417 research outputs found
Global water: issues and insights
This book brings together some of the world’s leading water researchers with an especially written collection of chapters on: water economics; transboundary water; water and development; water and energy; and water concepts.
Introduction
Freshwater governance holds a prominent position in the global policy agenda. Burgeoning water demand due to population growth and rising incomes is combining with supply-side pressures, such as environmental pollution and climate change, to create acute conditions of global water scarcity. This is a major concern because water is a primary input for agriculture, manufacturing, environmental health, human health, energy production and just about every economic sector and ecosystem.
In addition to its importance, the management of freshwater resources is a complex, multidisciplinary topic. Encompassing a range of fields in the physical and social sciences, the task of sustainably meeting human and environmental water needs requires a depth and breadth of understanding unparalleled by most other policy problems.
Our objective in this volume is to provide knowledge and insights into major issues and concepts related to freshwater governance. The book is divided into five themed parts: Economics, Transboundary governance, Development, Energy and Water Concepts.
A part addresses each theme and opens with an introduction that provides an overview of key topics. For example, the introduction to the economics section presents two main foci: measuring the value of water and managing trade-offs between different water uses. The thematic case studies discuss issues such as water pricing in Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries, finance of water supply and irrigation infrastructure and improving agricultural production with enhanced water management.
The aim of the volume is to accessibly communicate academic research from the many fields of freshwater governance. Too often, academic research is paywalled and/or written in a style that caters to colleagues in the same field, rather than a broader audience from other disciplines, the policy-making community and the general public. This open-access book presents the research of a range of global experts on freshwater governance in brief, insightful chapters that do not presume a high level of pre-existing knowledge of their respective subjects. This format is intended to present knowledge on the key problems of and solutions to global freshwater challenges.
The final part presents research from several United Nations Educational, Social, and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) supported water research Chairs and Centres. Support and coordination of the insititutions highlighted in this part of the book is provided by UNESCO. One water research Chair is The Australian National University – UNESCO Chair in Water Economics and Transboundary Governance, which was established in April 2010 and works with partners in southern Africa, UNESCO, the Global Water Partnership and other organisations to: (1) increase the skills, capacity, networks and potential of leaders and prospective water managers and policy-makers; (2) sustain and strengthen institutional capacity (especially in southern Africa) by providing a platform for collaboration and institutional development; and, (3) develop innovative research, tools, case-studies, and insights on water economics, water governance and equity.
Established by the ANU–UNESCO Chair, the Global Water Forum (GWF) seeks to disseminate knowledge regarding freshwater governance and build the capacity of students, policy-makers and the general public to respond to local and global water issues. The GWF publishes accessible, subscription-free articles highlighing the latest research and practice concerning freshwater governance. A broad range of water-related topics are discussed in a non-technical manner, including water security, development, agriculture, energy and environment. In addition to publishing articles, reports and books, the GWF is engaged in a range of activities, such as the annual Emerging Scholars Award and hosting a portal to educational resources on freshwater.
We hope that you enjoy reading this book and, more importantly, gain an improved understanding of the complex freshwater-governance challenges facing us all on a global scale and at a local level
Fully computable error estimation of a nonlinear, positivity-preserving discretization of the convection-diffusion-reaction equation
This work is devoted to the proposal, analysis, and numerical testing of a fully computable a posteriori error bound for a class of nonlinear discretizations of the convection-diffusion-reaction equation. The type of discretization we consider is nonlinear, since it has been built with the aim of preserving the discrete maximum principle. Under mild assumptions on the stabilizing term, we obtain an a posteriori error estimator that provides a certified upper bound on the norm of the error. Under the additional assumption that the stabilizing term is both Lipschitz continuous and linearity preserving, the estimator is shown to be locally efficient. We present examples of discretizations that satisfy these two requirements, and the theory is illustrated by several numerical experiments in two and three space dimensions
Drug Delivery Micropump with Built-In Monitoring
AbstractWe report on the fabrication of the first MEMS micropump including an integrated pressure sensor. The signal of this sensor allows direct insight into the pump's operating dynamics and enables real-time self-monitoring. We demonstrate the changes in the sensor signal under different pumping conditions, including the presence of air in the pumping chamber and a downstream occlusions. Deviations from normal operating conditions create clear and characteristic deviations from the normal signal. These deviations will be exploited to detect extraordinary or faulty pumping conditions during use
A divergence-free low-order stabilized finite element method for a generalized steady state Boussinesq problem
In this work we propose and analyze a new stabilized finite element method for the coupled Navier-Stokes/temperature (or Boussinesq) equations. The method is built using low order conforming elements for velocity and temperature, and piecewise constant elements for pressure. With the help of the lowest order Raviart-Thomas space, a lifting of the jumps of the discrete pressure is built in such a way that when this lifting is added to the conforming velocity field, the resulting velocity is solenoidal (at the price of being non-conforming). This field is then fed to the momentum and temperature equations, guaranteeing that the convective terms in these equations are antisymmetric, without the need of altering them, thus simplifying the analysis of the resulting method. Existence of solutions, discrete stability, and optimal convergence are proved for both the conforming velocity field, and its corresponding divergence-free non-conforming counterpart. Numerical results confirm the theoretical findings, as well as the gain provided by the solenoidal discrete velocity field over the conforming one
Off-shell Behavior of the Mixing Amplitude
We extend a recent calculation of the momentum dependence of the
mixing amplitude to the pseudoscalar sector. The
mixing amplitude is calculated in a hadronic model where the mixing is driven
by the neutron-proton mass difference. Closed-form analytic expressions are
presented in terms of a few nucleon-meson parameters. The observed momentum
dependence of the mixing amplitude is strong enough as to question earlier
calculations of charge-symmetry-breaking observables based on the on-shell
assumption. The momentum dependence of the amplitude is,
however, practically identical to the one recently predicted for
mixing. Hence, in this model, the ratio of pseudoscalar to vector mixing
amplitudes is, to a good approximation, a constant solely determined from
nucleon-meson coupling constants. Furthermore, by selecting these parameters in
accordance with charge-symmetry-conserving data and SU(3)-flavor symmetry, we
reproduce the momentum dependence of the mixing amplitude
predicted from chiral perturbation theory. Alternatively, one can use
chiral-perturbation-theory results to set stringent limits on the value of the
coupling constant.Comment: 13 pages, Latex with Revtex, 3 postscript figures (not included)
available on request, SCRI-03089
Two-Loop Calculations with Vertex Corrections in the Walecka Model
Two-loop corrections with scalar and vector form factors are calculated for
nuclear matter in the Walecka model. The on-shell form factors are derived from
vertex corrections within the framework of the model and are highly damped at
large spacelike momenta. The two-loop corrections are evaluated first by using
the one-loop parameters and mean fields and then by refitting the total
energy/baryon to empirical nuclear matter saturation properties. The modified
two-loop corrections are significantly smaller than those computed with bare
vertices. Contributions from the anomalous isoscalar form factor of the nucleon
are included for the first time. The effects of the implicit density dependence
of the form factors, which arise from the shift in the baryon mass, are also
considered. Finally, necessary extensions of these calculations are discussed.Comment: 29 pages in REVTeX, 18 figures, preprint IU/NTC 94-02 //OSU--94-11
Structure of the Vacuum in Nuclear Matter - A Nonperturbative Approach
We compute the vacuum polarisation correction to the binding energy of
nuclear matter in the Walecka model using a nonperturbative approach. We first
study such a contribution as arising from a ground state structure with
baryon-antibaryon condensates. This yields the same results as obtained through
the relativistic Hartree approximation of summing tadpole diagrams for the
baryon propagator. Such a vacuum is then generalized to include quantum effects
from meson fields through scalar-meson condensates. The method is applied to
study properties of nuclear matter and leads to a softer equation of state
giving a lower value of the incompressibility than would be reached without
quantum effects. The density dependent effective sigma mass is also calculated
including such vacuum polarisation effects.Comment: 26 pages including 5 eps files, uses revtex style; PACS number:
21.65.+f,21.30.+
Self-consistent solution of the Schwinger-Dyson equations for the nucleon and meson propagators
The Schwinger-Dyson equations for the nucleon and meson propagators are
solved self-consistently in an approximation that goes beyond the Hartree-Fock
approximation. The traditional approach consists in solving the nucleon
Schwinger-Dyson equation with bare meson propagators and bare meson-nucleon
vertices; the corrections to the meson propagators are calculated using the
bare nucleon propagator and bare nucleon-meson vertices. It is known that such
an approximation scheme produces the appearance of ghost poles in the
propagators. In this paper the coupled system of Schwinger-Dyson equations for
the nucleon and the meson propagators are solved self-consistently including
vertex corrections. The interplay of self-consistency and vertex corrections on
the ghosts problem is investigated. It is found that the self-consistency does
not affect significantly the spectral properties of the propagators. In
particular, it does not affect the appearance of the ghost poles in the
propagators.Comment: REVTEX, 7 figures (available upon request), IFT-P.037/93,
DOE/ER/40427-12-N9
Estudios de la transformación enzimática de derivados de adamantano con cepas de hongos de los géneros aspergillus y fusarium, y sus potenciales actividades biológica
La idea es presentar el proyecto a la comunidad universitaria, teniendo en cuenta que el mismo se desarrolla entre la Facultadde Ciencias de la Alimentación, Bioquímicas y Farmacéuticas y el área Química del Instituto de Ciencias Básicas de la Universidad Nacionalde San Juan. Está dirigido a la obtención de compuestos novedosos a partir de sustratos orgánicos derivados de adamantano, a través de su funcionalización utilizando catalizadores biológicos (enzimas), producidos por microorganismos (hongos filamentosos). Los metabolitos obtenidos serán aislados, purificados y analizados por métodos espectroscópicos para determinar su estructura. Los compuestos puros obtenidos por esta técnica, serán evaluados in vitro en su actividad sobre la acción tóxica de NMDA midiendo viabilidad y muerte celular
The Momentum Dependence of the Mixing Amplitude in a Hadronic Model
We calculate the momentum dependence of the mixing amplitude in
a purely hadronic model. The basic assumption of the model is that the mixing
amplitude is generated by loops and thus driven entirely by the
neutron-proton mass difference. The value of the amplitude at the
-meson point is expressed in terms of only the and the
coupling constants. Using values for these couplings constrained by
empirical two-nucleon data we obtain a value for the mixing amplitude in
agreement with experiment. Extending these results to the spacelike region, we
find a contribution to the NN interaction that is strongly
suppressed and opposite in sign relative to the conventional contribution
obtained from using the constant on-shell value for the mixing amplitude.Comment: 11 pages, SCRI-12219
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