Research and development in radiological protection

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Butragueno, J. L.; Villota, C.; Gutierrez, C.; Rodriguez, A.

2004-01-01

The objective of Radiological Protection is to guarantee that neither people, be they workers or members of the public, or the environment are exposed to radiological risks considered by society to be unacceptable. Among the various resources available to meet this objective is Research and Development (R and D), which is carried out in three areas: I. Radiological protection of persons: (a) knowledge of the biological effects of radiations, in order to determine the relationship that exists between radiation exposure dose and its effects on health; (b) the development of new personal dosimetry techniques in order to adapt to new situations, instrumental techniques and information management technologies allowing for better assessment of exposure dose; and (c) development of the principle of radiological protection optimisation (ALARA), which has been set up internationally as the fundamental principle on which radiological protection interventions are based. II. Assessment of environmental radiological impact, the objective of which is to assess the nature and magnitude of situations of exposure to ionising radiations as a result of the controlled or uncontrolled release of radioactive material to the environment, and III.Reduction of the radiological impact of radioactive wastes, the objective of which is to develop radioactive material and waste management techniques suitable for each situation, in order to reduce the risks associated with their definitive management or their release to the environment. Briefly described below are the strategic lines of R and D of the CSN, the Electricity Industry, Ciemat and Enresa in the aforementioned areas. (Author)

On the Adaptive Protection of Microgrids: A Review on How to Mitigate Cyber Attacks and Communication Failures

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Habib, Hany F [Florida Intl Univ., Miami, FL (United States); Lashway, Christopher R [Florida Intl Univ., Miami, FL (United States); Mohammed, Osama A

2017-05-15

One main challenge in the practical implementation of a microgrid is the design of an adequate protection scheme in both grid connected and islanded modes. Conventional overcurrent protection schemes face selectivity and sensitivity issues during grid and microgrid faults since the fault current level is different in both cases for the same relay. Various approaches have been implemented in the past to deal with this problem, yet the most promising ones are the implementation of adaptive protection techniques abiding by the IEC 61850 communication standard. This paper presents a critical review of existing adaptive protection schemes, the technical challenges for the use of classical protection techniques and the need for an adaptive, smart protection system. However, the risk of communication link failures and cyber security threats still remain a challenge in implementing a reliable adaptive protection scheme. A contingency is needed where a communication issue prevents the relay from adjusting to a lower current level during islanded mode. An adaptive protection scheme is proposed that utilizes energy storage (ES) and hybrid ES (HESS) already available in the network as a mechanism to source the higher fault current. Four common grid ES and HESS are reviewed for their suitability in feeding the fault while some solutions are proposed.

Is prevention of acute pesticide poisoning effective and efficient, with Locally Adapted Personal Protective Equipment?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Varma, Anshu; Neupane, Dinesh; Ellekilde Bonde, Jens Peter

2016-01-01

BACKGROUND: Farmers' risk of pesticide poisoning can be reduced with personal protective equipment but in low-income countries farmers' use of such equipment is limited. OBJECTIVE: To examine the effectiveness and efficiency of Locally Adapted Personal Protective Equipment to reduce organophosphate...... exposure among farmers. METHODS: In a crossover study, 45 male farmers from Chitwan, Nepal, were randomly allocated to work as usual applying organophosphate pesticides wearing Locally Adapted Personal Protective Equipment or Daily Practice Clothing. For seven days before each experiment, each farmer.......08;0.06]. Wearing the Locally Adapted Personal Protective Equipment versus Daily Practice Clothing gave the following results, respectively: comfort 75.6% versus 100%, sense of heat 64.4% versus 31.3%, other problems 44.4% versus 33.3%, likeability 95.6% versus 77.8%. CONCLUSION: We cannot support the expectation...

The low prevalence of female smoking in the developing world: gender inequality or maternal adaptations for fetal protection?

Science.gov (United States)

Hagen, Edward H; Garfield, Melissa J; Sullivan, Roger J

2016-01-01

Female smoking prevalence is dramatically lower in developing countries (3.1%) than developed countries (17.2%), whereas male smoking is similar (32% vs 30.1%). Low female smoking has been linked to high gender inequality. Alternatively, to protect their offspring from teratogenic substances, pregnant and lactating women appear to have evolved aversions to toxic plant substances like nicotine, which are reinforced by cultural proscriptions. Higher total fertility rates (TFRs) in developing countries could therefore explain their lower prevalence of female smoking. To compare the associations of TFR and gender inequality with national prevalence rates of female and male smoking. Data from a previous study of smoking prevalence vs gender inequality in 74 countries were reanalysed with a regression model that also included TFR. We replicated this analysis with three additional measures of gender equality and 2012 smoking data from 173 countries. A 1 SD increase in TFR predicted a decrease in female smoking prevalence by factors of 0.58-0.77, adjusting for covariates. TFR had a smaller and unexpected negative association with male smoking prevalence. Increased gender equality was associated with increased female smoking prevalence, and, unexpectedly, with decreased male smoking prevalence. TFR was also associated with an increase in smoking prevalence among postmenopausal women. High TFR and gender inequality both predict reduced prevalence of female smoking across nations. In countries with high TFR, adaptations and cultural norms that protect fetuses from plant toxins might suppress smoking among frequently pregnant and lactating women. © The Author(s) 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Foundation for Evolution, Medicine, and Public Health.

Research and development to protect soldiers from landmines and improvised explosive devices

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Ahmed, R

2015-10-01

Full Text Available Landmines and Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) remain a major threat for military vehicles, their occupants and other assets. It is thus imperative that traditional methods of protection need to be adapted or new technologies developed....

Tracking adaptation and measuring development

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Brooks, Nick; Anderson, Simon; Ayers, Jessica; Burton, Ian; Tellam, Ian

2011-11-15

This is the first paper in the new IIED Climate Change Working Paper series. As adaptation to climate change becomes the focus of increasing attention and the target of significant spending, there is a growing need for frameworks and tools that enable organisations to track and assess the outcomes of adaptation interventions. This paper presents a coherent framework for climate change adaptation programming, including potential indicators, or indicator categories/types, for tracking and evaluating the success of adaptation support and adaptation interventions. The paper begins with a discussion of some of the key issues related to the evaluation of adaptation, and outlines some of the main difficulties and constraints with respect to the development of adaptation indicators. Next, an evaluation framework is proposed and indicator categories or 'domains' are identified. Lastly, key conclusions are provided and a theory of change is outlined that shows how development and use of the framework could lead to more effective adaptation investments for climate resilient development.

Can Protection Motivation Theory explain farmers'adaptation to Climate change/variability decision making in the Gambia?

Science.gov (United States)

Bagagnan, A. R.

2016-12-01

In the Gambia, Changes in the climate pattern has affected and continue to affect the agriculture sector and therefore calling for effective adaptation policies. The present study aimed to explain farmers' adoption of climate change adaptation measure through the protection motivation theory in The Central River Region of The Gambia. Primary data were collected in all the eight communities of the study area. A transect walk was conducted first followed by a survey with 283 informants. The perception variables were referring to the past 20 years while the stated implementation was addressing the current adaptation practices. Results showed that on one hand, most of the perception variables such as severity, ability to withstand, and internal barriers are significantly correlated to protection motivation and on the other hand Protection motivation and stated implementation for water conservation technique are strongly correlated. Structural Equation Modeling confirms the mediation role of Protection motivation between Farmers stated implementation and their perception of climate variability. Decrease in soil water storage capacity, degradation of the quality of soil surface structure, decrease of the length of the growing season are factors that motivate farmers to implement an adaptation measure. Cost of the implementation and farmers' vulnerability are factors that prevent farmers to implement an adaptation measure. The cost of the implementation is the main barrier to farmers `protection motivation. Therefore the study suggested that farmers' awareness about climate change/variability should be increased through farmers' field school and awareness campaigns, farmers' resilience should be improved and adaptation measures should be made accessible to farmers through loans facilities and subsidizes application.

Adaptive inflatable structures for protecting wind turbines against ship collisions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Graczykowski, C.; Heinonen, J.

2006-09-15

Collisions of small ships are one of main dangers for the offshore wind turbines. Using inflatable structures surrounding the tower on the water level is a possibility of effective protection. Modelling of such structures is based on interaction between solid wall and fluid enclosed inside. Inflatable structures can be adapted to various impact schemes by adjusting initial pressure and controlling release of compressed air by opening piezo-valves. Simulations of ship collision with 2D model of wind turbine tower protected by pneumatic structure are presented in the report. Numerical analysis is performed using ABAQUS/Standard and ABAQUS/Explicit. Performed feasibility study proves that inflatable structures can protect wind turbine tower and ship against serious damages. (orig.)

International and European law on protected areas and climate change: need for adaptation or implementation?

Science.gov (United States)

Cliquet, A

2014-10-01

The protection and management of protected areas must be adapted to the effects of climate change. An important question is if the law on protected areas is capable of dealing with the required changes. In general, both international nature conventions and European Union nature conservation law do not contain any specific provisions on climate change and protected areas. Attention has been paid to this link in non-binding decisions and policy documents. In order to adapt the law to increased dynamics from climate change, more flexibility is needed. This flexibility should not be understood as "legal" flexibility, in the sense of the weakening nature conservation provisions. Scientific uncertainties on the effects of climate change might conflict with the need for legal certainties. In order to adapt to the effects of climate change, the two crucial elements are the strengthening of core protected areas and connectivity between the core areas. At the international level, both elements can be found in non-binding documents. International law enables the required adaptation; however, it often lacks concrete obligations. A stronger legal framework can be found at the level of the European Union. The Birds and Habitats Directives contain sufficient tools to deal with the effects of climate change. The Directives have been insufficiently implemented so far. Especially the central goals of reaching a favorable conservation status and connectivity measures need to be addressed much more in the future.

Radiation protection concepts review with an adapted quiz commercial game

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rodrigues Junior, Ary de Araujo

2002-01-01

Before a new employee starts working at EMBRARAD under a large irradiation operator supervision, he has to attend the first radiation protection training. After that all radiation protection subjects are revised every six months. In that half-yearly training the employees are chosen randomly to explain radiation protection subjects to other participants under an instructor supervision. After some years attending the same training, employees do not have motivation to participate in this kind of periodic event due to the same issues covered. Therefore something should be made to revival their interest and motivation to take part in this periodic training. The way chose was adapted a commercial game to revised radiation protection subjects and included it in the periodic training. The game was well accepted by the employees, it caused a competition among them because everybody wanted to win the game and consequently stimulated them to study. (author)

Managing for climate change on protected areas: An adaptive management decision making framework.

Science.gov (United States)

Tanner-McAllister, Sherri L; Rhodes, Jonathan; Hockings, Marc

2017-12-15

Current protected area management is becoming more challenging with advancing climate change and current park management techniques may not be adequate to adapt for effective management into the future. The framework presented here provides an adaptive management decision making process to assist protected area managers with adapting on-park management to climate change. The framework sets out a 4 step process. One, a good understanding of the park's context within climate change. Secondly, a thorough understanding of the park management systems including governance, planning and management systems. Thirdly, a series of management options set out as an accept/prevent change style structure, including a systematic assessment of those options. The adaptive approaches are defined as acceptance of anthropogenic climate change impact and attempt to adapt to a new climatic environment or prevention of change and attempt to maintain current systems under new climatic variations. Last, implementation and monitoring of long term trends in response to ecological responses to management interventions and assessing management effectiveness. The framework addresses many issues currently with park management in dealing with climate change including the considerable amount of research focussing on 'off-reserve' strategies, and threats and stress focused in situ park management. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Development of fault tolerant adaptive control laws for aerospace systems

Science.gov (United States)

Perez Rocha, Andres E.

The main topic of this dissertation is the design, development and implementation of intelligent adaptive control techniques designed to maintain healthy performance of aerospace systems subjected to malfunctions, external parameter changes and/or unmodeled dynamics. The dissertation is focused on the development of novel adaptive control configurations that rely on non-linear functions that appear in the immune system of living organisms as main source of adaptation. One of the main goals of this dissertation is to demonstrate that these novel adaptive control architectures are able to improve overall performance and protect the system while reducing control effort and maintaining adequate operation outside bounds of nominal design. This research effort explores several phases, ranging from theoretical stability analysis, simulation and hardware implementation on different types of aerospace systems including spacecraft, aircraft and quadrotor vehicles. The results presented in this dissertation are focused on two main adaptivity approaches, the first one is intended for aerospace systems that do not attain large angles and use exact feedback linearization of Euler angle kinematics. A proof of stability is presented by means of the circle Criterion and Lyapunov's direct method. The second approach is intended for aerospace systems that can attain large attitude angles (e.g. space systems in gravity-less environments), the adaptation is incorporated on a baseline architecture that uses partial feedback linearization of quaternions kinematics. In this case, the closed loop stability was analyzed using Lyapunov's direct method and Barbalat's Lemma. It is expected that some results presented in this dissertation can contribute towards the validation and certification of direct adaptive controllers.

An Adaptive Privacy Protection Method for Smart Home Environments Using Supervised Learning

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jingsha He

2017-03-01

Full Text Available In recent years, smart home technologies have started to be widely used, bringing a great deal of convenience to people’s daily lives. At the same time, privacy issues have become particularly prominent. Traditional encryption methods can no longer meet the needs of privacy protection in smart home applications, since attacks can be launched even without the need for access to the cipher. Rather, attacks can be successfully realized through analyzing the frequency of radio signals, as well as the timestamp series, so that the daily activities of the residents in the smart home can be learnt. Such types of attacks can achieve a very high success rate, making them a great threat to users’ privacy. In this paper, we propose an adaptive method based on sample data analysis and supervised learning (SDASL, to hide the patterns of daily routines of residents that would adapt to dynamically changing network loads. Compared to some existing solutions, our proposed method exhibits advantages such as low energy consumption, low latency, strong adaptability, and effective privacy protection.

Adaptation of the present concept of dosimetric radiation protection quantities for external radiation to radiation protection practice

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Boehm, J.; Thompson, I. M. G.

2004-01-01

The present concept of dosimetric radiation protection quantities for external radiation is reviewed. For everyday application of the concept some adaptations are recommended. The check of the compliance with dose limits should be performed either by the comparison with values of the respective operational quantities directly or by the calculation of the protection quantity by means of the operational quantity, the appertaining conversion coefficient and additional information of the radiation field. Only four operational quantities are regarded to be sufficient for most applications in radiation protection practice. The term equivalent should be used in the connection dose equivalent only. Proposals are made for names of frequently used operational quantities which are denoted up to now by symbols only. (authors)

A Simple Adaptive Overcurrent Protection of Distribution Systems With Distributed Generation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mahat, Pukar; Chen, Zhe; Bak-Jensen, Birgitte

2011-01-01

current when the system is connected to the grid and when it is islanded. This paper proposes the use of adaptive protection, using local information, to overcome the challenges of the overcurrent protection in distribution systems with distributed generation. The trip characteristics of the relays...... are updated by detecting operating states (grid connected or island) and the faulted section. The paper also proposes faulted section detection using the time over-current characteristics of the protective relays. Simulation results show that the operating state and faulted section can be correctly identified......A significant increase in the penetration of distributed generation has resulted in a possibility of operating distribution systems with distributed generation in islanded mode. However, over-current protection of an islanded distribution system is still an issue due to the difference in fault...

Adipose tissue and sustainable development: a connection that needs protection

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Angelo eTremblay

2015-05-01

Full Text Available Obesity is generally considered as an excess body fat that increases the risk to develop ergonomic, metabolic and psychosocial problems. As suggested in this paper, body fat gain is also a protective adaptation that prevents body lipotoxicity, contributes to the secretion of molecules involved in metabolic regulation, and dilutes lipid soluble persistent organic pollutants (POPs. Recent literature shows that this protective role of adipose tissue is more solicited in a modern context in which unsuspected factors can affect energy balance to a much greater extent than what is generally perceived by health care professionals. These factors include short sleep duration, demanding mental work, and chemical pollution whose impact is more detectable in a context dominated by economic productivity and competitiveness. Since these factors might also include the increase in atmospheric CO2, it is likely that obesity prevention will need the support of a promotion in sustainable development, whether it is for human health and well-being or global ecological protection.

Development of adaptive helicopter seat systems for aircrew vibration mitigation

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Yong; Wickramasinghe, Viresh; Zimcik, David G.

2008-03-01

Helicopter aircrews are exposed to high levels of whole body vibration during flight. This paper presents the results of an investigation of adaptive seat mount approaches to reduce helicopter aircrew whole body vibration levels. A flight test was conducted on a four-blade helicopter and showed that the currently used passive seat systems were not able to provide satisfactory protection to the helicopter aircrew in both front-back and vertical directions. Long-term exposure to the measured whole body vibration environment may cause occupational health issues such as spine and neck strain injuries for aircrew. In order to address this issue, a novel adaptive seat mount concept was developed to mitigate the vibration levels transmitted to the aircrew body. For proof-of-concept demonstration, a miniature modal shaker was properly aligned between the cabin floor and the seat frame to provide adaptive actuation authority. Adaptive control laws were developed to reduce the vibration transmitted to the aircrew body, especially the helmet location in order to minimize neck and spine injuries. Closed-loop control test have been conducted on a full-scale helicopter seat with a mannequin configuration and a large mechanical shaker was used to provide representative helicopter vibration profiles to the seat frame. Significant vibration reductions to the vertical and front-back vibration modes have been achieved simultaneously, which verified the technical readiness of the adaptive mount approach for full-scale flight test on the vehicle.

Adaptive Protection Scheme for a Distribution System Considering Grid-Connected and Islanded Modes of Operation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yavuz Ates

2016-05-01

Full Text Available The renewable energy-based distributed generation (DG implementation in power systems has been an active research area during the last few decades due to several environmental, economic and political factors. Although the integration of DG offers many advantages, several concerns, including protection schemes in systems with the possibility of bi-directional power flow, are raised. Thus, new protection schemes are strongly required in power systems with a significant presence of DG. In this study, an adaptive protection strategy for a distribution system with DG integration is proposed. The proposed strategy considers both grid-connected and islanded operating modes, while the adaptive operation of the protection is dynamically realized considering the availability of DG power production (related to faults or meteorological conditions in each time step. Besides, the modular structure and fast response of the proposed strategy is validated via simulations conducted on the IEEE 13-node test system.

Adaptation and validation of the Inventory of Family Protective Factors for the Portuguese culture.

Science.gov (United States)

Augusto, Cláudia Cristina Vieira Carvalho de Oliveira Ferreira; Araújo, Beatriz Rodrigues; Rodrigues, Vítor Manuel Costa Pereira; de Figueiredo, Maria do Céu Aguiar Barbieri

2014-01-01

to adapt and validate the Inventory of Family Protective Factors (IFPF) for the Portuguese culture. This instrument assesses protective factors that contribute to family resilience. Studies addressing resilience are embedded within the salutogenic paradigm, i.e. it addresses protective factors of individuals or groups without underestimating risk factors or vulnerability. in order to assess the IFPF's linguistic and conceptual equivalence, the instrument was translated, retro-translated and the think-aloud protocol was used. We then verified the instrument's sensitiveness, reliability and validity of results to assess its psychometric characteristics. A factor analysis was performed of the principal components with varimax rotation of the scale's items and Cronbach's alpha coefficient was calculated for each dimension. A total of 85 families with disabled children, selected through simple random sampling, self-administered the instrument. the IFPF presents psychometric characteristics that are appropriate for the Portuguese population (Cronbach's alpha = .90). the IFPF was adapted and validated for the Portuguese culture and is an instrument to be used in studies intended to assess protective factors of family resilience.

Adaptation funding and development assistance: some FAQs

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ayers, Jessica; Huq, Saleemul

2008-11-15

It's becoming ever clearer that development and climate change are intertwined issues. Unsustainable development drives climate change; sustainable development can reduce vulnerability to it. Development issues can constrain capacity to adapt to climate change; climate impacts can be a barrier to development. So adaptation to climate impacts is increasingly seen as part of good development practice – and development to improve the lives and resource access of people facing climate challenges is viewed as a prerequisite for successful adaptation. But when it comes to adaptation funding, confusion and contention remain over the role development institutions play.

Adaptive Immunity to Francisella tularensis and Considerations for Vaccine Development

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lydia M. Roberts

2018-04-01

Full Text Available Francisella tularensis is an intracellular bacterium that causes the disease tularemia. There are several subspecies of F. tularensis whose ability to cause disease varies in humans. The most virulent subspecies, tularensis, is a Tier One Select Agent and a potential bioweapon. Although considerable effort has made to generate efficacious tularemia vaccines, to date none have been licensed for use in the United States. Despite the lack of a tularemia vaccine, we have learned a great deal about the adaptive immune response the underlies protective immunity. Herein, we detail the animal models commonly used to study tularemia and their recapitulation of human disease, the field's current understanding of vaccine-mediated protection, and discuss the challenges associated with new vaccine development.

Adapting to Climate Change: Reconsidering the Role of Protected Areas and Protected Organisms in Western North America

Science.gov (United States)

Graumlich, L. J.; Cross, M. S.; Hilty, J.; Berger, J.

2007-12-01

With the recent publication of the 2007 Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), little doubt remains among scientists that the global climate system is changing due to human influence and that climate change will have far-reaching and fundamental impacts on ecosystems and biodiversity. Arguably the best-documented evidence linking 20th Century warming trends to changes in physical and biological systems comes from the mountains of western North America (e.g., Figure SPM1 in Summary of Working Group 11 Report). In the West, ecosystem impacts include changes in the distribution of species as well as changing functional linkages between species such as the synchrony between flower emergence and pollinating insects. These climate impacts, when combined with other environmental stressors (e.g., altered disturbance regimes, land-use change and habitat fragmentation) portend an amplification of species extinction rates. One of the great challenges in adapting to climate change is developing and implementing policies that enhance ecological resilience in the face of these change. Clearly, the current system of nature reserves in Western North America is a fundamental asset for maintaining biodiversity and ecosystem services. However, the fixed- boundary nature of these protected areas presents a problem as species' ranges shift with future climate change. The loss of species whose ranges move outside of fixed park boundaries and the arrival of other species that move into protected areas could lead to significant turnover of species diversity, new species assemblages, and altered functionality. In short, reserves that were designed to protect particular species or communities may no longer serve their intended purpose under a changing climate. In this talk, we use case studies from the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem and the Sonoran Desert Ecosystem to define strategies for enhancing ecological resilience to climate change at

Adaptation to Climate Change in Developing Countries

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mertz, Ole; Halsnæs, Kirsten; Olesen, Jørgen E.

2009-01-01

Adaptation to climate change is given increasing international attention as the confidence in climate change projections is getting higher. Developing countries have specific needs for adaptation due to high vulnerabilities, and they will in this way carry a great part of the global costs...... of climate change although the rising atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations are mainly the responsibility of industrialized countries. This article provides a status of climate change adaptation in developing countries. An overview of observed and projected climate change is given, and recent literature...... on impacts, vulnerability, and adaptation are reviewed, including the emerging focus on mainstreaming of climate change and adaptation in development plans and programs. The article also serves as an introduction to the seven research articles of this special issue on climate change adaptation in developing...

Regionalized Development and Maintenance of the Intestinal Adaptive Immune Landscape

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Agace, William Winston; McCoy, Kathy D.

2017-01-01

The intestinal immune system has the daunting task of protecting us from pathogenic insults while limiting inflammatory responses against the resident commensal microbiota and providing tolerance to food antigens. This role is particularly impressive when one considers the vast mucosal surface...... and changing landscape that the intestinal immune system must monitor. In this review, we highlight regional differences in the development and composition of the adaptive immune landscape of the intestine and the impact of local intrinsic and environmental factors that shape this process. To conclude, we...... review the evidence for a critical window of opportunity for early-life exposures that affect immune development and alter disease susceptibility later in life....

Development and Climate Change: A Mainstreaming Approach for Assessing Economic, Social, and Environmental Impacts of Adaptation Measures

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Halsnæs, Kirsten; Trærup, Sara Lærke Meltofte

2009-01-01

The paper introduces the so-called climate change mainstreaming approach, where vulnerability and adaptation measures are assessed in the context of general development policy objectives. The approach is based on the application of a limited set of indicators. These indicators are selected...... how development policy indicators in practice can be used to assess climate change impacts and adaptation measures based on three case studies, namely a road project in flood prone areas of Mozambique, rainwater harvesting in the agricultural sector in Tanzania and malaria protection in Tanzania...

Climate change adaptation in Ethiopia: to what extent does social protection influence livelihood diversification?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Weldegebriel, Zerihun; Prowse, Martin Philip

2013-01-01

Social-protection programmes like the Productive Safety-Net Programme (PSNP) in Ethiopia can play a positive role in promoting livelihoods and enhancing risk management. This article uses propensity score matching to estimate its effect on income diversification. The results suggest that receiving...... in a positive manner for climate adaptation. The article concludes by arguing for the promotion of positive forms of income diversification and the further investigation of the PSNP’s influence on autonomous adaptation strategies....

A review: Development of a microdose model for analysis of adaptive response and bystander dose response behavior.

Science.gov (United States)

Leonard, Bobby E

2008-02-27

Prior work has provided incremental phases to a microdosimetry modeling program to describe the dose response behavior of the radio-protective adaptive response effect. We have here consolidated these prior works (Leonard 2000, 2005, 2007a, 2007b, 2007c) to provide a composite, comprehensive Microdose Model that is also herein modified to include the bystander effect. The nomenclature for the model is also standardized for the benefit of the experimental cellular radio-biologist. It extends the prior work to explicitly encompass separately the analysis of experimental data that is 1.) only dose dependent and reflecting only adaptive response radio-protection, 2.) both dose and dose-rate dependent data and reflecting only adaptive response radio-protection for spontaneous and challenge dose damage, 3.) only dose dependent data and reflecting both bystander deleterious damage and adaptive response radio-protection (AR-BE model). The Appendix cites the various applications of the model. Here we have used the Microdose Model to analyze the, much more human risk significant, Elmore et al (2006) data for the dose and dose rate influence on the adaptive response radio-protective behavior of HeLa x Skin cells for naturally occurring, spontaneous chromosome damage from a Brachytherapy type (125)I photon radiation source. We have also applied the AR-BE Microdose Model to the Chromosome inversion data of Hooker et al (2004) reflecting both low LET bystander and adaptive response effects. The micro-beam facility data of Miller et al (1999), Nagasawa and Little (1999) and Zhou et al (2003) is also examined. For the Zhou et al (2003) data, we use the AR-BE model to estimate the threshold for adaptive response reduction of the bystander effect. The mammogram and diagnostic X-ray induction of AR and protective BE are observed. We show that bystander damage is reduced in the similar manner as spontaneous and challenge dose damage as shown by the Azzam et al (1996) data. We cite

Adaptability in the workplace: development of a taxonomy of adaptive performance.

Science.gov (United States)

Pulakos, E D; Arad, S; Donovan, M A; Plamondon, K E

2000-08-01

The purpose of this research was to develop a taxonomy of adaptive job performance and examine the implications of this taxonomy for understanding, predicting, and training adaptive behavior in work settings. Two studies were conducted to address this issue. In Study 1, over 1,000 critical incidents from 21 different jobs were content analyzed to identify an 8-dimension taxonomy of adaptive performance. Study 2 reports the development and administration of an instrument, the Job Adaptability Inventory, that was used to empirically examine the proposed taxonomy in 24 different jobs. Exploratory factor analyses using data from 1,619 respondents supported the proposed 8-dimension taxonomy from Study 1. Subsequent confirmatory factor analyses on the remainder of the sample (n = 1,715) indicated a good fit for the 8-factor model. Results and implications are discussed.

A DSP-Based Beam Current Monitoring System for Machine Protection Using Adaptive Filtering

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

J. Musson; H. Dong; R. Flood; C. Hovater; J. Hereford

2001-01-01

The CEBAF accelerator at Jefferson Lab is currently using an analog beam current monitoring (BCM) system for its machine protection system (MPS), which has a loss accuracy of 2 micro-amps. Recent burn-through simulations predict catastrophic beam line component failures below 1 micro-amp of loss, resulting in a blind spot for the MPS. Revised MPS requirements target an ultimate beam loss accuracy of 250 nA. A new beam current monitoring system has been developed which utilizes modern digital receiver technology and digital signal processing concepts. The receiver employs a direct-digital down converter integrated circuit, mated with a Jefferson Lab digital signal processor VME card. Adaptive filtering is used to take advantage of current-dependent burn-through rates. Benefits of such a system include elimination of DC offsets, generic algorithm development, extensive filter options, and interfaces to UNIX-based control systems

Implementing new flood protection standards: obstacles to adaptive management and how to overcome these

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Klijn Frans

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The Netherlands is updating its flood protection, whilst fully taking into account climate change and socioeconomic development. This translates in ‘anticipatory standards’ which need to be met in 2050, and which apply for the then foreseen climate and economy. Whilst the government maintains to have adopted a policy of adaptive planning and management, the new standards are thus based on one future situation, which qualifies as a ‘high end scenario’ from a flood risk management perspective. The consequences of adopting these new standards are now becoming clear. It is expected that many hundreds of kilometres of primary flood defences need to be reinforced and/or raised, at an estimated investment of about 9-14 billion euros. The many uncertainties about actual future development, however, complicate the decision making about the implementation of individual reinforcement projects: should one aim at immediately meeting the new standard or gradually improve and grow towards it? In this paper we discuss the uncertain decision making context, show that lawfulness (working according to procedures, rules and regulations and expediency (towards a purpose may jeopardize the good intentions of adaptive management, and argue that optimization may not provide the most useful answer to this decision making problem.

Assessing institutional capacities to adapt to climate change - integrating psychological dimensions in the Adaptive Capacity Wheel

Science.gov (United States)

Grothmann, T.; Grecksch, K.; Winges, M.; Siebenhüner, B.

2013-03-01

Several case studies show that "soft social factors" (e.g. institutions, perceptions, social capital) strongly affect social capacities to adapt to climate change. Many soft social factors can probably be changed faster than "hard social factors" (e.g. economic and technological development) and are therefore particularly important for building social capacities. However, there are almost no methodologies for the systematic assessment of soft social factors. Gupta et al. (2010) have developed the Adaptive Capacity Wheel (ACW) for assessing the adaptive capacity of institutions. The ACW differentiates 22 criteria to assess six dimensions: variety, learning capacity, room for autonomous change, leadership, availability of resources, fair governance. To include important psychological factors we extended the ACW by two dimensions: "adaptation motivation" refers to actors' motivation to realise, support and/or promote adaptation to climate. "Adaptation belief" refers to actors' perceptions of realisability and effectiveness of adaptation measures. We applied the extended ACW to assess adaptive capacities of four sectors - water management, flood/coastal protection, civil protection and regional planning - in North Western Germany. The assessments of adaptation motivation and belief provided a clear added value. The results also revealed some methodological problems in applying the ACW (e.g. overlap of dimensions), for which we propose methodological solutions.

Assessing institutional capacities to adapt to climate change: integrating psychological dimensions in the Adaptive Capacity Wheel

Science.gov (United States)

Grothmann, T.; Grecksch, K.; Winges, M.; Siebenhüner, B.

2013-12-01

Several case studies show that social factors like institutions, perceptions and social capital strongly affect social capacities to adapt to climate change. Together with economic and technological development they are important for building social capacities. However, there are almost no methodologies for the systematic assessment of social factors. After reviewing existing methodologies we identify the Adaptive Capacity Wheel (ACW) by Gupta et al. (2010), developed for assessing the adaptive capacity of institutions, as the most comprehensive and operationalised framework to assess social factors. The ACW differentiates 22 criteria to assess 6 dimensions: variety, learning capacity, room for autonomous change, leadership, availability of resources, fair governance. To include important psychological factors we extended the ACW by two dimensions: "adaptation motivation" refers to actors' motivation to realise, support and/or promote adaptation to climate; "adaptation belief" refers to actors' perceptions of realisability and effectiveness of adaptation measures. We applied the extended ACW to assess adaptive capacities of four sectors - water management, flood/coastal protection, civil protection and regional planning - in northwestern Germany. The assessments of adaptation motivation and belief provided a clear added value. The results also revealed some methodological problems in applying the ACW (e.g. overlap of dimensions), for which we propose methodological solutions.

Assessment of the effectiveness of participatory developed adaptation strategies for HCMC

Science.gov (United States)

Lasage, R.; Veldkamp, T. I. E.; de Moel, H.; Van, T. C.; Phi, H. L.; Vellinga, P.; Aerts, J. C. J. H.

2014-01-01

Coastal cities are vulnerable to flooding, and flood risk to coastal cities will increase due to sea-level rise. Moreover, especially Asian cities are subject to considerable population growth and associated urban developments, increasing this risk even more. Empirical data on vulnerability and the cost and benefits of flood risk reducing measures are therefore paramount for sustainable development of these cities. This paper presents an approach to explore the impacts of sea level rise and socio-economic developments on flood risk for the flood prone District 4 in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, and to develop and evaluate the effects of different adaptation strategies (new levees, dry- and wet flood proofing of buildings). A flood damage model was developed to simulate current and future flood risk using the results from a household survey to establish stage-damage curves for residential buildings. the model has been used to assess the effects of several participatory developed adaptation strategies to reduce flood risk, expressed in Expected Annual Damage (EAD). Adaptation strategies were evaluated assuming combinations of both sea level scenarios and land use scenarios. Together with information on costs of these strategies, we calculated the benefit-cost ratio and net present value for the adaptation strategies until 2100, taking into account depreciation rates of 2.5% and 5%. The results of this modeling study indicate that the current flood risk in District 4 is 0.31 million USD yr-1, increasing up to 0.78 million USD yr-1 in 2100. The net present value and benefit-cost ratios using a discount rate of 5% range from USD -107 to -1.5 million, and from 0.086 to 0.796 for the different strategies. Using a discount rate of 2.5% leads to an increase in both net present value and benefit cost ratio. The adaptation strategies wet proofing and dry proofing generate the best results using these economic indicators. The information on different strategies will be used by

Adaptive and cross-protective responses against cadmium and zinc toxicity in cadmium-resistant bacterium isolated from a zinc mine

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Benjaphorn Prapagdee

2009-12-01

Full Text Available Cadmium (Cd is a major environmental hazard, which usually is detected in its ionic form of Cd2+. It also causes adverse toxic effects on human health and other living organisms. Cd-resistant bacteria were isolated from Cd-contaminated soils. One isolate, TAK1, was highly resistance level to Cd toxicity. TAK1 was isolated from soil contaminated with a high Cd concentration (204.1 mg.kg-1. The result of 16S rDNA sequence analysis found that the TAK1 showed the similarity to Ralstonia sp. Physiological adaptive and cross-protective responses to Cd and Zn killing were investigated in Ralstonia sp.TAK1. Exposure to a low concentration of Cd induced adaptive resistance to higher concentrations of Cd. In addition, pretreatment of Ralstonia sp.TAK1 with an inducing concentration of Cd conferred cross-protective response against subsequent exposure to the lethal concentrations of Zn. The induced adaptive and cross-protective response Ralstonia sp.TAK1 required newly synthesized protein(s. Cd-induced adaptive and cross-protective responses against Cd and Zn toxicity are the important mechanisms used by Ralstonia sp.TAK1 to survive in the heavy metal contaminated environments. These findings might lead to the use of Ralstonia sp.TAK1 for microbial based remediation in Cd and Zn-contaminated soils.

Intermittent cardiac overload results in adaptive hypertrophy and provides protection against left ventricular acute pressure overload insult.

Science.gov (United States)

Moreira-Gonçalves, Daniel; Henriques-Coelho, Tiago; Fonseca, Hélder; Ferreira, Rita; Padrão, Ana Isabel; Santa, Cátia; Vieira, Sara; Silva, Ana Filipa; Amado, Francisco; Leite-Moreira, Adelino; Duarte, José Alberto

2015-09-01

The present study aimed to test whether a chronic intermittent workload could induce an adaptive cardiac phenotype Chronic intermittent workload induced features of adaptive hypertrophy This was paralleled by protection against acute pressure overload insult The heart may adapt favourably to balanced demands, regardless of the nature of the stimuli. The present study aimed to test whether submitting the healthy heart to intermittent and tolerable amounts of workload, independently of its nature, could result in an adaptive cardiac phenotype. Male Wistar rats were subjected to treadmill running (Ex) (n = 20), intermittent cardiac overload with dobutamine (ITO) (2 mg kg(-1) , s.c.; n = 20) or placebo administration (Cont) (n = 20) for 5 days week(-1) for 8 weeks. Animals were then killed for histological and biochemical analysis or subjected to left ventricular haemodynamic evaluation under baseline conditions, in response to isovolumetric contractions and to sustained LV acute pressure overload (35% increase in peak systolic pressure maintained for 2 h). Baseline cardiac function was enhanced only in Ex, whereas the response to isovolumetric heartbeats was improved in both ITO and Ex. By contrast to the Cont group, in which rats developed diastolic dysfunction with sustained acute pressure overload, ITO and Ex showed increased tolerance to this stress test. Both ITO and Ex developed cardiomyocyte hypertrophy without fibrosis, no overexpression of osteopontin-1 or β-myosin heavy chain, and increased expression of sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca(2+) protein. Regarding hypertrophic pathways, ITO and Ex showed activation of the protein kinase B/mammalian target of rapamycin pathway but not calcineurin. Mitochondrial complex IV and V activities were also increased in ITO and Ex. Chronic submission to controlled intermittent cardiac overload, independently of its nature, results in an adaptive cardiac phenotype. Features of the cardiac overload, such as the duration and

Forestry in times of climatic change. From adaptation to climate protection; Forstwirtschaft in Zeiten des Klimawandels. Von Anpassung bis Klimaschutz

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2010-07-01

The notification 30/2010 of the Thuringian State Institute for Forest, Hunting and Fishing (Gotha, Federal Republic of Germany) reports on the forest management in times of the climatic changes. This notification consists of the following contributions: (1) Perception of the climatic change by private forest owners - A social-scientific investigation (Stefanie Rimkus); (2) Fundamentals for the designation of the inventory destination types adapted to climatic change for Thuringia (Nico Frischbier); (3) Recommendations of tree species adapted to climatic change for the forestry practice in Thuringia (Wolfgang Arenhoevel); (4) Development of carbon storage in the state-owned forest Thuringia (Thomas Wutzler); (5) The carbon inventories in copper beech forests (Fagus Sylvatica L.) under the influence of different silvicultural treatment (Martina Mund); (6) Wood products for the climate protection - The state of the art in Thuringia (Ingolf Profft); (7) HABIT-CHANGE - 'Adaptive management of climate-induced changes of habitat diversity in protected areas' (Nico Frischbier); (8) Cultivation experiences of non-indigenous tree species (Wolfgang Ahrenhoevel); (9) Registration of damages of the storm 'Xynthia' in the forestry office Bad Salzungen by means of ANDROMEDA {sup registered} data (Herbert Sagischewski); (10) www.waldundklima.net - The open internet portal on forest, wood and climate (Ingolf Profft).

ADAPTER: Analysing and developing adaptability and performance in teams to enhance resilience

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Beek, Dolf van der; Schraagen, Jan Maarten

2015-01-01

In the current study, the concept of team resilience was operationalized by developing a first version of a questionnaire (ADAPTER) driven by the four essential abilities of resilience (Hollnagel E, 2011, Resilience engineering in practice: a guidebook, p. 275–96) and expanded with more relation-oriented abilities of leadership and cooperation. The development and administration of ADAPTER took place within two companies. Factor analyses using data of 91 participants largely supported the hypothesized 6-dimension taxonomy. Support was found for Team responding behavior, Shared Leadership and Cooperation with other teams/departments. Anticipation showed considerable overlap with the monitoring scale, possibly due to the fact that monitoring items dealt with prospective situations. Using ADAPTER questionnaire results as a starting point for further in-depth discussion among the different teams in the pilot companies proved very useful. Suggestions for future research include contextualizing the questionnaire by embedding it in actual cases or having it filled in after specific incidents. Also, support of organization should be included as a separate dimension in ADAPTER. - Highlights: • Development of a team resilience questionnaire (ADAPTER). • Driven by Hollnagel's resilience abilities plus shared leadership and cooperation. • Pilot testing of ADAPTER took place within two companies. • Factor analyses (N=91) largely supported the hypothesized 6-dimension taxonomy. • Results provide a useful starting point for further in-depth discussions

Adaptation in the context of technology development and transfer

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Olhoff, Anne

2015-01-01

and transfer. It summarizes what technologies for adaptation are, how they relate to development, and what their role is in adaptation. It subsequently highlights a number of policy and research issues that could be important to inform future policy. The commentary has two key messages. First, it argues...... that informed policy decisions on technology development and transfer to enhance adaptation require systematic assessments of the findings in the theoretical and empirical literature. Second, in light of the potential for overlap between processes for adaptation and processes for technologies for adaptation......Starting from a summary of key developments under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) related to adaptation and technologies, the commentary provides an initial review of the available literature relevant to adaptation in the context of technology development...

Reliable Software Development for Machine Protection Systems

CERN Document Server

Anderson, D; Dragu, M; Fuchsberger, K; Garnier, JC; Gorzawski, AA; Koza, M; Krol, K; Misiowiec, K; Stamos, K; Zerlauth, M

2014-01-01

The Controls software for the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN, with more than 150 millions lines of code, resides amongst the largest known code bases in the world1. Industry has been applying Agile software engineering techniques for more than two decades now, and the advantages of these techniques can no longer be ignored to manage the code base for large projects within the accelerator community. Furthermore, CERN is a particular environment due to the high personnel turnover and manpower limitations, where applying Agile processes can improve both, the codebase management as well as its quality. This paper presents the successful application of the Agile software development process Scrum for machine protection systems at CERN, the quality standards and infrastructure introduced together with the Agile process as well as the challenges encountered to adapt it to the CERN environment.

Professional Development to Promote Teacher Adaptability

Science.gov (United States)

Parsons, Allison Ward; Ankrum, Julie Winneur; Morewood, Aimee

2016-01-01

Effective professional development (PD) follows adaptive teaching principles; it increases teacher understanding and instructional purpose, which ultimately supports and extends adaptive teaching. Through this article, we compare and contrast training models with educative models of PD (Duffy, 2004). We discuss characteristics of effective PD that…

Active materials for adaptive architectural envelopes based on plant adaptation principles

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marlen Lopez

2015-06-01

Full Text Available In this paper, the authors present research into adaptive architectural envelopes that adapt to environmental changes using active materials, as a result of application of biomimetic principles from plants to architecture. Buildings use large amounts of energy in order to maintain their internal comfort, because conventional buildings are designed to provide a static design solution. Most of the current solutions for facades are not designed for optimum adaptation to contextual issues and needs, while biological solutions to adaptation are often complex, multi-functional and highly responsive. We focus on plant adaptations to the environment, as, due to their immobility, they have developed special means of protection against weather changing conditions. Furthermore, recent developments in new technologies are allowing the possibility to transfer these plant adaptation strategies to technical implementation. These technologies include: multi-material 3D printing, advances in materials science and new capabilities in simulation software. Unlike traditional mechanical activation used for dynamic systems in kinetic facades, adaptive architectural envelopes require no complex electronics, sensors, or actuators. The paper proposes a research of the relationship that can be developed between active materials and environmental issues in order to propose innovative and low-tech design strategies to achieve living envelopes according to plant adaptation principles.  

An adaptive control strategy of converter based DG to maintain protection coordination in distribution system

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Su, Chi; Liu, Zhou; Chen, Zhe

2014-01-01

of network protection devices. As a protection measure commonly used in distribution network, recloser-fuse coordination could suffer from this impact. Research work has been conducted to deal with this problem by modifying the control strategy of the DG converters during faults. These solutions generally...... reduce the current output from the converters during faults so as to mitigate the influence on protection coordination. However, converter current reduction may not be necessary for all types of faults. This paper proposes a converter control strategy with adaptivity to different fault types and also non......-fault voltage drop events. This control strategy is validated by simulations in DIgSILENT PowerFactory....

Adaptive Planning for Resilient Coastal Waterfronts

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Peter Christiaan van Veelen

2016-11-01

The method follows three basic steps: (1 assessing the spatial and timely synchronisation of adaptation measures with planned urban development projects and public and private infrastructure maintenance investments; (2 assessing the institutional and financial barriers to be removed in order to mainstream climate adaptation measures in these urban development processes, and (3 assessing what opportunities derived from urban development are able to ‘break through’ the path dependencies that lock-in more sustainable adaptive paths. The method is based on mapping all planned spatial investments in brownfield development, urban renovation, and maintenance projects of public and private infrastructure and assets and by assessing the effectiveness of prevailing policies. Using design research, new opportunities for adaptation are explored and assessed. The urban dynamics based adaptation pathways method is tested at two waterfront areas in Rotterdam (Feijenoord and New York (Red Hook. Both cases show that identifying intervention opportunities and potential transitional interventions is helpful in selecting and assessing adaptive pathways. Moreover, it helps to identify legal or financial arrangements that are needed to unlock the potential of adaptation paths. One of the key findings of the case study research is that in high density urban conditions there is limited potential to build resilience from household redevelopment or renovation, even when new complementary policies and regulative instruments that support buildinglevel resilience would be developed. District-wide flood protection is effective in terms of flood risk, but requires large-scale transformations of the waterfront zone to seize opportunities to develop integrated protection at low costs. This strategy, however, needs new governance structures and financial arrangements to redistribute costs and benefits fairly among stakeholders.

Research and development in radiological protection; Investigacion y desarrollo en proteccion radiologica

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Butragueno, J. L.; Villota, C.; Gutierrez, C.; Rodriguez, A.

2004-07-01

The objective of Radiological Protection is to gurantee that neither people, be they workers or members of the public, or the environment are exposed to radiological risks considered by society to be unacceptable. Among the various resources available to meet this objective is Research and Development (R and D), which is carried out in three areas: I. Radiological protection of persons: (a) knowledge of the biological effects of radiations, in order to determine the relationship that exists between radiation exposure dose and its effects on health; (b) the development of new personal dosimetry techniques in order to adapt to new situations, instrumental techniques and information managmenet technologies allowing for better assessment of exposure dose; and (c) development of the principle of radiological protection optimisation (ALARA), which has been set up internationally as the fundamental principle on which radiological protection interventions are based. II. Assessment of environmental radiological impact, the objective of which is to assess the nature and magnitude of situations of exposure to ionising radiations as a result of the controlled or uncontrolled release of radioactive material to the environment, and III.Reduction of the radiological impact of radioactive wastes, the objective of which is to develop radioactive material and waste management techniques suitable for each situation, in order to reduce the risks assocaited with their definitive managmenet or thier release to the environment. Briefly desribed below are the strategic lines of R and D of the CSN, the Electricity Industry, Ciemat and Enresa in the aforementioned areas. (Author)

Integrating climate change adaptation into civil protection: comparative lessons from Norway, Sweden and the Netherlands.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Groven, K.; Aall, C.; van den Berg, Maya Marieke; Carlsson-Kanyama, A.; Coenen, Franciscus H.J.M.

2012-01-01

Integrating policy on climate change adaptation into civil protection is explored through studies of extreme weather management at the national level in Norway, Sweden and the Netherlands, and through local case studies of the three coastal cities of Bergen, Malmö and Rotterdam. The research issues

Understanding Institutional Adaptation to Climate Change: Social Resilience and Adaptive Governance Capacities of the Nature Based Tourism Institutions in the Annapurna Conservation Area, Nepal

OpenAIRE

Lama, Anu Kumari

2016-01-01

The global-local sustainable development and climate change adaptation policy, and the emerging political discourse on the value of local Adaptation, have positioned the local institutions and their governance space within the strategic enclaves of multilevel governance system. Such shifts have transformed the context for sustainable Nature Based Tourism (NBT) development and adaptation in Nepal in general, and its protected areas, in particular. The emerging institutional adaptation discours...

Utilization of Supercapacitors in Adaptive Protection Applications for Resiliency against Communication Failures: A Size and Cost Optimization Case Study

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Habib, Hany F [Florida Intl Univ., Miami, FL (United States); El Hariri, Mohamad [Florida Intl Univ., Miami, FL (United States); Elsayed, Ahmed [Florida Intl Univ., Miami, FL (United States); Mohammed, Osama [Florida Intl Univ., Miami, FL (United States)

2017-03-30

Microgrids’ adaptive protection techniques rely on communication signals from the point of common coupling to ad- just the corresponding relays’ settings for either grid-connected or islanded modes of operation. However, during communication out- ages or in the event of a cyberattack, relays settings are not changed. Thus adaptive protection schemes are rendered unsuc- cessful. Due to their fast response, supercapacitors, which are pre- sent in the microgrid to feed pulse loads, could also be utilized to enhance the resiliency of adaptive protection schemes to communi- cation outages. Proper sizing of the supercapacitors is therefore im- portant in order to maintain a stable system operation and also reg- ulate the protection scheme’s cost. This paper presents a two-level optimization scheme for minimizing the supercapacitor size along with optimizing its controllers’ parameters. The latter will lead to a reduction of the supercapacitor fault current contribution and an increase in that of other AC resources in the microgrid in the ex- treme case of having a fault occurring simultaneously with a pulse load. It was also shown that the size of the supercapacitor can be reduced if the pulse load is temporary disconnected during the transient fault period. Simulations showed that the resulting super- capacitor size and the optimized controller parameters from the proposed two-level optimization scheme were feeding enough fault currents for different types of faults and minimizing the cost of the protection scheme.

Adaptive management of higher school intellectual capital development

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Borova T.A.

2010-07-01

Full Text Available The essence of the intellectual capital in higher educational establishment and conditions of management is construed by his development. It is possible to consider an adaptive technique one of ways of management in an astable situation. Affirms, that the adaptive technique professional development of teachers helps to correct the activity. Higher educational establishment should possess organization by "capital" in the form of an advanced education system. A feature of an adaptive technique is managements of changes which give a push to development. Considering professional development of scientific and pedagogical collective of higher educational establishment it is possible to affirm about development of the intellectual capital of higher educational establishment.

Is prevention of acute pesticide poisoning effective and efficient, with Locally Adapted Personal Protective Equipment? A randomized crossover study among farmers in Chitwan, Nepal

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Varma, Anshu; Neupane, Dinesh; Bonde, Jens Peter Ellekilde

2016-01-01

Background: Farmers' risk of pesticide poisoning can be reduced with personal protective equipment but in low-income countries farmers' use of such equipment is limited. Objective: To examine the effectiveness and efficiency of Locally Adapted Personal Protective Equipment to reduce organophosphate...... exposure among farmers. Methods: In a crossover study, 45 male farmers from Chitwan, Nepal, were randomly allocated to work as usual applying organophosphate pesticides wearing Locally Adapted Personal Protective Equipment or Daily Practice Clothing. For seven days before each experiment, each farmer.......08; 0.06]. Wearing the Locally Adapted Personal Protective Equipment versus Daily Practice Clothing gave the following results, respectively: comfort 75.6% versus 100%, sense of heat 64.4% versus 31.3%, other problems 44.4% versus 33.3%, like-ability 95.6% versus 77.8%. Conclusion: We cannot support...

Rhetorical Dissent as an Adaptive Response to Classroom Problems: A Test of Protection Motivation Theory

Science.gov (United States)

Bolkan, San; Goodboy, Alan K.

2016-01-01

Protection motivation theory (PMT) explains people's adaptive behavior in response to personal threats. In this study, PMT was used to predict rhetorical dissent episodes related to 210 student reports of perceived classroom problems. In line with theoretical predictions, a moderated moderation analysis revealed that students were likely to voice…

Neurobiological Adaptations to Violence across Development

Science.gov (United States)

Mead, Hilary K.; Beauchaine, Theodore P.; Shannon, Katherine E.

2009-01-01

Adaptation to violent environments across development involves a multitude of cascading effects spanning many levels of analysis from genes to behavior. In this review, we (a) examine the potentiating effects of violence on genetic vulnerabilities and the functioning of neurotransmitter systems in producing both internalizing and externalizing psychopathology, (b) consider the impact of violence on the developing human stress and startle responses, and (c) brain development including the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex. This review integrates literature on the developmental effects of violence on rodents, non-human primates, and humans. Many neurobiological changes that are adaptive for survival in violent contexts become maladaptive in other environments, conferring life-long risk for psychopathology. PMID:20102643

Design issues in adaptive web-site development

NARCIS (Netherlands)

De Bra, P.M.E.; Brusilovsky, P.; De Bra, P.M.E.

1999-01-01

For almost a decade people have been developing hypertext or hypermedia applications that adapt to some "features" of their users, like knowledge or preferences [Brusilovsky, 1996]. Recently some adaptive application environments have become available that use World Wide Web technology. Examples of

Unusual adaptive, cross protection responses and growth phase resistance against peroxide killing in a bacterial shrimp pathogen, Vibrio harveyi.

Science.gov (United States)

Vattanaviboon, P; Mongkolsuk, S

2001-06-12

Oxidant induced protection against peroxide killing was investigated in a prawn bacterial pathogen, Vibrio harveyi. Exposure to 250 microM H(2)O(2) induced adaptive protection against subsequent exposure to killing concentrations of H(2)O(2). In addition, 200 microM t-butyl hydroperoxide (tBOOH) induced cross protection to H(2)O(2) killing. On the other hand, peroxide pretreatment did not induce protection against tBOOH killing. Peroxide induced adaptive and cross protection responses required new protein synthesis and were abolished by addition of a protein synthesis inhibitor. Pretreatments of V. harveyi with 250 microM H(2)O(2) and 200 microM tBOOH induced an increase in peroxide scavenging enzymes, catalase and alkyl hydroperoxide reductase subunit C. In addition, stationary phase cells of V. harveyi were more resistant to H(2)O(2) and iodoacetamide killing but highly susceptible to tBOOH killing compared to exponential phase cells. Many aspects of the oxidative stress response of V. harveyi are different from those of other bacteria and these factors may be important for bacterial survival in the environment and during interactions with host shrimp.

Unequal Protection of Video Streaming through Adaptive Modulation with a Trizone Buffer over Bluetooth Enhanced Data Rate

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Razavi Rouzbeh

2008-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract Bluetooth enhanced data rate wireless channel can support higher-quality video streams compared to previous versions of Bluetooth. Packet loss when transmitting compressed data has an effect on the delivered video quality that endures over multiple frames. To reduce the impact of radio frequency noise and interference, this paper proposes adaptive modulation based on content type at the video frame level and content importance at the macroblock level. Because the bit rate of protected data is reduced, the paper proposes buffer management to reduce the risk of buffer overflow. A trizone buffer is introduced, with a varying unequal protection policy in each zone. Application of this policy together with adaptive modulation results in up to 4 dB improvement in objective video quality compared to fixed rate scheme for an additive white Gaussian noise channel and around 10 dB for a Gilbert-Elliott channel. The paper also reports a consistent improvement in video quality over a scheme that adapts to channel conditions by varying the data rate without accounting for the video frame packet type or buffer congestion.

Unequal Protection of Video Streaming through Adaptive Modulation with a Trizone Buffer over Bluetooth Enhanced Data Rate

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rouzbeh Razavi

2007-12-01

Full Text Available Bluetooth enhanced data rate wireless channel can support higher-quality video streams compared to previous versions of Bluetooth. Packet loss when transmitting compressed data has an effect on the delivered video quality that endures over multiple frames. To reduce the impact of radio frequency noise and interference, this paper proposes adaptive modulation based on content type at the video frame level and content importance at the macroblock level. Because the bit rate of protected data is reduced, the paper proposes buffer management to reduce the risk of buffer overflow. A trizone buffer is introduced, with a varying unequal protection policy in each zone. Application of this policy together with adaptive modulation results in up to 4 dB improvement in objective video quality compared to fixed rate scheme for an additive white Gaussian noise channel and around 10 dB for a Gilbert-Elliott channel. The paper also reports a consistent improvement in video quality over a scheme that adapts to channel conditions by varying the data rate without accounting for the video frame packet type or buffer congestion.

Developing Resilient Urban Waterfronts : Integrating Adaptation into Urban Development and Management

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Veelen, P.C.; Deppisch, Sonja

2017-01-01

There is a growing attention for integrating climate change adaptation into policies, strategies and decision-making processes (e.g. mainstreaming). This paper explores to what extent climate adaptation can be integrated into processes of urban development and change, based on case study research in

Cold-adapted influenza and recombinant adenovirus vaccines induce cross-protective immunity against pH1N1 challenge in mice.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mark R Soboleski

Full Text Available The rapid spread of the 2009 H1N1 pandemic influenza virus (pH1N1 highlighted problems associated with relying on strain-matched vaccines. A lengthy process of strain identification, manufacture, and testing is required for current strain-matched vaccines and delays vaccine availability. Vaccines inducing immunity to conserved viral proteins could be manufactured and tested in advance and provide cross-protection against novel influenza viruses until strain-matched vaccines became available. Here we test two prototype vaccines for cross-protection against the recent pandemic virus.BALB/c and C57BL/6 mice were intranasally immunized with a single dose of cold-adapted (ca influenza viruses from 1977 or recombinant adenoviruses (rAd expressing 1934 nucleoprotein (NP and consensus matrix 2 (M2 (NP+M2-rAd. Antibodies against the M2 ectodomain (M2e were seen in NP+M2-rAd immunized BALB/c but not C57BL/6 mice, and cross-reacted with pH1N1 M2e. The ca-immunized mice did not develop antibodies against M2e. Despite sequence differences between vaccine and challenge virus NP and M2e epitopes, extensive cross-reactivity of lung T cells with pH1N1 peptides was detected following immunization. Both ca and NP+M2-rAd immunization protected BALB/c and C57BL/6 mice against challenge with a mouse-adapted pH1N1 virus.Cross-protective vaccines such as NP+M2-rAd and ca virus are effective against pH1N1 challenge within 3 weeks of immunization. Protection was not dependent on recognition of the highly variable external viral proteins and could be achieved with a single vaccine dose. The rAd vaccine was superior to the ca vaccine by certain measures, justifying continued investigation of this experimental vaccine even though ca vaccine is already available. This study highlights the potential for cross-protective vaccines as a public health option early in an influenza pandemic.

Motivations and Barriers for Policymakers to Developing State Adaptation Plans

Science.gov (United States)

Miller, R.; Sylak-Glassman, E.

2016-12-01

Current approaches for developing high-quality adaptation plan require significant resources. In recent years, communities have grown to embrace adaptive plans across multiple forms, including adaptive capacity assessments, resilience strategies, and vulnerability assessments. Across the United States, as of this writing, 14 states have established adaptation plans, with another 8 states having begun the process. Given the high resources requirements and increasing interest in the development of adaptation plans, we aim to examine patterns behind the establishment of resilience plans at the state level. We examine demographic, financial, political, and physical characteristics associated with different states in an effort to explore the reasoning behind investing in the development of adaptation plans. This analysis considers quantitative and qualitative factors, including recent elections for political parties, politicians' climate-related statements and campaign promises, demographics, budgets, and regional climate threats. The analysis aims to identify motivations for state leadership taking action to develop adaptation plans. Results from the analysis seek to identify the primary drivers and barriers associated with state-wide resilience planning. These results could inform the design of scientific communication tools or approaches to aid future adaptation responses to climate change.

AWARE: Adaptive Software Monitoring and Dynamic Reconfiguration for Critical Infrastructure Protection

Science.gov (United States)

2015-04-29

in which we applied these adaptation patterns to an adaptive news web server intended to tolerate extremely heavy, unexpected loads. To address...collection of existing models used as benchmarks for OO-based refactoring and an existing web -based repository called REMODD to provide users with model...invariant properties. Specifically, we developed Avida- MDE (based on the Avida digital evolution platform) to support the automatic generation of software

Adaptive settings of distance relay for MOV-protected series compensated line with distributed capacitance considering wind power

Science.gov (United States)

Sivov, Oleg Viktorovich

Series compensated lines are protected from overvoltage by metal-oxide-varistors (MOVs) connected in parallel with the capacitor bank. The nonlinear characteristics of MOV devices add complexity to fault analysis and distance protection operation. During faults, the impedance of the line is modified by an equivalent impedance of the parallel MOV/capacitor circuit, which affects the distance protection. The intermittent wind generation introduces additional complexity to the system performance and distance protection. Wind variation affects the fault current level and equivalent MOV/capacitor impedance during a fault, and hence the distance relay operation. This thesis studies the impact of the intermittent wind power generation on the operation of MOV during faults. For the purpose of simulation, an equivalent wind farm model is proposed to generate a wind generation profile using wind farm generation from California independent system operator (ISO) as a guide for wind power variation to perform the study. The IEEE 12-bus test system is modified to include MOV-protected series capacitor and the equivalent wind farm model. The modified test system is simulated in the MATLAB/Simulink environment. The study has been achieved considering three phase and single line to ground (SLG) faults on the series compensated line to show the effect of wind variation on the MOV operation. This thesis proposes an adaptive setting method for the mho relay distance protection of series compensated line considering effects of wind power variation and MOV operation. The distributed parameters of a transmission line are taken into account to avoid overreaching and underreaching of distance relays. The study shows that variable wind power affects system power flow and fault current in the compensated line during a fault which affects the operation of MOVs for different fault conditions. The equivalent per-phase impedance of the MOV/capacitor circuit has an effect on the system operation

40 CFR 230.6 - Adaptability.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 40 Protection of Environment 24 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Adaptability. 230.6 Section 230.6 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (CONTINUED) OCEAN DUMPING SECTION 404(b)(1) GUIDELINES FOR SPECIFICATION OF DISPOSAL SITES FOR DREDGED OR FILL MATERIAL General § 230.6 Adaptability. (a...

[Adapting the law to offer better protection to female victims of violence].

Science.gov (United States)

Durand, Édouard

2014-11-01

As society has become more aware of the seriousness and the extent of domestic violence, the law has been adapted in order to offer female victims better protection. These legislative changes are recent and still meet with some resistance. The act of the 9th of July 2010 modified penal and civil laws to take better account of the specificities of the mechanisms of domestic abuse and create appropriate tools. The law about real equality between women and men, approved by the National Assembly on the 23rd of July 2014, is in line with this same objective.

The development of radiation protection in Hungary

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bisztray-Balku, S.; Bozoky, L.; Koblinger, L.

1982-01-01

This book contains the short history, development and present status of radiation protection and health physics in Hungary. The first chapter discusses the radiation protection standards and practices used in scientific, technical and medical radiology in this country, with their development history. The next chapter is devoted to the radiation protection techniques applied for medical uses of radioisotopes and accelerators including the organizational and management problems. The last chapter presents a review on radiation protection and health physics aspects of the Hungarian industry and agriculture, on radiation protection research and management, on instruments and dosimeters. A national bibliography on the subject up to 1979 is included. (Sz.J.)

The value and adaptation of plant uptake models in international trade of produce treated with crop protection products

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kennedy, C.; Anderson, J.; Snyder, N.

2010-01-01

Crop Protection Product (CPP) national registrations and/or international trade require magnitude and decline of residue data for treated produce. These data are used to assess human dietary risk and establish legal limits (Maximum Residue Limits, MRLs) for traded produce. The ability to predict...... residues based on limited data sets affords business value by enabling informed product development decisions about the likelihood for MRL compliance for varied product use scenarios. Predicted residues can additionally support the design and conduct of time-constrained interdependent studies required...... for product registrations. While advances in predicting residues for the case of foliar applications of CPPs have been achieved, predictions for the case of soil applications of CPPs provide additional challenge. The adaptation of a newly developed dynamic model to CPP product use scenarios will be explored...

Climate change adaptation in Ethiopia

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Weldegebriel, Zerihun Berhane; Prowse, Martin

Ethiopia is vulnerable to climate change due to its limited development and dependence on agriculture. Social protection schemes like the Productive Safety Net Programme (PSNP) can play a positive role in promoting livelihoods and enhancing households’ risk management. This article examines......, they suggest the PSNP may not be helping smallholders diversify income sources in a positive manner for climate adaptation. The article concludes by arguing for further investigation of the PSNP’s influence on smallholders’ adaptation strategies....

EDV supported dynamic fire protection concept adaptation during dismantling of nuclear facilities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mummert, Maxi; Traichel, Anke; Dilger, Matthias

2013-01-01

Fire protection concepts are supposed to be a decision guide for the definition of measures and priorities in fire fighting and fire prevention. In case of reactor dismantling a fire protection concept for the actual status is required. Following the fuel removal from the reactor the protection goals are reduced to the safe confinement of radioactive materials and the restriction of radiation exposure. A dynamic fire protection concept was developed to allow the compliance with the required protection measures with respect to the protection targets. The implementation of the dynamic fire protection concept simplifies the planning of the dismantling steps and to adjust the fire protection measured in the frame of changes in the plant.

Adaptation: Needs, Financing and Institutions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Klein, Richard J.T.; Kartha, Sivan; Persson, Aasa; Watkiss, Paul; Ackerman, Frank; Downing, Thomas E.; Kjellen, Bo; Schipper, Lisa (Stockholm Environment Institute, Stockholm (SE))

2008-07-01

Regardless of the efforts put into mitigation, some impacts of climate change are already unavoidable. Adaptation to climate change has therefore become a key component of domestic climate policy, along with mitigation. Adaptation has also become key to the success of global climate policy. Without an agreement on supporting adaptation in developing countries, there will be no agreement on mitigation. Strong mitigation efforts make it more likely that adaptation will be effective and affordable. The world cannot rely on adaptation alone: it would eventually lead to a level of climate change to which adaptation is no longer feasible. Government action is needed to create an enabling environment for adaptation. This includes removing existing financial, legal, institutional and knowledge barriers to adaptation, and strengthening the capacity of people and organisations to adapt. The success of adaptation relies on the success of development, and vice versa. Poverty reduction, good governance, education, environmental protection, health and gender equality all contribute to adaptive capacity. Substantially more money is needed to support adaptation in developing countries. Current levels of funding will soon have to be scaled up by two orders of magnitude (from US$ hundreds of million to US$ tens of billion per year). An agreement on adaptation in Copenhagen in 2009 will need to include concrete steps towards a strengthened knowledge base for adaptation, substantially more funding for developing countries, and enhanced adaptation planning and implementation at the national level. Recommendations: Developed countries should accept a transparent, principle-based allocation of responsibility for adaptation funding, resulting in adequate, new and additional money to support adaptation programmes in developing countries. Levies on carbon market transactions and auctioning emission permits are two existing mechanisms of generating new and additional funds consistent with

Adaptation of an Agile Information System Development Method

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Aydin, M.N.; Harmsen, A.F.; van Hillegersberg, Jos; Stegwee, R.A.; Siau, K.

2007-01-01

Little specific research has been conducted to date on the adaptation of agile information systems development (ISD) methods. This chapter presents the work practice in dealing with the adaptation of such a method in the ISD department of one of the leading financial institutes in Europe. The

Cold-Adapted Influenza and Recombinant Adenovirus Vaccines Induce Cross-Protective Immunity against pH1N1 Challenge in Mice

Science.gov (United States)

Soboleski, Mark R.; Gabbard, Jon D.; Price, Graeme E.; Misplon, Julia A.; Lo, Chia-Yun; Perez, Daniel R.; Ye, Jianqiang; Tompkins, S. Mark; Epstein, Suzanne L.

2011-01-01

Background The rapid spread of the 2009 H1N1 pandemic influenza virus (pH1N1) highlighted problems associated with relying on strain-matched vaccines. A lengthy process of strain identification, manufacture, and testing is required for current strain-matched vaccines and delays vaccine availability. Vaccines inducing immunity to conserved viral proteins could be manufactured and tested in advance and provide cross-protection against novel influenza viruses until strain-matched vaccines became available. Here we test two prototype vaccines for cross-protection against the recent pandemic virus. Methodology/Principal Findings BALB/c and C57BL/6 mice were intranasally immunized with a single dose of cold-adapted (ca) influenza viruses from 1977 or recombinant adenoviruses (rAd) expressing 1934 nucleoprotein (NP) and consensus matrix 2 (M2) (NP+M2-rAd). Antibodies against the M2 ectodomain (M2e) were seen in NP+M2-rAd immunized BALB/c but not C57BL/6 mice, and cross-reacted with pH1N1 M2e. The ca-immunized mice did not develop antibodies against M2e. Despite sequence differences between vaccine and challenge virus NP and M2e epitopes, extensive cross-reactivity of lung T cells with pH1N1 peptides was detected following immunization. Both ca and NP+M2-rAd immunization protected BALB/c and C57BL/6 mice against challenge with a mouse-adapted pH1N1 virus. Conclusion/Significance Cross-protective vaccines such as NP+M2-rAd and ca virus are effective against pH1N1 challenge within 3 weeks of immunization. Protection was not dependent on recognition of the highly variable external viral proteins and could be achieved with a single vaccine dose. The rAd vaccine was superior to the ca vaccine by certain measures, justifying continued investigation of this experimental vaccine even though ca vaccine is already available. This study highlights the potential for cross-protective vaccines as a public health option early in an influenza pandemic. PMID:21789196

Adapting the unified software development process for user interface development

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Obrenovic, Z.; Starcevic, D.

2006-01-01

In this paper we describe how existing software developing processes, such as Rational Unified Process, can be adapted in order to allow disciplined and more efficient development of user interfaces. The main objective of this paper is to demonstrate that standard modeling environments, based on the

Neurobiological Adaptations to Violence across Development

OpenAIRE

Mead, Hilary K.; Beauchaine, Theodore P.; Shannon, Katherine E.

2010-01-01

Adaptation to violent environments across development involves a multitude of cascading effects spanning many levels of analysis from genes to behavior. In this review, we (a) examine the potentiating effects of violence on genetic vulnerabilities and the functioning of neurotransmitter systems in producing both internalizing and externalizing psychopathology, (b) consider the impact of violence on the developing human stress and startle responses, and (c) brain development including the hipp...

Adaptation to acrolein through upregulating the protection by glutathione in human bronchial epithelial cells: the materialization of the hormesis concept.

Science.gov (United States)

Sthijns, Mireille M J P E; Randall, Matthew J; Bast, Aalt; Haenen, Guido R M M

2014-04-18

Acrolein is a thiol reactive compound present in cigarette smoke and plays a pivotal role in the deleterious effects of smoking. Acrolein causes toxicity in human bronchial epithelial cells in a dose dependent manner. GSH forms the first line of defense against acrolein-induced toxicity. At high doses of acrolein (⩾10 μM) the capacity of the cellular protection by GSH is overwhelmed and GSH is not able to quench all the acrolein, resulting in cytotoxicity. At a relatively low dose of acrolein (3 μM), no cytotoxicity is observed due to protection by GSH. Moreover we found that exposure to a low dose of acrolein protects cells against the toxic effect of a second higher dose of acrolein. The adaptation to acrolein is induced via Nrf2 mediated gene expression of γ-glutamylcysteine synthetase leading to elevated GSH levels. This upregulation of the protection by GSH demonstrates a hormetic response to acrolein. Hormesis is an adaptive or compensatory response induced by a relatively subtle challenge of homeostasis by a toxic compound. Insight into the mechanism of hormesis is mandatory for a more accurate societal regulation of toxic compounds. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Overview of adaptive phased management repository design development

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Russell, S.

2011-01-01

The Nuclear Waste Management Organization is implementing Adaptive Phased Management, Canada's plan for long-term management of used nuclear fuel. The organization is proceeding with the process for selecting a site in partnership with an informed and willing host community to safely and securely container and isolate used nuclear fuel in a deep geological repository in a suitable rock formation. Adaptive Phased Management is the culmination of more than 30 years of research, development and demonstration of repository concepts in Canada. Adaptive Phased Management uses a phased and adaptive step-wise approach to the multi-barrier system which is consistent with the long-term waste management approaches being developed in many other countries with nuclear power programs such as Sweden, Finland, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and France. The Nuclear Waste Management Organization is examining and developing conceptual designs for a deep geological repository and associated facilities for the placement of used nuclear fuel in long-lived containers. This paper will examine two of these generic conceptual designs which have recently been refined and updated. These conceptual designs will be used to support a pre-project review of repository design and safety by the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission. (author)

Overcoming the barriers. Mainstreaming climate change adaptation in developing countries

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mitchell, T.; Tanner, T.; Wilkinson, E.; Roach, R.; Boyd, S.

2006-10-01

Climate change is a huge threat to all aspects of human development and achievement of the Millennium Development Goals for poverty reduction. Until recently, donor agencies, national and local layers of government, and non-governmental organisations have paid little attention to the risks and uncertainties associated with climate change. Now, however, players at all levels are increasingly engaging with the question of how to tackle the impacts of climate change on development in poorer nations. There are growing efforts to reduce negative impacts and seize opportunities by integrating climate change adaptation into development planning, programmes and budgeting, a process known as mainstreaming. Such a co-ordinated, integrated approach to adaptation is imperative in order to deal with the scale and urgency of dealing with climate change impacts. In developed countries progress on mainstreaming climate adaptation has been limited. Many countries have carried out climate change projections and impact assessments, but few have started consultation processes to look at adaptation options and identify policy responses. In developing countries, the mainstreaming process is also in its early stages. Small island developing states have made good progress, with Caribbean countries among the first to start work on adaptation. The Pacific islands have received considerable support and through the World Bank a number of initiatives have begun. Crucially, there has been little progress in mainstreaming adaptation within existing poverty alleviation policy frameworks. There is a lack of research on the extent to which climate change, and environmental issues more broadly, have been integrated within PRSPs. This is critical. Examples of efforts from Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Tanzania, Uganda, Sudan, Mexico and Kenya are presented, highlighting a number of key issues relating to current experiences of integrating climate change into poverty reduction efforts. Experiences so far

Mobilising private adaptation finance: developed country perspectives

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Pauw, W.P.

2017-01-01

Abstract The private sector is one of the sources of finance included in developed countries’ pledge in the UN climate negotiations to mobilise $100 billion annually by 2020 to support developing countries’ efforts to address climate change. For adaptation in particular, it remains unclear what

Inactivated Influenza Vaccine That Provides Rapid, Innate-Immune-System-Mediated Protection and Subsequent Long-Term Adaptive Immunity.

Science.gov (United States)

Chua, Brendon Y; Wong, Chinn Yi; Mifsud, Edin J; Edenborough, Kathryn M; Sekiya, Toshiki; Tan, Amabel C L; Mercuri, Francesca; Rockman, Steve; Chen, Weisan; Turner, Stephen J; Doherty, Peter C; Kelso, Anne; Brown, Lorena E; Jackson, David C

2015-10-27

The continual threat to global health posed by influenza has led to increased efforts to improve the effectiveness of influenza vaccines for use in epidemics and pandemics. We show in this study that formulation of a low dose of inactivated detergent-split influenza vaccine with a Toll-like receptor 2 (TLR2) agonist-based lipopeptide adjuvant (R4Pam2Cys) provides (i) immediate, antigen-independent immunity mediated by the innate immune system and (ii) significant enhancement of antigen-dependent immunity which exhibits an increased breadth of effector function. Intranasal administration of mice with vaccine formulated with R4Pam2Cys but not vaccine alone provides protection against both homologous and serologically distinct (heterologous) viral strains within a day of administration. Vaccination in the presence of R4Pam2Cys subsequently also induces high levels of systemic IgM, IgG1, and IgG2b antibodies and pulmonary IgA antibodies that inhibit hemagglutination (HA) and neuraminidase (NA) activities of homologous but not heterologous virus. Improved primary virus nucleoprotein (NP)-specific CD8(+) T cell responses are also induced by the use of R4Pam2Cys and are associated with robust recall responses to provide heterologous protection. These protective effects are demonstrated in wild-type and antibody-deficient animals but not in those depleted of CD8(+) T cells. Using a contact-dependent virus transmission model, we also found that heterologous virus transmission from vaccinated mice to naive mice is significantly reduced. These results demonstrate the potential of adding a TLR2 agonist to an existing seasonal influenza vaccine to improve its utility by inducing immediate short-term nonspecific antiviral protection and also antigen-specific responses to provide homologous and heterologous immunity. The innate and adaptive immune systems differ in mechanisms, specificities, and times at which they take effect. The innate immune system responds within hours of

A lower dose threshold for the in vivo protective adaptive response to radiation. Tumorigenesis in chronically exposed normal and Trp53 heterozygous C57BL/6 mice

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mitchel, R.E.J.; Burchart, P.; Wyatt, H.

2008-01-01

Low doses of ionizing radiation to cells and animals may induce adaptive responses that reduce the risk of cancer. However, there are upper dose thresholds above which these protective adaptive responses do not occur. We have now tested the hypothesis that there are similar lower dose thresholds that must be exceeded in order to induce protective effects in vivo. We examined the effects of low dose/low dose rate fractionated exposures on cancer formation in Trp53 normal or cancer-prone Trp53 heterozygous female C57BL/6 mice. Beginning at 6 weeks of age, mice were exposed 5 days/week to single daily doses (0.33 mGy, 0.7 mGy/h) totaling 48, 97 or 146 mGy over 30, 60 or 90 weeks. The exposures for shorter times (up to 60 weeks) appeared to be below the level necessary to induce overall protective adaptive responses in Trp53 normal mice, and detrimental effects (shortened lifespan, increased frequency) evident for only specific tumor types (B- and T-cell lymphomas), were produced. Only when the exposures were continued for 90 weeks did the dose become sufficient to induce protective adaptive responses, balancing the detrimental effects for these specific cancers, and reducing the risk level back to that of the unexposed animals. Detrimental effects were not seen for other tumor types, and a protective effect was seen for sarcomas after 60 weeks of exposure, which was then lost when the exposure continued for 90 weeks. As previously shown for the upper dose threshold for protection by low doses, the lower dose boundary between protection and harm was influenced by Trp53 functionality. Neither protection nor harm was observed in exposed Trp53 heterozygous mice, indicating that reduced Trp53 function raises the lower dose/dose rate threshold for both detrimental and protective tumorigenic effects. (author)

THE IMPORTANCE OF ENERGY FOR THE ECONOMY, SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION - AN ECONOMIC ASPECT

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ljiljana Stošić Mihajlović

2018-01-01

Full Text Available In the area of modern economy and environmental protection there are no significant changes: the old problems are not solved, and the existing ones are deepening. Humanity is still struggling with three existential problems: lack of food, lack of drinking water and insufficiently energized energy. They are also associated with the dangers of further degradation of the environment, the general fear and fear of terrorism and wars, the emergence of diseases for which modern medicine simply has no solution and which threatens to overcome the challenge of pandemic. Energy is still a mood of economic development, with at the same time a disastrous effect on the environment, when traditional sources of fossil resources are used as sources of energy. The paper explores the phenomenon of the impact of energy on the sustainable development of the economy, with a key focus on environmental protection, as well as the possibilities for adaptation to mitigate the consequences of this global phenomenon. In this regard, special attention has been devoted to researching the role and significance of energy from renewable sources as a possible response to current or expected climate stimuli or their consequences in natural and humanism systems. Particular emphasis is placed on the principle of adaptation, which includes mitigation of damages or the exploitation of effective opportunities; understanding how climate can change, what can be impacts, and capacity building and action on these impacts

Replanning Criteria and Timing Definition for Parotid Protection-Based Adaptive Radiation Therapy in Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Wei-Rong Yao

2015-01-01

Full Text Available The goal of this study was to evaluate real-time volumetric and dosimetric changes of the parotid gland so as to determine replanning criteria and timing for parotid protection-based adaptive radiation therapy in nasopharyngeal carcinoma. Fifty NPC patients were treated with helical tomotherapy; volumetric and dosimetric (Dmean, V1, and D50 changes of the parotid gland at the 1st, 6th, 11th, 16th, 21st, 26th, 31st, and 33rd fractions were evaluated. The clinical parameters affecting these changes were studied by analyses of variance methods for repeated measures. Factors influencing the actual parotid dose were analyzed by a multivariate logistic regression model. The cut-off values predicting parotid overdose were developed from receiver operating characteristic curves and judged by combining them with a diagnostic test consistency check. The median absolute value and percentage of parotid volume reduction were 19.51 cm3 and 35%, respectively. The interweekly parotid volume varied significantly (p<0.05. The parotid Dmean, V1, and D50 increased by 22.13%, 39.42%, and 48.45%, respectively. The actual parotid dose increased by an average of 11.38% at the end of radiation therapy. Initial parotid volume, initial parotid Dmean, and weight loss rate are valuable indicators for parotid protection-based replanning.

Nature protection and socio-economic development in selected protected landscape areas

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Kušová, Drahomíra; Těšitel, Jan; Matějka, K.; Bartoš, Michael

2005-01-01

Roč. 24, č. 1 (2005), s. 109-123 ISSN 1335-342X R&D Projects: GA MŽP(CZ) SM/610/3/03 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z60870520 Keywords : protected landscape areas * nature protection * biosphere reserves * socio-economic development Subject RIV: DO - Wilderness Conservation Impact factor: 0.085, year: 2005

[Adaptability assessment of economic and environmental development of Tangshan, Hebei, China].

Science.gov (United States)

Han, Rui-Ling; Zhu, Shao-Hua; Zhang, Qiu-Luan

2014-10-01

It is vital to explore whether the economic system adapts to the environmental system as the relationship between economy and environment becomes a gradually concerned problem. Tangshan, a typical resource-based city, was chosen to study the adaptabilities and performances of economic developments in response to environmental changes from 1992 to 2011. It was found that the economic-environmental adaptation curve of Tangshan City had an overall fluctuating and increasing tendency. The systematic adaptability kept advancing, reflecting Tangshan paid much attention to environmental development in addition to economic performances, and the two aspects became more and more coordinated. Filtering analysis of the adaptive curve with Eviews software revealed that the potential systematic coordinating index was rising continuously, however, the sum of resilience gap for 20 years was still negative, which implied that fundamental contradictions between high economic development and high energy consumption and high pollutant emission still existed. Carrying out adaptive researches not only helps people to adapt to climate changes better, but also has significances for economic and environmental coordination and sustainability research.

Migration Adapter Development for SaaS Applications

OpenAIRE

Šemrov, Sandi

2013-01-01

This thesis presents methods and procedures for migration and applications integration, with the main focus on applications that are offered as a service – SaaS (Software-as-a-Service). At the level of data integration we analyze approaches for data migration between different types of SaaS applications. We design a framework for executing migration adapters and show an example of data migration between two SaaS applications. We then describe the development of adapters for two specific SaaS ...

Draft Guidance for Protective Action Strategies Development

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Park, Sang Hyun; Jeong, Seung Young; Kim, Wanjoo [Korea Institute of Nuclear Safety, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2016-10-15

National nuclear emergency preparedness and response (EPR) framework has been improved since the Fukushima accident in 2011. There are still many needs to be amended and improved in regulatory requirements and technical criteria to warrant efficacy of the EPR framework. As an important part of the framework, protective actions have to be implemented with optimized and justified manner during whole emergency phases. In this study, to enhance protective action strategies in response to severe accident or general emergency, existing procedures were reviewed. And generic guidance to develop protective action recommendations (PARs) was proposed considering revised EPZ and recent technical information on protective action strategies. The generic guidance for PARs based on facility status was introduced. Revision of EPZ and some recent information on protective action strategies, such as staged evacuation, specific approach for rapidly progressing accident were considered. It would be employed as a basis to develop site-specific strategies of PARs and regulatory guidance for emergency plan by nuclear licensee. It was focused on an early phase of nuclear emergency. Further efforts to develop site specific strategies of PARs and strategies which cover full range of nuclear emergency would be followed by several stake holders.

A Multiagent System-Based Protection and Control Scheme for Distribution System With Distributed-Generation Integration

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Liu, Z.; Su, Chi; Hoidalen, Hans

2017-01-01

In this paper, a multi agent system (MAS) based protection and control scheme is proposed to deal with diverse operation conditions in distribution system due to distributed generation (DG) integration. Based on cooperation between DG controller and relays, an adaptive protection and control...... algorithm is designed on converter based wind turbine DG to limit the influence of infeed fault current. With the consideration of DG control modes, an adaptive relay setting strategy is developed to help protective relays adapt suitable settings to different operation conditions caused by the variations...

History and Organizations for Radiological Protection.

Science.gov (United States)

Kang, Keon Wook

2016-02-01

International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP), an independent international organization established in 1925, develops, maintains, and elaborates radiological protection standards, legislation, and guidelines. United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation (UNSCEAR) provides scientific evidence. World Health Organization (WHO) and International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) utilise the ICRP recommendations to implement radiation protection in practice. Finally, radiation protection agencies in each country adopt the policies, and adapt them to each situation. In Korea, Nuclear Safety and Security Commission is the governmental body for nuclear safety regulation and Korea Institute of Nuclear Safety is a public organization for technical support and R&D in nuclear safety and radiation protection.

Glutathione (GSH Production as Protective Adaptation Against Light Regime Radiation of Symbiodinium Natural Population

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Moh Muhaemin

2017-08-01

Full Text Available Glutathione (GSH, as a wide range of low molecular weight, which found in marine microalgae and event bacteria, are essential to prevent photooxidation and productivity loss from these Radical Oxigen Species (ROS. Symbiodinium, endo-symbiont of corals, were exposed with different UV radiation combined with irradiance treatments to explore biomass specific initial response. Intracellular glutahione was observed as potential adaptive response of Symbiodinium population under environmental specific stress. The result showed that GSH production increased significantly with increasing irradiance and/or UV levels. GSH concentration was fluctuated among populations exposed by different irradiance treatments, but not effected by UV and irradiance exposure. GSH production as a response of UV exposure was higher than irradiance treatments. Both these high correlative fluctuation of intracellular GSH production and the presence of both treatments indicated protective specific adaptation of Symbiodinium under specific environmental stress, respectively.   Keywords: zooxanthellae, irradiance, glutathione (GSH, corals, Fungia

Feasibility study for core protection calculator development

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

In, W. K.; Han, J. B.

2003-06-01

This project confirmed the development feasibility of new digital core protection system and established development plan for ITOPS that can replace the CPC system. The development plan and implementation strategy for ITOPS proposed in this project will be useful to successfully develop advanced digital core protection system for the CPC replacement in KSNP plants. YGN units 3 and 4 are expected to replace the CPC system within next ten years and the other KSNP plants are followed. The localization model for advanced digital core protection system, ITOPS, is judged to upgrade the Common Q CPC system in both system configuration and algorithm performance and can reduce the cost for supply and maintenance. Hence, ITOPS is expected to be installed in new Korea nuclear power plants and also useful to export the associated technology in the future

Mars Technology Program: Planetary Protection Technology Development

Science.gov (United States)

Lin, Ying

2006-01-01

This slide presentation reviews the development of Planetary Protection Technology in the Mars Technology Program. The goal of the program is to develop technologies that will enable NASA to build, launch, and operate a mission that has subsystems with different Planetary Protection (PP) classifications, specifically for operating a Category IVb-equivalent subsystem from a Category IVa platform. The IVa category of planetary protection requires bioburden reduction (i.e., no sterilization is required) The IVb category in addition to IVa requirements: (i.e., terminal sterilization of spacecraft is required). The differences between the categories are further reviewed.

Development of force adaptation during childhood.

Science.gov (United States)

Konczak, Jürgen; Jansen-Osmann, Petra; Kalveram, Karl-Theodor

2003-03-01

Humans learn to make reaching movements in novel dynamic environments by acquiring an internal motor model of their limb dynamics. Here, the authors investigated how 4- to 11-year-old children (N = 39) and adults (N = 7) adapted to changes in arm dynamics, and they examined whether those data support the view that the human brain acquires inverse dynamics models (IDM) during development. While external damping forces were applied, the children learned to perform goal-directed forearm flexion movements. After changes in damping, all children showed kinematic aftereffects indicative of a neural controller that still attempted to compensate the no longer existing damping force. With increasing age, the number of trials toward complete adaptation decreased. When damping was present, forearm paths were most perturbed and most variable in the youngest children but were improved in the older children. The findings indicate that the neural representations of limb dynamics are less precise in children and less stable in time than those of adults. Such controller instability might be a primary cause of the high kinematic variability observed in many motor tasks during childhood. Finally, the young children were not able to update those models at the same rate as the older children, who, in turn, adapted more slowly than adults. In conclusion, the ability to adapt to unknown forces is a developmental achievement. The present results are consistent with the view that the acquisition and modification of internal models of the limb dynamics form the basis of that adaptive process.

Adding A2K Principles to the UN Guidelines for Consumer Protection

International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

Adding A2K Principles to the UN Guidelines for Consumer Protection ... of standards for good practices in consumer protection, particularly for developing countries. ... IWRA/IDRC webinar on climate change and adaptive water management.

Pan-Influenza A Protection by Prime-Boost Vaccination with Cold-Adapted Live-Attenuated Influenza Vaccine in a Mouse Model.

Science.gov (United States)

Jang, Yo Han; Kim, Joo Young; Byun, Young Ho; Son, Ahyun; Lee, Jeong-Yoon; Lee, Yoon Jae; Chang, Jun; Seong, Baik Lin

2018-01-01

Influenza virus infections continually pose a major public health threat with seasonal epidemics and sporadic pandemics worldwide. While currently licensed influenza vaccines provide only strain-specific protection, antigenic drift and shift occasionally render the viruses resistant to the host immune responses, which highlight the need for a vaccine that provides broad protection against multiple subtypes. In this study, we suggest a vaccination strategy using cold-adapted, live attenuated influenza vaccines (CAIVs) to provide a broad, potent, and safe cross-protection covering antigenically distinct hemagglutinin (HA) groups 1 and 2 influenza viruses. Using a mouse model, we tested different prime-boost combinations of CAIVs for their ability to induce humoral and T-cell responses, and protective efficacy against H1 and H5 (HA group 1) as well as H3 and H7 (HA group 2) influenza viruses. Notably, even in the absence of antibody-mediated neutralizing activity or HA inhibitory activity in vitro , CAIVs provided a potent protection against heterologous and heterosubtypic lethal challenges in vivo . Heterologous combination of prime (H1)-boost (H5) vaccine strains showed the most potent cross-protection efficacy. In vivo depletion experiments demonstrated not only that T cells and natural killer cells contributed to the cross-protection, but also the involvement of antibody-dependent mechanisms for the cross-protection. Vaccination-induced antibodies did not enhance the infectivity of heterologous viruses, and prime vaccination did not interfere with neutralizing antibody generation by the boost vaccination, allaying vaccine safety concerns associated with heterogeneity between the vaccines and challenge strains. Our data show that CAIV-based strategy can serve as a simple but powerful option for developing a "truly" universal influenza vaccine providing pan-influenza A protection, which has not been achieved yet by other vaccine strategies. The promising results

Pan-Influenza A Protection by Prime–Boost Vaccination with Cold-Adapted Live-Attenuated Influenza Vaccine in a Mouse Model

Science.gov (United States)

Jang, Yo Han; Kim, Joo Young; Byun, Young Ho; Son, Ahyun; Lee, Jeong-Yoon; Lee, Yoon Jae; Chang, Jun; Seong, Baik Lin

2018-01-01

Influenza virus infections continually pose a major public health threat with seasonal epidemics and sporadic pandemics worldwide. While currently licensed influenza vaccines provide only strain-specific protection, antigenic drift and shift occasionally render the viruses resistant to the host immune responses, which highlight the need for a vaccine that provides broad protection against multiple subtypes. In this study, we suggest a vaccination strategy using cold-adapted, live attenuated influenza vaccines (CAIVs) to provide a broad, potent, and safe cross-protection covering antigenically distinct hemagglutinin (HA) groups 1 and 2 influenza viruses. Using a mouse model, we tested different prime–boost combinations of CAIVs for their ability to induce humoral and T-cell responses, and protective efficacy against H1 and H5 (HA group 1) as well as H3 and H7 (HA group 2) influenza viruses. Notably, even in the absence of antibody-mediated neutralizing activity or HA inhibitory activity in vitro, CAIVs provided a potent protection against heterologous and heterosubtypic lethal challenges in vivo. Heterologous combination of prime (H1)–boost (H5) vaccine strains showed the most potent cross-protection efficacy. In vivo depletion experiments demonstrated not only that T cells and natural killer cells contributed to the cross-protection, but also the involvement of antibody-dependent mechanisms for the cross-protection. Vaccination-induced antibodies did not enhance the infectivity of heterologous viruses, and prime vaccination did not interfere with neutralizing antibody generation by the boost vaccination, allaying vaccine safety concerns associated with heterogeneity between the vaccines and challenge strains. Our data show that CAIV-based strategy can serve as a simple but powerful option for developing a “truly” universal influenza vaccine providing pan-influenza A protection, which has not been achieved yet by other vaccine strategies. The promising

Mars Technology Program Planetary Protection Technology Development

Science.gov (United States)

Lin, Ying

2006-01-01

The objectives of the NASA Planetary Protection program are to preserve biological and organic conditions of solar-system bodies for future scientific exploration and to protect the Earth from potential hazardous extraterrestrial contamination. As the exploration of solar system continues, NASA remains committed to the implementation of planetary protection policy and regulations. To fulfill this commitment, the Mars Technology Program (MTP) has invested in a portfolio of tasks for developing necessary technologies to meet planetary protection requirements for the next decade missions.

Anirban Mukhopadhyay: Examining migration and adaptation in deltas

International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

2015-03-10

Mar 10, 2015 ... Marissa Van Epp is a writer based in New York City. ... Afroza Haque: Developing new approaches to adaptation in Himalayan river basins ... Protecting access to water from urban sprawl, climate change in South Asia.

Greening flood protection through knowledge processes

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Janssen, Stephanie; Tatenhove, van J.P.M.; Mol, A.P.J.; Otter, H.S.

2017-01-01

Greening flood protection (GFP) is increasingly recognized as an adaptive and flexible approach to water management that is well suited to addressing uncertain futures associated with climate change. In the last decade, GFP knowledge and policies have developed rapidly, but implementation has been

Climate Change and River Ecosystems: Protection and Adaptation Options

Science.gov (United States)

Palmer, Margaret A.; Lettenmaier, Dennis P.; Poff, N. Leroy; Postel, Sandra L.; Richter, Brian; Warner, Richard

2009-12-01

Rivers provide a special suite of goods and services valued highly by the public that are inextricably linked to their flow dynamics and the interaction of flow with the landscape. Yet most rivers are within watersheds that are stressed to some extent by human activities including development, dams, or extractive uses. Climate change will add to and magnify risks that are already present through its potential to alter rainfall, temperature, runoff patterns, and to disrupt biological communities and sever ecological linkages. We provide an overview of the predicted impacts based on published studies to date, discuss both reactive and proactive management responses, and outline six categories of management actions that will contribute substantially to the protection of valuable river assets. To be effective, management must be place-based focusing on local watershed scales that are most relevant to management scales. The first priority should be enhancing environmental monitoring of changes and river responses coupled with the development of local scenario-building exercises that take land use and water use into account. Protection of a greater number of rivers and riparian corridors is essential, as is conjunctive groundwater/surface water management. This will require collaborations among multiple partners in the respective river basins and wise land use planning to minimize additional development in watersheds with valued rivers. Ensuring environmental flows by purchasing or leasing water rights and/or altering reservoir release patterns will be needed for many rivers. Implementing restoration projects proactively can be used to protect existing resources so that expensive reactive restoration to repair damage associated with a changing climate is minimized. Special attention should be given to diversifying and replicating habitats of special importance and to monitoring populations at high risk or of special value so that management interventions can occur if the

African Development of AIDS Prevention Trials (ADAPT2) | IDRC ...

International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

The African Development of AIDS Prevention Trials (ADAPT2) capacity building initiative is an African-Canadian partnership that aims to increase the number and quality of HIV prevention trials led by African researchers. Building on experience gained during ADAPT1 - funded by the Global Health Research Initiative ...

African Development of AIDS Prevention Trials (ADAPT2) | CRDI ...

International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

The African Development of AIDS Prevention Trials (ADAPT2) capacity building initiative is an African-Canadian partnership that aims to increase the number and quality of HIV prevention trials led by African researchers. Building on experience gained during ADAPT1 - funded by the Global Health Research Initiative ...

Adapting environmental function analysis for management of protected areas in small islands--case of Pico Island (the Azores).

Science.gov (United States)

Calado, Helena; Bragagnolo, Chiara; Silva, Susana; Vergílio, Marta

2016-04-15

Protected areas (PAs) are considered key priorities for ensuring long-term sustainability of small islands. The traditional approach of conservation versus development is currently being replaced by an approach of "win-win" relationships. During the last decades PAs have been increasingly requested to simultaneously ensure biodiversity conservation, mainstream ecosystem services into main development policies, and accounting for leisure-related revenues to sustain local and regional economies. Following this new paradigm, the Smartparks project (Planning and Management System for Small Islands Protected Areas), encompassing this study, aimed at an innovative approach for supporting the management of PAs in small islands. In this study, we propose a methodology based on Environmental Functional Analyses (EFA) to compare the potential for conservation and the potential for use of PAs that can be used not only on small islands but also in other territories. For this purpose, a set of environmental and socio-economic components was defined and selected indicators describing each component to calculate conservation and use/development functions of PAs were established. Pico Island, in the Azores archipelago (Portugal), was selected as the case study for testing the methodology. The EFA for all PAs of Pico Island was performed identifying those with more potential for conservation or for development of human activities, and also those with high levels of conflict. A total of 34 indicators was applied (assigning a value from 1 to 3) to the 22 PAs composing the INP of Pico Island: 44% were scored with a value of 1, in both ecological and social components; 22% and 29% were scored 3 in ecological and social components respectively. Social indicators were generally considered less important than environmental ones. In general, PAs presented higher values for conservation. The results further show that the potential for conservation and/or development was consistent with the

Climate protection and sustainable economy. For a new development political mission statement; Klimaschutz und nachhaltiges Wirtschaften. Fuer ein neues entwicklungspolitisches Leitbild

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kofler, Baerbel; Netzer, Nina (eds.)

2011-11-15

The book under consideration is devoted to climate protection and sustainable economy. It consists of the following contributions: (1) Climate protection and development policy - New allies in the fight against poverty? (B. Kofler); (2) In preparation for a wormer world - Adjustment to the climatic change using local resources (A. Schroeder); (3) Sustainable economy today - a development political consideration (H.-J. Luhmann); (4) The Clean Development Mechanism - No-Win instead of Win-Win for developing countries?; (5) New market based mechanisms for improving the climate protection in developing countries (K. Wentrup); (6) Global emission trading: market-economy instruments for a development-oriented climate policy? (S. Fischer); (7) The policy is needed - Central strategies for combating climatic change (R. Guenther); (8) Technology transfer: Political controversies, successes and problems of implementation (C. Gerstetter); (9) REDDplus - Forest protection as a chance for development and poverty reduction (K. Gerber); (10) What is climate justice? From the principle to political practice (T. Hirsch); (11) How much are 100 Billion Us-Dollar? Financing of climate protection between adequacy and creative bookkeeping (W. Sterk); (12) No money, no fun - Climate change financing has to be made more concrete (F. Schwabe); (13) Human rights - Common struggle against the climatic change (T. Rathgeber); (14) Climate change adaptation - Handling extreme events and damages: 'Loss and damage' (T. Hirsch); (15) Rio 2012 and the reform of the international environment governance (N. Simon).

Physical protection evaluation methodology program development and application

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Seo, Janghoon; Yoo, Hosik

2015-01-01

It is essential to develop a reliable physical protection evaluation methodology for applying physical protection concept to the design stage. The methodology can be used to assess weak points and improve performance not only for the design stage but also for nuclear facilities in operation. Analyzing physical protection property of nuclear facilities is not a trivial work since there are many interconnected factors affecting overall performance. Therefore several international projects have been organized to develop a systematic physical protection evaluation methodology. INPRO (The International Project on Innovative Nuclear Reactors and Fuel Cycles) and GIF PRPP (Generation IV International Forum Proliferation Resistance and Physical Protection) methodology are among the most well-known evaluation methodologies. INPRO adopts a checklist type of questionnaire and has a strong point in analyzing overall characteristic of facilities in a qualitative way. COMPRE program has been developed to help general users apply COMPRE methodology to nuclear facilities. In this work, COMPRE program development and a case study of the hypothetical nuclear facility are presented. The development of COMPRE program and a case study for hypothetic facility is presented in this work. The case study shows that COMPRE PP methodology can be a useful tool to assess the overall physical protection performance of nuclear facilities. To obtain meaningful results from COMPRE PP methodology, detailed information and comprehensive analysis are required. Especially, it is not trivial to calculate reliable values for PPSE (Physical Protection System Effectiveness) and C (Consequence), while it is relatively straightforward to evaluate LI (Legislative and Institutional framework), MC (Material Control) and HR (Human Resources). To obtain a reliable PPSE value, comprehensive information about physical protection system, vital area analysis and realistic threat scenario assessment are required. Like

Physical protection evaluation methodology program development and application

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Seo, Janghoon; Yoo, Hosik [Korea Institute of Nuclear Non-proliferation and Control, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2015-10-15

It is essential to develop a reliable physical protection evaluation methodology for applying physical protection concept to the design stage. The methodology can be used to assess weak points and improve performance not only for the design stage but also for nuclear facilities in operation. Analyzing physical protection property of nuclear facilities is not a trivial work since there are many interconnected factors affecting overall performance. Therefore several international projects have been organized to develop a systematic physical protection evaluation methodology. INPRO (The International Project on Innovative Nuclear Reactors and Fuel Cycles) and GIF PRPP (Generation IV International Forum Proliferation Resistance and Physical Protection) methodology are among the most well-known evaluation methodologies. INPRO adopts a checklist type of questionnaire and has a strong point in analyzing overall characteristic of facilities in a qualitative way. COMPRE program has been developed to help general users apply COMPRE methodology to nuclear facilities. In this work, COMPRE program development and a case study of the hypothetical nuclear facility are presented. The development of COMPRE program and a case study for hypothetic facility is presented in this work. The case study shows that COMPRE PP methodology can be a useful tool to assess the overall physical protection performance of nuclear facilities. To obtain meaningful results from COMPRE PP methodology, detailed information and comprehensive analysis are required. Especially, it is not trivial to calculate reliable values for PPSE (Physical Protection System Effectiveness) and C (Consequence), while it is relatively straightforward to evaluate LI (Legislative and Institutional framework), MC (Material Control) and HR (Human Resources). To obtain a reliable PPSE value, comprehensive information about physical protection system, vital area analysis and realistic threat scenario assessment are required. Like

Climate change, habitat loss, protected areas and the climate adaptation potential of species in mediterranean ecosystems worldwide.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kirk R Klausmeyer

Full Text Available Mediterranean climate is found on five continents and supports five global biodiversity hotspots. Based on combined downscaled results from 23 atmosphere-ocean general circulation models (AOGCMs for three emissions scenarios, we determined the projected spatial shifts in the mediterranean climate extent (MCE over the next century. Although most AOGCMs project a moderate expansion in the global MCE, regional impacts are large and uneven. The median AOGCM simulation output for the three emissions scenarios project the MCE at the end of the 21(st century in Chile will range from 129-153% of its current size, while in Australia, it will contract to only 77-49% of its current size losing an area equivalent to over twice the size of Portugal. Only 4% of the land area within the current MCE worldwide is in protected status (compared to a global average of 12% for all biome types, and, depending on the emissions scenario, only 50-60% of these protected areas are likely to be in the future MCE. To exacerbate the climate impact, nearly one third (29-31% of the land where the MCE is projected to remain stable has already been converted to human use, limiting the size of the potential climate refuges and diminishing the adaptation potential of native biota. High conversion and low protection in projected stable areas make Australia the highest priority region for investment in climate-adaptation strategies to reduce the threat of climate change to the rich biodiversity of the mediterranean biome.

Development of adaptation strategies of marshland water management to regional climate change

Science.gov (United States)

Bormann, Helge; Frank, Ahlhorn; Luise, Giani; Kirsten, Klaassen; Thomas, Klenke

2010-05-01

Since many centuries, low lying areas at the German North Sea coast are intensively managed by water boards and dike boards. Sophisticated water management systems have been developed in order to keep the water out of the low lying areas in wet periods, while in some regions additional water is needed in dry periods for agricultural and ecological purposes. For example in the Wesermarsch region, a water management system has been developed in historical times, draining the landscape in winter time by means of channels, ditches, gates, sluices and pumping stations. In contrast, in summer time water is conducted from Weser River into the Wesermarsch region to serve watering of animals, fencing grazing areas and ensuring a continuous flow in the marsh watercourses. Doing so, maintaining soil fertility is guaranteed for agriculture as well as protection against floods, sustaining river ecology and traditional livestock farming. Due to climate variability and river engineering, the water management of the Wesermarsch already runs into problems because watering in summer cannot be assured any longer in sufficient water quality. During high tides, salt water from the North Sea is flowing upstream into the Weser estuary, generating brackish conditions in the lower Weser River. In addition, soil subsidence and soil mineralization of marsh and peat soils as well as the sea level rise increase the necessary pumping frequency and the emerging energy costs. The expected future climate change will further aggravate those problems and require an adaptation of the current management system. This presentation introduces the concept behind and preliminary results of an integrative and participatory project, aiming at the development of a new water management strategy adapted to the regional climate change likely to occur until year 2050. In close cooperation with a number of regional stakeholders and based on the priorities with respect to the future development of the region

Becoming Predictably Adaptable in Software Development

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Michael Vakoc

2017-10-01

Full Text Available It’s difficult to state exact timelines in software development and it is even more difficult to say when features that users want will be delivered. We propose changes to current software development methodologies that enable companies to be predictably adaptable and deliver both on time and what customer asked for. We do so through research of current literature, interviews and personal experience working at an international company that builds products for millions of customers and is facing exactly the challenges described above.

Protective and Catching Safety Systems In Construction

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kuzhin Marat

2017-01-01

Full Text Available In the article is described application of protective and catching systems in construction. Classification of similar systems, their types and purpose are listed. Dangerous zones on construction site and events to for limiting their influence or protection from the factors. Protective and catching systems is one of the most effective technical equipment, applied in recent time. Protective fences and catching systems are important part in the problem solution. Protective fences protect workers from falling from height. Protective and catching systems allows avoid injuries by workers, also catch debris, fallen from constructing buildings. In regard with continuing development in technical and technological solutions, protective and catching systems require adaptation to a new requirements of construction industry and requirements of normative documents. Technical regulations in the appliance sphere of protective and catching systems requires actualization and aligning with modern normatives. Important role should be given to developing organizational and technological documentation for application of the systems. Scientific studying of technical parameters of fences and protective catching nets also has great interest.

Development and verification of unstructured adaptive mesh technique with edge compatibility

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ito, Kei; Ohshima, Hiroyuki; Kunugi, Tomoaki

2010-01-01

In the design study of the large-sized sodium-cooled fast reactor (JSFR), one key issue is suppression of gas entrainment (GE) phenomena at a gas-liquid interface. Therefore, the authors have been developed a high-precision CFD algorithm to evaluate the GE phenomena accurately. The CFD algorithm has been developed on unstructured meshes to establish an accurate modeling of JSFR system. For two-phase interfacial flow simulations, a high-precision volume-of-fluid algorithm is employed. It was confirmed that the developed CFD algorithm could reproduce the GE phenomena in a simple GE experiment. Recently, the authors have been developed an important technique for the simulation of the GE phenomena in JSFR. That is an unstructured adaptive mesh technique which can apply fine cells dynamically to the region where the GE occurs in JSFR. In this paper, as a part of the development, a two-dimensional unstructured adaptive mesh technique is discussed. In the two-dimensional adaptive mesh technique, each cell is refined isotropically to reduce distortions of the mesh. In addition, connection cells are formed to eliminate the edge incompatibility between refined and non-refined cells. The two-dimensional unstructured adaptive mesh technique is verified by solving well-known lid-driven cavity flow problem. As a result, the two-dimensional unstructured adaptive mesh technique succeeds in providing a high-precision solution, even though poor-quality distorted initial mesh is employed. In addition, the simulation error on the two-dimensional unstructured adaptive mesh is much less than the error on the structured mesh with a larger number of cells. (author)

Climate change and protected area policy and planning in Canada

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Scott, D. [Canada Research Chairs, Ottawa, ON (Canada); Waterloo Univ., ON (Canada). Dept. of Geography; Lemieux, C. [Waterloo Univ., ON (Canada). Dept. of Geography

2005-10-01

Challenges concerning climate change for agencies involved the management of Canada's protected areas were reviewed. Most protected areas have been designed to represent specific natural features, species and ecological communities, and are the most common and most important strategy for biodiversity conservation. It remains undecided whether adaptation should be a matter of responding to climate change as it manifests, or whether initiatives should be taken in advance to anticipate the potential effects of climate change. There are growing concerns that emergency adaptation will be less effective and more costly than anticipatory or precautionary adaptation over the long-term. Species extinction could result. It was noted that the northward shift of species from the United States will meet Parks Canada's existing definition of alien species in need of management interventions. The conservation objectives of individual protected areas would also be affected by projected biome and species changes, particularly as each of Canada's national parks is responsible for protecting ecosystems representative of the natural region within which it is located. All 6 vegetation change scenarios examined in a recent study projected the eventual loss of boreal forest in the Prince Albert National Park, suggesting that the park's current mandate to protect the ecological integrity of the area would no longer be viable. An overview of the policy and planning implications of climate change for protected areas in Canada was presented using examples from national and provincial park systems. A portfolio of climate change adaptation options in conservation literature was reviewed. Recommended strategies included system planning and policy development; active, adaptive ecosystem management; research and monitoring; and capacity building and awareness. It was concluded that governments will need to make major new investments in protected area establishment, personnel

Advanced physical protection systems for facilities and transportation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jones, O.E.

1976-01-01

Sandia Laboratories is developing advanced physical protection safeguards in order to improve the security of special nuclear materials, facilities, and transportation. Computer models are being used to assess the cost-effectiveness of alternative systems for protecting facilities against external attack which may include internal assistance, and against internal theft or sabotage. Physical protection elements such as admittance controls, portals and detectors, perimeter and interior intrusion alarms, fixed and remotely activated barriers, and secure communications are being evaluated, adapted, and where required, developed. New facilities safeguards concepts which involve ''control loops'' between physical protection and materials control elements are being evolved jointly between Sandia Laboratories and Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory. Special vehicles and digital communications equipment have been developed for the ERDA safe-secure transportation system. The current status and direction of these activities are surveyed

Advanced physical protection systems for facilities and transportation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jones, O.E.

1976-01-01

Sandia Laboratories is developing advanced physical protection safeguards in order to improve the security of special nuclear materials, facilities, and transportation. Computer models are being used to assess the cost-effectiveness of alternative systems for protecting facilities against external attack which may include internal assistance, and against internal theft or sabotage. Physical protection elements such as admittance controls, portals and detectors, perimeter and interior intrusion alarms, fixed and remotely-activated barriers, and secure communications are being evaluated, adapted, and where required, developed. New facilities safeguards concepts which involve (control loops) between physical protection and materials control elements are being evolved jointly between Sandia Laboratories and Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory. Special vehicles and digital communications equipment have been developed for the ERDA safe-secure transportation system. The current status and direction of these activities are surveyed

Economic performance of irrigation capacity development to adapt to climate in the American Southwest

Science.gov (United States)

Ward, Frank A.; Crawford, Terry L.

2016-09-01

additional storage, removal of constraints on weak transportation capacity, limited production scale, poor information access, weak risk-bearing capacity, limited management skills, scarce labor supply, low food processing capacity, and absolute scale constraints, all can raise the economic value of additional irrigation capacity development. Our results light a path forward to policy makers, water administrators, and farm managers, who bear the burden of protecting farm income, food and water security, and rural economic development in the world's dry regions faced by the need to adapt to climate variability.

Adaptation of enterovirus 71 to adult interferon deficient mice.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Elizabeth A Caine

Full Text Available Non-polio enteroviruses, including enterovirus 71 (EV71, have caused severe and fatal cases of hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD in the Asia-Pacific region. The development of a vaccine or antiviral against these pathogens has been hampered by the lack of a reliable small animal model. In this study, a mouse adapted EV71 strain was produced by conducting serial passages through A129 (α/β interferon (IFN receptor deficient and AG129 (α/β, γ IFN receptor deficient mice. A B2 sub genotype of EV71 was inoculated intraperitoneally (i.p. into neonatal AG129 mice and brain-harvested virus was subsequently passaged through 12 and 15 day-old A129 mice. When tested in 10 week-old AG129 mice, this adapted strain produced 100% lethality with clinical signs including limb paralysis, eye irritation, loss of balance, and death. This virus caused only 17% mortality in same age A129 mice, confirming that in the absence of a functional IFN response, adult AG129 mice are susceptible to infection by adapted EV71 isolates. Subsequent studies in adult AG129 and young A129 mice with the adapted EV71 virus examined the efficacy of an inactivated EV71 candidate vaccine and determined the role of humoral immunity in protection. Passive transfer of rabbit immune sera raised against the EV71 vaccine provided protection in a dose dependent manner in 15 day-old A129 mice. Intramuscular injections (i.m. in five week-old AG129 mice with the alum adjuvanted vaccine also provided protection against the mouse adapted homologous strain. No clinical signs of disease or mortality were observed in vaccinated animals, which received a prime-and-boost, whereas 71% of control animals were euthanized after exhibiting systemic clinical signs (P<0.05. The development of this animal model will facilitate studies on EV71 pathogenesis, antiviral testing, the evaluation of immunogenicity and efficacy of vaccine candidates, and has the potential to establish correlates of protection

Putting Climate Change Adaptation in the Development Mainstream. Policy Brief

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Agrawala, S.; Paris, R.

2005-03-01

Climate change poses a serious challenge to social and economic development. Developing countries are particularly vulnerable because their economies are generally more dependent on climate-sensitive natural resources, and because they are less able to cope with the impacts of climate change. How development occurs has implications, in turn, for climate change and for the vulnerability of societies to its impacts. Climate change adaptation needs to be brought into the mainstream of economic policies, development projects, and international aid efforts. Considerable analytical work has been done on how development can be made climate-friendly in terms of helping reduce greenhouse gas emissions which cause climate change, although implementation remains a challenge. Much less attention has been paid to how development can be made more resilient to the impacts of climate change. In a narrow engineering sense, this could involve taking climate changes into account in the siting and design of bridges and other infrastructure. At a policy level, it could involve considering the implications of climate change on a variety of development activities including poverty reduction, sectoral development, and natural resource management. Bridging the gap between the climate change adaptation and development communities, however, is not easy. The two communities have different priorities, often operate on different time and space scales, and do not necessarily 'speak the same language'. Specific information is therefore needed on the significance of climate change for development activities along with operational guidance on how best to adapt to its impacts, within the context of other pressing social priorities. This Policy Brief looks at how far current development policies and programmes are taking climate change risks into account, as well as at ways to improve the 'mainstreaming' of adaptation to climate change in development planning and assistance

Intranasal immunization of baculovirus displayed hemagglutinin confers complete protection against mouse adapted highly pathogenic H7N7 reassortant influenza virus.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Subaschandrabose Rajesh Kumar

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Avian influenza A H7N7 virus poses a pandemic threat to human health because of its ability for direct transmission from domestic poultry to humans and from human to human. The wide zoonotic potential of H7N7 combined with an antiviral immunity inhibition similar to pandemic 1918 H1N1 and 2009 H1N1 influenza viruses is disconcerting and increases the risk of a putative H7N7 pandemic in the future, underlining the urgent need for vaccine development against this virus. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: In this study, we developed a recombinant vaccine by expressing the H7N7-HA protein on the surface of baculovirus (Bac-HA. The protective efficacy of the live Bac-HA vaccine construct was evaluated in a mouse model by challenging mice immunized intranasally (i.n. or subcutaneously (s.c. with high pathogenic mouse adapted H7N7 reassorted strain. Although s.c. injection of live Bac-HA induced higher specific IgG than i.n. immunization, the later resulted in an elevated neutralization titer. Interestingly, 100% protection from the lethal viral challenge was only observed for the mice immunized intranasally with live Bac-HA, whereas no protection was achieved in any other s.c. or i.n. immunized mice groups. In addition, we also observed higher mucosal IgA as well as increased IFN-γ and IL-4 responses in the splenocytes of the surviving mice coupled with a reduced viral titer and diminished histopathological signs in the lungs. CONCLUSION: Our results indicated that protection from high pathogenic H7N7 (NL/219/03 virus requires both mucosal and systemic immune responses in mice. The balance between Th1 and Th2 cytokines is also required for the protection against the H7N7 pathogen. Intranasal administration of live Bac-HA induced all these immune responses and protected the mice from lethal viral challenge. Therefore, live Bac-HA is an effective vaccine candidate against H7N7 viral infections.

Developing adaptive user interfaces using a game-based simulation environment

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Brake, G.M. te; Greef, T.E. de; Lindenberg, J.; Rypkema, J.A.; Smets-Noor, N.J.J.M.

2006-01-01

In dynamic settings, user interfaces can provide more optimal support if they adapt to the context of use. Providing adaptive user interfaces to first responders may therefore be fruitful. A cognitive engineering method that incorporates development iterations in both a simulated and a real-world

Adaptive cyber-attack modeling system

Science.gov (United States)

Gonsalves, Paul G.; Dougherty, Edward T.

2006-05-01

The pervasiveness of software and networked information systems is evident across a broad spectrum of business and government sectors. Such reliance provides an ample opportunity not only for the nefarious exploits of lone wolf computer hackers, but for more systematic software attacks from organized entities. Much effort and focus has been placed on preventing and ameliorating network and OS attacks, a concomitant emphasis is required to address protection of mission critical software. Typical software protection technique and methodology evaluation and verification and validation (V&V) involves the use of a team of subject matter experts (SMEs) to mimic potential attackers or hackers. This manpower intensive, time-consuming, and potentially cost-prohibitive approach is not amenable to performing the necessary multiple non-subjective analyses required to support quantifying software protection levels. To facilitate the evaluation and V&V of software protection solutions, we have designed and developed a prototype adaptive cyber attack modeling system. Our approach integrates an off-line mechanism for rapid construction of Bayesian belief network (BN) attack models with an on-line model instantiation, adaptation and knowledge acquisition scheme. Off-line model construction is supported via a knowledge elicitation approach for identifying key domain requirements and a process for translating these requirements into a library of BN-based cyber-attack models. On-line attack modeling and knowledge acquisition is supported via BN evidence propagation and model parameter learning.

Adaptive coordination of protective relaying in Ehv transmission using artificial intelligence and parallel processing; Esquema adaptativo para la coordinacion de reles de proteccion en redes de transmission de alta tension incorporando tecnicas de inteligencia artificial y procesamiento en paralelo

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Orduna, E; Garces, F; Rivera, J F [Univ. Nacional de San Juan, San Juan (Argentina). Instituto de Energia Eletrica; Handschin, E [Dortmund Univ. (Germany). Lehrstuhl fuer Elektrische Energieversorgung

1994-12-31

The protection systems of electric power systems have as function to detect failures as soon possible and isolate the failed component. Considering that the main protection system may fail, protection in the elements adjacent to the failed one must act as a spare, observing an actuation time delay to accomplish selectivity criteria. This work presents the system named CORPRO developed in order to enable the fast determination of adjustments of relays coordination in electric power transmission lines for real time adaptive protection system 9 refs., 8 figs., 4 tabs.

Development of In-Core Protection System

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cho, J. H; Kim, C. H.; Kim, J. H.; Jeong, S. H.; Sohn, S. D.; BaeK, S. M.; YOON, J. H.

2016-01-01

In-core Protection System (ICOPS) is an on-line digital computer system which continuously calculates Departure from Nucleate Boiling Ratio (DNBR) and Local Power Density (LPD) based on plant parameters to make trip decisions based on the computations. The function of the system is the same as that of Core Protection Calculator System (CPCS) and Reactor Core Protection System (RCOPS) which are applied to Optimized Power Reactor 1000 (OPR1000) and Advanced Power Reactor 1400 (APR1400). The ICOPS has been developed to overcome the algorithm related obstacles in overseas project. To achieve this goal, several algorithms were newly developed and hardware and software design was updated. The functional design requirements document was developed by KEPCO-NF and the component design was conducted by Doosan. System design and software implementation were performed by KEPCO-E and C, and software Verification and Validation (V and V) was performed by KEPCO-E and C and Sure Softtech. The ICOPS has been developed to overcome the algorithm related obstacles in overseas project. The function of I/O simulator was improved even though the hardware platform is the same as that of RCOPS for Shin-Hanul 1 and 2. SCADE was applied to the implementation of ICOPS software, and the V and V system for ICOPS which satisfies international standards was developed. Although several further detailed design works remain, the function of ICOPS has been confirmed. The ICOPS will be applied to APR+ project, and the further works will be performed in following project

Development of In-Core Protection System

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Cho, J. H; Kim, C. H.; Kim, J. H.; Jeong, S. H.; Sohn, S. D.; BaeK, S. M.; YOON, J. H. [KEPCO Engineering and Construction Co., Deajeon (Korea, Republic of)

2016-10-15

In-core Protection System (ICOPS) is an on-line digital computer system which continuously calculates Departure from Nucleate Boiling Ratio (DNBR) and Local Power Density (LPD) based on plant parameters to make trip decisions based on the computations. The function of the system is the same as that of Core Protection Calculator System (CPCS) and Reactor Core Protection System (RCOPS) which are applied to Optimized Power Reactor 1000 (OPR1000) and Advanced Power Reactor 1400 (APR1400). The ICOPS has been developed to overcome the algorithm related obstacles in overseas project. To achieve this goal, several algorithms were newly developed and hardware and software design was updated. The functional design requirements document was developed by KEPCO-NF and the component design was conducted by Doosan. System design and software implementation were performed by KEPCO-E and C, and software Verification and Validation (V and V) was performed by KEPCO-E and C and Sure Softtech. The ICOPS has been developed to overcome the algorithm related obstacles in overseas project. The function of I/O simulator was improved even though the hardware platform is the same as that of RCOPS for Shin-Hanul 1 and 2. SCADE was applied to the implementation of ICOPS software, and the V and V system for ICOPS which satisfies international standards was developed. Although several further detailed design works remain, the function of ICOPS has been confirmed. The ICOPS will be applied to APR+ project, and the further works will be performed in following project.

International physical protection standards: support for development and implementation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Soo Hoo, M.S.

2002-01-01

Full text: Since 1972, the IAEA has been a recognized organization in promoting the development of international standards on the physical protection of nuclear materials. This responsibility has continued through the present in the 1999 publication of the fourth revision of INFCIRC/225, the physical protection of nuclear material and nuclear facilities and in being the repository for the convention on the physical protection of nuclear material which was originally published in 1980 as INFCIRC/274. The IAEA has also published other reference documents in support these two standards. With changing world events and greater concern for the physical protection of nuclear materials and facilities, IAEA member states have increased IAEA physical protection responsibilities. Currently, the IAEA is serving as the secretariat for drafting revisions to the physical protection convention. The proposed revisions will strengthen international physical protection standards through the incorporation of physical protection fundamentals that should apply to all nuclear materials in international or domestic use, storage and transport. Furthermore, the physical protection fundamentals would also extend to include nuclear facilities. Presently, the physical protection convention applies only to nuclear materials that are in international transport. To complement efforts to develop and promote international physical protection standards, the IAEA is actively involved in assisting member states with the implementation of the standards. This is accomplished through the delivery of training courses, workshops and hosting other international forums for the exchange of information. Through review services such as the international physical protection advisory service (IPPAS), the IAEA provides advice to member states on the application of international standards at national and facility-specific levels. These services can be followed up with technical support to implement the

The higher school teaching staff professional development system creation on the adaptive management principles

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Borova T.A.

2012-03-01

Full Text Available The article deals with theoretical analysis of the higher school teaching staff professional development system creation on the adaptive management principles. It is determined the background and components of the higher school teaching staff professional development adaptive management system. It is specified the mechanisms for higher school teaching staff professional development adaptive management: monitoring and coaching. It is shown their place in the higher school teaching staff professional development system on the adaptive management principles. The results of the system efficiency are singled out.

New developments in protective materials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mirick, W.

1987-01-01

Linemen who must work in close proximity to high voltage circuits utilize various types of protective equipment to minimize risks of injury due to electrical shock or other hazards. Tools are available which sometimes allow the linemen to work at a relatively safe distance from potential sources of danger. However, these tools may not be appropriate in all instances and, in fact, work often may be better conducted by hand using insulated clothing and accessories. Electrical insulating gloves and sleeves are presently worn by linemen for protection from electrical shock. In addition, insulating line hose, covers, and blankets are employed to cover high voltage sources when linemen are working in those areas. Leather gloves--protectors-- are worn over the rubber electrical insulating gloves to prevent cuts, punctures, or other physical injuries to the rubber glove. Deficiencies were perceived, however, with respect to protective equipment now available. Specific problems being experienced with insulating protective equipment were reported to be related to material characteristics such as flexibility, weight, ozone/corona resistance, hydraulic fluid resistance and stiffness, particularly at cold temperatures. Discussions between the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) and Battelle's Columbus Division (BCD) resulted a program to investigate the need for and the development of improved electrical insulating equipment for linemen. This article describes the program

On the Adaptation of an Agile Information Systems Development Method

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Aydin, M.N.; Harmsen, F.; van Slooten, C.; Stegwee, R.A.

2005-01-01

Little specific research has been conducted to date on the adaptation of agile information systems development (ISD) methods. This article presents the work practice in dealing with the adaptation of such a method in the ISD department of one of the leading financial institutes in Europe. Two forms

How climate compatible are livelihood adaptation strategies and development programs in rural Indonesia?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

R.M. Wise

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Achieving climate compatible development (CCD is a necessity in developing countries, but there are few examples of requisite planning processes, or manifestations of CCD. This paper presents a multi-stakeholder, participatory planning process designed to screen and prioritise rural livelihood adaptation strategies against nine CCD criteria. The process also integrated three principles of adaptation pathways: interventions should be (1 ‘no regrets’ and maintain reversibility to avoid mal-adaptation; (2 address both proximate and underlying systemic drivers of community vulnerability; and (3 linked across spatial scales and jurisdictional levels to promote coordination. Using examples of two rural sub-districts in Indonesia, we demonstrate the process and resulting CCD strategies. Priority strategies varied between the sub-districts but all reflected standard development interventions: water management, intensification or diversification of agriculture and aquaculture, education, health, food security and skills-building for communities. Strategies delivered co-benefits for human development and ecosystem services and hence adaptive capacity, but greenhouse mitigation co-benefits were less significant. Actions to deliver the strategies’ objectives were screened for reversibility, and a minority were potentially mal-adaptive (i.e. path dependent, disproportionately burdening the most vulnerable, reducing incentives to adapt, or increasing greenhouse gas emissions yet highly feasible. These related to infrastructure, which paradoxically is necessary to deliver ‘soft’ adaptation benefits (i.e. road access to health services. Only a small minority of transformative strategies addressed the systemic (i.e. institutional and political drivers of vulnerability. Strategies were well-matched by development programs, suggesting that current interventions mirror CCD. However, development programs tackled fewer systemic drivers, were poorly

Novel adaptive distance relay algorithm considering the operation of 154 kV SFCL in Korean power transmission system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, S.; Lee, J.; Song, S.; Yoon, J.; Lee, B.

2015-01-01

Highlights: • This paper presents an outline of the new project of the 154 kV SFCL in Korea. • And then we review some protection problems for the application of 154 kV SFCLs. • This paper proposes a new adaptive protection algorithm for 154 kV SFCLs. • The developed algorithm is tested in a simple distance relay system. - Abstract: In general, SFCLs can have a negative impact on the protective coordination in power transmission system because of the variable impedance of SFCLs. It is very important to solve the protection problems of the power system for the successful application of SFCLs to real power transmission system. This paper reviews some protection problems which can be caused by the application of 154 kV SFCLs to power transmission systems in South Korea. And then we propose an adaptive protection algorithm to solve the problems. The adaptive protection algorithm uses the real time information of the SFCL system operation.

Critical Issues in Radiation Protection Knowledge Management for Preserving Radiation Protection Research and Development Capabilities.

Science.gov (United States)

Dewji, Shaheen Azim

2017-02-01

As a hub of domestic radiation protection capabilities, Oak Ridge National Laboratory's Center for Radiation Protection Knowledge has a mandate to develop and actuate a formal knowledge management (KM) effort. This KM approach exceeds recruitment and training efforts but focuses on formalized strategies for knowledge transfer from outgoing subject matter experts in radiation protection to incoming generations. It is envisioned that such an effort will provide one avenue for preserving domestic capabilities to support stakeholder needs in the federal government and the nuclear industry while continuing to lead and innovate in research and development on a global scale. However, in the absence of broader coordination within the United States, preservation of radiation protection knowledge continues to be in jeopardy in the absence of a dedicated KM effort.

Perceptions of Australian marine protected area managers regarding the role, importance, and achievability of adaptation for managing the risks of climate change

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Christopher Cvitanovic

2014-12-01

Full Text Available The rapid development of adaptation as a mainstream strategy for managing the risks of climate change has led to the emergence of a broad range of adaptation policies and management strategies globally. However, the success of such policies or management interventions depends on the effective integration of new scientific research into the decision-making process. Ineffective communication between scientists and environmental decision makers represents one of the key barriers limiting the integration of science into the decision-making process in many areas of natural resource management. This can be overcome by understanding the perceptions of end users, so as to identify knowledge gaps and develop improved and targeted strategies for communication and engagement. We assessed what one group of environmental decision makers, Australian marine protected area (MPA managers, viewed as the major risks associated with climate change, and their perceptions regarding the role, importance, and achievability of adaptation for managing these risks. We also assessed what these managers perceived as the role of science in managing the risks from climate change, and identified the factors that increased their trust in scientific information. We do so by quantitatively surveying 30 MPA managers across 3 Australian management agencies. We found that although MPA managers have a very strong awareness of the range and severity of risks posed by climate change, their understanding of adaptation as an option for managing these risks is less comprehensive. We also found that although MPA managers view science as a critical source of information for informing the decision-making process, it should be considered in context with other knowledge types such as community and cultural knowledge, and be impartial, evidence based, and pragmatic in outlining policy and management recommendations that are realistically achievable.

Development, concept and scope of copyright protection in Nigeria ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Development, concept and scope of copyright protection in Nigeria: an overview. ... Nnamdi Azikiwe University Journal of International Law and Jurisprudence ... This forms the aim of this paper which focuses essentially on basic issues relating to the development, concept and the scope of protection afforded copyright in ...

Social Protection as Development Policy: A New International Agenda for Action

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

François-Xavier Merrien

2013-06-01

Full Text Available At the turn of the millennium, social protection became a new priority for both states of the global South and international development policy more generally. As, in the past, social protection policies were considered unsuitable for development countries, the elevation of social protection to the level of a preferred instrument of development marks a fundamental paradigm shift. This shift began in the late 1990s, driven by disenchantment with the results of economic adjustment programmes, the 1997 Asian economic crisis, and a heightened awareness of the negative effects of global poverty. Social protection thus became a preferred instrument of the Millennium Development Goals, while the World Bank promoted social protection as a key component of international poverty reduction strategies (social risk management. The Department for International Development (DfID in the United Kingdom, along with other organisations, promoted a development model centred on the rights of the poor. Successful social protection programmes developed in the Global South – such as Brazilian and South African social pension schemes and conditional cash transfers (CCT established in Mexico and Brazil – were adopted as model programmes at the global level. The purpose of this article is to analyse the emergence of social protection in development policies. From this perspective, it examines the various types of programmes promoted by the international community, with a specific focus on CCT. It concludes with an assessment of the relative appropriateness of social protection policies for developing countries.

PROBLEMS OF SOIL PROTECTION FROM EROSION

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. Voloshuk

2007-10-01

Full Text Available In this article the problems of soil protection from erosion in Moldova are considered. The history (evolution of erosive processes is generalized, the first items of information on presence washed off soils are marked. Purposeful study of soil erosion, development of measures of struggle with it were begun in Moldova at the end of 40 years. In connection with transition to new economic methods of conducting economy (farmers, rent, privatization of land before pedologist, the experts of design organizations put forward the new requirements to study of erosive processes, development of soil protection, ecologo-adaptive systems of landscape agriculture. The tasks for improvement of a soil cover, restoration of fertility soil and their protection are put forward which are necessary for deciding in a near future.

Critical issues in radiation protection knowledge management for preserving radiation protection research and development capabilities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dewji, Shaheen Azim

2017-01-01

As a hub of domestic radiation protection capabilities, Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s Center for Radiation Protection Knowledge has a mandate to develop and actuate a formal knowledge management (KM) effort. This KM approach exceeds recruitment and training efforts but focuses on formalized strategies for knowledge transfer from outgoing subject matter experts in radiation protection to incoming generations. It is envisioned that such an effort will provide one avenue for preserving domestic capabilities to support stakeholder needs in the federal government and the nuclear industry while continuing to lead and innovate in research and development on a global scale. Furthermore, in the absence of broader coordination within the United States, preservation of radiation protection knowledge continues to be in jeopardy in the absence of a dedicated KM effort.

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

Science.gov (United States)

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

2016-05-01

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

Development and Use of Curricular Adaptations for Students Receiving Special Education Services

Science.gov (United States)

Kurth, Jennifer A.; Keegan, Lissa

2014-01-01

This study is a quasi-experimental descriptive design, with existing educator-made adaptations evaluated. The goals of this study were to (a) describe how educators develop adaptations and (b) evaluate the effectiveness of educator-made adaptations in facilitating the learning of students with disabilities. Findings suggest that (a) most…

Inducible protective processes in animal systems XV: Hyperthermia enhances the Ethyl methanesulfonate induced adaptive response in meiotic cells of grasshopper Poecilocerus pictus

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

R. Venu

2016-04-01

Conclusion: There is a protection against EMS induced anomalies by hyperthermia in in vivo P. pictus. As far as our knowledge is concerned, this is the first report to demonstrate that hyperthermia enhances the EMS induced adaptive response in in vivo meiotic cells.

Inventory of cassava plant protection and development projects in ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

A total of 303 cassava protection and development projects were identified of which about half are plant protection-oriented. Most activities on cassava protection have been centred on biological control and host plant resistance. The least activity has been on chemical control. The applicability of the collected database is ...

Project Development Specification for Special Protective Coating

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

MCGREW, D.L.

2000-01-01

Establishes the performance, design development, and test requirements for the Special Protective Coating. The system engineering approach was used to develop this document in accordance with the guidelines laid out in the Systems Engineering Management Plan for Project W-314

Study on Difrarel protecting dark adaptation function in the patients with diabetic retinopathy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ying Hui

2017-03-01

Full Text Available AIM: To observe the change in full-field electroretinogram(ERGin patients with nonproliferative diabetic retinopathy(NPDRafter panretinal photocoagulation(PRP2d and 2mo, and evaluate the effects of Difrarel protecting dark adaptation function. METHODS: Fifty-five cases with NPDR were randomly divided into the observation group and the control group.Both groups were treated with panretinal photocoagulation.Difrarel tablets was added in the observation group,and Vitamin B was added in the control group. We administered these drugs to the patients for 2mo continuously and the changes in ERG were observed after 2d and 2mo treatment. The amplitude of wave b(bA, and the peak time of wave b(bTwere observed and the data were treated statistically with SPSS 20.0 and test t in pairs. RESULTS: The bT of the two groups before and at 2mo treatment had no difference inner group or inter-group(P>0.05. But there was obvious difference in bA of control group at 2mo after treatment compared with before treatment(PPCONCLUSION: The function of each layer of PDR's retina has been damaged obviously and cannot get well after PRP. The patients with diabetic retinopathy combined with Difrarel tablets and PRP can better restore vision and improve the dark adaptation function.

Robust Transmission of H.264/AVC Streams Using Adaptive Group Slicing and Unequal Error Protection

Science.gov (United States)

Thomos, Nikolaos; Argyropoulos, Savvas; Boulgouris, Nikolaos V.; Strintzis, Michael G.

2006-12-01

We present a novel scheme for the transmission of H.264/AVC video streams over lossy packet networks. The proposed scheme exploits the error-resilient features of H.264/AVC codec and employs Reed-Solomon codes to protect effectively the streams. A novel technique for adaptive classification of macroblocks into three slice groups is also proposed. The optimal classification of macroblocks and the optimal channel rate allocation are achieved by iterating two interdependent steps. Dynamic programming techniques are used for the channel rate allocation process in order to reduce complexity. Simulations clearly demonstrate the superiority of the proposed method over other recent algorithms for transmission of H.264/AVC streams.

An integrated approach to adapt physical protection to the new terrorism threats

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Steinhaeusler, F.; Braun, C.; Bunn, G.

2002-01-01

Full text: New terrorism (NT) differs significantly from the traditional form of terrorism insofar as it has the capability to: train and deploy suicide commandos; use sophisticated logistics; implement transnational terrorist operations; infiltrate security and diplomatic communities; and commit acts of mass disturbance and mass killings. NT does not engage in negotiations: it does not discriminate in its attacks between children, adult civilians or military personnel; and it is willing to deploy weapons of mass destruction. These characteristics require that the conventional approach to physical protection of installations dealing with nuclear and other radioactive materials (e.g., Design Basis Threat (DBT)) be adapted accordingly. This integrated approach should encompass: at the international level: revised legally binding conventions and recommendations which are more specific than current versions, providing practically applicable advice reflecting the new threat scenarios; at the national level: introducing an element of transparency for validating the national threat perception and supra-national review of the effectiveness of the counteractions taken such as regulatory approaches implementing these international agreements; at the operational level: enhancing security-related co-operation at the command and control level between the on-site security forces at nuclear installations, the response force, police and the military, as well as upgrading of the force-on-force training; and at the research level: R and D in physical protection technology and practices to keep abreast of the threats posed by the NT. (author)

Tip-over Prevention: Adaptive Control Development

Science.gov (United States)

2015-05-30

Tip-over Prevention: Adaptive Control Development Leah Kelley Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cambridge, MA 02139 Email: lckelley@mit.edu Kurt...Papadopoulos and D. Rey, Proc. IEEE ICRA, vol.4, 1996, pp. 3111. [7] S. Ali, A. Moosavian, and K. Alipour, Robotics, Automation and Mechatronics , 2006 IEEE Conf...on, 2006, pp. 1–6. [8] K. Talke, L. Kelley, P. Longhini, and G. Catron, Proc. SPIE 9084, Unmanned Systems Technology XVI, June 2014, pp. 90 840L–11

An interactive tutorial on radiation protection for medical students

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sendra-Portero, F.; Martinez-Morillo, M.

2003-01-01

The aim of this project is to develop an interactive tutorial designed for medical students training in radiation protection in order to use its definitive version in a collaborative group of medical schools. The contents of the tutorial matchers the outlines proposed by the EC guidelines on education and training in Radiation Protection for Medical exposures (RP118), for medical and dental schools. The tutorial is organised in virtual lectures, following a similar structure than the traditional lectures, slides and explanations. There is a central script for each theme with a forward-return interaction. Additionally, branches with deeper explanations (drawings, images, videos,...) are provided to the user. The tutorial is being developed on a set of power Point presentations, linked between them. The user can choose two ways sto launch each lecture, based either on spoken (audio) or written explanations. We present the initial version of a useful tool for pre-graduate training of general practitioners in Radiation Protection, which is a complementary tool for personally adapted computed-based education. Most of the contents can be easily adapted for other students of health related careers (i. e. nurses, technologists...) The use of multimedia tools has been recommended in the field of radiation protection, but developing these tools is time consuming and needs expertise in both, educative and multimedia resources. This projects takes part of more than a dozen multimedia projects on different radiology related subjects developed in our department. (Author) 6 refs

Development directions of the global climate protection law

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Richter, Katharina

2014-01-01

The contribution on development directions of the global climate protection law covers the origination process of the Kyoto protocol, the precise form of the Kyoto protocol, the climate protection regime afterwards: Montreal 2005 - implementation-improvement-innovation, Nairobi 2006 - climatic change very close, Bali 2007 - roadmap, Posen 2008 - intermediate step, Copenhagen 2009 - stagnancy, Cancun 2010 - comeback, Durban 2011 - gleam of hope, Doha 2012 - minimum compromise, Warsaw 2013 - hope. The last chapter discusses the fundamental problems and perspectives of the climate protection laws.

Adaptive infrared-reflecting systems inspired by cephalopods

Science.gov (United States)

Xu, Chengyi; Stiubianu, George T.; Gorodetsky, Alon A.

2018-03-01

Materials and systems that statically reflect radiation in the infrared region of the electromagnetic spectrum underpin the performance of many entrenched technologies, including building insulation, energy-conserving windows, spacecraft components, electronics shielding, container packaging, protective clothing, and camouflage platforms. The development of their adaptive variants, in which the infrared-reflecting properties dynamically change in response to external stimuli, has emerged as an important unmet scientific challenge. By drawing inspiration from cephalopod skin, we developed adaptive infrared-reflecting platforms that feature a simple actuation mechanism, low working temperature, tunable spectral range, weak angular dependence, fast response, stability to repeated cycling, amenability to patterning and multiplexing, autonomous operation, robust mechanical properties, and straightforward manufacturability. Our findings may open opportunities for infrared camouflage and other technologies that regulate infrared radiation.

Developing, adopting and adapting operating procedures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rabouhams, J.

1986-01-01

This lecture specifies all the dispositions which have been taken by EDF Nuclear and Fossil Generation Department - according to the fact that availability and safety largely depend on the quality of the procedures and their easy handling - in order to develop, adopt and adapt the operating procedures. The following points are treated: General organization of procedures for plant operation during normal and abnormal conditions; Personnel and extend of responsibility involved into the development of procedures (research center, training center, specialized services, nuclear station, etc.); Validation of the procedures by means of full-scope simulators; Modifications of the procedures taking into account operation experience in material and human fields; Development of simulation softs in order to perform the procedures in abnormal situations; Evolution of operating technics and future skills. (orig.)

Research for Foreign Advanced Ports for Protection and Development Experience

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Lu; Tian, Mingjing; Zhao, Junjie; Shou, Youping; Wang, Ning; Qiao, Jianzhe; Li, Guanglou

2018-04-01

Into the twenty-first century, the process globalization of economic and trade is getting faster and faster, As of 2014, China's annual port trading amount topped the world, But in the port of environmental protection sustainable development approach with foreign advanced port environmental management concept has a big gap. Combined with the present situation of modern ports in China. Drawing lessons from foreign advanced environmental protection idea of port, in order to promote the protection of port environment in our country. The experience of protection and development of foreign advanced port environment will be discussed and discussed.

An outlook to radiation protection development

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Martincic, R.; Strohal, P.

1996-01-01

Radiation protection and safety have developed over many decades as the effects of ionizing radiation have been better and better understood. Some events in the last decade had essential impact on radiation protection policy/philosophy and related safety standards. Among them are available data of some long term radio-epidemiological studies of populations exposed to radiation. Investigations of the survivors of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki illustrated that exposure to radiation has also a potential for the delayed induction of malignancies. They also showed that irradiation of pregnant women may result with certain mental damage in foetus. Several big radiation accidents which appeared in the last decade also had an impact on developments in radiation protection philosophy and practices. A well known Chernobyl accident showed that limited knowledge was available at the time of the accident on transfer of radionuclides in a specific environment, radioecological effects and pathways of highly radioactive atmospheric precipitation generated during the accident on various components of the environment. New scientific data indicated also that in some parts of human environment there are measurable effects of chronic exposure resulting from natural radiation. UNSCEAR is periodically publishing the most valuable set of data as compilation, and disseminates information on the health effects of radiation and on levels of radiation exposure due to different sources. These data are also the best guidelines for the necessary improvements and updating of radiation protection practices and philosophies. The latest ICRP-60 publication and recently issued International Basic Safety Standards for Protection Against Ionizing Radiation and for the Safety of Radiation Sources are reflecting many of the above mentioned findings. On the other hand the use of radiation sources is increasing day by day, and many new facilities applying radiation in radiotherapy

Integrating climate change mitigation, adaptation, communication and education strategies in Matanzas Province, Cuba: A Citizen Science Approach

Science.gov (United States)

Rodriguez Bueno, R. A.; Byrne, J. M.

2015-12-01

The Environment Service Center of Matanzas (ESCM), Cuba and the University of Lethbridge are collaborating on the development of climate mitigation and adaptation programs in Matanzas province. Tourism is the largest industry in Matanzas. Protecting that industry means protecting coastal zones and conservation areas of value to tourism. These same areas are critical to protecting the landscape from global environmental change: enhanced tropical cyclones, flooding, drought and a range of other environmental change impacts. Byrne (2014) adapted a multidisciplinary methodology for climate adaptation capacity definition for the population of Nicaragua. A wide array of adaptive capacity skills and resources were integrated with agricultural crop modeling to define regions of the country where adaptive capacity development were weakest and should be improved. In Matanzas province, we are developing a series of multidisciplinary mitigation and adaptation programs that builds social science and science knowledge to expand capacity within the ESCM and the provincial population. We will be exploring increased risk due to combined watershed and tropical cyclone flooding, stresses on crops, and defining a range of possibilities in shifting from fossil fuels to renewable energy. The program will build ongoing interactions with thousands of Matanzas citizens through site visits carried out by numerous Cuban and visiting students participating in a four-month education semester with a number of Lethbridge and Matanzas faculty. These visits will also provide local citizens with better access to web-based interactions. We will evaluate mitigation and adaptive capacities in three municipalities and some rural areas across the province. Furthermore, we will explore better ways and means to communicate between the research and conservation staff and the larger population of the province.

The protection of society in the 21st century

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Montilla, J.

2006-01-01

Jose Montilla extols the capacity to adapt of the Nuclear Safety council as the engine that has allowed it to joint the club of the most advanced countries in nuclear safety and radiation protection. the former Minister of Industry, commerce and Tourism points out that the council has adopted the adequate protection of the public as the leitmotiv of its management activity and the achievement of increasingly higher standards of protection, in accordance with the latest technology developments and know-how, as one of its main objectives. (Author)

Are conservation organizations configured for effective adaptation to global change?

Science.gov (United States)

Armsworth, Paul R.; Larson, Eric R.; Jackson, Stephen T.; Sax, Dov F.; Simonin, Paul W.; Blossey, Bernd; Green, Nancy; Lester, Liza; Klein, Mary L.; Ricketts, Taylor H.; Runge, Michael C.; Shaw, M. Rebecca

2015-01-01

Conservation organizations must adapt to respond to the ecological impacts of global change. Numerous changes to conservation actions (eg facilitated ecological transitions, managed relocations, or increased corridor development) have been recommended, but some institutional restructuring within organizations may also be needed. Here we discuss the capacity of conservation organizations to adapt to changing environmental conditions, focusing primarily on public agencies and nonprofits active in land protection and management in the US. After first reviewing how these organizations anticipate and detect impacts affecting target species and ecosystems, we then discuss whether they are sufficiently flexible to prepare and respond by reallocating funding, staff, or other resources. We raise new hypotheses about how the configuration of different organizations enables them to protect particular conservation targets and manage for particular biophysical changes that require coordinated management actions over different spatial and temporal scales. Finally, we provide a discussion resource to help conservation organizations assess their capacity to adapt.

Development of radiation protection and measurement technology

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chang, Si Young; Lee, T. Y.; Kim, J. L.; Kim, B. H.; Lee, B. J.; Chung, K. K.; Lee, K. C.; Chung, R. I.; Han, Y. D.; Kim, J. S.; Lee, H. S.; Kim, C. K.; Yoon, K. S.; Jeong, D. Y.; Yoon, S. C.; Yoon, Y. C.; Lee, S. Y.; Kim, J. S.; Seo, K. W. [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Taejon (Korea, Republic of); Kim, J. K.; Lee, J. K. [Hanyang Univ., Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

1997-07-01

Reference X-, gamma, beta and neutron radiation fields complying with the ISO and ANSI standards have been established and evaluated to provide a basic technical support in national radiation protection dosimetry program and to provide calibration measurement devices. Personal dose evaluation algorithm has been developed with these reference radiation fields, which comply well with both domestic and the new ANSI N13.11, to evaluate accurate personal dose equivalents. A personal internal dosimetry algorithm which can estimate the intakes of radionuclides from the results of in vivo bioassay and the resulting internal doses has been developed and verified its performance. It was also evaluated to be equality excellent compared with those being used in foreign countries and used to make a computer code for internal dose evaluation which can be run with PC under the Windows environment. A BOMAB phantom for precise calibration of in vivo system has been also designed, fabricated and test-evaluated. Based on the ALARA concept of the optimization principle of radiation protection, a method for estimating the cost for radiation protection has been studied and an objective monetary cost of detriment due to radiation exposure, called {alpha} value ($/man-Sv) has been derived and proposed based on the Korean socio-economic situation and human risk factors to provide basic data for the radiation protection optimization study in Korea. (author). 100 refs., 104 tabs., 69 figs.

The development of radiation protection regulations in Malaysia

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yusoff Ismail

1995-01-01

The paper begins by mentioning the established policy of the Government of Malaysia vis-a-vis protection against ionizing radiations as embodied in the Radioactive Substances Act 1968 and, later, the atomic Energy Licensing Act 1984. Then it turns to on the major events that influences the past, the present and the future development of the radiation protection regulations in Malaysia. it concludes with a vision where future Malaysia is seen drifting towards a consensus effort in radiation protection rendering self regulation the order of the day. (author)

Radiation Protection training WEB site to hold pedagogical material for developing courses a distance way

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Marco, M.; Rodriguez, M.; Hernando, E.; Falcon, S.; Rodriguez, M.; Villarroel, R.

2003-01-01

Radiation Protection Training (RPT) System in Spain are is well defined in the local local regulations related to radioactive facilities licensing and radiation protection. A system of personnel licenses is established considering two levels of required radiation protection training-supervisor and operator according to responsibilities assigned during the operation of the radioactive facilities. This paper present the major advances already done in the educational web site maintained on the CIEMAT server and accessible through the CSN web. The project includes training material for sixteen applied courses and the design of a educational web site to hold pedagogical material for developing distant learning courses. The main objective of this project is to provide training materials for course organisers, trainers and for professional participants and to promote the exchange of expertise between workers involved in all activities using radiation sources. The project also aims to provide necessary mechanism for standardisation of the radiation protection knowledge made available to the exposed workers, including theoretical and practical training. The developed training material included in the project will cover all uses of radioactive sources including medical diagnosis. The web site is being developed of provide educational material on a modular design and in Spanish. The paper presents the initial results of this useful tool for practitioners. Courses are based on core modules with basic and specific modules involving different targets groups, and the contents can be easily adapted for other target groups. For each one of the modules should be included in the web site: objectives, syllabus, lessons and practical sessions, demo and lab exercises, etc. The project includes training tools for sixteen courses based in the standard syllabus content in the Spanish legal framework. In the next future complete materials for trainers will be available to case courses

Smartphone adapters for digital photomicrography.

Science.gov (United States)

Roy, Somak; Pantanowitz, Liron; Amin, Milon; Seethala, Raja R; Ishtiaque, Ahmed; Yousem, Samuel A; Parwani, Anil V; Cucoranu, Ioan; Hartman, Douglas J

2014-01-01

Photomicrographs in Anatomic Pathology provide a means of quickly sharing information from a glass slide for consultation, education, documentation and publication. While static image acquisition historically involved the use of a permanently mounted camera unit on a microscope, such cameras may be expensive, need to be connected to a computer, and often require proprietary software to acquire and process images. Another novel approach for capturing digital microscopic images is to use smartphones coupled with the eyepiece of a microscope. Recently, several smartphone adapters have emerged that allow users to attach mobile phones to the microscope. The aim of this study was to test the utility of these various smartphone adapters. We surveyed the market for adapters to attach smartphones to the ocular lens of a conventional light microscope. Three adapters (Magnifi, Skylight and Snapzoom) were tested. We assessed the designs of these adapters and their effectiveness at acquiring static microscopic digital images. All adapters facilitated the acquisition of digital microscopic images with a smartphone. The optimal adapter was dependent on the type of phone used. The Magnifi adapters for iPhone were incompatible when using a protective case. The Snapzoom adapter was easiest to use with iPhones and other smartphones even with protective cases. Smartphone adapters are inexpensive and easy to use for acquiring digital microscopic images. However, they require some adjustment by the user in order to optimize focus and obtain good quality images. Smartphone microscope adapters provide an economically feasible method of acquiring and sharing digital pathology photomicrographs.

Money matters: cash transfers for adaptation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wood, Rachel Godfrey

2011-04-15

Developed countries have pledged billions of dollars a year to help poor nations adapt to climate change. But how should the money be spent? For the world's poor, who are both the most vulnerable to climate change and the most in need of social protection, the best answer may be cash transfer programmes. Giving money out in this way has a strong track record in reaching the poor and helping them improve their nutrition, education and incomes — all of which are vital for building their long-term capacity to adapt to climate change. Cash transfers are also well accepted at the local level and, given the right political backing, can be implemented on a broad scale.

Responding to climate change in national forests: a guidebook for developing adaptation options

Science.gov (United States)

David L. Peterson; Connie I. Millar; Linda A. Joyce; Michael J. Furniss; Jessica E. Halofsky; Ronald P. Neilson; Toni Lyn. Morelli

2011-01-01

This guidebook contains science-based principles, processes, and tools necessary to assist with developing adaptation options for national forest lands. The adaptation process is based on partnerships between local resource managers and scientists who work collaboratively to understand potential climate change effects, identify important resource issues, and develop...

Blended learning specialists in radiation protection

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mayo, P.; Campayo, J. M.; Verdu, G.

2011-01-01

In this paper, we present a blended learning Radiation Protection Technician through an approved degree from the Polytechnic University of Valencia, which covers the knowledge and skills of functions relating to operators and supervisors in various areas and skilled workers to be to perform their work in technical units or Radiation Protection Radiation Protection Services. The benefits of this work are those related to achieving quality training flexible and adapted to follow the check off the person conducting the course, adapted to internal and external training of the applicant companies.

Advances on radiation protection dosimetry research, development and services at AEOI

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sohrabi, M.

1993-01-01

Radiation dosimetry is the main counterpart of an effective national radiation protection program to protect radiation workers, public and the environment against harmful effects of radiation. Research and development on radiation dosimetry are of vital needs to support national dosimetry services. The National Radiation Protection Department (NRPD) of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) being a National Authority on radiation protection is also responsible for radiation dosimetry research, development and services. Some highlights of such activities at NRPD are reviewed and discussed

Technologies for climate change adaptation. Coastal erosion and flooding

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhu, X. (ed.) (UNEP Risoe Centre, Roskilde (Denmark)); Linham, M.M.; Nicholls, R.J. (Univ. of Southampton (United Kingdom))

2010-11-15

This guidebook is intended to be a practical tool for use by coastal zone managers in developing countries. The aim is to provide best practice guidance and assist these managers in assessing their evolving adaptation needs and help them to prepare action plans for adapting to climate change in the coastal zone. The guidebook first reviews the main physical and societal impacts of climate change in the coastal zone. It then considers the process of adaptation to erosion and flooding/inundation hazards where major impacts may occur and a range of adaptation technologies are best developed. Thirteen of these adaptation technologies are presented in this guide, representing examples of the protect, accommodate or (planned) retreat approaches to adaptation. While this does not represent an exhaustive list of the adaptation technologies that are available, these technologies are among those most widely used/considered in the coastal zone today. All the technologies considered are relevant to climate change adaptation and collectively, more widespread application is expected in the future under climate change and rising sea levels. For each adaptation technology the following issues are addressed: (1) definition and description; (2) technical advantages and disadvantages; (3) institutional and organisational requirements; (4) potential costs and opportunities; and (5) barriers to implementation; followed by a case study example. We have endeavoured to include developing country examples wherever possible, but as there is less activity and less documentation of developing world projects and some technologies are barely used in the developing world, this is not always possible. Knowledge and capacity building requirements and monitoring technologies are considered and contrasted across all 13 adaptation technologies. Finally, more detailed sources are indicated. Each adaptation technology has widely varying advantages and disadvantages. As such, selection of measures

The Development and Assesment of Adaptation Pathways for Urban Pluvial Flooding

Science.gov (United States)

Babovic, F.; Mijic, A.; Madani, K.

2017-12-01

Around the globe, urban areas are growing in both size and importance. However, due to the prevalence of impermeable surfaces within the urban fabric of cities these areas have a high risk of pluvial flooding. Due to the convergence of population growth and climate change the risk of pluvial flooding is growing. When designing solutions and adaptations to pluvial flood risk urban planners and engineers encounter a great deal of uncertainty due to model uncertainty, uncertainty within the data utilised, and uncertainty related to future climate and land use conditions. The interaction of these uncertainties leads to conditions of deep uncertainty. However, infrastructure systems must be designed and built in the face of this deep uncertainty. An Adaptation Tipping Points (ATP) methodology was used to develop a strategy to adapt an urban drainage system in the North East of London under conditions of deep uncertainty. The ATP approach was used to assess the current drainage system and potential drainage system adaptations. These adaptations were assessed against potential changes in rainfall depth and peakedness-defined as the ratio of mean to peak rainfall. These solutions encompassed both traditional and blue-green solutions that the Local Authority are known to be considering. This resulted in a set of Adaptation Pathways. However, theses pathways do not convey any information regarding the relative merits and demerits of the potential adaptation options presented. To address this a cost-benefit metric was developed that would reflect the solutions' costs and benefits under uncertainty. The resulting metric combines elements of the Benefits of SuDS Tool (BeST) with real options analysis in order to reflect the potential value of ecosystem services delivered by blue-green solutions under uncertainty. Lastly, it is discussed how a local body can utilise the adaptation pathways; their relative costs and benefits; and a system of local data collection to help guide

Proteomic analysis of endothelial cold-adaptation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zieger Michael AJ

2011-12-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Understanding how human cells in tissue culture adapt to hypothermia may aid in developing new clinical procedures for improved ischemic and hypothermic protection. Human coronary artery endothelial cells grown to confluence at 37°C and then transferred to 25°C become resistant over time to oxidative stress and injury induced by 0°C storage and rewarming. This protection correlates with an increase in intracellular glutathione at 25°C. To help understand the molecular basis of endothelial cold-adaptation, isolated proteins from cold-adapted (25°C/72 h and pre-adapted cells were analyzed by quantitative proteomic methods and differentially expressed proteins were categorized using the DAVID Bioinformatics Resource. Results Cells adapted to 25°C expressed changes in the abundance of 219 unique proteins representing a broad range of categories such as translation, glycolysis, biosynthetic (anabolic processes, NAD, cytoskeletal organization, RNA processing, oxidoreductase activity, response-to-stress and cell redox homeostasis. The number of proteins that decreased significantly with cold-adaptation exceeded the number that increased by 2:1. Almost half of the decreases were associated with protein metabolic processes and a third were related to anabolic processes including protein, DNA and fatty acid synthesis. Changes consistent with the suppression of cytoskeletal dynamics provided further evidence that cold-adapted cells are in an energy conserving state. Among the specific changes were increases in the abundance and activity of redox proteins glutathione S-transferase, thioredoxin and thioredoxin reductase, which correlated with a decrease in oxidative stress, an increase in protein glutathionylation, and a recovery of reduced protein thiols during rewarming from 0°C. Increases in S-adenosylhomocysteine hydrolase and nicotinamide phosphoribosyltransferase implicate a central role for the methionine

The development status and protection of traditional qiang ethnic minority villages

Science.gov (United States)

Long, Yanping; He, Yunxiao; Yu, Chunhua; Chen, Mengxin

2018-03-01

This study is to focus on the protection of development countermeasures on the development status of Yinling village,and to provide beneficial suggestions for the development of the village. It is approached by analyzing the traditional village deeply from the situation of Yinling village, development status and protection countermeasures,taking the traditional Qiang Ethnic Minority village of Yinling village in Pinwu county, Sichuan province as an example,which is under the background that the protection and development of traditional ethnic villages have became the focus of attention,because traditional ethnic villages are living villages of traditional Chinese culture, retaining old and historic material remains.

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

Science.gov (United States)

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

2015-09-15

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

Development of the integrated core on-line monitoring and protection aid surveillance system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cho, Byung Oh; In, Wang Kee; Song, Jae Seung; Zee, Sung Quun

1998-01-01

The integrated Core On-line Monitoring and Protection Aid Surveillance System (COMPASS) is developed for the purpose of supporting the reactor operation, based on the three-dimensional nodal design code, MASTER. The heart of COMPASS is an adaptive nodal core simulator for the on-line calculation of three-dimensional assembly and pin power distributions which are used for the evaluation of the thermal margins and for the guide in operation. In this paper, the overall structures and the solution methods of COMPASS are described. The uncertainty of COMPASS for SMART core was also evaluated by comparing that of MASTER. The results showed that COMPASS uncertainty in power shape prediction is identical to that of the design code system, MASTER. The application of COMPASS to the analysis of peaking factor for SMART core resulted with about 4% gain in peaking factor margin when compared to COLSS

Accelerating the Development of Adaptive Performance: Validating the Think Like a Commander Training

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Shadrick, Scott B; Lussler, James W; Fultz, Christopher

2007-01-01

...) and Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) contributes to the development of more adaptive leaders. In addition, the level of adaptive thinking for lieutenants, captains, majors, and lieutenant colonels was investigated...

A conceptual model for the development process of confirmatory adaptive clinical trials within an emergency research network.

Science.gov (United States)

Mawocha, Samkeliso C; Fetters, Michael D; Legocki, Laurie J; Guetterman, Timothy C; Frederiksen, Shirley; Barsan, William G; Lewis, Roger J; Berry, Donald A; Meurer, William J

2017-06-01

Adaptive clinical trials use accumulating data from enrolled subjects to alter trial conduct in pre-specified ways based on quantitative decision rules. In this research, we sought to characterize the perspectives of key stakeholders during the development process of confirmatory-phase adaptive clinical trials within an emergency clinical trials network and to build a model to guide future development of adaptive clinical trials. We used an ethnographic, qualitative approach to evaluate key stakeholders' views about the adaptive clinical trial development process. Stakeholders participated in a series of multidisciplinary meetings during the development of five adaptive clinical trials and completed a Strengths-Weaknesses-Opportunities-Threats questionnaire. In the analysis, we elucidated overarching themes across the stakeholders' responses to develop a conceptual model. Four major overarching themes emerged during the analysis of stakeholders' responses to questioning: the perceived statistical complexity of adaptive clinical trials and the roles of collaboration, communication, and time during the development process. Frequent and open communication and collaboration were viewed by stakeholders as critical during the development process, as were the careful management of time and logistical issues related to the complexity of planning adaptive clinical trials. The Adaptive Design Development Model illustrates how statistical complexity, time, communication, and collaboration are moderating factors in the adaptive design development process. The intensity and iterative nature of this process underscores the need for funding mechanisms for the development of novel trial proposals in academic settings.

Development of a psychosocial adaptation questionnaire for Chinese patients with visual impairments.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Xiu-jie; Wang, Ai-ping

2011-10-01

To develop a psychosocial adaptation questionnaire for Chinese patients with visual impairments and to examine its reliability and validity. Psychosocial adaptation with disease has been studied, however, there have been few reports on the impact of visual impairment on psychosocial adaptation. An instrument has not been developed to assess psychosocial adaptation with visual impairment specifically for patients in China. Both qualitative and quantitative research methods were used. A questionnaire was developed based on the concept of psychosocial adaptation with visual impairment. Items for the questionnaire were developed by reviewing the literature and carrying out a semi-structured interview with 12 visually impaired patients. Five ophthalmologists and ten patients evaluated the content validity and face validity of the questionnaire, respectively. The method of convenient sampling was used to select 213 visually impaired patients in the Ophthalmology Department of the First Affiliated Hospital of China Medical University to participate in the study. Discriminative index and item-total correlation analyses were used to delete items that were lower than a set criterion. Regarding construct validity, factor analysis was performed. The Self-rating Anxiety Scale (SAS), General Self-Efficacy Scale (GSES) and Self Acceptance Questionnaire (SAQ) were used to evaluate criterion validity. Cronbach's alpha coefficient was used as an index of internal consistency. To evaluate test-retest reliability, 50 patients were re-evaluated after 24 hours. A total of 204 questionnaire items were created. 22 items were deleted by discriminative index and item-total correlation before factor analysis; 38 items were entered into the model for factor analysis. Seven factors were extracted by using principal factor analysis and varimax rotation, with a cumulative contribution of 59·18%. The correlation coefficients between the psychosocial adaptation questionnaire for visual impairment

Developing the evidence base for mainstreaming adaptation of stormwater systems to climate change.

Science.gov (United States)

Gersonius, B; Nasruddin, F; Ashley, R; Jeuken, A; Pathirana, A; Zevenbergen, C

2012-12-15

In a context of high uncertainty about hydro-climatic variables, the development of updated methods for climate impact and adaptation assessment is as important, if not more important than the provision of improved climate change data. In this paper, we introduce a hybrid method to facilitate mainstreaming adaptation of stormwater systems to climate change: i.e., the Mainstreaming method. The Mainstreaming method starts with an analysis of adaptation tipping points (ATPs), which is effect-based. These are points of reference where the magnitude of climate change is such that acceptable technical, environmental, societal or economic standards may be compromised. It extends the ATP analysis to include aspects from a bottom-up approach. The extension concerns the analysis of adaptation opportunities in the stormwater system. The results from both analyses are then used in combination to identify and exploit Adaptation Mainstreaming Moments (AMMs). Use of this method will enhance the understanding of the adaptive potential of stormwater systems. We have applied the proposed hybrid method to the management of flood risk for an urban stormwater system in Dordrecht (the Netherlands). The main finding of this case study is that the application of the Mainstreaming method helps to increase the no-/low-regret character of adaptation for several reasons: it focuses the attention on the most urgent effects of climate change; it is expected to lead to potential cost reductions, since adaptation options can be integrated into infrastructure and building design at an early stage instead of being applied separately; it will lead to the development of area-specific responses, which could not have been developed on a higher scale level; it makes it possible to take account of local values and sensibilities, which contributes to increased public and political support for the adaptive strategies. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Radiological protection system in the era of nuclear renaissance expectation for development of radiological protection system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Toyomatsu, Hideki

2008-01-01

The current radiological protection system, which was established mainly by the ICRP and UNSCEAR, has contributed to the prevention of potential radiological health hazards, and has been a fundamental concept during the development of nuclear energy. Through a detailed discussion regarding the new ICRP recommendations, the world nuclear industry has reached a consensus that the current radiological protection system keeps its integrity in principle although it involves some remaining issues, such as the disposal of radioactive waste. In order to maximize the advantages of nuclear energy while keeping the integrity of radiological protection system, it is essential to address the characteristics of radiation, which is specific to nuclear energy, so that nuclear energy can coexist with other energy sources. The three basic principles of radiological protection (i.e., justification, optimization and dose limits), which were completed in the 1990 recommendations of ICRP, should be retained as the basic concepts for the future radiological protection system in order to maintain the continuity and consistency of the radiological protection system. The radiological protection system can be furthermore developed only by combining the above three principles with best practices extracted from utilities' field experience. The significant reduction of radiation exposures received by members of the public and radiation workers in the field has resulted from the efforts by the world utilities to achieve the optimization. In order to correctly apply the theory to the work practices, it is essential to see how the theory is practically used in the field. Such a process should be also emphasized in the revision work of the IAEA Basic Safety Standards (BSS), which is currently under progress. Integrating the theory in the work practices is the key to the true development of nuclear renaissance, which could lead to the establishment of the nuclear safety regime. (author)

Electric foot shock stress adaptation: Does it exist or not?

Science.gov (United States)

Bali, Anjana; Jaggi, Amteshwar Singh

2015-06-01

Stress adaptation is a protective phenomenon against repeated stress exposure and is characterized by a decreased responsiveness to a repeated stress stimulus. The adaptation is associated with a complex cascade of events, including the changes in behavior, neurotransmitter and gene expression levels. The non-adaptation or maladaptation to stress may underlie the affective disorders, such as anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Electric foot shock is a complex stressor, which includes both physical and emotional components. Unlike immobilization, restraint and cold immersion stress, the phenomenon of stress adaptation is not very well defined in response to electric foot shock. A number of preclinical studies have reported the development of adaptation to electric foot shock stress. However, evidence also reveals the non-adaptive behavior in response to foot shocks. The distinct adaptive/non-adaptive responses may be possibly influenced by the type, intensity, and duration of the stress. The present review discusses the existence or non-existence of adaptation to electric foot shock stress along with possible mechanism. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Adaptive Behavior and Development of Infants and Toddlers with Williams Syndrome

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rebecca M. Kirchner

2016-04-01

Full Text Available Williams syndrome (WS is a neurodevelopmental disorder that causes deficits in adaptive behavior, difficulties eating and sleeping, cognitive delays, and delayed development. Although researchers have conducted characterizations of children and adults with WS, less is known about young children with this disorder. This study characterizes the developmental and adaptive behavior features of 16 infants and toddlers with WS aged 3 months - 5 years. Data for this project was obtained from 2007-2014, and includes parent report data and standardized developmental testing. Thirty-one percent (31.3% of parents reported that their infant/toddler with WS had sleeping problems and 58.3% reported feeding difficulties. Levels of adaptive behavior were in the Mildly Delayed range as measured by the Adaptive Behavior Assessment System, Second Edition. Self care skills such as feeding or dressing oneself were significantly weaker than skills needed to function in the community, such as recognizing his/her home or throwing away trash. The difficulty with self-care skills is hypothesized to be related to the reported difficulties with eating and sleeping. Motor skills were significantly lower than both cognitive and language skills on the Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development, Third Edition. The current study highlights the need for early intervention in these young children across all areas of development, particularly in self-care skills.

The development of the international and national radiation protection law

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bischof, W.

1978-01-01

The author reports in detail about the development of the international radiation protection law, gives a general survey of domestic legislation in the FRG and abroad and presents the individual problems of the radiation protection laws in a comparative way, such as radiation protection principles/dose limit values, licensing and monitoring regulations disposal of radioactive wastes, application of ionising rays and radioactive substances to men as well as protection from non-ionising radiation. (UN) [de

Protection of civil rights and technological development

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wagner, H.

1985-01-01

The question of how the consequences of technological development are to be mastered on the legal level is not primarily a problem of the administrative procedure. The essential point in the discussion on protection of basic rights is not to be seen in the citizen's right to participate in administrative procedures, but rather in the substantive civil rights of individual persons as against the government, together with the system of values established in the Basic Law and derived from the basic rights, as well as in the proper functioning of the principle of separation of powers (legislature, administration, and judicature). The law on procedure and thus the idea of (protection of civil rights by rules of procedure) in this context only have an enhancing effect. Practical protection of civil rights is also ascertained in the Federal Republic of Germany by the particularly well-established guarantee of access to the courts. Another idea to be mentioned in this context is an approach that can be termed as 'protection of civil rights by government-funded research'. Other facts contributing to building a protective shield against infringement of civil rights by technology, activities or installations, include e.g. the federal structure of the state and the administration, type and scope of organisation of the public service, the established system of environmental protection and the safety provided by the current system of expert opinions. (orig./HSCH) [de

Protection of civil rights and technological development

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wagner, H

1985-01-01

The question of how the consequences of technological development are to be mastered on the legal level is not primarily a problem of the administrative procedure. The essential point in the discussion on protection of basic rights is not to be seen in the citizen's right to participate in administrative procedures, but rather in the substantive civil rights of individual persons as against the government, together with the system of values established in the Basic Law and derived from the basic rights, as well as in the proper functioning of the principle of separation of powers (legislature, administration, and judicature). The law on procedure and thus the idea of (protection of civil rights by rules of procedure) in this context only have an enhancing effect. Practical protection of civil rights is also ascertained in the Federal Republic of Germany by the particularly well-established guarantee of access to the courts. Another idea to be mentioned in this context is an approach that can be termed as 'protection of civil rights by government-funded research'. Other facts contributing to building a protective shield against infringement of civil rights by technology, activities or installations, include e.g. the federal structure of the state and the administration, type and scope of organisation of the public service, the established system of environmental protection and the safety provided by the current system of expert opinions. (orig./HSCH).

Autism as an adaptive common variant pathway for human brain development

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mark H. Johnson

2017-06-01

Full Text Available While research on focal perinatal lesions has provided evidence for recovery of function, much less is known about processes of brain adaptation resulting from mild but widespread disturbances to neural processing over the early years (such as alterations in synaptic efficiency. Rather than being viewed as a direct behavioral consequence of life-long neural dysfunction, I propose that autism is best viewed as the end result of engaging adaptive processes during a sensitive period. From this perspective, autism is not appropriately described as a disorder of neurodevelopment, but rather as an adaptive common variant pathway of human functional brain development.

Developing Personalized Sensorimotor Adaptability Countermeasures for Spaceflight

Science.gov (United States)

Mulavara, A. P.; Seidler, R. D.; Peters, B.; Cohen, H. S.; Wood, S.; Bloomberg, J. J.

2016-01-01

Astronauts experience sensorimotor disturbances during their initial exposure to microgravity and during the re-adaptation phase following a return to an Earth-gravitational environment. Interestingly, astronauts who return from spaceflight show substantial differences in their abilities to readapt to a gravitational environment. The ability to predict the manner and degree to which individual astronauts would be affected would improve the effectiveness of countermeasure training programs designed to enhance sensorimotor adaptability. In this paper we will be presenting results from our ground-based study that show how behavioral, brain imaging and genomic data may be used to predict individual differences in sensorimotor adaptability to novel sensorimotor environments. This approach will allow us to better design and implement sensorimotor adaptability training countermeasures against decrements in post-mission adaptive capability that are customized for each crewmember's sensory biases, adaptive capacity, brain structure, functional capacities, and genetic predispositions. The ability to customize adaptability training will allow more efficient use of crew time during training and will optimize training prescriptions for astronauts to ensure expected outcomes.

Development and Standardization of the Diagnostic Adaptive Behavior Scale: Application of Item Response Theory to the Assessment of Adaptive Behavior

Science.gov (United States)

Tassé, Marc J.; Schalock, Robert L.; Thissen, David; Balboni, Giulia; Bersani, Henry, Jr.; Borthwick-Duffy, Sharon A.; Spreat, Scott; Widaman, Keith F.; Zhang, Dalun; Navas, Patricia

2016-01-01

The Diagnostic Adaptive Behavior Scale (DABS) was developed using item response theory (IRT) methods and was constructed to provide the most precise and valid adaptive behavior information at or near the cutoff point of making a decision regarding a diagnosis of intellectual disability. The DABS initial item pool consisted of 260 items. Using IRT…

Data Requirements for Developing Adaptations to Climate Variability and Change

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Basher, Reid E.

1999-01-01

An extensive foundation of high quality data and information on the climate and on the biological, environmental and social systems affected by climate is required in order to understand the climate impact processes involved, to develop new adaptation practices, and to subsequently implement these practices. Experience of the impacts of current and past variability of climate and sea level is a prime source of information. Many practices are in use to reduce climate impacts, for example in engineering design, agricultural risk management and climate prediction services, though their roles as adaptations to climate change are not widely appreciated. While there are good data sets on some factors and in some regions, in many cases the databases are inadequate and there are few data sets on adaptation-specific quantities such as vulnerability, resilience and adaptation effectiveness. Current international action under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) pays little attention to adaptation and its information requirements. Furthermore there are trends toward reduced data gathering and to restrictions on access to data sets, especially arising from cost and commercialisation pressures. To effectively respond to the changes in climate that are now inevitable, governments will need to more clearly identify adaptation as a central feature of climate change policy and make a renewed shared commitment to collecting and freely exchanging the necessary data. 12 refs

Adaptive mechanisms of insect pests against plant protease inhibitors and future prospects related to crop protection: a review.

Science.gov (United States)

Macedo, Maria L R; de Oliveira, Caio F R; Costa, Poliene M; Castelhano, Elaine C; Silva-Filho, Marcio C

2015-01-01

The overwhelming demand for food requires the application of technology on field. An important issue that limits the productivity of crops is related to insect attacks. Hence, several studies have evaluated the application of different compounds to reduce the field losses, especially insecticide compounds from plant sources. Among them, plant protease inhibitors (PIs) have been studied in both basic and applied researches, displaying positive results in control of some insects. However, certain species are able to bypass the insecticide effects exerted by PIs. In this review, we disclosed the adaptive mechanisms showed by lepidopteran and coleopteran insects, the most expressive insect orders related to crop predation. The structural aspects involved in adaptation mechanisms are presented as well as the newest alternatives for pest control. The application of biotechnological tools in crop protection will be mandatory in agriculture, and it will be up to researchers to find the best candidates for effective control in long-term.

Developing Culture-Adaptive Competency Through Experiences with Expressive Avatars

Science.gov (United States)

Silverglate, Daniel S.; Sims, Edward M.; Glover, Gerald; Friedman, Harris

2012-01-01

Modern Warfighters often find themselves in a variety of non-combat roles such as negotiator, peacekeeper, reconstruction, and disaster relief. They are expected to perform these roles within a culture alien to their own. Each individual they encounter brings their own set of values to the interaction that must be understood and reconciled. To navigate the human terrain of these complex interactions, the Warfighter must not only consider the specifics of the target culture, but also identify the stakeholders, recognize the influencing cultural dimensions, and adapt to the situation to achieve the best possible outcome. Vcom3D is using game-based scenarios to develop culturally adaptive competency. The avatars that represent the stakeholders must be able to portray culturally accurate behavior, display complex emotion, and communicate through verbal and non-verbal cues. This paper will discuss the use of emerging game technologies to better simulate human behavior in cross-cultural dilemmas. Nomenclature: culture, adaptive, values, cultural values dimensions, dilemmas, virtual humans, non-verbal communications

Biodiversity Hotspots, Climate Change, and Agricultural Development: Global Limits of Adaptation

Science.gov (United States)

Schneider, U. A.; Rasche, L.; Schmid, E.; Habel, J. C.

2017-12-01

Terrestrial ecosystems are threatened by climate and land management change. These changes result from complex and heterogeneous interactions of human activities and natural processes. Here, we study the potential change in pristine area in 33 global biodiversity hotspots within this century under four climate projections (representative concentration pathways) and associated population and income developments (shared socio-economic pathways). A coupled modelling framework computes the regional net expansion of crop and pasture lands as result of changes in food production and consumption. We use a biophysical crop simulation model to quantify climate change impacts on agricultural productivity, water, and nutrient emissions for alternative crop management systems in more than 100 thousand agricultural land polygons (homogeneous response units) and for each climate projection. The crop simulation model depicts detailed soil, weather, and management information and operates with a daily time step. We use time series of livestock statistics to link livestock production to feed and pasture requirements. On the food consumption side, we estimate national demand shifts in all countries by processing population and income growth projections through econometrically estimated Engel curves. Finally, we use a global agricultural sector optimization model to quantify the net change in pristine area in all biodiversity hotspots under different adaptation options. These options include full-scale global implementation of i) crop yield maximizing management without additional irrigation, ii) crop yield maximizing management with additional irrigation, iii) food yield maximizing crop mix adjustments, iv) food supply maximizing trade flow adjustments, v) healthy diets, and vi) combinations of the individual options above. Results quantify the regional potentials and limits of major agricultural producer and consumer adaptation options for the preservation of pristine areas in

Adaptive bra designs for the individuals with special needs

Science.gov (United States)

Imran, A.; Drean, E.; Schacher, L.; Adolphe, D.

2017-10-01

Nowadays the numbers of disabled and elderly people is increasing, and the development of adaptive clothing for these people is in demand. The purpose of this study is to add features in bra design, to make it “Easy on, Easy off", to encourage the hemiplegic females to begin to dress themselves and to make dressing easier and more protective for them. This adaptive bra design will offer benefits to the wearer that include independence, conformity to culture, concealment of the disability, comfort, psychological contentment, safety, and durability. Our adaptive bra will promote harmony between functionality and aesthetics. Our e-bra enables continuous, real-time monitoring to identify any pathophysiological changes by monitoring blood pressure, body temperature, respiratory rate, oxygen consumption, some neural activity.

Development of an adaptive sawmill- flow simulator template for ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Development of an adaptive sawmill- flow simulator template for predicting results ... including: raw materials, personnel, equipment, product mix, product quality, orders ... Profitable sawing of small diameter logs requires high speed processing, use of ... performance measures due to changes in mill layout, raw material and ...

The development of Radiation Protection Training courses in the UK

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Paynter, R. A.

2003-01-01

This paper considers use of modern training materials and aids in radiation protection training activities. The development in the UK of training courses to satisfy the training requirements for Radiation Protection Advisers is also discussed. (Author)

Private power development and environmental protection in India

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Das, S.; Wilbanks, T.J.

1997-12-01

This report assesses relationships between private power development in India and environmental protection in that country. The central question is whether private firms generating and distributing electricity in developing countries will do a better or a worse job in environmental protection, as a part of their overall corporate responsibility, than public-sector institutions. After reviewing the fundamental question, why it is asked, and the context in which it operates in the nation of India, this report continues with an analysis of available information, quantitative and qualitative, that can help to resolve the issues in the particular case of India. Finally, it ends with conclusions from the analysis and recommendations for reducing remaining uncertainties in the future.

Requirements for Pseudomonas aeruginosa Type I-F CRISPR-Cas Adaptation Determined Using a Biofilm Enrichment Assay.

Science.gov (United States)

Heussler, Gary E; Miller, Jon L; Price, Courtney E; Collins, Alan J; O'Toole, George A

2016-11-15

CRISPR (clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeat)-Cas (CRISPR-associated protein) systems are diverse and found in many archaea and bacteria. These systems have mainly been characterized as adaptive immune systems able to protect against invading mobile genetic elements, including viruses. The first step in this protection is acquisition of spacer sequences from the invader DNA and incorporation of those sequences into the CRISPR array, termed CRISPR adaptation. Progress in understanding the mechanisms and requirements of CRISPR adaptation has largely been accomplished using overexpression of cas genes or plasmid loss assays; little work has focused on endogenous CRISPR-acquired immunity from viral predation. Here, we developed a new biofilm-based assay system to enrich for Pseudomonas aeruginosa strains with new spacer acquisition. We used this assay to demonstrate that P. aeruginosa rapidly acquires spacers protective against DMS3vir, an engineered lytic variant of the Mu-like bacteriophage DMS3, through primed CRISPR adaptation from spacers present in the native CRISPR2 array. We found that for the P. aeruginosa type I-F system, the cas1 gene is required for CRISPR adaptation, recG contributes to (but is not required for) primed CRISPR adaptation, recD is dispensable for primed CRISPR adaptation, and finally, the ability of a putative priming spacer to prime can vary considerably depending on the specific sequences of the spacer. Our understanding of CRISPR adaptation has expanded largely through experiments in type I CRISPR systems using plasmid loss assays, mutants of Escherichia coli, or cas1-cas2 overexpression systems, but there has been little focus on studying the adaptation of endogenous systems protecting against a lytic bacteriophage. Here we describe a biofilm system that allows P. aeruginosa to rapidly gain spacers protective against a lytic bacteriophage. This approach has allowed us to probe the requirements for CRISPR adaptation in

VSVΔG/EBOV GP-induced innate protection enhances natural killer cell activity to increase survival in a lethal mouse adapted Ebola virus infection.

Science.gov (United States)

Williams, Kinola J N; Qiu, Xiangguo; Fernando, Lisa; Jones, Steven M; Alimonti, Judie B

2015-02-01

Members of the species Zaire ebolavirus cause severe hemorrhagic fever with up to a 90% mortality rate in humans. The VSVΔG/EBOV GP vaccine has provided 100% protection in the mouse, guinea pig, and nonhuman primate (NHP) models, and has also been utilized as a post-exposure therapeutic to protect mice, guinea pigs, and NHPs from a lethal challenge of Ebola virus (EBOV). EBOV infection causes rapid mortality in human and animal models, with death occurring as early as 6 days after infection, suggesting a vital role for the innate immune system to control the infection before cells of the adaptive immune system can assume control. Natural killer (NK) cells are the predominant cell of the innate immune response, which has been shown to expand with VSVΔG/EBOV GP treatment. In the current study, an in vivo mouse model of the VSVΔG/EBOV GP post-exposure treatment was used for a mouse adapted (MA)-EBOV infection, to determine the putative VSVΔG/EBOV GP-induced protective mechanism of NK cells. NK depletion studies demonstrated that mice with NK cells survive longer in a MA-EBOV infection, which is further enhanced with VSVΔG/EBOV GP treatment. NK cell mediated cytotoxicity and IFN-γ secretion was significantly higher with VSVΔG/EBOV GP treatment. Cell mediated cytotoxicity assays and perforin knockout mice experiments suggest that there are perforin-dependent and -independent mechanisms involved. Together, these data suggest that NK cells play an important role in VSVΔG/EBOV GP-induced protection of EBOV by increasing NK cytotoxicity, and IFN-γ secretion.

A Framework for the Development of Computerized Adaptive Tests

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nathan A. Thompson

2011-01-01

Full Text Available A substantial amount of research has been conducted over the past 40 years on technical aspects of computerized adaptive testing (CAT, such as item selection algorithms, item exposure controls, and termination criteria. However, there is little literature providing practical guidance on the development of a CAT. This paper seeks to collate some of the available research methodologies into a general framework for the development of any CAT assessment.

Relay Protection and Automation Systems Based on Programmable Logic Integrated Circuits

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lashin, A. V.; Kozyrev, A. V.

2015-01-01

One of the most promising forms of developing the apparatus part of relay protection and automation devices is considered. The advantages of choosing programmable logic integrated circuits to obtain adaptive technological algorithms in power system protection and control systems are pointed out. The technical difficulties in the problems which today stand in the way of using relay protection and automation systems are indicated and a new technology for solving these problems is presented. Particular attention is devoted to the possibility of reconfiguring the logic of these devices, using programmable logic integrated circuits

Career Adaptability as a Strategic Competence for Career Development: An Exploratory Study of Its Key Predictors

Science.gov (United States)

Bocciardi, Federica; Caputo, Andrea; Fregonese, Chiara; Langher, Viviana; Sartori, Riccardo

2017-01-01

Purpose: In the current labour market, the competence to adapt is becoming significantly relevant for career development and career success. The construct of career adaptability, i.e. the capability to adapt to changing career-related circumstances and predict advancement in career development, seems to provide a fruitful scientific base for…

European information on climate change impacts, vulnerability and adaptation

Science.gov (United States)

Jol, A.; Isoard, S.

2010-09-01

Vulnerability to natural and technological disasters is increasing due to a combination of intensifying land use, increasing industrial development, further urban expansion and expanding infrastructure and also climate change. At EU level the European Commission's White Paper on adaptation to climate change (published in 2009) highlights that adaptation actions should be focused on the most vulnerable areas and communities in Europe (e.g. mountains, coastal areas, river flood prone areas, Mediterranean, Arctic). Mainstreaming of climate change into existing EU policies will be a key policy, including within the Water Framework Directive, Marine Strategy Framework Directive, Nature protection and biodiversity policies, integrated coastal zone management, other (sectoral) policies (agriculture, forestry, energy, transport, health) and disaster risk prevention. 2010 is the international year on biodiversity and the Conference of Parties of the biodiversity convention will meet in autumn 2010 (Japan) to discuss amongst other post-2010 strategies, objectives and indicators. Both within the Biodiversity Convention (CBD) and the Climate Change Convention (UNFCCC) there is increasing recognition of the need for integration of biodiversity conservation into climate change mitigation and adaptation activities. Furthermore a number of European countries and also some regions have started to prepare and/or have adopted national adaptation plans or frameworks. Sharing of good practices on climate change vulnerability methods and adaptation actions is so far limited, but is essential to improve such plans, at national, sub national and local level where much of the adaptation action is already taking place and will be expanding in future, also involving increasingly the business community. The EU Clearinghouse on CC impacts, vulnerability and adaptation should address these needs and it is planned to be operational end of 2011. The EEA is expected to have a role in its

An Exploratory Study of Cooperative Survival: Strategic Adaptation to External Developments

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jasper Grashuis

2018-02-01

Full Text Available Farmer cooperatives have been portrayed in the literature as flawed and complex organizations with ambiguous objectives. However, research on the observed survival of farmer cooperatives in spite of their weaknesses and limitations is scarce, in part because academic attention to cooperative performance has been static and introspective. Using evidence collected from case studies and print media publications, this paper contributes to the literature with a qualitative study of farmer cooperatives which spurred survival and longevity by means of strategic adaptation in response to four current developments in the external environment: industry consolidation, consumer segmentation, price volatility, and policy change. The qualitative study concludes farmer cooperatives in general respond to such developments by means of organizational growth. Common strategies are vertical integration, geographic expansion, and portfolio diversification. While survival and longevity are promoted in theory, strategic adaptation also often facilitates the pursuit of investor-oriented as opposed to user-oriented objectives. In some scenarios, member ownership and control may become burdensome to the business and prompt conversion to another structure if further adaptation to internal and external developments is unsuccessful. More research is therefore needed to explore the dynamic and variable impact of strategy on cooperative survival.

Developing a Climate Change Boundary Organization: the Montana Adaptation Exchange

Science.gov (United States)

Whitlock, C. L.; Brooks, S.; Armstrong, T.; Bryan, B.

2016-12-01

Small-population large-area states like Montana are often challenged by a need to offer timely and relevant climate-change information that addresses diverse and widely dispersed stakeholder groups. In Montana, filling the gap between science and various types of decision-makers has motivated development of the first Montana Climate Assessment (MCA1), to be released in 2017 with a focus on climate-change impacts for agricultural, water and forestry sectors. To sustain and build on the MCA1 effort, we are also in the process of creating a Boundary Organization (defined by the National Academy of Sciences) called the Montana Adaptation Exchange (the Exchange); this entity will facilitate the flow of information across the boundaries between science, knowledge and implementation. In Montana, the Exchange brings scientists and practitioners together to seek solutions related to climate-change adaptation and other pressing environmental and social-economic challenges. The Montana Adaptation Exchange (1) is a collaborative partnership of members from the science and practitioner communities under a shared governance and participatory model; (2) presents research that has been vetted by the scientific community at large and represents the current state of knowledge; (3) allows for revision and expansion of assessments like the MCA; (4) communicates relevant, often technical, research and findings to a wide variety of resource managers and other stakeholders; (5) develops and maintains an extensive online database that organizes, regularly updates, and makes research data products readily available; and (6) offers an online portal and expert network of affiliated researchers and climate adaptation specialists to provide effective customer support. Boundary organizations, such as the Montana Adaptation Exchange, offer a scalable path to effectively move from "science to knowledge to action" while also allowing stakeholder needs to help inform research agendas.

Future developments in physical protection against the insider threat

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Winblad, A.E.

1985-01-01

This report discusses a number of hardware elements that are being developed for future protection systems against insider adversaries. These elements will assist in enforcing administrative and procedural security rules, provide additional detection and delay capability for critical components, and improve the processing and display of security information. The incorporation of this hardware will add useful layers of protection to the employee-screening and human-reliability programs currently in use. User-friendly evaluation models that can aid in the overall design of more effective protection systems are also described. 2 refs., 6 figs

Future developments in physical protection against the insider threat

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Winblad, A.E.

1985-01-01

This report discusses a number of hardware elements that are being developed for future protection systems against insider adversaries. These elements will assist in enforcing administrative and procedural security rules, provide additional detection and delay capability for critical components, and improve the processing and display of security information. The incorporation of this hardware will add useful layers of protection to the employee-screening and human-reliability programs currently in use. User-friendly evaluation models that can aid in the overall design of more effective protection systems are also described

Employment protection

OpenAIRE

Stefano Scarpetta

2014-01-01

Laws on hiring and firing are intended to protect workers from unfair behavior by employers, to counter imperfections in financial markets that limit workers’ ability to insure themselves against job loss, and to preserve firm-specific human capital. But by imposing costs on firms’ adaptation to changes in demand and technology, employment protection legislation may reduce not only job destruction but also job creation, hindering the efficient allocation of labor and productivity growth....

Radiation protection monitoring in tropical, developing countries

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Becker, K.; Drexler, G.

1979-01-01

Almost all radiation protection standards, manuals and textbooks have been written in and for industrialized countries in temperate climates, and most research effort and instrument manufacturers are also located there. There has been relatively little interest in the completely different socio-economic and climatic conditions in many developing countries. Some of the important differences in conditions, such as high temperatures and relative humidities, electric-power failures and voltage fluctuations, shortage of trained manpower, etc., are discussed, and suggestions are made how to minimize their impacts. Other important matters that are considered are recruitment and training, optimized organizational structures, and the proper choice of research topics in the radiation protection field. (author)

THREADS TO BIODIVERSITY AND ECONOMIC APPROACHES TO DEVELOPMENT OF LAND USE AS ITS PROTECTION

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

L. G. Demydenko

2017-02-01

Full Text Available In the article the understanding of ecological and economic instruments for biodiversity conservation as a system of market, legal and regulatory, institutional arrangements and policies for sustainable development of land use. In terms of European integration, which is the basis of foreign policy identity Ukraine, acquires particular significance modernization of the state, forming an effective and efficient system of public administration (Public Administration, able to introduce systematic and consistent decisions, submission of all tasks of foreign and domestic policy achievement of the conditions and criteria membership in the European Union, particularly in the field of biodiversity conservation and land use management of protected areas, as its component. The signing of the Association Agreement between Ukraine, on one hand, and the European Union and its Member States, of the other part (the Agreement offers new opportunities and creates new standards in various areas of public life, including environmental protection. Sectoral cooperation in the field of environmental protection in the Agreement stipulated in Chapter 6, which is called "Environment" Chapter V «economic and sectoral cooperation." For Ukraine, the implementation of EU legislation in the field of the environment occurs within the eight sectors governed by 29 sources of law (Directives and Regulations of the EU in this area. Directive and Regulation establishes common rules and standards that need to be transposed (transferred to domestic law. These rules and standards are not the subject of discussion and be completely achieved, otherwise stipulated penalties. Unlike modern environmental legislation of Ukraine, which in many respects is a declarative sources of EU law determine the quantitative and qualitative results, which should reach every country within a specified period of time. The feature of EU Directives is that States must adapt their legislation to achieve the

Developed adaptive neuro-fuzzy algorithm to control air conditioning ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The paper developed artificial intelligence technique adaptive neuro-fuzzy controller for air conditioning systems at different pressures. The first order Sugeno fuzzy inference system was implemented and utilized for modeling and controller design. In addition, the estimation of the heat transfer rate and water mass flow rate ...

Developed adaptive neuro-fuzzy algorithm to control air conditioning ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

user

The paper developed artificial intelligence technique adaptive neuro-fuzzy ... system is highly appreciated and essential in most of our daily life. ... It can construct an input-output mapping based on human knowledge and specific input-output data ... fuzzy controllers to produce desirable internal temperature and air quality, ...

Protective role of downregulated MLK3 in myocardial adaptation to chronic hypoxia.

Science.gov (United States)

He, Siyi; Liu, Shunbi; Wu, Xiaochen; Xin, Mei; Ding, Sheng; Xin, Dong; Ouyang, Hui; Zhang, Jinbao

2016-08-01

A series of protective responses could be evoked to achieve compensatory adaptation once cardiomyocytes are subjected to chronic hypoxia. MLK3/JNK/c-jun signaling pathway was previously demonstrated to be involved in this process. In the present study, we aim to further examine the performance of MLK3 in hypoxic H9C2 cells and potential mechanism. Myocardial samples of patients with congenital heart disease (CHD) were collected. H9C2 cells were cultured in hypoxic conditions for various durations. MLK3 was silenced by transfection of shRNA to evaluate its role in cell viability. We found expression of MLK3 protein was lower in patients with cyanotic CHD. In hypoxic H9C2 cells, its expression was gradually decreased in a time-dependent manner. However, there was no significant difference about expression of MLK3 mRNA. According to the results of MTT, LDH, and TUNEL, faster cell growth curve, lower death rate, and less apoptotic cells could be observed in MLK-shRNA group compared with scramble-shRNA group. Silencing of MLK3 significantly reduced expression of cleaved caspase-3, cleaved PARP, Bad, and Bax, together with increased expression of Bcl-2 and ration of Bcl-2/Bax. Both ratio of phospho-JNK/total JNK and ratio of phospho-c-jun/total c-jun were significantly decreased once MLK3 was silenced. At various reoxygenation time, MLK3 shRNA could significantly promote cell survival and decrease cell death according to MTT and LDH. Our results suggested that chronic hypoxia could reduce MLK3 expression in a posttranscriptional regulatory manner. Downregulation of MLK3 protects H9C2 cells from hypoxia-induced apoptosis and H/R injury via blocking the activation of JNK and c-jun.

Perspectives on climate change and adaptation funding in developing countries

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

P Lalthapersad-Pillay

2011-12-01

Full Text Available Most studies concur that climate change could seriously affect the sustainability and well-being of developing countries as they depend directly on climate-sensitive natural resources for their livelihood endeavours. This could primarily occur through reduced agricultural productivity, a higher incidence of diseases, the displacement of people, loss of livelihood and food price increases, all of which could contribute to food insecurity, malnourishment and escalating poverty. Although developing countries have contributed the least to Green house Gas (GHG emissions, they stand to lose the most and it is likely that many of the development gains that have been made thus far will be reversed. To ensure that poverty reduction and economic growth do not become elusive goals for developing countries, it will be necessary to provide funds for potential adaptation measures to prevent these countries slipping further down the Human Development Index (HDI ranking. In this paper, we will use Africa as a reference and look at the funds required for adaptation, the possible sources of funds and the conflict that may occur in prioritizing development objectives. Keywords: Climate change, sustainability, Greenhouse Gas (GHG emissions, poverty reduction, Human Development Index (HDI Disciplines: Economics, Environmental Studies, Sustainabiilty Studies, African Studies

Contribution to developing the environment radiation protection methodology

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Oudalova, A. [Institute of Atomic Power Engineering NRNU MEPhI (Russian Federation); Alexakhin, R.; Dubynina, M. [Russian Institute of Agricultural Radiology and Agroecology (Russian Federation)

2014-07-01

The environment sustainable development and biota protection, including the environment radiation protection are issues of nowadays interest in the society. An activity is ongoing on the development of a system of radiation protection for non-human biota. Anthropocentric and eco-centric principles are widely discussed. ICRP Publications 103, 108, 114 and many other reports and articles refer to the topic of environmental protection, reference animals and plants set, corresponding transfer parameters, dose models and derived consideration reference levels. There is still an open field for discussion of methods and approaches to get well-established procedure to assess environmental risks of radiation impacts to different organisms, populations and ecosystems. A huge work has been done by the ICRP and other organizations and research groups to develop and systematize approaches for this difficult subject. This activity, however, is not everywhere well-known and perceived, and more efforts are needed to bring ideas of eco-centric strategy in the environment radiation protection not only to public but to specialists in many countries as well. One of the main points of interest is an assessment of critical doses and doses rates for flora and fauna species. Some aspects of a possible procedure to find their estimates are studied in this work, including criteria for datasets of good quality, models of dose dependence, sensitivity of different umbrella endpoints and methods of original massive datasets treatment. Estimates are done based on information gathered in a database on radiation-induced effects in plants. Data on biological effects in plants (umbrella endpoints of reproductive potential, survival, morbidity, morphological, biochemical, and genetic effects) in dependence on dose and dose rates of ionizing radiation have been collected from reviewed publications and maintained in MS Access format. The database now contains about 7000 datasets and 25000 records

Developing Adaptive Teaching Competency through Coaching

Science.gov (United States)

Vogt, Franziska; Rogalla, Marion

2009-01-01

The research project Adaptive Teaching Competency seeks to conceptualise the processes of tuning teaching to individual students' learning needs and to empirically test, within the field of science teaching, to what extent Adaptive Teaching Competency can be fostered through teacher education. 32 primary and secondary teachers took part in an…

Housing development erodes avian community structure in U.S. protected areas

Science.gov (United States)

Eric M. Wood; Anna M. Pidgeon; Volker C. Radeloff; David Helmers; Patrick D. Culbert; Nicholas S. Keuler; Curtis H. Flather

2014-01-01

Protected areas are a cornerstone for biodiversity conservation, but they also provide amenities that attract housing development on inholdings and adjacent private lands. We explored how this development affects biodiversity within and near protected areas among six ecological regions throughout the United States. We quantified the effect of housing density within, at...

Socio-economic vulnerability of coastal communities in southern Thailand: the development of adaptation strategies

Science.gov (United States)

Willroth, P.; Massmann, F.; Wehrhahn, R.; Revilla Diez, J.

2012-08-01

The tsunami of December 2004 impacted large areas of Thailand's coastline and caused severe human and economic losses. The recovery period revealed differences in the vulnerabilities of communities affected. An understanding of the causal factors of vulnerability is crucial for minimising the negative effects of future threats and developing adaptive capacities. This paper analyses the vulnerabilities and the development of adaptation strategies in the booming tourist area of Khao Lak and in the predominantly fishing and agricultural area of Ban Nam Khem through a comprehensive vulnerability framework. The results show that social networks played a crucial role in coping with the disaster. Social cohesion is important for strengthening the community and developing successful adaptation strategies. The development of tourism and the turning away from traditional activities have a significant positive influence on the income situation, but create a dependency on a single business sector. It could be shown that households generating their income in the tourism sector were vulnerable unless they had diversified their income previously. Income diversification decreased the vulnerability in the study areas. Adaptation strategies and processes developed in the aftermath clearly address these issues.

Development of Functional Foods for Body Protection Using Radiation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jo, S. K.; Jung, U. H.; Park, H. R.

2007-07-15

We have previously developed two herbal compositions(HemoHIM, HemoTonic) that protects immune/hematopoietic system and self-renewal tissues against radiation and enhances immune/hematopoietic functions. In this study, we tried to expand its usability by verifying its protective activity against various harmful stimuli as well as radiation. HemoHIM was shown to be highly effective in reducing immune/hematopoietic damage, particularly, normalizing the Th1/Th2 imbalance, which seemed to be a result of increased production of IL-12p70 by APC and enhanced NK cell activity. Also HemoHIM was shown to have protective activities against UV-induced skin damage, immune system damage by an anticancer drug (CP), immune depression by old age and stress, and inflammation. Finally it was confirmed in a human study that HemoHIM improves the immune cell functions and cytokine production. Based on these results, HemoHIM has been approved as a health functional food for immunomodulation by Korea FDA and succeeded in its industrialization. Meanwhile, to develop functional foods for the reduction of chronic radiation damage (carcinogenesis), we have screened natural products for inhibitory activities against carcinogenesis-related factors, and developed two anti-carcinogenic compositions. Also 6 single compounds were isolated and identified from radioprotective natural products and elucidated some synergistic protection by several single compounds and established a basis for the development of advanced technology for radioprotection. Also, to obtain the applicability of radiation technology for the safe sanitatation and distribution of functional food materials, we verified the toxicological safety, stability of activity and active components of irradiated medicinal herbs

Development of Functional Foods for Body Protection Using Radiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jo, S. K.; Jung, U. H.; Park, H. R.

2007-07-01

We have previously developed two herbal compositions(HemoHIM, HemoTonic) that protects immune/hematopoietic system and self-renewal tissues against radiation and enhances immune/hematopoietic functions. In this study, we tried to expand its usability by verifying its protective activity against various harmful stimuli as well as radiation. HemoHIM was shown to be highly effective in reducing immune/hematopoietic damage, particularly, normalizing the Th1/Th2 imbalance, which seemed to be a result of increased production of IL-12p70 by APC and enhanced NK cell activity. Also HemoHIM was shown to have protective activities against UV-induced skin damage, immune system damage by an anticancer drug (CP), immune depression by old age and stress, and inflammation. Finally it was confirmed in a human study that HemoHIM improves the immune cell functions and cytokine production. Based on these results, HemoHIM has been approved as a health functional food for immunomodulation by Korea FDA and succeeded in its industrialization. Meanwhile, to develop functional foods for the reduction of chronic radiation damage (carcinogenesis), we have screened natural products for inhibitory activities against carcinogenesis-related factors, and developed two anti-carcinogenic compositions. Also 6 single compounds were isolated and identified from radioprotective natural products and elucidated some synergistic protection by several single compounds and established a basis for the development of advanced technology for radioprotection. Also, to obtain the applicability of radiation technology for the safe sanitatation and distribution of functional food materials, we verified the toxicological safety, stability of activity and active components of irradiated medicinal herbs

Development and validation of the Children’s Center Adaptation Questionnaire (CAC

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Juan Manuel Fernández Millán

2017-12-01

Full Text Available The present study aims at the development and validation of the Center Adaptation Questionnaire (CAC by statistical homogeneity analysis, factor analysis and both internal and external validity. The questionnaire was admi- nistered to 318 children and adolescents aged between 4 and 17, from different child/youth care centers in Melilla (Spain. Statistical analyzes indicate that the questionnaire has a structure formed by two factors and 8 additional items with a Cronbach Alpha suitable for both the overall rate of the scale (0.790 and their different dimensions. These data and the correlation between total scores and external adaptation measure allow us to conclude that the Center Adaptation Questionnaire (CAC is a reliable and valid instrument.

Autism as an adaptive common variant pathway for human brain development.

Science.gov (United States)

Johnson, Mark H

2017-06-01

While research on focal perinatal lesions has provided evidence for recovery of function, much less is known about processes of brain adaptation resulting from mild but widespread disturbances to neural processing over the early years (such as alterations in synaptic efficiency). Rather than being viewed as a direct behavioral consequence of life-long neural dysfunction, I propose that autism is best viewed as the end result of engaging adaptive processes during a sensitive period. From this perspective, autism is not appropriately described as a disorder of neurodevelopment, but rather as an adaptive common variant pathway of human functional brain development. Copyright © 2017 The Author. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

The role of the international radiation protection association in development and implementation of radiation protection standards

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Metcalf, P.; Lochard, J.; Webb, G.

2002-01-01

The International Radiation Protection Association (IRPA) is an affiliation of national and regional professional societies. Its individual membership is approaching some 20 000 professionals from 42 societies and covering 50 countries. Its primary objective is to provide a platform for collaboration between members of its affiliate societies to further radiation protection and safety. The IRPA is mandated to promote and facilitate the establishment of radiation protection societies, support international meetings and to encourage international publications, research and education and the establishment and review of standards. Through its membership base and its observer status on bodies such as the ICRP and the safety standards committees of the IAEA, the IRPA is in a position to provide valuable input to the safety standards development process. This factor has been increasingly recognised more recently within the IRPA and the various organisations involved in the development of safety standards. This paper addresses the mechanisms that have been established to enhance the input of the IRPA into the safety standards development process and for their subsequent implementation. (author)

The political economy of urban climate adaptation and development planning in Surat, India

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Chu, E.

2016-01-01

This paper argues for a political economic approach to understanding climate change adaptation and development planning in an urban context. Based on field research conducted in Surat, India, across a period of two years, I illustrate how climate adaptation is rooted in preexisting and contextually

Context aware adaptive security service model

Science.gov (United States)

Tunia, Marcin A.

2015-09-01

Present systems and devices are usually protected against different threats concerning digital data processing. The protection mechanisms consume resources, which are either highly limited or intensively utilized by many entities. The optimization of these resources usage is advantageous. The resources that are saved performing optimization may be utilized by other mechanisms or may be sufficient for longer time. It is usually assumed that protection has to provide specific quality and attack resistance. By interpreting context situation of business services - users and services themselves, it is possible to adapt security services parameters to countermeasure threats associated with current situation. This approach leads to optimization of used resources and maintains sufficient security level. This paper presents architecture of adaptive security service, which is context-aware and exploits quality of context data issue.

Adaptive governance of the Baltic Sea - lessons from elsewhere

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Matilda Valman

2015-03-01

Full Text Available Governance of marine resources is increasingly characterized by integrated, cross sectoral and ecosystem based approaches. Such approaches require that existing governing bodies have an ability to adapt to ecosystem dynamics, while also providing transparent and legitimate outcomes. Here, we investigate how the Baltic Marine Environment Protection Commission (HELCOM, the international governing body for the Baltic Sea, could improve its prospects for working with the ecosystem approach, drawing from the literature on adaptive governance. We construct an ideal type of adaptive governance to which we compare the way in which HELCOM is operating and relate these dynamics to two other international marine environment governance organizations, the Coral Triangle Initiative on Coral Reefs, Fisheries and Food Security (CTI-CFF and the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR. We conclude that HELCOM deviates from an ideal type of adaptive governance in several ways but also that the other two case studies provide empirical support for potential ways in which HELCOM could improve its adaptive capacity. Key aspects where HELCOM could improve include increasing stakeholder participation – both in information sharing and decision making. Further, HELCOM need to develop evaluation mechanisms, secure compliance to improve adaptive capacity and organizational effectiveness, which entails the development of structures for conflict resolution. Finally, HELCOM need to increase communication and harmonization between different levels of authority.

Experimental investigation of biomimetic self-pumping and self-adaptive transpiration cooling.

Science.gov (United States)

Jiang, Pei-Xue; Huang, Gan; Zhu, Yinhai; Xu, Ruina; Liao, Zhiyuan; Lu, Taojie

2017-09-01

Transpiration cooling is an effective way to protect high heat flux walls. However, the pumps for the transpiration cooling system make the system more complex and increase the load, which is a huge challenge for practical applications. A biomimetic self-pumping transpiration cooling system was developed inspired by the process of trees transpiration that has no pumps. An experimental investigation showed that the water coolant automatically flowed from the water tank to the hot surface with a height difference of 80 mm without any pumps. A self-adaptive transpiration cooling system was then developed based on this mechanism. The system effectively cooled the hot surface with the surface temperature kept to about 373 K when the heating flame temperature was 1639 K and the heat flux was about 0.42 MW m -2 . The cooling efficiency reached 94.5%. The coolant mass flow rate adaptively increased with increasing flame heat flux from 0.24 MW m -2 to 0.42 MW m -2 while the cooled surface temperature stayed around 373 K. Schlieren pictures showed a protective steam layer on the hot surface which blocked the flame heat flux to the hot surface. The protective steam layer thickness also increased with increasing heat flux.

Protected area effectiveness against land development in Spain.

Science.gov (United States)

Rodríguez-Rodríguez, David; Martínez-Vega, Javier

2018-06-01

Land use-land cover (LULC) changes towards artificial covers are one of the main global threats to biodiversity conservation. In this comprehensive study, we tested a number of methodological and research hypotheses, and a new covariate control technique in order to address common protected area (PA) assessment issues and accurately assess whether different PA networks have had an effect at preventing development of artificial LULCs in Spain, a highly biodiverse country that has experienced massive socioeconomic transformations in the past two decades. We used digital census data for four PA networks designated between 1990 and 2000: Nature Reserves (NRs), Nature Parks (NPs), Sites of Community Importance (SCIs) and Special Protection Areas (SPAs). We analysed the effect of explanatory variables on the ecological effectiveness of protected polygons (PPs): Legislation stringency, cummulative legal designations, management, size, age and bio-physical characteristics. A multiple Before-After-Control-Impact (BACI) semi-experimental research design was used whereby artificial land cover increase (ALCI) and proportional artificial land cover increase (PALCI) results were compared inside and outside PAs, using 1 km and 5 km buffer areas surrounding PAs as controls. LULC data were retrieved from Corine Land Cover (CLC) 1990 and 2006 data. Results from three spatial-statistical models using progressively restrictive criteria to select control areas increasingly more accurate and similar to the assessed PPs were compared. PAs were a generally effective territorial policy to prevent land development in Spain. NRs were the most effective PA category, with no new artificial land covers in the assessed period, although exact causality could not be attributed due to legal overlaps. SPAs were the least effective category, with worse ALCI data than their control areas. Legal protection was effective against land development, which was influenced by most bio-physical variables

Cautious but Committed: Moving Toward Adaptive Planning and Operation Strategies for Renewable Energy's Wildlife Implications

Science.gov (United States)

Köppel, Johann; Dahmen, Marie; Helfrich, Jennifer; Schuster, Eva; Bulling, Lea

2014-10-01

Wildlife planning for renewable energy must cope with the uncertainties of potential wildlife impacts. Unfortunately, the environmental policies which instigate renewable energy and those which protect wildlife are not coherently aligned—creating a green versus green dilemma. Thus, climate mitigation efforts trigger renewable energy development, but then face substantial barriers from biodiversity protection instruments and practices. This article briefly reviews wind energy and wildlife interactions, highlighting the lively debated effects on bats. Today, planning and siting of renewable energy are guided by the precautionary principle in an attempt to carefully address wildlife challenges. However, this planning attitude creates limitations as it struggles to negotiate the aforementioned green versus green dilemma. More adaptive planning and management strategies and practices hold the potential to reconcile these discrepancies to some degree. This adaptive approach is discussed using facets of case studies from policy, planning, siting, and operational stages of wind energy in Germany and the United States, with one case showing adaptive planning in action for solar energy as well. This article attempts to highlight the benefits of more adaptive approaches as well as the possible shortcomings, such as reduced planning security for renewable energy developers. In conclusion, these studies show that adaptive planning and operation strategies can be designed to supplement and enhance the precautionary principle in wildlife planning for green energy.

Cautious but committed: moving toward adaptive planning and operation strategies for renewable energy's wildlife implications.

Science.gov (United States)

Köppel, Johann; Dahmen, Marie; Helfrich, Jennifer; Schuster, Eva; Bulling, Lea

2014-10-01

Wildlife planning for renewable energy must cope with the uncertainties of potential wildlife impacts. Unfortunately, the environmental policies which instigate renewable energy and those which protect wildlife are not coherently aligned-creating a green versus green dilemma. Thus, climate mitigation efforts trigger renewable energy development, but then face substantial barriers from biodiversity protection instruments and practices. This article briefly reviews wind energy and wildlife interactions, highlighting the lively debated effects on bats. Today, planning and siting of renewable energy are guided by the precautionary principle in an attempt to carefully address wildlife challenges. However, this planning attitude creates limitations as it struggles to negotiate the aforementioned green versus green dilemma. More adaptive planning and management strategies and practices hold the potential to reconcile these discrepancies to some degree. This adaptive approach is discussed using facets of case studies from policy, planning, siting, and operational stages of wind energy in Germany and the United States, with one case showing adaptive planning in action for solar energy as well. This article attempts to highlight the benefits of more adaptive approaches as well as the possible shortcomings, such as reduced planning security for renewable energy developers. In conclusion, these studies show that adaptive planning and operation strategies can be designed to supplement and enhance the precautionary principle in wildlife planning for green energy.

An Adaptive Approach to Managing Knowledge Development in a Project-Based Learning Environment

Science.gov (United States)

Tilchin, Oleg; Kittany, Mohamed

2016-01-01

In this paper we propose an adaptive approach to managing the development of students' knowledge in the comprehensive project-based learning (PBL) environment. Subject study is realized by two-stage PBL. It shapes adaptive knowledge management (KM) process and promotes the correct balance between personalized and collaborative learning. The…

Adaptive comanagement in developing world contexts: A systematic review of adaptive comanagement in Nusa Tenggara Barat, Indonesia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alex Laplaza

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Nusa Tenggara Barat (NTB province, Indonesia is beset by high vulnerability to climate change and weak adaptive capacity to address its effects. Livelihoods in the province are intimately tied to increasingly scarce and contested ecosystem goods and services. The population’s climate vulnerability is further exacerbated by social, economic, and cultural drivers of vulnerability, such as rapid population growth, pervasive corruption, and inadequate community participation in planning processes. Scholars and practitioners have begun conceptualizing and implementing adaptive comanagement (ACM approaches in NTB. ACM is an environmental governance approach for complex, multi-scale social-ecological systems facing uncertainty and rapid system changes. ACM aims to forge vertical and horizontal links for shared learning between the various actors of multi-level resource management systems. The province’s markedly heterogeneous physical and social geographies present a unique opportunity to glean lessons applicable to a range of contexts including rural communities, island geographies, the Indonesian archipelago, the tropical Asia-Pacific region, and the developing world more broadly. This paper provides a systematic review of efforts to conceptualize, implement, and evaluate adaptive comanagement approaches in Nusa Tenggara Barat. In doing so, it characterizes the literature, discerns salient thematic components, and identifies areas for further research and action on the conceptualization and implementation of adaptive comanagement.

SUBSTANTIATING THE DEVELOPMENT STRATEGIES FOR TOURISM IN PROTECTED AREAS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mirela Costencu

2013-12-01

Full Text Available The protected natural areas, irrespective of their classification modality or the motivations they propose, have become more and more attractive for tourists. However, in time, the increasing touristic flows they attract, often developed in an uncontrolled manner, lead to the erosion of the space and the degradation of ecosystems. Developing tourism on sustainable principles, with the appropriate balance of the two functions of a protected area – the scientific and the touristic function – should start from the analysis of this form of tourism and of the development opportunities and limits regarded from the perspective of the external environment, and from the particularisation of the concept “site’s tourist reception capacity”. Destination areas should meet the economic, social and ecological requirements in competition, so that they observe the integrity of natural resources and of local communities. The upper limit of the number of visits allowed in a protected area is purposefully set at a level below the identified level of accepted use, so that, in the long run, the environment could be able to cover the possible increases occurred in the number of tourists, without subjecting the environment to further harm.

A development of digital plant protection system architecture

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Seong, S. H.; Park, H. Y.; Kim, D. H.; Seo, Y. S.; Gu, I. S.

2000-01-01

The digital plant protection system (DPPS) which have a large number of advantages compared to current analog protection system has been developed in various field. The major disadvantages of digital system are, however, vulnerable to faults of processor and software. To overcome the disadvantages, the concept of segment and partition in a channel has been developed. Each segment in a channel is divided from sensor to reactor trip and engineered safety features, which is based on the functional diversity of input signals against the various plant transient phenomena. Each partition allocates the function module to an independent processing module in order to process and isolate the faults of each module of a segment. A communication system based on the deterministic protocol with the predictable and hard real-time characteristics has been developed in order to link the various modules within a segment. The self-diagnostics including online test and periodic test procedures are developed in order to increase the safety, reliability and availability of DPPS. The developed DPPS uses the off-the-shelf DSP (digital signal processor) and adopts VME bus architecture, which have sufficient operation experience in the industry. The verification and validation and quality assurance of software has been developed and the architecture and protocol of deterministic communication system has been researched

The Development of Consumer Protection Policies in Malaysia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mohamad Fazli Sabri

2014-06-01

Full Text Available The Malaysian government envisions Malaysia as an inclusive and sustainable high-income nation by 2020. The definition of “high income” is per capita income of USD15, 000 or MYR48, 000, based on the World Bank’s current definition of “high income”. The objective is not merely a quantitative target; it is also about Malaysia being an advanced and developed nation with an economy having the characteristics of developed nations. Advancements in information and communication technology (ICT and globalization have resulted in the evolution of a more complex and challenging marketplace. As today’s consumers are constantly faced with a bewildering array of goods and services in the market, consumers must be equipped with an elevated level of consumerism knowledge and skills. Malaysian consumers thus need to be kept in touch with developments in the market, enabling them to act and decide effectively, to ensure that they develop as more empowered, savvy and resilient consumers now and after Malaysia transforms into a developed nation. However, without the government’s intervention to protect consumers through adequate legislations and enforcement, the aim of creating “empowered consumers” will not be realized. This paper aims to discuss the development of consumer protection policies in Malaysia.

Developments in cathodic protection. Ontwikkelingen in de kathodische bescherming

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Van Bruchem, H. (VEG-Gasinstituut NV, Apeldoorn (Netherlands))

1990-07-01

Developments in cathodic protection of underground steel pipelines used for the transport of natural gas in the Netherlands are outlined. Besides criteria like applied negative potential in relation to ohmic resistances of soil, overprotection and the influence of stray currents, for instance in the vicinity of railroad tracks, are discussed. Control measurements of cathodic protection are described; a new method, wave form analysis, is outlined. 5 figs., 4 refs., 5 ills.

Pseudo Control Hedging and its Application for Safe Flight Envelope Protection

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Lombaerts, T.J.J.; Looye, G.H.N.; Chu, Q.P.; Mulder, J.A.

2010-01-01

This paper describes how the previously developed concept of Pseudo Control Hedging (PCH) can be integrated in a Fault Tolerant Flight Controller (FTFC) as a safe flight envelope protection system of the first degree. This PCH algorithm adapts the reference model for the system output in case of

Modeling adaptive and non-adaptive responses to environmental change

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Coulson, Tim; Kendall, Bruce E; Barthold, Julia A.

2017-01-01

, with plastic responses being either adaptive or non-adaptive. We develop an approach that links quantitative genetic theory with data-driven structured models to allow prediction of population responses to environmental change via plasticity and adaptive evolution. After introducing general new theory, we...... construct a number of example models to demonstrate that evolutionary responses to environmental change over the short-term will be considerably slower than plastic responses, and that the rate of adaptive evolution to a new environment depends upon whether plastic responses are adaptive or non-adaptive....... Parameterization of the models we develop requires information on genetic and phenotypic variation and demography that will not always be available, meaning that simpler models will often be required to predict responses to environmental change. We consequently develop a method to examine whether the full...

Design and Analysis of Adaptive Message Coding on LDPC Decoder with Faulty Storage

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Guangjun Ge

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Unreliable message storage severely degrades the performance of LDPC decoders. This paper discusses the impacts of message errors on LDPC decoders and schemes improving the robustness. Firstly, we develop a discrete density evolution analysis for faulty LDPC decoders, which indicates that protecting the sign bits of messages is effective enough for finite-precision LDPC decoders. Secondly, we analyze the effects of quantization precision loss for static sign bit protection and propose an embedded dynamic coding scheme by adaptively employing the least significant bits (LSBs to protect the sign bits. Thirdly, we give a construction of Hamming product code for the adaptive coding and present low complexity decoding algorithms. Theoretic analysis indicates that the proposed scheme outperforms traditional triple modular redundancy (TMR scheme in decoding both threshold and residual errors, while Monte Carlo simulations show that the performance loss is less than 0.2 dB when the storage error probability varies from 10-3 to 10-4.

Declining human population but increasing residential development around protected areas in Puerto Rico

Science.gov (United States)

J. Castro-Prieto; S. Martinuzzi; V.C. Radeloff; D.P. Helmers; M. Quiñones; W.A. Gould

2017-01-01

Increasing residential development around protected areas is a major threat for protected areas worldwide, and human population growth is often the most important cause. However, population is decreasing in many regions as a result of socio-economic changes, and it is unclear how residential development around protected areas is affected in these situations. We...

Protective barrier development: Overview

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wing, N.R.; Gee, G.W.

1990-01-01

Protective barrier and warning marker systems are being developed to isolate wastes disposed of near the earth's surface at the Hanford Site. The barrier is designed to function in an arid to semiarid climate, to limit infiltration and percolation of water through the waste zone to near-zero, to be maintenance free, and to last up to 10,000 yr. Natural materials (e.g., fine soil, sand, gravel, riprap, clay, asphalt) have been selected to optimize barrier performance and longevity and to create an integrated structure with redundant features. These materials isolate wastes by limiting water drainage; reducing the likelihood of plant, animal, and human intrusion; controlling emission of noxious gases; and minimizing erosion. Westinghouse Hanford Company and Pacific Northwest Laboratory efforts to assess the performance of various barrier and marker designs will be discussed

The principles of radiation protection

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2004-01-01

The aim of radiation protection is to avoid or to reduce the risks linked to ionizing radiation. In order to reduce these risks, the radiation protection uses three great principles: justification, optimization and limitation of radiation doses. to apply these principles, the radiation protection has regulatory and technical means adapted to three different categories of people: public, patients and workers. The nuclear safety authority elaborates the regulation, and carries out monitoring of the reliable application of radiation protection system. (N.C.)

Development of adaptive control applied to chaotic systems

Science.gov (United States)

Rhode, Martin Andreas

1997-12-01

Continuous-time derivative control and adaptive map-based recursive feedback control techniques are used to control chaos in a variety of systems and in situations that are of practical interest. The theoretical part of the research includes the review of fundamental concept of control theory in the context of its applications to deterministic chaotic systems, the development of a new adaptive algorithm to identify the linear system properties necessary for control, and the extension of the recursive proportional feedback control technique, RPF, to high dimensional systems. Chaos control was applied to models of a thermal pulsed combustor, electro-chemical dissolution and the hyperchaotic Rossler system. Important implications for combustion engineering were suggested by successful control of the model of the thermal pulsed combustor. The system was automatically tracked while maintaining control into regions of parameter and state space where no stable attractors exist. In a simulation of the electrochemical dissolution system, application of derivative control to stabilize a steady state, and adaptive RPF to stabilize a period one orbit, was demonstrated. The high dimensional adaptive control algorithm was applied in a simulation using the Rossler hyperchaotic system, where a period-two orbit with two unstable directions was stabilized and tracked over a wide range of a system parameter. In the experimental part, the electrochemical system was studied in parameter space, by scanning the applied potential and the frequency of the rotating copper disk. The automated control algorithm is demonstrated to be effective when applied to stabilize a period-one orbit in the experiment. We show the necessity of small random perturbations applied to the system in order to both learn the dynamics and control the system at the same time. The simultaneous learning and control capability is shown to be an important part of the active feedback control.

An Overview of Recent Developments in Cognitive Diagnostic Computer Adaptive Assessments

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alan Huebner

2010-01-01

Full Text Available Cognitive diagnostic modeling has become an exciting new field of psychometric research. These models aim to diagnose examinees' mastery status of a group of discretely defined skills, or attributes, thereby providing them with detailed information regarding their specific strengths and weaknesses. Combining cognitive diagnosis with computer adaptive assessments has emerged as an important part of this new field. This article aims to provide practitioners and researchers with an introduction to and overview of recent developments in cognitive diagnostic computer adaptive assessments.

A live attenuated cold-adapted influenza A H7N3 virus vaccine provides protection against homologous and heterologous H7 viruses in mice and ferrets

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Joseph, Tomy; McAuliffe, Josephine; Lu, Bin; Vogel, Leatrice; Swayne, David; Jin, Hong; Kemble, George; Subbarao, Kanta

2008-01-01

The appearance of human infections caused by avian influenza A H7 subtype viruses underscores their pandemic potential and the need to develop vaccines to protect humans from viruses of this subtype. A live attenuated H7N3 virus vaccine was generated by reverse genetics using the HA and NA genes of a low pathogenicity A/chicken/BC/CN-6/04 (H7N3) virus and the six internal protein genes of the cold-adapted A/Ann Arbor/6/60 ca (H2N2) virus. The reassortant H7N3 BC 04 ca vaccine virus was temperature sensitive and showed attenuation in mice and ferrets. Intranasal immunization with one dose of the vaccine protected mice and ferrets when challenged with homologous and heterologous H7 viruses. The reassortant H7N3 BC 04 ca vaccine virus showed comparable levels of attenuation, immunogenicity and efficacy in mice and ferret models. The safety, immunogenicity, and efficacy of this vaccine in mice and ferrets support the evaluation of this vaccine in clinical trials

Developing Adaptive Proficiency in Special Forces Officers

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

White, Susan S; Mueller-Hanson, Rose A; Dorsey, David W; Pulakos, Elaine D; Wisecarver, Michelle M; Deagle, Edwin A., III; Mendini, Kip G

2005-01-01

Adaptive proficiency is critical for operating in the dynamic Special Forces (SF) mission environment and a recent focus on this requirement has resulted in a greater emphasis on adaptability in current training for SF...

Coastal Adaptation to Climate Change. Can the IPCC Technical Guidelines be applied?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Klein, R.J.T.; Nicholls, R.J.; Mimura, Nobuo

1999-01-01

This paper evaluates the IPCC Technical Guidelines for Assessing Climate Change Impacts and Adaptations with respect to the guidance offered for coastal-adaptation assessment. It appears that the IPCC Technical Guidelines focus strongly on implementation. This paper uses both conceptual, and empirical information is used in this paper to show that coastal adaptation embraces more than selecting one of the 'technical' options to respond to sea-level rise (retreat, accommodate or protect). Coastal adaptation is a more complex and iterative process with a series of policy cycles. To be effective, an expanded adaptation framework involving four steps is suggested, including (1) information collection and awareness raising; (2) planning and design; (3) implementation, and (4) monitoring and evaluation. The incomplete coverage of these four steps in existing coastal-adaptation assessments constrains the development of adaptation strategies that are supported by the relevant actors and integrated into existing management. Researchers and policy-makers are recommended to work together to establish a framework for adaptation that is integrated within current coastal management processes and practices and takes a broader view on the subject. 46 refs

Optimization and radiation protection culture

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jeon, In Young; Shin, Hyeong Ki; Lee, Chan Mi

2013-01-01

Safety culture or radiation protection culture is based in common on the term, 'culture'. Culture is defined as the learned, shared set of symbols and patterns of basic assumptions, which is invented, discovered, or developed by a given group as it learns to cope with its problem of external adaptation and internal integration. Safety culture generally refers to the attitude and behaviors affecting safety performance. The concept of 'Safety Culture' was introduced after the Chernobyl accident in 1986. For the accident, nuclear society reached the conclusion that the cause was the wrong management attitude of the NPP, that is, deficient 'Safety Culture'. Recently, 'Radiation Protection Culture' was introduced as the core concept of nuclear safety culture. There have been many efforts to establish definition and develop assessment tool for radiation protection culture in international level such as ICRP and IRPA as well as NRC. In the same context with the safety culture, radiation protection culture is defined as 'the core values and behaviors resulting from a collective commitment by leaders and individual's to emphasize safety over competing goals to ensure protection of people and the environment.' It is worthwhile to recognize that regulatory enforcement in establishing healthy radiation protection culture of operators should be minimized because culture is not in the domain of regulatory enforcement. However, as 'ALARA', the most important concept in radiation protection, may be successfully achieved only in well established radiation protection culture, the least regulatory intervention would be needed in promoting and nurturing radiation protection culture in licensee. In addition, the concept of radiation protection culture should be addressed in plant operational policy to achieve the goals of ALARA. The pre-condition of the successful radiation protection culture is a healthy organizational

Optimization and radiation protection culture

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jeon, In Young; Shin, Hyeong Ki; Lee, Chan Mi [Korea Institute of Nuclear Safety, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2013-04-15

Safety culture or radiation protection culture is based in common on the term, 'culture'. Culture is defined as the learned, shared set of symbols and patterns of basic assumptions, which is invented, discovered, or developed by a given group as it learns to cope with its problem of external adaptation and internal integration. Safety culture generally refers to the attitude and behaviors affecting safety performance. The concept of 'Safety Culture' was introduced after the Chernobyl accident in 1986. For the accident, nuclear society reached the conclusion that the cause was the wrong management attitude of the NPP, that is, deficient 'Safety Culture'. Recently, 'Radiation Protection Culture' was introduced as the core concept of nuclear safety culture. There have been many efforts to establish definition and develop assessment tool for radiation protection culture in international level such as ICRP and IRPA as well as NRC. In the same context with the safety culture, radiation protection culture is defined as 'the core values and behaviors resulting from a collective commitment by leaders and individual's to emphasize safety over competing goals to ensure protection of people and the environment.' It is worthwhile to recognize that regulatory enforcement in establishing healthy radiation protection culture of operators should be minimized because culture is not in the domain of regulatory enforcement. However, as 'ALARA', the most important concept in radiation protection, may be successfully achieved only in well established radiation protection culture, the least regulatory intervention would be needed in promoting and nurturing radiation protection culture in licensee. In addition, the concept of radiation protection culture should be addressed in plant operational policy to achieve the goals of ALARA. The pre-condition of the successful radiation protection culture is a healthy organizational

Developing the experts we need: Fostering adaptive expertise through education.

Science.gov (United States)

Mylopoulos, Maria; Kulasegaram, Kulamakan; Woods, Nicole N

2018-03-08

In this era of increasing complexity, there is a growing gap between what we need our medical experts to do and the training we provide them. While medical education has a long history of being guided by theories of expertise to inform curriculum design and implementation, the theories that currently underpin our educational programs do not account for the expertise necessary for excellence in the changing health care context. The more comprehensive view of expertise gained by research on both clinical reasoning and adaptive expertise provides a useful framing for re-shaping physician education, placing emphasis on the training of clinicians who will be adaptive experts. That is, have both the ability to apply their extensive knowledge base as well as create new knowledge as dictated by patient needs and context. Three key educational approaches have been shown to foster the development of adaptive expertise: learning that emphasizes understanding, providing students with opportunities to embrace struggle and discovery in their learning, and maximizing variation in the teaching of clinical concepts. There is solid evidence that a commitment to these educational approaches can help medical educators to set trainees on the path towards adaptive expertise. © 2018 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Environmentally-adapted local energy systems

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Moe, N; Oefverholm, E [NUTEK, Stockholm (Sweden); Andersson, Owe [EKAN Gruppen (Sweden); Froste, H [Swedish Environmental Protection Agency, Stockholm (Sweden)

1997-10-01

Energy companies, municipalities, property companies, firms of consultants, environmental groups and individuals are examples of players working locally to shape environmentally adapted energy systems. These players have needed information making them better able to make decisions on cost-efficient, environmentally-adapted energy systems. This book answers many of the questions they have put. The volume is mainly based on Swedish handbooks produced by the Swedish National Board for Industrial and Technical Development, NUTEK, together with the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency. These handbooks have been used in conjunction with municipal energy planning, local Agenda 21 work, to provide a basis for deciding on concrete local energy systems. The contents in brief: -The book throws new light on the concept of energy efficiency; -A section on the environment compares how air-polluting emissions vary with different methods of energy production; -A section contains more than 40 ideas for measures which can be profitable, reduce energy consumption and the impact on the environment all at the same time; -The book gives concrete examples of new, alternative and environmentally-adapted local energy systems. More efficient use of energy is included as a possible change of energy system; -The greatest emphasis is laid upon alternative energy systems for heating. It may be heating in a house, block of flats, office building or school; -Finally, there are examples of environmentally-adapted local energy planning.

Evaluation of protection factor of respiratory protective equipment using indigenously developed protection factor test facility

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Patkulkar, D.S.; Ganesh, G.; Tripathi, R.M.

2018-01-01

Assigned protection factor (APF) is an indicator representing effectiveness of a respirator and it provides workplace level of respiratory protection for workers in providing protection against exposure to airborne contaminants Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) specifies 'Respirator APF' and 'Maximum Use Concentration' (MUC - a term derived using APF) shall be an integral part of Respirator Protection Standard. MUC establishes the maximum airborne concentration of a contaminant in which a respirator with a given APF may be used. The use of particulate respirators such as half face mask, full face mask and powered air purifying respirators is essential for radioactive jobs in nuclear facilities to prevent any intake of radionuclide. With this impetus, the Protection Factor Test Facility (PFTF) for testing and evaluation of respiratory protective equipment meeting relevant applicable standards was designed, fabricated and installed in Respiratory Protective Equipment Laboratory of Health Physics Division

Optical Fiber Protection

Science.gov (United States)

1999-01-01

F&S Inc. developed and commercialized fiber optic and microelectromechanical systems- (MEMS) based instrumentation for harsh environments encountered in the aerospace industry. The NASA SBIR programs have provided F&S the funds and the technology to develop ruggedized coatings and coating techniques that are applied during the optical fiber draw process. The F&S optical fiber fabrication facility and developed coating methods enable F&S to manufacture specialty optical fiber with custom designed refractive index profiles and protective or active coatings. F&S has demonstrated sputtered coatings using metals and ceramics and combinations of each, and has also developed techniques to apply thin coatings of specialized polyimides formulated at NASA Langley Research Center. With these capabilities, F&S has produced cost-effective, reliable instrumentation and sensors capable of withstanding temperatures up to 800? C and continues building commercial sales with corporate partners and private funding. More recently, F&S has adapted the same sensing platforms to provide the rapid detection and identification of chemical and biological agents

Science of adaptation to climate change and science for adaptation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rob eSwart

2014-07-01

Full Text Available Adaptation to climate change has gained a prominent place next to mitigation on global, national and local policy agendas. However, while an abundance of adaptation strategies, plans and programmes have been developed, progress in turning these into action has been slow. The development of a sound knowledge basis to support adaptation globally is suggested to accelerate progress, but has lagged behind. The emphasis in both current and newly proposed programmes is very much on practice-oriented research with strong stakeholder participation. This paper supports such practice-oriented research, but argues that this is insufficient to support adaptation policy and practice in a productive manner. We argue that there is not only a need for science for adaptation, but also a science of adaptation. The paper argues that participatory, practice-oriented research is indeed essential, but has to be complemented by and connected to more fundamental inquiry and concept development, which takes into account knowledge that has been developed in disciplinary sciences and on issues other than climate change adaptation. At the same time, the level and method of participation in science for adaptation should be determined on the basis of the specific project context and goals. More emphasis on science of adaptation can lead to improved understanding of the conditions for successful science for adaptation.

Development of X-ray protective clothes for medical treatments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nagai, M.; Koike, K.; Fujinuma, T.; Aso, T.; Konba, T.

1991-01-01

As various medical treatments using X-ray irradiation are getting more important in modern medicine, effective, excellent X-ray protective clothes have been required. Elastomeric or PVC sheets containing powdery lead are usually employed as conventional X-ray protective clothes. In this case, enhancement of X-ray shielding efficiency increases the weight because the efficiency depends on the amount of lead incorporated. Such heavy clothes give significant fatigue and inconvenience during long term use. Consequently, lightweight and comfortable X-ray protective clothes have been eagerly desired in the medical field. The authors have improved these defects in the conventional clothes by means of elastomeric blending technologies and successfully developed new, lightweight and comfortable X-ray shielding clothes. The new clothes consist of lead-containing rubber sheet in which lead is homogeneously incorporated and lightweight PVC laminated with fabrics. They achieved favorable sense of touch, comfortable wearing and long-term durability. Furthermore, the clothes satisfy all requirements including X-ray shielding efficiency defined in JIS specifications. This article introduces the development of the new clothes and their properties in detail. (author)

Design of an adaptive overcurrent protection scheme for microgrids

African Journals Online (AJOL)

For example equipment like. M.V motors have a voltage ... The faulted section is detected using time OC characteristics of directional OC relays. This adaptive .... Samples of system Current Transformers CTs ratio selection. CT. Max. FLA. (A).

Use of the analytical tree technique to develop a radiological protection program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Domenech N, H.; Jova S, L.

1996-01-01

The results obtained by the Cuban Center for Radiological Protection and Hygiene by using an analytical tree technique to develop its general operational radiation protection program are presented. By the application of this method, some factors such as the organization of the radiation protection services, the provision of administrative requirements, the existing general laboratories requirements, the viability of resources and the current documentation was evaluated. Main components were considered such as: complete normative and regulatory documentation; automatic radiological protection data management; scope of 'on the-job'and radiological protection training for the personnel; previous radiological appraisal for the safety performance of the works and application of dose constrains for the personnel and the public. The detailed development of the program allowed to identify the basic aims to be achieved in its maintenance and improvement. (authors). 3 refs

Opportunities and Challenges for Drug Development: Public-Private Partnerships, Adaptive Designs and Big Data.

Science.gov (United States)

Yildirim, Oktay; Gottwald, Matthias; Schüler, Peter; Michel, Martin C

2016-01-01

Drug development faces the double challenge of increasing costs and increasing pressure on pricing. To avoid that lack of perceived commercial perspective will leave existing medical needs unmet, pharmaceutical companies and many other stakeholders are discussing ways to improve the efficiency of drug Research and Development. Based on an international symposium organized by the Medical School of the University of Duisburg-Essen (Germany) and held in January 2016, we discuss the opportunities and challenges of three specific areas, i.e., public-private partnerships, adaptive designs and big data. Public-private partnerships come in many different forms with regard to scope, duration and type and number of participants. They range from project-specific collaborations to strategic alliances to large multi-party consortia. Each of them offers specific opportunities and faces distinct challenges. Among types of collaboration, investigator-initiated studies are becoming increasingly popular but have legal, ethical, and financial implications. Adaptive trial designs are also increasingly discussed. However, adaptive should not be used as euphemism for the repurposing of a failed trial; rather it requires carefully planning and specification before a trial starts. Adaptive licensing can be a counter-part of adaptive trial design. The use of Big Data is another opportunity to leverage existing information into knowledge useable for drug discovery and development. Respecting limitations of informed consent and privacy is a key challenge in the use of Big Data. Speakers and participants at the symposium were convinced that appropriate use of the above new options may indeed help to increase the efficiency of future drug development.

Opportunities and challenges for drug development: public-private partnerships, adaptive designs and big data

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Oktay Yildirim

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Drug development faces the double challenge of increasing costs and increasing pressure on pricing. To avoid that lack of perceived commercial perspective will leave existing medical needs unmet, pharmaceutical companies and many other stakeholders are discussing ways to improve the efficiency of drug Research & Development. Based on an international symposium organized by the Medical School of the University of Duisburg-Essen (Germany and held in January 2016, we discuss the opportunities and challenges of three specific areas, i.e. public-private partnerships, adaptive designs and big data. Public-private partnerships come in many different forms with regard to scope, duration and type and number of participants. They range from project-specific collaborations to strategic alliances to large multi-party consortia. Each of them offers specific opportunities and faces distinct challenges. Among types of collaboration, investigator-initiated studies are becoming increasingly popular but have legal, ethical and financial implications. Adaptive trial designs are also increasingly discussed. However, adaptive should not be used as euphemism for the repurposing of a failed trial; rather it requires carefully planning and specification before a trial starts. Adaptive licensing can be a counter-part of adaptive trial design. The use of Big Data is another opportunity to leverage existing information into knowledge useable for drug discovery and development. Respecting limitations of informed consent and privacy is a key challenge in the use of Big Data. Speakers and participants at the symposium were convinced that appropriate use of the above new options may indeed help to increase the efficiency of future drug development.

Opportunities and Challenges for Drug Development: Public–Private Partnerships, Adaptive Designs and Big Data

Science.gov (United States)

Yildirim, Oktay; Gottwald, Matthias; Schüler, Peter; Michel, Martin C.

2016-01-01

Drug development faces the double challenge of increasing costs and increasing pressure on pricing. To avoid that lack of perceived commercial perspective will leave existing medical needs unmet, pharmaceutical companies and many other stakeholders are discussing ways to improve the efficiency of drug Research and Development. Based on an international symposium organized by the Medical School of the University of Duisburg-Essen (Germany) and held in January 2016, we discuss the opportunities and challenges of three specific areas, i.e., public–private partnerships, adaptive designs and big data. Public–private partnerships come in many different forms with regard to scope, duration and type and number of participants. They range from project-specific collaborations to strategic alliances to large multi-party consortia. Each of them offers specific opportunities and faces distinct challenges. Among types of collaboration, investigator-initiated studies are becoming increasingly popular but have legal, ethical, and financial implications. Adaptive trial designs are also increasingly discussed. However, adaptive should not be used as euphemism for the repurposing of a failed trial; rather it requires carefully planning and specification before a trial starts. Adaptive licensing can be a counter-part of adaptive trial design. The use of Big Data is another opportunity to leverage existing information into knowledge useable for drug discovery and development. Respecting limitations of informed consent and privacy is a key challenge in the use of Big Data. Speakers and participants at the symposium were convinced that appropriate use of the above new options may indeed help to increase the efficiency of future drug development. PMID:27999543

The Assessment, Development, Assurance Pharmacist's Tool (ADAPT) for ensuring quality implementation of health promotion programs.

Science.gov (United States)

Truong, Hoai-An; Taylor, Catherine R; DiPietro, Natalie A

2012-02-10

To develop and validate the Assessment, Development, Assurance Pharmacist's Tool (ADAPT), an instrument for pharmacists and student pharmacists to use in developing and implementing health promotion programs. The 36-item ADAPT instrument was developed using the framework of public health's 3 core functions (assessment, policy development, and assurance) and 10 essential services. The tool's content and usage was assessed and conducted through peer-review and initial validity testing processes. Over 20 faculty members, preceptors, and student pharmacists at 5 institutions involved in planning and implementing health promotion initiatives reviewed the instrument and conducted validity testing. The instrument took approximately 15 minutes to complete and the findings resulted in changes and improvements to elements of the programs evaluated. The ADAPT instrument fills a need to more effectively plan, develop, implement, and evaluate pharmacist-directed public health programs that are evidence-based, high-quality, and compliant with laws and regulations and facilitates documentation of pharmacists' contributions to public health.

Social Networks, Psychosocial Adaptation, and Preventive/Developmental Interventions: The Support Development Workshop.

Science.gov (United States)

Todd, David M.

The Support Development Group is an approach which explores and develops a theory for the relationship between network characteristics and notions of psychosocial adaptation. The approach is based on the assumption that teaching people to view their social world in network terms can be helpful to them. The Support Development Workshop is presented…

Development and demonstration of atmospheric electricity hazards protection

OpenAIRE

Beavin , R.C.; Lippert , J.R.; La Voie , J.E.

1986-01-01

An Advanced Development Program (ADP) to develop and demonstrate effective Atmospheric Electricity Hazards Protection (AEHP) for the fighter, transport/bomber, helicopter and cruise missile classes of air vehicles is being conducted under an Air Force Wright Aeronautical Laboratories (AFWAL) contract with Boeing Military Airplane Company (BMAC). Other Government agencies are also supporting the ADP. The parameters characterizing the lightning threat have been defined for moderate and severe f...

Harness: Development of a multifunctional protective ship bulkhead

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Wal, R. van der; Meuers, R.J.C.

2016-01-01

HARNESS is a joint project between governments, industry and TNO with the objective to develop a multifunctional protective bulkhead for application on naval vessels. The multifunctional bulkhead aims at increasing the resilience of naval vessels, reduce damage and repair time and provide a safer

Modelling interactions between mitigation, adaptation and sustainable development

Science.gov (United States)

Reusser, D. E.; Siabatto, F. A. P.; Garcia Cantu Ros, A.; Pape, C.; Lissner, T.; Kropp, J. P.

2012-04-01

Managing the interdependence of climate mitigation, adaptation and sustainable development requires a good understanding of the dominant socioecological processes that have determined the pathways in the past. Key variables include water and food availability which depend on climate and overall ecosystem services, as well as energy supply and social, political and economic conditions. We present our initial steps to build a system dynamic model of nations that represents a minimal set of relevant variables of the socio- ecological development. The ultimate goal of the modelling exercise is to derive possible future scenarios and test those for their compatibility with sustainability boundaries. Where dynamics go beyond sustainability boundaries intervention points in the dynamics can be searched.

Development of protected area system of the Komi Republic

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tatyana Vyacheslavovna Tikhonova

2013-09-01

Full Text Available In this article, the damages for biodiversity on the Republic of Komi Protected Areas are outlined. World experience of organizing Protected Areas is represented. The central management tasks into categories of domestic Protected areas are shown. Analysis of prevailing categories of these objects functioning by continents is carried out. The main resources of financing are listed including state investments, various payments, taxes and charitable and grant incomes. In the result of the economic evaluation potential recipients of benefits from the usage of bioresources and ecosystem services on model objects are defined, including the world community, local inhabitants and tourists. Territories that possess reserve for increased usage of its resources and services are represented. The Russian experience of attracting investment, using of economic potential and cultural traditions, development of recreation, tourism and tourism industry and revival of native craft is shown. Actual and perspective objects of tourism and recreation on the territory of Protected Areas are represented

The Duty of the ANARAP-MAD for the Development of Radiation Protection in Madagascar

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ratovonjanahary, F.

2010-01-01

Association NAtionale de Radio Protection-MADagascar (ANARAP-MAD), to develop the radiation protection in Madagascar; to promote the radiation protection in Madagascar; to set up links with international institutions dealing with the same objectives (I.A.E.A., W.H.O., etc...); to care for the enforcement of the regulation in radiation protection; to propose improvements and amendments; to find solutions to problems relevant to the enforcement of the regulation; to inform and to train in the field of radiation protection; to contribute in the development of the science, all activities carried out by the association are based on the existing legislation in the country. Despite the insufficiency of financial support, the ANARAP-MAD had always made an effort to carry out activities for the development of radiation protection infrastructure in Madagascar. The main problem is also that the regulatory Authority is not yet operational. However, the ANARAP-MAD, with the support of the Madagascar-INSTN, has the challenge to effectively promoting radiation protection in Madagascar

Development of Ultraviolet (UV) Radiation Protective Fabric Using Combined Electrospinning and Electrospraying Technique

Science.gov (United States)

Sinha, Mukesh Kumar; Das, B. R.; Kumar, Kamal; Kishore, Brij; Prasad, N. Eswara

2017-06-01

The article reports a novel technique for functionization of nanoweb to develop ultraviolet (UV) radiation protective fabric. UV radiation protection effect is produced by combination of electrospinning and electrospraying technique. A nanofibrous web of polyvinylidene difluoride (PVDF) coated on polypropylene nonwoven fabric is produced by latest nanospider technology. Subsequently, web is functionalized by titanium dioxide (TiO2). The developed web is characterized for evaluation of surface morphology and other functional properties; mechanical, chemical, crystalline and thermal. An optimal (judicious) nanofibre spinning condition is achieved and established. The produced web is uniformly coated by defect free functional nanofibres in a continuous form of useable textile structural membrane for ultraviolet (UV) protective clothing. This research initiative succeeds in preparation and optimization of various nanowebs for UV protection. Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscope (FESEM) result reveals that PVDF webs photo-degradative behavior is non-accelerated, as compared to normal polymeric grade fibres. Functionalization with TiO2 has enhanced the photo-stability of webs. The ultraviolet protection factor of functionalized and non-functionalized nanowebs empirically evaluated to be 65 and 24 respectively. The developed coated layer could be exploited for developing various defence, para-military and civilian UV protective light weight clothing (tent, covers and shelter segments, combat suit, snow bound camouflaging nets). This research therefore, is conducted in an attempt to develop a scientific understanding of PVDF fibre coated webs for photo-degradation and applications for defence protective textiles. This technological research in laboratory scale could be translated into bulk productionization.

Visitor Management, a Tool for Sustainable Tourism Development in Protected Areas

OpenAIRE

Candrea A. N.; Ispas A.

2009-01-01

The article analyzes visitor management techniques as a way to develop sustainable tourism in protected areas. Visitor management is an important tool in recreational and protected areas, as increasing use levels can negatively impact the quality of recreational experience as well as natural resources. To meet the requirements of both nature and visitors, a prudent and careful management is necessary. In order to manage protected areas within acceptable ecological and social carrying capacit...

Adaptation of instruments developed to study the effectiveness of psychotherapeutic processes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shushanikova, Anastasia A.

2016-06-01

Full Text Available The objective of the research was to adapt for use in Russian-language contexts a set of instruments that assess the effectiveness of psychotherapeutic practices. The instruments explore the effectiveness of different types of therapy, without evaluating the abstract, idealized characteristics or specifics of each approach, specialist, or therapeutic case. The adapted instruments are based on reflective data about the significance of therapeutic events, from the point of view of both the client and the therapist. We translated, edited, and adapted forms developed by John McLeod and Mick Cooper — a “Goals Form”, a “Goal Assessment Form”, a “Post-Session Form”, and a “Therapy Personalization Form”. The adaption was intended to cohere with the stylistic and cultural aspects of the Russian language. The research showed that the instruments and the methods have great potential for practical and theoretical application in qualitative studies to formulate hypotheses and to verify them in quantitative studies. The phenomenological analysis reveals the reliability, appropriateness, and validity of the adapted instruments for identifying specific meanings of the psychotherapeutic cases considered. The instruments can be used in studies exploring helpful aspects and effectiveness in different types of therapy (cognitive, existential, outdoor therapy, online counseling, etc. with different groups of clients. It is reasonable to continue the use of the Russian-language version of the instruments in further studies exploring the effectiveness of psychological practices. The adapted instruments facilitate comparison and cross-cultural studies, and formulation of meaningful hypotheses about the effectiveness and quality of the psychotherapeutic process.

Career Adaptability Development in Adolescence: Multiple Predictors and Effect on Sense of Power and Life Satisfaction

Science.gov (United States)

Hirschi, Andreas

2009-01-01

This longitudinal panel study investigated predictors of career adaptability development and its effect on development of sense of power and experience of life satisfaction among 330 Swiss eighth graders. A multivariate measure of career adaptability consisting of career choice readiness, planning, exploration, and confidence was applied. Based on…

Development and characterization of a magnetorheological elastomer based adaptive seismic isolator

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li, Yancheng; Li, Jianchun; Samali, Bijan; Li, Weihua

2013-01-01

One of the main shortcomings in current base isolation design/practice is lack of adaptability. As a result, a base isolation system that is effective for one type earthquake may become ineffective or may have adverse effect for other earthquakes. The vulnerability of traditional base isolation systems can be exaggerated by two types of earthquakes, i.e. near-field earthquakes and far-field earthquakes. This paper addresses the challenge facing current base isolation design/practice by proposing a new type of seismic isolator for the base isolation system, namely an adaptive seismic isolator. The novel adaptive seismic isolator utilizes magnetorheological elastomer (MRE) for its field-sensitive material property. Traditional seismic isolator design with a unique laminated structure of steel and MRE layers has been adopted in the novel MRE seismic isolator. To evaluate and characterize the behavior of the MRE seismic isolator, experimental testing was conducted on a shake table facility under harmonic cycling loading. Experimental results show that the proposed adaptive seismic isolator can successfully alter the lateral stiffness and damping force in real time up to 37% and 45% respectively. Based on the successful development of the novel adaptive seismic isolator, a discussion is also extended to the impact and potential applications of such a device in structural control applications in civil engineering. (paper)

Can Social Protection Improve Sustainable Development Goals for Adolescent Health?

Science.gov (United States)

Cluver, Lucie D; Orkin, F Mark; Meinck, Franziska; Boyes, Mark E; Yakubovich, Alexa R; Sherr, Lorraine

2016-01-01

The first policy action outlined in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is the implementation of national social protection systems. This study assesses whether social protection provision can impact 17 indicators of five key health-related SDG goals amongst adolescents in South Africa. We conducted a longitudinal survey of adolescents (10-18 years) between 2009 and 2012. Census areas were randomly selected in two urban and two rural health districts in two South African provinces, including all homes with a resident adolescent. Household receipt of social protection in the form of 'cash' (economic provision) and 'care' (psychosocial support) social protection, and health-related indicators within five SDG goals were assessed. Gender-disaggregated analyses included multivariate logistic regression, testing for interactions between social protection and socio-demographic covariates, and marginal effects models. Social protection was associated with significant adolescent risk reductions in 12 of 17 gender-disaggregated SDG indicators, spanning SDG 2 (hunger); SDG 3 (AIDS, tuberculosis, mental health and substance abuse); SDG 4 (educational access); SDG 5 (sexual exploitation, sexual and reproductive health); and SDG 16 (violence perpetration). For six of 17 indicators, combined cash plus care showed enhanced risk reduction effects. Two interactions showed that effects of care varied by poverty level for boys' hunger and girls' school dropout. For tuberculosis, and for boys' sexual exploitation and girls' mental health and violence perpetration, no effects were found and more targeted or creative means will be needed to reach adolescents on these challenging burdens. National social protection systems are not a panacea, but findings suggest that they have multiple and synergistic positive associations with adolescent health outcomes. Such systems may help us rise to the challenges of health and sustainable development.

Can Social Protection Improve Sustainable Development Goals for Adolescent Health?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lucie D Cluver

Full Text Available The first policy action outlined in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs is the implementation of national social protection systems. This study assesses whether social protection provision can impact 17 indicators of five key health-related SDG goals amongst adolescents in South Africa.We conducted a longitudinal survey of adolescents (10-18 years between 2009 and 2012. Census areas were randomly selected in two urban and two rural health districts in two South African provinces, including all homes with a resident adolescent. Household receipt of social protection in the form of 'cash' (economic provision and 'care' (psychosocial support social protection, and health-related indicators within five SDG goals were assessed. Gender-disaggregated analyses included multivariate logistic regression, testing for interactions between social protection and socio-demographic covariates, and marginal effects models.Social protection was associated with significant adolescent risk reductions in 12 of 17 gender-disaggregated SDG indicators, spanning SDG 2 (hunger; SDG 3 (AIDS, tuberculosis, mental health and substance abuse; SDG 4 (educational access; SDG 5 (sexual exploitation, sexual and reproductive health; and SDG 16 (violence perpetration. For six of 17 indicators, combined cash plus care showed enhanced risk reduction effects. Two interactions showed that effects of care varied by poverty level for boys' hunger and girls' school dropout. For tuberculosis, and for boys' sexual exploitation and girls' mental health and violence perpetration, no effects were found and more targeted or creative means will be needed to reach adolescents on these challenging burdens.National social protection systems are not a panacea, but findings suggest that they have multiple and synergistic positive associations with adolescent health outcomes. Such systems may help us rise to the challenges of health and sustainable development.

Data Protection for Virtual Data Centers

CERN Document Server

Buffington, Jason

2010-01-01

Essential information on how to protect data in virtual environments!. Virtualization is changing the data center architecture and as a result, data protection is is quickly evolving as well. This unique book, written by an industry expert with over eighteen years of data storage/backup experience, shows you how to approach, protect, and manage data in a virtualized environment. You'll get up to speed on data protection problems, explore the data protection technologies available today, see how to adapt to virtualization, and more. The book uses a "good, better, best" approach, explo

Driving Meaningful Adaptation Action through an Adaptation Market Mechanism

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Butzengeiger-Geyer, Sonja; Koehler, Michel; Michaelowa, Axel

2011-07-01

Approaches and criteria for allocating adaptation funds vary significantly among current sources - UN-backed funds and bilateral cooperation - and to some extent lack transparency and consistency. Such funding risks being spent in a haphazard way that repeats many of the mistakes made in development assistance over the past decades. An Adaptation Market Mechanism (AMM) could contribute to efficient allocation of adaptation funds, promote adaptation activities by private and public actors through additional financial incentives, and raise additional and reliable adaptation money. This would help to avoid future public criticism of the effectiveness and efficiency of spending adaptation funding.The proposed AMM would specify mandatory adaptation targets, on international, regional or domestic level. Participants who achieve their targets either by generating adaptation units or by buying them in the market would incentivize private, commercial and institutional actors to develop adaptation projects that create verified adaptation units. A universally accepted and verifiable trading unit applicable to all types of adaptation activities would help to maximize the cost reduction potential for the AMM. We suggest applying net present value (NPV) for property saved; Disability Adjusted Life Years Saved (DALYS) for health benefits; and potentially a separate unit to consider the environmental benefits of an adaptation activity.(Author)

Adapting and Using Scrum in a Software Research and Development Laboratory

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

LIMA, I. R.

2012-06-01

Full Text Available Agile software development has gained importance in the industry because of its approach on the issues of human agility and return on investment. This paper shows how Scrum agile software project management methodology has been deployed and adapted to the model of software project management of a research and development laboratory. As a result of this deployment, experiences and lessons learned in seven real projects developed by the authors are reported.

Empowering Children with Adaptive Technology Skills: Careful Engagement in the Digital Information Age

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Miftachul HUDA

2017-03-01

Full Text Available The technological advancement occurring in the world today has a potency to create positive and negative side effects especially on children. The positive side may entail increased empathy and acceptance of diversity through modelling the prosocial behaviours, while the negative can be manifest in aggressive behaviour, risky sexual behaviour, and substance abuse. These challenges pose a need to draw a particular attention to children’s rights of protection and care in relation to the use of technology. This paper sought to critically explore the way in which children adapt technology skills and the way they respond towards media influences. The findings revealed that the adaptive technology skills are needed in providing a considerable guidance for child protection and careful engagement towards digital information as part of their rights to natural growth and development.

Ultrasound in environmental protection - Recent developments

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mason, T.J. [Coventry University, Coventry (United Kingdom). School of Science and the Environment

2002-07-01

There can be little doubt that there is an increasing interest in the development of new methods for environmental protection and remediation. Driven by the interests of scientists and engineers but increasingly by legislation a very wide range of new technologies is being examined. Amongst these power ultrasound is proving to be a front-runner and offers a wide range of applications. Not all of these are likely to become industrial realities nevertheless there are a few which have a real chance of adoption. Some of the stronger contenders are reviewed below. (orig.)

Talent Development Environment and Workplace Adaptation: The Mediating Effects of Organisational Support

Science.gov (United States)

Kunasegaran, Mageswari; Ismail, Maimunah; Rasdi, Roziah Mohd; Ismail, Ismi Arif; Ramayah, T.

2016-01-01

Purpose: This study aims to examine the relationship between talent development environment (TDE) variables of job focus and long-term development with the workplace adaptation (WA) of Malaysian professional returnees as mediated by the organisational support. Design/methodology/approach: A total of 130 respondents who are Malaysian professional…

Triggering the adaptive immune system with commensal gut bacteria protects against insulin resistance and dysglycemia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Céline Pomié

2016-06-01

Full Text Available Objective: To demonstrate that glycemia and insulin resistance are controlled by a mechanism involving the adaptive immune system and gut microbiota crosstalk. Methods: We triggered the immune system with microbial extracts specifically from the intestinal ileum contents of HFD-diabetic mice by the process of immunization. 35 days later, immunized mice were fed a HFD for up to two months in order to challenge the development of metabolic features. The immune responses were quantified. Eventually, adoptive transfer of immune cells from the microbiota-immunized mice to naïve mice was performed to demonstrate the causality of the microbiota-stimulated adaptive immune system on the development of metabolic disease. The gut microbiota of the immunized HFD-fed mice was characterized in order to demonstrate whether the manipulation of the microbiota to immune system interaction reverses the causal deleterious effect of gut microbiota dysbiosis on metabolic disease. Results: Subcutaneous injection (immunization procedure of ileum microbial extracts prevented hyperglycemia and insulin resistance in a dose-dependent manner in response to a HFD. The immunization enhanced the proliferation of CD4 and CD8 T cells in lymphoid organs, also increased cytokine production and antibody secretion. As a mechanism explaining the metabolic improvement, the immunization procedure reversed gut microbiota dysbiosis. Finally, adoptive transfer of immune cells from immunized mice improved metabolic features in response to HFD. Conclusions: Glycemia and insulin sensitivity can be regulated by triggering the adaptive immunity to microbiota interaction. This reduces the gut microbiota dysbiosis induced by a fat-enriched diet. Keywords: Gut microbiota and metabolic diseases, Immunity, Insulin resistance

Barriers to reducing climate enhanced disaster risks in Least Developed Country-Small Islands through anticipatory adaptation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Natasha Kuruppu

2015-03-01

Full Text Available Small Island Developing States (SIDS classified as Least Developed Countries (LDCs are particularly vulnerable to the projected impacts of climate change. Given their particular vulnerabilities, climate adaptation investments are being made through both national and international efforts to build the capacity of various sectors and communities to reduce climate risks and associated disasters. Despite these efforts, reducing climate risks is not free of various challenges and barriers. This paper aims to synthesise a set of critical socio-economic barriers present at various spatial scales that are specific to Least Developed Country SIDS. It also aims to identify the processes that give rise to these barriers. Drawing on theories from natural hazards, a systematic literature review method was adopted to identify and organise the set of barriers by focussing on both academic papers and grey literature. The data revealed a notable lack of studies on adaptation within African and Caribbean LDC-SIDS. In general, there was a paucity of academic as well as grey literature being produced by authors from LDC-SIDS to challenge existing discourses related to adaptation barriers. The most common barriers identified included those related to governance, technical, cognitive and cultural. Three key findings can be drawn from this study in relation to formal adaptation initiatives. Firstly, the lack of focus on the adaptive capacity needs of Local Government or Island Councils and communities was a key barrier to ensure success of adaptation interventions. Secondly, international adaptation funding modalities did little to address root causes of vulnerability or support system transformations. These funds were geared at supporting sectoral level adaptation initiatives for vulnerable natural resource sectors such as water, biodiversity and coastal zones. Thirdly, there is a need to recognise the significance of cultural knowledge and practices in shaping

Barriers to reducing climate enhanced disaster risks in Least Developed Country-Small Islands through anticipatory adaptation

Science.gov (United States)

Kuruppu, N.; Willie, R.

2015-12-01

Small Island Developing States (SIDS) classified as Least Developed Countries (LDCs) are particularly vulnerable to the projected impacts of climate change. Given their particular vulnerabilities, climate adaptation investments are being made through both national and international efforts to build the capacity of various sectors and communities to reduce climate risks and associated disasters. Despite these efforts, reducing climate risks is not free of various challenges and barriers. This paper aims to synthesise a set of critical socio-economic barriers present at various spatial scales that are specific to Least Developed Country SIDS. It also aims to identify the processes that give rise to these barriers. Drawing on theories from natural hazards, a systematic literature review method was adopted to identify and organise the set of barriers by focussing both on academic papers and grey literature. The data revealed a notable lack of studies on adaptation within African and Caribbean LDC-SIDS. In general, there was a paucity of academic as well as grey literature being produced by authors from LDC-SIDS to challenge existing discourses related to adaptation barriers. The most common barriers identified included those related to governance, technical, cognitive and cultural. Three key findings can be drawn from this study in relation to formal adaptation initiatives. Firstly, the lack of focus on the adaptive capacity needs of Local Government or Island Councils and communities was a key barrier to ensuring success of adaptation interventions. Secondly, international adaptation funding modalities did little to address root causes of vulnerability or support system transformations. These funds were geared at supporting sectoral level adaptation initiatives for vulnerable natural resource sectors such as water, biodiversity and coastal zones. Thirdly, there is a need to recognise the significance of cultural knowledge and practices in shaping adaptive choices of

Economic evaluation of climate risk adaptation strategies: Cost-benefit analysis of flood protection in Tabasco, Mexico

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Haer, T.; Botzen, W.J.W.; Zavala-Hidalgo, Jorge; Cusell, Carline; Ward, P.J.

2017-01-01

Economic losses as a result of natural hazards have been rising over the past few decades due to socio-economic development and perhaps climate change. This upwards trend is projected to continue, highlighting the need for adequate adaptation strategies. This raises the question of how to determine

Development of computerized adaptive testing (CAT) for the EORTC QLQ-C30 physical functioning dimension

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Petersen, Morten Aa; Groenvold, Mogens; Aaronson, Neil K

2011-01-01

Computerized adaptive test (CAT) methods, based on item response theory (IRT), enable a patient-reported outcome instrument to be adapted to the individual patient while maintaining direct comparability of scores. The EORTC Quality of Life Group is developing a CAT version of the widely used EORTC...... QLQ-C30. We present the development and psychometric validation of the item pool for the first of the scales, physical functioning (PF)....

Science and values in radiological protection: impact on radiological protection decision making

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Salomaa, Sisko; Pinak, Miroslav

2008-01-01

Full text: This work summarises the main ideas and achievements of the Science and Values in Radiological Protection Workshop that was held on 15-17 January 2008 in Helsinki, Finland. In the view of developing of new radiological applications and emerging scientific phenomena it has been recognized a need to develop a shared understanding of emerging challenges for radiological protection among scientific and regulatory communities, public and other concerned stake holders. In response to this the Committee of Radiation Protection and Public Health of the OECD Nuclear Energy Agency and Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority of Finland tried to initiate a process of longer-term reflection on scientific and societal issues that might challenge radiological protection in the coming years. Among general issues like radiological policy issues, improvement of understanding between research and policy communities, sharing views on emerging scientific issues, there were addressed several scientific issues, like non-targeted effects, individual sensitivity; and circulatory diseases. The main focus of these discussions was to elaborate potential 'what if' scenarios and propose feasible solutions at various levels. These discussions addressed effects that are not direct and evident consequence of the initial lesions produced at the cellular and DNA level like bystander responses, genomic instability, gene induction, adaptive responses and low dose. Particular interest was paid to an extrapolation of risk estimates to low doses and role of Linear Non-Threshold theory in setting regulatory principles. Individual radio-sensitivity and identification of genes that are suspected of having an influence on it were also discussed in one of the Breakout Sessions. Another Breakout Session addressed circulatory diseases. There is emerging evidence in the A-bomb survivors and in other exposed groups that ionising radiation also causes other diseases than cancer, such as circulatory

Air-adapted Methanosarcina acetivorans shows high methane production and develops resistance against oxygen stress.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ricardo Jasso-Chávez

Full Text Available Methanosarcina acetivorans, considered a strict anaerobic archaeon, was cultured in the presence of 0.4-1% O2 (atmospheric for at least 6 months to generate air-adapted cells; further, the biochemical mechanisms developed to deal with O2 were characterized. Methane production and protein content, as indicators of cell growth, did not change in air-adapted cells respect to cells cultured under anoxia (control cells. In contrast, growth and methane production significantly decreased in control cells exposed for the first time to O2. Production of reactive oxygen species was 50 times lower in air-adapted cells versus control cells, suggesting enhanced anti-oxidant mechanisms that attenuated the O2 toxicity. In this regard, (i the transcripts and activities of superoxide dismutase, catalase and peroxidase significantly increased; and (ii the thiol-molecules (cysteine + coenzyme M-SH + sulfide and polyphosphate contents were respectively 2 and 5 times higher in air-adapted cells versus anaerobic-control cells. Long-term cultures (18 days of air-adapted cells exposed to 2% O2 exhibited the ability to form biofilms. These data indicate that M. acetivorans develops multiple mechanisms to contend with O2 and the associated oxidative stress, as also suggested by genome analyses for some methanogens.

Risk Assessment Methodology for Protecting Our Critical Physical Infrastructures

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

BIRINGER,BETTY E.; DANNEELS,JEFFREY J.

2000-12-13

Critical infrastructures are central to our national defense and our economic well-being, but many are taken for granted. Presidential Decision Directive (PDD) 63 highlights the importance of eight of our critical infrastructures and outlines a plan for action. Greatly enhanced physical security systems will be required to protect these national assets from new and emerging threats. Sandia National Laboratories has been the lead laboratory for the Department of Energy (DOE) in developing and deploying physical security systems for the past twenty-five years. Many of the tools, processes, and systems employed in the protection of high consequence facilities can be adapted to the civilian infrastructure.

A desk evaluation review of project RAF/9/005 radiation protection development. Project desk evaluation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1994-01-01

The Agency has been assisting member nations through a number of national TC projects in radiation protection and related areas over the years. In addition, a regional project RAF/9/005 - Radiation Protection Development (which is under this review) was approved in 1988, with the aim of assessing existing radiation protection practices in the African Member States in relation to the Agency's new basic safety standards for radiation protection, and to advise Governments on improvements. The project was subsequently extended up to 1994 as an umbrella project to assist all African Member States in the development of appropriate radiation protection services; to co-ordinate the implementation of the relevant national TC projects; and to develop co-operation amongst groups of Member States on a regional and sub-regional basis. Particular emphasis was to be given to manpower development through workshops, seminars and training courses in radiation protection and safety. In parallel thereto, the Agency's Radiation Protection Advisory Teams (RAPATs) visited nineteen African Member States during the period 1986 through 1993, to review and assess their radiation protection activities, identify priorities, and design long-term radiation protection programmes. RAPAT findings and recommendations were considered in drawing up programmes for implementation under project RAF/9/005

Alternative adaptive immunity in invertebrates

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kurtz, Joachim; Armitage, Sophie Alice Octavia

2006-01-01

Vertebrate adaptive immunity is characterized by challenge-specific long-term protection. This specific memory is achieved through the vast diversity of somatically rearranged immunological receptors such as antibodies. Whether or not invertebrates are capable of a comparable phenotypic plasticity...

[Influence of cross-protection on the survival of Lactobacillus casei ATCC 393].

Science.gov (United States)

Xue, Feng; Zhang, Juan; Du, Guocheng; Chen, Jian

2010-04-01

In this study, we investigated the cross-protection of Lactobacillus casei ATCC 393 under multi-stress conditions. Cells pre-adapted to mild conditions (heat, H2O2, acid or bile salts) were then treated at lethal temperature (> 60 degrees C) or hydrogen peroxide stress (> 5 mmol/L). Furthermore, the changes of survival rate intracellular pH and membrane fatty acid under lethal conditions with or without acid adaption were compared. The cross-protection in Lactobacillus casei ATCC 393 were affected by different stress conditions. Acid pre-adaption, especially hydrochloride treatment, would increase the resistance of cells to lethal heat and peroxide stresses significantly, with the survival rate of 305-fold and 173-fold, respectively. Further study suggested that the effect of acid pre-adaption might be related to the regulation on intracellular pH and the saturation of cell membrane. Hydrochloride adaption was the best inducer for the cross-protection of Lactobacillus casei ATCC 393 to maintain relatively stable physiological status of cells. The results supplied a novel way to investigate the relationship between different protective mechanisms in L. casei under different kinds of stresses.

Context-dependent player's movement interpretation: application to adaptive game development

Science.gov (United States)

Picard, Francois; Estraillier, Pascal

2010-02-01

Video games are more and more controlled by the real movements of the player. However, the player is constrained by the system devices, imposing a limited vocabulary of actions associated with a set of unnatural movements. To introduce more entertaining video games to players, a component-based architecture is proposed. It has been acknowledged as the starting point for the development of adaptive applications based on the hypothesis of a high level dialogue between the system and the player. The system adaptability relies on interpretation mechanisms of the player behaviors. These behaviors are defined through the representation of the real movements of the player who freely interacts with the 3D elements composing an immersive virtual environment, following a given game scenario. The efficient interpretation of the player movements relies on the introduction in the system of the management of the scene's context. The contextual information not only helps to determine the true meaning of an observed behavior but also makes the system to adapt its processes regarding this interpretation, while managing its hardware and software resources efficiently. A commercial motion capture interface has been enhanced by the elaboration of such a system.

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

Science.gov (United States)

Donner, S. D.; Webber, S.

2011-12-01

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

Diverse Roles of Inhibitor of Differentiation 2 in Adaptive Immunity

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lucille Rankin

2011-01-01

Full Text Available The helix-loop-helix (HLH transcription factor inhibitor of DNA binding 2 (Id2 has been implicated as a regulator of hematopoiesis and embryonic development. While its role in early lymphopoiesis has been well characterized, new roles in adaptive immune responses have recently been uncovered opening exciting new directions for investigation. In the innate immune system, Id2 is required for the development of mature natural killer (NK cells, lymphoid tissue-inducer (LTi cells, and the recently identified interleukin (IL-22 secreting nonconventional innate lymphocytes found in the gut. In addition, Id2 has been implicated in the development of specific dendritic cell (DC subsets, decisions determining the formation of αβ and γδ T-cell development, NK T-cell behaviour, and in the maintenance of effector and memory CD8+ T cells in peripheral tissues. Here, we review the current understanding of the role of Id2 in lymphopoiesis and in the development of the adaptive immune response required for maintaining immune homeostasis and immune protection.

Climatic change in Germany. Adaptation is necessary. 4. ed.; Deutschland im Klimawandel. Anpassung ist notwendig

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Schuchardt, Bastian; Wittig, Stefan [BioConsult Schuchardt und Scholle, Bremen (Germany); Mahrenholz, Petra; Kartschall, Karin; Maeder, Claudia; Hasse, Clemens; Daschkeit, Achim [Umweltbundesamt, Dessau (Germany)

2008-11-15

The report discusses the global climatic change and the regional consequences for Germany. The risk analysis covers selected examples concerning health hazards, agriculture, forestry, water management, environmental protection and biodiversity, traffic, tourism, flood control and prevention and settlement development. Possible German adaptation strategies for these selected sections are summarized.

Adapting legume crops to climate change using genomic approaches.

Science.gov (United States)

Mousavi-Derazmahalleh, Mahsa; Bayer, Philipp E; Hane, James K; Babu, Valliyodan; Nguyen, Henry T; Nelson, Matthew N; Erskine, William; Varshney, Rajeev K; Papa, Roberto; Edwards, David

2018-03-30

Our agricultural system and hence food security is threatened by combination of events, such as increasing population, the impacts of climate change and the need to a more sustainable development. Evolutionary adaptation may help some species to overcome environmental changes through new selection pressures driven by climate change. However, success of evolutionary adaptation is dependent on various factors, one of which is the extent of genetic variation available within species. Genomic approaches provide an exceptional opportunity to identify genetic variation that can be employed in crop improvement programs. In this review, we illustrate some of the routinely used genomics-based methods as well as recent breakthroughs, which facilitate assessment of genetic variation and discovery of adaptive genes in legumes. While additional information is needed, the current utility of selection tools indicate a robust ability to utilize existing variation among legumes to address the challenges of climate uncertainty. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

New developments in operator protection for forest machines

Science.gov (United States)

Robert B. Rummer; S. Taylor; M. Veal

2003-01-01

Mechanization of forest operations ha greatly improved saftey of woods work. However, increasing use of machines has introduced new hazards that must be addressed. Two of these hazards are rollover of swing-type forestry machines (currently excluded from standard protection) and the hazard of thrown objects from cutting devices. Ongoing research projects are developing...

CFES--California Fire Economics Simulator: A Computerized System for Wildland Fire Protection Planning

Science.gov (United States)

Jeremy S. Fried; J. Keith Gilless; Robert E. Martin

1987-01-01

The University of California's Department of Forestry and Resource Management, under contract with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, has developed and released the first version of the California Fire Economics Simulator (CFES). The current release is adapted from the Initial Action Assessment component of the USFS's National Fire...

Development of a risk informed fire protection program

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ribeiro, J.; McDevitt, B.; Sawyer, O.; Volk, M.A.; Drennan, J.; Sweely, C.

2015-07-01

Over the past decade, one of the largest challenges for the Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) Operator in the United States has been the implementation of risk-informed, performance-based (RI-PB) fire protection strategies into their fire protection program. Regardless of whether a utility decides to fully transition their licensing basis from deterministic to risk based, or if they simply complete a fire probabilistic risk assessment (FPRA) in order to augment their current program, it is clear that risk-informed, performance based fire protection strategies and the associated challenges are the growing trend in the United States and are here to stay. The experience of the nuclear industry in the United States with the implementation of RI-PB fire protection strategies can provide a great deal of insight for plants and utilities that follow, either by choice or necessity, a similar path. The similarities in the design of the United States and Spanish nuclear plants make these insights even more significant contributions to the strategy and planning for the Spanish fleet. The experience in United States will provide guidance to avoid similar missteps and better plan for the challenges of the transition process. As the Spanish fleet develops risk-informed and deterministic strategies to improve fire safety, an understanding of the challenges and lessons learned from the United States experience will save time and money. (Author)

The Adaptive Ecosystem Climatology (AEC): Design and Development

Science.gov (United States)

deRada, S.; Penta, B.; McCarthy, S.; Gould, R. W., Jr.

2016-02-01

The concept of ecosystem-based management (EBM), recently introduced to rectify the shortcomings of single-species management policies, has been widely accepted as a basis for the conservation and management of natural resources. In line with NOAA's Integrated Ecosystem Assessment (IEA) Program, EBM is an integrated approach that considers the entire ecosystem and the interactions among species rather than focusing on individual components. This integrative approach relies on heterogeneous data, physical as well as biogeochemical data, among many others. Relative to physical data, however, marine biogeochemical records, also critical in IEA and EBM, are still lacking, both in terms of mature models and in terms of observational data availability. TheAdaptive Ecosystem Climatology (AEC) was conceived as a novel approach to address these limitations, mitigating the shortcomings of the individual components and combining their strengths to enhance decision-making activities. AEC is designed on the concept that a high-frequency climatology can be used as a baseline into which available observational data can be ingested to produce a higher accuracy product. In the absence of observations, the climatology acts as a best estimate. AEC was developed using a long-term simulation of a coupled biophysical numerical model configured for the Gulf of Mexico. Using the model results, we constructed a three-dimensional, dynamically balanced, gridded, static climatology for each calendar day. Using this `static' climatology as a background `first guess', observations from a particular date are ingested via optimal interpolation to `nudge' the climatology toward current conditions, thus providing representative fields for that date (adaptive climatology). With this adaptive approach, AEC can support a variety of EBM objectives, from fisheries, to resource management, to coastal resilience.

Development of Protective Coatings for Co-Sequestration Processes and Pipelines

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bierwagen, Gordon; Huang, Yaping

2011-11-30

The program, entitled Development of Protective Coatings for Co-Sequestration Processes and Pipelines, examined the sensitivity of existing coating systems to supercritical carbon dioxide (SCCO2) exposure and developed new coating system to protect pipelines from their corrosion under SCCO2 exposure. A literature review was also conducted regarding pipeline corrosion sensors to monitor pipes used in handling co-sequestration fluids. Research was to ensure safety and reliability for a pipeline involving transport of SCCO2 from the power plant to the sequestration site to mitigate the greenhouse gas effect. Results showed that one commercial coating and one designed formulation can both be supplied as potential candidates for internal pipeline coating to transport SCCO2.

Adaptive Vocational Personality Questionnaire Development and Validation of an adaptive personality questionnaire to analyze the vocational behavior of university students

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Amparo Gómez-Artiga

2013-05-01

Full Text Available This study presents a personality evaluation instrument adapted to the vocational setting: the Adaptive Vocational Personality Questionnaire (AVPQ. The questionnaire was developed and tested in a sample of 2160 university students in the final years of their degree programs. The purpose of the study is to validate the questionnaire, providing evidence about its internal structure and its usefulness for predicting scores on a criterion scale. A confirmatory factor analysis combined with a cross-validation design was used: the exploratory sample (n = 879 helped to identify the model with the factorial structure that best fit the relations among the items. As expected, this model had two related but clearly separate factors: Adaptive Personality Characteristics (AC with 9 items and Non-Adaptive Personality Characteristics (NAC with 11 items. The validation sample (n =932 was used to test the generalization capacity of this model, which was satisfactory and showed a good reliability index. Regarding its usefulness in predicting proactive job-search behaviors, the results were also satisfactory. The questionnaire and keys are provided, as well as the criteria for calculating the scores on each scale and on the entire questionnaire.

Towards Individualized Online Learning: The Design and Development of an Adaptive Web Based Learning Environment

Science.gov (United States)

Inan, Fethi A.; Flores, Raymond; Ari, Fatih; Arslan-Ari, Ismahan

2011-01-01

The purpose of this study was to document the design and development of an adaptive system which individualizes instruction such as content, interfaces, instructional strategies, and resources dependent on two factors, namely student motivation and prior knowledge levels. Combining adaptive hypermedia methods with strategies proposed by…

Effectiveness of solution focus brief counseling approach (SFBC in developing student career adaptability

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mulawarman Mulawarman

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Career adaptability is the preparedness role in work and adjustman to changes in working situation in the future. The purpose of this study was to examine Solution Focused Brief Counseling (SFBC approach in developing career adaptability of students.The method used in this study was a mix method . Subjects selected through a purposive sampling method that is focused on graduate students at the beginning of the semester with a major in Guidance and Counseling Faculty of Education, Semarang State University. Career adaptability in this study consists of four dimensions, concern, control, curiosity and confidence. Stages of Solution Focused Brief Counseling (SFBC implemented include establishing relationships, Identifying a solvable complaint, Establishing goals, Designing and Implementing Intervention, and termination, evaluation, and follow-up. The results of this study showed Solution Focused Brief Counseling (SFBC is effective in improving the adaptability of student career both qualitatively and quantitatively.

Multi-GPU Development of a Neural Networks Based Reconstructor for Adaptive Optics

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Carlos González-Gutiérrez

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Aberrations introduced by the atmospheric turbulence in large telescopes are compensated using adaptive optics systems, where the use of deformable mirrors and multiple sensors relies on complex control systems. Recently, the development of larger scales of telescopes as the E-ELT or TMT has created a computational challenge due to the increasing complexity of the new adaptive optics systems. The Complex Atmospheric Reconstructor based on Machine Learning (CARMEN is an algorithm based on artificial neural networks, designed to compensate the atmospheric turbulence. During recent years, the use of GPUs has been proved to be a great solution to speed up the learning process of neural networks, and different frameworks have been created to ease their development. The implementation of CARMEN in different Multi-GPU frameworks is presented in this paper, along with its development in a language originally developed for GPU, like CUDA. This implementation offers the best response for all the presented cases, although its advantage of using more than one GPU occurs only in large networks.

Empowering children with adaptive technology skills: Careful engagement in the digital ınformation age

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Miftachul Huda

2017-03-01

Full Text Available The technological advancement occurring in the world today has a potency to create positive and negative side effects especially on children. The positive side may entail increased empathy and acceptance of diversity through modelling the prosocial behaviours, while the negative can be manifest in aggressive behaviour, risky sexual behaviour, and substance abuse. These challenges pose a need to draw a particular attention to children’s rights of protection and care in relation to the use of technology. This paper sought to critically explore the way in which children adapt technology skills and the way they respond towards media influences. The findings revealed that the adaptive technology skills are needed in providing a considerable guidance for child protection and careful engagement towards digital information as part of their rights to natural growth and development.

Structural basis for the development of avian virus capsids that display influenza virus proteins and induce protective immunity.

Science.gov (United States)

Pascual, Elena; Mata, Carlos P; Gómez-Blanco, Josué; Moreno, Noelia; Bárcena, Juan; Blanco, Esther; Rodríguez-Frandsen, Ariel; Nieto, Amelia; Carrascosa, José L; Castón, José R

2015-03-01

Bioengineering of viruses and virus-like particles (VLPs) is a well-established approach in the development of new and improved vaccines against viral and bacterial pathogens. We report here that the capsid of a major avian pathogen, infectious bursal disease virus (IBDV), can accommodate heterologous proteins to induce protective immunity. The structural units of the ~70-nm-diameter T=13 IBDV capsid are trimers of VP2, which is made as a precursor (pVP2). The pVP2 C-terminal domain has an amphipathic α helix that controls VP2 polymorphism. In the absence of the VP3 scaffolding protein, 466-residue pVP2 intermediates bearing this α helix assemble into genuine VLPs only when expressed with an N-terminal His6 tag (the HT-VP2-466 protein). HT-VP2-466 capsids are optimal for protein insertion, as they are large enough (cargo space, ~78,000 nm(3)) and are assembled from a single protein. We explored HT-VP2-466-based chimeric capsids initially using enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP). The VLP assembly yield was efficient when we coexpressed EGFP-HT-VP2-466 and HT-VP2-466 from two recombinant baculoviruses. The native EGFP structure (~240 copies/virion) was successfully inserted in a functional form, as VLPs were fluorescent, and three-dimensional cryo-electron microscopy showed that the EGFP molecules incorporated at the inner capsid surface. Immunization of mice with purified EGFP-VLPs elicited anti-EGFP antibodies. We also inserted hemagglutinin (HA) and matrix (M2) protein epitopes derived from the mouse-adapted A/PR/8/34 influenza virus and engineered several HA- and M2-derived chimeric capsids. Mice immunized with VLPs containing the HA stalk, an M2 fragment, or both antigens developed full protection against viral challenge. Virus-like particles (VLPs) are multimeric protein cages that mimic the infectious virus capsid and are potential candidates as nonliving vaccines that induce long-lasting protection. Chimeric VLPs can display or include foreign

NASA Developments in Personnel Protective Equipment

Science.gov (United States)

Graf, John

2015-01-01

NASA has some unique and challenging PPE needs: there are credible threats to air quality (fire, ammonia leak, hydrazine leak)that require a contingency breathing apparatus that operates for many hours - but there is not enough space or up-mass to provide supplied air tanks. We cannot use "Scott Air Tanks" commonly used by firefighters and other first responders. NASA has developed a respirator based emergency breathing device. It uses a "one size fits everybody in the astronaut corps" hooded mask with excellent chemical permeability and fire resistance properties, and a filtering respirator cartridge that protects the wearer from ammonia leaks, hydrazine leaks, or products of combustion. If you need a small, lightweight emergency breathing system that lasts longer than a supplied air system, we should meet and learn if NASA sponsored technology development can help.

Culturally Relevant Human Subjects Protection Training: A Case Study in Community-Engaged Research in the United States.

Science.gov (United States)

Kue, Jennifer; Szalacha, Laura A; Happ, Mary Beth; Crisp, Abigail L; Menon, Usha

2018-02-01

Non-academic members of research teams, such as community members, can perceive traditional human subjects protection training as lacking in cultural relevance. We present a case exemplar of the development of a human subjects protection training for research staff with limited English proficiency and/or no or limited research experience. Seven modules were adapted for language, cultural examples, etc., from the standard Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative (CITI) human subjects protection training. Non-academic research staff completed a day-long training in human subjects protection (six modules) and our research protocol (one module). We assessed comprehension of content with PowerPoint slides and module quizzes. All participants successfully passed each module quiz with ≥ 80% correct. Questions answered incorrectly were discussed before proceeding to the next module. To meet the increasing demand for collaborative community-engaged research with underserved minority populations, human subjects protection training protocols can be adapted successfully to reflect real-world situations and provide culturally relevant materials to help non-academic research staff better understand the importance and necessity of research ethics.

Global climate change adaptation: examples from Russian boreal forests

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Krankina, O.N.; Dixon, R.K.; Kirilenko, A.P.; Kobak, K.I.

1997-01-01

The Russian Federation contains approximately 20% of the world's timber resources and more than half of all boreal forests. These forests play a prominent role in environmental protection and economic development at global, national, and local levels, as well as, provide commodities for indigenous people and habitat for a variety of plant and animal species. The response and feedbacks of Russian boreal forests to projected global climate change are expected to be profound. Current understanding of the vulnerability of Russian forest resources to projected climate change is discussed and examples of possible adaptation measures for Russian forests are presented including: (1) artificial forestation techniques that can be applied with the advent of failed natural regeneration and to facilitate forest migration northward; (2) silvicultural measures that can influence the species mix to maintain productivity under future climates; (3) identifying forests at risk and developing special management adaption measures for them: (4) alternative processing and uses of wood and non-wood products from future forests; and (5) potential future infrastructure and transport systems that can be employed as boreal forests shift northward into melting permafrost zones. Current infrastructure and technology can be employed to help Russian boreal forests adapt to projected global environmental change, however many current forest management practices may have to be modified. Application of this technical knowledge can help policymakers identify priorities for climate change adaptation

Development of Uncertainty Analysis Method for SMART Digital Core Protection and Monitoring System

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Koo, Bon Seung; In, Wang Kee; Hwang, Dae Hyun

2012-01-01

The Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute has developed a system-integrated modular advanced reactor (SMART) for a seawater desalination and electricity generation. Online digital core protection and monitoring systems, called SCOPS and SCOMS respectively were developed. SCOPS calculates minimum DNBR and maximum LPD based on the several online measured system parameters. SCOMS calculates the variables of limiting conditions for operation. KAERI developed overall uncertainty analysis methodology which is used statistically combining uncertainty components of SMART core protection and monitoring system. By applying overall uncertainty factors in on-line SCOPS/SCOMS calculation, calculated LPD and DNBR are conservative with a 95/95 probability/confidence level. In this paper, uncertainty analysis method is described for SMART core protection and monitoring system

Development of a Health-Protective Drinking Water Level for Perchlorate

Science.gov (United States)

Ting, David; Howd, Robert A.; Fan, Anna M.; Alexeeff, George V.

2006-01-01

We evaluated animal and human toxicity data for perchlorate and identified reduction of thyroidal iodide uptake as the critical end point in the development of a health-protective drinking water level [also known as the public health goal (PHG)] for the chemical. This work was performed under the drinking water program of the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment of the California Environmental Protection Agency. For dose–response characterization, we applied benchmark-dose modeling to human data and determined a point of departure (the 95% lower confidence limit for 5% inhibition of iodide uptake) of 0.0037 mg/kg/day. A PHG of 6 ppb was calculated by using an uncertainty factor of 10, a relative source contribution of 60%, and exposure assumptions specific to pregnant women. The California Department of Health Services will use the PHG, together with other considerations such as economic impact and engineering feasibility, to develop a California maximum contaminant level for perchlorate. We consider the PHG to be adequately protective of sensitive subpopulations, including pregnant women, their fetuses, infants, and people with hypothyroidism. PMID:16759989

Recommendations for adaptation and validation of commercial kits for biomarker quantification in drug development.

Science.gov (United States)

Khan, Masood U; Bowsher, Ronald R; Cameron, Mark; Devanarayan, Viswanath; Keller, Steve; King, Lindsay; Lee, Jean; Morimoto, Alyssa; Rhyne, Paul; Stephen, Laurie; Wu, Yuling; Wyant, Timothy; Lachno, D Richard

2015-01-01

Increasingly, commercial immunoassay kits are used to support drug discovery and development. Longitudinally consistent kit performance is crucial, but the degree to which kits and reagents are characterized by manufacturers is not standardized, nor are the approaches by users to adapt them and evaluate their performance through validation prior to use. These factors can negatively impact data quality. This paper offers a systematic approach to assessment, method adaptation and validation of commercial immunoassay kits for quantification of biomarkers in drug development, expanding upon previous publications and guidance. These recommendations aim to standardize and harmonize user practices, contributing to reliable biomarker data from commercial immunoassays, thus, enabling properly informed decisions during drug development.

An adaptive signal-processing approach to online adaptive tutoring.

Science.gov (United States)

Bergeron, Bryan; Cline, Andrew

2011-01-01

Conventional intelligent or adaptive tutoring online systems rely on domain-specific models of learner behavior based on rules, deep domain knowledge, and other resource-intensive methods. We have developed and studied a domain-independent methodology of adaptive tutoring based on domain-independent signal-processing approaches that obviate the need for the construction of explicit expert and student models. A key advantage of our method over conventional approaches is a lower barrier to entry for educators who want to develop adaptive online learning materials.

Adaptation

International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

building skills, knowledge or networks on adaptation, ... the African partners leading the AfricaAdapt network, together with the UK-based Institute of Development Studies; and ... UNCCD Secretariat, Regional Coordination Unit for Africa, Tunis, Tunisia .... 26 Rural–urban Cooperation on Water Management in the Context of.

Content-Adaptive Packetization and Streaming of Wavelet Video over IP Networks

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chien-Peng Ho

2007-03-01

Full Text Available This paper presents a framework of content-adaptive packetization scheme for streaming of 3D wavelet-based video content over lossy IP networks. The tradeoff between rate and distortion is controlled by jointly adapting scalable source coding rate and level of forward error correction (FEC protection. A content dependent packetization mechanism with data-interleaving and Reed-Solomon protection for wavelet-based video codecs is proposed to provide unequal error protection. This paper also tries to answer an important question for scalable video streaming systems: given extra bandwidth, should one increase the level of channel protection for the most important packets, or transmit more scalable source data? Experimental results show that the proposed framework achieves good balance between quality of the received video and level of error protection under bandwidth-varying lossy IP networks.

SYSTEM ANALYSIS OF MAJOR TRENDS IN DEVELOPMENT OF ADAPTIVE TRAFFIC FLOW MANAGEMENT METHODS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. N. Klimovich

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Adaptive algorithms, which current traffic systems are based on, exist for many decades. Information technologies have developed significantly over this period and it makes more relevant their application in the field of transport. This paper analyses modern trends in the development of adaptive traffic flow control methods. Reviewed the most perspective directions in the field of intelligent transport systems, such as high-speed wireless communication between vehicles and road infrastructure based on such technologies as DSRC and WAVE, traffic jams prediction having such features as traffic flow information, congestion, velocity of vehicles using machine learning, fuzzy logic rules and genetic algorithms, application of driver assistance systems to increase vehicle’s autonomy. Advantages of such technologies in safety, efficiency and usability of transport are shown. Described multi-agent approach, which uses V2I-communication between vehicles and intersection controller to improve efficiency of control due to more complete traffic flow information and possibility to give orders to separate vehicles. Presented number of algorithms which use such approach to create new generation of adaptive transport systems.

Effect of adaptive skill acquisition on youth development in the Niger ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This paper examines the effect of adaptive skill acquisition on youth development in the Niger delta area of Nigeria with emphasis on Bayelsa State. A structured questionnaire was used to collect relevant information from 99 respondents, which cut across four stakeholder institutions in the study area. Data analysis was by ...

Social protection for developing countries: Can social insurance be ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

In this article, Nicola Smit and Letlhokwa George Mpedi critically evaluate the appropriateness of social protection, particularly social insurance, for informal economy workers. It addresses the question from a developing country perspective, focusing in particular on Southern Africa. The authors start by analysing concepts ...

An Analysis of the Problems of Developing Environmental Education in Brazilian Federal Protected Areas.

Science.gov (United States)

De Carvalho, Cristina A. R.; Filho, Walter Leal; Hale, William H. G.

1998-01-01

Describes the problems encountered in developing environmental education in federally protected areas in Brazil. Suggests that the development of environmental education in those protected areas has several limitations including financial resources, lack of training, material resources, and lack of policy on environmental education. (Author/CCM)

Soft Thermal Sensor with Mechanical Adaptability.

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Hui; Qi, Dianpeng; Liu, Zhiyuan; Chandran, Bevita K; Wang, Ting; Yu, Jiancan; Chen, Xiaodong

2016-11-01

A soft thermal sensor with mechanical adaptability is fabricated by the combination of single-wall carbon nanotubes with carboxyl groups and self-healing polymers. This study demonstrates that this soft sensor has excellent thermal response and mechanical adaptability. It shows tremendous promise for improving the service life of soft artificial-intelligence robots and protecting thermally sensitive electronics from the risk of damage by high temperature. © 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Development of radiation protection standards at EPA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Meyers, S.

1987-01-01

Development of EPA radiation protection standards combines the elements of risk assessment and risk management. The process of risk assessment consists of technical evaluation of the source term, environmental transport mechanisms, and biological effects. Engineering evaluations provide data on control options and costs. The risk management process considers the scope of legal authorities and the balancing of costs and benefits of alternatives within the framework of national priorities. The regulatory process provides for substantial public participation and is subject to legal reviews

The historical development of radiation protection limits

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schuettmann, W.

1976-01-01

The present internationally largely corresponding radiation protection limits are based on recommendations given by the ICRP in 1965. In order to better understand the underlying concepts, a historical sketch of the development is presented including actual discussions of trends to be excepted. Although exposure of healthy individuals by man-made sources up to these maximum levels is legally permissible, it should be emphasized again and again that any unavoidable exposure must be justified by the need for its associated cause. (author)

THE EXTENSION OF GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATION PROTECTION: NECESSARY FOR DEVELOPING COUNTRY

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mas Rahmah

2015-02-01

Full Text Available This paper analyses the need of extension of Geographical Indication (GI protection since the current protection under Trade Related Aspect of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS is insufficient to cover all products as a result of discriminatory provisions in TRIPS regulating a greater protection to wines and spirits only and different level of GI protection under Article 22 and Article 23 TRIPS. This paper then assumes that the extensive GI protection for all products should be supported because it would give greater benefits particularly to developing countries such as prevent the free riding, attract regional investment and obtain market power.   Perlindungan Indikasi Geografis (IG perlu diperluas tidak hanya pada produk tertentu seperti wines danspiritskarena perlindungan IG diatur di dalam TRIPS tidak cukup memberikan perlindungan kepada semua produk sebagai akibat perbedaan pengaturan di TRIPS yang memberikan perlindungan lebih kepada wines danspirits saja dan adanya perbedaan tingkat perlindungan pada Pasal 22 dan 23 TRIPS. Perluasan perlindungan IG harus didukung karena akan memberikan manfaat khususnya kepada negara berkembang. Perluasan perlindungan IG dapat melarang pemboncengan reputasi, menarik investasi dan meningkatkan kekuatan produk negara berkembang di pasaran.

Recent developments in environmental protection in India: Pollution control

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Govind, H [NOIDA, Disst, Ghaziabad, Pin (IN)

1989-01-01

In India, pollution and environmental degradation have reached alarming dimensions due to poverty, deforestation, industrial development without adequate environmental safeguards, and sheer greed. Fortunately, public concern, rooted in the country's past, has revived. Major pollutants and critically affected areas have been identified. Pollution control of water, air and land has been established by both official and private organizations and the work on environmental protection is steadily growing. The Ganga purification plan is a representative case study. Poverty alleviation is a long-term process. It is India's major problem and is being tackled with help from private enterprise and by international assistance. Simultaneously environmental protection through pollution control is also receiving administrative and legislative support and fiscal assistance through direct and indirect tax incentives. The country's courts are rendering valuable help to environmentalists by pronouncing far-reaching decisions in public-interest litigation. To boost the existing environment-protection movement, greater emphasis is urgently needed for environmental education, peoples' participation, population control, and cost-effective pollution control measures.

Climate change adaptation benefits of potential conservation partnerships.

Science.gov (United States)

Monahan, William B; Theobald, David M

2018-01-01

We evaluate the world terrestrial network of protected areas (PAs) for its partnership potential in responding to climate change. That is, if a PA engaged in collaborative, trans-boundary management of species, by investing in conservation partnerships with neighboring areas, what climate change adaptation benefits might accrue? We consider core tenets of conservation biology related to protecting large areas with high environmental heterogeneity and low climate change velocity and ask how a series of biodiversity adaptation indicators change across spatial scales encompassing potential PA and non-PA partners. Less than 1% of current world terrestrial PAs equal or exceed the size of established and successful conservation partnerships. Partnering at this scale would increase the biodiversity adaptation indicators by factors up to two orders of magnitude, compared to a null model in which each PA is isolated. Most partnership area surrounding PAs is comprised of non-PAs (70%), indicating the importance of looking beyond the current network of PAs when promoting climate change adaptation. Given monumental challenges with PA-based species conservation in the face of climate change, partnerships provide a logical and achievable strategy for helping areas adapt. Our findings identify where strategic partnering efforts in highly vulnerable areas of the world may prove critical in safeguarding biodiversity.

Cold-adapted live attenuated influenza vaccines developed in Russia: Can they contribute to meeting the needs for influenza control in other countries?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kendal, Alan P.

1997-01-01

It is now more than 30 years since the first cold-adapted influenza viruses were developed in Russia as potential live, attenuated vaccines. In the past 15-20 years considerable experience has been gained from Russian and joint Russian-US laboratory and clinical studies with type A monovalent and bivalent vaccines prepared with genetic reassortant viruses derived from one of these cold-adapted viruses in particular, A/Leningrad/134/57. More recent experiences include use of trivalent cold-adapted vaccines with a type B component. The overall high level of safety of individual and combined vaccines in pre-school and school-aged children, with illness reductions in open field trials equivalent to that seen with inactivated vaccines, is such as to suggest that practical measures might now be justified to facilitate expansion of the use of these vaccines to other countries. It is proposed that further experimentation with the Russian cold-adapted live attenuated vaccines should be focused on issues that will relate to the public health perspective, i.e. selection of the single best candidate type A and B vaccines for intense study using as criteria their potential for meeting licensing requirements outside Russia, and documenting the clinical protective efficacy of a single vaccine dose compared to two doses as studied until now. Resolution of these issues is important to ensure that costs for future live vaccine production, control, and utilization will be kept at lowest levels so that expanded use of live vaccines will have maximum cost-benefit and affordability. To guide those interested in these issues, examples are given of populations for whom a licensed live cold-adapted vaccine might be considered, together with indications of extra data needed to fully validate each suggested use

Development and application of the basic principles of radiation protection

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Huyskens, C.J.

1986-01-01

The basic philosophy of radiation protection, i.e. to prevent non-stochastic effects and to reduce stochastic effects to an acceptable level, is realized in the internationally accepted three-stage system of dose reduction, viz. justification, ALARA and dose limits. Historical development of this three-stage system is described and the three components are worked out further. The application and applicability of the system is considered for radiation sources and accidents. Attention is also given to regulations, national policy and practice of radiation protection. (G.J.P.)

Now, think again about adaptation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tarlock, A [Chicago-Kent College of Law (USA)

1992-01-01

The paper concentrates on three problems with adaptation to global warming that are often overlooked. First, adaptation is based on the ideology of scientific progress, a faith that is open to question. Second, the degree of friction in the proposed institutional responses is often underestimated so institutions may not perform as expected. Third, many institutions have no fair and adequate mechanism to deal with global warming. In these cases, adaptation is the adoption of a no action strategy. The philosophical basis for the first objection is discussed. Then the second and third objections are illustrated with two problems: the reallocation of western water and the use of land use controls to protect coastal and inland areas from the adverse consequences of global climate change. 63 refs.

The beauty of simple adaptive control and new developments in nonlinear systems stability analysis

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Barkana, Itzhak, E-mail: ibarkana@gmail.com [BARKANA Consulting, Ramat Hasharon (Israel)

2014-12-10

Although various adaptive control techniques have been around for a long time and in spite of successful proofs of stability and even successful demonstrations of performance, the eventual use of adaptive control methodologies in practical real world systems has met a rather strong resistance from practitioners and has remained limited. Apparently, it is difficult to guarantee or even understand the conditions that can guarantee stable operations of adaptive control systems under realistic operational environments. Besides, it is difficult to measure the robustness of adaptive control system stability and allow it to be compared with the common and widely used measure of phase margin and gain margin that is utilized by present, mainly LTI, controllers. Furthermore, customary stability analysis methods seem to imply that the mere stability of adaptive systems may be adversely affected by any tiny deviation from the pretty idealistic and assumably required stability conditions. This paper first revisits the fundamental qualities of customary direct adaptive control methodologies, in particular the classical Model Reference Adaptive Control, and shows that some of their basic drawbacks have been addressed and eliminated within the so-called Simple Adaptive Control methodology. Moreover, recent developments in the stability analysis methods of nonlinear systems show that prior conditions that were customarily assumed to be needed for stability are only apparent and can be eliminated. As a result, sufficient conditions that guarantee stability are clearly stated and lead to similarly clear proofs of stability. As many real-world applications show, once robust stability of the adaptive systems can be guaranteed, the added value of using Add-On Adaptive Control along with classical Control design techniques is pushing the desired performance beyond any previous limits.

Possibilities for the development of ecotourism in protected areas of Western Serbia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Miljković Olgica

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Sustainable tourism is an important element of modern tourism, which are strictly controlled by the impact of tourism on the environment. Balanced ecological, economic and sociocultural components of tourism are therefore more frequently mentioned in the programs and strategies of tourism development. Sustainable tourism is particularly applicable to the development of tourism in the category of protected natural areas. These natural systems (national parks, nature parks, nature reserves and natural monuments are all interesting areas for various segments of the tourist. Typically, this is ecotourism - a modern form of tourism in which through education, volunteering, learning about nature, we help protect and preserve nature. Tourism development in protected natural areas is particularly sensitive, and as such it involves the determination of carrying capacity, limits of acceptable changes, environmental impact assessment, tourism zoning and designing codes of ethics that would help tourists to coordinate their activities with the values of the environment. [Projekat Ministarstva nauke Republike Srbije, br. 176008

Color Image Authentication and Recovery via Adaptive Encoding

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chun-Hung Chen

2014-01-01

Full Text Available We describe an authentication and recovery scheme for color image protection based on adaptive encoding. The image blocks are categorized based on their contents and different encoding schemes are applied according to their types. Such adaptive encoding results in better image quality and more robust image authentication. The approximations of the luminance and chromatic channels are carefully calculated, and for the purpose of reducing the data size, differential coding is used to encode the channels with variable size according to the characteristic of the block. The recovery data which represents the approximation and the detail of the image is embedded for data protection. The necessary data is well protected by using error correcting coding and duplication. The experimental results demonstrate that our technique is able to identify and localize image tampering, while preserving high quality for both watermarked and recovered images.

Development of an education and training programme for radiation protection officers in facilities and activities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mutwamezi, Tekla

2015-02-01

Education and training is a crucial matter in radiation protection and it is considered a regulatory requirement. For this reason, this project work focused on developing an education and training programme for Radiation Protection Officers whose overall function is to oversee radiation protection and safety at the work place. The developed education and training programme has adopted both the class room based and on the job training methods. Additionally, the programme is organized into 6 modules and focuses on fundamentals of radioactivity; biological effects; legislation; principles of radiation protection; assessment and protection against occupational exposure; medical exposure (only applicable to Radiation Protection Officers in the medical sector) and emergency preparedness and response. The purpose of the programme is to provide Radiation Protection Officers with the basic knowledge and skills to function effectively to meet radiation safety and regulatory requirements. (au)

Corrosion protection of Arctic offshore structures: Final report. [Effects of temperature and salinity on required cathodic protection current

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sackinger, W.M.; Rogers, J.C.; Feyk, C.; Theuveny, B.

1985-10-01

Results are presented for a research program on corrosion prevention for Arctic offshore structures which are in contact with sea ice for a significant portion of the year. The electrical method most adaptable for structure protection involves the injection of impressed current from several remote anodes buried just beneath the sea floor. The electrical resistivity of annual sea ice as a function of temperature and salinity is presented. Details of the interface layers formed between sea ice and steel in the presence of current injection are shown. A computer program was developed to enable the calculation of protective current density into the structure, in the presence of ice rubble and ridges around the structure. The program and the results of an example calculation are given for a caisson- retained island structure. 81 refs., 103 figs., 3 tabs.

The political ecology of climate change adaptation livelihoods, agrarian change and the conflicts of development

CERN Document Server

Taylor, Marcus

2014-01-01

This book provides the first systematic critique of the concept of climate change adaptation within the field of international development. Drawing on a reworked political ecology framework, it argues that climate is not something 'out there' that we adapt to. Instead, it is part of the social and biophysical forces through which our lived environments are actively yet unevenly produced. From this original foundation, the book challenges us to rethink the concepts of climate change, vulnerability, resilience and adaptive capacity in transformed ways. With case studies drawn from Pakistan, Indi

Integrated site investigation procedure for environment protection toward sustainable development

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Omar, R C; Roslan, R; Baharuddin, I N Z

2013-01-01

The spatial configuration of cities and their relationship to the urban environment has recently been the subject of empirical, theoretical and policy research. An awareness of environmental issues can assist policy makers, planners, developers and others to recognize the constraints imposed upon development due the physical environment especially in areas, which are susceptible to erosion, flooding and landslide. This paper highlights the key requirements for considering an assessment to protect our urban environment by incorporating three main factor i.e. policy practice, planning process and engineering investigation. Base on this three main factor the framework of the assessment is carried out. The assessment can be divided into three different categories, namely as investigation for planning, investigation for urban development and specialized investigation and mitigation. The minimum requirements for the planning and urban development investigation are listed. These guidelines suggest the level at which the various types of investigation should be carried out as well as the range of application, the scope and methodology to be used for different investigation. It is hoped that this procedure will provide guidance in the establishment and protection of urban ecosystem toward sustainable development.

Afroza Haque: Developing new approaches to adaptation in ...

International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

2015-02-10

Feb 10, 2015 ... HI-AWARE is one of four consortia that the Collaborative Adaptation Research Initiative in Africa and Asia (CARIAA) is supporting to conduct research and policy engagement in climate change hot spots. Based in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Afroza Haque works on climate change adaptation, livelihoods, and ...

Developing a Radiation Protection Hub

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hertel, Nolan E [ORNL

2017-01-01

The WARP report issued by the NCRP study committee estimates that in ten years there will be a human capital crisis across the radiation safety community. The ability to respond to this shortage will be amplified by the fact that many radiation protection (health physics) academic programs will find it difficult to justify their continued existence since they are low volume programs, both in terms of enrollment and research funding, compared to the research funding return and visibility of more highly subscribed and highly funded academic disciplines. In addition, across the national laboratory complex, radiation protection research groups have been disbanded or dramatically reduced in size. The loss of both of these national resources is being accelerated by low and uncertain government funding priorities. The most effective solution to this problem would be to form a consortium that would bring together the radiation protection research, academic and training communities. The goal of such a consortium would be to engage in research, education and training of the next generation of radiation protection professionals. Furthermore the consortium could bring together the strengths of different universities, national laboratory programs and other entities in a strategic manner to accomplish a multifaceted research, educational and training agenda. This vision would forge a working and funded relationship between major research universities, national labs, four-year degree institutes, technical colleges and other partners.

Development of a Smart Residential Fire Protection System

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Juhwan Oh

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Embedded system is applied for the development of smart residential fire detection and extinguishing system. Wireless communication capability is integrated into various fire sensors and alarm devices. The system activates the fire alarm to warn occupants, executes emergency and rescue calls to remote residents and fire-fighting facility in an intelligent way. The effective location of extra-sprinklers within the space of interest for the fire extinguishing system is also investigated. Actual fire test suggests that the developed wireless system for the smart residential fire protection system is reliable in terms of sensors and their communication linkage.

The Carbomer-Lecithin Adjuvant Adjuplex Has Potent Immunoactivating Properties and Elicits Protective Adaptive Immunity against Influenza Virus Challenge in Mice

Science.gov (United States)

Wegmann, Frank; Moghaddam, Amin E.; Schiffner, Torben; Gartlan, Kate H.; Powell, Timothy J.; Russell, Rebecca A.; Baart, Matthijs; Carrow, Emily W.

2015-01-01

The continued discovery and development of adjuvants for vaccine formulation are important to safely increase potency and/or reduce the antigen doses of existing vaccines and tailor the adaptive immune response to newly developed vaccines. Adjuplex is a novel adjuvant platform based on a purified lecithin and carbomer homopolymer. Here, we analyzed the adjuvant activity of Adjuplex in mice for the soluble hemagglutinin (HA) glycoprotein of influenza A virus. The titration of Adjuplex revealed an optimal dose of 1% for immunogenicity, eliciting high titers of HA-specific IgG but inducing no significant weight loss. At this dose, Adjuplex completely protected mice from an otherwise lethal influenza virus challenge and was at least as effective as the adjuvants monophosphoryl lipid A (MPL) and alum in preventing disease. Adjuplex elicited balanced Th1-/Th2-type immune responses with accompanying cytokines and triggered antigen-specific CD8+ T-cell proliferation. The use of the peritoneal inflammation model revealed that Adjuplex recruited dendritic cells (DCs), monocytes, and neutrophils in the context of innate cytokine and chemokine secretion. Adjuplex neither triggered classical maturation of DCs nor activated a pathogen recognition receptor (PRR)-expressing NF-κB reporter cell line, suggesting a mechanism of action different from that reported for classical pathogen-associated molecular pattern (PAMP)-activated innate immunity. Taken together, these data reveal Adjuplex to be a potent and well-tolerated adjuvant with application for subunit vaccines. PMID:26135973

Adaptivity in GRAPPLE: Adaptation in any way you like (Poster)

NARCIS (Netherlands)

De Bra, P.M.E.; Smits, D.; Pechenizkiy, M.; Vasilyeva, E.; Bonk, C.J.; et al., xx

2008-01-01

GRAPPLE is an EU funded IST FP7 project that brings together a group of researchers into adaptive learning technology and environments and developers of learning management systems (LMSs), in order to offer adaptive learning as a standard feature of future LMSs. This paper presents the adaptation

Development and evaluation of a hand held computer based on-call pack for health protection out of hours duty: A pilot study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Williams Christopher J

2005-04-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The on call service for health protection in most parts of the UK is provided by general public health consultants, registrars and nurses as the first tier of response backed up by medical consultants in health protection. The first tier responder usually carries a large bag of papers containing both local and national guidance on the management of common cases/incidents. An electronic on call pack may provide a suitable practical alternative to large paper based systems and help professionals deliver out of hours health protection advice and response to incidents. Methods We developed and piloted an electronic on call pack in Hertfordshire for use at the health protection unit level containing key local and national guidelines, contact information and useful references. The on-call pack was initially piloted using a laptop and more recently using a personal digital assistant (PDA. The use of the on-call pack was evaluated. Results Key advantages of the electronic system include reduced size, faster access to information that is clearly indexed and the relative ease of updating information. As part of the pilot, the electronic on call pack was presented to a local and regional training meeting with good response from participants using qualitative and quantitative methods. Conclusion It is anticipated that with suitable evaluation this system can be adapted and utilised by other health protection practitioners. This system provides a fast, reliable and easily maintained source of information for the public health on-call team.

Adapting environmental management to uncertain but inevitable change.

Science.gov (United States)

Nicol, Sam; Fuller, Richard A; Iwamura, Takuya; Chadès, Iadine

2015-06-07

Implementation of adaptation actions to protect biodiversity is limited by uncertainty about the future. One reason for this is the fear of making the wrong decisions caused by the myriad future scenarios presented to decision-makers. We propose an adaptive management (AM) method for optimally managing a population under uncertain and changing habitat conditions. Our approach incorporates multiple future scenarios and continually learns the best management strategy from observations, even as conditions change. We demonstrate the performance of our AM approach by applying it to the spatial management of migratory shorebird habitats on the East Asian-Australasian flyway, predicted to be severely impacted by future sea-level rise. By accounting for non-stationary dynamics, our solution protects 25,000 more birds per year than the current best stationary approach. Our approach can be applied to many ecological systems that require efficient adaptation strategies for an uncertain future. © 2015 The Author(s) Published by the Royal Society. All rights reserved.

Public Health Adaptation to Climate Change in Large Cities: A Global Baseline.

Science.gov (United States)

Araos, Malcolm; Austin, Stephanie E; Berrang-Ford, Lea; Ford, James D

2016-01-01

Climate change will have significant impacts on human health, and urban populations are expected to be highly sensitive. The health risks from climate change in cities are compounded by rapid urbanization, high population density, and climate-sensitive built environments. Local governments are positioned to protect populations from climate health risks, but it is unclear whether municipalities are producing climate-adaptive policies. In this article, we develop and apply systematic methods to assess the state of public health adaptation in 401 urban areas globally with more than 1 million people, creating the first global baseline for urban public health adaptation. We find that only 10% of the sampled urban areas report any public health adaptation initiatives. The initiatives identified most frequently address risks posed by extreme weather events and involve direct changes in management or behavior rather than capacity building, research, or long-term investments in infrastructure. Based on our characterization of the current urban health adaptation landscape, we identify several gaps: limited evidence of reporting of institutional adaptation at the municipal level in urban areas in the Global South; lack of information-based adaptation initiatives; limited focus on initiatives addressing infectious disease risks; and absence of monitoring, reporting, and evaluation. © The Author(s) 2015.

Development of Vegetation-Pervious Concrete in Grid Beam System for Soil Slope Protection

Science.gov (United States)

Bao, Xiaohua; Liao, Wenyu; Dong, Zhijun; Wang, Shanyong; Tang, Waiching

2017-01-01

One of the most efficient and environmentally friendly methods for preventing a landslide on a slope is to vegetate it. Vegetation-pervious concretes have a promising potential for soil protection. In this study, the vegetation-pervious concrete with low alkalinity was developed and studied. Combined with a grid beam structure system, the stability and strength between the vegetation-pervious concrete and base soil are believed to be enhanced effectively. For improving plant adaptability, the alkalinity of concrete can be decreased innovatively by adding a self-designed admixture into the cement paste. The effects of the admixture content on alkalinity and compressive strength of the hardened pervious concrete were investigated using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and compression test, respectively. Meanwhile, the permeability of the vegetation-pervious concrete was studied as well. Through comparing with ordinary pervious concrete, the effect of low alkaline pervious concrete on vegetation growth was investigated in a small-scale field for ten weeks. The test results indicated that the alkalinity of the cement samples decreased with the increase of admixture content, and the vegetation grew successfully on previous concrete. By increasing the admixture content to approximately 3.6%, the compressive strength of pervious concrete was more than 25 MPa. PMID:28772454

INFLUENCE OF WORKING ENVIRONMENT ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT THROUGH THE HEALTH PROTECTION OF THE ENTERPRISE STAFF

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yuliya V. Karpovich

2017-06-01

Full Text Available The article investigates the processes of health protection at modern industrial enterprises. Occupational health of workers is considered in the article as an important component of the sustainable development of the enterprise. The process of health protection is described in the study not only as a social component, but also as a process relating to all areas of sustainable development. The article attempts to show the place of ‘health-protection subsystem’ as part of an integrated system of industrial enterprises’ sustainable development. Four independent spheres of health protection programs implementation were pointed out at the level of enterprise – professional environment, the quality of workplace, involvement of employees in the process of health protection, involvement of the enterprise in the processes of health protection. The article emphasizes the interrelationship of biological and economic characteristics of human life and society in the formation of health protection processes. Programs for sustainable development taking into account the management of health protection should include two sets of activities: corrective and special ones. Tools used in health management programs aimed at expanding the choices of healthier behavior and altering the character of individual preferences in behavior within the framework of the formation of health tastes and preferences are defined. The authors present the results of the analysis of occupational diseases on the example of the three companies of the Perm region (Saranovskaya shakhta ‘Rudnaya’ OJSC, Motovilikhinskie zavody PJSC and Proton-PM PJSC. The results allowed to offer a list of universal and special arrangements for the implementation of health protection control programs within the mentioned industrial enterprises.

Review and challenges of policies of environmental protection and sustainable development in China.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Kun-Min; Wen, Zong-Guo

2008-09-01

China is confronted with the dual task of developing its national economy and protecting its ecological environment. Since the 1980s, China's policies on environmental protection and sustainable development have experienced five changes: (1) progression from the adoption of environmental protection as a basic state policy to the adoption of sustainable development strategy; (2) changing focus from pollution control to ecological conservation equally; (3) shifting from end-of-pipe treatment to source control; (4) moving from point source treatment to regional environmental governance; and (5) a turn away from administrative management-based approaches and towards a legal means and economic instruments-based approach. Since 1992, China has set down sustainable development as a basic national strategy. However, environmental pollution and ecological degradation in China have continued to be serious problems and have inflicted great damage on the economy and quality of life. The beginning of the 21st century is a critical juncture for China's efforts towards sustaining rapid economic development, intensifying environmental protection efforts, and curbing ecological degradation. As the largest developing country, China's policies on environmental protection and sustainable development will be of primary importance not only for China, but also the world. Realizing a completely well-off society by the year 2020 is seen as a crucial task by the Chinese government and an important goal for China's economic development in the new century, however, attaining it would require a four-fold increase over China's year 2000 GDP. Therefore, speeding up economic development is a major mission during the next two decades and doing so will bring great challenges in controlling depletion of natural resources and environmental pollution. By taking a critical look at the development of Chinese environmental policy, we try to determine how best to coordinate the relationship between the

[Development of a structural equation model for children's adaptation in divorced families].

Science.gov (United States)

Shin, Sung Hee

2010-02-01

This study was designed to develop and test a structural model for children's adaptation in divorced families. The hypothetical model was constructed based on the Family Resilience Model by McCubbin and McCubbin. Data were collected using self-report questionnaires from 219 children (3-6th grade) in divorced families. The children attended one of 22 community agencies, 8 after-school programs, 3 elementary schools in three cities in South Korea. The collected data were analyzed using LISREL program to test the hypothetical model. The modified model was constructed by deleting four paths in accordance with the statistical and theoretical criteria. Compared to the hypothetical model, the revised one had a better fit to the data. Self-esteem, and beliefs about parental divorce had direct effects, and family communication and internal control had indirect effects on children's adaptation in divorced families. These variables explained 56% of the variance in children's adaptation. The modified model was supported by empirical data. This model could be applied to family nursing interventions with divorced families or any other suffering family transition. When working with children experiencing parental divorce, it is important for nurses to enhance children's self-esteem, family communication and to decrease children's negative beliefs about parental divorce to help in their adaptation.

Personal Professional Development Efforts Scale for Middle School Mathematics Teachers: An Adaptation Study

Science.gov (United States)

Balbag, M. Zafer; Yenilmez, Kürsat; Turgut, Melih

2017-01-01

This study aimed at adapting the personal professional development efforts scale developed for science and technology teachers to be applied for middle school mathematics teachers. For this purpose, first of all, the items of the original scale were adjusted for the middle school mathematics teachers by a team of experts. Data obtained by the new…

CD4+ T Cells Mediate Aspergillosis Vaccine Protection.

Science.gov (United States)

Diaz-Arevalo, Diana; Kalkum, Markus

2017-01-01

Adaptive effector CD4 + T cells play essential roles in the defense against fungal infections, especially against invasive aspergillosis (IA). Such protective CD4 + T cells can be generated through immunization with specialized antifungal vaccines, as has been demonstrated for pulmonary Aspergillus fumigatus infections in mouse experiments. Adaptive transfer of fungal antigen-specific CD4 + T cells conferred protection onto non-immunized naive mice, an experimental approach that could potentially become a future treatment option for immunosuppressed IA patients, focusing on the ultimate goal to improve their otherwise dim chances for survival. Here, we describe the different techniques to analyze CD4 + T cell immune responses after immunization with a recombinant fungal protein. We present three major methods that are used to analyze the role of CD4 + T cells in protection against A. fumigatus challenge. They include (1) transplantation of CD4 + T cells from vaccinated mice into immunosuppressed naive mice, observing increasing protection of the cell recipients, (2) depletion of CD4 + T cells from vaccinated mice, which abolishes vaccine protection, and (3) T cell proliferation studies following stimulation with overlapping synthetic peptides or an intact protein vaccine. The latter can be used to validate immunization status and to identify protective T cell epitopes in vaccine antigens. In the methods detailed here, we used versions of the well-studied Asp f3 protein expressed in a bacterial host, either as the intact full length protein or its N-terminally truncated version, comprised of residues 15-168. However, these methods are generally applicable and can well be adapted to study other protein-based subunit vaccines.

How student models of expertise and innovation impact the development of adaptive expertise in medicine.

Science.gov (United States)

Mylopoulos, Maria; Regehr, Glenn

2009-02-01

The ability to innovate new solutions in response to daily workplace challenges is an important component of adaptive expertise. Exploring how to optimally develop this skill is therefore of paramount importance to education researchers. This is certainly no less true in health care, where optimal patient care is contingent on the continuous efforts of doctors and other health care workers to provide the best care to their patients through the development and incorporation of new knowledge. Medical education programmes must therefore foster the skills and attitudes necessary to engage future doctors in the systematic development of innovative problem solving. The aim of this paper is to describe the perceptions and experiences of medical students in their third and fourth years of training, and to explore their understanding of their development as adaptive experts. A sample of 25 medical students participated in individual 45-60-minute semi-structured interviews. Interviews were audiotaped, transcribed and entered into NVivo qualitative data analysis software to facilitate a thematic analysis. The analysis was both inductive, in that themes were generated from the data, and deductive, in that our data were meaningful when interpreted in the context of theories of adaptive expertise. Participants expressed a general belief that, as learners in the health care system, exerting any effort to be innovative was beyond the scope of their responsibilities. Generally, students suggested that innovative practice was the prerogative of experts and an outcome of expert development centred on the acquisition of knowledge and experience. Students' perceptions of themselves as having no responsibility to be innovative in their learning process have implications for their learning trajectories as adaptive experts.

Research for climate change adaptation

International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

Corey Piccioni

These impacts are ulti- ... While more needs to be done to reduce greenhouse gases globally, communities, ... tion and water capture/storage) and protecting people and assets in areas that are at ... drainage and early warning systems). ... 250+ adaptation options stemming from IDRC-funded research since 2006 for use by ...

A Multi-Pathfinder for Developing Adaptive Robust Policies in System Dynamics

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hamarat, C.; Pruyt, E.; Loonen, E.T.

2013-01-01

Adaptivity is essential for dynamically complex and uncertain systems. Adaptive policymaking is an approach to design policies that can be adapted over time to how the future unfolds. It is crucial for adaptive policymaking to specify under what conditions and how to adapt the policy. The

Developing a model lifeline protection program for DOE facilities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lowing, A.N.

1996-01-01

A National Lifeline Standard Development Program is currently being conducted by FEMA and NIST. The Department of Energy is following these developments and supplementing them to meet Life-Safety and mission requirements for all DOE facilities as part of the Natural Phenomena Hazards Mitigation Plan. The task will be overseen by a DOE management team with technical guidance provided by a Steering Group of management and operating contractor representatives. The DOE will participate in the federal program by conducting a workshop on lifeline protection issues, developing an overall plan, organizing a Steering Group, and conducting a pilot study at a DOE facility

Consumers` Attitude towards Consumer Protection in the Digital Single Market, as Reflected by European Barometers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Doru Alexandru Pleşea

2014-05-01

Full Text Available The European Single Market is an ongoing project that will continue to further develop and adapt to changing realities. Traditional economic activities, and the administrative rules governing them, face the challenge of adapting to developments that blur the dividing lines, for example, between shop and online sales or between traditional media and Internet communication. Convergence of this type will lead to a European Digital Single Market. A genuine Digital Single Market would generate new types of growth and also sustainable economic and social benefits for all European citizens. There are still a number of barriers which impose obstacles for the development of the digital market in Europe. Obstacles which can be identified include national differences regarding data protection rules, e-commerce rules, consumer protection rules and other legislation pertaining to information flows. The paper brings in discussion the advantages of a Digital Single Market, the obstacles in developing it in connection with e-commerce regulations, consumer protection and information flows legislation and also the premises for implementing a Digital Single Market. Consumers’ trust in on-line commerce results as one of the driving factors in implementing a Digital Single Market. These are some of the main obstacles for the boosting consumers’ confidence in the European Single Market. Improving consumer confidence in cross-border shopping online by taking appropriate policy action could provide a major boost to economic growth in Europe. Empowered and confident consumers can drive forward the European economy. Starting from the results of the Flash Euro-barometer survey „Consumer attitudes towards cross-border trade and consumer protection this study analyzes consumer`s readiness for the European Digital Single Market

Global Gene Expression Analysis of Cross-Protected Phenotype of Pectobacterium atrosepticum.

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Vladimir Gorshkov

Full Text Available The ability to adapt to adverse conditions permits many bacterial species to be virtually ubiquitous and survive in a variety of ecological niches. This ability is of particular importance for many plant pathogenic bacteria that should be able to exist, except for their host plants, in different environments e.g. soil, water, insect-vectors etc. Under some of these conditions, bacteria encounter absence of nutrients and persist, acquiring new properties related to resistance to a variety of stress factors (cross-protection. Although many studies describe the phenomenon of cross-protection and several regulatory components that induce the formation of resistant cells were elucidated, the global comparison of the physiology of cross-protected phenotype and growing cells has not been performed. In our study, we took advantage of RNA-Seq technology to gain better insights into the physiology of cross-protected cells on the example of a harmful phytopathogen, Pectobacterium atrosepticum (Pba that causes crop losses all over the world. The success of this bacterium in plant colonization is related to both its virulence potential and ability to persist effectively under various stress conditions (including nutrient deprivation retaining the ability to infect plants afterwards. In our previous studies, we showed Pba to be advanced in applying different adaptive strategies that led to manifestation of cell resistance to multiple stress factors. In the present study, we determined the period necessary for the formation of cross-protected Pba phenotype under starvation conditions, and compare the transcriptome profiles of non-adapted growing cells and of adapted cells after the cross-protective effect has reached the maximal level. The obtained data were verified using qRT-PCR. Genes that were expressed differentially (DEGs in two cell types were classified into functional groups and categories using different approaches. As a result, we portrayed

Dosimetric evaluation of indigenously developed non-lead bilayered radiation protective aprons

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Senthilkumar, S.

2018-01-01

Radiation shielding garments are commonly used to protect medical patients and radiation workers from X-radiation exposure during diagnostic imaging in hospitals. Originally, protective aprons consisted of lead-impregnated vinyl with a shielding equivalent given in millimeters of lead. All contained up to 2 mm of lead. While lead has long been used to shield patients from X-rays, its toxicity poses a health threat if the protective apron containing the metal wear out or the lead gets damaged. However, lead garments must be treated as hazardous waste for disposal and are heavy, causing back strain and other orthopedic problems for those who must wear them for long periods of time. The main purpose of this work was to indigenously develop light weight non lead based bilayered radiation protective aprons and evaluate dosimetrically with different combination of fabricated non lead materials and commercially available lead based aprons

Adaptive user interfaces

CERN Document Server

1990-01-01

This book describes techniques for designing and building adaptive user interfaces developed in the large AID project undertaken by the contributors.Key Features* Describes one of the few large-scale adaptive interface projects in the world* Outlines the principles of adaptivity in human-computer interaction

Self-Esteem and Social Adaptation Development in Children

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alicia Lamia

2011-12-01

Full Text Available Self-esteem is the self-evaluation each individual makes from the representations it has of itself and from the representations constructed by the others. The sense of personal worth appears in a process of identity construction. This is associated with the assessment that people make about the social adaptation of the child. The present study concerns the development of self-image and self-esteem of children in school age. The sample consisted of 180 children. The results demonstrated a difference in the responses of children in relation to age and gender. The boys were evaluated more positively than girls. There has been the same results in younger children compared to the older ones.

An analysis of the development and application of plant protection UAV based on advanced materials

Science.gov (United States)

Huang, Yuan-hui; Wei, Neng; Quan, Zhi-cheng; Huang, Yu-rong

2018-06-01

The development and application of a number of advanced materials plant protection unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) is an important part of the comprehensive production of agricultural modernization. The paper is taken as an example of Guangxi No. 1 agricultural service aviation science and Technology Co., Ltd. This paper introduces the internal and external environment of the research and development of the plant protection UAV for the advanced materials of the company. The external environment focuses on the role of the plant protection UAV on the development of the agricultural mechanization; the internal environment focuses on the advantages of the UAV in technology research, market promotion and application, which is imperative. Finally, according to the background of the whole industry, we put forward some suggestions for the developing opportunities and challenges faced by plant protection UAV, hoping to proving some ideas for operators, experts and scholars engaged in agricultural industry.

Face, neck, and eye protection: adapting body armour to counter the changing patterns of injuries on the battlefield.

Science.gov (United States)

Breeze, J; Horsfall, I; Hepper, A; Clasper, J

2011-12-01

Recent international papers have suggested an urgent need for new methods of protecting the face, neck, and eyes in battle. We made a systematic analysis to identify all papers that reported the incidence and mortality of combat wounds to the face, eyes, or neck in the 21st century, and any papers that described methods of protecting the face, neck, or eyes. Neck wounds were found in 2-11% of injuries in battle, and associated with high mortality, but no new methods of protecting the neck were identified. Facial wounds were found in 6-30% of injuries in battle, but despite the psychological effects of this type of injury only one paper suggested methods for protection. If soldiers wore existing eye protection they potentially reduced the mean incidence of eye injuries in combat from the 4.5% found in this analysis to 0.5%. Given the need to balance protection with the functional requirements of the individual soldier, a multidisciplinary approach is required. Military surgeons are well placed to work with material scientists and biomechanical engineers to suggest modifications to the design of both personal and vehicle-mounted protection. Further research needs is needed to find out how effective current methods of protecting the neck are, and to develop innovative methods of protecting the vulnerable regions of the neck and face. Crown Copyright © 2010. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Protected Areas' Impacts on Brazilian Amazon Deforestation: Examining Conservation-Development Interactions to Inform Planning.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alexander Pfaff

Full Text Available Protected areas are the leading forest conservation policy for species and ecoservices goals and they may feature in climate policy if countries with tropical forest rely on familiar tools. For Brazil's Legal Amazon, we estimate the average impact of protection upon deforestation and show how protected areas' forest impacts vary significantly with development pressure. We use matching, i.e., comparisons that are apples-to-apples in observed land characteristics, to address the fact that protected areas (PAs tend to be located on lands facing less pressure. Correcting for that location bias lowers our estimates of PAs' forest impacts by roughly half. Further, it reveals significant variation in PA impacts along development-related dimensions: for example, the PAs that are closer to roads and the PAs closer to cities have higher impact. Planners have multiple conservation and development goals, and are constrained by cost, yet still conservation planning should reflect what our results imply about future impacts of PAs.

Protected Areas' Impacts on Brazilian Amazon Deforestation: Examining Conservation-Development Interactions to Inform Planning.

Science.gov (United States)

Pfaff, Alexander; Robalino, Juan; Herrera, Diego; Sandoval, Catalina

2015-01-01

Protected areas are the leading forest conservation policy for species and ecoservices goals and they may feature in climate policy if countries with tropical forest rely on familiar tools. For Brazil's Legal Amazon, we estimate the average impact of protection upon deforestation and show how protected areas' forest impacts vary significantly with development pressure. We use matching, i.e., comparisons that are apples-to-apples in observed land characteristics, to address the fact that protected areas (PAs) tend to be located on lands facing less pressure. Correcting for that location bias lowers our estimates of PAs' forest impacts by roughly half. Further, it reveals significant variation in PA impacts along development-related dimensions: for example, the PAs that are closer to roads and the PAs closer to cities have higher impact. Planners have multiple conservation and development goals, and are constrained by cost, yet still conservation planning should reflect what our results imply about future impacts of PAs.

Adaptive signal processor

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Walz, H.V.

1980-07-01

An experimental, general purpose adaptive signal processor system has been developed, utilizing a quantized (clipped) version of the Widrow-Hoff least-mean-square adaptive algorithm developed by Moschner. The system accommodates 64 adaptive weight channels with 8-bit resolution for each weight. Internal weight update arithmetic is performed with 16-bit resolution, and the system error signal is measured with 12-bit resolution. An adapt cycle of adjusting all 64 weight channels is accomplished in 8 ..mu..sec. Hardware of the signal processor utilizes primarily Schottky-TTL type integrated circuits. A prototype system with 24 weight channels has been constructed and tested. This report presents details of the system design and describes basic experiments performed with the prototype signal processor. Finally some system configurations and applications for this adaptive signal processor are discussed.

Adaptive signal processor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Walz, H.V.

1980-07-01

An experimental, general purpose adaptive signal processor system has been developed, utilizing a quantized (clipped) version of the Widrow-Hoff least-mean-square adaptive algorithm developed by Moschner. The system accommodates 64 adaptive weight channels with 8-bit resolution for each weight. Internal weight update arithmetic is performed with 16-bit resolution, and the system error signal is measured with 12-bit resolution. An adapt cycle of adjusting all 64 weight channels is accomplished in 8 μsec. Hardware of the signal processor utilizes primarily Schottky-TTL type integrated circuits. A prototype system with 24 weight channels has been constructed and tested. This report presents details of the system design and describes basic experiments performed with the prototype signal processor. Finally some system configurations and applications for this adaptive signal processor are discussed

Radiation protection in biological investigation centers. Problematic, development and perspectives

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Macias, M.T.; Pina, R.; Usera, F.

1998-01-01

The radiological risk derivatives from the radioisotope techniques accomplished in the different investigation lines developed in the Centers object of this work, have necessary made establishing an organization that assure some adequate protection conditions in the use of the ionizing radiations

The new ICRP recommendations' project: A broader approach of the optimisation of radiation protection

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lochard, J.

2005-01-01

In the framework of the preparation of its new recommendations ICRP has developed a new text on the optimisation of radiological protection. This text prolongs the previous publications on the principle (Publications 37 and 45) reminding the need to adopt a pragmatic approach combining quantitative techniques when they are relevant as well as know-how and past experience which are often sufficient to ensure good protection. Moreover, it aims at adapting the optimisation process to the recent evolutions of risk management with the increasing role of stakeholder involvement in the decision framing. (author)

Physical Educators' Engagement in Online Adapted Physical Education Graduate Professional Development

Science.gov (United States)

Sato, Takahiro; Haegele, Justin A.

2018-01-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate in-service physical education teachers' engagement during online adapted physical education (APE) graduate professional development. This study was based on andragogy theory. All participants were in-service physical education teachers enrolled in a state-approved online APE endorsement program at a…

LABOUR PROTECTION AND INDUSTRIAL SAFETY IN UKRAINE: PROBLEMS OF TRANSITION PERIOD AND PERSPECTIVE WAYS OF DEVELOPMENT

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. P. BOCHKOVSKY

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Based on comparative analysis of the industrial accident causes in Ukraine and EU countries this article establishes that the main accident reasons are organizational ones (50 to 70% of the total number of cases, however such indicators as the registered in Ukraine fatal cases frequency coefficient (per 1 thousand of employees and the fatal accidents-total accidents number ratio are greater than the similar indicators in Europe by about 2- and 100-fold, respectively. It is noted that the issues of improving the work safety in Ukraine towards the association with the European Union should be considered in the context of two main planes, which are associated with changes in the legislative and educational systems. Within this article, the authors analyse the main inter-sectoral and sectoral regulatory legal acts on labour protection, in particular in the field of providing for fire, explosion and electrical safety, and relevant documents relating to the creation and maintenance of a comfortable environment at work. Based on the conducted analysis, the problems of adapting the national legislation in the field of labour protection and industrial safety to the legal framework of EU, the problems concerning the unsystematic character and selective approach to the implementation of appropriate changes, and potential hazards that can occur at all stages of the life cycle of technical systems in the event of their introduction are determined. The main differences in the systematic approach to the professional training of students in higher educational institutions (HEI of Ukraine and EU countries (Poland, for example in the field of labour protection and industrial safety are singled out. It is noted that in the Republic of Poland numbering the population correlative with Ukraine the quantity of special educational institutions preparing specialists in the field of labour protection in relation to the total number of higher educational establishment is

Planning and costing agriculture's adaptation to climate change: Policy Perspectives

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Downing, Tom; Chambwera, Muyeye; Venton, Courtnay Cabot; Dyszynski, Jillian; Crawford, Victoria

2011-10-15

Agriculture has a crucial role to play in meeting development goals – from demand for food as populations grow and become wealthier to maintaining essential ecosystem services, diverse livelihoods, and economic development. Underinvestment over the past 20 years has resulted in a sector that is not adequately prepared for the challenges of climate change. Yet for most developing countries, agriculture has been one of the earliest sectors to be affected by climate change, with negative impacts already apparent and more serious consequences projected for the future. There is increasing recognition by both the climate change and agricultural development communities that agriculture needs to be part of a new global climate change deal. 'No agriculture, no deal' is a clear signal from concerned stakeholders that agriculture will be a key feature of climate change negotiations, both for reducing greenhouse gas emissions and protecting vulnerable populations and economies. There has been a long history of assessments of the impact of climate change on agriculture, and recent international movements to press toward effective action are noteworthy. This Policy Perspectives paper summarises the results from a recent study led by the International Institute for Environment and Development, the Stockholm Environment Institute and the Global Climate Adaptation Partnership, with national teams in five developing countries. The principal conclusions inform policy and planning by addressing the following issues: 1. Framing and methodological development in the assessment of climate adaptation. 2. Assessment of current vulnerabilities, and potential future impacts and costs of adaptation. 3. Identification of strategies and measures considered priorities across regions and types of agriculture in 'pathways of adaptation'.

Can metaphysical values protect mountain wildlands from development damage?

Science.gov (United States)

Lawrence S. Hamilton; Jeneda Benally

2015-01-01

This paper addresses the question of whether spiritual, religious or cultural values held by humans for some wild mountain areas can protect these special places from developments that impair both these values and wild nature. The answer is sometimes yes, sometimes no, and sometimes a minimization of damage. Examples of each of these scenarios are briefly given, along...

Beyond Vulnerability Assessment: Impact of Developments toward Local Adaptive Capacity in Kemijen City Village, Semarang City

Science.gov (United States)

Jayanimitta, M. E.; Puspasari, D. A.; Widyahantari, R.; Kristina, D.; Ratnaningtyas, T.; Setionurjaya, A.; Anindita, Y. A.

2018-02-01

Vulnerability Assessment is usually used for assessing the ability of an area on facing disaster. In previous studies, the study of Vulnerability Assessment applied only quantitative method to show the vulnerability level. Therefore, this study attempts to add information reviews using qualitative method. Kemijen City Village is one of the administrative areas in the northern part of Semarang City affected by climate change. The residents have to adapt it by renovating and elevating their houses and other infrastructures to avoid floods. There are some development programs held by government, NGOs, and corporations such as Banger Polder Development, PLPBK, etc. It is interesting to know how big the vulnerability level of Kemijen on facing flood disasters, then how the projects can affect local adaptive capacity. To answer it, this research uses mixed-method approach. Vulnerability Assessment uses quantitative method by scoring indicators of Exposure, Sensitivity, and Adaptive Capacity, while the development impact uses qualitative method. The data were collected through interviews and FGD conducted in Joint Studio Course between Diponegoro University and University of Hawaii in October 2016. Non-physical programs such as community empowerment have more positive impacts on local adaptive capacity in Kemijen. Community participation is important for environmental sustainability that can not be done in a short time to educate the people.

Strategy of protected areas development in purposes of using and keeping bioresources and ecosystem services

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tatiana Vyacheslavovna Tikhonova

2012-09-01

Full Text Available Features and condition of existing system of especially protected natural territories of the Komi Republic are presented in this paper. Their specific environmental problems are defined. Strong sides and weaknesses of functioning and management of objects of special protection are provided. For approbation of a complex of methods of steady exploitation of this territory modeling objects of special protection are allocated and the economic assessment is carried out them. Potential recipients of benefits from use of bioresources and ecosystem services on modeling objects arerevealed. Theterritories possessing a reservefor increasein use of their resources and services are presented. Offers on strategy of development of a control system of especially protected natural territories of the Komi Republic are developed. Development strategy of control system ofespecially protected natural territories is consisting of someinstitutional decisions. This acceptance of federal-regional agreement about management control;creating of regional rules, which regulatethe usage of natural resources in especially protected natural territories; application of an integrated approach to the use of territories, which provide the bases to increase recreation and tourist industry; transfer buffer zone territories to biosphere reservation.

Limitations to Thermoregulation and Acclimatization Challenge Human Adaptation to Global Warming

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Elizabeth G. Hanna

2015-07-01

Full Text Available Human thermoregulation and acclimatization are core components of the human coping mechanism for withstanding variations in environmental heat exposure. Amidst growing recognition that curtailing global warming to less than two degrees is becoming increasing improbable, human survival will require increasing reliance on these mechanisms. The projected several fold increase in extreme heat events suggests we need to recalibrate health protection policies and ratchet up adaptation efforts. Climate researchers, epidemiologists, and policy makers engaged in climate change adaptation and health protection are not commonly drawn from heat physiology backgrounds. Injecting a scholarly consideration of physiological limitations to human heat tolerance into the adaptation and policy literature allows for a broader understanding of heat health risks to support effective human adaptation and adaptation planning. This paper details the physiological and external environmental factors that determine human thermoregulation and acclimatization. We present a model to illustrate the interrelationship between elements that modulate the physiological process of thermoregulation. Limitations inherent in these processes, and the constraints imposed by differing exposure levels, and thermal comfort seeking on achieving acclimatization, are then described. Combined, these limitations will restrict the likely contribution that acclimatization can play in future human adaptation to global warming. We postulate that behavioral and technological adaptations will need to become the dominant means for human individual and societal adaptations as global warming progresses.

Limitations to Thermoregulation and Acclimatization Challenge Human Adaptation to Global Warming.

Science.gov (United States)

Hanna, Elizabeth G; Tait, Peter W

2015-07-15

Human thermoregulation and acclimatization are core components of the human coping mechanism for withstanding variations in environmental heat exposure. Amidst growing recognition that curtailing global warming to less than two degrees is becoming increasing improbable, human survival will require increasing reliance on these mechanisms. The projected several fold increase in extreme heat events suggests we need to recalibrate health protection policies and ratchet up adaptation efforts. Climate researchers, epidemiologists, and policy makers engaged in climate change adaptation and health protection are not commonly drawn from heat physiology backgrounds. Injecting a scholarly consideration of physiological limitations to human heat tolerance into the adaptation and policy literature allows for a broader understanding of heat health risks to support effective human adaptation and adaptation planning. This paper details the physiological and external environmental factors that determine human thermoregulation and acclimatization. We present a model to illustrate the interrelationship between elements that modulate the physiological process of thermoregulation. Limitations inherent in these processes, and the constraints imposed by differing exposure levels, and thermal comfort seeking on achieving acclimatization, are then described. Combined, these limitations will restrict the likely contribution that acclimatization can play in future human adaptation to global warming. We postulate that behavioral and technological adaptations will need to become the dominant means for human individual and societal adaptations as global warming progresses.

The development of radiation protection

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pochin, E.E.

1981-01-01

The harm that might be caused by radiation exposure was recognised within months of Rontgen's discovery of X-rays, and recommendations for protection of patients and workers with radiation were formulated first in 1928. In the light of increasing radiobiological, genetic and human epidemiological evidence, it became clear that there might be no threshold, below which harmful effects did not occur. Recommendation and practice in radiation protection reflected this opinion from the early 1950's, and emphasised the consequent need for minimising exposures, quantifying risks and revising the dose limits appropriate for internal radiation of body organs. (author)

Cultural adaptation in translational research: field experiences.

Science.gov (United States)

Dévieux, Jessy G; Malow, Robert M; Rosenberg, Rhonda; Jean-Gilles, Michèle; Samuels, Deanne; Ergon-Pérez, Emma; Jacobs, Robin

2005-06-01

The increase in the incidence of HIV/AIDS among minorities in the United States and in certain developing nations has prompted new intervention priorities, stressing the adaptation of efficacious interventions for diverse and marginalized groups. The experiences of Florida International University's AIDS Prevention Program in translating HIV primary and secondary prevention interventions among these multicultural populations provide insight into the process of cultural adaptations and address the new scientific emphasis on ecological validity. An iterative process involving forward and backward translation, a cultural linguistic committee, focus group discussions, documentation of project procedures, and consultations with other researchers in the field was used to modify interventions. This article presents strategies used to ensure fidelity in implementing the efficacious core components of evidence-based interventions for reducing HIV transmission and drug use behaviors and the challenges posed by making cultural adaptation for participants with low literacy. This experience demonstrates the importance of integrating culturally relevant material in the translation process with intense focus on language and nuance. The process must ensure that the level of intervention is appropriate for the educational level of participants. Furthermore, the rights of participants must be protected during consenting procedures by instituting policies that recognize the socioeconomic, educational, and systemic pressures to participate in research.

Adaptive Lighting

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Petersen, Kjell Yngve; Søndergaard, Karin; Kongshaug, Jesper

2015-01-01

Adaptive Lighting Adaptive lighting is based on a partial automation of the possibilities to adjust the colour tone and brightness levels of light in order to adapt to people’s needs and desires. IT support is key to the technical developments that afford adaptive control systems. The possibilities...... offered by adaptive lighting control are created by the ways that the system components, the network and data flow can be coordinated through software so that the dynamic variations are controlled in ways that meaningfully adapt according to people’s situations and design intentions. This book discusses...... differently into an architectural body. We also examine what might occur when light is dynamic and able to change colour, intensity and direction, and when it is adaptive and can be brought into interaction with its surroundings. In short, what happens to an architectural space when artificial lighting ceases...

EDF: contribution to local development and the protection of the environment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Parot, F.; Veyret, G.

1995-01-01

As a consequence of the 1982-1983 French Decentralization laws, local elected officials were entrusted with new responsibilities concerning environmental protection and local development. EDF, the French public electricity utility therefore had to respond to new demands. New forms of cooperation with the various local actors were imagined: assistance in diagnostics, working out local strategies, subcontracting and working for the establishment of new industrial plants, multi-purpose water management (dams for example), environment protection (discreet lines...), urban waste treatment, transportation, etc

Adaptive steganography

Science.gov (United States)

Chandramouli, Rajarathnam; Li, Grace; Memon, Nasir D.

2002-04-01

Steganalysis techniques attempt to differentiate between stego-objects and cover-objects. In recent work we developed an explicit analytic upper bound for the steganographic capacity of LSB based steganographic techniques for a given false probability of detection. In this paper we look at adaptive steganographic techniques. Adaptive steganographic techniques take explicit steps to escape detection. We explore different techniques that can be used to adapt message embedding to the image content or to a known steganalysis technique. We investigate the advantages of adaptive steganography within an analytical framework. We also give experimental results with a state-of-the-art steganalysis technique demonstrating that adaptive embedding results in a significant number of bits embedded without detection.

Development of Adaptability and Value Orientations of Kazakh Students in the course of Sociocultural Adaptation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Z V Boyko

2011-09-01

Full Text Available The article is devoted to the analysis of the results of research of adaptability and value orientations in students from Kazakhstan. The peculiarities of adaptability and value orientations of the first and fourth courses Kazakh students in their first and fourth years at university, living in Russia, are compared in the article.

Physical protection design and analysis training for the former Soviet Union

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Soo Hoo, M.S.; Chapek, J.F.; Ebel, P.E.

1996-01-01

Since 1978, Sandia National Laboratories has provided training courses in the systematic design of Physical Protection Systems (PPS). One such course, the International Training Course (TC) on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Facilities and Materials, is sponsored by the Department of Energy's International Safeguards Division , the International Atomic Energy Agency, and the Department of State. Since 1978, twelve 3- and 4-week classes have been conducted by Sandia for these sponsors. One- and two-week adaptations of this course have been developed for other customers, and, since 1994, nine of these abbreviated courses have been presented in the Russian language to participants from the Former Soviet Union (SU). These courses have been performed in support of the Department of Energy's program on Material Protection, Control and Accounting (MPC ampersand A) for the Russian Federation and the Newly Independent States. MPC ampersand A physical protection training assumes participants have more narrowly defined backgrounds. In using affective approaches, the overall goal of training in the context of the MPC ampersand A Program is to develop modern and effective, indigenous capabilities for physical protection system design and analysis within the SU. This paper contrasts the cognitive and affective approaches to training and indicates why different approaches are required for the ITC and the MPC ampersand A Programs

Coastal and river flood risk analyses for guiding economically optimal flood adaptation policies: a country-scale study for Mexico

Science.gov (United States)

Haer, Toon; Botzen, W. J. Wouter; van Roomen, Vincent; Connor, Harry; Zavala-Hidalgo, Jorge; Eilander, Dirk M.; Ward, Philip J.

2018-06-01

Many countries around the world face increasing impacts from flooding due to socio-economic development in flood-prone areas, which may be enhanced in intensity and frequency as a result of climate change. With increasing flood risk, it is becoming more important to be able to assess the costs and benefits of adaptation strategies. To guide the design of such strategies, policy makers need tools to prioritize where adaptation is needed and how much adaptation funds are required. In this country-scale study, we show how flood risk analyses can be used in cost-benefit analyses to prioritize investments in flood adaptation strategies in Mexico under future climate scenarios. Moreover, given the often limited availability of detailed local data for such analyses, we show how state-of-the-art global data and flood risk assessment models can be applied for a detailed assessment of optimal flood-protection strategies. Our results show that especially states along the Gulf of Mexico have considerable economic benefits from investments in adaptation that limit risks from both river and coastal floods, and that increased flood-protection standards are economically beneficial for many Mexican states. We discuss the sensitivity of our results to modelling uncertainties, the transferability of our modelling approach and policy implications. This article is part of the theme issue `Advances in risk assessment for climate change adaptation policy'.

Identifying product development crises: The potential of adaptive heuristics

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Münzberger, C.; Stingl, Verena; Oehmen, Josef

2017-01-01

This paper introduces adaptive heuristics as a tool to identify crises in design projects and highlights potential applications of these heuristics as decision support tool for crisis identification. Crises may emerge slowly or suddenly, and often have ambiguous signals. Thus the identification...... for the application of heuristics in design sciences. To achieve this, the paper compares crises to 'business as usual', and presents sixteen indicators for emerging crises. These indicators are potential cues for adaptive heuristics. Specifically three adaptive heuristics, One-single-cue, Fast-and-Frugal-Trees...

Seeing the light : adapting to climate change with decentralized renewable energy in developing countries

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Venema, H.D.; Cisse, M.

2004-01-01

This book presents innovative and sustainable ways to respond to climate change with particular reference to decentralized renewable energy (DRE) projects. It presents the experience of developing DRE projects in five developing countries, Argentina, Bangladesh, Brazil, Senegal and Zimbabwe. The conditions under which these countries can support DRE through the Kyoto Protocol's Clean Development Mechanism were also examined. Some policy recommendations were proposed for more dynamic DRE support for the Kyoto era. The Clean Development Mechanism was examined as a key financial tool for supporting DRE. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) states that the least developed countries are the least equipped with adaptive capacity, and therefore most vulnerable to climate change. The IPCC claims that climate adaptation and sustainable development can be compatible if policies are made to lessen resource pressure, improve environmental risk management and improve the prosperity of the poorest members of society. This book presents a framework for introducing modern energy services through DRE that can stabilize the socio-economics of a developing country. The main implications of rural energy deprivation include deforestation and ecosystem degradation, chronic rural poverty and high vulnerability to the adverse effects of climate change. refs., tabs., figs

Development of a Just-in-Time Adaptive mHealth Intervention for Insomnia: Usability Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Pulantara, I Wayan; Parmanto, Bambang; Germain, Anne

2018-05-17

Healthy sleep is a fundamental component of physical and brain health. Insomnia, however, is a prevalent sleep disorder that compromises functioning, productivity, and health. Therefore, developing efficient treatment delivery methods for insomnia can have significant societal and personal health impacts. Cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBTI) is the recommended first-line treatment of insomnia but access is currently limited for patients, since treatment must occur in specialty sleep clinics, which suffer from an insufficient number of trained clinicians. Smartphone-based interventions offer a promising means for improving the delivery of CBTI. Furthermore, novel features such as real-time monitoring and assessment, personalization, dynamic adaptations of the intervention, and context awareness can enhance treatment personalization and effectiveness, and reduce associated costs. Ultimately, this "Just in Time Adaptive Intervention" for insomnia-an intervention approach that is acceptable to patients and clinicians, and is based on mobile health (mHealth) platform and tools-can significantly improve patient access and clinician delivery of evidence-based insomnia treatments. This study aims to develop and assess the usability of a Just in Time Adaptive Intervention application platform called iREST ("interactive Resilience Enhancing Sleep Tactics") for use in behavioral insomnia interventions. iREST can be used by both patients and clinicians. The development of iREST was based on the Iterative and Incremental Development software development model. Requirement analysis was based on the case study's description, workflow and needs, clinician inputs, and a previously conducted BBTI military study/implementation of the Just in Time Adaptive Intervention architecture. To evaluate the usability of the iREST mHealth tool, a pilot usability study was conducted. Additionally, this study explores the feasibility of using an off-the-shelf wearable device to

Adaptation in Europe. Addressing risks and opportunities from climate change in the context of socio-economic developments

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Isoard, S. [EEA (Denmark); Winograd, M. [Alterra (Netherlands)

2013-04-15

Europe. Such soft measures can help communities cope with risks, the report says. A similar project in Italy has set up early warning systems for mosquito-borne diseases expected to increase with climate change. Europe needs to adapt to climate change in a coherent way, ensuring adaptation is integrated in EU and national policies, the report says. There is no 'one-size-fits-all' approach - adapting to climate change should respond to national and local conditions. There is still uncertainty in climate change projections, and it is difficult to accurately estimate future risks as socio-economic aspects are also changing. For these reasons adaptation planning should be flexible enough to cope with unforeseen circumstances and a range of future climate changes, the report says. For example, the upgrade of the Thames Barrier which protects London from coastal flooding is being planned to keep options open, so it can be adjusted depending on the trend in sea level rise. (Author)

Diabetic beta-cells can achieve self-protection against oxidative stress through an adaptive up-regulation of their antioxidant defenses.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Grégory Lacraz

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Oxidative stress (OS, through excessive and/or chronic reactive oxygen species (ROS, is a mediator of diabetes-related damages in various tissues including pancreatic beta-cells. Here, we have evaluated islet OS status and beta-cell response to ROS using the GK/Par rat as a model of type 2 diabetes. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Localization of OS markers was performed on whole pancreases. Using islets isolated from 7-day-old or 2.5-month-old male GK/Par and Wistar control rats, 1 gene expression was analyzed by qRT-PCR; 2 insulin secretion rate was measured; 3 ROS accumulation and mitochondrial polarization were assessed by fluorescence methods; 4 antioxidant contents were quantified by HPLC. After diabetes onset, OS markers targeted mostly peri-islet vascular and inflammatory areas, and not islet cells. GK/Par islets revealed in fact protected against OS, because they maintained basal ROS accumulation similar or even lower than Wistar islets. Remarkably, GK/Par insulin secretion also exhibited strong resistance to the toxic effect of exogenous H(2O(2 or endogenous ROS exposure. Such adaptation was associated to both high glutathione content and overexpression (mRNA and/or protein levels of a large set of genes encoding antioxidant proteins as well as UCP2. Finally, we showed that such a phenotype was not innate but spontaneously acquired after diabetes onset, as the result of an adaptive response to the diabetic environment. CONCLUSIONS: The GK/Par model illustrates the effectiveness of adaptive response to OS by beta-cells to achieve self-tolerance. It remains to be determined to what extend such islet antioxidant defenses upregulation might contribute to GK/Par beta-cell secretory dysfunction.

Blended learning specialists in radiation protection; Formacion semipresencial de especialistas en proteccion radiologica

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mayo, P.; Campayo, J. M.; Verdu, G.

2011-07-01

In this paper, we present a blended learning Radiation Protection Technician through an approved degree from the Polytechnic University of Valencia, which covers the knowledge and skills of functions relating to operators and supervisors in various areas and skilled workers to be to perform their work in technical units or Radiation Protection Radiation Protection Services. The benefits of this work are those related to achieving quality training flexible and adapted to follow the check off the person conducting the course, adapted to internal and external training of the applicant companies.

Optimizing the passenger air bag of an adaptive restraint system for multiple size occupants.

Science.gov (United States)

Bai, Zhonghao; Jiang, Binhui; Zhu, Feng; Cao, Libo

2014-01-01

The development of the adaptive occupant restraint system (AORS) has led to an innovative way to optimize such systems for multiple size occupants. An AORS consists of multiple units such as adaptive air bags, seat belts, etc. During a collision, as a supplemental protective device, air bags can provide constraint force and play a role in dissipating the crash energy of the occupants' head and thorax. This article presents an investigation into an adaptive passenger air bag (PAB). The purpose of this study is to develop a base shape of a PAB for different size occupants using an optimization method. Four typical base shapes of a PAB were designed based on geometric data on the passenger side. Then 4 PAB finite element (FE) models and a validated sled with different size dummy models were developed in MADYMO (TNO, Rijswijk, The Netherlands) to conduct the optimization to obtain the best baseline PAB that would be used in the AORS. The objective functions-that is, the minimum total probability of injuries (∑Pcomb) of the 5th percentile female and 50th and 95th percentile male dummies-were adopted to evaluate the optimal configurations. The injury probability (Pcomb) for each dummy was adopted from the U.S. New Car Assessment Program (US-NCAP). The parameters of the AORS were first optimized for different types of PAB base shapes in a frontal impact. Then, contact time duration and force between the PAB and dummy head/chest were optimized by adjusting the parameters of the PAB, such as the number and position of tethers, lower the Pcomb of the 95th percentile male dummy. According to the optimization results, 4 typical PABs could provide effective protection to 5th and 50th percentile dummies. However, due to the heavy and large torsos of the 95th percentile occupants, the current occupant restraint system does not demonstrate satisfactory protective function, particularly for the thorax.

Understanding climate change adaptation and adaptive capacity: synthesis report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Patino, L. [Policy Research Initiative, Government of Canada, Ottawa, ON (Canada)

2010-09-15

In 2007, the Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) Climate Change Impacts and Adaptation Division (CCIAD) offered its support to research projects that were involved in understanding and improving adaptation and adaptive capacity and contributed to climate change decision-making and policy development in Canada. 20 research projects were commissioned by the CCIAD. With the collaboration of NRCan, the principal findings raised by the commissioned projects were synthesized by the Policy Research Initiative (PRI). Common themes and main messages are introduced in this synthesis report, and policy and program aspects that promote adaptive capacity to climate change in Canada are identified. Common themes and important messages emerging from the research projects, as well as the processes and barriers to adaptation and adaptive capacity identified in the commissioned projects, were discussed during a workshop held in Ottawa in 2009. Five main themes and four common barriers to adaptation were found. 25 refs.

A structure-based approach to evaluation product adaptability in adaptable design

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cheng, Qiang; Liu, Zhifeng; Cai, Ligang; Zhang, Guojun; Gu, Peihua

2011-01-01

Adaptable design, as a new design paradigm, involves creating designs and products that can be easily changed to satisfy different requirements. In this paper, two types of product adaptability are proposed as essential adaptability and behavioral adaptability, and through measuring which respectively a model for product adaptability evaluation is developed. The essential adaptability evaluation proceeds with analyzing the independencies of function requirements and function modules firstly based on axiomatic design, and measuring the adaptability of interfaces secondly with three indices. The behavioral adaptability reflected by the performance of adaptable requirements after adaptation is measured based on Kano model. At last, the effectiveness of the proposed method is demonstrated by an illustrative example of the motherboard of a personal computer. The results show that the method can evaluate and reveal the adaptability of a product in essence, and is of directive significance to improving design and innovative design

Evolution of the radiological protection policy. Applications in developing countries. IPEN a case of study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gordon, A.M.P.L.; Sordi, G.M.A. A.

2006-01-01

This paper aims to show the radiological protection development in Brazil from the beginning, when President Joao Cafe Filho signed an agreement with the U.S.A. In this agreement, Brazil joined the 'Atoms for Peace' program established on August 3., 1955. Yet in 1955, Brazil participated as a foundation member in the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). As a result, the Iea - 'Instituto de Energia Atomica'- was created on August 31., 1956 and a research reactor type swimming pool was installed to produce radioisotopes and prepare experts in the field of nuclear activities. This reactor is maintained in operation at the Instituto de Pesquisas Energeticas e Nucleares (IPEN), former Iea. Having the Iea as a case of study, we analyze the radiological protection evolution during the fifty years of its life. We correlate this development with the Brazilian National Nuclear Energy Commission (CNEN) Regulations. CNEN was also created in 1956. The first safety standard in Brazil was delivered in 1973. Therefore, this paper will focus the radiological protection development at national level. Both institutions followed the international radiological protection recommendations, under the difficulties imposed by the historical conditions of a developing country. In order to have an outline of the radiological protection development, we inform that it was started as a section of the Radiological Division at the Iea. At that time, the Iea had four divisions. The radiological protection was performed by four people, being two physicists and two technicians that accomplished all the duties. On that occasion, approximately 30 people operated the Iea. The work staff at IPEN increased, arriving to 1600 people in 1998, including 150 persons in the radiological protection activities. Nowadays, 1200 people, including 100 persons in the health physics duties operate the IPEN. (authors)

Evolution of the radiological protection policy. Applications in developing countries. IPEN a case of study

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gordon, A.M.P.L.; Sordi, G.M.A. A. [Instituto de Pesquisas Energeticas e Nucleares - IPEN, Sao Paulo (Brazil)

2006-07-01

This paper aims to show the radiological protection development in Brazil from the beginning, when President Joao Cafe Filho signed an agreement with the U.S.A. In this agreement, Brazil joined the 'Atoms for Peace' program established on August 3., 1955. Yet in 1955, Brazil participated as a foundation member in the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). As a result, the Iea - 'Instituto de Energia Atomica'- was created on August 31., 1956 and a research reactor type swimming pool was installed to produce radioisotopes and prepare experts in the field of nuclear activities. This reactor is maintained in operation at the Instituto de Pesquisas Energeticas e Nucleares (IPEN), former Iea. Having the Iea as a case of study, we analyze the radiological protection evolution during the fifty years of its life. We correlate this development with the Brazilian National Nuclear Energy Commission (CNEN) Regulations. CNEN was also created in 1956. The first safety standard in Brazil was delivered in 1973. Therefore, this paper will focus the radiological protection development at national level. Both institutions followed the international radiological protection recommendations, under the difficulties imposed by the historical conditions of a developing country. In order to have an outline of the radiological protection development, we inform that it was started as a section of the Radiological Division at the Iea. At that time, the Iea had four divisions. The radiological protection was performed by four people, being two physicists and two technicians that accomplished all the duties. On that occasion, approximately 30 people operated the Iea. The work staff at IPEN increased, arriving to 1600 people in 1998, including 150 persons in the radiological protection activities. Nowadays, 1200 people, including 100 persons in the health physics duties operate the IPEN. (authors)

Family adaptation to cerebral palsy in adolescents: A European multicenter study.

Science.gov (United States)

Guyard, Audrey; Michelsen, Susan I; Arnaud, Catherine; Fauconnier, Jerome

2017-02-01

Factors promoting family adaptation to child's disability are poorly studied together. The aim of the study was to describe the family adaptation to disability and to identify determinants associated with using a global theoretical model. 286 families of teenagers [13-17 years] with cerebral palsy (CP) from 4 European disability registers were included and visited at home. Face to face interviews were performed in order to measure parental distress, perceived impact in various dimensions of family life, family resources and stressors. Relationships were modelled with structural equations. 31.8% of parents living with an adolescent with CP showed clinically significant high stress requiring professional assistance. The main stressors were the level of motor impairment and behavioural disorders in adolescent. A good family functioning was the best protective factor. Respite in care and a parents' positive attitude were significantly related to less parental distress. Material support, socioeconomical level, marital status or parental qualifications did not appear to be significant protector factors. Particular attention must be paid not only on physical condition but also on adolescent psychological problems to improve family adaptation. Families at risk of experiencing severe distress should be targeted early and proactive caregiver interventions on the whole family should be performed. Family is a dynamic system: facing disability, it tries to recover its balance with available resources and its perception of the situation. Literature highlights potential stressors and protecting factors that could affect the disabled child's family adaptation but few papers study a global model including most of these factors. This study validated a global theoretical model of family adaptation to disability at adolescence. It identified behaviour disorders and motor impairment level as main stressors, family functioning as the largest protecting factors, and equipment and

Force Protection in Urban and Unconventional Environments

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Gold, Theodore; Hartzog, William

2006-01-01

...; the same populace that adaptive enemies attempt to hide within. While its subject is force protection, the task force has little to say about armor, fences, portals, and other defensive measures...

Challenges and Opportunities for Mainstreaming Climate Change Adaptation into WaSH Development Planning in Ghana

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Salley Alhassan

2017-07-01

Full Text Available Climate change threatens water, sanitation and hygiene (WaSH facilities and services, as these are intimately linked to the water cycle and are vulnerable to changes in the quantity and quality of available water resources. Floods and droughts, which pollute and reduce water delivery respectively, have now become a perennial issue to deal with in the northern regions of Ghana. This study aimed to assess the degree to which climate change adaptation measures are mainstreamed into the water, sanitation and hygiene (WaSH development planning process in Ghana. Stakeholders from government and non-government agencies were interviewed to gain perspectives on the threat of climate change, the inclusion of climate change in WaSH planning and the barriers preventing mainstreaming. Despite awareness of climate change, adaptation measures have not been considered, and the immediate WaSH needs remain the priority. Overall, stakeholders felt the adaptive capacity of the Municipality was low and that mainstreaming has not yet occurred. Despite the lack of progress, there are great opportunities for mainstreaming climate change adaptation into planning through increasing awareness and capacity, legislative and institutional changes and the development of participatory systems to provide early warning systems and disaster risk analyses that will inform future planning.

Challenges and Opportunities for Mainstreaming Climate Change Adaptation into WaSH Development Planning in Ghana.

Science.gov (United States)

Alhassan, Salley; Hadwen, Wade L

2017-07-10

Climate change threatens water, sanitation and hygiene (WaSH) facilities and services, as these are intimately linked to the water cycle and are vulnerable to changes in the quantity and quality of available water resources. Floods and droughts, which pollute and reduce water delivery respectively, have now become a perennial issue to deal with in the northern regions of Ghana. This study aimed to assess the degree to which climate change adaptation measures are mainstreamed into the water, sanitation and hygiene (WaSH) development planning process in Ghana. Stakeholders from government and non-government agencies were interviewed to gain perspectives on the threat of climate change, the inclusion of climate change in WaSH planning and the barriers preventing mainstreaming. Despite awareness of climate change, adaptation measures have not been considered, and the immediate WaSH needs remain the priority. Overall, stakeholders felt the adaptive capacity of the Municipality was low and that mainstreaming has not yet occurred. Despite the lack of progress, there are great opportunities for mainstreaming climate change adaptation into planning through increasing awareness and capacity, legislative and institutional changes and the development of participatory systems to provide early warning systems and disaster risk analyses that will inform future planning.

CAPACITY BUILDING FOR CLIMATE CHANGE ADAPTATION: MODULES FOR AGRICULTURAL EXTENSION CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

B.O. Ogunbameru

2013-02-01

Full Text Available Basically, climate change refers to any change in climate overtime, generally caused by natural variability and/or human activities. It has great devastating impact, particularly on agriculture and by extrapolation on farmers and the national economy. The frontline agricultural extension workers are expected to be among the principal stakeholders to teach farmers how to cope with climate change. Consequently, there is a need to develop appropriate teaching package for the training of the frontline agricultural extension workers, based on the myriad of adaptation strategies and practices available in the literature. This paper synthesizes the rationale for capacity building in climate change and the adaptation or coping strategies. The modules (train-the-trainer for teaching agricultural extension workers and farmers are documented in the paper.

Optimization of coastal protection measures on small islands in the northfrisian part of the North Sea

Science.gov (United States)

Wöffler, T.; Jensen, J.; Schüttrumpf, H.

2017-12-01

Low lying small islands are among the most vulnerable regions worldwide due to the consequences of climate change. The reasons for this are the concentration of infrastructure, geographical features and their small size. Worldwide special forms and adaptations of coastal protection strategies and measures can be found on small islands. In the northfrisian part of the North Sea worldwide unique strategies and measures have been developed in the last centuries due to the geographic location and the isolation during extreme events. One special feature of their coastal protection strategy is the lack of dikes. For this reason, the houses are built on artificial dwelling mounds in order to protect the inhabitants and their goods against frequently occurring inundations during storm surge seasons (up to 30 times a year). The Hallig islands themselves benefit by these inundations due to sediments, which are accumulated on the island's surfaces. This sedimentation has enabled a natural adaption to sea level rise in the past. Nevertheless, the construction methods of the coastal protection measures are mainly based on tradition and the knowledge of the inhabitants. No resilient design approaches and safety standards for these special structures like dwelling mounds and elevated revetments exist today. For this reason, neither a cost efficient construction nor a prioritization of measures is possible. Main part of this paper is the scientific investigation of the existing coastal protection measures with the objective of the development of design approaches and safety standards. The results will optimize the construction of the existing coastal protection measures and can be transferred to other small islands and low lying areas worldwide.

Developing a training program for radiation protection officers in industrial radiography

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kinda, R.

2013-04-01

Non-Destructive Testing employs a variety of techniques which are used to test objects e.g. pipes, vessels, welded joints, castings and other devices for imperfections without interfering with their physical structure. The common methods of testing include magnetic particle, ultrasound, dye penetrant and industrial radiography using gamma emitting radiation sources and electronic x-ray emitting devices. Other methods used are acoustic emission testing, acoustic resonance testing, electromagnetic testing, infrared testing and leak testing. This project work focuses on training of RPOs in the areas where radiation is used, as improper use may lead to high radiation exposure. In order to ensure adequate protection and safety of staff and the public, the Radiation Protection Officers need to be thoroughly trained. With proper training the Radiation Protection Officer will have the ability to interpret legislative instruments and understand the requirements. The RPO will also be able to develop a Radiation Protection Plan and train fellow staff on radiation safety issues. A number of companies currently specialize in Industrial Radiography and this number is growing on a yearly basis. Since the increased use of radiation sources cannot be curbed, training Radiation Protection Officers will improve the radiation safety standards within these companies and promote the safe use of the radiation sources. Therefore this project covers the fundamental elements required to train Radiation Protection Officers in Industrial Radiography. (author)

Participation of a preschooler with visual impairments on the playground: effects of musical adaptations and staff development.

Science.gov (United States)

Kern, P; Wolery PhD, M

2001-01-01

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the adaptations of a playground, and subsequently staff development, on the participation of a 3-year-old boy with congenital blindness. A single-subject design with three conditions (baseline, adaptations of the playground, and staff development) was used. The playground adaptation involved adding musical stations in strategic locations on the playground and connecting them with a "path" that provided auditory feedback. The staff training involved the music therapist providing individualized instruction to the staff who supervised the child. The child's participation was measured in terms of social interaction with peers or adults, play and engagement with materials, movement on the playground, and stereotypic behaviors. The playground adaptation resulted in no changes in the child's social interactions with peers or adults, increases in engagement, no change in movement on the playground, and a decrease in stereotypic responses. Staff training resulted in increased but variable interactions with adults and peers, in additional increases in engagement, less movement, and similar levels of stereotypic behavior. The findings suggest that musical adaptations of physical environments may he helpful but not sufficient for promoting desired outcomes.

Development and operation of fast protection for KSTAR

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hong, Jaesic, E-mail: hjaesic@nfri.re.kr; Lee, Woongryol; Lee, Taegu; Han, Hyunsun; Han, Sang-Hee; Park, Kaprai

2016-11-15

Highlights: • The evolution of KSTAR machine interlock system. • The evolution of KSTAR fast interlock. • The fast interlock interface. • The operation results of the fast interlock. - Abstract: Protection for the Korea superconducting tokamak advanced research (KSTAR) is somewhat more complicated than for the previous tokomak generation. External reasons for this increased complexity are the initial and maintenance costs, and internal reasons relate to various characteristics of the tokamak and long pulse operation. KSTAR has two protection mechanisms: the device protection system protects damage to superconducting coils etc. from events within the other systems, and the fast protection system protects the internal vacuum vessel components against damage from heating and the long pulse plasma. The fast protection system initially contained the plasma control system (PCS), central control system (CCS), and the heating devices. In 2012, a fast interlock interface was implemented for PCS fail-safe. This detected the absence of plasma current using the diagnostic signals and discharge operation gate windows of the timing synchronized system (TSS), and activates the operation gates and heating stop from the CCS. Additional fast interlock logic was implemented to reduce damage to the plasma facing components (PFC) and other materials by overheating and improper operational state of heating systems after starting the discharge sequence. However, the fast interlock interface system has failed to protect the heating during PCS malfunctions since 2013. This paper introduces the KSTAR protection system, and describes the fast protection interface, with testing and operational results, then discusses future plans for a more effective and safer protection system.

Impact of Nursing Learning Environments on Adaptive Competency Development in Baccalaureate Nursing Students.

Science.gov (United States)

Laschinger, Heather K. Spence

1992-01-01

Kolb's experiential learning theory was used as a framework to study 179 generic baccalaureate students' perceptions of the different types of learning environments and adaptive competencies. Clinical experience and preceptorships contributed more to competency development than did nursing or nonnursing classes. (JOW)

Adaptive and non-adaptive data hiding methods for grayscale images based on modulus function

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Najme Maleki

2014-07-01

Full Text Available This paper presents two adaptive and non-adaptive data hiding methods for grayscale images based on modulus function. Our adaptive scheme is based on the concept of human vision sensitivity, so the pixels in edge areas than to smooth areas can tolerate much more changes without making visible distortion for human eyes. In our adaptive scheme, the average differencing value of four neighborhood pixels into a block via a threshold secret key determines whether current block is located in edge or smooth area. Pixels in the edge areas are embedded by Q-bit of secret data with a larger value of Q than that of pixels placed in smooth areas. Also in this scholar, we represent one non-adaptive data hiding algorithm. Our non-adaptive scheme, via an error reduction procedure, produces a high visual quality for stego-image. The proposed schemes present several advantages. 1-of aspects the embedding capacity and visual quality of stego-image are scalable. In other words, the embedding rate as well as the image quality can be scaled for practical applications 2-the high embedding capacity with minimal visual distortion can be achieved, 3-our methods require little memory space for secret data embedding and extracting phases, 4-secret keys have used to protect of the embedded secret data. Thus, level of security is high, 5-the problem of overflow or underflow does not occur. Experimental results indicated that the proposed adaptive scheme significantly is superior to the currently existing scheme, in terms of stego-image visual quality, embedding capacity and level of security and also our non-adaptive method is better than other non-adaptive methods, in view of stego-image quality. Results show which our adaptive algorithm can resist against the RS steganalysis attack.

Development and Psychometric Evaluation of the Adaptive Functions of Music Listening Scale.

Science.gov (United States)

Groarke, Jenny M; Hogan, Michael J

2018-01-01

Music listening may serve many adaptive functions in everyday life. However, studies examining the relationship between the functions of music listening (FML) and wellbeing outcomes have produced mixed findings. The purpose of this study is to develop a new measure to assess music listening functions that is psychometrically robust, and suitable for outcomes-based research on music listening and wellbeing. Scale items were developed based on a literature review and a prior qualitative enquiry. The items were reviewed by four content experts in music psychology and scale development. Scale structure was investigated by EFA and CFA in two large samples of participants ( N = 1,191, 17-66 years, M = 22.04, SD = 6.23, 326 males). Tests of dimensionality revealed a 46-item scale with 11 factors for the Adaptive Functions of Music Listening (AFML) scale. Namely, Stress Regulation, Anxiety Regulation, Anger Regulation, Loneliness Regulation, Rumination, Reminiscence, Strong Emotional Experiences, Awe and Appreciation, Cognitive Regulation, Identity , and Sleep FML. The scale and its subscales possess good internal consistency and construct validity. In line with theory and research on gender differences in FML, scores on factors representing affect regulation FML were significantly higher among female respondents. Supporting the concurrent validity of the AFML scale, factors were positively correlated with an existing measure of the FML-the Music USE questionnaire. Further evidence of construct validity derives from positive associations between affect regulation factor scores and level of reappraisal, and lack of association with suppression, as measured by the Emotion Regulation Questionnaire. Consistent with the view that adaptive FML are positively related to wellbeing, a number of factors, affect regulation factors in particular, were significantly positively correlated with subjective, psychological, and social wellbeing measures across two cross-sectional studies.

Development and Psychometric Evaluation of the Adaptive Functions of Music Listening Scale

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jenny M. Groarke

2018-04-01

Full Text Available Music listening may serve many adaptive functions in everyday life. However, studies examining the relationship between the functions of music listening (FML and wellbeing outcomes have produced mixed findings. The purpose of this study is to develop a new measure to assess music listening functions that is psychometrically robust, and suitable for outcomes-based research on music listening and wellbeing. Scale items were developed based on a literature review and a prior qualitative enquiry. The items were reviewed by four content experts in music psychology and scale development. Scale structure was investigated by EFA and CFA in two large samples of participants (N = 1,191, 17–66 years, M = 22.04, SD = 6.23, 326 males. Tests of dimensionality revealed a 46-item scale with 11 factors for the Adaptive Functions of Music Listening (AFML scale. Namely, Stress Regulation, Anxiety Regulation, Anger Regulation, Loneliness Regulation, Rumination, Reminiscence, Strong Emotional Experiences, Awe and Appreciation, Cognitive Regulation, Identity, and Sleep FML. The scale and its subscales possess good internal consistency and construct validity. In line with theory and research on gender differences in FML, scores on factors representing affect regulation FML were significantly higher among female respondents. Supporting the concurrent validity of the AFML scale, factors were positively correlated with an existing measure of the FML—the Music USE questionnaire. Further evidence of construct validity derives from positive associations between affect regulation factor scores and level of reappraisal, and lack of association with suppression, as measured by the Emotion Regulation Questionnaire. Consistent with the view that adaptive FML are positively related to wellbeing, a number of factors, affect regulation factors in particular, were significantly positively correlated with subjective, psychological, and social wellbeing measures across two cross

Paint Removal from Composites and Protective Coating Development