Generating and managing virtual city models with the CITYGRID system

Peer Reviewe

Generating and managing virtual city models with the CITYGRID system

Peer Reviewe

Metodika hodnocení socioekonomických dopadů energetické transformace

Transformace na nízkouhlíkovou ekonomiku vyžaduje rozsáhlé technologické a infrastrukturní změny v řadě odvětví a neobejde se bez řady souvisejících sociálních, politických a institucionálních dopadů. Energetický sektor patří mezi největší emitenty emisí skleníkových plynů a jeho dekarbonizace tak představuje jednu z největších výzev s významnými dopady na chod ekonomiky. Metodika si klade za cíl sloužit jako průvodce při modelování dopadů nízkouhlíkové transformace v oblasti energetiky na (1) strukturu zaměstnanosti, resp. poptávku po pracovní síle, na (2) hrubou přidanou hodnotu (HPH) včetně rozlišení jednotlivých složek HPH a na (3) na hrubý domácí produkt (HDP).The transformation to a post-carbon economy requires extensive technological and infrastructural changes in many industries and will have a number of related social, political and institutional impacts. The energy industry is one of the largest emitters of greenhouse gases and its decarbonisation therefore represents one of the biggest challenges with significant implications for the economy. The methodology aims to serve as a guide for modelling the impacts of the post-carbon transformation in the energy sector regarding (1) the structure of employment (labor demand), (2) gross value added (GVA), including the differentiation of individual components of GVA, and (3) gross domestic product (GDP)

Distinguishing the spending preferences of seniors

Journal ArticleOne thousand, four hundred and six seniors were asked about their consumer spending preferences. While some could name a product spending preference, others could not. This study examines the characteristics that best distinguish those elders who are uninterested in spending on consumer products from those who choose product specific preferences. Discriminant function analyses show that age best distinguishes the non-interested group from the others, supporting a previous report by Walker and Schwenk (1991). Income and health status most reliably separate those whose most important spending priority is a recreational product from those most interested in basic needs or housing products. Those whose spending priority is a housing item tend to be home-owners who have lived in their residences for long periods of time. The results confirm that the heterogeneity among seniors documented in other areas (such as health and social characteristics) extends to their consumption preferences. The diversity in spending preferences can be understood in terms of a desire to enhance quality of life

How long will it take? Conceptualizing the temporal dynamics of energy transitions

Transitioning away from our current global energy system is of paramount importance. The speed at which a transition can take place—its timing, or temporal dynamics—is a critical element of consideration. This study therefore investigates the issue of time in global and national energy transitions by asking: What does the mainstream academic literature suggest about the time scale of energy transitions? Additionally, what does some of the more recent empirical data related to transitions say, or challenge, about conventional views? In answering these questions, the article presents a “mainstream” view of energy transitions as long, protracted affairs, often taking decades to centuries to occur. However, the article then offers some empirical evidence that the predominant view of timing may not always be supported by the evidence. With this in mind, the final part of the article argues for more transparent conceptions and definitions of energy transitions, and it asks for analysis that recognizes the causal complexity underlying them

Evaluation of 15 Functional Candidate Genes for Association with Chronic Otitis Media with Effusion and/or Recurrent Otitis Media (COME/ROM)

DNA sequence variants in genes involved in the innate immune response and secondary response to infection may confer susceptibility to chronic otitis media with effusion and/or recurrent otitis media (COME/ROM). We evaluated single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in 15 functional candidate genes. A total of 99 SNPs were successfully genotyped on the Sequenom platform in 142 families (618 subjects) from the Minnesota COME/ROM Family Study. Data were analyzed for association with COME/ROM using the Generalized Disequilibrium Test (GDT). Sex and age at exam were adjusted as covariates, relatedness was accounted for, and genotype differences from all phenotypically discordant relative pairs were utilized to measure the evidence of association between COME/ROM and each SNP. SNP rs2735733 in the region of the mucin 5, subtypes A/C gene (MUC5AC) exhibited nominal evidence for association with COME/ROM (P = 0.002). Two additional SNPs from this region had P values<0.05. Other variants exhibiting associations with COME/ROM at P<0.05 included the SCN1B SNP rs8100085 (P = 0.013), SFTPD SNP rs1051246 (P = 0.039) and TLR4 SNP rs2770146 (P = 0.038). However, none of these associations replicated in an independent sample of COME/ROM families. The candidate gene variants examined do not appear to make a major contribution to COME/ROM susceptibility, despite a priori evidence from functional or animal model studies for a role in COME/ROM pathology

Emergence of methicillin resistance predates the clinical use of antibiotics.

The discovery of antibiotics more than 80 years ago has led to considerable improvements in human and animal health. Although antibiotic resistance in environmental bacteria is ancient, resistance in human pathogens is thought to be a modern phenomenon that is driven by the clinical use of antibiotics1. Here we show that particular lineages of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus-a notorious human pathogen-appeared in European hedgehogs in the pre-antibiotic era. Subsequently, these lineages spread within the local hedgehog populations and between hedgehogs and secondary hosts, including livestock and humans. We also demonstrate that the hedgehog dermatophyte Trichophyton erinacei produces two β-lactam antibiotics that provide a natural selective environment in which methicillin-resistant S. aureus isolates have an advantage over susceptible isolates. Together, these results suggest that methicillin resistance emerged in the pre-antibiotic era as a co-evolutionary adaptation of S. aureus to the colonization of dermatophyte-infected hedgehogs. The evolution of clinically relevant antibiotic-resistance genes in wild animals and the connectivity of natural, agricultural and human ecosystems demonstrate that the use of a One Health approach is critical for our understanding and management of antibiotic resistance, which is one of the biggest threats to global health, food security and development

Homologous Twin Snakes Integrated in a Bundle Block Adjustment

: Snakes are active contours in the 2d image plane. Starting from an initial estimate of a curve&apos;s shape and position they move to salient image features in an iterative process driven by minimization of an energy function. The twin snakes concept is an extension to traditional snakes. Twin snakes are designed for detecting two parallel contours simultaneously and are useful for line extraction in high resolution imagery. For that purpose the snakes&apos; energy function is extended by an additional term formulating the attraction force to a curve which is parallel to the twin partner. They are more robust than traditional snakes regarding inaccurate initialization, because the attraction force makes the snake approach to the desired line from far away. The presented method is applicable to both closed and open lines. After extraction of the 2d lines from several photos homologous lines are identified and integrated in a bundle block geometry. The 3d free-formed object curves are derived i..