Mapping community knowledge of vulnerability of value: A case study in the UK

Commercial property value can be vulnerable to risk exposure, economic effects of risk on property and perception of usefulness of the property in the market. The processes of decision making in risk reduction can generate differential exposure to risk making some organisations more vulnerable than others. This research deals with understanding exposure of property value to flood risk in a selected case study area in Wakefield, England. The work constitutes identification of variables that analyses the business vulnerability of organisations and presenting them through an operational framework. The operational framework is then practically tested in the field using the questionnaire survey method. The results from the survey show the differential attitude of respondents with varying level of knowledge and occupational experience towards specific factors associated with flooding that may affect property value. However, a tendency can be observed for flooding and its effects to be taken more seriously in peoples’ perception. It was difficult to observe direct evidence of effect of flooding on commercial property price or rent but it can be noticed that respondents from all flood hazard zones recognised flooding as an issue of concern and emphasised problems of “loss of income” and the requirement for “cheap and easily available insurance”

A magneto-optic trap using a reversible, solid-state alkali-metal source

We demonstrate a novel way to form and deplete a vapor-cell magneto-optic trap (MOT) using a reversible, solid-state alkali-metal source (AMS) via an applied polarized voltage. Using ~100 mW of electrical power, a trapped-atom number of 5x10^6 has been achieved starting from near zero and the timescales of the MOT formation and depletion of ~1 s. This fast, reversible, and low power alkali-atom source is desirable in both tabletop and portable cold-atom systems. The core technology of this device should translate readily to other alkali and alkaline-earth elements that could find a wide range of uses in cold-atom systems and instruments.Comment: 7 page

Dynamic characterization of an alkali-ion battery as a source for laser-cooled atoms

We investigate a solid-state, reversible, alkali-ion battery (AIB) capable of regulating the density of alkali atoms in a vacuum system used for the production of laser-cooled atoms. The cold-atom sample can be used with in-vacuum chronoamperometry as a diagnostic for the voltage-controlled electrochemical reaction that sources or sinks alkali atoms into the vapor. In a combined reaction-diffusion-limited regime, we show that the number of laser-cooled atoms in a magneto-optical trap can be increased both by initially loading the AIB from the vapor for longer, and by using higher voltages across the AIB when atoms are subsequently sourced back into the vapor. The time constants associated with the change in atom number in response to a change in AIB voltage are in the range of 0.5 s - 40 s. The AIB alkali reservoir is demonstrated to survive oxidization during atmospheric exposure, simplifying reservoir loading prior to vacuum implementation as a replacement for traditional resistively-heated dispensers. The AIB capabilities may provide an improved atom number stability in next-generation atomic clocks and sensors, while also facilitating fast loading and increased interrogation times.Comment: 7 pages, 5 figure

Late Cenozoic Climate History of the Ross Embayment from the AND-1B Drill Hole: Culmination of Three Decades of Antarctic Margin Drilling

Because of the paucity of exposed rock, the direct physical record of Antarctic Cenozoic glacial history has become known only recently and then largely from offshore shelf basins through seismic surveys and drilling. The number of holes on the continental shelf has been small and largely confined to three areas (McMurdo Sound, Prydz Bay, and Antarctic Peninsula), but even in McMurdo Sound, where Oligocene and early Miocene strata are well cored, the late Cenozoic is poorly known and dated. The latest Antarctic geological drilling program, ANDRILL, successfully cored a 1285-m-long record of climate history spanning the last 13 m.y. from subsea-floor sediment beneath the McMurdo Ice Shelf (MIS), using drilling systems specially developed for operating through ice shelves. The cores provide the most complete Antarctic record to date of ice-sheet and climate fluctuations for this period of Earth’s history. The >60 cycles of advance and retreat of the grounded ice margin preserved in the AND-1B record the evolution of the Antarctic ice sheet since a profound global cooling step in deep-sea oxygen isotope records ~14 m.y.a. A feature of particular interest is a ~90-m-thick interval of diatomite deposited during the warm Pliocene and representing an extended period (~200,000 years) of locally open water, high phytoplankton productivity, and retreat of the glaciers on land

Risk perception and vulnerability of value: a study in the context of commercial property sector

© 2016 The Author(s). Published by Vilnius Gediminas Technical University (VGTU) Press, and Taylor & Francis. The research was developed linking the impact of flood risk on utility, desirability and marketability related to vulnerability of commercial property value. Likert style questionnaire survey was conducted to obtain data from flood affected and un-affected respondents across different designated flood risk zones on key business and perception variables among two groups of business property holders in England. The responses were analysed through a spatial vulnerability model to illustrate the distribution of the vulnerability of value of properties among flood plain business holders on a GIS platform. Majority of respondents perceived that utility of properties may be hampered by flooding and subsequently have an impact on value for property at risk. Those with flood experience gave greater weight to their specific business needs such as the prime location and expected income level than those without flood experience. The implication of the study lies in understanding that flood risk perceptions can shape actions of people at risk towards future increase in resilience having strategic impact on value of property saleability in the future

Late Cenozoic Climate History of the Ross Embayment from the AND-1B Drill Hole: Culmination of Three Decades of Antarctic Margin Drilling

Because of the paucity of exposed rock, the direct physical record of Antarctic Cenozoic glacial history has become known only recently and then largely from offshore shelf basins through seismic surveys and drilling. The number of holes on the continental shelf has been small and largely confined to three areas (McMurdo Sound, Prydz Bay, and Antarctic Peninsula), but even in McMurdo Sound, where Oligocene and early Miocene strata are well cored, the late Cenozoic is poorly known and dated. The latest Antarctic geological drilling program, ANDRILL, successfully cored a 1285-m-long record of climate history spanning the last 13 m.y. from subsea-floor sediment beneath the McMurdo Ice Shelf (MIS), using drilling systems specially developed for operating through ice shelves. The cores provide the most complete Antarctic record to date of ice-sheet and climate fluctuations for this period of Earth’s history. The >60 cycles of advance and retreat of the grounded ice margin preserved in the AND-1B record the evolution of the Antarctic ice sheet since a profound global cooling step in deep-sea oxygen isotope records ~14 m.y.a. A feature of particular interest is a ~90-m-thick interval of diatomite deposited during the warm Pliocene and representing an extended period (~200,000 years) of locally open water, high phytoplankton productivity, and retreat of the glaciers on land

Actividades para promover la gestión crítica de la información de Internet aplicadas a estudiantes de farmacia

Con el fin de promover la adquisición de habilidades y destrezas que permitan al estudiante de Farmacia desarrollar una actitud activa y crítica frente a la información disponible en Internet, así como saber seleccionar las fuentes de información de Internet adecuadas para su formación, se ha llevado a cabo un proyecto de innovación docente (2008PID-UB/115) cuyo objetivo final es fomentar la gestión crítica de la información. Para ello se han diseñado una serie de ejercicios integrados en una actividad basada en casos clínicos, que forma parte de la evaluación continuada de la asignatura de Fisiopatología de la Licenciatura de Farmacia (UB). Se ha evaluado el proyecto a través de las calificaciones obtenidas en las actividades y las encuestas de opinión de un total de 379 estudiantes. Los resultados evidencian que la mayoría de estudiantes (90%) valoran muy positivamente las actividades planteadas, considerando que favorecen su aprendizaje y formación personal, y les aportan criterios útiles y provechosos para el análisis y selección de información biomédica a través de Internet. Por último, cabe destacar que el proyecto planteado ha demostrado ser aplicable a un grupo numeroso de estudiantes de Grado y constituye una estrategia válida para fomentar competencias transversales relacionadas con la gestión de la información, de gran relevancia para el futuro profesional farmacéutico