AdvManuNet: a networking project on metrology for advanced manufacturing

The networking project AdvManuNet has been started recently to accelerate the process of establishing an European Metrology Network (EMN) on Advanced Manufacturing. EMNs are intended by EURAMET, the association of metrology institutes in Europe, to provide a sustainable structure for ongoing stakeholder interaction in different thematic areas. Advanced manufacturing has been identified by the European Commission (EC) as one of six Key Enabling Technologies (KETs) with applications in multiple industries. Various EURAMET projects have partly addressed metrology needs for advanced manufacturing. However, a high-level coordination of the metrology community is currently absent and limits the impact of metrology developments on advanced manufacturing. AdvManuNet will address these limits by establishing a single hub for stakeholder consultation, a knowledge base on research results, and a strategic agenda for research and training to push forward advanced manufacturing and related KETs and strengthen Europe’s position in advanced manufacturing via the EMN

Pre-sleep feeding, sleep quality, and markers of recovery in division I NCAA female soccer players

Pre-sleep nutrition habits in elite female athletes have yet to be evaluated. A retrospective analysis was performed with 14 NCAA Division I female soccer players who wore a WHOOP, Inc. band – a wearable device that quantifies recovery by measuring sleep, activity, and heart rate metrics through actigraphy and photoplethysmography, respectively – 24 h a day for an entire competitive season to measure sleep and recovery. Pre-sleep food consumption data were collected via surveys every 3 days. Average pre-sleep nutritional intake (mean ± sd: kcals 330 ± 284; cho 46.2 ± 40.5 g; pro 7.6 ± 7.3 g; fat 12 ± 10.5 g) was recorded. Macronutrients and kcals were grouped into high and low categories based upon the 50th percentile of the mean to compare the impact of a high versus low pre-sleep intake on sleep and recovery variables. Sleep duration (p = 0.10, 0.69, 0.16, 0.17) and sleep disturbances (p = 0.42, 0.65, 0.81, 0.81) were not affected by high versus low kcal, PRO, fat, CHO intake, respectively. Recovery (p = 0.81, 0.06, 0.81, 0.92), RHR (p = 0.84, 0.64, 0.26, 0.66), or HRV (p = 0.84, 0.70, 0.76, 0.93) were also not affected by high versus low kcal, PRO, fat, or CHO consumption, respectively. Consuming a small meal before bed may have no impact on sleep or recovery

Photovoltaic power plants: a multicriteria approach to investment decisions and a case study in western Spain

his paper proposes a compromise programming (CP) model to help investors decide whether to construct photovoltaic power plants with government financial support. For this purpose, we simulate an agreement between the government, who pursues political prices (guaranteed prices) as low as possible, and the project sponsor who wants returns (stochastic cash flows) as high as possible. The sponsor s decision depends on the positive or negative result of this simulation, the resulting simulated price being compared to the effective guaranteed price established by the country legislation for photovoltaic energy. To undertake the simulation, the CP model articulates variables such as ranges of guaranteed prices, tech- nical characteristics of the plant, expected energy to be generated over the investment life, investment cost, cash flow probabilities, and others. To determine the CP metric, risk aver- sion is assumed. 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I., & Toffel, M. W. (2009). How well do social ratings actually measure corporate social responsibility? Journal of Economics & Management Strategy, 18(1), 125–169.Copeland, T. E., & Weston, J. (1988). Financial theory and corporate policy. Reading, Massachusetts: Addison-Wesley.Gallagher, K. S. (2013). Why & how governments support renewable energy. Daedalus, 142(1), 59–77.García-Cascales, M. S., Lamata, M. T., & Sánchez-Lozano, J. M. (2012). Evaluation of photovoltaic cells in a multi-criteria decision making process. Annals of Operations Research, 199(1), 373–391.Gupta, S. (2012). Financing renewable energy. In F. L. Toth (Ed.), Energy for development (pp. 171–186). Springer.Karaarslan, A. (2012). Obtaining renewable energy from piezoelectric ceramics using Sheppard–Taylor converter. International Review of Electrical Engineering, 7(2), 3949–3956.Koellner, T., Weber, O., Fenchel, M., & Scholz, R. (2005). Principles for sustainability rating of investment funds. 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On energetics of allotrope transformations in transition-metal diborides via plane-by-plane shearing

Transition metal diborides crystallize in the α, γ, or ω type structure, in which pure transition metal layers alternate with pure boron layers stacked along the hexagonal [0001] axis. Here we view the prototypes as different stackings of the transition metal planes and suppose they can transform from one into another by a displacive transformation. Employing first-principles calculations, we simulate sliding of individual planes in the group IV-VII transition metal diborides along a transformation pathway connecting the α, γ, or ω structure. Chemistry-related trends are predicted in terms of energetic and structural changes along a transformation pathway, together with the mechanical and dynamical stability of the different stackings. Our results suggest that MnB2 and MoB2 possess the overall lowest sliding barriers among the investigated TMB2s. Furthermore, we discuss trends in strength and ductility indicators, including Youngs modulus or Cauchy pressure, derived from elastic constants.Funding Agencies|Austrian Science Fund, FWF [T30801]; Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation [PID2019-105488GB-I00]</p

The Hierarchical compromise programming

Hierarchical Compromise Programming, Compromise Programming, Hierarchy, Analytic Hierarchy Process, 90A05, 90B50, 90C31,