Investigation of low voltage regulation opportunities on the distribution network

The low voltage electricity network is a large distribution asset designed to deliver electricity to customers whilst maintaining voltage within statutory limits. Recent increases in solar photovoltaic connections have changed the way electricity flows through the network. Instead of flowing from generators, through transmission networks, through distribution networks and then to customers, electricity can now flow in either direction. This can cause voltage issues to customers. This research project investigates the use of emerging low voltage regulation technologies to address performance issues on the LV network. The initial part of this project investigates four types of LV regulation opportunities, which are a Gridco Systems Inline Power Regulator (IPR), a distribution transformer with an on load tap changer, a transformer with electronic regulation and installing a Volt VAR regulator device. The core component of this project assesses the Gridco Systems IPR as a viable means of addressing LV regulation problems as this device has been installed within the Energex network. Voltages were measured before and after the IPR was installed and the measured data compared to the modelled data. There has also been a cost benefit analysis completed to ensure that this alternative is the most cost effective solution in these scenarios. The results show that the IPR maintains the voltage within statutory limits and a tighter range than before the IPR was installed. The results also indicate that there is the ability to provide greater PV hosting capacity on the LV network. The field based trial will continue after this project is completed to ensure the device is suitable in all seasons for Australian conditions

Supervision of cyber teachers: Examining U.S. based cyber school policy and practice

This study extends the body of knowledge in the field of K-12 teacher supervision through an investigation of contemporary literature on supervision in traditional and cyber schools; an inventory of current cyber school supervisory practices, procedures, policies, needs, and issues; and a review of related supervisory documents. The results of the outreach effort yielded an effective response rate of 9% resulting in an unintended, but important finding, in that a better mechanism is needed for identifying, categorizing and reaching cyber schools. The study supports contemporary beliefs related to the necessity and importance of a quality supervisory program and that multiple considerations and approaches are available. Participating schools report substantially lower teacher to supervisor ratios than the national average and that supervision practices have a positive impact on quality of instruction. Respondents indicate that the principal is primarily responsible for supervision however; many call upon other individuals such as peer mentors, instructional supervisors, and team leaders to assess and support the teacher. Most participating schools incorporate the use of classroom observations using archived data and report that email is most widely used and most useful supervisory tool. Student work/test scores, input from students, teacher self-reflection, and input from parents are reported to be the most widely used sources of data. Professional development needs and a lack of time for supervision are reported to be the biggest supervisory challenges facing cyber school administrators

Talent Management and the Impact of Dark Triad Personalities in the Workplace

This study examines links between the Dark Triad of personality types (Machiavellianism, psychopathy, and narcissism) and workplace behaviors. The research objective seeks to confirm the relationship between the Dark Triad and several negative behaviors while investigating positive externalities that have not been previously explored. A literature review covers the background of the Dark Triad, instruments that have been used to measure it, and ongoing research streams in the field. The Short Dark Triad (SD3) survey was administered to 142 working professionals and data collected were quantitatively examined using a variety of statistical tools in SPSS. Corresponding results provide additional evidence that the Dark Triad personalities are positively related to risk taking. Additional findings support a previously theorized link between these personalities and a distaste for workplace training programs and, notably, could not confirm other previously supported linkages associating this phenomenon with negative behaviors. By better understanding the strengths and weaknesses of individuals with Dark Triad characteristics, organizations are provided with appropriate guidance to ensure the most beneficial relationship possible for all constituents

Increasing Online Information Retention: Analyzing the Effects

While online education offerings continue to grow in the higher education marketplace, issues of student achievement and course rigor remain challenges to the underlying instructional model and alignment with institutional missions. Pedagogically, instructors and course designers can mitigate these issues by leveraging technology to further enhance students’ cognition and knowledge retention within the online domain. This study analyzed the effects of visual hints and elaborate feedback embedded in serious educational games to determine the effects on student learning and information recollection. Using a quasi-experimental design and quantitative testing methods, significant differences were found among 3 groups of students within an online educational environment based on differing forms of feedback within the game.  Supporting information processing theory, mean scores on comprehension tests indicated that participants exposed to elaborate feedback and visual hints performed better than control groups in an online learning environment

Identification and expression of a putative facilitative urea transporter in three species of true frogs (Ranidae): implications for terrestrial adaptation.

Urea transporters (UTs) help mediate the transmembrane movement of urea and therefore are likely important in amphibian osmoregulation. Although UTs contribute to urea reabsorption in anuran excretory organs, little is known about the protein’s distribution and functions in other tissues, and their importance in the evolutionary adaptation of amphibians to their environment remains unclear. To address these questions, we obtained a partial sequence of a putative UT and examined relative abundance of this protein in tissues of the wood frog (Rana sylvatica), leopard frog (R. pipiens), and mink frog (R. septentrionalis), closely related species that are adapted to different habitats. Using immunoblotting techniques, we found the protein to be abundant in the osmoregulatory organs but also present in visceral organs, suggesting that UTs play both osmoregulatory and nonosmoregulatory roles in amphibians. UT abundance seems to relate to the species’ habitat preference, as levels of the protein were higher in the terrestrial R. sylvatica, intermediate in the semiaquatic R. pipiens, and quite low in the aquatic R. septentrionalis. These findings suggest that, in amphibians, UTs are involved in various physiological processes, including solute and water dynamics, and that they have played a role in adaptation to the osmotic challenges of terrestrial environments

Seasonality of Freeze Tolerance in a Subarctic Population of the Wood Frog, Rana sylvatica

We compared physiological characteristics and responses to experimental freezing and thawing in winter and spring samples of the wood frog, Rana sylvatica, indigenous to Interior Alaska, USA. Whereas winter frogs can survive freezing at temperatures at least as low as −16°C, the lower limit of tolerance for spring frogs was between −2.5°C and −5°C. Spring frogs had comparatively low levels of the urea in blood plasma, liver, heart, brain, and skeletal muscle, as well as a smaller hepatic reserve of glycogen, which is converted to glucose after freezing begins. Consequently, following freezing (−2.5°C, 48 h) tissue concentrations of these cryoprotective osmolytes were 44–88% lower than those measured in winter frogs. Spring frogs formed much more ice and incurred extensive cryohemolysis and lactate accrual, indicating that they had suffered marked cell damage and hypoxic stress during freezing. Multiple, interactive stresses, in addition to diminished cryoprotectant levels, contribute to the reduced capacity for freeze tolerance in posthibernal frogs

Addressing Disparities in Acute Stroke Management and Prognosis

There are now abundant data demonstrating disparities in acute stroke management and prognosis; however, interventions to reduce these disparities remain limited. This special report aims to provide a critical review of the current landscape of disparities in acute stroke care and highlight opportunities to use implementation science to reduce disparities throughout the early care continuum. In the prehospital setting, stroke symptom recognition campaigns that have been successful in reducing prehospital delays used a multilevel approach to education, including mass media, culturally tailored community education, and professional education. The mobile stroke unit is an organizational intervention that has the potential to provide more equitable access to timely thrombolysis and thrombectomy treatments. In the hospital setting, interventions to address implicit biases among health care providers in acute stroke care decision‐making are urgently needed as part of a multifaceted approach to advance stroke equity. Implementing stroke systems of care interventions, such as evidence‐based stroke care protocols at designated stroke centers, can have a broader public health impact and may help reduce geographic, racial, and ethnic disparities in stroke care, although further research is needed. The long‐term impact of disparities in acute stroke care cannot be underestimated. The consistent trend of longer time to treatment for Black and Hispanic people experiencing stroke has direct implications on long‐term disability and independence after stroke. A learning health system model may help expedite the translation of evidence‐based interventions into clinical practice to reduce disparities in stroke care