Advanced Wind Technology: New Challenges for a New Century

This paper describes the growth, advances, and challenges faced by the wind energy industry in 2006

Wind Turbine Design Cost and Scaling Model

This model intends to provide projections of the impact on cost from changes in economic indicators such as the Gross Domestic Product and Producer Price Index

Seasonal and Vertical Distribution, Food Web Dynamics and Contaminant Biomagnification of Cercopagis pengoi in Lake Ontario

During the early growth season of 1999 to 2001, Cercopagis abundance in offshore waters of Lake Ontario remained low (less than 30 individuals/m3). From late July, its abundance increased rapidly until it peaked during August. After first appearing in 1998, maximum offshore abundance in Lake Ontario decreased each year since 1999 (1999:1759/m3; 2000: 679/m3; 2001: 355/m3). Cercopagis appears not to migrate below the thermocline and is restricted to the epilimnion. A comparison of pre- and post-invasion average abundance of Daphnia retrocurva, Bosmina longirostris and Diacyclops thomasi suggests that Cercopagis is having a major effect on zooplankton composition and abundance in Lake Ontario. Abundance of all three species has decreased significantly in the offshore waters since the invasion of Cercopagis. Preliminary results also suggest that insertion of Cercopagis pengoi into the Lake Ontario food web will not elevate levels of hydrophobic organic compounds in salmonids through biomagnification

Geospatial analysis of mean sensitivity in Pinus strobus

The dendrochronological statistic mean sensitivity quantifies the environmental stress experienced by trees; however, researchers have not applied mean sensitivity to interpretations of macroclimatic tolerance, because, in the southwestern United States, where the metric was developed, species' discontinuous distributions on mountains obscure range-wide patterns, and because topoedaphic factors disproportionately influence mean sensitivity in these semi-arid environments. In this thesis, I examine geospatial patterns of mean sensitivity in temperate, humid regions, specifically for Pinus strobus. I developed P. strobus chronologies for sites across an elevation gradient in North Carolina. Correlation analyses of topography and individual tree data reveal that no topographic factor influences mean sensitivity. Conversely, broad-scale trends are evident in a collection of range-wide chronologies; specifically, mean sensitivity is lowest in the range core and increases toward range margins. These results suggest that mean sensitivity can be interpreted to reflect macroclimatic suitability. Such interpretation facilitates the identification of populations that are poorly adapted to their climatic conditions. Further, geographically weighted regression of mean sensitivity allows one to determine the specific climatic component that precludes complacent growth at any location. By accounting for non-stationarity, geographically weighted regression could even identify ecotypic responses. Applying these methods to Pinus strobus helped to identify the species' western populations as the most sensitive, due to moisture stress. Results indicate that the high-elevation, southern populations are the least sensitive, due to abundant moisture. The geographically weighted regression only elucidated the quadratic relationship between mean sensitivity and climate, while ecotypic responses were not evident with such sparse data

Technology Improvement Opportunities for Low Wind Speed Turbines and Implications for Cost of Energy Reduction: July 9, 2005 - July 8, 2006

This report analyzes the status of wind energy technology in 2002 and describes the potential for technology advancements to reduce the cost and increase the performance of wind turbines

Alterations in vasomotor control of coronary resistance vessels in remodelled myocardium of swine with a recent myocardial infarction

The mechanism underlying the progressive deterioration of left ventricular (LV) dysfunction after myocardial infarction (MI) towards overt heart failure remains incompletely understood, but may involve impairments in coronary blood flow regulation within remodelled myocardium leading to intermittent myocardial ischemia. Blood flow to the remodelled myocardium is hampered as the coronary vasculature does not grow commensurate with the increase in LV mass and because extravascular compression of the coronary vasculature is increased. In addition to these factors, an increase in coronary vasomotor tone, secondary to neurohumoral activation and endothelial dysfunction, could also contribute to the impaired myocardial oxygen supply. Consequently, we explored, in a series of studies, the alterations in regulation of coronary resistance vessel tone in remodelled myocardium of swine with a 2 to 3-week-old MI. These studies indicate that myocardial oxygen balance is perturbed in remodelled myocardium, thereby forcing the myocardium to increase its oxygen extraction. These perturbations do not appear to be the result of blunted β-adrenergic or endothelial NO-mediated coronary vasodilator influences, and are opposed by an increased vasodilator influence through opening of KATP channels. Unexpectedly, we observed that despite increased circulating levels of noradrenaline, angiotensin II and endothelin-1, α-adrenergic tone remained negligible, while the coronary vasoconstrictor influences of endogenous endothelin and angiotensin II were virtually abolished. We conclude that, early after MI, perturbations in myocardial oxygen balance are observed in remodelled myocardium. However, adaptive alterations in coronary resistance vessel control, consisting of increased vasodilator influences in conjunction with blunted vasoconstrictor influences, act to minimize the impairments of myocardial oxygen balance

Effects of alirocumab on types of myocardial infarction: insights from the ODYSSEY OUTCOMES trial

Aims  The third Universal Definition of Myocardial Infarction (MI) Task Force classified MIs into five types: Type 1, spontaneous; Type 2, related to oxygen supply/demand imbalance; Type 3, fatal without ascertainment of cardiac biomarkers; Type 4, related to percutaneous coronary intervention; and Type 5, related to coronary artery bypass surgery. Low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) reduction with statins and proprotein convertase subtilisin–kexin Type 9 (PCSK9) inhibitors reduces risk of MI, but less is known about effects on types of MI. ODYSSEY OUTCOMES compared the PCSK9 inhibitor alirocumab with placebo in 18 924 patients with recent acute coronary syndrome (ACS) and elevated LDL-C (≥1.8 mmol/L) despite intensive statin therapy. In a pre-specified analysis, we assessed the effects of alirocumab on types of MI. Methods and results  Median follow-up was 2.8 years. Myocardial infarction types were prospectively adjudicated and classified. Of 1860 total MIs, 1223 (65.8%) were adjudicated as Type 1, 386 (20.8%) as Type 2, and 244 (13.1%) as Type 4. Few events were Type 3 (n = 2) or Type 5 (n = 5). Alirocumab reduced first MIs [hazard ratio (HR) 0.85, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.77–0.95; P = 0.003], with reductions in both Type 1 (HR 0.87, 95% CI 0.77–0.99; P = 0.032) and Type 2 (0.77, 0.61–0.97; P = 0.025), but not Type 4 MI. Conclusion  After ACS, alirocumab added to intensive statin therapy favourably impacted on Type 1 and 2 MIs. The data indicate for the first time that a lipid-lowering therapy can attenuate the risk of Type 2 MI. Low-density lipoprotein cholesterol reduction below levels achievable with statins is an effective preventive strategy for both MI types.For complete list of authors see http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/eurheartj/ehz299</p

Effect of alirocumab on mortality after acute coronary syndromes. An analysis of the ODYSSEY OUTCOMES randomized clinical trial

Background: Previous trials of PCSK9 (proprotein convertase subtilisin-kexin type 9) inhibitors demonstrated reductions in major adverse cardiovascular events, but not death. We assessed the effects of alirocumab on death after index acute coronary syndrome. Methods: ODYSSEY OUTCOMES (Evaluation of Cardiovascular Outcomes After an Acute Coronary Syndrome During Treatment With Alirocumab) was a double-blind, randomized comparison of alirocumab or placebo in 18 924 patients who had an ACS 1 to 12 months previously and elevated atherogenic lipoproteins despite intensive statin therapy. Alirocumab dose was blindly titrated to target achieved low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) between 25 and 50 mg/dL. We examined the effects of treatment on all-cause death and its components, cardiovascular and noncardiovascular death, with log-rank testing. Joint semiparametric models tested associations between nonfatal cardiovascular events and cardiovascular or noncardiovascular death. Results: Median follow-up was 2.8 years. Death occurred in 334 (3.5%) and 392 (4.1%) patients, respectively, in the alirocumab and placebo groups (hazard ratio [HR], 0.85; 95% CI, 0.73 to 0.98; P=0.03, nominal P value). This resulted from nonsignificantly fewer cardiovascular (240 [2.5%] vs 271 [2.9%]; HR, 0.88; 95% CI, 0.74 to 1.05; P=0.15) and noncardiovascular (94 [1.0%] vs 121 [1.3%]; HR, 0.77; 95% CI, 0.59 to 1.01; P=0.06) deaths with alirocumab. In a prespecified analysis of 8242 patients eligible for ≥3 years follow-up, alirocumab reduced death (HR, 0.78; 95% CI, 0.65 to 0.94; P=0.01). Patients with nonfatal cardiovascular events were at increased risk for cardiovascular and noncardiovascular deaths (P<0.0001 for the associations). Alirocumab reduced total nonfatal cardiovascular events (P<0.001) and thereby may have attenuated the number of cardiovascular and noncardiovascular deaths. A post hoc analysis found that, compared to patients with lower LDL-C, patients with baseline LDL-C ≥100 mg/dL (2.59 mmol/L) had a greater absolute risk of death and a larger mortality benefit from alirocumab (HR, 0.71; 95% CI, 0.56 to 0.90; Pinteraction=0.007). In the alirocumab group, all-cause death declined wit h achieved LDL-C at 4 months of treatment, to a level of approximately 30 mg/dL (adjusted P=0.017 for linear trend). Conclusions: Alirocumab added to intensive statin therapy has the potential to reduce death after acute coronary syndrome, particularly if treatment is maintained for ≥3 years, if baseline LDL-C is ≥100 mg/dL, or if achieved LDL-C is low. Clinical Trial Registration: URL: https://www.clinicaltrials.gov. Unique identifier: NCT01663402

Geospatial analysis of mean sensitivity in Pinus strobus

The dendrochronological statistic mean sensitivity quantifies the environmental stress experienced by trees; however, researchers have not applied mean sensitivity to interpretations of macroclimatic tolerance, because, in the southwestern United States, where the metric was developed, species' discontinuous distributions on mountains obscure range-wide patterns, and because topoedaphic factors disproportionately influence mean sensitivity in these semi-arid environments. In this thesis, I examine geospatial patterns of mean sensitivity in temperate, humid regions, specifically for Pinus strobus. I developed P. strobus chronologies for sites across an elevation gradient in North Carolina. Correlation analyses of topography and individual tree data reveal that no topographic factor influences mean sensitivity. Conversely, broad-scale trends are evident in a collection of range-wide chronologies; specifically, mean sensitivity is lowest in the range core and increases toward range margins. These results suggest that mean sensitivity can be interpreted to reflect macroclimatic suitability. Such interpretation facilitates the identification of populations that are poorly adapted to their climatic conditions. Further, geographically weighted regression of mean sensitivity allows one to determine the specific climatic component that precludes complacent growth at any location. By accounting for non-stationarity, geographically weighted regression could even identify ecotypic responses. Applying these methods to Pinus strobus helped to identify the species' western populations as the most sensitive, due to moisture stress. Results indicate that the high-elevation, southern populations are the least sensitive, due to abundant moisture. The geographically weighted regression only elucidated the quadratic relationship between mean sensitivity and climate, while ecotypic responses were not evident with such sparse data

High Wind Penetration Impact on U.S. Wind Manufacturing Capacity and Critical Resources

This study used two different models to analyze a number of alternative scenarios of annual wind power capacity expansion to better understand the impacts of high levels of wind generated electricity production on wind energy manufacturing and installation rates