Energy in the 21st Century: New Challenges and Goals

In the next century energy will remain the pillar of social development and wealth. The demand for energy will continue to increase apace with economic growth in the medium term and population growth in the longer term. In several countries, development planning strategies might also conflict sharply with environmental concerns, thus complicating the implementation of timely environmental protection policy strategies. However, early introduction and deployment of safe and clean technologies could reduce future economic burdens such as compensation payments for health and the environmental costs of energy use. The major goal in developing long-term energy projections is to identify those principal trends and tendencies that will prevail over the time period under consideration rather than to define exactly the various factors constituting the scenario or system being studied. Whereas long-term projections can concentrate on many different aspects, the major focus is on the possible exhaustion of cheap energy resources and the environmental and climatic impact of energy systems. Scenarios and options for global and regional energy systems are addressed in this paper with the aim of identifying a smooth transition from the present structure based primarily on fossil fuels to a future structure based on the more efficient and balanced use of fossil fuels, nuclear energy and renewable energy. It is clear that energy resources are available in sufficient quantity in the medium term to support national development and individual well-being. The energy mix adopted by each country will depend on the economical and ecological use of the indigenous resource base and global/regional constraints on greenhouse gas emissions. Trade-offs between environmental impact and economic development must be explored and incorporated into national energy policies. The challenge of the next decades will place greater emphasis on energy sources and power generation technologies that have the potential to minimize damage to health and the environment, while at the same time being economically viable and deployable on a broad scale so as to meet global energy demands. Energy availability, security of supply, and the pricing structure of primary as well as final energy sources are important issues on the decision-makers' agendas. Improvements in technology transfer, financial mechanisms, and new more effective institutional frameworks are required, if a global environmentally compatible energy strategy is to be achieved for the next century

"Challenges in Trust and Security by Implementation of E-CRM Among Banks and Financial Institution: A Case Study of E-Banking in Iran”

The advancement in technology, information and communication has forced banks and financial institutions into hard competition.  In this new era technology, people and customer are the elements which the banks are concentrating on them to manage customer relationship and success of banking in customer satisfaction. Electronic customer relationship management (e-CRM) is seen to arise from the consolidation of traditional CRM with the e-business applications marketplace and has created a flurry of activity among companies. The purpose of this study is to examine the competitive advantages on e-CRM in financial institutions and banks and obtain better understanding of the e-CRM benefits. A qualitative research approach was used for this study. Empirical data was collected through interviews were conducted with twenty six banks which just sixteen of them are participated. Our findings indicate Accessibility, Convenience, Services quality, Timeliness, and Trust are the most important benefits of E-CRM. We found that implementation of E-CRM bring about the following competitive advantages: Up to date of banks, Preparation of up to date technology, Proliferation of channels, Marketing and Strategic Factors and Fragmentation of customer segment

Communicating Processes with Data for Supervisory Coordination

We employ supervisory controllers to safely coordinate high-level discrete(-event) behavior of distributed components of complex systems. Supervisory controllers observe discrete-event system behavior, make a decision on allowed activities, and communicate the control signals to the involved parties. Models of the supervisory controllers can be automatically synthesized based on formal models of the system components and a formalization of the safe coordination (control) requirements. Based on the obtained models, code generation can be used to implement the supervisory controllers in software, on a PLC, or an embedded (micro)processor. In this article, we develop a process theory with data that supports a model-based systems engineering framework for supervisory coordination. We employ communication to distinguish between the different flows of information, i.e., observation and supervision, whereas we employ data to specify the coordination requirements more compactly, and to increase the expressivity of the framework. To illustrate the framework, we remodel an industrial case study involving coordination of maintenance procedures of a printing process of a high-tech Oce printer.Comment: In Proceedings FOCLASA 2012, arXiv:1208.432

Pathological validation and significance of micrometastasis in sentinel nodes in primary breast cancer

In embracing a multidisciplinary approach to the management of patients with sentinel node biopsy in breast cancer, the pathologist task is to screen sentinel nodes for possible metastasis. The consequences of missing sentinel node micrometastasis can directly influence treatment strategies, and this screening therefore has to be performed with more attention than usual. There is presently great diversity in the histopathological work-up of sentinel nodes, with many centres employing additional techniques such as immunohistochemistry, reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction or flow cytometry in addition to routine haematoxylin and eosin staining. In this review, we address the pathological validation and significance of micrometastasis in sentinel node biopsy in primary breast cancer

A Process Algebra for Supervisory Coordination

A supervisory controller controls and coordinates the behavior of different components of a complex machine by observing their discrete behaviour. Supervisory control theory studies automated synthesis of controller models, known as supervisors, based on formal models of the machine components and a formalization of the requirements. Subsequently, code generation can be used to implement this supervisor in software, on a PLC, or embedded microprocessor. In this article, we take a closer look at the control loop that couples the supervisory controller and the machine. We model both event-based and state-based observations using process algebra and bisimulation-based semantics. The main application area of supervisory control that we consider is coordination, referred to as supervisory coordination, and we give an academic and an industrial example, discussing the process-theoretic concepts employed.Comment: In Proceedings PACO 2011, arXiv:1108.145

Acute and delayed sulfur mustard toxicity; novel mechanisms and future studies

Sulfur mustard (SM), also known as mustard gas, has been the most widely used chemical weapon. The toxicity of SM as an incapacitating agent is of much greater importance than its ability to cause lethality. Acute toxicity of SM is related to reactive oxygen and nitrogen species, DNA damage, poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase activation and energy depletion within the affected cell. Therefore melatonin shows beneficial effects against acute SM toxicity in a variety of manner. It scavenges most of the oxygen- and nitrogen-based reactants, inhibits inducible nitric oxide synthase, repairs DNA damage and restores cellular energy depletion. The delayed toxicity of SM however, currently has no mechanistic explanation. We propose that epigenetic aberrations may be responsible for delayed detrimental effects of mustard poisoning. Epigenetic refers to the study of changes that influence the phenotype without causing alteration of the genotype. It involves changes in the properties of a cell that are inherited but do not involve a change in DNA sequence. It is now known that in addition to genetic mutations, epimutations can also involve in the pathogenesis of a variety of human diseases. Several actions of melatonin are now delineated by epigenetic actions including modulation of histone acetylation and DNA methylation. Future studies are warranted to clarify whether epigenetic mechanisms are involved in pathogenesis of delayed sulfur mustard toxicity and melatonin alleviates delayed toxicity of this warfare agent