Baseline Assumptions and Future Research Areas for Urban Air Mobility Vehicles

NASA is developing Urban Air Mobility (UAM) concepts to (1) create first-generation reference vehicles that can be used for technology, system, and market studies, and (2) hypothesize second-generation UAM aircraft to determine high-payoff technology targets and future research areas that reach far beyond initial UAM vehicle capabilities. This report discusses the vehicle-level technology assumptions for NASAs UAM reference vehicles, and highlights future research areas for second-generation UAM aircraft that includes deflected slipstream concepts, low-noise rotors for edgewise flight, stacked rotors/propellers, ducted propellers, solid oxide fuel cells with liquefied natural gas, and improved turbo shaft and reciprocating engine technology. The report also highlights a transportation network-scale model that is being developed to understand the impact of these and other technologies on future UAM solutions

Smart home energy management

The new challenges on Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) in Automatic Home Systems (AHS) focus on the methods useful to monitor, control, and optimize the data management flow and the use of energy. An AHS is a residential dwelling, in some cases with a garden or an outdoor space, equipped with sensors and actuators to collect data and send controls according to the activities and expectations of the occupants/users. Home automation provides a centralized or distributed control of electrical appliances. Adding intelligence to the home environment, it would be possible to obtain, not only excellent levels of comfort, but also energy savings both inside and outside the dwelling, for instance using smart solutions for the management of the external lights and of the garden

The great turn-of-the-century housing boom

This article explains the recent high levels of residential investment and rates of homeownership.Home ownership ; Housing - Finance ; Housing - Prices

Mine Road Design and Management In Autonomous Hauling Operations: A Research Roadmap

In truck-based hauling systems, the mine haul road network is a critical and vital component of the production process. As such, under-performance of a haul road will impact immediately on mine productivity and costs. Operations safety, productivity and equipment longevity are all dependent on well-designed, constructed and maintained haul roads. With the advent of autonomous haul trucks, the haul road itself becomes all the more critical to the success of these type of operations; not only in relation to mine operators requirements for safer and more efficient and predictable haulage systems, but also in response to autonomous truck manufacturers' requirements for a more predictable and controlled operating environment.This paper presents a brief summary of the state-of-the-art in surface mine road design and then proceeds to examine the design and technological challenges associated providing a safe, predictable and affordable road for autonomous mine haul trucks. The paper serves as a basis for evaluating the contributions that enhancements in road design and management can deliver to autonomous mining operations, an initiative that also has scope for adoption within the operating life of many mines, haul roads and haul trucks

How to enhance communication among healthcare providers and improve patient safety

In 2010, the Provincial Health Funder (PHF) mandated the reporting of unintentional adverse events that occur in the process of healthcare delivery, which result in disability, death, or prolong treatments. The results of reporting are available to the public on the Health Quality website, providing transparency for the public and accountability for Advanced Healthcare System (AHS)[1], which has made patient safety its organizational strategic priority (AHS, 2018). This Organizational Improvement Plan (OIP) seeks to improve communication and positive change among healthcare providers by maximizing the use of error prevention tools to improve patient safety. The principles of distributive and transformational leadership are applied to enhance collaboration, build capacity, empower people to speak up for safety, and enhance team decision making. The organizational plan aligns with my leadership philosophy to develop others, as well as abide by the Social Work regulatory body’s ethical standards, which guides my work as a change agent to support the best interest of others. Systems theory guides the plan and Bolman and Deal’s (2013) four frame conceptual framework is used to enhance the understanding of the existing state of the organization, which currently includes challenges in communication, a culture of “blame and shame”, insufficient use of error prevention tools, and patient harm. The Murray and Richardson (2002) framework is utilized to guide the OIP and identify ten “winning conditions” to address the problem from a holistic standpoint, while encompassing speed and momentum. Keywords: patient safety, error prevention tools, culture of blame and shame, capacity building, organization culture [1] Advanced Healthcare System (AHS) is a pseudonym to protect the identity of the facility

Caring attributes and preparedness to care: effects of a pre-enrolled nursing certificate programme in Singapore

Background: Caring is a highly complex and abstract concept, and nurturing a caring attribute among individuals for a nursing career is believed to be best introduced at the start of student journey in preparatory courses specifically designed for nursing. However, because of the need to professionalise nursing, pre-enrolled nursing programmes have been discontinued and replaced by generic healthcare programmes in many parts of the world. Aim: This study aims to evaluate the impact of pre-enrolled certificate nursing education on students’ caring attributes and their preparedness to care. Methodology: A mixed methods approach using unstructured questions and the Caring Behaviour Inventory was employed to determine student caring attributes and their preparedness to care. The participants were final year pre-enrolled nursing students in Singapore. Findings: Students demonstrated attributes of caring based on an average CBI score of 4.55 (SD 0.32). Expressions of professional nurse caring were explicit in students’ entire learning journey and these took various forms of approach embedded in both curricular and extracurricular activites. The study also found that nurturing caring attributes was associated with a high expectation of student social behaviour and closely linked to the increasingly good reputation of nursing as a profession in that region. Conclusions: This study indicates the high potential value of pre-enrolled nursing education for developing the caring attributes of individuals. A nursing-oriented programme title and its high status associated with nursing were critical elements for nurturing the caring attributes. The implications for developments in nurse education and research are discussed

Issues Related to the Emergence of the Information Superhighway and California Societal Changes, IISTPS Report 96-4

The Norman Y. Mineta International Institute for Surface Transportation Policy Studies (IISTPS) at San José State University (SJSU) conducted this project to review the continuing development of the Internet and the Information Superhighway. Emphasis was placed on an examination of the impact on commuting and working patterns in California, and an analysis of how public transportation agencies, including Caltrans, might take advantage of the new communications technologies. The document reviews the technology underlying the current Internet “structure” and examines anticipated developments. It is important to note that much of the research for this limited-scope project was conducted during 1995, and the topic is so rapidly evolving that some information is almost automatically “dated.” The report also examines how transportation agencies are basically similar in structure and function to other business entities, and how they can continue to utilize the emerging technologies to improve internal and external communications. As part of a detailed discussion of specific transportation agency functions, it is noted that the concept of a “Roundtable Forum,” growing out of developments in Concurrent Engineering, can provide an opportunity for representatives from multiple jurisdictions to utilize the Internet for more coordinated decision-making. The report also included an extensive analysis of demographic trends in California in recent years, such as commute and recreational activities, and identifies how the emerging technologies may impact future changes