effects of education on economic growth in developing countries, and discusses problems of education in manpower planning: questions of the source of education, the content, and the percentage of the population ot be educated at a given time. Important political limitations are…

SU-E-T-616: Plan Quality Assessment of Both Treatment Planning System Dose and Measurement-Based 3D Reconstructed Dose in the Patient

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Olch, A

2015-01-01

Purpose: Systematic radiotherapy plan quality assessment promotes quality improvement. Software tools can perform this analysis by applying site-specific structure dose metrics. The next step is to similarly evaluate the quality of the dose delivery. This study defines metrics for acceptable doses to targets and normal organs for a particular treatment site and scores each plan accordingly. The input can be the TPS or the measurement-based 3D patient dose. From this analysis, one can determine whether the delivered dose distribution to the patient receives a score which is comparable to the TPS plan score, otherwise replanning may be indicated. Methods: Eleven neuroblastoma patient plans were exported from Eclipse to the Quality Reports program. A scoring algorithm defined a score for each normal and target structure based on dose-volume parameters. Each plan was scored by this algorithm and the percentage of total possible points was obtained. Each plan also underwent IMRT QA measurements with a Mapcheck2 or ArcCheck. These measurements were input into the 3DVH program to compute the patient 3D dose distribution which was analyzed using the same scoring algorithm as the TPS plan. Results: The mean quality score for the TPS plans was 75.37% (std dev=14.15%) compared to 71.95% (std dev=13.45%) for the 3DVH dose distribution. For 3/11 plans, the 3DVH-based quality score was higher than the TPS score, by between 0.5 to 8.4 percentage points. Eight/11 plans scores decreased based on IMRT QA measurements by 1.2 to 18.6 points. Conclusion: Software was used to determine the degree to which the plan quality score differed between the TPS and measurement-based dose. Although the delivery score was generally in good agreement with the planned dose score, there were some that improved while there was one plan whose delivered dose quality was significantly less than planned. This methodology helps evaluate both planned and delivered dose quality. Sun Nuclear Corporation has

SU-E-T-616: Plan Quality Assessment of Both Treatment Planning System Dose and Measurement-Based 3D Reconstructed Dose in the Patient

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Olch, A [University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA (United States)

2015-06-15

Purpose: Systematic radiotherapy plan quality assessment promotes quality improvement. Software tools can perform this analysis by applying site-specific structure dose metrics. The next step is to similarly evaluate the quality of the dose delivery. This study defines metrics for acceptable doses to targets and normal organs for a particular treatment site and scores each plan accordingly. The input can be the TPS or the measurement-based 3D patient dose. From this analysis, one can determine whether the delivered dose distribution to the patient receives a score which is comparable to the TPS plan score, otherwise replanning may be indicated. Methods: Eleven neuroblastoma patient plans were exported from Eclipse to the Quality Reports program. A scoring algorithm defined a score for each normal and target structure based on dose-volume parameters. Each plan was scored by this algorithm and the percentage of total possible points was obtained. Each plan also underwent IMRT QA measurements with a Mapcheck2 or ArcCheck. These measurements were input into the 3DVH program to compute the patient 3D dose distribution which was analyzed using the same scoring algorithm as the TPS plan. Results: The mean quality score for the TPS plans was 75.37% (std dev=14.15%) compared to 71.95% (std dev=13.45%) for the 3DVH dose distribution. For 3/11 plans, the 3DVH-based quality score was higher than the TPS score, by between 0.5 to 8.4 percentage points. Eight/11 plans scores decreased based on IMRT QA measurements by 1.2 to 18.6 points. Conclusion: Software was used to determine the degree to which the plan quality score differed between the TPS and measurement-based dose. Although the delivery score was generally in good agreement with the planned dose score, there were some that improved while there was one plan whose delivered dose quality was significantly less than planned. This methodology helps evaluate both planned and delivered dose quality. Sun Nuclear Corporation has

Overview of IAEA Action Plan on Nuclear Safety

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Monti, Stefano

2012-01-01

The IAEA Action Plan represents a work programme to strengthen and improve nuclear safety world wide. The plan identifies actions for Member States and the IAEA. Success depends upon: • Cooperation between IAEA, Member States, and other stakeholders; • Availability of appropriate financial resources (MS voluntary contributions)

Distributed controller clustering in software defined networks.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ahmed Abdelaziz

Full Text Available Software Defined Networking (SDN is an emerging promising paradigm for network management because of its centralized network intelligence. However, the centralized control architecture of the software-defined networks (SDNs brings novel challenges of reliability, scalability, fault tolerance and interoperability. In this paper, we proposed a novel clustered distributed controller architecture in the real setting of SDNs. The distributed cluster implementation comprises of multiple popular SDN controllers. The proposed mechanism is evaluated using a real world network topology running on top of an emulated SDN environment. The result shows that the proposed distributed controller clustering mechanism is able to significantly reduce the average latency from 8.1% to 1.6%, the packet loss from 5.22% to 4.15%, compared to distributed controller without clustering running on HP Virtual Application Network (VAN SDN and Open Network Operating System (ONOS controllers respectively. Moreover, proposed method also shows reasonable CPU utilization results. Furthermore, the proposed mechanism makes possible to handle unexpected load fluctuations while maintaining a continuous network operation, even when there is a controller failure. The paper is a potential contribution stepping towards addressing the issues of reliability, scalability, fault tolerance, and inter-operability.

Distributed controller clustering in software defined networks.

Science.gov (United States)

Abdelaziz, Ahmed; Fong, Ang Tan; Gani, Abdullah; Garba, Usman; Khan, Suleman; Akhunzada, Adnan; Talebian, Hamid; Choo, Kim-Kwang Raymond

2017-01-01

Software Defined Networking (SDN) is an emerging promising paradigm for network management because of its centralized network intelligence. However, the centralized control architecture of the software-defined networks (SDNs) brings novel challenges of reliability, scalability, fault tolerance and interoperability. In this paper, we proposed a novel clustered distributed controller architecture in the real setting of SDNs. The distributed cluster implementation comprises of multiple popular SDN controllers. The proposed mechanism is evaluated using a real world network topology running on top of an emulated SDN environment. The result shows that the proposed distributed controller clustering mechanism is able to significantly reduce the average latency from 8.1% to 1.6%, the packet loss from 5.22% to 4.15%, compared to distributed controller without clustering running on HP Virtual Application Network (VAN) SDN and Open Network Operating System (ONOS) controllers respectively. Moreover, proposed method also shows reasonable CPU utilization results. Furthermore, the proposed mechanism makes possible to handle unexpected load fluctuations while maintaining a continuous network operation, even when there is a controller failure. The paper is a potential contribution stepping towards addressing the issues of reliability, scalability, fault tolerance, and inter-operability.

Influence of the demand information quality on planning process accuracy in supply chain. Case studies

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Natalia Szozda

2013-06-01

Full Text Available Background: Identification and analysis of factors that affect the accuracy of demand planning process across the supply chain is one of the most important problems which influence the effectiveness of its material and information flows. Material and methods: On the basis of demand planning process investigation authors define the main elements affecting the right supply chain performance level and investigate the possible connections between demand information quality and demand planning process accuracy. Later, an overview of some recent developments in the analyzed research area is provided. Results: Based on the literature review, there is described the defined factors impact on the accuracy of demand plan in each echelon for case companies. There are considered three cases. The examples illustrate supply chains of different manufacturing companies. The focus is placed on demand planning across the supply chains. The issue of determining the accuracy of future sales plans in each echelon of supply chains and factors affecting it are raised. Taking into account the case companies demand planning process analyses, there are defined possible quality measures, that are possible to be used when forecasting the customer demand. Conclusions: One of the most important and difficult planning area in the companies is becoming planning demand. Errors in planning are reflected not just in the business resource planning but also in the entire supply chain. Presented cases show that many factors affect the proper demand planning process in the supply chain, like e.g.  information technologies, lead-time, or number of supplied materials. As it can be seen from the case studies, the model of collecting information from the market plays an important role in the demand planning process.

Planning for Interagency Cooperation in Rural Development. CARD Report 45.

Science.gov (United States)

Rogers, David L.; Glick, Edward L.

With a major emphasis on cooperative planning in rural development, three elements of development process were identified: (1) integration of units involved, occurring when several organizations contribute to a larger collective effort; (2) decentralized planning and local initiative, occurring when planning initiative is at the local level; (3)…

SU-F-T-352: Development of a Knowledge Based Automatic Lung IMRT Planning Algorithm with Non-Coplanar Beams

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhu, W; Wu, Q; Yuan, L

2016-01-01

Purpose: To improve the robustness of a knowledge based automatic lung IMRT planning method and to further validate the reliability of this algorithm by utilizing for the planning of clinical cases with non-coplanar beams. Methods: A lung IMRT planning method which automatically determines both plan optimization objectives and beam configurations with non-coplanar beams has been reported previously. A beam efficiency index map is constructed to guide beam angle selection in this algorithm. This index takes into account both the dose contributions from individual beams and the combined effect of multiple beams which is represented by a beam separation score. We studied the effect of this beam separation score on plan quality and determined the optimal weight for this score.14 clinical plans were re-planned with the knowledge-based algorithm. Significant dosimetric metrics for the PTV and OARs in the automatic plans are compared with those in the clinical plans by the two-sample t-test. In addition, a composite dosimetric quality index was defined to obtain the relationship between the plan quality and the beam separation score. Results: On average, we observed more than 15% reduction on conformity index and homogeneity index for PTV and V_4_0, V_6_0 for heart while an 8% and 3% increase on V_5, V_2_0 for lungs, respectively. The variation curve of the composite index as a function of angle spread score shows that 0.6 is the best value for the weight of the beam separation score. Conclusion: Optimal value for beam angle spread score in automatic lung IMRT planning is obtained. With this value, model can result in statistically the “best” achievable plans. This method can potentially improve the quality and planning efficiency for IMRT plans with no-coplanar angles.

Assessment of PlanIQ Feasibility DVH for head and neck treatment planning.

Science.gov (United States)

Fried, David V; Chera, Bhishamjit S; Das, Shiva K

2017-09-01

Designing a radiation plan that optimally delivers both target coverage and normal tissue sparing is challenging. There are limited tools to determine what is dosimetrically achievable and frequently the experience of the planner/physician is relied upon to make these determinations. PlanIQ software provides a tool that uses target and organ at risk (OAR) geometry to indicate the difficulty of achieving different points for organ dose-volume histograms (DVH). We hypothesized that PlanIQ Feasibility DVH may aid planners in reducing dose to OARs. Clinically delivered head and neck treatments (clinical plan) were re-planned (re-plan) putting high emphasis on maximally sparing the contralateral parotid gland, contralateral submandibular gland, and larynx while maintaining routine clinical dosimetric objectives. The planner was blinded to the results of the clinically delivered plan as well as the Feasibility DVHs from PlanIQ. The re-plan treatments were designed using 3-arc VMAT in Raystation (RaySearch Laboratories, Sweden). The planner was then given the results from the PlanIQ Feasibility DVH analysis and developed an additional plan incorporating this information using 4-arc VMAT (IQ plan). The DVHs across the three treatment plans were compared with what was deemed "impossible" by PlanIQ's Feasibility DVH (Impossible DVH). The impossible DVH (red) is defined as the DVH generated using the minimal dose that any voxel outside the targets must receive given 100% target coverage. The re-plans performed blinded to PlanIQ Feasibilty DVH achieved superior sparing of aforementioned OARs compared to the clinically delivered plans and resulted in discrepancies from the impossible DVHs by an average of 200-700 cGy. Using the PlanIQ Feasibility DVH led to additionalOAR sparing compared to both the re-plans and clinical plans and reduced the discrepancies from the impossible DVHs to an average of approximately 100 cGy. The dose reduction from clinical to re-plan and re-plan to

Improving treatment planning accuracy through multimodality imaging

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sailer, Scott L.; Rosenman, Julian G.; Soltys, Mitchel; Cullip, Tim J.; Chen, Jun

1996-01-01

Purpose: In clinical practice, physicians are constantly comparing multiple images taken at various times during the patient's treatment course. One goal of such a comparison is to accurately define the gross tumor volume (GTV). The introduction of three-dimensional treatment planning has greatly enhanced the ability to define the GTV, but there are times when the GTV is not visible on the treatment-planning computed tomography (CT) scan. We have modified our treatment-planning software to allow for interactive display of multiple, registered images that enhance the physician's ability to accurately determine the GTV. Methods and Materials: Images are registered using interactive tools developed at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC). Automated methods are also available. Images registered with the treatment-planning CT scan are digitized from film. After a physician has approved the registration, the registered images are made available to the treatment-planning software. Structures and volumes of interest are contoured on all images. In the beam's eye view, wire loop representations of these structures can be visualized from all image types simultaneously. Each registered image can be seamlessly viewed during the treatment-planning process, and all contours from all image types can be seen on any registered image. A beam may, therefore, be designed based on any contour. Results: Nineteen patients have been planned and treated using multimodality imaging from November 1993 through August 1994. All registered images were digitized from film, and many were from outside institutions. Brain has been the most common site (12), but the techniques of registration and image display have also been used for the thorax (4), abdomen (2), and extremity (1). The registered image has been an magnetic resonance (MR) scan in 15 cases and a diagnostic CT scan in 5 cases. In one case, sequential MRs, one before treatment and another after 30 Gy, were used to plan

STAR-CCM+ Verification and Validation Plan

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pointer, William David [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)

2016-09-30

The commercial Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) code STAR-CCM+ provides general purpose finite volume method solutions for fluid dynamics and energy transport. This document defines plans for verification and validation (V&V) of the base code and models implemented within the code by the Consortium for Advanced Simulation of Light water reactors (CASL). The software quality assurance activities described herein are port of the overall software life cycle defined in the CASL Software Quality Assurance (SQA) Plan [Sieger, 2015]. STAR-CCM+ serves as the principal foundation for development of an advanced predictive multi-phase boiling simulation capability within CASL. The CASL Thermal Hydraulics Methods (THM) team develops advanced closure models required to describe the subgrid-resolution behavior of secondary fluids or fluid phases in multiphase boiling flows within the Eulerian-Eulerian framework of the code. These include wall heat partitioning models that describe the formation of vapor on the surface and the forces the define bubble/droplet dynamic motion. The CASL models are implemented as user coding or field functions within the general framework of the code. This report defines procedures and requirements for V&V of the multi-phase CFD capability developed by CASL THM. Results of V&V evaluations will be documented in a separate STAR-CCM+ V&V assessment report. This report is expected to be a living document and will be updated as additional validation cases are identified and adopted as part of the CASL THM V&V suite.

Artificial intelligence for the EChO mission planning tool

Science.gov (United States)

Garcia-Piquer, Alvaro; Ribas, Ignasi; Colomé, Josep

2015-12-01

The Exoplanet Characterisation Observatory (EChO) has as its main goal the measurement of atmospheres of transiting planets. This requires the observation of two types of events: primary and secondary eclipses. In order to yield measurements of sufficient Signal-to-Noise Ratio to fulfil the mission objectives, the events of each exoplanet have to be observed several times. In addition, several criteria have to be considered to carry out each observation, such as the exoplanet visibility, its event duration, and no overlapping with other tasks. It is expected that a suitable mission plan increases the efficiency of telescope operation, which will represent an important benefit in terms of scientific return and operational costs. Nevertheless, to obtain a long term mission plan becomes unaffordable for human planners due to the complexity of computing the huge number of possible combinations for finding an optimum solution. In this contribution we present a long term mission planning tool based on Genetic Algorithms, which are focused on solving optimization problems such as the planning of several tasks. Specifically, the proposed tool finds a solution that highly optimizes the defined objectives, which are based on the maximization of the time spent on scientific observations and the scientific return (e.g., the coverage of the mission survey). The results obtained on the large experimental set up support that the proposed scheduler technology is robust and can function in a variety of scenarios, offering a competitive performance which does not depend on the collection of exoplanets to be observed. Specifically, the results show that, with the proposed tool, EChO uses 94% of the available time of the mission, so the amount of downtime is small, and it completes 98% of the targets.

CNES Strategic Plan 2001-2005

Science.gov (United States)

Janichewski, S.; Ben Aı̈m, H.

2004-04-01

CNES's latest strategic plan defines the French space agency's strategic focus and charts its course for the 2001-2005 timeframe. Based on a vision of how the space sector will evolve over the period up to 2010, the Strategic Plan sets out the agency's ambition for 2005: " CNES—space technology serving society". This ambition is structured around four challenges: Focusing actions on society's needs in three areas where space technology can make a major difference—environment, science and the information society and mobility. Building the foundation for success by ensuring competitive access to space and boosting basic research and technological innovation. Strengthening national and European synergies to ensure complementarity between: the ESA European framework, which is well adapted for major projects and the development of a European Space Strategy (ESS); and the national framework to support activities of national responsibility such as defence, science and technology development, and to improve competitiveness through direct international cooperation with other space agencies. Forging effective partnerships with its research and industry partners in Europe and France to enhance performance by: developing a service culture; building partnerships; concentrating on core competencies where it can most add value; improving skills and responsiveness in line with its strategic position; ensuring transparent and rigorous management of public funds. This Strategic Plan will be implemented in the 2001-2005 timeframe at all management levels. Implementation will be eased by the fact that the plan has been drawn up through a specific process designed to make internal management aware of the analysis underlying it. This will ensure that all stakeholders understand and appropriate the plan's orientations and thus play an active role in CNES' development. This process involved five successive steps: shared assessment of the space sector's evolution, providing a common

International Photovoltaic Program Plan

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Costello, D.; Koontz, R.; Posner, D.; Heiferling, P.; Carpenter, P.; Forman, S.; Perelman, L.

1979-12-01

The International Photovoltaics Program Plan is in direct response to the Solar Photovoltaic Energy Research, Development, and Demonstration Act of 1978 (PL 95-590). As stated in the Act, the primary objective of the plan is to accelerate the widespread use of photovoltaic systems in international markets. Benefits which could result from increased international sales by US companies include: stabilization and expansion of the US photovoltaic industry, preparing the industry for supplying future domestic needs; contribution to the economic and social advancement of developing countries; reduced world demand for oil; and improvements in the US balance of trade. The plan outlines programs for photovoltaic demonstrations, systems developments, supplier assistance, information dissemination/purchaser assistance, and an informaion clearinghouse. Each program element includes tactical objectives and summaries of approaches. A program management office will be established to coordinate and manage the program plan. Although the US Department of Energy (DOE) had the lead responsibility for preparing and implementing the plan, numerous federal organizations and agencies (US Departments of Commerce, Justice, State, Treasury; Agency for International Development; ACTION; Export/Import Bank; Federal Trade Commission; Small Business Administration) were involved in the plan's preparation and implementation.

Pre-defined and optional staging for the deployment of enterprise systems: a case study and a framework

Science.gov (United States)

Lichtenstein, Yossi; Cucuy, Shy; Fink, Lior

2017-03-01

The effective deployment of enterprise systems has been a major challenge for many organisations. Customising the new system, changing business processes, and integrating multiple information sources are all difficult tasks. As such, they are typically done in carefully planned stages in a process known as phased implementation. Using ideas from Option Theory, this article critiques aspects of phased implementation. One customer relationship management (CRM) project and its phased implementation are described in detail and ten other enterprise system deployments are summarised as a basis for the observation that almost all deployment stages are pre-defined operational steps rather than decision points. However, Option Theory suggests that optional stages, to be used only when risk materialises, should be integral parts of project plans. Although such optional stages are often more valuable than pre-defined stages, the evidence presented in this article shows that they are only rarely utilised. Therefore, a simple framework is presented; it first identifies risks related to the deployment of enterprise systems, then identifies optional stages that can mitigate these risks, and finally compares the costs and benefits of both pre-defined and optional stages.

Treatment planning for heavy ion irradiation. Pt. 1

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jaekel, O.

1997-01-01

In this contribution we will outline briefly the GSI beam delivery system and the qualitative differences in the methods used for inverse planning arising from it. We will describe the planning package, consisting of VOXELPLAN and TRiP and show some results for first test cases. (orig./MG)

Treatment planning for heavy ion irradiation. Pt. 1

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jaekel, O [Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum, Heidelberg (Germany). FS Radiologische Diagnostik und Therapie; Kraemer, M [Gesellschaft fuer Schwerionenforschung (GSI), Biophysik, Darmstadt (Germany)

1997-09-01

In this contribution we will outline briefly the GSI beam delivery system and the qualitative differences in the methods used for inverse planning arising from it. We will describe the planning package, consisting of VOXELPLAN and TRiP and show some results for first test cases. (orig./MG)

Critical care medicine as a distinct product line with substantial financial profitability: the role of business planning.

Science.gov (United States)

Bekes, Carolyn E; Dellinger, R Phillip; Brooks, Daniel; Edmondson, Robert; Olivia, Christopher T; Parrillo, Joseph E

2004-05-01

patients admitted primarily through other product lines or the emergency room. This can be seen as the profit related to the "hospital service" segment of critical care. This represented a total contribution margin of dollar 12.8 million, approximately 24% of the institution's entire contribution margin. This information was subsequently used to develop strategic plans to promote this product line. We were able to define the critical care product line, and we were able to demonstrate profitability through an analysis of revenue and expenses related to critical care services. Our experience suggests that the concept of critical care as a product line, in addition to a hospital service, may lead to a useful analysis of this new discipline. This plan provided a rational foundation for development of the operating and capital budgets for the health system.

Writing a successful business plan.

Science.gov (United States)

Haag, A B

1997-01-01

1. In creating and building a business, the entrepreneur assumes all the responsibilities for its development and management, as well as the risks and risks and rewards. Many businesses do not survive because business owners fail to develop an effective plan. 2. The business plan focuses on major areas of concern and their contribution to the success of a new business. The finished product communicates the product/service to others and provides the basis for the financial proposal. 3. Planning helps identify customers, market area, pricing strategy, and competitive conditions. It aids in decision making and is an essential guide for operating a business successfully and measuring progress. 4. The business plan not only serves as a mechanism for obtaining any needed financial resources, but also indicates the future direction of the company.

The ultimate uncertainty--intergenerational planning.

Science.gov (United States)

Starr, C

2000-12-01

The philosophic and practical aspects of intergenerational planning for a 50-100-year time frame are reviewed, with recognition of its speculative quality. Society's near term choice of future physical pathways based on comparative quantitative benefit/cost/risk analyses of alternatives is usually modified by the intervention of a variety of time-dependent, nontechnical value systems. Further, the continuous competition among society's disparate technical systems, capital investment choices, and planning objectives all contribute to the uncertainty of the intergenerational outcome of any plan. Nevertheless, the quantitative planning process provides an essential base. Benefit/cost/risk projections are discussed for both the case with a historical database and the case without such a historical base. The end-objectives and continuous nature of such benefit/cost/risk analyses are described.

Energy operations and planning decision support for systems using weather forecast information

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Altalo, M.G.

2004-01-01

Hydroelectric utilities deal with uncertainties on a regular basis. These include uncertainties in weather, policy and markets. This presentation outlined regional studies to define uncertainty, sources of uncertainty and their affect on power managers, power marketers, power insurers and end users. Solutions to minimize uncertainties include better forecasting and better business processes to mobilize action. The main causes of uncertainty in energy operations and planning include uncaptured wind, precipitation and wind events. Load model errors also contribute to uncertainty in energy operations. This presentation presented the results of a 2002-2003 study conducted by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) on the impact uncertainties in northeast energy weather forecasts. The study demonstrated the cost of seabreeze error on transmission and distribution. The impact of climate scale events were also presented along with energy demand implications. It was suggested that energy planners should incorporate climate change parameters into planning, and that models should include probability distribution forecasts and ensemble forecasting methods that incorporate microclimate estimates. It was also suggested that seabreeze, lake effect, fog, afternoon thunderstorms and frontal passage should be incorporated into forecasts. tabs., figs

Clinical treatment planning in gynecologic cancer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Brady, L.W.; Markoe, A.M.; Micaily, B.; Damsker, J.I.; Karlsson, U.L.; Amendola, B.E.

1987-01-01

Treatment planning in gynecologic cancer is a complicated and difficult procedure. It requires an adequate preoperative assessment of the true extent of the patient's disease process and oftentimes this can be achieved not only by conventional studies but must employ surgical exploratory techniques in order to truly define the extent of the disease. However, with contemporary sophisticated treatment planning techniques that are now available in most contemporary departments of radiation oncology, radiation therapy is reemerging as an important and major treatment technique in the management of patients with gynecologic cancer

Factor 4 planning

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bariol-Mathais, Brigitte; Lavoillotte, Philippine; Gall-Sorrentino, Florence; Malez, Marianne; Sanna, Daniela; Marsauche, Maud; Marquet, Sarah; Debergue, Sophie; Aminu, Olufunmi; Bernard, Helene; Marchand, Jean-Michel; Blin, Frederic; Grange, Jerome; Caillierez, Sophie; Muller, Dania; Clement, Bob; Desire, Jean-Charles; Metais, Benedicte; Lannuzel, Philippe; Pezet-Kuhn, Murielle; Pons, Anne; Rivoire-Meley, Benedicte; Tissot, Heloise

2015-07-01

Factor 4 is the goal of cutting our greenhouse gas emissions by 75% by 2050. Achieving this objective will necessitate radical changes in our practices, in particular concerning transport and housing; the measures currently implemented, such as positive-energy buildings, low-impact mobility and eco-neighbourhoods, will not be enough to meet this goal. These measures must be conceived in the framework of broad territorial planning that integrates environmental and energy objectives far upstream. To this end, the French Environment and Energy Management Agency (ADEME) and the French network of Urban Planning Agencies (FNAU), pursuing their missions in their respective areas of competence, have joined forces to make infrastructure and land use planning an integral part of the environmental and energy transition process. In 2013, the two organisations signed a partnership agreement and compiled an inventory of practices that are relevant to Factor 4 planning. This work was led by Epures, Saint-etienne urban planning agency, along with FNAU, drawing upon the expertise of a dozen urban planning agencies in precursor territories. This inventory describes the stakes, resources and strengths for each territory, which have led to cross-sectoral territorial planning exercises with ambitious environmental and energy objectives; the importance of evaluation in attaining these goals is emphasised. Current experience, questions and available methodological tools are summarised in this document, to encourage territories and help them design their planning policies along a trajectory to achieve Factor 4 goals. The compilation also aims to be a contribution to the COP21 climate conference

Typical Plan : The Architecture of Labor and the Space of Production

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Marullo, F.

2014-01-01

In a short essay dealing with the repetitive homogeneity of the Manhattan’s office layouts, Rem Koolhaas defined the term Typical Plan as one of the purest American architectural archetypes. A plan stripped of all its qualities and reduced to a calculated relation between discreet standardised

29 CFR 1952.160 - Description of the plan as initially approved.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... include both occupational safety and occupational health, the latter on a developmental basis. The plan defines the covered occupational safety and health issues as defined by the Secretary of Labor in 29 CFR... Section 1952.160 Labor Regulations Relating to Labor (Continued) OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH...

A case study of strategic planning IFB

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Pedro Henrique Rodrigues de Camargo Dias

2018-03-01

Full Text Available The purpose of this article is to identify and characterize the initial stage of the IFB strategic planning, based on the perception of top management and planning team. The case study adopts a qualitative approach supported by bibliographic research techniques, to build a theoretical foundation, allied to the semistructure interview for later, application of the content analysis. As a result, we can identify that the institution opted to first define the strategic references, based on the construction of the mission, vision and values, and later, analysis of the organizational diagnosis, based on the Balanced Scorecard methodology. It was verified that the tool of strategic planning and its use are points that need to be better understood by the managers and technical planning team. The predominant characteristics of strategic planning are composed of a programmatic tool for projecting medium and long term goals and actions, of legal compliance, as it integrates and operationalizes the Institutional Development Plan (PDI.

105-KE Basin Pilot Run design plan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sherrell, D.L.

1994-01-01

This document identifies all design deliverables and procedures applicable to the 105-KE Basin Pilot Run. It also establishes a general design strategy, defines interface control requirements, and covers planning for mechanical, electrical, instrument/control system, and equipment installation design

Integrating impact assessment and conflict management in urban planning: Experiences from Finland

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Peltonen, Lasse; Sairinen, Rauno

2010-01-01

The article examines the interlinkages between recent developments in conflict management and impact assessment procedures in the context of urban planning in Finland. It sets out by introducing the fields of impact assessment and conflict mediation. It then proceeds to discuss the development of impact assessment practices and the status of conflict mediation in Finnish land use planning. The case of Korteniitty infill development plan in Jyvaeskylae is used to demonstrate how the Finnish planning system operates in conflict situations - and how social impact assessment can contribute to managing planning conflicts. The authors ask how the processes of impact assessment contribute to conflict management. Based on the Finnish experience, it is argued that social impact assessment of land use plans can contribute to conflict management, especially in the absence of institutionalised conflict mediation processes. In addition, SIA may acquire features of conflict mediation, depending on extent and intensity of stakeholder participation in the process, and the quality of linkages it between knowledge production and decision-making. Simultaneously, conflict mediation practices and theoretical insights can inform the application of SIA to help it address land use conflicts more consciously.

The relationship between the Municipal Master Plan and local Watershed Plans in water management

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Denise Gallo Pizella

2015-07-01

Full Text Available The National Water Resources Policy has as one of its tools the drafting of local Water Resource Plans. In view of water resources planning and its relationship to land use planning, the aim of this work is to analyze the institutional and legal difficulties and the potential for an integrated system of water resources management. For this, we used the method of documentary and bibliographic research, beginning with the “Estatuto da Cidade”, a law for urban policy in Brazil, and literature on water management at the municipal and watershed levels. At the municipal level, the “Master Plan” (municipal plan of land use planning became the main instrument of territorial and municipal management, defining the parameters for the compliance of social, environmental and economic functions of real property. In this sense, the municipalities have a responsibility to protect water resources and, without local support, territorial and water management cannot be integrated in the context of the river basin. Despite the difficulties of including environmental variable in urban planning, the Master Plan has the potential to shape local water management systems that are environmentally sustainable and that progressively improve water quality and quantity within the watershed. Similarly, with more significant participation of the municipality in the Basin Committee, it is possible that the forms of municipal land use and occupation can be considered during the development and implementation of the Basin Plan. Thus, the management of water resources can occur integrally.

Preventive distribution and plans of iodine tablets stocks management; Distribution preventive et plans de gestion des stocks de comprimes d'iode

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2002-07-01

This official note includes two parts: one concerns the new preventive distribution of iodine tablets on the areas defined by the Particular Intervention Plans (P.P.I.) around nuclear facilities and the other one the setting up of iodine tablets stocks beyond the P.P.I. areas. In annexe is a guide for the elaboration of stocks management plans for steady iodine tablets. (N.C.)

Environmental support FY 1995 multi-year program plan/fiscal year work plan WBS 1.5.2/7.4.11

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Moore, D.A.

1994-09-01

The multi-Year Program Plan (MYPP) is the programmatic planning baseline document for technical, schedule, and cost data. The MYPP contains data by which all work is managed, performed and controlled. The integrated planning process, defined by RL, is redicted on establishment of detailed data in the MYPP. The MYPP includes detailed information for the data elements including Level II critical path schedules, cost estimate detail, and updated technical data to be done annually. There will be baseline execution year and out year approval with work authorization for execution. The MYPP will concentrate on definition of the scope, schedule, cost and program element level critical path schedules that show the relationship of planned activities. The Fiscal Year Work Plan (FYWP) is prepared for each program to provide the basis for authorizing fiscal year work. The MYPP/FYWP will be structured into three main areas: (1) Program Overview; (2) Program Baselines; (3) Fiscal Year Work Plan

29 CFR 1952.370 - Description of the plan as initially approved.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... Section 1952.370 Labor Regulations Relating to Labor (Continued) OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH... designated as responsible for occupational health matters. The plan defines the covered occupational safety and health issues as defined by the Secretary of Labor in 29 CFR 1902.2(c)(1) and all safety and...

29 CFR 1952.320 - Description of the plan as initially approved.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... of Labor. (2) The plan defines the covered occupational safety and health issues as defined by the... Section 1952.320 Labor Regulations Relating to Labor (Continued) OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH... existing enabling legislation and the Indiana Occupational Safety and Health Act (IC 1971, 22-8-1.1 et seq...

Planning under uncertainties paradigm - application to electric power distribution systems planning; Paradigma de planejamento sob incertezas - aplicacao ao planejamento dos sistemas de distribuicao de energia eletrica

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bianchi Junior, Alberto

1996-12-31

In this work it is presented an original methodology of multistage planning, with conflictive objectives and restrictions, incorporating the concept of uncertainties. To do so, the proposed paradigm is based on the Dynamic Programming which comprehends the multistage subject to conflictive restrictions; on the Fuzzy Sets Theory, through the decisions and fuzzy numbers, which model the uncertainties and ambiguous decisions referent to qualitative variables; and on the consideration of evolutional rules associated to network flow algorithm. In its conceptual elaboration, the paradigm is developed in a very ample way, of generalized application to a well defined class of planning problems Particularly, the model fits in the flexible planning, which has been very discussed in the recent literature. Flexible planning must be understood as the one which allows to the planner, under well-defined limits, the evaluation of the planning policy composed by strips of options (discreet or continuous), associated to uncertainty levels related to the real world. In order to validate and consolidate the theoretic concepts, it was elaborated an algorithm turned to the aggregated planning of the distribution of electric energy, that presents intrinsic characteristics which are perfectly fitted in the paradigm`s applicability. (author) 41 refs., 26 figs., 36 tabs.

Planning under uncertainties paradigm - application to electric power distribution systems planning; Paradigma de planejamento sob incertezas - aplicacao ao planejamento dos sistemas de distribuicao de energia eletrica

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bianchi, Junior, Alberto

1997-12-31

In this work it is presented an original methodology of multistage planning, with conflictive objectives and restrictions, incorporating the concept of uncertainties. To do so, the proposed paradigm is based on the Dynamic Programming which comprehends the multistage subject to conflictive restrictions; on the Fuzzy Sets Theory, through the decisions and fuzzy numbers, which model the uncertainties and ambiguous decisions referent to qualitative variables; and on the consideration of evolutional rules associated to network flow algorithm. In its conceptual elaboration, the paradigm is developed in a very ample way, of generalized application to a well defined class of planning problems Particularly, the model fits in the flexible planning, which has been very discussed in the recent literature. Flexible planning must be understood as the one which allows to the planner, under well-defined limits, the evaluation of the planning policy composed by strips of options (discreet or continuous), associated to uncertainty levels related to the real world. In order to validate and consolidate the theoretic concepts, it was elaborated an algorithm turned to the aggregated planning of the distribution of electric energy, that presents intrinsic characteristics which are perfectly fitted in the paradigm`s applicability. (author) 41 refs., 26 figs., 36 tabs.

A Methodology to Define Flood Resilience

Science.gov (United States)

Tourbier, J.

2012-04-01

Flood resilience has become an internationally used term with an ever-increasing number of entries on the Internet. The SMARTeST Project is looking at approaches to flood resilience through case studies at cities in various countries, including Washington D.C. in the United States. In light of U.S. experiences a methodology is being proposed by the author that is intended to meet ecologic, spatial, structural, social, disaster relief and flood risk aspects. It concludes that: "Flood resilience combines (1) spatial, (2) structural, (3) social, and (4) risk management levels of flood preparedness." Flood resilience should incorporate all four levels, but not necessarily with equal emphasis. Stakeholders can assign priorities within different flood resilience levels and the considerations they contain, dividing 100% emphasis into four levels. This evaluation would be applied to planned and completed projects, considering existing conditions, goals and concepts. We have long known that the "road to market" for the implementation of flood resilience is linked to capacity building of stakeholders. It is a multidisciplinary enterprise, involving the integration of all the above aspects into the decision-making process. Traditional flood management has largely been influenced by what in the UK has been called "Silo Thinking", involving constituent organizations that are responsible for different elements, and are interested only in their defined part of the system. This barrier to innovation also has been called the "entrapment effect". Flood resilience is being defined as (1) SPATIAL FLOOD RESILIENCE implying the management of land by floodplain zoning, urban greening and management to reduce storm runoff through depression storage and by practicing Sustainable Urban Drainage (SUD's), Best Management Practices (BMP's, or Low Impact Development (LID). Ecologic processes and cultural elements are included. (2) STRUCTURAL FLOOD RESILIENCE referring to permanent flood defense