Scenarios for Consuming Standardized Automated Demand Response Signals

Automated Demand Response (DR) programs require that Utility/ISO's deliver DR signals to participants via a machine to machine communications channel. Typically these DR signals constitute business logic information (e.g. prices and reliability/shed levels) as opposed to commands to control specific loads in the facility. At some point in the chain from the Utility/ISO to the loads in a facility, the business level information sent by the Utility/ISO must be processed and used to execute a DR strategy for the facility. This paper explores the various scenarios and types of participants that may utilize DR signals from the Utility/ISO. Specifically it explores scenarios ranging from single end user facility, to third party facility managers and DR Aggregators. In each of these scenarios it is pointed out where the DR signal sent from the Utility/ISO is processed and turned into the specific load control commands that are part of a DR strategy for a facility. The information in these signals is discussed. In some cases the DR strategy will be completely embedded in the facility while in others it may be centralized at a third party (e.g. Aggregator) and part of an aggregated set of facilities. This paper also discusses the pros and cons of the various scenarios and discusses how the Utility/ISO can use an open standardized method (e.g. Open Automated Demand Response Communication Standards) for delivering DR signals that will promote interoperability and insure that the widest range of end user facilities can participate in DR programs regardless of which scenario they belong to

The Extended Star Formation History of the Andromeda Spheroid at 35 Kpc on the Minor Axis

Using the HST ACS, we have obtained deep optical images reaching well below the oldest main sequence turnoff in fields on the southeast minor-axis of the Andromeda Galaxy, 35 kpc from the nucleus. These data probe the star formation history in the extended halo of Andromeda -- that region beyond 30 kpc that appears both chemically and morphologically distinct from the metal-rich, highly-disturbed inner spheroid. The present data, together with our previous data for fields at 11 and 21 kpc, do not show a simple trend toward older ages and lower metallicities, as one might expect for populations further removed from the obvious disturbances of the inner spheroid. Specifically, the mean ages and [Fe/H] values at 11 kpc, 21 kpc, and 35 kpc are 9.7 Gyr and -0.65, 11.0 Gyr and -0.87, and 10.5 Gyr and -0.98, respectively. In the best-fit model of the 35 kpc population, one third of the stars are younger than 10 Gyr, while only ~10% of the stars are truly ancient and metal-poor. The extended halo thus exhibits clear evidence of its hierarchical assembly, and the contribution from any classical halo formed via early monolithic collapse must be small.Comment: Accepted for publication in The Astrophysical Journal Letters. 4 pages, latex, 2 color figure

Open Automated Demand Response for Small Commerical Buildings

This report characterizes small commercial buildings by market segments, systems and end-uses; develops a framework for identifying demand response (DR) enabling technologies and communication means; and reports on the design and development of a low-cost OpenADR enabling technology that delivers demand reductions as a percentage of the total predicted building peak electric demand. The results show that small offices, restaurants and retail buildings are the major contributors making up over one third of the small commercial peak demand. The majority of the small commercial buildings in California are located in southern inland areas and the central valley. Single-zone packaged units with manual and programmable thermostat controls make up the majority of heating ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems for small commercial buildings with less than 200 kW peak electric demand. Fluorescent tubes with magnetic ballast and manual controls dominate this customer group's lighting systems. There are various ways, each with its pros and cons for a particular application, to communicate with these systems and three methods to enable automated DR in small commercial buildings using the Open Automated Demand Response (or OpenADR) communications infrastructure. Development of DR strategies must consider building characteristics, such as weather sensitivity and load variability, as well as system design (i.e. under-sizing, under-lighting, over-sizing, etc). Finally, field tests show that requesting demand reductions as a percentage of the total building predicted peak electric demand is feasible using the OpenADR infrastructure

Decay versus survival of a localized state subjected to harmonic forcing: exact results

We investigate the survival probability of a localized 1-d quantum particle subjected to a time dependent potential of the form $rU(x)\sin{\omega t}$ with $U(x)=2\delta (x-a)$ or $U(x)= 2\delta(x-a)-2\delta (x+a)$. The particle is initially in a bound state produced by the binding potential $-2\delta (x)$. We prove that this probability goes to zero as $t\to\infty$ for almost all values of $r$, $\omega$, and $a$. The decay is initially exponential followed by a $t^{-3}$ law if $\omega$ is not close to resonances and $r$ is small; otherwise the exponential disappears and Fermi's golden rule fails. For exceptional sets of parameters $r,\omega$ and $a$ the survival probability never decays to zero, corresponding to the Floquet operator having a bound state. We show similar behavior even in the absence of a binding potential: permitting a free particle to be trapped by harmonically oscillating delta function potential

Brains studying brains: look before you think in vision

Using our own brains to study our brains is extraordinary. For example, in vision this makes us naturally blind to our own blindness, since our impression of seeing our world clearly is consistent with our ignorance of what we do not see. Our brain employs its 'conscious' part to reason and make logical deductions using familiar rules and past experience. However, human vision employs many 'subconscious' brain parts that follow rules alien to our intuition. Our blindness to our unknown unknowns and our presumptive intuitions easily lead us astray in asking and formulating theoretical questions, as witnessed in many unexpected and counter-intuitive difficulties and failures encountered by generations of scientists. We should therefore pay a more than usual amount of attention and respect to experimental data when studying our brain. I show that this can be productive by reviewing two vision theories that have provided testable predictions and surprising insights

Sexuality and Affection among Elderly German Men and Women in Long-Term Relationships: Results of a Prospective Population-Based Study

This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.The study was funded by the German Federal Ministry for Families, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth (AZ 314-1722-102/16; AZ 301-1720-295/2), the Ministry for Science, Research and Art Baden-Württemberg, and the University of Rostock (FORUN 989020; 889048)

Compact and Rugged Transceiver for Coherent Doppler Wind Lidar Applications in Space

High-accuracy, vertical profiles of the horizontal vector wind in earth s atmosphere, with the global coverage of an orbiting sensor, are a highly desired measurement of NASA, NOAA, and many other agencies and countries. It is the consensus of NASA and NOAA that the most cost effective, lowest risk measurement method with the earliest achievable mission date is the hybrid Doppler lidar method which utilizes both coherent- and direct-detection Doppler lidars to obtain the desired profiles. NASA Langley Research Center (LaRC) has advanced the 2-micron pulsed solid-state laser greatly over the past 15 years and has recently demonstrated 1.2 J of pulse energy whereas the requirement for a 400-km hybrid Doppler lidar mission is only 0.25 J. The IIP project reported here is an effort to increase the ruggedness and to compactly package the LaRC state-of-the-art laser technology

Rapid generation of chromosome-specific alphoid DNA probes using the polymerase chain reaction

Non-isotopic in situ hybridization of chromosome-specific alphoid DNA probes has become a potent tool in the study of numerical aberrations of specific human chromosomes at all stages of the cell cycle. In this paper, we describe approaches for the rapid generation of such probes using the polymerase chain reaction (PCR), and demonstrate their chromosome specificity by fluorescence in situ hybridization to normal human metaphase spreads and interphase nuclei. Oligonucleotide primers for conserved regions of the alpha satellite monomer were used to generate chromosome-specific DNA probes from somatic hybrid cells containing various human chromosomes, and from DNA libraries from sorted human chromosomes. Oligonucleotide primers for chromosome-specific regions of the alpha satellite monomer were used to generate specific DNA probes for the pericentromeric heterochromatin of human chromosomes 1, 6, 7, 17 and X directly from human genomic DNA

Open Automated Demand Response Dynamic Pricing Technologies and Demonstration

This study examines the use of OpenADR communications specification, related data models, technologies, and strategies to send dynamic prices (e.g., real time prices and peak prices) and Time of Use (TOU) rates to commercial and industrial electricity customers. OpenADR v1.0 is a Web services-based flexible, open information model that has been used in California utilities' commercial automated demand response programs since 2007. We find that data models can be used to send real time prices. These same data models can also be used to support peak pricing and TOU rates. We present a data model that can accommodate all three types of rates. For demonstration purposes, the data models were generated from California Independent System Operator's real-time wholesale market prices, and a California utility's dynamic prices and TOU rates. Customers can respond to dynamic prices by either using the actual prices, or prices can be mapped into"operation modes," which can act as inputs to control systems. We present several different methods for mapping actual prices. Some of these methods were implemented in demonstration projects. The study results demonstrate show that OpenADR allows interoperability with existing/future systems/technologies and can be used within related dynamic pricing activities within Smart Grid