Technology for the Future: In-Space Technology Experiments Program, part 2

The purpose of the Office of Aeronautics and Space Technology (OAST) In-Space Technology Experiments Program In-STEP 1988 Workshop was to identify and prioritize technologies that are critical for future national space programs and require validation in the space environment, and review current NASA (In-Reach) and industry/ university (Out-Reach) experiments. A prioritized list of the critical technology needs was developed for the following eight disciplines: structures; environmental effects; power systems and thermal management; fluid management and propulsion systems; automation and robotics; sensors and information systems; in-space systems; and humans in space. This is part two of two parts and contains the critical technology presentations for the eight theme elements and a summary listing of critical space technology needs for each theme

Understanding AI Application Dynamics in Oil and Gas Supply Chain Management and Development: A Location Perspective

The purpose of this paper is to gain a better understanding of Artificial Intelligence (AI) application dynamics in the oil and gas supply chain. A location perspective is used to explore the opportunities and challenges of specific AI technologies from upstream to downstream of the oil and gas supply chain. A literature review approach is adopted to capture representative research along these locations. This was followed by descriptive and comparative analysis for the reviewed literature. Results from the conducted analysis revealed important insights about AI implementation dynamics in the oil and gas industry. Furthermore, various recommendations for technology managers, policymakers, practitioners, and industry leaders in the oil and gas industry to ensure successful AI implementation were outlined. Doi: 10.28991/HIJ-SP2022-03-01 Full Text: PD

Artificial intelligence and machine learning in environmental impact prediction for soil pollution management – case for EIA process

Scientific predictions are a key component of Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA), which can indicate the level of change within an environmental sphere (e.g., soil). As part of the EIA process, decision-making in mitigating complex environmental problems such as maintaining soil quality can be challenging, especially in data-sparse locations. Artificial Intelligence (AI) can ameliorate but the literature suggests that the deployment of Machine Learning (ML) techniques in soil research is concentrated mostly in developed countries. The potential of ML in managing soil pollution from complex mixture of heavy metals, petroleum hydrocarbons, and physicochemical factors is rarely explored. To address this research gap, we built robust models that increase the accuracy of impact prediction based on new experimental soil data from a data-sparse region of Africa (i.e., Nigeria). The algorithms applied are artificial neural networks (ANN), support vector regression (SVR), regression tree (RT), and random forest (RF). The study also implemented a multivariate linear regression (MLR) model as a baseline. Key findings include (a) the MLR model performed less than the machine learning models largely due to the nonlinearity of data; (b) Log-normalization helped to improve the predictive capability of all models as the effects of statistical variability were removed; (c) the RF model had the best performance in terms of correlation coefficient, mean absolute error, and root mean square error, and (d) the machine learning models showed improved performance with increased correlation and lower error between the actual and predicted soil electrical conductivity values. Our results imply that data sparsity may no longer be an excuse for the non-use of quantitative impact prediction in Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) processes. This could change how EIAs are conducted and enhance sustainability in natural resource exploitation, globally. Future work will apply algorithms for automated feature selection to obtain optimal subset of soil quality measurements that will further improve the accuracy of the models

An overview of decision table literature 1982-1995.

This report gives an overview of the literature on decision tables over the past 15 years. As much as possible, for each reference, an author supplied abstract, a number of keywords and a classification are provided. In some cases own comments are added. The purpose of these comments is to show where, how and why decision tables are used. The literature is classified according to application area, theoretical versus practical character, year of publication, country or origin (not necessarily country of publication) and the language of the document. After a description of the scope of the interview, classification results and the classification by topic are presented. The main body of the paper is the ordered list of publications with abstract, classification and comments.

Developing long-term energy and carbon emission modelling for the operational activities of ports: A case study of Fremantle Ports

The port and maritime industry contributes significantly to global greenhouse gas emissions. As such, there is increasing pressure for ports to decarbonise their operations. Despite the availability of multiple port carbon inventory and emission reduction guidance documents, no published methodologies currently exist for the development of port energy consumption and carbon emission forecasting. To fill this information gap, a methodology was developed through the review and experimentation with established forecasting techniques. The ‘ISCA’ Base Case Approach was adopted as a scaffolding for model development, largely to test the usability of the approach, currently in pilot. The approach consists of a baseline scenario and an ‘actual case’ scenario. A combination of qualitative, quantitative - time series and quantitative - causal modelling techniques were incorporated into the methodology. Linear and non-linear regression analysis curve-fitting techniques were selected as the most appropriate time-series modelling method for long-term energy and emissions projections, with simple linear regression analysis used for causal models. The methodology was tested through its application in a case study for Fremantle Ports. As a result of obligations from the state government to reach net-zero emissions by 2050, Fremantle Ports required the development of long-term energy consumption and carbon emission projections for its internal operations and container terminals to 2050. Using a bottom-up strategy, categorising energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions by trade type, energy type and facility, the methodology successfully developed long-term energy and emissions projections. As per this modelling, energy consumption at Fremantle Ports is expected to increase 53% under the baseline scenario and 46.5% under the actual case scenario (Figure 1). Despite increases of energy consumption at the port, greenhouse gas emissions are expected to decrease 71% and 74% under the baseline and actual case scenarios, respectively (Figure 2). These drastic emissions reductions are predominantly the result of projected scope 2 emission factor decreases as grid renewable electricity generation capacity increases. The usability of the ISCA Base Case Approach for energy and emissions modelling was found to be adequate, although issues were experienced distinguishing constant and variable energy use. Additionally, it is recommended that a third scenario is incorporated into the approach

The Global Risks Report 2016, 11th Edition

Now in its 11th edition, The Global Risks Report 2016 draws attention to ways that global risks could evolve and interact in the next decade. The year 2016 marks a forceful departure from past findings, as the risks about which the Report has been warning over the past decade are starting to manifest themselves in new, sometimes unexpected ways and harm people, institutions and economies. Warming climate is likely to raise this year's temperature to 1° Celsius above the pre-industrial era, 60 million people, equivalent to the world's 24th largest country and largest number in recent history, are forcibly displaced, and crimes in cyberspace cost the global economy an estimated US$445 billion, higher than many economies' national incomes. In this context, the Reportcalls for action to build resilience – the "resilience imperative" – and identifies practical examples of how it could be done.The Report also steps back and explores how emerging global risks and major trends, such as climate change, the rise of cyber dependence and income and wealth disparity are impacting already-strained societies by highlighting three clusters of risks as Risks in Focus. As resilience building is helped by the ability to analyse global risks from the perspective of specific stakeholders, the Report also analyses the significance of global risks to the business community at a regional and country-level