Current Development of Carbon Capture and Storage in the UK – a Non Technical Review

This paper reviewed a current situation of carbon capture and storage (CCS) development in the UK mainly within the last 10 years in general. It looked at the positive ways to implement the CCS technologies, including the geological advantages, potential sector growth, financial incentives, and the support in the policies. Current projects were brought forward together with the university and industry research. Some concerns and limitation of applying CCS technologies were discussed. To the end, the conclusion was made that the UK is in a good position to implement CCS technologies and would become a global leader in CCS development providing that the first four trials were successful

Factors Associated with Dietary Diversity among Children of Agro Pastoral Households in Afar Regional State, Northeastern Ethiopia

Introduction: Dietary diversity has been consistently associated with child nutritional status and growth in developing countries. Therefore, this study was aimed to identify the factors affecting dietary diversity among children of agro pastoral households in northeastern Ethiopia.Methods: A community-based cross sectional study was employed in Afambo district on 370 mother-child pairs. Binary and multivariable logistic regression analyses were used to identify the factors associated with dietary diversity. Variables with a p-value < 0.05 were identified as statistically significant.Results: Overall 30.8% (95% CI: 26.1, 35.5%) of children aged 6-59 months achieved the minimum dietary diversity score (DDS) with mean score of 2.73. Mothers who got counseling on proper child feeding practices at postnatal checkup [AOR=3.7(1.45, 9.28)] and mothers who fed colostrum to their children were independent positive predictors of meeting minimum dietary diversity. The factor associated with decreased odds of meeting minimum dietary diversity was moderate to severe household hunger scale [AOR=0.24(0.10, 0.57)]. Conclusion: This study showed that nearly three children in every ten achieved the minimum DDS. Therefore, sound and culturally appropriate child feeding counseling during postnatal care should be given to mothers of young children so that they can make the possible use of locally available foods. In addition, expansion of social programs that might contribute to the earning capacity of poor households is also vital to ensure the dietary diversity. Keywords: Children, dietary diversity, Afambo, Afar, Northeastern Ethiopi

Forecasting Tourist Arrivals and Supply and Demand Gap Analysis for Hotel Sector in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

This paper aims to forecast the long term behavior of tourist arrivals and analyze the gap between supply and demand for the hotel/accommodation sector of the city of Addis Ababa. It also intends to provide vital information in regards to the sparse knowledge in the subject of forecasting tourist arrivals in Ethiopia. The research is largely conducted based on the secondary data obtained from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism (MOCT) in the tenth edition of the Policy, Planning, Evaluation and Monitoring Directorate’s bulletin publication on Tourism Statistics (2009-2012),(MOCT, 2013). Theoretical assessments of the requirement of a forecasting process and a critical analysis of available forecasting methods have been carried out to fit the profile of long term tourist arrivals. Based on the assessments and analysis, the Box-Jenkins process was selected. Furthermore, the gap analysis is done using the Funneling Technique. The method has also determined that the annual tourist arrivals for the country in the year 2015 will be 798,157 and for the year of 2020, it is expected to be 1,130,971 and finally in 2025, the annual tourist arrivals are expected to climb to 1,463,743. The use of the Funneling Technique in combination with the Stepped Function Intervention Model establishes a different case scenario (positive, negative and starched intervention) which has then been studied to foresee the relationship between supply and demand of the accommodation sector under different circumstances.Keywords: Forecasting, tourist arrival, X-12-ARIMA, Supply, demand

Detecting Majorana fermions by use of superconductor-quantum Hall liquid junctions

The point contact tunnel junctions between a one-dimensional topological superconductor and single-channel quantum Hall (QH) liquids are investigated theoretically with bosonization technology and renormalization group methods. For the $\nu=1$ integer QH liquid, the universal low-energy tunneling transport is governed by the perfect Andreev reflection fixed point with quantized zero-bias conductance $G(0)=2e^{2}/h$, which can serve as a definitive fingerprint of the existence of a Majorana fermion. For the $\nu =1/m$ Laughlin fractional QH liquids, its transport is governed by the perfect normal reflection fixed point with vanishing zero-bias conductance and bias-dependent conductance $G(V) \sim V^{m-2}$. Our setup is within reach of present experimental techniques.Comment: 6 pages, 1 figure, Added references,Corrected typo

Do Diffusion Protocols Govern Cascade Growth?

Large cascades can develop in online social networks as people share information with one another. Though simple reshare cascades have been studied extensively, the full range of cascading behaviors on social media is much more diverse. Here we study how diffusion protocols, or the social exchanges that enable information transmission, affect cascade growth, analogous to the way communication protocols define how information is transmitted from one point to another. Studying 98 of the largest information cascades on Facebook, we find a wide range of diffusion protocols - from cascading reshares of images, which use a simple protocol of tapping a single button for propagation, to the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge, whose diffusion protocol involved individuals creating and posting a video, and then nominating specific others to do the same. We find recurring classes of diffusion protocols, and identify two key counterbalancing factors in the construction of these protocols, with implications for a cascade's growth: the effort required to participate in the cascade, and the social cost of staying on the sidelines. Protocols requiring greater individual effort slow down a cascade's propagation, while those imposing a greater social cost of not participating increase the cascade's adoption likelihood. The predictability of transmission also varies with protocol. But regardless of mechanism, the cascades in our analysis all have a similar reproduction number ($\approx$ 1.8), meaning that lower rates of exposure can be offset with higher per-exposure rates of adoption. Last, we show how a cascade's structure can not only differentiate these protocols, but also be modeled through branching processes. Together, these findings provide a framework for understanding how a wide variety of information cascades can achieve substantial adoption across a network.Comment: ICWSM 201

An Investigation into the Energy Performance Gap between the Predicted and Measured Output of Photovoltaic Systems Using Dynamic Simulation Modelling Software – A Case Study

The use of solar energy can help reduce the CO2 emission and dependency on fossil fuels, and using Solar Photovoltaic (PV) systems to generate electricity is a popular route to validate the building energy performance in the UK. To help achieve the targets set out in the Climate Change Act, Part L of the Building Regulations 2013 stated that a building must achieve the approved minimum energy performance requirements. EDSL Tas, a dynamic modelling software, is often used by building consultant companies whose designers use the facility to simulate PV systems and integrate the energy output results into the overall energy performance of a building. There is, however, a clear performance gap between the measured and predicted energy output when using dynamic modelling software. Therefore, this paper is to use a comparative study to address this issue by using EDSL Tas software to predict PV system’s energy output and comprehensively analyse a case study at Poole Methodist Church. There are many causes for the potential deviation of results, although the most influential in relation to energy performance is the use of weather data, future climate change, adverse weather conditions and environmental factors affecting the PV array. The results indicate an 8.6% higher measured energy output from the installed PV system although the performance gap has little detrimental effect in regards to achieving Building Regulation compliance, but could lead to the unreasonable design of the PV system and inappropriate use of capital investment. Further simulation using projected future weather data from several different climate change scenarios was undertaken. 2020, 2050 and 2080 with low, medium and high emission scenarios indicated that the PV array would increase energy output by up to 5% by 2080 compared with using current weather data, indicating a rise in PV energy output in relation to increased CO₂ emissions. This is due to a projected reduction in cloud cover and increased downward shortwave radiation