Leading safety performance indicators for resilience assessment of radiopharmaceuticals production process

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Grecco, Claudio H.S.; Santos, Isaac J.A.L.; Carvalho, Paulo V.R., E-mail: grecco@ien.gov.b, E-mail: luquetti@ien.gov.b, E-mail: paulov@ien.gov.b [Instituto de Engenharia Nuclear (IEN/CNEN-RJ), Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil). Div. de Instrumentacao e Confiabilidade Humana; Vidal, Mario C.R., E-mail: mvidal@ergonomia.ufrj.b [Coordenacao dos Programas de Pos-Graduacao de Engenharia (PEP/COPPE/UFRJ), Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil). Programa de Engenharia de Producao. Grupo de Ergonomia e Novas Tecnologias (GENTE)

2011-07-01

Radiopharmaceuticals are radiation-emitting substances used in medicine for radiotherapy and imaging diagnosis. A Research Institute, located in Rio de Janeiro, produces three radiopharmaceuticals: the sodium iodate is used in the diagnosis of thyroid dysfunctions, the meta-iodo-benzyl guanidine is used in the diagnosis of cardiac diseases, and the fluorodeoxyglucose is used in diagnosis in cardiology, oncology, neurology and neuro psychiatry. This paper presents a leading safety performance indicators framework to assess the resilience of radiopharmaceuticals production processes. The organizations that use resilience indicators will be able to pro actively evaluate and manage safety. (author)

Cost analysis of enzymatic biodiesel production in small-scaled packed-bed reactors

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Budzaki, S.; Miljic, G.; Sundaram, S.; Tisma, M.; Hessel, V.

2017-01-01

A cost analysis of enzymatic biodiesel production in small-scaled packed-bed reactors using refined sunflower oil is performed in this work. A few enzymatic micro-flow reactors have so far reached a performance close to gram-scale, which might be sufficient for the pharmaceutical industry. This

Divergent Explanatory Production (DEP): The Relationship between Resilience and Creativity

Science.gov (United States)

Hernández, Óscar Sánchez; Méndez, Francisco Xavier; Garber, Judy

2015-01-01

Introduction: The aim of the study is to describe and analyze a new test and construct, Divergent Explanatory Production (DEP), defined as the ability to observe adverse situations from various points of view. At the theoretical level, it is a bridge between the reformulated model of learned helplessness (as a resilience model), and creative…

Shelving 6 pack crisps

OpenAIRE

Garriga Torrecillas, Núria; Otrubova, Natalie; Worm, Robert; Larroque, Thibaut

2017-01-01

6-Pack crisps are one of the main products sold by PepsiCo using the standard shelf storage options offered by Tesco PLC. While presenting specific packaging involves a multitude of variables. This report focusses on cognitive recognition, brand confusion and product attractiveness. PepsiCo asked the research team to investigate innovative ways of presenting the crisp 6-pack variant on instore displays. research shows that attraction is crucial in the form of expected rewards. The combination...

Sustainable and Resilient Supply Chain Network Design under Disruption Risks

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sonia Irshad Mari

2014-09-01

Full Text Available Sustainable supply chain network design is a rich area for academic research that is still in its infancy and has potential to affect supply chain performance. Increasing regulations for carbon and waste management are forcing firms to consider their supply chains from ecological and social objectives, but in reality, however, facilities and the links connecting them are disrupted from time to time, due to poor weather, natural or manmade disasters or a combination of any other factors. Supply chain systems drop their sustainability objectives while coping with these unexpected disruptions. Hence, the new challenges for supply chain managers are to design an efficient and effective supply chain network that will be resilient enough to bounce back from any disruption and that also should have sufficient vigilance to offer same sustainability under a disruption state. This paper focuses on ecological sustainability, because an environmental focus in a supply chain system is more important and also links with other pillars of sustainability, as the products need to be produced, packed and transported in an ethical way, which should not harm social balance and the environment. Owing to importance of the considered issue, this paper attempts to introduce a network optimization model for a sustainable and resilient supply chain network by incorporating (1 sustainability via carbon emissions and embodied carbon footprints and (2 resilience by incorporating location-specific risks. The proposed goal programming (GP model optimizes the total cost, while considering the resilience and sustainability of the supply chain network.

Structured packing: an opportunity for energy savings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chavez T, R.H.; Guadarrama G, J.J.

1996-01-01

This work emphasizes the advantages about the use of structured packing. This type of packings allows by its geometry to reduce the processing time giving energy savings and throw down the production costs in several industries such as heavy water production plants, petrochemical industry and all industries involved with separation processes. There is a comparative results of energy consumption utilizing the structured vs. Raschig packings. (Author)

How Cities Think: Knowledge Co-Production for Urban Sustainability and Resilience

Science.gov (United States)

Tischa Muñoz-Erickson; Clark Miller; Thaddeus Miller

2017-01-01

Understanding and transforming how cities think is a crucial part of developing effective knowledge infrastructures for the Anthropocene. In this article, we review knowledge co-production as a popular approach in environmental and sustainability science communities to the generationof useable knowledge for sustainability and resilience. We present knowledge systems...

Does resilient mean eco-inefficient?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Pizzol, Massimo

as long-term perfomance. Resilience is not explicitly taken into account within life cycle assessment (LCA). LCA determines the eco-efficiency of product systems, i.e. the ratio between the function provided by the product and its impact on the environment. The question is whether a product system which...... structure is improved or designed to be more resilient will not only be more inefficient, but also eco-inefficient, when studied by means of LCA. In this work a two steps approach is proposed to study resilience of product systems: 1) assessment of disturbance conditions and their inclusion within the scope......, because the redundant connections between elements of a system make it less efficient but also more flexible and adaptable and allow to perform a function even if some connections are interrupted or missing. Balancing between resilience and efficiency seems to be the key for sustainability intended...

New series of paper pack vending machines; Paper pack jido hanbaiki no shin series

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ohashi, M. [Fuji Denki Reiki Co. Ltd., Tokyo (Japan); Umino, S. [Fuji Electric Co. Ltd., Tokyo (Japan)

1996-07-10

This paper presents series of paper pack vending machines. These machines may be broadly classified into those of cold drinks and of hot and cold drinks depending on the storage temperature of products. The former is the machine for cooling dairy products at 10{degree}C with a combined stacking by direct-stacked racks and chain-multiracks. The latter is provided with divided storing chambers with each chamber selectively cooled or heated. Products in the hot chamber are canned coffee and the like set at 55{degree}C. The temperature control is performed by a microcomputer. The chain-multiracks are provided with advantages such as capability of handling various kinds of container shapes, storing drinks and foods vertically, replacing products by the change of a shelf attachment with one operation, and storing one liter packs by setting pair columns. The direct-stacked racks are provided with advantages such as versatility of handling various kinds of containers and miniaturization of the mechanism other than the storage part. The installation space was reduced by devising the opening and closing of the door. The control part is capable of setting temperatures differently for cans and paper packs. 7 figs., 1 tab.

Detection of relevant amounts of cow's milk protein in non-pre-packed bakery products sold as cow's milk-free.

Science.gov (United States)

Trendelenburg, V; Enzian, N; Bellach, J; Schnadt, S; Niggemann, B; Beyer, K

2015-05-01

Currently, there is no mandatory labelling of allergens for non-pre-packed foods in the EU. Therefore, consumers with food allergy rely on voluntary information provided by the staff. The aim of this study was to characterize allergic reactions to non-pre-packed foods and to investigate whether staff in bakery shops were able to give advice regarding a safe product choice. Questionnaires were sent to 200 parents of children with a food allergy. Staff of 50 bakery shops were interviewed regarding selling non-pre-packed foods to food-allergic customers. Bakery products being recommended as 'cow's milk-free' were bought, and cow's milk protein levels were measured using ELISA. A total of 104 of 200 questionnaires were returned. 25% of the children experienced an allergic reaction due to a non-pre-packed food from bakery shops and 20% from ice cream parlours. Sixty percent of the bakery staff reported serving food-allergic customers at least once a month, 24% once a week. Eighty four percent of the staff felt able to advise food-allergic consumers regarding a safe product choice. Seventy three 'cow's milk-free' products were sold in 44 bakery shops. Cow's milk could be detected in 43% of the bakery products, 21% contained >3 mg cow's milk protein per serving. Staff in bakery shops felt confident about advising customers with food allergy. However, cow's milk was detectable in almost half of bakery products being sold as 'cow's milk-free'. Every fifth product contained quantities of cow's milk exceeding an amount where approximately 10% of cow's milk-allergic children will show clinical relevant symptoms. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

27 CFR 24.308 - Bottled or packed wine record.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... 27 Alcohol, Tobacco Products and Firearms 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Bottled or packed wine... BUREAU, DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY LIQUORS WINE Records and Reports § 24.308 Bottled or packed wine record. A proprietor who bottles, packs, or receives bottled or packed beverage wine in bond shall...

Simulated selection responses for breeding programs including resistance and resilience to parasites in Creole goats.

Science.gov (United States)

Gunia, M; Phocas, F; Gourdine, J-L; Bijma, P; Mandonnet, N

2013-02-01

The Creole goat is a local breed used for meat production in Guadeloupe (French West Indies). As in other tropical countries, improvement of parasite resistance is needed. In this study, we compared predicted selection responses for alternative breeding programs with or without parasite resistance and resilience traits. The overall breeding goal included traits for production, reproduction, and parasite resilience and resistance to ensure a balanced selection outcome. The production traits were BW and dressing percentage (DP). The reproduction trait was fertility (FER), which was the number of doe kiddings per mating. The resistance trait was worm fecal egg count (FEC), which is a measurement of the number of gastro-intestinal parasite eggs found in the feces. The resilience trait was the packed cell volume (PCV), which is a measurement of the volume of red blood cells in the blood. Dressing percentage, BW, and FEC were measured at 11 mo of age, which is the mating or selling age. Fertility and PCV were measured on females at each kidding period. The breeding program accounting for the overall breeding goal and a selection index including all traits gave annual selection responses of 800 g for BW, 3.75% for FER, 0.08% for DP, -0.005 ln(eggs/g) for FEC, and 0.28% for PCV. The expected selection responses for BW and DP in this breeding program were reduced by 2% and 6%, respectively, compared with a breeding program not accounting for FEC and PCV. The overall breeding program, proposed for the Creole breed, offers the best breeding strategy in terms of expected selection responses, making it possible to improve all traits together. It offers a good balance between production and adaptation traits and may present some interest for the selection of other goat breeds in the tropics.

A summary of the Chalk River valve packing evaluation program 1985 - 1990

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aikin, J.A.; Doubt, G.L.; Lade, C.R.

1990-12-01

The move away from asbestos-based valve packing products has generated concern among valve manufacturers, packing manufacturers and user groups about the reliability and safety of non-asbestos based products for long-term use. AECL Research, Chalk River, has been actively evaluating these new valve packing products since 1985. This report describes the work done at Chalk River from 1985 to 1990. The report includes both Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) and CANDU Owners Group (COG) funded studies. A description of the test programs and a brief summary of the functional performance of the more successful materials (die-formed graphite, braided asbestos and braided non-asbestos) on friction, stem leakage and consolidation are provided. At this time, Chalk River and Ontario Hydro have approved the following packing arrangements: for non-live-loaded valves, the recommended replacements packing for braided asbestos is combination flexible graphite packing sets; and, for heavy water valves originally designed with JC187I, the recommended replacement packing is approved braided-asbestos products

Understanding transformations in agriculture in south India through the quantification of productivity, equity, and resilience

Science.gov (United States)

Penny, G.; Srinivasan, V.; Thompson, S. E.

2017-12-01

Rapid acceleration of human-water interactions have been identified in many regions of the world, often resulting in reduced water security. In the Arkavathy watershed adjacent to Bangalore, India, environmental and human systems have collectively experienced major transformations since the initiation of sustainable agriculture near the beginning of the Holocene. We reconstruct a narrative history of water security in the Arkavathy, focusing on quantitative metrics of productivity, equity, and resilience. Over this time period, the system can be separated into multiple distinct eras characterized by the dominant practices of agriculture and water management, including the unmanaged (natural) plant ecology of the region, followed by subsistence farming, tank irrigation, construction of large reservoirs, groundwater depletion, and decentralized adaptation. Each of these eras was initiated by a combination of external drivers (e.g., climate, technology) and internal drivers (e.g., demand for food and water). The last fifty years have been characterized by rapid increase in productivity largely sustained by expansion of groundwater irrigation and increasing demand from the rapidly urbanizing Bangalore. Equity initially increased with the introduction of groundwater irrigation and the increased access to irrigation supply. As the water table declined and groundwater irrigation became less affordable, resilience of the system decreased and was followed by a decrease in equity and productivity, with wealthier farmers reaping the benefits and poorer farmers unable to afford access to groundwater. Absent meaningful changes to water rights policy, the system appears to be trending towards a new, undesirable equilibrium characterized by high inequality, moderate productivity (concentrated among the wealthiest farmers), and low resilience.

Scaling up the diversity-resilience relationship with trait databases and remote sensing data: the recovery of productivity after wildfire.

Science.gov (United States)

Spasojevic, Marko J; Bahlai, Christie A; Bradley, Bethany A; Butterfield, Bradley J; Tuanmu, Mao-Ning; Sistla, Seeta; Wiederholt, Ruscena; Suding, Katharine N

2016-04-01

Understanding the mechanisms underlying ecosystem resilience - why some systems have an irreversible response to disturbances while others recover - is critical for conserving biodiversity and ecosystem function in the face of global change. Despite the widespread acceptance of a positive relationship between biodiversity and resilience, empirical evidence for this relationship remains fairly limited in scope and localized in scale. Assessing resilience at the large landscape and regional scales most relevant to land management and conservation practices has been limited by the ability to measure both diversity and resilience over large spatial scales. Here, we combined tools used in large-scale studies of biodiversity (remote sensing and trait databases) with theoretical advances developed from small-scale experiments to ask whether the functional diversity within a range of woodland and forest ecosystems influences the recovery of productivity after wildfires across the four-corner region of the United States. We additionally asked how environmental variation (topography, macroclimate) across this geographic region influences such resilience, either directly or indirectly via changes in functional diversity. Using path analysis, we found that functional diversity in regeneration traits (fire tolerance, fire resistance, resprout ability) was a stronger predictor of the recovery of productivity after wildfire than the functional diversity of seed mass or species richness. Moreover, slope, elevation, and aspect either directly or indirectly influenced the recovery of productivity, likely via their effect on microclimate, while macroclimate had no direct or indirect effects. Our study provides some of the first direct empirical evidence for functional diversity increasing resilience at large spatial scales. Our approach highlights the power of combining theory based on local-scale studies with tools used in studies at large spatial scales and trait databases to

21 CFR 133.124 - Cold-pack cheese food.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 2 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Cold-pack cheese food. 133.124 Section 133.124 Food and Drugs FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES (CONTINUED) FOOD... Cheese and Related Products § 133.124 Cold-pack cheese food. (a)(1) Cold-pack cheese food is the food...

Knowledge and tools to enhance resilience of beef grazing systems for sustainable animal protein production.

Science.gov (United States)

Steiner, Jean L; Engle, David M; Xiao, Xiangming; Saleh, Ali; Tomlinson, Peter; Rice, Charles W; Cole, N Andy; Coleman, Samuel W; Osei, Edward; Basara, Jeffrey; Middendorf, Gerad; Gowda, Prasanna; Todd, Richard; Moffet, Corey; Anandhi, Aavudai; Starks, Patrick J; Ocshner, Tyson; Reuter, Ryan; Devlin, Daniel

2014-11-01

Ruminant livestock provides meat and dairy products that sustain health and livelihood for much of the world's population. Grazing lands that support ruminant livestock provide numerous ecosystem services, including provision of food, water, and genetic resources; climate and water regulation; support of soil formation; nutrient cycling; and cultural services. In the U.S. southern Great Plains, beef production on pastures, rangelands, and hay is a major economic activity. The region's climate is characterized by extremes of heat and cold and extremes of drought and flooding. Grazing lands occupy a large portion of the region's land, significantly affecting carbon, nitrogen, and water budgets. To understand vulnerabilities and enhance resilience of beef production, a multi-institutional Coordinated Agricultural Project (CAP), the "grazing CAP," was established. Integrative research and extension spanning biophysical, socioeconomic, and agricultural disciplines address management effects on productivity and environmental footprints of production systems. Knowledge and tools being developed will allow farmers and ranchers to evaluate risks and increase resilience to dynamic conditions. The knowledge and tools developed will also have relevance to grazing lands in semiarid and subhumid regions of the world. © 2014 New York Academy of Sciences.

SUPPLY CHAIN RESILIENCE ANALYSIS: A BRAZILIAN AUTOMOTIVE CASE

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Luiz Felipe Scavarda

2015-04-01

Full Text Available Supply chain (SC resilience and flexibility are important research topics receiving growing attention. However, the academic literature needs empirical studies on SC resilience capable of investigating the inter-organizational components of flexibility along different tiers. Therefore, this paper analyzes the main lack of flexibilities in three Brazilian automotive SCs that limit their resilience and therefore their capacity to better support and meet the demand changes in the marketplace. A multi-tier case study approach is adopted. Research findings identify lack of flexibilities in different tiers that inhibit the SC resilience as well as manufacturing and SC flexibilities that build SC resilience. The findings also highlight that the same SC may have the flexibility to be resilient for one of its products but not for another product, what sheds new lights on the academic literature. Finally, flexible SCs should be designed to increase SC resilience to cope with mishaps as significant demand changes.

Resilience: Theory and Application.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Carlson, J.L.; Haffenden, R.A.; Bassett, G.W.; Buehring, W.A.; Collins, M.J., III; Folga, S.M.; Petit, F.D.; Phillips, J.A.; Verner, D.R.; Whitfield, R.G. (Decision and Information Sciences)

2012-02-03

the most critical asset-level components about which the least is known. Implementation of the strategies outlined here to assess resilience will facilitate the following four objectives: (1) Develop a methodology and supporting products to assess resilience at the asset/facility level, (2) Develop a methodology and supporting products to assess resilience at the critical infrastructure sector level, (3) Provide resilience-related information to critical infrastructure owners/operators to facilitate risk-based resource decision making, and (4) Provide resilience-related information to State and local mission partners to support their risk-based resource decision making.

Nasal packing with ventilated nasal packs; a comparison with traditional vaseline nasal pack

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Alam, J.; Siddiqui, M.W.; Abbas, A.; Sami, M.; Ayub, Z.

2017-01-01

To compare the benefits of ventilated nasal packing with traditional vaseline guaze nasal packing. Study Design: Randomized controlled trial. Place and Duration of Study: This study was conducted at CMH Multan, from Jun 2014 to Dec 2014. Material and Methods: In this study, sample size of 80 patients was calculated using WHO calculator. Patients were divided in two groups using lottery method endotracheal tube and piece of surgical glove filled with ribbon guaze was utilized for fabricated ventilated nasal pack and compared with traditional nasal packs. Nasal obstruction and sleep disturbance were studied at eight hours and twenty-four hours following surgery using visual analog scale. Results: Mean nasal obstruction with ventilated nasal pack was 45.62 +- 6.17 and with Vaseline nasal pack was 77.67 +- 4.85 which was statistically significant (p=0.001) in both the groups. Mean sleep disturbance in both the groups was 46.32 +- 5.23 and 68.75 +- 2.70 respectively which was statistically significant (p=0.001) in both the groups. Conclusion: Patients with ventilated nasal packs were found to have better tolerance to nasal packs due to less nasal obstruction and sleep disturbance

Economic resilience lessons from the ShakeOut earthquake scenario

Science.gov (United States)

Wein, A.; Rose, A.

2011-01-01

Following a damaging earthquake, “business interruption” (BI)—reduced production of goods and services—begins and continues long after the ground shaking stops. Economic resilience reduces BI losses by making the best use of the resources available at a given point in time (static resilience) or by speeding recovery through repair and reconstruction (dynamic resilience), in contrast to mitigation that prevents damage in the first place. Economic resilience is an important concept to incorporate into economic loss modeling and in recovery and contingency planning. Economic resilience framework includes the applicability of resilience strategies to production inputs and output, demand- and supply-side effects, inherent and adaptive abilities, and levels of the economy. We use our resilience framework to organize and share strategies that enhance economic resilience, identify overlooked resilience strategies, and present evidence and structure of resilience strategies for economic loss modelers. Numerous resilience strategies are compiled from stakeholder discussions about the ShakeOut Scenario (Jones et. al. 2008). Modeled results of ShakeOut BI sector losses reveal variable effectiveness of resilience strategies for lengthy disruptions caused by fire-damaged buildings and water service outages. Resilience is a complement to mitigation and may, in fact, have cost and all-hazards advantages.

American Spirit Pack Descriptors and Perceptions of Harm: A Crowdsourced Comparison of Modified Packs.

Science.gov (United States)

Pearson, Jennifer L; Richardson, Amanda; Feirman, Shari P; Villanti, Andrea C; Cantrell, Jennifer; Cohn, Amy; Tacelosky, Michael; Kirchner, Thomas R

2016-08-01

In 2015, the Food and Drug Administration issued warnings to three tobacco manufacturers who label their cigarettes as "additive-free" and/or "natural" on the grounds that they make unauthorized reduced risk claims. The goal of this study was to examine US adults' perceptions of three American Spirit (AS) pack descriptors ("Made with Organic Tobacco," "100% Additive-Free," and "100% US Grown Tobacco") to assess if they communicate reduced risk. In September 2012, three cross-sectional surveys were posted on Amazon Mechanical Turk. Adult participants evaluated the relative harm of a Marlboro Red pack versus three different AS packs with the descriptors "Made with Organic Tobacco," "100% Additive-Free," or "100% US Grown Tobacco" (Survey 1; n = 461); a Marlboro Red pack versus these AS packs modified to exclude descriptors (Survey 2; n = 857); and unmodified versus modified AS pack images (Survey 3; n = 1001). The majority of Survey 1 participants rated the unmodified AS packs as less harmful than the Marlboro Red pack; 35.4%-58.8% of Survey 2 participants also rated the modified (no claims) packs as less harmful than Marlboro Red. In these surveys, prior use of AS cigarettes was associated with reduced perceptions of risk (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] 1.59-2.40). "Made with Organic Tobacco" and "100% Additive-Free" were associated with reduced perceptions of risk when comparing the modified versus the unmodified AS packs (Survey 3). Data suggest that these AS pack descriptors communicate reduced harm messages to consumers. Findings have implications for regulatory actions related to product labeling and packaging. These findings provide additional evidence that the "Made with Organic Tobacco," "100% Additive-Free," and "100% US Grown" descriptors, as well as other aspects of the AS pack design, communicate reduced harm to non-, current, and former smokers. Additionally, they provide support for the importance of FDA's 2015 warning to Santa Fe Natural Tobacco Company on

To Pack or Not to Pack? A Randomized Trial of Vaginal Packing After Vaginal Reconstructive Surgery.

Science.gov (United States)

Westermann, Lauren B; Crisp, Catrina C; Oakley, Susan H; Mazloomdoost, Donna; Kleeman, Steven D; Benbouajili, Janine M; Ghodsi, Vivian; Pauls, Rachel N

2016-01-01

Placement of vaginal packing after pelvic reconstructive surgery is common; however, little evidence exists to support the practice. Furthermore, patients have reported discomfort from the packs. We describe pain and satisfaction in women treated with and without vaginal packing. This institutional review board-approved randomized-controlled trial enrolled patients undergoing vaginal hysterectomy with prolapse repairs. The primary outcome was visual analog scales (VASs) for pain on postoperative day 1. Allocation to "packing" ("P") or "no-packing" ("NP") arms occurred intraoperatively at the end of surgery. Visual analog scales regarding pain and satisfaction were completed early on postoperative day 1 before packing removal. Visual analog scale scores for pain, satisfaction, and bother attributable to packing were recorded before discharge. All packing and perineal pads were weighed to calculate a "postoperative vaginal blood loss." Perioperative data were collected from the hospital record. Our sample size estimation required 74 subjects. Ninety-three women were enrolled. After exclusions, 77 were randomized (P, 37; NP, 40). No differences were found in surgical information, hemoglobin levels, or narcotic use between groups. However, "postoperative vaginal blood loss" was greater in packed subjects (P discharge (P, 35.0 vs NP, 40.0; P = 0.43] were not significantly different between treatment arms. Likewise, VAS scores for satisfaction before removal of packing (P, 81.0 vs NP, 90.0; P = 0.08] and before discharge (P, 90.0 vs NP, 90.5; P = 0.60] were not significantly different. Packed patients noted lower nursing verbal pain scores (P = 0.04) and used less ketorolac (P = 0.01). Bother from packing was low overall. Although there was no difference based on VAS, women receiving vaginal packing had lower nursing documented pain and used less ketorolac than packed women. Vaginal packing may provide benefit and can remain part of the surgical practice.

Butanol production by Clostridium acetobutylicum in a continuous packed bed reactor.

Science.gov (United States)

Napoli, Fabio; Olivieri, Giuseppe; Russo, Maria Elena; Marzocchella, Antonio; Salatino, Piero

2010-06-01

In this study, we report on a butanol production process by immobilized Clostridium acetobutylicum in a continuous packed bed reactor (PBR) using Tygon rings as a carrier. The medium was a solution of lactose (15-30 g/L) and yeast extract (3 g/L) to emulate the cheese whey, an abundant lactose-rich wastewater. The reactor was operated under controlled conditions with respect to the pH and to the dilution rate. The pH and the dilution rate ranged between 4 and 5, the dilution rate between 0.54 and 2.4 h(-1) (2.5 times the maximum specific growth rate assessed for suspended cells). The optimal performance of the reactor was recorded at a dilution rate of 0.97 h(-1): the butanol productivity was 4.4 g/Lh and the selectivity of solvent in butanol was 88%(w).

Economics Action Pack.

Science.gov (United States)

McDonald's Corp., Oak Brook, IL.

One of five McDonald's Action Packs, this learning package introduces intermediate grade students to basic economic concepts. The fourteen activities include the topics of consumption (4 activities), production (5), the market system (3), a pretest, and a posttest. Specific titles under consumption include The Wonderful Treasure Tree (introduction…

Syngas fermentation by Clostridium carboxidivorans P7 in a horizontal rotating packed bed biofilm reactor with enhanced ethanol production

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shen, Yanwen; Brown, Robert C.; Wen, Zhiyou

2017-01-01

Highlights: • A novel a horizontal rotating packed bed (h-RPB) reactor for syngas fermentation was reported. • The h-RPB reactor enhanced ethanol productivity by 3.3-folds compared to continuous stirred tank reactor (CSTR). • The h-RPB reactor has a unique feature of transfer gas from both bulk liquid phase and headspace phase. • The mass transfer in the headspace of h-PRB played an important role for enhanced ethanol production. - Abstract: Gasification of lignocellulosic biomass followed by syngas fermentation is a promising process for producing fuels and chemicals. Syngas fermentation, however, is commonly limited by low mass transfer rates. In this work, a horizontally oriented rotating packed bed (h-RPB) reactor was developed to improve mass transfer and enhance ethanol production. In the h-RPB reactor, cell attachment materials were packed in the reactor and half submerged in the liquid and half exposed to the headspace. With continuous rotation of the packing materials, the cells in biofilm were alternately in contact with liquid and headspace; thus, transport of syngas to the cells occurred in both the liquid phase and headspace. The volumetric mass transfer coefficient (k_La) of the h-RPB reactor was lower than that in a traditional continuous stirred tank reactor (CSTR), indicating the mass transfer in the liquid phase of h-PRB was lower than CSTR, and the mass transfer in the headspace phase played an important role in syngas fermentation. The syngas fermentation of Clostridium carboxidivorans P7 in h-RPB resulted in a 7.0 g/L titer and 6.7 g/L/day productivity of ethanol, respectively, 3.3 times higher than those obtained in a CSTR under the same operational conditions. The results demonstrate that the h-RPB reactor is an efficient system for syngas fermentation, making cellulosic ethanol biorefinery one step closer to technical and economic feasibility.

Butanol production by bioconversion of cheese whey in a continuous packed bed reactor.

Science.gov (United States)

Raganati, F; Olivieri, G; Procentese, A; Russo, M E; Salatino, P; Marzocchella, A

2013-06-01

Butanol production by Clostridium acetobutylicum DSM 792 fermentation was investigated. Unsupplemented cheese whey was adopted as renewable feedstock. The conversion was successfully carried out in a biofilm packed bed reactor (PBR) for more than 3 months. The PBR was a 4 cm ID, 16 cm high glass tube with a 8 cm bed of 3mm Tygon rings, as carriers. It was operated at the dilution rate between 0.4h(-1) and 0.94 h(-1). The cheese whey conversion process was characterized in terms of metabolites production (butanol included), lactose conversion and biofilm mass. Under optimized conditions, the performances were: butanol productivity 2.66 g/Lh, butanol concentration 4.93 g/L, butanol yield 0.26 g/g, butanol selectivity of the overall solvents production 82 wt%. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Managing Capabilities for Supply Chain Resilience Through it Integration

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gružauskas Valentas

2017-08-01

Full Text Available The trend for e-commerce, estimated population size to 11 billion by 2050, and an increase in urbanization level to 70 % is requiring to re-think the current supply chain. These trends changed the distribution process: delivery distances are decreasing, the product variety is increasing, and more products are being sold in smaller quantities. Therefore, the concept of supply chain resilience has gained more recognition in recent years. The scientific literature analysis conducted by the authors indicate several capabilities that influence supply chain resilience. Collaboration, flexibility, redundancy and integration are the most influential capabilities to supply chain resilience. However, the authors identify that the combination of these capabilities to supply chain resilience is under researched. The authors indicate that by combining these capabilities with the upcoming technologies of industry 4.0, supply chain resilience can be achieved. In the future, the authors are planning to conduct further research to identify the influence of these capabilities to supply chain resilience, to quantify supply chain resilience, and to provide further practices of industry 4.0 concept usage for supply chain resilience.

Performance of high-rate gravel-packed oil wells

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Unneland, Trond

2001-05-01

Improved methods for the prediction, evaluation, and monitoring of performance in high-rate cased-hole gravel-packed oil wells are presented in this thesis. The ability to predict well performance prior to the gravel-pack operations, evaluate the results after the operation, and monitor well performance over time has been improved. This lifetime approach to performance analysis of gravel-packed oil wells contributes to increase oil production and field profitability. First, analytical models available for prediction of performance in gravel-packed oil wells are reviewed, with particular emphasis on high-velocity flow effects. From the analysis of field data from three North Sea oil fields, improved and calibrated cased-hole gravel-pack performance prediction models are presented. The recommended model is based on serial flow through formation sand and gravel in the perforation tunnels. In addition, new correlations for high-velocity flow in high-rate gravel-packed oil wells are introduced. Combined, this improves the performance prediction for gravel-packed oil wells, and specific areas can be targeted for optimized well design. Next, limitations in the current methods and alternative methods for evaluation and comparison of well performance are presented. The most widely used parameter, the skin factor, remains a convenient and important parameter. However, using the skin concept in direct comparisons between wells with different reservoir properties may result in misleading or even invalid conclusions. A discussion of the parameters affecting the skin value, with a clarification of limitations, is included. A methodology for evaluation and comparison of gravel-packed well performance is presented, and this includes the use of results from production logs and the use of effective perforation tunnel permeability as a parameter. This contributes to optimized operational procedures from well to well and from field to field. Finally, the data sources available for

RD-MolPack technology for the constitutive production of self-inactivating lentiviral vectors pseudotyped with the nontoxic RD114-TR envelope.

Science.gov (United States)

Marin, Virna; Stornaiuolo, Anna; Piovan, Claudia; Corna, Stefano; Bossi, Sergio; Pema, Monika; Giuliani, Erica; Scavullo, Cinzia; Zucchelli, Eleonora; Bordignon, Claudio; Rizzardi, Gian Paolo; Bovolenta, Chiara

2016-01-01

To date, gene therapy with transiently derived lentivectors has been very successful to cure rare infant genetic diseases. However, transient manufacturing is unfeasible to treat adult malignancies because large vector lots are required. By contrast, stable manufacturing is the best option for high-incidence diseases since it reduces the production cost, which is the major current limitation to scale up the transient methods. We have previously developed the proprietary RD2-MolPack technology for the stable production of second-generation lentivectors, based on the RD114-TR envelope. Of note, opposite to vesicular stomatitis virus glycoprotein (VSV-G) envelope, RD114-TR does not need inducible expression thanks to lack of toxicity. Here, we present the construction of RD2- and RD3-MolPack cells for the production of self-inactivating lentivectors expressing green fluorescent protein (GFP) as a proof-of-concept of the feasibility and safety of this technology before its later therapeutic exploitation. We report that human T lymphocytes transduced with self-inactivating lentivectors derived from RD3-MolPack cells or with self-inactivating VSV-G pseudotyped lentivectors derived from transient transfection show identical T-cell memory differentiation phenotype and comparable transduction efficiency in all T-cell subsets. RD-MolPack technology represents, therefore, a straightforward tool to simplify and standardize lentivector manufacturing to engineer T-cells for frontline immunotherapy applications.

Design and Production of Damage-Resistant Tray Pack Containers

Science.gov (United States)

1985-07-01

No COMMENT ,34.5 ýX .7.. . , . 35.0 x 36.0 x " 36.5 x • - . ,- 37.0 x 37.5 X 22 Ma after failure .4 J L,. Local Red stain...VACUUM-TRAY PACK SAMPLE 90#-BASELINE !4 TEST LEVEL PANEL VACUUM YES NO COMMENT 𔃾 I S2"X - 3" X 4ŕ x 4.5" X 27 Ma with Red spot @ S1 - wrinkle. * i...44 i 63 DATE 8-29-84 * SAMPLE # 3 TEST TYPE VACUUM-TRAY PACK SAMPLE 90#/0.050" REINFORCED TEST LEVEL PAN] VACUUM YES NO COMMENT i ", 2" X 2 1 V - I

Breaking Resilient Patterns of Inequality in Santiago de Chile: Challenges to Navigate towards a More Sustainable City

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ignacio C. Fernández

2016-08-01

Full Text Available Resilience can have desirable and undesirable consequences. Thus, resilience should not be viewed as a normative desirable goal, but as a descriptor of complex systems dynamics. From this perspective, we apply resilience thinking concepts to assess the dynamics of inequality, spatial segregation, and sustainability in Chile’s capital city of Santiago. Chile’s economy boosted since democracy was restored in 1990, but continuity of neoliberal reforms and transformations of Pinochet’s dictatorship (1973–1990 seem to have locked Chilean cities in resilient, albeit unsustainable, patterns of uneven development. Socio-economic data from Santiago shows highly resilient patterns of urban inequality and segregation from 1992 to 2009 despite democratic efforts, political agendas and discourses packed with calls for reducing poverty and inequality. We present a conceptual model based on the notion of stability landscapes to explore potential trade-offs between resilience and sustainable development. We mapped Santiago’s spatio-temporal inequality trends and explored if these patterns support an inequality-resilience stability landscape. Analysis of temporal and spatial distribution of development assets across four human development dimensions (i.e., income, education, health, democracy revealed potential socio-political and spatial feedbacks supporting the resilience of inequality and segregation in Santiago. We argue that urban sustainability may require breaking this resilience, a process where bottom-up stressors such as social movements could play a key role.

Co-design, co-production, and dissemination of social-ecological knowledge to promote sustainability and resilience: urban experiences from the U.S

Science.gov (United States)

J. Morgan Grove; Rinku Roy Chowdhury; Daniel Childers

2015-01-01

To promote sustainability and resilience, the role of co-design, co-production, and dissemination of social-ecological knowledge is of growing interest and importance. Although the antecedents for this approach are decades old, the integration of science and practice to advance sustainability and resilience is different from earlier approaches in several ways. In this...

Evaluation of Packed-Bed Reactor and Continuous Stirred Tank Reactor for the Production of Colchicine Derivatives

OpenAIRE

Dubey, Kashyap Kumar; Kumar, Dhirendra; Kumar, Punit; Haque, Shafiul; Jawed, Arshad

2013-01-01

Bioconversion of colchicine into its pharmacologically active derivative 3-demethylated colchicine (3-DMC) mediated by P450BM3 enzyme is an economic and promising strategy for the production of this inexpensive and potent anticancer drug. Continuous stirred tank reactor (CSTR) and packed-bed reactor (PBR) of 3 L and 2 L total volumes were compared for the production of 3-demethylated colchicine (3-DMC) a colchicine derivative using Bacillus megaterium MTCC*420 under aerobic conditions. Statis...

27 CFR 24.255 - Bottling or packing wine.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... in the same tax class when that wine is removed from bond, without benefit of tolerance, when the... 27 Alcohol, Tobacco Products and Firearms 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Bottling or packing wine..., DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY LIQUORS WINE Storage, Treatment and Finishing of Wine Bottling, Packing, and...

Resilience Thinking: Integrating Resilience, Adaptability and Transformability

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Carl Folke

2010-12-01

Full Text Available Resilience thinking addresses the dynamics and development of complex social-ecological systems (SES. Three aspects are central: resilience, adaptability and transformability. These aspects interrelate across multiple scales. Resilience in this context is the capacity of a SES to continually change and adapt yet remain within critical thresholds. Adaptability is part of resilience. It represents the capacity to adjust responses to changing external drivers and internal processes and thereby allow for development along the current trajectory (stability domain. Transformability is the capacity to cross thresholds into new development trajectories. Transformational change at smaller scales enables resilience at larger scales. The capacity to transform at smaller scales draws on resilience from multiple scales, making use of crises as windows of opportunity for novelty and innovation, and recombining sources of experience and knowledge to navigate social-ecological transitions. Society must seriously consider ways to foster resilience of smaller more manageable SESs that contribute to Earth System resilience and to explore options for deliberate transformation of SESs that threaten Earth System resilience.

Is the cigarette pack just a wrapper or a characteristic of the product itself? A qualitative study of adult smokers to inform U.S. regulations.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Joseph G L; Averett, Paige E; Blanchflower, Tiffany; Gregory, Kyle R

2018-03-01

In the U.S., tobacco products are now regulated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Litigation has quickly followed. One area of controversy is when a change to the design of the cigarette pack requires approval through FDA's rigorous premarket review process. In this paper, we examine how adult U.S. smokers view the connection between the design of cigarette packs and the characteristics of the cigarettes within. Data for this qualitative study came from six focus groups conducted in March 2017 with adult smokers. Two groups consisted of lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) participants; two groups of participants with less than four years of college education; one group of LGB and straight identity; and, one group of the general population. All groups were selected for regional, gender, and racial/ethnic diversity. Participants (n = 33) represented all nine U.S. Census divisions. We conducted constant comparison qualitative analysis utilizing a grounded theory approach. Participants' views reflected a belief that pack design is clearly a reflection of the cigarettes within and that a change in the pack signaled a change in the cigarettes. However, some participants felt price was the salient characteristic of cigarettes and design mattered more for enticing young people to smoke. Changes in pack design signal changes to the product for smokers. Pack design and changes to pack design are seen as particularly relevant to new and young smokers. These findings provide support for regulations that require assessment of cigarette pack design changes for impacts on public health.

Can Resilience Thinking Inform Resilience Investments? Learning from Resilience Principles for Disaster Risk Reduction

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Margot Hill Clarvis

2015-07-01

Full Text Available As the human and financial costs of natural disasters rise and state finances continue to deplete, increasing attention is being placed on the role of the private sector to support disaster and climate resilience. However, not only is there a recognised lack of private finance to fill this gap, but international institutional and financing bodies tend to prioritise specific reactive response over preparedness and general resilience building. This paper utilises the central tenets of resilience thinking that have emerged from scholarship on social-ecological system resilience as a lens through which to assess investing in disaster risk reduction (DRR for resilience. It draws on an established framework of resilience principles and examples of resilience investments to explore how resilience principles can actually inform decisions around DRR and resilience investing. It proposes some key lessons for diversifying sources of finance in order to, in turn, enhance “financial resilience”. In doing so, it suggests a series of questions to align investments with resilience building, and to better balance the achievement of the resilience principles with financial requirements such as financial diversification and replicability. It argues for a critical look to be taken at how resilience principles, which focus on longer-term systems perspectives, could complement the focus in DRR on critical and immediate stresses.

Galacto-oligosaccharide production with immobilized ß-galactosidase in a packed-bed reactor vs. free ß-galactosidase in a batch reactor

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Warmerdam, A.; Benjamins, E.; Leeuw de, T.F.; Broekhuis, T.A.; Boom, R.M.; Janssen, A.E.M.

2014-01-01

We report here that the usage of immobilized enzyme in a continuous packed bed reactor (PBR) can be a good alternative for GOS production instead of the traditional use of free enzyme in a batch reactor. The carbohydrate composition of the product of the PBR with immobilized enzyme was comparable to

The impact of cigarette pack shape, size and opening: evidence from tobacco company documents.

Science.gov (United States)

Kotnowski, Kathy; Hammond, David

2013-09-01

To use tobacco industry documents on cigarette pack shape, size and openings to identify industry findings on associations with brand imagery, product attributes, consumer perceptions and behaviour. Internal tobacco industry research and marketing documents obtained through court disclosure contained in the Legacy Tobacco Documents Library were searched using keywords related to pack shapes, sizes and opening methods. The search identified 66 documents related to consumer research and marketing plans on pack shape, size and openings, drawn from 1973 to 2002. Industry research consistently found that packs that deviated from the traditional flip-top box projected impressions of 'modern', 'elegant' and 'unique' brand imagery. Alternative pack shape and openings were identified as an effective means to communicate product attributes, particularly with regard to premium quality and smooth taste. Consumer studies consistently found that pack shape, size and opening style influenced perceptions of reduced product harm, and were often used to communicate a 'lighter' product. Slim, rounded, oval and booklet packs were found to be particularly appealing among young adults, and several studies demonstrated increased purchase interest for tobacco products presented in novel packaging shape or opening. Evidence from consumer tracking reports and company presentations indicate that pack innovations in shape or opening method increased market share of brands. Consumer research by the tobacco industry between 1973 and 2002 found that variations in packaging shape, size and opening method could influence brand appeal and risk perceptions and increase cigarette sales. © 2013 Society for the Study of Addiction.

Sanitation and Microbiological Quality in Production Field and Fruit-Packing Shed of Persimmon and Satsuma Mandarin in Japan

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hidemi Izumi

2008-01-01

Full Text Available The effects of sanitation treatments including chlorination (ca 10 ppm available chlorine of agricultural water and ethyl alcohol (70% spraying on packing shed equipment on microbial contamination on fruits and the environment were determined and compared with those in conventionally managed field and packing shed in persimmon and satsuma mandarin orchards. Chlorinated water reduced the microbial counts to levels below the lower limit of detection (1.4 log CFU/ml for bacteria and 2.0 log CFU/ml for fungi in most agricultural water samples. Microbial counts of pesticide solution, which contained the agricultural water or chlorinated water for the mixture, were lower in sanitary field than in control field in both fruit orchards. The number of bacterial and mold species detected in agricultural water, chlorinated water, and pesticide solution were almost proportional to microbial counts in each sample throughout the year. The chlorination treatment of agricultural water tended to reduce the counts of mesophiles and fungi on the peel of persimmon fruit during production season. The ethyl alcohol spray treatment on packing shed equipment resulted in a substantial microbial reduction on plastic harvest basket and container in persimmon orchard and plastic harvest basket and container, gloves, scissors, and size sorter in satsuma mandarin orchard. The spray application on packing shed equipment reduced the counts of mesophiles and fungi on the peel of persimmon fruit by >1 log CFU/g. The number of satsuma mandarin packing shed equipment containing the species found on fruit peel was higher in control than in sanitary packing shed. No human pathogens such as verotoxin-producing Escherichia coli and Salmonella were detected in any of the fruit and environmental samples. These results indicate that uses of sanitizers such as chlorine for agricultural water and ethyl alcohol for packing shed equipment would be useful in a good agricultural practices

Sanitation and Microbiological Quality in Production Field and Fruit-Packing Shed of Persimmon and Satsuma Mandarin in Japan

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hidemi Izumi

2008-01-01

Full Text Available The effects of sanitation treatments including chlorination (ca 10 ppm available chlorine of agricultural water and ethyl alcohol (70% spraying on packing shed equipment on microbial contamination on fruits and the environment were determined and compared with those in conventionally managed field and packing shed in persimmon and satsuma mandarin orchards. Chlorinated water reduced the microbial counts to levels below the lower limit of detection (1.4 log CFU/ml for bacteria and 2.0 log CFU/ml for fungi in most agricultural water samples. Microbial counts of pesticide solution, which contained the agricultural water or chlorinated water for the mixture, were lower in sanitary field than in control field in both fruit orchards. The number of bacterial and mold species detected in agricultural water, chlorinated water, and pesticide solution were almost proportional to microbial counts in each sample throughout the year. The chlorination treatment of agricultural water tended to reduce the counts of mesophiles and fungi on the peel of persimmon fruit during production season. The ethyl alcohol spray treatment on packing shed equipment resulted in a substantial microbial reduction on plastic harvest basket and container in persimmon orchard and plastic harvest basket and container, gloves, scissors, and size sorter in satsuma mandarin orchard. The spray application on packing shed equipment reduced the counts of mesophiles and fungi on the peel of persimmon fruit by 1 log CFU/g. The number of satsuma mandarin packing shed equipment containing the species found on fruit peel was higher in control than in sanitary packing shed. No human pathogens such as verotoxin-producing Escherichia coli and Salmonella were detected in any of the fruit and environmental samples. These results indicate that uses of sanitizers such as chlorine for agricultural water and ethyl alcohol for packing shed equipment would be useful in a good agricultural practices

Resilience versus "Resilient Individual": What Exactly Do We Study?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jan Sebastian Novotný

2014-07-01

Full Text Available The nature and definition of resilience, despite the extensive 40 years of research, is still unclear. Currently is resilience seen as a personality trait, sum of the traits/factors, result of adaptation, or as a process. The concept of resilience as personality traits is usually tied to uni-dimensional or "simplex" theories of resistance as Hardiness, Sense of Control, Ego-Resiliency, Self-efficacy, Sense of Coherence, or specific personality traits. Multidimensional concepts see resilience as a complex of personality and social (environmental factors that work in interaction, complement or replace each other, and, in aggregate, create a comprehensive picture of resilience. The concept of resilience as the result of adaptation examines resilience in terms of the presence/absence of adverse/pathological manifestations, consequences and outcomes in relation to the earlier effect of stressful, risky or otherwise unfavorable situations. Finally, the concept of resilience as the process examines individual's response to risk factors or wounds that are present in the environment. Resilience is thus a process consisting of interactions between individual characteristics and the environment. Most experts and a large part of resilience research is based on the first three concepts that however explore how "resilient" the individual is rather than resilience itself, since they are based on "diagnosing" or at best dimensional, at worse dichotomous rating of the individual's resilience (within personality trait approach, or on the evaluation of the presence/absence of factors/source of resilience, thereby they are still holding the "diagnostic" approach (within multidimensional approach. Only the examination of processes, such as the ongoing interaction between these risk factors, resilience factors, outcomes (expressions of personality, behavior, presence of problems, etc. and other variables allows us to understand resilience (the true nature of how

Implementation of Bin Packing Model for Reed Switch Production Planning

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Parra, Rainier Romero [Polytechnic University of Baja California, Calle de la Claridad S/N, Col Plutarco Elias Calles, Mexicali, B. C., 21376 (Mexico); Burtseva, Larysa [Engineering Institute, Autonomous University of Baja California, Calle de la Normal S/N, Col. Insurgentes Este, Mexicali, BC, 21280 (Mexico)

2010-06-17

This paper presents a form to resolve a real problem of efficient material election in reed switch manufacturing. The carrying out of the consumer demands depends on the stochastic results of the classification process where each lot of switches is distributed into bins according to an electric measure value. Various glass types are employed for the switch manufacturing. The effect caused by the glass type variation on the switch classification results was investigated. Based on real data statistic analysis, the problem is reduced to the lot number minimizing taking into consideration the glass type, and interpreted as a bin packing problem generalization. On difference to the classic bin packing problem, in the considered case, an item represents a set of pieces; a container is divided into a number of bins (sub-containers); the bin capacity is variable; there are the assignment restrictions between bins and sets of pieces; the items are allowed to be fragmented into bins and containers. The problem has a high complexity. A heuristic offline algorithm is proposed to find the quantity, types and packing sequence of containers, the item fragments associated with containers and bins. The bin capacities do not affect the algorithm.

Implementation of Bin Packing Model for Reed Switch Production Planning

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Parra, Rainier Romero; Burtseva, Larysa

2010-01-01

This paper presents a form to resolve a real problem of efficient material election in reed switch manufacturing. The carrying out of the consumer demands depends on the stochastic results of the classification process where each lot of switches is distributed into bins according to an electric measure value. Various glass types are employed for the switch manufacturing. The effect caused by the glass type variation on the switch classification results was investigated. Based on real data statistic analysis, the problem is reduced to the lot number minimizing taking into consideration the glass type, and interpreted as a bin packing problem generalization. On difference to the classic bin packing problem, in the considered case, an item represents a set of pieces; a container is divided into a number of bins (sub-containers); the bin capacity is variable; there are the assignment restrictions between bins and sets of pieces; the items are allowed to be fragmented into bins and containers. The problem has a high complexity. A heuristic offline algorithm is proposed to find the quantity, types and packing sequence of containers, the item fragments associated with containers and bins. The bin capacities do not affect the algorithm.

Sorption-enhanced water gas shift reaction for high-purity hydrogen production: Application of a Na-Mg double salt-based sorbent and the divided section packing concept

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Chan Hyun; Lee, Ki Bong

2017-01-01

Highlights: •Na-Mg double salt-based sorbent was used for high-temperature CO 2 sorption. •Divided section packing concept was applied to the SE-WGS reaction. •High-purity H 2 was produced from the SE-WGS reaction with divided section packing. •High-purity H 2 productivity could be further enhanced by modifying packing method. -- Abstract: Hydrogen is considered a promising environmentally benign energy carrier because it has high energy density and produces no pollutants when it is converted into other types of energy. The sorption-enhanced water gas shift (SE-WGS) reaction, where the catalytic WGS reaction and byproduct CO 2 removal are carried out simultaneously in a single reactor, has received considerable attention as a novel method for high-purity hydrogen production. Since the high-purity hydrogen productivity of the SE-WGS reaction is largely dependent on the performance of the CO 2 sorbent, the development of sorbents having high CO 2 sorption capacity is crucial. Recently, a Na-Mg double salt-based sorbent has been considered for high-temperature CO 2 capture since it has been reported to have a high sorption capacity and fast sorption kinetics. In this study, the SE-WGS reaction was experimentally demonstrated using a commercial catalyst and a Na-Mg double salt-based sorbent. However, the SE-WGS reaction with a one-body hybrid solid, a physical admixture of catalyst and sorbent, showed poor reactivity and reduced CO 2 sorption uptake. As a result, a divided section packing concept was suggested as a solution. In the divided section packing method, the degree of mixing for the catalyst and sorbent in a column can be controlled by the number of sections. High-purity hydrogen (<10 ppm CO) was produced directly from the SE-WGS reaction with divided section packing, and the hydrogen productivity was further improved when the reactor column was divided into more sections and packed with more sorbent.

Storage capacity assessment of liquid fuels production by solar gasification in a packed bed reactor using a dynamic process model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kaniyal, Ashok A.; Eyk, Philip J. van; Nathan, Graham J.

2016-01-01

Highlights: • First analysis to assess storage requirements of a stand-alone packed bed, batch process solar gasifier. • 35 days of storage required for stand-alone solar system, whereas 8 h of storage required for hybrid system. • Sensitivity of storage requirement to reactor operation, solar region and solar multiple evaluated. - Abstract: The first multi-day performance analysis of the feasibility of integrating a packed bed, indirectly irradiated solar gasification reactor with a downstream FT liquids production facility is reported. Two fuel-loading scenarios were assessed. In one, the residual unconverted fuel at the end of a day is reused, while in the second, the residual fuel is discarded. To estimate a full year time-series of operation, a simplified statistical model was developed from short-period simulations of the 1-D heat transfer, devolatilisation and gasification chemistry model of a 150 kW th packed bed reactor (based on the authors’ earlier work). The short time-series cover a variety of solar conditions to represent seasonal, diurnal and cloud-induced solar transience. Also assessed was the influence of increasing the solar flux incident at the emitter plate of the packed bed reactor on syngas production. The combination of the annual time-series and daily model of syngas production was found to represent reasonably the seasonal transience in syngas production. It was then used to estimate the minimum syngas storage volume required to maintain a stable flow-rate and composition of syngas to a FT reactor over a full year of operation. This found that, for an assumed heliostat field collection area of 1000 m 2 , at least 64 days of storage is required, under both the Residual Fuel Re-Use and Discard scenarios. This figure was not sensitive to the two solar sites assessed, Farmington, New Mexico or Tonopah Airport, Nevada. Increasing the heliostat field collection area from 1000 to 1500 m 2 , led to an increase in the calculated daily rate

Investigation of the Time Evolution and Species Production in a 2-Dimensional Packed Bed Reactor

Science.gov (United States)

Engeling, Kenneth; Kruszelnicki, Juliusz; Kushner, Mark; Foster, John

2016-09-01

Plasma production in microporous media has potential to enable a number of technologies ranging from flameless combustion to environmental hazard mitigation addressing air borne pollutants. Packed bed reactors (PBRs) is one such technology that relies on plasma production in microporous media. The physics of plasma production and transport in such media however remains poorly understood. In order to better understand the plasma propagation and plasma driven chemical reaction within microporous media, absorption spectroscopy and time-resolved imaging diagnostics are being utilized. We report on plasma driven species formation and plasma discharge spatial structure and evolution characteristics found in the 2-dimensional representation of a PBR. Work supported by US DOE Office of Fusion Energy Science and the National Science Foundation.

Identifying resilient and non-resilient middle-adolescents in a ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The aim in this study was to develop a way of identifying resilient and non- resilient middle adolescents in a formerly black-only urban residential (township) school, in order to ultimately support the development of learners' resilience under stressful circumstances. A Resilience Scale was developed to screen for resilient ...

Continuous D-tagatose production by immobilized thermostable L-arabinose isomerase in a packed-bed bioreactor.

Science.gov (United States)

Ryu, Se-Ah; Kim, Chang Sup; Kim, Hye-Jung; Baek, Dae Heoun; Oh, Deok-Kun

2003-01-01

D-Tagatose was continuously produced using thermostable L-arabinose isomerase immobilized in alginate with D-galactose solution in a packed-bed bioreactor. Bead size, L/D (length/diameter) of reactor, dilution rate, total loaded enzyme amount, and substrate concentration were found to be optimal at 0.8 mm, 520/7 mm, 0.375 h(-1), 5.65 units, and 300 g/L, respectively. Under these conditions, the bioreactor produced about 145 g/L tagatose with an average productivity of 54 g tagatose/L x h and an average conversion yield of 48% (w/w). Operational stability of the immobilized enzyme was demonstrated, with a tagatose production half-life of 24 days.

Resilience in the Romanian Food Industry. Preliminary Research

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Silvius STANCIU

2015-12-01

Full Text Available Critical situations occurring in the food chain represent a cause for concern for companies, consumers and government authorities. Food product supply continuity assurance is supported by economic considerations coming from producers or food product merchants, by the increasing demand that exists on the market or by the political implications regarding food security assurance among the population. The study focuses on assessing the extent to which the food sector economic agents are prepared to face potential critical situations in the unfolding of their business activities. In Romania there haven’t been carried out any studies regarding food chain resilience regarding critical incidents and the economic impact of these incidents on the food sector. The main objective of the research was the Romanian food chain resilience assessment to critical situations, having a highly applicative character. It was based on questionnaires given to a representative sample of companies and it highlighted the food companies’ resilience to critical situations. The responding economic agents were mainly from the agro-food production, food distribution, food production and distribution, and other related domains. The research regarding food chain resilience to critical situations in Romania showed a primary character of the concept; therefore, this sector must be developed both at a strategic and operational level.

Designing Resilient and Productive Grasses with Plasticity to Extreme Weather Events

Science.gov (United States)

Loka, D.; Humphreys, M.; Gwyn Jones, D.; Scullion, J.; Doonan, J.; Gasior, D.; Harper, J.; Farrell, M.; Kingston-Smith, A.; Dodd, R.; Chadwick, D.; Hill, P.; Robinson, D.; Jones, D.

2016-12-01

Grasslands occupy more than 70% of the world's agricultural land and are major providers of healthy feed for livestock and for ecosystem services. Global warming is projected to increase the intensity and frequency of extreme weather events such as drought and flooding and will reduce persistency of currently productive but stress sensitive forage grass varieties, thereby challenging global food security and compromising on their existing ecosystem functionality. New perennial grass varieties, tolerant to the onsets of more than one abiotic stresses, are required in order to achieve sustainable grassland production and function over years under adverse environmental conditions. Identifying and selecting reliable morphological and physiological traits associated with increased resistance to multiple stress conditions is a prerequisite to ensure future grasslands resilience. The objectives of our study were to select from diverse and novel Festulolium (ryegrass spp. x fescue spp. hybrids) grass populations capable of providing optimal combinations of good forage production together with resilience to multiple stresses and to monitor morphological and physiological responses under multiple stress conditions. The grasses were: Festulolium variety Prior (L. perenne x F. pratensis), shown to alter soil structure and hydrology to mitigate run-off and flooding; two advanced breeding populations of diploid L. perenne with genes for drought tolerance derived from the Mediterranean fescue species F. arundinacea and F. glaucescens; two tetraploid hybrid populations involving L. perenne in combination with F. glaucescens and F. mairei (from North Africa), respectively. As controls, Festulolium variety AberNiche and L. perenne variety AberWolf varieties, were used. Treatments consisted of: A) Control; plants maintained at optimum conditions, B) Flood; plants were flooded for 6 weeks followed by a 4-week recovery, C) Drought; plants received limited quantity of water for 12 weeks

Resilience Thinking: Integrating Resilience, Adaptability and Transformability

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Folke, C.; Carpenter, S.R.; Walker, B.; Scheffer, M.; Chapin, T.; Rockstrom, J.

2010-01-01

Resilience thinking addresses the dynamics and development of complex social-ecological systems (SES). Three aspects are central: resilience, adaptability and transformability. These aspects interrelate across multiple scales. Resilience in this context is the capacity of a SES to continually change

The Use of Sports Imagery and Terminology on Cigarette Packs from Fourteen Countries.

Science.gov (United States)

Kleb, Cerise; Welding, Kevin; Cohen, Joanna E; Smith, Katherine C

2018-04-16

Tobacco companies have historically associated their products with sports through event sponsorship and sports-themed advertising campaigns. Such linkages serve to enhance brand image by connecting cigarette brands to ideals associated with sports such as strength, individual accomplishment, and a healthy body. Public health policy progress has created restrictions for tobacco sponsorship and restricted traditional advertising avenues for tobacco products. Nonetheless, the pack itself remains as a mechanism by which to link cigarettes to sports and sporting prowess. Thus, we analyze depictions of sport and references to sports terminology on cigarette packs. To describe the sports-related marketing appeals on cigarette packages purchased in 14 low and middle income countries. In 2013, we collected and coded cigarette packs from 14 low and middle income countries and we returned to four of these countries for further data collection in 2015. Packs from both years were assessed for sports-related appeals (text and imagery) and sports-related brand names to identify sports appeals on cigarette packs. The analysis yielded 36 brands with distinct depictions of sport or sporting terminology on the pack. Text-based appeals were found on 24 of the 36 distinct "sports appeal" packs (e.g., "Polo," "Olympic," "Win," "iScore"). Sporting imagery was present on 22 packs (e.g., soccer ball, race car, wrestling match, trophy). The pack is a powerful medium through which tobacco companies continue to associate their products with idealized concepts associated with sports. These are potentially problematic associations that could be restricted through plain and standardized packaging policy initiatives.

Tunable random packings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lumay, G; Vandewalle, N

2007-01-01

We present an experimental protocol that allows one to tune the packing fraction η of a random pile of ferromagnetic spheres from a value close to the lower limit of random loose packing η RLP ≅0.56 to the upper limit of random close packing η RCP ≅0.64. This broad range of packing fraction values is obtained under normal gravity in air, by adjusting a magnetic cohesion between the grains during the formation of the pile. Attractive and repulsive magnetic interactions are found to affect stongly the internal structure and the stability of sphere packing. After the formation of the pile, the induced cohesion is decreased continuously along a linear decreasing ramp. The controlled collapse of the pile is found to generate various and reproducible values of the random packing fraction η

Improving urban ecosystems resilience at a city level

Science.gov (United States)

Ferreira, António J. D.; Ferrreira, Carla S. S.; Malta, Miguel; Soares, Daniel D. J.; Pardal, João; Vilhena, José

2013-04-01

The sustainability of urban communities is at risk in a global change context, where environmental problems and the constraints posed by a limited access to key raw materials, energy and sanitation will cause profound changes on the way we interact with the natural environment. Major changes are expected on processes magnitude and connectivity at various scales, with profound impacts on the environmental and well-being problems posed by the packing of high density of people in restricted areas, that have to be dealt with. The conventional approach is to find technological solutions that are often expensive and inefficient, especially in what concerns the use of energy and raw materials, limiting long term sustainability and urban ecosystems' resilience, and consequent impacts on the quality of life and health of urban populations. To improve city resilience in face of global change threats (climatic change, growing world population, land use change, lower energy availability, reduced mobility as a result of fossil fuels stringency and costs), we need to develop a nested approach binding together various greening actions and management of green infrastructures at various scales (i.e. household, neighbourhood, city and urban/wildland interface). This paper presents the conceptual strategy being developed at the Coimbra City (Centre of Portugal) to increase the resilience of urban ecosystems, using them to reduce natural risk occurrence (such as flash floods), the promotion of human health and increasing city resilience towards an improve food self sufficiency. We present a discussion and evaluation of the different solutions designed and implemented to improve the overall urban sustainability at different scales of intervention, from the household solutions to more structural solutions such as the recover of riparian forests or the preservation and improvement of green corridors. Of paramount importance to improve urban ecosystem resilience is the development of new

Packing Density Approach for Sustainable Development of Concrete

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sudarshan Dattatraya KORE

2017-12-01

Full Text Available This paper deals with the details of optimized mix design for normal strength concrete using particle packing density method. Also the concrete mixes were designed as per BIS: 10262-2009. Different water-cement ratios were used and kept same in both design methods. An attempt has been made to obtain sustainable and cost effective concrete product by use of particle packing density method. The parameters such as workability, compressive strength, cost analysis and carbon di oxide emission were discussed. The results of the study showed that, the compressive strength of the concrete produced by packing density method are closer to that of design compressive strength of BIS code method. By adopting the packing density method for design of concrete mixes, resulted in 11% cost saving with 12% reduction in carbon di oxide emission.

Resilience thinking: integrating resilience, adaptability and transformability

Science.gov (United States)

Carl Folke; Stephen R. Carpenter; Brian Walker; Marten Scheffer; Terry Chapin; Johan. Rockstrom

2010-01-01

Resilience thinking addresses the dynamics and development of complex social-ecological systems (SES). Three aspects are central: resilience, adaptability and transformability. These aspects interrelate across multiple scales. Resilience in this context is the capacity of a SES to continually change and adapt yet remain within critical thresholds. Adaptability is part...

A New Resilience Measure for Supply Chain Networks

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ruiying Li

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Currently, supply chain networks can span the whole world, and any disruption of these networks may cause economic losses, decreases in sales and unsustainable supplies. Resilience, the ability of the system to withstand disruption and return to a normal state quickly, has become a new challenge during the supply chain network design. This paper defines a new resilience measure as the ratio of the integral of the normalized system performance within its maximum allowable recovery time after the disruption to the integral of the performance in the normal state. Using the maximum allowable recovery time of the system as the time interval under consideration, this measure allows the resilience of different systems to be compared on the same relative scale, and be used under both scenarios that the system can or cannot restore in the given time. Two specific resilience measures, the resilience based on the amount of product delivered and the resilience based on the average delivery distance, are provided for supply chain networks. To estimate the resilience of a given supply chain network, a resilience simulation method is proposed based on the Monte Carlo method. A four-layered hierarchial mobile phone supply chain network is used to illustrate the resilience quantification process and show how network structure affects the resilience of supply chain networks.

Continuous production of lipase-catalyzed biodiesel in a packed-bed reactor: optimization and enzyme reuse study.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Hsiao-Ching; Ju, Hen-Yi; Wu, Tsung-Ta; Liu, Yung-Chuan; Lee, Chih-Chen; Chang, Cheng; Chung, Yi-Lin; Shieh, Chwen-Jen

2011-01-01

An optimal continuous production of biodiesel by methanolysis of soybean oil in a packed-bed reactor was developed using immobilized lipase (Novozym 435) as a catalyst in a tert-butanol solvent system. Response surface methodology (RSM) and Box-Behnken design were employed to evaluate the effects of reaction temperature, flow rate, and substrate molar ratio on the molar conversion of biodiesel. The results showed that flow rate and temperature have significant effects on the percentage of molar conversion. On the basis of ridge max analysis, the optimum conditions were as follows: flow rate 0.1 mL/min, temperature 52.1°C, and substrate molar ratio 1 : 4. The predicted and experimental values of molar conversion were 83.31 ± 2.07% and 82.81 ± .98%, respectively. Furthermore, the continuous process over 30 days showed no appreciable decrease in the molar conversion. The paper demonstrates the applicability of using immobilized lipase and a packed-bed reactor for continuous biodiesel synthesis.

Process engineering and optimization of glycerol separation in a packed-bed reactor for enzymatic biodiesel production.

Science.gov (United States)

Hama, Shinji; Tamalampudi, Sriappareddy; Yoshida, Ayumi; Tamadani, Naoki; Kuratani, Nobuyuki; Noda, Hideo; Fukuda, Hideki; Kondo, Akihiko

2011-11-01

A process model for efficient glycerol separation during methanolysis in an enzymatic packed-bed reactor (PBR) was developed. A theoretical glycerol removal efficiency from the reaction mixture containing over 30% methyl esters was achieved at a high flow rate of 540 ml/h. To facilitate a stable operation of the PBR system, a batch reaction prior to continuous methanolysis was conducted using oils with different acid values and immobilized lipases pretreated with methyl esters. The reaction system successfully attained the methyl ester content of over 30% along with reduced viscosity and water content. Furthermore, to obtain a high methyl ester content above 96% continuously, long-term lipase stability was confirmed by operating a bench-scale PBR system for 550 h, in which the intermediates containing methyl esters and residual glycerides were fed into the enzyme-packed columns connected in series. Therefore, the developed process model is considered useful for industrial biodiesel production. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Optimization of lipase production by solid-state fermentation of olive pomace: from flask to laboratory-scale packed-bed bioreactor.

Science.gov (United States)

Oliveira, Felisbela; Salgado, José Manuel; Abrunhosa, Luís; Pérez-Rodríguez, Noelia; Domínguez, José M; Venâncio, Armando; Belo, Isabel

2017-07-01

Lipases are versatile catalysts with many applications and can be produced by solid-state fermentation (SSF) using agro-industrial wastes. The aim of this work was to maximize the production of Aspergillus ibericus lipase under SSF of olive pomace (OP) and wheat bran (WB), evaluating the effect on lipase production of C/N ratio, lipids, phenols, content of sugars of substrates and nitrogen source addition. Moreover, the implementation of the SSF process in a packed-bed bioreactor and the improvement of lipase extraction conditions were assessed. Low C/N ratios and high content of lipids led to maximum lipase production. Optimum SSF conditions were achieved with a C/N mass ratio of 25.2 and 10.2% (w/w) lipids in substrate, by the mixture of OP:WB (1:1) and supplemented with 1.33% (w/w) (NH 4 ) 2 SO 4 . Studies in a packed-bed bioreactor showed that the lower aeration rates tested prevented substrate dehydration, improving lipase production. In this work, the important role of Triton X-100 on lipase extraction from the fermented solid substrate has been shown. A final lipase activity of 223 ± 5 U g -1 (dry basis) was obtained after 7 days of fermentation.

The Positive Effect of Resilience on Stress and Business Outcomes in Difficult Work Environments.

Science.gov (United States)

Shatté, Andrew; Perlman, Adam; Smith, Brad; Lynch, Wendy D

2017-02-01

To examine whether resilience has a protective effect in difficult work environments. A survey of 2063 individuals measured individual resilience, stress, burnout, sleep problems, likelihood of depression, job satisfaction, intent to quit, absences, and productivity. It also measured work characteristics: job demands, job influence, and social support. Multivariate and logistic regression models examined the main effects and interactions of resilience and job characteristics. High strain work environments (high demand, low influence, and low support) have an unfavorable effect on all outcomes. Resilience has a protective effect on all outcomes. For stress, burnout, and sleep, higher resilience has a more protective effect under low-strain conditions. For depression, absence and productivity, resilience has a more protective effect when job strain is high. Workers with high resilience have better outcomes in difficult work environments.

From resilience thinking to Resilience Planning: Lessons from practice.

Science.gov (United States)

Sellberg, M M; Ryan, P; Borgström, S T; Norström, A V; Peterson, G D

2018-07-01

Resilience thinking has frequently been proposed as an alternative to conventional natural resource management, but there are few studies of its applications in real-world settings. To address this gap, we synthesized experiences from practitioners that have applied a resilience thinking approach to strategic planning, called Resilience Planning, in regional natural resource management organizations in Australia. This case represents one of the most extensive and long-term applications of resilience thinking in the world today. We conducted semi-structured interviews with Resilience Planning practitioners from nine organizations and reviewed strategic planning documents to investigate: 1) the key contributions of the approach to their existing strategic planning, and 2) what enabled and hindered the practitioners in applying and embedding the new approach in their organizations. Our results reveal that Resilience Planning contributed to developing a social-ecological systems perspective, more adaptive and collaborative approaches to planning, and that it clarified management goals of desirable resource conditions. Applying Resilience Planning required translating resilience thinking to practice in each unique circumstance, while simultaneously creating support among staff, and engaging external actors. Embedding Resilience Planning within organizations implied starting and maintaining longer-term change processes that required sustained multi-level organizational support. We conclude by identifying four lessons for successfully applying and embedding resilience practice in an organization: 1) to connect internal "entrepreneurs" to "interpreters" and "networkers" who work across organizations, 2) to assess the opportunity context for resilience practice, 3) to ensure that resilience practice is a learning process that engages internal and external actors, and 4) to develop reflective strategies for managing complexity and uncertainty. Copyright © 2018 The Authors

Experimental, kinetic and numerical modeling of hydrogen production by catalytic reforming of crude ethanol over a commercial catalyst in packed bed tubular reactor and packed bed membrane reactor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aboudheir, Ahmed; Akande, Abayomi; Idem, Raphael

2006-01-01

The demand for hydrogen energy has increased tremendously in recent years essentially because of the increase in the word energy consumption as well as recent developments in fuel cell technologies. The energy information administration has projected that world energy consumption will increase by 59% over the next two decades, from 1999 to 2020, in which the largest share is still dominated by fossil fuels (oil, natural gas and coal). Carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) emissions resulting from the combustion of these fossil fuels currently are estimated to account for three-fourth of human-caused CO 2 emissions worldwide. Greenhouse gas emission, including CO 2 , should be limited, as recommended at the Kyoto Conference, Japan, in December 1997. In this regard, hydrogen (H 2 ) has a significant future potential as an alternative fuel that can solve the problems of CO 2 emissions as well as the emissions of other air contaminants. One of the techniques to produce hydrogen is by reforming of hydrocarbons or biomass. Crude ethanol (a form of biomass, which essentially is fermentation broth) is easy to produce, is free of sulphur, has low toxicity, and is also safe to handle, transport and store. In addition, crude ethanol consists of oxygenated hydrocarbons, such as ethanol, lactic acid, glycerol, and maltose. These oxygenated hydrocarbons can be reformed completely to H 2 and CO 2 , the latter of which could be separated from H 2 by membrane technology. This provides for CO 2 capture for eventual storage or destruction. In the case of using crude ethanol, this will result in negative CO 2 , emissions. In this paper, we conducted experimental work on production of hydrogen by the catalytic reforming of crude ethanol over a commercial promoted Ni-based catalyst in a packed bed tubular reactor as well as a packed bed membrane reactor. As well, a rigorous numerical model was developed to simulate this process in both the catalytic packed bed tubular reactor and packed bed membrane

Dynamics of resilience of wheat to drought in Australia from 1991-2010.

Science.gov (United States)

Huai, Jianjun

2017-08-25

Although enhancing resilience is a well-recognized adaptation to climate change, little research has been undertaken on the dynamics of resilience. This occurs because complex relationships exist between adaptive capacity and resilience, and some issues also create challenges related to the construction, operation, and application of resilience. This study identified the dynamics of temporal, spatial changes of resilience found in a sample of wheat-drought resilience in Australia's wheat-sheep production zone during 1991-2010. I estimated resilience using principal component analysis, mapped resilience and its components, distinguished resilient and sensitive regions, and provided recommendations related to improving resilience. I frame that resilience is composed of social resilience including on- and off-site adaptive capacity as well as biophysical resilience including resistance and absorption. I found that resilience and its components have different temporal trends, spatial shifts and growth ratios in each region during different years, which results from complicated interactions, such as complementation and substitution among its components. In wheat-sheep zones, I recommend that identifying regional bottlenecks, science-policy engagement, and managing resilience components are the priorities for improving resilience.

Packed Bed Reactor Technology for Chemical-Looping Combustion

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Noorman, S.; Sint Annaland, van M.; Kuipers, J.A.M.

2007-01-01

Chemical-looping combustion (CLC) has emerged as an alternative for conventional power production processes to intrinsically integrate power production and CO2 capture. In this work a new reactor concept for CLC is proposed, based on dynamically operated packed bed reactors. With analytical

Understanding Resilience

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gang eWu

2013-02-01

Full Text Available Resilience is the ability to adapt successfully in the face of stress and adversity. Stressful life events, trauma and chronic adversity can have a substantial impact on brain function and structure, and can result in the development of PTSD, depression and other psychiatric disorders. However, most individuals do not develop such illnesses after experiencing stressful life events, and are thus thought to be resilient. Resilience as successful adaptation relies on effective responses to environmental challenges and ultimate resistance to the deleterious effects of stress, therefore a greater understanding of the factors that promote such effects is of great relevance. This review focuses on recent findings regarding genetic, epigenetic, developmental, psychosocial and neurochemical factors that are considered essential contributors to the development of resilience. Neural circuits and pathways involved in mediating resilience are also discussed. The growing understanding of resilience factors will hopefully lead to the development of new pharmacological and psychological interventions for enhancing resilience and mitigating the untoward consequences.

Importance of Photobacterium phosphoreum in relation to spoilage of modified atmosphere-packed fish products

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Dalgaard, Paw; Mejlholm, Ole; Christiansen, T.J.

1997-01-01

Occurrence and growth of Photobacterium phosphoreum were studied in 20 experiments with fresh fish from Denmark, Iceland and Greece. The organism was detected in all marine fish species but not in fish from fresh water. Growth of P. phosphoreum to high levels (>10(7) cfu g(-1)) was observed in most...... products and the organism is likely to be of importance for spoilage of several modified atmosphere-packed (MAP) marine fish species when stored at chill temperatures. Some microbiological methods recommended for control of fish products by national and international authorities are inappropriate...... for detection of psychrotolerant and heat-labile micro-organisms like P. phosphoreum. These methods have been used in many previous studies of MAP fish and this could explain why, contrary to the findings in the present study, P. phosphoreum in general was not detected previously in spoiled MAP fish....

Examining the resilience of national energy systems: Measurements of diversity in production-based and consumption-based electricity in the globalization of trade networks

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kharrazi, Ali; Sato, Masahiro; Yarime, Masaru; Nakayama, Hirofumi; Yu, Yadong; Kraines, Steven

2015-01-01

Energy is a critical component of achieving sustainable development. In addition to the three aspects of promoting access, renewables, and efficiency, the dimension of resilience in energy systems should also considered. The implementation of resilient energy systems requires a quantitative understanding of the socio-economic practices underlying such systems. Specifically, in line with the increasing globalization of trade, there remains a critical knowledge gap on the link between embodied energy in the production and consumption of traded goods. To bridge this knowledge gap, we investigate the resilience of global energy systems through an examination of a diversity measure of global embodied electricity trade based on multi-regional input-output (MRIO) networks. The significance of this research lies in its ability to utilize high resolution MRIO data sets in assessing the resilience of national energy systems. This research indicates that secure and responsible consumption requires the diversification of not only energy generation but also energy imports. This research will lay the ground for further research in the governance of resilience in global energy networks. - Highlights: • We examine the resilience of global embodied energy based on (MRIO) trade networks. • We propose a secure and responsible mode of thinking for national energy consumption. • Secure & responsible consumption requires diversity in energy generation and imports.

The influence of process parameters in production of lipopeptide iturin A using aerated packed bed bioreactors in solid-state fermentation.

Science.gov (United States)

Piedrahíta-Aguirre, C A; Bastos, R G; Carvalho, A L; Monte Alegre, R

2014-08-01

The strain Bacillus iso 1 co-produces the lipopeptide iturin A and biopolymer poly-γ-glutamic acid (γ-PGA) in solid-state fermentation of substrate consisting of soybean meal, wheat bran with rice husks as an inert support. The effects of pressure drop, oxygen consumption, medium permeability and temperature profile were studied in an aerated packed bed bioreactor to produce iturin A, diameter of which was 50 mm and bed height 300 mm. The highest concentrations of iturin A and γ-PGA were 5.58 and 3.58 g/kg-dry substrate, respectively, at 0.4 L/min after 96 h of fermentation. The low oxygen uptake rates, being 23.34 and 22.56 mg O2/kg-dry solid substrate for each air flow rate tested generated 5.75 W/kg-dry substrate that increased the fermentation temperature at 3.7 °C. The highest pressure drop was 561 Pa/m at 0.8 L/min in 24 h. This is the highest concentration of iturin A produced to date in an aerated packed bed bioreactor in solid-state fermentation. The results can be useful to design strategies to scale-up process of iturin A in aerated packed bed bioreactors. Low concentration of γ-PGA affected seriously pressure drop, decreasing the viability of the process due to generation of huge pressure gradients with volumetric air flow rates. Also, the low oxygenation favored the iturin A production due to the reduction of free void by γ-PGA production, and finally, the low oxygen consumption generated low metabolic heat. The results show that it must control the pressure gradients to scale-up the process of iturin A production.

Caregiver Resiliency.

Science.gov (United States)

Siebert, Al

2002-01-01

This article argues that school counselors cannot teach and preach resilient behavior if they are not models of resiliency themselves. Examines why some people come through challenging times more emotionally intact than others and suggests some tips for increasing one's resilience potential. (GCP)

Continuous Production of Lipase-Catalyzed Biodiesel in a Packed-Bed Reactor: Optimization and Enzyme Reuse Study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hsiao-Ching Chen

2011-01-01

Full Text Available An optimal continuous production of biodiesel by methanolysis of soybean oil in a packed-bed reactor was developed using immobilized lipase (Novozym 435 as a catalyst in a tert-butanol solvent system. Response surface methodology (RSM and Box-Behnken design were employed to evaluate the effects of reaction temperature, flow rate, and substrate molar ratio on the molar conversion of biodiesel. The results showed that flow rate and temperature have significant effects on the percentage of molar conversion. On the basis of ridge max analysis, the optimum conditions were as follows: flow rate 0.1 mL/min, temperature 52.1∘C, and substrate molar ratio 1 : 4. The predicted and experimental values of molar conversion were 83.31±2.07% and 82.81±.98%, respectively. Furthermore, the continuous process over 30 days showed no appreciable decrease in the molar conversion. The paper demonstrates the applicability of using immobilized lipase and a packed-bed reactor for continuous biodiesel synthesis.

Optimal recovery sequencing for critical infrastructure resilience assessment.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Vugrin, Eric D.; Brown, Nathanael J. K.; Turnquist, Mark Alan (Cornell University, Ithaca, NY)

2010-09-01

Critical infrastructure resilience has become a national priority for the U. S. Department of Homeland Security. System resilience has been studied for several decades in many different disciplines, but no standards or unifying methods exist for critical infrastructure resilience analysis. This report documents the results of a late-start Laboratory Directed Research and Development (LDRD) project that investigated the identification of optimal recovery strategies that maximize resilience. To this goal, we formulate a bi-level optimization problem for infrastructure network models. In the 'inner' problem, we solve for network flows, and we use the 'outer' problem to identify the optimal recovery modes and sequences. We draw from the literature of multi-mode project scheduling problems to create an effective solution strategy for the resilience optimization model. We demonstrate the application of this approach to a set of network models, including a national railroad model and a supply chain for Army munitions production.

Optimization of tannase production by Aspergillus niger in solid-state packed-bed bioreactor.

Science.gov (United States)

Rodríguez-Durán, Luis V; Contreras-Esquivel, Juan C; Rodríguez, Raúl; Prado-Barragán, L Arely; Aguilar, Cristóbal N

2011-09-01

Tannin acyl hydrolase, also known as tannase, is an enzyme with important applications in the food, feed, pharmaceutical, and chemical industries. However, despite a growing interest in the catalytic properties of tannase, its practical use is very limited owing to high production costs. Several studies have already demonstrated the advantages of solid-state fermentation (SSF) for the production of fungal tannase, yet the optimal conditions for enzyme production strongly depend on the microbial strain utilized. Therefore, the aim of this study was to improve the tannase production by a locally isolated A. niger strain in an SSF system. The SSF was carried out in packed-bed bioreactors using polyurethane foam as an inert support impregnated with defined culture media. The process parameters influencing the enzyme production were identified using a Plackett–Burman design, where the substrate concentration, initial pH, and incubation temperature were determined as the most significant. These parameters were then further optimized using a Box-Behnken design. The maximum tannase production was obtained with a high tannic acid concentration (50 g/l), relatively low incubation temperature (30°C), and unique low initial pH (4.0). The statistical strategy aided in increasing the enzyme activity nearly 1.97-fold, from 4,030 to 7,955 U/l. Consequently, these findings can lead to the development of a fermentation system that is able to produce large amounts of tannase in economical, compact, and scalable reactors.

Resilience - A Concept

Science.gov (United States)

2016-04-05

the assessment of the health of a network or system. The hypothesis is: resiliency is meaningful in the context of holistic assessments of... health , holistic , Resiliency Tier, Resiliency Tier Matrix, State of Resiliency 295Defense ARJ, July 2015, Vol. 22 No. 3 : 294–324 296 Defense ARJ, July...upon who is speaking. Taking this one step further, consider resiliency as a concept that provides a holistic view of a system or capability, just

Systemic resilience model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lundberg, Jonas; Johansson, Björn JE

2015-01-01

It has been realized that resilience as a concept involves several contradictory definitions, both for instance resilience as agile adjustment and as robust resistance to situations. Our analysis of resilience concepts and models suggest that beyond simplistic definitions, it is possible to draw up a systemic resilience model (SyRes) that maintains these opposing characteristics without contradiction. We outline six functions in a systemic model, drawing primarily on resilience engineering, and disaster response: anticipation, monitoring, response, recovery, learning, and self-monitoring. The model consists of four areas: Event-based constraints, Functional Dependencies, Adaptive Capacity and Strategy. The paper describes dependencies between constraints, functions and strategies. We argue that models such as SyRes should be useful both for envisioning new resilience methods and metrics, as well as for engineering and evaluating resilient systems. - Highlights: • The SyRes model resolves contradictions between previous resilience definitions. • SyRes is a core model for envisioning and evaluating resilience metrics and models. • SyRes describes six functions in a systemic model. • They are anticipation, monitoring, response, recovery, learning, self-monitoring. • The model describes dependencies between constraints, functions and strategies

Consumer preferences for front-of-pack calories labelling.

Science.gov (United States)

van Kleef, Ellen; van Trijp, Hans; Paeps, Frederic; Fernández-Celemín, Laura

2008-02-01

In light of the emerging obesity pandemic, front-of-pack calories labels may be an important tool to assist consumers in making informed healthier food choices. However, there is little prior research to guide key decisions on whether caloric content should be expressed in absolute terms or relative to recommended daily intake, whether it should be expressed in per serving or per 100 g and whether the information should be further brought alive for consumers in terms of what the extra calorie intake implies in relation to activity levels. The present study aimed at providing more insight into consumers' appreciation of front-of-pack labelling of caloric content of food products and their specific preferences for alternative execution formats for such information in Europe. For this purpose, eight executions of front-of-pack calorie flags were designed and their appeal and information value were extensively discussed with consumers through qualitative research in four different countries (Germany, The Netherlands, France and the UK). The results show that calories are well-understood and that participants were generally positive about front-of-pack flags, particularly when flags are uniform across products. The most liked flags are the simpler flags depicting only the number of calories per serving or per 100 g, while more complex flags including references to daily needs or exercise and the flag including a phrase referring to balanced lifestyle were least preferred. Some relevant differences between countries were observed. Although participants seem to be familiar with the notion of calories, they do not seem to fully understand how to apply them. From the results, managerial implications for the design and implementation of front-of-pack calorie labelling as well as important directions for future research are discussed.

Consumer preferences for front-of-pack calories labelling

Science.gov (United States)

van Kleef, Ellen; van Trijp, Hans; Paeps, Frederic; Fernández-Celemín, Laura

2008-01-01

Objective In light of the emerging obesity pandemic, front-of-pack calories labels may be an important tool to assist consumers in making informed healthier food choices. However, there is little prior research to guide key decisions on whether caloric content should be expressed in absolute terms or relative to recommended daily intake, whether it should be expressed in per serving or per 100 g and whether the information should be further brought alive for consumers in terms of what the extra calorie intake implies in relation to activity levels. The present study aimed at providing more insight into consumers’ appreciation of front-of-pack labelling of caloric content of food products and their specific preferences for alternative execution formats for such information in Europe. Design For this purpose, eight executions of front-of-pack calorie flags were designed and their appeal and information value were extensively discussed with consumers through qualitative research in four different countries (Germany, The Netherlands, France and the UK). Results The results show that calories are well-understood and that participants were generally positive about front-of-pack flags, particularly when flags are uniform across products. The most liked flags are the simpler flags depicting only the number of calories per serving or per 100 g, while more complex flags including references to daily needs or exercise and the flag including a phrase referring to balanced lifestyle were least preferred. Some relevant differences between countries were observed. Although participants seem to be familiar with the notion of calories, they do not seem to fully understand how to apply them. Conclusion From the results, managerial implications for the design and implementation of front-of-pack calorie labelling as well as important directions for future research are discussed. PMID:17601362

Comparing the efficacy of mature mud pack and hot pack treatments for knee osteoarthritis.

Science.gov (United States)

Sarsan, Ayşe; Akkaya, Nuray; Ozgen, Merih; Yildiz, Necmettin; Atalay, Nilgun Simsir; Ardic, Fusun

2012-01-01

The objective of this study is to compare the efficacy of mature mud pack and hot pack therapies on patients with knee osteoarthritis. This study was designed as a prospective, randomized-controlled, and single-blinded clinical trial. Twenty-seven patients with clinical and radiologic evidence of knee osteoarthritis were randomly assigned into two groups and were treated with mature mud packs (n 15) or hot packs (n=12). Patients were evaluated for pain [based on the visual analog scale (VAS)], function (WOMAC, 6 min walking distance), quality of life [Short Form-36 (SF-36)], and serum levels of tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), interleukin-6 (IL-6), and insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) at baseline, post-treatment, and 3 and 6~months after treatment. The mud pack group shows a significant improvement in VAS, pain, stifness, and physical function domains of WOMAC. The difference between groups of pain and physical activity domains is significant at post-treatment in favor of mud pack. For a 6 min walking distance, mud pack shows significant improvement, and the difference is significant between groups in favor of mud pack at post-treatment and 3 and 6 months after treatment. Mud pack shows significant improvement in the pain subscale of SF-36 at the third month continuing until the sixth month after the treatment. Significant improvements are found for the social function, vitality/energy, physical role disability, and general health subscales of SF-36 in favor of the mud pack compared with the hot pack group at post-treatment. A significant increase is detected for IGF-1 in the mud pack group 3 months after treatment compared with the baseline, and the difference is significant between groups 3 months after the treatment. Mud pack is a favorable option compared with hotpack for pain relief and for the improvement of functional conditions in treating patients with knee osteoarthritis.

Does aquaculture add resilience to the global food system?

Science.gov (United States)

Troell, Max; Naylor, Rosamond L; Metian, Marc; Beveridge, Malcolm; Tyedmers, Peter H; Folke, Carl; Arrow, Kenneth J; Barrett, Scott; Crépin, Anne-Sophie; Ehrlich, Paul R; Gren, Asa; Kautsky, Nils; Levin, Simon A; Nyborg, Karine; Österblom, Henrik; Polasky, Stephen; Scheffer, Marten; Walker, Brian H; Xepapadeas, Tasos; de Zeeuw, Aart

2014-09-16

Aquaculture is the fastest growing food sector and continues to expand alongside terrestrial crop and livestock production. Using portfolio theory as a conceptual framework, we explore how current interconnections between the aquaculture, crop, livestock, and fisheries sectors act as an impediment to, or an opportunity for, enhanced resilience in the global food system given increased resource scarcity and climate change. Aquaculture can potentially enhance resilience through improved resource use efficiencies and increased diversification of farmed species, locales of production, and feeding strategies. However, aquaculture's reliance on terrestrial crops and wild fish for feeds, its dependence on freshwater and land for culture sites, and its broad array of environmental impacts diminishes its ability to add resilience. Feeds for livestock and farmed fish that are fed rely largely on the same crops, although the fraction destined for aquaculture is presently small (∼4%). As demand for high-value fed aquaculture products grows, competition for these crops will also rise, as will the demand for wild fish as feed inputs. Many of these crops and forage fish are also consumed directly by humans and provide essential nutrition for low-income households. Their rising use in aquafeeds has the potential to increase price levels and volatility, worsening food insecurity among the most vulnerable populations. Although the diversification of global food production systems that includes aquaculture offers promise for enhanced resilience, such promise will not be realized if government policies fail to provide adequate incentives for resource efficiency, equity, and environmental protection.

Organizational resilience: Nonprofit organizations' response to change.

Science.gov (United States)

Witmer, Hope; Mellinger, Marcela Sarmiento

2016-05-24

Organizational resilience refers to the ability to respond productively to significant disruptive change and transform challenges into opportunities. There is a gap in the literature about resilient nonprofit organizations and its application for identifying organizational conditions for successful adaption to external variables that threaten their existence. The aim of this study was to identify organizational characteristics that point to the resilience of nonprofit behavioral healthcare organizations as they successfully adapt to funding changes. A multiple case study of two behavioral health nonprofit organizations was conducted. Data was collected through interviews and focus groups, and analyzed through a qualitative content analysis. Using the framework of resilience, six themes that equipped these organizations to successfully adapt to funding changes were identified. They included: commitment to the mission, improvisation, community reciprocity, servant and transformational leadership, hope and optimism, and fiscal transparency. The findings suggest that incorporating these qualities into an organizational system equips it to systematically adapt to funding changes and other disruptive challenges. Using resilience as a process and not simply an outcome after recovery, nonprofit organizations can have the capacity to continuously respond to challenges and provide uninterrupted and valuable services to society.

Argo packing friction research update

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

VanTassell, D.M.

1994-01-01

This paper focuses on the issue of valve packing friction and its affect on the operability of motor- and air-operated valves (MOVs and AOVs). At this time, most nuclear power plants are required to perform postmaintenance testing following a packing adjustment or replacement. In many cases, the friction generated by the packing does not impact the operability window of a valve. However, to date there has not been a concerted effort to substantiate this claim. To quantify the effects of packing friction, it has become necessary to develop a formula to predict the friction effects accurately. This formula provides a much more accurate method of predicting packing friction than previously used factors based strictly on stem diameter. Over the past 5 years, Argo Packing Company has been developing and testing improved graphite packing systems at research facilities, such as AECL Chalk River and Wyle Laboratories. Much of this testing has centered around reducing and predicting friction that is related to packing. In addition, diagnostic testing for Generic Letter 89-10 MOVs and AOVs has created a significant data base. In July 1992 Argo asked several utilities to provide running load data that could be used to quantify packing friction repeatability and predictability. This technical paper provides the basis to predict packing friction, which will improve calculations for thrust requirements for Generic Leter 89-10 and future AOV programs. In addition, having an accurate packing friction formula will improve packing performance when low running loads are identified that would indicate insufficient sealing force

Column-to-column packing variation of disposable pre-packed columns for protein chromatography.

Science.gov (United States)

Schweiger, Susanne; Hinterberger, Stephan; Jungbauer, Alois

2017-12-08

In the biopharmaceutical industry, pre-packed columns are the standard for process development, but they must be qualified before use in experimental studies to confirm the required performance of the packed bed. Column qualification is commonly done by pulse response experiments and depends highly on the experimental testing conditions. Additionally, the peak analysis method, the variation in the 3D packing structure of the bed, and the measurement precision of the workstation influence the outcome of qualification runs. While a full body of literature on these factors is available for HPLC columns, no comparable studies exist for preparative columns for protein chromatography. We quantified the influence of these parameters for commercially available pre-packed and self-packed columns of disposable and non-disposable design. Pulse response experiments were performed on 105 preparative chromatography columns with volumes of 0.2-20ml. The analyte acetone was studied at six different superficial velocities (30, 60, 100, 150, 250 and 500cm/h). The column-to-column packing variation between disposable pre-packed columns of different diameter-length combinations varied by 10-15%, which was acceptable for the intended use. The column-to-column variation cannot be explained by the packing density, but is interpreted as a difference in particle arrangement in the column. Since it was possible to determine differences in the column-to-column performance, we concluded that the columns were well-packed. The measurement precision of the chromatography workstation was independent of the column volume and was in a range of±0.01ml for the first peak moment and±0.007 ml 2 for the second moment. The measurement precision must be considered for small columns in the range of 2ml or less. The efficiency of disposable pre-packed columns was equal or better than that of self-packed columns. Copyright © 2017 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Psychological Trait Resilience Within Ecological Systems Theory: The Resilient Systems Scales.

Science.gov (United States)

Maltby, John; Day, Liz; Flowe, Heather D; Vostanis, Panos; Chivers, Sally

2017-07-14

This project describes the development of the Resilient Systems Scales, created to address conceptual and methodological ambiguities in assessing the ecological systems model of resilience. Across a number of samples (total N = 986), our findings suggest that the Resilient Systems Scales show equivalence to a previously reported assessment (Maltby, Day, & Hall, 2015 ) in demonstrating the same factor structure, adequate intercorrelation between the 2 measures of resilience, and equivalent associations with personality and well-being. The findings also suggest that the Resilient Systems Scales demonstrate adequate test-retest reliability, compare well with other extant measures of resilience in predicting well-being, and map, to varying degrees, onto positive expression of several cognitive, social, and emotional traits. The findings suggest that the new measure can be used alongside existing measures of resilience, or singly, to assess positive life outcomes within psychology research.

Resilient leadership and the organizational culture of resilience: construct validation.

Science.gov (United States)

Everly, George S; Smith, Kenneth J; Lobo, Rachel

2013-01-01

Political, economic, and social unrest and uncertainty seem replete throughout the world. Within the United States, political vitriol and economic volatility have led to severe economic restrictions. Both government and private sector organizations are being asked to do more with less. The specter of dramatic changes in healthcare creates a condition of uncertainty affecting budget allocations and hiring practices. If ever there was a time when a "resilient culture" was needed, it is now. In this paper we shall discuss the application of "tipping point" theory (Gladwell, 2000) operationalized through a special form of leadership: "resilient leadership" (Everly, Strouse, Everly, 2010). Resilient leadership is consistent with Gladwells "Law of the Few" and strives to create an organizational culture of resilience by implementing an initial change within no more than 20% of an organization's workforce. It is expected that such a minority, if chosen correctly, will "tip" the rest of the organization toward enhanced resilience, ideally creating a self-sustaining culture of resilience. This paper reports on the empirical foundations and construct validation of "resilient leadership".

Interaction between Proppant Packing, Reservoir Depletion, and Fluid Flow in Pore Space

Science.gov (United States)

Fan, M.; McClure, J. E.; Han, Y.; Chen, C.

2016-12-01

In the oil and gas industry, the performance of proppant pack in hydraulically created fractures has a significant influence on fracture conductivity. A better understanding of proppant transport and deposition pattern in a hydraulic fracture is vital for effective and economical production within oil and gas reservoirs. In this research, a numerical modeling approach, combining Particle Flow Code (PFC) and GPU-enhanced lattice Boltzmann simulator (GELBS), is adopted to advance the understanding of the interaction between proppant particle packing, depletion of reservoir formation, and transport of reservoir flow through the pore space. In this numerical work flow, PFC is used to simulate effective stress increase and proppant particle movement and rearrangement under increasing mechanical loading. The pore structure of the proppant pack evolves subsequently and the geometrical data are output for lattice Boltzmann (LB) simulation of proppant pack permeability. Three different proppant packs with fixed particle concentration and 12/18, 16/30, and 20/40 mesh sizes are generated. These proppant packs are compressed with specified loading stress and their subsequent geometries are used for fluid flow simulations. The simulation results are in good agreement with experimental observations, e.g., the conductivity of proppant packs decreases with increasing effective stress. Three proppant packs with the same average diameter were generated using different coefficients of variation (COVs) for the proppant diameter (namely cov5%, cov20%, and cov30%). By using the coupled PFC-LBM work flow, the proppant pack permeability as functions of effective stress and porosity is investigated. The results show that the proppant pack with a higher proppant diameter COV has lower permeability and porosity under the same effective stress, because smaller particles fill in the pore space between bigger particles. The relationship between porosity and permeability is also consistent with

Resilience

Science.gov (United States)

Resilience is an important framework for understanding and managing complex systems of people and nature that are subject to abrupt and nonlinear change. The idea of ecological resilience was slow to gain acceptance in the scientific community, taking thirty years to become widel...

Packing force data correlations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Heiman, S.M.

1994-01-01

One of the issues facing valve maintenance personnel today deals with an appropriate methodology for installing and setting valve packing that will minimize leak rates, yet ensure functionality of the the valve under all anticipated operating conditions. Several variables can affect a valve packing's ability to seal, such as packing bolt torque, stem finish, and lubrication. Stem frictional force can be an excellent overall indicator of some of the underlying conditions that affect the sealing characteristics of the packing and the best parameter to use when adjusting the packing. This paper addresses stem friction forces, analytically derives the equations related to these forces, presents a methodology for measuring these forces on valve stems, and attempts to correlate the data directly to the underlying variables

Codesigning a resilient food system

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sari J. Himanen

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Global changes, especially the progression of climate change, create a plethora of adaptation needs for social-ecological systems. With increasing uncertainty, more resilient food systems that are able to adapt and shape their operations in response to emerging challenges are required. Most of the research on this subject has been focused on developing countries; however, developed countries also face increasing environmental, economic, and social pressures. Because food systems are complex and involve multiple actors, using codesign might be the most productive way to develop desirable system characteristics. For this study, we engaged food system actors in a scenario-planning exercise to identify means of building more resilient food systems. In particular, the actors focused on determinants of adaptive capacity in developed countries, with Finland as a case study. The brainstorming session followed by a two-round Delphi study raised three main characteristics for effective food system resilience, namely, energy and nutrient sovereignty, transparency and dialogue in the food chain, and continuous innovativeness and evidence-based learning. In addition, policy interventions were found instrumental for supporting such food system resilience. The main actor-specific determinants of adaptive capacity identified included the farmers' utilization of agri-technology and expertise; energy and logistic efficiency of the input and processing industry; and for retail, communication to build consumer trust and environmental awareness, and effective use of information and communication technology. Of the food system actors, farmers and the processing industry were perceived to be the closest to reaching the limits of their adaptive capacities. The use of adaptive capacity as a proxy seemed to concretize food system resilience effectively. Our study suggests that the resilience approach generates new perspectives that can guide actors in developing food

Incorporating resilience and cost in ecological restoration strategies at landscape scale

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maurício Stefanes

2016-12-01

Full Text Available The restoration of deforested or degraded areas can contribute to biodiversity conservation and global resilience given the current and projected impacts of climate change. In recent years, a robust array of ecological restoration frameworks have been generated to address restoration challenges at large scales in different ecosystems around the world. Unfortunately, the costs associated with restoration at such scales greatly challenges the implementation of such frameworks. We used landscape ecology principles with multicriteria optimization of landscape resilience and agricultural productivity as a way to mitigate the trade-offs between production and restoration. We used the Cerrado biome in Mato Grosso do Sul State, Brazil, as a case study to apply our framework. We compared three scenarios: minimal legal compliance (MLC; selection by ecological resilience (SER; and selection by restoration cost (SRC. Our results show that increasing the restoration target from MLC (25% to SER (30% means moving from 968,316 to 1592 million hectares, which can represent a huge opportunity cost for agricultural lands. However, because costs and resilience are not homogeneously distributed throughout landscapes, we can select areas of intermediate ecological resilience and low cost, for the same restoration area target. This process can reduce potential conflicts and make restoration a more viable process. Our results also reveal some areas that can be particularly important for reconciling agriculture and landscape restoration. Those areas combined high and intermediate resilience and an above average profitability. This could mean that increasing restoration in this area could be very expensive, assuming that our proxy roughly represents the restoration implementation cost. However, there is another important message here, that some areas can be productive at the same time that they maintain levels of resilience above the legal compliance, which facilitates

Developing the resilience typology

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Simonsen, Daniel Morten

2013-01-01

There is a growing interest in resilience in internal crisis management and crisis communication. How an organization can build up resilience as a response to organisational crisis, at a time when the amount of crises seem only to increase, is more relevant than ever before. Nevertheless resilience...... is often perceived in the literature as something certain organisations have by definition, without further reflection on what it is that creates this resiliency. This article explores what it is that creates organisational resilience, and in view of the different understandings of the resilience...... phenomenon, develops a typology of resilience. Furthermore the resilience phenomenon is discussed against the definition of a crisis as a cosmological episode, and implications for future research is discussed and summarized....

NEW MODEL FOR QUANTIFICATION OF ICT DEPENDABLE ORGANIZATIONS RESILIENCE

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zora Arsovski

2011-03-01

Full Text Available Business environment today demands high reliable organizations in every segment to be competitive on the global market. Beside that, ICT sector is becoming irreplaceable in many fields of business, from the communication to the complex systems for process control and production. To fulfill those requirements and to develop further, many organizations worldwide are implementing business paradigm called - organizations resilience. Although resilience is well known term in many science fields, it is not well studied due to its complex nature. This paper is dealing with developing the new model for assessment and quantification of ICT dependable organizations resilience.

Proceedings of the third resilience engineering symposium

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hollnagel, Erik; Pieri, Francois; Rigaud, Eric

2008-01-01

The proceeding from Third Resilience Engineering Symposium collects the papers presented on October 28-30, 2008, in Antibes-Juan-les-Pins, France. The Symposium provided a much appreciated forum for people working within the area of Resilience Engineering to become updated with the latest scientific achievements as well as more practical oriented applications, and exchange views and idea within the area. Resilience Engineering represents a new way of thinking about safety that has already given rise to several practical applications. In contrast to established risk management approaches that are based on hindsight and emphasise error tabulation and calculation of failure probabilities, Resilience Engineering looks for ways to enhance the ability of organisations to create processes that are robust yet flexible, to monitor and revise risk models, and to use resources pro-actively in the face of disruptions or ongoing production and economic pressures. In Resilience Engineering failures do not stand for a breakdown or malfunctioning of normal system functions, but rather represent the converse of the adaptations necessary to cope with the real world complexity. Individuals and organisations must always adjust their performance to the current conditions; and because resources and time are finite it is inevitable that such adjustments are approximate. Success has been ascribed to the ability of groups, individuals, and organisations to anticipate the changing shape of risk before damage occurs; failure is simply the temporary or permanent absence of that. Three papers were selected for INIS, these are: - Resilience and Brittleness in a Nuclear Emergency Response Simulation: Focusing on Team Coordination Activity (Costa, W.S. et al.); - Resilience and the Training of Nuclear Operators - A View from the Shop Floor (Hildebrandt, M. et al.); and - Complexity of Resilient Power Distribution Networks (May, M.)

'Resilience thinking' in transport planning

OpenAIRE

Wang, JYT

2015-01-01

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

Four concepts for resilience and the implications for the future of resilience engineering

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Woods, David D.

2015-01-01

The concept of system resilience is important and popular—in fact, hyper-popular over the last few years. Clarifying the technical meanings and foundations of the concept of resilience would appear to be necessary. Proposals for defining resilience are flourishing as well. This paper organizes the different technical approaches to the question of what is resilience and how to engineer it in complex adaptive systems. This paper groups the different uses of the label ‘resilience’ around four basic concepts: (1) resilience as rebound from trauma and return to equilibrium; (2) resilience as a synonym for robustness; (3) resilience as the opposite of brittleness, i.e., as graceful extensibility when surprise challenges boundaries; (4) resilience as network architectures that can sustain the ability to adapt to future surprises as conditions evolve. - Highlights: • There continues to be a wide diversity of definitions of the label resilience. • Research progress points to 4 basic concepts underneath diverse uses of. • Each of the four core concepts defines different research agendas. • The 4 concepts provide guides on how to engineer resilience for safety

Does aquaculture add resilience to the global food system?

Science.gov (United States)

Troell, Max; Naylor, Rosamond L.; Metian, Marc; Beveridge, Malcolm; Tyedmers, Peter H.; Folke, Carl; Arrow, Kenneth J.; Barrett, Scott; Crépin, Anne-Sophie; Ehrlich, Paul R.; Gren, Åsa; Kautsky, Nils; Levin, Simon A.; Nyborg, Karine; Österblom, Henrik; Polasky, Stephen; Scheffer, Marten; Walker, Brian H.; Xepapadeas, Tasos; de Zeeuw, Aart

2014-01-01

Aquaculture is the fastest growing food sector and continues to expand alongside terrestrial crop and livestock production. Using portfolio theory as a conceptual framework, we explore how current interconnections between the aquaculture, crop, livestock, and fisheries sectors act as an impediment to, or an opportunity for, enhanced resilience in the global food system given increased resource scarcity and climate change. Aquaculture can potentially enhance resilience through improved resource use efficiencies and increased diversification of farmed species, locales of production, and feeding strategies. However, aquaculture’s reliance on terrestrial crops and wild fish for feeds, its dependence on freshwater and land for culture sites, and its broad array of environmental impacts diminishes its ability to add resilience. Feeds for livestock and farmed fish that are fed rely largely on the same crops, although the fraction destined for aquaculture is presently small (∼4%). As demand for high-value fed aquaculture products grows, competition for these crops will also rise, as will the demand for wild fish as feed inputs. Many of these crops and forage fish are also consumed directly by humans and provide essential nutrition for low-income households. Their rising use in aquafeeds has the potential to increase price levels and volatility, worsening food insecurity among the most vulnerable populations. Although the diversification of global food production systems that includes aquaculture offers promise for enhanced resilience, such promise will not be realized if government policies fail to provide adequate incentives for resource efficiency, equity, and environmental protection. PMID:25136111

Conceptualizing Resilience

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Thomas A. Birkland

2016-12-01

Full Text Available This commentary provides an overview of the idea of resilience, and acknowledges the challenges of defining and applying the idea in practice. The article summarizes a way of looking at resilience called a “resilience delta”, that takes into account both the shock done to a community by a disaster and the capacity of that community to rebound from that shock to return to its prior functionality. I show how different features of the community can create resilience, and consider how the developed and developing world addresses resilience. I also consider the role of focusing events in gaining attention to events and promoting change. I note that, while focusing events are considered by many in the disaster studies field to be major drivers of policy change in the United States disaster policy, most disasters have little effect on the overall doctrine of shared responsibilities between the national and subnational governments.

FY-87 packing fabrication techniques (commercial waste form) results

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Werry, E.V.; Gates, T.E.; Cabbage, K.S.; Eklund, J.D.

1988-04-01

This report covers the investigation of fabrication techniques associated with the development of suitable materials and methods to provide a prefabricated packing for waste packages for the Basalt Waste Isolation Project (BWIP). The principal functions of the packing are to minimize container corrosion during the 300 to 1000 years following repository closure and provide long-term control of the release of radionuclides from the waste package. The investigative work, discussed in this report, was specifically conceived to develop the design criteria for production of full-scale prototypical packing rings. The investigative work included the preparation of procedures, the preparation of fabrication materials, physical properties, and the determination of the engineering properties. The principal activities were the preparation of the materials and the determination of the physical properties. 21 refs., 20 figs., 14 tabs

Forest resilience to drought varies across biomes.

Science.gov (United States)

Gazol, Antonio; Camarero, Jesus Julio; Vicente-Serrano, Sergio M; Sánchez-Salguero, Raúl; Gutiérrez, Emilia; de Luis, Martin; Sangüesa-Barreda, Gabriel; Novak, Klemen; Rozas, Vicente; Tíscar, Pedro A; Linares, Juan C; Martín-Hernández, Natalia; Martínez Del Castillo, Edurne; Ribas, Montse; García-González, Ignacio; Silla, Fernando; Camisón, Alvaro; Génova, Mar; Olano, José M; Longares, Luis A; Hevia, Andrea; Tomás-Burguera, Miquel; Galván, J Diego

2018-05-01

Forecasted increase drought frequency and severity may drive worldwide declines in forest productivity. Species-level responses to a drier world are likely to be influenced by their functional traits. Here, we analyse forest resilience to drought using an extensive network of tree-ring width data and satellite imagery. We compiled proxies of forest growth and productivity (TRWi, absolutely dated ring-width indices; NDVI, Normalized Difference Vegetation Index) for 11 tree species and 502 forests in Spain corresponding to Mediterranean, temperate, and continental biomes. Four different components of forest resilience to drought were calculated based on TRWi and NDVI data before, during, and after four major droughts (1986, 1994-1995, 1999, and 2005), and pointed out that TRWi data were more sensitive metrics of forest resilience to drought than NDVI data. Resilience was related to both drought severity and forest composition. Evergreen gymnosperms dominating semi-arid Mediterranean forests showed the lowest resistance to drought, but higher recovery than deciduous angiosperms dominating humid temperate forests. Moreover, semi-arid gymnosperm forests presented a negative temporal trend in the resistance to drought, but this pattern was absent in continental and temperate forests. Although gymnosperms in dry Mediterranean forests showed a faster recovery after drought, their recovery potential could be constrained if droughts become more frequent. Conversely, angiosperms and gymnosperms inhabiting temperate and continental sites might have problems to recover after more intense droughts since they resist drought but are less able to recover afterwards. © 2018 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Integrated Approach to a Resilient City: Associating Social, Environmental and Infrastructure Resilience in its Whole

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Birutė PITRĖNAITĖ-ŽILĖNIENĖ

2014-12-01

Full Text Available Rising complexity, numbers and severity of natural and manmade disasters enhance the importance of reducing vulnerability, or on contrary – increasing resilience, of different kind of systems, including those of social, engineering (infrastructure, and environmental (ecological nature. The goal of this research is to explore urban resilience as an integral system of social, environmental, and engineering resilience. This report analyses the concepts of each kind of resilience and identifies key factors influencing social, ecological, and infrastructure resilience discussing how these factors relate within urban systems. The achievement of resilience of urban and regional systems happens through the interaction of the different elements (social, psychological, physical, structural, and environmental, etc.; therefore, resilient city could be determined by synergy of resilient society, resilient infrastructure and resilient environment of the given area. Based on literature analysis, the current research provides some insights on conceptual framework for assessment of complex urban systems in terms of resilience. To be able to evaluate resilience and define effective measures for prevention and risk mitigation, and thereby strengthen resilience, we propose to develop an e-platform, joining risk parameters’ Monitoring Systems, which feed with data Resiliency Index calculation domain. Both these elements result in Multirisk Platform, which could serve for awareness and shared decision making for resilient people in resilient city.

Quantifying resilience for resilience engineering of socio technical systems

OpenAIRE

Häring, Ivo; Ebenhöch, Stefan; Stolz, Alexander

2016-01-01

Resilience engineering can be defined to comprise originally technical, engineering and natural science approaches to improve the resilience and sustainability of socio technical cyber-physical systems of various complexities with respect to disruptive events. It is argued how this emerging interdisciplinary technical and societal science approach may contribute to civil and societal security research. In this context, the article lists expected benefits of quantifying resilience. Along the r...

Framing resilience: social uncertainty in designing urban climate resilience

OpenAIRE

Wardekker, J.A.

2016-01-01

Building urban resilience to climate change and other challenges will be essential for maintaining thriving cities into the future. Resilience has become very popular in both research on and practice of climate adaptation. However, people have different interpretations of what it means: what resilience-building contributes to, what the problems, causes and solutions are, and what trade-offs, side-effects and other normative choices are acceptable. These different ways of ‘framing’ climate res...

Hardness of approximation for strip packing

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Adamaszek, Anna Maria; Kociumaka, Tomasz; Pilipczuk, Marcin

2017-01-01

Strip packing is a classical packing problem, where the goal is to pack a set of rectangular objects into a strip of a given width, while minimizing the total height of the packing. The problem has multiple applications, for example, in scheduling and stock-cutting, and has been studied extensively......)-approximation by two independent research groups [FSTTCS 2016,WALCOM 2017]. This raises a questionwhether strip packing with polynomially bounded input data admits a quasi-polynomial time approximation scheme, as is the case for related twodimensional packing problems like maximum independent set of rectangles or two...

Limited indications of tax stamp discordance and counterfeiting on cigarette packs purchased in tobacco retailers, 97 counties, USA, 2012

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Joseph G.L. Lee

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Increasing the per-unit cost of tobacco products is one of the strongest interventions for tobacco control. In jurisdictions with higher taxes in the U.S., however, cigarette pack litter studies show a substantial proportion of littered packs lack the appropriate tax stamp. More limited but still present counterfeiting also exists. We sought to examine the role of tobacco retailers as a source for untaxed and counterfeit products. Data collectors purchased Newport Green (menthol or Marlboro Red cigarette packs in a national probability-based sample of tobacco retailers (in 97 counties from June–October 2012. They made no effort to buy counterfeit or untaxed cigarettes. In this cross-sectional study, we assessed the presence, tax authority, and type (low-tech thermal vs. encrypted of cigarette pack tax stamps; concordance of tax stamps with where the pack was purchased; and, for Marlboro cigarettes, publicly available visible indicators of counterfeiting. We purchased 2147 packs of which 2033 had tax stamps. Packs missing stamps were in states that do not require them. We found very limited discordance between store location and tax stamp(s (<1%. However, a substantial minority of cigarette packs had damaged tax stamps (13%. This occurred entirely with low-tech tax stamps and was not identified with encrypted tax stamps. We found no clear evidence of counterfeit products. Almost all tax stamps matched the location of purchase. Litter studies may be picking up legal tax avoidance instead of illegal tax evasion or, alternatively, purchase of illicit products requires special request by the purchaser. Keywords: Taxes, Smoking, Tobacco products, Government regulation, Government

Modified strip packing heuristics for the rectangular variable-sized bin packing problem

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

FG Ortmann

2010-06-01

Full Text Available Two packing problems are considered in this paper, namely the well-known strip packing problem (SPP and the variable-sized bin packing problem (VSBPP. A total of 252 strip packing heuristics (and variations thereof from the literature, as well as novel heuristics proposed by the authors, are compared statistically by means of 1170 SPP benchmark instances in order to identify the best heuristics in various classes. A combination of new heuristics with a new sorting method yields the best results. These heuristics are combined with a previous heuristic for the VSBPP by the authors to find good feasible solutions to 1357 VSBPP benchmark instances. This is the largest statistical comparison of algorithms for the SPP and the VSBPP to the best knowledge of the authors.

An Approach for Modeling Supplier Resilience

Science.gov (United States)

2016-04-30

interests include resilience modeling of supply chains, reliability engineering, and meta- heuristic optimization. [m.hosseini@ou.edu] Abstract...be availability , or the extent to which the products produced by the supply chain are available for use (measured as a ratio of uptime to total time...of the use of the product). Available systems are important in many industries, particularly in the Department of Defense, where weapons systems

Flooding characteristics of Goodloe packing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Begovich, J.M.; Watson, J.S.

1976-08-01

Experimental flooding data for the countercurrent flow of air and water in a 7.62-cm-diam glass column filled with Goodloe packing were compared with a correlation reported by the packing manufacturer. Flooding rates observed in this study were as low as one-half those predicted by the correlation. Rearranging the packing by inverting the column and removing some packing segments yielded results similar to the correlation for liquid-to-gas (L/G) mass flow rate ratios greater than 10, but the experimental flooding curve fell significantly below the correlation at lower L/G ratios. When the column was repacked with new packing, the results were essentially the same as those obtained in the inverted column. Thus, it is believed that a carefully packed column is more likely to yield flooding rates similar to those obtained in the new or inverted columns rather than rates predicted by the original correlation

Development of a framework for resilience measurement: Suggestion of fuzzy Resilience Grade (RG) and fuzzy Resilience Early Warning Grade (REWG).

Science.gov (United States)

Omidvar, Mohsen; Mazloumi, Adel; Mohammad Fam, Iraj; Nirumand, Fereshteh

2017-01-01

Resilience engineering (RE) can be an alternative technique to the traditional risk assessment and management techniques, to predict and manage safety conditions of modern socio-technical organizations. While traditional risk management approaches are retrospective and highlight error calculation and computation of malfunction possibilities, resilience engineering seeks ways to improve capacity at all levels of organizations in order to build strong yet flexible processes. Considering the resilience potential measurement as a concern in complex working systems, the aim of this study was to quantify the resilience by the help of fuzzy sets and Multi-Criteria Decision-Making (MCDM) techniques. In this paper, we adopted the fuzzy analytic hierarchy process (FAHP) method to measure resilience in a gas refinery plant. A resilience assessment framework containing six indicators, each with its own sub-indicators, was constructed. Then, the fuzzy weights of the indicators and the sub-indicators were derived from pair-wise comparisons conducted by experts. The fuzzy evaluating vectors of the indicators and the sub-indicators computed according to the initial assessment data. Finally, the Comprehensive Resilience Index (CoRI), Resilience Grade (RG), and Resilience Early Warning Grade (REWG) were established. To demonstrate the applicability of the proposed method, an illustrative example in a gas refinery complex (an instance of socio-technical systems) was provided. CoRI of the refinery ranked as "III". In addition, for the six main indicators, RG and REWG ranked as "III" and "NEWZ", respectively, except for C3, in which RG ranked as "II", and REWG ranked as "OEWZ". The results revealed the engineering practicability and usefulness of the proposed method in resilience evaluation of socio-technical systems.

The advantages of hydraulic packing extraction

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Baker, R.S.

1991-01-01

Today's competitive environment, coupled with industry's desire to improve the efficiency of plant maintenance and operations, has management continually seeking ways to save time, money, and, at nuclear plants, radiation exposure. One area where a tremendous improvement in efficiency can be realized is valve packing removal. For example, industry experience indicates that up to 70% of the time it takes to repack a valve can be spent just removing the old packing. In some case, the bonnets of small valves are removed to facilitate packing removal and prevent stem and stuffing box damage that can occur when using packing removal picks. In other cases, small valves are simply removed and discarded because it costs less to replace the valves than to remove the packing using conventional methods. Hydraulic packing extraction greatly reduces packing removal time and will not damage the stem nor stuffing box, thus eliminating the need for bonnet removal or valve replacement. This paper will review some of the more common problems associated with manual packing extraction techniques. It will explain how hydraulic packing extraction eliminates or greatly reduces the impact of each of the problem areas. A discussion will be provided of some actual industry operating experiences related to success stories using hydraulic packing extraction. The paper will also briefly describe the operating parameters associated with hydraulic packing extraction tools. Throughout the paper, actual operating experiences from the nuclear power, fossil power, petrochemical, and refinery industries will be used to support the conclusion that hydraulic packing extraction is an alternative that can save time, money, and exposure

The Maximum Resource Bin Packing Problem

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Boyar, J.; Epstein, L.; Favrholdt, L.M.

2006-01-01

Usually, for bin packing problems, we try to minimize the number of bins used or in the case of the dual bin packing problem, maximize the number or total size of accepted items. This paper presents results for the opposite problems, where we would like to maximize the number of bins used...... algorithms, First-Fit-Increasing and First-Fit-Decreasing for the maximum resource variant of classical bin packing. For the on-line variant, we define maximum resource variants of classical and dual bin packing. For dual bin packing, no on-line algorithm is competitive. For classical bin packing, we find...

Flood Resilient Systems and their Application for Flood Resilient Planning

Science.gov (United States)

Manojlovic, N.; Gabalda, V.; Antanaskovic, D.; Gershovich, I.; Pasche, E.

2012-04-01

Following the paradigm shift in flood management from traditional to more integrated approaches, and considering the uncertainties of future development due to drivers such as climate change, one of the main emerging tasks of flood managers becomes the development of (flood) resilient cities. It can be achieved by application of non-structural - flood resilience measures, summarised in the 4As: assistance, alleviation, awareness and avoidance (FIAC, 2007). As a part of this strategy, the key aspect of development of resilient cities - resilient built environment can be reached by efficient application of Flood Resilience Technology (FReT) and its meaningful combination into flood resilient systems (FRS). FRS are given as [an interconnecting network of FReT which facilitates resilience (including both restorative and adaptive capacity) to flooding, addressing physical and social systems and considering different flood typologies] (SMARTeST, http://www.floodresilience.eu/). Applying the system approach (e.g. Zevenbergen, 2008), FRS can be developed at different scales from the building to the city level. Still, a matter of research is a method to define and systematise different FRS crossing those scales. Further, the decision on which resilient system is to be applied for the given conditions and given scale is a complex task, calling for utilisation of decision support tools. This process of decision-making should follow the steps of flood risk assessment (1) and development of a flood resilience plan (2) (Manojlovic et al, 2009). The key problem in (2) is how to match the input parameters that describe physical&social system and flood typology to the appropriate flood resilient system. Additionally, an open issue is how to integrate the advances in FReT and findings on its efficiency into decision support tools. This paper presents a way to define, systematise and make decisions on FRS at different scales of an urban system developed within the 7th FP Project

Resilience Indicator Summaries and Resilience Scores CNMI JPEG Maps

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — Maps of relative classifications (low to high) for six resilience indicators and two anthropogenic stressors and a map of final relative resilience scores for 78...

Resilience Indicator Summaries and Resilience Scores CNMI Excel database

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — Maps of relative classifications (low to high) for six resilience indicators and two anthropogenic stressors and a map of final relative resilience scores for 78...

The impact of interpretive and reductive front-of-pack labels on food choice and willingness to pay.

Science.gov (United States)

Talati, Zenobia; Norman, Richard; Pettigrew, Simone; Neal, Bruce; Kelly, Bridget; Dixon, Helen; Ball, Kylie; Miller, Caroline; Shilton, Trevor

2017-12-19

This study examined how front-of-pack labels and product healthfulness affect choice and willingness to pay across a range of foods. It was hypothesized that: (i) product choice and (ii) willingness to pay would be more aligned with product healthfulness when healthfulness was expressed through the Health Star Rating, followed by the Multiple Traffic Light, then the Daily Intake Guide, and (iii) the Nutrition Facts Panel would be viewed infrequently. Adults and children aged 10+ years (n = 2069) completed an online discrete choice task involving mock food packages. A 4 food type (cookies, corn flakes, pizza, yoghurt) × 2 front-of-pack label presence (present, absent) × 3 front-of-pack label type (Daily Intake Guide, Multiple Traffic Light, Health Star Rating) × 3 price (cheap, moderate, expensive) × 3 healthfulness (less healthy, moderately healthy, healthier) design was used. A 30 s time limit was imposed for each choice. Of the three front-of-pack labels tested, the Health Star Rating produced the largest differences in choices, with 40% (95% CIs: 38%-42%) of respondents selecting the healthier variant, 33% selecting the moderately healthy variant (95% CIs: 31%-35%), and 23% (95% CIs: 21%-24%) selecting the less healthy variant of the four products included in the study. The Multiple Traffic Light led to significant differences in choices between healthier (35%, 95% CIs: 33%-37%) and less healthy products (29%, 95% CIs: 27%-31%), but not moderately healthy products (32%, 95% CIs: 30%-34%). No significant differences in choices were observed by product healthfulness when the Daily Intake Guide was present. Only the Health Star Rating resulted in a significantly greater willingness to pay for healthier versus less healthy products. The Nutrition Facts Panel was viewed for only 7% of all mock packages. Front-of-pack labels that are more interpretive, such as the Health Star Rating, can be more effective at directing consumers towards healthier choices than

A Measure of Team Resilience: Developing the Resilience at Work Team Scale.

Science.gov (United States)

McEwen, Kathryn; Boyd, Carolyn M

2018-03-01

This study develops, and initial evaluates, a new measure of team-based resilience for use in research and practice. We conducted preliminary analyses, based on a cross-sectional sample of 344 employees nested within 31 teams. Seven dimensions were identified through exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses. The measure had high reliability and significant discrimination to indicate the presence of a unique team-based aspect of resilience that contributed to higher work engagement and higher self-rated team performance, over and above the effects of individual resilience. Multilevel analyses showed that team, but not individual, resilience predicted self-rated team performance. Practice implications include a need to focus on collective as well as individual behaviors in resilience-building. The measure provides a diagnostic instrument for teams and a scale to evaluate organizational interventions and research the relationship of resilience to other constructs.

Decontamination of Chlorpyrifos packing using ionizing radiation: processing optimization

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mori, Manoel Nunes; Sampa, Maria Helena de Oliveira; Duarte, Celina Lopes

2007-01-01

The discharge of empty plastic packing of pesticide can be an environmental concern causing problems to human health, animals and plants if done without inspection and monitoring. Among the commercial pesticides, chlorpyrifos, o, o- Diethyl - o- (3,5,6 - trichloro - 2 - pyridyl) phosphorothioate, has significant importance because of its wide distribution, extensive use and persistence. The most commonly used formulations include the emulsified concentrate, granule, wet powder and dispersible granule has significant importance because of its wide distribution and extensive use and persistence. The hydroxyl .OH attack is the most efficient process of chemical oxidation. The degradation-induced of chlorpyrifos by gamma radiolysis was studied in packaging of high-density polyethylene tree layer coextruded, named COEX, irradiated intact and fragments. The intact packing was irradiated with water and the fragmented packing was irradiated with water and with a solution of 50% of water and 50% of acetonitrile. An AECL 'Gammacell 2201 60 Co source and a multipurpose gamma irradiator were used in the processing. The chemical analysis of the chlorpyrifos and by-products were made using a gas chromatography associated to the mass spectrometry (MSGC-Shimadzu QP5000. Radiation processing of packing in pieces showed higher efficiency in removing chlorpyrifos than whole packing. The presence of water showed fundamental to promote the formation of frees radicals and acetonitrile facilitate the dissolution of chlorpyrifos and consequently its removal. (author)

Decontamination of Chlorpyrifos packing using ionizing radiation: processing optimization

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mori, Manoel Nunes; Sampa, Maria Helena de Oliveira; Duarte, Celina Lopes [Instituto de Pesquisas Energeticas e Nucleares (IPEN/CNEN-SP), Sao Paulo, SP (Brazil)]. E-mails: mnmori@ipen.br; mhosampa@ipen.br; clduarte@ipen.br

2007-07-01

The discharge of empty plastic packing of pesticide can be an environmental concern causing problems to human health, animals and plants if done without inspection and monitoring. Among the commercial pesticides, chlorpyrifos, o, o- Diethyl - o- (3,5,6 - trichloro - 2 - pyridyl) phosphorothioate, has significant importance because of its wide distribution, extensive use and persistence. The most commonly used formulations include the emulsified concentrate, granule, wet powder and dispersible granule has significant importance because of its wide distribution and extensive use and persistence. The hydroxyl .OH attack is the most efficient process of chemical oxidation. The degradation-induced of chlorpyrifos by gamma radiolysis was studied in packaging of high-density polyethylene tree layer coextruded, named COEX, irradiated intact and fragments. The intact packing was irradiated with water and the fragmented packing was irradiated with water and with a solution of 50% of water and 50% of acetonitrile. An AECL 'Gammacell 2201 {sup 60}Co source and a multipurpose gamma irradiator were used in the processing. The chemical analysis of the chlorpyrifos and by-products were made using a gas chromatography associated to the mass spectrometry (MSGC-Shimadzu QP5000. Radiation processing of packing in pieces showed higher efficiency in removing chlorpyrifos than whole packing. The presence of water showed fundamental to promote the formation of frees radicals and acetonitrile facilitate the dissolution of chlorpyrifos and consequently its removal. (author)

Evaluation of pulp and mortar to pack bitumen radioactive waste

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gregorio, Marina da S.; Vieira, Vanessa M.; Tello, Cledola C.O.

2013-01-01

According to international experience, for the deposition of cement in surface repository, is necessary the use of cement mortar pastes to immobilize the product. Determining the most efficient folder or for the packed mortar, as well as its ideal formulation, is the goal of this study. To do various experiments with samples of cement paste and mortar, with presence of fluxing and / or clay were performed. Viscosity, density, setting time and compressive strength were evaluated. This study will be presented only the results found in testing of compressive strength to be an essential parameter in the transport, storage and disposal of the product. From the results found will be selected the best formulations for use in packed bitumen tailings from the National Radioactive Waste Repository

Physical disease and resilient outcomes: a systematic review of resilience definitions and study methods.

Science.gov (United States)

Johnston, Marjorie C; Porteous, Terry; Crilly, Michael A; Burton, Christopher D; Elliott, Alison; Iversen, Lisa; McArdle, Karen; Murray, Alison; Phillips, Louise H; Black, Corri

2015-01-01

Findings from physical disease resilience research may be used to develop approaches to reduce the burden of disease. However, there is no consensus on the definition and measurement of resilience in the context of physical disease. The aim was to summarize the range of definitions of physical disease resilience and the approaches taken to study it in studies examining physical disease and its relationship to resilient outcomes. Electronic databases were searched from inception to March 2013 for studies in which physical disease was assessed for its association with resilient outcomes. Article screening, data extraction, and quality assessment were carried out independently by 2 reviewers, with disagreements being resolved by a third reviewer. The results were combined using a narrative technique. Of 2280 articles, 12 met the inclusion criteria. Of these studies, 1 was of high quality, 9 were of moderate quality, and 2 were low quality. The common findings were that resilience involves maintaining healthy levels of functioning following adversity and that it is a dynamic process not a personality trait. Studies either assessed resilience based on observed outcomes or via resilience measurement scales. They either considered physical disease as an adversity leading to resilience or as a variable modifying the relationship between adversity and resilience. This work begins building consensus as to the approach to take when defining and measuring physical disease resilience. Resilience should be considered as a dynamic process that varies across the life-course and across different domains, therefore the choice of a resilience measure should reflect this. Copyright © 2015 The Academy of Psychosomatic Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Valve packing manual. A maintenance application guide

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aikin, J.A.; McCutcheon, R.G.; Cumming, D.

1997-01-01

Since 1970, AECL Chalk River Mechanical Equipment Development (MED) branch has invested over 175 person years in testing related to improving valve packing performance. Successful developments, including, 'live-loading', reduced packing heights, and performance-based packing qualification testing have been implemented. Since 1986, MED and the Integrated Valve Actuator Program Task Force - Valve Packing Steering Committee (IVAP-VPSC) have been involved in the development of combination die-formed graphite packing for use in CANDU plants. Many reports, articles, and specifications have been issued. Due to the large amount of test data and reports, a more user-friendly document has been prepared for everyday use. The Valve Packing Manual is based on many years of MED research and testing, as well as operating experience from CANDU nuclear generating stations (NGS). Since 1986, packing research and testing has been funded by the CANDU Owners Group (COG), the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI), and participating valve packing manufacturers. The Valve Packing Manual (VPM) provides topical summaries of all work related to valve packing done since 1985. It includes advances in configuration design, stem packing friction, materials specifications, and installation procedures. This paper provides an overview on the application of the VPM with a focus on qualification testing, packing configuration, and stem packing friction. (author)

Mapping Resilience

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Carruth, Susan

2015-01-01

by planners when aiming to construct resilient energy plans. It concludes that a graphical language has the potential to be a significant tool, flexibly facilitating cross-disciplinary communication and decision-making, while emphasising that its role is to support imaginative, resilient planning rather than...... the relationship between resilience and energy planning, suggesting that planning in, and with, time is a core necessity in this domain. It then reviews four examples of graphically mapping with time, highlighting some of the key challenges, before tentatively proposing a graphical language to be employed...

Teaching Resilience: A Narrative Inquiry into the Importance of Teacher Resilience

Science.gov (United States)

Vance, Angela; Pendergast, Donna; Garvis, Susanne

2015-01-01

This study set out to explore how high school teachers perceive their resilience as they teach a scripted social and emotional learning program to students with the goal of promoting the resilience skills of the students in their pastoral care classes. In this emerging field of research on teacher resilience, there is a paucity of research…

Rights for resilience: food sovereignty, power, and resilience in development practice

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marygold Walsh-Dilley

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Even as resilience thinking becomes evermore popular as part of strategic programming among development and humanitarian organizations, uncertainty about how to define, operationalize, measure, and evaluate resilience for development goals prevails. As a result, many organizations and institutions have undertaken individual, collective, and simultaneous efforts toward clarification and definition. This has opened up a unique opportunity for a rethinking of development practices. The emergent consensus about what resilience means within development practice will have important consequences both for development practitioners and the communities in which they work. Incorporating resilience thinking into development practice has the potential to radically transform this arena in favor of social and environmental justice, but it could also flounder as a way to dress old ideas in new clothes or, at worst, to further exploit, disempower, and marginalize the world's most vulnerable populations. We seek to make an intervention into the definitional debates surrounding resilience that supports the former and helps prevent the latter. We argue that resilience thinking as it has been developed in social-ecological systems and allied literatures has a lot in common with the concept of food sovereignty and that paying attention to some of the lessons and claims of food sovereignty movements could contribute toward building a consensus around resilience that supports social and environmental justice. In particular, the food sovereignty movement relies on a strategy that elevates rights. We suggest that a rights-based approach to resilience-oriented development practice could contribute to its application in just and equitable ways.

Comparison of toxin production by clostridium botulinum type E in irradiated vacuum-packed trout (Salmo gairdneri)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hussain, A.M.; Ehlermann, D.; Diehl, J.F.

1977-01-01

Trouts obtained from a nearby Fish farm were slaughtered, gutted, cut into 100 g samples and inoculated with 10 1 , 10 3 and 10 5 spores per g of Clostridium botulinum type E. The vacuum-packed samples were stored under melting ice (0 0 C) and at temperatures of 5 0 and 10 0 C for periods of up to 8 weeks. At weekly intervals, occurrence of spoilage and toxin production were determined. Only at 10 0 C storage, the irradiated samples showed toxin production before spoilage was observed. When the fishes were stored at 5 0 C, no toxicity occurred before spoilage was observed even in samples treated with doses as high as 200 krad. Samples stored under melting ice, irradiated or unirradiated, never showed toxin production. It is concluded that the radurization of fish at doses of about 100 or 200 krad and at storage temperatures of melting ice or up to 5 0 C is safe with regard to a possible botulism risk. (orig.) [de

Limited indications of tax stamp discordance and counterfeiting on cigarette packs purchased in tobacco retailers, 97 counties, USA, 2012.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Joseph G L; Golden, Shelley D; Ribisl, Kurt M

2017-12-01

Increasing the per-unit cost of tobacco products is one of the strongest interventions for tobacco control. In jurisdictions with higher taxes in the U.S., however, cigarette pack litter studies show a substantial proportion of littered packs lack the appropriate tax stamp. More limited but still present counterfeiting also exists. We sought to examine the role of tobacco retailers as a source for untaxed and counterfeit products. Data collectors purchased Newport Green (menthol) or Marlboro Red cigarette packs in a national probability-based sample of tobacco retailers (in 97 counties) from June-October 2012. They made no effort to buy counterfeit or untaxed cigarettes. In this cross-sectional study, we assessed the presence, tax authority, and type (low-tech thermal vs. encrypted) of cigarette pack tax stamps; concordance of tax stamps with where the pack was purchased; and, for Marlboro cigarettes, publicly available visible indicators of counterfeiting. We purchased 2147 packs of which 2033 had tax stamps. Packs missing stamps were in states that do not require them. We found very limited discordance between store location and tax stamp(s) (tax stamps (13%). This occurred entirely with low-tech tax stamps and was not identified with encrypted tax stamps. We found no clear evidence of counterfeit products. Almost all tax stamps matched the location of purchase. Litter studies may be picking up legal tax avoidance instead of illegal tax evasion or, alternatively, purchase of illicit products requires special request by the purchaser.

Experimental studies on the coolability of packed beds. Flooding of hot dry packed beds

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Leininger, S.; Kulenovic, R.; Laurien, E.

2013-01-01

In case of a severe accident in a nuclear power plant meltdown of the reactor core can occur and form a packed bed in the lower plenum of the reactor pressure vessel (RPV) after solidification due to contact with water. The removal of after-heat and the long-term coolability is of essential interest. The efficient injection of cooling water into the packed bed has to be assured without endangering the structural integrity of the reactor pressure vessel. The experiments performed aimed to study the dry-out and the quenching (flooding) of hot dry packed beds. Two different inflow variants, bottom- and top-flooding including the variation of the starting temperature of the packed bed and the injection rate were studied. In case of bottom flooding the quenching time increases with increasing packed bed temperature and decreasing injection rate. In case of top flooding the flow pattern is more complex, in a first phase the water flows preferentially toward the RPV wall, the flow paths conduct the water downwards. The flow resistance of the packed bed increases with increasing bed temperatures. The quenching temperatures increase significantly above average.

Extreme-scale Algorithms and Solver Resilience

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dongarra, Jack [Univ. of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN (United States)

2016-12-10

A widening gap exists between the peak performance of high-performance computers and the performance achieved by complex applications running on these platforms. Over the next decade, extreme-scale systems will present major new challenges to algorithm development that could amplify this mismatch in such a way that it prevents the productive use of future DOE Leadership computers due to the following; Extreme levels of parallelism due to multicore processors; An increase in system fault rates requiring algorithms to be resilient beyond just checkpoint/restart; Complex memory hierarchies and costly data movement in both energy and performance; Heterogeneous system architectures (mixing CPUs, GPUs, etc.); and Conflicting goals of performance, resilience, and power requirements.

Resilience in disaster research

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Dahlberg, Rasmus; Johannessen-Henry, Christine Tind; Raju, Emmanuel

2015-01-01

This paper explores the concept of resilience in disaster management settings in modern society. The diversity and relatedness of ‘resilience’ as a concept and as a process are reflected in its presentation through three ‘versions’: (i) pastoral care and the role of the church for victims...... of disaster trauma, (ii) federal policy and the US Critical Infrastructure Plan, and (iii) the building of resilient communities for disaster risk reduction practices. The three versions aim to offer characteristic expressions of resilience, as increasingly evident in current disaster literature....... In presenting resilience through the lens of these three versions, the article highlights the complexity in using resilience as an all-encompassing word. The article also suggests the need for understanding the nexuses between risk, vulnerability, and policy for the future of resilience discourse....

An overdue alignment of risk and resilience? A conceptual contribution to community resilience.

Science.gov (United States)

Mochizuki, Junko; Keating, Adriana; Liu, Wei; Hochrainer-Stigler, Stefan; Mechler, Reinhard

2018-04-01

A systematic review of literature on community resilience measurement published between 2005 and 2014 revealed that the profound lack of clarity on risk and resilience is one of the main reasons why confusion about terms such as adaptive capacity, resilience, and vulnerability persists, despite the effort spared to operationalise these concepts. Resilience is measured in isolation in some cases, where a shock is perceived to arise external to the system of interest. Problematically, this contradicts the way in which the climate change and disaster communities perceive risk as manifesting itself endogenously as a function of exposure, hazard, and vulnerability. The common conceptualisation of resilience as predominantly positive is problematic as well when, in reality, many undesirable properties of a system are resilient. Consequently, this paper presents an integrative framework that highlights the interactions between risk drivers and coping, adaptive, and transformative capacities, providing an improved conceptual basis for resilience measurement. © 2018 The Author(s). Disasters © Overseas Development Institute, 2018.

Understanding resilience of pastoralists to climate change and variability in the Southern Afar Region, Ethiopia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Muluken Mekuyie

Full Text Available Change in climate and climate extremes are acknowledged as a vital challenge to pastoral production systems. Alternative systems that are accessible to a household in order to make a living could determine the household’s resilience at a given point in time. This study was conducted in the Southern Afar region in Ethiopia to understand the resilience of pastoralists to climate change and variability. A household questionnaire survey and focus group discussions were employed to collect primary data at household level. A total of 250 pastoral households were sampled using stratified random sampling. The data obtained were analysed using descriptive statistics and principal component analysis. The resilience of households to climate shocks and stresses was determined using a two-step modelling approach by clustering households into livelihood groups, gender and districts. The results indicated that agro-pastoral households were more resilient than pastoralists to climate-induced shock. Furthermore, households in the Gewane district were more resilient than those in the Amibara district. Female-headed households were less resilient than male-headed households. Enhancing livestock assets and productivity, social safety nets, access to market, credit, extension services and education, improving irrigation crop farming, and providing farm inputs significantly enhanced the resilience of pastoralists to climate change and variability. Keywords: Asset, Livelihood, Climate shock, Pastoralist, Resilience

The influence of bamboo-packed configuration to mixing characteristics in a fixed-bed reactor

Science.gov (United States)

Detalina, M.; Pradanawati, S. A.; Widyarani; Mamat; Nilawati, D.; Sintawardani, N.

2018-03-01

Fixed-bed reactors are commonly used as bioreactors for various applications, including chemicals production and organic wastewater treatment. Bioreactors are fixed with packing materials for attaching microorganisms. Packing materials should have high surface area and enable sufficient fluid flow in the reactor. Natural materials e.g. rocks and fibres are often used as packing materials. Commercially, packing materials are also produced from polymer with the advantage of customizable shapes. The objective of this research was to study the mixing pattern in a packed-bed reactor using bamboo as packing material. Bamboo was selected for its pipe-like and porous form, as well as its abundant availability in Indonesia. The cut bamboo sticks were installed in a reactor in different configurations namely vertical, horizontal, and random. Textile dye was used as a tracer. Our results show that the vertical configuration gave the least liquid resistant flow. Yet, the random configuration was the best configuration during mixing process.

Data replicating the factor structure and reliability of commonly used measures of resilience: The Connor–Davidson Resilience Scale, Resilience Scale, and Scale of Protective Factors

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A.N. Madewell

2016-09-01

Full Text Available The data presented in this article are related to the article entitled “Assessing Resilience in Emerging Adulthood: The Resilience Scale (RS, Connor Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC, and Scale of Protective Factors (SPF” (Madewell and Ponce-Garcia, 2016 [1]. The data were collected from a sample of 451 college students from three universities located in the Southwestern region of the United States: 374 from a large public university and 67 from two smaller regional universities. The data from the three universities did not significantly differ in terms of demographics. The data represent participant responses on six measurements to include the Resilience Scale-25 (RS-25, Resilience Scale-14 (RS-14, Connor Davidson Resilience Scale-25 (CD-RISC-25, Connor Davidson Resilience Scale-10 (CD-RISC-10, Scale of Protective Factors-24 (SPF-24, and the Life Stressor Checklist Revised (LSC-R. Keywords: Scale of Protective Factors, Resilience Scale, Connor–Davidson Resilience Scale, Emerging adulthood, Confirmatory factor analysis

Multifractal resilience and viability

Science.gov (United States)

Tchiguirinskaia, I.; Schertzer, D. J. M.

2017-12-01

The term resilience has become extremely fashionable and there had been many attempts to provide operational definition and in fact metrics going beyond a set of more or less ad-hoc indicators. The viability theory (Aubin and Saint-Pierre, 2011) have been used to give a rather precise mathematical definition of resilience (Deffuant and Gilbert, 2011). However, it does not grasp the multiscale nature of resilience that is rather fundamental as particularly stressed by Folke et al (2010). In this communication, we first recall a preliminary attempt (Tchiguirinskaia et al., 2014) to define multifractal resilience with the help of the maximal probable singularity. Then we extend this multifractal approach to the capture basin of the viability, therefore the resilient basin. Aubin, J P, A. Bayen, and P Saint-Pierre (2011). Viability Theory. New Directions. Springer, Berlin,. Deffuant, G. and Gilbert, N. (eds) (2011) Viability and Resilience of Complex Systems. Springer Berlin.Folke, C., S R Carpenter, B Walker, M Sheffer, T Chapin, and J Rockstroem (2010). Resilience thinking: integrating re- silience, adaptability and transformability. Ecology and So- ciety, 14(4):20, Tchiguirinskaia,I., D. Schertzer, , A. Giangola-Murzyn and T. C. Hoang (2014). Multiscale resilience metrics to assess flood. Proceedings of ICCSA 2014, Normandie University, Le Havre, France -.

Framing resilience: social uncertainty in designing urban climate resilience

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Wardekker, J.A.

2016-01-01

Building urban resilience to climate change and other challenges will be essential for maintaining thriving cities into the future. Resilience has become very popular in both research on and practice of climate adaptation. However, people have different interpretations of what it means: what

Optimized packings with applications

CERN Document Server

Pintér, János

2015-01-01

This volume presents a selection of case studies that address a substantial range of optimized object packings (OOP) and their applications. The contributing authors are well-recognized researchers and practitioners. The mathematical modelling and numerical solution aspects of each application case study are presented in sufficient detail. A broad range of OOP problems are discussed: these include various specific and non-standard container loading and object packing problems, as well as the stowing of hazardous and other materials on container ships, data centre resource management, automotive engineering design, space station logistic support, cutting and packing problems with placement constraints, the optimal design of LED street lighting, robust sensor deployment strategies, spatial scheduling problems, and graph coloring models and metaheuristics for packing applications. Novel points of view related to model development and to computational nonlinear, global, mixed integer optimization and heuristic st...

Evaluation of co-pyrolysis petrochemical wastewater sludge with lignite in a thermogravimetric analyzer and a packed-bed reactor: Pyrolysis characteristics, kinetics, and products analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Mu, Lin; Chen, Jianbiao; Yao, Pikai; Zhou, Dapeng; Zhao, Liang; Yin, Hongchao

2016-12-01

Co-pyrolysis characteristics of petrochemical wastewater sludge and Huolinhe lignite were investigated using thermogravimetric analyzer and packed-bed reactor coupled with Fourier transform infrared spectrometer and gas chromatography. The pyrolysis characteristics of the blends at various sludge blending ratios were compared with those of the individual materials. Thermogravimetric experiments showed that the interactions between the blends were beneficial to generate more residues. In packed-bed reactor, synergetic effects promoted the release of gas products and left less liquid and solid products than those calculated by additive manner. Fourier transform infrared spectrometer analysis showed that main functional groups in chars gradually disappeared with pyrolysis temperatures increasing, and H 2 O, CH 4 , CO, and CO 2 appeared in volatiles during pyrolysis. Gas compositions analysis indicated that, the yields of H 2 and CO clearly increased as the pyrolysis temperature and sludge blending ratio increasing, while the changes of CH 4 and CO 2 yields were relatively complex. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Refining Trait Resilience: Identifying Engineering, Ecological, and Adaptive Facets from Extant Measures of Resilience

Science.gov (United States)

Maltby, John; Day, Liz; Hall, Sophie

2015-01-01

The current paper presents a new measure of trait resilience derived from three common mechanisms identified in ecological theory: Engineering, Ecological and Adaptive (EEA) resilience. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses of five existing resilience scales suggest that the three trait resilience facets emerge, and can be reduced to a 12-item scale. The conceptualization and value of EEA resilience within the wider trait and well-being psychology is illustrated in terms of differing relationships with adaptive expressions of the traits of the five-factor personality model and the contribution to well-being after controlling for personality and coping, or over time. The current findings suggest that EEA resilience is a useful and parsimonious model and measure of trait resilience that can readily be placed within wider trait psychology and that is found to contribute to individual well-being. PMID:26132197

A Whole Community Approach toward Child and Youth Resilience Promotion: A Review of Resilience Literature.

Science.gov (United States)

Khanlou, Nazilla; Wray, Ron

2014-01-01

A literature review of child and youth resilience with a focus on: definitions and factors of resilience; relationships between resilience, mental health and social outcomes; evidence for resilience promoting interventions; and implications for reducing health inequities. To conduct the review, the first two following steps were conducted iteratively and informed the third step: 1) Review of published peer-review literature since 2000; and 2) Review of grey literature; and 3) Quasi-realist synthesis of evidence. Evidence from three perspectives were examined: i) whether interventions can improve 'resilience' for vulnerable children and youth; ii) whether there is a differential effect among different populations; and, iii) whether there is evidence that resilience interventions 'close the gap' on health and social outcome measures. Definitions of resilience vary as do perspectives on it. We argue for a hybrid approach that recognizes the value of combining multiple theoretical perspectives, epistemologies (positivistic and constructivist/interpretive/critical) in studying resilience. Resilience is: a) a process (rather than a single event), b) a continuum (rather than a binary outcome), and c) likely a global concept with specific dimensions. Individual, family and social environmental factors influence resilience. A social determinants perspective on resilience and mental health is emphasized. Programs and interventions to promoting resilience should be complimentary to public health measures addressing the social determinants of health. A whole community approach to resilience is suggested as a step toward closing the public health policy gap. Local initiatives that stimulate a local transformation process are needed. Recognition of each child's or youth's intersections of gender, lifestage, family resources within the context of their identity markers fits with a localized approach to resilience promotion and, at the same time, requires recognition of the

An on-line estimation of battery pack parameters and state-of-charge using dual filters based on pack model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang, Xu; Wang, Yujie; Yang, Duo; Chen, Zonghai

2016-01-01

Accurate estimation of battery pack state-of-charge plays a very important role for electric vehicles, which directly reflects the behavior of battery pack usage. However, the inconsistency of battery makes the estimation of battery pack state-of-charge different from single cell. In this paper, to estimate the battery pack state-of-charge on-line, the definition of battery pack is proposed, and the relationship between the total available capacity of battery pack and single cell is put forward to analyze the energy efficiency influenced by battery inconsistency, then a lumped parameter battery model is built up to describe the dynamic behavior of battery pack. Furthermore, the extend Kalman filter-unscented Kalman filter algorithm is developed to identify the parameters of battery pack and forecast state-of-charge concurrently. The extend Kalman filter is applied to update the battery pack parameters by real-time measured data, while the unscented Kalman filter is employed to estimate the battery pack state-of-charge. Finally, the proposed approach is verified by experiments operated on the lithium-ion battery under constant current condition and the dynamic stress test profiles. Experimental results indicate that the proposed method can estimate the battery pack state-of-charge with high accuracy. - Highlights: • A novel space state equation is built to describe the pack dynamic behavior. • The dual filters method is used to estimate the pack state-of-charge. • Battery inconsistency is considered to analyze the pack usage efficiency. • The accuracy of the proposed method is verified under different conditions.

Assessing Resilience in Stressed Watersheds

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kristine T. Nemec

2014-03-01

Full Text Available Although several frameworks for assessing the resilience of social-ecological systems (SESs have been developed, some practitioners may not have sufficient time and information to conduct extensive resilience assessments. We have presented a simplified approach to resilience assessment that reviews the scientific, historical, and social literature to rate the resilience of an SES with respect to nine resilience properties: ecological variability, diversity, modularity, acknowledgement of slow variables, tight feedbacks, social capital, innovation, overlap in governance, and ecosystem services. We evaluated the effects of two large-scale projects, the construction of a major dam and the implementation of an ecosystem recovery program, on the resilience of the central Platte River SES (Nebraska, United States. We used this case study to identify the strengths and weaknesses of applying a simplified approach to resilience assessment. Although social resilience has increased steadily since the predam period for the central Platte River SES, ecological resilience was greatly reduced in the postdam period as compared to the predam and ecosystem recovery program time periods.

Family Resilience in the Military

Science.gov (United States)

Meadows, Sarah O.; Beckett, Megan K.; Bowling, Kirby; Golinelli, Daniela; Fisher, Michael P.; Martin, Laurie T.; Meredith, Lisa S.; Osilla, Karen Chan

2016-01-01

Abstract Military life presents a variety of challenges to military families, including frequent separations and relocations as well as the risks that service members face during deployment; however, many families successfully navigate these challenges. Despite a recent emphasis on family resilience, the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) does not have a standard and universally accepted definition of family resilience. A standard definition is a necessary for DoD to more effectively assess its efforts to sustain and improve family resilience. RAND authors reviewed the literature on family resilience and, in this study, recommend a definition that could be used DoD-wide. The authors also reviewed DoD policies related to family resilience, reviewed models that describe family resilience and identified key family resilience factors, and developed several recommendations for how family-resilience programs and policies could be managed across DoD. PMID:28083409

Resilience of the IMS system

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kamyod, Chayapol; Nielsen, Rasmus Hjorth; Prasad, Neeli R.

2014-01-01

The paper focuses on end-to-end resilience analysis of the IMS based network through the principal resilience parameters by using OPNET. The resilience behaviours of communication across multiple IMS domains are investigated at different communication scenarios and compared with previous state......-of-the-art. Moreover, the resilience effects when adding a redundancy of the S-CSCF unit are examined. The results disclose interesting resilience behaviours for long distance communications....

The Tobacco Pack Surveillance System: A Protocol for Assessing Health Warning Compliance, Design Features, and Appeals of Tobacco Packs Sold in Low- and Middle-Income Countries.

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, Katherine; Washington, Carmen; Brown, Jennifer; Vadnais, Alison; Kroart, Laura; Ferguson, Jacqueline; Cohen, Joanna

2015-01-01

Tobacco remains the world's leading preventable cause of death, with the majority of tobacco-caused deaths occurring in low- and middle-income countries. The first global health treaty, the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), outlines a set of policy initiatives that have been demonstrated as effective in reducing tobacco use. Article 11 of the FCTC focuses on using the tobacco package to communicate tobacco-caused harms; it also seeks to restrict the delivery of misleading information about the product on the pack. The objective of this study was to establish a surveillance system for tobacco packs in the 14 low- and middle-income countries with the greatest number of smokers. The Tobacco Pack Surveillance System (TPackSS) monitors whether required health warnings on tobacco packages are being implemented as intended, and identifies pack designs and appeals that might violate or detract from the communication of harm-related information and undermine the impact of a country's tobacco packaging laws. The protocol outlined is intended to be applicable or adaptable for surveillance efforts in other countries. Tobacco packs were collected in 14 countries during 2013. The intention was, to the extent possible, to construct a census of "unique" pack presentations available for purchase in each country. The TPackSS team partnered with in-country field staff to implement a standardized protocol for acquiring packs from 36 diverse neighborhoods across three cities in each country. At the time of purchase, data on price and place of acquisition of each pack was recorded. The field staff, according to a standardized protocol, then photographed packs before they were shipped to the United States for coding and archiving. Each pack was coded for compliance with the country-specific health warning label laws, as well as for key design features of the pack and appeals of the branding elements. The coding protocols were developed based upon prior research, expert

Packing Degenerate Graphs Greedily

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Allen, P.; Böttcher, J.; Hladký, J.; Piguet, Diana

2017-01-01

Roč. 61, August (2017), s. 45-51 ISSN 1571-0653 R&D Projects: GA ČR GJ16-07822Y Institutional support: RVO:67985807 Keywords : tree packing conjecture * graph packing * graph processes Subject RIV: BA - General Mathematics OBOR OECD: Pure mathematics

Toward Operationalizing Resilience Concepts in Australian Marine Sectors Coping with Climate Change

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Julie L. Davidson

2013-09-01

Full Text Available We seek to contribute to the scholarship on operationalizing resilience concepts via a working resilience indicator framework. Although it requires further refinement, this practical framework provides a useful baseline for generating awareness and understanding of the complexity and diversity of variables that impinge on resilience. It has potential value for the evaluation, benchmarking, monitoring, and reporting of marine system resilience. The necessity for such a framework is a consequence of the levels of complexity and uncertainty associated with climate change and other global change stressors in marine social-ecological systems, and the problems involved in assessing their resilience. There is a need for: (1 methodologies that bring together knowledge from diverse sources and disciplines to investigate the complexity and uncertainty of interactions between climate, ocean, and human systems and (2 frameworks to facilitate the evaluation and monitoring of the social-ecological resilience of marine-dependent sectors. Accordingly, our main objective is to demonstrate the virtues of combining a case study methodology with complex adaptive systems approaches as a means to improve understanding of the multifaceted dynamics of marine sectors experiencing climate change. The resilience indicator framework, the main product of the methodology, is developed using four case studies across key Australian marine biodiversity and resource sectors already experiencing impacts from climate and other global changes. It comprises a set of resilience dimensions with a candidate set of abstract and concrete resilience indicators. Its design ensures an integrated approach to resilience evaluation.

Labor processes within a commodity system :a comparative study of workers in apple packing houses

OpenAIRE

Bello Barros, Rosario

1993-01-01

This study is a comparative analysis of how two forms of capitalist production intersect with gender to shape the labor process in apple packing houses of Virginia, United States and the VI Region, Chile. It illustrates how differences in growers' production systems, as well as traditional undervaluation of women's work, shape the organization of the apple-packing workplace. A theoretical framework based on the notion of labor processes was developed to study growers' farming systems and t...

Heuristics for Multidimensional Packing Problems

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Egeblad, Jens

for a minimum height container required for the items. The main contributions of the thesis are three new heuristics for strip-packing and knapsack packing problems where items are both rectangular and irregular. In the two first papers we describe a heuristic for the multidimensional strip-packing problem...... that is based on a relaxed placement principle. The heuristic starts with a random overlapping placement of items and large container dimensions. From the overlapping placement overlap is reduced iteratively until a non-overlapping placement is found and a new problem is solved with a smaller container size...... of this heuristic are among the best published in the literature both for two- and three-dimensional strip-packing problems for irregular shapes. In the third paper, we introduce a heuristic for two- and three-dimensional rectangular knapsack packing problems. The two-dimensional heuristic uses the sequence pair...

Resilience: Building immunity in psychiatry

Science.gov (United States)

Shastri, Priyvadan Chandrakant

2013-01-01

The challenges in our personal, professional, financial, and emotional world are on rise, more so in developing countries and people will be longing for mental wellness for achieving complete health in their life. Resilience stands for one's capacity to recover from extremes of trauma and stress. Resilience in a person reflects a dynamic union of factors that encourages positive adaptation despite exposure to adverse life experiences. One needs to have a three-dimensional construct for understanding resilience as a state (what is it and how does one identify it?), a condition (what can be done about it?), and a practice (how does one get there?). Evaluating the level of resilience requires the measurement of internal (personal) and external (environmental) factors, taking into account that family and social environment variables of resilience play very important roles in an individual's resilience. Protection factors seem to be more important in the development of resilience than risk factors. Resilience is a process that lasts a lifetime, with periods of acquisition and maintenance, and reduction and loss for assessment. Overall, currently available data on resilience suggest the presence of a neurobiological substrate, based largely on genetics, which correlates with personality traits, some of which are configured via social learning. The major questions about resilience revolve around properly defining the concept, identifying the factors involved in its development and recognizing whether it is actually possible to immunize mental health against adversities. In the clinical field, it may be possible to identify predisposing factors or risk factors for psychopathologies and to develop new intervention strategies, both preventive and therapeutic, based on the concept of resilience. The preferred environments for application of resilience are health, education, and social policy and the right approach in integrating; it can be developed only with more research

Valve-stem-packing improvement study. Final report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Adey, C.W.; Klein, J.J.

1982-08-01

By employing questionnaires and face-to-face interviews with valve and valve packing manufacturers, as well as nuclear plant personnel, an understanding of valve stem packing leakage problems from each of the three viewpoints was developed. This information, in-house experience, and available technical literature were used to develop specific recommendations for valve manufacturers, valve packing manufacturers, and nuclear plant valve users. It was generally recommended that each these groups make better use of graphite packing. The questionnaires and interviews indicated that increased usage of graphite packing over the last few years has reduced the incidence of valve packing problems. To confirm this, a survey of Licensee Event Reports (LERs) from 1972 to 1980 was undertaken using the keywords Valve and Packing. A statistical analysis of the LER data confirms that the adoption of graphite packing has significantly reduced valve stem leakage

Resilience in nurses: an integrative review.

Science.gov (United States)

Hart, Patricia L; Brannan, Jane D; De Chesnay, Mary

2014-09-01

To describe nursing research that has been conducted to understand the phenomenon of resilience in nurses. Resilience is the ability to bounce back or cope successfully despite adverse circumstances. Nurses deal with modern-day problems that affect their abilities to remain resilient. Nursing administrators/managers need to look for solutions not only to recruit nurses, but to become knowledgeable about how to support and retain nurses. A comprehensive search was undertaken for nursing research conducted between 1990 and 2011. Key search terms were nurse, resilience, resiliency and resilient. Whittemore and Knafl's integrative approach was used to conduct the methodological review. Challenging workplaces, psychological emptiness, diminishing inner balance and a sense of dissonance are contributing factors for resilience. Examples of intrapersonal characteristics include hope, self-efficacy and coping. Cognitive reframing, toughening up, grounding connections, work-life balance and reconciliation are resilience building strategies. This review provides information about the concept of resilience. Becoming aware of contributing factors to the need for resilience and successful strategies to build resilience can help in recruiting and retaining nurses. Understanding the concept of resilience can assist in providing support and developing programmes to help nurses become and stay resilient. © 2012 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Towards resilient cities. Comparing approaches/strategies

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Angela Colucci

2012-07-01

Full Text Available The term “resilience” is used in many disciplines with different meanings. We will adopt the ecological concept of resilience, which epitomises the capacity of a system to adapt itself in response to the action of a force, achieving a state of equilibrium different from the original (White, 2011. Since the end of the last century, with a significant increase over the last few years, resilience has featured as key concept in many technical, political papers and documents, and appears in many researches. Of all this recent and varied range of literature, our focus is on those texts that combine resilience with strategies, processes and models for resilient cities, communities and regions. Starting from the resilience strategies developed as response for risks mitigation, the paper thus explores other approaches and experiences on cities resilience that have been conducted: the aim is to compare and identify innovation in the planning process towards risks mitigation. In this paper we present a summary of the initial survey stage of our research, with three main aims: understanding the approaches to resilience developed so far and identifying which aspects these approaches share (or not;understanding which strategies are being proposed for resilient regions, cities or social-ecological systems;understanding whether proposed resilience strategies involve innovations in urban and regional development disciplines. The aim is to understand whether the proposed concept of resilience, or rather strategies, constitute progress and contribute to innovation in the areas of urban planning and design in relation to risk mitigation. Three main families of literature have been identified from the recent literature promoting resilience as a key strategy. The first aim of the research is to understand which particular concept and which aspects of resilience are used, which resilience strategies are proposed, how the term ‘city’ is defined and interpreted

Focusing the Meaning(s of Resilience: Resilience as a Descriptive Concept and a Boundary Object

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fridolin Simon. Brand

2007-06-01

Full Text Available This article reviews the variety of definitions proposed for "resilience" within sustainability science and suggests a typology according to the specific degree of normativity. There is a tension between the original descriptive concept of resilience first defined in ecological science and a more recent, vague, and malleable notion of resilience used as an approach or boundary object by different scientific disciplines. Even though increased conceptual vagueness can be valuable to foster communication across disciplines and between science and practice, both conceptual clarity and practical relevance of the concept of resilience are critically in danger. The fundamental question is what conceptual structure we want resilience to have. This article argues that a clearly specified, descriptive concept of resilience is critical in providing a counterbalance to the use of resilience as a vague boundary object. A clear descriptive concept provides the basis for operationalization and application of resilience within ecological science.

Understanding individual resilience in the workplace: the international collaboration of workforce resilience model.

Science.gov (United States)

Rees, Clare S; Breen, Lauren J; Cusack, Lynette; Hegney, Desley

2015-01-01

When not managed effectively, high levels of workplace stress can lead to several negative personal and performance outcomes. Some professional groups work in highly stressful settings and are therefore particularly at risk of conditions such as anxiety, depression, secondary traumatic stress, and burnout. However, some individuals are less affected by workplace stress and the associated negative outcomes. Such individuals have been described as "resilient." A number of studies have found relationships between levels of individual resilience and specific negative outcomes such as burnout and compassion fatigue. However, because psychological resilience is a multi-dimensional construct it is necessary to more clearly delineate it from other related and overlapping constructs. The creation of a testable theoretical model of individual workforce resilience, which includes both stable traits (e.g., neuroticism) as well as more malleable intrapersonal factors (e.g., coping style), enables information to be derived that can eventually inform interventions aimed at enhancing individual resilience in the workplace. The purpose of this paper is to introduce a new theoretical model of individual workforce resilience that includes several intrapersonal constructs known to be central in the appraisal of and response to stressors and that also overlap with the construct of psychological resilience. We propose a model in which psychological resilience is hypothesized to mediate the relationship between neuroticism, mindfulness, self-efficacy, coping, and psychological adjustment.

Resilience and (in)security

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

dunn cavelty, myriam; Kaufmann, Mareile; Kristensen, Kristian Søby

2015-01-01

, and redefine relations of security and insecurity. We show the increased attention – scholarly as well as political – given to resilience in recent times and provide a review of the state of critical security studies literature on resilience. We argue that to advance this discussion, resilience needs...

Resilience Management System And Development Of Resilience Capability On Site Workers

OpenAIRE

Komatsubara, Akinori

2013-01-01

When we consider the safety of socio-technical or safety critical systems, discussions from three layers are required; safety strategy, safety management and safety activity. In this study, development of resilience safety from the three layers is discussed. For the safety management layer, this study proposes resilience management system (RMS) as the style of safety management system (SMS) for resilience safety approach. Two cases at Japanese companies to enhance attitude and non-technical s...

Continuous Packed Bed Reactor with Immobilized β-Galactosidase for Production of Galactooligosaccharides (GOS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Barbara Rodriguez-Colinas

2016-11-01

Full Text Available The β-galactosidase from Bacillus circulans was covalently attached to aldehyde-activated (glyoxal agarose beads and assayed for the continuous production of galactooligosaccharides (GOS in a packed-bed reactor (PBR. The immobilization was fast (1 h and the activity of the resulting biocatalyst was 97.4 U/g measured with o-nitrophenyl-β-d-galactopyranoside (ONPG. The biocatalyst showed excellent operational stability in 14 successive 20 min reaction cycles at 45 °C in a batch reactor. A continuous process for GOS synthesis was operated for 213 h at 0.2 mL/min and 45 °C using 100 g/L of lactose as a feed solution. The efficiency of the PBR slightly decreased with time; however, the maximum GOS concentration (24.2 g/L was obtained after 48 h of operation, which corresponded to 48.6% lactose conversion and thus to maximum transgalactosylation activity. HPAEC-PAD analysis showed that the two major GOS were the trisaccharide Gal-β(1→4-Gal-β(1→4-Glc and the tetrasaccharide Gal-β(1→4-Gal-β(1→4-Gal-β(1→4-Glc. The PBR was also assessed in the production of GOS from milk as a feed solution. The stability of the bioreactor was satisfactory during the first 8 h of operation; after that, a decrease in the flow rate was observed, probably due to partial clogging of the column. This work represents a step forward in the continuous production of GOS employing fixed-bed reactors with immobilized β-galactosidases.

Degrees of Resilience: Profiling Psychological Resilience and Prospective Academic Achievement in University Inductees

Science.gov (United States)

Allan, John F.; McKenna, Jim; Dominey, Susan

2014-01-01

University inductees may be increasingly vulnerable to stressors during transition into higher education (HE), requiring psychological resilience to achieve academic success. This study aimed to profile inductees' resilience and to investigate links to prospective end of year academic outcomes. Scores for resilience were based on a validated…

Complications of balloon packing in epistaxis

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Vermeeren, Lenka; Derks, Wynia; Fokkens, Wytske; Menger, Dirk Jan

2015-01-01

Although balloon packing appears to be efficient to control epistaxis, severe local complications can occur. We describe four patients with local lesions after balloon packing. Prolonged balloon packing can cause damage to nasal mucosa, septum and alar skin (nasal mucosa, the cartilaginous skeleton

Different roles in the quest for system resilience.

Science.gov (United States)

Borges, Fábio Morais; Menegon, Nilton Luiz

2012-01-01

Into dangerous and complex systems with high degree of interactivity between its components, the variability is present at all time, demanding a high degree of control of its operation. Maintaining or recovering the normality, when the system is under some stress (instability) is a function of Resilience. To cope with prevention, forecast, recovery and with memory of experiences from learned lessons requires some features from the companies. This paper purposes a structure that enables the Total Resilience of a system production that defines the assignments for Workers, Designers and Management Team, according to its features and possibilities. During one year and a half developing studies on ergonomics area of a Brazilian Oil Refinery, several situations were observed and studied using Work Ergonomic Analysis. These situations show actions and strategies that workers use to maintain the system stability. Furthermore, they revealed the importance that these actions are stored in a database of learned lessons from the Company. The research resulted in a broad scheme. It places each of these groups in the process of Total Resilience. It also shows the human like a center of actions that ensure the continuity of the system, main element at Resilience (Anthropocentric View).

Hypostatic jammed packings of frictionless nonspherical particles

Science.gov (United States)

VanderWerf, Kyle; Jin, Weiwei; Shattuck, Mark D.; O'Hern, Corey S.

2018-01-01

We perform computational studies of static packings of a variety of nonspherical particles including circulo-lines, circulo-polygons, ellipses, asymmetric dimers, dumbbells, and others to determine which shapes form packings with fewer contacts than degrees of freedom (hypostatic packings) and which have equal numbers of contacts and degrees of freedom (isostatic packings), and to understand why hypostatic packings of nonspherical particles can be mechanically stable despite having fewer contacts than that predicted from naive constraint counting. To generate highly accurate force- and torque-balanced packings of circulo-lines and cir-polygons, we developed an interparticle potential that gives continuous forces and torques as a function of the particle coordinates. We show that the packing fraction and coordination number at jamming onset obey a masterlike form for all of the nonspherical particle packings we studied when plotted versus the particle asphericity A , which is proportional to the ratio of the squared perimeter to the area of the particle. Further, the eigenvalue spectra of the dynamical matrix for packings of different particle shapes collapse when plotted at the same A . For hypostatic packings of nonspherical particles, we verify that the number of "quartic" modes along which the potential energy increases as the fourth power of the perturbation amplitude matches the number of missing contacts relative to the isostatic value. We show that the fourth derivatives of the total potential energy in the directions of the quartic modes remain nonzero as the pressure of the packings is decreased to zero. In addition, we calculate the principal curvatures of the inequality constraints for each contact in circulo-line packings and identify specific types of contacts with inequality constraints that possess convex curvature. These contacts can constrain multiple degrees of freedom and allow hypostatic packings of nonspherical particles to be mechanically

Resilience and stability in bird guilds across tropical countryside

Science.gov (United States)

Karp, Daniel S.; Ziv, Guy; Zook, Jim; Ehrlich, Paul R.; Daily, Gretchen C.

2011-01-01

The consequences of biodiversity decline in intensified agricultural landscapes hinge on surviving biotic assemblages. Maintaining crucial ecosystem processes and services requires resilience to natural and anthropogenic disturbances. However, the resilience and stability of surviving biological communities remain poorly quantified. From a 10-y dataset comprising 2,880 bird censuses across a land-use gradient, we present three key findings concerning the resilience and stability of Costa Rican bird communities. First, seed dispersing, insect eating, and pollinating guilds were more resilient to low-intensity land use than high-intensity land use. Compared with forest assemblages, bird abundance, species richness, and diversity were all ∼15% lower in low-intensity land use and ∼50% lower in high-intensity land use. Second, patterns in species richness generally correlated with patterns in stability: guilds exhibited less variation in abundance in low-intensity land use than in high-intensity land use. Finally, interspecific differences in reaction to environmental change (response diversity) and possibly the portfolio effect, but not negative covariance of species abundances, conferred resilience and stability. These findings point to the changes needed in agricultural production practices in the tropics to better sustain bird communities and, possibly, the functional and service roles that they play. PMID:22160726

Foundations of resilience thinking.

Science.gov (United States)

Curtin, Charles G; Parker, Jessica P

2014-08-01

Through 3 broad and interconnected streams of thought, resilience thinking has influenced the science of ecology and natural resource management by generating new multidisciplinary approaches to environmental problem solving. Resilience science, adaptive management (AM), and ecological policy design (EPD) contributed to an internationally unified paradigm built around the realization that change is inevitable and that science and management must approach the world with this assumption, rather than one of stability. Resilience thinking treats actions as experiments to be learned from, rather than intellectual propositions to be defended or mistakes to be ignored. It asks what is novel and innovative and strives to capture the overall behavior of a system, rather than seeking static, precise outcomes from discrete action steps. Understanding the foundations of resilience thinking is an important building block for developing more holistic and adaptive approaches to conservation. We conducted a comprehensive review of the history of resilience thinking because resilience thinking provides a working context upon which more effective, synergistic, and systems-based conservation action can be taken in light of rapid and unpredictable change. Together, resilience science, AM, and EPD bridge the gaps between systems analysis, ecology, and resource management to provide an interdisciplinary approach to solving wicked problems. © 2014 Society for Conservation Biology.

Midwives׳ experiences of workplace resilience.

Science.gov (United States)

Hunter, Billie; Warren, Lucie

2014-08-01

many UK midwives experience workplace adversity resulting from a national shortage of midwives, rise in birth rate and increased numbers of women entering pregnancy with complex care needs. Research evidence suggests that workplace pressures, and the emotional demands of the job, may increase midwives׳ experience of stress and contribute to low morale, sickness and attrition. Much less is known about midwives who demonstrate resilience in the face of adversity. Resilience has been investigated in studies of other health and social care workers, but there is a gap in knowledge regarding midwives׳ experiences. to explore clinical midwives׳ understanding and experience of professional resilience and to identify the personal, professional and contextual factors considered to contribute to or act as barriers to resilience. an exploratory qualitative descriptive study. In Stage One, a closed online professional discussion group was conducted over a one month period. Midwives discussed workplace adversity and their resilient responses to this. In Stage Two, the data were discussed with an Expert Panel with representatives from midwifery workforce and resilience research, in order to enhance data interpretation and refine the concept modelling. the online discussion group was hosted by the Royal College of Midwives, UK online professional networking hub: 'Communities'. 11 practising midwives with 15 or more years of 'hands on clinical experience', and who self-identified as being resilient, took part in the online discussion group. thematic analysis of the data identified four themes: challenges to resilience, managing and coping, self-awareness and building resilience. The participants identified 'critical moments' in their careers when midwives were especially vulnerable to workplace adversity. Resilience was seen as a learned process which was facilitated by a range of coping strategies, including accessing support and developing self-awareness and protection of self

Resilience among Military Youth

Science.gov (United States)

Easterbrooks, M. Ann; Ginsburg, Kenneth; Lerner, Richard M.

2013-01-01

In this article, the authors present their approach to understanding resilience among military connected young people, and they discuss some of the gaps in their knowledge. They begin by defining resilience, and then present a theoretical model of how young people demonstrate resilient functioning. Next they consider some of the research on…

Using an agent-based model to evaluate the effect of producer specialization on the epidemiological resilience of livestock production networks.

Science.gov (United States)

Wiltshire, Serge W

2018-01-01

An agent-based computer model that builds representative regional U.S. hog production networks was developed and employed to assess the potential impact of the ongoing trend towards increased producer specialization upon network-level resilience to catastrophic disease outbreaks. Empirical analyses suggest that the spatial distribution and connectivity patterns of contact networks often predict epidemic spreading dynamics. Our model heuristically generates realistic systems composed of hog producer, feed mill, and slaughter plant agents. Network edges are added during each run as agents exchange livestock and feed. The heuristics governing agents' contact patterns account for factors including their industry roles, physical proximities, and the age of their livestock. In each run, an infection is introduced, and may spread according to probabilities associated with the various modes of contact. For each of three treatments-defined by one-phase, two-phase, and three-phase production systems-a parameter variation experiment examines the impact of the spatial density of producer agents in the system upon the length and size of disease outbreaks. Resulting data show phase transitions whereby, above some density threshold, systemic outbreaks become possible, echoing findings from percolation theory. Data analysis reveals that multi-phase production systems are vulnerable to catastrophic outbreaks at lower spatial densities, have more abrupt percolation transitions, and are characterized by less-predictable outbreak scales and durations. Key differences in network-level metrics shed light on these results, suggesting that the absence of potentially-bridging producer-producer edges may be largely responsible for the superior disease resilience of single-phase "farrow to finish" production systems.

Factors Affecting Rural Households’ Resilience to Food Insecurity in Niger

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Aboubakr Gambo Boukary

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Niger faces many natural and human constraints explaining the erratic evolution of its agricultural production over time. Unfortunately, this is likely to cause a decline in the food supply. This study attempts to identify factors affecting rural households’ resilience to food insecurity in Niger. For this, we first create a resilience index by using principal component analysis and later apply structural equation modeling to identify its determinants. Data from the 2010 National Survey on Households’ Vulnerability to Food Insecurity done by the National Institute of Statistics is used. The study shows that asset and social safety net indicators are significant and have a positive impact on households’ resilience. Climate change approximated by long-term mean rainfall has a negative and significant effect on households’ resilience. Therefore, to strengthen households’ resilience to food insecurity, there is a need to increase assistance to households through social safety nets and to help them gather more resources in order to acquire more assets. Furthermore, early warning of climatic events could alert households, especially farmers, to be prepared and avoid important losses that they experience anytime an uneven climatic event occurs.

"Their Packaging Has Always Been Like a Power": A Qualitative Study of U.S. Smokers' Perceptions of Cigarette Pack Visual Design Features to Inform Product Regulation.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Joseph G L; Averett, Paige E; Blanchflower, Tiffany; Landi, Nunzio; Gregory, Kyle R

2017-10-17

Cigarette packaging matters to consumer behavior. However, it is less clear which changes to packaging design would be salient for adult smokers. Such information is critically important to regulators in the United States who are charged with reviewing new tobacco products for their impact on population health. In this qualitative study, U.S. adult smokers ( n = 33) participated in six telephone-based focus groups in March 2017. Separate groups were comprised of lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) participants; participants with less than four years of post-secondary education; a mix of LGB and straight participants; and, the general population. All groups were purposely selected for diversity. Open thematic coding identified salient design elements used on cigarette packaging. Smokers articulated design elements' use, meaning, and links with consumer behaviors. Three themes were identified: (1) the power of color, (2) supporting color with other design elements (e.g., logos/images, typography, the pack itself), and (3) the combined product brand experience of multiple design elements. Participants linked design elements to product characteristics and to consumer behavior (e.g., purchase). As the Food and Drug Administration is charged with regulating tobacco products, these findings suggest the importance of considering the cigarette pack part of the characteristics of a product.

Modifiable Resilience Factors to Childhood Adversity for Clinical Pediatric Practice.

Science.gov (United States)

Traub, Flora; Boynton-Jarrett, Renée

2017-05-01

Childhood adversity is highly prevalent and associated with risk for poor health outcomes in childhood and throughout the life course. Empirical literature on resilience over the past 40 years has identified protective factors for traumatized children that improve health outcomes. Despite these empirical investigations of resilience, there is limited integration of these findings into proactive strategies to mitigate the impact of adverse childhood experiences. We review the state of resilience research, with a focus on recent work, as it pertains to protecting children from the health impacts of early adversity. We identify and document evidence for 5 modifiable resilience factors to improve children's long- and short-term health outcomes, including fostering positive appraisal styles in children and bolstering executive function, improving parenting, supporting maternal mental health, teaching parents the importance of good self-care skills and consistent household routines, and offering anticipatory guidance about the impact of trauma on children. We conclude with 10 recommendations for pediatric practitioners to leverage the identified modifiable resilience factors to help children withstand, adapt to, and recover from adversity. Taken together, these recommendations constitute a blueprint for a trauma-informed medical home. Building resilience in pediatric patients offers an opportunity to improve the health and well-being of the next generation, enhance national productivity, and reduce spending on health care for chronic diseases. Copyright © 2017 by the American Academy of Pediatrics.

The Resilient Schools Consortium (RiSC): Linking Climate Literacy, Resilience Thinking and Service Learning

Science.gov (United States)

Branco, B. F.; Fano, E.; Adams, J.; Shon, L.; Zimmermann, A.; Sioux, H.; Gillis, A.

2017-12-01

Public schools and youth voices are largely absent from climate resilience planning and projects in New York City. Additionally, research shows that U.S. science teachers' understanding of climate science is lacking, hence there is not only an urgent need to train and support teachers on both the science and pedagogy of climate change, but to link climate literacy, resilience thinking and service learning in K-12 education. However, research on participation of students and teachers in authentic, civic-oriented experiences points to increased engagement and learning outcomes in science. The Resilient Schools Consortium (RiSC) Project will address all these needs through an afterschool program in six coastal Brooklyn schools that engages teachers and urban youth (grades 6-12), in school and community climate resilience assessment and project design. The RiSC climate curriculum, co-designed by New York City school teachers with Brooklyn College, the National Wildlife Federation, New York Sea Grant and the Science and Resilience Institute at Jamaica Bay, will begin by helping students to understand the difference between climate and weather. The curriculum makes extensive use of existing resources such as NOAA's Digital Coast and the Coastal Resilience Mapping Portal. Through a series of four modules over two school years, the six RiSC teams will; 1. explore and understand the human-induced drivers of climate change and, particularly, the significant climate and extreme weather related risks to their schools and surrounding communities; 2. complete a climate vulnerability assessment within the school and the community that is aligned to OneNYC - the city's resilience planning document; 3. design and execute a school-based resilience project; and 4. propose resilience guidelines for NYC Department of Education schools. At the end of each school year, the six RiSC teams will convene a RiSC summit with city officials and resilience practitioners to share ideas and

Reconnecting Social and Ecological Resilience in Salmon Ecosystems

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Daniel L. Bottom

2009-06-01

Full Text Available Fishery management programs designed to control Pacific salmon (Oncorhynchus spp. for optimum production have failed to prevent widespread fish population decline and have caused greater uncertainty for salmon, their ecosystems, and the people who depend upon them. In this special feature introduction, we explore several key attributes of ecosystem resilience that have been overlooked by traditional salmon management approaches. The dynamics of salmon ecosystems involve social-ecological interactions across multiple scales that create difficult mismatches with the many jurisdictions that manage fisheries and other natural resources. Of particular importance to ecosystem resilience are large-scale shifts in oceanic and climatic regimes or in global economic conditions that unpredictably alter social and ecological systems. Past management actions that did not account for such changes have undermined salmon population resilience and increased the risk of irreversible regime shifts in salmon ecosystems. Because salmon convey important provisioning, cultural, and supporting services to their local watersheds, widespread population decline has undermined both human well-being and ecosystem resilience. Strengthening resilience will require expanding habitat opportunities for salmon populations to express their maximum life-history variation. Such actions also may benefit the "response diversity" of local communities by expanding the opportunities for people to express diverse social and economic values. Reestablishing social-ecological connections in salmon ecosystems will provide important ecosystem services, including those that depend on clean water, ample stream flows, functional wetlands and floodplains, intact riparian systems, and abundant fish populations.

Assessing resilience in adolescence: the Spanish adaptation of the Adolescent Resilience Questionnaire.

Science.gov (United States)

Guilera, Georgina; Pereda, Noemí; Paños, Ana; Abad, Judit

2015-07-11

The concept and assessment of resilience have attracted considerable attention in recent years, but none of the instruments developed to measure resilience in adolescents have been adapted to the Spanish context. The Adolescent Resilience Questionnaire (ARQ) provides a comprehensive and multidimensional assessment of the resources associated with resilience in adolescents. This study analyzes the psychometric properties of the ARQ. Participants included a community sample of 1101 Spanish adolescents (53.5 % boys) aged 12-17 years (M = 14.51; SD = 1.755). Results confirm the factor structure based on 12 scales. Internal consistency was generally adequate (between .60 and .84), although the unacceptable coefficient for the Empathy/Tolerance scale (α = .38) means that this scale needs to be revised for the Spanish context. Relationships between ARQ scales and psychopathology were in the expected direction and magnitude. Some gender differences were observed, with higher scores for boys on Confidence and Negative cognition. The Spanish version of the ARQ can help to identify personal characteristics associated with resilience and signs of positive engagement with family, peers, school, and the community. It can identify those adolescents most likely to show resilience in response to adversity, as well as those who may be vulnerable under situations of stress.

Resilience Design Patterns: A Structured Approach to Resilience at Extreme Scale

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Engelmann, Christian; Hukerikar, Saurabh

2017-01-01

Reliability is a serious concern for future extreme-scale high-performance computing (HPC) systems. Projections based on the current generation of HPC systems and technology roadmaps suggest the prevalence of very high fault rates in future systems. While the HPC community has developed various resilience solutions, application-level techniques as well as system-based solutions, the solution space remains fragmented. There are no formal methods and metrics to integrate the various HPC resilience techniques into composite solutions, nor are there methods to holistically evaluate the adequacy and efficacy of such solutions in terms of their protection coverage, and their performance \\& power efficiency characteristics. Additionally, few of the current approaches are portable to newer architectures and software environments that will be deployed on future systems. In this paper, we develop a structured approach to the design, evaluation and optimization of HPC resilience using the concept of design patterns. A design pattern is a general repeatable solution to a commonly occurring problem. We identify the problems caused by various types of faults, errors and failures in HPC systems and the techniques used to deal with these events. Each well-known solution that addresses a specific HPC resilience challenge is described in the form of a pattern. We develop a complete catalog of such resilience design patterns, which may be used by system architects, system software and tools developers, application programmers, as well as users and operators as essential building blocks when designing and deploying resilience solutions. We also develop a design framework that enhances a designer's understanding the opportunities for integrating multiple patterns across layers of the system stack and the important constraints during implementation of the individual patterns. It is also useful for defining mechanisms and interfaces to coordinate flexible fault management across

Production of structured lipids in a packed-bed reactor with Thermomyces lanuginosa lipase

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Xu, Xuebing; Porsgaard, Trine; Zhang, Hong

2002-01-01

Lipase-catalyzed interesterification between fish oil and medium-chain TAG has been investigated in a packed-bed reactor with a commercially immobilized enzyme. The enzyme, a Thermomyces lanuginosa lipase immobilized on silica by granulation (Lipozyme TL IM; Novozymes A/S, Bagsvaerd, Denmark), ha...

Development of a leadership resource pack

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2001-07-01

The pack contains notes and presentation material for OSD inspectors to help them prepare for health and safety discussions with senior managers. The successful application of the leadership resource pack depends on an inspector gaining familiarity with the contents of the pack. Flexibility and adaptability were considered crucial factors in developing the contents. The pack is not considered a substitute for an inspector's own experience, knowledge or substitute for prior research. The leadership resource pack is intended as a source of knowledge and good practice that demonstrates how positive leadership can drive a health and safety agenda alongside business considerations. The benefits of the leadership resource pack include: the creation of a flexible tool that inspectors can use to highlight key leadership messages in health and safety; the development of a seven-stage model for characterising senior management commitment; practical examples of how leadership in health and safety management was felt throughout nine organisations; ideas for devising an aide memoire for specific discussions with senior managers. (author)

Zoogeomorphology and resilience theory

Science.gov (United States)

Butler, David R.; Anzah, Faisal; Goff, Paepin D.; Villa, Jennifer

2018-03-01

Zoogeomorphology, the study of animals as geomorphic agents, has been largely overlooked in the context of resilience theory and biogeomorphic systems. In this paper, examples are provided of the interactions between external landscape disturbances and zoogeomorphological agents. We describe cases in which naturally occurring zoogeomorphological agents occupy a landscape, and examine whether those zoogeomorphic agents provide resilience to a landscape or instead serve as a landscape stress capable of inducing a phase-state shift. Several cases are described whereby the presence of exotic (introduced) zoogeomorphic agents overwhelms a landscape and induce collapse. The impact of climate change on species with zoogeomorphological importance is discussed in the context of resilience of a landscape. We conclude with a summary diagram illustrating the relationships existing between zoogeomorphic impacts and landscape resilience in the context of our case studies, and speculate about the future of the study of zoogeomorphology in the framework of resilience theory.

Tiered Approach to Resilience Assessment.

Science.gov (United States)

Linkov, Igor; Fox-Lent, Cate; Read, Laura; Allen, Craig R; Arnott, James C; Bellini, Emanuele; Coaffee, Jon; Florin, Marie-Valentine; Hatfield, Kirk; Hyde, Iain; Hynes, William; Jovanovic, Aleksandar; Kasperson, Roger; Katzenberger, John; Keys, Patrick W; Lambert, James H; Moss, Richard; Murdoch, Peter S; Palma-Oliveira, Jose; Pulwarty, Roger S; Sands, Dale; Thomas, Edward A; Tye, Mari R; Woods, David

2018-04-25

Regulatory agencies have long adopted a three-tier framework for risk assessment. We build on this structure to propose a tiered approach for resilience assessment that can be integrated into the existing regulatory processes. Comprehensive approaches to assessing resilience at appropriate and operational scales, reconciling analytical complexity as needed with stakeholder needs and resources available, and ultimately creating actionable recommendations to enhance resilience are still lacking. Our proposed framework consists of tiers by which analysts can select resilience assessment and decision support tools to inform associated management actions relative to the scope and urgency of the risk and the capacity of resource managers to improve system resilience. The resilience management framework proposed is not intended to supplant either risk management or the many existing efforts of resilience quantification method development, but instead provide a guide to selecting tools that are appropriate for the given analytic need. The goal of this tiered approach is to intentionally parallel the tiered approach used in regulatory contexts so that resilience assessment might be more easily and quickly integrated into existing structures and with existing policies. Published 2018. This article is a U.S. government work and is in the public domain in the USA.

Measuring resilience in integrated planning

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Apneseth, K.; Wahl, A. M.; Hollnagel, E.

2013-01-01

This chapter demonstrates how a Resilience Analysis Grid (RAG) can be used to profile the performance of a company in terms of the four abilities that characterize a resilient organization. It describes the development of a new, RAG-based tool founded on Resilience Engineering principles that can...... be used to assess an organization's resilience. The tool was tested in a case study involving a company in the offshore oil and gas industry. The company had decided to adopt an Integrated Operations (IO) approach to operations and maintenance planning and the tool was used to evaluate the impact...... of the Integrated Planning (IPL) process on its resilience....

Reframing Resilience: Pilot Evaluation of a Program to Promote Resilience in Marginalized Older Adults

Science.gov (United States)

Fullen, Matthew C.; Gorby, Sean R.

2016-01-01

Resilience has been described as a paradigm for aging that is more inclusive than models that focus on physiological and functional abilities. We evaluated a novel program, Resilient Aging, designed to influence marginalized older adults' perceptions of their resilience, self-efficacy, and wellness. The multiweek group program incorporated an…

Agglomeration techniques for the production of spheres for packed beds

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sullivan, J.D.

1988-03-01

One attractive fusion-breeder-blanket design features a lithium bearing ceramic in the form of spheres packed into a random array. The spheres have diameters of 3 mm and 0.3 mm. This report surveys techniques used to produce ceramic spheres on an industrial scale. The methods examined include tumbling and mixing granulation, extrusion, briquetting and pelletizing. It is concluded that the required quantities of 0.3 mm diameter spheres can be produced by the tumbling agglomeration of a feed powder. The 3 mm diameter spheres will be made using a process of extrusion, chopping and rolling

Computational fluid dynamics and experimental tests helping to understand the gravel pack displacement in petroleum wells; Fluidodinamica computacional (CFD) e testes experimentais ajudam a compreender o fenomeno do deslocamento do gravel pack em pocos de petroleo

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Magalhaes, Joao Vicente Martins de; Leal, Rafael Amorim Ferreira; Martins, Andre Leibsohn; Calderon, Agostinho; Ferreira, Marcus Vinicius Duarte [Petrobras S.A., Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil)], E-mails: ivmm@petrobras.com.br, rafaelleal@petrobras.com.br, aleibsohn@petrobras.com.br, agoscal@petrobras.com.br, mvdferreira@petrobras.com.br; Simoes, Bruno; Barbosa, Diego [Halliburton, Novo Cavaleiros, Macae, RJ (Brazil)], E-mails: bruno.simoes@halliburton.com.br, diego.barbosa@halliburton.com.br

2010-07-01

In the petroleum exploitation and production in deep water, at the fields operated by PETROBRAS, Brazil, one of the problems frequently found is the need of elimination of sand production, having in mind that the most of those fields produce from the non consolidated sandstones. The opened well Gravel Packing is the technique most used for that task. Due to the fact of Gravel Packing operations occurs at thousand of meters below the surface, it is necessary the computational simulation for forecasting how particle deposition (Gravel) in the well occurs. So, it was used the commercial pack of fluid dynamics FLUENT 12, which calculates the fluid velocity field, coupled to another commercial pack, the EDEM, based on discrete elements that treat of particle mechanics. The coupling of the two software has shown adequate the comparison of the computational results with the experimental data shows a good adjustment. Besides, it was possible to simulate problems of well early clogging, showing that the computational simulation is strong and capable of captivating such a phenomena.

Mechanised packing for longwall coal faces. Monolithic packing and powered supports for the packhole

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Carr, F; Kitching, F

1978-11-01

If full advantage is to be taken of the great advances that have taken place in power loading and powered support at the coalface, other operations in that vicinity must be similarly mechanised and automated. The gateside packing is one of the most important of these ancillary operations on the longwall face, and in previous articles F. Carr and F. Kitching, National Coal Board Headquarters, Coalface Operations Mining Engineers have given a very comprehensive resume of the present situation. Subjects covered include the requirements of mechanised packing, the parameters involved, the various working arrangements, the different systems of gate-ends, the types of equipment that are being used, their characteristics, the spread of their application, and the results obtained from them. In this article the authors conclude their survey by dealing with dirt/cement and anhydrite packing, by taking a hard look at powered supports for the packhole, and by expressing their views on the way mechanised packing may be expected to develop in the future.

“Their Packaging Has Always Been Like a Power”: A Qualitative Study of U.S. Smokers’ Perceptions of Cigarette Pack Visual Design Features to Inform Product Regulation

Science.gov (United States)

Blanchflower, Tiffany; Landi, Nunzio; Gregory, Kyle R.

2017-01-01

Cigarette packaging matters to consumer behavior. However, it is less clear which changes to packaging design would be salient for adult smokers. Such information is critically important to regulators in the United States who are charged with reviewing new tobacco products for their impact on population health. In this qualitative study, U.S. adult smokers (n = 33) participated in six telephone-based focus groups in March 2017. Separate groups were comprised of lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) participants; participants with less than four years of post-secondary education; a mix of LGB and straight participants; and, the general population. All groups were purposely selected for diversity. Open thematic coding identified salient design elements used on cigarette packaging. Smokers articulated design elements’ use, meaning, and links with consumer behaviors. Three themes were identified: (1) the power of color, (2) supporting color with other design elements (e.g., logos/images, typography, the pack itself), and (3) the combined product brand experience of multiple design elements. Participants linked design elements to product characteristics and to consumer behavior (e.g., purchase). As the Food and Drug Administration is charged with regulating tobacco products, these findings suggest the importance of considering the cigarette pack part of the characteristics of a product. PMID:29039769

“Their Packaging Has Always Been Like a Power”: A Qualitative Study of U.S. Smokers’ Perceptions of Cigarette Pack Visual Design Features to Inform Product Regulation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Joseph G. L. Lee

2017-10-01

Full Text Available Cigarette packaging matters to consumer behavior. However, it is less clear which changes to packaging design would be salient for adult smokers. Such information is critically important to regulators in the United States who are charged with reviewing new tobacco products for their impact on population health. In this qualitative study, U.S. adult smokers (n = 33 participated in six telephone-based focus groups in March 2017. Separate groups were comprised of lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB participants; participants with less than four years of post-secondary education; a mix of LGB and straight participants; and, the general population. All groups were purposely selected for diversity. Open thematic coding identified salient design elements used on cigarette packaging. Smokers articulated design elements’ use, meaning, and links with consumer behaviors. Three themes were identified: (1 the power of color, (2 supporting color with other design elements (e.g., logos/images, typography, the pack itself, and (3 the combined product brand experience of multiple design elements. Participants linked design elements to product characteristics and to consumer behavior (e.g., purchase. As the Food and Drug Administration is charged with regulating tobacco products, these findings suggest the importance of considering the cigarette pack part of the characteristics of a product.

Hypostatic jammed packings of frictionless nonspherical particles

OpenAIRE

VanderWerf, Kyle; Jin, Weiwei; Shattuck, Mark D.; O'Hern, Corey S.

2017-01-01

We perform computational studies of static packings of a variety of nonspherical particles including circulo-lines, circulo-polygons, ellipses, asymmetric dimers, and dumbbells to determine which shapes form hypostatic versus isostatic packings and to understand why hypostatic packings of nonspherical particles can be mechanically stable despite having fewer contacts than that predicted from na\\"ive constraint counting. To generate highly accurate force- and torque-balanced packings of circul...

New Structured Packing CUB for Purification of Exhaust Gases

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Irina Novikova

2016-10-01

Full Text Available New structured packing for heat and mass transfer processes named CUB is presented in our article. The packing can be applied in packed towers for exhaust gas cleaning instead random packing, for example, rings type that are the most used in such processes. The advantages of the new packing over random packing are lower pressure drop, capability of purification and as a consequence long-term service of the packing. The researches of intensity of liquid-phase mass-transfer in packed bed depending on liquid spray rate and gas velocity were carried out. Obtained data show that packing CUB is more effective than the most popular type of structured packing under all other conditions being equal. As experimental data shown heat transfer coefficient was up by 17% and mass transfer coefficient was up by 51%. We found out optimal geometry of cross section of the new packing, namely, number of elements and parameters of one element. The new construction of structured packing is applicable for both type of column cross-section round and square.

Development of an effective valve packing program

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hart, K.A.

1996-12-01

Current data now shows that graphite valve packing installed within the guidance of a controlled program produces not only reliable stem sealing but predictable running loads. By utilizing recent technological developments in valve performance monitoring for both MOV`s and AOV`s, valve packing performance can be enhanced while reducing maintenance costs. Once known, values are established for acceptable valve packing loads, the measurement of actual valve running loads via the current MOV/AOV diagnostic techniques can provide indication of future valve stem sealing problems, improper valve packing installation or identify the opportunity for valve packing program improvements. At times the full benefit of these advances in material and predictive technology remain under utilized due to simple past misconceptions associated with valve packing. This paper will explore the basis for these misconceptions, provide general insight into the current understanding of valve packing and demonstrate how with this new understanding and current valve diagnostic equipment the key aspects required to develop an effective, quality valve packing program fit together. The cost and operational benefits provided by this approach can be significant impact by the: elimination of periodic valve repacking, reduction of maintenance costs, benefits of leak-free valve operation, justification for reduced Post Maintenance Test Requirements, reduced radiation exposure, improved plant appearance.

Children's resilience and trauma-specific cognitive behavioral therapy: Comparing resilience as an outcome, a trait, and a process.

Science.gov (United States)

Happer, Kaitlin; Brown, Elissa J; Sharma-Patel, Komal

2017-11-01

Resilience, which is associated with relatively positive outcomes following negative life experiences, is an important research target in the field of child maltreatment (Luthar et al., 2000). The extant literature contains multiple conceptualizations of resilience, which hinders development in research and clinical utility. Three models emerge from the literature: resilience as an immediate outcome (i.e., behavioral or symptom response), resilience as a trait, and resilience as a dynamic process. The current study compared these models in youth undergoing trauma-specific cognitive behavioral therapy. Results provide the most support for resilience as a process, in which increase in resilience preceded associated decrease in posttraumatic stress and depressive symptoms. There was partial support for resilience conceptualized as an outcome, and minimal support for resilience as a trait. Results of the models are compared and discussed in the context of existing literature and in light of potential clinical implications for maltreated youth seeking treatment. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Random packing of digitized particles

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Korte, de A.C.J.; Brouwers, H.J.H.

2013-01-01

The random packing of regularly and irregularly shaped particles has been studied extensively. Within this paper, packing is studied from the perspective of digitized particles. These digitized particles are developed for and used in cellular automata systems, which are employed for the simple

Random packing of digitized particles

NARCIS (Netherlands)

de Korte, A.C.J.; Brouwers, Jos

2012-01-01

The random packing of regularly and irregularly shaped particles has been studied extensively. Within this paper, packing is studied from the perspective of digitized particles. These digitized particles are developed for and used in cellular automata systems, which are employed for the simple

BNGS B valve packing program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cumming, D.

1995-01-01

The Bruce B Valve Packing Program began in 1987. The early history and development were presented at the 1992 International CANDU Maintenance conference. This presentation covers the evolution of the Bruce B Valve Packing Program over the period 1992 to 1995. (author)

Comparison of toxin production by clostridium botulinum type E in irradiated and unirradiated vacuum-packed trout (Salmo gairdneri)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hussain, M.; Ehlermann, D.; Diehl, J.F.

1977-01-01

Trouts obtained from a nearby Fish farm were slaughtered, gutted, cut into 100g samples and inoculated with 10 1 , 10 3 and 10 5 spores per g of Clostridium botulinum type E. The vacuum-packed samples were stored under melting ice (0 0 C) and at temperatures of 5 0 and 10 0 C for periods of up to 8 weeks. At weekly intervals, occurrence of spoilage and toxin production were determined. Only at 10 0 C storage, the irradiated samples showed toxin production before spoilage was observed. When the fishes were stored at 5 0 C, no toxicity occured before spoilage was observed even in samples treated with doses as high as 200 krad. Samples stored under melting ice, irradiated or unirradiated, never showed toxin production. It is concluded that the radurization of fish at doses of about 100 or 200 krad and at storage temperatures of melting ice or up to 5 0 C is safe with regard to a possible botulism risk. (orig.) [de

Comparison of toxin production by clostridium botulinum type E in irradiated and unirradiated vacuum-packed trout (Salmo gairdneri)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hussain, A.M.; Ehlermann, D.; Diehl, J.F.

1977-01-01

Trouts obtained from a nearby fish farm were slaughtered, gutted, cut into 100 g samples and inoculated with 10 1 , 10 3 and 10 5 spores per g of Clostridium botulinum type E. The vacuum-packed samples were stored under melting ice (0 0 C) and at temperatures of 5 0 and 10 0 C for periods of up to 8 weeks. At weekly intervals, occurrence of spoilage and toxin production were determined. Only at 10 0 C storage, the irradiated samples showed toxin production before spoilage was observed. When the fishes were stored at 5 0 C, no toxicity occurred before spoilage was observed even in samples treated with doses as high as 200 krad. Samples stored under melting ice, irradiated or unirradiated, never showed toxin production. It is concluded that the radurization of fish at doses of about 100 or 200 krad and at storage temperatures of melting ice or up to 5 0 C is safe with regard to a possible botulism risk. (orig.) [de

Resiliência e maus-tratos à criança Resilience and child abuse

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maria de Fátima Pinheiro da Silva Junqueira

2003-02-01

Full Text Available O artigo propõe discutir o conceito de resiliência a partir de uma revisão crítica. Foram priorizados textos produzidos por órgãos que têm um papel direcionador no campo da saúde da criança e do adolescente (OPAS - Organização Pan-Americana da Saúde; ASBRA - Associação Brasileira de Adolescência. Discute-se as principais definições de resiliência. São debatidas as contribuições e limitações das leituras vigentes. Debate-se ainda, as possibilidades conceituais e operativas da resiliência frente às situações de maus-tratos contra criança e adolescente, tomando o exemplo do abuso sexual intrafamiliar. Conclui-se que o conceito de resiliência apresenta polarizações em torno de certos eixos: "adaptação/superação", "inato/adquirido", "permanente/circunstancial". Contudo, ele aponta para um ponto comum: a singularidade e a delicadeza das relações microssociais de promoção em saúde.The article discusses the resilience concept from a critical review. It prioritizes texts produced by organizations with leading roles in the field of child and adolescent health (PAHO, Pan-American Health Organization; ASBRA, the Brazilian Association for Adolescence. The main definitions of resilience are discussed, along with a debate on the contributions and limitations of the current literature. Furthermore, the conceptual and operative possibilities of resilience when confronted with child abuse are discussed, specifically using intra-familial sexual abuse as an example. The authors conclude that the concept of resilience presents polarization around certain axes: "adaptation/overcoming process", "innate/acquired", "permanent/circumstantial". However, they all point to a common ground: the singularity and delicacy of micro-social health-promoting relationships.

The pursuit of perfect packing

CERN Document Server

Weaire, Denis

2008-01-01

Coauthored by one of the creators of the most efficient space packing solution, the Weaire-Phelan structure, The Pursuit of Perfect Packing, Second Edition explores a problem of importance in physics, mathematics, chemistry, biology, and engineering: the packing of structures. Maintaining its mathematical core, this edition continues and revises some of the stories from its predecessor while adding several new examples and applications. The book focuses on both scientific and everyday problems ranging from atoms to honeycombs. It describes packing models, such as the Kepler conjecture, Voronoï decomposition, and Delaunay decomposition, as well as actual structure models, such as the Kelvin cell and the Weaire-Phelan structure. The authors discuss numerous historical aspects and provide biographical details on influential contributors to the field, including emails from Thomas Hales and Ken Brakke. With examples from physics, crystallography, engineering, and biology, this accessible and whimsical bo...

The Resilient Brain

Science.gov (United States)

Brendtro, Larry K.; Longhurst, James E.

2005-01-01

Brain research opens new frontiers in working with children and youth experiencing conflict in school and community. Blending this knowledge with resilience science offers a roadmap for reclaiming those identified as "at risk." This article applies findings from resilience research and recent brain research to identify strategies for reaching…

Warrior Resilience Training in Operation Iraqi Freedom: combining rational emotive behavior therapy, resiliency, and positive psychology.

Science.gov (United States)

Jarrett, Thomas

2008-01-01

Warrior Resilience Training (WRT) is an educational class designed to enhance Warrior resilience, thriving, and posttraumatic growth for Soldiers deployed in Operation Iraqi Freedom. Warrior Resilience Training uses rational emotive behavior therapy (REBT), Army leadership principles, and positive psychology as a vehicle for students to apply resilient philosophies derived from Army Warrior Ethos, Stoic philosophy, and the survivor and resiliency literature. Students in WRT are trained to focus upon virtue, character, and emotional self-regulation by constructing and maintaining a personal resiliency philosophy that emphasizes critical thinking, rationality, virtue, and Warrior Ethos. The author, an Army licensed clinical social worker, executive coach, REBT doctoral fellow, and former Special Forces noncommissioned officer, describes his initial experience teaching WRT during Operation Iraqi Freedom to combat medics and Soldiers from 2005 to 2006, and his experience as a leader of a combat stress control prevention team currently in Iraq offering mobile WRT classes in-theater. Warrior Resilience Training rationale, curriculum, variants (like Warrior Family Resilience Training), and feedback are included, with suggestions as to how behavioral health providers and combat stress control teams might better integrate their services with leaders, chaplains, and commands to better market combat stress resiliency, reduce barriers to care, and promote force preservation. Informal analysis of class feedback from 1168 respondents regarding WRT reception and utilization is examined.

Using torque switch settings and spring pack characteristics to determine actuator output torques

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Black, B.R.

1992-01-01

Actuator output torque of motor operated valves is often a performance parameter of interest. It is not always possible to directly measure this torque. Torque spring pack deflection directly reflects actuator output torque and can be directly measured on most actuators. The torque spring pack may be removed from the actuator and tested to determine its unique force-deflection relationship. Or, a representative force-deflection relationship for the particular spring pack model may be available. With either relationship, measurements of torque spring pack deflection may then be correlated to corresponding forces. If the effective length of the moment arm within the actuator is known, actuator output torque can then be determined. The output torque is simply the product of the effective moment arm length and the spring pack force. This paper presents the reliability of this technique as indicated by testing. TU Electric is evaluating this technique for potential use in the future. Results presented in this paper should be considered preliminary. Applicability of these results may be limited to actuators and their components in a condition similar to those for which test data have been examined

Battery Pack Thermal Design

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pesaran, Ahmad

2016-06-14

This presentation describes the thermal design of battery packs at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. A battery thermal management system essential for xEVs for both normal operation during daily driving (achieving life and performance) and off-normal operation during abuse conditions (achieving safety). The battery thermal management system needs to be optimized with the right tools for the lowest cost. Experimental tools such as NREL's isothermal battery calorimeter, thermal imaging, and heat transfer setups are needed. Thermal models and computer-aided engineering tools are useful for robust designs. During abuse conditions, designs should prevent cell-to-cell propagation in a module/pack (i.e., keep the fire small and manageable). NREL's battery ISC device can be used for evaluating the robustness of a module/pack to cell-to-cell propagation.

Thinning increases climatic resilience of red pine

Science.gov (United States)

Magruder, Matthew; Chhin, Sophan; Palik, Brian; Bradford, John B.

2013-01-01

Forest management techniques such as intermediate stand-tending practices (e.g., thinning) can promote climatic resiliency in forest stands by moderating tree competition. Residual trees gain increased access to environmental resources (i.e., soil moisture, light), which in turn has the potential to buffer trees from stressful climatic conditions. The influences of climate (temperature and precipitation) and forest management (thinning method and intensity) on the productivity of red pine (Pinus resinosa Ait.) in Michigan were examined to assess whether repeated thinning treatments were able to increase climatic resiliency (i.e., maintaining productivity and reduced sensitivity to climatic stress). The cumulative productivity of each thinning treatment was determined, and it was found that thinning from below to a residual basal area of 14 m2·ha−1 produced the largest average tree size but also the second lowest overall biomass per acre. On the other hand, the uncut control and the thinning from above to a residual basal area of 28 m2·ha−1 produced the smallest average tree size but also the greatest overall biomass per acre. Dendrochronological methods were used to quantify sensitivity of annual radial growth to monthly and seasonal climatic factors for each thinning treatment type. Climatic sensitivity was influenced by thinning method (i.e., thinning from below decreased sensitivity to climatic stress more than thinning from above) and by thinning intensity (i.e., more intense thinning led to a lower climatic sensitivity). Overall, thinning from below to a residual basal area of 21 m2·ha−1 represented a potentially beneficial compromise to maximize tree size, biomass per acre, and reduced sensitivity to climatic stress, and, thus, the highest level of climatic resilience.

Access and Resilience: Analyzing the Construction of Social Resilience to the Threat of Water Scarcity

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ruth Langridge

2006-12-01

Full Text Available Resilience is a vital attribute that characterizes a system's capacity to cope with stress. Researchers have examined the measurement of resilience in ecosystems and in social-ecological systems, and the comparative vulnerability of social groups. Our paper refocuses attention on the processes and relations that create social resilience. Our central proposition is that the creation of social resilience is linked to a community's ability to access critical resources. We explore this proposition through an analysis of how community resilience to the stress of water scarcity is influenced by historically contingent mechanisms to gain, control, and maintain access to water. Access is defined broadly as the ability of a community to actually benefit from a resource, and includes a wider range of relations than those derived from property rights alone. We provide a framework for assessing the construction of social resilience and use it to examine, first, the different processes and relations that enabled four communities in northern California to acquire access to water, and second, how access contributed to their differential levels of resilience to potential water scarcity. Legal water rights are extremely difficult to alter, and given the variety of mechanisms that can generate access, our study suggests that strengthening and diversifying a range of structural and relational mechanisms to access water can enhance a community's resilience to water scarcity.

Effect of Mass-Transport Limitations on the Performance of a Packed Bed Membrane Reactor for Partial Oxidations. Transport from the Membrane to the Packed Bed

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Sint Annaland, M.; Kurten, U.; Kuipers, J.A.M.

2007-01-01

With a packed bed membrane reactor, the product yield can be significantly enhanced for partial oxidation systems, via distributive addition of oxygen to the reaction mixture along the axial coordinate of the reactor, provided that the reaction order in oxygen of the formation rate of the target

Effect of mass-transport limitations on the performance of a packed bed membrane reactor for partial oxidations. Transport from the membrane to the packed bed

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Sint Annaland, van M.; Kurten, U.; Kuipers, J.A.M.

2007-01-01

With a packed bed membrane reactor, the product yield can be significantly enhanced for partial oxidation systems, via distributive addition of oxygen to the reaction mixture along the axial coordinate of the reactor, provided that the reaction order in oxygen of the formation rate of the target

7 CFR 982.11 - Pack.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... according to size, internal quality, and external appearance and condition of hazelnuts packed in accordance... 7 Agriculture 8 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Pack. 982.11 Section 982.11 Agriculture Regulations of the Department of Agriculture (Continued) AGRICULTURAL MARKETING SERVICE (Marketing Agreements and...

The impact of front-of-pack nutrition labels on consumer product evaluation and choice: an experimental study.

Science.gov (United States)

Hamlin, Robert P; McNeill, Lisa S; Moore, Vanessa

2015-08-01

The present research was an experimental test that aimed to quantify the impact of two dominant front-of-pack (FOP) nutritional label formats on consumer evaluations of food products that carried them. The two FOP label types tested were the traffic light label and the Percentage Daily Intake. A 4×5 partially replicated Latin square design was used that allowed the impact of the FOP labels to be isolated from the effects of the product and the consumers who were performing the evaluations. The experiment was conducted on campus at the University of Otago, New Zealand. The participants were 250 university students selected at random who met qualifying criteria of independent living and regular purchase of the products used in the research. They were not aware of the purpose of the research. The presence of FOP labels led to significant and positive changes in consumer purchase intentions towards the products that carried them. These changes were not affected by the nature of FOP labels used, their size or the product nutritional status (good/bad) that they were reporting. The result is consistent with the participants paying attention to the FOP label and then using it as an adimensional cue indicating product desirability. As such, it represents a complete functional failure of both of these FOP label types in this specific instance. This result supports calls for further research on the performance of these FOP labels before any move to compulsory deployment is made.

Child-targeted on-pack communications in Belgian supermarkets: associations with nutritional value and type of brand.

Science.gov (United States)

Aerts, Goele; Smits, Tim

2017-09-14

Persuasive on-pack marketing strategies, such as colourful images and games, affect children's preferences and requests. The purpose of this study was to describe the prevalence of these child-directed (i.e. aimed at children) strategies on food packages at a Belgian retailer. Although previous research already demonstrated the frequency of most of these techniques directed at children, this paper extends to food pricing and facing strategies (i.e. the number of items from the same product aligned next to each other in the supermarket shelves) which were unstudied till now. Moreover, the association between the use of these strategies, the products' (un)healthiness and their type of brand (national vs. private) is investigated. The content analysis found that 372 food products contained one or more child-directed marketing strategies on-pack, all these communications were coded; the products could be classified in 15 food categories. On average, 3.9 (Min = 1; Max = 8) food promotion techniques were used per package. Unhealthiness of products was rated according to Food Standards Agency (FSA) Nutrient Profile UK. We found that 89.2% of all products with child-directed strategies were considered to be unhealthy. The presence of marketing strategies was associated with higher product unhealthiness, but did not differ much between types of brand. Overall, these findings suggest that (unhealthy) foods aimed at children typically feature many on-pack persuasive communications, which implies that policy makers should (continue to) monitor this. These findings highlight the need for further research to investigate the impact of on-pack communications on children's consumption. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Deterministic indexing for packed strings

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bille, Philip; Gørtz, Inge Li; Skjoldjensen, Frederik Rye

2017-01-01

Given a string S of length n, the classic string indexing problem is to preprocess S into a compact data structure that supports efficient subsequent pattern queries. In the deterministic variant the goal is to solve the string indexing problem without any randomization (at preprocessing time...... or query time). In the packed variant the strings are stored with several character in a single word, giving us the opportunity to read multiple characters simultaneously. Our main result is a new string index in the deterministic and packed setting. Given a packed string S of length n over an alphabet σ...

How Resilience Works.

Science.gov (United States)

Coutu, Diane L.

2002-01-01

Looks at coping skills that carry people through life and why some have them and others do not. Suggests that resilience is a reflex, a way of facing and understanding the world, and that resilient people and companies face reality with staunchness, make meaning out of hardship, and improvise. (JOW)

Formal aspects of resilience

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Diana-Maria Drigă

2015-12-01

Full Text Available The concept of resilience has represented during the recent years a leading concern both in Romania, within the European Union and worldwide. Specialists in economics, management, finance, legal sciences, political sciences, sociology, psychology, grant a particular interest to this concept. Multidisciplinary research of resilience has materialized throughout the time in multiple conceptualizations and theorizing, but without being a consensus between specialists in terms of content, specificity and scope. Through this paper it is intended to clarify the concept of resilience, achieving an exploration of the evolution of this concept in ecological, social and economic environment. At the same time, the paper presents aspects of feedback mechanisms and proposes a formalization of resilience using the logic and mathematical analysis.

Understanding Individual Resilience in the Workplace: The International Collaboration of Workforce Resilience (ICWR Model

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Clare Samantha Rees

2015-02-01

Full Text Available When not managed effectively, high levels of workplace stress can lead to several negative personal and performance outcomes. Some professional groups work in highly stressful settings and are therefore particularly at risk of conditions such as anxiety, depression, secondary traumatic stress and burnout. However, some individuals are less affected by workplace stress and the associated negative outcomes. Such individuals have been described as ‘resilient’. A number of studies have found relationships between levels of individual resilience and specific negative outcomes such as burnout and compassion fatigue. However, because psychological resilience is a multi-dimensional construct it is necessary to more clearly delineate it from other related and overlapping constructs. The creation of a testable theoretical model of individual workforce resilience, which includes both stable traits (e.g. neuroticism as well as more malleable intrapersonal factors (e.g. coping style, enables information to be derived that can eventually inform interventions aimed at enhancing individual resilience in the workplace. The purpose of this paper is to introduce a new theoretical model of individual workforce resilience that includes several intrapersonal constructs known to be central in the appraisal of and response to stressors and that also overlap with the construct of psychological resilience. We propose a model in which psychological resilience is hypothesised to mediate the relationship between neuroticism, mindfulness, self-efficacy, coping and psychological adjustment.

New raw materials improve packing sealing efficiency

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Igel, B.; McKeague, L.

2012-01-01

End-users and OEM's using or manufacturing on/off and control valves expect a permanent and effective increase in service life together with an increased sealing capability while at the same time minimizing maintenance concerns. Developing materials which provide consistency and repeatability are essential characteristics to optimizing valve performance. “New Generation” materials and yarn allow us to meet this growing demand while complying with the requirements related to chemical purity and an increased level of safety to both plant workers and equipment in the nuclear environment. Through R&D initiatives and developments in new and improved raw materials; a new mechanical packing generation which optimizes friction coefficients and extended life cycle has been introduced to the industry. Lower friction values drastically optimize actuator effort and size improving efficiency for stem operation with significant improvements in flow control of fluids. Combined with new and improved procedures (installation, torque levels and consolidation recommendations), this new packing generation has provided significant improvement in the mechanical behavior of packing materials (independent tests carried out in collaboration with AECL and CETIM) this has provided the opportunity to develop successful Valve Enhancement Programs which offer improved efficiency, valve operation and repeatability. These NEW generation yarns are available with or without wire reinforcement depending on specific operating parameters and conditions. The purpose of this presentation is to demonstrate that new generation material(s). Which are available to the industry for AOV, MOV and Manual valves? - To highlight the steps taken in R&D and manufacturing contributing to the much improved yarns and finished packing products. - Comply and are designed to meet the stringent requirements in the nuclear industry - Simplify valve maintenance without risk to safety or performance - Increase service

Introduction 'Governance for Drought Resilience'

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bressers, Nanny; Bressers, Johannes T.A.; Larrue, Corinne; Bressers, Hans; Bressers, Nanny; Larrue, Corinne

2016-01-01

This book is about governance for drought resilience. But that simple sentence alone might rouse several questions. Because what do we mean with drought, and how does that relate to water scarcity? And what do we mean with resilience, and why is resilience needed for tackling drought? And how does

Resiliency against stress among athletes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kamila Litwic-Kaminska

2015-10-01

Full Text Available Background The aim of this paper is to describe the results of a study concerning the relationship between resiliency and appraisal of a stressful situation, anxiety reactions and undertaken methods of coping among sportsmen. Participants and procedure The research concerned 192 competitors who actively train in one of the Olympic disciplines – individual or team. We used the following instruments: Resiliency Assessment Scale (SPP-25; Stress Appraisal Questionnaire A/B; Reactions to Competition Questionnaire; Coping Inventory for Stressful Situations (CISS; Sport Stress Coping Strategies Questionnaire (SR3S, self-constructed. Results Athletes most frequently apply positive types of stress appraisal, and they cope with stress through a task-oriented style during competitions. There is a relationship between the level of resiliency and the analysed aspects of the process of stress. The higher the resiliency, the more positive is the appraisal of a stressful situation and the more task-oriented are the strategies applied. Similarly, in everyday situations resilient sportspeople positively appraise difficult situations and undertake mostly task-oriented strategies. Resiliency is connected with less frequently experiencing reactions in the form of anxiety. Conclusions The obtained results, similarly to previous research, suggest that resiliency is connected with experiencing positive emotions. It causes more frequent appraisal of stressful situations as a challenge. More resilient people also choose more effective and situation-appropriate coping strategies. Therefore they are more resistant to stress.

Developing a workplace resilience instrument.

Science.gov (United States)

Mallak, Larry A; Yildiz, Mustafa

2016-05-27

Resilience benefits from the use of protective factors, as opposed to risk factors, which are associated with vulnerability. Considerable research and instrument development has been conducted in clinical settings for patients. The need existed for an instrument to be developed in a workplace setting to measure resilience of employees. This study developed and tested a resilience instrument for employees in the workplace. The research instrument was distributed to executives and nurses working in the United States in hospital settings. Five-hundred-forty completed and usable responses were obtained. The instrument contained an inventory of workplace resilience, a job stress questionnaire, and relevant demographics. The resilience items were written based on previous work by the lead author and inspired by Weick's [1] sense-making theory. A four-factor model yielded an instrument having psychometric properties showing good model fit. Twenty items were retained for the resulting Workplace Resilience Instrument (WRI). Parallel analysis was conducted with successive iterations of exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses. Respondents were classified based on their employment with either a rural or an urban hospital. Executives had significantly higher WRI scores than nurses, controlling for gender. WRI scores were positively and significantly correlated with years of experience and the Brief Job Stress Questionnaire. An instrument to measure individual resilience in the workplace (WRI) was developed. The WRI's four factors identify dimensions of workplace resilience for use in subsequent investigations: Active Problem-Solving, Team Efficacy, Confident Sense-Making, and Bricolage.

Random packing of colloids and granular matter

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Wouterse, A.

2008-01-01

This thesis deals with the random packing of colloids and granular matter. A random packing is a stable disordered collection of touching particles, without long-range positional and orientational order. Experimental random packings of particles with the same shape but made of different materials

Packing circles and spheres on surfaces

KAUST Repository

Schiftner, Alexander; Hö binger, Mathias; Wallner, Johannes; Pottmann, Helmut

2009-01-01

Inspired by freeform designs in architecture which involve circles and spheres, we introduce a new kind of triangle mesh whose faces' incircles form a packing. As it turns out, such meshes have a rich geometry and allow us to cover surfaces with circle patterns, sphere packings, approximate circle packings, hexagonal meshes which carry a torsion-free support structure, hybrid tri-hex meshes, and others. We show how triangle meshes can be optimized so as to have the incircle packing property. We explain their relation to conformal geometry and implications on solvability of optimization. The examples we give confirm that this kind of meshes is a rich source of geometric structures relevant to architectural geometry. © 2009 ACM.

Packing circles and spheres on surfaces

KAUST Repository

Schiftner, Alexander

2009-12-01

Inspired by freeform designs in architecture which involve circles and spheres, we introduce a new kind of triangle mesh whose faces\\' incircles form a packing. As it turns out, such meshes have a rich geometry and allow us to cover surfaces with circle patterns, sphere packings, approximate circle packings, hexagonal meshes which carry a torsion-free support structure, hybrid tri-hex meshes, and others. We show how triangle meshes can be optimized so as to have the incircle packing property. We explain their relation to conformal geometry and implications on solvability of optimization. The examples we give confirm that this kind of meshes is a rich source of geometric structures relevant to architectural geometry.

Packing circles and spheres on surfaces

KAUST Repository

Schiftner, Alexander

2009-01-01

Inspired by freeform designs in architecture which involve circles and spheres, we introduce a new kind of triangle mesh whose faces\\' incircles form a packing. As it turns out, such meshes have a rich geometry and allow us to cover surfaces with circle patterns, sphere packings, approximate circle packings, hexagonal meshes which carry a torsion-free support structure, hybrid tri-hex meshes, and others. We show how triangle meshes can be optimized so as to have the incircle packing property. We explain their relation to conformal geometry and implications on solvability of optimization. The examples we give confirm that this kind of meshes is a rich source of geometric structures relevant to architectural geometry. © 2009 ACM.

Packing circles and spheres on surfaces

KAUST Repository

Schiftner, Alexander; Hö binger, Mathias; Wallner, Johannes; Pottmann, Helmut

2009-01-01

Inspired by freeform designs in architecture which involve circles and spheres, we introduce a new kind of triangle mesh whose faces' incircles form a packing. As it turns out, such meshes have a rich geometry and allow us to cover surfaces with circle patterns, sphere packings, approximate circle packings, hexagonal meshes which carry a torsion-free support structure, hybrid tri-hex meshes, and others. We show how triangle meshes can be optimized so as to have the incircle packing property. We explain their relation to conformal geometry and implications on solvability of optimization. The examples we give confirm that this kind of meshes is a rich source of geometric structures relevant to architectural geometry.

Think Again: Higher Elasticity of Substitution Increases Economic Resilience

OpenAIRE

P. Dumas; S. Hallegatte

2009-01-01

This paper shows that, counter-intuitively, a higher elasticity of substitution in model production function can lead to reduced economic resilience and larger vulnerability to shocks in production factor prices. This result is due to the fact that assuming a higher elasticity of substitution requires a recalibration of the production function parameters to keep the model initial state unchanged. This result has consequences for economic analysis, e.g., on the economic vulnerability to climat...

Communal resilience: the Lebanese case

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Eric BOUTIN

2015-07-01

Full Text Available In a turbulent and aggressive environment, organizations are subject to external events. They are sometimes destabilized and can disappear. This context explains the multiplication of works studying resilience of human organizations. Resilience is then defined as the ability of the organization studied to face an external shock.This paper proposes a state of the art of resilience concept and considers the interests of the transposition of the concept to the field of a territorial community. A case study will lead us to apply the concept of resilience to the Lebanese nation.

Practical Leakage-Resilient Symmetric Cryptography

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Faust, Sebastian; Pietrzak, Krzysztof; Schipper, Joachim

2012-01-01

Leakage resilient cryptography attempts to incorporate side-channel leakage into the black-box security model and designs cryptographic schemes that are provably secure within it. Informally, a scheme is leakage-resilient if it remains secure even if an adversary learns a bounded amount of arbitr......Leakage resilient cryptography attempts to incorporate side-channel leakage into the black-box security model and designs cryptographic schemes that are provably secure within it. Informally, a scheme is leakage-resilient if it remains secure even if an adversary learns a bounded amount...

Packing configuration performance for small stem diameters

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aikin, J.A.; Spence, C.G.; Cumming, D.

1997-01-01

The extensive use of graphite packing and its excellent track record for large isolating valves in CANDU, Primary Heat Transfer (PHT) systems has resulted in an increased application of graphite packing on the conventional side. Many of these applications are in air operated valves (AOVs) where the packing sets are used on small stem diameters (<1 inch) with frequent short-cycling strokes (± 10% of full stroke). The direct application of the proven packing configurations for large isolated valves to control valve application has generated problems such as stiction, packing wear and, in isolated cases, stem stall. To address this issue, a test program was conducted at AECL, CRL by MED branch. The testing showed that by reconfiguring the packing sets and using PTFE wafers reductions in stem friction of 50% at ambient conditions, a 3 fold at hot conditions are achievable. The test program also demonstrated benefits gained in packing wear with different stem roughness finishes and the potential need to exercise small stems valves that see less than full stroke cycling. The paper describes the tests results and provides field support experience. (author)

Biotransformation of ferulic acid to vanillin in the packed bed-stirred fermentors.

Science.gov (United States)

Yan, Lei; Chen, Peng; Zhang, Shuang; Li, Suyue; Yan, Xiaojuan; Wang, Ningbo; Liang, Ning; Li, Hongyu

2016-10-06

We performed the biotransformation of ferulic acid to vanillin using Bacillus subtilis (B. subtilis) in the stirring packed-bed reactors filled with carbon fiber textiles (CFT). Scanning electron microscope (SEM), HPLC, qRT-PCR and ATP assay indicated that vanillin biotransformation is tightly related to cell growth, cellar activity and the extent of biofilm formation. The biotransformation was affected by hydraulic retention time (HRT), temperature, initial pH, stirring speed and ferulic acid concentration, and the maximum vanillin production was obtained at 20 h, 35 °C, 9.0, 200 rpm, 1.5 g/L, respectively. Repeated batch biotransformation performed under this optimized condition showed that the maximum productivity (0.047 g/L/h) and molar yield (60.43%) achieved in immobilized cell system were 1.84 and 3.61 folds higher than those achieved in free cell system. Therefore, the stirring reactor packed with CFT carrier biofilm formed by B. subtilis represented a valid biocatalytic system for the production of vanillin.

Bidispersed Sphere Packing on Spherical Surfaces

Science.gov (United States)

Atherton, Timothy; Mascioli, Andrew; Burke, Christopher

Packing problems on spherical surfaces have a long history, originating in the classic Thompson problem of finding the ground state configuration of charges on a sphere. Such packings contain a minimal number of defects needed to accommodate the curvature; this is predictable using the Gauss-Bonnet theorem from knowledge of the topology of the surface and the local symmetry of the ordering. Famously, the packing of spherical particles on a sphere contains a 'scar' transition, where additional defects over those required by topology appear above a certain critical number of particles and self-organize into chains or scars. In this work, we study the packing of bidispersed packings on a sphere, and hence determine the interaction of bidispersity and curvature. The resultant configurations are nearly crystalline for low values of bidispersity and retain scar-like structures; these rapidly become disordered for intermediate values and approach a so-called Appollonian limit at the point where smaller particles can be entirely accommodated within the voids left by the larger particles. We connect our results with studies of bidispersed packings in the bulk and on flat surfaces from the literature on glassy systems and jamming. Supported by a Cottrell Award from the Research Corporation for Science Advancement.

Community Resilience to Militant Islamism: Who and What?: An Explorative Study of Resilience in Three Danish Communities

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Dalgaard-Nielsen, Anja; Schack, Patrick

2016-01-01

of resilience to militant Islamism in three Danish communities. It shows how families and trust-based networks, including local government, are the major sources of resilience, but also how punitive national policies and discourses work at cross purposes with resilience-building by reducing local actors......Building community resilience to violent extremism increasingly figures as a goal in national security strategies and debates. The exact meaning of resilience remains unclear, complicating an informed discussion of whom and what to support. This article presents findings from an explorative study...

Influence of γ-ray radiation on mechanical character of packing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tashiro, Hisao; Sakuma, Toshio

1989-01-01

This paper describes the results of investigation on coefficient of friction, normal to axial pressure-ratio and compressed strain of packings influenced by γ-ray irradiation, which are necessary to evaluate the mechanical characteristics of packing, using packings made of seven kinds of new materials and conventional asbestos packing A. It resulted that graphite packing was less influenced by the γ-ray exposure, whereas carbon-fiber (pitch) packing, tefron-fiber packing and alamid-fiber packing were much influenced as compared with the graphite packing. (author)

Aligning Organizational Pathologies and Organizational Resilience Indicators

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Manuel Morales Allende

2017-07-01

Full Text Available Developing resilient individuals, organizations and communities is a hot topic in the research agenda in Management, Ecology, Psychology or Engineering. Despite the number of works that focus on resilience is increasing, there is not completely agreed definition of resilience, neither an entirely formal and accepted framework. The cause may be the spread of research among different fields. In this paper, we focus on the study of organizational resilience with the aim of improving the level of resilience in organizations. We review the relation between viable and resilient organizations and their common properties. Based on these common properties, we defend the application of the Viable System Model (VSM to design resilient organizations. We also identify the organizational pathologies defined applying the VSM through resilience indicators. We conclude that an organization with any organizational pathology is not likely to be resilient because it does not fulfill the requirements of viable organizations.

Development of a multi-dimensional measure of resilience in adolescents: the Adolescent Resilience Questionnaire

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Buzwell Simone

2011-10-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The concept of resilience has captured the imagination of researchers and policy makers over the past two decades. However, despite the ever growing body of resilience research, there is a paucity of relevant, comprehensive measurement tools. In this article, the development of a theoretically based, comprehensive multi-dimensional measure of resilience in adolescents is described. Methods Extensive literature review and focus groups with young people living with chronic illness informed the conceptual development of scales and items. Two sequential rounds of factor and scale analyses were undertaken to revise the conceptually developed scales using data collected from young people living with a chronic illness and a general population sample. Results The revised Adolescent Resilience Questionnaire comprises 93 items and 12 scales measuring resilience factors in the domains of self, family, peer, school and community. All scales have acceptable alpha coefficients. Revised scales closely reflect conceptually developed scales. Conclusions It is proposed that, with further psychometric testing, this new measure of resilience will provide researchers and clinicians with a comprehensive and developmentally appropriate instrument to measure a young person's capacity to achieve positive outcomes despite life stressors.

Consumer perceptions of cigarette pack design in France: a comparison of regular, limited edition and plain packaging.

Science.gov (United States)

Gallopel-Morvan, Karine; Moodie, Crawford; Hammond, David; Eker, Figen; Beguinot, Emmanuelle; Martinet, Yves

2012-09-01

In the face of comprehensive bans on the marketing of tobacco products, packaging has become an increasingly important promotional tool for the tobacco industry. A ban on the use of branding on tobacco packaging, known as 'plain' packaging, has emerged as a promising regulatory strategy. The current study sought to examine perceptions of cigarette packaging among adults in France. Adult smokers and non-smokers (N=836) were surveyed using computer-assisted personal interviewing to assess perceptions of pack design by comparing 'regular' branded packs and 'limited edition' packs (with novel designs or innovations) with 'plain' versions of these packs with all branding, including colour, removed. Plain packs (PP) were less likely than regular packs, and particularly limited edition packs, to be considered attractive, attention grabbing and likely to motivate youth purchase. PPs were also rated as the most effective in convincing non-smokers not to start and smokers to reduce consumption and quit. Logistic regression showed that smokers motivated to quit, in comparison to smokers not motivated to quit, were significantly more likely to consider the PPs as the packs most likely to motivate cessation. Novel cigarette packaging, in the form of limited edition packs, had the highest ratings of consumer appeal, ahead of regular branded packs and also PPs. Interestingly, PPs were perceived to be the packs most likely to promote cessation among those adults with quitting intentions. Plain packaging, therefore, may be a means of helping existing adult smokers motivated to quit to do so.

The Communities Advancing Resilience Toolkit (CART): an intervention to build community resilience to disasters.

Science.gov (United States)

Pfefferbaum, Rose L; Pfefferbaum, Betty; Van Horn, Richard L; Klomp, Richard W; Norris, Fran H; Reissman, Dori B

2013-01-01

Community resilience has emerged as a construct to support and foster healthy individual, family, and community adaptation to mass casualty incidents. The Communities Advancing Resilience Toolkit (CART) is a publicly available theory-based and evidence-informed community intervention designed to enhance community resilience by bringing stakeholders together to address community issues in a process that includes assessment, feedback, planning, and action. Tools include a field-tested community resilience survey and other assessment and analytical instruments. The CART process encourages public engagement in problem solving and the development and use of local assets to address community needs. CART recognizes 4 interrelated domains that contribute to community resilience: connection and caring, resources, transformative potential, and disaster management. The primary value of CART is its contribution to community participation, communication, self-awareness, cooperation, and critical reflection and its ability to stimulate analysis, collaboration, skill building, resource sharing, and purposeful action.

Characteristics of recovery and resilience in the Romanian regions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

József BENEDEK

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Differences in regional economic growth trajectories and the multiple regional effects of the economic crisis have revived studies dedicated to the subject of resilience. The main goal of this paper is to measure the resilience of the Romanian regions, seeking to answer two basic questions: What was the regional impact of the global crisis from 2008 onwards? How have the Romanian regions recovered following the crisis? We focus our analysis on the region with the highest economic growth in the post-crisis period (South-East in order to understand the main drivers of economic recovery. The methodology of the study involves a multi-dimensional understanding of resilience. This means that we have extended our focus from economic indicators towards a more inclusive methodology related to the measurement of regional well-being. Our main finding is that productivity growth was a critical driver of economic recovery, having a significant impact on income and jobs, as well as influencing non-material elements of well-being.

Quasi-human seniority-order algorithm for unequal circles packing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhu, Dingju

2016-01-01

In the existing methods for solving unequal circles packing problems, the initial configuration is given arbitrarily or randomly, but the impact of different initial configurations for existing packing algorithm to the speed of existing packing algorithm solving unequal circles packing problems is very large. The quasi-human seniority-order algorithm proposed in this paper can generate a better initial configuration for existing packing algorithm to accelerate the speed of existing packing algorithm solving unequal circles packing problems. In experiments, the quasi-human seniority-order algorithm is applied to generate better initial configurations for quasi-physical elasticity methods to solve the unequal circles packing problems, and the experimental results show that the proposed quasi-human seniority-order algorithm can greatly improve the speed of solving the problem.

The relationship between resilience and personality traits in doctors: implications for enhancing well being

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Diann S. Eley

2013-11-01

Full Text Available Objective. The health and well being of medical doctors is vital to their longevity and safe practice. The concept of resilience is recognised as a key component of well being and is an important factor in medical training to help doctors learn to cope with challenge, stress, and adversity. This study examined the relationship of resilience to personality traits and resilience in doctors in order to identify the key traits that promote or impair resilience.Methods. A cross sectional cohort of 479 family practitioners in practice across Australia was studied. The Temperament and Character Inventory measured levels of the seven basic dimensions of personality and the Resilience Scale provided an overall measure of resilience. The associations between resilience and personality were examined by Pearson product-moment correlation coefficients, controlling for age and gender (α = 0.05 with an accompanying 95% confidence level and multiple regression analyses.Results. Strong to medium positive correlations were found between Resilience and Self-directedness (r = .614, p < .01, Persistence (r = .498, p < .01, and Cooperativeness (r = .363, p < .01 and negative with Harm Avoidance (r = .−555, p < .01. Individual differences in personality explained 39% of the variance in resilience [F(7, 460 = 38.40, p < .001]. The three traits which contributed significantly to this variance were Self-directedness (β = .33, p < .001, Persistence (β = .22, p < .001 and Harm Avoidance (β = .19, p < .001.Conclusion. Resilience was associated with a personality trait pattern that is mature, responsible, optimistic, persevering, and cooperative. Findings support the inclusion of resilience as a component of optimal functioning and well being in doctors. Strategies for enhancing resilience should consider the key traits that drive or impair it.

48 CFR 552.211-87 - Export packing.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... 48 Federal Acquisition Regulations System 4 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Export packing. 552.211-87... FORMS SOLICITATION PROVISIONS AND CONTRACT CLAUSES Text of Provisions and Clauses 552.211-87 Export packing. As prescribed in 511.204(b)(7), insert the following clause: Export Packing (JAN 2010) (a...

Resilience Design Patterns - A Structured Approach to Resilience at Extreme Scale (version 1.1)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hukerikar, Saurabh [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Engelmann, Christian [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)

2016-12-01

Reliability is a serious concern for future extreme-scale high-performance computing (HPC) systems. Projections based on the current generation of HPC systems and technology roadmaps suggest the prevalence of very high fault rates in future systems. The errors resulting from these faults will propagate and generate various kinds of failures, which may result in outcomes ranging from result corruptions to catastrophic application crashes. Therefore the resilience challenge for extreme-scale HPC systems requires management of various hardware and software technologies that are capable of handling a broad set of fault models at accelerated fault rates. Also, due to practical limits on power consumption in HPC systems future systems are likely to embrace innovative architectures, increasing the levels of hardware and software complexities. As a result the techniques that seek to improve resilience must navigate the complex trade-off space between resilience and the overheads to power consumption and performance. While the HPC community has developed various resilience solutions, application-level techniques as well as system-based solutions, the solution space of HPC resilience techniques remains fragmented. There are no formal methods and metrics to investigate and evaluate resilience holistically in HPC systems that consider impact scope, handling coverage, and performance & power efficiency across the system stack. Additionally, few of the current approaches are portable to newer architectures and software environments that will be deployed on future systems. In this document, we develop a structured approach to the management of HPC resilience using the concept of resilience-based design patterns. A design pattern is a general repeatable solution to a commonly occurring problem. We identify the commonly occurring problems and solutions used to deal with faults, errors and failures in HPC systems. Each established solution is described in the form of a pattern that

Building Inner Resilience

Science.gov (United States)

Lantieri, Linda

2008-01-01

The capacity to be in control of one's thoughts, emotions, and physiology can form an internal safety net preparing children to face the challenges and opportunities of life. This is the goal of the Inner Resilience Program in the New York City Schools. Teachers in the Inner Resilience Program's intervention are exposed to calming and focusing…

Investigations on a new internally-heated tubular packed-bed methanol–steam reformer

KAUST Repository

Nehe, Prashant; Vanteru, Mahendra Reddy; Kumar, Sudarshan

2015-01-01

Small-scale reformers for hydrogen production through steam reforming of methanol can provide an alternative solution to the demand of continuous supply of hydrogen gas for the operation of Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells (PEMFCs). A packed

Resilience in patients with psychotic disorder.

Science.gov (United States)

Bozikas, V; Parlapani, E

2016-01-01

The recovery movement differentiated clinical, which is related to disorder's symptoms, from personal recovery, which is outlined by a subjectively defined wellness state, characterised by hope and self-management. Schizophrenia research has long focused on risk factors and symptoms. The recovery movement triggered a focus shift from psychopathology towards better adjustment and growth despite living with schizophrenia. The recovery movement flourished parallel with positive psychology, the scientific study of ordinary human strengths and virtues investigating human motives and potentials. Understanding of human strengths could contribute to prevention or lessening of psychiatric disorders' devastating consequences, since optimism, sense of personal control and many other positive processes promote psychological health. Lately, the concepts of positive psychology have been implemented in schizophrenia research. Positive self-appraisals moderated suicidal ideation, even when patients experienced high levels of hopelessness.1 Additionally, among other factors, better self-images, internal locus of control (i.e. the perception that events in one's life relate to one's actions) and emphasis on personal efforts predicted a more favourable outcome in functioning of unmedicated patients.2 The concept of "resilience" is closely related to positive psychology. The American Psychological Association defines resilience as ''the process of adapting well in the face of adversity, trauma, threats or significant sources of stress''. The concept of resilience includes rebound from adversity.3 Determinants of resilience include biological, psychological, social and cultural factors that interact in a complex manner. The major manifestations of personal resilience are social competence, problem solving, autonomy and sense of purpose.5 Personality strengths that relate to resilience include high self-esteem, extroversion and optimism. Internal assets and personal competencies

Sustainable smallholder poultry interventions to promote food security and social, agricultural, and ecological resilience in the Luangwa Valley, Zambia.

Science.gov (United States)

Dumas, Sarah E; Lungu, Luke; Mulambya, Nathan; Daka, Whiteson; McDonald, Erin; Steubing, Emily; Lewis, Tamika; Backel, Katherine; Jange, Jarra; Lucio-Martinez, Benjamin; Lewis, Dale; Travis, Alexander J

2016-06-01

In Zambia's Luangwa Valley, highly variable rainfall and lack of education, agricultural inputs, and market access constrain agricultural productivity, trapping smallholder farmers in chronic poverty and food insecurity. Human and animal disease (e.g. HIV and Newcastle Disease, respectively), further threaten the resilience of poor families. To cope with various shocks and stressors, many farmers employ short-term coping strategies that threaten ecosystem resilience. Community Markets for Conservation (COMACO) utilizes an agribusiness model to alleviate poverty and food insecurity through conservation farming, market development and value-added food production. COMACO promotes household, agricultural and ecological resilience along two strategic lines: improving recovery from shocks (mitigation) and reducing the risk of shock occurrence. Here we focus on two of COMACO's poultry interventions and present data showing that addressing health and management constraints within the existing village poultry system resulted in significantly improved productivity and profitability. However, once reliable productivity was achieved, farmers preferred to sell chickens rather than eat either the birds or their eggs. Sales of live birds were largely outside the community to avoid price suppression; in contrast, the sale of eggs from community-operated, semi-intensive egg production facilities was invariably within the communities. These facilities resulted in significant increases in both producer income and community consumption of eggs. This intervention therefore has the potential to improve not only producers' economic resilience, but also resilience tied to the food security and physical health of the entire community.

The quest for resilience.

Science.gov (United States)

Hamel, Gary; Välikangas, Liisa

2003-09-01

In less turbulent times, executives had the luxury of assuming that business models were more or less immortal. Companies always had to work to get better, but they seldom had to get different--not at their core, not in their essence. Today, getting different is the imperative. It's the challenge facing Coca-Cola as it struggles to raise its "share of throat" in noncarbonated beverages. It's the task that bedevils McDonald's as it tries to restart its growth in a burger-weary world. It's the hurdle for Sun Microsystems as it searches for ways to protect its high-margin server business from the Linux onslaught. Continued success no longer hinges on momentum. Rather, it rides on resilience-on the ability to dynamically reinvent business models and strategies as circumstances change. Strategic resilience is not about responding to a onetime crisis or rebounding from a setback. It's about continually anticipating and adjusting to deep, secular trends that can permanently impair the earning power of a core business. It's about having the capacity to change even before the case for change becomes obvious. To thrive in turbulent times, companies must become as efficient at renewal as they are at producing today's products and services. To achieve strategic resilience, companies will have to overcome the cognitive challenge of eliminating denial, nostalgia, and arrogance; the strategic challenge of learning how to create a wealth of small tactical experiments; the political challenge of reallocating financial and human resources to where they can earn the best returns; and the ideological challenge of learning that strategic renewal is as important as optimization.

The impact of the 2011 floods in Thailand on world economy using resilience concept

Science.gov (United States)

Jaboyedoff, Michel; Derron, Marc-Henri; Nicolet, Pierrick; Rudaz, Benjamin; Sudmeier, Karen

2014-05-01

In fall 2011, Thailand suffered from floods in the area of Bangkok, where 30% of the world production of hard disks (HD) was located. This event had a great impact on HD production, which decreased drastically. In analysing the market price evolution of HDs throughout time after the event, the market price for HDs returned to a "normal" after one year. This variable can be considered as an index that recovers its normal value, similar to an indicator of resilience, when defined as « the efficiency required to return to a normal state during a given period of time ». In other words, it describes how efficiently world HD production returned to "business as usual". This presentation aims to provide a further analysis of resilience as relates to the overall cost of recovery after disasters and an element that should be included in a more comprehensive analysis of risk. To further analyse the concept of resilience, instantaneous resilience is defined: integration over time permits to obtain the total impact of this flood event on the world HD business based on the market prices. In the present approach we consider the direct cost of a disaster as the result of the standard risk (R) equation (R = H x V x Exp x W) including the vulnerability (V) which describes the direct impact of a disaster taking into account the elements at risk's value or number (W), the exposure (Exp) and the hazard (H). The total impact of a disaster (Impact total = R + DRE) is the sum of R and cost post disaster (DRE), which corresponds to the indirect costs of the disaster and depends on resilience. The resilience is then the capacity of a variable to reach a value similar to its pre-event value over a period of time. Its unit is then %. Regarding the Thai event, over one year, resilience is estimated at 69%, which leads to a negative impact of the flood of around 31% on the HD price or approximately 10 billion US globally. This result is similar to other estimations. This approach underlines

ANALYSIS OF PACKERS\\' WORKLOAD ON THE PACKING LINE - A CASE STUDY

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andrzej Marek Lasota

2014-12-01

Full Text Available Background: One of the elements of the logistics system is the subsystem of production, which is a system composed of physical elements such as machinery and equipment, tools, and (most importantly people. In addition, systems dependent on the human operator are particularly prone to problems related to: discomfort, ensuring production quality and increases in training costs and absenteeism. Material and methods: The study was conducted in an establishment in the furniture industry, in the product packing department. The system under assessment included a position located at the conveyor belt. The aim of the study was to evaluate the load and the risk of musculoskeletal discomfort (MSD's among workers and conduct an analysis of risk factors. For the evaluation method, the Ovako Working posture Analysing System (OWAS was used. The evaluated activities related to the sequential packing of furniture in positions located at the conveyor belt. Results: The result was 7 tasks qualifying for action category (AC 1, 4 tasks for AC 2 and 5 activities for AC 4. The main risk factors influencing the negative assessment of posture were keeping the back sloped and twisted, work in a standing position and shifting weight onto one leg. Conclusions and recommendations: On each of the evaluated positions where AC 4 occurred, employees back and legs were particularly vulnerable while retrieving elements. Corrective action in these positions should be carried out as soon as possible. Ergonomic intervention should be linked to: reorganizing positions with particular emphasis on retrieving items as well as the storage of packed products; introduction of employee rotation on such positions to ensure load variation of the musculoskeletal system. After making changes on the test positions, reassessment with the OWAS method is recommended in order to verify the effectiveness of the changes.  

The Australian Natural Disaster Resilience Index

Science.gov (United States)

Thoms, Martin

2016-04-01

The Australian Natural Disaster Resilience Index Martin Thoms, Melissa Parsons, Phil Morley Bushfire and Natural Hazards Cooperative Research Centre, Geography and Planning, University of New England, Armidale NSW 2351, Australia. Natural hazard management policy directions in Australia - and indeed internationally - are increasingly being aligned to ideas of resilience. Resilience to natural hazards is the ability of individuals and communities to cope with disturbance and adversity and to maintain adaptive behaviour. Operationalizing the measurement and assessment of disaster resilience is often undertaken using a composite index, but this exercise is yet to be undertaken in Australia. The Australian Natural Disaster Resilience Index is a top-down, national scale assessment of the resilience of communities to natural hazards. Resilience is assessed based on two sets of capacities: coping and adaptive capacities. Coping capacity relates to the factors influencing the ability of a community to prepare for, absorb and recover from a natural hazard event. Adaptive capacity relates to the arrangements and processes that enable adjustment through learning, adaptation and transformation. Indicators are derived under themes of social character, economic capital, infrastructure and planning, emergency services, community capital, information and engagement and governance/leadership/policy, using existing data sets (e.g. census data) or evaluation of policy and procedure (e.g. disaster management planning). A composite index of disaster resilience is then computed for each spatial division, giving national scale coverage. The results of the Australian Natural Disaster Resilience Index will be reported in a State of Disaster Resilience report, due in 2018. The index is co-designed with emergency service agencies, and will support policy development, planning, community engagement and emergency management.

Your Resilience is My Vulnerability: ‘Rules in Use’ in a Local Water Conflict

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Frank Sondershaus

2014-03-01

Full Text Available This paper uses an empirical analysis of a water conflict in the German state of Brandenburg to explore diverse constructions of vulnerability to water scarcity by local stakeholders. It demonstrates how, in the absence of effective formal institutions, these constructions are getting translated into conflictual resilience strategies practiced by these stakeholders, creating situations in which “your resilience is my vulnerability”. The novel contribution of the paper to resilience research is threefold. Firstly, it illustrates how the vulnerability and resilience of a socio-ecological system—such as small catchment—are socially constructed; that is, how they are not given but rather the product of stakeholders’ perceptions of threats and suitable responses to them. Secondly, the paper emphasizes the role of institutions—both formal and informal—in framing these vulnerability constructions and resilience strategies. Particular attention is paid to the importance of informal ‘rules in use’ emerging in the wake of (formal ‘institutional voids’ and how they work against collective solutions. Thirdly, by choosing a small-scale, commonplace dispute to study vulnerability and resilience, the paper seeks to redress the imbalance of resilience research (and policy on dramatic disaster events by revealing the relevance of everyday vulnerabilities, which may be less eye-catching but are far more widespread.

[Perspectives on resilience : trait or aptitude ?

Science.gov (United States)

Rolin, H; Fossion, P; Kotsou, I; Leys, C

2018-01-01

In this paper, we discuss various issues related to the concept of resilience, which is conventionally defined as a dynamic process allowing for a positive adaptation in a context of significant adversity. First, we try to draw the reader's attention to the importance of the concept of resilience in terms of public health. Second, we address the difficulty of measuring resilience in a relevant and operational manner. Third, we then address the question of whether resilience can be conceived only in the context of a confrontation with trauma, or whether its application can be relevant to the everyday nontraumatic adversity. In this regard, we introduce and define another coping strategy which is the Sense of Coherence (SOC). Fourth, we discuss the nature of resilience, that is to say, whether it should be considered as a personality trait or as an aptitude. We try to show that this problem arises from the difficulty to specify the emotional processes involved in resilience. Finally, we propose future research perspectives that should allow us to better understand the concept of resilience.

Resilience in women with autoimmune rheumatic diseases.

Science.gov (United States)

Rojas, Manuel; Rodriguez, Yhojan; Pacheco, Yovana; Zapata, Elizabeth; Monsalve, Diana M; Mantilla, Rubén D; Rodríguez-Jimenez, Monica; Ramírez-Santana, Carolina; Molano-González, Nicolás; Anaya, Juan-Manuel

2017-12-28

To evaluate the relationship between resilience and clinical outcomes in patients with autoimmune rheumatic diseases. Focus groups, individual interviews, and chart reviews were done to collect data on 188 women with autoimmune rheumatic diseases, namely rheumatoid arthritis (n=51), systemic lupus erythematosus (n=70), systemic sclerosis (n=35), and Sjögren's syndrome (n=32). Demographic, clinical, and laboratory variables were assessed including disease activity by patient reported outcomes. Resilience was evaluated by using the Brief Resilience Scale. Bivariate, multiple linear regression, and classification and regression trees were used to analyse data. Resilience was influenced by age, duration of disease, and socioeconomic status. Lower resilience scores were observed in younger patients (50years) had higher resilience scores regardless of socioeconomic status. There was no influence of disease activity on resilience. A particular behaviour was observed in systemic sclerosis in which patients with high socioeconomic status and regular physical activity had higher resilience scores. Resilience in patients with autoimmune rheumatic diseases is a continuum process influenced by age and socioeconomic status. The ways in which these variables along with exercise influence resilience deserve further investigation. Copyright © 2017 Société française de rhumatologie. Published by Elsevier SAS. All rights reserved.

Resilience in Utility Technologies

Science.gov (United States)

Seaton, Roger

The following sections are included: * Scope of paper * Preamble * Background to the case-study projects * Source projects * Resilience * Case study 1: Electricity generation * Context * Model * Case study 2: Water recycling * Context * Model * Case study 3: Ecotechnology and water treatment * Context * The problem of classification: Finding a classificatory solution * Application of the new taxonomy to water treatment * Concluding comments and questions * Conclusions * Questions and issues * Purposive or Purposeful? * Resilience: Flexibility and adaptivity? * Resilience: With respect of what? * Risk, uncertainty, surprise, emergence - What sort of shock, and who says so? * Co-evolutionary friction * References

A biphasic oxidation of alcohols to aldehydes and ketones using a simplified packed-bed microreactor

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andrew Bogdan

2009-04-01

Full Text Available We demonstrate the preparation and characterization of a simplified packed-bed microreactor using an immobilized TEMPO catalyst shown to oxidize primary and secondary alcohols via the biphasic Anelli-Montanari protocol. Oxidations occurred in high yields with great stability over time. We observed that plugs of aqueous oxidant and organic alcohol entered the reactor as plugs but merged into an emulsion on the packed-bed. The emulsion coalesced into larger plugs upon exiting the reactor, leaving the organic product separate from the aqueous by-products. Furthermore, the microreactor oxidized a wide range of alcohols and remained active in excess of 100 trials without showing any loss of catalytic activity.

Does Post Septoplasty Nasal Packing Reduce Complications?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bijan Naghibzadeh

2011-01-01

Full Text Available The main issues in nasal surgery are to stabilize the nose in the good position after surgery and preserve the cartilages and bones in the favorable situation and reduce the risk of deviation recurrence. Also it is necessary to avoid the synechia formation, nasal valve narrowing, hematoma and bleeding. Due to the above mentioned problems and in order to solve and minimize them nasal packing, nasal splint and nasal mold have been advised. Patients for whom the nasal packing used may faced to some problems like naso-pulmonary reflex, intractable pain, sleep disorder, post operation infection and very dangerous complication like toxic shock syndrome. We have two groups of patients and three surgeons (one of the surgeons used post operative nasal packing in his patients and the two others surgeons did not.Complications and morbidities were compared in these two groups. Comparing the two groups showed that the rate of complication and morbidities between these two groups were same and the differences were not valuable, except the pain and discomfort post operatively and at the time of its removal. Nasal packing has several risks for the patients while its effects are not studied. Septoplasty can be safely performed without postoperative nasal packing. Nasal packing had no main findings that compensated its usage. Septal suture is one of the procedures that can be used as alternative method to nasal packing. Therefore the nasal packing after septoplasty should be reserved for the patients with increased risk of bleeding.

The mechanical behaviour of packed particulates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dutton, R.

1998-01-01

Within the Canadian Nuclear Fuel Waste Management program, the central concept is to package used fuel in containers that would be deposited in an underground vault in a plutonic rock formation. To provide internal mechanical support for the container, the reference design specifies it to be filled with a matrix of compacted particulate material (called 'packed particulate'), such as quartz sand granules. The focus of this report is on the mechanical properties of the packed-particulate material, based on information drawn from the extant literature. We first consider the packing density of particulate matrices to minimize the remnant porosity and maximize mechanical stability under conditions of external pressure. Practical methods, involving vibratory packing, are reviewed and recommendations made to select techniques to achieve optimum packing density. The behaviour of particulates under compressive loading has been of interest to the powder metallurgy industry (i.e., the manufacture of products from pressed/sintered metal and ceramic powders) since the early decades of this century. We review the evidence showing that in short timescales, stress induced compaction occurs by particle shuffling and rearrangement, elastic distortion, plastic yielding and microfracturing. Analytical expressions are available to describe these processes in a semiquantitative fashion. Time-dependent compaction, mainly via creep mechanisms, is more complex. Much of the theoretical and experimental information is confined to higher temperatures (> 500 degrees C), where deformation rates are more rapid. Thus, for the relatively low ambient temperatures of the waste container (∼100 degrees C), we require analytical techniques to extrapolate the collective particulate creep behaviour. This is largely accomplished by employing current theories of creep deformation, particularly in the form of Deformation Mechanism Maps, which allow estimation of creep rates over a wide range of stress

The mechanical behaviour of packed particulates

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dutton, R

1998-01-01

Within the Canadian Nuclear Fuel Waste Management program, the central concept is to package used fuel in containers that would be deposited in an underground vault in a plutonic rock formation. To provide internal mechanical support for the container, the reference design specifies it to be filled with a matrix of compacted particulate material (called 'packed particulate'), such as quartz sand granules. The focus of this report is on the mechanical properties of the packed-particulate material, based on information drawn from the extant literature. We first consider the packing density of particulate matrices to minimize the remnant porosity and maximize mechanical stability under conditions of external pressure. Practical methods, involving vibratory packing, are reviewed and recommendations made to select techniques to achieve optimum packing density. The behaviour of particulates under compressive loading has been of interest to the powder metallurgy industry (i.e., the manufacture of products from pressed/sintered metal and ceramic powders) since the early decades of this century. We review the evidence showing that in short timescales, stress induced compaction occurs by particle shuffling and rearrangement, elastic distortion, plastic yielding and microfracturing. Analytical expressions are available to describe these processes in a semiquantitative fashion. Time-dependent compaction, mainly via creep mechanisms, is more complex. Much of the theoretical and experimental information is confined to higher temperatures (> 500 degrees C), where deformation rates are more rapid. Thus, for the relatively low ambient temperatures of the waste container ({approx}100 degrees C), we require analytical techniques to extrapolate the collective particulate creep behaviour. This is largely accomplished by employing current theories of creep deformation, particularly in the form of Deformation Mechanism Maps, which allow estimation of creep rates over a wide

To compare efficacy & discomfort in posterior nasal packing with foley's catheters versus bipp gauze packing in cases of posterior epistaxis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Khan, M.A.; Ahmed, A.

2015-01-01

To compare efficacy and discomfort in posterior nasal packing with Foley's catheters versus BIPP gauze packing in cases of posterior epistaxis. Study Design: Randomized controlled trial. Place and Duration of Study: Combined Military Hospital (CMH) Kharian from October 2011 to October 2013. Material and Methods: A total of 206 patients of posterior epistaxis were included in the study through non-probability convenience sampling and randomly divided in two groups of 103 each. In group A patients were treated by posterior nasal packing with Foley's catheter and in group B patients were treated by posterior nasal packing with BIPP gauze and results in terms of control of epistaxis and discomfort during pack insertion, while the packs were in situ and pack removal, based on VAS (Visual Analogue Scale) were observed. Results: Average age in group A was 52.64 years (SD=9.57) and in group B it was 50.27 years (SD ± 10.13). There were 71 (68.9%) males in group A while 67 (65%) males in group B. During posterior nasal pack insertion, the mean pain score in Group A was 6.21 (SD ± I.13) and in Group B was 7.43 (SD ± 1.19). The mean pain score with the pack in situ was 4.27 (SD ± 0.08) in Group A versus 4.76 (SD ± 0.09) Group B. Similarly pack removal was also more painful in group B than group A (6.14 ± 0.91 vs 6.89 ± 1.09) (p =0.000). In the group A, 31 (30.1%) patients had rebleeding after pack removal, out of which 9 (8.7%) had significant bleeding requiring repacking. In 22 (21.4%) cases there was mild bleeding which settled without repacking. In group B 22 (21.4%) patients had rebleeding after pack removal, out of which 5 (4.7%) had significant bleeding requiring repacking. Conclusion: It is concluded that posterior nasal packing with BIPP gauze pack is effective for controlling posterior epistaxis but causes more discomfort to the patients as compared to Foley's catheter packing. (author)

Intervention studies to foster resilience - A systematic review and proposal for a resilience framework in future intervention studies.

Science.gov (United States)

Chmitorz, A; Kunzler, A; Helmreich, I; Tüscher, O; Kalisch, R; Kubiak, T; Wessa, M; Lieb, K

2018-02-01

Psychological resilience refers to the phenomenon that many people are able to adapt to the challenges of life and maintain mental health despite exposure to adversity. This has stimulated research on training programs to foster psychological resilience. We evaluated concepts, methods and designs of 43 randomized controlled trials published between 1979 and 2014 which assessed the efficacy of such training programs and propose standards for future intervention research based on recent developments in the field. We found that concepts, methods and designs in current resilience intervention studies are of limited use to properly assess efficacy of interventions to foster resilience. Major problems are the use of definitions of resilience as trait or a composite of resilience factors, the use of unsuited assessment instruments, and inappropriate study designs. To overcome these challenges, we propose 1) an outcome-oriented definition of resilience, 2) an outcome-oriented assessment of resilience as change in mental health in relation to stressor load, and 3) methodological standards for suitable study designs of future intervention studies. Our proposals may contribute to an improved quality of resilience intervention studies and may stimulate further progress in this growing research field. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

Resilience definitions, theory, and challenges: interdisciplinary perspectives.

Science.gov (United States)

Southwick, Steven M; Bonanno, George A; Masten, Ann S; Panter-Brick, Catherine; Yehuda, Rachel

2014-01-01

In this paper, inspired by the plenary panel at the 2013 meeting of the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies, Dr. Steven Southwick (chair) and multidisciplinary panelists Drs. George Bonanno, Ann Masten, Catherine Panter-Brick, and Rachel Yehuda tackle some of the most pressing current questions in the field of resilience research including: (1) how do we define resilience, (2) what are the most important determinants of resilience, (3) how are new technologies informing the science of resilience, and (4) what are the most effective ways to enhance resilience? These multidisciplinary experts provide insight into these difficult questions, and although each of the panelists had a slightly different definition of resilience, most of the proposed definitions included a concept of healthy, adaptive, or integrated positive functioning over the passage of time in the aftermath of adversity. The panelists agreed that resilience is a complex construct and it may be defined differently in the context of individuals, families, organizations, societies, and cultures. With regard to the determinants of resilience, there was a consensus that the empirical study of this construct needs to be approached from a multiple level of analysis perspective that includes genetic, epigenetic, developmental, demographic, cultural, economic, and social variables. The empirical study of determinates of resilience will inform efforts made at fostering resilience, with the recognition that resilience may be enhanced on numerous levels (e.g., individual, family, community, culture).

Resilience definitions, theory, and challenges: interdisciplinary perspectives

Science.gov (United States)

Southwick, Steven M.; Bonanno, George A.; Masten, Ann S.; Panter-Brick, Catherine; Yehuda, Rachel

2014-01-01

In this paper, inspired by the plenary panel at the 2013 meeting of the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies, Dr. Steven Southwick (chair) and multidisciplinary panelists Drs. George Bonanno, Ann Masten, Catherine Panter-Brick, and Rachel Yehuda tackle some of the most pressing current questions in the field of resilience research including: (1) how do we define resilience, (2) what are the most important determinants of resilience, (3) how are new technologies informing the science of resilience, and (4) what are the most effective ways to enhance resilience? These multidisciplinary experts provide insight into these difficult questions, and although each of the panelists had a slightly different definition of resilience, most of the proposed definitions included a concept of healthy, adaptive, or integrated positive functioning over the passage of time in the aftermath of adversity. The panelists agreed that resilience is a complex construct and it may be defined differently in the context of individuals, families, organizations, societies, and cultures. With regard to the determinants of resilience, there was a consensus that the empirical study of this construct needs to be approached from a multiple level of analysis perspective that includes genetic, epigenetic, developmental, demographic, cultural, economic, and social variables. The empirical study of determinates of resilience will inform efforts made at fostering resilience, with the recognition that resilience may be enhanced on numerous levels (e.g., individual, family, community, culture). PMID:25317257

Transdisciplinary application of the cross-scale resilience model

Science.gov (United States)

Sundstrom, Shana M.; Angeler, David G.; Garmestani, Ahjond S.; Garcia, Jorge H.; Allen, Craig R.

2014-01-01

The cross-scale resilience model was developed in ecology to explain the emergence of resilience from the distribution of ecological functions within and across scales, and as a tool to assess resilience. We propose that the model and the underlying discontinuity hypothesis are relevant to other complex adaptive systems, and can be used to identify and track changes in system parameters related to resilience. We explain the theory behind the cross-scale resilience model, review the cases where it has been applied to non-ecological systems, and discuss some examples of social-ecological, archaeological/ anthropological, and economic systems where a cross-scale resilience analysis could add a quantitative dimension to our current understanding of system dynamics and resilience. We argue that the scaling and diversity parameters suitable for a resilience analysis of ecological systems are appropriate for a broad suite of systems where non-normative quantitative assessments of resilience are desired. Our planet is currently characterized by fast environmental and social change, and the cross-scale resilience model has the potential to quantify resilience across many types of complex adaptive systems.

Designing medical technology for resilience: integrating health economics and human factors approaches.

Science.gov (United States)

Borsci, Simone; Uchegbu, Ijeoma; Buckle, Peter; Ni, Zhifang; Walne, Simon; Hanna, George B

2018-01-01

The slow adoption of innovation into healthcare calls into question the manner of evidence generation for medical technology. This paper identifies potential reasons for this including a lack of attention to human factors, poor evaluation of economic benefits, lack of understanding of the existing healthcare system and a failure to recognise the need to generate resilient products. Areas covered: Recognising a cross-disciplinary need to enhance evidence generation early in a technology's life cycle, the present paper proposes a new approach that integrates human factors and health economic evaluation as part of a wider systems approach to the design of technology. This approach (Human and Economic Resilience Design for Medical Technology or HERD MedTech) supports early stages of product development and is based on the recent experiences of the National Institute for Health Research London Diagnostic Evidence Co-operative in the UK. Expert commentary: HERD MedTech i) proposes a shift from design for usability to design for resilience, ii) aspires to reduce the need for service adaptation to technological constraints iii) ensures value of innovation at the time of product development, and iv) aims to stimulate discussion around the integration of pre- and post-market methods of assessment of medical technology.

Estimating cigarette tax avoidance and evasion: evidence from a national sample of littered packs.

Science.gov (United States)

Barker, Dianne C; Wang, Shu; Merriman, David; Crosby, Andrew; Resnick, Elissa A; Chaloupka, Frank J

2016-10-01

A number of recent studies document the proportion of all cigarette packs that are 'contraband' using discarded packs to measure tax avoidance and evasion, which we call tax non-compliance. To date, academic studies using discarded packs focused on relatively small geographical areas such as a city or a neighbourhood. We visited 160 communities across 38 US states in 2012 and collected data from littered cigarette packs as part of the State and Community Tobacco Control (SCTC) Research Initiative and the Bridging the Gap Community Obesity Measures Project (BTG-COMP). Data collectors were trained in a previously tested littered pack data collection protocol. Field teams collected 2116 packs with cellophane across 132 communities. We estimate a national tax non-compliance rate of 18.5% with considerable variation across regions. Suburban areas had lower non-compliance than urban areas as well as areas with high and low median household income areas compared with middle income areas. We present the first academic national study of tax non-compliance using littered cigarette packs. We demonstrate the feasibility of meaningful large-scale data collection using this methodology and document considerable variation in tax non-compliance across areas, suggesting that both policy differences and geography may be important in control of illicit tobacco use. Given the geography of open borders among countries with varying tax rates, this simple methodology may be appropriate to estimate tax non-compliance in countries that use tax stamps or other pack markings, such as health warnings. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/.

The Measurement and Role of Ecological Resilience Systems Theory Across Domain-Specific Outcomes: The Domain-Specific Resilient Systems Scales.

Science.gov (United States)

Maltby, John; Day, Liz; Hall, Sophie S; Chivers, Sally

2017-10-01

Research suggests that trait resilience may be best understood within an ecological resilient systems theory, comprising engineering, ecological, and adaptive capacity resilience. However, there is no evidence as to how this theory translates to specific life domains. Data from two samples (the United States, n = 1,278; the United Kingdom, n = 211) facilitated five studies that introduce the Domain-Specific Resilient Systems Scales for assessing ecological resilient systems theory within work, health, marriage, friendships, and education. The Domain-Specific Resilient Systems Scales are found to predict unique variance in job satisfaction, lower job burnout, quality-of-life following illness, marriage commitment, and educational engagement, while controlling for factors including sex, age, personality, cognitive ability, and trait resilience. The findings also suggest a distinction between the three resilience dimensions in terms of the types of systems to which they contribute. Engineering resilience may contribute most to life domains where an established system needs to be maintained, for example, one's health. Ecological resilience may contribute most to life domains where the system needs sustainability in terms of present and future goal orientation, for example, one's work. Adaptive Capacity may contribute most to life domains where the system needs to be retained, preventing it from reaching a crisis state, for example, work burnout.

A Quantitative Study on Packing Density and Pozzolanic Activity of Cementitious Materials Based on the Compaction Packing Model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gong, Jianqing; Chou, Kai; Huang, Zheng Yu; Zhao, Minghua

2014-01-01

A brief introduction to the theoretical basis of compaction packing model (CPM) and an over-view of the principle of the specific strength method provided the starting point of this study. Then, research on quantitative relations was carried out to find the correlation between the contribution rate of the pozzolanic activity and the contribution value of packing density when CPM was applied to fine powder mixture systems. The concept of the contribution value of the packing density being in direct correspondence with the contribution rate was proved by the compressive strength results and SEM images. The results indicated that the variation rule of the contribution rate of the pozzolanic activity is similar to that of the contribution value of packing density as calculated by CPM. This means the contribution value of the packing density could approximately simulate the change tendency of the contribution rate of the pozzolanic activity, which is of significant value for the future of mix designs for high and ultra-high performance concrete

Impact of Natural Disasters on Livelihood Resilience of Sichuan Rural Residents and Policy Implementation

Science.gov (United States)

Fang, Yiping

2017-04-01

rural households. From local government perspective, there is need for effective policies and interventions, for example, optimization the structure of financial resources, expansion the scale and channels of financial resources, and improvement the efficiency of fiscal expenditure, that can enhance investment in the agricultural infrastructure and disaster early warning system for improving livelihood resilience. From rural household perspective, livelihood strategies, increasing in education, productive expenditure are very effective in the long term when they are complemented by appropriate public policies such as subsidies of agricultural production material, compulsory education, professional training and innovation of rural residents' perception at different scales.

Resilience in Aging Mice.

Science.gov (United States)

Kirkland, James L; Stout, Michael B; Sierra, Felipe

2016-11-01

Recently discovered interventions that target fundamental aging mechanisms have been shown to increase life span in mice and other species, and in some cases, these same manipulations have been shown to enhance health span and alleviate multiple age-related diseases and conditions. Aging is generally associated with decreases in resilience, the capacity to respond to or recover from clinically relevant stresses such as surgery, infections, or vascular events. We hypothesize that the age-related increase in susceptibility to those diseases and conditions is driven by or associated with the decrease in resilience. Thus, a test for resilience at middle age or even earlier could represent a surrogate approach to test the hypothesis that an intervention delays the process of aging itself. For this, animal models to test resilience accurately and predictably are needed. In addition, interventions that increase resilience might lead to treatments aimed at enhancing recovery following acute illnesses, or preventing poor outcomes from medical interventions in older, prefrail subjects. At a meeting of basic researchers and clinicians engaged in research on mechanisms of aging and care of the elderly, the merits and drawbacks of investigating effects of interventions on resilience in mice were considered. Available and potential stressors for assessing physiological resilience as well as the notion of developing a limited battery of such stressors and how to rank them were discussed. Relevant ranking parameters included value in assessing general health (as opposed to focusing on a single physiological system), ease of use, cost, reproducibility, clinical relevance, and feasibility of being repeated in the same animal longitudinally. During the discussions it became clear that, while this is an important area, very little is known or established. Much more research is needed in the near future to develop appropriate tests of resilience in animal models within an aging context

The Resilience Assessment Framework: a common indicator for land management?

Science.gov (United States)

Cowie, Annette; Metternicht, Graciela; O'Connell, Deborah

2015-04-01

At the Rio+20 conference in June 2013, the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), and the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) reinforced their mutual interests in building linkages between biodiversity conservation, sustainable land management, and climate change mitigation and adaptation. The UNCCD sees building resilience of agro-ecosystems as a common interest that could strengthen linkages between the conventions and deliver synergies in progressing goals of each of the conventions. Furthermore, enhancing resilience of productive agro-ecosystems is fundamental to food security and sustainable development, and thus aligns with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The Global Environment Facility (GEF) shares the interest of the conventions in building resilience in agro-ecosystems. Indicators of resilience are required for monitoring progress in these endeavors, application of a common indicator between the UNCCD, UNFCCC and CBD as a measure of both land-based adaptation and ecosystem resilience, could strengthen links between the conventions and increase attention to the broad benefits of improved land management. Consequently, the Scientific and Technical Advisory Panel (STAP) to the GEF commissioned the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) to produce a report reviewing the conceptual basis for resilience, and proposing an indicator approach that could meet the needs of the Conventions and the GEF for an indicator of agro-ecosystem resilience and land-based adaption. The paper presents a synthesis of scientific understanding of resilience in agro-ecosystems, reviews indicators that have been proposed, and, having concluded that none of the extant indicator approaches adequately assesses resilience of agro-ecosystems, proposes a new approach to the assessment of resilience. Recognizing that no single indicator of resilience is

Characterisation of Wear Resistant Boride Layers on a Tool Steel by Activity Controlled Pack Boronising

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Fernandes, Frederico Augusto Pires; Christiansen, Thomas Lundin; Somers, Marcel A. J.

2015-01-01

The present work addresses the production and characterisation of iron boride layers by pack boronising of a Vanadis 6 tool steel. The boride layers were produced at 900°C for 2h using different pack compositions in order to obtain a single-phase boride layer. The layers were characterized...... by electron microscopy, glow discharge optical emission spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, Vickers hardness tests and wear testing with a pin-on-disc tribometer. It was found that the type of boride phases (FeB and/or Fe2B) present in the treated layer can be controlled by changing the boron activity...... by pack boronising for all conditions as compared to the heat treated tool steel....

The Resiliency Scale for Young Adults

Science.gov (United States)

Prince-Embury, Sandra; Saklofske, Donald H.; Nordstokke, David W.

2017-01-01

The Resiliency Scale for Young Adults (RSYA) is presented as an upward extension of the Resiliency Scales for Children and Adolescents (RSCA). The RSYA is based on the "three-factor model of personal resiliency" including "mastery," "relatedness," and "emotional reactivity." Several stages of scale…

Power Packing

Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Podcasts

2011-08-16

In this podcast for kids, the Kidtastics talk about how to pack a lunch safely, to help keep you from getting sick.  Created: 8/16/2011 by National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases (NCEZID).   Date Released: 8/16/2011.

Metrics for energy resilience

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Roege, Paul E.; Collier, Zachary A.; Mancillas, James; McDonagh, John A.; Linkov, Igor

2014-01-01

Energy lies at the backbone of any advanced society and constitutes an essential prerequisite for economic growth, social order and national defense. However there is an Achilles heel to today's energy and technology relationship; namely a precarious intimacy between energy and the fiscal, social, and technical systems it supports. Recently, widespread and persistent disruptions in energy systems have highlighted the extent of this dependence and the vulnerability of increasingly optimized systems to changing conditions. Resilience is an emerging concept that offers to reconcile considerations of performance under dynamic environments and across multiple time frames by supplementing traditionally static system performance measures to consider behaviors under changing conditions and complex interactions among physical, information and human domains. This paper identifies metrics useful to implement guidance for energy-related planning, design, investment, and operation. Recommendations are presented using a matrix format to provide a structured and comprehensive framework of metrics relevant to a system's energy resilience. The study synthesizes previously proposed metrics and emergent resilience literature to provide a multi-dimensional model intended for use by leaders and practitioners as they transform our energy posture from one of stasis and reaction to one that is proactive and which fosters sustainable growth. - Highlights: • Resilience is the ability of a system to recover from adversity. • There is a need for methods to quantify and measure system resilience. • We developed a matrix-based approach to generate energy resilience metrics. • These metrics can be used in energy planning, system design, and operations

A fungal biofilm reactor based on metal structured packing improves the quality of a Gla::GFP fusion protein produced by Aspergillus oryzae.

Science.gov (United States)

Zune, Q; Delepierre, A; Gofflot, S; Bauwens, J; Twizere, J C; Punt, P J; Francis, F; Toye, D; Bawin, T; Delvigne, F

2015-08-01

Fungal biofilm is known to promote the excretion of secondary metabolites in accordance with solid-state-related physiological mechanisms. This work is based on the comparative analysis of classical submerged fermentation with a fungal biofilm reactor for the production of a Gla::green fluorescent protein (GFP) fusion protein by Aspergillus oryzae. The biofilm reactor comprises a metal structured packing allowing the attachment of the fungal biomass. Since the production of the target protein is under the control of the promoter glaB, specifically induced in solid-state fermentation, the biofilm mode of culture is expected to enhance the global productivity. Although production of the target protein was enhanced by using the biofilm mode of culture, we also found that fusion protein production is also significant when the submerged mode of culture is used. This result is related to high shear stress leading to biomass autolysis and leakage of intracellular fusion protein into the extracellular medium. Moreover, 2-D gel electrophoresis highlights the preservation of fusion protein integrity produced in biofilm conditions. Two fungal biofilm reactor designs were then investigated further, i.e. with full immersion of the packing or with medium recirculation on the packing, and the scale-up potentialities were evaluated. In this context, it has been shown that full immersion of the metal packing in the liquid medium during cultivation allows for a uniform colonization of the packing by the fungal biomass and leads to a better quality of the fusion protein.

What do you mean, 'resilient geomorphic systems'?

Science.gov (United States)

Thoms, M. C.; Piégay, H.; Parsons, M.

2018-03-01

Resilience thinking has many parallels in the study of geomorphology. Similarities and intersections exist between the scientific discipline of geomorphology and the scientific concept of resilience. Many of the core themes fundamental to geomorphology are closely related to the key themes of resilience. Applications of resilience thinking in the study of natural and human systems have expanded, based on the fundamental premise that ecosystems, economies, and societies must be managed as linked social-ecological systems. Despite geomorphology and resilience sharing core themes, appreciation is limited of the history and development of geomorphology as a field of scientific endeavor by many in the field of resilience, as well as a limited awareness of the foundations of the former in the more recent emergence of resilience. This potentially limits applications of resilience concepts to the study of geomorphology. In this manuscript we provide a collective examination of geomorphology and resilience as a means to conceptually advance both areas of study, as well as to further cement the relevance and importance of not only understanding the complexities of geomorphic systems in an emerging world of interdisciplinary challenges but also the importance of viewing humans as an intrinsic component of geomorphic systems rather than just an external driver. The application of the concepts of hierarchy and scale, fundamental tenets of the study of geomorphic systems, provide a means to overcome contemporary scale-limited approaches within resilience studies. Resilience offers a framework for geomorphology to expand its application into the broader social-ecological domain.

Decontamination of pesticide packing using ionizing radiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Duarte, C.L.; Mori, M.N.; Kodama, Yasko; Oikawa, H.; Sampa, M.H.O.

2007-01-01

The Brazilian agriculture activities have consumed about 288,000 tons of pesticides per year conditioned in about 107,000,000 packing with weight of approximately 23,000 tons. The discharge of empty plastic packing of pesticides can be an environmental concern causing problems to human health, animals, and plants if done without inspection and monitoring. The objective of this work is to study the ionizing radiation effect in the main pesticides used in Brazil for plastic packing decontamination. Among the commercial pesticides, chlorpyrifos has significant importance because of its wide distribution and extensive use and persistence. The radiation-induced degradation of chlorpyrifos in liquid samples and in polyethylene pack was studied by gamma radiolysis. Packing of high-density polyethylene (HDPE) three layer coextruded, named COEX, contaminated with chlorpyrifos, were irradiated using both a multipurpose Co-60 gamma irradiator and a gamma source with 5000 Ci total activity Gamma cell type. The chemical analysis of the chlorpyrifos was made using a gas chromatography associated to the Mass Spectrometry-GCMS from Shimadzu Model QP 5000. Gamma radiation was efficient for removing chlorpyrifos from the plastic packing, in all studied cases

Decontamination of pesticide packing using ionizing radiation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Duarte, C.L. [Instituto de Pesquisas Energeticas e Nucleares-IPEN-CNEN/SP Av. Lineu Prestes 2.242, 05508-900, Sao Paulo, SP (Brazil)], E-mail: clduarte@ipen.br; Mori, M.N.; Kodama, Yasko; Oikawa, H.; Sampa, M.H.O. [Instituto de Pesquisas Energeticas e Nucleares-IPEN-CNEN/SP Av. Lineu Prestes 2.242, 05508-900, Sao Paulo, SP (Brazil)

2007-11-15

The Brazilian agriculture activities have consumed about 288,000 tons of pesticides per year conditioned in about 107,000,000 packing with weight of approximately 23,000 tons. The discharge of empty plastic packing of pesticides can be an environmental concern causing problems to human health, animals, and plants if done without inspection and monitoring. The objective of this work is to study the ionizing radiation effect in the main pesticides used in Brazil for plastic packing decontamination. Among the commercial pesticides, chlorpyrifos has significant importance because of its wide distribution and extensive use and persistence. The radiation-induced degradation of chlorpyrifos in liquid samples and in polyethylene pack was studied by gamma radiolysis. Packing of high-density polyethylene (HDPE) three layer coextruded, named COEX, contaminated with chlorpyrifos, were irradiated using both a multipurpose Co-60 gamma irradiator and a gamma source with 5000 Ci total activity Gamma cell type. The chemical analysis of the chlorpyrifos was made using a gas chromatography associated to the Mass Spectrometry-GCMS from Shimadzu Model QP 5000. Gamma radiation was efficient for removing chlorpyrifos from the plastic packing, in all studied cases.

ObsPack: a framework for the preparation, delivery, and attribution of atmospheric greenhouse gas data

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Masarie, K. A.; Peters, W.; Jacobson, A. R.; Tans, P. P.

2014-01-01

Observation Package (ObsPack) is a framework designed to bring together atmospheric greenhouse gas observations from a variety of sampling platforms, prepare them with specific applications in mind, and package and distribute them in a self-consistent and well-documented product. Data products

ObsPack: a framework for the preparation, delivery, and attribution of atmospheric greenhouse gas measurements

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Masarie, K. A.; Peters, W.; Jacobson, A. R.; Tans, P. P.

2014-01-01

Observation Package (ObsPack) is a framework designed to bring together atmospheric greenhouse gas observations from a variety of sampling platforms, prepare them with specific applications in mind, and package and distribute them in a self-consistent and well-documented product. Data products

HETP evaluation of structured packing distillation column

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. E. Orlando Jr.

2009-09-01

Full Text Available Several tests with a hydrocarbon mixture of known composition (C8-C14, obtained from DETEN Chemistry S.A., have been performed in a laboratory distillation column, having 40mm of nominal diameter and 2.2m high, with internals of Sulzer DX gauze stainless steel structured packing. The main purpose of this work was to evaluate HETP of a structured packing laboratory scale distillation column, operating continuously. Six HETP correlations available in the literature were compared in order to find out which is the most appropriate for structured packing columns working with medium distillates. Prior to the experimental tests, simulation studies using commercial software PRO/II® were performed in order to establish the optimum operational conditions for the distillation, especially concerning operating pressure, top and bottom temperatures, feed location and reflux ratio. The results of PRO/II® were very similar to the analysis of the products obtained during continuous operation, therefore permitting the use of the properties calculated by that software on the theoretical models investigated. The theoretical models chosen for HETP evaluation were: Bravo, Rocha and Fair (1985; Rocha, Bravo and Fair (1993, 1996; Brunazzi and Pagliant (1997; Carlo, Olujić and Pagliant (2006; Olujić et al., (2004. Modifications concerning calculation of specific areas were performed on the correlations in order to fit them for gauze packing HETP evaluation. As the laboratory distillation column was operated continuously, different HETP values were found by the models investigated for each section of the column. The low liquid flow rates in the top section of the column are a source of error for HETP evaluation by the models; therefore, more reliable HETP values were found in the bottom section, in which liquid flow rates were much greater. Among the theoretical models, Olujić et al. (2004 has shown good results relative to the experimental tests. In addition, the

Regional employment growth, shocks and regional industrial resilience

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Holm, Jacob Rubæk; Østergaard, Christian Richter

2013-01-01

The resilience of regional industries to economic shocks has gained a lot of attention in evolutionary economic geography recently. This paper uses a novel quantitative approach to investigate the regional industrial resilience of the Danish ICT sector to the shock following the burst of the dot......-com bubble. It is shown that regions characterised by small and young ICT service companies were more adaptable and grew more than others, while diversity and urbanisation increased the sensitivity to the business cycle after the shock. Different types of resilient regions are found: adaptively resilient......, rigidly resilient, entrepreneurially resilient and non-resilient regions....

Pictorial cigarette pack warnings: a meta-analysis of experimental studies.

Science.gov (United States)

Noar, Seth M; Hall, Marissa G; Francis, Diane B; Ribisl, Kurt M; Pepper, Jessica K; Brewer, Noel T

2016-05-01

To inform international research and policy, we conducted a meta-analysis of the experimental literature on pictorial cigarette pack warnings. We systematically searched 7 computerised databases in April 2013 using several search terms. We also searched reference lists of relevant articles. We included studies that used an experimental protocol to test cigarette pack warnings and reported data on both pictorial and text-only conditions. 37 studies with data on 48 independent samples (N=33,613) met criteria. Two independent coders coded all study characteristics. Effect sizes were computed from data extracted from study reports and were combined using random effects meta-analytic procedures. Pictorial warnings were more effective than text-only warnings for 12 of 17 effectiveness outcomes (all pnegative pack attitudes and negative smoking attitudes and (4) more effectively increased intentions to not start smoking and to quit smoking. Participants also perceived pictorial warnings as being more effective than text-only warnings across all 8 perceived effectiveness outcomes. The evidence from this international body of literature supports pictorial cigarette pack warnings as more effective than text-only warnings. Gaps in the literature include a lack of assessment of smoking behaviour and a dearth of theory-based research on how warnings exert their effects. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/

Resilience | Science Inventory | US EPA

Science.gov (United States)

Resilience is an important framework for understanding and managing complex systems of people and nature that are subject to abrupt and nonlinear change. The idea of ecological resilience was slow to gain acceptance in the scientific community, taking thirty years to become widely accepted (Gunderson 2000, cited under Original Definition). Currently, the concept is commonplace in academics, management, and policy. Although the idea has quantitative roots in the ecological sciences and was proposed as a measurable quality of ecosystems, the broad use of resilience led to an expansion of definitions and applications. Holling’s original definition, presented in 1973 (Holling 1973, cited under Original Definition), was simply the amount of disturbance that a system can withstand before it shifts into an alternative stability domain. Ecological resilience, therefore, emphasizes that the dynamics of complex systems are nonlinear, meaning that these systems can transition, often abruptly, between dynamic states with substantially different structures, functions, and processes. The transition of ecological systems from one state to another frequently has important repercussions for humans. Recent definitions are more normative and qualitative, especially in the social sciences, and a competing definition, that of engineering resilience, is still often used. Resilience is an emergent phenomenon of complex systems, which means it cannot be deduced from the behavior of t

Measuring county resilience after the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake

Science.gov (United States)

Li, X.; Lam, N.; Qiang, Y.; Li, K.; Yin, L.; Liu, S.; Zheng, W.

2015-01-01

The catastrophic earthquake in 2008 has caused serious damage to Wenchuan County and the surrounding area in China. In recent years, great attention has been paid to the resilience of the affected area. This study applied a new framework, the Resilience Inference Measurement (RIM) model, to quantify and validate the community resilience of 105 counties in the affected area. The RIM model uses cluster analysis to classify counties into four resilience levels according to the exposure, damage, and recovery conditions, and then applies discriminant analysis to quantify the influence of socioeconomic characteristics on the county resilience. The analysis results show that counties located right at the epicenter had the lowest resilience, but counties immediately adjacent to the epicenter had the highest resilience capacities. Counties that were farther away from the epicenter returned to normal resiliency. The socioeconomic variables, including sex ratio, per capita GDP, percent of ethnic minority, and medical facilities, were identified as the most influential socio-economic characteristics on resilience. This study provides useful information to improve county resilience to earthquakes and support decision-making for sustainable development.

Interrogating resilience in health systems development.

Science.gov (United States)

van de Pas, Remco; Ashour, Majdi; Kapilashrami, Anuj; Fustukian, Suzanne

2017-11-01

The Fourth Global Symposium on Health Systems Research was themed around 'Resilient and responsive health systems for a changing world.' This commentary is the outcome of a panel discussion at the symposium in which the resilience discourse and its use in health systems development was critically interrogated. The 2014-15 Ebola outbreak in West-Africa added momentum for the wider adoption of resilient health systems as a crucial element to prepare for and effectively respond to crisis. The growing salience of resilience in development and health systems debates can be attributed in part to development actors and philanthropies such as the Rockefeller Foundation. Three concerns regarding the application of resilience to health systems development are discussed: (1) the resilience narrative overrules certain democratic procedures and priority setting in public health agendas by 'claiming' an exceptional policy space; (2) resilience compels accepting and maintaining the status quo and excludes alternative imaginations of just and equitable health systems including the socio-political struggles required to attain those; and (3) an empirical case study from Gaza makes the case that resilience and vulnerability are symbiotic with each other rather than providing a solution for developing a strong health system. In conclusion, if the normative aim of health policies is to build sustainable, universally accessible, health systems then resilience is not the answer. The current threats that health systems face demand us to imagine beyond and explore possibilities for global solidarity and justice in health. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press in association with The London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Healthy ageing, resilience and wellbeing.

Science.gov (United States)

Cosco, T D; Howse, K; Brayne, C

2017-12-01

The extension of life does not appear to be slowing, representing a great achievement for mankind as well as a challenge for ageing populations. As we move towards an increasingly older population we will need to find novel ways for individuals to make the best of the challenges they face, as the likelihood of encountering some form of adversity increases with age. Resilience theories share a common idea that individuals who manage to navigate adversity and maintain high levels of functioning demonstrate resilience. Traditional models of healthy ageing suggest that having a high level of functioning across a number of domains is a requirement. The addition of adversity to the healthy ageing model via resilience makes this concept much more accessible and more amenable to the ageing population. Through asset-based approaches, such as the invoking of individual, social and environmental resources, it is hoped that greater resilience can be fostered at a population level. Interventions aimed at fostering greater resilience may take many forms; however, there is great potential to increase social and environmental resources through public policy interventions. The wellbeing of the individual must be the focus of these efforts; quality of life is an integral component to the enjoyment of additional years and should not be overlooked. Therefore, it will become increasingly important to use resilience as a public health concept and to intervene through policy to foster greater resilience by increasing resources available to older people. Fostering wellbeing in the face of increasing adversity has significant implications for ageing individuals and society as a whole.

Urban form and fitness: Towards a space-morphological approach to general urban resilience

OpenAIRE

Forgaci, C.; Van Timmeren, A.

2014-01-01

Assessment is one of the greatest challenges of urban resilience research. The difficulty of this task arises from the increasing complexity of urban environments and from the unpredictability of external changes, two trends that have raised environmental awareness and, consequently, led to a growing debate on the relationship between city and nature. We join this debate by looking at urban resilience through the lens of urban form. We refer to urban form as a product of the continuous tensio...

Regional Employment Growth, Shocks and Regional Industrial Resilience

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Holm, J.R.; Østergaard, Christian Richter

2015-01-01

The resilience of regional industries to economic shocks has gained a lot of attention in evolutionary economic geography recently. This paper uses a novel quantitative approach to investigate the regional industrial resilience of the Danish information and communication technology (ICT) sector...... to the shock following the burst of the dot.com bubble. It is shown that regions characterized by small and young ICT service companies were more adaptable and grew more than others, while diversity and urbanization increased the sensitivity to the business cycle after the shock. Different types of resilient...... regions are found: adaptively resilient, rigidly resilient, entrepreneurially resilient and non-resilient regions....

A fuzzy logic based method to monitor organizational resilience: application in a brazilian radioactive facility

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Grecco, Claudio H.S.; Santos, Isaac J.A.L.; Carvalho, Paulo V.R.; Vidal, Mario C.R.; Cosenza, Carlos A.N.

2013-01-01

Resilience is the intrinsic ability of a system to adjust its functioning prior to, during, or following changes and disturbances, so that it can sustain required operations under expected and unexpected conditions. This definition focuses on the ability to function, rather than on being impervious to failure, and thereby overcomes the traditional conflict between productivity and safety. Resilience engineering (RE) has fast become recognized as a valuable complement to the established approaches to safety of complex socio-technical systems and methods to monitor organizational resilience are needed. However, few, if any, comprehensive and systematic research studies focus on developing an objective, reliable and practical assessment model for monitoring organizational resilience. Most methods cannot fully solve the subjectivity of resilience evaluation. In order to remedy this deficiency, the aim of this research is to adopt a Fuzzy Set Theory (FST) approach to establish a method for resilience assessment in organizations based on leading safety performance indicators, defined according to the resilience engineering principles. The method uses FST concepts and properties to model the indicators and to assess the results of their application. To exemplify the method we performed an exploratory case study at the process of radiopharmaceuticals dispatch package of a Brazilian radioactive facility. (author)

A fuzzy logic based method to monitor organizational resilience: application in a brazilian radioactive facility

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Grecco, Claudio H.S.; Santos, Isaac J.A.L.; Carvalho, Paulo V.R., E-mail: grecco@ien.gov.br, E-mail: luquetti@ien.gov.br, E-mail: paulov@ien.gov.br [Instituto de Engenharia Nuclear (IEN/CNEN-RJ), Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil). Divisao de Instrumentacao e Confiabilidade Humana; Vidal, Mario C.R.; Cosenza, Carlos A.N., E-mail: mvidal@ergonomia.ufrj.br, E-mail: cosenza@pep.ufrj.br [Coordenacao dos Programas de Pos-Graduacao em Engenharia (PEP/COPPE/UFRJ), Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil). Programa de Engenharia de Producao

2013-07-01

Resilience is the intrinsic ability of a system to adjust its functioning prior to, during, or following changes and disturbances, so that it can sustain required operations under expected and unexpected conditions. This definition focuses on the ability to function, rather than on being impervious to failure, and thereby overcomes the traditional conflict between productivity and safety. Resilience engineering (RE) has fast become recognized as a valuable complement to the established approaches to safety of complex socio-technical systems and methods to monitor organizational resilience are needed. However, few, if any, comprehensive and systematic research studies focus on developing an objective, reliable and practical assessment model for monitoring organizational resilience. Most methods cannot fully solve the subjectivity of resilience evaluation. In order to remedy this deficiency, the aim of this research is to adopt a Fuzzy Set Theory (FST) approach to establish a method for resilience assessment in organizations based on leading safety performance indicators, defined according to the resilience engineering principles. The method uses FST concepts and properties to model the indicators and to assess the results of their application. To exemplify the method we performed an exploratory case study at the process of radiopharmaceuticals dispatch package of a Brazilian radioactive facility. (author)

Temporal Changes in Community Resilience to Drought Hazard

Science.gov (United States)

Mihunov, V.

2017-12-01

The threat of droughts and their associated impacts on the landscape and human communities have long been recognized. While considerable research on the climatological aspect of droughts has been conducted, studies on the resilience of human communities to the effects of drought remain limited. Understanding how different communities respond to and recover from the drought hazard, i.e. their community resilience, should inform the development of better strategies to cope with the hazard. This research assesses community resilience to drought hazard in South-Central U.S. and captures the temporal changes of community resilience in the region facing the climate change. First, the study applies the Resilience Inference Measurement (RIM) framework using the existing drought incidence, crop damage, socio-economic and food-water-energy nexus variables, which allows to assign county-level resilience scores in the study region and derive variables contributing to the resilience. Second, it captures the temporal changes in community resilience by using the model extracted from the RIM study and socio-economic data from several consecutive time periods. The resilience measurement study should help understand the complex process underlying communities' response to the drought impacts. The results identify gaps in resilience planning and help the improvement of the community resilience to the droughts of increasing frequency and intensity.

Hashish Body Packing: A Case Report

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Manuel Jesus Soriano-Perez

2009-01-01

Full Text Available A 42-year-old African male was brought by the police to the emergency department under suspicion of drug smuggling by body-packing. Plain abdominal radiograph showed multiple foreign bodies within the gastrointestinal tract. Contrast-enhanced abdominal CT confirmed the findings, and the patient admitted to have swallowed “balls” of hashish. Body-packing is a recognized method of smuggling drugs across international borders. Body packers may present to the emergency department because of drug toxicity, intestinal obstruction, or more commonly, requested by law-enforcement officers for medical confirmation or exclusion of suspected body packing.

A new multidimensional measure of personal resilience and its use: Chinese nurse resilience, organizational socialization and career success.

Science.gov (United States)

Wei, Wei; Taormina, Robert J

2014-12-01

This study refined the concept of resilience and developed four valid and reliable subscales to measure resilience, namely, Determination, Endurance, Adaptability and Recuperability. The study also assessed their hypothesized relationships with six antecedent variables (worry, physiological needs satisfaction, organizational socialization, conscientiousness, future orientation and Chinese values) and with one outcome variable (nurses' career success). The four new 10-item subscale measures of personal resilience were constructed based on their operational definitions and tested for their validity and reliability. All items were included in a questionnaire completed by 244 full-time nurses at two hospitals in China. All four measures demonstrated concurrent validity and had high reliabilities (from 0.74 to 0.78). The hypothesized correlations with the personality and organizational variables were statistically significant and in the predicted directions. Regression analyses confirmed these relationships, which explained 25-32% of the variance for the four resilience facets and 27% of the variance for the nurses' career success. The results provided strong evidence that organizational socialization facilitates resilience, that resilience engenders career success and that identifying the four resilience facets permits a more complete understanding of personal resilience, which could benefit nurses, help nurse administrators with their work and also help in treating patients. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

36 CFR 34.10 - Saddle and pack animals.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Saddle and pack animals. 34... INTERIOR EL PORTAL ADMINISTRATIVE SITE REGULATIONS § 34.10 Saddle and pack animals. The use of saddle and pack animals is prohibited without a permit from the Superintendent. ...

CoolPack – Simulation tools for refrigeration systems

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jakobsen, Arne; Rasmussen, Bjarne D.; Andersen, Simon Engedal

1999-01-01

CoolPack is a collection of programs used for energy analysis and optimisation of refrigeration systems. CoolPack is developed at the Department of Energy Engineering at the Technical University of Denmark. The Danish Energy Agency finances the project. CoolPack is freeware and can be downloaded...

Resilience through adaptation.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Guus A Ten Broeke

Full Text Available Adaptation of agents through learning or evolution is an important component of the resilience of Complex Adaptive Systems (CAS. Without adaptation, the flexibility of such systems to cope with outside pressures would be much lower. To study the capabilities of CAS to adapt, social simulations with agent-based models (ABMs provide a helpful tool. However, the value of ABMs for studying adaptation depends on the availability of methodologies for sensitivity analysis that can quantify resilience and adaptation in ABMs. In this paper we propose a sensitivity analysis methodology that is based on comparing time-dependent probability density functions of output of ABMs with and without agent adaptation. The differences between the probability density functions are quantified by the so-called earth-mover's distance. We use this sensitivity analysis methodology to quantify the probability of occurrence of critical transitions and other long-term effects of agent adaptation. To test the potential of this new approach, it is used to analyse the resilience of an ABM of adaptive agents competing for a common-pool resource. Adaptation is shown to contribute positively to the resilience of this ABM. If adaptation proceeds sufficiently fast, it may delay or avert the collapse of this system.

Resilience through adaptation.

Science.gov (United States)

Ten Broeke, Guus A; van Voorn, George A K; Ligtenberg, Arend; Molenaar, Jaap

2017-01-01

Adaptation of agents through learning or evolution is an important component of the resilience of Complex Adaptive Systems (CAS). Without adaptation, the flexibility of such systems to cope with outside pressures would be much lower. To study the capabilities of CAS to adapt, social simulations with agent-based models (ABMs) provide a helpful tool. However, the value of ABMs for studying adaptation depends on the availability of methodologies for sensitivity analysis that can quantify resilience and adaptation in ABMs. In this paper we propose a sensitivity analysis methodology that is based on comparing time-dependent probability density functions of output of ABMs with and without agent adaptation. The differences between the probability density functions are quantified by the so-called earth-mover's distance. We use this sensitivity analysis methodology to quantify the probability of occurrence of critical transitions and other long-term effects of agent adaptation. To test the potential of this new approach, it is used to analyse the resilience of an ABM of adaptive agents competing for a common-pool resource. Adaptation is shown to contribute positively to the resilience of this ABM. If adaptation proceeds sufficiently fast, it may delay or avert the collapse of this system.

Sociotechnical Resilience: A Preliminary Concept.

Science.gov (United States)

Amir, Sulfikar; Kant, Vivek

2018-01-01

This article presents the concept of sociotechnical resilience by employing an interdisciplinary perspective derived from the fields of science and technology studies, human factors, safety science, organizational studies, and systems engineering. Highlighting the hybrid nature of sociotechnical systems, we identify three main constituents that characterize sociotechnical resilience: informational relations, sociomaterial structures, and anticipatory practices. Further, we frame sociotechnical resilience as undergirded by the notion of transformability with an emphasis on intentional activities, focusing on the ability of sociotechnical systems to shift from one form to another in the aftermath of shock and disturbance. We propose that the triad of relations, structures, and practices are fundamental aspects required to comprehend the resilience of sociotechnical systems during times of crisis. © 2017 Society for Risk Analysis.

Resilience and Coping After Hospital Mergers.

Science.gov (United States)

Russo, Cynthia; Calo, Oriana; Harrison, Georgia; Mahoney, Kathleen; Zavotsky, Kathleen Evanovich

The aim of this study was to explore the relationship between resilience and coping in frontline nurses working in a healthcare system that has recently undergone a merger. Hospital mergers are common in the current healthcare environment. Mergers can provide hospital nurses the opportunity to use and develop positive coping strategies to help remain resilient during times of change. An anonymous-survey, quantitative, exploratory, descriptive study design was used. Data were obtained from an electronic survey that was made available to all nurses working in a 3-hospital system located in the northeast. Overall, the results showed that, when nurses reported using positive coping strategies, they report higher levels of resilience. The levels of resilience also varied from campus to campus. The campus that has been through 2 recent mergers reported the highest levels of resilience. This study suggests that, during times of change in the workplace, if nurses are encouraged to use positive coping strategies, they may have higher levels of resilience. This changing environment provides the clinical nurse specialists/clinical nurse educators the opportunity to foster and support frontline nurses in the use of healthy coping strategies and to help improve and maintain a high level of resilience, which is critical in today's healthcare environment.

Resilience in IMS

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kamyod, Chayapol; Nielsen, Rasmus Hjorth; Prasad, Neeli R.

2012-01-01

) and supporting always on services. Therefore, not only Quality of Service (QoS) but also resilience is required. In this paper, we attempt to evaluate and analyze end-to-end reliability of the IMS system using a model proposed as a combination of Reliability Block Diagram (RBD) and Markov Reward Models (MRMs......Reliability evaluation of systems has been widely researched for improving system resilience especially in designing processes of a complex system. The convergence of different access networks is possible via IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) for development toward Next Generation Networks (NGNs......). The resilience of the IMS architecture is studied by applying 1:1 redundancy at different communication scenarios between end users within and across communication domains. The model analysis provides useful reliability characteristics of the system and can be further applied for system design processes....

Multidimensional approach to complex system resilience analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gama Dessavre, Dante; Ramirez-Marquez, Jose E.; Barker, Kash

2016-01-01

Recent works have attempted to formally define a general metric for quantifying resilience for complex systems as a relationship of performance of the systems against time. The technical content in the proposed work introduces a new model that allows, for the first time, to compare the system resilience among systems (or different modifications to a system), by introducing a new dimension to system resilience models, called stress, to mimic the definition of resilience in material science. The applicability and usefulness of the model is shown with a new heat map visualization proposed in this work, and it is applied to a simulated network resilience case to exemplify its potential benefits. - Highlights: • We analyzed two of the main current metrics of resilience. • We create a new model that relates events with the effects they have. • We develop a novel heat map visualization to compare system resilience. • We showed the model and visualization usefulness in a simulated case.

Comparison of packed bed and fluidized bed membrane reactors for methane reforming

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Gallucci, F.; van Sint Annaland, M.; Kuipers, J.A.M.

2009-01-01

In this work the performance of different membrane reactor concepts, both fluidized bed and packed bed membrane reactors, have been compared for the reforming of methane for the production of ultra-pure hydrogen. Using detailed theoretical models, the required membrane area to reach a given

Simulation of abuse tolerance of lithium-ion battery packs

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Spotnitz, Robert M.; Weaver, James; Yeduvaka, Gowri [Battery Design LLC, 2277 DeLucchi Drive, Pleasanton, CA 94588 (United States); Doughty, D.H.; Roth, E.P. [Lithium Battery Department, Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, NM 87185 (United States)

2007-01-01

A simple approach for using accelerating rate calorimetry data to simulate the thermal abuse resistance of battery packs is described. The thermal abuse tolerance of battery packs is estimated based on the exothermic behavior of a single cell and an energy balance than accounts for radiative, conductive, and convective heat transfer modes of the pack. For the specific example of a notebook computer pack containing eight 18650-size cells, the effects of cell position, heat of reaction, and heat-transfer coefficient are explored. Thermal runaway of the pack is more likely to be induced by thermal runaway of a single cell when that cell is in good contact with other cells and is close to the pack wall. (author)

Resilience Design Patterns - A Structured Approach to Resilience at Extreme Scale (version 1.0)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hukerikar, Saurabh [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Engelmann, Christian [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)

2016-10-01

Reliability is a serious concern for future extreme-scale high-performance computing (HPC) systems. Projections based on the current generation of HPC systems and technology roadmaps suggest that very high fault rates in future systems. The errors resulting from these faults will propagate and generate various kinds of failures, which may result in outcomes ranging from result corruptions to catastrophic application crashes. Practical limits on power consumption in HPC systems will require future systems to embrace innovative architectures, increasing the levels of hardware and software complexities. The resilience challenge for extreme-scale HPC systems requires management of various hardware and software technologies that are capable of handling a broad set of fault models at accelerated fault rates. These techniques must seek to improve resilience at reasonable overheads to power consumption and performance. While the HPC community has developed various solutions, application-level as well as system-based solutions, the solution space of HPC resilience techniques remains fragmented. There are no formal methods and metrics to investigate and evaluate resilience holistically in HPC systems that consider impact scope, handling coverage, and performance & power eciency across the system stack. Additionally, few of the current approaches are portable to newer architectures and software ecosystems, which are expected to be deployed on future systems. In this document, we develop a structured approach to the management of HPC resilience based on the concept of resilience-based design patterns. A design pattern is a general repeatable solution to a commonly occurring problem. We identify the commonly occurring problems and solutions used to deal with faults, errors and failures in HPC systems. The catalog of resilience design patterns provides designers with reusable design elements. We define a design framework that enhances our understanding of the important

Hardfacing and packings for improved valve performance

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aikin, J.A.; Patrick, J.N.F.; Inglis, I.

2003-01-01

The CANDU Owners Group (COG), Chemistry, Materials and Components (CMC) Program has supported an ongoing program on valve maintenance and performance for several years. An overview is presented of recent work on iron-based hardfacing, packing qualification, friction testing of polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) packings, and an investigation of re-torquing valve packing. Based on this program, two new valve-packing materials have been qualified for use in CANDU stations. By doing this, CANDU maintenance can avoid having only one packing qualified for station use, as well as assess the potential impact of the industry trend towards using lower gland loads. The results from corrosion tests by AECL and the coefficient of friction studies at Battelle' s tribology testing facilities on Delcrome 910, an iron-based hardfacing alloy, indicate it is an acceptable replacement for Stellite 6 under certain conditions. This information can be used to update in-line valve purchasing specifications. The renewed interest in friction characteristics, and environmental qualification (EQ) of packing containing PTFE has resulted in a new test program in these areas. The COG-funded valve programs have resulted in modifications to design specifications for nuclear station in-line valves and have led to better maintenance practices and valve reliability. In the end, this means lower costs and cheaper electricity. (author)

Managing a sustainable and resilient cheese supply chain for the dynamic market

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Zhu, Quan; Krikke, Harold; Pawar, K.S.; Tsai, K.M.

2016-01-01

Purpose: Cheese has a long production time, but is as perishable as other fresh food. If it is not delivered to customers in time, it does not have value any more. Any product shortage causes customers to seek alternative sources. To manage a sustainable and resilient cheese supply chain for the

Promoting resilience among nursing students in clinical education.

Science.gov (United States)

Thomas, Lisa Jean; Asselin, Marilyn

2018-01-01

Resilience is the ability to overcome adversity and grow stronger from the experience. Increased resilience has been shown to positively impact nurses in practice. With this knowledge, recommendations to incorporate resilience training into nursing education have been made. Research, integrative reviews and a theoretical model of resilience in nursing students are explored in this paper. The authors posit that facilitating resilience is important in the setting of clinical education. Through incorporating resilience training in the clinical setting, educators can better prepare students for challenges in their educational environment and ultimately for nursing practice. Specific strategies for clinical educators to incorporate resilience training are suggested. Strategies are organized into three categories, support, education and reflection. The position of facilitating resilience in clinical education may open a discussion for future educational practices. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Distributed Energy Planning for Climate Resilience

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Stout, Sherry R [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Hotchkiss, Elizabeth L [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Day, Megan H [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Lee, Nathan [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Holm, Alison [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)

2018-05-01

At various levels of government across the United States and globally climate resilient solutions are being adopted and implemented. Solutions vary based on predicted hazards, community context, priorities, complexity, and available resources. Lessons are being learned through the implementation process, which can be replicated regardless of level or type of government entity carrying out the resiliency planning. Through a number of analyses and technical support across the world, NREL has learned key lessons related to resilience planning associated with power generation and water distribution. Distributed energy generation is a large factor in building resilience with clean energy technologies and solutions. The technical and policy solutions associated with distributed energy implementation for resilience fall into a few major categories, including spatial diversification, microgrids, water-energy nexus, policy, and redundancy.

Structural characterization of the packings of granular regular polygons.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Chuncheng; Dong, Kejun; Yu, Aibing

2015-12-01

By using a recently developed method for discrete modeling of nonspherical particles, we simulate the random packings of granular regular polygons with three to 11 edges under gravity. The effects of shape and friction on the packing structures are investigated by various structural parameters, including packing fraction, the radial distribution function, coordination number, Voronoi tessellation, and bond-orientational order. We find that packing fraction is generally higher for geometrically nonfrustrated regular polygons, and can be increased by the increase of edge number and decrease of friction. The changes of packing fraction are linked with those of the microstructures, such as the variations of the translational and orientational orders and local configurations. In particular, the free areas of Voronoi tessellations (which are related to local packing fractions) can be described by log-normal distributions for all polygons. The quantitative analyses establish a clearer picture for the packings of regular polygons.

Max–min Bin Packing Algorithm and its application in nano-particles filling

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhu, Dingju

2016-01-01

With regard to existing bin packing algorithms, higher packing efficiency often leads to lower packing speed while higher packing speed leads to lower packing efficiency. Packing speed and packing efficiency of existing bin packing algorithms including NFD, NF, FF, FFD, BF and BFD correlates negatively with each other, thus resulting in the failure of existing bin packing algorithms to satisfy the demand of nano-particles filling for both high speed and high efficiency. The paper provides a new bin packing algorithm, Max–min Bin Packing Algorithm (MM), which realizes both high packing speed and high packing efficiency. MM has the same packing speed as NFD (whose packing speed ranks no. 1 among existing bin packing algorithms); in case that the size repetition rate of objects to be packed is over 5, MM can realize almost the same packing efficiency as BFD (whose packing efficiency ranks No. 1 among existing bin packing algorithms), and in case that the size repetition rate of objects to be packed is over 500, MM can achieve exactly the same packing efficiency as BFD. With respect to application of nano-particles filling, the size repetition rate of nano particles to be packed is usually in thousands or ten thousands, far higher than 5 or 500. Consequently, in application of nano-particles filling, the packing efficiency of MM is exactly equal to that of BFD. Thus the irreconcilable conflict between packing speed and packing efficiency is successfully removed by MM, which leads to MM having better packing effect than any existing bin packing algorithm. In practice, there are few cases when the size repetition of objects to be packed is lower than 5. Therefore the MM is not necessarily limited to nano-particles filling, and can also be widely used in other applications besides nano-particles filling. Especially, MM has significant value in application of nano-particles filling such as nano printing and nano tooth filling.

Biomass resilience of Neotropical secondary forests.

Science.gov (United States)

Poorter, Lourens; Bongers, Frans; Aide, T Mitchell; Almeyda Zambrano, Angélica M; Balvanera, Patricia; Becknell, Justin M; Boukili, Vanessa; Brancalion, Pedro H S; Broadbent, Eben N; Chazdon, Robin L; Craven, Dylan; de Almeida-Cortez, Jarcilene S; Cabral, George A L; de Jong, Ben H J; Denslow, Julie S; Dent, Daisy H; DeWalt, Saara J; Dupuy, Juan M; Durán, Sandra M; Espírito-Santo, Mario M; Fandino, María C; César, Ricardo G; Hall, Jefferson S; Hernandez-Stefanoni, José Luis; Jakovac, Catarina C; Junqueira, André B; Kennard, Deborah; Letcher, Susan G; Licona, Juan-Carlos; Lohbeck, Madelon; Marín-Spiotta, Erika; Martínez-Ramos, Miguel; Massoca, Paulo; Meave, Jorge A; Mesquita, Rita; Mora, Francisco; Muñoz, Rodrigo; Muscarella, Robert; Nunes, Yule R F; Ochoa-Gaona, Susana; de Oliveira, Alexandre A; Orihuela-Belmonte, Edith; Peña-Claros, Marielos; Pérez-García, Eduardo A; Piotto, Daniel; Powers, Jennifer S; Rodríguez-Velázquez, Jorge; Romero-Pérez, I Eunice; Ruíz, Jorge; Saldarriaga, Juan G; Sanchez-Azofeifa, Arturo; Schwartz, Naomi B; Steininger, Marc K; Swenson, Nathan G; Toledo, Marisol; Uriarte, Maria; van Breugel, Michiel; van der Wal, Hans; Veloso, Maria D M; Vester, Hans F M; Vicentini, Alberto; Vieira, Ima C G; Bentos, Tony Vizcarra; Williamson, G Bruce; Rozendaal, Danaë M A

2016-02-11

Land-use change occurs nowhere more rapidly than in the tropics, where the imbalance between deforestation and forest regrowth has large consequences for the global carbon cycle. However, considerable uncertainty remains about the rate of biomass recovery in secondary forests, and how these rates are influenced by climate, landscape, and prior land use. Here we analyse aboveground biomass recovery during secondary succession in 45 forest sites and about 1,500 forest plots covering the major environmental gradients in the Neotropics. The studied secondary forests are highly productive and resilient. Aboveground biomass recovery after 20 years was on average 122 megagrams per hectare (Mg ha(-1)), corresponding to a net carbon uptake of 3.05 Mg C ha(-1) yr(-1), 11 times the uptake rate of old-growth forests. Aboveground biomass stocks took a median time of 66 years to recover to 90% of old-growth values. Aboveground biomass recovery after 20 years varied 11.3-fold (from 20 to 225 Mg ha(-1)) across sites, and this recovery increased with water availability (higher local rainfall and lower climatic water deficit). We present a biomass recovery map of Latin America, which illustrates geographical and climatic variation in carbon sequestration potential during forest regrowth. The map will support policies to minimize forest loss in areas where biomass resilience is naturally low (such as seasonally dry forest regions) and promote forest regeneration and restoration in humid tropical lowland areas with high biomass resilience.

Packing for food irradiation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chmielewski, A G [Institute of Nuclear Chemistry and Technology, Warsaw (Poland)

2006-07-01

Joint FAO/IAEA/WHO Expert Committee approved the use of radiation treatment of foods. Nowadays food packaging are mostly made of plastics, natural or synthetic, therefore effect of irradiation on these materials is crucial for packing engineering for food irradiation technology. By selecting the right polymer materials for food packaging it can be ensured that the critical elements of material and product performance are not compromised. When packaging materials are in contact with food at the time of irradiation that regulatory approvals sometimes apply. The review of the R-and-D and technical papers regarding material selection, testing and approval is presented in the report. The most information come from the USA where this subject is well elaborated, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) reports are reviewed as well. The report can be useful for scientists and food irradiation plants operators. (author)

Packing for food irradiation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chmielewski, A.G.

2006-01-01

Joint FAO/IAEA/WHO Expert Committee approved the use of radiation treatment of foods. Nowadays food packaging are mostly made of plastics, natural or synthetic, therefore effect of irradiation on these materials is crucial for packing engineering for food irradiation technology. By selecting the right polymer materials for food packaging it can be ensured that the critical elements of material and product performance are not compromised. When packaging materials are in contact with food at the time of irradiation that regulatory approvals sometimes apply. The review of the R-and-D and technical papers regarding material selection, testing and approval is presented in the report. The most information come from the USA where this subject is well elaborated, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) reports are reviewed as well. The report can be useful for scientists and food irradiation plants operators. (author)

Measuring regional resilience towards fossil fuel supply constraints. Adaptability and vulnerability in socio-ecological Transformations-the case of Austria

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Exner, Andreas; Politti, Emilio; Schriefl, Ernst; Erker, Susanna; Stangl, Rosemarie; Baud, Sacha; Warmuth, Hannes; Matzenberger, Julian; Kranzl, Lukas; Paulesich, Reinhard

2016-01-01

Resilience has become a prominent concept to understand system vulnerabilities and flexible ways of adapting to crises. Recently, it gained importance in discussions about the possible peak in oil production (peak oil) and its consequences, which might affect economic performance, social well-being and political stability, and thus also the energy transition to a low-carbon economy. The paper presents a new way of measuring resilience as absolute resilience related to a best practice-model of a resilient society. The resilience model is grounded in explicit theoretical assumptions. All indicators are justified by theoretical and empirical arguments. We present a case study of Austrian municipalities and broader-scale spatial types, which were defined according to their degree of urbanization. The mean resilience of Austrian municipalities is moderate, the difference between resilience values of municipalities is small. Significant differences between spatial types exist. Higher resilience is displayed by less urbanized types due to a higher share of agricultural activities and a more favorable level of GDP per capita. Austria has considerable latitude to improve resilience. Corresponding policies should target resilience components with the lowest values first. A sole focus on regionalization is not recommended. These conclusions are applicable to OECD countries in general. - Highlights: •Mean resilience of Austrian municipalities towards peak oil is moderate. •The difference between resilience values of municipalities is small. •Significant differences in resilience between spatial types exist. •Higher resilience is displayed by less urbanized types. •Policies should target resilience components with the lowest values first.

How Do Communities Use a Participatory Public Health Approach to Build Resilience? The Los Angeles County Community Disaster Resilience Project.

Science.gov (United States)

Bromley, Elizabeth; Eisenman, David P; Magana, Aizita; Williams, Malcolm; Kim, Biblia; McCreary, Michael; Chandra, Anita; Wells, Kenneth B

2017-10-21

Community resilience is a key concept in the National Health Security Strategy that emphasizes development of multi-sector partnerships and equity through community engagement. Here, we describe the advancement of CR principles through community participatory methods in the Los Angeles County Community Disaster Resilience (LACCDR) initiative. LACCDR, an initiative led by the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health with academic partners, randomized 16 community coalitions to implement either an Enhanced Standard Preparedness or Community Resilience approach over 24 months. Facilitated by a public health nurse or community educator, coalitions comprised government agencies, community-focused organizations and community members. We used thematic analysis of data from focus groups ( n = 5) and interviews ( n = 6 coalition members; n = 16 facilitators) to compare coalitions' strategies for operationalizing community resilience levers of change (engagement, partnership, self-sufficiency, education). We find that strategies that included bidirectional learning helped coalitions understand and adopt resilience principles. Strategies that operationalized community resilience levers in mutually reinforcing ways (e.g., disseminating information while strengthening partnerships) also secured commitment to resilience principles. We review additional challenges and successes in achieving cross-sector collaboration and engaging at-risk groups in the resilience versus preparedness coalitions. The LACCDR example can inform strategies for uptake and implementation of community resilience and uptake of the resilience concept and methods.

How Do Communities Use a Participatory Public Health Approach to Build Resilience? The Los Angeles County Community Disaster Resilience Project

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Elizabeth Bromley

2017-10-01

Full Text Available Community resilience is a key concept in the National Health Security Strategy that emphasizes development of multi-sector partnerships and equity through community engagement. Here, we describe the advancement of CR principles through community participatory methods in the Los Angeles County Community Disaster Resilience (LACCDR initiative. LACCDR, an initiative led by the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health with academic partners, randomized 16 community coalitions to implement either an Enhanced Standard Preparedness or Community Resilience approach over 24 months. Facilitated by a public health nurse or community educator, coalitions comprised government agencies, community-focused organizations and community members. We used thematic analysis of data from focus groups (n = 5 and interviews (n = 6 coalition members; n = 16 facilitators to compare coalitions’ strategies for operationalizing community resilience levers of change (engagement, partnership, self-sufficiency, education. We find that strategies that included bidirectional learning helped coalitions understand and adopt resilience principles. Strategies that operationalized community resilience levers in mutually reinforcing ways (e.g., disseminating information while strengthening partnerships also secured commitment to resilience principles. We review additional challenges and successes in achieving cross-sector collaboration and engaging at-risk groups in the resilience versus preparedness coalitions. The LACCDR example can inform strategies for uptake and implementation of community resilience and uptake of the resilience concept and methods.

The Resilience-Enabling Value of African Folktales: The Read-Me-To-Resilience Intervention

Science.gov (United States)

Theron, Linda; Cockcroft, Kate; Wood, Lesley

2017-01-01

Resilience, or the process of adjusting well to adversity, draws on personal and social ecological resources (i.e., caregiving and community supports). Previous research--conducted mostly in the Global North--has shown that bibliotherapy offers a way to support children in identifying and utilizing resilience-enabling resources. In so doing,…

Forced Convection Heat Transfer of a sphere in Packed Bed Arrangement

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Dong-Young; Chung, Bum-Jin

2016-01-01

This paper analysis and discuss the forced convective heat transfer from heated single sphere, which is buried in unheated packed bed, depending on Re d with porosity. The present work determines the test matrix for the packed bed experiment. And this study discuss difference of heat transfer according to the location of heated sphere and compared heated bed with heated sphere in packed bed and compared FCC (Face Centered Cubic), HCP (Hexagonal Closed Packed) structured packed bed with random packed. This paper is to discuss and make the plan to experiment the heat transfer for depending on location of heated single sphere in unheated packed bed, to compare single sphere in packed bed with heated packed bed and to compare the structured packed bed with random packed bed. The Nu d increase as heated single sphere is close to the wall and bottom because of increasing porosity and enhancing eddy motion respectively. The existing experiment of heated sphere in packed bed do not consider the preheating effect which decrease heat transfer on downstream. The heat transfer rate of structured packed bed is different from random packed bed because of unsteady flow in random packed bed. In this study, mass transfer experiments will replace heat transfer experiments based on analogy concept. An electroplating system is adopted using limiting current technique

Forced Convection Heat Transfer of a sphere in Packed Bed Arrangement

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, Dong-Young; Chung, Bum-Jin [Kyung Hee University, Yongin (Korea, Republic of)

2016-10-15

This paper analysis and discuss the forced convective heat transfer from heated single sphere, which is buried in unheated packed bed, depending on Re{sub d} with porosity. The present work determines the test matrix for the packed bed experiment. And this study discuss difference of heat transfer according to the location of heated sphere and compared heated bed with heated sphere in packed bed and compared FCC (Face Centered Cubic), HCP (Hexagonal Closed Packed) structured packed bed with random packed. This paper is to discuss and make the plan to experiment the heat transfer for depending on location of heated single sphere in unheated packed bed, to compare single sphere in packed bed with heated packed bed and to compare the structured packed bed with random packed bed. The Nu{sub d} increase as heated single sphere is close to the wall and bottom because of increasing porosity and enhancing eddy motion respectively. The existing experiment of heated sphere in packed bed do not consider the preheating effect which decrease heat transfer on downstream. The heat transfer rate of structured packed bed is different from random packed bed because of unsteady flow in random packed bed. In this study, mass transfer experiments will replace heat transfer experiments based on analogy concept. An electroplating system is adopted using limiting current technique.

Prevention and suppression of metal packing fires.

Science.gov (United States)

Roberts, Mark; Rogers, William J; Sam Mannan, M; Ostrowski, Scott W

2003-11-14

Structured packing has been widely used because of large surface area that makes possible columns with high capacity and efficiency. The large surface area also contributes to fire hazards because of hydrocarbon deposits that can easily combust and promote combustion of the thin metal packing materials. Materials of high surface area that can fuel fires include reactive metals, such as titanium, and materials that are not considered combustible, such as stainless steel. Column design and material selection for packing construction is discussed together with employee training and practices for safe column maintenance and operations. Presented also are methods and agents for suppression of metal fires. Guidance for prevention and suppression of metal fires is related to incidents involving packing fires in columns.

Resilience of primary healthcare professionals: a systematic review.

Science.gov (United States)

Robertson, Helen D; Elliott, Alison M; Burton, Christopher; Iversen, Lisa; Murchie, Peter; Porteous, Terry; Matheson, Catriona

2016-06-01

Modern demands and challenges among healthcare professionals can be particularly stressful and resilience is increasingly necessary to maintain an effective, adaptable, and sustainable workforce. However, definitions of, and associations with, resilience have not been examined within the primary care context. To examine definitions and measures of resilience, identify characteristics and components, and synthesise current evidence about resilience in primary healthcare professionals. A systematic review was undertaken to identify studies relating to the primary care setting. Ovid(®), Embase(®), CINAHL, PsycINFO, and Scopus databases were searched in December 2014. Text selections and data extraction were conducted by paired reviewers working independently. Data were extracted on health professional resilience definitions and associated factors. Thirteen studies met the inclusion criteria: eight were quantitative, four qualitative, and one was an intervention study. Resilience, although multifaceted, was commonly defined as involving positive adaptation to adversity. Interactions were identified between personal growth and accomplishment in resilient physicians. Resilience, high persistence, high self-directedness, and low avoidance of challenges were strongly correlated; resilience had significant associations with traits supporting high function levels associated with demanding health professional roles. Current resilience measures do not allow for these different aspects in the primary care context. Health professional resilience is multifaceted, combining discrete personal traits alongside personal, social, and workplace features. A measure for health professional resilience should be developed and validated that may be used in future quantitative research to measure the effect of an intervention to promote it. © British Journal of General Practice 2016.

Resilience concepts in psychiatry demonstrated with bipolar disorder.

Science.gov (United States)

Angeler, David G; Allen, Craig R; Persson, Maj-Liz

2018-02-09

The term resilience describes stress-response patterns of subjects across scientific disciplines. In ecology, advances have been made to clearly distinguish resilience definitions based on underlying mechanistic assumptions. Engineering resilience (rebound) is used for describing the ability of subjects to recover from adverse conditions (disturbances), and is the rate of recovery. In contrast, the ecological resilience definition considers a systemic change: when complex systems (including humans) respond to disturbances by reorganizing into a new regime (stable state) where structural and functional aspects have fundamentally changed relative to the prior regime. In this context, resilience is an emergent property of complex systems. We argue that both resilience definitions and uses are appropriate in psychology and psychiatry, but although the differences are subtle, the implications and uses are profoundly different. We borrow from the field of ecology to discuss resilience concepts in the mental health sciences. In psychology and psychiatry, the prevailing view of resilience is adaptation to, coping with, and recovery (engineering resilience) from adverse social and environmental conditions. Ecological resilience may be useful for describing vulnerability, onset, and the irreversibility patterns of mental disorders. We discuss this in the context of bipolar disorder. Rebound, adaptation, and coping are processes that are subsumed within the broader systemic organization of humans, from which ecological resilience emanates. Discerning resilience concepts in psychology and psychiatry has potential for a mechanistically appropriate contextualization of mental disorders at large. This might contribute to a refinement of theory and contextualize clinical practice within the broader systemic functioning of mental illnesses.

Clinical correlates of resilience factors in geriatric depression.

Science.gov (United States)

Laird, Kelsey T; Lavretsky, Helen; Paholpak, Pattharee; Vlasova, Roza M; Roman, Michael; St Cyr, Natalie; Siddarth, Prabha

2018-01-16

Traditional perspectives conceptualize resilience as a trait and depression as resulting from resilience deficiency. However, research indicates that resilience varies substantially even among adults who are clinically depressed, as well as across the lifespan of an individual. Few studies have investigated resilience in depression, and even fewer have examined resilience in depressed older adults. Three hundred thirty-seven adults ≥60 years with major depressive disorder completed the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC) and measures of mental health, quality of life (QOL), and medical comorbidity. Exploratory factor analysis was used to explore the factor structure of the CD-RISC. Correlations and general linear models were used to examine associations between resilience and other variables. The rotated component matrix indicated a four-factor model. Sorting of items by highest factor loading revealed constructs associated with (1) grit, (2) active coping self-efficacy, (3) accommodative coping self-efficacy, and (4) spirituality. Resilience was significantly correlated with increased age, lower cognitive functioning, greater cerebrovascular risk, and greater medical comorbidity. Resilience was negatively associated with mental health symptoms (depression, apathy, and anxiety) and positively associated with QOL. The final optimal model identified less depression, less apathy, greater medical comorbidity, higher QOL, and minority (non-White) race as factors that significantly explained variability in resilience. Resilience was significantly associated with a range of mental health constructs in a sample of older adults with depression. Future clinical trials and dismantling studies may help determine whether interventions targeting grit, active coping, accommodative coping, and spirituality can increase resilience and help prevent and treat depression in older adults.

Resilience of primary healthcare professionals: a systematic review

Science.gov (United States)

Robertson, Helen D; Elliott, Alison M; Burton, Christopher; Iversen, Lisa; Murchie, Peter; Porteous, Terry; Matheson, Catriona

2016-01-01

Background Modern demands and challenges among healthcare professionals can be particularly stressful and resilience is increasingly necessary to maintain an effective, adaptable, and sustainable workforce. However, definitions of, and associations with, resilience have not been examined within the primary care context. Aim To examine definitions and measures of resilience, identify characteristics and components, and synthesise current evidence about resilience in primary healthcare professionals. Design and setting A systematic review was undertaken to identify studies relating to the primary care setting. Method Ovid®, Embase®, CINAHL, PsycINFO, and Scopus databases were searched in December 2014. Text selections and data extraction were conducted by paired reviewers working independently. Data were extracted on health professional resilience definitions and associated factors. Results Thirteen studies met the inclusion criteria: eight were quantitative, four qualitative, and one was an intervention study. Resilience, although multifaceted, was commonly defined as involving positive adaptation to adversity. Interactions were identified between personal growth and accomplishment in resilient physicians. Resilience, high persistence, high self-directedness, and low avoidance of challenges were strongly correlated; resilience had significant associations with traits supporting high function levels associated with demanding health professional roles. Current resilience measures do not allow for these different aspects in the primary care context. Conclusion Health professional resilience is multifaceted, combining discrete personal traits alongside personal, social, and workplace features. A measure for health professional resilience should be developed and validated that may be used in future quantitative research to measure the effect of an intervention to promote it. PMID:27162208

A multicriterial analysis of national competitiveness: Evidences for a resilient economy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sima Violeta

2017-01-01

Full Text Available This article is structured in three parts, as follows: In the first part, we summarized the different approaches of national competitiveness in the literature on the economic performance assessment, using specific indexes: Global Competitiveness Index (GCI, Ecological Performance Index (EPI, and Human Development Index (HDI, highlighting their advantages and limitations. These variables were analyzed ante-crisis and ex-crisis, assuming that the economic recession could generate some effects. Data sources are presented at the beginning of the 'Results and discussion' paragraph. Considering the diversity of the issues and the inhomogeneity of data describing those issues, GDP was used along with the four composite indicators: GCI, EPI, HDI, and Economic Resilience Index (ERI. The third part presents the main findings and their implications. Thus, a downward trend of the evolution of Romania's economic resilience index during 2008-2014 was observed. This decline appears to be due largely to the decrease in Social development sub-index and in Governance sub-index. The low level of the Romanian economy resilience is mainly explained by the low level of competitiveness and productivity of production factors. The obtained outcomes suggest that in addition to national competitiveness assessing, ERI evaluation is important because it can reveal the hidden sources of vulnerability of the economy to external shocks.

Domain Discretization and Circle Packings

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Dias, Kealey

A circle packing is a configuration of circles which are tangent with one another in a prescribed pattern determined by a combinatorial triangulation, where the configuration fills a planar domain or a two-dimensional surface. The vertices in the triangulation correspond to centers of circles...... to domain discretization problems such as triangulation and unstructured mesh generation techniques. We wish to ask ourselves the question: given a cloud of points in the plane (we restrict ourselves to planar domains), is it possible to construct a circle packing preserving the positions of the vertices...... and constrained meshes having predefined vertices as constraints. A standard method of two-dimensional mesh generation involves conformal mapping of the surface or domain to standardized shapes, such as a disk. Since circle packing is a new technique for constructing discrete conformal mappings, it is possible...

The pursuit of perfect packing

CERN Document Server

Weaire, Denis

2000-01-01

In 1998 Thomas Hales dramatically announced the solution of a problem that has long teased eminent mathematicians: what is the densest possible arrangement of identical spheres? The Pursuit of Perfect Packing recounts the story of this problem and many others that have to do with packing things together. The examples are taken from mathematics, physics, biology, and engineering, including the arrangement of soap bubbles in foam, atoms in a crystal, the architecture of the bee''s honeycomb, and the structure of the Giant''s Causeway. Using an informal style and with key references, the book also includes brief accounts of the lives of many of the scientists who devoted themselves to problems of packing over many centuries, together with wry comments on their efforts. It is an entertaining introduction to the field for both specialists and the more general public.

Resilience engineering and the built environment

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hollnagel, Erik

2014-01-01

important to understand the range of conditions about why and how the system functions in the desired' mode as well as unwanted' modes. Resilience is the capacity to sustain operations under both expected and unexpected conditions. The unexpected conditions are not only threats but also opportunities.......The possible relations between resilience engineering and built environments are explored. Resilience engineering has been concerned with the safe and efficient functioning of large and small industrial systems. These may be described as built systems or artefacts. The resilience engineering...... approach argues that if the performance of systems is to be resilient, then they must be able to respond, monitor, learn and anticipate. The last ability in particular means that they must be able to consider themselves vis-a-vis their environment, i.e. be sentient and reflective systems. In practice...

Alzheimer's aggression: influences on caregiver coping and resilience.

Science.gov (United States)

Wilks, Scott E; Little, Kristina G; Gough, Heather R; Spurlock, Wanda J

2011-04-01

This study assessed impact of Alzheimer's patients' aggressive behavior (AD aggression) on caregiver coping strategies (task-, emotion-, and avoidance-focused) and caregiver resilience, and examined whether coping strategy moderated the AD aggression-caregiver resilience relationship. Informal caregivers across Louisiana (N = 419) completed surveys with measures of demographics, AD aggression, caregiver coping strategies, and caregiver resilience. Task-focused coping positively related to resilience. Aggression negatively predicted caregiver resilience. Emotion- and avoidance-focused coping strategies separately interacted with aggression and increased its negative relationship to caregiver resilience. Task-focused coping showed no moderation. Implications for social work professionals are discussed.

Building Resilience through Humor.

Science.gov (United States)

Berg, Debra Vande; Van Brockern, Steve

1995-01-01

Research on resilience suggests that a sense of humor helps to stress-proof children in conflict. Reports on a workshop for educators and youth workers convened to explore ways humor is being used to foster positive development and resilience with troubled youth. Describes applications of humor front-line professionals report as useful in their…

Random close packing of hard spheres and disks

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Berryman, J.G.

1983-01-01

A simple definition of random close packing of hard spheres is presented, and the consequences of this definition are explored. According to this definition, random close packing occurs at the minimum packing fraction eta for which the median nearest-neighbor radius equals the diameter of the spheres. Using the radial distribution function at more dilute concentrations to estimate median nearest-neighbor radii, lower bounds on the critical packing fraction eta/sub RCP/ are obtained and the value of eta/sub RCP/ is estimated by extrapolation. Random close packing is predicted to occur for eta/sub RCP/ = 0.64 +- 0.02 in three dimensions and eta/sub RCP/ = 0.82 +- 0.02 in two dimensions. Both of these predictions are shown to be consistent with the available experimental data

Enabling Microliquid Chromatography by Microbead Packing of Microchannels

Science.gov (United States)

Balvin, Manuel; Zheng, Yun

2014-01-01

The microbead packing is the critical element required in the success of on-chip microfabrication of critical microfluidic components for in-situ analysis and detection of chiral amino acids. In order for microliquid chromatography to occur, there must be a stationary phase medium within the microchannel that interacts with the analytes present within flowing fluid. The stationary phase media are the microbeads packed by the process discussed in this work. The purpose of the microliquid chromatography is to provide a lightweight, low-volume, and low-power element to separate amino acids and their chiral partners efficiently to understand better the origin of life. In order to densely pack microbeads into the microchannels, a liquid slurry of microbeads was created. Microbeads were extracted from a commercially available high-performance liquid chromatography column. The silica beads extracted were 5 microns in diameter, and had surface coating of phenyl-hexyl. These microbeads were mixed with a 200- proof ethanol solution to create a microbead slurry with the right viscosity for packing. A microfilter is placed at the outlet via of the microchannel and the slurry is injected, then withdrawn across a filter using modified syringes. After each injection, the channel is flushed with ethanol to enhance packing. This cycle is repeated numerous times to allow for a tightly packed channel of microbeads. Typical microbead packing occurs in the macroscale into tubes or channels by using highly pressurized systems. Moreover, these channels are typically long and straight without any turns or curves. On the other hand, this method of microbead packing is completed within a microchannel 75 micrometers in diameter. Moreover, the microbead packing is completed into a serpentine type microchannel, such that it maximizes microchannel length within a microchip. Doing so enhances the interactions of the analytes with the microbeads to separate efficiently amino acids and amino acid

New iodine filter pack design

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Blackbee, B.A.

1977-10-01

To enable Naval Emergency Monitoring Teams to fulfil their role in the field it was necessary to locate or design a replacement filter pack for the collection of radioactive iodine air samples. Collaboration with the Berkeley Laboratories of the Central Electricity Generating Board provided the necessary starting point for a suitable type of package. Further development by NGTE (West Drayton) yielded the improved filter pack which is the subject of this memorandum. (author)

36 CFR 1002.16 - Horses and pack animals.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 3 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Horses and pack animals. 1002... AND RECREATION § 1002.16 Horses and pack animals. The following are prohibited: (a) The use of animals other than those designated as “pack animals” for purposes of transporting equipment. (b) The use of...

36 CFR 2.16 - Horses and pack animals.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Horses and pack animals. 2.16... RESOURCE PROTECTION, PUBLIC USE AND RECREATION § 2.16 Horses and pack animals. The following are prohibited: (a) The use of animals other than those designated as “pack animals” for purposes of transporting...

A resilience markers framework for small teams

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Furniss, Dominic, E-mail: d.furniss@ucl.ac.u [UCL Interaction Centre, University College London, Gower Street, London WC1E 6BT (United Kingdom); Back, Jonathan; Blandford, Ann [UCL Interaction Centre, University College London, Gower Street, London WC1E 6BT (United Kingdom); Hildebrandt, Michael; Broberg, Helena [OECD Halden Reactor Project, PO Box 173, 1751 Halden (Norway)

2011-01-15

Processes that enable an effective response to unexpected events and vulnerabilities that lie outside the scope of formal procedures can be described as being resilient. There are many such descriptions of resilience within and across different domains. Comparison and generalisation is difficult because resilience is not a component of a system and should be understood as an emergent property. Here we provide a framework for reasoning about resilience that requires representation of the level of analysis (from the individual to operational), a traceable link from abstract theory to specific observations, resilience mechanisms, and contextual factors. This moves forward an agenda to systematically observe concrete manifestations of resilience within and across domains. We illustrate the application of the framework by considering a case study of the performance of nuclear power plant (NPP) operators in an experimental scenario. This paper focuses on the small team level of analysis. The framework presented here provides the basis for developing concrete measures for improving the resilience of organisations through training, system design, and organisational learning.

A resilience markers framework for small teams

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Furniss, Dominic; Back, Jonathan; Blandford, Ann; Hildebrandt, Michael; Broberg, Helena

2011-01-01

Processes that enable an effective response to unexpected events and vulnerabilities that lie outside the scope of formal procedures can be described as being resilient. There are many such descriptions of resilience within and across different domains. Comparison and generalisation is difficult because resilience is not a component of a system and should be understood as an emergent property. Here we provide a framework for reasoning about resilience that requires representation of the level of analysis (from the individual to operational), a traceable link from abstract theory to specific observations, resilience mechanisms, and contextual factors. This moves forward an agenda to systematically observe concrete manifestations of resilience within and across domains. We illustrate the application of the framework by considering a case study of the performance of nuclear power plant (NPP) operators in an experimental scenario. This paper focuses on the small team level of analysis. The framework presented here provides the basis for developing concrete measures for improving the resilience of organisations through training, system design, and organisational learning.

Systems Measures of Water Distribution System Resilience

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Klise, Katherine A. [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States); Murray, Regan [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States); Walker, La Tonya Nicole [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States)

2015-01-01

Resilience is a concept that is being used increasingly to refer to the capacity of infrastructure systems to be prepared for and able to respond effectively and rapidly to hazardous events. In Section 2 of this report, drinking water hazards, resilience literature, and available resilience tools are presented. Broader definitions, attributes and methods for measuring resilience are presented in Section 3. In Section 4, quantitative systems performance measures for water distribution systems are presented. Finally, in Section 5, the performance measures and their relevance to measuring the resilience of water systems to hazards is discussed along with needed improvements to water distribution system modeling tools.

Optimal Sizing of a Solar-Plus-Storage System For Utility Bill Savings and Resiliency Benefits: Preprint

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Simpkins, Travis; Anderson, Kate; Cutler, Dylan; Olis, Dan

2016-11-01

Solar-plus-storage systems can achieve significant utility savings in behind-the-meter deployments in buildings, campuses, or industrial sites. Common applications include demand charge reduction, energy arbitrage, time-shifting of excess photovoltaic (PV) production, and selling ancillary services to the utility grid. These systems can also offer some energy resiliency during grid outages. It is often difficult to quantify the amount of resiliency that these systems can provide, however, and this benefit is often undervalued or omitted during the design process. We propose a method for estimating the resiliency that a solar-plus-storage system can provide at a given location. We then present an optimization model that can optimally size the system components to minimize the lifecycle cost of electricity to the site, including the costs incurred during grid outages. The results show that including the value of resiliency during the feasibility stage can result in larger systems and increased resiliency.

Resilience in a reborn nation: Validation of the Lithuanian Resilience Scale for Adults (RSA).

Science.gov (United States)

Hilbig, Jan; Viliūnienė, Rima; Friborg, Oddgeir; Pakalniškienė, Vilmantė; Danilevičiūtė, Vita

2015-07-01

Resilience, as an ability to withstand or rebound from crisis or adversity, is becoming an increasingly significant concept in health promotion and well-being. Individuals exhibiting resilience use skills or resources flexibly to solve situational demands. The Resilience Scale for Adults (RSA) may be used to assess protective resources, and the aim of the present study was to validate the Lithuanian translation. The translated RSA was administered to a clinical (n=125) and a non clinical sample (n=499) to examine the discriminant validity of the RSA items with a confirmatory factor analysis, the internal consistency as well as construct validity by correlating it with the Quick Psycho-Affective Symptoms Scan (QPASS). The internal consistency, the test-retest stability and the factor structure were replicated as adequate, thus indicating good psychometric properties and support of discriminant validity. Females reported more resilience resources for the domains of social competence, family cohesion and social resources compared to men. The RSA subscales correlated negatively with the QPASS scores, and patients reported significantly less resilience resources than non-patients, thus indicating construct validity. Valid psychometric tools for research purposes and routine every-day use are urgently needed in Lithuania, a young nation still under numerous challenges due to social, economic and political transitions. The RSA represents a reliable and valid tool for assessing protective factors. Assessing resilience factors may extend the understanding of factors relevant for mental health problems as well as treatment prognosis beyond the capabilities of mere symptom oriented approaches. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Whole Community Resilience: Engaging Multiple Sectors with the Coastal Community Resilience Index and the Climate and Resilience Community of Practice in the Gulf of Mexico

Science.gov (United States)

Sempier, T.

2017-12-01

Communicating risk due to flooding, sea level rise, storm surge, and other natural hazards is a complex task when attempting to build resilience in coastal communities. There are a number of challenges related to preparing for, responding to, and recovering from coastal storms. Successful resilience planning must include a wide range of sectors including, but not limited to local government, business, non-profit, religious, academia, and healthcare. Years of experience working with communities in the Gulf of Mexico has helped create a process that is both inclusive and effective at bringing the right people to the table and gaining momentum towards resilience efforts. The Coastal Community Resilience Index (CRI), a self-assessment for community leaders, has been implemented in 54 Gulf communities with funding that provides small grant awards to help communities take action to address gaps and vulnerabilities identified in the assessment process. To maintain momentum with resilience actions, the Gulf Climate and Resilience Community of Practice (CoP) encourages local municipality participants to share lessons learned and best practices from their implementation projects in an annual symposium. Recently, both graduate and undergraduate students have been exposed to the CRI and CoP as avenues to work through solutions to complex problems at the local level. In addition, a new generation of high school students has been introduced to the CRI. Their engagement in the process is building a more informed citizenry that will take on the leadership and decision-making roles in the future. Investing in multiple age groups and sectors through the CRI and CoP is building capacity for whole community resilience in the Gulf of Mexico. This presentation will focus on methods that have been successful in the Gulf of Mexico for creating effective change in local municipalities towards resilience actions. Discussion will include decision support tools for engaging local

A quantitative framework for assessing ecological resilience

Science.gov (United States)

Quantitative approaches to measure and assess resilience are needed to bridge gaps between science, policy, and management. In this paper, we suggest a quantitative framework for assessing ecological resilience. Ecological resilience as an emergent ecosystem phenomenon can be de...

Resilient Renewable Energy Microgrids

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Anderson, Katherine H [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); DiOrio, Nicholas A [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Butt, Robert S [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Cutler, Dylan S [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Richards, Allison [Unaffiliated

2017-11-14

This presentation for the Cable-Tec Expo 2017 offers information about how renewable microgrids can be used to increase resiliency. It includes information about why renewable energy battery diesel hybrids microgrids should be considered for backup power, how to estimate economic savings of microgrids, quantifying the resiliency gain of microgrids, and where renewable microgrids will be successful.

Integrating packing and distribution problems and optimization through mathematical programming

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fabio Miguel

2016-06-01

Full Text Available This paper analyzes the integration of two combinatorial problems that frequently arise in production and distribution systems. One is the Bin Packing Problem (BPP problem, which involves finding an ordering of some objects of different volumes to be packed into the minimal number of containers of the same or different size. An optimal solution to this NP-Hard problem can be approximated by means of meta-heuristic methods. On the other hand, we consider the Capacitated Vehicle Routing Problem with Time Windows (CVRPTW, which is a variant of the Travelling Salesman Problem (again a NP-Hard problem with extra constraints. Here we model those two problems in a single framework and use an evolutionary meta-heuristics to solve them jointly. Furthermore, we use data from a real world company as a test-bed for the method introduced here.

Packing Smart

Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Podcasts

2011-08-22

In this podcast for kids, the Kidtastics talk about packing a lunch that's not boring and is full of the power and energy kids need to make it through the day.  Created: 8/22/2011 by National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases (NCEZID).   Date Released: 8/22/2011.

Achieving enhanced organisational resilience by improved management of risk: Summary of research into the principles of resilience and the practices of resilient organisations.

Science.gov (United States)

Hopkin, Paul

There have been many high-profile incidents in recent times that have affected both individual organisations and large parts of society. In response to these disasters and their consequences, there has been increasing focus on the concept of 'resilience'. Airmic worked with Cranfield School of Management to investigate the features of resilient organisations and whether common characteristics could be identified. The research summarised in this paper discovered five principles that increase an organisation's level of resilence. The paper also reports on the actions taken by organisations to embed these resilience principles into four main business enablers. These business enablers in combination represent the business model of the organisation. The overall conclusion of the research was that, in order to achieve a state of enhanced resilience, organisations need to be aware of risks and threats they face and then combine the actions required to be 'risk compliant' with the ability to be 'risk responsive'.

PENGARUH POROSITAS PACKING STEEL WOOL TERHADAP PRESSURE DROP DIDALAM PACKED BED COLUMN PADA DISTILASI CAMPURAN ETANOL-AMIL-ALKOHOL-AIR

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Trisna Kumala Dhaniswara

2016-08-01

Full Text Available Inventories of petroleum fuels are increasingly depleted and will someday run out. These shortcomings can be overcome by using alternative fuels, such as ethanol. Based on this, it is necessary to research and development of ethanol as a fuel. One way is with a separation in a packed distillation column. This study aims to assess the mass transfer phenomena that occur in the process of distilling a mixture of ethanol-water-amyl alcohol packed in column. In addition, this study aims to optimize temperature and reflux to obtain the highest levels of ethanol. This research method uses packed bed distillation system with the batch process. Feed used is synthetic ethanol, water, and solvent. Solvent used were amyl alcohol. Doing distillation with heating temperature is maintained. Distillation is done in the packing of stainless steel wool. Research carried out in a batch process with a variable temperature of  79°C; 84°C; 91°C; and porosity packing 20%; 30%; 40%; 50%; 60%; 70%; 80%.

Social ecology of resilience and Sumud of Palestinians.

Science.gov (United States)

Marie, Mohammad; Hannigan, Ben; Jones, Aled

2018-01-01

The aim of this article is to provide an overview of theoretical perspectives and practical research knowledge in relation to 'resilience', the resilience of Palestinians in particular and the related concept of 'Sumud'. 'Sumud' is a Palestinian idea that is interwoven with ideas of personal and collective resilience and steadfastness. It is also a socio-political concept and refers to ways of surviving in the context of occupation, chronic adversity, lack of resources and limited infrastructure. The concept of 'resilience' has deep roots, going back at least to the 10th century when Arabic scholars suggested strategies to cope with life adversity. In Europe, research into resilience extends back to the 1800s. The understanding of resilience has developed over four overlapping waves. These focus on individual traits, protective factors, ecological assets and (in the current wave) social ecological factors. The current wave of resilience research focuses on the contribution of cultural contextualisation and is an approach that is discussed in this article, which draws on Arabic and English language literature located through a search of multiple databases (CINAHL, British Nursing Index, ASSIA, MEDLINE, PsycINFO and EMBASE). Findings suggest that 'Sumud' is linked to the surrounding cultural context and can be thought of as an innovative, social ecological, approach to promoting resilience. We show that resilience is a prerequisite to 'Sumud', meaning that the individual has to be resilient in order to stay and not to leave their place, position or community. We close by pressing the case for studies which investigate resilience especially in underdeveloped countries such as Palestine (occupied Palestinian territories), and which reveal how resilience is embedded in pre-existing cultural contexts.

Building Ecological and Community Resilience and Measuring Success of the Department of Interior Hurricane Sandy Resilience Projects

Science.gov (United States)

Taylor, S. M.; Worman, S. L.; Bennett, R.; Bassow, A.

2017-12-01

The Department of the Interior (DOI) partnered with the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) to administer an external funding competition to support coastal resilience projects in the region affected by Hurricane Sandy. The projects complement the DOI Bureau-led projects, but are led by state and local governments, universities, non-profits, community groups, tribes, and other non-Federal entities. In total, the Hurricane Sandy Resilience Program invested over $750 million in approximately 180 projects to repair damage and improve the resilience of habitats, communities and infrastructure to future storms and sea level rise. Project activities include waterway connection and opening, living shoreline, marsh restoration, community resilience planning, data/mapping/modeling, and beach and dune restoration. DOI and NFWF initiated a resilience assessment in 2015 to evaluate the impact of this investment. The assessment began by clarifying the program's resilience goals and the development of ecological and socio-economic metrics across the project activities. Using these metrics, the evaluation is assessing the ecological and community outcomes, cost effectiveness of activities, improved scientific understanding, and temporal and spatial scaling of benefits across resilience activities. Recognizing the unique opportunity afforded by the scale and distribution of projects, NFWF and DOI have invested in monitoring through 2024 to better understand how these projects perform over time. This presentation will describe the evaluation questions, approach, long-term monitoring, online metrics portal, and findings to date.

Social-ecological resilience and geomorphic systems

Science.gov (United States)

Chaffin, Brian C.; Scown, Murray

2018-03-01

Governance of coupled social-ecological systems (SESs) and the underlying geomorphic processes that structure and alter Earth's surface is a key challenge for global sustainability amid the increasing uncertainty and change that defines the Anthropocene. Social-ecological resilience as a concept of scientific inquiry has contributed to new understandings of the dynamics of change in SESs, increasing our ability to contextualize and implement governance in these systems. Often, however, the importance of geomorphic change and geomorphological knowledge is somewhat missing from processes employed to inform SES governance. In this contribution, we argue that geomorphology and social-ecological resilience research should be integrated to improve governance toward sustainability. We first provide definitions of engineering, ecological, community, and social-ecological resilience and then explore the use of these concepts within and alongside geomorphology in the literature. While ecological studies often consider geomorphology as an important factor influencing the resilience of ecosystems and geomorphological studies often consider the engineering resilience of geomorphic systems of interest, very few studies define and employ a social-ecological resilience framing and explicitly link the concept to geomorphic systems. We present five key concepts-scale, feedbacks, state or regime, thresholds and regime shifts, and humans as part of the system-which we believe can help explicitly link important aspects of social-ecological resilience inquiry and geomorphological inquiry in order to strengthen the impact of both lines of research. Finally, we discuss how these five concepts might be used to integrate social-ecological resilience and geomorphology to better understand change in, and inform governance of, SESs. To compound these dynamics of resilience, complex systems are nested and cross-scale interactions from smaller and larger scales relative to the system of interest

Developing a community-based flood resilience measurement standard

Science.gov (United States)

Keating, Adriana; Szoenyi, Michael; Chaplowe, Scott; McQuistan, Colin; Campbell, Karen

2015-04-01

Given the increased attention to resilience-strengthening in international humanitarian and development work, there has been concurrent interest in its measurement and the overall accountability of "resilience strengthening" initiatives. The literature is reaching beyond the polemic of defining resilience to its measurement. Similarly, donors are increasingly expecting organizations to go beyond claiming resilience programing to measuring and showing it. However, key questions must be asked, in particular "Resilience of whom and to what?". There is no one-size-fits-all solution. The approach to measuring resilience is dependent on the audience and the purpose of the measurement exercise. Deriving a resilience measurement system needs to be based on the question it seeks to answer and needs to be specific. This session highlights key lessons from the Zurich Flood Resilience Alliance approach to develop a flood resilience measurement standard to measure and assess the impact of community based flood resilience interventions, and to inform decision-making to enhance the effectiveness of these interventions. We draw on experience in methodology development to-date, together with lessons from application in two case study sites in Latin America. Attention will be given to the use of a consistent measurement methodology for community resilience to floods over time and place; challenges to measuring a complex and dynamic phenomenon such as community resilience; methodological implications of measuring community resilience versus impact on and contribution to this goal; and using measurement and tools such as cost-benefit analysis to prioritize and inform strategic decision making for resilience interventions. The measurement tool follows the five categories of the Sustainable Livelihoods Framework and the 4Rs of complex adaptive systems - robustness, rapidity, redundancy and resourcefulness -5C-4R. A recent white paper by the Zurich Flood Resilience Alliance traces the

Cell packing structures

KAUST Repository

Pottmann, Helmut; Jiang, Caigui; Hö binger, Mathias; Wang, Jun; Bompas, Philippe; Wallner, Johannes

2015-01-01

optimization schemes for the computation of quad-based support structures. Hex-dominant structures may be designed via Voronoi tessellations, power diagrams, sphere packings and various extensions of these concepts. Apart from the obvious application as load

Assessment instruments of urban resilience

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Giovanna Saporiti

2012-07-01

Full Text Available The objective of this work is to highlight the aspects related to the resilient capacity of a neoecosistema. Clarifying what does it means to speak about a resilient neoecosistema and which are the specific characters that make him capable of change and adaptation when facing an environmental, social or economic threat, it will be possible to understand the efficacy related to the model of urban development. From the individuation of perturbing factors of this capacity, it will be possible to generate a panel of the resilient capacity linked to three different ambits that represent the three characteristic elements of natural ecosystems: its physic structure, the persons and the interaction processes between them so we would be able to make explicit the specific characters of resilience distinguished from those of sustainability and urban quality.  

Priority Queues Resilient to Memory Faults

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jørgensen, Allan Grønlund; Moruz, Gabriel; Mølhave, Thomas

2007-01-01

In the faulty-memory RAM model, the content of memory cells can get corrupted at any time during the execution of an algorithm, and a constant number of uncorruptible registers are available. A resilient data structure in this model works correctly on the set of uncorrupted values. In this paper we...... introduce a resilient priority queue. The deletemin operation of a resilient priority queue returns either the minimum uncorrupted element or some corrupted element. Our resilient priority queue uses $O(n)$ space to store $n$ elements. Both insert and deletemin operations are performed in $O(\\log n......+\\delta)$ time amortized, where $\\delta$ is the maximum amount of corruptions tolerated. Our priority queue matches the performance of classical optimal priority queues in the RAM model when the number of corruptions tolerated is $O(\\log n)$. We prove matching worst case lower bounds for resilient priority...

RESILIENCE AND ENTERPRISE ARCHITECTURE IN SMES

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rui Gomes

2015-12-01

Full Text Available Considering that SMEs need to embrace the drivers of resilience and that a well-defined and readily available Enterprise Architecture (EA supports enterprise integration by enabling the common view of business processes, data and systems across the enterprise and its partners, we can say that EA is one of the tracks making resilience predictable and it should support and collaborate with other resilience tracks. However, the EA frameworks do not give relevance to the activities that contribute most to business resilience, so this paper aims to clarify the dimensions and the activities related to the development of an EA and the touching points with other enterprise wide processes in order to guarantee that resilience requirements are met in SMEs. For this I propose an approach of ecological adaptation, and four architectures: business, organizational, information, and technological, although this paper only presents the Business and Organizational Architectures.

Priority Queues Resilient to Memory Faults

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jørgensen, Allan Grønlund; Moruz, Gabriel; Mølhave, Thomas

2007-01-01

In the faulty-memory RAM model, the content of memory cells can get corrupted at any time during the execution of an algorithm, and a constant number of uncorruptible registers are available. A resilient data structure in this model works correctly on the set of uncorrupted values. In this paper we...... introduce a resilient priority queue. The deletemin operation of a resilient priority queue returns either the minimum uncorrupted element or some corrupted element. Our resilient priority queue uses $O(n)$ space to store $n$ elements. Both insert and deletemin operations are performed in $O(\\log n...... queues storing only structural information in the uncorruptible registers between operations....

Resilience to Surprises through Communicative Planning

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bruce Evan. Goldstein

2009-12-01

Full Text Available Resilience thinkers share an interest in collaborative deliberation with communicative planners, who aim to accommodate different forms of knowledge and styles of reasoning to promote social learning and yield creative and equitable agreements. Members of both fields attended a symposium at Virginia Tech in late 2008, where communicative planners considered how social-ecological resilience informed new possibilities for planning practice beyond disaster mitigation and response. In turn, communicative planners offered resilience scholars ideas about how collaboration could accomplish more than enhance rational decision making of the commons. Through these exchanges, the symposium fostered ideas about collaborative governance and the critical role of expertise in fostering communicative resilience.

Theoretical comparison of packed bed and fluidized bed membrane reactors for methane reforming

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Gallucci, F.; van Sint Annaland, M.; Kuipers, J.A.M.

2010-01-01

In this theoretical work the performance of different membrane reactor concepts, both fluidized bed and packed bed membrane reactors, has been compared for ultra-pure hydrogen production via methane reforming. Using detailed theoretical models, the required membrane area to reach a given conversion

Social-ecological resilience and law

Science.gov (United States)

Garmestani, Ahjond S.; Allen, Craig R.

2014-01-01

Environmental law envisions ecological systems as existing in an equilibrium state, reinforcing a rigid legal framework unable to absorb rapid environmental changes and innovations in sustainability. For the past four decades, “resilience theory,” which embraces uncertainty and nonlinear dynamics in complex adaptive systems, has provided a robust, invaluable foundation for sound environmental management. Reforming American law to incorporate this knowledge is the key to sustainability. This volume features top legal and resilience scholars speaking on resilience theory and its legal applications to climate change, biodiversity, national parks, and water law.

Resilience in ecotoxicology: Toward a multiple equilibrium concept.

Science.gov (United States)

Bundschuh, Mirco; Schulz, Ralf; Schäfer, Ralf B; Allen, Craig R; Angeler, David G

2017-10-01

The term resilience describes stress-response patterns across scientific disciplines. In ecology, advances have been made to clearly define resilience based on underlying mechanistic assumptions. Engineering resilience (rebound) is used to describe the ability of organisms to recover from adverse conditions (disturbances), which is termed the rate of recovery. By contrast, the ecological resilience definition considers a systemic change, that is, when ecosystems reorganize into a new regime following disturbance. Under this new regime, structural and functional aspects change considerably relative to the previous regime, without recovery. In this context, resilience is an emergent property of complex systems. In the present study, we argue that both definitions and uses are appropriate in ecotoxicology, and although the differences are subtle, the implications and uses are profoundly different. We discuss resilience concepts in ecotoxicology, where the prevailing view of resilience is engineering resilience from chemical stress. Ecological resilience may also be useful for describing systemic ecological changes because of chemical stress. We present quantitative methods that allow ecotoxicologists and risk managers to assess whether an ecosystem faces an impending regime shift or whether it has already undergone such a shift. We contend that engineering and ecological resilience help to distinguish ecotoxicological responses to chemical stressors mechanistically and thus have implications for theory, policy, and application. Environ Toxicol Chem 2017;36:2574-2580. © 2017 SETAC. © 2017 SETAC.

SEPTOPLASTY WITH AND WITHOUT NASAL PACKING: A COMPARATIVE STUDY

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mitta

2016-05-01

Full Text Available Septoplasty is one of the most commonly performed surgeries in rhinology to relieve nasal obstruction of patients with distortion in the midline cartilage or septum of the nose to relieve nasal obstruction of patient and findings consistent with nasal endoscopy. The anterior nasal packing routinely done following septoplasty is usually conventional and not evidence based. The purpose of nasal packing is to obtain haemostasis, enhance opposition of septal flaps, avoid septal haematoma formation, close the dead space, avoid synechiae formation, provide support to septal cartilage and prevent its displacement. OBJECTIVE This study intends to evaluate the effects of nasal packing on surgical success and related complications in septoplasty. MATERIALS AND METHODS The present clinical prospective and randomised study was carried out on patients attending Otorhinolaryngology Department of Santhiram Medical College & General Hospital between March 2012 and March 2015. Patients undergoing septoplasty were randomised either to receive anterior nasal packing or to not receive nasal packing postoperatively. RESULTS Levels of pain experienced by patients with nasal packing postoperatively during the initial 24 hours postoperatively and during the removal of the pack were significantly more. Post-operative headache, epiphora, swallowing discomfort and sleep disturbance were more in patients with nasal packing and statistically (p.05. Septal haematoma, adhesions and local infections in both groups were statistically insignificant (p>.05. CONCLUSION Septoplasty enhances the standard of living of patients with septal deviation and nasal obstruction. Our study results suggest that nasal packing after septoplasty is not obligatory. Nasal packing causes considerably more pain and complications, and it should be reserved only for those who have bleeding predisposition.

Effect of radiation on preservation of convenient dish 'bowl-shape packed pig elbow'

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang Keqin; Chen Jingping; Li Wenge; Peng Weizheng

2005-01-01

The suitable parameters for radiation processing were investiqated by analyzing the microload of material and product, and radiation effect on the preservation of convenient dish 'bowl-shape packed pig elbow'. The results showed the store period of the product could be extended 2-6 month by 4.0-6.0 kGy radiation at different storage temperature. The sensory, physical and chemical index of the products met the requirement of relevant national standard of food hygiene. (authors)

Characterization of metallic surfaces in phosphorous-bronze ordered packings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sandru, Claudia; Titescu, Gh.

1997-01-01

Copper and its alloys, particularly the phosphorous bronze, are characterized by a high water wettability as compared with other materials. This feature led to utilization of phosphorous bronze in fabrication of contact elements, a packing type equipping the distillation columns. For heavy water separation by isotopic distillation under vacuum, ordered packings of phosphorous bronze networks were fabricated. The superior performances of these packings are determined by the material and also by the geometrical form and the state of the metallic surface. Thus, a procedure of evaluating the wettability has been developed, based on tests of the network material. The results of the tests constitute a criterion of rating the functional performances of packings, particularly of their efficiencies. Also, investigation techniques of the chemical composition and of the thickness of superficial layer on the packing were developed. It was found that the packing surface presents a layer of about 5-20 μm formed mainly by oxides of copper, tin, and, depending on the packing treatment, of oxides of other elements coming from the treatment agent. The paper presents characterization of phosphorous bronze treated with potassium permanganate, a specific treatment for improving the functional performances of the packings used in the heavy water concentration and re-concentration installations

Fast charge implications: Pack and cell analysis and comparison

Science.gov (United States)

Tanim, Tanvir R.; Shirk, Matthew G.; Bewley, Randy L.; Dufek, Eric J.; Liaw, Bor Yann

2018-03-01

This study investigates the effect of 50-kW (about 2C) direct current fast charging on a full-size battery electric vehicle's battery pack in comparison to a pack exclusively charged at 3.3 kW, which is the common alternating current Level 2 charging power level. Comparable scaled charging protocols are also independently applied to individual cells at three different temperatures, 20 °C, 30 °C, and 40 °C, to perform a comparative analysis with the packs. Dominant cell-level aging modes were identified through incremental capacity analysis and compared with full packs to gain a clear understanding of additional key factors that affect pack aging. While the cell-level study showed a minor impact on performance due to direct current fast charging, the packs showed a significantly higher rate of capacity fade under similar charging protocols. This indicates that pack-level aging cannot be directly extrapolated from cell evaluation. Delayed fast charging, completing shortly before discharge, was found to have less of an impact on battery degradation than conventional alternating current Level 2 charging.

Can Biogeochemists Help To Enhance Urban Resilience?

Science.gov (United States)

Baker, L. A.

2012-12-01

Throughout history, many human settlements have collapsed, often caused or triggered by extreme climatic fluctuation, resource depletion, or pollution. In today's world, with rapid urbanization, much of it in "informal" peri-urban settlements, increasing per capita wealth and consumption, climate warming, and widespread pollution, the potential for collapse of modern cities is a realistic hazard. This presentation addresses the question: can biogeochemists contribute knowledge, and translate that knowledge, into greater resilience of urban systems? I argue that we can, and present four examples, each illustrated with case studies. The first is an example of resource depletion - the eventual exhaustion of P rock used for fertilizer. Phosphate rock reserves are limited, at least in the U.S., causing us to import fertilizer P. Prices are rising, prompting more efficient use. Over the long term, depletion of phosphate rock globally may lead to a "brown devolution". We have started a process of tracking P from agricultural watersheds to the "urban plate", and the potential for recycling urban wastes back to agriculture. Early findings in our lab show that agricultural P use in a high-production watershed is now quite efficient, but urban P use is extremely inefficient. A P balance of the Minneapolis-St. Paul region showed that only 4% of input P was recycled, but 75% recycling was possible, even with off-the-shelf technologies. Recycling urban P to agricultural systems, at least for cities in agricultural regions, could close the P cycle and add resilience to the urban food system. A second example is the loss of resilience caused by pollution. Cities often pollute their groundwater, especially with nitrate, salts, and bacteria, limiting the potential for using underlying aquifers for water supply during drought periods and reducing the resilience of the urban system. This is a serious problem in cities in the developing world that do not have water-based waste removal

Agency and Resilience: Teachings of Pikangikum First Nation Elders, Northwestern Ontario

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andrew M. Miller

2013-09-01

Full Text Available Although scholars of social-ecological resilience propose unity between humans and the natural world, much of this work remains based on Cartesian division of mind and body that denies it. We present an example of a unified system of resilience thinking shared with us by Anishinaabe (Ojibway elders of Pikangikum First Nation, northwestern Ontario. The elders' views of boreal forest disturbance and renewal are distinct from western scientific approaches in their recognition of agency, the ability to individually express free will in nonhuman beings including animals, plants, rocks, and forest fire within their landscape. Pikangikum elders perceive that, if relationships based on respect, reciprocity, and noninterference are maintained with other agents, renewal will continue. The proposition of living landscapes composed of diverse nonhuman agents poses challenges to collaboration with western worldviews, which view nature largely as mechanistic and without moral standing. We suggest that a greater attention to nonwestern ontologies can contribute to productive cross-cultural partnerships directed toward fostering resilience.

Resilient mounting systems in buildings

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Breeuwer, R.; Tukker, J.C.

1976-01-01

The basic elements of resilient mounting systems are described and various measures for quantifying the effect of such systems defined. Using electrical analogue circuits, the calculation of these measures is illustrated. With special reference to resilient mounting systems in buildings, under

A comprehensive approach to assess operational resilience

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Stolker, R.J.M.; Karydas, D.M.; Rouvroye, J.L.; Hollnagel, E.; Pieri, F.

2008-01-01

This paper presents a first attempt to apply Multi-Attribute Utility Theory (MAUT) to the concept of resilience. The focus of this paper is measuring the management performance of operational resilience in an organization. Operational resilience refers to the ability of an organization to prevent

Chameleon-Inspired Mechanochromic Photonic Films Composed of Non-Close-Packed Colloidal Arrays.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Gun Ho; Choi, Tae Min; Kim, Bomi; Han, Sang Hoon; Lee, Jung Min; Kim, Shin-Hyun

2017-11-28

Chameleons use a non-close-packed array of guanine nanocrystals in iridophores to develop and tune skin colors in the full visible range. Inspired by the biological process uncovered in panther chameleons, we designed photonic films containing a non-close-packed face-centered-cubic array of silica particles embedded in an elastomer. The non-close-packed array is formed by interparticle repulsion exerted by solvation layers on the particle surface, which is rapidly captured in the elastomer by photocuring of the dispersion medium. The artificial skin exhibits a structural color that shifts from red to blue under stretching or compression. The separation between inelastic particles enables tuning without experiencing significant rearrangement of particles, providing elastic deformation and reversible color change, as chameleons do. The simple fabrication procedure consists of film casting and UV irradiation, potentially enabling the continuous high-throughput production. The mechanochromic property of the photonic films enables the visualization of deformation or stress with colors, which is potentially beneficial for various applications, including mechanical sensors, sound-vision transformers, and color display.

Primary school teachers' resilience and their readiness for enhancing children's resilience

OpenAIRE

Bon, Barbara

2017-01-01

Resilience is an important trait, which enables people to successfully recover from difficulties and stress. For teachers, resilience is of vital importance, as it offers different ways and solutions to successfully cope with difficult and stressful situations they face on a daily basis. The way teachers experience and react to stress often affects their pupils, who are under a lot of stress as well. Teachers could help and teach them how to cope with stressful situations by spending some sch...

SPH Modelling of Sea-ice Pack Dynamics

Science.gov (United States)

Staroszczyk, Ryszard

2017-12-01

The paper is concerned with the problem of sea-ice pack motion and deformation under the action of wind and water currents. Differential equations describing the dynamics of ice, with its very distinct mateFfigrial responses in converging and diverging flows, express the mass and linear momentum balances on the horizontal plane (the free surface of the ocean). These equations are solved by the fully Lagrangian method of smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH). Assuming that the ice behaviour can be approximated by a non-linearly viscous rheology, the proposed SPH model has been used to simulate the evolution of a sea-ice pack driven by wind drag stresses. The results of numerical simulations illustrate the evolution of an ice pack, including variations in ice thickness and ice area fraction in space and time. The effects of different initial ice pack configurations and of different conditions assumed at the coast-ice interface are examined. In particular, the SPH model is applied to a pack flow driven by a vortex wind to demonstrate how well the Lagrangian formulation can capture large deformations and displacements of sea ice.

How Robust is Your System Resilience?

Science.gov (United States)

Homayounfar, M.; Muneepeerakul, R.

2017-12-01

Robustness and resilience are concepts in system thinking that have grown in importance and popularity. For many complex social-ecological systems, however, robustness and resilience are difficult to quantify and the connections and trade-offs between them difficult to study. Most studies have either focused on qualitative approaches to discuss their connections or considered only one of them under particular classes of disturbances. In this study, we present an analytical framework to address the linkage between robustness and resilience more systematically. Our analysis is based on a stylized dynamical model that operationalizes a widely used concept framework for social-ecological systems. The model enables us to rigorously define robustness and resilience and consequently investigate their connections. The results reveal the tradeoffs among performance, robustness, and resilience. They also show how the nature of the such tradeoffs varies with the choices of certain policies (e.g., taxation and investment in public infrastructure), internal stresses and external disturbances.

Depression and Resilience in Breast Cancer Patients

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gordana Ristevska-Dimitrоvska

2015-11-01

CONCLUSION: This study shows that patients who are less depressed have higher levels of resilience and that psychological resilience may independently contribute to lower levels of depression among breast cancer patients. The level of psychological resilience may be a protective factor for depression and psychological distress.

Risk Behavior and Personal Resiliency in Adolescents

Science.gov (United States)

Prince-Embury, Sandra

2015-01-01

This study explores the relationship between self-reported risk behaviors and personal resiliency in adolescents; specifically whether youth with higher personal resiliency report less frequent risk behaviors than those with lower personal resiliency. Self-reported risk behavior is surveyed by the "Adolescent Risk Behavior Inventory"…

Direct contact condensation in packed beds

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Li, Yi; Klausner, James F.; Mei, Renwei; Knight, Jessica [Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611 (United States)

2006-12-15

A diffusion driven desalination process was recently described where a very effective direct contact condenser with a packed bed is used to condense water vapor out of an air/vapor mixture. A laboratory scale direct contact condenser has been fabricated as a twin tower structure with two stages, co-current and countercurrent. Experiments have been operated in each stage with respective saturated air inlet temperatures of 36, 40 and 43{sup o}C. The temperature and humidity data have been collected at the inlet and exit of the packed bed for different water to air mass flow ratios that vary between 0 and 2.5. A one-dimensional model based on conservation principles has been developed, which predicts the variation of temperature, humidity, and condensation rate through the condenser stages. Agreement between the model and experiments is very good. It is observed that the countercurrent flow stage condensation effectiveness is significantly higher than that for the co-current stage. The condensation heat and mass transfer rates were found to decrease when water blockages occur within the packed bed. Using high-speed digital cinematography, it was observed that this problem can occur at any operating condition, and is dependent on the packing surface wetting characteristics. This observation is used to explain the requirement for two different empirical constants, depending on packing diameter, suggested by Onda for the air side mass transfer coefficient correlation. (author)

Is there room for resilience? A scoping review and critique of substance use literature and its utilization of the concept of resilience.

Science.gov (United States)

Rudzinski, Katherine; McDonough, Peggy; Gartner, Rosemary; Strike, Carol

2017-09-15

Research in the area of illicit substance use remains preoccupied with describing and analyzing the risks of people who use drugs (PWUD), however more recently there has been a drive to use a strengths-based or resilience approach as an alternative to investigating drug use. This leads us to ask: what can be known about PWUD from the point of view of resilience? The objective of this scoping review is to analyze how the concept of resilience is defined, operationalized, and applied in substance use research. Popular health, social science, psychology, and inter-disciplinary databases namely: SCOPUS, PUBMED, PsycINFO, and Sociological Abstracts were searched. Studies were selected if they used the concept of resilience and if substance use was a key variable under investigation. A total of 77 studies were identified which provided a definition of resilience, or attempted to operationalize (e.g., via scales) the concept of resilience in some manner. Data were charted and sorted using key terms and fundamental aspects of resilience. The majority of studies focus on youth and their resistance to, or engagement in, substance use. There is also a small but growing area of research that examines recovery from substance addiction as a form of resilience. Very few studies were found that thoroughly investigated resilience among PWUD. Consistently throughout the literature drug use is presented as a 'risk factor' jeopardizing one's ability to be resilient, or drug use is seen as a 'maladaptive coping strategy', purporting one's lack of resilience. Currently, substance use research provides a substantial amount of information about the internal strengths that can assist in resisting future drug use; however there is less information about the external resources that play a role, especially for adults. Though popular, outcome-based conceptualizations of resilience are often static, concealing the potential for developing resilience over time or as conditions change. Studies of

Evaluating multicast resilience in carrier ethernet

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ruepp, Sarah Renée; Wessing, Henrik; Zhang, Jiang

2010-01-01

This paper gives an overview of the Carrier Ethernet technology with specific focus on resilience. In particular, we show how multicast traffic, which is essential for IPTV can be protected. We detail the ackground for resilience mechanisms and their control and e present Carrier Ethernet...... resilience methods for linear nd ring networks. By simulation we show that the vailability of a multicast connection can be significantly increased by applying protection methods....

Incorporating Resilience into Dynamic Social Models

Science.gov (United States)

2016-07-20

form contains classified information, stamp classification level on the top and bottom of this page. 17. LIMITATION OF ABSTRACT. This block must be...resilience as a multi- level resilience and study their resilience at individual, family and society levels . However, having more than one level on a...4] U. Fischbacher, S. Gächter, and E. Fehr, “Are People Conditionally Cooperative ? Evidence from a Public Goods Experiment,” Econ . Lett., vol

The politics of vulnerability and resilience

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Georg Frerks

2011-12-01

Full Text Available Much conceptual confusion exists over the concepts of vulnerability and (social resilience, reinforced by the different paradigms (the article identifies four and disciplinary traditions underlying their use. While since the 1980s the social construction of "vulnerability" as a driver for disaster received considerable attention, in recent years we have seen increased attention to people's capacities and resilience. The currently popular "complexity" approach to risk moreover appears to offer ways of breaking through entrenched vulnerabilities. Resilience however is also a political project which, we argue, also has its dark, conservative overtones and overlooks structural sources of vulnerability that continue to affect hazard-prone actors. We may therefore need to conceive resilience as the potential for social transformation after disaster.Existe muita confusão conceitual em torno dos conceitos de vulnerabilidade e resiliência (social, reforçada pela diferença de paradigmas (este artigo identifica quarto e tradições disciplinares subjacentes à sua utilização. Enquanto desde os anos 80 a construção social de "vulnerabilidade" como condutor para desastres recebeu atenção considerável, nos últimos anos temos visto maior atenção às capacidades e resiliência das pessoas. Atualmente popular, a abordagem da "complexidade" do risco, além disso, parece oferecer maneiras transformadoras através das vulnerabilidades enraizadas. No entanto, defendemos que a resiliência é um projeto político que também tem seus sombrios sobretons conservadores e omite fontes estruturais de vulnerabilidade que continuam a afetar os atores propensos ao risco. Podemos, portanto, precisar conceber a resiliência como potencial para transformação social depois de desastres.

Modi ed strip packing heuristics for the rectangular variable-sized ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Two packing problems are considered in this paper, namely the well-known strip packing problem (SPP) and the variable-sized bin packing problem (VSBPP). A total of 252 strip packing heuristics (and variations thereof) from the literature, as well as novel heuristics proposed by the authors, are compared statistically by ...

Toward quantifying metrics for rail-system resilience : Identification and analysis of performance weak resilience signals

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Regt, A. de; Siegel, A.W.; Schraagen, J.M.C.

2016-01-01

This paper aims to enhance tangibility of the resilience engineering concept by facilitating understanding and operationalization of weak resilience signals (WRSs) in the rail sector. Within complex socio-technical systems, accidents can be seen as unwanted outcomes emerging from uncontrolled

Literature Review of Concepts: Psychological Resiliency

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Wald, Jaye; Taylor, Steven; Asmundson, Gordon J; Jang, Kerry L; Stapleton, Jennifer

2006-01-01

...; and resiliency measures, their development and validation. Existing definitions implicate resiliency with the ability to adapt and successfully cope with adversity, life stressors, and traumatic events...

Reference book for design of valve packings, sealing high temperature water

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Doubt, G.L.

1976-01-01

Mockups of stuffing boxes for valves in the 1/4 to 1 in. (0.6-2.54cm) pipe size range and ASA 900 and up pressure class were tested to determine how temperature, stuffing box dimensions, packing compressive stress and stem surface finish affect water leak rate, packing friction torque and packing volume loss (creep). One brand of wire-reinforced asbestos braid on graphite-and-asbestos core packing was used in all tests. The theory of leakage through porous media was reviewed with emphasis on application to packed stuffing boxes, and a mathematical framework for relating leakage and packing friction to stuffing box dimensions and compressive stress was developed. The tests gave empirical relationships (1) for leak rate vs temperature, packing compressive stress, stem diameter and packing size, (2) for packing friction torque vs the above variables and (3) for packing creep vs temperature and stress. Packing stress affected leakage far more than any other variable, the leak rate being inversely proportional to stress to the 7.3 power at a packing temperature of 350 deg F (175 deg C). Factors which increase packing compression (density) have a strong reducing effect on leakage and a moderate to zero effect on packing friction torque. Surface finish had no visible effect on leakage, torque or creep. Empirical results and theory have been combined to show how stuffing boxes can be designed for a given leakage rate. Suggestions for decreasing leakage from existing high temperature stuffing boxes are included. (author)

Measures of emergency preparedness contributing to nursing home resilience.

Science.gov (United States)

Lane, Sandi J; McGrady, Elizabeth

2017-12-13

Resilience approaches have been successfully applied in crisis management, disaster response, and high reliability organizations and have the potential to enhance existing systems of nursing home disaster preparedness. This study's purpose was to determine how the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) "Emergency Preparedness Checklist Recommended Tool for Effective Health Care Facility Planning" contributes to organizational resilience by identifying the benchmark resilience items addressed by the CMS Emergency Preparedness Checklist and items not addressed by the CMS Emergency Preparedness Checklist, and to recommend tools and processes to improve resilience for nursing homes. The CMS Emergency Preparedness Checklist items were compared to the Resilience Benchmark Tool items; similar items were considered matches. Resilience Benchmark Tool items with no CMS Emergency Preparedness Checklist item matches were considered breaches in nursing home resilience. The findings suggest that the CMS Emergency Preparedness Checklist can be used to measure some aspects of resilience, however, there were many resilience factors not addressed. For nursing homes to prepare and respond to crisis situations, organizations need to embrace a culture that promotes individual resilience-related competencies that when aggregated enable the organization to improve its resiliency. Social workers have the skills and experience to facilitate this change.

Nurse leader resilience: career defining moments.

Science.gov (United States)

Cline, Susan

2015-01-01

Resilience is an essential component of effective nursing leadership. It is defined as the ability to survive and thrive in the face of adversity. Resilience can be developed and internalized as a measure to improve retention and reduce burnout. Nurse leaders at all levels should develop these competencies to survive and thrive in an increasingly complex health care environment. Building positive relationships, maintaining positivity, developing emotional insight, creating work-life balance, and reflecting on successes and challenges are effective strategies for resilience building. Nurse leaders have a professional obligation to develop resilience in themselves, the teams they supervise, and the organization as a whole. Additional benefits include reduced turnover, reduced cost, and improved quality outcomes through organizational mindfulness.

Influence of packing and dispersion of particles on the cement content of concretes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

B. L. DAMINELI

Full Text Available Abstract Due to environmental issues, the concrete chain seeks to reduce CO2 emissions. However, growing demand from developing countries causes the increase of CO2 emissions in production to exceed decreases generated by industrial actions, such as improving kilns and clinker replacement. New strategies are important. Changes in the concrete formulation, making it more efficient, can help if these changes produce concrete with the same performance and lower cement consumption. In this regard, the improvement of packing and dispersion of particles increases this efficiency. The better the packing, the lower the volume of voids between particles, thereby requiring lower fluid content (water to permit flow. The dispersion of the particles also decreases the water content for the same fluidity. The less the water content, the smaller the water/cement (w/c ratio, and the greater the resistance. Thus, both strategies increase the efficiency by uncoupling obtaining fluidity from the water content. This study investigated the influence of packing and dispersion on the efficiency of cement use in concrete. The increase of packing and the complete dispersion of fine particles has been shown to improve efficiency, as measured by the ratio between binder consumption and compressive strength (the performance parameter used in most practical applications.

Special issue on Resilience and (in)security

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kristensen, Kristian Søby

, and redefine relations of security and insecurity. We show the increased attention – scholarly as well as political – given to resilience in recent times and provide a review of the state of critical security studies literature on resilience. We argue that to advance this discussion, resilience needs...

Resistance of the packing to attack of insects pest in irradiated ration

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Arthur, Paula B.; Arthur, Valter; Silva, Lucia C.A.S.; Franco, Suely S.H.

2013-01-01

The pests as beetles, acarids, moths and mushrooms among other, usually infest products stored as: grains, crumbs, flours, coffee, tobacco, dried fruits, animal rations, spices, dehydrated plants, causing the visual depreciation and promoting the deterioration of the products. The objective of the research was use the gamma radiation of Cobalt-60 in the disinfestation of some types of rations used for feeding of animals of small size. In the experiment packing measuring 10 cm x 20 cm with capacity of 70 grams of substrate (ration) with 4 types of existent marks in the trade: (1), (2), (3) and (4) of free samples were used. Each treatment had 10 repetitions, that were irradiated with doses of: 0 (control) 0,5; 1,0 and 2,0 kGy, to do the disinfestation of the ration samples. After the irradiation all the packing and the control were conditioned in plastic boxes of 80 cm x 50 cm with cover, where the insects: Lasioderma serricorne, Plodia interpuctella, Sitophilus zeamais and S. oryzae were liberated, in a total of 400 for each box. The boxes were maintained at room acclimatized with 27 ± 2 deg C and relative humidity of 70 ± 5%. The counting of the number of insects and holes in the packing were made after 60 days. The results showed that only the package of the ration type number 4, was susceptive to the attack of the species of insects. (author)

Resistance of the packing to attack of insects pest in irradiated ration

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Arthur, Paula B.; Arthur, Valter; Silva, Lucia C.A.S.; Franco, Suely S.H., E-mail: paula.arthur@hotmail.com [Centro de Energia Nuclear na Agricultura (CENA/USP), Piracicaba, SP (Brazil). Lab. de Radiobiologia e Ambiente; Franco, Jose G.; Villavicencio, Anna L.H.C., E-mail: gilmita@uol.com.br, E-mail: villavic@ipen.br [Instituto de Pesquisas Energeticas e Nucleares (IPEN/CNEN-SP), Sao Paulo, SP (Brazil)

2013-07-01

The pests as beetles, acarids, moths and mushrooms among other, usually infest products stored as: grains, crumbs, flours, coffee, tobacco, dried fruits, animal rations, spices, dehydrated plants, causing the visual depreciation and promoting the deterioration of the products. The objective of the research was use the gamma radiation of Cobalt-60 in the disinfestation of some types of rations used for feeding of animals of small size. In the experiment packing measuring 10 cm x 20 cm with capacity of 70 grams of substrate (ration) with 4 types of existent marks in the trade: (1), (2), (3) and (4) of free samples were used. Each treatment had 10 repetitions, that were irradiated with doses of: 0 (control) 0,5; 1,0 and 2,0 kGy, to do the disinfestation of the ration samples. After the irradiation all the packing and the control were conditioned in plastic boxes of 80 cm x 50 cm with cover, where the insects: Lasioderma serricorne, Plodia interpuctella, Sitophilus zeamais and S. oryzae were liberated, in a total of 400 for each box. The boxes were maintained at room acclimatized with 27 ± 2 deg C and relative humidity of 70 ± 5%. The counting of the number of insects and holes in the packing were made after 60 days. The results showed that only the package of the ration type number 4, was susceptive to the attack of the species of insects. (author)

Pack stability in dip faces fitted with scraper conveyors

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Schwartzmann, R

1978-01-01

This paper presents an account of an investigation conducted by CERCHAR, at the request of HBNPC, into the problems of goafside pack stability. Winning method and support and stowing techniques are described. Sets out the study methods used: systematic measurement (by direct or remote means) using an instrument developed by CERCHAR to investigate all aspects of in situ pack behaviour: settling, stresses, pressure on supports, etc. Gives the results of the investigation (tables and graphs) load-bearing capacity of the supports, deformation of the surrounding rock, convergence and stresses in the pack (figures, graphs), resistance of support-timber screen, model of in situ pack behaviour. Detailed conclusions (potential techniques, detailed study, practical improvements in packing techniques) are presented.

Sclerosing lipogranuloma of the eyelid: unusual complication following nasal packing in endoscopic sinus surgery.

Science.gov (United States)

Ramaswamy, Balakrishnan; Singh, Rohit; Manusrut, Manusrut; Hazarika, Manali

2015-03-06

An eyelid or orbital lipogranuloma can occur following nasal packing with liquid paraffin, petroleum jelly or an antibiotic-based cream. It usually presents a few weeks or months after the initial procedure. We present a report of three such cases of sclerosing lipogranuloma involving the eyelid, which occurred following a sinonasal surgery where nasal packing using petroleum jelly was performed. The typical clinical course and the classical histopathological features are highlighted. All cases were diagnosed by histopathological examination as sclerosing lipogranuloma. Complete surgical removal resulted in complete resolution on 1 month follow-up. The diagnosis is based on a high degree of suspicion following a detailed history of prior use of lipid-based products for nasal packing following endonasal surgery. Histopathology is diagnostic. Surgical excision is the treatment of choice, however, due to its infiltrative nature, it may be difficult to obtain a complete cure. 2015 BMJ Publishing Group Ltd.

Olive and olive pomace oil packing and marketing

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Berzosa, Juan

2006-03-01

Full Text Available The paper describes the industrial installations and equipments used by the olive oil sector for olive oil packing, the different types of containers used (plastic, glass, tin, and carton, and the diverse technologies applied for filling, stoppering, labelling, and packing as well as the trend and new technologies developed according to the material of the containers and the markets’ demands.Some logistic aspects such as palletization, storage, and shipment of final products are also discussed. The use of modern tools and codification systems like EAN 128 permits to follow the product distribution and assure the traceability of packed oils.The last part of the article includes the world and EU production and consumption of olive oil, paying special attention to the peculiarities of the main EU producers (Spain, Italy, Greece, and Portugal. Finally, the olive oil consumption in third countries is analysed and the consumption and its trend in merging markets like USA, Australia, and Japan commented.En este artículo se describen los equipos e instalaciones industriales que utiliza el sector del aceite de oliva para el envasado de los aceites de oliva, los tipos de envases más empleados (plástico, vidrio, metálicos y cartón y las diferentes tecnologías de llenado, taponado, etiquetado y embalado, así como las tendencias y nuevas tecnologías en función del material de los envases y la demanda de los mercados.Se contemplan también aspectos logísticos como el paletizado, el almacenamiento y la expedición del producto terminado. El uso de modernas herramientas y sistemas de codificación como el EAN 128 permite el seguimiento del producto y la trazabilidad de los aceites envasados a lo largo de la cadena de distribución.En la última parte del artículo, se indican cifras de producción y consumo de aceite de oliva en el mundo y en la Unión Europea. Se comentan especialmente las peculiaridades de los principales países productores de la

Resilient children of injection drug users.

Science.gov (United States)

Pilowsky, Daniel J; Zybert, Patricia A; Vlahov, David

2004-11-01

To examine associations between resilience in children of injection drug users and children's coping strategies, parenting stress, and children's social support. Injection drug-using parents (n=91) and their children aged 6 to 11 (n=117) were recruited in Baltimore (1997-1999). Resilience was defined as scoring in the lowest quartile of the Child Behavior Checklist total psychopathology score. Coping strategies used by resilient and nonresilient children, the extent and types of social support that they received, and the level of parenting stress reported by their parents were compared and contrasted. Rates of depressive, anxiety, and disruptive behavior disorders were 15.4%, 22.2%, and 21.4%, respectively, for the entire sample. Compared with the nonresilient, resilient children were less likely to use two avoidance coping strategies (internalizing [p=.002] and externalizing [p=.017]). The level of actual support received by resilient and nonresilient children did not differ significantly (p=.202). Perceived support was greater among resilient children (as reported by their parents; p parents reported lower parenting stress (p=.042). A significant proportion of children of injection drug users are in need of clinical care. Interventions to help children of substance-abusing parents modify their coping style merit exploration.

Why resilience is unappealing to social science: Theoretical and empirical investigations of the scientific use of resilience

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Olsson, Lennart; Jerneck, Anne; Thoren, Henrik; Persson, Johannes; O’Byrne, David

2015-01-01

Resilience is often promoted as a boundary concept to integrate the social and natural dimensions of sustainability. However, it is a troubled dialogue from which social scientists may feel detached. To explain this, we first scrutinize the meanings, attributes, and uses of resilience in ecology and elsewhere to construct a typology of definitions. Second, we analyze core concepts and principles in resilience theory that cause disciplinary tensions between the social and natural sciences (system ontology, system boundary, equilibria and thresholds, feedback mechanisms, self-organization, and function). Third, we provide empirical evidence of the asymmetry in the use of resilience theory in ecology and environmental sciences compared to five relevant social science disciplines. Fourth, we contrast the unification ambition in resilience theory with methodological pluralism. Throughout, we develop the argument that incommensurability and unification constrain the interdisciplinary dialogue, whereas pluralism drawing on core social scientific concepts would better facilitate integrated sustainability research. PMID:26601176

What Do We Mean by 'Community Resilience'? A Systematic Literature Review of How It Is Defined in the Literature.

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Patel, Sonny S; Rogers, M Brooke; Amlôt, Richard; Rubin, G James

2017-02-01

Government, industry and charitable organisations have an increasing focus on programs intended to support community resilience to disasters. But has consensus been reached as to what defines 'community resilience' and what its core characteristics are? We undertook a systematic literature review of definitions of community resilience related to disasters. We conducted an inductive thematic analysis of the definitions and descriptions that we identified, in order to determine the proposed characteristics of community resilience prior to, during and after a disaster. We identified 80 relevant papers. There was no evidence of a common, agreed definition of community resilience. In spite of this, evidence was found of nine core elements of community resilience that were common among the definitions. The core elements were: local knowledge, community networks and relationships, communication, health, governance and leadership, resources, economic investment, preparedness, and mental outlook. Within these core elements, we identified 19 sub-elements linked to community resilience. Our findings show that community resilience remains an amorphous concept that is understood and applied differently by different research groups. Yet in spite of the differences in conception and application, there are well-understood elements that are widely proposed as important for a resilient community. A focus on these individual elements may be more productive than attempting to define and study community resilience as a distinct concept.

Unpacking Resilience for Adaptation: Incorporating Practitioners’ Experiences through a Transdisciplinary Approach to the Case of Drought in Chile

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Paulina Aldunce

2016-09-01

Full Text Available Current debate on the implementation of resilience in addressing climatic impacts calls for more pragmatic means of reducing losses. In this study we aimed to generate context-specific knowledge about resilience factors for addressing the impacts of drought, with the expectation that bringing forth experiential knowledge on how impacts were addressed in the past would shed light on what constitutes key resilience factors for practitioners working in urban contexts. The study was carried in three of the largest cities in Chile: Santiago, Concepción, and Valdivia. The analytical framework consists of urban and regional resilience incorporating transdisciplinary approaches applying the Resilience-Wheel tool, combined with participatory methods for the co-production of knowledge and qualitative content analysis of documents and workshops. Results show that key determinants of building resilience to drought were: improving education and access to information, enhancing preparedness, promoting technology transfer, reinforcing organizational linkages and collaboration, decentralizing governance, and encouraging citizen participation. The Resilience-Wheel was useful for navigating the conceptual complexity and diversity of perspectives inherent among social actors. The transdisciplinary approach allowed us to co-produce key knowledge that can be applied to build resilience in future, through a bottom-up approach that bridges the science–policy interface.

A fresh look at the wolf-pack theory of companion-animal dog social behavior.

Science.gov (United States)

van Kerkhove, Wendy

2004-01-01

A popular perspective on the social behavior of dogs in multiple-dog households sees the dogs' behavior as reflecting the sociobiological laws of the rigidly structured dominance hierarchy that has been described for wolf packs. This view suggests that aggression problems among dogs are natural expressions of conflict that arise whenever dominance status is in contention. One recommended solution has been for the owner to endorse and enforce a particular dominance hierarchy because, on the wolf pack model, aggression is minimized when the structure of the hierarchy is clear, strong, and stable. This article questions the validity of this perspective on 2 principal grounds. First, because it does not seem to occur in the wild, this article suggests the strong dominance hierarchy that has been described for wolves may be a by-product of captivity. If true, it implies that social behavior--even in wolves--may be a product more of environmental circumstances and contingencies than an instinctive directive. Second, because feral dogs do not exhibit the classic wolf-pack structure, the validity of the canid, social dominance hierarchy again comes into question. This article suggests that behavioral learning theory offers another perspective regarding the behavior of dogs and wolves in the wild or in captivity and offers an effective intervention for aggression problems.

Volatile compounds and odor preferences of ground beef added with garlic and red wine, and irradiated with charcoal pack

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Kyung Haeng; Yun, Hyejeong; Lee, Ju Woon; Ahn, Dong Uk; Lee, Eun Joo; Jo, Cheorun

2012-01-01

Irradiation is the most efficient non-thermal technology for improving hygienic quality and extending the shelf-life of food products. One of the adverse effects of food irradiation, however, is off-flavor production, which significantly affects the sensory preferences for certain foods. In this study, garlic (5%, w/w) and red wine (1:1, w/w) were added to ground beef to increase the radiation sensitivity of pathogens and improve meat odor/flavor. Samples were irradiated at 0 or 5 kGy in the presence of charcoal pack. SPME-GC–MS analysis was performed to measure the changes in the volatile compounds and sensory characteristics of the samples. The amount of total volatile compounds produced from ground beef was greater when the sample was irradiated. When garlic and red wine were added to the ground beef, the amount of volatile compounds significantly increased, and the amount of volatile compounds increased even further after irradiation. However, when the samples were irradiated with charcoal pack, the amount of volatile compounds decreased significantly. Sensory evaluation indicated that charcoal pack significantly increased the odor preferences for both irradiated and non-irradiated ground beef added with garlic. These results indicated that addition of charcoal pack to ground beef could reduce off-odor problems induced by irradiation, and this effect was consistent even when certain additives such as garlic and red wine were added. - Highlights: ► Garlic and red wine were added to ground beef and irradiated at 5 kGy in the presence of charcoal pack. ► When the samples were irradiated with charcoal pack, the amount of volatile compounds decreased significantly and it affected sensory score. ► Thus, addition of charcoal pack to ground beef could reduce off-odor problems induced by irradiation. ► This effect was consistent when additives, such as garlic and red wine, were added into ground beef.

Scandinavian consumer preference for beef steaks packed with or without oxygen.

Science.gov (United States)

Aaslyng, M D; Tørngren, M A; Madsen, N T

2010-07-01

Beef steaks retail-packed with (80% O(2), 20% CO(2)) or without oxygen (either skin-packed or gas-packed (69.6% N(2), 30% CO(2), 0.04% CO or 70% N(2), 30% CO(2))) were compared by consumers in Denmark (n=382), Norway (n=316) and Sweden (n=374). Two pairs of two steaks - one steak packed in a high oxygen atmosphere and one packed without oxygen - were given to the consumers. They were instructed to prepare the steaks at home on two consecutive days, and two persons had to taste each steak. In Denmark, the oxygen-free packing was either gas packing with CO (69.6% N(2), 30% CO(2), 0.04% CO) or without CO (70% N(2), 30% CO(2)), in Norway it was either gas packing with CO (69.6% N(2), 30% CO(2), 0.04% CO) or skin packing, and in Sweden it was either skin packing or gas packing without CO (70% N(2), 30% CO(2)). The meat represented animals that were between 17 and 80 months old (Denmark) and young bulls (Norway and Sweden). Consumers in all three countries clearly preferred steaks packed without oxygen, in terms of overall liking, willingness to pay and their preferred choice of one steak. Furthermore, they preferred the oxygen-free steaks in terms of both overall liking and liking of tenderness, juiciness and flavour. In Sweden, many consumers would pay more than usual for the skin-packed steak, and it was more often chosen as the preferred steak out of the four compared with gas-packed without oxygen. No difference was seen between the two oxygen-free packing methods in Denmark and Norway. Copyright 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Teaching Resiliency Theory to Substance Abuse Counselors

Science.gov (United States)

Ward, Kelly

2003-01-01

Resiliency is the ability to cope in the face of adversity. One protective factor that promotes resiliency in substance-abusing dysfunctional families is family rituals and traditions. Social workers and substance abuse counselors can teach family members how to instill resiliency in their families and themselves through rituals and traditions. To…

Resilience and Complexity

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Dahlberg, Rasmus

2015-01-01

This paper explores two key concepts: resilience and complexity. The first is understood as an emergent property of the latter, and their inter-relatedness is discussed using a three tier approach. First, by exploring the discourse of each concept, next, by analyzing underlying relationships and...... robust. Robustness is a property of simple or complicated systems characterized by predictable behavior, enabling the system to bounce back to its normal state following a perturbation. Resilience, however, is an emergent property of complex adaptive systems. It is suggested that this distinction...

Multi-Sited Resilience

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Olwig, Mette Fog

2012-01-01

with natural disasters and climate change. In a globalized world, however, it is hard to discern what is “local” as global organizations play an increasingly visible and powerful role. This paper will argue that local understandings and practices of resilience cannot be disentangled from global understandings...... flooding in northern Ghana, this paper examines the mutual construction of “local” and “global” notions and practices of resilience through multi-sited processes. It is based on interviews and participant observation in multiple sites at the “local,” “regional” and “global” levels....

Studies on Pyrolysis Kinetic of Newspaper Wastes in a Packed Bed Reactor: Experiments, Modeling, and Product Characterization

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Aparna Sarkar

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Newspaper waste was pyrolysed in a 50 mm diameter and 640 mm long reactor placed in a packed bed pyrolyser from 573 K to 1173 K in nitrogen atmosphere to obtain char and pyro-oil. The newspaper sample was also pyrolysed in a thermogravimetric analyser (TGA under the same experimental conditions. The pyrolysis rate of newspaper was observed to decelerate above 673 K. A deactivation model has been attempted to explain this behaviour. The parameters of kinetic model of the reactions have been determined in the temperature range under study. The kinetic rate constants of volatile and char have been determined in the temperature range under study. The activation energies 25.69 KJ/mol, 27.73 KJ/mol, 20.73 KJ/mol and preexponential factors 7.69 min−1, 8.09 min−1, 0.853 min−1 of all products (solid reactant, volatile, and char have been determined, respectively. A deactivation model for pyrolysis of newspaper has been developed under the present study. The char and pyro-oil obtained at different pyrolysis temperatures have been characterized. The FT-IR analyses of pyro-oil have been done. The higher heating values of both pyro-products have been determined.

Effects of electrode geometry on the performance of dielectric barrier/packed-bed discharge plasmas in benzene degradation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jiang, Nan; Lu, Na; Shang, Kefeng; Li, Jie; Wu, Yan

2013-01-01

Highlights: • Benzene was successfully degraded by dielectric barrier/packed-bed discharge plasmas. • Different electrode geometry has distinct effect on plasmas oxidation performance. • Benzene degradation and energy performance were enhanced when using the coil electrode. • The reaction products were well determined by online FTIR analysis. -- Abstract: In this study, the effects of electrode geometry on benzene degradation in a dielectric barrier/packed-bed discharge plasma reactor with different electrodes were systematically investigated. Three electrodes were employed in the experiments, these were coil, bolt, and rod geometries. The reactor using the coil electrode showed better performance in reducing the dielectric loss in the barrier compared to that using the bolt or rod electrodes. In the case of the coil electrode, both the benzene degradation efficiency and energy yield were higher than those for the other electrodes, which can be attributed to the increased role of surface mediated reactions. Irrespective of the electrode geometry, the packed-bed discharge plasma was superior to the dielectric barrier discharge plasma in benzene degradation at any specific applied voltage. The main gaseous products of benzene degradation were CO, CO 2 , H 2 O, and formic acid. Discharge products such as O 3 , N 2 O, N 2 O 5 , and HNO 3 were also detected in the outlet gas. Moreover, the presence of benzene inhibited the formation of ozone because of the competing reaction of oxygen atoms with benzene. This study is expected to offer an optimized approach combining dielectric barrier discharge and packed-bed discharge to improve the degradation of gaseous pollutants

On contact numbers in random rod packings

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Wouterse, A.; Luding, Stefan; Philipse, A.P.

2009-01-01

Random packings of non-spherical granular particles are simulated by combining mechanical contraction and molecular dynamics, to determine contact numbers as a function of density. Particle shapes are varied from spheres to thin rods. The observed contact numbers (and packing densities) agree well

Development of resilience evaluation method for nuclear power plants. Part 3. Study of evaluation method and applicability of resilience index

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Suzuki, Masaaki; Demachi, Kazuyuki; Miyano, Hiroshi

2017-01-01

We have developed a new index, called the resilience index, that evaluates the dynamic stability of the system safety of a nuclear power plant during a severe accident by considering the ability to recover system safety functions that have become lost in the situation. In this paper, a detailed evaluation procedure for the resilience index is described. The system safety of a pressurized water reactor plant during a severe accident is then assessed according to the resilience index in order to discuss the applicability of the index. We find that the resilience index successfully represents management capability and, therefore, the resilience capability of a nuclear power plant. (author)

Development of resilience evaluation method for nuclear power plants. Part 3. Study on evaluation method and applicability of resilience index

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Suzuki, Masaaki; Demachi, Kazuyuki; Murakami, Kenta

2016-01-01

We have developed a new index, called the resilience index, that evaluates the dynamic stability of the system safety of a nuclear power plant during a severe accident by considering the ability to recover system safety functions that have become lost in the situation. In this paper, a detailed evaluation procedure for the resilience index is described. The system safety of a PWR plant during a severe accident is then assessed according to the resilience index in order to discuss the applicability of the index. We find that the resilience index successfully represents management capability and, therefore, the resilience capability of a nuclear power plant. (author)

Packing of ganglioside-phospholipid monolayers

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Majewski, J.; Kuhl, T.L.; Kjær, K.

2001-01-01

Using synchrotron grazing-incidence x-ray diffraction (GIXD) and reflectivity, the in-plane and out-of-plane structure of mixed ganglioside-phospholipid monolayers was investigated at the air-water interface. Mixed monolayers of 0, 5, 10, 20, and 100 mol% ganglioside GM, and the phospholipid...... monolayers did not affect hydrocarbon tail packing (fluidization or condensation of the hydrocarbon region). This is in contrast to previous investigations of lipopolymer-lipid mixtures, where the packing structure of phospholipid monolayers was greatly altered by the inclusion of lipids bearing hydrophilic...

A resilience approach can improve anadromous fish restoration

Science.gov (United States)

Waldman, John R.; Wilson, Karen A.; Mather, Martha E.; Snyder, Noah P.

2016-01-01

Most anadromous fish populations remain at low levels or are in decline despite substantial investments in restoration. We explore whether a resilience perspective (i.e., a different paradigm for understanding populations, communities, and ecosystems) is a viable alternative framework for anadromous fish restoration. Many life history traits have allowed anadromous fish to thrive in unimpacted ecosystems but have become contemporary curses as anthropogenic effects increase. This contradiction creates a significant conservation challenge but also makes these fish excellent candidates for a resilience approach. A resilience approach recognizes the need to maintain life history, population, and habitat characteristics that increase the ability of a population to withstand and recover from multiple disturbances. To evaluate whether a resilience approach represents a viable strategy for anadromous fish restoration, we review four issues: (1) how resilience theory can inform anadromous fish restoration, (2) how a resilience-based approach is fundamentally different than extant anadromous fish restoration strategies, (3) ecological characteristics that historically benefited anadromous fish persistence, and (4) examples of how human impacts harm anadromous fish and how a resilience approach might produce more successful outcomes. We close by suggesting new research and restoration directions for implementation of a resilience-based approach.

[Resilience: an interdisciplinary approach to concept and findings].

Science.gov (United States)