EVALUATION OF EFFECTS THAT CAN MASK LOW DECAY RATES OF TCE IN AEROBIC GROUNDWATER PLUMES

Current methods for evaluating chlorinated solvent plumes often assume that no TCE degradation occurs under aerobic conditions. It is possible that decay rates with values greater than zero exist in these plumes, but this decay may be masked by effects of parameter values in zero–decay–rate models. This hidden decay can be identified by comparing the zero–decay–rate models with others that have been created with a decay rate greater than zero. The results of this research and analysis show that it is possible to create matches between the zero–decay–rate models and models with greater than zero decay rates by adjusting model parameters other than the decay rates. The matches were closer and more easily achieved at lower decay rates than at higher ones, and increasing the number of spatial dimensions in which to match the models also increases the difficulty of creating the match. The matches are sensitive to time and do not maintain their similarity when they are examined at other discrete points in time. Time was the most important variable in making the distinction between the effects of degradation processes on the plume and those of physical processes, but the three–dimensional plume geometry is also an important factor. Because of the strong influence of time as a variable, it is crucial to collect plume data at different points in time to help constrain the models. Analysis of the results shows that it is indeed possible for rates of decay up to about 0.3 (yr-1) to be masked by model parameter values and that this misinterpretation is more likely to occur in models with lower decay rates (such as 0.1 per yr) than in models with higher rates

On US government trade policy: Trump's 'America first' policy puts pressure on the EU

Given the US tariffs on steel and aluminium and further tariff threats, the transatlantic trade relationship remains tense. While EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker and US President Donald Trump agreed at their meeting on 26 July to start negotiations to reduce tariffs in several industrial sectors over a period of 120 days, it remains uncertain they can reach a compromise that allows both sides to save face. At the same time, Europe is struggling with an important, but as yet, unanswered question: Is the US government’s trade policy the result of a strategy designed to weaken geopolitical rivals like China, even if it adversely affects close partners such as the EU? Or does Trump really want to break away from the liberal multilateral order? The EU needs to prepare for both possibilities. Support could come increasingly from US companies. (Autorenreferat

Last exit Basel III: as regulation of bank capital comes to a close, stability concerns risk taking a backseat

Following the global financial crisis, in 2009 the world’s major economies (G20) quickly agreed on stricter rules for financial markets. Heads of government tasked the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS) with developing a new framework for the capitalisation and liquidity of globally active financial institutions and the agreement (Basel III) was signed in December 2010. A crucial area that was left to be finalized later were final rules on the use of banks’ internal risk models. While it has been the US government’s intention to restrict risk models the EU made it clear that it would not agree to additional rules leading to increased regulatory capital requirements. After a long stalemate in the negotiations, chances now seem to increase for an agreement in fall 2017 between European and US representatives in the Basel Committee. The Trump administration might be willing to meet the EU halfway and grant Europe’s ailing banks greater freedom in calculating risk. But the price could be high: the US wants more leeway in national interpretations of the Basel framework. The European Commission, which will have to give its agreement in Basel, needs to be aware of the risks this poses to the stability of its own banking market. (author's abstract

Aesthetic Knowing: Essential to the Development of Heart and Mind.

Children are biologically wired to experience their world through rich sensory, affective, aesthetic, and imaginal experiences. Children thirst for art, music and movement, and these modes are utilized widely to learn the varied languages of literacy: the alphabet, numbers, vocabulary, body-sense and more. Yet, in response to meeting higher and more prescribed standards at the elementary and secondary levels, there is a tendency to narrow the curriculum, to consider art and music expendable, to view social-emotional development as external to the schoolhouse. This narrowing is happening just as our global culture is moving again toward multiple kinds of communication: toward oral language, pictures, sounds, diagrams, videos – a world that increasingly requires creative and collaborative problem solving, imagination, and multicultural competence. To be successful –academically, emotionally and socially – in our rapidly changing world, children need opportunities to nurture their imaginations and connect emotionally through drama, athletics, art, music and dance. Integrating the arts throughout and within the curriculum at all levels supports the development of broad-based literacy

New US export controls: key policy choices for Europe; recommendations for a robust European export control policy

In response to Russia's attack on Ukraine, the United States and 37 countries formed a coalition in February 2022 to implement a barrage of export controls outside of any formal arrangement. By contrast, US controls on China are often unilateral, such as its October 2022 measures on semiconductors that went ahead without explicit con­sent, let alone a commitment by its allies to join. But to deny China access to "dual-use" technology, unilateral export controls will not be effective. As European Com­mission President Ursula von der Leyen announced during her visit to the White House, the European Union (EU) wants to renew its export controls on dual-use prod­ucts and new technologies and to coordinate them more closely with US measures. That means that member states will need to develop a common position on the scope of their export controls - including the extent of their alignment with the United States - as well as ways forward with multilateral controls of dual-use goods, given the freeze of the Wassenaar Arrangement due to Russia's actions. (author's abstract

Embodied carbon dioxide of network assets in a decarbonised electricity grid

Calculating carbon dioxide ( {CO} 2 ) emissions associated with electricity is a key component in the field of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), but is often cited as challenging due to the complex nature of electricity systems despite its importance to the outcome. While calculating the operational {CO} 2 emissions associated with electricity generation is an active research field, the embodied {CO} 2 emissions, typically referred to as embodied carbon, of network assets has far less representation in the literature. This paper focuses on the {CO} 2 emissions aspect of {LCA} to calculate the embodied {CO} 2 of network assets in relation to the operational grid {CO} 2 over time. Several functional units are defined: {CO} 2 per operational year, {CO} 2 per asset cost, {CO} 2 per functional unit of electricity (kW h) and the relationship between embodied emissions and operational emissions in an electricity system over time. Hybrid functional units are then applied in order to better attribute the embodied carbon to the network functions. The hybrid functional units involve network asset lifetime and the issue of temporal horizons. Several suitable horizons are suggested and the comparison of results highlight the importance of the timeframe on results. The relationship between temporal horizons and environmental discounting is discussed and recommendations are made on the appropriate level of discounting depending on the temporal horizon and the purpose of the LCA. The paper uses data from the Great Britain electricity system where planned investment in network assets is £12bn at distribution level (Dx) and £16.4bn at transmission level (Tx) over the next eight years. By using {GB} network data for embodied carbon, demand and asset data, as well as data from the decarbonisation of electricity generation, indicative results are provided into the way in which embodied carbon impacts could change over time, showing that by 2035, the embodied carbon of the transmission network could contribute almost 25 of total emissions associated with electricity. On a regional basis, {DNO} level network assets could reach anywhere between 40 and 130. This network data is also used to show that new network investment could account for up to 6.5 of {DNO} level network embodied carbon when front loaded during the RIIO-ED1 period

Ways out of the WTO's December crisis: how to prevent the open global trade order from unravelling

The World Trade Organization (WTO) is facing the biggest crisis since its inception in 1995. From 11 December, the committee that deals with WTO members’ appeals, the Appellate Body, will be left with only one judge. New appointments have been blocked by the United States. This will incapacitate the Body because the minimum require­ment for any decision is three judges. What seems to be a mere procedural issue will result in major disruptions for international trade relations and might ultimately lead to the unravelling of the existing global trade order. The EU and like-minded part­ners have three options to cope with the situation and to safeguard the WTO’s role in trade dispute settlement. The EU and its partners could either endure the stale­mate while aiming for a broader WTO reform. Or the EU could strive for an alter­native appeals mechanism within the WTO, as an interim solution. The third option would be to seek dispute settlements outside of the WTO. None of the options comes without risk of failure since there is uncertainty about the US endgame, and each move could deliver proof for the US that the WTO no longer serves its interests

Results of Web-Scale Discovery: Data, Discussions, and Decisions

A library with the best and most credible resources available is of little value if its patrons do not find the resources.Web-scale discovery products were created to provide a search mechanism that library patrons will actually use, and which will yield relevant results even for the most inexperienced of searchers. An overview of one such product, Summon, is presented by the company’s product manager and by a librarian who helped to implement the product for his library