29,741 research outputs found
On crossing fitness valleys with the Baldwin Effect
Escaping local optima and crossing fitness valleys to reach higher-fitness regions of a fitness landscape is a ubiquitous concept in much writing on evolutionary difficulty. The Baldwin effect, an interaction between non-heritable lifetime plasticity (e.g. learning) and evolution, has been shown to be able to guide evolutionary change and âsmooth outâ abrupt fitness changes in fitness landscapes âthus enabling genetic evolution that would otherwise not occur. However, prior work has not provided a detailed study or analysis on the saddle-crossing ability of the Baldwin effect in a simple multi-peaked landscape. Here we provide analytic and simulation studies to investigate the effectiveness and limitations of the Baldwin effect in enabling genotypic evolution to cross fitness valleys. We also discuss how canalisation, an aspect of many prior models of the Baldwin effect, is unnecessary for the Baldwin effect and a hindrance to its valley-crossing ability
A critical analysis of the hydrino model
Recently, spectroscopic and calorimetric observations of hydrogen plasmas and
chemical reactions with them have been interpreted as evidence for the
existence of electronic states of the hydrogen atom with a binding energy of
more than 13.6 eV. The theoretical basis for such states, that have been dubbed
hydrinos, is investigated. We discuss both, the novel deterministic model of
the hydrogen atom, in which the existence of hydrinos was predicted, and
standard quantum mechanics. Severe inconsistencies in the deterministic model
are pointed out and the incompatibility of hydrino states with quantum
mechanics is reviewed.Comment: 9 page
Measuring micro-organism gas production
Transducer, which senses pressure buildup, is easy to assemble and use, and rate of gas produced can be measured automatically and accurately. Method can be used in research, in clinical laboratories, and for environmental pollution studies because of its ability to detect and quantify rapidly the number of gas-producing microorganisms in water, beverages, and clinical samples
Vapor Deposited Tungsten for Application as a Thermionic Emitter Material
Purity and resistance to grain growth of vapor deposited tungsten tubing for use as thermionic emitte
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Impacts of variable renewable energy on wholesale markets and generating assets in the United States: A review of expectations and evidence
We synthesize available literature, data, and analysis on the degree to which growth in variable renewable energy (VRE) has impacted or might in the future impact bulk power system assets, pricing, and costs in the United States. Most studies of future scenarios indicate that VRE reduces wholesale energy prices and capacity factors of thermal generators. Traditional baseload generators are more exposed to these changing market conditions than low-capital cost and more flexible intermediate and peak-load generators. From analysis of historical data we find that VRE is already influencing the bulk power market through changes in temporal and geographic patterns areas with higher levels of VRE. The most significant observed impacts have concentrated in areas with significant VRE and/or nuclear generation along with limited transmission, with negative pricing also often occurring during periods with lower system-wide load. So far, however, VRE, has had a relatively modest impact on historical average annual wholesale prices across entire market regions, at least in comparison to other drivers. The reduction of natural gas prices is the primary contributor to the decline in wholesale prices since 2008. Similarly, VRE impacts on thermal plant retirements have been limited and there is little relationship between the location of recent retirements and VRE penetration levels. Although impacts on wholesale prices have been modest so far, impacts of VRE on the electricity market will be more significant under higher VRE penetrations
Mulesing : still the best weapon against fly-strike
IN SPITE of modern chemicals and insecticides, blow-fly strike remains one of the major problems facing sheep farmers today
Accommodating repair actions into gas turbine prognostics
Elements of gas turbine degradation, such as compressor
fouling, are recoverable through maintenance actions like
compressor washing. These actions increase the usable engine
life and optimise the performance of the gas turbine.
However, these maintenance actions are performed by a separate
organization to those undertaking fleet management operations,
leading to significant uncertainty in the maintenance
state of the asset. The uncertainty surrounding maintenance
actions impacts prognostic efficacy. In this paper, we adopt
Bayesian on-line change point detection to detect the compressor
washing events. Then, the event detection information
is used as an input to a prognostic algorithm, advising an
update to the estimation of remaining useful life. To illustrate
the capability of the approach, we demonstrated our on-line
Bayesian change detection algorithms on synthetic and real
aircraft engine service data, in order to identify the compressor
washing events for a gas turbine and thus provide demonstrably
improved prognosis
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