Payment network scale economies, SEPA, and cash replacement

The goal of SEPA (Single Euro Payments Area) is to facilitate the emergence of a competitive, intra-European market by making cross-border payments as easy as domestic transactions. With crossborder inter-operability for electronic payments, card transactions will increasingly replace cash and checks for all types of payments. Using different methods, the authors estimate card and other payment network scale economies for Europe. These indicate substantial cost efficiency gains if processing is consolidated across borders rather than "piggybacked" onto existing national operations. Cost reductions likely to induce greater replacement of small value cash transactions are also illustrated.

The effect of transaction pricing on the adoption of electronic payments: a cross-country comparison

Pricing should speed up the substitution of low cost electronic payments for expensive paper-based transactions and cash. But by how much? Norway has explicitly priced individual payment transactions and rapidly shifted to electronic payments while the Netherlands has experienced the same shift without direct pricing. Controlling for differences between countries, the authors estimate the incremental effect of pricing on the shift to electronic payments. If users strongly value the improved convenience or security of electronic payments, pricing—viewed negatively by most consumers—may not be necessary to ensure rapid adoption of electronic payments. ; Also issued as Payment Cards Center Discussion Paper No. 05-18Electronic funds transfers ; Prices

Estimating green roofing and storm water regulation in an urban environment

Thesis (M.A.)--Boston UniversityThe City of Boston land use has altered the surrounding watersheds through creation of infrastructure, damming, landfill, and expansion of impervious surfaces. The continued growth of the City has historically outstripped the capacity of its combined storm and sanitary sewer system, necessitating discharges into area water bodies. In light of model forecasts by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change predicting precipitation increases it is likely the already strained system will need additional capacity. Boston's tradition of expanding artificial capacity is compared to the City of Curitiba's enhanced natural capacity stormwater management plan. Limitations in both are discussed and the author concludes the City of Boston would benefit from increasing decentralized natural capacity through green rooftechnology. To investigate this claim remote sensing data was analyzed over three neighborhoods. The resulting available green roofing area was then combined with historical climate data to create a retention response model. The extrapolated city-wide model predicted retention of 19%-27% of total building received rainfall from 1983-2009. This model was then correlated with Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO) discharge National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System report data. The retention volume was found to accommodate most discharges in the FY2009 as well. Thus, extensive green roof technology presents a supplemental capacity building strategy for the City of Boston to avoid increases in future CSOs

The effects of non-focused extracorporeal shock waves on neuronal morphology, function and analgesia in horses

These studies were conducted to elucidate the regional analgesic effect that is observed clinically after treatment of orthopedic disorders with application of extracorporeal shock waves in horses. Regional analgesia after treatment with extracorporeal shock waves presents a concern because it may eliminate protective limiting mechanisms and may place equine athletes with predisposing lesions at risk of sustaining career- or life-ending injuries. Direct percutaneous application of non-focused extracorporeal shock waves to palmar digital nerves in the pastern area of horses resulted in decreased sensory nerve conduction velocities compared with untreated control nerves at 3, 7, and 35 days after treatment. Transmission electron microscopy revealed distinct morphological changes consisting of extensive separation and disruption between the different layers of the myelin sheath in large- to medium-sized myelinated axons of treated palmar digital nerves. Treatment of selected areas of the metacarpus in horses with non-focused extracorporeal shock waves failed to identify a regional analgesic effect when cutaneous sensation was assessed by comparing the nociceptive threshold (limb withdrawal reflex latency, LWRL) between treated and non-treated areas after stimulation with a focused light source. The LWRL responses in all horses were comparable in treated and control areas over time with a significant decrease noted at most sites and time points compared with baseline values

Public good issues in TARGET: natural monopoly, scale economies, network effects and cost allocation

This paper discusses various theoretic concepts which play a role in assessing the public benefits of Target, the large value RTGS payment network operated by the Eurosystem. These concepts touch upon natural monopoly, network externalities, competition and contestability, as well as economies of scale and scope. The existence of a natural monopoly provides a rationale for a temporary partial or full subsidy in order for Target to achieve the ‘most efficient scale’ or apply the most efficient technology to lower unit costs. Such a subsidy could be implemented through temporary 'penetration' pricing. Based on empirical results for the Federal Reserve’s payment system (Fedwire), it is further argued that if Target decided to standardize its operating platforms and consolidate its processing sites into one or a few centers, it too could realize strong scale economy benefits and lower unit costs

Competition in bank-provided payment services

Banks supply payment services that underpin the smooth operation of the economy. To ensure an efficient payment system, it is important to maintain competition among payment service providers but data available to gauge the degree of competition are quite limited. We propose and implement a frontierbased method to assess relative competition in bank-provided payment services. Billion dollar banks account for around ninety percent of assets in the US and those with around to billion in assets turn out to be both the most and the least competitive in payment services, not the very largest banks

Online HEPA Filter Replacement

High Efficiency Particulate Arrestance (HEPA) filters serve an important role in safety of nuclear facilities and can be an important tool in safeguards verification of nuclear activities. This paper describes a new design for HEPA filter housing in nuclear facilities to reduce replacement time, improve safety, reduce worker dosage, and facilitate safeguards procedures post replacement. This design must meet the criteria of staying online during filter exchanges, assisting with International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) sampling practices, meeting the nuclear air and gas code specifications and relevant subsections, and adhering to the principles of ALARA (as low as reasonably achievable), for maintaining low radiation levels to maximize worker safety. Our new design focuses on improved safety while achieving an online filter exchange. Not only will an online filter exchange reduce facility downtime and save facilities money, it has the potential to offer increased worker safety, and provide easy filter access for IAEA officials who wish to conduct sampling and inspection for safeguards. It would effectively eliminate the need for a facility to shut down for filters to be replaced. In our research, we did not find any current designs on the market that can perform an online HEPA filter exchange. We also conducted research on sealing techniques to support the online system design. We have established a project relationship with Radiation Protection Systems (RPS), Inc.: a contracting company based out of Groton, Connecticut, USA which specializes in mobile HEPA filter and carbon pre-filter housings for nuclear applications. The technical information exchange and partnership with RPS may result in an actual product that could be installed in future nuclear power plants if the design can be proven to work in concept and function. It may also be possible to retrofit existing HEPA installations in some cases. The design includes a double door bag-in, bag-out design and operational procedure to maintain worker safety and allow for zero escape of radioactive volatiles or particulates into the air external to the facility enclosure. A combination of neoprene gasket, silicone gel, and brush sealing techniques are employed in the new design with continuity of airflow during the switch in mind. This innovative design improves safety as well as operational efficiency. The design team is cognizant of safeguards considerations and aimed the design towards facilitating access. In particular, in our new design access to HEPA filter for sampling is much easier which can potentially improve the frequency and quality of sampling during IAEA inspections. Likewise, the lower level of effort (therefore cost) in switching filters will encourage changing filters more frequently. This will lower the risk of filter failures caused by clogged or possibly faulty filters. In fact, the IAEA reported that âAIJInvestigators from other national laboratories have suggested that aging effects could have contributed to over 80 percent of these failures. âAI The prototype design features a HEPA filter train (2 HEPA filters connected by a gel-seal interface) that slide seamlessly through the housing on rollers while the nuclear facility is online, the first (old) filter being dislodged into a sealed bagging unit, and the second (new) filter being clamped into place using a cam shaft clamping mechanism. There are two areas of design innovation here that are particularly exciting. The gel-seal interface that connects the filters will provide an air tight gap between two filters while they are exchanged. The clamping system features a brush seal interface on top and bottom, to maintain airflow and mobility of the filter while facilitating a switch. Because extended radiation exposure may alter the properties of sealants and gaskets we are investigating the use of seals that can be replaced during these quick filter changes. The design prototype is a full-scale model, capable of housing a 12x24x12 inch HEPA filter. Currently, we have completed the design of the new housing unit, created a proof of concept build, as well as conducted the preliminary engineering analysis, cost analysis, and material selection of the final prototype. Manufacturing of the final housing is proceeding and upon completion will be validated with a set of rigorous testing procedures concerning sealing and safety of the system. These tests are standard industry practices and RPS will assist in performing the tests. Namely, ASME test FC-I- 3272, a test in which aerosol particles of 20 m, which are the most penetrating particle sizes (MPPS), are sent through the housing unit and penetration is monitored during an online switch. Further testing will include colored smoke being pumped through the unit to test sealing capabilities and to identify possible particulate buildup. Provided the tests show that the design is successful in maintaining air flow and safety during the filter exchange, methods of improvement for ease of use and the automation of the exchange process, improvements to continuity of knowledge, and radiation monitoring techniques will be investigated for a comprehensive final product design

Disability and the rhetoric of Inclusive Higher Education

Abstract The social model of disability states that many people have many impairments, but that it is only by the ableist society in which they live that they are disabled. In considering just how inclusive Higher Education is for said people, this short paper proposes a long-overdue modernisation of the ableist way in which undergraduates are taught. As a traditional, goldstandard university subject, direct reference is made to the study of English, but the conclusion will be pertinent to other disciplines. Similarly, though the paper cites the case of people with impaired vision, the findings are relevant to Deaf people and to people who are disabled in general

Remnants of Community: What I Learned in the First Year of the Pandemic

This commentary reflects briefly on 10 of the many lessons that defined the Covid‐19 pandemic. These reflections are taken from one disabled person’s experience but resonate with many. As such they give a flavour of the thematic issue as a whole, while offering a highly personal contribution to the publication project

Radio Blindness: Interdisciplinarity, Ocularnormativity, and Young People’s Preparation for Academia

True to the field of Cultural Disability Studies in Education (CDSE), this project adopts an explicitly interdisciplinary approach in order to explore representations of disability and the related social attitudes and experiences. Disability studies and radio studies are brought together to predicate and inform the analysis of a sample of education-centred discussions featured in In Touch, a long-running BBC Radio 4 programme made for, and by, people who have visual impairments. Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) is applied to the sub-themes of mainstream-special schooling and social interaction, which are organised in accordance with the tripartite model of disability in order to avoid one-dimensional readings. The project cuts across the mainstream-special binary and reveals the epistemological value of non-normative community in both preparing for, and succeeding in, 21st-century academia