10,650 research outputs found
Emission-aware Energy Storage Scheduling for a Greener Grid
Reducing our reliance on carbon-intensive energy sources is vital for
reducing the carbon footprint of the electric grid. Although the grid is seeing
increasing deployments of clean, renewable sources of energy, a significant
portion of the grid demand is still met using traditional carbon-intensive
energy sources. In this paper, we study the problem of using energy storage
deployed in the grid to reduce the grid's carbon emissions. While energy
storage has previously been used for grid optimizations such as peak shaving
and smoothing intermittent sources, our insight is to use distributed storage
to enable utilities to reduce their reliance on their less efficient and most
carbon-intensive power plants and thereby reduce their overall emission
footprint. We formulate the problem of emission-aware scheduling of distributed
energy storage as an optimization problem, and use a robust optimization
approach that is well-suited for handling the uncertainty in load predictions,
especially in the presence of intermittent renewables such as solar and wind.
We evaluate our approach using a state of the art neural network load
forecasting technique and real load traces from a distribution grid with 1,341
homes. Our results show a reduction of >0.5 million kg in annual carbon
emissions -- equivalent to a drop of 23.3% in our electric grid emissions.Comment: 11 pages, 7 figure, This paper will appear in the Proceedings of the
ACM International Conference on Future Energy Systems (e-Energy 20) June
2020, Australi
Department of Social Services Quarterly Report, Fiscal Year 2007 2nd Quarter, 10/1/2006 - 12/31/2006
Development of computer models to describe the epidemiology of Johne's disease in sheep.
The pathogenesis, epidemiology and options for control of Johne's disease in sheep were reviewed and mathematical models developed to simulate the spread of Johneās disease within infected flocks, and between flocks on a regional basis. The models (the OJD Flock Model and the OJD Regional Model) also allow the evaluation and comparison of various control options at both flock and regional levels. Adequate data is still unavailable to allow accurate estimates of the true values for many of the models' parameters. However, as more precise estimates of the values of key parameters become available, the models will allow a rapid assessment of the likely impact of these values on our understanding of the disease
Department of Social Services Quarterly Report, Fiscal Year 2006 2nd Quarter, 10/1/2005 - 12/31/2005
Boston University Medical Center: Perspectives on Health Policy
Report of a symposium held at the Boston University Medical Center
Naturally Better? A Review of the NaturalāisāBetter Bias
People are frequently exposed to products and services that are labeled natural (e.g., Nature Made Vitamins or GoJo Natural Orange Hand Cleaner). The frequency with which this label is used suggests that it delivers an advantage in marketing and sales. Our review examines the preference for and perception of naturalness and reveals that people have a bias for items described as natural in many domains including foods, medicine, beauty products, cigarettes, and lighting. These preferences abound even when the natural item is identical or not objectively better than the nonānatural or synthetic item. We believe this bias may be driven by a naturalāisābetter default belief as well as the belief that natural items are safer than nonānatural items. Although a bias for natural items is apparent, this literature is in its infancy, and we suggest three areas that will help build and refine the empirical research base and theory: the measurement of behavior, the examination of individual differences, and the development of methods for reducing the bias. A better understanding of the naturalness bias relevant to these areas will lead to a more comprehensive understanding of the area, including factors that may cause and reduce it
Finding a way: long-term care homes to support dementia
An ageing demographic has increased the number of people with dementia. Although dementia is commonly
associated with memory loss, other early symptoms include difficulty with wayfinding. Dementia alters visuo-spatial
perception and the processes used to interpret the physical environment. The role of the design of the physical
environment for people with dementia has gained increased recognition. Despite this, design for dementia is often
overlooked, focusing on issues relating to physical impairment. This paper presents the results of a PhD study and aims to examine the role of the design of the physical environment in supporting wayfinding for people with dementia living in long-term care settings in Northern Ireland. Mixed methods combined the observation of wayfinding walks and conversational style interviews to elicit perspectives and experiences of residents with
dementia. The findings aim to promote well-being for those with dementia living in long-term care settings
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