Space shuttle orbiter test flight series

The proposed studies on the space shuttle orbiter test taxi runs and captive flight tests were set forth. The orbiter test flights, the approach and landing tests (ALT), and the ground vibration tests were cited. Free flight plans, the space shuttle ALT crews, and 747 carrier aircraft crew were considered

Demonstration of sustained and useful converter responses during balanced and unbalanced faults in microgrids

In large power grids where converter penetration is presently low and the network impedance is predominantly reactive, the required response from converters during faults is presently specified by phrases such as “maximum reactive output”. However, in marine and aero power systems most faults are unbalanced, the network impedance is resistive, and converter penetration may be high. Therefore a balanced reactive fault current response to an unbalanced fault may lead to over-voltages or over/under frequency events. Instead, this paper presents a method of controlling the converter as a balanced voltage source behind a reactance, thereby emulating the fault response of a synchronous generator (SG) as closely as possible. In this mode there is a risk of converter destruction due to overcurrent. A new way of preventing destruction but still providing fault performance as close to a SG as possible is presented. Demonstrations are presented of simulations and laboratory testing at the 10kVA 400V scale, with balanced and unbalanced faults. Currents can be limited to about 1.5pu while still providing appropriate unbalanced fault response within a resistive network

An exploratory study of the role of emotion regulation and emotional intelligence in compassion satisfaction and fatigue among doctors and nurses

Aim: To explore relationships between emotion management strategies (ER), emotional intelligence (EI), and compassion satisfaction (CS) and fatigue (CF) in doctors and nurses at a large National Health Service (NHS) Hospital in the United Kingdom (UK).Objective: To identify predicting variable(s) for compassion satisfaction and fatigue in doctors and nurses.Method: Four hundred and eighty-seven participants completed questionnaires assessing six possible explanatory variables for compassion satisfaction and fatigue: (i) intrapersonal EI (ii) interpersonal EI, (iii) cognitive reappraisal, (iv) cognitive fusion, (v) expressive suppression, and (vi) emotional contagion. Two open-ended questionnaire items assessed the best and worst aspects of doctors and nurses’ roles that might be associated with emotional stress and potentially influence CS and CF. Data Analysis: Descriptive statistics, correlations, regression, and mediation analysis were undertaken. The two open-ended items were analysed using content analysis. Results: Only cognitive reappraisal and intra-personal EI predicted CS positively and CF negatively. Intra-personal EI was the stronger predictor. It predicted CS (β = .29, p < .001) and CF (β = - .35, p < .001) versus cognitive reappraisal CS (β = .27, p < .001) and CF (β = - .15, p < .001). Intrapersonal EI also partially mediated relationships between cognitive reappraisal and CS (b = .59, BCI .298, .927) and between cognitive reappraisal and CF (b = -.72, BCI -1.099, -.378). Content analysis of the two open-ended questionnaire items demonstrated that 54% of the enjoyable aspects of participants’ roles related to direct patient care/contact, while 60% of the least enjoyable aspects related to workplace stress, bureaucracy, lack of support and resources, and workplace politics. This provides contextual support for the main quantitative findings above, and reiterates the importance of supporting development of intrapersonal emotional intelligence skills which does help enhance reappraisal strategies required to manage undesirable effects of workplace stressors like negative emotions e.g. anger or anxiety, that can influence CS and CF. Conclusion: Intrapersonal EI represents an important target variable for possible psychological interventions aimed at enhancing CS and reducing CF in doctors and nurses in clinical settings

Effects of the New Cooperative Medical Scheme on village doctor’s prescribing behaviour in Shandong Province

Objective: To assess the effects of China’s new community health insurance, the New Cooperative Medical Scheme (NCMS), on village doctors’ prescribing behaviour. NCMS began in 2003. Method, In 2005 we conducted a quasi-experimental case-control study in Shandong Province, and collected information from 2,271 patient visits in 30 village health stations. Results, NCMS has adversely influenced prescribing behaviour of village doctors. Average number of drugs prescribed, percentage of prescriptions containing antibiotics, number of antibiotics per prescription, percentage of patients given injections, and average per prescription cost were consistently higher in NCMS village health stations than non-NCMS. Within NCMS villages, prescribing behaviour towards insured patients was significantly different to the uninsured. Conclusion, Over-prescribing is common in villages with and without health insurance, with grave concerns for service quality and drug-use safety. Policy implications are NCMS should be redesigned to exert more influence on health providers, with incentives for cost containment and service quality. Stricter regulatory environment for prescriptions is necessary to counter irrational drug-use and ensure people’s access to effective care at reasonable cost.

Economic Base Multipliers: A Comparison of ACDS and IMPLAN

Local and regional practitioners commonly use the economic (export) base multiplier in project assessments. However, dependable estimates of the regional multiplier require that the division of total activity into its export (basic) and local (nonbasic) components be accurate across all industries – especially in the dominant ones. This paper compares the activity divisions that are generated by a shortcut approach, calibrated by the Arizona Community Data Set, with those generated by the widely used IMPLAN input-output model. the comparison is made over 577 micropolitan U.S. countries (all are nonmetropolitan) in the year 2000. Although the two approaches are methodologically dissimilar they generate comparable estimates of economic base multipliers. Moreover, other important regional attributes, like human capital and specialization, affect the alternative multiplier estimates in a similar way